Kevin C. Wong

Fallen Empire Series v1-3 (2016) [-]

Lindsay Buroker's Fallen Empire series spans eight novels and some short stories. I listened to the first three books on audio narrated by Kate Reading.

This is a universe where a star-spanning Empire has just fallen six months before and though still around is now confined to one world. The Alliance, which overthrew the Empire, has a core homeworld and a shaky hold on nearby worlds. But it seems like much of the inhabited planets are near or totally lawless.

Alisa Marchenko is a former alliance fighter pilot. In the first book she finds herself out of the hospital after six months -- having been shot down in one of the final battles of the war -- and stranded on a backwards and now unaligned world. She manages to repossess her mother's freighter Star Nomad and gets herself a misfit crew and passengers hoping for transport off world.

This is told in first person from Alisa's point of view though the other main character is Leonidas, former Colonel in the Empire's Cyborg Corps. Although he was an enemy now he's someone with his own mission which might conflict with Alisa's loyalties. But as the story goes on he turns out to be a taciturn but decent person and they have a definite attraction by the end of book three.

Book 1 is getting the people together, getting off planet, then exploring an abandoned science station and tangling with space pirates. Book 2 Alisa returns home to find her daughter has been kidnapped by Star Seers (a psionic faction that almost overthrew the Empire several generations ago). Book 3 they visit a Star Seer temple for information though the Star Seers are not that friendly to outsiders.

It's an ok series. Moves along in a slow way but always forward. It does seem like not much happens in each book so it's not surprising it took eight books to tell the whole epic. Don't think I'd recommend it though. Not that I regret listening to these novels but there must be better stories out there.

Just noticed that all the books seem to have been written over the course of less than a year so i guess that explains the lack of progress in each novel.

Spot Reviews 03/22/24

The Menu (2022) [/] Psychological thriller. At an exclusive island restaurant the guests are horrified when Chef Slowik (Ralph Fiennes) announces everyone here tonight will die and he has his fanatical sous chefs to make sure of that. But that’s because all the guests were chosen by Slowik because of their sins. Except for Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy), a last minute replacement, who threatens to derail Slowik’s carefully prepared menu and plans… Not so much a kill kill sudden death movie as a horrible fascination seeing one person die here or there until the final destructive orgy. It’s a very talky movie. In the end I’m not sure if this is a worthwhile movie to watch or not.

Heroes of the Sky: The Mighty Eighth Air Force (2020) [-] National Geographics 90-minute documentary about World War 2's US 8th Air Force which operated out of England and was used to bomb Germany. Lots of period footage, interviews with audio though also voice actors reading letters and reports. I'm not really enamored with how military history programs are presented and this one is kind of typical and seems old-fashioned.

Taste of Sha Xian, San Mateo [-] Came here for dinner with C3, W3 and Dave S. Bright and new, you use an iPad to enter the wait list, can order from your phone, and staff was friendly. Chinese food and it wasn't that great. I think the less trendy Chinese restaurant a few doors down has better food at cheaper prices, though once again it went through an ownership change so wasn't open that night.

Wibbly-Wobbly Dicey-Wicey (2020) [/] A podcast dedicated to Cubicle 7's Doctor Who RPG. Not that many episodes and they experimented with format: converting famous characters to DW RPG; GM advice; RPG book reviews. After a one year hiatus they came back with three episodes covering DW RPG 2E. Now it's on another 14+ month hiatus so we'll see if it comes back. The podcast is of average quality for a table-top RPG podcast and I like the focus on a non D&D game.

The Legend of the White Snake (2019) [-]

The Legend of the White Snake is a 36-episode Chinese drama-romance set in ancient China. It's loosely based on a Chinese legend of the same name.

The concept is that Bai Suzhen (Ju Jingyi), a 1000-year old white snake spirit, is commanded to mingle among humans in order to progress further into the Buddhist enlightenment. In the city of Lin'an she falls for a young physician, Xu Xian (Yu Menglong), and vice versa. But is opposed by Jin Ruyi (Yu Lang), daughter of Xian's employer and infatuated with Xian, though he doesn't feel the same. Bai also befriends a 500-year old green snake spirit, Xiao Qing (Xiao Yan), who is a lot more impulsive and careless than Bai. It's sort of an older/younger sister relationship.

