Busted Flush continues the adventures of next generation of Wild Cards, with a few of the originals in pivotal roles. All of them are survivors of the deadly alien Joker virus that triggers strange deformities and powerful abilities, and most of whom work for various governments as authorized superheroes or weapons. It's set in a 10 degree variant universe, wherein American Hero is a Survivor-style show for testing/recruiting new Wild Cards, the U.S. President is named Kennedy, the Attorney General is Hilary Rodham, and fuel from the Mideast costs 300 dollars a barrel, so not many people are driving cars; and evidently our politicians are still clueless and ineffective, because no one is producing ethanol from hemp. If only Arizona could send Leslie Fish to the Senate.
The "Double Helix" pieces are by Melinda Snodgrass, who wrote The Edge of Reason last year. Teleporting hermaphrodite British Interpol ace Noel leads a duplicitous life as a double-agent. As assassin Bahir, he spies on/works for/sabotages the United Arab Emirate's Prince Siraj, the man who sets the prices on oil. As Lilith, she spies on/works for/sabotages the Committee, the organization which directs superhero activities of Aces on this side of the pond. Lilith is sexy and snarky; Bahir is by turn respectful and flippant with authority figures; but Noel is trying to cope with a dying dad and accumulated self-loathing.
"Could, Would, Shoulda," penned by Caroline Spector, follows the activities of Bubbles, who has PTSD from her rescue work in Egypt and a troubled relationship with her girlfriend, but still has the heart to visit young jokers and aces kept in hospitals or other holding facilities. She befriends a Wild Card named Niobe, after the Greek queen who grieved inconsolably for the death of all her 14 children. Niobe births fully activated Wild Cards every time she breeds, but all her children die in a matter of days.
Niobe also shares the "Political Science" storyline with 13 year old Blake, who mysteriously survived a nuclear explosion in a two-bit, played-out oil town in Texas. Blake's reaction to the Joker virus is just emerging, and when it proves to be out of control, he's slated for termination. Niobe and her children bust Blake out, but they inadvertently release some of the most dangerous criminal Jokers on the planet, and the Committee sends some of its finest to clean up the ensuing mess. Ian Tregellis and Walton Simons write this story arc, and John Jos. Miller gets to tell more of it in "Mortality's Strong Hand."
"Just Cause," by Carrie Vaughn, follows Committee members Ana, Kate, and Tinker, who specialize in mitigating natural disasters. Kate is involved in a romantic triangle with her boss, John "Fortune" Tipton-Clarke, and fellow Ace Michael, aka Drummer Boy, who gets his own storyline in "Dirge in a Major Key" by Stephen Leigh.
Kevin Andrew Murphy's "The Tears of Nephritus" follows the senior Ace, Ellen, who can channel the memories and abilities of others if she has something of theirs to hold onto. Too bad for Ellen - she's in love with a ghost.
Victor Milan writes the other sections, giving each its own title. These are the darkest, since his focus is the politics of genocide and power plays, featuring the seemingly indestructible shadow Ace, The Radical.
George Martin edited but did not actually write any of the storylines that are woven together to make up Busted Flush, which I will only forgive if he is working on another Tuff Voyaging story. That being said, his touch at the helm is sure, and the actual authors do this series fantastic justice. It's the literary equivalent of The Traveling WillburysGet more detail about
Busted Flush (Wild Cards).
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