Finally got my books!

[msb]

Some random thoughts on rereading it.

1) Some of the printing is slightly blurry (most visible on the text) and the pages feel extremely flimsy and cheap. Personally I'd rather pay two or three times as much for a nicer book.

2) The spread on pp 76-77 looks frickin amazing.

3) The higher res printed art is nice, but by far the best thing about having the book version is the smaller dialogue boxes (which, I know, is a corollary of the higher res). The pages look waaaayy better. I'd say it was worth the wait just for this.

4) For the most part I like the new pages, especially the action pages. The big exposition page in the thinkamancy temple, I'm a bit less of a fan of. I think maybe I prefer of the main story arc in book 1, starting with the summoning and resolved by uncroaking the volcano. The complex conspiracy elements (the GMTTA, Hippiemancer-Predictamancers, Charlie, etc.) that come to the fore at the end of book 1/book 2, while fun to read about, feel too much like the world is just getting lost in its own mythology. It doesn't have the same compelling aspect as watching a laterally thinking gamer who gets sucked into a strange world that needs a laterally thinking gamer. Book 2 is a lot less compelling to me for this reason so far (though definitely still good enough to keep reading).

5) Okay, that said, Book 1 of Erfworld is seriously one of the best, most creative, most brilliantly conceived, plotted, and executed graphic novels ever. Along some of those dimensions it is just *the* best, flat out. Rereading it in print form is a great pleasure.

6) There's a bit of info in the glossary that I don't think we knew before. Did we know about the "ruins" mechanics? Or that each hex has an independent time flow? There some other little tidbits in there too.

7) Page 50, with sonnet 28, is going to be removed from the book, framed, and put on my wall next to my other favorite pages from comics. I bought a whole extra book for this purpose.

Very happy with it overall. If you're reading this forum and haven't ordered the book, chances are you should.

[Kaed]

I dunno, I thought the Thinkamancer temple was the best, most interesting page of bonus material.

[msb]

Does it even give us new information?

I guess we know that a GMTTA member was involved in the linkup that made the scroll. And that no one (or at least no thinkamancer) knows whether or not Parson is a Hippiemancer or why he can enter the portal.

But mostly it feels like it was added to provide additional setup and continuity between the books. Which is good. I was just reflecting on how I'm comparatively less interested in that part of the story. But to each his own.

[cloudbreaker]

I really enjoyed the extra dialogue between Webinar and Dora. Just that half page added a lot more depth to their characters.

[drachefly]

6) There's a bit of info in the glossary that I don't think we knew before. ... Or that each hex has an independent time flow?

That was suggested pretty strongly during the picnic that ended with Banana having a rough landing trying to carry Parson.

[Saladman]

I got mine also and have read them twice so far, despite following the strip online.

I want to say to Rob this is an awesome comic and book. Bound together, it works as a graphic novel. The perennial cliffhanger/not enough action/not enough new info complaints on the forum are just an artifact of choosing to view it one page at a time. But taken together, it looks to me like the author is making the right decisions on pacing. (The bonus pages are a nice touch though, and I'd take even more.)

So thank you, congratulations and well done!

[effataigus]

Indeed... just got mine only a handful of days before moving across the country... cut it close!

Very happy with it overall, and it's wonderful to have a copy in hand. Also love the new page for the forum's darling.

I gotta ask though, does it look to anyone else like the dwagon on the cover is vomiting up Wanda and her army?

[Tensor]

11 days later and I still don't have mine.