Now there's going to be a novel for "The Astonishing"???

[zappafrank2112]

Just let the damn thing die already.  I know there's enough polarization in the positive that to say it was a failure isn't accurate, but it certainly wasn't the home run they were hoping for.  They need to just cut their losses and move on.

[TAC]

If you are not interested then ignore it. There may be some people that are interested in it.

[zappafrank2112]

One of my friends (a diehard fan who even has DT tattoos) made a good point: "There's the lyrics book AND the expanded story available already."

So this is really just overkill.

[Ben_Jamin]

Did you even read the description. They're adding more characters, likely places as well. Also, the plot differences could be more towards the new characters. And also, demoes of unused songs.

That's what I'm looking forward to checking out.

[Prog Snob]

I'm really curious to see what they add. I'm generally not into sci-fi at all, but I'm keeping an open mind about this.

[SystematicThought]

I don't really see it as overkill. They have this huge world in which we only visit 3 places throughout the entire album. I remember feeling letdown when we didn't get to see more of the map so I'm excited to see it flesh out a bit more.

Some people like the album and are excited, others aren't. That's life

[Ben_Jamin]

Yup a big vast of the map hasn't been mentioned. Yorkeland, New Anglya.

[gzarruk]

Am I the only one who finds it really cool/interesing that the author is actually a prog metal singer as well? It got me by surprise in a good way   

[RaiseTheKnife]

The novel (plus the hinted bonus material) seem pretty cool to me.  I think we fans are lucky to experience the creative spirit of DT in so many unique ways, crossing over in alternative media.  Video games, books, etc. -- pretty bold for a band.

[bl5150]

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/dream-theater-the-astonishing-album-turned-into-a-novel/


Nice to see the BM crew being positive 

[SystematicThought]

Did it already sell out? I was gonna buy a copy when I got home from work 

Never mind, it wasn't redirecting me when I added it to my cart. Turns out, I added 13 copies to my cart. 

[BlobVanDam]

I'm really curious to see what they add. I'm generally not into sci-fi at all, but I'm keeping an open mind about this.

I'd call it more fantasy than scifi anyway. I mean, the magical power of music healing the dying?

[Adami]

I'm really curious to see what they add. I'm generally not into sci-fi at all, but I'm keeping an open mind about this.

I'd call it more fantasy than scifi anyway. I mean, the magical power of music healing the dying?

Yea, there's nothing sci-fi about this unless you consider the no-macs to be sc-fi.

[pcs90]

The most interesting thing to me is the bonus audio content.

[Adami]

The most interesting thing to me is the bonus audio content.

I think a really in-depth making of DVD for the album would have been amazing.

[jammindude]

I never get a chance to do this....so can I just say...

I KNOW THIS GUY!!!!!!!

I met him at Emerald City Comicon in 2015, and I interviewed him for Jammin Dudes Neighborhood in 2016.   

His books are fantastic.  It was purely by accident that I met him, and we hit it off talking about music.....and to be honest, when he first told me he was a writer, I had my doubts.   (Yeah right, I thought)

But then I took home his book, and I could not put it down.   Its one of the best fantasy novels Ive ever read, and Ive pimped it in the What Are You Reading Now thread before. 

This is my interview with him at Comic Con last year.

https://youtu.be/jAM-4n5iE5U

My first mention was on my "Support Your Local Artist" rant at the 7 min mark of this episode.

https://youtu.be/TGdU3eDG1Zk

This guy is one of the best writers Ive ever read...and just a seriously nice guy.   

BUY HIS BOOKS!!!  They are awesome!!!

[Darkstarshades]

As soon as I saw the post on DT's facebook about it, I knew I was going to open the comment section to see comments of my fellow hispanicmen throwing shit at it, and I wasn't disappointed.

Hell, they've literally been whining about it since it came out and it's just going to be a year.

I don't see TA stopping DT from writing anything, they're just not done fleshing it and it's their way, why are the social media people just so fucking insistent on that?

