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Dreadnought
At the end of the world, three broken girls entrusted with the piloting of biomechanical monstrosities known as Dreadnoughts are all that stand between humanity and annihilation at the hands of the Lilim, a race of monstrous giant women from another world. As sanity and civilization teeter in the balance, Leah, El, and Kelly struggle to reconcile their hated minds and bodies with the perfect engines of destruction with which they must bond to survive.
142 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2020
About the author
Gretchen Felker-Martin
16 books1,087 followersGRETCHEN FELKER-MARTIN is a Massachusetts-based horror author and film critic. Her debut novel, Manhunt, was named the #1 Best Book of 2022 by Vulture, and one of the Best Horror Novels of 2022 by Esquire, Library Journal, and Paste. You can follow her work on Twitter and read her fiction and film criticism on Patreon and in TIME, The Outline, Nylon, Polygon, and more.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 6, 2020
I read this novella in one afternoon, not just because it's 142 pages, but because the reader lands so deep in the skin of the three protagonists that taking a break from reading to eat or do anything else felt torturous. Viscerally real in depicting the nuanced ways each protagonist's psyche has deteriorated from the unique ways the world hates them, as well as the universal teenage realization that you will never be "enough" for what the world demands of you as a human and as a commodity, this book filled me with the sort of futile dread that the movie Akira fills me with. Don't get it twisted, that's meant as the highest of compliments. Cannot recommend highly enough.
February 4, 2020
I liked this as much as, if not more than, I liked EGO HOMINI LUPUS. It explores similar themes to Felker-Martin's other work, but with more emphasis on the particular travails of adolescence, and this time in an alternate 1990s apocalyptic biopunk military dystopia. This novella wears its influences on its sleeve, in particular Neon Genesis Evangelion, but the pastiche aspects never came off as a tired retread of material I'd seen before. In particular, Felker-Martin's explicit, detailed explorations of gender and womanhood, of body dysphoria and the daily humiliations of living in a non-normative body or one that's considered "ugly", and of sexual abuse add an original spin to the teen-trauma-and-self-loathing-as-mecha-battles metaphor.
This is a quick read, and a great example of the novella form; to be honest, I tend to think most novellas would work a lot better as either short stories or full-on novels, but DREADNOUGHT is, I think, exactly the length it needs to be, with a fast-paced plot but nuanced characters and plenty of psychological insight.
As with EGO HOMINI LUPUS, I would describe the tone as relentlessly grim and cynical, so if that's not your thing, you may want to skip this one. I found the violence and gore less bracing and intense than in the former book, as most of it involves giant biomechs and monstrous women from another dimension with neon viscera rather than un-armored human beings-- but YMMV on that. (It's the depiction of teenage misery, cruelty, and self-hatred that really made me wince here, both with empathy and because-- in the case of bipolar, anorexic, clumsily manipulative El-- I recognized far too much of my own troubled younger self's behavior. Among other things, Felker-Martin really excels at stripping away the lies and justifications people come up with to pretend to themselves that they're not being horrible, or that they aren't really as vulnerable as they clearly are.)
This is a quick read, and a great example of the novella form; to be honest, I tend to think most novellas would work a lot better as either short stories or full-on novels, but DREADNOUGHT is, I think, exactly the length it needs to be, with a fast-paced plot but nuanced characters and plenty of psychological insight.
As with EGO HOMINI LUPUS, I would describe the tone as relentlessly grim and cynical, so if that's not your thing, you may want to skip this one. I found the violence and gore less bracing and intense than in the former book, as most of it involves giant biomechs and monstrous women from another dimension with neon viscera rather than un-armored human beings-- but YMMV on that. (It's the depiction of teenage misery, cruelty, and self-hatred that really made me wince here, both with empathy and because-- in the case of bipolar, anorexic, clumsily manipulative El-- I recognized far too much of my own troubled younger self's behavior. Among other things, Felker-Martin really excels at stripping away the lies and justifications people come up with to pretend to themselves that they're not being horrible, or that they aren't really as vulnerable as they clearly are.)
April 27, 2022
What do you get when you take one of the most transcendental works of sci-fi anime art and staple it to the works of Porpentine? This awkward beast, apparently. I feel like if you're going to so nakedly plagiarise someone's work, the least you can do is spell their name correctly in the acknowledgments section. Because that's what this text is, plagiarism masquerading as homage.
