[foolio]

We have seen all the favorite threads; favorite quotes, favorite story lines, and favorite characters... now I would like to see what people think are the weakest moments. I dont think this is overly critical since we are talking about a huge series and I can only think of a handful of things that bothered me... Also I was wondering if there would be any kind of consensus on what people dont like.

I thought these were weak moments
1/ Laseen talking Kalam out of killing her, or opposing her, at the end of DHG
2/Orfantals effortless death
3/just about all of ROTCG, hated Laseen being in control the whole time, and everthing being part of her plan. I didnt think this was a good twist or surprise momment, I just thought it came off as dishonest writing. Seemed like ICE was going for a "Sixth Sense " type of surprise and it just didnt work for me.Also disliked all the motivational logic, IE Temper, Ferrule, Daseem coming to her rescue. Wickans coming to her rescue.



Prediction

Spoiler

I predict alot of people will say the dieing god story line in ToTH, didnt really bother me, but I think others hated it.

[Aptorian]

The ending of RG.

Both the unnecessary fight between everyone when Ruin and co arrived in the refugium and the disappointing fight between Karsa and Rhulad.

[blackzoid]

Have to agree on RoTCG. Not a great book at all.
Complete lack of tension of Silchas Ruin being twarted by cussers was also bad.
And SE bringing back Brys was just Bad, Bad, Bad. He had a perfect death in MT. He should have created a new character instead to fill whatever role Brys is supposed to have.

[Slow Ben]

I thought Silchas being thwarted my the Malazans was badass. SE spent every couple paragraphs saying how he was coming, then he gets punked by Fid & QB. Hilarious.

[L'oric]

1. All time worst for me the Mhybe or the maybe I will never read her sections again.

2. Most of the all knowing scenes involving Kruppe. Gag. Please explain or stop using him altogether.

Nuff from me

[Sindriss]

Some freaking ancient child of mother dark, soletaken from tiams blood and brother to rake, said to rival his power gets beaten by some moranth munition and QB. That was the absolutely worst part in the entire series in my honest opinion. I still get angry reading it.

[Aptorian]

Well, it wasn't unrealistic that a couple of cussers had that effect on him. Just disappointing when you were expecting Lether to go up in flames.

Actually it was a testament to Ruins strength that he took two or more cussers and a full barage of Quicks warrens and was still able to fly away. The sisters didn't do that well faced with the combined force of munitions and magic.

[The Drum]

I don't understand why people hate that SR had his ass whipped by the munitions and QB combined. Let's be honest here, SR was intombed in a azath house for thousands of years, he probably never seen a munition go off and didn't realise it could damage him that much, and despite that he still flew away. Rake got pierced by a sword right, so why can't a fucking great explosion hurt his brother?
Just cos he's powerful doesn't mean he's indestructable!

[Sindriss]

Maybe, but he is a freaking powerhouse, and I was so exciting to see him take down Lether in a ragnarok. And then getting beaten by a cusser and a mortal wizard feels just like a blow to the balls. A handgranate doesn't hurt a tank either. And it is like that in my mind.
Besides, I bet silchas ruin has some powerful magic he could use to oppose QB and saying it is because he underestimated both the mage and the cusser just doesn't cut it with me.

[Aptorian]

I don't think that's the issue. You have the ending of RG, where the supposed great convergence is taking place. You have Karsa vs Rhulad, Iccy, a Sea Demon, Mael, the Errant, the Warlock King, the Malazans at the gates, Ruin flying in, etc.

The potential for awesome battles and amazing destruction was up there, and instead Erikson does what he does best and takes a completely different route.

I wanted to see Ruin descending upon the city and creating massive destruction and then see mages and gods retaliating, every thing going tits up and then, THEN! a pebble hits Iccy and he goes ballistic. The epilogue being the shake looking out of Maidens fort at the growing plume of magical destruction that is slowly engulfing the southern part of the continent, the only sound a low keening that seems to go through flesh and bone.

[The Drum]

Back to the thread topic -

I always hated the confrontation between Felisin and Tavore, Tavore just running her through and walking off was a big let down. I wanted her to know it was her sister she'd just killed and show some emo for once.

