Orion's Arm is...
"Space Opera"
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Orion's Arm is..."Space Opera" |
The term "Space Opera" is a play on "Soap Opera". Soap Operas are so called because the early versions that were broadcast on radio were sponsored by soap companies. From Peyton Place to Flash Gorden is not such a big leap, so it is easy to see how the term was applied. Facetiously, Space Opera means any science fiction setting where maidens are busty, heroes are bold (and lantern-jawed), and spaceships look like Buck Rogers-style V2 rockets (fins and all) and go "whoosh" in a vacuum. More seriously Space Opera is a term applied to any science fiction of vast scale, epic science fiction, complete with starships and fleets, empires, federations, intrigues, battles, dramas and heroics, heroes and anti-heroes. This is too large a canvas to be fit in a single novel, and trilogies abound. The genre was founded in the 1920s by E. E. "Doc" Smith (the Lensman series, etc), one of the fathers of modern science fiction. During the Golden Age of Science Fiction (the 1940s, 50s, and early 60s) it was developed by such greats as Isaac Asimov (Foundation Series) and Frank Herbert (Dune series). More recent examples, adopted for the film and TV media, include Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek, George Lucas' Star Wars, and J. Michael Straczinsky's Babylon 5. While in the print media, Iain M. Banks (Culture novels), David Brin (Uplift series), David Zindell (Neverness and sequels), Peter Hamilton's Night Dawn trilogy, and Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game) are good examples of quality Space Opera, although each of those authors would probably shrink from the term. And space opera role-playing games occur in abundance (Mechwarrior series, Traveller/Megatraveller series, etc)
See also Classic
vs Transhuman Space Opera for more
In Orion's Arm we wish to retain the excitement, the adventure, the fun, the majesty, the spectacle, and the grandeur, of traditional space opera, with its spectacular ships, interstellar backdrop, and human dramas set against a vast stage. OA however differs from traditional Space Opera in that we abide by hard science principles.
