The Watchers

What am I looking at? 
Neil Spring's The Watchers.

Whassit about? 
Well... it starts off as a straight forward alien conspiracy thriller before morphing into a horror / occult nightmare.

Okay? 
There are reports of UFOs and aliens showing up in Wales doing terrible things to the locals and their children. It's mostly dismissed as a hoax until a government official turns up to investigate after receiving some classified documents hinting at military involvement. Could these peculiar happenings be some sort of unofficial weapon testing? As the story develops the protagonist starts to experience some of these peculiar happenings first hand. At first he is sceptical but begins to question his own sanity the more these occurrences happen. Are these events triggering some repressed memory or is he just becoming increasingly delusional? Who are these strange men in black suits? Military officials, aliens in disguise or could some other covert force be at hand?

Sounds a bit epic. 
It is and gets increasingly so as the tale goes on. By the the end we were completely wiped out.

Cool. So it's good then? 
Yes.

Great. Thanks. Bye. 

The Powerpuff Girls!

What am I looking at? 
A historic moment. Nino Paulito with the Powerpuff Girls!

What is the Powerpuff Girls? 
One of our favourite cartoons ever. Bubbles, Blossom and Buttercup are preteen superheroes, made by accident, who fight crime in the city of Townsville. They're from that golden era of Cartoon Network animation which also included Cow & Chicken, Jonny Bravo and Dextor's Laboratory.

What makes the Powerpuff Girls cartoon so special? 
What was most impressive about the Powerpuff Girls is the way it graciously subverted all the usual superhero conventions. It isn't boorish and predictable like it's modern counterpart either. Check out this classic episode for proof. It also has the most peculiar assortment of villains of any superhero series too. Our favourites include the maniacal Mojo Jojo and 'HIM'. The soundtrack is pretty awesome too.

Great. Thanks. Bye. 

Man Of 1000 Farces

What am I looking at? 
The man of 1000 Farces.

Who is this man of 100 farces? 
He is a clown, magician, mime, daredevil, performance dude. His act is based on a series of circus paintings. Each painting depicts a fictional character which is brought to life in his live show.

Alright. Can you describe some of these personas? 
Well, there is the coke head Spanish guy, a knife wielding punk and a stripper to name a few.

I see. Was he any good though? 
Yes. We loved the way he'd pretend to be really shit by messing tricks up or simply revealing how they were done, but then would surprise the audience with something ridiculously astonishing.

For example? 
There was one bit where he was this wiggly fingered Nosferatu type character who did shadow puppets. At first he just randomly waggled his fingers in front of a lamp but gradually the shapes morphed into some of the best finger puppetry we've ever seen. He did stuff like cowboys riding horses, a boxing match and even recreated the famous Dirty Dancing lift sequence.

Mind blowing. Anything else? 
Nah.

Great. Thanks. Bye. 

Hilda & The Troll

What am I looking at? 
Hilda & The Troll by Luke Pearson.

Who is Hilda the troll? 
Hilda is not the troll. She meets a troll and discovers they are not quite what they seem.

What the hell does that mean? 
Telling you would give it all away.

Don't care. 
Hilda is an explorer who likes to draw her discoveries. One day she sees a rock shaped like a troll so puts a bell around its neck. The rock turns out to be an actual troll and follows her home so she can take the bell back.

Sounds logical. Why put a bell on a rock? 
Troll lore 101: trolls don't like the sound of bells. It's a form of torture to them.

That's nice. So is this book any good then? 
If you are an explorer with a healthily vivid imagination, you will enjoy this.

Alrite. Anything else? 
Hilda and The Troll is going to be made into a Netflix series. Read all the books now before it starts and be one of those annoying people who spoil all the surprises.

Great. Thanks. Bye.