 Folks welcome back. I'm Philip Magnus and this is my brand new series of science fiction reviews It is called fittingly Philip reads the hugos. Why is it so fitting a name? Simple enough because I will be reading and not just reading but reviewing all the hugo ward winning novels Since all the way back in 1953 to whenever I'm done with this series, which is probably going to be 2053 Knowing myself It's going to be very exciting to fail to finish all these wonderful science fictional novels The first one we're starting off is of course the demolished man by Alfred Bester Which first among all books to ever be written Won the hugo There were a few retroactive hugos, but we'll leave those for a later date once I'm done with all the proper hugos Now, what do you need to know about the demolished man? It was written by Alfred Bester who also wrote Tiger Tiger Novel named after the William Blake poem about man a prisoner who True true this demand for vengeance Becomes something much different from from the Vile criminal that at first he appeared to be I read Tiger Tiger a very long time ago We shall speak no more of it Instead we shall together with me Go through my review the one I've cooked up on my word processor of the demolished man What does Philip from the past have to say about it all science fiction? He writes it can be endlessly entertaining in holly and intentional ways. I owe linguistic Drift alone for more than a few chuckles as I explored the very first novel awarded the hugo for best sci-fi all the way back in 1953 I mean Philip we already said all of that. Oh, well Despite certain antiquated notions the demolished man made for exciting reading and I can see why it still holds a place in the science fictional canon Why? Why you might ask I Tangled up my that's not what I was going to say what I was going to say is when you read the novel so old with so much familiar already It can be easy to lose track of some of the ones fresh elements introduced This is one of the earlier sci-fi trailers out there reading almost as Philip Marlowe He faced lightly less deranged Philip K. Dick had written it There's plenty of hard-boiled fun set in a gripping version of the 24th century as our two protagonists go forth to war with one another Ben Reich a solid system-spanning business Tycoon at the end of his rope offers his greatest rival old men the Courtney a merger deal when he is Refused by the Courtney Reich decides to solve the issue of his business rival less savory way Saying at one point if you won't let it be merger. They'll make it murder That's my American accent. It is as dreary as it sounds God will appreciate however a man willing to go all the difference Hey But murder is not easy in the future Not when said future is filled with espers capable of reading your mind Reich starts cut the opening of the book is to navigate his way through a series of challenges In the accomplishment of this dastardly goal While it's certainly an engaging start that the demolished man is at its best when the first class expert Lincoln This honest ape Powell enters into the fray at this point about a quarter into the book The two begin a contest of wills and wits that dominates the remnant of the book Both spin circles over the other out thinking each other in cleverly thought-out ways best as writing here Absolutely shines at the height of this novel. It is gripping intelligent witty and a pleasure to read the way best adores Powell and Reich as the Antithesis of one another the chemistry that the two share every time both are on the same page This has to be one of the original science fictional frenemy relationships and I could not get enough of it A recurring gag with Powell is the line who stole the weather which never fails to make him blush So we never get an exact Explanation it's certain that this honest ape is to blame This part of Powell's personality is a liar extraordinaire Jumping into high gear whenever the policeman seems to lose focus in a more informal Setting our conversation and the gustu with which he tells lie after lie each one building like a stack of cards a house of cards rather it makes for For some really fun dialogue and and also It makes for lies just outrageous enough to be believable you when you're met With with such lies as to think them Totally totally impossible to make up. That's the kind of lies. I'm talking about here It's not all butterflies and rabos alas The demolished man is a Holly Freudian affair in its conception of familial relationships And then its ultimate resolution alike, which I find not only outdated but also kind of yucky in addition to that Bessar allows himself to moralize the readers at the nulls very end and Humanist notions to those moralizing notions are They might even be soaked with admirable enough sentiment and yet to most of us readers in the early 20th century Did I say 20th century? I did didn't I? It's the 21st century Philip Trying to keep them. I've been around for a long long while At any point for the readers in the 21st century having moralizing Fint your book all around up with a bow It it diminishes the work somehow and it is a surefire way to lose us especially if it had been done earlier But that is a small matter compared to the alas expected sexist portrayal of Female characters not much in the way of representation of strong female characters indeed So I will say the book is better in the representation of minorities at least Women seem to only have two tree rolls to choose from They're either love sick or the maliciously insane or Last but certainly not least secretaries it's at once to be anticipated with so many of these golden age or just after the golden age sci-fi novelists and At the same time it is disappointing beyond measure because although so many of them The authors I mean had these visionary ideas of how society could develop and best is indeed a very fine Imaginary kind of use of of his his faculties to extrapolate the notions of what a late-stage capitalist Society with a technology much improved and now growing well outside the span of our own Solid system would look like Despite this magnificent capacity for extrapolation They could only think of The way the future might be in a very limited framework monochromatic and male dominated and that is Unfortunately hard to stomach in the 21st century. Of course, we cannot have the same expectations of Literature from 70 years back to to tick all the boxes But that doesn't mean that we're not At least Required to to mention From from a place where we might think that we know better and I would say that we do at least in in the importance of Women's rights and and the role of women in society which should it must be Underlined should be at the same level as any Male I Know I said no moralizing, but I think that's an important point to make Who knows maybe it's not Maybe of course it is and there's no maybe here It's an important point to make my friends and that is the last I will say on it Now I am absolutely happy to recommend to you the demolished man With that big caveat in mind if you'd think that you can enjoy the novel Knowing it's chief issue By all means you should pick it up. I did but I also have to be conscious and I have to Underline the issues that I see That said Join me again next week when I will be talking about my first Robert a Heinlein book double star which I Loved more than I did this and I was saying something Is it is it saying something? I think I dished this book quite a bit But I said it and so I'm stuck with it Meanwhile, I have but one more word for you and that is Subscribe please I beg of you or If if you don't feel like subscribing you might as well click the like button if you dislike the video of course Click the dislike button and let me know how I can do better in the comments below Do you think you're going to? Read this one Do you think you're going to be into the next few videos in which I will Undoubtedly be dishing a lot of these 1950s novels because of their outdated and sexist views You probably will enjoy it one way or the other and that sir is a shred See you next time bye Not a demolish it Demolished what now the demolished man