Stainless Steel Rat

[Mr C]

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[JOE SOAP]

Somebody needs to pay Mike so he can finish getting the Rat out to the fans in a nice big book.

[Trout]

I'm another one who sought out the books because I remembered them from the comic.

I haven't read the comic adaptation for years, although some back progs I picked up a few months ago reminded me just how good it was.

You have to love that Ezquerra art.

- Trout

[Radbacker]

being completely dumb can some one help me out with this, Whats it about(obviously a future war story, but a few more details would help me) and who is this Harry Harison am I likely to of read anything else of his?

CU Radbacker

[TordelBack]

"...who is this Harry Harison am I likely to of read anything else of his? "

I love seeing things like this - it makes me envious of you, Radbacker!  Books and books of fresh fun ahead!

There are folk better qualified than me to answer your question in full, but the SSR is far from a future war story (the eponymous Slippery Jim diGriz is a master criminal), and much of the rest of Harrison's huge bibliography is well worth tracking down (although a few bits are probably only for the hardcore fan).  A great writer with a fine wit.  A quirky personal favourite of mine is his novel Captive Universe.

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

Not future war at all, Mr Backer.

"Slippery" Jim DiGriz is a master criminal extrodinaire, the 'rat' in the supposed perfect workings of the far future (hence, Stainless Steel Rat).

No con is too big, no heist is too small, for this man... until he gets caught.

He is then indoctrinated into the Special Corps, the FBI of the future. With crime so low, no one has the skills to catch the few criminals out there - apart from other criminals. So, following the doctrine "set a thief to catch a thief", Jim is offered the chance of a lifetime - that is, the chance to have one - join the Corps or be a corpse.

What follows is a series of intergalactic romps, kind of Nikolai Dante meets James Bond. There are about a dozen books. Three of the first four were adapted by 2000ad (the second, The Stainless Steel Rat's Revenge was not). The adaptions were:-

The Stainless Steel Rat : In which our hero must foil the machinations of the beguling, but murderous, Angelina.

The Stainless Steel Rat Saves the World: A time-travelling caper, where he fights the villainous Him

The Stainless Steel Rat For President: In which Slippery Jim takes on a banana republic planet.

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

(1) That's from memory. It's pretty accurate I'm sure.

(2) I'd buy the book.

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

Harry Harrison's most well known work is probably Make Room! Make Room! .

Never heard of it? It was filmed as Soylent Green . And we all know what that is...

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

Harry Harrison's most well known work is probably Make Room! Make Room! .

Never heard of it? It was filmed as Soylent Green . And we all know what that is...

[I, Cosh]

There are about a dozen books.

Wow! When I read them I'm sure there were only five. HH has obviously been busy since 1983.

[Buttonman]

I recently read '...Saves The World' and although I enjoyed it I prefered the 2000ad adaptation. The trouble of having read the strip first is that you imagine all the characters and scenes in terms of the comic rather than in your own imagination.

Is the proposed book to be all-colour? The original strips had some colour centre spreads but the 6 issue Eagle reprint was all colour. I too would be in the market for said tome.

If anyone wants to try out the paperback version pipe up and I'll send it on as my good deed for the day.

[Tiplodocus]

I would buy this collection the second it came out.  

It was one of my fave strips when I was younger and made me search out the books. I'd probably do the same again.

Ezquerra's art is fantastic - top of his game here.

And Angela was most attractive with that little squiggly nose.

I think the Time Travel one was my favourite but recall it having a slightly rushed ending.

[Mike Carroll]

> Three of the first four were adapted by 2000ad (the second, The Stainless Steel Rat's Revenge was not).

Close, but not quite! The Stainless Steel Rat Wants You is the fourth book, and The Stainless Steel Rat for President is the fifth.

Find out lots more about Harry and his books at the link below!

Cheers,
Mike

Link: http://www.harryharrison.com" target="_blank">Harry's website!

[Mike Carroll]

> Wow! When I read them I'm sure there were only five.

There are ten Stainless Steel Rat novels:

The Stainless Steel Rat (1961)
The Stainless Steel Rat's Revenge (1970)
The Stainless Steel Rat Saves the World (1971)
The Stainless Steel Rat Wants You (1978)
The Stainless Steel Rat for President (1982)
A Stainless Steel Rat is Born (1985)
The Stainless Steel Rat Gets Drafted (1987)
The Stainless Steel Rat Sings the Blues (1994)
The Stainless Steel Rat Goes to Hell (1996)
The Stainless Steel Rat Joins the Circus  (1999)

There's also an adventure game book: You can be the Stainless Steel Rat (1985), and three short stories.

[Bolt-01]

The adventure book has some early Dave McKean illos as well.

Bolt-01