This was a sweet sentimental tale that even though it has a sad touch to it at the end it leaves the reader feeling bittersweet rather than just completely bitter. As I was reading it, it at first glance felt like a mystery. Gordon Sills was going to find out who this Anna was who was writing about the love shared between her and his client Mercer if it was the last thing he was going to do. As the story progresses however he discovers that the mystery isn't a mystery at all. At least the one he was trying to solve. Instead the mystery of how in the world he slipped in time comes to a head. And that is a mystery he cannot solve.
The idea of learning the future before it occurs is one that a lot of us want to experience for ourselves. This story shows both the positive and negative sides of this situation, and really hammers it home. Knowing who will fall in love with who is not necessarily the greatest thing. It leaves your life with no sense of intrigue or suspense. Plus if you slipped in time once, isn't there a chance you could do so again? And if you do what will happen that time around? And in Gordon's case, he knows the tragic future of this poor Anna's future which involves the untimely death of the man she loves. And even though he knows this now he can't tell her 20 year old self who knows nothing of this Mercer fellow if he tried. She'd think he was a lunatic. So just like the story says he'll just be there to comfort her when that sad day does come. It's another example of a paradox of sorts but yet another tale that doesn't end in world or universal destruction just a slow chipping away of one poor man's soul with the realization that he has a concrete vision of the future and it is one that isn't the end of the world but equally as devastating.
Speaking of slipping in time here is an awesome episode of one of my favorite TV shows, Tales From The Darkside called Slippage starring David Patrick Kelly, Sully from Commando in a chilling tale of a man losing his grip on time and reality.
This story was confusing as hell. But I think that was precisely the point. It depicts an insane voyage stuck within a neverending time warp that repeats itself constantly in a loop. So much so that multiple different incarnations of the story's main character develop and then begin to reproduce. By the end of the story you are having a hard time telling if the Wednesday me is actually the Saturday me and so on. I still am having a hard time making heads or tails of this voyage. I know how it ends and somehow the dang rudder gets fixed and by kids that somehow were created at one point. A point that I have no clue when it occurred or how. I don't think that point is made clear either. It could just be a figure of speech by the author. Beats me. It's not that I didn't enjoy the story I ultimately liked it. It was a quick and engaging read. It was just very hard to follow and the whole tale got mixed up multiple times by the story's end.
But like I was mentioning earlier, this chaotic nature of the story is ultimately what the Seventh Voyage is about. If you somehow got stuck in a time loop this is a very likely scenario and very close to what you would experience if you were in the protagonist's shoes. It's both funny but at the same time terrifying. Because if you get any of the yous future or past mixed up things could go wrong. Likewise the idea of remaining in the loop is a horrible and humbling one. In the end things end up ok but you just know in the back of your mind just like the lead in the story that this is a voyage that will not be forgotten any time soon.
The worst enemy in The Seventh Voyage is in the end you. All incarnations of you. The thing that is holding the hero in the tale back is himself. And that is quite evident numerous times in this story. He even warns himself and he doesn't listen. He thinks its all a dream. And you can't blame him when he first sees himself warning himself for not buying a single word he was saying to himself, but you can't say he didn't warn you of things to come. And he did, and just like what many of us would do in the same scenario we didn't listen. So if I could take one concrete message out of this confusing tale, it would be the tired and true old adage of trust in yourself and your gut instincts. If something doesn't feel right go with your inner gut reaction to the situation. If you don't, you could end up in an annoying ceaseless time loop for all your trouble.
Speaking of errors in time...Here's is a fun scene from a corny 80's movie called The Ice Pirates that comes to my mind when I think of the times when time goes screwy...
Now this was quite an interesting read. I still am trying to wrap my brain around the story's ending. Is the unmarried man one and the same as the older grizzled time cop? It sure appears to be the case. Heinlein's approach to gender is also quite fascinating and way ahead of it's time. You really feel for the character of the unmarried man. A bastard child, an orphan, and a hermaphrodite. He/she was never really either a man or a woman at birth. Even when she has SRS surgery forced upon her into a man, she still isn't really truly a man and never will be. It is so tragic and heartbreaking. And to discover that the only person that seems to have anything in common with him/her is him/herself? Double bummer.
