The Fortress of Solitude
Review by Gary Chaloner Plot 6/10 Potentially, the premise of this book could have been fantastic. But after reading it for the first time just the other day, I was VERY disappointed with how the plot was handled. Rogue villain John Sunlight stumbles onto Doc's secret hideaway in the Arctic then commences to do deals with two warring Balkan powers to sell off some of Doc's dubious inventions. Doc finds out and tries to stop the madman. The opportunities to flesh out Doc's guilt over his inventions being used for evil is never capitalized upon. Regular Characters 8/10 Monk, Ham and Long Tom assist Doc in this adventure. The scenes with Long Tom and Ham escorting one of the female characters in a plane are very entertaining. I've always enjoyed Long Tom's contributions to the sagas. Two points taken away represent Renny and Johnny. Villians 8/10 John Sunlight. Need I say more? The two points lost were for names of two of the female baddies: Titania and Giantia. Give me a break. Gadgets 7/10 Not my favorite part of the Doc mythos, so my score is average. The fact that they figure as the main plot motivation helps the score. Doc uses his usual tricks of make-up and disguises, but it's his dread weapons of destruction in the Fortress that sends a chill down the spine. Monk/Ham Hijinx 6/10 Fairly subdued this time around. They get worked over by two huge women and are separated for the bulk of the adventure. Monk sticks with Doc for most of the action. Overall Score: 35/50 As I stated above, a great premise wasted. After the build up from other Doc fans about The Fortress of Solitude and John Sunlight's debut, it turned out to be a Fortress of Disappointment. |