Such is author JD Cowan’s appraisal of Current Year science fiction and fantasy:
The elephant in the room is that “Science Fiction” is modernist heresy in print form, which can only survive in a late 19th to late 20th century climate where Hard Science is purely material and not only does the supernatural have no place in it, it can only be separate and given its own Nonsense genre to keep it sealed away (that would be “Fantasy”) in order for Science to thrive and guide Humanity’s hand to the next step of evolution/post-human/meat robots/whatever it is the nearly microscopic number of old materialists who still exist believe.
There have always been stories of the Future, and there will always be stories of the Future. That is inevitable. What is going away is the dated from that has been locked in place since Fandom took control of OldPub and drew battle lines. Their influence is over, no one believes in what they sell anymore. “Science Fiction” is dead because its time and place is over, just as penny dreadfuls or railways stories are–not because you can’t write stories like them, but because it has no relevance for where we are as a culture. It’s niche and kitsch, it has no connection to modern audiences, same as “Fantasy” as a genre concept. We aren’t there anymore, and we won’t be again.
One of the reasons I advocate not bothering with outdated OldPub genre terms is because they lead people to think in those crusty old boxes, unable to imagine anything more and connecting to the needs of the modern audience. What are these so-called needs, you might be wondering? Audiences want exciting stories where We’re Going To Make It, where the Supernatural not only exists (even modern atheists believe in the supernatural, believe it or not) but is no longer separate from the natural.
Related: Is Science Fiction Doomed After Generation X?
As you can see, this goes against what we’ve been taught in regards to modern genres from the older crowd. And this isn’t to sneer at or spit on Gen X and older, but no one reads anymore and that decline happened under their watch–their answers to these questions are wrong, they aren’t connecting with modern audiences, in fact its been shrinking them since the pulps went away to the point where no one even reads at all anymore.
So, yes, my answer is that “Science Fiction & Fantasy” is dead and not coming back. However, both Futuristic and Mythic Adventure stories will not only thrive, they will grow and reconnect with audiences again. Once we accept the 20th century is over and act accordingly, we will see a radical shift in the right direction.
My comment:
The mass media distribution monopolies of the post-WWII years has lulled most members of the Baby Boomer through Generation Y cohorts into forgetting that science fiction wasn’t always about Big Men With Screwdrivers, superheroes didn’t always dominate comics, and fantasy didn’t begin and end with Lord of the Rings.
Long before that, giants like Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Walter Gibson, and Robert E. Howard achieved greater and longer-lasting cultural impact than any contemporary writer.
Those great authors didn’t see a hard line between science fiction and fantasy. Instead, they understood adventure fiction’s wide appeal.
The great divorce between science fiction and fantasy was forced from the top down. It was always destined to end, and Zoomers will see the genres reconciled.
JD is right. The 20th century is over. Act accordingly.
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Guys like Burroughs used science as a kind of flavoring in his stories. It was a way adding to the otherworldliness of his settings. It definitely did not represent the dawn of a new age of man for him, as he really didn’t think humanity needed a new age.
Now the New Age is a punchline, and Burroughs is still a genius.
I think that Dying Earth style stories are ripe for a comeback. I mean not only the eponymous collection of stories by Jack Vance, but also things like Wolfe’s Solar Cycle, Hodgson’s “The Night Land,” Clark Ashton Smith’s Zothique stories, etc. These work particularly well if you’re not concerned with distinguishing between science fiction and fantasy, since they tend to involve both wizards and mysterious ancient technology (which may or may not be drawing from the same sources.) Nerds from the last half century have wasted much ink arguing whether that makes the stories “science fiction” or “fantasy”, or maybe “horror”, but the truth is that none of the authors seemed to care, and the characters in the stories themselves don’t make these distinctions.
This type of story was one of the most influential on early Dungeons and Dragons and as such you can see it showing up in many early computer games and JRPGs, as well as cartoons from the 80’s and 90’s like Thundarr the Barbarian, He-Man, Thundercats or even the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (!) Later works slid more into the established science fiction and fantasy roles (though the Japanese never really went along with this), but there is still enough influence from these 70’s-90’s works that even Zoomers will have an instinctive sense of what a Dying Earth story is like.
It’s also something that has the right mood for now: not too hard to empathize with everything being a wreck and the best days seemingly being behind us, but the best of these stories have a theme of hope that something new will be created that is unlike what came before.
Even in the 20th century, futuristic adventure fiction still beat Big Men With Screwdrivers. Just ask which was more popular in the latter quar of the century: Star Trek…or Star Wars? The story of Gene Roddenberry, whose vision of the future was one where science replaced God and religion ceased to exist, or of George Lucas, who was inspired by the likes of Flash Gordon?
