Score: 88/100 (8.8 out of 10)
Ultimatum by Vladimir Fleurisma is a sci-fi/monster novel that explores themes of survival, the loss of humanity, and the fragility of civilization in the face of global disaster. The novel is marked by intense action scenes, moments of horror, and psychological tension among its characters, who must constantly confront the limits of their endurance in a world that no longer makes sense. During a conflict with an entity known as the Coalition, six 240-megaton nuclear warheads explode over the continental United States, destroying much of Pennsylvania and presumably kickstarting a global nuclear catastrophe. With the world embroiled in a nuclear winter, little to no direction or leadership, and facing an uncertain future, survivors like D (a marine) and Jaime (a 1st lieutenant) find themselves in a sort of bunker below the rubble. They are joined by the likes of Zach (a civilian), Andre (a sergeant), Colt (a tactical leader of the group), Jade (Colt's lover), and Cella (Jade's sister and rival who has a strong scientific background). Their lives become a mundane, miserable, and monotonous cycle of rationing food (including barely-edible meat) and being starved of normal human companionship and intimacy. We soon learn that the world outside of the bunker is full of dangerous predators—mutated bioweapons—called “Uglies.” They are alternatively given other names throughout the book like Brogs, Sniffers, Abnormals, Unnaturals, SOULS (Strategic Operational Urban Land Squads), and ASPERS (Amphibious Strategic Precision Exploration Rampage Squads). In fact, the characters have a few violent and even deadly engagements with these fearsome creatures. We also learn about a mysterious virus that spread throughout the globe, presumably explaining the creation of the Uglies. The virus is a key threat not only to the creatures but also to the human survivors, as it is highly contagious and has no known cure. The virus adapts quickly, further complicating efforts to control it. Similar to our first reading of the book, our second reading didn't exactly wow, impress, or endear us to the book, its plot, or its characters. There's something very dry, goofy, silly, cheesy, and disjointed about all of it. For example, so many of the human characters and their conflicts seem unnecessary and childish. The grand majority of these characters act like they immature high schoolers who have never had a serious relationship with the opposite sex, can't navigate their emotions or feelings, and certainly can't modulate their feelings of jealousy, pettiness, and insecurity. For example, several of the female characters (primarily Jade & Cella) have an intense feud over a bottle of perfume given as a gift to one woman rather than the other. They then have a wager over the perfume bottle, then argue over other items like Dede's edible panties collection. Speaking of panties, we get a lot of descriptions of characters' butts (and other private parts) and their underwear. Specifically, there's a whole line of dialogue about thongs. It just seems so unnecessary. Oh, yeah, there's also this huge emphasis on the characters (including female characters) having body hair, specifically armpit hair. Now, that is something we can understand and forgive the book for. It does add a little realism to the otherwise-fantastical story since people in a bunker/crisis probably wouldn't be able to shave and practice hygiene to the level they normally would. Ok, fine. The problem with all of this—the perfume, the butts, the armpit hair, etc.—is that they aren't presented in a serious, gritty, or realistic way. They're presented in a silly, goofy, and humorous way which really ruins the mood and tone of what's going on in the book. It's so hard to take this seriously. We have notes about “hot pink yoga pants,” “bacon,” and a “T-Rex toy” that a character keeps playing with. Why? None of these things seem to mix, mesh, and mash. There's also this over-the-top, cartoonish MMA/fighting side-plot in which the characters engage in all-out free-for-all battle royals, striking, biting, eye-gouging, and strangling each other to near-death. It's really ridiculous and hard to get behind. Like, it seems like such a waste of energy and resources for these characters to be fighting, injuring, and wounding each other when there's already a shortage of food and medical supplies. This doesn't make them seem cool, it makes them seem like moronic idiots. And unless they're Austin Powers or Mr. Bean, we tend not to like cheering for moronic idiots. We also get humorous and amusing lines like, “They're eating people and throwing them at other people” while characters like Greer and Timmy are being brutally killed. We really shouldn't be laughing, but the writing and presentation is so hokey and unserious that we found ourselves laughing at arguably Jaime's darkest moment. There's also some sort of surprise about D being more than he lets off, being a killer of over 3,200 people. Ok... but... why? To make him a deeper, darker, grayer character? That doesn't endear us to him or make him seem more human. It makes him seem like a worse person and like a comic book or cartoon character. In a book that lacks almost all suspension of disbelief, this just adds to it. Now, in all fairness, this is par for the course in monster/kaiju fiction. The human characters are typically annoying, unnecessary, and useless. Most people don't watch monster movies for the human characters, they watch monster movies for the monsters. Indeed, the author admits to being a big fan of classic kaiju/monster films, as are we! However, the best monster/kaiju films generally had interesting and likable human characters. The recent Godzilla Minus One movie, an Academy Award-buster, is a testament to that. Godzilla 2014 featured characters played by Bryan Cranston, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Elizabeth Olsen, who seemed likable, human, and relatable. In fact, the early death scene of one of the characters was genuinely sad and heartbreaking. Why? Well, because the film achieved a feeling of suspension of disbelief. Between Ultimatum and Terror in Big Bend by Ethan Richards, it's going to be hard to choose which of these cheesy monster books is better or worse. Both have genuinely great monsters, subpar formatting, and mostly forgettable human characters. However, Terror in Big Bend at least seemed to have more respect for the reader's time and attention span. It didn't have characters arguing needlessly about perfume, butts, and thongs like petulant, drunk high school seniors. The formatting in this book could really use some work. As it stands now, it is a bit of an eyesore. However, this book does have one big, huge redeeming quality: THE MONSTERS! The so-called “Uglies” are actually well fleshed out in this book. We learn so much about them. They kinda reminded us of the Tyrants (super bioweapons) from the Resident Evil franchise like Nemesis. There are also multiple types of Uglies: SOULS, ASPERS, Bogs, Sniffers, Unnaturals, and probably more. It's really interesting how these creatures sound different, smell different, look different, and act different. They each seem unique and seem to have a unique purpose (presumably for warfare). That's a big plus. The explanation for their origin, while convoluted, is also somewhat interesting. For example, it's found that the Uglies have a reproductive system based on earthworms. A love and knowledge of science, especially biology, does shine through in this book. There are also some decent lines like “You can't talk to a woman when you have to use the bathroom” which are humorous. Jaime & D, though somewhat boring on their own, are actually an interesting couple and great dynamic duo when they're put together. So, this book does have something to offer, especially for fans of monsters, kaiju, and sci-fi. Check it out on Amazon!
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