There's a lot to say about Dreadnought. It's better written than Felker-Martin's actual debut novel Manhunt, I think, but that's low praise. But it's ultimately a novel where the author took an existing property and retrofitted it in particular ways that align better with their own neuroses and identity, a prop for their own self-gratification. That's something that might be interesting as an online fanfiction experiment but is remarkably less so as a product that people are expected to pay "a fair price for" and as an author walking the gauntlet of traditional publication. Maybe that's why it is better written, because it's just the author slathering their own themes over someone else's skeleton?
Just about every character relationship is drawn from Evangelion. Just about every major set piece or character beat or worldbuilding element is drawn from Evangelion. But it's all so much flatter due to Felker-Martin's insistence in rendering Evangelion's tapestry of themes down into a single thread: how much it sucks to be dysmorphic. As you go through this novel, you're basically playing Evangelion bingo from the big (four-eyed biomechanical monster) to the small (red security keycard) to the fanfiction'd (Fem!Gendo) and so on. Hell, I compiled a list from the first half of the novel but then figured, hey, what's the point? The only part of Dreadnaught that is worth discussing is the stuff Felker-Martin changed from the story it's so obviously based on and why that might be.
With all due respect, Felker-Martin, but you owe Hideaki Anno more than just a "special thanks" at the end of your work.
There's a lot to say about Dreadnought. It's better written than Felker-Martin's actual debut novel Manhunt, I think, but that's low praise. But it's ultimately a novel where the author took an existing property and retrofitted it in particular ways that align better with their own neuroses and identity, a prop for their own self-gratification. That's something that might be interesting as an online fanfiction experiment but is remarkably less so as a product that people are expected to pay "a fair price for" and as an author walking the gauntlet of traditional publication. Maybe that's why it is better written, because it's just the author slathering their own themes over someone else's skeleton?
Just about every character relationship is drawn from Evangelion. Just about every major set piece or character beat or worldbuilding element is drawn from Evangelion. But it's all so much flatter due to Felker-Martin's insistence in rendering Evangelion's tapestry of themes down into a single thread: how much it sucks to be dysmorphic. As you go through this novel, you're basically playing Evangelion bingo from the big (four-eyed biomechanical monster) to the small (red security keycard) to the fanfiction'd (Fem!Gendo) and so on. Hell, I compiled a list from the first half of the novel but then figured, hey, what's the point? The only part of Dreadnaught that is worth discussing is the stuff Felker-Martin changed from the story it's so obviously based on and why that might be.
With all due respect, Felker-Martin, but you owe Hideaki Anno more than just a "special thanks" at the end of your work.
May 8, 2020
First, the good: Dreadnought has some really excellent action scenes, which strike just the right balance between clarity and visceral conciseness. And in fact, this could probably be said of the entire book, whose pacing never truly relents, only shifts between the violence of humanity's fight for survival and the inner wars of the various members of the Dreadnought paramilitary. As a result, the book was gripping all throughout, sustained by the slow revelation of the grim world against which the story is set.
That said (and here, the bad), I never felt quite engaged outside of the heart-stopping biomech vs. monster fights. The characters never go beyond their self-loathing (and their decidedly horrible coping mechanisms) to emerge as fully fleshed-out. Everyone ultimately seems to be a one-note caricature of misanthropy and (self-)hate sex. These stunted psyches keep the book from reaching anything truly interesting in its explorations on embodiment, cyborg/hybrid existence and the like.
What emerges, ultimately, is a grimdark gore fest of self-destruction with disappointingly Freudian overtones - though one with some really spectacular clashes between monster and biomachine.
That said (and here, the bad), I never felt quite engaged outside of the heart-stopping biomech vs. monster fights. The characters never go beyond their self-loathing (and their decidedly horrible coping mechanisms) to emerge as fully fleshed-out. Everyone ultimately seems to be a one-note caricature of misanthropy and (self-)hate sex. These stunted psyches keep the book from reaching anything truly interesting in its explorations on embodiment, cyborg/hybrid existence and the like.
What emerges, ultimately, is a grimdark gore fest of self-destruction with disappointingly Freudian overtones - though one with some really spectacular clashes between monster and biomachine.
