1) The Ketran come from a world that is quite unique. It is a crystal based planet, with the actual ground pretty unliveable. The Ket actually live on crystals that they keep lifted in the air miles above the planet's ground. What do you think about this concept of a species? How could such a creature evolve?As cool as they were, and as interesting as it was to create such a unique planet/circumstance/evolution that was so difficult to replicate after their planet was destroyed, I kind of feel like the Ketran are on the same level as the Iskoort in like, narrative importance, you know? Like it was neat to see a new alien race developed, but I really really think we spent WAY too much time with them in this book. Crayak is not even introduced until the book is 3/4 over. I think that's a big problem.
2) The juvies on Ket especially are involved in a sort of gaming that parallels the game that the Ellimist will play against Crayak (it is also suspiciously similar to rpging, but that's besides the point). What do you think about the game and its rules of limited intrusion? Do you side with Ellimist, where less is more, or with Menno, who thinks that the players should be able to become direct players in the game?lol see this is another thing...I kept having to ask myself as I was reading, post-apocalypse, "who the hell is Menno?" Menno had ONE LINE of dialogue, he was barely given ANY character development, and yet his *one-line philosophy* causes the greatest debate in Toomin's mind throughout the whole book. THIS BOOK WAS VERY UNBALANCED.
3) What do you think about Father, and his existence? Why do you think he chose Ellimist, out of all his captives, to keep alive for the purpose of gaming?Father was an awesome concept, and creeiply, awesomely done, but that whole detail was the most glossed over and the most important. Why is Toomin the first alien in hundreds of thousands of years (probably longer) to survive the somewhat violent process of being infested or integrated or whatever by Father? Did Father choose him? Was it just dumb luck? Because no offense to Toomin, but I have trouble believing that he's SO INTERESTING that he intrigues Father enough to make him change his entire modus operandi, you know? You could argue Father was just lonely, and had just gotten to the point where he was desperate to try something new, even if it threatened him and killed him in the end, but if that's the case, I would have liked to hear a little more about it. Idk, this book introduces so many weird elements without explaining them fully. I'm still not totally sure what a Ket is supposed to look like.
4) Any speculation on Crayak's story?Not really, but again, I feel like his motivation and backstory were kind of important details that got lost in the shuffle. Like he just wanted death? He just wanted to kill everything? I mean, in a way, the oversimplification is kind of cool and scary, like the Joker from The Dark Knight, but idk in this book he just came off kind of Saturday-morning-cartoon "I'LL KILL YOU ALL FOOLS" hokey to me. Though the distinction good=order and evil=chaos is one of the cooler ones imho.
5) The Ellimist spends a good deal of time with the Andalites, even going so far as to start a family with them. This begs a couple of questions. Firstly, what did you think of this view of prehistoric Andalite times? Secondly, what do you think about the Ellimist's involvement in their history?This was my favorite part of the book, and top five favorite chapters in the entire series. First, I think pre-historic Andalites made total sense. Like I can see how every detail she gave us led them to being the species/hardasses they are today. I mean, I know we've been told that they were prey before, but I like how it was just so hopeless and helpless before the Ellimist came along. I love that he settled down and just got to LIVE for a lifetime, I love that his involvement with an immature, barely sentient race gave him the inspiration to fight Crayak, idk. I just really loved that chapter.
6) Anything else?*Still want to know what a Ket is supposed to look like.
Okay, yeah. I suck, I suck, I suck. I know. I'm sorry! It's just been...so ridiculously insanely busy. I know, that's no excuse. I'm sorry! But I'm on summer break now! Or...I will be this upcoming Friday....so that means free time! Right? *grovels for forgiveness* Rob, this is for you! :PSeriously, what's up with that? Priorities! Why would you want to fulfill your real life obligations when you could be here, talking to me! ;D
1) The Ketran come from a world that is quite unique. It is a crystal based planet, with the actual ground pretty unliveable. The Ket actually live on crystals that they keep lifted in the air miles above the planet's ground. What do you think about this concept of a species? How could such a creature evolve?Jen, you're so critical ;) I love the concept of Ket and Ketrans. It is undeniably one of the most memorable images of the entire series, and the concept of a society like theirs just has a very alien feel.
2) The juvies on Ket especially are involved in a sort of gaming that parallels the game that the Ellimist will play against Crayak (it is also suspiciously similar to rpging, but that's besides the point). What do you think about the game and its rules of limited intrusion? Do you side with Ellimist, where less is more, or with Menno, who thinks that the players should be able to become direct players in the game?The game-playing aspect of this book always felt a little silly to me. It's pretty obviously a character trait of the Ellimist's designed after his character was already in place. "Oh, well... he likes playing games, right? Why not just make it so that he always played games?" Aside from the concept itself, I thought that game sounded very interesting. I'd play it. As a casual gamer myself, my instinct would be to agree with Menno (he had more than one line, didn't he?), but honestly, I find the concept of just being able to make a subtle change and watch it trickle down very alluring. I think I'd have to back Toomin overall, though their gamer culture would probably benefit from having more than one game ::)
3) What do you think about Father, and his existence? Why do you think he chose Ellimist, out of all his captives, to keep alive for the purpose of gaming?Man, Father was crazy cool. Again, I'm not sure of the plausibility, but there's a point where plausible must be sacrificed for awesome. The giant, planet-sized brain-sponge develops a (somewhat douchey) personality... I got the impression that Toomin was the only one to every survive his "infestation" process, though I guess, Like Jen said, it could just be that Father got bored and needed someone alive. Either way, it seems as thought Toomin was just disgustingly lucky (or unlucky, I guess).
