   an REG Omega
2007-04-18 . chapter 12The Mirratord
Summary: Following in the creative style of Stand Five Feet High, this story's central focus is on the creation of the mysterious organization of operatives at the right hand of the High Council, and one warrior's journey through its ranks.
Another Soulguard classic, this story ties up more loose ends and opens up intriguing new possibilities in the notorious series he has already authored, raising the bar once again.
Tie-ins with Canon material: 5/5
This story successfully integrates elements from the Halo Graphic Novel, even though the series began long before it was published.
Political intrigue: 10/10
This story raises many questions surrounding the actions of the prophets, who are themselves divided on their dealings with the Sangheili race. The elites are subtly aware of this and show great restraint in their dealings with the prophets, but behind the rhetoric, we see that intricate webs of lies and quiet assassinations are what ultimately keep order in the Covenant.
Action Sequences: 10/10
The other half of a story is in the action. While the plot focuses largely on the politics surrounding the House of Vas, there were several well-executed fights in this story. Soulguard has proven himself capable of writing a fast-paced actions scene that is easy to visualize, making for a fantastic read.
Freshness: 10/10
This story never lost its pull. Though politics played a key role, it held the reader's interest as new clues and insights were released throughout the entire story, yet not to the point of confusing the reader. The story left off with several cliffhangers, but these did not leave the bad taste that so many stories often do.
Characters: 10/10
Soulguard has enriched a unique culture, adding depth and tradition that is hard to find anywhere else. The emotions of his characters are legitimate, and their actions and feelings are easy to rationalize. Their actions mould their personalities over the course of the story, which lends a great deal to its overall worth. Stony, emotionless killers who never change do not make for good reading, and Soulguard has made the Mirratord far more than this.
Continuity: 4/5
Though it seemed a bit rushed at the end and a few contradictions were made in characters' names, this story kept a steady pace all the way through.
Presentation: 9/10
Save for the occasional grammatical error or mispelled word, this story was very easy to follow. Overall, The Mirratord is an excellent story that I would recommend to all readers.
Total: 58/60 |
 Lai Tasha
2007-03-06 . chapter 1The Mirratord by Soul Guardian
Prequel to Stand Five Feet High
The Mirratord is another soulguard great; it gives an in-depth look into the creation of the Mirratord and The Mirratord First, Second and Honour Guard. This fanfic is filled with intrigue suspense and the penultimate cliff-hanger.
Question 1 ~ What was the Migration?
Question 2 ~ How did Balmaedee get through the door?
Question 3 ~ What was the Masters involvement in The Mirratord?
Question 4 ~ Did R’Tas Vadumee teach Simyaldee the martial arts?
Question 5 ~ Was a Mirratord member on the Ship that was supposed to pick Simyaldee up from the Elite Outpost but got destroyed?
Question 6 ~ If there are 40 members in The Mirratord, and its full, how can Gridolee be a new inductee?
First things first, the things that bugged me a lot. The main one was The Migration. The High Prophets referred to the migration and that it was about to begin, then in another chapter that The Migration was complete. I still have no clear idea about what The Migration was, I have strong opinions but they don’t quite fit to what a migration is, hence Question 1. Another smaller bug, was when you called a character the wrong name, you did it in two different chapters, this totally mucked my reading up until I figured that you weren’t talking about (Simyaldee) but (Balmaedee). The last bug that I encountered, was how you left some very small questions unanswered, such as Questions 2 – 6.
Now spelling and grammar, Apart from the naming part such as [i] [u]Simyaldee[/u] released the young one as they all entered the alley. He turned to see what had happened to the Brute that was coming toward them, but as he turned he saw something shocking. The Brute seemed to be floating backwards a few feet off the ground with an Energy sword protruding out of its chest. [u]Simyaldee[/u] had snuck up from behind, impaled the beast, and lifted it off the ground with one arm. [/i] Small but big enough that I couldn’t quickly sort it out. Other than that there isn’t anything that stands out, almost perfect.
The Plot was very interesting, there were a few things that I knew were going to happen, such as Vasmeola surviving some how, and the elder dieing, but others took me by storm, that Regret, was behind allowing the pure blood lines to continue, was a huge shock. Also that The Mirratord probably all have the super-soldier gene was unexpected to say the least.
I think in this story you actually tied up more loose ends than you created, which with Path of Reclamation coming up was a good sign, only a few lingering questions remained, but they look as if they will be answered.
Now to suspense, since this is not a battle type story but more about speed and stealth, It lacks the suspense that IIWYH had (ie. Defense Clash of the Titans). But it still had enough to keep me interested. For a history about the Mirratord you gave it enough suspense to keep me interested. Though I must say you excel in battle scenes, and for a history of the greatest military group, one small battle was on the very small side…
Another thing I would have liked to see was R’Tas Vadumee in battle, You gave us a taste of what he could do, but I would love to see him in a full battle situation, I have images of him going against hundreds of brutes, an eternal warrior, and was hoping to see something like that in The Mirratord, especially after “Rin Simyaldee, R’tas Vadumee”.
A thing I was happy to see is that you broke up the speech, though this fanfic was speech and story orientated, you gave us enough different things to keep us involved, though when Vasmeola told us the story, it was a one time read, I had to skip in on my second read, there was no alternative depth or angle to it.
Now originality, he he, slightly pointless, since this is his creation, different from almost everything... but in comparison to his other stories, this was unique, SFFH was about the Grunts, Fragment, the AI's. Letter to the UNSC, The rebels, IIWYH, the Black Ops, GotLK, The Reclaimers... and now The Mirratord, finishing off the list of good guys in representing the The Elites. Original, especially since you didn't go on about the Forerunners. Thank You.
Need I go into the presentation, perfect, your way to good an author now to get caught up on presentation worries, though I am glad that you didn't go for italics and bolding, In My Opinion there was no need.
Lets see, I would give this fic... (gave out of 20's instead of .5's)
[*] Plot 15/20
Felt a bit rushed towards the end.
[*] S&G&Structure 10/10
Duh!
[*] Originality 9/10
One has to relate it to your other works to find a similar piece of work.
[*] Reading Experiance (It Factor) 17/20
On the first read I couldn't stop till you'd finnished, but on the second read, I was reading the same stuff during some parts, some parts lacked a deeper level.
[*] Tie in to The Trilogy 10/10
On so many levels it tied in.
[*] Emotional Thrill 5/10
lacking the emotion rollercoaster of SFFH, could of made Simyaldee's loss more emotional. It needed to give me more of a rush or crash.
[*]Twists 10/10
Here you excelled past your other books, the cliffhangers were huge, the twists were unexpected, some places I thought twist coming up, and got wrenched in the other direction.
[*] Politics 10/10
Great, I find you need politics in fanfics, but it can be boring, you made it interesting. Especially the High Prophets, it was more interesting than Halo 2's politics.
[*] Delicacy / Intricacy 10/10
So much going on but you kept it smooth as a whistle, I though for a moment you had too much going on, but you survived and excelled.
[*] Likability 8/10
I had a constant feeling I was missing something, but I liked it all the same.
So. I said 88%, but it was more like 117%. If you haven't read it then shame on you!
Now Soulguard, as a thankyou for giving us this story, is there anything that you want me to give you my opinion about Trilogy/The Mirratord related. Also is there anything that you want me to elaborate on in my bitsy review. |
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