Space opera is a subgenre of speculative fiction or science fiction that emphasizes romantic, often melodramatic adventure, set mainly or entirely in space, generally involving conflict between opponents possessing powerful (and sometimes quite fanciful) technologies and abilities. Speculative fiction is a term used as an inclusive descriptor covering a group of Fiction Genres that speculate about worlds that are unlike the real world in As a Literary genre of High culture, romance or chivalric romance refers to a style of heroic Prose and verse Narrative Perhaps the most significant trait of space opera is that settings, characters, battles, powers, and themes tend to be very large-scale.
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History of space opera
In 1941, science fiction fan Bob Tucker (who would later become writer Wilson Tucker) coined the term "space opera" (by analogy to "horse opera" and "soap opera") to describe what he characterized as "the hacky, grinding, stinking, outworn space-ship yarn, or world-saving [story] for that matter. For the football player of the same name see Bob Tucker (football player. Horse opera refers to a Western movie or television series that is extremely cliched or formulaic (in the manner of a Soap opera) A soap opera is an ongoing episodic work of Fiction, usually broadcast on Television or Radio. "[1] "Space opera" is sometimes used in this negative sense, but it can also be used to describe a particular science fiction genre, without any value judgment.
Space opera in its most familiar form was a product of 1930s-40s pulp magazines. Pulp magazines (or pulp fiction; often referred to as "the pulps" were inexpensive Fiction magazines Like early science fiction in general, space opera borrowed extensively from established adventure, crime, and thriller genres. Notable influences included stories that described adventures on exotic or uncivilized frontiers, e. g. the American West, Africa, or the Orient. The Western United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American West or simply the West &mdashtraditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost The imagined future of space opera included immense space liners, intrepid explorers of unknown worlds, pirates of the spaceways, and tough but incorruptible space police. An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one Seaport to another along regular long-distance Maritime routes according to a schedule
Elements of space opera can be found in late Victorian and Edwardian science fiction, for example, in the works of Garrett P. Serviss, George Griffith, and especially in Robert W. Garrett Putnam Serviss (1851-1929 was an Astronomer, popularizer of Astronomy, and early science fiction writer For George Griffith the former Headmaster of The Perse School, see The Perse School For George Griffith the 19th century English cricketer Cole's The Struggle for Empire: A Story of the Year 2236. [2] But it was not until the 1920s that the space opera proper appeared in the pulp magazines Weird Tales and Amazing Stories. Weird Tales is an American Fantasy and Horror fiction Pulp magazine first published in March 1923. Amazing Stories was an American Science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback 's Experimenter Publishing. Unlike earlier stories of space adventure, which either related the invasion of Earth by extraterrestrials, or concentrated on the invention of a space vehicle by a genius inventor, pure space opera simply took space travel for granted (usually by setting the story in the far future), skipped the preliminaries, and launched straight into tales of derring-do among the stars.
The first stories of this type were J. Schlossel's The Second Swarm (Spring 1928) in Amazing Stories Quarterly and Edmond Hamilton's Crashing Suns (August-September 1928) and The Star Stealers (February 1929) in Weird Tales. Edmond Moore Hamilton ( October 21, 1904 - February 1 1977) was a popular author of Science fiction stories and novels during the mid-twentieth Weird Tales is an American Fantasy and Horror fiction Pulp magazine first published in March 1923. Similar stories by other writers followed through 1929 and 1930; by 1931 the space opera was well-established as a dominant sub-genre of science fiction.
