Eternal Champion

"Not as well known as Moorcock's other books - e.g., the Elric and Corum series, but this is just as good." -- Glenn G. Thater, Author of 'Harbinger of Doom'

This review is for only the story "The Eternal Champion"Moorcock wrote this story in less than a week when he was seventeen and it is the only one by him written in first person (at least that I know of). The story is simple: A man called to champion the human race in a war against ?the evil Eldrin? finds that the Eldrin are not evil at all; that the evil is all a projection of humanity?s own shortcomings. The hero then betrays humankind and champions the Eldrin. In the Eldrin he finds kindness, dignity, restraint, spirituality, and beauty (all the things seventeen year old men want, but lack in adolescence). In the end the very qualities of humanity he detests (anger, revenge, myopia, self interest) overtake him and he launches a genocide against mankind. The story is told in broad strokes, and the writing is inconsistent; weak at times, strong at others. But the magic of this story is seeing how Moorcock?s young mind is trying to come to grips with really powerful ideas. Most of the struggles in our life are actually quite simple: who am I; what do I believe; to whom am I loyal and why; how do I reconcile what I want be with who I actually am; what does my choice of enemies say about me; how well do I really understand my enemies; etc... In the end the hero is not Eldrin (whom he admires), he is human (what he detests),and so he ends up all alone in the middle (again an adolescent fantasy: I refuse to be like the world, but I fail to be what I want, and therefore I am nowhere and all alone...). This may all sound simple, but compared to much of the sci-fi/fantasy claptrap out there this is Dostoyevsky by comparison. And Moorcock is brilliant at filling in a fantasy world, and keeping the narration at high speed. This is a sparse tale; not a lot of wasted words here. What is left unsaid is equally important as what is said. This book is not a complex masterpiece. It is a simple, yet competent work by a young brilliant author just realizing his skill in story telling and thought. In the end the simplicity is betrayed by an honest existential sadness. I first read this book in sixth grade twenty years ago and have read it several times since. Each time I like this tale more. Great short read. Enjoy.

I have the Millenium edition of this book, which contains the three novels, The Eternal Champion, Phoenix in Obsidian and the Dragon in the Sword. It is a good intro to the Eternal Champion series because it is the simplest. John Daker, moaning that he has many lives, many forms, introduces the true nature of the champion. Yet for me, the Eternal Champion is one of the best switching-sides story. The hero is told by humans that they're the good guys and the Eldren are the bad guys, and so he fights for them. Then he realizes that the truth is the other way around, so he switches to the Eldren and beats the crap out of humans. It makes me wonder, is what we've been taught as right since childhood really right, or are we being deceived? There's some implied philosophy for you. The next two parts are about the other guises of the Eternal Champion. After this, Moorcock has placed the Eternal Champion in every possible speculative fiction setting: post-apocalyptic earth, steampunk, time travel, sword and sorcery, etc. It's a series any questioning hero would love.

The Eternal Champion is the first in the series of re-issues of Moorcock's short stories with new forewards, and introductions. This book contains four stories, all centered around The Eternal Champion. The first story The Eternal Champion is a brilliant tale. In it the man John Daker is drawn into another world, slowly. Attracted by the word Erekose, he is brought to another dimension where he is the reincarnation of the great warrior Erekose. Erekose is enlisted by humanity to defeat the so-called demonic Eldren. Erekose defeats the Eldren, but eventually realizes that humanity is the blight on this planet, not the Eldren. He turns traitor and helps the Eldren against the savage humans. This is one of the most intriguing stories I have ever read. From the humanity as ignorant savage theme, to the horrific ending relating to the abuse of superior weaponry, this story has rarely been equaled. Erekose is then drawn out of a happy existence to another world in The Sundered Worlds, where humanity must travel the multiverse to rescue itself and prove to those running the universe they are ready to evolve and take the next step in the big picture. Phoenix in Obsidian is the third story in which, similarly to The Etenal Champion, Urlik Skarsol, must fight those he originally sees as his friends. This takes place on a world of ice, similar to the setting of The Ice Schooner in Vol. 8 Sailing to Utopia. Seemingly tacked on to the end is ...to Rescue Tanelorn a short story about the quest of one man to find help for the fabled city of Tanelorn before it is overrun by the forces of Chaos. Worth the price for the first story alone

I always wanted to read the Eternal Champion series by Michael Moorcock, but it included so many series and so many different books that were either hard to find or out of print that I figured the task was too hard. Fortunately, the author has help set up this new series for lazy fans like me. And it's very, very welcome. There are four novels in this volumn, so I'll take them separately: The Eternal Champion: One of his first and his simpliest, but the themes protrayed in it would have a lasting effect on the rest of the series. Some of the best scenes are those where Erekose is dreaming and the names of the other champions are being shouted. Classic. The Sundered Worlds: Little departure, but its sets up the rest of the multiverse, although it can be hard to follow all the ideas at times. But, hey, there's a Von Bek in it, can it be all that bad? Phoenix in Obsidian: I just like the title to be honest. A nice continuation of the story of Erekose/John Daker/whoever, furthering the themes presented in the first story. I think it's even simpler than The Eternal Champion, but still fun to read. To Rescue Tanelorn: A short story about the peaceful city that was only included because of said city. A good fantasy tale with hints of what will later happen in the series. And hey, it mentions Elric! It can't be all that bad. So, while these stories are simple, one has to start somewhere, and with Michael Moorcock, the beginning is always the best place