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JosefBugman2011-07-14 02:07:17

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Hello guys, Josef Bugman here. I have decided to do a review of a book that I am unsure most of you will have heard of. It is called “The Game” by a fellow called “Neil Strauss”. There actually is a trope page for it but I must admit to approaching it with barely veiled horror. You see this book is supposedly about how an individual who is “frustrated, average and shy” turns himself into *shudder* “Style” an apparently smooth talking, woman laying individual apparently by meeting someone called “mystery”.

I bought this for 50 pence used so I know that, at the very least, not a penny of that 50p is going anywhere near this grasping individual and is instead going to help a local museum. I intend to begin at the beginning (unsurprisingly) of the book but I should first warn you that I already sense a large amount of evil pouring off the book like steam from a sauna.

The introduction begins with the old “not making this up disclaimer” shown on the page describing this work. Already I have a problem that if you are having to tell people something is real through a disclaimer and not an addendum then you might be attention whoring but “eh” let’s see how this goes.

The first page of the book proper is entitled “Meet Mystery” presumably ignoring the fact that mystery is a really hard anthropomorphic personification to track down and talk to. Apparently it all begins in a house where M has been busily smashing the ever loving hell out of everything and weeping like a three year old with 5 other people. M himself, “Style”, “herbal”, “papa” and “playboy”, I will be referring to mystery and style as “m” and “s” from now on, and based on how often the others turn up they will be h, p1, and p2. And yes S does bring attention to the naming. That and the fact that is not the only mansion M owns.

We are apparently being shown someone falling apart. There are Noughts and Crosses and bodily fluids mentioned. He even quotes a super computer by saying “The only way to win is not to play”, which suggests he doesn’t really understand Noughts and crosses. S then mentions how he needs Drugs, because why not give the unstable Manic Depressive drugs, to give to mystery because he can’t let him “Die on his watch”, implying that this may well be a regular thing. S also mentions how “Everyone who would have drugs didn’t have any or didn’t want to share”. Just let that idea sink in for a moment folks.

M is then bundled into a car after drugs are acquired from a “party girl” and speaks of wanting to learn martial arts so that he can “kill someone if I want to”. Don’t these folks sound like just the right sort of people to hang out with? They reach a hospital and end up there for pretty much 4 hours until M finally walks out and almost escapes to kill himself (no. Stop. Think of the Children) and is then brought in to talk to a psychiatrist whom he tells that he has “slept with the most beautiful women in the world”, which is EXACTLY how I would want to be introduced to someone treating me for mental health issues.

S then delivers a final schpeel about how the guy actually HAS slept with supermodels/ Tiger Girls/ Floating godheads (two of these may not be wholly accurate) and then says that the only one who had the potential to “outgame” him was S himself.

Well that’s the first chapter out of the way, hope you guys liked it and I will make sure that there is slightly less verbiage next time!

Started doing a reading heres the Vocaroo Link [1]

Comments

slowzombie Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 3:03:04 PM
Well, presumably there's a reason why people read this stuff. To learn how to pick up mad chicks, brah For the psychology behind it?

Also, Scott Baio He's apparently famous, but I can't recall having seen him anywhere.
FurikoMaru Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 6:08:03 PM
Before I say anything else, dice is plural. The word you need in there is die.

Yes, several mystery novels have used the obvious pun.

JosefBugman Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 6:13:02 PM
Not really, as there is only one dice in the chapter title :P
FurikoMaru Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 6:21:52 PM
... yeah, one die. Yahtzee comes with dice, some variants of Jacks come with a die.
FurikoMaru Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 6:22:21 PM
Where do you think the phrase "The die is cast" comes from?
JosefBugman Since: Dec, 1969
Jul 8th 2011 at 6:23:03 PM
I assumed it was an exact translation of "Alea Jacta Est"
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