Active Users:381 Time:17/06/2025 08:21:52 AM
Certainly one of the most original, you get points for that. Legolas Send a noteboard - 09/09/2012 10:39:00 PM
I reluctantly agreed to read two D&D trilogies (Dragonlance: Legends and Forgotten Realms: Icewind Dale) and to give my thoughts in sonnet form. Below is what I composed based off of only reading the blurbs:

Wait, did you agree to read two trilogies and then base your review on the blurbs? What kind of grade would you give your students if you found out they did that? ;)
Let us not to the marriage of true minds

Admit poor D&D, love is not love

Which alters when Forgotten Realms it finds,

Or bends with the Dragonlance to remove.

O no, it is an ever fixèd mark

No mock sonnet would be complete without one of those mis-stressed past participles. Good thinking.
That looks on fell Drizzt and is n'er shaken;

He is the fearsome Elf that is so Dark,

Whose sword rings chill; his measure never taken.

Love's not time's fool, though Crysania be meek

In her love for Raistlin Majere shall bloom,

Love alters not with a brief hour or week,

But bears it out even to prophetic doom:

If this be error and upon me proved,

I never writ, nor no woman so loved.

Bravo! A true masterpiece! :P
There will be at least two more of these in the coming weeks. How these are popular with so many is what I am trying to understand.