[Aptorian]

Actually I thought that ending was about as awesome as it could have been written. Very Eriksonian of it to end unresolved. Truly tragic.

[Sindriss]

Have to side with Apt on this one. It could hardly get more tragic, and in some way I think it fitted very well that tavore just ran her sister down and then moved back to her army. And her dying sisters thought, asking why she didnt love her gave me goosebumps. I thought it was very well written to be honest.

[The Drum]

I just wanted her to bend down, remove the helm see who it was and go mental or something. It was tragic, for Felisin, but she got on my nerves for far too long so it was hard to feel anything but satisfaction that she was dead. (yes i'm a heartless b'stard)

[Sindriss]

Didn't really fancy her either, but couldn't help but feel compassion for her at the end. She was a bitch but she had a tough life

[The Drum]

Another thing that was weak IMO was the death of Hebroic, a few T'lan Imass popping up and cuting him down without a fight at all, although he was starting to do my head in, to be just cut down out of the blue like that WTF?

[Sindriss]

Also didn't like it that Paran just left felisin to have fun with her cult which he knew would become a seriously threat to the world at some point. Just kill her and be done with it imo!

[Skywalker]

foolio, on Feb 23 2009, 10:57 PM, said:

I thought these were weak moments
1/ Laseen talking Kalam out of killing her, or opposing her, at the end of DHG

Hmm... I actually liked that moment... I particularly liked how she wasn't really there, both she and Kalam knew it, and then when talking to Topper afterwards, I love how Topper establishes Kalam's badass-ness once and for all (and grimly foreshadows book 6 if you thinkabbatit)... he says he wont recall the Claw, but that doesn't mean he expects Kalam to die.

Anyway... SE has been "doing the unexpected" and getting dumped on for it since book 1:

GOTM: Rake v Raest never happens
DG: The Path of Hands is a fake... Iccy's rage never happens.
MOI: well ok... nothing about MOI was weak/ anti-climactic, except the whiny beeyatch that is the Mhybe.
HoC: No climactic battle for the 14th... just ghost BBs turning up to kill the Dogslayers.
MT: Ceda dies just as he's about to slaughter him some Edur
BH: Confused "resolution" for Heboric and co
RG: No Karsa v Icarium v Rhulad triple thread cage match, anti-climactic Karsa v Rhulad match. Silchas boomed away. No Scabandari revival
TtH: No Nimander/ Anomander reunion, no Kallor v Rake, no Traveller v Karsa, etc. (although the final convergence is more than enough for anyone)

My point being this... that isn't a bad thing. He keeps us on our toes, guessing....

[Onos]

I really like ROTCG. And i liked that Lasseen more or less had the thing planned. She new the old guard would attack her, same for the CGu, so why not do it at a time of her choosing? Seems clever to me. Tays Hints at her doing this earlier in the book.

It wasnt that SR was hurt the way he did that bothered me, but that he all of a sudden just went off on dealing with Letheras. He is supposed to be cold and patient... then that. Just didnt fit. What is it to him what happens there. He has spent milennia in the Azath, figured he would have better things to do...

Mhybe is bad, though i can tolerate her purpose. Young Harlo though.... gah.... sure hope he has a purpose cause i have totally blocked him out. (missing fingers thread wasnt much better)

Brys coming back... thought that was weak. I really liked/appreciated the tragic death. Tired of everybody and their dog being brought back to life... starting to get old.

[Urkle Crust]

I thought the whole Kyle/sword/Ossric thing in RotCG was weak. Kyle in general sucked, too. I also thought the fact that K'azz just walked out onto the beach to go with Kyle and the group was weak.

I didn't like Kelanved and Dancer's fight to get into the Azath, either. I didn't like the idea of them simply having to cross a yard as the final hurdle to ascend.

(If you can't tell, I am not the biggest ICE fan, though I thought RotCG was an improvement over NoK).

Heboric's death was weak.

I also thought that the storyline of the D'ivers that almost killed Mappo (been a long time since I re-read Bonehunters) kinda fizzled.

I liked the Dying God storyline, but thought the part with Seerdomin and the priestess under the influence of the black stuff was lame.