Reporting For Duty
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
Categories
'No Deals, Mr. Bond' as a title?
Dragonpol
https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
I just wanted to ask you all your thoughts on the choice of No Deals, Mr. Bond (1987) as a title for John Gardner's sixth James Bond continuation novel.
Who do you think was responsible for naming the novel and what do you think a good alternative title would have been?
Do you remember any of the fan reaction to the title around the time that the novel was released?
I'm preparing a piece on the novel and I'd be very grateful to hear your views as members of the literary Bond fan community.
Thanking you,
Dragonpol. :)
Who do you think was responsible for naming the novel and what do you think a good alternative title would have been?
Do you remember any of the fan reaction to the title around the time that the novel was released?
I'm preparing a piece on the novel and I'd be very grateful to hear your views as members of the literary Bond fan community.
Thanking you,
Dragonpol. :)
^ Back to Top
The MI6 Community is unofficial and in no way associated or linked with EON Productions, MGM, Sony Pictures, Activision or Ian Fleming Publications. Any views expressed on this website are of the individual members and do not necessarily reflect those of the Community owners. Any video or images displayed in topics on MI6 Community are embedded by users from third party sites and as such MI6 Community and its owners take no responsibility for this material.
James Bond News • James Bond Articles • James Bond Magazine
Comments
I believe I read somewhere that John Gardner had a different title prepared, but that the publishers insisted on No Deals, Mr. Bond—a choice Gardner was dissatisfied with. Not 100% sure on that, but I'm sure you'll uncover the truth in your research. I look forward to reading your article!
Of it himself, the publishers came up with it ?
I think some of the best continuation novel titles are:
- By Royal Command by Charlie Higson
- Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks
- Carte Blanche by Jeffrey Deaver
I would like to see those titles used for Bond films in the future (as long as they make sense with the plot and are not just shoehorned).
If any other members want to throw in their two cents I'd love to hear from you in this thread. There's a somewhat fascinating story to tell here, I feel. :)
Hardcore Bond, especially towards the end.
One of Gardner's tougher efforts.
I am ambivalent re the title.
But the book was so good, the title hardly matters to me.
I agree.
This is a frankly awful title - how does it refer to anything in the plot? It's been a long time since I read it (and I certainly stand to be corrected) but I'm pretty sure Bond never asks for any sort of deal nor does the villain utter the line at any point. Who came up with it and why?
It strikes me as some classic corporate bullshit where a committee decided that it would sell better if the word 'Bond' was clearly on the cover (notably in a lot of Bond novels (non Fleming that is) and paperbacks since the name James Bond is often bigger than the author on the cover).
I'd be interested to know if sales had started to decline with the previous couple of books and some focus group did some research and concluded that the casual Bond fan didn't realise that ROH and NLF were Bond books so they came up with the stroke of genius of putting Bond's name in the title.
Bond titles should be poetic, romantic and mysterious and not as unimaginative or in your face as this or execrable '007 in New York' (which is an even worse title for a 'story' that is little more than a magazine article that Fleming clearly knocked off in afternoon).
We all know that this was a decision imposed on Gardner from over his head so it can only have been for commercial reasons because it is inconceivable that Gardner could not come up with a better title himself.
As a matter if fact which Fleming title do you think is the best?
Interestingly, there was a chapter title in John Gardner's first Bond novel Licence Renewed (1981) called 'A Contract, Mr Bond'. Perhaps there was meant to be similar dialogue in No Deals, Mr Bond?
To answer your question I think that Moonraker is the best Fleming title.
I really like all of Gardener's books,except 'Brokenclaw'...I didn't get on with that at all.
Well, I'm very glad to hear it, @barryt007! Another big Gardner fan here. :)
Nice one !
Yes,he is a very under-rated author I find sometimes..but I can imagine Icebreaker or Nobody Lives Forever on the big screen as an EON production in the 007 series.
Yes, I agree that he is very underrated as a Bond author. I too would love to see some of his Bond novels filmed.
I like a great deal of the John Gardner titles, actually: LICENCE RENEWED, ICEBREAKER, ROLE OF HONOR, SCORPIUS, BROKENCALW, etc and always supported the idea of Eon doing movie adaptations of his work. For one thing, the films could have gone back to announcing the next title at the end credits had they carried on with the Gardners. That I would have certainly welcomed. NO DEALS, MR BOND as a film title, though would sound too much like a joke.
Although, as I mention above the publishers went over the head of John Gardner for the naming of this particular Bond novel of his. Gardner categorically stated that he was not responsible for this title. In fact, only about four of the titles of his Bond novels are his alone.
Icebreaker is certainly one of them that the publishers eventually came back to. I'm not too sure about the rest or if he ever revealed them. There's more about it on the 'Bond' page of his website http://www.john-gardner.com
Just by reading this article, I appreciate Gardner a lot more. I totally see where he's coming from with all these experiences and claims where the public "hated the change". Good on you, Gardner.
Yes, me too and that was of course the bit I was referring to in my post above. :)
and
BOND FIGHTS BACK
sounds like some fan fiction that could get posted on here.