April 28, 2021
pushing Evangelion to the extreme logical conclusion, eviscerating everything in its process. very painful to read, but very compelling, too
January 30, 2020
If you're going to treat giant mecha stories seriously, you need to find the compelling metaphor in them, and huge insanely powerful prosthetic bodies clashing with each other only really lend themselves to a few interesting themes. GFM finds one to excellent effect here. Most mecha stories are aimed at the power fantasy aspect, the desire to be strong, unfeeling, invulnerable, in a world that violates the feelings of young people at every turn. Neon Genesis Evangelion was successful at inverting this, and using giant fleshy bleeding engaged bodies to express the inner pain of the young people piloting them.
Dreadnought takes a similar but somewhat orthogonal direction, as fits the obvious NGE influence. Here, the Dreadnoughts express profound feelings of body distortion, self-horror, numbness, alienation, disgust. GFM's mastery of the carnographic detail effectively dramatizes the emotional states of young people who would seemingly rather be in any body but their own, and allows self-hate to explode into several graphic and explosive action scenes, which are quite kinetic and effective in their own right. Anyone can describe action, describe pain and violence in lurid detail, but GFM has a handle on how to make you feel both what its like to inflict, and to receive, violence. And, being driven as it is by self-hate and disgust, the violence never feels satisfying. In the world we see here, you're always the one who hurts, whether you win or lose. Putting on a giant body only makes the pain bigger.
There's nothing really to take away from this story. It is exactly what it needs to be for its purpose. I did wish the setting were more fleshed out, the plot a little less disjointed, the ending less abrupt, but that's largely the obsessive in me who always takes enormous pains over world-building and plot mechanics. Such things are largely beside the point here. Dreadnought leverages your familiarity with mecha stories that have come before in order to punch right down into the bleeding heart of the matter in minimal space and time. If this seems like your thing from the description, it almost certainly is.
Dreadnought takes a similar but somewhat orthogonal direction, as fits the obvious NGE influence. Here, the Dreadnoughts express profound feelings of body distortion, self-horror, numbness, alienation, disgust. GFM's mastery of the carnographic detail effectively dramatizes the emotional states of young people who would seemingly rather be in any body but their own, and allows self-hate to explode into several graphic and explosive action scenes, which are quite kinetic and effective in their own right. Anyone can describe action, describe pain and violence in lurid detail, but GFM has a handle on how to make you feel both what its like to inflict, and to receive, violence. And, being driven as it is by self-hate and disgust, the violence never feels satisfying. In the world we see here, you're always the one who hurts, whether you win or lose. Putting on a giant body only makes the pain bigger.
There's nothing really to take away from this story. It is exactly what it needs to be for its purpose. I did wish the setting were more fleshed out, the plot a little less disjointed, the ending less abrupt, but that's largely the obsessive in me who always takes enormous pains over world-building and plot mechanics. Such things are largely beside the point here. Dreadnought leverages your familiarity with mecha stories that have come before in order to punch right down into the bleeding heart of the matter in minimal space and time. If this seems like your thing from the description, it almost certainly is.
October 28, 2020
What a fucked up story. It needs every content warning under the sun, it wears its influences on its sleeve (Neon Genesis Evangelion and Porpentine) and it's great. Gross and great and everything goes straight to hell.
What a perfect way to end my "read 80 books challenge", this thing crawled up in my brain and screamed for several hours straight as I read it.
I don't have anything eloquent to say about it because it's about body image and family issues and realizing that its ultimate core is body issues, wanting to love yourself but you can't because your body is wrong and always will be, and not everyone can climb inside a killer robot and take revenge on the world.
What a perfect way to end my "read 80 books challenge", this thing crawled up in my brain and screamed for several hours straight as I read it.
I don't have anything eloquent to say about it because it's about body image and family issues and realizing that its ultimate core is body issues, wanting to love yourself but you can't because your body is wrong and always will be, and not everyone can climb inside a killer robot and take revenge on the world.
February 18, 2020
Lush and visceral prose (by which I mean there's a lot of viscera) drives this story about teenage girls, the monsters they contain and the monsters they inhabit, and the horror of the corporeal.
July 13, 2022
I became a fan of Felker-Martin after reading her debut full-length novel Manhunt earlier this year, which is still my #1 book of 2022, and Dreadnought shares a ton of similarities with that project, cementing my status as a big fan of her work.
The novella is told from the point-of-view of 3 teenage girls, all of whom are struggling with their own body-related issues and coping in pretty unhealthy ways. What I really appreciate about Felker-Martin's character work in both this novella and Manhunt is that I feel like it's populated by characters I've never read before. It's incredibly refreshing and interesting reading about characters with perspectives that I've never experienced in my own life and gaining some insight into that perspective. It's a really tough book to read at times, because these characters are so hard on themselves, but it does a fantastic job of shining a light on the internal (and sometimes external) struggles that they are going through.