The romance is good at times with Bai using her supernatural powers but secretly whilst Ruyi tries to sabotage them both and does so in more and more bloodthirsty ways as the series progresses. Both Bai and Qing are demons so they are constantly threatened by Fahai (Pei Zitian), a Buddhist monk Demon Slayer. But since they're both trying to be good he keeps appearing just in time to threaten or stop them from crossing the line.

Comparing with Who Rules The World (2022) which is also ancient China romance drama, I prefer the latter. The two main characters in Who Rules The World are fairly balanced in power and are more animated and alive. In this one Bai is much more powerful and even at times a better physician. Both Bai and Xian are very reserved so it's up to Qing and Ruyi to display emotions.

Who Rules The World the last few episodes seemed a bit meaningless. Here also the last two episodes are a bit of a letdown. Bai is finally forced to commit an evil act (could have been prevented if she communicated more with her by then husband Xian but there's a real lack of communication and constant misunderstandings throughout the series). There is a punishment from Heaven and a couple of decades of atonement before she is freed to be finally happy with Xian, although the final scene cuts short so we have to assume there is finally a happy ending... Oh, and I almost forgot that Qing has her own romance storyline that ends badly.

Anyway, I'd say this is a series to skip. There are a lot of good parts but in the end a bit disappointing so why spend the 20-odd hours watching it when there must be better stories out there.

Morgan Is My Name (2022) [+]

Morgan Is My Name is an Arthurian fiction novel by Sophie Keetch and as the title implies it is the story of Morgan le Fay as told in first person by Morgan. This is the first book in a trilogy and it covers Morgan's childhood through to the birth of her son Ywaine.

She sees her father go off to war and then "return" to begot the future King Arthur and she also sees Merlin and the Lady of the Lake take Arthur away at birth. She is quite rebellious against her new father King Uther, falls in love with a squire and later knight, and is sent to a convent where she learns healing and a bit of magic. Eventually recalled and made to marry King Accolon and live in the North where her marriage starts out fine but sours after a few childless years. Arthur becomes King and she meets him and Merlin reveals their relationship. They are friendly and she returns home, becomes pregnant, and has a final confrontation with King Accolon (who has been cheating on her for years) before she leaves him.

I like all the references since the story interweaves with events that are in the Great Pendragon Campaign, though there are many small differences since Arthurian lore was written over hundreds of years by several people. I also like that she's basically a decent and good person at the start and even at the end of this book still a good person though one willing to use magic to hurt in self defense. She also starts with a fairly good relationship with her half-brother Arthur. In future books she will probably turn darker though from her point of view maybe quite justified.

I listened to the audio version read by actress Vanessa Kirby. Overall I enjoyed it especially as it is a fantasy-type book that is not YA romance.

Spot Reviews 03/15/24

For All Mankind s4 (2023) [/] Last season was getting to Mars and establishing a base. Now it’s a decade later, 2003, with Mars base probably a few hundred people with a sort of mining town feel. Class divisions threaten to break the colony when the Helios Aerospace workers, most of whom are the tech and maintenance people on the base, go on strike for better pay and working conditions. Later on there is a huge opportunity when a valuable asteroid is discovered heading towards Mars but the governments back on Earth want the asteroid redirected to Earth orbit which would then consign Mars colony as a backwater…

This is still an ok series. I loved the first couple of seasons because it was so epic. Seasons three and four seem less epic even though they went to Mars. But I guess adding Helios Aerospace more normal non-astronaut people makes it seem like space is becoming civilized and therefore boring.

Doona! (2023) [-] Korean romantic series of nine 45-minute episodes. College student Lee Won-jun (Yan Se-jong) moves into the second floor of a house that has two other guys. He discovers that the first floor tenant is the beautiful and distant Lee Doo-na (Bae Suzy), former lead singer of a popular K-Pop girl group until she quit due to anxiety. They form a friendship and slowly it becomes more, with brief hiccups when a couple of Won-jun’s female acquaintances show up again in his life.