The transition from the older space-voyage story to the space opera can be seen in the works of E. E. Smith. E E Smith, also Edward Elmer Smith PhD, EE "Doc" Smith, Doc Smith, "Skylark" Smith, and (to family Ted His first published work, The Skylark of Space (August-October 1928, Amazing Stories), merges the traditional tale of a scientist inventing a space-drive with planetary romance in the style of Edgar Rice Burroughs; but by the time of the sequel, Skylark Three (August-October 1930, Amazing Stories) which introduces the spacefaring race of the Fenachrone, Smith had moved closer to a space opera mode. The Skylark of Space is one of the earliest novels of Interstellar travel. Amazing Stories was an American Science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback 's Experimenter Publishing. Planetary romance is a type of Science fantasy story in which the bulk of the action consists of adventures on one or more exotic alien planets characterized by distinctive Edgar Rice Burroughs ( September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author best known for his creation of the jungle hero
E. E. Smith's later Lensman series and the works of Edmond Hamilton, John W. Campbell, and Jack Williamson in the 1930s and 1940s were popular with readers and much imitated by other writers. The Lensman series is a serial Science fiction Space opera by E Edmond Moore Hamilton ( October 21, 1904 - February 1 1977) was a popular author of Science fiction stories and novels during the mid-twentieth John Wood Campbell Jr (June 8 1910 – July 11 1971 was an important Science fiction editor and writer John Stewart Williamson ( April 29, 1908 – November 10, 2006) who wrote as Jack Williamson (and occasionally under the Pseudonym By the early 1940s, the repetitiousness and extravagance of some of these stories led to objections from some fans and the coining of the term in its original, pejorative sense.
Eventually, though, a fondness for the best examples of the genre led to a reevaluation of the term and a resurrection of the subgenre's traditions. Writers such as Poul Anderson and Gordon R. Dickson had kept the large-scale space adventure form alive through the 1950s, followed by (to name only a few examples) M. John Harrison and C. J. Cherryh in the 1970s and Iain M. Banks, Lois McMaster Bujold, and Paul J. McAuley in the 1980s. Poul William Anderson ( November 25, 1926 – July 31, 2001) was an American Science fiction author who wrote during a Golden Gordon Rupert Dickson ( November 1, 1923 – January 31, 2001) was an American Science fiction author Michael John Harrison (born July 26, 1945) who writes as M John Harrison, is a British author of Science fiction, Fantasy Carolyn Janice Cherry (born September 1, 1942) better known by the Pseudonym C Iain Menzies Banks (born on 16 February 1954 in Dunfermline, Fife) is a Scottish Writer. Lois McMaster Bujold (born November 2, 1949, Columbus, Ohio) is an American author of Science fiction and Fantasy Paul J McAuley (born April 23, 1955) a British botanist award-winning author and self-described science Junkie. By this time, "space opera" was for many readers no longer a term of insult but a simple description of a particular kind of science fiction adventure story.
In the 1970s, a number of mostly British writers began to reinvent space opera. Significant events in this process include the publication of M. John Harrison's The Centauri Device in 1975; a "call to arms" editorial by David Pringle and Colin Greenland in Interzone[3]; and the financial success of Star Wars, which closely follows many traditional space opera conventions. Michael John Harrison (born July 26, 1945) who writes as M John Harrison, is a British author of Science fiction, Fantasy Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded This new space opera, which evolved around the same time cyberpunk emerged and was influenced by it, is darker, moves away from the "triumph of mankind" template of space opera, involves newer technologies, and has stronger characterization than the space opera of old. Cyberpunk is a Science fiction genre noted for its focus on " High tech and low life. While it does retain the interstellar scale and scope of traditional space opera, it can also be scientifically rigorous. Among the practitioners of the new space opera are Neal Asher, Iain M. Banks, Stephen Baxter, Simon Green, Peter F. Hamilton, M. John Harrison, Paul J. McAuley, Ken MacLeod, Alastair Reynolds, Charles Stross, Vernor Vinge, Walter Jon Williams, and John C. Wright. Neal Asher (born 1961 in Billericay, Essex, England) is an English Science fiction writer Iain Menzies Banks (born on 16 February 1954 in Dunfermline, Fife) is a Scottish Writer. Stephen Baxter (born 13 November 1957 is a British Hard science fiction Author. Simon Green may refer to Simon R Green, a British Science-fiction and fantasy-author Simon F Peter F Hamilton (born 2 March 1960 is a British Science fiction Author. Michael John Harrison (born July 26, 1945) who writes as M John Harrison, is a British author of Science fiction, Fantasy Paul J McAuley (born April 23, 1955) a British botanist award-winning author and self-described science Junkie. Ken MacLeod (born 2 August 1954 an award-winning Scottish Science fiction writer lives in South Queensferry near Edinburgh. Alastair Preston Reynolds (born in 1966 in Barry, Wales) is a Welsh Science fiction author. Charles David George "Charlie" Stross (born Leeds, 18 October 1964 is a writer based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Vernor Steffen Vinge (ˈvɪndʒi (born October 2, 1944 in Waukesha Wisconsin, U Walter Jon Williams (born 15 October 1953) is an American writer primarily of Science fiction. John C Wright (John Charles Justin Wright born 1961 is an American Author of Science fiction and Fantasy novels
