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The latest episode of the "Book Review" podcast from the "N/Y/T" is a beaut listen. Guest genre authors Leigh Bardugo and Paul Tremblay discuss their personal horror histories and suggest Halloween reads for various age groups/dispositions.

Saw this flick. Lee Miller was an American-born fashion model and socialite who took up artistic photography, then perhaps surprisingly became a frontline reporter in Europe during WW2, documenting important events and horrors of the war.

How's this for a premise?

Office guy on train finishes final chapter of serialised scifi novel he's been reading online for years. Each post from the author shows the number of views and, by this point, guy knows for a fact he's long been the only person still reading. Train suddenly stops, mighty demon appears, forces all humans present into horrible death game...just like in the novel. Only office guy is aware of what is "supposed" to happen next - and how it might be possible to survive it! 

Note: He's experiencing things from a slightly different angle to the book, because he's not the main character, which I think is very clever.

I shall be collecting the subsequent volumes.

Go climb a tree

COMIC COVER OF THE WEEK

By Brazilian champ Fabio Moon. It's like nostalgia viewed with ironic detachment. Or something. "Long tails and ears for hats!"

SONGS OF THE WEEK

* "Waiting Here" by Peach Fuzz (Australia) - rad dudes/dudette pictured below.

* "Khatun" by Bilguun (Mongolia)

* "Go Hard" by Meovv (Korea) - shoulda been on last Friday's list.

RANDOM TRPG REMINISCENCE

MG was in town, with a partner we'd not yet met. He asked if we could organise some tabletop role-playing as she was keen to try it. I ran a "D&D" 2E tournament module I'd written about a band of over-the-hill adventurers reuniting to tackle an eccentric vampire in his equally peculiar abode. It had been thoroughly play-tested and well received by all three previous groups. DB ran "Werewolf: The Apocalypse" 1E (with the claw marks in the cover). A ramshackle romp involving a polluted patch of land and shadowy figures out to kick our furry butts. Pretty sure he made it up on the spot. Guess which game MG's partner much preferred? <Sigh> To add further insult, the lady in question accused yours truly of stealing my castellan NPC from "Doctor Who". Me: "Nah, it's just an old-fashioned job title." Not that I'm bitter 30+ years later :-)

How many tatami mats?

RS2 and I rewatched "Trek 4" with sushi and a sixpack. I'd forgotten just how wacky it is...Kirk and co. travelling back and forward through time in a stolen Klingon Bird Of Prey to relocate a pair of humpback whales so as to pacify a never-explained, planet-threatening BDO.

Borrowed this coffee-table tome from the public library. An easy, interesting read. Precious natural/man-made sites on all continents endangered by everything from creeping sand to lost fortunes.

Viddied this. Not as good as the book, obvs, but what you lose in the learning and language departments is to an extent made up for by the wonderful performances - including that of the hawk. Warning: It's a bit of an emotional slog.

Only latterly discovered the existence of this manhwa sequel series. Not as good as the original, but it does scratch that "Solo Leveling" itch. Protagonist is powering up too quickly, IMCO.

After CM told me about a production of "Spamalot" he saw recently, I was prompted to dig out my official CD for a relisten. I'd forgotten that Tim Curry was part of the Broadway cast. I'm glad this musical exists.

Halfway through S3 of this heart-warming Japanese reality romance for oldies (a few of whom are younger than me, haha). Talk about chaos. I've never seen so many trips to hospital on a reality program. Studio host Becky remains the secret star - impossible to take your eyes off her.

On the off chance you care, pod "The Rest Is History" has done a four-part miniseries about the literary origin, themes, influence and murky historical connections of the legend of King Arthur.

Crouching yowie, hidden bunyip

BEER OF THE WEEK

Decent session brew from a dependable brewery. I tried a new alcoholic ginger beer as well (not made by Stone & Wood). Won't plug that as the taste's harsh and a single can induces a headache.

LATEST LEGO KIT

Scored this for $50 off the RRP. Surprisingly fun. Hefty! Besides the usual pink blocks, hidden inside is a teensy-weensy scene of an Imperial Star Destroyer chasing an Alderaanian cruiser. Seriously.

FINISHED THESE'UNS

Had been picking away at them for a while. A history of videogame near misses and a sci-fi comic saga from the mid-'80s. Both are flawed, but with sufficient highs that I don't regret reading either.

A chain of gold or silver is still a chain

COMIC COVER OF THE WEEK

A gloriously armoured Wondy lost in thoughts beyond our mortal ken. By Jenny Frison. Simply angelic.

SONGS OF THE WEEK

* "Naeme Veel" by Sadu (Estonia) - change of pace for the normally high-energy outfit.

* "Jaapahan" by JVG (Finland) - bounced off this a year ago, but I've realised I was wrong. In fact, I'll go so far as to say it could be mentioned in the same breath as their "Liike On Laake".

* "Feelings" by Ailee Band (Korea) - promising debut from the veteran singer plus new crew. Tight band and her voice remains fantastic. See also their live cover of Choi Baek-Ho's "Run".

*  "Yuzutsu" by Radwimps (Japan) - another hit to the feels by the group with the all-time best name. Falsetto bit is great.

* "Montagem Nada Tropica" by Eternxlkz (Kazakhstan) - A year late to this festa as well. Stupidly catchy Brazilian phonk. Love it.

* "Blue Season" by Jeon Seyeon (Korea) - Not to be confused with Jeon S-O-yeon! Second promising debut in this list. Sweet, interesting, uplifting vibe.

RANDOM TRPG REMINISCENCE OF THE WEEK

MD was DM-ing at a sleepover. Our characters were low level - minimal abilities and resources. We had to cross a guarded bridge to reach a privileged inner district of the city on an urgent mission. Except...nothing we did or said would convince the guards to allow us passage. Lies, bribes, threats and sneakiness all failed. And the scenario was designed such that there were no feasible alternative routes at our level. It was INCREDIBLY frustrating. I verbally quit after an hour or so, then M. wouldn't let me rejoin the game. Didn't matter - the rest of the party never crossed the bridge. My hazy memory was of him getting the adventure from an issue of "Dungeon". However, while Googling uncovered a few annoying bridge modules printed in that magazine, none sounded like what we faced. Did he invent it to teach us some kind of lesson, or perhaps to have a laugh at our expense? Simply demonic.

Greebling

Read "Wargames Illustrated #466" from cover to cover. Has the hobby been healthier since the 1970s? I may get "The Silver Bayonet: Venice - The Alchemists's Legacy".

Chatted with a neighbour about their upcoming trip to Norway. Half their luck! That said, they're heading to the far north of the country, where it'll be freezing every day.

Enjoyed the new docofilm "Who Is Martin Mull?" [N]. While an instantly recognisable supporting actor, I was clueless about his careers as comedian, songwriter and painter.

Can't wait for the RLWC to launch tomozza. Also eagerly anticipating Korean survival puzzler "The Devil's Plan: Dead Again" (Nov. 10), starring past winners and more.

Illegal knee

Backed a book project - https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/goodman-games/goodman-games-25th-anniversary-celebration

Caught up with the new season of "The Celebrity Traitors UK". Whoever selected this group of famous folks did a terrific job.

Ate a meal that was half lasagne and half fried rice for the first and possibly only time. Don't get me wrong - it was yummy.

Also caught up with the entries in the upcoming, inaugural Eurovision Asia contest (Nov. 14). I like the Vietnamese entry best.