Oooh, I could totally get behind that. I think you nailed my issue with it: the setting is great but I couldn’t get into any of the plots.
Nice to hear I’m not alone in that.
I have no idea how they can pull this off.
And the Culture books, I like the ones I’ve read, but I’ve never been wowed by them. Probably because the Minds don’t feel like they should. Oh, they’re smart and all, but I’ve never gone “That’s next level thought, that’s beyond human thinking”. That a human was writing them probably has something to do with it…
Love the series.
Two potential ways to go about it.
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Miniseries for each book, essentially.
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Follow Zakalwe and make a serialized special agent show.
I’d prefer #1.
That’s because the Mind is spending 99% of its time in the Land of Infinite Fun and with the remaining 1% it’s simultaneously holding conversations with a billion humans on the same orbital. And also because it’s being careful not to freak out its collocutor :)
Don’t fuck this up Bezos.
I’m thinking Look To Windward would be the best place to start, though Player of Games would be a good choice too.
As you can infer from Bezos tweet and confirm by reading the linked press release, they only have the rights to Consider Phlebas. Seems a bit misleading to characterize it as an adaptation of the whole series instead of just that one book.
At this point, the only creative name associated with it is some guy whose credits include Matilda and Utopia. I don’t know either of those. Do they mean anything to you guys?
-Tom
Utopia is a paranoid, surreal British show with an incredible visual aesthetic. I have very much enjoyed what I’ve seen of it. Course, that guy wasn’t responsible for the visuals, which are the biggest thing I remember about the show. And Matilda apparently isn’t out yet.
I take full responsibility!! I didn’t read the press release and went ahead and incorrectly titled the thread.
300 lashes…er games of Cuphead
I’d start with Inversions. Very self-contained.
Oh, no lashes needed! Your title is correct and the series is coming to Amazon in the sense that one of the books is being adapted. That qualifies! It’s just that the jury is still out on the other umpteen books.
And given what I know of the Culture series, a bite-sized one-book approach seems like a much more viable approach.
-Tom
It could be good. It will be interesting to see how this turns out.
In a way it could be a “Star Trek” with looser morals, and from a point of view of a race that has discovered it all from a technological point of view, and in some ways are almost like gods. The only thing is, they like to meddle in the affairs of others, and that is what the story is usually about.
Phelbas was his first Culture novel.
Utopia was fantastic, this is great news.
I think Excession is the height of the series, but they are all worthwhile. I agree Consider Phlebas feels a bit thinner in terms of setting because it was the first and he hadn’t yet developed the long historical backstory and governance framework that appeared over time in the subsequent books. It’s also written somewhat more in the complex, intricate style of his non-SF novels.
Gotcha. And I agree.
Hopefully they can bring over elements from the other books to make it more consistent if they decide to move forward with the series.
Btw, a True Detective-like format of a season per book could work really well here.
Completely agree.
I just finished Consider Phlebas, the first I’ve read of the Culture Series and the first I’ve read of Banks. I really didn’t care for it. Problem is, I’ve already purchased what I think is the second Culture book, the Player of Games. Should I push on and read it?