A more recent movement of American space opera writers, many writing for the Baen books imprint, developed during the 1990s and 2000s. Baen Books is an American Publishing company established in 1983 by long time Science Fiction publisher and editor Jim Baen. This new wave of space opera authors include David Drake, Lois McMaster Bujold, Eric Flint, Elizabeth Moon, S.M. Stirling, John Ringo and David Weber. David Drake (born September 24, 1945) is an author of Science fiction and Fantasy literature Lois McMaster Bujold (born November 2, 1949, Columbus, Ohio) is an American author of Science fiction and Fantasy Eric Flint (born 1947 is an American Alternate history and Fantasy author, editor, and e-publisher. Elizabeth Moon (born March 7, 1945) is an award-winning American Science fiction and Fantasy author Stephen Michael Stirling is a French -born Canadian - American Science fiction and Fantasy author John Ringo (b March 22 1963 is an American Science fiction and military fiction author who writes full time David Mark Weber is an American Science fiction and Fantasy author. This branch of space opera follows more military themes than the British branch and usually features tales of war on an interstellar scale.
Other older, more established writers such as James H. Schmitz and Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, among others, had produced space opera and were often reprinted by Baen during this same period, as part of an effort by the publisher to reestablish the market for more military-themed space opera. James Henry Schmitz ( October 15 1911 – April 18, 1981) was an American Writer born in Hamburg, Germany Laurence van Cott Niven (born April 30, 1938 Los Angeles California) is a US Science fiction author. Jerry Eugene Pournelle (born August 7, 1933) is an American Science fiction Writer, Essayist and Journalist
Random House's Del Rey division, which had never totally gone out of the space opera business, also increased their output of space opera books during the 1990s and 2000s, including their own versions of military space opera. Random House Inc is the world's largest English-language general trade book publisher Del Rey Books is a branch of Ballantine Books, which is owned by Random House. Stories such as David Sherman and Dan Cragg's StarFist series became increasingly common. David Sherman is an American novelist who deals overwhelmingly with military themes at the small-unit tactical level Dan Cragg (born September 6, 1939, in Rochester NY) is an American soldier essayist and science-fiction author StarFist is a series of military Science-fiction Novels set in the 25th century and written from the viewpoint of the men of the Confederation Marine Corps
Definitions by contrast
Space opera and planetary romance
Some critics distinguish between space opera and planetary romance. Planetary romance is a type of Science fantasy story in which the bulk of the action consists of adventures on one or more exotic alien planets characterized by distinctive [4] Where space opera grows out of both the Western and sea adventure traditions, the planetary romance grows out of the lost world or lost civilization tradition. Both feature adventures in exotic settings, but space opera emphasizes space travel, while planetary romances focus on alien worlds. In this view, the Martian-, Venusian-, and lunar-setting stories of Edgar Rice Burroughs would be planetary romances (and among the earliest), as would be Leigh Brackett's Burroughs-influenced Eric John Stark stories. Edgar Rice Burroughs ( September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author best known for his creation of the jungle hero Leigh Douglass Brackett ( December 7, 1915, in Los Angeles California &ndash March 18, 1978) was a female writer of Science Erik John Stark is a character created by Science fiction author Leigh Brackett. Other writers who have produced planetary romances include Jack Vance (the Tschai tetralogy and Durdane trilogy), Philip José Farmer (The Green Odyssey), Robert Silverberg (the Majipoor series), and Frank Herbert (the first three Dune novels). John Holbrook Vance (born August 28, 1916 in San Francisco, The Durdane series is a trilogy of Science fiction books written by Jack Vance between 1971 and 1973 and detail the political and social adventures of Gastel Etzwane Philip José Farmer (born January 26 1918) is an American Author, principally known for his Science fiction and fantasy The Green Odyssey is an American Science fiction Novel written by Philip José Farmer. Robert Silverberg (born January 15, 1935) is a prolific American author best known for writing Science fiction. The Majipoor series is a series of Novels and stories by Robert Silverberg, set on the planet Majipoor. Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr ( October 8 1920 &ndash February 11 1986) was a critically acclaimed and commercially successful American Dune is a Science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert and published in 1965.
