The iBooks revival of Wild Cards was short lived. Only two books were published and the series went into dormancy again. This time, however, the dormancy would be short lived. Only two years later, Tor Books would begin publishing the series, this time with Inside Straight, the first book in what would come to be known as the Committee triad.
This time, however, the new start would bring a soft reboot of the series. Unlike the previous book Death Draws Five, which also tried to reintroduce the series but also focused on established characters and resolving old plotlines, Inside Straight (for the most part) chose to focus on a cast of completely new characters. The old characters are still around and while several of them cameo, this book entirely belongs to the new characters with the exception of John Fortune, who gets a POV story for the first time here.
Meanwhile, back in America, a new reality show has just launched. Young Aces from all over the country come together to compete on American Hero, a reality show for aspiring super-heroes. This plot thread primarily serves to introduce all the new characters and give them a reason for interaction. Of course, as the story progresses, the events of American Hero begin to connect with the events in Egypt in unexpected ways.
Discussing Inside Straight presents some headaches. The stories in this book proceed fairly linearly with many stories being more or less direct continuations of proceeding story. I am going to try to avoid spoilers but no promises.
The story begins with:
Dark of the Moon (by Melinda Snodgrass, starring Lilith): This is the story that kicks off the main plot. Lilith, an Ace assassin with the power to teleport, sneaks into the Caliphate to carry out the assassination of the Noor Al-allah. The story is a good thriller and Lilith is an intriguing enigma of a character who's alignment remains murky. It's a bit of a shame to see the Noor go out like this. It always seemed like such a long-term villain deserved a better sendoff, but on the other hand, he was a cliched character who had perhaps outstayed his welcome. A good start to the book. Rating: 4/5.
From the Desk of Rebecca Leiberman: This isn't technically a story, but is include here for completions sake. Nominally, an in-universe broadsheet of promotional material for the American Hero reality show, its real function is to serve as a cast list introducing the contestants on the show and their powers. Other than that not much to say about this one. Rating: NA.
Looking for Jetboy (by Michael Cassutt, starring Jamal Norwood/Stuntman): Jamal Norwood, the regenerating Ace called Stuntman, has never had much luck with his career choices. An aspiring athlete turned failed actor turned Hollywood stuntman, his newly discovered powers have finally given him a chance for success when he appears on American Hero. As the game ramps up, Stuntman will find himself crossing ethical lines to make sure that he is the last hero standing. Stuntman is in some was one of the more subversive Wild Cards characters. Wild Card's protagonists are often flawed and selfish people who are often capable of great heroism when the moment calls for it. Stuntman, on the other hand, is a narcissistic jerk with daddy issues who when the chips are down stays a narcissistic jerk with daddy issues. Michael Cassutt has generally been the writer who seems least interested in the superhero aspects of Wild Cards so it's interesting that he chooses to make his most conventional superhero character deliberately unlikable. It's a choice that pays off as the character becomes a contrast to the other new heroes around him. Rating: 4/5.
Metagames (by Caroline Spector, staring Michell Pond/ The Amazing Bubbles): Michelle Pond, the Amazing Bubbles, is easy to underestimate. Her powers are designed to feed her insecurities: She can absorb any force used against her, converting it into mass, then converting that mass into a stream of energy bubbles that she can use against her opponents, literally gaining and loosing weight as she uses her powers. Not the most popular competitor on American Hero, she enters into an alliance with her new crush, the ace Tiffani. But on a show where there can only be one winner, how much is such an alliance worth? Another strong story in this collection, this one introducing more characters but with a stronger focus on the dark side of reality shows: mainly, how the contestant to manipulate in each other in unethical fashion in order to win. I found Bubbles to be a likable character which gave some suspense to the relatively low stakes reality show setting. Rating: 4/5.
Wake the Lion (by John Jos. Miller, starring John Fortune): After losing his powers in the last book, John Fortune had been reduced to working as a PA on the set of American Hero. Jumping at a chance to regain his powers, John finds himself the host of the symbiotic Joker/Ace known as Sekhmet. Now John has to decide if he will do as Sekhmet asked and use his newly regained powers to intervene in Egypt. Yet another strong story. I will admit that I do not find John Fortune as compelling a character as others in this book. He's another young person trying to prove that he's a hero and unfortunately, that describes a lot of the other characters in the book. Rating: 3/5.
