David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer’s The Space Opera Renaissance, a 941 page mammoth volume from 2006, is divided into six sections. I’m going to review Section 1, “Redefined Writers,” for this week’s WEDNESDAY’S SHORT STORIES and about once a month, I’ll review one of the other five sections.
Hartwell’s INTRODUCTION presents the history of the term “Space Opera”–credited to Wilson Tucker–and how that term morphed from a dismissive and snarky term to an actual respected sub-genre of Science Fiction.
Some SF critics have asserted that Edmond Hamilton was the writer that created the “Space Opera” genre. “The Star Stealers” (1929) makes a good case for Hamilton. A gigantic dark sun is threatening the Earth and the Solar System. “…their dark-star world, plunging on through empty space…would grasp this sun and carry it out with it into space. The sun’s planets, too, would be carried out, but these they planned to crash into the fires of the sun itself, to increase its size and splendor.” (p. 37). Hamilton obviously borrowed this scenario from his 1928 SF novel, Crashing Suns. A desperate group of Earthlings accept the challenge of stopping this approaching doom. GRADE: B+
“The Prince of Space” (1931) by Jack Williamson borrows from H. G. Wells’s classic, War of the Worlds. Aliens from Mars attack the Earth and only a stealth attack on Mars can prevent the Earth from devastating defeat. GRADE: B+
In David G. Hartwell’s Introduction to Leigh Brackett’s “Enchantress of Venus” (1949), Hartwell calls Brackett “The Queen of Space Opera.” Who can argue with that label on the woman who wrote the first draft of The Empire Strikes Back in 1978? Brackett wrote, “For fifteen years, from 1940 to 1955, when the magazine ceased publication, I had the happiest relationship possible for a writer with the editors of Planet Stories.” Planet Stories specialized in Space Opera. “Enchantress of Venus,” published 20 years after “The Star Stealers” and “The Prince of Space,” has added richness of character and setting with a large dollop of noir. GRADE: A
I first read “The Swordsman of Varnis” by Clive Jackson (aka, “Geoffrey Cobb) (1950) when it was reprinted in 1953 in Science Fiction Carnival, an anthology of comic SF stories edited by Fredric Brown and Mack Reynolds. It’s a silly trifle that captures the essence of Space Opera stories from that era. GRADE: B-
TO BE CONTINUED…
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
I. Redefined Writers
- “The Star Stealers” by Edmond Hamilton — 21
- “The Prince of Space” by Jack Williamson — 45
- “Enchantress of Venus” by Leigh Brackett — 92
- “The Swordsman of Varnis” by Clive Jackson — 134
Leigh Brackett is also one of the credited screenwriters (along with Jules Furthman and…William Faulkner!) of the 1946 movie adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s “The Big Sleep”—one of the greatest noir movies adapted from one of the greatest noir novels ever.
Deb, I became a fan of Leigh Brackett as a teenager. I later learned about her work on the movie version of THE BIG SLEEP. It’s a classic!
As an editor, Hartwell surely knew his beans about science fiction, and translated that into many doorstopper anthologies. For this one, I am most sympatico with the first two sections. Sadly, much of the later science fiction has passed me by, but I would be eager to read the entire book just based on Hartwell’s expertise.
Jerry, I’ve read a few of Hartwell’s massive tomes of SF over the years. THE SPACE OPERA RENAISSANCE has been waiting for me to read it for years. Nearly a 1000 pages of thrilling SF! I’ll chip away at it, section by section, over the next few months.
Sounds good, if massive. It really calls for the Kindle edition.
Jeff, I have to read THE SPACE OPERA RENAISSANCE with the book resting on a table because of its size and weight. I might consider the Kindle edition if AMAZON sends me more reward points for delaying shipping for a week (I’m in no hurry).