1957 - Year in SF&F: Reviews

THE WONDER TIMELINE: SF&F RETROSPECTIVE Read other issues here ------------------------------------------ Murray Leinster "The Mutant Weapon" (nv) (also as "Med Service") (Calhoun Med Service series) © Astounding Stories, Aug 1957 novel: Ace Double, 1959 --/ cool sf novel Med Service replaces a Galactic Government in these series of novels, being the only organization that keeps civilization together in the face of great distances and travel times. Med Patrol man Calhoun is a loner and a type of space-ranger, who travels with his alien pet around the Galaxy and solves mysteries on many colonized planets. This is a great premise for an adventure book, but not every novel from this series is a winner. In fact, the only exciting and enjoyable part for me often were the first pages, as Calhoun chills out in a little ship, jokes with his alien pet, and keeps his cool - the contrast between glorious stars and loneliness of his watch is striking - but when the ship actually lands on some planet the sense-of-wonder begins to diminish, planet ecologies usually are run-of-the-mill, and the plot turns to pretty basic mystery-solving. The better part comes again at the ending, when the pair blasts into space again and is back to enjoying each other's company among the vastness of surrounding stars. This novel tells of a man-made plague designed to finish off the native population before the main group of colonists arrive. review: 29-Jul-06 (read in 2006) ------------------------------------------ Return to the Wonder Timeline

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