Yes indeed, I remember as a kid from around 8-9 to 14-15 wandering around the library shelves, bookstores and second hand books in charity shops staring in wonder at the covers. They always whetted the appetite to read the book, what wonders and strange worlds might be inside?
Here's the thing with Elric its almost like a movie script, these books ( and Corum ) just rock along. It was a 70's style. Suggest also Fafhrd and the grey mouser as must read series.
Those DAW books w/the Michael Whelan art work just capture Elric! He paints Elric & Stormbringer perfectly!! They are what drew (pun intended)me to read them!! Elric is the ultimate bad ass!!!!
I discovered the Elric and the Conan novels back in the 70s when I was still in Jr. high, it was the Frazetta and Micheal Whelan book covers that caught my attention
Same for me, it was Frazetta in particular that drew me to Conan initially. The visceral primal horror of rage and war is captured so gorgeously in his paintings that I absolutely had to know who is this man?
That book is in incredible shape for its age. My first Elric was a copy of "The Stealer of Souls" my old man gave me when I was about 12. It's copyright 1972 I believe and the cover has just disintegrated now.
@@tommoblue2296 OOoopps... The Elric novels predate the Children of Hurin by 25 years. It was published in 2007. The Elric books were taken from a series on novellas Moorcock started in 1961 with "The Dreaming City". So it's even older. Unless Moorcock had access to Tolkien's manuscripts then I'd say that it's not a copy of any one's idea. Magic swords have been a part of epic fantasy for a long time but Stormbringer is unique.
Lars O it was in the silmarilion first but your still right as that also came out after Elric I wasn’t saying who copped who I was just saying they are verry similar
I'm sure Salvatore read Elric. Drizzt is in many ways the anti-Elric. He comes from a similarly depraved culture and is similarly concerned with morality, but goes in the opposite direction.
Love the Elric series, gothic and dark. Very simple writing style and straight storyline perfect if you just wanna relax. Usually goes scenery, battle, tragic ending and there's some bigger arc too. The themes in the books, being a sickly outsider, chaos vs order, the cursed black rune blade resonate through time and are classic fantasy tropes now. Definitely recommended, fun read just don't expect some complicated heavy literature. It's one guy with a sword, linear progression.
Still reading the first story but the world of Elric is pretty awesome, in a metal way. I can see why Moorcock has apparently been a big influence in culture.
The Eternal Champion in general is a great archetypal concept, I believe Erekose was one incarnation who was cursed to remember all his other incarnations and he goes through some names at one point. He also meets Elric, Hawkmoon and Corum I think in the story of the magical tower? Also the Chaos and Law, The Balance, The Multiverse. So many of Moorcock's ideas become part of common fantasy culture and in resonate with science in terms of the multiverse / multiple universes theory.
Its interesting to note that Moorcock was actually displeased with Whelan's depiction of Elric. He found the portrayal to be too muscular and Conan-esqe, in direct opposition to his own physical description of the character. Great overview, love this stuff.
your average crown of thorns I can see why. Been years since I’ve read the book but wasn’t Elric albino and anemic? He would be lanky or ropey at best.
@@rhero1 yes, do so. I don't think you will regret a rereading. The material holds up well. Also, i recommend you go further into the eternal champion cycle of short novels. I am very fond of the Hawkmoon stories, if your not familiar.
well made illustrated covers are not "out of style" it's just modern covers are cheap and fast . and hey you don' have to pay an artist for those long hours of work, But in doing that you end up with the modern bookshelf that is filled with thousands of books with pretty much the same cover .. it is sad from a few different points it makes books look cheap , and for me as a artist of course it is sad to see art vanish But more for me it's the memories of being a kid in a book store or library picking up a book because of the cover that makes it jump off the shelf and stand apart
Marketing types will tell you they are out of style, but like anything, it depends on the genre and the target demographic. If you want to see just how cheap and easy a photo cover is, I have a video on my channel where I re-make the cover to "Name of the Wind" using a free program, even though I said I wasn't going to in this video.
@@DVSPress that is a great example of a boring, dull, bland, irrelevant cover. I picked this book up for free on the open bookshelf here in Germany! I would not have gone for it at all if I hadn't known who the author is from his D&D appearances on RUclips! Even a fan-art cover would be way better than the stock photo schlock.
@@handlesarestupid154 Agreed. But I think you could say that about most writers -- literary or genre fiction or whomever -- in that some works will be lauded by the masses and critics while others will be dumped on. It happens to most writers.
That Elric paperback is going for $50 in some places (thanks to the Michael Whalen artwork on the front.) I easily got a copy in the early 80s while a sophomore in college - when my older brother saw it at home - unknown to me, he later brought over a grocery bag full of his Moorcock paperbacks that he read 15 years earlier. Excellent read. Good find, D.S. Thanks. (Think I was directed to this post after recently listening to some RUclips's audio readings of Elric.)
Seen 80s copies with the same cover art on E-Bay for a tenth of the price. I reckon the more recent cover art with Elric looking like Edgar Winter is superior - and truer to MM's description of Elric.
After reading reading, quite a few Elric books (and The Broken Sword) it is quite clear that many things modern authors do, Moorcock did it better and many flaws modern writers make Moorcock did not fell to. It is not just that he is very focused and tightly paced but wrote with inventive and interesting concepts and narratives in mind: The magic, the multiverse, the eternal champion, the worlds. So much, more interesting ideas in these books than what you find in most modern day fantasy.
best elric covers - revenge of the rose, the stormbringer one where the cover is... covered in roses, and japanese fortress of the pearl with that sweet amano art
I CRI EVERYTIEM GODDAMMIT. THAT OLD FAT FUCK IS ONE OF THE BEST WRITERS I'VE READ, HANDS DOWN (personal preference), AND I REAAAAAALLY WANT HIM TO FINISH THAT SHIT HIMSELF.
Great review! I love the core Elric books! Not some of the later stories so much. The Dorian Hawkmoon series starting with The Jewell In The Skull are also excellent! Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and The Grey Mouser are great reads and so is Karl Edward Wagner's Kane series. There is a Kane story where he meets Elric if memory serves. Its a shame that these books don't garner more popularity. They are better than most of the stuff out there today.
I was blown away when I found a book called 'Midnight Sun' with all of Karl Edward Wagner's Kane short stories compiled into one volume. Many of these I had never read before, especially when he reaches the modern period of Earth. For instance, Deep in the Depths of the Acme Warehouse and At First Just Ghostly and a few others. I knew he was immortal but had never read any stories when Kane is a modern drug dealer.
This was a great video to watch, it's been a few years since I read the book ... never owned it myself, but I do remember getting this from the library and enjoying it a lot; I want to revisit it now. Also I played the "Sunless Sea" soundtrack in the background while watching, and it works really well. Just in case anybody else wants to try this ;)
I am more of a Conan fan, but I really did enjoy the first and fourth books of the Elric Saga (those are the only ones i have read). I actually really like a fast moving stories. I have trouble reading really big fantasy epics because i end up getting bored. It seems like Howard and Moorcock were good at writing bite sized fantasy.