But then Doona is forced back into the business on pain of breaching her contract and as part of that has to break off contact with Won-jun who takes it stoically hard. The last episode is four years later where they run into each other and confess they still love each other but I guess they realize her career can’t afford a boyfriend so they part amicably to live their own lives…

Has kind of a bummer ending. As a character Doona is attractive and rather annoying in that she does things without telling people why which leads to misunderstandings. It’s a series I kept hoping would get better (which it didn’t) or at least have a good ending (which it didn’t). Even when they finally admitted their feelings it was a bit of a letdown. At least this was only nine episodes.

Progresso Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup [/] Not bad as a chicken tortilla soup (though would be better if you add your own tortilla chips because this has nothing as far as I can tell and would be too soggy if it did). I like the medium spiciness which is not too much to override the flavor, though it’s definitely too spicy if you don’t like spicy.

Pride and Prejudice audiobook (2018) [-] Apple has a nice 12-hour version narrated by Kate Beckinsale. I hadn’t realized how much the Dickinson tv series borrowed from Pride and Prejudice. Anyway, this novel was kind of a slog. It feels very stodgy British unlike Anne of Green Gables which had a more childlike and happy feel. So I did not really enjoy listening to this for 12 hours and it took me a long time to get through it. On the other hand the narration is just fine and Beckinsale has a pleasant British voice.

Love to Hate You (2023) [/]

Love to Hate You is a 10-episode Korean romance comedy. Yeo Mi-ran (Kim Ok-vin) is a lawyer and martial arts expert who cannot stand by if she sees something that needs to be righted. She ends up being the lawyer for Nam Kang-ho (Teo Yoo), the most popular and handsome actor in Korea, but she believes he's actually a misogynist. Meanwhile he thinks she's crazy.

Naturally she ends up having to pretend to be his girlfriend and more contact makes them realize they've misunderstood each other. But once their relationship becomes real various scandals threaten to derail it, such as that Mi-ran has beat up people in the past. Also there's the inevitable ex-girlfriend, actress Oh Se-na (Lee Joo-bin), who wants to get back with Kang-ho.

As usual it takes a few episodes to get going and then there are only a few episodes to complete the story. The male lead is a bit stiff and not that appealing but I guess Korean handsomeness is different than the USA. The story leans more towards Mi-ran and Kim Ok-vin is pretty good in that character. It's a watchable series but not one of the better Korean rom-coms.

B6 The Veiled Society (1984) [-]

B6 The Veiled Society is a module for Basic Dungeons & Dragons. This is a city adventure set in Specularum, capital of the Grand Duchy of Karameikos.

Part 1. Characters arrive. Due to lack of Inn space they are split into two groups and each group is contacted by a faction: Torenescu (the nobles) and The Veiled Society (a bit like anarchists but controlled by the Radu family).

Part 2. Investigate mysterious sounds coming from an old woman's basement. This leads into a mini-dungeon with maybe a fight or two and a body.

Part 3. Investigate the death of the woman they found.

Part 4. Get embroiled in a riot where they could end up siding with the city guard or the rioters.

Part 5. Both groups are given missions that will end up with each PC group on two sides of the same fight.

Part 6. By now enough clues to lead the PCs to the final encounter. Before then an ambush then chase through some city streets.

Part 7. Mini-dungeon into The Veiled Society HQ. Could be by the front door or back door depending on the clues they found.

There are several problems with the adventure.

  • The PCs are set up to be in conflict but it only happens once and in the end it's assumed they are not siding with The Veiled Society (though if they do the module eventually says Lawful characters become Chaotic).
  • It's a very linear adventure. Theoretically their investigations may take them anywhere but...
  • The city is not described. No NPCs are described. There's a half page at the beginning briefly describing the three factions with some names and bare facts but other NPCs are listed in the adventure and none even describe class/level, demeanor, goals (other than the final fight which has two NPCs statted out for the PCs to fight).

I think the reason so much detail is left out is that 9 pages (plus one side of the back cover) are for cutouts and figures so you can depict the action on your table. Not that impressive since, from the battle map diagrams, you're not setting up a large enough are for PCs to maneuver a lot in which case theater-of-the-mind descriptions are just fine. The Part 6 chase scene could be nice with a diorama but it feels too large for the amount of cutouts you get.

