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Diablerie, v. 1, issue 1, January 1944
Page 17
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IDEA MAN eddie clinton, ir (new frisco fan) "Van Vogt?" "Oh, Lord, yes-Slan. Say, there was a story. Yes, he's written some beauti-ful stuff-Black Destroyer and Discord in Scarlet. I think Vault of the Beast was the best study in alien psychology I've ever read. And there was another one, too-Repetition. That was a pretty good yarn." "Fifteen others? Fifteen-Why, you must be mistaken. Wait, now, let me see. Hmm. Oh-oh yes, Seesaw. That was a grand little yarn. Then there was...ah...ah..." To the average science fiction fan, Van Vogt means five or possibly half a dozen stories of excellence and memorableness. Beyond that there is almost noth-ing-yet this man, who wrote the indisputably classic Slan, has written twenty science fiction pieces. Let's list them in their order of appearance: Black Destroyer Discord in Scarlet Repition Vault of the Beast Slan Not the First Seesaw Recruiting Station Co-Operate-Or Else Asylum Secret Unattainable The Second Solution Not Only Dead Men The Weapon Shop The Search The Weapon Makers The Great Engine M33 In Andromeda Concealment The Storm Remember them now? Notice that those stories for which Van Vogt is noted were the first very ones he wrote. In fact, since Slan, there have been only one or two worthwhile bits-Seesaw and possibly Co-Operate-Or Else. The rest have certainly not fulfilled the promise of Slan. Not that the stories weren't basically good-they are, with a couple of minor exceptions. (Not the First and M33 in Andromeda were purest hack; Secret Unattain able we can forgive and forget, because it was just story.) There is the same style, the steady, swift movement, the careful building up of suspense, the al-ways-excellent atmosphere; but there is something, also, something rather indef-inable, which sharply distinguishes his later from his earlier works. Recruiting Station could have been excellent-but wasn't; likewise Asylum.
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IDEA MAN eddie clinton, ir (new frisco fan) "Van Vogt?" "Oh, Lord, yes-Slan. Say, there was a story. Yes, he's written some beauti-ful stuff-Black Destroyer and Discord in Scarlet. I think Vault of the Beast was the best study in alien psychology I've ever read. And there was another one, too-Repetition. That was a pretty good yarn." "Fifteen others? Fifteen-Why, you must be mistaken. Wait, now, let me see. Hmm. Oh-oh yes, Seesaw. That was a grand little yarn. Then there was...ah...ah..." To the average science fiction fan, Van Vogt means five or possibly half a dozen stories of excellence and memorableness. Beyond that there is almost noth-ing-yet this man, who wrote the indisputably classic Slan, has written twenty science fiction pieces. Let's list them in their order of appearance: Black Destroyer Discord in Scarlet Repition Vault of the Beast Slan Not the First Seesaw Recruiting Station Co-Operate-Or Else Asylum Secret Unattainable The Second Solution Not Only Dead Men The Weapon Shop The Search The Weapon Makers The Great Engine M33 In Andromeda Concealment The Storm Remember them now? Notice that those stories for which Van Vogt is noted were the first very ones he wrote. In fact, since Slan, there have been only one or two worthwhile bits-Seesaw and possibly Co-Operate-Or Else. The rest have certainly not fulfilled the promise of Slan. Not that the stories weren't basically good-they are, with a couple of minor exceptions. (Not the First and M33 in Andromeda were purest hack; Secret Unattain able we can forgive and forget, because it was just story.) There is the same style, the steady, swift movement, the careful building up of suspense, the al-ways-excellent atmosphere; but there is something, also, something rather indef-inable, which sharply distinguishes his later from his earlier works. Recruiting Station could have been excellent-but wasn't; likewise Asylum.
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