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A review by brettt
The Prometheus Design by Sondra Marshak, Myrna Culbreath
1.0
Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath played large roles in the initial stages of officially published Star Trek fiction. Together they edited both New Voyages collections (one of which contained one of their stories) and they produced four of the first dozen or so novels, among the few authors who put out work in both the initial Bantam Books and the later Pocket Books groups. They were prominent members of the initial fan communities that began to produce the first fan conventions.
And they offer solid proof that bad Star Trek fiction wasn't limited to the later glut years, as all four of their books have a text-to-subtext ratio that resembles an iceberg and depend heavily on characters who may share names with those we saw on the screen but resemble them little otherwise. It's hard to say which of their four books is the least successful, but 1982's The Prometheus Design makes a strong case for itself out of the four.
A rising tide of senseless violence seems to be gripping the known galaxy, with formerly peaceful people and stable diplomatic relationships deteriorating across the Federation. The Enterprise is investigating the way these phenomena have been seen on the planet Helvan but the survey team itself falls victim. James Kirk is separated from the team and only recovered after being exposed as an alien by the Helvans; his recovery is incomplete as he has significant memory loss that leads to irrational outbursts. Starfleet Admiral Savaj boards the Enterprise to examine the situation and continue the mission, and he demotes Kirk in order to replace him with Spock as captain. Spock tries to deal with the deteriorating situation by invoking "Vulcan code of command," a codicil that Vulcans demanded in return for Starfleet participation. A Vulcan who invokes this code demands instant and unquestioning obedience to every order given. A later return to Helvan with both Spock and Savaj as part of a survey team puts them in danger as the truth behind the mystery and its actors is finally revealed.
As with all Marshak-Culbreath Trek stories, the key plot point turns on weakening, even feminizing Kirk in the face of the true alpha male of the crew, Spock. At one point Kirk is even something of a prize fought over by the two Vulcans, who have been mysteriously enlarged by the antagonists so that the Marshak and Culbreath Kirk is even smaller and weaker than usual compared to Spock. The "Vulcan code of command" device is, no pun intended, illogical and the pair's vision of what Vulcans are like is never seen again in the history of Trek fiction.
Prometheus winds up in a tangle of discussions and monologues meant to either obliquely or directly explore ideas that the two authors consider important, such as objectivism, libertarian philosophy, sociobiology and genetic determinism. It's pretty heady stuff for a show that once had its lead fight a man in a lizard suit amongst a set of papier-mâché rocks, and it is done with little effort at making it a vital part of the narrative. Marshak and Culbreath may have had something to say, and it might even have been something worth saying and good to hear -- but it's been stuck in such a lumpy, clumsy and bizarre novel that it never gets the chance to be properly introduced and judged on its own merits.
Original available here.
And they offer solid proof that bad Star Trek fiction wasn't limited to the later glut years, as all four of their books have a text-to-subtext ratio that resembles an iceberg and depend heavily on characters who may share names with those we saw on the screen but resemble them little otherwise. It's hard to say which of their four books is the least successful, but 1982's The Prometheus Design makes a strong case for itself out of the four.
A rising tide of senseless violence seems to be gripping the known galaxy, with formerly peaceful people and stable diplomatic relationships deteriorating across the Federation. The Enterprise is investigating the way these phenomena have been seen on the planet Helvan but the survey team itself falls victim. James Kirk is separated from the team and only recovered after being exposed as an alien by the Helvans; his recovery is incomplete as he has significant memory loss that leads to irrational outbursts. Starfleet Admiral Savaj boards the Enterprise to examine the situation and continue the mission, and he demotes Kirk in order to replace him with Spock as captain. Spock tries to deal with the deteriorating situation by invoking "Vulcan code of command," a codicil that Vulcans demanded in return for Starfleet participation. A Vulcan who invokes this code demands instant and unquestioning obedience to every order given. A later return to Helvan with both Spock and Savaj as part of a survey team puts them in danger as the truth behind the mystery and its actors is finally revealed.
As with all Marshak-Culbreath Trek stories, the key plot point turns on weakening, even feminizing Kirk in the face of the true alpha male of the crew, Spock. At one point Kirk is even something of a prize fought over by the two Vulcans, who have been mysteriously enlarged by the antagonists so that the Marshak and Culbreath Kirk is even smaller and weaker than usual compared to Spock. The "Vulcan code of command" device is, no pun intended, illogical and the pair's vision of what Vulcans are like is never seen again in the history of Trek fiction.
Prometheus winds up in a tangle of discussions and monologues meant to either obliquely or directly explore ideas that the two authors consider important, such as objectivism, libertarian philosophy, sociobiology and genetic determinism. It's pretty heady stuff for a show that once had its lead fight a man in a lizard suit amongst a set of papier-mâché rocks, and it is done with little effort at making it a vital part of the narrative. Marshak and Culbreath may have had something to say, and it might even have been something worth saying and good to hear -- but it's been stuck in such a lumpy, clumsy and bizarre novel that it never gets the chance to be properly introduced and judged on its own merits.
Original available here.