Moorcock's critics (who, oddly, all refuse to actually read his books) say that his stories just emphasize the action of doing things, without point, and that the characters receive no treatment or development. Moorcock, however, develops everything through action, including the setting and characters, which creates a much different effect than what most modern fantasy goes for. Elric reveals who he *is* through what he *does.* There is no need for endless pages of dialogue discussing feelings and philosophy and attitudes about the setting, like what you get in the modern mode. As a result, the stories are shorter on words and longer on plot. You also get much more TENSION going through the story when you spend less time with characters relaxing and reflecting on what is happening. It's the same with his Hawkmoon series, which I also like. btw my next fantasy book is a bit closer to the Moorcock mode - packed with action rather than reflection. www.amazon.com/dp/B071G49GH9
I read the whole series when I was in about 13 years old in 1980.. Could not stop reading them. A few years ago I got the hard cover books for Christmas from my daughter and reread them again ... It was awesome to relive how Elric saved the world.
Finally finished "Elric: Stormbringer!", the last novel. This series has had its ups and downs, but man, is it worth going through all of it just to reach this final novel. The whole was better than the sum of its parts(I didn't like the second story in the novel), but overall the novel was quite sensational. It was a thousand times more evil than I expected!
Um...well worded, based on what you commented, may i respectfully suggest now reading the Dorian Hawkmoon books. I have a suspicion you will highly favor those as well. But bare in mind, they are of a somewhat different flavor from the Elric stories.
@@youraveragecrownofthorns8919 I'll definitely go with Hawkmoon next. I'm glad to hear it's different, because I wouldn't want to read the exact same story again. I've also purchased Corum and Erekose series as well.
the way the four come together is awesome. i have a graphic novel of sea of fate that introduced me to the whole saga and the artwork detailing the narrations is just gorgeous.
I have read every book in the Eternal Champion saga... right down to Son of the White Wolf. Some I liked more than others. I really wish he had been more intent on fleshing out "The Eternal Champion" as a starting point. The cover art was always a big part of the experience for me. I never felt like any of the covers for the Corum books were very good. We only had the word pictures of what Corum looked like. The Hawkmoon books always had a good character portrait on the cover and depicted a scene from the books. I am an artist and I was heavily influenced bu Whelan and Boris. "Realistic" fantasy art has always been my passion.
@@DVSPress I haven't ever tried to put anything online. Most of my hand drawn and painted scenes were destroyed in a flood and since then I do 3D art with my computer. I just never felt comfortable putting it online.
I think it was Michael Whelan who did the Elric covers. I know he did a lot of book covers in the seventies, he also did a lot of album covers for bands, as well. For example he did the Sepultura album covers.
David Stewart yeah I just love his album covers, and the style that he had. I particularly love the cover where Eric is on a ship and there's a group of men behind him, and he's holding stormbringer and you could just see the fear on the faces of the individuals behind him. That is a great cover. There was even a metal band that got permission from Michael Whelan to use that cover for their album.
Titus groan and Gormenghast by Mervyn Peak, The Deepest Sea by Charles Barnitz, Three Hearts and Three Lions by Poul Anderson, The Goblin Reservation by Clifford D Simak.
just re-read the Amber chronicles (Zelazny) - one of my all-time favs and highly recommended. Another series that people might want to check out are the Book of Swords set by Fred Saberhagen which even I need to refamiliarize myself with as I only remember that I loved reading them so that's next on my list.
speaking of "anti-heroes" check out The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant where the aforementioned hero is a misanthropic impotent leper who gets transported to a fantasy realm which heals him of his afflictions and his newfound surging virility causes him to rape the first maiden he comes across, great guy! Amazing series.
Sweet Man i just started reading the Elric saga got to say I really like Elric as a character he's a Badass but he has many weaknesses that he has 2 over come in life that make him humble.
@Randy & Ed Robert Gould's Elric is still the gold standard, his renditions look suitably ancient and malevolent without sacrificing the frailty inherent to the character. Amano's is fantastic too, but I've always found his works to be a little too idealized and romanticized. Luckily, Elric has no shortage of superb art to his name which is a boon for fans like us!
Not wishing to be obtuse here, but the story itself is meant to conjure up a mental image of the fantasy world, the protagonists and the adventures they have. You don't need cover art at all.
I just picked this book up at my local used book store a few weeks ago! I'm always drawn to that 60's and 70's fantasy and sci-fi art style so it was a must have. I was very impressed by it, wonderful short read that makes me want to read the whole series!
Really glad I found you David! I really appreciate this kind of content, I'm on a journey back through epic fantasy chronology, and will get right on the Moorcock stuff now!
I have fixed feelings about this idea. On the one hand I'm afraid they'd screw it up, and I'm also a bit of a snob. Like if people can't be bothered to read a good book they don't deserve the story. But on the other hand it could be done really well and I'd really love to see Michael Moorcock get the props he deserves while he's still alive. 🤔
I generally enjoyed The Name of the Wind. It was fun getting to know Kvoth, and it also felt like there was enough of the story being driven forward with the periodic showing up of things relating to the Chandrian. In retrospect, I think the story was teetering on the edge of losing track of the plot and becoming too involved in just how Kvoth became awesome. The Name of the Wind didn't fall enough into that trap to ruin it for me. The Wise Man's Fear, on the other hand, ran head-long into the trap and then plunged flaming over a cliff. More than half the book is just random "how Kvoth became awesome" moments strung together with no glint of an over-arching plot in sight.
I have just read an interview with Michael Moorcock where he explains that his books were a way of approaching a discussion with his contemporaries on the society of the time. I read them without knowing it but now I understand why it has me so much more and why I do not cling to modern fantasy. It's like old science fiction: it's sometimes a little too lean but it's full of sense, there is a spirit, it's the story that counts. Today's books seem to me a bit the opposite: dressed void with a cumbersome mess ! : P Great review !
At the end you substituted gate for gait twice. About the only thing I saw. Loved that there was some history woven into your story. Again; a good job.
David, The Melniboneans are elvish stock. Not quite standard elf but not quite human. Tapered skulls, fine featured and tapering ears that sit close to the skull. he does go into some detail on this ona couple of occasions.
Thank you for promoting Elric, and for explaining how e-book market for me, I am looking to publishing my book, which was inspire by Elric and other things i f-ing love.
While ''magic'' swords were nothing new, Stormbringer, The Runeblade brought a whole new level to the genre. Light-sucking black when first drawn, emitting black radiance in play and howling like a lost soul as it, indeed, sucked in the souls of those slain and trapped them in torment. To paraphrase ''Pulp Fiction'', that was some serious shit!
Elric and The Runestaff suite was published in Swedish in the 80's and 90's and I read a lot of them in (not greatly translated) paperbacks as a teen. Read a lot more of Moorcock since then, in English. I Think some of his fantasy works suffers on the actual Writing (not the ideas or storytelling side though), though I Think that really is down to the format as he clearly follows a certain litterary structure depending on what he is Writing (suspension of logic and plausability for example). Overall I Think he is a great writer (especially The Jerry Cornelius books)., With such a vast output in different styles of sci fi and fantasy Everything can not be expected to be great, but to me his more flawed work (of which Elric is not one) still surpasses a lot of the tedious Contemporary books obsessed with minutiae. This video made me realise quite clear what I often dislike with Contemporary fantasy - the focus on perceived realism over more stylized storytelling and structure (my personal opinion of course) Also 100% agree on the covers.
Excellent point with the physical book aesthetics and refreshing taste of the older Moorcock books! Do you enjoy the Complete Chronicles of Corum book covers? And the old and new cover styles of History of the Runestaff? Great writing!
