Christopher Pike narrative themes
In this post i'm writing about the Christopher Pike books Witch, Season of Passage, Monster, The Listeners, Scavenger Hunt, and The Last Vampire series.
Pike appears to have at least 2 general types of supernatural themes: 1, the alien based parasite that can only live through a host's body, and over time the parasite in effect transforms the human host into a powerful alien/reptile/vampire/monster, and attempts infect the entire world with the parasitic race; and 2, spiritual beings who have no physical form, and hitch a ride on souls dying or souls being reborn into a physical plain--these spirits, when reborn, exhibit no emotions, immense strength, the ability to transform humans into what they are, and have powerful eyes that can mesmerise others.
Right now these two categories are simplified, but I have an idea that most Pike novels could fit into either category well enough. It's late at night, so I'm too lazy to do this in full, but I'll try a few novels. ‘Witch’ supernatural elements: bloodlines carry the witch’s power, female relatives exhibit this power; most witches have the ability to control others and read other's minds by dominating another's will with their eyes/mind; some witches can heal, with touch; moonlight, sun, and the light from Mars can enhance a witch’s power when she is around water.
So the supernatural elements in ‘Witch’ coincide with the parasite category I've described above. 1, bloodlines carry the witch power, which is similar to The Last Vampire series where, although most of the vampirism was from blood-transfusion, some supernatural elements were given through birth--Seymour was born with ‘seeing’ powers, and Kalika was born from a human but possessed powers. 2, Julia and her Aunt could control people's wills and read other's minds by using the force of their eyes--this seemed a watered-down version of Lauren's power in Season of Passage, the vampire's powers in The Last Vampire series, the sibling’s power in Scavenger Hunt, and the reptile's powers in The Listeners. 3, some witches can heal with their touch--in Monster, Season of Passage, and The Last Vampire series, blood was a wonderful healer for parasites, and there was touching involved as one vampire/monster usually had to hold and feed the hurt vampire/monster the blood in order too heal it. 4, moonlight, sun, and the light from Mars enhanced power when a witch was around water--in Monster, Season of Passage, and The Last Vampire, sunlight was a deterrent, moonlight seemed to represent transcendence, and the light from Mars was over-powering, while pools of water and blood either 'washed' you in innocence or terror, especially in The Last Vampire 5, the Suzama scripture mentioned the child and mother fleeing 'to the mirror in the sky', and in The Last Vampire 1 and 2 Yaksha felt calm when near water.
It could be possible, if you want to read this much into Pike's mythology (and I do), that the Florence family somewhere along the line contracted some of the parasite/vampire-type blood into their gene-pool. The Florence family didn't become fully fledged monsters, but they have a little monster in them. What I found really interesting about the novel Witch, is the family's powers weren't innately 'good'--the powers could be used cruelly, such as Julia mentally hurting the overweight villain in the first convenience store shoot-out. Later she remarks to Jim when at the motel, she feels such 'hatred' and wants to act on it. If the family powers came from the parasite/vampire bloodline, then it's possible the powers could allow the user to be cruel or kind. Anyway, I'm just beginning with this idea. I figure I can tie more novels into it.
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Now, to lighten the mood, here's a little something for shits & giggles:
One thing that hit me about the novel The Last Vampire was the structure of the novel had a whole noir crime feel. I mean, the high school part lasted what, two chapters? Then there was the mystery/intrigue, the expansive, rich settings intersecting cheap offices with questionable morals and bad lighting. The character triad was very noir, too. Sita, the dark hero, was loved from afar by the geeky Seymour, and fell for the handsome stranger (Ray) when she knows she shouldn't, all while trying to evade past romantic tangles (Yaksha). It reminded me of old Humphrey Bogart movies, like the Maltese Falcon: Bogart is the dark detective, loved from afar by his bookish secretary or his partner's wife, but quickly falling for a mysterious woman too closely related to the villain he is tracking. Patricia Cornwall books are like that: Scarpetta, the hero forging ahead with always two men following, the overweight, downtrodden police detective and the powerful FBI agent. In The Last Vampire, it was odd, but somehow the mythical flashbacks mixed well with the noir.
Funny as hell: there was Sita, in a constant repitition of her 'brilliant' powers, in a scene where her hands and ankles are handcuffed and she's trapped in the limo, considering what she'll do if she can't break the cuffs. "The metal is incredibly hard. I will not be able to break it. But that doesn't mean I can't get around. I can hop, even bound, far more quickly than any mortal can run." Although, she may be able to escape the vehicle and hop away, being the victor of the scene, I couldn't help laughing while imagining someone speedily moving through a field like an Energiser Bunny. I suppose being a victor means nothing if you can't do it without grace.