This is definitely a character-driven story, with a huge focus being on the girls' mental and physical struggles, but there is also a lot of mecha/kaiju battling. The girls are slotted into giant biomechanical mechas called dreadnoughts, and they have to battle against enormous, women-esque creatures from another dimension called lilim that are wiping out cities and turning them into "gardens." Felker-Martin is adept at writing visceral, horrifying action when it comes to these bloody, neon-drenched battles filled with violence and gore and intestines.
I also should say real quick that I love Felker-Martin's writing style. To me, it's the perfect blend of straightforward + flowery prose. She never dives too deep into purple prose, but she does employ some beautiful (and sometimes grisly) metaphors while keeping all the writing super clear and readable.
My own problem with Dreadnought is pretty much the same problem I have with most novellas: I wanted more! Things move along at a fast pace, and while it doesn't feel rushed necessarily, I just wanted more time to flesh out the characters and the world. It's a really fascinating 90s dystopia that Felker-Martin has crafted, and I wanted to spend more time in that world learning about the state of earth, what's going on with the lilim, how the dreadnoughts were originally created, all of it. It's such an interesting setting and story with fascinating characters, I wanted more of everything.
One thing that suffers from it being novella-length though, I'd say, is the character development. We really get into the minds of each of the three main characters, but I wouldn't say that they especially change over the course of the story. Which isn't necessary for all stories, or will be a deterrent for all readers, but I did find myself wishing to see some sort of development in that department. Obviously I didn't need them to all suddenly "solve" their body image issues--life is never that simple or easy--but I would've liked to see those things explored and change a bit over the course of a longer story.
That being said, Dreadnought is definitely worth your time if you like rich characters and mechas battling kaijus. I'm confident in claiming that it won't be like anything else you've read this year. And if you enjoy this, definitely check out Manhunt as well for more great storytelling by Felker-Martin.
The novella is told from the point-of-view of 3 teenage girls, all of whom are struggling with their own body-related issues and coping in pretty unhealthy ways. What I really appreciate about Felker-Martin's character work in both this novella and Manhunt is that I feel like it's populated by characters I've never read before. It's incredibly refreshing and interesting reading about characters with perspectives that I've never experienced in my own life and gaining some insight into that perspective. It's a really tough book to read at times, because these characters are so hard on themselves, but it does a fantastic job of shining a light on the internal (and sometimes external) struggles that they are going through.
This is definitely a character-driven story, with a huge focus being on the girls' mental and physical struggles, but there is also a lot of mecha/kaiju battling. The girls are slotted into giant biomechanical mechas called dreadnoughts, and they have to battle against enormous, women-esque creatures from another dimension called lilim that are wiping out cities and turning them into "gardens." Felker-Martin is adept at writing visceral, horrifying action when it comes to these bloody, neon-drenched battles filled with violence and gore and intestines.
I also should say real quick that I love Felker-Martin's writing style. To me, it's the perfect blend of straightforward + flowery prose. She never dives too deep into purple prose, but she does employ some beautiful (and sometimes grisly) metaphors while keeping all the writing super clear and readable.
My own problem with Dreadnought is pretty much the same problem I have with most novellas: I wanted more! Things move along at a fast pace, and while it doesn't feel rushed necessarily, I just wanted more time to flesh out the characters and the world. It's a really fascinating 90s dystopia that Felker-Martin has crafted, and I wanted to spend more time in that world learning about the state of earth, what's going on with the lilim, how the dreadnoughts were originally created, all of it. It's such an interesting setting and story with fascinating characters, I wanted more of everything.
One thing that suffers from it being novella-length though, I'd say, is the character development. We really get into the minds of each of the three main characters, but I wouldn't say that they especially change over the course of the story. Which isn't necessary for all stories, or will be a deterrent for all readers, but I did find myself wishing to see some sort of development in that department. Obviously I didn't need them to all suddenly "solve" their body image issues--life is never that simple or easy--but I would've liked to see those things explored and change a bit over the course of a longer story.
That being said, Dreadnought is definitely worth your time if you like rich characters and mechas battling kaijus. I'm confident in claiming that it won't be like anything else you've read this year. And if you enjoy this, definitely check out Manhunt as well for more great storytelling by Felker-Martin.