I read much of the Elric series in the early and into the late eighties. Had and 850 Norton Motorcycle that I painted Elrics arm holding Stormbringer high and named the bike Stormbringer. After that the bike always seemed to be chased by really bad weather. Many cross country trips were pursued by extreme storms. Everything connected to the sword then the bike had bad karma. Got another 850 Norton, was going to call it Mournblade, the other sword in Moorcocks novels but decided it would be a bad idea.
Hello everyone, I'm thinking of reading the Elric saga. As a girl interested in fantasy books, I did some research on Elric. Moorcock has six core books on Elric. Unfortunately, I can't find the audiobooks for the following books (if you know where I can find these three audiobooks, please let me know): book 3 - The Weird of the White Wolf book 4 - The Vanishing Tower book 5 - The Bane of the Black Sword You can find the following audiobooks at audiobookbay.me/ (Ive already downloaded my copies): book 1 - Elric of Melnibone book 2 - The Sailor on the Seas of Fate book 6 - Stormbringer Thanks.
A lot of people have been complaining about not being able to find the audio books. I'm actually having trouble finding any of the Elric stories on Kindle. The complete Corum stories and Eternal Champion are available but not Elric for some reason. I did find a reading of The Sailor on the Seas of Fate on RUclips here. ruclips.net/video/mo2WkEa6Qao/видео.html
I loved that reading! I read those when I was a teenager so it was great to revisit now as an OLD man. The narrator and soundtrack were quite good as well.
I completely agree with you about old book covers. I really miss Darrell K. Sweet and the Brothers Hildebrandt. They did some of the best work in the fantasy art field. Keith Parkinson and Michael Whelan aren't bad but I adore Sweet and Hildebrandt best.
Great video. I wouldn't say i'm a huge Moorcock fan but I do love his books. I love classic fantasy and agree with what you said about the time period. I feel the 60s and 70s and even before that as far back as Robert Howard, the writers really developed a lot of the staples we have today. That's why it's hard for me to love anything past the 70s because I feel as though I've read elements of it before. Lovecraft, Howard, Piers Anthony, Gene Wolfe; these guys really set the bar when it comes to the genre. I can't stand modern fantasy. It's so lengthy and cluttered. I don't need a paragraph to tell me how a town smells or how someone likes his sword smelted. These books from the classic era is where it's at. Just straight to the point. Looking forward to more videos from you. have a good one.
Clarence Dass I agree with most of what you said but the first thing you stated doesn't make sense. so you're not a fan of Moorcock but you love his books? well, being that Mr Moorcock is an author, then 'loving' his books would make you, uhm, a, uh, uh, a 'Fan' ! just sayin 😇
haha yeah, don't know what I was saying. What I meant was, I have a lot of his books and loved the ones I have, but I don't know the ins and outs of them like a fan would. Like, Robert Howard's Conan, I've read those books to death and would consider myself a fan cause I know so many thing things about them and the story details and such. cheers for commenting though. have a good one :)
Great video! You are very conversational and intelligent. I came here because of Moorcock/Elric talk, but I'll view your other videos as well. I became interested in Elric when I was 15 (this was 1985). My era was of the Robert Gould covers (prints are available of these covers on Ebay for a great price BTW). I know what you mean about covers. I believe that a cover should be a work of art in itself and part of the consumer experience. Thrown together covers are an insult to me. Moorcock has gone on record as saying that Elric was developed to be a kind of Conan by being an anti-Conan. Conan came from no renown but was strong and clever, and therefore became king on his own terms by his own power. Elric is also an adventurer but is introduced as the ruler of the most powerful kingdom in the world. He lacks all the physical traits of Conan by being weak and dependent on herbs, magic and drugs. He later gets caught up in powers beyond his control (Stormbringer, the Chaos Lords, fate, etc.). The Elric stories feature only one of the many aspects of the Eternal Champion. Aside from Elric, there are books on Hawkmoon, Corum, Erekose, etc. I'm an avid reader and Moorcock is one of my faves. Cheers.
Have you read the much later "Albino" trilogy? Very different tone from the earlier Elric material. But read Fortress of the Pearl first or you will miss some significant ground work.
Fan of Moorcock's fantasy from way back. Elric is a fantastic inverse of the Conan stories but much more. Stormbringer is a character in itself - a brilliant idea.
MM is still writing. Check out THE WHISPERING SWARM. JIM CAWTHORN did the interior art and Michael Whelan did the cover for that Elric book. Moorcock wasn't upset by Witcher. Until mentioned by his fans, he'd never heard of him. He is a lot less upset than some of his fans.
I just remember reading some of his responses on the forums where he said he was talking to a lawyer about it, but thought it was derivative. And I agree his new stuff is good too, but Elric is classic. Anyone who is looking to find the fantasy classics shouldn't overlook Elric, or Hawkmoon.
David Stewart Do you like old Sci-fi? Perhaps some Heinlein, Asimov or Burroughs. Moorcock did a lot of interesting stand alone work as well. I'm enjoying your movie reviews as well, but I'm a bit of a 50's-80's pulp sci-fi/fantasy fanatic so finding this vid was pretty sweet.
60s/70s cover art on books are my nerdiest pleasure. I like how you describe them as "risky". The only more contemporary books that look something like that time are the Discworld books that came out in the 90s. There's something much bolder about the stories themselves. Often quite weird, to the point of being a little sus in terms of what the "heroes" get up to (look at you Frank Herbert. Chapterhouse bro. Wtf). But there is something kinda fun and weird about that time of sci fi. Everyone is trying to be Tolkein 2.0 now. And no disrepect to Tolkein, love all of his work; but there only needs to be one of him haha. Glad I found your channel!.
I really appreciate this review. As an aspiring novelist (have self published a couple, some years ago, with writing that is pretty atrocious haha) currently writing a book, I'm always feeling inadequate with my descriptions. I hadn't really thought that a lot of it may be the current literary climate, in that flowery descriptions of every detail of people's clothes and things like that is really "in", but that doesn't mean it's NECESSARY for a story to be compelling and worth reading. I've been trying to add more and more descriptions of things, but my style is more plain/to the point and focused instead on plot and character. So, this review actually helped me a lot, to realize I don't need to try and stuff my writing style in a box. :D Also, I really kinda hate the current trend of "stock photo of a person & ill-fitting background with some photoshopped magic" book covers. >.> I loooove illustrated covers! Some photomanipulated covers look great, most are just all right or turn me off from a book completely because they look so basic and boring.
While i love the detail of rothfuss and Sanderson and other contemporary writers its great to have a more direct story to balance it out. Think ill pick up elric when i get the time
Hah. Liked your Star Wars examinations and was just looking through to see if there was anything from one of my favorite authors from my youth. good to see you appreciate the same stuff. Great vid as ever.
I enjoyed the discussion on cover art. It reminds me of a video on youtube by a guy named GoodBadFlicks where he discusses what happened to movie posters. He shows how they are way more formulaic and use Adobe when compared to the 70s/80s. Isn't funny we are not supposed to judge a book by its cover but today's covers are so blah? Right now I'm looking at an old paper back of Footfall by Larry Niven and the cover art is a painting which pulls me in and makes me ask questions like: whose house is wrecked, what happens 5 minutes later, and so on.
I could do a whole video on it. I've done quite a bit of research on it the last few months (for my own necessity). Basically, all the current books use stock photography and are just a few images cleverly blended together, along with some eye-catching typography. Of course, saying that doesn't mean any old person can do the same design - like anything there are a million subtle differences between crap and gold. I too miss the illustrative covers, but they are very out in most genres.
