Low Orbits 06: The Gamesters of Triskelion

We go back to our childhoods to discuss key books that turned us into fans and shaped our future as writers. In this case, Tarzaan at the Earth's Core by Edgar Rice Burroughs and Have Spacesuit, Will Travel, by Robert Heinlein. Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarzan_at_the_Earth%27s_Core https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Have_Space_Suit%E2%80%94Will_Travel

Check out our review of Tomorrow is Yesterday, the original Series Star Trek episode where the Enterprise travels back in time to 1967 and unnecssarily creates a time paradox. Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomorrow_Is_Yesterday

This week, we review the pilot episode of Irwin Allen's Land of the Giants, a 1960s slice of sci-fi fun. A passenger rocket lands in a world where they are menaced by giants, giant cats, and giant pencils. Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_of_the_Giants

This week we revisit a childhood favorite, The Invisible Enemy from The Outer Limits. Shark monsters living in the sands of Mars murder astronauts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Invisible_Enemy_(The_Outer_Limits)

This week we chat about The Gamesters of Triskelion the Star Trek epsidoe we judge to be the most Shatnerific. Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gamesters_of_Triskelion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelique_Pettyjohn

We discuss The Country of the Kind, by Damon Knight, where a psychopathic mutant is shunned by the human race. Then we discuss Knight's acerbic literary criticism. LINKS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Country_of_the_Kind https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Search_of_Wonder

We experience Deja Vu when we review Mars is Heaven! by Ray Bradbury. The second expedition to Mars is defeated by memories. We discuss more possible plagiarism by Rod Serling. We also examine stories stranding astronauts on the red planet. LINKS: Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Is_Heaven! Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/Planet_Stories_Canadian_Ed._v03n12_1948-Fall/page/n57/mode/2up?view=theater

This week we chat about Elegy, a Twilight Zone episode featuring astronauts forced to land on a mysterious asteroid where everyone is frozen in place in an Earth-like vintage village. Links: Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elegy_(The_Twilight_Zone) Text of Charles Beaumont original story: https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/32819/pg32819-images.html

We discuss Cold Equations, by Tom Godwin, the classic tale of brutal choices forced by the laws of physics that might have been plagiarized by John W. Campbell. LINKS: Link to the X Minus One radio episode (8/25/1955): https://www.radioechoes.com/?page=play_download&mode=play&dl_mp3folder=X&dl_file=x_minus_one_1955-08-25_cold_equation.mp3&dl_series=X%20Minus%20One&dl_title=Cold%20Equation&dl_date=1955.08.25&dl_size=10.94%20MB Precedent by Charles Gray (New Worlds #15 May 1952): https://archive.org/details/New_Worlds_015v05_1952-05 Cory Doctorow: Cold Equations and Moral Hazard: https://locusmag.com/2014/03/cory-doctorow-cold-equations-and-moral-hazard/

We discuss the beloved classic: Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes. Scientists operate on a mentally challenged man and turn him into a genius, with tragic consequences. Story Link: https://archive.org/stream/Fantasy_Science_Fiction_v016n04_1959-04_PDF/Fantasy__Science_Fiction_v016n04_1959-04_PDF#page/n3/mode/2up Film Adaptation: Charly https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charly_(1968_film)