And I'm sick of people literally begging to bring Portnoy back, what kind of audience does DT have anyway? I'm a fan of another group in similar situation and with comparable (if not higher) fame than DT and they're not even close to having such a toxic social media.

[pcs90]

The most interesting thing to me is the bonus audio content.

I think a really in-depth making of DVD for the album would have been amazing.

I agree. This would be the perfect album for that kind of thing. Not sure if they even filmed all the writing sessions though, I'm sure there is at least audio? I know MP recorded everything while he was in the band, but not sure how that works now.

Either way, I'm curious how this all turns out. I love TA, even after all this time it's easily one of my favorite DT albums. I feel the book would actually make a much better story, as there is much more room for detail, but at the same time the main reason I loved the album so much was the music and overall atmosphere, plus James sounded amazing on it IMO. The book just can't have the same effect because, well, there is no sound.

[Cyclopssss]

75 bucks....

[Prog Snob]

I'm really curious to see what they add. I'm generally not into sci-fi at all, but I'm keeping an open mind about this.

I'd call it more fantasy than scifi anyway. I mean, the magical power of music healing the dying?

Yea, there's nothing sci-fi about this unless you consider the no-macs to be sc-fi.

Futuristic technology is generally associated with sci-fi and not fantasy.

[Adami]

I'm really curious to see what they add. I'm generally not into sci-fi at all, but I'm keeping an open mind about this.

I'd call it more fantasy than scifi anyway. I mean, the magical power of music healing the dying?

Yea, there's nothing sci-fi about this unless you consider the no-macs to be sc-fi.

Futuristic technology is generally associated with sci-fi and not fantasy.

Meh. Not enough. Being set in the future doesn't make it sci-fi to me, especially since the no-macs themselves are the only futuristic element to it and they're just used as plot devices and the science of it all isn't important. I also don't really consider the new Star Trek movies to really be sci fi either.

I'm not insulting it. It doesn't have to be sci-fi. Most great literature wasn't sci-fi. I wouldn't even consider the Battlestar Galactica reboot to really be sci-fi and it's one of my favorite shows.

[Prog Snob]

That's one of the contrasts between science fiction and fantasy. Plus, dystopian fiction is not really considered fantasy. It's similar, but dystopian fiction is usually categorized under science fiction because of the time period in which it takes place.

[Adami]

That's one of the contrasts between science fiction and fantasy. Plus, dystopian fiction is not really considered fantasy. It's similar, but dystopian fiction is usually categorized under science fiction because of the time period in which it takes place.

Sure. But if you removed the nomacs and replaced them with anything else, no one would have a clue when this story takes place. The only reason we know it's a dystopian future is because we were told.


In the end though, it doesn't matter in the slightest hahaha. Still not a fan of the story, whether it's sci-fi-, fantasy, noir crime or erotica.

Maybe if it were all four....

[Prog Snob]

Sure. Maybe we can have Gandalf show up and tell the NOMAC it cannot pass. 

[Jester]

You guys are making this too hard.

Describe your favorite scene.

If you sound like a nerd, it is sci-fi.
If you sound like a geek, it is fantasy.
If you sound like a freak, it is horror.
If it sounds like gossip, it is drama.
If it sounds like a love note, it is ro ..... action (or WWE)

[BlobVanDam]

Adami covered most of my thoughts.
It's much closer to a fantasy world than scifi, with LOTR and GOT even being mentioned specifically as strong influences. The NOMACS are apparently technological, but if it weren't for seeing the album art, it would be irrelevant, it could be a magical orb for all it matters to the plot. They're barely even mentioned.
Fantasy often includes a technological element, especially in the overlap between the genres/subgenres. It's not black and white there. Dystopian settings also aren't exclusive to scifi, even though it's a commonly used trope in the genre.

The novel will very likely expand on many of the elements that are currently stopping it from being scifi, such as the backstory of the world, and the way the technology (including the NOMACS) has incorporated into the world, but then the ending with magically reviving the dying with music would negate that for me. It's idealistic fantasy, and isn't compatible with the rest being presented as a scifi story as an extrapolation of our world. You could argue it's an alternate world where magical music works, but then we've come full circle back to fantasy again.