I also love the time cop aspect of the story. Not just because I am a huge fan of the Jean-Claude Van Damme film but because it really does set up the story perfectly for its wild twist. Without the temporal agent storyline the revelation in the end would not be possible. It also shows an example of a time paradox that doesn't end with the entire universe exploding or anything of that sort. It just continues to go on like the meeting had never happened round and round like an endless circle. Like the author writes so eloquently the unmarried man is "The Snake That Eats Its Own Tail, Forever and Ever." The unmarried man also knows where he comes from since he has figured that out not once but twice with the same effect, but everyone else around him feels empty and hollow to his gaze. Hence why he remarks the words that inspire the title of the story Heinlein is telling.
"Where Did All You Zombies Come From?"
These zombies are not the living dead variety who are looking to feast on people's brains. No they are completely normal human beings. But to The Unmarried Man they might as well be. He can't relate to them, he doesn't trust them, he sees nothing but a long line of faceless beings shuffling about aimlessly not really knowing what their destination is or what their future holds in store for them.
"You aren't really there at all. There isn't anybody but me-Jane-here alone in the dark.
I miss you dreadfully!"
This last quote really solidifies the supreme isolation The Unmarried Man(Jane) feels. Being both a man and a woman but in the end being neither is just too much for one human to bear and this identity crisis leaves the protagonist with no one to care or a shoulder to cry on. What is he/she? Does Gender really determine who you are? Is all that makes us who we are a series of different sex organs and characteristics?
A lot of questions are brought to mind while reading this story, and that is a wonderful thing. I love stories that make you question what is really going on in not only the story but in life as well. And Heinlein's "All You Zombies" poses plenty of deep thoughts.
And just for fun and on a lighter note here is some appropriate music for this story and your listening pleasure.
The Star by Arthur C. Clarke is not only a great short story but an equally wonderful television adaptation from the New Twlight Zone from the 1980's, which is my personal favorite rendition of the iconic tv series. I love this show dearly and find it highly underrated. It's a shame to me that not many people speak about this show and it's brilliance. Episodes like The Star are reasons why more people should.
The Star was the last segment of an already solid holiday themed episode that had included the lovely remake of a old Twilight Zone favorite, Night Of The Meek and a so so but entertaining fantasy scenario But Can She Type?, but The Star really sends the 13th episode of the first season off with a bang. In many ways The Star is a lot like Arthur C. Clarke's The Sentinel in it's approach and goals. It is one of the many episodes of the show's great first and second seasons that really strikes an emotional chord within me.
Before you go on to reading the spoiler ridden synopsis and my final thoughts on this episode, Give it a watch. It's only 12 minutes long and I don't think you'll regret it.
Synopsis: On an interstellar journey, far in the future, a medical doctor and a
priest debate about the existence of God in the wonders of the
universe. Dr. Chandler(Donald Moffat) believes them to be random patterns, but the
priest, Father Matthew Costigan(Fritz Weaver)—also an astrophysicist—believes
it is God's grand design. While having their friendly debate and
wishing each other a merry Christmas, their ship picks up a subspace
signal from a long-dead world. Father Matthew claims it is impossible
that a civilization could have survived its star going supernova. The planet was so far from the star when it exploded that it escaped the worst. Upon landing on the now-dead planet, the explorers discover that the
planet holds the last remains of a race which was destroyed when the
supernova hit. Their civilization was quite advanced, with remnants of
art and other pieces of their culture. Along with a computer record of
their entire history comes evidence that they had had a thousand years
of peace before their extinction. The captain requests Father Matthew to
determine when the star went supernova. He calculates that the star
exploded in the year 3120 B.C.
To his dismay, however, Father Matthew realizes that it would have
taken 3120 years for the light from this explosion to reach Earth, in
the Eastern Hemisphere. This star was the same star that shone down on
Earth the day Jesus was born, "The Star of Bethlehem".