Space opera and hard science fiction
Space opera can also be contrasted with "hard science fiction", in which the emphasis is on the effects of technological progress and inventions, and where the settings are carefully worked out to obey the laws of physics, cosmology, mathematics, and biology. Hard science fiction is a category of Science fiction characterized by an emphasis on scientific or technical detail or on scientific accuracy or on both There is, however (according to some), no sharp division between hard science fiction and true space opera. Many of Robert A. Heinlein's young adult novels, such as Starship Troopers, are seen by his fans to qualify as both. Robert Anson Heinlein (July 7 1907 – May 8 1988 was an American Novelist and Science fiction Writer. Starship Troopers is a Science fiction Novel by Robert A Heinlein, first published (in abridged form as a serial in The Magazine
Space opera and military science fiction
One subset of space opera overlaps with military science fiction, concentrating on large-scale space battles with futuristic weapons (example: Honor Harrington series by David Weber). Military science fiction is a Subgenre of Science fiction in which the principal characters are members of a military service and an armed conflict is taking Honor Stephanie Harrington is a Fictional character, the Eponymous heroine of a series of Science fiction books set in the " Honorverse David Mark Weber is an American Science fiction and Fantasy author. In such stories, the military tone and weapon system technology may be taken very seriously. At one extreme, the genre is used to speculate about future wars involving space travel, or the effects of such a war on humans; at the other it consists of the use of military fiction plots with some superficial science fiction trappings.
Parodies
Fredric Brown's What Mad Universe has as its protagonist a sober-headed science fiction magazine editor who suddenly finds himself transported to an alternate history timeline where all the Space opera clichés (a larger-than-life space hero fighting evil aliens who are totally bent on humanity's destruction, etc. Fredric Brown ( October 29, 1906, Cincinnati &ndash March 11, 1972) was an American Science fiction and What Mad Universe is a Science-fiction novel written in 1949 by the American author Fredric Brown. Alternate history or alternative history is a subgenre of Speculative fiction (or Science fiction) and Historical fiction ) are concrete, daily life realities.
Harry Harrison's Bill, the Galactic Hero and Star Smashers of the Galaxy Rangers, and Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy parody the conventions of classic space opera. For the radio personality see Harry Harrison (radio. Harry Harrison (born Henry Maxwell Dempsey, March 12 1925 Bill the Galactic Hero is a Satirical Science fiction novel by Harry Harrison, first published in 1965. Star Smashers of the Galaxy Rangers (1973 is a comic Science fiction novel by Harry Harrison. Douglas Noël Adams (11 March 1952 &ndash 11 May 2001 was an English author comic Radio dramatist The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series The 1987 film Spaceballs, directed and co-written by Mel Brooks, is a Star Wars parody with many space opera characteristics. Spaceballs is a 1987 Science fiction Parody film of Star Wars co-written directed by and starring Mel Brooks. Mel Brooks (born Melvin Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American director, Writer, Composer, Lyricist Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded The American animated television series Futurama, created by Matt Groening, plays with the space opera genre from time to time, for example in the over-the-top military officer Zapp Brannigan. Futurama is an Emmy Award -winning animated American sitcom created by Matt Groening, and developed by Groening and Matthew Abram Groening (ˈɡreɪnɪŋ GRAY-ning) (born February 15 1954 is an American Cartoonist, television producer and writer from Portland Major General Webelo (later Commander) Zapp Brannigan is a Fictional character in the television series Futurama, voiced Stephen Colbert, in his character as host of the Colbert Report, is the author of a so-called "un-published and shopping it around to publishers" epic novel called Alpha Squad 7: Lady Nocturne: A Tek Jansen Adventure. Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( born May 13 1964 is an American Comedian, satirist, Actor and Writer, known for his ironic style Dr Stephen T Colbert DFA (koʊɫˈbεɹ is the The Colbert Report (/kolˈbɛr rəˈpɔr/&mdashthe t is silent in "Colbert" is a Peabody Award and Emmy Award winning American Tek Jansen is a Fictional character featured on The Colbert Report and in a comic book series published by Oni Press. He occasionally reads excerpts from the novel, and later aired several animated shorts based on them, and it then was spun off to a comic book series by Oni Press. Oni Press is an American independent Comic book publisher based in Portland Oregon.
