Why this story?
At last, we’ve reached the fourth set of Slow Reviews, so I finally have the chance to call it the Slow Reviews Quadrilogy. That was the word they stamped on a fancy DVD collection of all the Alien movies about 20 years ago, and I’ve been dying to use it in polite society ever since.
If you’ve encountered any of the previous parts, then you should know what to expect. Slow Reviews are Tortoise’s way of grappling with the long history of popular culture. They’re reviews, by various contributors, of the cultural artefacts that changed the world around them.
But, much like those acid-spewing xenomorphs, Slow Reviews are also evolving – and coming to get you. This fourth part features supplementary audio readings by all of the authors, as well as a special edition of Tortoise’s Slow Newscast halfway through the week.
I shan’t spoil the contents here, but I will say that the reviews range from massively popular animated TV shows to individual fashion collections, from fiendishly difficult Japanese video games to 1950s skiffle classics.
Because that, after all, is the culture – a broad, diverse and tremendous thing. Enjoy. Peter Hoskin, Editor