In front of Dr. Chandler, Father Matthew cries out to God, to question
why it had to be these people who had to lose their lives, why it could
not have been a star with no life around it. Dr. Chandler attempts to
comfort him by reading a poem he found among the archives of the
advanced culture. It says that no one should mourn for them, for they
lived in peace and love and saw the beauty of the universe. It says to
grieve for those who live in pain and those who never see the light of
peace. Dr. Chandler says that "whatever destiny was theirs, they
fulfilled it. Their time had come, and in their passing, they passed
their light on to another world. A balance was struck, and perhaps one
day, whenever we've fulfilled whatever destiny we have, maybe we too
will light the way for another world." The doctor's words and this quiet
artifact consoles and encourages the priest.
Final Thoughts: The connection this story makes with the tales of the bible and the birth of Jesus Christ are amazing, and have haunting and tragic reprocussions that stick with the viewer for days after viewing. The episodes production values are fine for the television budget it was given and for it's time frame. Some effects don't hold up as well nowadays but it was never a story about the effects being the forefront, it was a story about it's message and the moment in time when two men discover a sad truth about one of the most wonderful births, the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. You don't even have to be deeply religous to feel this story's impact. It is so well written and preformed by Fritz Weaver and Donald Moffat that it can touch anyone's heart. I remember fondly the first time I saw this episode. It took me for a loop with it's conclusion and really affected me emotionally. So much so that I actually shed some tears at the episode's end. Now I try to make it a christmas tradition to watch this episode every year, and try to share it with those who are willing to give it a watch and appreciate it as much as I do.
"Whatever destiny was theirs, they fulfilled it. Their time had come,
and in their passing, they passed their light on to another world. A
balance was struck, and perhaps one day, whenever we've fulfilled
whatever destiny we have, maybe we too will light the way for another
world."
Those are ambitions for all mankind to strive for in my book. To by the time our world does come to an end to light the way for another world.
The first word that comes to my mind when describing Nancy Kress's Out Of All Them Bright Stars, is quirky. It's a quirky fairly light hearted tale about an alien encounter that really comes across as nothing stranger than some foreigner from another country arriving at a local diner and ordering something to eat. But in this story's case he happens to be an alien with blue skin. It doesn't appear that these beings are harmful or want to blow us sky high, even though they have all the firepower in the world necessary to do so it seems that they are here willingly and for a purpose that isn't entirely known by all but one that is not the least bit confrontational. But these are aliens dang it and they don't belong here. That's the attitude that permeates throughout this short piece. It's blunt but it's true. Even Sally who feels that these strange blue men wearing "Humphrey Bogart Hats" are here to do us no harm but even she doesn't understand why they would come here. Especially since there are so many other stars they could have chosen to come to or visit instead of earth. It's a natural reaction that we all can relate to. If aliens did come and visit our world we would think the same thing that and ask the questions why are they here, and what do they want to do with us or to us? These questions are asked by the people in the story as well. As alien encounters go this one was very nonchalant. But even though the characters take this alien invasion lightly as if it's just another event of immigrants from a strange land invading the good ol' usa, the author manages to bring some weight to the situation too by showcasing the good nature of these Aliens and how it is being for the most part ignored by all. Even Sally who notices these good natured qualities and experiences them first hand at the end of the story seems more pissed at her boss and worried about keeping her job than her first hand encounter with life from another planet. I feel for these blue men. Whatever point or message they came so far away to earth to say seems to have fallen on deaf ears, and no one wants to listen. For them this must be a fate worse than death by nuclear annihilation. For them to travel so far and wide for a purpose that is just brushed off like a piece of lint on one's t-shirt? Deeply tragic. I think that is the point of Out Of All Them Stars. To show a scenario where aliens do arrive on earth but everyone just keeps on going through their everyday motions like nothing major had ever happened at all. And to be honest I wouldn't be surprised if aliens were already living among us. If they were we probably ignored them and went on with our lives years ago. Maybe they already paid a visit. Realized no one cared and went home. That would be a cold harsh truth that would be hard to stomach, and one that I hope has not already become a reality.