I was thinking of running this adventure but probably not. It feels like I'd have to make up too much stuff on the fly. Possibly Parts 2, 3 and 7 I can string into a one-session murder investigation adventure in the big city.

Spot Reviews 03/08/24

Anna (2019) [/] I rewatched this spy action film starring Sasha Luss as Anna, European model by day and KGB operative by night. Some neat action scenes. A bit too much doing flashbacks to fill in the back story or reveal plot twists.

Four Falls of Buffalo (2015) [-] Hour and a half long documentary about the Buffalo Bills and their four consecutive Super Bowl appearances (and losses). Lots of archival footage and going over the season and the game mixed with current-day interview clips with the former players/coaches (with at most two people being interviewed in a session)… Very pedestrian but I guess typical of the time. I’d rather have 20 minutes on each season and playoff run with no current-day interviews (sort of a “this is what happened then” nostalgia trip), or 5 to 10 minutes quick recap of the season and Super Bowl game then 10 to 15 minutes of a group interview with former players/coaches reminiscing (which is more of a “what does it all mean 25 years later”).

Pasta Prima Spinach & Mozzarella Ravioli Club Size [/] Fairly good ravioli. Has herb and cheese packs to add flavor though you can also add your own sauce. The pasta is strong so you can overcook without it falling apart.

Game Design Deep Dive (2022) [/] This is an interview podcast with tabletop wargame designers. I like this niche since I'm not as into computer wargames nor tabletop board games in general. It feels a bit more professional than other podcasts in this area.

Her Private Life (2019) [+]

Her Private Life is a Korean romantic comedy in 16 hour-long episodes. Sung Deok-mi (Park min-young) is a art gallery head curator who is secretly an super fan of K-Pop singer Sian (Jung Jae-won) and has the most popular web site dedicated to him.

Deok-mi clashes with new gallery director Ryan Gold (Kim Jae-wook) which gets complicated when she is mistaken for Sian's new girlfriend. That brings her a lot of hate from fans so Ryan has to pretend to be her boyfriend which is more complicated when another super fan, Sindy (Kim Bo-ra) starts working at the gallery with the intention of exposing their fake relationship.

Seon-joo (Park Jin-joo) is Deok-mi's best friend and fellow super fan. There's a small subplot for a few episodes where Ryan thinks they're in a relationship which makes him protective of their privacy. Eun-gi (Ahn Bo-hyun) is Deok-mi's sort of foster brother who later in the series reveals he likes Deok-mi so is a competitor with Ryan.

The first three or four episodes are tough to get through because it's setup and I didn't like the characters. Then it gets really good for about ten episodes, once they start "dating" and their relationship begins. The last three or four episodes get back to being a bit boring. It's like they ran out of story so there are these episodes where it's all sad as new background is revealed for each character.

I love the fan girl subplot though it kind of ends in a dud as her secret identity is never revealed to Sian (there are some close calls though).

Overall though I enjoyed the series. I did quit after two episodes then came back later and tried again so I'm glad I did that.

Cross-Channel Attack (1951) [/]

Cross-Channel Attack, by Gordon A Harrison, is one of many that US Army historians published to document World War II. Although the main combat covered is from D-Day to the capture of Cherbourg the first half of the book (about 250 pages) the history of planning for Operation Overlord, the politics of making it all happen (the British were mostly against an invasion through France), and the logistics of assembling men, supplies and ships.

Once we get to the invasion the combat details are fairly good though it does have to jump around a lot as there were many units involved — luckily British activities are outside the scope of this book other than broad overviews of how the affected American activities. Combats have a lot of small anecdotes and a lot of names and places. There are also many backs at the back of the book so you can follow the general action.

Overall still mostly relevant seven decades later. Lots more stuff has come out since then (for example Allied decryption efforts are maybe mentioned once or twice but much of that stuff was still secret when this book was written) but I think for the most part it’s a mostly accurate telling. It’s readable enough that it makes me interested in reading the other volumes (well, not all of them but at least some).