Who out Bonded Bond?

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  • I just wanted to let the Modesty Blaise fans know that BBC Radio 4 will be airing a brand new radio play of 'A Taste for Death' from December 17-20, 2012. You can read the deets here: http://modestyblaisenews.blogspot.ca/2012/12/TasteForDeathRadio.html

    And I agree that Modesty is the greatest character in espionage fiction (although technically it's not really espionage), and that Peter O'Donnell certainly had a knack for making his readers care about his characters.
  • Brilliant - thanks a million for this - I'll definitely tune in!
    Just a question JodyKihara, why do you say that the fabulous Modesty Blaise books are technically not espionage when most of the assignments are commissioned by Tarrent (head of Mi6)?
    You obviously love his stuff as much as Bentley & I do - O'Donnell was the best and a lovely man with it!
  • The BBC4 radio play started today and its well worth a listen. I think O'Donnell would have approved.
    It's a clever adaptation and the writer and producer have done a great job at capturing the mood and the essence of the characters. Willie Garvin in particular comes across as very true to the novels.
    I hope some big producer picks up on this and recognises the potential for the silver screen. Well done it would knock Bond out of the park. Sacrilege on this site — but true!
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,687
    Remo Williams in the Destroyer series comes to mind...
  • Posts: 5,774
    chrisisall wrote:
    Remo Williams in the Destroyer series comes to mind...

    I do agree. Of all the american "man's adventures" series that came out in the 70s, The Destroyer is the only one that was, and stayed, original. The rest you can bury in the seepest pit of hell.

    In France, you get Largo Winch, which started as a series of novels, then gave birth to a graphic novel series, a TV series and two movies. The novels were written at a time where Jean Van Hamme had some good ideas.

    XIII started good, but jumped the shark with "Pour Maria", IMHO.
  • New to this board. I'm also a Blaise fan although I've only read Modesty, Sabre Tooth, Taste of Death and Pieces so far; currently reading Impossible Virgin. The books are satisfyingly long and O'Donnell maintains a very high standard from the first line to the last.

    If I had a minor criticism it would be that Blaise and Garvin are given too much of an air of infallibility in the way they triumph over the bad guys, and also in their judgement of other people.

    Of the many imitators from the sixties, I really enjoy Adam Diment's Philip McAlpine, who I envisage as looking like Owen Wilson. Shame the books were never filmed.
  • Your certainly correct regarding O'Donnell's consistent high quality. The standard from start to finish was absolutely amazing -vastly superior to Fleming in every regard and like Bentley, I think the failure of Hollywood to pick up on the franchise is one of the great unanswered questions of our time.
    This is particularly true when you consider all the failed attempts to develop thriller franchises with female leads. You would think that producers would research the genre and pick up on what remains the biggest cenematic opportunity of all ?
    I don't know if it's true but many say that Tarantino owns the rights. If correct, this may not be a good thing because I don't think he's the man for the job. IMHO you need a Brit because there is something quintessentially English about Blaise and we don't need a spoof - we need the real deal from A-Z. We live in hope.
  • For my money I always felt Donald Hamilton's Matt Helm's books were a bit better than Bond.
  • Posts: 802
    For my money I always felt Donald Hamilton's Matt Helm's books were a bit better than Bond.

    @mikeninja008 I tried a couple back in the day (The Silencer & The Wrecking Crew) but I just couldn't get those silly Dean Martin movies out of my head whilst reading.
    Shame but if ever there was a case of movies getting in the way of books, that was it!
  • That is a shame @Villers53
  • Posts: 2,341
    Wei constantly showed him up in TND...
  • Posts: 12,837
    I prefer Andy Mcnab's Nick Stone books to Flemings novels.

    Maybe not as well written but I find them more entertaining and involving than some of the Bond books. I like a few Bond books better but overall I think Stone is the better series.
  • MrcogginsMrcoggins Following in the footsteps of Quentin Quigley.
    Posts: 3,144
    She's Back this week Ms Blaise can be found on BBC Radio 4 at 19:45 hrs every week day for this week only also can be found on the listen again section of the radio 4 web site
  • Posts: 802
    @ Mrcoggins - brilliant, thank's for this. I'm on it.
    Why the hell Quentin Tarantino doesn't get on and make the movies, I'll never know.
    If he wants a franchise bigger than Bond as his legacy, this is it!
  • MrcogginsMrcoggins Following in the footsteps of Quentin Quigley.
    Posts: 3,144
    Dear Villiers my pleasure !
  • Posts: 802
    Mrcoggins wrote:
    Dear Villiers my pleasure !
    Thanks Mrcoggins - indeed it was a pleasure!
    It was a first class adaptation that, although heavily abridged, captured perfectly the era and Blaise zeitgeist. Why on earth a big producer doesn't pick up on this franchise beats the hell out of me — when you consider all the attention 'The Man From Uncle' reboot is getting you'd have thought Blaise would have been a natural.
    Maybe these guys just don't like making money?
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