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I'll say this for Tim Burton's 2001 version of Planet of the Apes, it drove me to rediscover and appreciate the influence and scope of the original Apes universe. Still, W.T. Quick's The Fall does a good job in patching up some of the remake's gaping plot holes. For instance, Quick reveals the size of the Oberon's crew, how and why the apes' numbers and intelligence increase, and how this relates to the presence of a top predator on the planet the Oberon crew call "New Hope". There's an unspoken revelation about Leo Davidson, which pays off in the film, and the true origin of Semos is uncovered. On the other hand, where did the horses come from? The movie completely ignored this obvious question. Quick answers this nagging (pun intended, sorry) question, but doesn't explain how the first generation horses were born. The level of profanity and gore seem forced and a little over the top, but nothing can match Quick's gratuitous use of the word "monkey", even by characters who work with the apes, like Dr. Alexander. Quick either doesn't know the difference or doesn't care, and if you're a fan of these films his inexplicable ignorance of this easily referenced fact could drive you bananas. (I loathe bananas.) Despite this, the action barrels along at a fast pace, a clearly defined adversary necessitates the ape army seen in the film, and Quick pays off just about everything he sets up. The book works as both sequel and prequel to the Burton film, reminiscent of Escape from the Planet of the Apes. There's a little more time to explore and expand on the topics raised by the original science fiction classic, but overall, I get the feeling that neither Quick nor Burton were all that excited at "re-imagining" the Planet of the Apes. Worth a read, especially if you didn't totally hate the Burton movie. Maybe they'll get Planet of the Apes 7 right.Read full review