4) Any speculation on Crayak's story?Um... yes and no... we're really given next to nothing about Crayak over the course of the story, so it'd be interesting to know more, but I really don't feel it's necessary. Considering the fact that, outside of this book, the Ellimist and Crayak are nothing more than plot devices, I'm not really that concerned with them (or other beings like them). Godlike creatures might be cool, but they're not very interesting in my opinion. That's why I'm glad the Ellimist in this book is an actual character.
5) The Ellimist spends a good deal of time with the Andalites, even going so far as to start a family with them. This begs a couple of questions. Firstly, what did you think of this view of prehistoric Andalite times? Secondly, what do you think about the Ellimist's involvement in their history?You know, everybody seems to be under the impression that this was one of the turning points in Andalite history. I dunno, I guess I never really got that impression. The Andalites would have gotten on okay with or without the Ellimist. I loved that it was a turning point in his existence, though. He got more from this primitive race than he gave them, with all his knowledge and power, and that's a kind of postive irony that I really appreciate.
6) Anything else?*Oh... yes, definitely. A thousand times yes. I think I'm sort of suffering from the same thing you are, where there's really too much here to go into. I like how this book is set in the Animorphs universe, but it's far enough back in time, and with enough different players, that it's anything but the familiar Animorphs universe we've gotten to know. Sort of echoing Jen's comment on the one-off aliens there, I guess. This book, more than any of the others in the series, gives me the impression of a rich, dynamic history for the Aniverse, outside of just the Yeerk/Andalite conflict.
Oh, yeah, the Skrit Na bit is a question I meant to put in and forgot. If the Skrit Na are space faring millions of years before the Andalites, what does that say about them? I mean, they're kind of regarded as silly galactic kleptomaniacs in TAC, but the fact that they've been around so long makes me wonder about their evolution. Do they even have a homeworld at this point? Or are they nomadic, claiming a moon here, a planet there, and just using them as giant junk shops? It's a really cool detail, imo.They really are an intriguing race, aren't they? I kind of get the impression that they might be entirely space-faring, actually, just living out of their little junk-peddling spacecraft. They seem fairly content with their niche, don't they? I don't think many species would be able to maintain their position for millions of years.
2) The juvies on Ket especially are involved in a sort of gaming that parallels the game that the Ellimist will play against Crayak (it is also suspiciously similar to rpging, but that's besides the point). What do you think about the game and its rules of limited intrusion? Do you side with Ellimist, where less is more, or with Menno, who thinks that the players should be able to become direct players in the game?
3) What do you think about Father, and his existence? Why do you think he chose Ellimist, out of all his captives, to keep alive for the purpose of gaming?
5) The Ellimist spends a good deal of time with the Andalites, even going so far as to start a family with them. This begs a couple of questions. Firstly, what did you think of this view of prehistoric Andalite times? Secondly, what do you think about the Ellimist's involvement in their history?
6) Anything else?*
That's rather dark and sad. Doesn't make much sense to me either. Though I guess we can discuss that in the future thread.
1) The Ketran come from a world that is quite unique. It is a crystal based planet, with the actual ground pretty unliveable. The Ket actually live on crystals that they keep lifted in the air miles above the planet's ground. What do you think about this concept of a species? How could such a creature evolve?
2) The juvies on Ket especially are involved in a sort of gaming that parallels the game that the Ellimist will play against Crayak (it is also suspiciously similar to rpging, but that's besides the point). What do you think about the game and its rules of limited intrusion? Do you side with Ellimist, where less is more, or with Menno, who thinks that the players should be able to become direct players in the game?
3) What do you think about Father, and his existence? Why do you think he chose Ellimist, out of all his captives, to keep alive for the purpose of gaming?
4) Any speculation on Crayak's story?
5) The Ellimist spends a good deal of time with the Andalites, even going so far as to start a family with them. This begs a couple of questions. Firstly, what did you think of this view of prehistoric Andalite times? Secondly, what do you think about the Ellimist's involvement in their history?I'm with some of the others here too, I loved that he learned something very valuable from his time with the primitive society in a 'from the mouths of babes' sort of way, and it was neat to see an early version of Andalite adaptation, but I really don't think that he had any meaningful involvement in their history other than giving them a legend/fairy tale.
6) Anything else?*
(plus I really still have no concept of wtf a ketran looks like and can handle)
...I'm not entirely clear that the docking talons and the pods are the same organ. I go through it and get a jumble of parts that don't fit together in any viewable organism to me...Most of the aliens we meet we have (numerous) fairly detailed descriptions of, but the one here is fragmented and incomplete as far as I'm concerned...I couldn't understand it, plain and simple. Now adays I get what is happening on, but don't know why and again frankly don't bother to know... the beginning totally jumps around and then, well I've made my points on what the big let down of this book was for me...Gotta back you up here, RYTX, since you've virtually nailed the things I am referring to and am trying to say.
...but getting a new story, that was waaaaaaaay before the Andalite X Yeerk war, that doesn't really leave us any wiser in the bigger schemes of the Ellimist X Cryak 'game', at THIS stage in the series, was, really, empty fulfilment to me, as a fan and as a reader. Excuse my sincerity.Oh, well your sincerity is certainly more than excused, it is quite appreciated; the only reason I asked in the first place is because I like to see things from others' views as well as explaining mine. And this reasoning here is particularly clear to me now, I actually started a thread where I asked if others thought it was a good thing or not when an author decides to write their own "The Ill-Advised Curiosity" of their novels, using the Civil War side-story of #47 as an example. In essence, that would be the main problem I would say that I have with TEC as well.