MattBrady
07-15-2003, 01:58 PM
<img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Other_Publishers/vic_blood.jpg" width="185" height="293" align="right"><I>by Mike Sangiacomo</I>
I remember the first time I read Harlan Ellison’s “A Boy And His Dog,” the oddly titled story of a teenager and his telepathic pooch living in a post nuclear wasteland.
A particularly hip college English teacher tossed me his copy of the 1969 novella and said, “You’ll like this.”
The teacher, as always, was right. He also shaped my musical tastes by giving me tapes of very cool albums I had never heard like Traffic, Genesis, Tim Buckley etc.
Sure I was grossed out by the ending, as most people are, but Ellison could sure pitch a thought-provoking concept. I was slightly disappointed a few years later in a young Don Johnson played the title role in the 1975 film, my vision of Vin and his dog Blood were different.
My vision is more like Richard Corben’s in <b>The Continuing Adventures of A Boy and His Dog</b> (iBooks, $17.95) which not only illustrates the classic story, but also the prequel “Eggsucker” and the very sad sequel, “Run, Spot, Run.”
I envy anyone who has not read the three stories in the other formats they have appeared over the years and gets to see Corben’s version first, because his interpretation is almost perfect. These Corben works have appeared before, but those publications are out of print. The collection includes Ellison’s text version of the stories, which have additional scenes and dialogue.
In the world of Vin and Blood, dogs have been genetically engineered to help humans find food. Blood is particularly adept at tracking down women for his buddy as well.
“Eggsucker” establishes the depth of affection between the two. “A Boy and His Dog” is a cautionary tale about the danger of getting everything you wish for. The last story, “Run, Spot, Run,” is the sad sequel wherein Vin has to pay a price for his choices.
Ellison is a writing machine who produced tons of short stories for science fiction magazines starting at an early age. He graduated to longer stories and novels. He moved to Los Angeles in 1962 and turned his talents toward writing scripts for shows like <I>The Untouchables, Burke’s Law, The Man From U.N.C.L.E, Outer Limits</I> (“Demon With A Glass Hand”) and <I>Star Trek</I> (“The City on The Edge of Forever.”)
He’s a favorite at comic conventions for his quick wit and an absolute refusal to suffer fools. So if you don’t want to be smited, never call him a “science fiction writer.” It drives him nuts.
But pick up and read this book first – one shouldn’t die without having checked it out.
Michael Sangiacomo is a statewide news reporter for the Plain Dealer newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio. His syndicated "Journey Into Comics" weekly column on the state of the comic book business, can be found in newspapers and at the Newsarama website. His monthly comic book column appears the first Saturday of each month in the Plain Dealer Arts page and is syndicated through Newhouse Newspapers. He also writes a twice-monthly audiobooks review column covering crime thrillers and mysteries that can be seen at <a href="http://www.audiobookstoday.com" target="_blank">www.audiobookstoday.com</a>. He currently is developing Nowhere Man...er, <b>Phantom Jack</b> for Marvel’s Epic imprint.
I remember the first time I read Harlan Ellison’s “A Boy And His Dog,” the oddly titled story of a teenager and his telepathic pooch living in a post nuclear wasteland.
A particularly hip college English teacher tossed me his copy of the 1969 novella and said, “You’ll like this.”
The teacher, as always, was right. He also shaped my musical tastes by giving me tapes of very cool albums I had never heard like Traffic, Genesis, Tim Buckley etc.
Sure I was grossed out by the ending, as most people are, but Ellison could sure pitch a thought-provoking concept. I was slightly disappointed a few years later in a young Don Johnson played the title role in the 1975 film, my vision of Vin and his dog Blood were different.
My vision is more like Richard Corben’s in <b>The Continuing Adventures of A Boy and His Dog</b> (iBooks, $17.95) which not only illustrates the classic story, but also the prequel “Eggsucker” and the very sad sequel, “Run, Spot, Run.”
I envy anyone who has not read the three stories in the other formats they have appeared over the years and gets to see Corben’s version first, because his interpretation is almost perfect. These Corben works have appeared before, but those publications are out of print. The collection includes Ellison’s text version of the stories, which have additional scenes and dialogue.
In the world of Vin and Blood, dogs have been genetically engineered to help humans find food. Blood is particularly adept at tracking down women for his buddy as well.
“Eggsucker” establishes the depth of affection between the two. “A Boy and His Dog” is a cautionary tale about the danger of getting everything you wish for. The last story, “Run, Spot, Run,” is the sad sequel wherein Vin has to pay a price for his choices.
Ellison is a writing machine who produced tons of short stories for science fiction magazines starting at an early age. He graduated to longer stories and novels. He moved to Los Angeles in 1962 and turned his talents toward writing scripts for shows like <I>The Untouchables, Burke’s Law, The Man From U.N.C.L.E, Outer Limits</I> (“Demon With A Glass Hand”) and <I>Star Trek</I> (“The City on The Edge of Forever.”)
He’s a favorite at comic conventions for his quick wit and an absolute refusal to suffer fools. So if you don’t want to be smited, never call him a “science fiction writer.” It drives him nuts.
But pick up and read this book first – one shouldn’t die without having checked it out.
Michael Sangiacomo is a statewide news reporter for the Plain Dealer newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio. His syndicated "Journey Into Comics" weekly column on the state of the comic book business, can be found in newspapers and at the Newsarama website. His monthly comic book column appears the first Saturday of each month in the Plain Dealer Arts page and is syndicated through Newhouse Newspapers. He also writes a twice-monthly audiobooks review column covering crime thrillers and mysteries that can be seen at <a href="http://www.audiobookstoday.com" target="_blank">www.audiobookstoday.com</a>. He currently is developing Nowhere Man...er, <b>Phantom Jack</b> for Marvel’s Epic imprint.