Author Topic: Pseudopod 131: Tales of the White Street Society - The Corpse Army of Khartoum  (Read 19521 times)

Bdoomed

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Pseudopod 131: Tales of the White Street Society - The Corpse Army of Khartoum

By Grady Hendrix

Read by Alasdair Stuart

It had been some time since we had last been called to a meeting of the White Street Society and all of us yearned to quench the thirst for the strange that these meetings had fostered in our souls, which is why the three of us – Drake, Lewis and myself – finally abandoned formality and stopped by the clubhouse uninvited, fully expecting Augustus to be absent, overseas perhaps, investigating some mysterious mystery. Instead, we stood frozen in surprise and dripping with February rain in the doorway of the clubroom, watching our old friend sitting by the fire and reading the papers, as cool as an oyster.

“Augustus,” cried Drake. “What are you doing here?”

“And where’s Charles?,” said Lewis, as an unfamiliar manservant helped him off with his overcoat.



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Raving_Lunatic

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This was an excellent story. Funny, as the previous one was, yet shocking at the end. Dare I say that it is one of the best Pseudopods ever run? It slowly introduces the madness of Augustus which grows into a huge crescendo as we realise how many he had killed for his own gain, and see that he is the evil one. It also raises questions about how we can slowly cross the line into madness, and about the greed of humanity. A truly amazing ending in those last few paragraphs or lines, and I guarentee it will hit you emotionally as well. Well done to the author for writing such a wonderful and thought-provoking story.

Oh and Al, that moment in Blackadder IV is still my favourite piece of television, ever. Just incredibly powerful.



DKT

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I haven't listened to it yet...but I am so so happy that there's another one of these stories. I loved the first one. Yay!  ;D ;D ;D ;D


leaaah

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Loved it, from the casual cruelty of the protagonist to the horrible ending. (Horrible in a good way, obviously.)



Listener

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This story had all the same hallmarks of the last one that made me like it so much. However, I don't think this one was AS good. Last time, I felt the protagonist was much more unpleasant a person; this time, he's just a callous, self-interested man. The ending -- using Chinese Gordon as a stock ticker -- was a suitably disturbing image to end on. Unfortunately, unlike A.S., I did NOT like the drawn-out denouement where the observer went on and on about the evils of money. That slowed down a formerly fast-paced story and left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth after how good the story was in the first place.

So, if the author is reading this... next time, end after the image of Chinese Gordon (relatively speaking) and I for one will be much happier. Otherwise, great job all around.

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DKT

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A worthy follow-up to the first one, that's for sure.

I laughed out loud when the narrator was able to talk himself out of himself out of his bonds, then pushed the man who had freed him off the building. Brilliant. And a great narration by Al. The ending denouement kind of surprised me, too. I think that's more because the denouement at the end of the first one was so horribly chilling because the character completely missed the real horror. Whereas this character seemed to grasp it (I can't remember if it's the same narrator in both pieces). That said, as this is becoming something of a serial, I'm very willing to give Grady Hendrix the benefit of the doubt and go with it as one of those future developments to hold onto in other stories.

All in all, another great story. Chilling to the end. And now I'm hoping there's more where these came from.


Poppydragon

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I enjoyed this, as I've not listened to the first one that has been referenced I shall have to go looking. It had a bit of a feel of The Man Who Would Be King about it, or at least that was the setting that my mind put it in, or maybe it was just the unveiling of the head . I enjoyed most of the narration but I'm afraid I did wince at Al's Scottish accent, it did put me off for a few minutes.

The horror of the story, for me, was in the contrast between the matter of fact narration by Augustus and the terrible events that were being described as if there was nothing unsettling about them. IMO the lengthy denoument worked, further reinforcing the horror of what was up stairs and how it was being used. Not the best I've heard on PP but certainly up there.

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Alasdair5000

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Sorry about the accent, it is HORRIBLE:)  I went round and round on it and ultimately, just about, managed to justify my dismal Scottish accent as it being Augustus telling the story and he doesn't bother himself with petty things like accuracy...



Poppydragon

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Sorry about the accent, it is HORRIBLE:)  I went round and round on it and ultimately, just about, managed to justify my dismal Scottish accent as it being Augustus telling the story and he doesn't bother himself with petty things like accuracy...

One of the best bits of sophistry that I've heard in ages, brilliant Al, worth the accent just to read the justification  ;D

Man - despite his artistic pretensions, his sophistication, and his many accomplishments - owes his existence to a six inch layer of topsoil and the fact that it rains.


Sgarre1

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Very good story, I enjoyed it much more than the earlier one ("The Hairy Ghost") which was also very good, but suffered in a subtle area.  I appreciate that the narrator in the first one was a callous prig, oblivious to his racism, sexism, etc, but when dealing with ethnic stereotypes it is perhaps worthwhile to remember that you want to pull off the tough writing act with them being treated as if they were stereotypes without them actually acting in story as same, unless we're to assume that the narrator is coloring the tale, at which point it drifts into that area of "I know racism is bad but I'm writing a character who's racist and telling a story, so I can indulge my desire to use racist stereotypes safely" - just bite the writing bullet and do the subtle stuff.

This one was a treat, having the same level of blind offensiveness, while running along in a nice, breezy pulp style.  I laughed out loud at the "did you die?" question.

I'm torn on the ending.  I'm completely in agreement with its point, but do feel that it somewhat undermines the tone of the preceding material.  I have no problem with idea of occult investigators crossed with racist upper-crust types as humor/horror story point (In fact, I think its brilliant!) as long as the writing walks the tightrope I noted above (think George MacDonald Fraser's FLASHMAN series of books, for a better example - in fact, as Fraser has recently died, I'd suggest Grady Hendrix as the obvious successor to continue writing the series!), but I do feel that this sudden twinge of conscience on the part of the main character seemed at odds with the promise of the story's tone - kind of like wanting to have your cake and eat it to.  Better to have just ended on that horrible image for a really black comedy punchline.  We know they're monsters, unless we happen to have not been paying attention all this time.  But the writing of the ending itself was simply lovely, so I can see how it's a tough call.

I'm kind of confused as the the time setting of these stories, what with stock tickers and all.  Anyone?

I was lucky enough to be in England when the season finale of BLACKADDER GOES FOURTH was premiered.  I can still remember how a young woman in the room started crying when George realized that all his school chums were now dead (including "Strangely Brown"), and how deathly silent the room became as the final moments rolled out.

Thanks For Listening
“You’re like a lighthouse shining beside the sea of humanity, motionless: all you can see is your own reflection in the water. You’re alone, so you think it’s a vast, magnificent panorama. You haven’t sounded the depths. You simply believe in the beauty of God’s creation. But I have spent all this time in the water, diving deep into the howling ocean of life, deeper than anyone. While you were admiring the surface, I saw the shipwrecks, the drowned bodies, the monsters of the deep.”
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« Last Edit: March 04, 2009, 06:10:28 AM by Sgarre1 »



MacArthurBug

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Absolutely awesome story- very very very well done. I enjoyed the heck out of the whole thing..


.. except the singing.
« Last Edit: March 04, 2009, 04:30:00 AM by MacArthurBug »

Oh, great and mighty Alasdair, Orator Maleficent, He of the Silvered Tongue, guide this humble fangirl past jumping up and down and squeeing upon hearing the greatness of Thy voice.
Oh mighty Mur the Magnificent. I am not worthy.


Alasdair5000

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Absolutely awesome story- very very very well done. I enjoyed the heck out of the whole thing..


.. except the singing.

Oh God...Oh God the SINGING...the endless SINGING...

Not a high point of my Pseudopod career, was it?:)



600south

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That was a great story. Surprisingly, I was more shocked by Augustus' actions throughout the story than I was by the ending. I guess by that stage, nothing he did shocked me anymore.

I also remember being chilled by the ending of Blackadder Goes Forth. Probably because I was expecting comedy and got something heartwrenching instead. The ending of the Aussie film "Gallipoli" has the same effect on people, even though it was a drama all along.

of course there are other examples, like "The Vanishing", where the dramatic left turn is taken and then steered back on course. Those ones never stick in our minds as much.



Cerebrilith

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This story was fun.  I chuckled at it too much to feel like it was really horror.  More like it was satire of horror.  Or perhaps a gory fantasy.



MacArthurBug

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Al- truly not. I had to prove I had a reason for the cringe/twitch so I exposed my oldest daughter to the "singing"- she fled the room.
« Last Edit: March 04, 2009, 06:02:55 PM by MacArthurBug »

Oh, great and mighty Alasdair, Orator Maleficent, He of the Silvered Tongue, guide this humble fangirl past jumping up and down and squeeing upon hearing the greatness of Thy voice.
Oh mighty Mur the Magnificent. I am not worthy.


Kaa

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...and when the wind brought me their scent, it was of dried chicken, spiced with cinnamon.

This warranted a LOL.  Unfortunately, at the time, I was in the public bathroom.  At work.

Anyway, I'm not sure I can truly say I enjoyed this story, because I pretty much loathe the character of Augustus, it was nevertheless nicely done.  Alasdair, please...no more singing. We beg of you. :)

I felt that it had a certain flavor to it of those old novels where there was always a framing story in which the real story was set, usually being told to a(n) (in)credulous audience. Frankenstein.  The Time Machine.  Quite a few of Lovecraft's stories.  That gave it a..."flavor" that I rather like, once I got used to it.

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deflective

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fantastic end to the story.
there's a less bloody way to exploit a zombie head...




« Last Edit: March 05, 2009, 04:59:38 AM by deflective »



MacArthurBug

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...
great, now I want a zombie head on a stick. Worse I'll refrence it at unfortunate moments.   PTA! Here I come!

Oh, great and mighty Alasdair, Orator Maleficent, He of the Silvered Tongue, guide this humble fangirl past jumping up and down and squeeing upon hearing the greatness of Thy voice.
Oh mighty Mur the Magnificent. I am not worthy.


eytanz

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The problem with falling behind on my story listening is that when I hear a story, I have little to add to the feedback thread that hasn't already been said. So, let me echo the general sentiment - great story, wonderful reading. Definitely one of my new favorites. I do agree with the people who said that the narrator's moral awakening at the end was somewhat surprising given his failure to have any similar realization in the previous story. But hey, storytelling evolves, and this was a superior story in almost every respect.



Loz

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A wonderful story though really it deserved to be in either Escape Pod or Podcastle, especially as the offerings I listened to before and after this were both on the crappy side.

And yes, the last five minutes of Blackadder are one of those amazing moments when a tv programme elevates itself out of it's genre and in to the truly emotional. That someone so vile as Blackadder or so malevolent and petty as Darling could be sent to this fate and yet you hope against hope that something will come up to save them... (and if anyone needs to see the clip in question it is, for now, here)



deflective

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A wonderful story though really it deserved to be in either Escape Pod or Podcastle, especially as the offerings I listened to before and after this were both on the crappy side.

the implied second-class status of pseudopod rubs me wrong way.

i like that pseudopod has a very wide selection standard, it pretty much guarantees that there will be something i'll enjoy every month. sure, there's probably gonna be something i don't like as well but that's only a problem you let it become one. pseudopod has come a long way, i particularly appreciate the consistent releases during ea's restructuring.

btw: i do agree with you overall. pp130 & pp132 weren't to my taste, and there once was a scrawny twelve year old kid that convinced his parents to sit down with him and watch the blackadder finale with hopes that it would ultimately get them off his back about tv watching.

I'm torn on the ending.  I'm completely in agreement with its point, but do feel that it somewhat undermines the tone of the preceding material.  I have no problem with idea of occult investigators crossed with racist upper-crust types as humor/horror story point ... but I do feel that this sudden twinge of conscience on the part of the main character seemed at odds with the promise of the story's tone ... .

I'm kind of confused as the the time setting of these stories, what with stock tickers and all.  Anyone?

the change in tone has come up a couple times. i was ok with the change because we had switched narrators (we start & finish with a guy that's visiting the house to listen to the owner tell his tale) and, frankly, i needed the exposition. i hadn't seen the allegory until it was pointed out and the best part was rethinking the entire story as a representation of the colonization & exploitation of africa. the line between horror and historical accuracy blurred in a most distressing way.

the first white street society story puts this around 1850 so tickertape was an anachronism but not that far off.



Loz

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A wonderful story though really it deserved to be in either Escape Pod or Podcastle, especially as the offerings I listened to before and after this were both on the crappy side.

the implied second-class status of pseudopod rubs me wrong way.


Not my intention at all, though rereading I can see why you thought that. It should have been in Escape Pod or PodCastle because to my mind it wasn't particularly nasty, people were dispatched in generally a humorous manner and the climax involves a magic head singing 'Jerusalem' for C'Thulu's sake. Separately I listened to this at the same time as the episodes that were roughly broadcast at the same time in those two shows ('Botox School of Acting' and the first elf one which I can't even be bothered to check the name of) and this was my favourite of the three. Not dissing Pseudopod at all.



deflective

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ah, alright. a comment on genre. while i disagree that the horror genre can't have fun with itself (scream and Shaun of the dead come to mind) it isn't something i would have taken issue with. =)



H. Bergeron

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Time for me to wade in!

To work from the beginning - this story was absolutely hilarious, and I found myself cracking up throughout when I listened.  Definitely better than "The Hairy Ghost" in terms of humor (although that story did make me lose it quite a few times, too).

When I first listened to the story, though, I was actually kind of thrown by the ending - what he called the "hard left turn at the last possible minute" in the outro - because the absolute first thing that popped into my head was the thought that the author may have read what was written in the comments thread for The Hairy Ghost and decided to tack on a much more explicit condemnation of imperialism in Africa.  While I will concede that, like an earlier poster, I appreciate the presentation of that theme, since I hadn't drawn the parallel myself immediately, I would have liked it to be presented in perhaps a somewhat more subtle fashion.  I already KNOW the author can give me over-the-top ridiculous descriptive visuals, and I appreciate that - but it seems like we could have more contrast with the ending by doing the final condemnation with fewer words and thereby more subtlety and more punch.

But hey, I'm not actually an author, so... yeah.

I think this does fit in on Pseudopod, genre-wise.  It's kind of over-the-top silliness (for the most part) but it's still centered around an idea that's kind of in the horror genre - taking a trip up the river to a (haunted!) occupied city in an attempt to retrieve the severed oracular head of General Chinese Gordon?  Sounds like you could take the same basic concept and write a pretty scary story around it without changing too many of the scenes outright - just altering the dialogue and the descriptive framing to be less over-the-top without changing the actual plot progression could make this whole story terrifying.  Although, in hindsight, could such be said about most stories?  I'm not sure.

Did anyone else's brain hurt when you heard him say, in his strong accent, "I am an American!"?

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Alasdair5000

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Did anyone else's brain hurt when you heard him say, in his strong accent, "I am an American!"?


   Then my work was a success!  A SUCCESS!  A HA HA HA HA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Ahem.

Trust me, whilst my Scottish accent is terrible my American one is...well...terrible to the power of awful.