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Post by skyelash on Oct 22, 2005 19:28:31 GMT -5
I give it a very unhappy "two." Spoilers...
What was the point of this book? I just don't get any of it- why did we need to meet Dewey? Why did he need to die?, why is the "cataloge" important, even worth mentioning. when the Baudelaires will likely never return to the hotel site? What was the point of Jerome's book? Why can the children NEVER, EVER be helped by ANYONE, even someone as purely decent as Charles? Why were all of Justice Strausess's noble efforts for nothing? Why did we wait for two years (at least!) to get to this hotel, this LAST SAFE PLACE, only to have it become useless and harmful? Why was the ONLY decent peice of information we got was the name of Mr. Baudelaire? And WHY, WHY, WHY did we spend SO LONG waiting for the stupid sugar bowl to be recovered only to be DENIED ANY POSSIBILITY OF DISCOVERING WHAT IT HOLDS???
I was not expecting to feel this way, and I don't like it one bit. But Book Thirteen had better be good and long if all the endless mysteries of this series have even a hope of being satisfactorily explained.
Sorry for the rant.
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Post by Jacques the Environmentalist on Oct 22, 2005 19:38:47 GMT -5
No, a catalog filled with all the secrets of the entire series that was never burned isn't important in the least I completely agree.
As for them not being helped they are helped. But you can't expect every last villain to be brought to justice and to have the adults change ways and save the day, that's just not how the series WORKS. The Baudelaires have to solve their problems and mysteries on their own, adults can't just save them.
And were you just expecting them to all have a merry little time at a nice VFD filled hotel? There's no way the villains would just let VFD unite and beat them down with evidence and info, you heard that villains were already on their way to the hotel in book 11, so how could you not expect the presence of umpteen villains inside?
Yes it was confusing, and no it's not really what we expected but ranting about something when you see this is the path the series has long been taking is just kind of annoying.
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Post by skyelash on Oct 22, 2005 19:54:00 GMT -5
Of course I wasn't expecting them to have it easy. But we have already gotten the idea that the Baudelaires can take care of themselves- dozens of times over, in fact. If they aren't to be helped by adults, why must the adults be given any significance at all by now? Why take them to a safe place at all? Presumably to save the sugar bowl- but even this they don't really do, which contributes to the lack of any significant new information. Feel free to disagree, but I find that absesnce pretty appalling in the twelfth book of a thirteen book mystery series.
And I was ranting because I felt the book had veered off the "path the series has been taking." Sorry if that irritates you.
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Post by PJ on Oct 22, 2005 19:59:25 GMT -5
He has a point, though. I mean, making the children spy on villains and volunteers? Come on.
And it said in TGG that their unfortunate water was broken....in this book, they have killed someone with a harpoon gun, and burnt down an entire hotel filled with blindfolded people just to set a signal.
And the only good information we got was the poison darts thing, and Bertrand.
In the end, EVERYONE was deceived by the judges, and Dewey was killed.
Another spectacular loss by the VFD. Now they don't even have a place to meet anymore.
Honestly, VFD is dead. How will they all communicate? The volunteers will drift apart, and the organization will fail. UNLESS some sort of signal is made, and another meeting place is arranged.
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Post by Linda Rhaldeen on Oct 22, 2005 20:12:13 GMT -5
I hate to say this, but we can't say we weren't warned. The ending wasn't satisfactory, and almost none of the questions were answered. The VFD was shown to be in pieces, with all hopes resting on the trial which turned out to be disastrous. But Handler can technically do whatever he wants, make us as unsatisfied and angry as he wants, make the Baudelaires as villainous as he wants, and he'll have something to fall back on. "Didn't I warn you, very early on, that this series does NOT have a happy ending?" he'll say. " Didn't I say that these books were depressing, and that you'd be better off reading something else? It's not my fault you didn't listen."
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Post by LargeManFeOrMale on Oct 22, 2005 20:30:41 GMT -5
Wow, just finished it, hmm. . . Wasn't expecting it and I was unfortunatly dissapointed. I was looking forward to book 12 when i finished 11 more then I'm looking forward to book 13 now. . . hmm. . .
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Post by dirkamoeba on Oct 22, 2005 20:38:44 GMT -5
Presumably to save the sugar bowl- but even this they don't really do, which contributes to the lack of any significant new information. They do save the sugar bowl. It is either at the bottom of the lake or (more likely) in the hands of the cab driver. |
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Post by jman on Oct 22, 2005 20:45:00 GMT -5
I personaly, loved it. It's my second fav.(after TGG)
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Post by ineedyourhelp on Oct 22, 2005 20:51:57 GMT -5
hold on, i havent had time to read all of these posts, whats Mr. Bauds first name?
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Antenora
Detriment Deleter 
Fiendish Philologist
Put down that harpoon gun, in the name of these wonderful birds!
Posts: 15,891 
Likes: 113
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Post by Antenora on Oct 22, 2005 21:24:52 GMT -5
According to the backgammon flashback, his name was Bertrand. Like the lion on Olaf's wall, possibly.
I also think Book 12 raised more questions than it answered, which makes me worry that Book 13 will either be amazingly uniformative or basically an "answers section", with all the mysteries solved altogether too quickly.
VFD's really falling apart--not only is it broken in two, with both sides equally corrupt, members are losing contact. I think Book 13 will be massively tragic for all involved, perhaps ending VFD once and for all.
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Post by Jacques the Environmentalist on Oct 22, 2005 21:26:07 GMT -5
Bertrand.
Sure VFD has a place to meet. They can still communicate the same way they've always communicated: secret messages, codes, telegrams, etc...
the sea is the last safe place for the bauds. And they can meet in the sshamh. Series are always done like this, almost every chance for good to triumph fails miserably, but then in the end...
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Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2005 21:41:17 GMT -5
They'll be saved by the ?
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whoopi
Reptile Researcher
Posts: 17
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Post by whoopi on Oct 22, 2005 23:20:18 GMT -5
Did anybody notice that they were rowing away with spatulas that had holes in them? How would they be able to get anywhere if the water would just pass through?
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Post by TopHat on Oct 22, 2005 23:34:17 GMT -5
According to the backgammon flashback, his name was Bertrand. Like the lion on Olaf's wall, possibly. I also think Book 12 raised more questions than it answered, which makes me worry that Book 13 will either be amazingly uniformative or basically an "answers section", with all the mysteries solved altogether too quickly. VFD's really falling apart--not only is it broken in two, with both sides equally corrupt, members are losing contact. I think Book 13 will be massively tragic for all involved, perhaps ending VFD once and for all. Since Mr. Baudlaire's First name is(as is said in the backgammon flashback)Betrand than on page 156 of the UA who sent the postcard. I always though it was an Alex Baudelaire. And yes it seems VFD is slowly dying like the wilted flower which Kit held. |
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Post by SnicketFires on Oct 22, 2005 23:48:18 GMT -5
Since Mr. Baudlaire's First name is(as is said in the backgammon flashback)Betrand than on page 156 of the UA who sent the postcard. I always though it was an Alex Baudelaire. If it indeed says "Alex Baudelaire" on the postcard (page 156) - like many details in the UA, it is smudged out - it could be a random cousin. The people who sent the postcard own the Prospero. I don't really have a point with this. I've been up for too long. Goodnight. |
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