As Adami pointed out, the matter of classification isn't meant as an insult or judgement, just calling it for what it is. I basically do nothing but watch fantasy and scifi all day, so it's all good! But I'm also very aware of this stuff.

[Prog Snob]

Is this like one of those all sci fi is fantasy but not all fantasy is sci fi type things? 

[ariich]

Adami covered most of my thoughts.
It's much closer to a fantasy world than scifi, with LOTR and GOT even being mentioned specifically as strong influences. The NOMACS are apparently technological, but if it weren't for seeing the album art, it would be irrelevant, it could be a magical orb for all it matters to the plot. They're barely even mentioned.
Fantasy often includes a technological element, especially in the overlap between the genres/subgenres. It's not black and white there. Dystopian settings also aren't exclusive to scifi, even though it's a commonly used trope in the genre.

The novel will very likely expand on many of the elements that are currently stopping it from being scifi, such as the backstory of the world, and the way the technology (including the NOMACS) has incorporated into the world, but then the ending with magically reviving the dying with music would negate that for me. It's idealistic fantasy, and isn't compatible with the rest being presented as a scifi story as an extrapolation of our world. You could argue it's an alternate world where magical music works, but then we've come full circle back to fantasy again.

As Adami pointed out, the matter of classification isn't meant as an insult or judgement, just calling it for what it is. I basically do nothing but watch fantasy and scifi all day, so it's all good! But I'm also very aware of this stuff.

Interesting - I've never considered that sci-fi precludes anything magical or supernatural. Indeed, some of what I consider the best sci-fi has a certain spiritual element to it. What you're describing I would normally call hard sci-fi, i.e. super-realistic science concepts and no room for anything supernormal.

[BlobVanDam]

Interesting - I've never considered that sci-fi precludes anything magical or supernatural. Indeed, some of what I consider the best sci-fi has a certain spiritual element to it. What you're describing I would normally call hard sci-fi, i.e. super-realistic science concepts and no room for anything supernormal.

Including some kind of spiritual/supernormal element is one thing, but healing the dying through the magical power of music as the culmination of the story's plot is fantasy by definition. A lot of scifi doesn't include anything supernatural at all, without being close to hard scifi. There's a huge area in between fantasy and hard scifi, and sure there can be overlap in the middle, but as the story of The Astonishing stands in its current form, it's a lot closer to fantasy than scifi. Given the importance of the fantasy element to the story, I would always classify it as fantasy, at least partially, even if the book expands greatly upon the scifi side.
I'm curious, by your definition, what stops something like Back to the Future being called hard scifi? There's nothing magical in there.

[Prog Snob]

[RoeDent]

Heck, there's enough scope in what Petrucci's conceived for a trilogy of concept albums, let alone just one. I just love that DT is absolutely sticking to its guns with this, despite the mixed reception the album has received (unjustified imho; it's a masterpiece, end of.)

[mikeyd23]

I'd definitely be interested in reading this book. Maybe not $75 interested, but I'm assuming that will just be the first pressing with the bonus stuff, hopefully they will release a cheaper option as well.

[ChuckSteak]

Why don't they sell The Astonishing toys while they're at it 

[hefdaddy42]

One of my friends (a diehard fan who even has DT tattoos) made a good point: "There's the lyrics book AND the expanded story available already."

So this is really just overkill.

We get it.  You aren't the target audience.

FFS

[rumborak]

If they decide to release a cheap Kindle version, I'll likely get that. The only other thing I'm interested in is the different phases of the song, but not $75 interested.

BTW, I'm not sure they do themselves a favor announcing all these things so early before release. When it then gets delayed (like the computer game), it becomes very visible in a negative way. In general, you want to announce things when you have a set release date and there's little chance you will not hit it. The way the book announcement made it sound, the guy only recently started on the project?