Even in the 20th century, with the most powerful copyright cartels gatekeeping at their hardest to back them up, Big Men With Screwdrivers STILL lost to the son of the pulp future adventure fiction and was stuck forever in its shadow. The co-opting of Star Wars that we see now was as much a “Revenge of the Sith” as it was the only strategy left to them after losing like that.
Exactly right. As I mentioned to a commenter on Substack, that’s why the same people who tear down monuments feel the fanatical need to desecrate Star Wars.
“The story of Gene Roddenberry, whose vision of the future was one where science replaced God and religion ceased to exist”
That may have been Roddenberry’s view behind the scenes, but it never really materialized in the original series.
Here’s a relevant quote from an article by Chase Masterson (Leeta from “Star Trek: Deep Space 9”):
“The TOS season-two episode “Who Mourns for Adonais?” — written by Roddenberry and Gene Coon — establishes that humans are largely monotheistic in the Trek universe. Kirk has the following exchange with an alien posing as Apollo:
APOLLO: I could sweep you out of existence with a wave of my hand and bring you back again. I can give life or death. What else does mankind demand of its gods?
KIRK: Mankind has no need for “gods.” We find the One quite adequate.
There are other examples, such as the Enterprise’s chapel shown in season one’s “Balance of Terror” (by Paul Schneider) and season three’s “The Tholian Web” (by Judy Burns and Chet Richards). Various religious symbols adorn the walls — such as are often present in non-demoninational chapels — indicating that at least some members of the ship’s crew are spiritual seekers.
The films continue these themes. We all remember the poignant moment in Wrath of Khan when Scotty plays “Amazing Grace” at Spock’s funeral. And Star Trek V: The Final Frontier addresses the dangers of religious fundamentalism and an overly literal interpretation of doctrine. As we accompany Spock’s obsessive half-brother on a journey to the galactic center in a search for the Vulcan “Eden,” this exchange transpires:
McCOY: We were speculating. Is God really out there?
KIRK: Maybe He’s not out there, Bones. Maybe He’s right here. [points to his heart] Human heart.
Indeed, spiritual allusions in Trek don’t always pertain to contemporary Earth religions, instead exploring the spiritual beliefs of other civilizations. Nevertheless, the meaning is metaphorical — and universal. As noted above, the original cast films (as well as The Animated Series) lay much of the groundwork for Vulcan religion, which is explored further in later series such as Enterprise. Canon shows us that Vulcans both ancient and modern are deeply religious beings. I find it noteworthy that a logic-driven society is depicted as having an inherent, ubiquitous spiritual culture. I’ll explore this theme further in the future.
Finally, mention must be made of the classic episode “Bread and Circuses,” also written by Roddenberry and Coon in TOS season two. Kirk, Spock and the crew visit a planet that has an oppressive, ancient Roman-like culture, where they find a cult of sun-worshippers who help them escape the regime:
SPOCK: It seems illogical for a sun worshipper to develop a philosophy of total brotherhood. Sun worship is usually a superstitious, primitive religion.
UHURA: I am afraid you have it all wrong, Mr. Spock, all of you. I have been monitoring some of their old-style radio waves… the Empire spokesman trying to ridicule their religion. But he couldn’t. Don’t you understand? It’s not the sun up in the sky. It’s the Son of God.
KIRK: Caesar… and Christ. They had them both. And the Word is spreading only now.
MCCOY: A philosophy of total love and total brotherhood.
SPOCK: It will replace their imperial Rome, but it will happen in their 20th century.
KIRK: Wouldn’t it be something to watch, to be a part of? To see it happen all over again?”
The full article:
https://www.startrek.com/news/thrill-of-the-chase-undefined-july-2011
Another theme commonly thought of as ubiquitous in Star Trek is the abolition of money (implying the end of capitalism). However, the first mention of money no longer being used in the future was in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (1986), which was contradicted by two of the other movies. In “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” (1984), McCoy says to an alien he is trying to make a deal with, “Look, price you name, money I got.” In “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” (1991), McCoy says “I’d give real money if he’d shut up.”
The concept of there being no money never appeared in the original series, and various episodes include references to money or wages. Here’s a link to a compilation of some of the relevant quotes:
https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/history-of-star-trek-having-no-money.284118/#post-11772616
Globalist themes are arguably present in the original series in the form of two mentions of “United Earth”, but never dealt with in any significant way.
“The Corbomite Maneuver” (S01E02):
“KIRK: This is the United Earth ship Enterprise. We convey greetings and await your reply. What is it, Mister Bailey?”