I have early 90's Finnish translation of the book with cover and interior illustrations by a Finnish comic book artist Petri Hiltunen. kauppa.aavetaajuus.fi/tuotekuvat/900x600/elric-melnibonelainen.jpg I think his style fits this story pretty well. I think he illustrated the Finnish translation of the Stormbringer RPG too, but I never played that. I'm always a bit shocked that so many fantasy fans don't know Elric. I think it's essential information to the genre.
Couldn’t you run the photo collage cover through a filter to make it look like a painting? It wouldn’t be as good as a real illustration, but it would still give a similar look, if that’s what you want.
It's an excellent series of books. Moorcock creates a unique world. I did not know it was influenced by Japanese cursed blade myths. Thanks for the info.
I like a lot of early fantasy novels, . Moorcock was modern fantasy when I was growing up and I read a fair bit of his work, but now not so much. George MacDonald: his children's novels Princess and the Goblin and Princess and Curdie his adult fantasy novels Phantastes and particularly Lilith - this novel has a good shot at being the greatest fantasy novel, it is incredibly imaginative and deeply religious, it has a deep seriousness yet that seriousness is perfectly entwined with imagination. Tolkien: The Hobbit , Lord of the Rings etc - These were the first books I read with joy and they just get better with age. Lord Dinsany - The King of Elfland's Daughter - There is one bit that I have a problem with his prose is kind of ornate King Jamesish but he gets across the idea of the beauty of elfland. That'll do for now
@@DVSPress I started to read White but put him down, I can't remember why I didn't take to him, it could have been his prose. I just re-read my comment on Dunsany and see it gives the wrong impression. I said there was one bit I had a problem with then went to speak of his prose but they were two different points. I certainly could see people having a problem with his prose but it does seem like its an intrinsic part of his writing, It is something I would mention to people if they were thinking of reading Dunsany. I don't think it's something other writers should try to copy, although I really liked Lovecaft's Dream Quest of Unknown Kaddath which is Dunsany inspired. The one bit of the King of Elfland's Daughter I had a problem with was actually killing the Unicorn, to kill a mythical beast just seemed like an evil thing to me and Dunsany wasn't trying to represent it as an evil deed. He's just a keen hunter. edit: ps I stayed up last night finishing your Needle Ash series, really enjoyed it and Water of Awakening which I read immediately prior.
I am new to Moorcock's work, I think I only know of it because there is some connection to BLue Oyster Cult --Veteran of the Psychic Wars? I have a copy (Mayflower) of Stormbringer but find that it is difficult for me to find a way in? I want to read the books in some kind of order but keep getting conflicting info on the books and the editions etc. I would like to collect the old pulpy Daw editions if you can give me a hint about which to read first...thanks
"Elric of Melnibone" is the place to start. If you like it, then you can go through the original sequence and interquels. I think the order is: Elric of Melnibone. Fortress of the Pearl (interquel), Sailer on the Seas of Fate, Weird of the White Wolf, Vanishing Tower, Revenge of the Rose (interquel, Bane of the black sword, and Stormbringer.
Nothing beats a good ole Michael Whelan book cover. Love it and Love Elric! I too could go on and on about book cover art. There are a few digital artists that are pushing the curve other than just stock art, but it's few and far between. I also love artwork inside the book as well, sadly that's mostly gone as well. =/ Man I sure do miss the 80's! BTW, have you seen Stranger Things on Netflix yet? wowzers..loved it! You DEF need to check it out!
What is worse than lacklustre photographic covers is those who request free artwork for free, because the book/film is promotion in of itself. Let's compare Moorcock to George RR: filler that ruins the narrative vs. rather surrealist fantasy that does not include many peripherals.
I need a reading order for the COMICS of Elric. I littereally cant find it anywhere. Been searching for like an hour. They don't exactly match up with the book titles and no one has an explanation of order for reading ANYWHERE Please help.
Those older books with the classic fantasy art just make you want to pick it up and start reading!
Yes indeed, I remember as a kid from around 8-9 to 14-15 wandering around the library shelves, bookstores and second hand books in charity shops staring in wonder at the covers. They always whetted the appetite to read the book, what wonders and strange worlds might be inside?
That's the mark of a good cover.
If it makes you want to read the book by definition that's a good cover.
Here's the thing with Elric its almost like a movie script, these books ( and Corum ) just rock along. It was a 70's style. Suggest also Fafhrd and the grey mouser as must read series.
Those DAW books w/the Michael Whelan art work just capture Elric! He paints Elric & Stormbringer perfectly!! They are what drew (pun intended)me to read them!! Elric is the ultimate bad ass!!!!
That first book you talked about looks cool :3 anyhow nice comparison between styles of different times :)
I found the Metatron in the wild! I'm a subscriber, love your videos.
I discovered the Elric and the Conan novels back in the 70s when I was still in Jr. high, it was the Frazetta and Micheal Whelan book covers that caught my attention
Same for me, it was Frazetta in particular that drew me to Conan initially. The visceral primal horror of rage and war is captured so gorgeously in his paintings that I absolutely had to know who is this man?
Vintage fantasy is the way to go for me. The artwork alone a lot of early fantasy books is absolutely gorgeous as well.
That book is in incredible shape for its age. My first Elric was a copy of "The Stealer of Souls" my old man gave me when I was about 12. It's copyright 1972 I believe and the cover has just disintegrated now.
Yeah these old paperbacks aren:t robust and are usually quite well-loved.
Discovered elric in 1983 and when he dies in the end
I felt actual grief and mourned him
Spoiler alert damn dude
@@roddydiaz1090 The books are written out of order so it doesn't matter
Don't worry, he'll be re-incarnated as another Eternal Champion.
"Farewell, my friend, for I was a thousand times more evil than thou" , Stormbringer.
just spoil the end in the comment.
thank you for reminding me, I forgot about it.
Stormbringer is literally Gurthang from the children of Hurin
@@tommoblue2296 OOoopps... The Elric novels predate the Children of Hurin by 25 years. It was published in 2007. The Elric books were taken from a series on novellas Moorcock started in 1961 with "The Dreaming City". So it's even older. Unless Moorcock had access to Tolkien's manuscripts then I'd say that it's not a copy of any one's idea. Magic swords have been a part of epic fantasy for a long time but Stormbringer is unique.
Lars O it was in the silmarilion first but your still right as that also came out after Elric I wasn’t saying who copped who I was just saying they are verry similar
@@tommoblue2296 The idea of cursed swords and other weapons that have a will on their own are found across various human cultures and myths.
What I love about the older Fantasy books, is that most of them have an epic looking artwork!
Four words:
Frank Frazetta
Boris Vallejo
@@garypotter5569 Michael Whelan as well!
I read these books in the mid 80s. One of my favorite series. I wonder if Drizzt was inspired by Elric.
I'm sure Salvatore read Elric. Drizzt is in many ways the anti-Elric. He comes from a similarly depraved culture and is similarly concerned with morality, but goes in the opposite direction.
I highly recommend Jack Vance's works as well. The Dying Earth books are simply masterpieces.
Nice DAW edition. Everyone should sample Elric and Michael Moorecock.
Love the Elric series, gothic and dark. Very simple writing style and straight storyline perfect if you just wanna relax. Usually goes scenery, battle, tragic ending and there's some bigger arc too. The themes in the books, being a sickly outsider, chaos vs order, the cursed black rune blade resonate through time and are classic fantasy tropes now.