Pike appears to have at least 2 general types of supernatural themes: 1, the alien based parasite that can only live through a host's body, and over time the parasite in effect transforms the human host into a powerful alien/reptile/vampire/monster, and attempts infect the entire world with the parasitic race; and 2, spiritual beings who have no physical form, and hitch a ride on souls dying or souls being reborn into a physical plain--these spirits, when reborn, exhibit no emotions, immense strength, the ability to transform humans into what they are, and have powerful eyes that can mesmerise others.
Right now these two categories are simplified, but I have an idea that most Pike novels could fit into either category well enough. It's late at night, so I'm too lazy to do this in full, but I'll try a few novels. ‘Witch’ supernatural elements: bloodlines carry the witch’s power, female relatives exhibit this power; most witches have the ability to control others and read other's minds by dominating another's will with their eyes/mind; some witches can heal, with touch; moonlight, sun, and the light from Mars can enhance a witch’s power when she is around water.
So the supernatural elements in ‘Witch’ coincide with the parasite category I've described above. 1, bloodlines carry the witch power, which is similar to The Last Vampire series where, although most of the vampirism was from blood-transfusion, some supernatural elements were given through birth--Seymour was born with ‘seeing’ powers, and Kalika was born from a human but possessed powers. 2, Julia and her Aunt could control people's wills and read other's minds by using the force of their eyes--this seemed a watered-down version of Lauren's power in Season of Passage, the vampire's powers in The Last Vampire series, the sibling’s power in Scavenger Hunt, and the reptile's powers in The Listeners. 3, some witches can heal with their touch--in Monster, Season of Passage, and The Last Vampire series, blood was a wonderful healer for parasites, and there was touching involved as one vampire/monster usually had to hold and feed the hurt vampire/monster the blood in order too heal it. 4, moonlight, sun, and the light from Mars enhanced power when a witch was around water--in Monster, Season of Passage, and The Last Vampire, sunlight was a deterrent, moonlight seemed to represent transcendence, and the light from Mars was over-powering, while pools of water and blood either 'washed' you in innocence or terror, especially in The Last Vampire 5, the Suzama scripture mentioned the child and mother fleeing 'to the mirror in the sky', and in The Last Vampire 1 and 2 Yaksha felt calm when near water.
It could be possible, if you want to read this much into Pike's mythology (and I do), that the Florence family somewhere along the line contracted some of the parasite/vampire-type blood into their gene-pool. The Florence family didn't become fully fledged monsters, but they have a little monster in them. What I found really interesting about the novel Witch, is the family's powers weren't innately 'good'--the powers could be used cruelly, such as Julia mentally hurting the overweight villain in the first convenience store shoot-out. Later she remarks to Jim when at the motel, she feels such 'hatred' and wants to act on it. If the family powers came from the parasite/vampire bloodline, then it's possible the powers could allow the user to be cruel or kind. Anyway, I'm just beginning with this idea. I figure I can tie more novels into it.
___________________________
Now, to lighten the mood, here's a little something for shits & giggles:
One thing that hit me about the novel The Last Vampire was the structure of the novel had a whole noir crime feel. I mean, the high school part lasted what, two chapters? Then there was the mystery/intrigue, the expansive, rich settings intersecting cheap offices with questionable morals and bad lighting. The character triad was very noir, too. Sita, the dark hero, was loved from afar by the geeky Seymour, and fell for the handsome stranger (Ray) when she knows she shouldn't, all while trying to evade past romantic tangles (Yaksha). It reminded me of old Humphrey Bogart movies, like the Maltese Falcon: Bogart is the dark detective, loved from afar by his bookish secretary or his partner's wife, but quickly falling for a mysterious woman too closely related to the villain he is tracking. Patricia Cornwall books are like that: Scarpetta, the hero forging ahead with always two men following, the overweight, downtrodden police detective and the powerful FBI agent. In The Last Vampire, it was odd, but somehow the mythical flashbacks mixed well with the noir.
Funny as hell: there was Sita, in a constant repitition of her 'brilliant' powers, in a scene where her hands and ankles are handcuffed and she's trapped in the limo, considering what she'll do if she can't break the cuffs. "The metal is incredibly hard. I will not be able to break it. But that doesn't mean I can't get around. I can hop, even bound, far more quickly than any mortal can run." Although, she may be able to escape the vehicle and hop away, being the victor of the scene, I couldn't help laughing while imagining someone speedily moving through a field like an Energiser Bunny. I suppose being a victor means nothing if you can't do it without grace.