I haven't read much of them, only a few Dragonlance books. I guess a lot of people like not going outside their comfort zone, and so they stick with what they know? The original Dragonlance trilogy wasn't exactly the pinnacle of fantasy writing, the amazing part is how they then added dozens of other books, most written by other and utterly unknown authors, and somehow kept managing to sell them. And as for Icewind Dale and the other Forgotten Realms books, I'm inclined to say they're much better as computer (or tabletop, of course) games than as books. Haven't played Icewind Dale itself, but I've played other games set in that world - it's an interesting enough world, and some of the games they made in it are masterpieces. But even in that genre of fantasy that relies heavily on worldbuilding and that you're not a fan of, worldbuilding is still only one element and it still takes good writing to make the novel more than fan fiction set in the universe in question.
Reply to message
This may be one of the most dire reviews you shall ever read - 09/09/2012 09:12:25 PM 2179 Views
Certainly one of the most original, you get points for that. - 09/09/2012 10:39:00 PM 1418 Views
Well... - 09/09/2012 10:57:25 PM 1410 Views
A review of a D&D bestiary could be more dire. - 09/09/2012 11:29:17 PM 1280 Views
Perhaps - 09/09/2012 11:50:20 PM 1391 Views
Hey now. Owlbears are awesome. - 11/09/2012 02:35:28 AM 1601 Views
That page is painful to behold - 11/09/2012 03:09:29 AM 1385 Views
They are popular as they are fun, easy reading books - 10/09/2012 12:11:24 AM 1360 Views
"Popular", "Fun," and "Easy" doesn't have to be equated with poorly-written - 10/09/2012 12:16:27 AM 1498 Views
Poorly written by what standard? - 10/09/2012 12:29:17 AM 1450 Views
By the standards of what I enjoyed as a nine year-old? - 10/09/2012 01:04:12 AM 1389 Views
So like I said, by the standards of Elitist Literary Snobs - 11/09/2012 12:03:08 AM 1491 Views
Nice attempt at sophistry, but alas, it fails - 11/09/2012 12:38:24 AM 1394 Views
Was that meant to make any sense? - 11/09/2012 01:43:13 AM 1544 Views
Re: Was that meant to make any sense? - 11/09/2012 01:54:23 AM 1385 Views
I'm with Wibble on this (big surprise) - 12/09/2012 03:07:53 PM 1500 Views
Heh. - 12/09/2012 03:43:52 PM 1599 Views
Pretty much so - 12/09/2012 04:19:35 PM 1520 Views
When did you put up that header? - 12/09/2012 04:35:20 PM 1404 Views
I didn't put it up - 12/09/2012 04:51:32 PM 1313 Views
I shall tread lightly so. - 12/09/2012 06:15:51 PM 1452 Views
- 12/09/2012 07:25:29 PM 1300 Views
+6 health? What game are you playing? - 12/09/2012 07:52:52 PM 1345 Views
The Game of Life? - 12/09/2012 08:23:53 PM 1424 Views
Re: Pretty much so - 12/09/2012 08:50:57 PM 1430 Views
You apparently do not read my blog/reviews much - 12/09/2012 09:07:18 PM 1447 Views
Actually, I read them almost never - 13/09/2012 03:07:48 PM 1485 Views
I think my IQ dropped a little bit when I parsed what you said - 13/09/2012 04:16:21 PM 1444 Views
Yep, your usual rebuttal... *NM* - 17/09/2012 02:14:56 PM 700 Views
No, not really - 17/09/2012 06:25:15 PM 1263 Views
Yes, Yes, wrap yourself in arrogance and declare yourself correct until your opposite gets bored... - 17/09/2012 11:12:17 PM 1574 Views
Nah, I just wipe my ass with arrogance - 18/09/2012 12:23:44 AM 1818 Views
The last word with me is rather difficult to obtain - 18/09/2012 02:48:03 PM 1362 Views
Don't try to argue with them. They've made their judgments. They are better than you. - 10/09/2012 09:36:17 PM 1399 Views
Defensive much? *NM* - 10/09/2012 10:31:17 PM 755 Views
He never said you couldn't enjoy it. - 10/09/2012 11:10:11 PM 1514 Views
Indeed - 10/09/2012 11:17:20 PM 1392 Views
But they aren't. - 10/09/2012 11:48:14 PM 1437 Views
Prove it. *NM* - 11/09/2012 03:12:17 AM 688 Views
He also went on to compare liking the books to having the standards of a nine-year-old. - 11/09/2012 02:34:18 AM 1387 Views
You didn't read what I said very well then - 11/09/2012 03:16:21 AM 1378 Views
I believe that they were not meant for adults. - 10/09/2012 12:30:05 AM 1399 Views
Basically, both get dubious kudos for trying something new by the dire standards of the day. - 10/09/2012 11:38:22 PM 1413 Views
Interesting point - 11/09/2012 12:41:01 AM 1378 Views
Are you aware of the game's alignment rules? Some of the novels struggle with this. - 12/09/2012 10:58:37 PM 1391 Views
Not aware of it at all until now - 12/09/2012 11:18:57 PM 1380 Views
How is that possible? - 12/09/2012 11:28:33 PM 1337 Views
My dad was (and is) influenced by Evangelicals - 13/09/2012 12:17:36 AM 1287 Views
Wait, so you didn't read the Chronicles first? - 13/09/2012 02:12:13 PM 1289 Views
No - 13/09/2012 02:18:03 PM 1363 Views
Well, it's sort of like starting Jordan at Lord of Chaos - 13/09/2012 05:18:23 PM 1352 Views
Oddly enough, I started WoT at CoS in November 1997 - 13/09/2012 05:56:04 PM 1312 Views
Chronicles is considerably weaker - 13/09/2012 11:14:38 PM 1386 Views
12 modules, not 15 - 14/09/2012 02:55:39 PM 1517 Views
These threads are so much better than the rape threads! *NM* - 12/09/2012 04:03:01 AM 787 Views
You're just waiting to see if I'll use hexameter in the next one *NM* - 12/09/2012 04:32:31 AM 624 Views
When do we get to see some alexandrines? *NM* - 12/09/2012 12:41:29 PM 710 Views
Or quatrains? - 12/09/2012 03:25:13 PM 1278 Views
At least you didn't read the Baldur's Gate novelizations - 14/09/2012 04:29:17 AM 1308 Views
Sssssh! - 14/09/2012 05:10:19 AM 1380 Views
People become lesbians for no reason! - 17/09/2012 04:34:20 PM 1232 Views
I think my IQ dropped further upon learning of this - 17/09/2012 06:29:29 PM 1280 Views
Baldurs Gate wooooo! - 14/09/2012 04:13:34 PM 1502 Views
Is the review dire because of the subject or the sonnet form? - 14/09/2012 04:24:37 PM 1415 Views
Both - 14/09/2012 04:36:59 PM 1318 Views
it would be unusual for someone to just randomly pick books like that up - 14/09/2012 05:05:37 PM 1650 Views
Interesting scenario - 14/09/2012 10:16:11 PM 1345 Views
Re: Interesting scenario - 15/09/2012 09:55:59 AM 1612 Views
Re: Interesting scenario - 17/09/2012 06:28:57 PM 1273 Views

Reply to Message