Definitely recommended, fun read just don't expect some complicated heavy literature. It's one guy with a sword, linear progression.
Lord Of Chaos Inc. - “I wasn’t expecting ... this”
The Witcher. Game of Thrones. Warhammer. Etc. Etc. Etc.
You name it, it's ripped Elric off.
The Father of Dark Fantasy.
This vid got me to buy 11 Elric books, currently enjoying them a LOT. Really love the fastpaced writing style.
Still reading the first story but the world of Elric is pretty awesome, in a metal way. I can see why Moorcock has apparently been a big influence in culture.
He wrote lyrics for Hawkwind (Lemmy's first band) and Blue Oyster Cult, and performed with them sometimes.
@@DVSPress yep. Awsome bands too. Moorcock is pretty interesting to learn. Really loved Hawkwind’s Moonglum song.
@@DVSPressHave you heard Moorcock's narration at the beginning of Hawkwind's album 'live chronicles'
It's brilliant
I love Elric. I've cried with him, felt his love, pain and adrenaline. His energy runs through my veins
The Eternal Champion in general is a great archetypal concept, I believe Erekose was one incarnation who was cursed to remember all his other incarnations and he goes through some names at one point. He also meets Elric, Hawkmoon and Corum I think in the story of the magical tower? Also the Chaos and Law, The Balance, The Multiverse. So many of Moorcock's ideas become part of common fantasy culture and in resonate with science in terms of the multiverse / multiple universes theory.
Its interesting to note that Moorcock was actually displeased with Whelan's depiction of Elric. He found the portrayal to be too muscular and Conan-esqe, in direct opposition to his own physical description of the character. Great overview, love this stuff.
your average crown of thorns
I can see why. Been years since I’ve read the book but wasn’t Elric albino and anemic? He would be lanky or ropey at best.
@@rhero1 yes, that was part of his description.
your average crown of thorns
Wasn’t sure. It’s been 30+ years since first reading.
I think I’m gonna have to read it again.
@@rhero1 yes, do so. I don't think you will regret a rereading. The material holds up well. Also, i recommend you go further into the eternal champion cycle of short novels. I am very fond of the Hawkmoon stories, if your not familiar.
well made illustrated covers are not "out of style" it's just modern covers are cheap and fast .
and hey you don' have to pay an artist for those long hours of work, But in doing that you end up with the modern bookshelf that is filled with thousands of books with pretty much the same cover .. it is sad from a few different points it makes books look cheap , and for me as a artist of course it is sad to see art vanish But more for me it's the memories of being a kid in a book store or library picking up a book because of the cover that makes it jump off the shelf and stand apart
Marketing types will tell you they are out of style, but like anything, it depends on the genre and the target demographic. If you want to see just how cheap and easy a photo cover is, I have a video on my channel where I re-make the cover to "Name of the Wind" using a free program, even though I said I wasn't going to in this video.
@@DVSPress that is a great example of a boring, dull, bland, irrelevant cover. I picked this book up for free on the open bookshelf here in Germany! I would not have gone for it at all if I hadn't known who the author is from his D&D appearances on RUclips! Even a fan-art cover would be way better than the stock photo schlock.
Roger Zelazny or Piers Anthony -- Moorcock's contemporaries from the same 60s and 70s time period -- are two great writers to look at as well.
Piers Anthony is extremely hit or miss
@@handlesarestupid154 True, Anthony had some classics and ones not so much.
@@kamuelalee reading On a Pale Horse followed by Bearing an Hourglass is such a difference in quality that it gave me whiplash
@@handlesarestupid154 Agreed. But I think you could say that about most writers -- literary or genre fiction or whomever -- in that some works will be lauded by the masses and critics while others will be dumped on. It happens to most writers.
That Elric paperback is going for $50 in some places (thanks to the Michael Whalen artwork on the front.) I easily got a copy in the early 80s while a sophomore in college - when my older brother saw it at home - unknown to me, he later brought over a grocery bag full of his Moorcock paperbacks that he read 15 years earlier. Excellent read. Good find, D.S. Thanks. (Think I was directed to this post after recently listening to some RUclips's audio readings of Elric.)
Thankfully they've been republished in omnibuses this year.
Seen 80s copies with the same cover art on E-Bay for a tenth of the price. I reckon the more recent cover art with Elric looking like Edgar Winter is superior - and truer to MM's description of Elric.
After reading reading, quite a few Elric books (and The Broken Sword) it is quite clear that many things modern authors do, Moorcock did it better and many flaws modern writers make Moorcock did not fell to. It is not just that he is very focused and tightly paced but wrote with inventive and interesting concepts and narratives in mind: The magic, the multiverse, the eternal champion, the worlds.
So much, more interesting ideas in these books than what you find in most modern day fantasy.
best elric covers - revenge of the rose, the stormbringer one where the cover is... covered in roses, and japanese fortress of the pearl with that sweet amano art
@7:44 if George R. R. Martin wrote it it would be three books long with the third book still TBA
HA!
That old fat fuck will croak before he
ever finishes "A Song of Ice and Fire."
True, but every character and battle would be allegory to actual history.
I CRI EVERYTIEM GODDAMMIT. THAT OLD FAT FUCK IS ONE OF THE BEST WRITERS I'VE READ, HANDS DOWN (personal preference), AND I REAAAAAALLY WANT HIM TO FINISH THAT SHIT HIMSELF.
George stole a lot from Moorcock. But Moorcock wrote the best endings ever.
Great review! I love the core Elric books! Not some of the later stories so much. The Dorian Hawkmoon series starting with The Jewell In The Skull are also excellent! Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and The Grey Mouser are great reads and so is Karl Edward Wagner's Kane series. There is a Kane story where he meets Elric if memory serves. Its a shame that these books don't garner more popularity. They are better than most of the stuff out there today.
I was blown away when I found a book called 'Midnight Sun' with all of Karl Edward Wagner's Kane short stories compiled into one volume. Many of these I had never read before, especially when he reaches the modern period of Earth. For instance, Deep in the Depths of the Acme Warehouse and At First Just Ghostly and a few others. I knew he was immortal but had never read any stories when Kane is a modern drug dealer.
This series was the first fantasy book i ever read it still holds up today great book.
Agreed. Moorcock and Robert E. Howard were my idols growing up, and their novels served as my personal Bibles for years afterwards.
This was a great video to watch, it's been a few years since I read the book ... never owned it myself, but I do remember getting this from the library and enjoying it a lot; I want to revisit it now.
Also I played the "Sunless Sea" soundtrack in the background while watching, and it works really well. Just in case anybody else wants to try this ;)
I am more of a Conan fan, but I really did enjoy the first and fourth books of the Elric Saga (those are the only ones i have read). I actually really like a fast moving stories. I have trouble reading really big fantasy epics because i end up getting bored. It seems like Howard and Moorcock were good at writing bite sized fantasy.
Moorcock's critics (who, oddly, all refuse to actually read his books) say that his stories just emphasize the action of doing things, without point, and that the characters receive no treatment or development. Moorcock, however, develops everything through action, including the setting and characters, which creates a much different effect than what most modern fantasy goes for. Elric reveals who he *is* through what he *does.* There is no need for endless pages of dialogue discussing feelings and philosophy and attitudes about the setting, like what you get in the modern mode. As a result, the stories are shorter on words and longer on plot. You also get much more TENSION going through the story when you spend less time with characters relaxing and reflecting on what is happening.
