If space is an ocean and interstellar colonization is happening on a grand scale, then it should come as no surprise that so many starship captains are intrepid merchants, traveling the galaxy in pursuit of a good business deal. Whether they’re doing it legally as entrepreneurs or illegally as smugglers, you can find these guys… Continue reading M is for Merchanter
Tag: Star Wars
J is for Jedi
As much as science fiction looks to the future, it also of necessity looks to the past. And as much confidence as it places in the scientific method, it often turns to religion, simply because of the scope of the great cosmic questions that such stories inevitably pose. For these reasons, it should come as… Continue reading J is for Jedi
I is for Interstellar
Right after I went through my Dinosaur phase, I saw Star Wars IV: A New Hope for the first time. Instantly, all that childlike excitement and exuberance was transferred from paleontology to astronomy. We had a series of about twenty astronomy books in my elementary school’s LRC (Asimov’s astronomy series, I believe–the ones with the… Continue reading I is for Interstellar
H is for Hologram
In real life, the term “hologram” means something fairly specific. But in science fiction, it can mean a number of different things. For example, in Star Wars it’s basically a three dimensional video recording projected on a flat surface. In Halo, it’s the visual form that the AI character Cortana takes when she wants to… Continue reading H is for Hologram
E is for Empire
Almost every far future science fiction story has a galactic empire of some kind. From Dune to Foundation, from Star Wars to Firefly, there’s always someone trying to rule the galaxy, often in a way that makes life difficult for the protagonists. Why? Rule of drama, of course, but also because it gives the story… Continue reading E is for Empire
D is for Droids
Some of the best-loved characters in science fiction don’t even have a heartbeat. Why? They’re robots, that’s why! Unlike the mechanical “slaves” (the original meaning of the Czech root robota) that built your car or enable your GPS devices, these robots are a lot more human. In fact, the word “droid” is short for “android,”… Continue reading D is for Droids
A is for Aliens
Alien races–what would science fiction be without them? They’re as fundamental to the genre as elves and dwarves are to fantasy. If you’re reading a book and an alien being from another planet shows up on the page, that in itself is usually enough to make the story science fiction. My first exposure to aliens… Continue reading A is for Aliens
Trope Tuesday: Planetville (aka Adventure Planets)
Adventure towns…IN SPAAACE!!! Seriously, that’s the best way to describe it. In Westerns and TV serials, the heroes travel from town to town, with a new adventure in each place. Well, in science fiction, we don’t hop towns, we hop planets. Why? Because we can. Unfortunately, since planets and towns are actually pretty different kinds… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Planetville (aka Adventure Planets)
Trope Tuesday: Elegant Weapon for a More Civilized Age
Before the world fell apart and the Empire took over, when there were still men of honor in the world who stood boldly against evil and fought for the weak and the downtrodden, there was this trope. The weapon of choice of a bygone age, more elegant and noble than the crass instruments of wanton destruction so common… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Elegant Weapon for a More Civilized Age
Trope Tuesday: Came Back Strong
This trope, also kown as apotheosis, is by far my favorite part of the hero’s journey. Up to this point, the hero has faced a lot of tests and trials. Some of them he’s passed, some of them he hasn’t, but the setbacks haven’t yet been enough to stop him. Sure, the costs have been… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Came Back Strong