Revenge of the Computer Phantoms

Shadow Zone #4

by J.R. Black

Mike Willis's life is transformed into a nightmare when a computer game comes to life, releasing Thor, a powerful action hero who likes life outside the computer, and a host of evil computer phantoms into the real world.

Genres: Horror, Middle Grade

126 pages, Paperback

First published December 21, 1993

Reviews

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Juvenile horror novels don't always feature a lesson, but the Shadow Zone series usually has some deeper thought to impart. In Revenge of the Computer Phantoms, the lesson stems from the actions of sixth-grader Mike Willis, whose enthusiasm for video games lands him in hot water after he acquires a bootleg disk of a game called Phantom Quest. Hacker, a friend of Mike's who sends him the copied disk, includes a note of warning in the package. There's something weird about the Phantom Quest bootleg, he cautions. Kids who play it become obsessed to the point of attempting dangerous stunts to enhance their experience. Mike is mildly concerned by Hacker's note, but he can't afford a legitimate copy of Phantom Quest. He accesses a personal computer and boots up.

Mike is better at the game than most of his peers. He reaches level four, gladiator warfare, before anything strange occurs. At that point a muscular gladiator wearing horns atop his head steps right out of the computer screen and seizes mental control of Mike's hands, forcing him to play the game faster and faster. Thor, as the gladiator is called, says his purpose is to punish Mike for using a bootleg disk by never letting him stop playing. Thor's grasp of reality is limited, but he manages not to draw too much attention to himself as he assumes control over Mike's school. Mike's friend Ben suggests the game designer may have installed a backdoor failsafe into Phantom Quest in case a gladiator went rogue as Thor has done, but sending Thor back becomes more complicated when three other gladiators—Exterminator, Mongo, and Siren—escape the game and start destroying Mike's school. Can Mike and Ben implement their plan to stop the gladiators before they embark on a quest for world domination?

Revenge of the Computer Phantoms is an interesting enough story. Mike's focus in life had narrowed to the point of neglecting friends and outdoor activities so he could sit inside and play video games, but he'll have a new outlook if he survives Thor and the other gladiators. He may even have a new friend in Vickie Goldberg, a cute and friendly girl from his class. I rate Revenge of the Computer Phantoms only one and a half stars because the story logic doesn't hold up under the slightest scrutiny, but it's a fun read and I enjoy the Shadow Zone series. It beats getting attacked by crazed virtual gladiators while playing video games.

[Alejandro Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow Zone: a series that is extremely unpopular, YET HAS TWO FREAKIN’ FILMS? Bull. No less, I finally read one of these damn books—and here we are. And, I’m glad to report I will indeed be diving into this series again in the future fo sho (I do own another). The writing is solid and the pacing is on point, plus the story wastes no time and jumps into the goods immediately. There’s a hidden theme inside of this book that, whilst I was concerned would be homed in and slammed down like nails going through my testicles, was a well-executed, non-invasive slight character arc and theme of enjoying life as a whole. Thor is dope and I like his character and how it evolves throughout the book, and the threat-level overall is reaching great heights. The main character is likable, the story is good for what it is, and there’s some ideas in here that worked wonders and basically acted as a Pixels (yes, the movie with Adam Sandler and PAC-MAN) but on a less large scale, and fit for a kids horror story. This is only further conveyed with the reveal towards the end of the book in the cafeteria, iykyk. But, the book isn’t all great, now getting to my few issues. The lack of personality and really much of anything with the other computer phantoms left me a little dissatisfied with their characters. They served their purpose as the villains, yes, but the trio didn’t do much to be memorable unlike Thor, though I get that this isn’t a full novel so I’m kind of forgiving on that. Our protagonist’s Dad is a numb minded fuck and is apparently blind, not seeing Thor and the burned up pillows all over his son’s bed, which I guess also means he can’t smell (this is merely a nitpick lol but it pissed me off a bit). Also, the defeat of them all felt kind of cheap and easy, but apart from those issues, I really liked this one. Overall, 9/10–Shadow Zone has successfully impressed me from the get-go, so I hope to jump back into this series if I can get more books. Apparently there’s a certain alien book in this series that slaps… might have to give that a read sometime.

[Cws]

JM-Bla