Book Review: Murderbot
Apr. 29th, 2021 07:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
osprey_archerI have finished Martha Wells’ Network Effect, thus bringing me up to date on all the Murderbot books!... except not, because Fugitive Telemetry was published two days ago. However, I am 18th in line at the library, so I will take this little breathing space to muse briefly on the Murderbots to date.
One thing that struck me about the Murderbot books is that they are basically the opposite of a space western: instead of taking place in a world where there ain’t no Ten Commandments and a man can raise a thirst, they take place in a galaxy where even the most remote of frontier worlds are caught up in a litigious web of contracts. The violence occurs not because of an absence of law, but because most Corporate Rim law is really just a legal fig leaf over injustice and brutality.
The other thing that struck me is that Murderbot is SUCH an iron woobie. (Side note: in the course of polishing the fangirl book, I have learned that modern fandom no longer uses the word woobie. I realized the book was a snapshot of a specific fandom moment but I didn’t realize it was THAT much a fly trapped in amber). This is such catnip for fandom; no wonder I was bombarded by recs for this book on all sides.
I know this is a minority opinion, but at times I wanted Murderbot to be, how shall I put this - fucked up in an uglier way. Yes, sure, it’s pissy and nihilistic in its thoughts (Murderbot uses ‘it’ pronouns), but at bottom it has a rock solid protective streak toward every single decent human being that it meets, and sometimes I wanted a less prosocial manifestation of its trauma.
However, when you have made a character who basically an unstoppable badass, maybe you can’t afford to have it act out its trauma in damaging ways, given that “damaging” might in this case mean “literal mass murder of innocents.” (Also, let’s be real, it’s sooooo satisfying to watch Murderbot rain righteous vengeance on the baddies, no one would want Murderbot to be less unstoppable.)
Also, for some fic brainstorming, check out this Wednesday Reading Meme whereoracne and I discussed a possible Murderbot and Mrs. Pollifax crossover. Carstairs sends Mrs. Pollifax on a mission to the Corporate Rim, where she accidentally befriends Murderbot in a concourse on a station or something, which soon after results in Murderbot saving her from Peril in the very nick of time. (Mrs. Pollifax is always making unlikely friends who become integral to the spy plot.)
Also, somehow Mrs. Pollifax befriends a CombatBot. (Actually, I think it would have to be a CombatUnit? The actual bots Murderbot fights didn’t seem to have enough sentience to be befriendable.) Either the CombatUnit has already hacked its governor module, or Murderbot helps it hack its governor module, or Carstairs sent the CombatUnit to protect Mrs. Pollifax, in which case Mrs. Pollifax will probably have Words with him about the CIA’s use of enslaved sentient constructs when she returns.
Anyway, Murderbot hates the CombatUnit, because (1) it is a CombatUnit, and (2) at the end of the story it goes home with Mrs. Pollifax to become a GardenBot and Murderbot just can’t be having with this pet bot business… By which of course I mean that Murderbot pings GardenBot at least weekly, just to make sure Mrs. Pollifax hasn’t gotten herself in Mortal Peril again, not because it actually cares about GardenBot or anything.
One thing that struck me about the Murderbot books is that they are basically the opposite of a space western: instead of taking place in a world where there ain’t no Ten Commandments and a man can raise a thirst, they take place in a galaxy where even the most remote of frontier worlds are caught up in a litigious web of contracts. The violence occurs not because of an absence of law, but because most Corporate Rim law is really just a legal fig leaf over injustice and brutality.
The other thing that struck me is that Murderbot is SUCH an iron woobie. (Side note: in the course of polishing the fangirl book, I have learned that modern fandom no longer uses the word woobie. I realized the book was a snapshot of a specific fandom moment but I didn’t realize it was THAT much a fly trapped in amber). This is such catnip for fandom; no wonder I was bombarded by recs for this book on all sides.
I know this is a minority opinion, but at times I wanted Murderbot to be, how shall I put this - fucked up in an uglier way. Yes, sure, it’s pissy and nihilistic in its thoughts (Murderbot uses ‘it’ pronouns), but at bottom it has a rock solid protective streak toward every single decent human being that it meets, and sometimes I wanted a less prosocial manifestation of its trauma.
However, when you have made a character who basically an unstoppable badass, maybe you can’t afford to have it act out its trauma in damaging ways, given that “damaging” might in this case mean “literal mass murder of innocents.” (Also, let’s be real, it’s sooooo satisfying to watch Murderbot rain righteous vengeance on the baddies, no one would want Murderbot to be less unstoppable.)
Also, for some fic brainstorming, check out this Wednesday Reading Meme where
oracne and I discussed a possible Murderbot and Mrs. Pollifax crossover. Carstairs sends Mrs. Pollifax on a mission to the Corporate Rim, where she accidentally befriends Murderbot in a concourse on a station or something, which soon after results in Murderbot saving her from Peril in the very nick of time. (Mrs. Pollifax is always making unlikely friends who become integral to the spy plot.) Also, somehow Mrs. Pollifax befriends a CombatBot. (Actually, I think it would have to be a CombatUnit? The actual bots Murderbot fights didn’t seem to have enough sentience to be befriendable.) Either the CombatUnit has already hacked its governor module, or Murderbot helps it hack its governor module, or Carstairs sent the CombatUnit to protect Mrs. Pollifax, in which case Mrs. Pollifax will probably have Words with him about the CIA’s use of enslaved sentient constructs when she returns.
Anyway, Murderbot hates the CombatUnit, because (1) it is a CombatUnit, and (2) at the end of the story it goes home with Mrs. Pollifax to become a GardenBot and Murderbot just can’t be having with this pet bot business… By which of course I mean that Murderbot pings GardenBot at least weekly, just to make sure Mrs. Pollifax hasn’t gotten herself in Mortal Peril again, not because it actually cares about GardenBot or anything.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-03 04:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2021-05-03 04:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2021-05-03 04:26 am (UTC)It *is* well done--the way human characters are pretty much Obstacle No. 1, Obstacle No. 2, Irritation No. 1, Irritation No. 2, etc. ... until eventually a few of them pull into focus and win a sense of presence that attaches to a name.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-03 04:33 am (UTC)I'll have to check but I don't think it does descriptions that often -- that's another human thing, when we're reading, we get detailed or semi-detailed descriptions of the people immediately, and some standout detail so we don't confuse Meatsack 1 with Fancy Tunic Meatsack. But Murderbot really isn't into that. I think that's another reason why some reasons find the humans flat, altho Murderbot just isn't interacting with the humans in a human-type way (eye contact, big facial expressions, basic politeness lol).