In the comic strip world, the adventures of Spaceman Spiff, an alter ego of Calvin, eponymous hero of Calvin and Hobbes, parodied many space opera conventions. A comic strip is a sequence of drawings that tells a story Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a Comics artist An alter ego ( Latin, "the other I" is a second self, a second Personality or Persona within a Person Calvin is a Fictional character in the Comic strip Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. Calvin and Hobbes is a Comic strip written and illustrated by Bill Watterson, following the humorous antics of Calvin, an imaginative
The Buzz Lightyear character in the 1995 film Toy Story is a parody of a typical space opera hero. Buzz Lightyear (created May 26, 1995) is a Fictional character that first appeared in the full-length CGI animated film Toy Story Toy Story is a 1995 American computer-generated Comedy film, directed by John Lasseter and starring Tom Hanks
Examples
Below are listed the best-known examples of space opera in all media. In Communication, media (Singular Medium) are the storage and transmission tools used to store and deliver Information Items marked with an asterisk(*) are multimedia franchises, such as Star Trek or Star Wars, both of which include films, television series, novels, and comics. An asterisk ( *) (Latin asteriscum "little star" from Greek ἀστερίσκος) is a Typographical symbol or Glyph Multimedia is media and content that utilizes a combination of different content forms. A media franchise is an Intellectual property involving the characters, setting, and Trademarks of an original work of media (usually Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded Many other examples of space opera can be found in category:space operas.
Literature
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Film
- The Star Wars films, (1977-2005) created by George Lucas *
- Stargate (1994) directed by Roland Emmerich *
- The Fifth Element (1997), directed by Luc Besson
- The Chronicles of Riddick series (2000-present), created by David Twohy *
Television
- Star Trek franchise, (1966-1969) created by Gene Roddenberry *
- Babylon 5, (1993-1998) created by J. Michael Straczynski *
- Battlestar Galactica (TOS), (1978-1980), created by Glen Larson
- Battlestar Galactica (RDM), (2003-2009), created by Ronald D. Moore
- Macross, (1982-1983), created by Shoji Kawamori and Studio NUE, later adapted into part of Robotech by Carl Macek and Harmony Gold USA *
- Legend of the Galactic Heroes, (1988-1997), created by Yoshiki Tanaka *
- Space: Above and Beyond, (1995-1996) created by Glen Morgan and James Wong*
- Power Rangers in Space, (1998-1999) created by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy
- Andromeda, (2000-2005) created by Gene Roddenberry, developed by Robert Hewitt Wolfe *
Comics
- DC Universe, (1940-present) by DC Comics, USA *
- Flash Gordon, (1934-1943) by Alex Raymond, USA *
- Adam Strange, (1958-present) by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky, USA
- Barbarella, (1962) by Jean-Claude Forest, France *
- Death Hawk and Star Rangers, (1987-1988) by Mark Ellis, USA
- Jodoverse, (1981-2003) by Alexandro Jodorowsky, France
Stage
- Starstruck, (1980) by Elaine Lee *
Pen & Paper or Board Games
- Traveller, (1977-present) created by Marc Miller
- BattleTech, (1984-present) designed by Jordan Weisman and L. David Geddes Hartwell (b July 10, 1941) is an American editor of Science fiction and Fantasy. Kathryn Elizabeth Cramer ( April 16, 1962) is an American Science fiction Author, editor, and Literary critic The New Space Opera (2007 ISBN 978-0060846756 is a science fiction anthology edited by Gardner Dozois and Jonathan Strahan. Gardner Dozois (born July 23, 1947) is an American Science fiction author and editor. Jonathan Strahan ( 1964 in Belfast -) is an editor and Publisher of Science fiction. Buck Rogers is a fictional character who first appeared in 1928 as Anthony Rogers the hero of two Novellas by Philip Francis Nowlan published in the magazine Philip Francis Nowlan (b 1888 in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, d Doctor and the Medics are a London based Psychedelic rock band, famous in the 1980s Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded George Walton Lucas Jr (born May 14, 1944) is an Academy Award -winning American Film director, producer, Screenwriter Stargate refers to the Science fiction Media franchise owned by MGM that began in 1994 with the Feature film Stargate Roland Emmerich (born November 10 1955 is a German Film director, Screenwriter, and producer. The Fifth Element is a French 1997 Science fantasy, action, Comedy, Techno thriller film directed by Luc Besson (lyk bɛsɔ̃ born 18 March 1959 is a French Film director, writer and producer. The Chronicles of Riddick is a Science fiction series spanning a number of films and video games David Neil Twohy ( 18 October 1955 &mdash is an American movie director and Screenwriter. Star Trek is a Science fiction Television series created by Gene Roddenberry that aired from September 8, 1966 through Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry (August 19 1921 &ndash October 24 1991 was an American Screenwriter and producer. Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created produced and largely written by J Joseph Michael Straczynski (born July 17, 1954) known professionally as J Battlestar Galactica is an American Science fiction television series, produced in 1978 by Glen Larson and starring Lorne Greene Glen A Larson (born January 3, 1937) is an American Television producer and writer best known as creator of the series Battlestar Galactica is an Emmy and Peabody Award -winning serial drama Television program created by Ronald D Ronald Dowl Moore (born 5 July 1964 in Chowchilla California) is a two-time Emmy Award -nominated American Screenwriter is a long-running series of Science fiction Anime, created by Shoji Kawamori of Studio Nue in 1982 is a renowned Japanese Anime creator and designer having created or co-created such notable series as The Vision of Escaflowne, Earth Girl Arjuna Robotech is a Science fiction franchise that was launched by an 85-episode adaptation of three different Anime Television series. Carl Macek (born 1951 in Pittsburgh) is an American writer and controversial Anime pioneer and producer of the 1980s and 1990s Harmony Gold' is a television production and distribution company established in 1983 is a series of Science fiction Novels by Yoshiki Tanaka. An Anime adaptation of the novels ran from 1988 to 2000 and a Manga is also based Dr Yoshiki Tanaka (田中芳樹 Tanaka Yoshiki, born October 22, 1952) is a Japanese novelist Space Above and Beyond (abbreviated as SAAB) was a short-lived 1990s American Science fiction Television show on the Glen Morgan is an American Television producer, Writer and director, best known for his screen works of The X-Files, James Wong ( Chinese: 黃毅瑜 Pinyin: Huáng Yìyú Jyutping: Wong4 Ngai6 Jyu4 (B Power Rangers in Space (often abbreviated as PRiS or referred to as simply In Space) is a Television show that aired in 1998 as the Haim Saban (Hebrew חיים סבן born 15 October 1944 in Alexandria, Egypt Personal life Haim Saban was born in Alexandria Shuki Levy ( Hebrew: שוקי לוי born June 3, 1947 in Tel Aviv, Palestine) is a Music See Andromeda (disambiguation for other uses of "Andromeda" Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry (August 19 1921 &ndash October 24 1991 was an American Screenwriter and producer. Robert Hewitt Wolfe is an American Television producer and Scriptwriter. The DC Universe ( DCU) is the fictional Shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company Flash Gordon is the hero of a Science fiction adventure Comic strip originally drawn by Alex Raymond, which was first published on January 7, Alexander Gillespie Raymond ( October 2, 1909 – September 6, 1956) was an American Comic strip artist best known for creating the Adam Strange is a fictional Superhero published by DC Comics. Gardner Francis Cooper Fox (Speed Saunders was initially credited to "E Mike Sekowsky ( November 19, 1923 - March 30, 1989) was a Jewish American Comic book Artist best known Jean-Claude Forest ( 11 September 1930, Le Perreux-sur-Marne, France - 29 December 1998, Paris, France Death Hawk is a fictional American Comic book character a self-styled salvage expert in the 25th century This article concerns the comic book For the novel by Andre Norton see Star Rangers (novel. Mark Ellis is an American novelist who resides in Newport Rhode Island with his wife of 28 years Melissa Martin The Incal is a Science fiction Comic book saga written by Alejandro Jodorowsky and illustrated by Moebius. Alejandro Jodorowsky (ɑːlɛˈxɑːndrɒ jɒdɒˈrɒvskiː (born February 7 1929 in Tocopilla, Chile, of a Jewish Russian (Ukranian immigrant family (A different actor named Elaine Lee appears in a cameo in Serenity; there is also a South African born Australian based actor named Traveller is a series of related Science fiction Role-playing games the first published in 1977 by Game Designers' Workshop and subsequent editions Marc W Miller (born 1947 is an American Game designer. Miller was one of the founding partners of the Game Designers' Workshop (GDW and the original BattleTech is a Wargaming and Science fiction franchise launched by FASA Corporation and currently owned by WizKids. Jordan Weisman is an American Game designer, author and serial entrepreneur who has founded four major Game design companies each in a different game Ross Babcock III *
