The Man who Never was

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei My rating: 5 of 5 stars Rating 5 out 5 | Grade: A+; A moving cautionary tale What is it about? They called us Enemy is a biographical account of the childhood and life of Hollywood actor George Takei (Star Trek fame). In it, he recounts the time when he was just four years old. It was the time when Japan had attacked Pearl Harbour, and in retaliation the US declared war on Imperial Japan. As an immediate consequence of this decision, a large number of Japanese, over 100000 people were uprooted from their homes across the nation, and taken to forced incarceration facilities, with limited facilities. Men, women, children, elders, who’d committed no formal crime, but the crime of being Japanese, the same ethnicity as the enemy. Series of Events The account starts when George is 4 years old. His younger brother Henry had just been born, and the USA, in retaliation to Pearl Harbour had declared war on the Japanes...

The Left Hand of the Führer by Richard D. Nolane My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 |Grade: C+; Ride of the Valkyries, Conspiracy Disclaimer: I know that the Nazi Superweapons never worked, never had a chance of working, and even if they did, the dire fuel situation of the Germans meant that they wouldn't have made much of a difference in the war. But this is after all a pulpy fictional story. So, let's just enjoy it, and keep logic away for the duration The Wunderwaffen of the Nazi regime have, with their superior technological prowess, managed to thwart the spearpoint of the allied offensive. Which has given Germany a much-needed respite from the relentless assault upon them. So naturally, the interlude is a time when the Nazi high command starts conniving and scheming behind the scenes for power. Himmler, Goebbles, Goering, Heydrich and the rest are all running their own schemes to position themselves as Hitler’s successor. Alt...

The Reich's Damned by Richard D. Nolane My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 | Grade: C; Just because it looks weird, doesn't mean it can't fly Things are turning for the better for the Nazi regimes. The acts of saboteurs and spies can produce only mixed results at best. While psychics selected by the Nazi occult branch under Himmler are giving the Germans even more of an edge. It’s still a mystery why certain people are seeing Hitler’s face when exposed to dangerous situations. And how this is helping them improve their survivability and mission success. So far, the story is taking an approach where they mix the plot with introducing new pieces of German Wunder-waffen. Which in real life were German 'super weapons', which were conceptualized but never came to fruition. Some were even in prototype phase. We don't know whether they'd have actually worked. Or if they did, putting them into service would've changed G...

At the Gates of Hell by Richard D. Nolane My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 | Grade: C+; This man almost died; you wouldn't believe what happened to him after As hoped, Chapter 2 of Richard D. Nolane seems to have rectified the jarring shortcomings of the opening issue. I’m glad to find that the dialogue, which was a major sore point of the first chapter, is markedly better this time. It’s cohesive, reads like a proper dialogue and maintains the pace of the story quite well. On the other hand, it seems that our protagonist, the devil’s pilot, is developing some manner of precog predictive ability following his near-death experience. Which allows him to get out of unexpected jams and stay ahead of his opponents. Though already piloting a jet, that’d mean he’s 2-3 steps ahead at this point. In typical Nazi fashion, the biggest threat to their regime are not the allies, but their own politics, a neurotic dictator and personal interests u...

The Devil's Pilot by Richard D. Nolane My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 | Grade: B; WWII dogfights with Nazi Jets Here we are back again, indulging in the junk food of Alternate history fiction; what if the Nazis won the war. Only this time around they didn't. As what happened in the real world, WWII happened, and the allies defeated Imperial Japan by dropping the nukes on Hiroshima & Nagasaki. Everything is quiet on the eastern front. Only, the western front is still very much a contested battlefield. Downright catastrophic weather conditions saw the Landings at Normandy, as well as D-day, turn into a devastating failure. Much like the Persian fleet on the Greek shores, the allied naval offensive was blunted, and the Axis powers got a brief respite, allowing them to stay in the war late into 1946. The coinciding launch of the Lippisch .13a , the German ramjet prototype, swung the scale more in favor of the Germans, especially wh...

Iron Squad #1: Red Commando 1/2 by Jean-Luc Sala My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rating 4 out of 5 | Grade: B; Command & Conquer, mecha edition Disclaimer: I fully acknowledge that the period of the World wars is one of the darkest parts of human history. One which causes death, destruction & suffering on a continental scale. One which put into the collective consciousness, horrors pertaining to humanity, depths to which we never thought men could stoop to. Suffering and testament to human will, in Ethnic genocide & concentration camp (Something which is still being carried out by the ahem, ‘world’s next superpower’). It’s something which has shaped Geopolitical events for almost 80 years since. Not something to be made light of. Having said that, fictional stories where the Axis win the war, and establish a new world order, are a dime a dozen. It might be because, like me, there is a dedicated niche following of readers who guzzle it all up, li...