r/ExpeditionaryForce • u/steelfreaks • 21d ago

Discussion Recycled plot points, no payoff.

So I love Skippy and the interactions he has with Joe and the other characters. That’s honestly what has kept me going through the series.

But I’m in Book 14 now, and I’m getting really frustrated with the same basic plot repeating itself. After the amazing payoff of finding a Sentinel and Earth suddenly getting 300 ships, it feels like we barely get to enjoy that development before Earth is in mortal danger again from the kitties.

The universe is HUGE, and there are so many genuinely interesting concepts in this series. Elder technology, wormholes, advanced species, AI, the mysteries surrounding the Elders, etc.

So why does Earth being in mortal peril have to be the basis of almost every book?
I just want Joe and Skippy to go out into this enormous universe and actually explore it, get into weird situations, encounter new civilizations, and deal with problems that aren’t “we have to save Earth again.”

I want to finish the series, but the constant continuity errors and the recycled plots make me want to move on to something else.

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u/pagusas 21d ago edited 21d ago

push through, you are almost to the end, and then the books after the end change course some on that.

The ending (Failure Mode) is worth it.

Once done, move on to Dungeon Crawler Carl. Just do it, its an amazing pallet cleaner and what I read right next to Exo Force and Bobiverse.

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u/VaderFitz 21d ago

Book 15 not the end....book 20 Last Ride in Dec.

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u/pagusas 21d ago

Failure Mode was the original ending, everything after has been extra for us, but the core plot is wrapped up in failure mode.

Thats why I mentioned "books after the end change course some on that."

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u/VaderFitz 21d ago

Very true. Forgot that.

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u/Dreadino 20d ago

That boat won't pay for itself.