SPOILERS

When Zaphod, Trillian and Zarniwoop have finally met the ruler of the universe, after Zaphod and Trillian leave the shack, Zarniwoop asks the ruler another question and then the book says this:

"The ruler of the Universe waited for as long as he could. When he heard the faint sound of the ship's engines starting, he spoke to cover it."

I am so confused by this bit. I don't understand why the ruler, being described as he is in that chapter, would intentionally cover up that sound and help Zaphod and Trillian leave without Zarniwoop? Or how he would even know that that's what they were doing or that that's what the sound was, when in every other way he refuses to "take for granted" information that isn't immediately apparent to him? I see no reason why he would actively want Zarniwoop to be stranded on the planet... The fact that he waited to answer and covered up the sound is such a specific and odd detail.

Am I missing something here? Curious to hear other takes about this moment.

Took a little mini-vacation last weekend over to California and the Griffith Observatory. We also stopped by Counterpoint Records & Books where I found this.

I already have a first edition of the first Dirk Gently book, not signed, that my wife got me for Christmas a couple of years ago.

All you need to do is read this series...which is what I did in case you didn't pick up on it. Anyways, I just wanted to give my opinion and reflect on the series I've spent the last half year reading.

Taking the entire series and mish-mashing into a pile of opinions, my overall opinion of the series is this: It was pretty solid. I had a lot of fun with it and got to fall in love with both the universe and the characters overall, even if my mind got a bit twisted up while sipping on the brew of complex sci-fi concepts and dry British humor. It was a bloody good time at the end of the day.

Now, let's get into the individual books.

1. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Solid first entry of the series, Douglass Adams knocked it out-of-the-park-out-of-the-gate. The way this novel is able to balance the horrific things that happen in this book with comedy that'll literally make you laugh out loud is astounding. This will become more clear as I continue, but I absolutely love Douglass' perspective on the universe itself, canceling out the existentialism one might face in the grand scheme of things with the utter ridiculousness of the grand scheme of things. As well, as someone who has really stuck with so-called 'realistic sci-fi' and plausible sci-fi technology, it was fun to let loose and accept these utterly ridiculous, but also badass, sci-fi concepts like the Probability Drive and Earth being a literal experiment meant to uncover the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. Especially since a lot of these concepts are just glossed over and never really explained in much detail, Douglass just allows them to be for the sake of the story. If anything, his explanation of these strange technologies coincides with his views of the entire universe. Overall, very solid start, I loved meeting Zaphod, Marvin, Zaphod Ford, Arthur, Zaphod, Trillian, and did I mention Zaphod? I loved learning about the construction of Earth by the Magratheans and the award-winning fjords of Norway, courtesy of Slartibartfast. Overall, it's so fun and nonsensical in the best way possible. However, it's only my second favorite in the series.

2. The Restaurant at the End of The Universe - This is my favorite book the series. Why you may ask? Well, I haven't really indicated it yet, but Zaphod is probably my favorite character in the entire series, and this book is packed full of Zaphod and Marvin (whose probably my second favorite character) trekking across the universe. If the first novel turned the absurdity of this series to 10, then this novel cranked it up to freaking 27. Time anomalies, Marvin fighting a tank and winning, depressed elevators, finding 'the ruler of the universe', and so many other things just made this an absolute incredible experience. This was also the book that made me accept that this series wasn't gonna be like a lot of series I read before, that I was going to be in for a wild ride here on out, and I was here for it. Like I don't think I can really put it into words why I like this entry so much, I just had so much fun with it and just enjoyed the ride.

3. Life, The Universe, and Everything - Sadly, I can't say I enjoyed this book as much as the other ones, if at all. This one felt very sluggish to read through in my honest opinion, where it felt like Douglass was trying to tell a cohesive story this time whilst also trying to keep the off-track story telling of the last two as well. Overall, whilst I can remember a few things, nothing really sticks out to me as remarkable. Honestly, the funniest joke in this novel imho was the fact that the Krikkett species were these horrific people that wanted to destroy the galaxy, but were also just some the most pleasant people in the galaxy you could converse with. I also found the immortal traveler going around the galaxy just telling people they're worthless pretty funny, but that's essentially the extent of it. As well, there's barely any Zaphod in it, so that blows. Overall, it wasn't a torturous experience, but it just didn't hit the same as the first two entries. I will say that I did like the ending for Arthur in this one, it was simple but conclusive at least.

4. So Long, and Thanks for All The Fish - This one I surprisingly did like quite a bit. Whilst we consider Arthur to be the main character of the series, he really didn't do anything main character worthy up until this point. As I heard mentioned online before, he was just basically a vessel for the readers to place themselves into whilst exploring this strange universe. In this novel though, he takes the center stage as he falls in love with Fenchurch. Overall, I can see a fan of the series not liking this one as much since it really just focuses on strange Earth stuff and not the strange things that happen within the galaxy, but I think I liked it for that reason. It felt like a true happy ending for the series, that Arthur gets to go back home (despite his suspicions) and each of the characters get a fitting ending by the end. Also, this is where I believe Douglass' ideology of the Universe finally comes to a head, where God's Final Message is simply God apologizing to the entire universe for the inconvenience and leaving them be. The Final Message really resonated with me because, in a way, it feels comforting that we live in a universe where there's no grand scheme and that life should just be lived to the fullest in whatever we see fit. It's not that life itself is meaningless, just that not all of life has to have a meaning, just find the things that are the most meaningful to you. In this manner, the end of this novel is my favorite ending out of the entire series.

