• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Comment Policy
  • Nav Widget Area

    • Instagram
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Pretty Terrible

Pop Culture Criticism by Natalie Luhrs

You are here: Home / Book Reviews / Science Fiction / The Human Division #12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads, John Scalzi

April 3, 2013

The Human Division #12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads, John Scalzi

The Human Division #12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads, John Scalzi

The Human Division #12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads, John Scalzi

Woo, more plot! How exciting!

Okay, okay, I’ll stop being a facetious jerk. For at least a little while.

This is a B plot episode…or is it?

Danielle Lowen, who you may or may not remember from episode 9, “The Observers”, is the main character in this, the next the last episode of The Human Division: “The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads”.

Lowen has been sent by the Secretary of State, who just happens to be her father, to the Brazilian consulate in New York where they have been told that the Brazilian government will provide them with all the information they have on Luisa Carvalho, last seen messily exiting an airlock sans space suit (will not travel). She’s given the runaround by a minor diplomatic functionary and he pisses her off to the point where she basically tells him that if he doesn’t get her what his government promised her that she’ll cause a diplomatic incident. She gives him half an hour to comply, heads to a nearby shop for a snack, and the Brazilian consulate explodes.

PLOT. YAY. (Sorry.)

Since Lowen’s been trained as a doctor, she helps the injured and becomes a bit of a minor celebrity in the way that the US media likes to make people celebrities. After the initial furor dies down, she heads back to her home in the DC suburbs and goes out to get a drink at what we like to call yupsteraunts in my household. While there, she orders a drink as big as her head and as she’s preparing to drown her woes (and possibly herself) in it, she’s approached by a man who claims to be a pharmaceutical salesman. As they talk, she mentions her little problem with how a person as boring as Luisa Carvalho becomes a killer and he just happens to suggest something that would work–and then drops a few hints at her and disappears.

So maybe we might actually see some resolution in the next episode but unless it’s an extra long episode I’m having a hard time seeing how all the loose ends are going to be wrapped up. I guess we’ll see.

And I’ve been waiting WEEKS to post this when we came to the next to last episode of the serial (because I am nothing if not utter predictable)–

The ball is in your court, Mr. Scalzi.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Science Fiction Natalie Luhrs

About Natalie Luhrs

I'm a lifelong geek with a passion for books and social justice.

Reader Interactions

The Whistling Season, Ivan Doig
Mapp and Lucia, E.F. Benson

Comments

  1. donna says

    April 3, 2013 at 8:40 am

    He mentioned yesterday on his blog that the final episode is about twice as long.

    • Natalie says

      April 3, 2013 at 8:43 am

      I’ve been making a point of not reading any commentary about the episodes before I read and write my blog post–I’m still not sure that a double-length episode is enough space to resolve things in a satisfactory sort of way.

    • donna says

      April 3, 2013 at 8:55 am

      Oh sorry–hope that didn’t spoil anything for you.

    • Natalie says

      April 3, 2013 at 9:06 am

      Nah, not at all. It’s good to know that the last episode will be a bit longer–I had a feeling it would be.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

a purple haired woman with glasses smiles at the camera

Hello! I’m Natalie Luhrs. I write about books, culture, my health, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I have many opinions.

I am a two-time Hugo Award finalist, in 2017 for Best Fan Writer and in 2021 for my essay “George R.R. Martin Can Fuck Off Into the Sun, Or: The 2020 Hugo Awards Ceremony (Rageblog Edition)” in the Best Related Work category.

Search

Upcoming Conventions

Readercon - July 9 to 11, 2021 (virtual)

DisCon III, the 79th World Science Fiction Convention - August 25 to 29, 2021

Support Pretty Terrible

Updates by Email

Blog posts, cat pictures, and other random things in email? Sign up here.
 

 

2021 Reading Challenge

2021 Reading Challenge

2021 Reading Challenge
Natalie has read 6 books toward their goal of 50 books.
hide
6 of 50 (12%)
view books

Recently Read

The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows
The Relentless Moon
A Wizard's Guide To Defensive Baking
Mischief
Architects of Memory
The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water
Unconquerable Sun
Bury Your Dead
The Brutal Telling
A Rule Against Murder
The Cruelest Month
A Fatal Grace
The Angel of the Crows
One Summer in Paris
Still Life
The Crossroads of Should and Must: Find and Follow Your Passion
Family for Beginners
The City We Became
Seven Sisters
The Harbors of the Sun


Natalie's favorite books »

Footer

Helpful Links

  • Home
  • About
  • Comment Policy
  • RSS - Posts

Archives

Looking for Something?

Recent Posts

  • 2021 Best Related Work Finalist!
  • What Comes Next
  • Recent Reading, January 2021
  • Could I possibly catch a break now?
  • Some Positive News, For Once

Copyright © 2021 Natalie Luhrs · Pretty Happy On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in
"It's chaos, be kind." Michelle McNamara

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.