Third Gen Blues

Review from May 2026
So, Third Gen Blues, is a post-war story about hounds turned mercs. I have to admit, and those of you that have followed me for a while already know this, that this story is not he kind of mechsplo that I normally enjoy. The more positive, more hopeful, take on the kind of community that ex-hounds might find is just not my thing: it is pretty much antithetical to the things I enjoy in the genre. That said I found this quite an enjoyable read so far (and it is coming out at quite a pace).

While the prose itself didn't wow me in particular and sometimes the more fluffy aspects get a bit much for me, I found myself compelled to keep reading all the same. The character are fairly interesting and the dynamic of the found family on this ship is nice and it's happy. It oddly made me feel a strong sense of nostalgia for the era of the internet of 2009-2012. Perhaps that was just a more hopeful time in my conception of the world. I particularly liked the characters of the three main hounds, they're all drawing from different mechsplo archetypes and they all have something interesting that they are contributing to the story.

Don't get it confused that this is a nice story. No, there are some really horrible things that happen in it. The pain and the violence is there and I would contend that it is only made all the more potent by the contrast it has to the more compassionate moments. The stakes are high and the combat is brutal. Just because this is a hopeful story does not me that it doesn't have teeth.

Definitely if you're interested in more hopeful post-war mechsplo I would recommend checking it out.