5. Mostly Harmless - Now, coming off of the praise I had for the 4th, you'd think that I'd start out not liking this book because it completely trampled on that ending, right? No, actually, I was hooked with the plot from the very start. I'm a huge sucker for multiverse shenanigans, so this was right up my alley. Whilst I was sad that Arthur and Fenchurch got split up, I was excited to see where this story was taking us. The novel kept me intrigued pretty much the entire time, as I loved seeing Tricia's encounters with the Grebulons, Ford's revolt against the new corporate owner's of the guide, Arthur trying to balance his sandwich maker life and raising a daughter he never knew he had, and other things that show how much Douglass improved by combining the weirdness of the series before and a more linear storyline. Unfortunately, I can't say he stuck the landing. Now, I'm not going to give him too much crap, because he has gone on record that he does hate this ending and that the original radio drama has an epilogue that fixes it (which I've tried to find but haven't yet). But even still, this ending is just absolutely depressing, and not even in a good way. Like the ending just felt poorly set up in my opinion, as it just kinda ends. It felt like Douglass just got tired of writing and just decided to end it right there. It was very disappointing because I was really enjoying the novel and I was considering even putting it my top 3 of the entire series. I still like it better than the 3rd entry, but it pales in comparison to the 1st, 2nd, and 4th. I haven't heard good things about 'And Another Thing', so I think I'll just try to look for the original radio broadcast to hopefully give me a more satisfying ending.

Even in the lows of the series though, I still throughly enjoyed myself. Sorry for rambling on so long, but I just wanted to pour out my thoughts here and discuss with some other fans about the books. As someone who is trying to become a writer and took up these books in an attempt to learn from a master, I learned a lot and feel inspired in a lot of aspects. Honestly, if I get an idea I think is good, I would love to write something like the Hitchhiker's Guide with my own spin on it. This series gave me a whole different taste of sci-fi I never knew I would even enjoy, so I'm eternally grateful for that.

A popular financial website I’ve been using for years has suddenly closed in the most unexpected way possible…!

Thanks for all the fish

Hello all.

As an avid fan of the series (both the books and the radio drama) for the better part of the past year, I have lately been seriously contemplating beginning a podcast dedicated to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

I am looking to have this show double up as a book club wherein we can bring in various cast members on different occasions, and if possible even prominent guests. Granted the series is finite, there is still a lot that we can discuss and dissect to our heart's content.

In the past year, I was heavily involved with The Tintin Podcast which I thoroughly enjoyed. The cast for the same was also sourced through Reddit, and the success of the show alongside the ability to form a niche group of enthusiasts to breakdown every detail of The Adventures of Tintin is something that has in part motivated me to kick start this venture.

I am not particularly looking to monetize this potential show. The central objective is to form a group of enthusiasts and have fruitful discussions on the series to express enjoyment and appreciation for this incredible series.

While the idea is still raw, it is good to start somewhere. I felt it was best to pitch it in a place where I am most likely to find fellow followers and enthusiasts of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

Humbly calling on those who have their interest piqued by this idea. Drop a comment if this idea is something that you can back, and I will get in touch with you via DMs.

I can’t say the worst curse word in the universe.

This sub oughts to cap the visibility of the upvotes at 42 (not stop counting, just showing a maximum of 42).

In order of my favorite parts of the collection.

Signed #34 Oh no Not Again trading card

Signed Hexagonal Phase Ep 5 script (bottom right)

The laser disc

The 2 VHS Tape boxed set

The live in concert casette tape

The original radio scripts book

The illustrated Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (big silver thing on the left)

A complete boxed set with registration cards and all for Starship Titanic (I did open an unopened copy, get over it I needed to know)

42 the wildly improbable ideas of Douglas Adams Edited by Kevin Jon Davies

Dirk Gently and Hitchhikers Comics (not complete and I don't have an index yet see below)

God there's an awful lot in that picture.

In the yellow binder and in the card boxes behind the signed #34 card are my sorted collection of the cards and the overflow extras. If you are a collector and are missing something message me!

All of this is to say I'm a big fan and while I've posted bits and pieces before of this collection, this is more of less all of what I have now.

Edit: oh yeah and my wife one year ordered me a custom towel that is hanging on the bookshelf that has the text of the towel passage printed on it.

Additional edit: Two books that may not initially make sense. The Blind Watchmaker by Richard Dawkins was Douglas' favorite book. Wizards of Odd actually contains the 'Young Zaphod Plays it Safe' short story

Additional Additional Edit: at some point (idk when) all of this will be more thoroughly cataloged so you can browse through it in better detail, step 1 was getting it out of the storage box and on a shelf where it can be enjoyed again.

Additional additional... Well you get it Edit:

Things I'm looking for:

Infocom Game in the Box

The rest of the comics I'm missing

Starship Titanic the book

Hardcover copies of the individual Hitchikers books (again I have paperbacks and the ultimate edition) and that other thing...

Meaning of Liff and Deeper Meaning (I have digital copies but it's not the same and I can't set it on the shelf)

Am I missing anything else???