neuromancer

random reactions / notes

i forgot how disorienting this book was when i read it years ago. it takes a solid 30% of the book before the place setting and the character relationships really start to sink in. the descriptive text is incredibly dense. it’s been interesting to see gibson’s evolution over the years. he has the knack for the clever phrase and the interesting metaphor, but the shock application for description has been dialed back considerably. iirc, things improved thru the balance of the sprawl trilogy, but man, there were a couple of places where this was a slog.

lots of this book really holds up well. particularly as we’re looking at the development of AI. the origin story of wintermute (and its looming presence in the 90s text BBS culture) the punk aesthetic and description of the tech is pitch perfect. it’s easy to see why it basically defined the genre. the bias towards japanese futurism and mega-corporations driving the developments on all fronts, this is my earliest recollection of this assertion.

the ono-sendai deck being the entryway to “cyberspace” and something that could customize and enhance your online interaction was in retrospect, so quaint. yet, so in keeping with the state of DIY and hack culture. i’m very curious to see how this is presented in the upcoming appletv series.

i don’t have a firm grounding in late 80s early 90s scifi such that the prior notion of the freeside is well formed for me. but as it’s described it feels like the proto-space vegas that so much scifi seems to incorporate into plots/scenery these days.

at this point i feel compelled to re-read the balance of the sprawl trilogy. this won’t help aggregate personal productivity.