We could probably break off and form a thread in original fics discussion. Would make more sense than discussing here. As far as Peer goes, political intrigues like it seems to be can be either absolutely gripping or mind-numbingly boring. Wildbow could probably pull off the former, but idk. Way too early to tell where it's going still.

 

I think the problem with Peer is that we were suddenly presented with fully-formed characters who aren't really relatable. In Worm, not only did we see Taylor grow and mature, we saw a whole host of supporting characters do the same. The first arc antagonist (I use the term loosely) of Armsmaster doesn't just disappear after the arc ends, he comes back and develops in front of our eyes too. Honestly, I'm hard-pressed to find one-off characters in the entire series.

Compared to those well-developed characters, an orc and a big loser in a fantasy setting aren't people I can connect to.

 

Wow, that got pretty compelling pretty quickly. And this was the weakest of the ideas? Geeze


Also

Spoiler

"I would like nothing more than to spend my days feeding you succulent dishes, take you to bed to slather oils on that broad stomach of yours, and whisper of strategy and politics so your mind is as fully stated as your body.” She was real thirsty

 

Yeah that was probably the strongest of the three sections. I think that Casper, unfortunately, remains a sticking point. Someone pointed out on Wildbow's blog that he seems to represent one part Taylor (A ruthless, intelligent, under-dog), and one part Theo (Whiteknight, people-shy, etc). Throw in a dash of sliminess and you're left with a character who is somewhat compelling, but very polarizing.

That was my biggest problem with the first two chapters. Even when Casper was acting, he came across as passive. This is probably why I like the third chapter the most. Casper was running about, doing things, and we got a good sense of his character not just from the dialogue but from his internal thoughts as well.

Does anyone remember which snippet is coming next?

 

Probably Body; Wildbow listed the stories he plans to preview in his 'The End' post.

Peer (Fantasy)

Body (Biopunk)

Face (Thriller)

Pact (Horror/Modern Supernatural)

 

Personally, I'm looking forward to Pact more than anything. I love a bit of horror mixed with my urban fantasy (assuming this isn't more like Supernatural or something).

 

My gut says that Pact and Body are going to be more to my tastes. Also: Wildbow has a thing for four letter titles, eh?

 

So it's Face. Writing's okay, but the scenario is way overdone to someone who reads the right manga. This killing game business is old hat when you have series like Rabbit Doubt.

 

It's a lot more interesting than Peer to start with at least. This is Wildbow stepping outside his comfort zone. He's trying to use his writing style (moderate stream of conscious, narrative heavy) to muck around with different tones and themes. Now, I'm not a big fan of the whole Battle Royale/Murder Games shtick and think the fact that it's evolved into a genre is somewhat depressing, but the 3 antagonists are interesting enough and there's a solid chance we'll see a large spin on the concept.

Still way more hyped for Pact and Body though

 

Hm, this is a pretty interesting start. The dialogue felt a lot more Worm-like than in Peer. Now I just wish I didn't have to wait until Saturday for the next chapter - but I'm definitely intrigued.

It's not like the superhero genre had never been done before.

 

The last lines make it sound like a game of Mafia.

 

Boil is good. Definitely the best so far.

 

Boil seems to be the biopunk one. Body (listed above) appears to be incorrect, for now. Agree with Euroclydon though, best so far by a fair margin.

 

Yeah, I think this might be my favorite so far. Maybe if the guy from Face had a pet octo-jellyfish for a sidekick, things would be different.

 

Boil seems cool but I didn't really feel the whole escape situation. She disabled two guards pretty easily. Maybe that'll make sense when we get to know her better, but right now it's just "Failed PhD graduate takes down two armed prison guards." I'm also not really clear on why, other than compassion, Fray took that heart-in-a-jar guy with her. I don't understand what Fray's up to exactly. I think Peer was one extreme, where there was too much back story, and this one is the opposite.

I guess I just feel like I'm missing a few key facts which will explain her actions. Even still,the writing is compelling enough that I'll keep at it.

 

I still like Face more but it seems like Boil is whats going to get picked. Hopefully Wildbow does both but at least bi-weekly updates of face. Boil seems nice to but just didn't grab me.

 

Well, I finally caught up to the ending of Worm. Strictly speaking, it's probably the kind of ending I would write, though it feels more like a loss than a win, and for this sort of story... with all the losses already endured... section after section after section... It's the kind of story that just leaves me bitter and exhausted, like I was expecting something a little more positive. But, I'm just complaining, Wildblow wrote an amazing story with a length that exceeds anything I will ever write in my life - I can hardly keep a plot together for ten thousand words, nevermind several million. Well done for keeping me reading this long.

I hope his next story doesn't quite have the same tone as Worm though. I don't think I could take another series of this kind.

I am curious how the kickstarter slash crowdfunding route will work for him - will he be able to use Worm to become a known entity in the world of writing? Or will Worm fail to gain the same traction in stores that it did on this forum? Will the fully-edited version of Worm fix whatever small misgivings we have? Or will it largely stay the same story? I would be hardpressed to step back into some of those older chapters and write new content - the story is done and finished, shoving more between the ends seems rough. All I know is, I won't have the patience to read it all over again, even though I really like the beginnings of Worm, so I probably won't read whatever improvements he does choose to make.