see the image credits for the elements of these photomanipulated composites |
I'm making modified versions of cover illustrations for some Astounding magazine issues that have passed into the public domain. In order to explore the idea that Grean the Kac'hin visited Earth in the 1930s, I'm inserting images of models who are playing the role of Grean. These models were photographed by Cathleen Tarawhiti and made available at deviantART under a Creative Commons license.
image source |
In order to insert Grean into the scene, I used a photograph of model Tori Calderwood. As usual, I modified Tori's appearance slightly to create a hint of the alien.
see the original cover art |
The imaginary story title "Trapped in Preland" is a pulpish twisting of a concept from the Exode Trilogy. In my story Exode, the Prelands are a variation on the human form, crafted and designed by the pek. There is no place called "Preland". However, with poor Grean trapped in the web of this alien "spider", we can imagine her in some alien territory of prehistoric nightmares...a Preland.
image source |
In the 1930s, every plot twist involved the appropriate type of "ray", including "a gravital ray, with strong magnetic properties". In the Exode Trilogy, my favorite plot device is the ultra-small zeptite.
see the original cover art |
Of course, if Grean can be reduced to her zeptite components, then the purple skeletal zeptite collection can surely be in the process of assembling into human form. The forming humanoid face on the skeleton is rather freaky...already giving poor Grean the evil eye.
The bearded guy in the lower right seems to be using radio telegraphy equipment from 1910 to force the zeptite transition upon Grean.
image source |
The original Astounding Stories cover art by Hans Wessolowski was inspired by a story called "The Red Hell of Jupiter".
see the original cover art |
In "The Red Hell of Jupiter", the PEF hero meets a humanoid slave girl from a moon of Jupiter. In my modified cover, Grean is inserted into the scene in place of the slave girl; she hangs there behind the pipes that snake from the Red Sedron storage tank. The PEF hero, who looks like he is shining a flashlight on one of the "pipe-like men", is actually wielding a disintegrator ray in "The Red Hell of Jupiter". Since the imaginary pulp magazine Future Science is designed for family-friendly entertainment, I actually rebuilt a disintegated arm for the poor "pipe-like man" at the back of the scene.
image source |
see the original cover art |
Grean, resting on a glass platform, gazes down upon the confrontation between the man and the machine. In the Exode Trilogy, a major plot device and example of "future science" are the submicroscopic femtobots made from hierions. Since Grean is a Kac'hin from the distant planet Luk'ru, I can imagine her as being significantly larger than the Earthling.
image source |
see the original cover art |
image source The high observation deck of the Planetara |
image source |
The original cover art for the July 1930 Astounding issue was inspired by "Earth, the Marauder". On the cover is a globe, showing Earth of the future, with no oceans....the water having been "disintegrated".
see the original cover art |
In the Exode Trilogy, Earth faces a different problem: global warming and rising sea levels. The globe depicted on the cover is an interesting element in "Earth, the Marauder". Burks imagined that it functioned as a sophisticated communications device. When focused upon with a magnifier, each of the billions of inhabitants of Earth could be individually seen and heard.
In the Exode Trilogy, Grean must engage in time travel, using technology made possible by sedrons, to save Earth from catastrophic sea level rise.
Future Science
Trysta and Ekcolir |
I've been having fun with the idea that some science fiction stories that were written in the Ekcolir Reality found their way into our Reality. I first imagined that Thomas would be the vector for transporting science fiction from the Ekcolir Reality to the Buld Reality. I originally imagined that he would simply carry his memories over into our Reality, but what if there were actual physical artifacts such as books or magazines that Thomas was able to bring into our Reality?
And why stop there? Before the Ekcolir Reality was the Foundation Reality. In the Foundation Reality Grean was engaged in a struggle against the positronic robots of Earth and she was not able to indulge in the luxury of acting delicately so as to not allow herself to be noticed by Earthlings. But how might Earthlings explain to themselves the appearance of Grean the Kac'hin among them?
alien beings, tentacles and giant bugs |
The three Future Science covers to the right include classic pulp science fiction monsters that are tormenting poor Grean, the damsel in distress. I suppose someone has done a statistical analysis to determine if more Sci Fi damsels in distress from the 1930s were tormented by tentacles or by insect-like aliens.
green slime |
For the cover, I did not want Grean actually getting slimed.
Grean in the tank |
But here it is (image to the left) with a more horror-tinged approach to the scene. This version of the scene also removes a tentacle-like arm from the alien, the arm having been blasted off by the disintegrator ray gun, leaving the alien's appendage draped over the rim of the tank.
Worse still, the alien on the far right in the scene is really getting his face disintegrated by our hero's disintegrator beam.
This version is more pulpish, but the editor for Future Science rejected the gore.
spidy claw |
Size Matters
One of the major Sci Fi "tricks" used in the Exode Trilogy is to imagine that ancient aliens like the Huaoshy have advanced technology that goes far beyond the possibilities of miniaturization that are to be expected for nanotechnology.
Grean the giant |
Giant artificial life forms |
The Final Four
The top 4 covers |
The easiest modification for me to make to a model is to enlarge the eyes. Sometimes I can play with the color of the eyes and give a pulp Sci Fi eye glow to Grean. I did not want to make the appearance of Grean in these Future Science covers too freaky.
Next cover image: first draft of a retro Future Science cover that depicts Grean's confrontation with R. Fengtol.
see more Sci Fi posters at the gallery |
visit the Gallery of Book and Magazine Covers |
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