Love them or hate them there are a lot of common tropes across the science fiction genre. What are some of your favorite and least favorite tropes?
I think it goes without saying that one of the least favorite tropes is Deux ex Machina. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it at first, but after watching the German TV show “Dark” I was utterly dissatisfied with it. The entire series up until the very last episode is about this inescapable time loop and alternative universes which is pretty cool while watching it, but then you get closer and closer to the end wondering how they are going to solve this impossible problem. Then surprise they just do it instantly in the last episode.
Another trope I am not very fond of is nanotechnology where there are trillions of tiny robots that can effectively act as magic. It just feels like a lazy way to write science fiction because you really want a fantasy.
A trope I do actually like despite how overdone it is, is the idea of a precursor or forerunner. It often brings to light the absolutely massive scale of the universe which I find fun to think about.
One of the worst examples of the Deus Ex Machina has to be Battlestar Galactica.
I actually tried watching Battlestar Galactica awhile back, but the religious themes made me drop it far before the end. I’m glad I did if it turns even more into something I wouldn’t enjoy.
I enjoy well done religious themes in sci fi and fantasy. It can either be completely goofy, and that’s enjoyable in one way, or it can give a moment of “i wonder what the journey between what we have now and what they have looks like”. Take for example Neon Genesis Evangelion; what the hell happened?
With Neon Genesis Evangelion the religious themes are almost entirely visual only or just something Anno thought was cool rather than making any actual statement. In Battlestar Galactica I started to feel like I was being preached too and then instead of the logical conclusion of their baseless beliefs about things being wrong the whole time it turns out they were right. The show was just not for me I guess.
The Outside has the best religious themes. The galaxy is ruled by superintelligent AIs who call themselves gods and feed on human souls to maintain their sentience. A scientist who hates the gods and thinks reality is fake is punching holes in reality, bringing in Lovecraftian monsters, and sending random people mad or killing them. The protagonist is tasked by the gods with hunting down this scientist, and she’s stuck in the middle of this ideological war between two different religions in which both sides are scientifically correct in their religious beliefs, and yet the beliefs are totally incompatible and one must be destroyed.
Damn, that sounds amazing, how have I never heard of this before? That’s going on the ‘to read’ list for sure
Oh also 90% of the characters are either queer, neurodivergent, or both. The hero is an autistic lesbian scientist. The book takes the Lovecraftian trope of “Gazing upon creatures from beyond reality drives you mad” and updates it to the modern day with correct ideas about mental health and a genuinely informed perspective on what it’s like to be neurodivergent. Also it’s full of gays
Aaaah, that’s probably why I never heard of it
I’m gonna read some reviews before I buy it anyway, but I gotta ask - Is it about the cool space monsters and cool space monster related shenanigans, or is it about the people being queer & neurodivergent in space?
Please don’t get me wrong, I have no problems with anybody, it’s just not what I want from a
sci fibook. In general I find written descriptions of sex turbo cringe and I wouldn’t enjoy a book about someone existing as a straight person in space either.There are no descriptions of sex at any point in the entire book. The characters just happen to be gay. I mean, 90% of people are straight, so if you read any other scifi book, it’s gonna be full of straight people who aren’t having sex, right? The Outside is full of gay people not having sex, just the same. In terms of how gayness impacts the plot, it doesn’t. The hero has a girlfriend and they get separated at the start of the book and then there’s some angst which is used to push the arc of the hero being isolated from all she knows by the competing pressures of the gods and the rebel scientist pushing against her. It constructs a narrative focusing on the theme of isolation, which ultimately serves to make the hero more sympathetic to the rebel scientist’s perspective of hating the gods for isolating her for her religion.
On the other hand, it is very much about people being neurodivergent in space, because this is a Lovecraftian story. The destructive interactions of extrareal beings with the human mind is a core plot point. In other words, people’s brains being fucked up is the cool space monster shenanigans. This is a story of philosophical adventures much more so than action adventures. You’re not going to get big tentacle monsters ripping spaceships apart, you’re going to get big tentacle monsters ripping minds apart, as viewed from a perspective that is well informed on psychiatric issues. It’s awesome.
I actually dropped it a few episodes in due to the extreme shaky-cam space battle scenes. Every once in a while I’d reconsider watching it but the things I kept hearing didn’t seem compelling, and then after I heard how it ended I was very glad I’d made the choice to stay away.
I guess this leads to another “trope” (I don’t know if it’s really a trope so much as it is bad planning) where a series is advertised as having a grand story arc or deep mystery that’s unfolding as the series progresses. I’ve been burned by these so often that even though I love that sort of thing I now take it as a signal to avoid the series until it’s well and truly finished so I can find out whether the showrunners really did have that or if they were just lying through their teeth to keep viewers engaged.