- Warhammer 40,000, (1987-present) designed by Rick Priestly *
- Fading Suns, (1996-present) designed by Bill Bridges and Andrew Greenberg
Computer/Video Games
- Elite series, (1984-1995) designed by David Braben and Ian Bell
- Star Control series, (1990-1996) developed by Toys for Bob
- Wing Commander, (1990-present) developed by Origin Systems *
- Master of Orion, (1993-2003) developed by Simtex
- X series, (1995-2005) developed by Egosoft
- Escape Velocity series, (1996-2002) developed by Ambrosia Software
- StarCraft series, (1998-present) developed by Blizzard Entertainment *
- Halo series, (2001-present) developed by Bungie Studios *
- Galactic Civilizations, (2003-2006) developed by Stardock
- Mass Effect, (2007-Present) developed by Bioware
Online Projects
- Ray Gun Revival magazine A biweekly e-zine dedicated to space opera and golden age sci-fi
- Orion's Arm A Transhumanist space opera world-building project (see main)
See also
Overlapping genres
- Hard science fiction
- Planetary romance
- Soft science fiction
- Space opera noir
- Space western
- Military science fiction
- New Weird, which has some overlap in the UK with the New Space Opera
- Postcyberpunk
Editors and publishers
Themes and ideas
- Transhumanism in fiction
- Political ideas in science fiction
- Religious ideas in science fiction
- Space opera in Scientology scripture
- Science fiction on television
- Science fiction operas
References
- ^ Tucker, Wilson (January 1941). Warhammer 40000 (informally known as Warhammer 40K or just 40K) is a tabletop miniature wargame in a Science Rick Priestley is a game designer for Games Workshop. Priestley was one of the original designers of Games Workshop 's Warhammer, along with Fading Suns is a Science fiction Space opera Role-playing game published by Holistic Design. Bill Bridges may refer to Bill Bridges (basketball, professional basketball player Bill Bridges (game designer, RPG developer and author Andrew Greenberg is a Game designer of both pen-and-paper Role-playing games and Computer games ref name="Interview with Andrew Greenburg and Bill Bridges"> Elite is a seminal space trading Computer game, originally published by Acornsoft in 1984 for the BBC Micro and David John Braben (born 1964 Basford Nottingham) is a British Computer programmer, best known for co-writing Elite, a hugely popular Ian Ronald Bell MBE (born 11 April 1982 in Coventry, West Midlands) is an England Test Cricketer He also plays County Star Control Famous Battles of the Ur-Quan Conflict Volume IV is a Science fiction Computer game that was developed by Toys for Bob and published by Toys For Bob is a small Video game developer founded in 1989 by Paul Reiche III and Fred Ford. Wing Commander is a Media franchise consisting of Space combat simulation computer games from Origin Systems Inc Origin Systems Inc (sometimes abbreviated as OSI) was a Computer game developer based in Austin Texas that was active from 1983 to Master of Orion ( MoO or MOO) is a Turn-based, 4X Science fiction Computer strategy game Simtex was a Video game developer established by Steve Barcia in 1988. Egosoft is a computer game developer based in Würselen, Germany. Escape Velocity is a Single-player Role-playing space-adventure Computer game series first introduced in 1996 by Ambrosia Software Ambrosia Software is a predominantly Macintosh Software company located in Rochester, New York. StarCraft is a Military science fiction Real-time strategy Video game developed by Blizzard Entertainment. Blizzard Entertainment is an American Video game developer and publisher headquartered in Irvine California. Halo is a Science fiction Video game franchise created by Bungie and owned and published by Microsoft Game Studios. Bungie is an American Video game developer founded in May 1991 under the name Galactic Civilizations is a Turn-based strategy Computer game developed by Stardock and released in March 2003 Stardock Corporation is a Software development company founded in 1991 and incorporated in 1993 as Stardock Systems. Mass Effect is an Action role-playing game developed by BioWare for Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. BioWare Corp is a Canadian electronic entertainment company founded in February 1995 by Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip. Orion's Arm, (also called the Orion's Arm Universe Project OAUP or simply OA is an