It's the same with his Hawkmoon series, which I also like.
btw my next fantasy book is a bit closer to the Moorcock mode - packed with action rather than reflection. www.amazon.com/dp/B071G49GH9
I read the whole series when I was in about 13 years old in 1980.. Could not stop reading them. A few years ago I got the hard cover books for Christmas from my daughter and reread them again ... It was awesome to relive how Elric saved the world.
Just ordered this book. Been a long time sci fi fan figured I must be missing out by avoiding some fantasy. Starting with this book.
Just reading the Elric novels and I noticed that G.R.R Martin took rather a lot of ideas of from it.
Fake zit Thtone Writer. Defiantly. read log of Moorcock
Finally finished "Elric: Stormbringer!", the last novel. This series has had its ups and downs, but man, is it worth going through all of it just to reach this final novel. The whole was better than the sum of its parts(I didn't like the second story in the novel), but overall the novel was quite sensational. It was a thousand times more evil than I expected!
Um...well worded, based on what you commented, may i respectfully suggest now reading the Dorian Hawkmoon books. I have a suspicion you will highly favor those as well. But bare in mind, they are of a somewhat different flavor from the Elric stories.
@@youraveragecrownofthorns8919 I'll definitely go with Hawkmoon next. I'm glad to hear it's different, because I wouldn't want to read the exact same story again. I've also purchased Corum and Erekose series as well.
@@constantin5509 you won't regret reading any of them🍺🤘
Currently reading Elric. Enjoying it a lot. Great review!
the way the four come together is awesome. i have a graphic novel of sea of fate that introduced me to the whole saga and the artwork detailing the narrations is just gorgeous.
I have read every book in the Eternal Champion saga... right down to Son of the White Wolf. Some I liked more than others. I really wish he had been more intent on fleshing out "The Eternal Champion" as a starting point. The cover art was always a big part of the experience for me. I never felt like any of the covers for the Corum books were very good. We only had the word pictures of what Corum looked like. The Hawkmoon books always had a good character portrait on the cover and depicted a scene from the books. I am an artist and I was heavily influenced bu Whelan and Boris. "Realistic" fantasy art has always been my passion.
Have a portfolio to link?
@@DVSPress I haven't ever tried to put anything online. Most of my hand drawn and painted scenes were destroyed in a flood and since then I do 3D art with my computer. I just never felt comfortable putting it online.
I think it was Michael Whelan who did the Elric covers. I know he did a lot of book covers in the seventies, he also did a lot of album covers for bands, as well. For example he did the Sepultura album covers.
He's been very prolific. Currently, he does pretty high-profile covers, including the stormlight archive for Brandon Sanderson.
David Stewart yeah I just love his album covers, and the style that he had. I particularly love the cover where Eric is on a ship and there's a group of men behind him, and he's holding stormbringer and you could just see the fear on the faces of the individuals behind him. That is a great cover. There was even a metal band that got permission from Michael Whelan to use that cover for their album.
Titus groan and Gormenghast by Mervyn Peak, The Deepest Sea by Charles Barnitz, Three Hearts and Three Lions by Poul Anderson, The Goblin Reservation by Clifford D Simak.
just re-read the Amber chronicles (Zelazny) - one of my all-time favs and highly recommended. Another series that people might want to check out are the Book of Swords set by Fred Saberhagen which even I need to refamiliarize myself with as I only remember that I loved reading them so that's next on my list.
speaking of "anti-heroes" check out The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant where the aforementioned hero is a misanthropic impotent leper who gets transported to a fantasy realm which heals him of his afflictions and his newfound surging virility causes him to rape the first maiden he comes across, great guy! Amazing series.
I love the Amber series. I wish someone would make it into an anime series
Sweet Man i just started reading the Elric saga got to say I really like Elric as a character he's a Badass but he has many weaknesses that he has 2 over come in life that make him humble.
I have read the Elric series multiple times and are among my favorites. Great books!
Watching in August of 2020
I never liked that painting of Elric. He is supposed to be sickly, not a bodybuilder. However, the Elric series is excellent.
@Randy & Ed Robert Gould's Elric is still the gold standard, his renditions look suitably ancient and malevolent without sacrificing the frailty inherent to the character. Amano's is fantastic too, but I've always found his works to be a little too idealized and romanticized. Luckily, Elric has no shortage of superb art to his name which is a boon for fans like us!
Not wishing to be obtuse here, but the story itself is meant to conjure up a mental image of the fantasy world, the protagonists and the adventures they have. You don't need cover art at all.
I just picked this book up at my local used book store a few weeks ago! I'm always drawn to that 60's and 70's fantasy and sci-fi art style so it was a must have. I was very impressed by it, wonderful short read that makes me want to read the whole series!
I think the best books are later on in the series.
Really glad I found you David! I really appreciate this kind of content, I'm on a journey back through epic fantasy chronology, and will get right on the Moorcock stuff now!
Always loved Michael Moorcock's Elric series of books, truly wonderful and awesome epic adventures :)
I loved this series and others in Moorcock’s Champion Eternal series. Would love to see a Netflix series.
I have fixed feelings about this idea.
On the one hand I'm afraid they'd screw it up, and I'm also a bit of a snob.
Like if people can't be bothered to read a good book they don't deserve the story.
But on the other hand it could be done really well and I'd really love to see Michael Moorcock get the props he deserves while he's still alive. 🤔
Nine Princes in Amber, by Roger Zelazny, Is a must-read.
It's great
I generally enjoyed The Name of the Wind. It was fun getting to know Kvoth, and it also felt like there was enough of the story being driven forward with the periodic showing up of things relating to the Chandrian. In retrospect, I think the story was teetering on the edge of losing track of the plot and becoming too involved in just how Kvoth became awesome. The Name of the Wind didn't fall enough into that trap to ruin it for me.
The Wise Man's Fear, on the other hand, ran head-long into the trap and then plunged flaming over a cliff. More than half the book is just random "how Kvoth became awesome" moments strung together with no glint of an over-arching plot in sight.
I have just read an interview with Michael Moorcock where he explains that his books were a way of approaching a discussion with his contemporaries on the society of the time. I read them without knowing it but now I understand why it has me so much more and why I do not cling to modern fantasy. It's like old science fiction: it's sometimes a little too lean but it's full of sense, there is a spirit, it's the story that counts. Today's books seem to me a bit the opposite: dressed void with a cumbersome mess ! : P Great review !
At the end you substituted gate for gait twice. About the only thing I saw. Loved that there was some history woven into your story. Again; a good job.
David, The Melniboneans are elvish stock. Not quite standard elf but not quite human. Tapered skulls, fine featured and tapering ears that sit close to the skull. he does go into some detail on this ona couple of occasions.
Thank you for promoting Elric, and for explaining how e-book market for me, I am looking to publishing my book, which was inspire by Elric and other things i f-ing love.
While ''magic'' swords were nothing new, Stormbringer, The Runeblade brought a whole new level to the genre. Light-sucking black when first drawn, emitting black radiance in play and howling like a lost soul as it, indeed, sucked in the souls of those slain and trapped them in torment. To paraphrase ''Pulp Fiction'', that was some serious shit!
