Saturday 20 July 2024

A Dynamic Series

Satan's World begins with David Falkayn, then becomes a trader team novel because Chee Lan and Adzel are backing up Falkayn but then Nicholas van Rijn comes on-stage, running his company from Earth. After Adzel and Chee Lan, directed by van Rijn, have rescued Falkayn, we follow parallel narratives about two sub-teams: van Rijn and Adzel; Falkayn and Chee Lan. But the tripartite team are back together again, heading out into space, at the conclusion of the novel. But everything has really changed for them because they are now rich enough not to have to do this. It is like the later Star Trek films. And the situation will be very different again in the next novel, Mirkheim, which concludes the Polesotechnic League series. In other words, Poul Anderson does not get set into a rut and everything changes all the time.

1 comment:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

I just hope any cinematic version of the Technic stories is scrupulously accurate and respectful of its background and spirit.

I agree about Anderson not getting into a "rut" with the Technic series. That was why he decided to end it with THE GAME OF EMPIRE, to avoid the risk of it becoming stagnant. And because he wanted to move on to other ideas and themes.

Still, I would have been glad if he had written one or two more Technic stories!

Ad astra! Sean