December 30, 2021
Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Beautifully written, Dreadnought is probably an unexpected favorite of mine this year. A hard read, but something that you can't take your eyes off of. There's so much to unpack in this - imagery, themes, metaphors, etc etc this is definitely something to read in one sitting and then reread over the course of your lifetime.
From the get-go, this is not a story about heroes saving the world. It's about girls barely fitting into their bodies and burdened with the weight of a worldwide extinction they have to prevent. It's the brutality of girlhood, of not having enough room to grow because of the suffocation of your own skin, the repeated exposure to violence (from your hand, by those of others) - and the heavy ache of wanting to have a home, a place to belong to, and a body you at least tolerate.
Be mindful of the content warnings (there are a lot) when going into this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Transphobia, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Racial slurs, Gore, and Sexual content
Moderate: Eating disorder and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol, Deadnaming, and Self harm
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Beautifully written, Dreadnought is probably an unexpected favorite of mine this year. A hard read, but something that you can't take your eyes off of. There's so much to unpack in this - imagery, themes, metaphors, etc etc this is definitely something to read in one sitting and then reread over the course of your lifetime.
From the get-go, this is not a story about heroes saving the world. It's about girls barely fitting into their bodies and burdened with the weight of a worldwide extinction they have to prevent. It's the brutality of girlhood, of not having enough room to grow because of the suffocation of your own skin, the repeated exposure to violence (from your hand, by those of others) - and the heavy ache of wanting to have a home, a place to belong to, and a body you at least tolerate.
Be mindful of the content warnings (there are a lot) when going into this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Transphobia, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Racial slurs, Gore, and Sexual content
Moderate: Eating disorder and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol, Deadnaming, and Self harm
September 10, 2021
CW: eating disorders, fatphobia, transphobic language/slurs, gore, violence, sexual abuse
Neon Genisis Evangelion is one of my favourite things. Ever. I'm saving up for my Evangelion tattoos as I type this.
I really enjoyed Felker-Martins take on a world and a story I am very familiar with while still making it her own. I really appreciated that she kept a lot of the themes intact but still put her own spin on it (like replacing the constant bible imagery).
This was bit more digestible than Ego Homini Lupus, but also possibly slightly less ambitious. Her writing style remains really confident and beautiful.
I was a severely mentally ill teenager growing up, so I found the characters engaging, relatable and I felt very deeply for them.
I wish a few things that were established in this were expanded upon a bit more. Overall I very much appreciated the length of this Novella, but if it had been twice the length I would've been at least equally as happy with it.
Based on other reviews I've see I'd like to say that this very much feels like a work by an Evangelion fan for Evangelion fans and you get the most out of it having previously consumed that franchise.
I've noticed with Felker-Martin's work that I want to re-read them as soon as I finish them (even though they are very upsetting) and if there are ever going to physical copies available I'd 100% purchase them so I can annotate and really fully analyse the work.
Neon Genisis Evangelion is one of my favourite things. Ever. I'm saving up for my Evangelion tattoos as I type this.
I really enjoyed Felker-Martins take on a world and a story I am very familiar with while still making it her own. I really appreciated that she kept a lot of the themes intact but still put her own spin on it (like replacing the constant bible imagery).
This was bit more digestible than Ego Homini Lupus, but also possibly slightly less ambitious. Her writing style remains really confident and beautiful.
I was a severely mentally ill teenager growing up, so I found the characters engaging, relatable and I felt very deeply for them.
I wish a few things that were established in this were expanded upon a bit more. Overall I very much appreciated the length of this Novella, but if it had been twice the length I would've been at least equally as happy with it.
Based on other reviews I've see I'd like to say that this very much feels like a work by an Evangelion fan for Evangelion fans and you get the most out of it having previously consumed that franchise.
I've noticed with Felker-Martin's work that I want to re-read them as soon as I finish them (even though they are very upsetting) and if there are ever going to physical copies available I'd 100% purchase them so I can annotate and really fully analyse the work.
January 17, 2021
Remember watching OVAs for Neon Genesis Evangelion that just really focused on the psycho-sexual nature of the story? This is that turned to 11. It was a short, violent read and the kaijus were the least of the problems. In a way they were the freedom from those problems.
There's a review here that says that the characters are all one note and that we don't see them move past their trauma and that's true but it's not a point against the work, I don't think. We don't see growth because their is no room to do that. These teens in their 90s military AU were in constant trauma. They had no room to breathe and every second of every day was a reminder of all the things that hurt them and they had to deal with it because . . . they had to save the world.
