Galactic Patrol (Paperback)

Other reviews on Amazon summarise the plot adequately, but I should like to add some information I think may be helpful.

I, too, first met Kim Kinnison when I was a kid, in the original "Astounding" magazines that I inherited from my uncle.

Chronologically, the first Lensman story was "Galactic Patrol", from 1937-38. This was followed by the next three stories: "Gray Lensman", "Second Stage Lensmen" and "Children of the Lens". When publication in book form was mooted, Smith revised his earlier "Triplanetary" to fit into the lensman universe, and wrote "First Lensman" to form a bridge between that and "Galactic Patrol". "Masters of the Vortex", another unrelated story, was likewise modified.

I personally feel that the four books representing Smith's original conception are the essential ones, and the others are disposable ("Vortex", in particular, being a pot-boiler with virtually no relation to the others). Although "First Lensman" certainly has entertaining moments (as when Virgil Samms is almost deafened at a Rigellian construction site, because the Rigellians have no sense of hearing and can't understand what the problem is).

There's another problem with the books, although fortunately not an insuperable one. Smith's universe, although already huge at the outset of "Galactic Patrol", expands as the series progresses. Originally, the reader didn't discover the total significance of the struggles going on within it until the end of "Children". But the books (except, for some inscrutable reason, "Patrol") feature tacked-on and needless Forewords that give away the whole plot. I *strongly* recommend first-time readers to skip these. Also, if you've never read Smith before, I'd recommend starting with "Patrol" -- "Triplanetary" is not nearly as good, neither is it "really" the first.

Smith's dated (and sometimes banal) style has been an easy target, but it has some lovely moments as well:

"near them there crouched or huddled or lay at ease a many-tentacled creature indescribable to man. It was not like an octopus. Though spiny, it did not resemble at all closely a sea-cucumber. Nor, although it was scaly and toothy and wingy, was it, save in the vaguest possible way, similar to a lizard, a sea-serpent or a vulture. Such a description by negatives is, of course, pitifully inadequate; but, unfortunately, it is the best that can be done."

If you want mind-boggling adventure, ever-expanding vistas, BEMs and battle laid on with a trowel, you need go no further. For my money, the depth and invention of Smith's universe, and the sheer glee with which he unfolds his narrative, more than compensate for any deficiencies. These are books I will always love.

Smith has quite an active mind. It reminds me of Zeus giving birth to a full-grown Athena from his head. This series has an overwhelming ambient. Not only are the props and gizmos there, but also the social and political connections. There are layers and depths to the story he tell, it is as layered as Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" and Herbert's "Dune" series. You feel that you are in a real world, and not just look at a painted background.

I confess that these stories are dated in some ways. There is the quaint 1930's and 1940's slang that you see in old Bogart and Hope/Crosby movies. There is a bit of naiveté about human nature, even thought there are drug dealers and pirates. Some of the science is dated, such as ether theory and cultural progressions. Despite these things, the story holds its own, and compares to anything new in print.

Many people complain that the characters are flat. I see their point. Kimball Kinnison's marriage isn't on the rocks, nor is he about to be kicked off the force, and he certainly is a loony-but-crafty vigilante like Batman. But he is an admirable character, and is someone I admire, despite being fictitious. Then again, Jean Valjean is also fictitious, but what a piece of fiction!

Admittedly, the Lensmen seem to be flat because they are so morally virtuous. But you wouldn't describe their lives as boring. Kinnison can barely catch his breath as he zips across the galaxy catch the drug runners and the pirates. Kirk, Petard, and Skywalker eat his inertialess dust. Kinnison isn't flat, but he is ideal. These books are modern-day morality plays, and serve the same function as their medieval counterparts; they instruct and set a pattern for our behavior in the so-called "Real World."

This Old School Sci-Fi is essential reading. I wish I had read it earlier. It is essential Sci-Fi reading, along with Wells, Verne, Asimov, Herbert, and Bradbury

By the way, I have been keeping track of the names, and am surprised at how far Smith's intellectual seed has been sewn. Here is a list:

Lensman LaForge = Geordi LaForge (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Mauler ships = Darth Maul from "Phantom Menace"
Planet Bennett = Jack Bennett and Bennett Family from "The Bionic Six"