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Thread: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

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    Default Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    I'm a dystopian fan, so I thought I'd finally get to reading this one (somehow I hadn't yet).

    This is the book that Blade Runner was based off of. The novel is set in a post-apocalyptic near future, taking place after World War Terminus (nuclear) severely damaged the Earth, forcing normal humans to migrate to Mars (while those who suffered from the radioactive fallout were forced to stay behind). On Earth, most types of animals are extinct or severely endangered, and owning an animal is a status symbol. On Mars, androids serve as aids to the migrated humans, and are so well-developed that they are indistinguishable from them - except for their lack of ability to feel empathy.

    Rick Deckard is the main character, a bounty hunter who has to retire (aka. destroy) six Nexus-6 androids that escaped from Mars. A second plot follows John Isidore, a "chickenhead" (i.e. mental deficiency due to radioactive fallout) that aids the escaped androids. The novel follows the two storylines in Deckard's pursuit to retire the androids, and the book explores what it means to be a human.

    All in all, it's a great book, but the depth of the story and its development doesn't compare to the classics in my opinion (1984, We, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, The Chrysallids, etc). I give it a 4/5 and say it's well worth the read if you like dystopian books.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    Nice, I'll have to give this a shot.
    Though... I'm going to be 4-5 months off... my wife got me into "Gone Girl" and my mom is sending me the Fire/Ice books.
    Thanks!

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    With regards to androids and smart machines, we all know it won't end well.

    eg... Terminator, The Matrix, I Robot, Mass Effect, Battlestar Gallactica, 2001 A Space Odyssey.....
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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    Quote Originally Posted by Pengwin7 View Post
    Nice, I'll have to give this a shot.
    Though... I'm going to be 4-5 months off... my wife got me into "Gone Girl" and my mom is sending me the Fire/Ice books.
    Thanks!
    No worries. Definitely worth the read. But if you want to get into dystopian books, you are better off with the classics! They are classics for a reason. I'm consistently disappointed because nothing seems to compare to Brave New World, 1984, We, and Fahrenheit 451.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    Great book, if you enjoyed it I'd recommend checking out his other stories.

    I highly recommend getting the Library of America collections if you can, they come beautifully bound with page markers and the whole nine yards. You can often find them discounted on Amazon too:

    https://www.loa.org/volume.jsp?RequestID=252

    Oddly though, I feel this particular story is a rare example of where the movie trumps the book, Blade Runner is one of my favorite movies ever

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    I actually was just looking for this book in the library last week and they didn't have it. It's high on my list of 'To-read' along with Canticle for Liebowitz.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    Although I like PKD in novel form, where he really shines like a superstar is with his short story collections. Goddamn, those are off-the-scale brilliant!

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    This was one of the first books I ever read in French, and it rocked it in a second language too. The movie is very well done, but it has been twenty years since I last watched it. may have to dust off the VCR...LOL.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    I have always loved Blade Runner, it's been in my top 5 movies for 30 years. I read the book about 2 years ago and I was completely underwhelmed compared to the movie. I always expect the book to be better, but here it wasn't, at least to me. I probably need to go back and re read it with an open mind... Because while similar to me these were way different.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    I have tried 3 times in the past few months to watch Blade Runner. All 3 times I fell asleep. I am a huge sci-fi fan, but I still have about a third of the movie left after three attempts and I'm not sure I have it in me to finish it off. I have to admit that it's one of those movies that I don't get why it constantly rates so high with people.

    I've found B-grade sci-fi movies far more enjoyable than this one. Not sure what it is. The pace is slow, but I can handle that in movies usually (2001: A Space Odyssey for example I really enjoyed) so I'm not sure what I'm missing here. Some people talk about how good the acting is as well, but meh ... not sure. Very strange.

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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    This made me think about the PC adventure game called Blade Runner that came out in the 90s. It actually holds up fairly well to this day. Excellent writing and voice acting. The atmosphere is there and it takes place parallel to the movie.
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    Default Re: Do androids dream of electric sheep?

    Quote Originally Posted by doulos View Post
    I have tried 3 times in the past few months to watch Blade Runner. All 3 times I fell asleep. I am a huge sci-fi fan, but I still have about a third of the movie left after three attempts and I'm not sure I have it in me to finish it off. I have to admit that it's one of those movies that I don't get why it constantly rates so high with people.

    I've found B-grade sci-fi movies far more enjoyable than this one. Not sure what it is. The pace is slow, but I can handle that in movies usually (2001: A Space Odyssey for example I really enjoyed) so I'm not sure what I'm missing here. Some people talk about how good the acting is as well, but meh ... not sure. Very strange.
    Well it's beautifully filmed for one, but if you're not into the story then you probably will never enjoy it.
    I feel the same way about the Godfather...yes, taken as a whole it is a great movie and a great story portrayed by some great actors...but it's incredibly overrated too and the way people gush over as though it was beyond reproach is absurd. The reality is that it gets bogged down and draggy in several parts. I find it difficult to stay engaged with the movie throughout.

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