But hurt people can't save the world. Hurt people just . . . hurt people.
Great read.
There's a review here that says that the characters are all one note and that we don't see them move past their trauma and that's true but it's not a point against the work, I don't think. We don't see growth because their is no room to do that. These teens in their 90s military AU were in constant trauma. They had no room to breathe and every second of every day was a reminder of all the things that hurt them and they had to deal with it because . . . they had to save the world.
But hurt people can't save the world. Hurt people just . . . hurt people.
Great read.
January 6, 2023
Probably my favorite of all of Felker-Martin’s books, not lease because I can rely on her to write bodyhate so chillingly real I feel it in my bones. I truly feel like she, more than almost any other author, taps into the most vile and visceral things I am capable of feeling in my body, splays them out on the page and fucks (with) them until I’m begging for mercy. Dread sight is superb in this regard, telling a macro-level story of conflict and war while also mapping embodied zones of conflict. Leah is a character I will be sitting with for a long time, and (Gretchen, if you’re reading this!!!!) hope to meet again in other work, if I should be so lucky.
May 20, 2021
The author is one of today's most talented writers in any medium, be it critical analysis, thinkpieces, or fiction, as she does here. She has a comfortability with language, and a facility with it, which makes reading her work just an absolute pleasure. She enlightens things you didn't know you'd been thinking about. Her language is vivid, precise, and visceral. Truly one of the best to ever do it
May 9, 2022
A beautiful, revelatory book about dysphoria, viscera, desolation, and girlhood. I want to sear every word of this into my brain with a hot poker. LONG LIVE THE NEW FLESH!!
August 22, 2021
If I'm going to read about teenagers, I want it to be like how they are here - absolutely miserable, overwhelmed with self loathing and angst. Gretchen Felker-Martin is so great at creating the most oppressive atmosphere in her writing, you know everyone is doomed and nothing good will happen, but still you get attached to the characters because what else can you do?
October 7, 2023
An absolutely beautiful cacophony of nightmarish biomass and trauma. An incredibly unique take on the Evangelion premise, that refuses to let up no matter how atrocious and hopeless things might get. Also I just love the way Felker-Martin writes women. Not for everyone, but definitely my cup of tea.
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December 18, 2023i think i've cooled quite a bit on felker-martin's writing since reading manhunt last year, but i still enjoyed this a lot. wish that the world had been more fleshed out, although given the *heavy* evangelion influence the dots connected regardless. the world can always use more biomecha
June 5, 2024
Very mean and cruel, Gretchen's prose is to die for.
To be honest I wish it was longer but I understand why not...
To be honest I wish it was longer but I understand why not...
September 15, 2021
this really gave me 'attack on titan' vibes.
December 29, 2023
This was finally the year where I watched the monumentally-influential anime TV show classic Neon Genesis Evangelion: a hauntingly depressing and surreal story about three traumatized young teens being forced to pilot fleshy mechs to fight against a relentless cosmic horror. I imagine that if I had watched this show when I was a depressed teenager, it would have really connected with me, but watching it now, I found myself impressed by its aesthetics and grateful for its inspiration while also finding much of it a slog.
Dreadnought is a horrifying, deeply dark take on NGE, where its own three traumatized teens are also trans, grappling with their shame, desire, and their acute self-loathing and body horror. It’s extremely not for the faint of heart, but like in Felker-Martin’s other (excellent) works, it buries itself deep in the worst of humanity, while also simultaneously showcasing some of the most heart-wrenching self-hatred around bodies (particularly fat and trans bodies) and some of the most overtly erotic desire for these non-conventional bodies. It’s NGE with some of the unintentional subtext turned to text; a tragic deep dive into darkness, complete with gripping prose and some of the gnarliest fight scenes you’ll ever read.
Dreadnought is a horrifying, deeply dark take on NGE, where its own three traumatized teens are also trans, grappling with their shame, desire, and their acute self-loathing and body horror. It’s extremely not for the faint of heart, but like in Felker-Martin’s other (excellent) works, it buries itself deep in the worst of humanity, while also simultaneously showcasing some of the most heart-wrenching self-hatred around bodies (particularly fat and trans bodies) and some of the most overtly erotic desire for these non-conventional bodies. It’s NGE with some of the unintentional subtext turned to text; a tragic deep dive into darkness, complete with gripping prose and some of the gnarliest fight scenes you’ll ever read.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews