Alien Prototype - Tim Waggoner

[SiL]

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Even if the supporting characters didn't get much more characterisation, I still worked well enough.

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I appreciate that was a typo but given the circumstances this comment is amazing

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[Corporal Hicks]

https://dailydead.com/qa-with-alien-prototype-author-tim-waggoner/

[HuDaFuK]

I'm about a third of the way through it at the moment, and my overriding feeling is how much it feels like one of the old Bantam novels. It's thoroughly oldschool.

Also, re:the training op on the planet's surface:

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I was so convinced the Hider bot was going to be modelled on a Predator that I was legit disappointed when it was explicitly described otherwise

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[Corporal Hicks]

I'm about a third of the way through it at the moment, and my overriding feeling is how much it feels like one of the old Bantam novels. It's thoroughly oldschool.

Yeah, I definitely agree with that. Feels like it'd fit in quite well along-side Rogue.

[Corporal Hicks]

So what are people's thoughts on how this fits in-between Defiance and Resistance?

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I liked how it set Zula up as being more confident as a leader. But I'm not sure how I feel about it being a spur to get back out there and fight the Aliens. I feel like she'd have been quite happy to do that following straight on from the end of Defiance. But does the book explain that away with her working for cash for the crusade? I can't remember exactly what it says.

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[HuDaFuK]

Having not finished yet, the repeated mentions of extrasolar colonisation being in its infancy are bugging me.

I thought the whole reason Sevastopol went belly-up was because colonisation had taken off and usurped it. Yet this book makes it sound like colonising is still in the prototype phase (no pun intended) despite supposedly happening after Isolation.

[Still Collating...]

Not to mention what the prequels have to say on the colonization front.

But the infancy can be a longer period of history, things can be moving slowly and having ups and downs. With a great venture like space colonization, I would get that things can move slowly, a century of work can still be the early phase as a whole, even though individual cases can vary wildly, from prosperous to a extremely hard life on a planet. And the prototype phase can mean that no planet as a whole has been settled yet, only isolated colony settlements, being few in number and not of a huge size when you consider that you have a whole planet to yourself.

[Xiggz456]

So what are people's thoughts on how this fits in-between Defiance and Resistance?

Spoiler

I liked how it set Zula up as being more confident as a leader. But I'm not sure how I feel about it being a spur to get back out there and fight the Aliens. I feel like she'd have been quite happy to do that following straight on from the end of Defiance. But does the book explain that away with her working for cash for the crusade? I can't remember exactly what it says.

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It was explained that she needed to work to get more funds in order to form a resistance. And it is quite a coincidence that she would encounter a xeno on her new job. But crazy coincidences aren't impossible; for example the guy who was struck by lightning 7 different times in his life (Guinness record). But overall I find the placing of this story to work well enough in the timeline.

I want to know what everyone thinks about a lone xeno being able to produce one egg.

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[ClockworkHorror]

I honestly am really not enjoying the book. There was one brief chapter I liked, but otherwise it seems really half assed. Super cliche, chock full of 2 dimensional characters and really repetitive writing.

Spoiler

'Necromorph'? Really? Come on. And 'Xenomorph' being overused. Call it a 'creature', 'thing', 'alien'. Something other than constant  Capital X xenormorph. Also, the idea of the virus mutating it doesn't really sit well with me. Are there going to be hybrids with other weird strains of diseases now? Or genetic abnormalities? I see what Waggoner was going for, but I think it's a little meh. Also, why the hell does everyone know what Cellular Necrosis is? Is that a common thing in the mid 2100s?

Mirriam's hospital scene was pretty excellent. Really loved that.

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Honestly, I think Cold Forge and the first half of Out of the Shadows are the best offerings Titan have given us so far. Prototype just feels... uninspired.

[[cancerblack]]

I'm about a third of the way through it at the moment, and my overriding feeling is how much it feels like one of the old Bantam novels. It's thoroughly oldschool.

This has me more interested than any other review/comment.

Having not finished yet, the repeated mentions of extrasolar colonisation being in its infancy are bugging me.

I thought the whole reason Sevastopol went belly-up was because colonisation had taken off and usurped it. Yet this book makes it sound like colonising is still in the prototype phase (no pun intended) despite supposedly happening after Isolation.

Flying cars were in their infancy in the 60's and still don't quite work properly, this shit takes time. Something like offworld colonization can only be deemed truly successful with multiple generations thriving so I'd be fine with it being considered an experiment for the first 50-100 years tbh. 

[HuDaFuK]

Sure, but it's clearly successful enough by that time for everyone to have ditched Sevastopol in favour of living on a planetary colony. That's the entire reason the station has become destitute.

In contrast this novel makes out that they're still running feasibility studies. It doesn't tie up.

Anyway, I'm quite enjoying the book. It's no Cold Forge, not even close, but the oldschool feel is keeping me entertained.

Something else I've noticed - the character names all have a multi-cultural, intercontinental feel. Hispanic first name and Oriental surname, Islamic mixed with Scandinavian etc. It's happened often enough throughout the book that I can't believe it's merely coincidence but rather an intentional thing by Waggoner. Perhaps a statement on the intermingled nature of society in the future. Just an interesting observation.

[Stitch]

I'm halfway through and quite enjoying it. It does remind me of the old novels, and that's a good thing.

Is it just me, though, or does the book itself feel cheap? Like, the paper looks thin and greyish rather than white, and the cover feels like thin card. The other books have felt kind of premium, but this feels like a discount run.

[HuDaFuK]

Finished this last night.

It wound up being a fairly middle-of-the-road Alien novel. It was by no means awful, but it wasn't especially fantastic either. The oldschool Bantam feel was perhaps the main thing it had going for it, but that kinda wore off towards the end.

Spoiler

The idea of the Alien being infected with the virus at a genetic level was a good one, but ultimately the book didn't really seem to go anywhere with it - the virus was so instantly fatal that it really didn't have any chance to spread, and 95% of the people who got it were immediately killed by the Alien anyway. The second half of the novel also suffered from being a bit repetitive - Marines find Alien, Marines shoot at Alien, Alien gets away, repeat. The same thing happened about three or four times, just in different locations. Still, the final showdown between Zula and the beast aboard the out-of-control shuttle was admittedly really good and by far the most tense and exciting the book ever got. It's a shame more of it wasn't on that level. Overall I thought the writing was acceptable but nothing like as engaging as Alex White or Tim Lebbon's efforts.

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Can't really give it any more than a rather average 5 or 6 out of 10. Didn't love it, but certainly didn't hate it either.

[Stitch]

On the whole I enjoyed it. One bit really brought me out of it, though, and that's the section with the synthetic program and the AI. It was really stupid, like 90s Saturday morning cartoons stupid.

If that bit was written better, then I probably wouldn't have any problems with it. Well, apart from the book itself feeling cheap. On the whole, I'd probably give it a 7/10, for the 90s Aliens comic book feel.

One last thing, though, what's with the title? It has nothing to do with the story. 

[Corporal Hicks]

Venture's first attempt, I guess.