Elric and The Runestaff suite was published in Swedish in the 80's and 90's and I read a lot of them in (not greatly translated) paperbacks as a teen. Read a lot more of Moorcock since then, in English. I Think some of his fantasy works suffers on the actual Writing (not the ideas or storytelling side though), though I Think that really is down to the format as he clearly follows a certain litterary structure depending on what he is Writing (suspension of logic and plausability for example). Overall I Think he is a great writer (especially The Jerry Cornelius books)., With such a vast output in different styles of sci fi and fantasy Everything can not be expected to be great, but to me his more flawed work (of which Elric is not one) still surpasses a lot of the tedious Contemporary books obsessed with minutiae. This video made me realise quite clear what I often dislike with Contemporary fantasy - the focus on perceived realism over more stylized storytelling and structure (my personal opinion of course)
Also 100% agree on the covers.
Excellent point with the physical book aesthetics and refreshing taste of the older Moorcock books! Do you enjoy the Complete Chronicles of Corum book covers? And the old and new cover styles of History of the Runestaff? Great writing!
I read much of the Elric series in the early and into the late eighties. Had and 850 Norton Motorcycle that I painted Elrics arm holding Stormbringer high and named the bike Stormbringer. After that the bike always seemed to be chased by really bad weather. Many cross country trips were pursued by extreme storms. Everything connected to the sword then the bike had bad karma. Got another 850 Norton, was going to call it Mournblade, the other sword in Moorcocks novels but decided it would be a bad idea.
Elric of Melnibone' with his Stormbringer and Drizzt Do'urden with his Llolth.
Two of the greatest characters ever created any time, or anywhere.
Hello everyone, I'm thinking of reading the Elric saga. As a girl interested in fantasy books, I did some research on Elric. Moorcock has six core books on Elric. Unfortunately, I can't find the audiobooks for the following books (if you know where I can find these three audiobooks, please let me know):
book 3 - The Weird of the White Wolf
book 4 - The Vanishing Tower
book 5 - The Bane of the Black Sword
You can find the following audiobooks at audiobookbay.me/ (Ive already downloaded my copies):
book 1 - Elric of Melnibone
book 2 - The Sailor on the Seas of Fate
book 6 - Stormbringer
Thanks.
A lot of people have been complaining about not being able to find the audio books. I'm actually having trouble finding any of the Elric stories on Kindle. The complete Corum stories and Eternal Champion are available but not Elric for some reason.
I did find a reading of The Sailor on the Seas of Fate on RUclips here. ruclips.net/video/mo2WkEa6Qao/видео.html
I loved that reading! I read those when I was a teenager so it was great to revisit now as an OLD man. The narrator and soundtrack were quite good as well.
I completely agree with you about old book covers. I really miss Darrell K. Sweet and the Brothers Hildebrandt. They did some of the best work in the fantasy art field. Keith Parkinson and Michael Whelan aren't bad but I adore Sweet and Hildebrandt best.
I read that book YEEEEEEARS ago, and I agree with you, in my opinion it was a great book.
One of my favorites ! I still have the DAW box set from the 70s.
Great video. I wouldn't say i'm a huge Moorcock fan but I do love his books. I love classic fantasy and agree with what you said about the time period. I feel the 60s and 70s and even before that as far back as Robert Howard, the writers really developed a lot of the staples we have today.
That's why it's hard for me to love anything past the 70s because I feel as though I've read elements of it before. Lovecraft, Howard, Piers Anthony, Gene Wolfe; these guys really set the bar when it comes to the genre.
I can't stand modern fantasy. It's so lengthy and cluttered. I don't need a paragraph to tell me how a town smells or how someone likes his sword smelted.
These books from the classic era is where it's at. Just straight to the point.
Looking forward to more videos from you. have a good one.
I agree. My latest project was explicitly trying to condense my style a bit more and pack a more compelling story into a smaller package.
Clarence Dass I agree with most of what you said but the first thing you stated doesn't make sense. so you're not a fan of Moorcock but you love his books? well, being that Mr Moorcock is an author, then 'loving' his books would make you, uhm, a, uh, uh, a 'Fan' !
just sayin 😇
haha yeah, don't know what I was saying. What I meant was, I have a lot of his books and loved the ones I have, but I don't know the ins and outs of them like a fan would. Like, Robert Howard's Conan, I've read those books to death and would consider myself a fan cause I know so many thing things about them and the story details and such.
cheers for commenting though. have a good one :)
Great video! You are very conversational and intelligent. I came here because of Moorcock/Elric talk, but I'll view your other videos as well.
I became interested in Elric when I was 15 (this was 1985). My era was of the Robert Gould covers (prints are available of these covers on Ebay for a great price BTW). I know what you mean about covers. I believe that a cover should be a work of art in itself and part of the consumer experience. Thrown together covers are an insult to me.
Moorcock has gone on record as saying that Elric was developed to be a kind of Conan by being an anti-Conan. Conan came from no renown but was strong and clever, and therefore became king on his own terms by his own power. Elric is also an adventurer but is introduced as the ruler of the most powerful kingdom in the world. He lacks all the physical traits of Conan by being weak and dependent on herbs, magic and drugs. He later gets caught up in powers beyond his control (Stormbringer, the Chaos Lords, fate, etc.).
The Elric stories feature only one of the many aspects of the Eternal Champion. Aside from Elric, there are books on Hawkmoon, Corum, Erekose, etc.
I'm an avid reader and Moorcock is one of my faves. Cheers.
Have you read the much later "Albino" trilogy? Very different tone from the earlier Elric material. But read Fortress of the Pearl first or you will miss some significant ground work.
I'm pretty sure that Elric's blade inspired the Soul Reaver from the Legacy of Kain video games
Chris Snow and black razor
and the lich king and frostmourn
Miguel Bibanski stfu
Fan of Moorcock's fantasy from way back. Elric is a fantastic inverse of the Conan stories but much more. Stormbringer is a character in itself - a brilliant idea.
I have this same edition and it's fantastic.
One of the greatest works of dark fiction I’ve ever read!
Just finished your book Muramasa: Blood Drinker. I enjoyed it a lot. I had the DAW series of Elric books. Re-read them several times.
Thanks so much! The second addition will be coming out soon, so I'll look out for those mistakes.
Another group that had songs about elric, Blind Guardian. Fast to madness, tanelorn, quest for tanelorn are all song about elric by them.
MM is still writing. Check out THE WHISPERING SWARM. JIM CAWTHORN did the interior art and Michael Whelan did the cover for that Elric book. Moorcock wasn't upset by Witcher. Until mentioned by his fans, he'd never heard of him. He is a lot less upset than some of his fans.
I just remember reading some of his responses on the forums where he said he was talking to a lawyer about it, but thought it was derivative. And I agree his new stuff is good too, but Elric is classic. Anyone who is looking to find the fantasy classics shouldn't overlook Elric, or Hawkmoon.
Time for some more classic book reviews!!
I'm enjoying your reviews.
Thanks!
David Stewart Do you like old Sci-fi? Perhaps some Heinlein, Asimov or Burroughs. Moorcock did a lot of interesting stand alone work as well.
I'm enjoying your movie reviews as well, but I'm a bit of a 50's-80's pulp sci-fi/fantasy fanatic so finding this vid was pretty sweet.
I was critical of Starship Troopers, but I like Heinlein's books overall. Older scifi used to be about IDEAS, and he was great at those.
@@DVSPress He was. If you want to cover a writer with ideas there's few better than Philip K Dick.
60s/70s cover art on books are my nerdiest pleasure.
