VLVL2 (12): Summary II
Tim Strzechowski
dedalus204 at comcast.net
Mon Jan 12 20:47:48 CST 2004
>From Keith Woodward back in January, 1999's VLVL:
This chapter provides a history of Frenesi's involvement in the decline of 24fps and the People's Republic of Rock and Roll as well as her personal relationships with Weed Atman, Brock Vond, &c, &c. It opens up in the present, describing Weed as a malaise-ridden Thanatoid who doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the walking dead. While Van Meter is present at Thanatoid Roast '84, Zoyd (as he is throughout this chapter) is absent, hiding in Holytail. Tension builds around the Emerald Triangle as Vineland County Sheriff Willis Chunko patrols the ground and the "private vigilante squadron of . . . antidrug activists" is led through the skies by Kommandant Bopp, "former Nazi Luftwaffe officer and subsequently useful American citizen" (221). As Van Meter continues through his set of tunes that are continuously slowing in tempo, Weed runs into Dr. Larry Elasmo, D.D.S., who triggers Weed's memory of Frenesi and the PR3.
Elasmo (or: Weed has placed Elasmo's image in the place of an individual who) is constantly present (seemingly accidentally: e.g., driving next to him, &c.) in Weed's memory of his relationship with Frenesi. Further, he requests that Weed come to his office during the period of PR3, only to initialize a Kafkaesque system of forcing the patient to continuously wait.
Rex gives Bruno, his Porsche, to the members of BAAD, which is then redesignated UHURU. Rex has suspicions about Frenesi's loyalty to Weed, but Weed refuses to listen. Frenesi gets involved with Rex and convinces him that Weed is an FBI plant. They plan to hang the snitch jacket on Weed.
Brock Vond isn't satisfied with this set up. He convinces Frenesi to deliver a gun to Rex. Later, she goes in front of the Grand Jury for Brock (the one thing she swore she'd never do).
While campus riots erupt, Rex's conflict with Weed is filmed. Rex realizes after he has killed Weed that it should have been Frenesi.
Along with a good deal of others, Frenesi is taken to a secret government base. DL and individuals from 24fps discover the road that leads to the base, DL rescues (?) Frenesi. They escape together to Mexico. Frenesi confesses to DL. DL and Frenesi return to America, Frenesi is dropped off at the exit where she will meet Zoyd.
Back in the present, Ditza tells DL and Prairie that astrological problems are on the rise (including Reagan's getting reelected). DL finds a bug in the house. DL realizes that it's time for the last roundup. They drive off in her ninjamobile.
http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l&month=9901&msg=34820&sort=date
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