OSC InterGalactic Medicine Show, Dec 2010-Jan 2011
“The Never Never Wizard of Apalachicola” by Jason Sanford
“Sympathy of a Gun” by Gary Kloster
“The Vicksburg Dead” by Jens Rushing
“Beneath the Shadow of the Dragon” by Erin Cashier
“The American” by Bruce Warden
“Wise Men” by Orson Scott Card
“Miracle on Massachusetts Avenue” by Maureen Power
Reviewed by Bob Blough
This issue of Intergalactic Medicine Show is filled with enjoyable stories even though none of them are of award caliber. Good solid stories, however.
The first, “The Never Never Wizard of Apalachicola” is by Jason Sanford, an author often published in the British magazine Interzone. He is a writer I have come to look forward to seeing in a magazine’s contents page. This story, however, just did not work for me. It concerns an astronaut by the name of Major Solomon Lawrence. His magical past almost literally reaches out to touch him, in the form of a raven, as he is working in space. In order to combat his magical past he must return to the bayous of the panhandle of Florida where he was raised by a Mother and Father who, in their own past, were in the service of the world’s most potent Wizard. The Wizard goes by the name of Chapel. Solomon must confront Chapel and his own guilt about his complicity with the fate of his sister, Diane. It is a competently written SF/Fantasy hybrid but does not have the force or emotional involvement that was needed to make it memorable.
The next story has an opening that grabs you by the throat and promises adventure. “Sympathy of a Gun” by Gary Kloster begins with an attack by a swarm of alien “insects” that for some reason refrain from hurting our protagonist. It turns out that they do not hurt Emily because she is pregnant. This has significant meaning as everyone who is not pregnant in Southern Florida (and, we find out, the entire world) has been brutally murdered by these aliens. Emily must confront these enigmatic beings who can change their shapes as easily as we can try on clothes and somehow come to the bottom of this mystery. She discovers that the aliens have various factions within their group. These factions each contact her. Which faction is telling the truth and which is not? It is a mystery that is a little too neatly solved but filled with adventure.
“The Vicksburg Dead” by Jens Rushing is something else again, a mood piece that is a fantasy of life and sacrifice during the battle of Vicksburg in the Civil War. The story is recounted in an authentic regional voice by Rushing, who is an author new to me. It is about a confederate soldier trying to reconcile his magical healing by the doctor who is stationed with the regiment. The fantasy is restrained yet integral to the story and the plight of the foot soldiers, the doctors and the command staff are effectively portrayed. I hope to see more by this author.
The next story also deals with human responses to alien beings, but in this one we are the aliens who have crash landed on another world. Erin Cashier, another new writer to me, does not surprise in “Beneath the Shadow of the Dragon” but she does create an interesting milieu for her stranded human beings. It is many years past the crash and the alien “Watchers” are considered as ghosts or demons that bedevil the survivors. The human technology is decaying into remnants and a new “mythology” is springing up to explain their plight. Who and what these “Watchers” really are is discovered by the unnamed narrator as she deals with the bizarre rituals surrounding the remains of her dead Mother. It is a good tale that is solidly SF.
“The American” takes place in a future Poland. The United States has become so deeply paranoid and technologically savvy that it is effectively isolated from the rest of the world. It continues to be in control of this future world through a Spy/Soldier network that is seemingly invincible. Bruce Worden writes early in the story:
“The Americans had undoubtedly fought simulated wars with the rest of us that we could not even comprehend, let alone actually wage. But that had not stopped them from spending untold trillions on weapons to counter the threat we theoretically could pose were we somehow to find ourselves in a position to pose it, and suicidal enough to think it was a good idea.”
The voice is that of a young girl who meets an American soldier and becomes involved with him. It’s an interesting take on a post-singularity world from the eyes of someone completely alien to such ideas.
The next piece, a special Christmas story, is the biblical tale of the wise men visiting Jesus as seen through a science fictional lens. “Wise Men” by Orson Scott Card is more complex than the other stories in the issue. It’s narrated by an evil alien being that is the stand in for Satan in this SFnal world. The mission of Jesus (here called Beyn) – the salvation of the world – can be effectively stopped from happening before the alien wise men of the title bestow their gifts on him. Satan takes possession of an influential man in Herod’s court to try to have this child killed. The entire account is a fascinating take on this story and it is interesting to see how Card works through the permutations in SF terms. It ends on a thoroughly chilling note. A very clever piece.
The final short is another special Christmas story and is a bit more in keeping with the temper of the season. “The Miracle on Massachusetts Avenue” by Maureen Power is a fantasy about a visit from the Banshee of Irish legend portending a death. It is about the miracle that comes to a young, poor girl at Christmas time. It is another addition to a long line of Christmas ghost stories.
Again, this is a very solid issue with a lot of new writers who show definite promise. I must mention the cover illustration by Julie Dillon and the interior illustrations for “Wise Men” by Nick Greenwood as particularly effective for each story. It is very good to see such fine work from new artists at work in the genre.