Star Power (by Melinda Snodgrass, starring Noel Matthews): Around this portion of the book, the reality shoe and the Middle East subplots begin to intertwine. Noel Matthews is a celebrity magician and Ace who conceals his exact power from the general public. He's also a British intelligence operative who is deliberately causing the unrest in the Middle East. When making a guest appearance on American Hero, he discovers that one of the contestants had a family connection that may disrupt his plans. Noel isn't my favorite character among the new additions. He's cruel and calculating and, in this story, at least, there's not much more to him than that. However, the story is necessary in that it provides the books two plot threads with some much need connective tissue and with that it get the job done. Rating: 4/5.
Crusader (by George RR Martin, starring Klaus Hauser/ Lohengrin): The last story George RR Martin has written to date for Wild Cards. When John Fortune decided to help stop the massacre in Egypt, he drags Bugsy and Lohengrin, a German ace, appearing as celebrity guest on American Hero, with him. Obsessed with chivalry and the idea of heroism, Lohengrin has the ability to literally transform himself into a knight in shining armor, creating medieval weaponry with the power of his mind. But will a man who is quite literally a German crusader make a volatile situation better or worse? Another character out to prove himself a hero but this time with a little more depth. There's a sense her that, while Lohengrin's heart is in the right place, he is naive and his desire to play hero might endanger the very people he wants to help. Some of this story definitely hasn't aged well: Martin inadvertently gave Lohengrin a catchphrase that is actually used by hate groups in the real world (which is why it never appears again after this story). Still, it's a good last story from the writer who started it all. Rating: 4/5.
The Tin Man's Lament (by Ian Tregellis, starring Wally Gunderson/ Rustbelt): Rustbelt's experience on American Hero has not been anything to write home about. Thanks to a dirty trick by a fellow competitor, he's been falsely smeared in the national new media as a racist. But that's not the only thing that's bothering the metallic joker-ace. He's beginning to believe that he should be using his powers for more than just chasing celebrity especially as he see more news stories about the massacre in Egypt. Soon, Rustbelt will take a step that will change the Wild Card Universe forever. Yet another story hero featuring an aspiring new hero but this one is refreshing in how it doesn't try to be anything more that that. While the other characters in this book want to be heroes for a complex series of motivations, Rustbelt's motivation is simply --- he's a really good person who wants to do good in the world. That kind of simplicity of motivation is kind of refreshing in Wild Cards where even the more noble characters tend to have trauma based motivations. Plus, this was the point in the book where I realized where the story was going. I'll talk more about it later but for a long time superhero fan like me, it was about time Wild Cards tried a story like this and it was a great entrance for new readers. Rating: 4.5/5.
Incidental Music for Heroes (by SL Ferrell, starring Michael Vogali/ Drummer Boy): Drummer Boy is another character who had a bad time on American Hero. A famous musician, he only participated for the celebrity exposure and the only thing he has to show for it is a failed romance with fellow contestant Curveball. However, when Rustbelt lead a group of American hero losers to help in Egypt, Drummer Boy takes the opportunity to win back the girl and possibly save the day in the process. This story contains the climax of the story but its marred by the fact that Drummer Boy isn't a terribly likable character. We keep getting hints that he has a shred of decency but we aren't actually shown much of that. In this book, whatever good deeds he does are motivated entirely by his (self-inflicted) girl problems. Still, as a climax to the overarching narrative, this story works well enough. Rating: 3.5/5.
Blood on the Sun (by Melinda Snodgrass, starring Bahir): This final story focuses on Bahir, an Ace in the service of the Caliphate. However, he's not quite the loyal servant he presents himself as he has an agenda all of his own. This story is difficult to talk about without spoiling one of the larger plot twists in the book so I will refrain from going into further detail. I will say however, that it is a twist that a) caught me off guard and b) makes sense when you go back and reread the stories in this book. What more can you ask from a surprise ending? Rating: 4/5.
This book was the shot in the arm the series needed. With the last attempt to relaunch the series fizzling out, a break with the past was just what the doctor ordered. With the largely new cast and setting, Inside Straight allowed new readers to jump in without having to know anything anything about the setting and characters.
The rest of my thoughts on the book are hard to discuss without SPOILERS which I will present now. The end of the book sees the newly introduced characters (except Stuntman) forming the Committee, a UN backed strike force of Aces designed to intervene in foreign affairs. Essentially, this is Wild Cards version of the Justice League or the Avengers. In a world based on superheroes, it always struck me as a little odd that there wasn't a group like this so it was cool to see that vacuum filled. This book was, in the end m n excellent new beginning for the series.
Addenda: In addition to the new heroes who form the Committee, this book introduces several side characters who will be important in later volumes. Several of the contestants of American Hero including Wild Fox, the Candle, Jade Blossom, the Gardener and Pop Tart would have expanded roles in their own stories (some of them eventually going on to join the Committee).
