Toyman (Dumarest #3) 3.5Stars

 

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Title: Toyman
Series: Dumarest #3
Author: EC Tubb
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SF
Pages: 158
Words: 46K

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I am thoroughly enjoying these adventures of Earl Dumarest. He’s a man’s man with just the right amount of bravado and nonchalance balanced with a caring side that comes out at the oddest times. In this adventure, he comes to the planet Toy, can’t immediately pay his way off the planet and thus is drafted into a game where the corporate owners of Toy bet stock options on the outcomes of battles. The Toyman, the leader with the most stock, is a megamaniacal murderer who wants to be the supreme leader. He’s being helped by the Cyclans and Earl gets caught up between the factions.

In one scene, he has to fight a cage full of spiders, each the size of a basketball or larger. With his bare hands. There was some major pulp action going on! It was great.

Also on the plus side, there was no woman for Dumarest to get involved in. There is the sister of the Toyman, and she controls the next largest chunk of stock, but she’s in love with one of the other leaders and her brother uses that against her.

The whole point of Dumarest coming to this world was to ask the Super Computer about Earth. But of course, the Cyclan’s plot destroys the ONE part of the machine that had that info. Dumarest does learn that Earth is also called Terra, so he got one crumb. One measly crumb. But as I pointed out in the previous review, Dumarest getting back to Earth doesn’t make sense, so it has really lost its meaning to me.

The covers. Man, there were some weeeeeeeird ones. I chose this one because it showed the least amount of nakedness. One has Dumarest in a plastic codpiece with giant plastic shoulder pads wielding a sword while another has a naked mutant lady with flippers and wings in a giant tank with Dumarest looking on. Neither were covers I wanted to showcase, so you ended up with this monstrosity. I have zero idea what it is supposed to represent, but I figure it some artists drugged out idea of Dumarest and the world of Toy.

★★★✬☆

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From the Publisher

Space-wanderer Earl Dumarest is on the planet Toy to consult the giant computer which may contain information on the whereabouts of Earth, his lost home-world.
But soon he realises Toy is a place that gives away nothing for free. Before Dumarest can gain the information he needs, he must take part in the Toy Games - must fight like a tin soldier in a vast nursery.
And there is nothing playful about the Games on Toy. The pain is real enough; the wounds, the blood - and death.