Wild CardsRandy's Guide to the Wild Cards Books |
||
|
Wild Cards Home Wild Cards Books Wild Cards (1987) Aces High (1987) Jokers Wild (1987) Aces Abroad (1988) Down and Dirty (1988) Ace in the Hole (1990) Dead Man's Hand (1990) One-Eyed Jacks (1991) Jokertown Shuffle (1991) Double Solitaire (1992) Dealer's Choice (1992) Turn of the Cards (1993) Card Sharks (1993) Marked Cards (1994) Black Trump (1995) Deuces Down (2002) Death Draws Five (2006) Inside Straight (2008) Busted Flush Suicide Kings
|
Wild Cards Superhero Anthologies
Wild Cards is a series of books written in what's called a "shared universe". (Thieves World is another example of the idea.) A shared universe is a setting that multiple writers use as a setting for their work. Most comic book universes are shared universes, so this idea is particularly useful for the Wild Cards series, which is about superheroes and supervillains. Wild Cards CharactersBut these heroes and villains live in a richer and much different setting than the heroes and villains of Marvel or DC Comics. The setting implies that an alien virus released over Manhattan has killed 90% of the people who come in contact with it. But the other 10% develop mutations. Of those, a few (1%) develop superpowers. They're called "Aces". But most of them become deformed in some way. They're called "Jokers". And some Aces develop useless superpowers. They're called Deuces.
Wild Cards Alternate HistoryWhat would happen in the real world if people started developing superpowers and mutations? In the Wild Cards universe, most of the deformed (the Jokers) live in a ghetto called Jokertown. The Aces, who have developed superpowers, become celebrities. Violence and sex are more serious concerns in the Wild Cards books than in traditional four-color comic books too. Wild Cards also has alternate history aspects. Many famous people from the real world also exist in the Wild Cards universe, but they are different from their real world versions. Fidel Castro stays in New York and plays baseball instead of taking over Cuba. He eventually becomes the pitching coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Wild Cards BooksMost of the Wild Cards books are anthologies of short stories, although some were written as full-fledged novels. Wild Cards was also adapted as a setting for the roleplaying game GURPS, which is fitting since the setting was based on author George R.R. Martin's Superworld campaign. A new Wild Cards supplement for the roleplaying game Mutants and Masterminds is scheduled to be released in 2008. The books can roughly be divided into three series. A complete listing of the books can be found in the menu on the left. A horizontal line separates each series. As I read the books, I'll provide reviews and other thoughts for each book on the specific page for that books. Wild Cards AuthorsMany of the authors of the short stories found in the Wild Cards books are noted science fiction and fantasy authors, including:
I hope you enjoy my guide to the Wild Cards books. |
|
I
heard about Wild Cards years ago, but I only recently found
the time to start reading them. So far I love them.
I
mentioned earlier that the Wild Cards universe is comprised
of superheroes and supervillains. That's not strictly accurate.
Unlike comic book characters, most of the characters in Wild
Cards are not crimefighters. And most of them don't have secret
identities. Wild Cards has more of a "real-world"
sensibility, almost like the television show Heroes. But
Wild Cards preceded Heroes by twenty years.|
All content copyright 2008, Randy's Guides. No unauthorized duplication allowed. |