I like how you describe them as "risky". The only more contemporary books that look something like that time are the Discworld books that came out in the 90s.
There's something much bolder about the stories themselves.
Often quite weird, to the point of being a little sus in terms of what the "heroes" get up to (look at you Frank Herbert. Chapterhouse bro. Wtf).
But there is something kinda fun and weird about that time of sci fi.
Everyone is trying to be Tolkein 2.0 now. And no disrepect to Tolkein, love all of his work; but there only needs to be one of him haha.
Glad I found your channel!.
Elric is my favorite fantasy character.
really good summery. Possibly check out Mervyn Peake which is a huge influence on Elric and a cracking read.
I really appreciate this review. As an aspiring novelist (have self published a couple, some years ago, with writing that is pretty atrocious haha) currently writing a book, I'm always feeling inadequate with my descriptions. I hadn't really thought that a lot of it may be the current literary climate, in that flowery descriptions of every detail of people's clothes and things like that is really "in", but that doesn't mean it's NECESSARY for a story to be compelling and worth reading. I've been trying to add more and more descriptions of things, but my style is more plain/to the point and focused instead on plot and character.
So, this review actually helped me a lot, to realize I don't need to try and stuff my writing style in a box. :D Also, I really kinda hate the current trend of "stock photo of a person & ill-fitting background with some photoshopped magic" book covers. >.> I loooove illustrated covers! Some photomanipulated covers look great, most are just all right or turn me off from a book completely because they look so basic and boring.
While i love the detail of rothfuss and Sanderson and other contemporary writers its great to have a more direct story to balance it out. Think ill pick up elric when i get the time
You are 100% right about the covers tho i adore the old painted covers, especially noticeable in horror novels
You can't sell a horror novel with a painted cover these days.
Hah. Liked your Star Wars examinations and was just looking through to see if there was anything from one of my favorite authors from my youth. good to see you appreciate the same stuff. Great vid as ever.
I enjoyed the discussion on cover art. It reminds me of a video on youtube by a guy named GoodBadFlicks where he discusses what happened to movie posters. He shows how they are way more formulaic and use Adobe when compared to the 70s/80s. Isn't funny we are not supposed to judge a book by its cover but today's covers are so blah? Right now I'm looking at an old paper back of Footfall by Larry Niven and the cover art is a painting which pulls me in and makes me ask questions like: whose house is wrecked, what happens 5 minutes later, and so on.
I could do a whole video on it. I've done quite a bit of research on it the last few months (for my own necessity). Basically, all the current books use stock photography and are just a few images cleverly blended together, along with some eye-catching typography. Of course, saying that doesn't mean any old person can do the same design - like anything there are a million subtle differences between crap and gold.
I too miss the illustrative covers, but they are very out in most genres.
I have early 90's Finnish translation of the book with cover and interior illustrations by a Finnish comic book artist Petri Hiltunen.
kauppa.aavetaajuus.fi/tuotekuvat/900x600/elric-melnibonelainen.jpg
I think his style fits this story pretty well. I think he illustrated the Finnish translation of the Stormbringer RPG too, but I never played that.
I'm always a bit shocked that so many fantasy fans don't know Elric. I think it's essential information to the genre.
What a great image - totally what I imagine with Elric on his battle-barge.
Couldn’t you run the photo collage cover through a filter to make it look like a painting? It wouldn’t be as good as a real illustration, but it would still give a similar look, if that’s what you want.
'Blood and souls for my lord Arioch!' would recomend a bit of Moorcock for a read
Talk about Karl Edward Wagner's Kane books!! Great, great character. Great stories!!👍
I LOVED that book as a kid!
It's an excellent series of books. Moorcock creates a unique world. I did not know it was influenced by Japanese cursed blade myths. Thanks for the info.
Witcher author Sapkowski translated the Elric books into Polish, then…. ‘borrowed’ from the stories.
I like a lot of early fantasy novels, . Moorcock was modern fantasy when I was growing up and I read a fair bit of his work, but now not so much.
George MacDonald: his children's novels Princess and the Goblin and Princess and Curdie
his adult fantasy novels Phantastes and particularly Lilith - this novel has a good shot at being the greatest fantasy novel, it is incredibly imaginative and deeply religious, it has a deep seriousness yet that seriousness is perfectly entwined with imagination.
Tolkien: The Hobbit , Lord of the Rings etc - These were the first books I read with joy and they just get better with age.
Lord Dinsany - The King of Elfland's Daughter - There is one bit that I have a problem with his prose is kind of ornate King Jamesish but he gets across the idea of the beauty of elfland.
That'll do for now
Prefer Dunsanay to TH White though. White's prose is opaque in places.
@@DVSPress I started to read White but put him down, I can't remember why I didn't take to him, it could have been his prose. I just re-read my comment on Dunsany and see it gives the wrong impression. I said there was one bit I had a problem with then went to speak of his prose but they were two different points. I certainly could see people having a problem with his prose but it does seem like its an intrinsic part of his writing, It is something I would mention to people if they were thinking of reading Dunsany. I don't think it's something other writers should try to copy, although I really liked Lovecaft's Dream Quest of Unknown Kaddath which is Dunsany inspired. The one bit of the King of Elfland's Daughter I had a problem with was actually killing the Unicorn, to kill a mythical beast just seemed like an evil thing to me and Dunsany wasn't trying to represent it as an evil deed. He's just a keen hunter.
edit: ps I stayed up last night finishing your Needle Ash series, really enjoyed it and Water of Awakening which I read immediately prior.
I am new to Moorcock's work, I think I only know of it because there is some connection to BLue Oyster Cult --Veteran of the Psychic Wars? I have a copy (Mayflower) of Stormbringer but find that it is difficult for me to find a way in? I want to read the books in some kind of order but keep getting conflicting info on the books and the editions etc. I would like to collect the old pulpy Daw editions if you can give me a hint about which to read first...thanks
"Elric of Melnibone" is the place to start. If you like it, then you can go through the original sequence and interquels. I think the order is: Elric of Melnibone. Fortress of the Pearl (interquel), Sailer on the Seas of Fate, Weird of the White Wolf, Vanishing Tower, Revenge of the Rose (interquel, Bane of the black sword, and Stormbringer.
My favorite read this 35 years ago
What are your thoughts on R. Scott Bakker's Second Apocalypse Saga {Prince of Nothing Trilogy and Aspect-Emperor Quarter}??
Nothing beats a good ole Michael Whelan book cover. Love it and Love Elric!
I too could go on and on about book cover art. There are a few digital artists that are pushing the curve other than just stock art, but it's few and far between. I also love artwork inside the book as well, sadly that's mostly gone as well. =/ Man I sure do miss the 80's!
BTW, have you seen Stranger Things on Netflix yet? wowzers..loved it! You DEF need to check it out!
I will, thanks!
Elric is anti-Conan.
it's hard to find his novels of Elric. Hawkmoon
I want a pact with the dark gods
What is worse than lacklustre photographic covers is those who request free artwork for free, because the book/film is promotion in of itself. Let's compare Moorcock to George RR: filler that ruins the narrative vs. rather surrealist fantasy that does not include many peripherals.
I need a reading order for the COMICS of Elric. I littereally cant find it anywhere. Been searching for like an hour. They don't exactly match up with the book titles and no one has an explanation of order for reading ANYWHERE Please help.
Ty for your video
why are these books so expensive? I'm used to seeing these paperbacks go for 2.99 but its going for 40 usd on ebay.