“Tomorrow is Yesterday” (S01E21):
“KIRK: There are only twelve like it in the fleet.
CHRISTOPHER: I see. Did the Navy
KIRK: We’re a combined service, Captain. Our authority is the United Earth Space Probe Agency.
CHRISTOPHER: United Earth?
KIRK: This is very difficult to explain. We’re from your future. A time warp placed us here. It was an accident.”
The original series never went into detail about whether “United Earth” was a world government or something more akin to a United Nation-like alliance, and the crew was made up largely of characters who displayed strong national identities (in the case of Chekov, a propensity for bragging about and exaggerating the accomplishments of his country) and some of which came from countries which had different languages (showing that Earth was, at the very least, not a homogenized monoculture).
“Spectre of the Gun” (S03E01):
“MELKOT: Aliens, you have encroached on the space of the Melkot. You will turn back immediately. This is the only warning you will receive.
SPOCK: Vulcan, Captain.
KIRK: English.
CHEKOV: It was Russian, sir. Every word.
UHURA: No, Captain. It was Swahili.
KIRK: Interesting. Telepathy.
SPOCK: Unquestionably. Most impressive.”
It wasn’t until “Star Trek: The Next Generation” that the Earth having a World Government was dealt with in any meaningful way.
“Attached” (S07E08):
“CRUSHER: First of all, the Kes are not half the planet, they’re nearly three quarters of it. And the Prytt are not being left out. They themselves simply don’t want to have contact with anyone from the outside. not the Federation or anyone else.
PICARD: Every member of the Federation entered as a unified world, and that unity said something about them. That they had resolved certain social and political differences and they were now ready to become part of a larger community.
CRUSHER: By all indications, the Kes are a very unified, very progressive people.
PICARD: But the Prytt are not. They are reclusive to the point of xenophobia.
CRUSHER: Well, think about Earth. What if one of the old nation states, say Australia, had decided not to join the World Government in 2150? Would that have disqualified us as a Federation member?”
Essentially, many of the atheist and leftist themes generally thought of as ubiquitous throughout Star Trek were either non-present or only slightly present in the original series, and only present to a limited degree in the original six movies (with “The Voyage Home” having the most of them). It was mostly “The Next Generation” and later series that really took those types of ideas and ran with them.
Think of it this way: imagine yourself as a person of the late 1960s, switching on the television and turning the dial to NBC to watch “Star Trek” each week. You don’t have access to detailed knowledge of what Gene Roddenberry or other people making the series believe (perhaps the occasional magazine article at most), or about what Star Trek will become in future decades. All you have access to is what is broadcast in the actual show, including positive references to Christianity in some episodes, occasional sightings of a chapel on board the Enterprise, patriotic characters from various countries, and references to earning pay. Would you come away thinking that the message of the show is that we need to abolish religion, nations, and capitalism in order to usher in a better future?
Good. These arbitrary restrictions have been suffocating us for too long. My personal favourite vision of the future story is *After the End*, a game mod for Crusader Kings 2 that transplants the base game’s Feudalism Simulator gameplay into a 26th century North American setting, in a post-apocalyptic setting so far past the “apocalyptic event” that nobody even remembers what it actually was anymore. It has such novelties as the Deep South being formed into an analogue to the Holy Roman Empire, resurgent Christian kingdoms, weird neo-religions such as Gaia Worship taking concrete cultic form, mercenaries who wear armour inspired by Football equipment, Viking raiders in Minnesota, and Appalachian tribes whose Christian faith has become so tainted by superstition and accretion that it is counted as pagan by the game’s engine.
How have I never heard of that before? Intriguing!
It’s relatively niche, but Paradox Games tend to have very dedicated modding communities, some of which are extremely creative. I’m plugged into it because not only did I play said mod a lot, I actually joined a team that worked on a mod inspired by it, which covers the same time period but back in Eurasia. I haven’t actually been a part of the team for like two or three years at this point, but I still remember my time there fondly, and others are still working on it. They got all the way to adding content for China and Korea, last I heard.
Out of curiosity, where might I find this mod? Steam workshop appears to not have it.
The original is called “After the end: Fan Fork” because it’s a spinoff of an earlier version. The Eurasia one is called New Era Old World. You might have to get them through github at this point, since there’s a maximum size that Steam permits a Workshop mod to be. Both of them have setups on Discord that let you download them.
I play various gacha games that have interesting stories, and I notice that they all have supernatural themes that borrow from their native pagan culture.
Honkai Star Rail has Aeons (gods) and religions built around following the Aeon’s path.
Arknights is more of an urban fantasy with a scientific bent, but it still has pagan gods built into the story.