# Ian Watson's Space Marine



## buckythefly (Mar 16, 2009)

(I didn't put this in the black library cause I didn't want a real discussion, I just want to know if anyone remembers this gem)

Have any of you read Ian Watson's "Space Marine"? That old old book, one of the first 40k novels. It featured:

space marines slamming up the rectum of a spacefaring tyranid hive ship. (draw your own punchline with 6th edition) 
Creepy homoerotic bonding rituals. 
Unappealing nudity.
Incorrect definitions for everything.
Butt Branding.
Arts and crafts. 
a unique perspective on the emperors finest.

I wholeheartedly recommend it if you have a high tolerance for wordless terror or just want to feel the emperors hot sticky love all over you.


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## MontytheMighty (Jul 21, 2009)

LOL you have to check out this guy's review: http://ferretbrain.com/articles/article-288

This quote stands out in particular
"_Yet still, there was to be a branding upon the leather-tough buttocks: an imprint of a clenched fist, no larger than a fingernail. Only, this was indeed to be an honour - for the Sergeant himself personally wielded the electro-iron when Lexandro, Yeremi, and Biff bent over to flex the great gluteal muscles of their rumps_."





> Fists of Beauty
> by Arthur B
> Wednesday, 02 July 2008
> Arthur reviews Space Marine, a long-out-of print Warhammer 40,000 novel by Ian Watson.~ Unlike the Warhammer Fantasy world, the universe of Warhammer 40,000 has changed radically since its first inception, to the point where entire major intelligent species have been tossed into the memory hole because they no longer fit the atmosphere. There have been many casualties of this slow progression of the mileau from an anything-goes universe where anything that might happen in the pages of 2000 AD might be encountered to a more focused variety of grim far future darkness, and amongst these casaulties is Space Marine, Ian Watson's 1993 novel. Whereas most of the early Warhammer Fantasy tie-in novels remain in print - even dreck like the Konrad Saga - Space Marine has been allowed to vanish, the stated reason being that it happens to deal with large amounts of material which has been removed from the Warhammer 40,000 canon.
> ...


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## bitsandkits (Mar 18, 2008)

i think i own it(or used to) , its the one with the dark angels on the cover,but imperial fists inside? about three lads from necromunda becoming marines?

im still looking for two books of his that i havent read, Harlequin and chaos child.


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## MontytheMighty (Jul 21, 2009)

bitsandkits said:


> i think i own it(or used to) , its the one with the dark angels on the cover,but imperial fists inside? about three lads from necromunda becoming marines?


Yes...


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## humakt (Jan 2, 2008)

I have not read it for a while, but yes I think it is very out of date background wise. The second aprt of the book involves Squats.


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## bitsandkits (Mar 18, 2008)

humakt said:


> I have not read it for a while, but yes I think it is very out of date background wise. The second aprt of the book involves Squats.


shhhh dont get them all excited


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## Sakura_ninja (Apr 29, 2012)

Sounds allot more fun to read than the adventures of the GRIMDARK: quest for the skull of skulls: about a servo skull called grimdark on a quest to find skulls to put on skulls to unlock the secrets of skulls and find the great skull of skulls which opens a great skull on the mountain of skull filled with...........SKULLS!!!


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## Rems (Jun 20, 2011)

While _Space Marine_ hasn't stood the test of time very well _Inquisition War_ is still good. It's still one of the better portrayals of life in the Imperium and its gothic weirdness than the endless battle scenes we mostly get nowdays. 

Speaking of squats though they've been mentioned in the 6th ed rulebook surprisingly. They're tolerated Ab-Humans.


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## humakt (Jan 2, 2008)

Sakura_ninja said:


> Sounds allot more fun to read than the adventures of the GRIMDARK: quest for the skull of skulls: about a servo skull called grimdark on a quest to find skulls to put on skulls to unlock the secrets of skulls and find the great skull of skulls which opens a great skull on the mountain of skull filled with...........SKULLS!!!


Actually, that sounds like a great book! Why hasnt it been written already :grin:


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## Sakura_ninja (Apr 29, 2012)

humakt said:


> Actually, that sounds like a great book! Why hasnt it been written already :grin:


Because C.S.goto had his pen stolen


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## bitsandkits (Mar 18, 2008)

Sakura_ninja said:


> Because C.S.goto had his pen stolen


Do you think C.S.goto has a mate called A.D. Load ? or JP Plot


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## Kreuger (Aug 30, 2010)

I haven't read Space Marine, but I do have Chaos Child and that was a mighty strange book. I bought it visiting the UK in '96. 

Lexandro is still just as strange and the symbolism surrounding him is still overtly homoerotic. But there's also the Inquisitor Draco and his callidus assassin girlfriend . . . and a genestealer cult and . . . its pretty far out of canon now. 

I think the major issue isn't Lexandro's homoeroticism or his S&M bent, or the strange relationship stuff with the inquisitor and the assassin. The problem with this book, and I presume the rest of the Ian Watson books is how terribly pedantic he makes the universe. Sometimes it is creative but its more of just goofy and lacking the gravity that Games Workshop typically wants to instill in one of their background pieces.

p.s. - Bits, Chaos Child, Harlequin, and Draco are all available cheap used from 3rd party sellers on Amazon.


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## Corporal Punishment 69 (Jul 8, 2012)

I am loving these books, I read them when they written, the first 40K stories, lots of very dark and strnge things, like RT was, and the Realms of Chaos books, which is why I speak english, to read these books!!


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## Vaz (Mar 19, 2008)

Did he do Lasgun Wedding? I have that lying around in a box somewhere.


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## TheSpore (Oct 15, 2009)

I never read SM, but I read all of Inqusition War and absolutely loved that series, I thought the whole Draco and his Assassin lady friend was interesting, it is something missing in many of the 40k novels, just becasue they are no suppose to become lovers doens't mean it can't happen.


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## buckythefly (Mar 16, 2009)

I'll have to check out inquisition war. For all the trouble I gave space marine, I really thought it was an interesting piece of 40k history. I don't really dig the angry locker-room vibes from the dudes, but thats just cause it reminds me of highschool... I only seem to like the "bad" 40k fiction.


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