Batman vs. Two-Face

Dial D for Deadman by Barry J. Hutchison

Dial D for Deadman: A Space Team Universe Novel by Barry J. Hutchison
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dan Deadman makes his move from a supporting character in the Space Team series with this fully fledged adventure "Dial D for Deadman".
Dan is a detective, well sort of as he is not known for his hardcore analytical investigative skills but he knows the streets and the people of Down Here and oh by the way he is dead hence his name and the rather abrupt reactions of everyone he meets, even with a galaxy full of aliens Dan is a rather startling individual to come across especially down a dark alley.
A routine (for Dan) prevention of a mad serial killer opening a portal into the malwhere (demonish dimensions) leaves him with a dame tagging along who has some very unusual skills, she remembers her name (Oledol) but lacks a translation ship and has no memory of where she is or even more basic things such as using the bathroom, lots of comedic opportunities revolve around Oledol and how Dan deals with them. Dan begins an investigation into a missing child case and unable to shake Oledol finds himself with a partner who to say complicates his life would be an understatement, it doesn't help that his arm got ripped off earlier and was replaced by a womans arm complete with painted nails so Dan is not in a great mood. The investigation takes them all over Down Here and we meet many interesting characters, suspects, passers-by and there is no question that the setting and character interactions are very entertaining, the mystery in itself works well but it's the main and ancillary characters that won't allow you to put this book down.
The novel certainly pays homage to film noir and the classic private dick and dame with an agenda narrative but set within the Space Team universe the humour just keeps on coming. Dan is returning in "Dead Men Don't Get Paid" and for me a certain purchase.

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Miracle Workers - S.C.E.

Miracle Workers by Keith R.A. DeCandido
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The second book in the Starfleet Corps of Engineers series presents three stories under the title "Miracle Workers". The first story is a direct continuation from the first novel as the Da Vinci deals with the USS Defiant and the Tholians in Interphase Book Two. Events are spiraling out of the control as the Tholians look to bury a dark secret and the Federation diplomatic corps seem more willing to sacrifice Starfleet personnel than stand up to this alien power.
The second story is Cold Fusion and this where Deep Space Nine makes its presence felt post the Dominion War as the Da Vinci is tasked with meeting with Lt. Nog to salvage the fusion core from the Cardassian station Empok Nor for use on DS9. Complications arise when they find that they are not alone.
The final story "Invincible" concentrates on Commander Sonya Gomez who has been on detached duty from the Da Vinci and working on the planet Sarindar on a project which has been suffering many issues. The Nalori in a reversal of nearly two centuries of mild xenophobia invited Starfleet into their space to help fix the problems and in return will open up their space to Starfleet long range exploration ships. Gomez (formerly of the Enterprise) has immediate success until a number of the workers are slaughtered by something thought to be legend and no help is forthcoming.
Miracle Workers maintains the strong character driven elements of the SCE series, the second part of Interphase demonstrates the publishers/editors will embrace longer stories when required and this mix seems to be a winner.


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Have Tech Will Travel: Star Trek S.C.E.

Have Tech Will Travel: Star Trek S.c.e. by Keith R.A. DeCandido
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The series of stories/novels under the Starfleet Corps of Engineers banner is focused on a rarely used aspect of the Star Trek universe (at least on tv and the movies). This branch of Starfleet are the futuristic equivalent of the Army Corp of Engineers and like their illustrious predecessors are often tasked with both military and civilian missions all of which continue to have a strong construction/development/maintenance aspect while still retaining the ability to act as a fully fledged arm of Starfleet when required. The books are primarily focused on the USS Da Vinci and her crew under the command of Captain David Gold and while they contain many stand alone stories there are many multi-part and a continuing/developing narrative throughout. Diversity is also a big factor in the series as a wide range of authors and styles come together to keep things fresh while remaining true to the original concept/characters.
Have Tech Will Travel consists of four stories, the first is The Belly of the Beast in which the Enterprise disables a huge unknown alien starship and leaves the Da Vinci to do a full investigation of the technology and determine who built the ship. The second story is Fatal Error which deals with a malfunctioning AI which has been responsible for generations for guiding/controlling the economy/infrastructure and society of the non-federation world of Eerlikka. The third is Hard Crash which deals with a mysterious alien vessel which slams into a city on the world of Intar and the revelations as the Da Vinci delve into the remains found on board. The final story is called Interphase Book One and is tied to the original series episode The Tholian Web, the SCE are invited into Tholian space to retrieve the Defiant which has reappeared in the spatial rift, there are time constraints but what they find onboard could spark renewed hostilities with the Tholians.
I've planned to read this series for a while now but was put off due to the shear amount of content but gotta start somewhere and now I am glad I didn't put them off any longer.

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Battlestar Galactica Model

Well after I finished my Space 1999 Eagle model I was looking around for something else to do and of course I recalled like the Eagle I had a model of the classic Battlestar Galactica as a kid which went the way of the dodo many years ago. So a quick internet search later I found Moebius Models who had a classic Galactica kit along with many other wonderful models. I sourced the kit from a UK dealer and then got to work, I didn't have any intention of lighting the model just wanted something that looked nice on the shelf and while the decals were a pain (the ship ends up being the Pacifica) it did eventual turn out well enough to have been worth the time and money.

Overall build quality of the parts was high although some issues with putting all the major components together, I had to fill a few gaps in but fortunately the base paint allowed me to cover them after the fact so that don't stand out too harshly. The decals as I said were not great although I may not have that gentle touch required :)

Stunning Cosplay

Alicia Marie

Always good to have a VULCAN on board the starship... #logical #tpol #enterprise #STLV #StarTrekCon 🖖🏽❤️😆 pic.twitter.com/ZfvaEnzPDZ

— Alicia Marie (@AliciaMarieBODY) August 4, 2017