Wild, wild ride.
The Red Men - a terrific action/adventure tale packed with an entire list of New Wave SF themes.
British
author Matthew De Abaitua sets the frame thusly: one-time radical
journalist Nelson Millar now works for Monad, a megacorporation focusing
on futuristic technologies. But when Nelson oversees the creation of a
digital suburb not too far from Liverpool called Redtown filled with Red
Men (see below), events take unexpected turns and Nelson must face life
and death moral choices.
Have a gander at my rendition of the novel's trailer:
IDENTITY DUPLICATION
Red
Men (Nelson, creative type that he is, came up with the name) are, to
use company jargon, the new new thing. “We record hotspots of molecular
activity in crucial areas of the brain through non-invasive surface
scanning, combine that with in-depth interviews with the subject,
supplemented with our unique exegesis of their outline behaviour, and
plug all that information into our artificial intelligence. At the end
of the process, we get something which looks like you, talks like you,
and thinks a bit like you.”
The exact physical reality of the
Red Men, their existing exclusively as computerized avatars or
manifesting as something more tangible, say, as holographic images, is
purposefully vague, an ambivalence leaving room for each reader's
imagination.
THE DOCTOR IS IN
This near-future world
features such as Dr Easy, a thin, somewhat frail robot that can speak in
a warm compassionate voice, offering humans psychological comfort or
the needed attention for one's physical injuries. Here's a great video
of the novel's first chapter where Dr Easy attempts to effectively deal
with a gunman on the loose: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xslAPX-yB4I
But when Dr Easy proves, well, too
soft and easy for a crisis, there's always Dr Hard, a robot in many ways
better suited for this future age of terror. Dr Hard doesn't invite
polite conversation. Sheathed in indestructible metal, Dr Hard is
forever combat-ready.
BALLS
Interspecies transplants also
play a part in the novel's unfolding drama. Here's a snip to serve as
foretaste: a burly business executive recently underwent an operation
where he now has pig testicles. During a corporate cocktail hour, an
attractive young lady asks if he shoots pig's sperm, to which our
empowered hero asserts: “I do. Lots of it. Also when I get a surge of
testosterone, I want to rut like a pig. I want to nuzzle with my snout
intensely and then mount.”
CORPORATE NIGHTMARE
Nelson's
nonconformist poet friend Raymond desperately needs a job to crawl out
of poverty. Since megacorp Monad requires the services of creative types
for one aspect of public relations regarding Red Men, they're willing
to hire Raymond and other poets and prose writers. However, working for
Monad carries a huge price: one must surrender one's privacy, one's
individuality and any moral sense running counter to corporate goals.
Accordingly, The Red Men brings to mind two short novels of corporate horror by American author Thomas Ligotti: My Work Is Not Yet Done and I Have A Special Plan For This World.
And it is this aspect of De Abaitua's thought-provoking tale I
personally found most fascinating. Thus I'll zero in on the following:
CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE AND PRODDING
Nelson informs Raymond his must keep alert since he will be observed from the
moment he steps into the sleek new building housing the offices of
Monad. And added to these invasive corporate cameras, there's an
unending ticker of information reporting customer orders, subscriber
feedback and... a la North Korea, "hourly encouragement from the
management". Corporate horror isn't overstatement: such jackboot
manipulations are violations against humanity.
CAREER DRUGS
Nelson
waits as manager Morton Eakins takes his career drugs, an absolute
necessity, for as Morton explains, “Once you pass forty, your faculties
recede every single day. New memories struggle to tak hold and you are
unable to assimilate novelty. Monad is novelty. Monad is the new new
thing. Without career drugs, the future will overwhelm us, wave after
wave after wave.”
Ahhh! How revolting. In this near future world,
corporate types take career drugs the way our current athletes take
performance drugs. And if such imbibing ruins one's health after age
sixty? Hey, screw old age - my success in career and performance are all
that counts.
ALBERT CAMUS REDUX
Raymond can only take off
two days when his father dies: one day for the funeral and one day of
“compassionate leave”. Ramond is so frustrated and emotionally
conflicted. We hear echoes of Meursault (from The Stranger,
published 1942) apologizing to his manager at the shipping office for
having to attend his mother’s funeral. Some things never change: for
both Raymond and Meursault, a family death is an unwelcomed
inconvenience and interruption in the world of business and profits.
MONAD IS THE WAY GOD WOULD WANT IT
Nelson
acknowledges all the sixties counter-culture prophecies have come true,
especially “a fundamentalist Christian business culture.” For examples
from our current day, we need look no further than Texas oil companies.
Keep in mind Matthew De Abaitua was writing his novel in the aftermath
of 9/11 and George W. Bush's Christian crusade.
KEEPING UP APPEARANCES
In
corporate world, how you look, how you come off means so much. However,
as everyone concedes, "ugliness was a perk confined to management."
Well, with qualification: corporations are thoroughly sexist: you're
allowed to be an ugly manager unless you are a woman. Good luck to a
beautiful corporate woman who loses her looks. Honey, you've just lost a
good hunk of your power.
SELLING OUT
Raymond the poet comes
to a moment of truth. “Selling out had never been a problem before
because no one had wanted to buy. Why are we kneecapping ourselves with
artistic principles when we are yet to produce any art.” Again, artistic
integrity vs. doing others' bidding to make money is a key theme. This
reminds me of a picture cartoon where a writer with a beard stands up
from his desk and tells his wife, “The hell with literature. I'm going
to get a shave and start writing novels that will sell.”
CELESTIAL CEO
Nelson
has to ask himself, "Was Hermes Spence about to launch the world's
first Gnostic consultancy?" Hermes Spence heads up Monad. Hermes is
supersmart and a man who insists on getting his own way - even if it
means destroying others. To glean a more complete understanding of what
Hermes Spence stands for and how far he will go with his vision, I urge
you to grab a copy of The Red Men and strap yourself in for the ride.
British author Matthew De Abaitua, born 1971
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