online Science fiction World-building project founded by M Hard science fiction is a category of Science fiction characterized by an emphasis on scientific or technical detail or on scientific accuracy or on both Planetary romance is a type of Science fantasy story in which the bulk of the action consists of adventures on one or more exotic alien planets characterized by distinctive Soft science fiction, or soft SF, like its complementary opposite Hard science fiction, is a descriptive term that points to the role and nature of the Space Opera Noir is a term utilised to discuss one of the new schools of the more classic Space Opera subgenre of Speculative fiction or Science fiction Space Western is a subgenre of Science fiction, primarily grounded in film and television that transposes themes of American Western books and film to a backdrop Military science fiction is a Subgenre of Science fiction in which the principal characters are members of a military service and an armed conflict is taking The New Weird is an Avant-garde Literary movement or Literary genre that began nascent and unnamed in the 1990s and culminated in a series of novels Postcyberpunk describes a subgenre of Science fiction which some Critics suggest has evolved from Cyberpunk. James Patrick "Jim" Baen ( October 22, 1943 Pennsylvania – June 28, 2006 Raleigh North Carolina) was a noted Judy-Lynn del Rey née Benjamin ( January 26[[ 943]]&ndash February 20[[ 986]]was a Science fiction editor. Lester del Rey ( June 2 1915 &ndash May 10 1993) was an American Science fiction author and editor. Many of the tropes of Science fiction can be viewed as similar to the goals of Transhumanism. The exploration of Politics in Science fiction is arguably older than the identification of the Genre. In Scientology, founder L Ron Hubbard used the Science fiction term Space opera to describe what he said were actual extraterrestrial Science fiction first appeared on Television during the Golden age of science fiction, first in Britain (UK and then in the United States Science-fiction opera is a style of Opera whose subject-matter fits in or near the Science fiction genre For the football player of the same name see Bob Tucker (football player. "Suggestion Dept". Le Zombie 4 (1 (36)): 9.
- ^ See E. F. Bleiler, Science Fiction, the Early Years, Kent State University Press, 1990, pp. 147-48.
- ^ See Paul J. McAuley, "Junkyard Universes," Locus, August 2003
- ^ SF Citations for OED, "Planetary romance"
Articles
- Dave Langford: "Fun With Senseless Violence," in The Silence of the Langford (NESFA Press, 1996, ISBN 0-915368-62-5)
- David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer, "How Shit Became Shinola: Definition and Redefinition of Space Opera"
- Locus, August 2003: Special section on "The New Space Opera. David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953 is a British author editor and Critic, largely active within the Science fiction field David Geddes Hartwell (b July 10, 1941) is an American editor of Science fiction and Fantasy. Kathryn Elizabeth Cramer ( April 16, 1962) is an American Science fiction Author, editor, and Literary critic " Articles by Russell Letson & Gary K. Wolfe, Ken MacLeod, Paul J. McAuley, Gwyneth Jones, M. John Harrison, and Stephen Baxter. Interview with Alastair Reynolds. Interview with Charles Stross.
- The entry on Space Opera from the Grollier Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science Fiction by John Clute and Peter Nicholls, 1995. John Frederick Clute (1940-) is a Canadian born author and critic who has lived in Britain since 1969 Peter Nicholls may refer to Peter Nicholls (writer - critic and co-editor of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Peter Nicholls
- Gary Westfahl's chapter on Space Opera in The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction, ed. Farah Mendlesohn & Edward James, Cambridge University Press, 2003. Farah Mendlesohn is a British academic and writer on Science fiction. Cambridge University Press (known colloquially as CUP is a Publisher given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII in 1534
- Interview with M. John Harrison, Locus, December 2003. Harrison discusses his view of the nature of space opera in depth.
External links
Dictionary
space opera
-noun
- A subgenre of speculative fiction or science fiction that emphasizes space travel, romantic adventure, and larger-than-life characters often set against vast exotic settings. Used initially as a derogatory term.
- A subgenre of speculative fiction or science fiction that utilises serialisation.
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