Wild at Heart: A Wild Cards Retrospective - Book III: Joker's Wild

So I had to step away from this for a while.  I wasn't happy with the way the posts were turning out. I had a piece written up for book III but I decided to re-write it from scratch so it was something that I was more comfortable with.

We're going to be trying something new going forward with this retrospective.  Starting from now on for each story, I will put the title, the name of the main character, and the author in bold to make it easier to follow along.

This will be easier to do with the third book in the series which is substantially different from the previous two. Books 1 and 2 were essentially anthologies with interconnecting plot threads between the stories forming a single novel. Book 3 is formatted more like a traditional novel. Throughout the novel, the narrative switches perspective between eight different characters during the fortieth anniversary of the release of the Wild Card virus. Each of these changes in perspective is handled by a different writer.  From this point on, books that set up story arcs in Wild Cards will be formatted like anthologies while the book that end those story arcs will be formatted like a more traditional novel.

The third book in the series deals with two major threats to the Wild Cards universe: one returning from the previous book and one relatively new.  The returning threat is the Astronomer, the homicidal Ace, who is back for revenge against the Ace heroes who defeated him in book two. His return draws the attention of his arch nemesis, the tantric wizard  Fortunato (written by Lewis Shiner) who must stop the Astronomer when he starts racking up a body count. On the other side of the equation, the Astronomer's henchwoman, Roulette (written by Melinda Snodgrass), gifted with the Ace ability that literally kills the men she seduces, is sent to assassinate Dr. Tachyon, the man she blames for her condition.

The new threat takes the form of the Shadow Fist Society,  a criminal organization mentioned in previous books, but here showing itself for the first time. A coalition of various of street criminals, jokers, and aces, the organization is led by Kien Phuc, the arch-nemesis of the vigilante Yeoman. When a new character, Jennifer Malloy, the costumed thief known as Wraith (written by John Jospeh Miller) steals a ledger containing the Shadow Fist's ilicitdealing, she finds herself pursued by both the Fists and Yeoman, who wants the ledger for himself. In addition, gravity controlling, restaurateur Hiram Worchester (written by George RR. Martin), formerly the hero Fatman, find himself drawn into the conflict when the Shadow Fists begin running a protection racket against his restaurant's suppliers.

Meanwhile, the Shadow Fist's expanding territory has led to a war with the local mafia family, the Gambiones.  Bagabond (written by Leanne C. Harper), the animal controlling Ace introduced in bBook 1, winds up involved in the conflict as her friend, Rosemarie Muldoon, the local district attorney, is secretly a member of the Gambione family. Complicating matters, the Shadow Fists hire the ace assassin James Spector, aka Demise (written by Walton Simons), who kills through eye contact, to take out the Gambione leadership. Tying it into the other plot threads, Demise is being pursued by his former employer, the Astronomer,  who wishes to forcibly recruit him into his revenge scheme.

And, to cap things off, were-alligator Sewer Jack (written by Edward Bryant) is searching for his niece who has run away to New York City, intersecting with the other characters as he does so.

If that seems like a lot that's because it is. Later books using the novel format will be better at sticking to a central plotline, but this one is overstuffed with story, which leads it to have an unfocused feel to it. The Shadow Fists and the Astronomer make for formidable threats and the books high points are when it goes into full superhero action. The Astronomer bits especially raise the stakes as heroes introduced in book 1 are killed off, in ascending importance, leading to the a shocking scene that features the apparent death of a major character. By contrast, the subplot focusing on the Gambione family are kind of pointless and it's kind of a let down when after the climactic confrontation with the Astronomer we get several pages of low-rent Soprano's type drama. Mobsters just aren't that interesting in a world where super-villains plot world domination.

The book does do a good job in developing established characters. Walton Simons used this book started to transition Demise from an utter monster to more of a Wile E. Coyote-esque figure, who suffers incredible physical punishment over the course of the book to the point where it seems the universe itself is out to get him. It has  humanizing effect on the character, making it easier to empathize with him, even though he is undoubtedly a terrible person. Meanwhile, we learn more about Sewer Jack, who may be one of the first positively portrayed gay characters in superhero fiction. And with Wraith, Wild Cards gets credit for introducing the rare heroine (or hero for that  matter) whose not motivated by a dark and troubled past. (It's just kind of a shame she never got anymore stories).

Housekeeping Notes: This volume introduces several characters who will get stories in later volumes. Most notable of these are  Billy Ray,  a government employed ace with healing power and super strength, who winds up being used as a pawn by the Shadow Fists. We finally see Jay Ackroyd, aka Poppinjay, a  private detective with teleporting abilities who was mentioned in the previous volume. We also meet Fadeout, a Shadow Fist member with the power to turn invisible, who will get a single story in an upcoming volume.  One character who will return as a prominent antagonist is St. John "Loophole" Latham, the Shadow Fists corrupt attorney. Finally, both "Digger" Downs, an unscrupulous reporter, and Father Squid, the religious leader of Jokertown, who play larger roles in later books are introduced here.