Now, I understand why people like to call Mr. Clarke the master of Science Fiction. The Sentinel is a truly spectacular work. It is very short, only a few pages long but it's impact reaches as far and wide as the universe. The crux of the story concerns a bunch of rag tag moon explorers on a seemingly routine lunar expedition in the year 1996. The story's protagonist whom I don't believe we the reader is even given a name for has long dreamed of finding life or evidence of it on the moon. He dreams that he would find it over a big mountainside and one day he decides to climb that mountain and reach his dreams and aspirations of alien life. He ends up finding evidence of alien life in a giant monolithic pyramid but nothing living in his general vicinity. He explores this mysterious pyramid and then by accident or by design activates the structure's main purpose. The pyramid was left over by an alien civilization, but it was not by accident. It was built on the moon waiting for the time when man was brave and intelligent enough to find it and activate it's innate reason for existence. To send a message to whatever lifeforms that had created it that mankind was now ready and willing to communicate and learn from these alien beings. A decision that has immense weight on the earth and the universe as a whole. The story doesn't delve into what happens after this fateful discovery, instead it leaves it up in the air and leaves the reader with a sense of anticipation and dread of what may come. I related to this story very well since I believe in my heart that if we had activated such a beacon today, we would not welcome the alien lifeforms with open arms. Instead we would perceive them as a threat and blow them out of the sky. I think Clarke felt the same way since the lead protagonist was also leery of the fact that aliens would be communicating and visiting earth very soon and he was fearful for their safety just as much as our own.
The Sentinel would go on to become the building blocks for Clarke's magnum opus, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and in many ways despite it's short length it has just as much impact as 2001 ever did. This was thought provoking and in a way somber and very tragic. The weight of the impact of this story was immense. It was a story about not just one form of alien encounter but two forms. The first was the discovery of The Sentinel, and the second is the upcoming visitations from beyond our universe from aliens who had heard the response they had been waiting decades if not thousands of years to come and share their knowledge and existence with the planet Earth believing that it is ready for such a monumental moment in mankind, but in reality due to an over eager explorer the message was sent too soon, and man is not yet ready. It takes an event so wonderful and makes it so sad and infuriating. Excellent story. I highly recommend it to anyone. Even people who aren't fans of Science Fiction. It's message is one that can touch anyone who picks it up and reads it's contents and chooses to hear it's call.
This was one wild short story. It grabbed me with it's tendrils and didn't let go. It was an amazing piece of science fiction writing by C.L. Moore. It's hard to believe that this story was written all the way back in 1933. At the core of it's plot is an alien encounter that has very obvious connotations to race relations of the time period. Especially with the way the "Shambleau is treated by the other denizens of the martian colony. Even the alien creature's appearance is quote similar to that of an african american with it's dark brown skin. The whole story is one big alien encounter. One that starts out quite innocently enough with the rescue of what at first glance appears to be a misunderstood and preyed upon creature by the wiles of the story's hero the hilariously named, Northwest Smith. The story even goes as far as delving into man's carnal desires and how they can be easily corrupted. Anyway you put it, the aspect of interspecies sex is very controversial and Shambleau's sequences of wild, animal eroticism are no exception. As the story continues and Smith begins to take this creature under his wing, you begin to learn more about this creature and it's purpose you start to question things. Questions about what exactly this creature is and what it's purpose may be. As Smith experiences his forebodding nigthmare of swarms of slimy red tendrils the skin begins to crawl. When the vampiric and medusa like identity of the Shambleau is revealed in all it's unholy glory your skin wants to crawl right off your bones as the terror and disgust takes over your senses. Smith's encounter with the Shambleau was voluntary and seemed at least in the beginning of the tale to be one that was made with the best of intentions, but as the story progresses the encounter becomes life threatening, sinister and life changing. By the end of the story you are left both repulsed, terrified and intrigued about the Shambleau. You feel exactly the same way that Smith does after it's all over. Minus the great soulless eyes of course. But all kidding aside this was a great read.
This is an encounter with an alien species that preys on your emotions and leaves you stunned with it's sheer brilliance. Shambleau is an unforgettable alien encounter that is just as chilling as it is fascinating. I throughly enjoyed it, and I was amazed about how well written and how strong of a read it was. It was just the right length too. Enough to carry on it's narrative effectively but not overstaying it's welcome or taking too long to get to it's purpose and climax.
