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rderange's review against another edition
5.0
This was a fun story that puts you in a semi-believable situation during an intergalactic battle in space and throws you down into a strange arena on a strange world where a battle for the entire race takes place. Whether you win or lose it doesn't matter because no one will ever believe you anyway.
jmeyers888's review
2.0
I thought this short story was alright. I thought for the pure entertainment level it was pretty good, but I was hoping for something deeper.
I read this book for my literature of science fiction class. After reading it, my teacher explained the "meaning" of the story. During the 40's, when this book was written, the USA was in WWII and fighting with Japan. The alien character in the book, that the main character is fighting, is a Red Rolling ball with red tentacles. Which is the symbol on the Japanese flag. I found this all very interesting, and discovered a bit of the deepness I was looking for. However I still think this story was "just ok."
Also, this story was made into an episode in the original Star Trek series. The episode is also called Arena. They do change it up a bit, and end it with the deepness I was hoping the book would have.
I read this book for my literature of science fiction class. After reading it, my teacher explained the "meaning" of the story. During the 40's, when this book was written, the USA was in WWII and fighting with Japan. The alien character in the book, that the main character is fighting, is a Red Rolling ball with red tentacles. Which is the symbol on the Japanese flag. I found this all very interesting, and discovered a bit of the deepness I was looking for. However I still think this story was "just ok."
Also, this story was made into an episode in the original Star Trek series. The episode is also called Arena. They do change it up a bit, and end it with the deepness I was hoping the book would have.
anna_hepworth's review
4.0
Read this because it was nominated for a retro Hugo award, so I was reading quite a few works from the same year in a short period of time.
This is one I‰ЫЄve read before, and it is still as weird and powerful as it was previously. One human, one alien, in an arena set aside by a stronger alien to decide the outcome of the whole war. Bloodthirsty, but not irrationally so.
This is one I‰ЫЄve read before, and it is still as weird and powerful as it was previously. One human, one alien, in an arena set aside by a stronger alien to decide the outcome of the whole war. Bloodthirsty, but not irrationally so.
cujo_willaby's review
5.0
Loved it! This was clearly the inspiration for that Star Trek episode where Kirk fights the Gorn. Totally worth a quick read.
snyx88's review
3.0
cuento corto, me gusto el argumento aunque falto profundidad, hubiera querido q sea desarrolle mas la mentalidad de «El intruso»
montyskid's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't particularly care for this. It's hard to talk about what I didn't like without giving it away because it's so short. The lizard scene put a bad taste in my mouth
oatcappuccino's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
This story is credited as the basis for the Star Trek Original Series episode Arena; so I read it with that in mind and only learned later that the episode was intended as original and they sought adaption rights after a producer noticed the similarity of the stories. So I was very impressed with the divergences of this from the story of the episode (although it did lack a lizard man in a shiny miniskirt)
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