Tuesday, 20 February 2018 08:33 pm
Book Review: First Lensman
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deckardcanineI think I first heard of E.E. "Doc" Smith's Lensman series as having been a likely inspiration to DC Comics, if not the source of a ripoff. Well, that sounded like a recommendation, and I felt up for a little retro sci-fi adventure. This volume comes second in both publication and story chronology but was written sixth, which may have helped iron things out. Looks like I did right to skip the first, at least for now, because it's a little too alien in focus.
The starting premise is that an ancient psychic alien race grants superpower-lending accessories to decidedly worthy members of all sapient species, for the purpose of establishing a Galactic Patrol. Sounds a lot like DC's Green Lantern Corps, except that the "Lenses," which are more like wristbands, aren't nearly as versatile or arguably as powerful. They do allow mind reading and truth-only telepathy with no language barriers, but as useful as that is, a Lensman would be hard-pressed to defeat a modern Green Lantern, who can fly, fire energy beams, create bubble shields, and summon other objects as needed. (Defeating one from the era when seeing yellow could suspend their powers is another story.)
The titular First Lensman, being both the first to receive a Lens and the founder and highest leader of the GP, is a space-faring human named Virgil Samms. He was chosen not just for wanting to launch the GP but for being incorruptible. It's up to him to select the next bunch of Lensmen personally, after inspecting them for merit, and enroll them in the GP. Even afterward, he is explicitly regarded as the most important person in the universe to protect.
Hence the first issue I have with the story: the very idea that any human under heaven could be so pure. Oh, the aliens in question don't believe that absolute good can exist, but apparently some men come close enough to be entrusted with extreme authority -- watchmen in no need of watching. This despite some pretty major differences in personalities and priorities; the second Lensman, Rod Kinnison, sometimes has to be talked out of overly aggressive, borderline tyrannical moves.
Far worse is the prophecy that there will be exactly one Lenswoman in all of history. Yes, most men fail the test, many of whom had been expected to pass, but the Lensmen still number in the millions eventually. Could certain positive attributes be that much rarer in an entire sex? It's especially insulting when you consider how many alien races make up the GP, including some that come nowhere close to humanoid. Geez Louise, Doc, how can your imagination be so rich and yet so limited? The 1950 publication date is no excuse.
There is one major female character: Virgilia Samms, daughter of Virgil. She fails the test but feels that the Lens is such a burden that she's better off without one. Fortunately, she's honed such incredible skills that she'd hardly need one to help out the GP, at least where espionage is concerned. But that doesn't change the fact that she becomes a damsel in distress -- and a state of undress -- to be rescued by a love interest.
For all the laughably dated elements, Doc's writing gets pretty impressive. In an era when little green men wouldn't seem out of place, he comes up with some highly creative alien types, albeit with no great importance to the plot. He did foresee a few events, such as the downfall of communism and reemergence of Russia as a nation. Too bad he assumed there wouldn't be a second presidential impeachment by this unspecified distant future.
What makes the story most interesting to me is the way it kinda combines subgenres. Sometimes it resembles a spy action thriller, sometimes there are epic spaceship battles, and sometimes it gets into the trickiness of politics. See, there's quite a web of alien-backed corruption for the GP to take on. They have an obvious advantage: The enemy not only can't acquire Lenses even by theft (the Lens kills an unauthorized wearer) but doesn't know much about them. Still, if the GP is going to handle things properly, they need to have enough compelling evidence by election time. And they hope to convince people that Rod Frigging Kinnison is presidential material. An opponent claims that Lenses override free will, so you should never accept a Lensman's offer to show you the truth; it occurs to me that there's really no proof to the contrary, so I can't say how I would've voted if I didn't have my own Lens.
Would I read another volume? Maybe. It can be pretty cool in an old-fashioned sort of way. I just don't know how much more I'd get out of it.
My next reading is one you probably didn't expect: Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. I chose it partly because it was easy to pack for vacation.
The starting premise is that an ancient psychic alien race grants superpower-lending accessories to decidedly worthy members of all sapient species, for the purpose of establishing a Galactic Patrol. Sounds a lot like DC's Green Lantern Corps, except that the "Lenses," which are more like wristbands, aren't nearly as versatile or arguably as powerful. They do allow mind reading and truth-only telepathy with no language barriers, but as useful as that is, a Lensman would be hard-pressed to defeat a modern Green Lantern, who can fly, fire energy beams, create bubble shields, and summon other objects as needed. (Defeating one from the era when seeing yellow could suspend their powers is another story.)
The titular First Lensman, being both the first to receive a Lens and the founder and highest leader of the GP, is a space-faring human named Virgil Samms. He was chosen not just for wanting to launch the GP but for being incorruptible. It's up to him to select the next bunch of Lensmen personally, after inspecting them for merit, and enroll them in the GP. Even afterward, he is explicitly regarded as the most important person in the universe to protect.
Hence the first issue I have with the story: the very idea that any human under heaven could be so pure. Oh, the aliens in question don't believe that absolute good can exist, but apparently some men come close enough to be entrusted with extreme authority -- watchmen in no need of watching. This despite some pretty major differences in personalities and priorities; the second Lensman, Rod Kinnison, sometimes has to be talked out of overly aggressive, borderline tyrannical moves.
Far worse is the prophecy that there will be exactly one Lenswoman in all of history. Yes, most men fail the test, many of whom had been expected to pass, but the Lensmen still number in the millions eventually. Could certain positive attributes be that much rarer in an entire sex? It's especially insulting when you consider how many alien races make up the GP, including some that come nowhere close to humanoid. Geez Louise, Doc, how can your imagination be so rich and yet so limited? The 1950 publication date is no excuse.
There is one major female character: Virgilia Samms, daughter of Virgil. She fails the test but feels that the Lens is such a burden that she's better off without one. Fortunately, she's honed such incredible skills that she'd hardly need one to help out the GP, at least where espionage is concerned. But that doesn't change the fact that she becomes a damsel in distress -- and a state of undress -- to be rescued by a love interest.
For all the laughably dated elements, Doc's writing gets pretty impressive. In an era when little green men wouldn't seem out of place, he comes up with some highly creative alien types, albeit with no great importance to the plot. He did foresee a few events, such as the downfall of communism and reemergence of Russia as a nation. Too bad he assumed there wouldn't be a second presidential impeachment by this unspecified distant future.
What makes the story most interesting to me is the way it kinda combines subgenres. Sometimes it resembles a spy action thriller, sometimes there are epic spaceship battles, and sometimes it gets into the trickiness of politics. See, there's quite a web of alien-backed corruption for the GP to take on. They have an obvious advantage: The enemy not only can't acquire Lenses even by theft (the Lens kills an unauthorized wearer) but doesn't know much about them. Still, if the GP is going to handle things properly, they need to have enough compelling evidence by election time. And they hope to convince people that Rod Frigging Kinnison is presidential material. An opponent claims that Lenses override free will, so you should never accept a Lensman's offer to show you the truth; it occurs to me that there's really no proof to the contrary, so I can't say how I would've voted if I didn't have my own Lens.
Would I read another volume? Maybe. It can be pretty cool in an old-fashioned sort of way. I just don't know how much more I'd get out of it.
My next reading is one you probably didn't expect: Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. I chose it partly because it was easy to pack for vacation.