Introductions And Aftermaths

Unfortunately, I cannot just now find my copy of James Blish's The Day After Judgement. This happens with books. Another comparison with Poul and Karen Anderson's The King of Ys is in order.

The King of Ys is a Tetralogy. Black Easter and The Day After Judgement are Volumes II(a) and II(b) of Blish's After Such Knowledge Trilogy. The Tetralogy and the Trilogy address theology, the latter more so. The Tetralogy is linear, a single four-part narrative, whereas the Trilogy is thematic, three discrete narratives united only by a common issue. Black Easter was written and published as a one-off story, climaxing with Armageddon, thus at least implicitly precluding any kind of sequel. The decision to write a sequel, The Day of Judgement, was made later. Subsequently, the two works came to be regarded as a unity and were republished in a single volume.

When the sequel was first published, it began with an extended, italicized (I think) introduction, summarizing Black Easter in surprising detail, beginning something like: "The events leading to the catastrophe were as follows:..." Some kind of introduction was necessary for a narrative set in the aftermath of Armageddon. When the two works were published together, this introduction was omitted, presumably regarded as no longer necessary. I think that it should have been included as part of Blish's work. Volume II of The King of Ys begins with a very welcome ten-page italicized "Synopsis" of Volume I. We appreciate the reminder, the details and the perspective.

The Tetralogy and the Trilogy envisage changes in the supernatural realm. Referring to the Gods, a high priestess says:

"...They Themselves are troubled. For the heavens have moved from the Sign of the Ram to the Sign of the Fish, and the old Age dies as the new comes to birth.'"

-Poul and Karen Anderson, Gallicenae (London, 1988), I, 3, p. 32.

In the event, many gods withdraw before the one born in the new Age. Volume III ends with the destruction of Ys as its Gods recede. Volume IV is the aftermath.