When one author contributes to a series created by another, he has to leave the series and its characters as he found them. Thus, in "Plato's Cave," Poul Anderson borrows Isaac Asimov's characters, Gregory Powell and Michael Donovan, gives them a robotic problem to solve and has them solve it. The solution is based on an understanding of how a positronic robot will have to respond according to the Three Laws of Robotics. Meanwhile, a supporting character hopes that Stephen Byerly will become coordinator. Indeed. When the story is completed, Asimov's future history flows on as before. Powell and Donovan will continue to work for US Robots. Byerly will eventually become coordinator. Other events will occur that are of no concern here. It is an intellectual exercise to fit an episode into a particular point in an already established timeline but Anderson cannot create any pivotal turning point in that timeline.
He sometimes performed this same exercise with his own future history series. Thus, "How To Be Ethnic In One Easy Lesson," fills in a detail about Adzel's student days on on Earth. "Wingless" and "Rescue on Avalon" contribute details about the colonization of Avalon, thus immeasurably enriching the Technic History.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
A later written "prequel" about Manuel Argos earlier years would also have been good! We do get some details about his prior life in "The Star Plunderer."
Ad astra! Sean
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