Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
July 2nd 2006 09:33
I think the reason why 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' has remained the definitive work of sci-fi/comedy is that it succeeds so brilliantly at both being good science fiction and genuinely funny. Author Douglas Adams had a few chances to get it right I suppose, seeing as it has been re-written and released through various different mediums. I think the most successful medium for his masterpiece has been the book version.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy concerns one Arthur Dent, a put-open man in a dressing gown who's best friend is Ford Prefect - an alien slumming it on Earth in order to research the planet for a universal travel guide (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). The two hitchhike their way off the planet just in time to escape it's destruction at the hands of the Vogons - who are clearing the way for an intergalactic highway. The pair find their way onto the Heart of Gold, a stolen spaceship helmed by two-headed love-o and part-time jerk Zaphod Beeblebrox. There's also a love interest in there somewhere, as well as a depressed robot, the meaning of life, some mice and all sorts of other crazy stuff. Adventures ensue.
Throughout the book there are also various asides to entries in the 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', which prove to be very funny and worth reading the book for alone. The book is also full of big ideas and revelations - none of which I'll talk about here in fear of spoiling things, and it's for these that the book is probably most remembered. The reason why it has become so influential and is so definitive is that it successfully splices two genres together - science fiction and comedy - in such a way that neither genre's use works without the other. It's all tied up in a wonderfully ridiculous and meaningful way and the lunacy propels things along at a very readable and fun pace.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy actually started life as a radio play in the late 70s. From here Adams adapted it into book form (1979) and a television series (1981). It has also been released as a computer game (1984), comic books (1993-1996) and a film (2005 - Adams wrote the script but sadly died before the film eventuated). All of these adaptations deviate from one another... the ideas and characters remain the same but the structure of the plot and various bits and pieces have been tweaked and fiddled with in each case to best suit the medium. I don't think any version is better or worse than another, each has their own strong points, but if you're new to the whole Hitchhiker's thing than it's probably most easily understood (and dare I say best appreciated!) in it's book form.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was followed by four more books - 'The Restaurant at the End of the Universe' (1980), 'Life, The Universe and Everything' (1982), 'So Long and Thanks for All The Fish' (1984) and 'Mostly Harmless (1992).
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy concerns one Arthur Dent, a put-open man in a dressing gown who's best friend is Ford Prefect - an alien slumming it on Earth in order to research the planet for a universal travel guide (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). The two hitchhike their way off the planet just in time to escape it's destruction at the hands of the Vogons - who are clearing the way for an intergalactic highway. The pair find their way onto the Heart of Gold, a stolen spaceship helmed by two-headed love-o and part-time jerk Zaphod Beeblebrox. There's also a love interest in there somewhere, as well as a depressed robot, the meaning of life, some mice and all sorts of other crazy stuff. Adventures ensue.
Throughout the book there are also various asides to entries in the 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', which prove to be very funny and worth reading the book for alone. The book is also full of big ideas and revelations - none of which I'll talk about here in fear of spoiling things, and it's for these that the book is probably most remembered. The reason why it has become so influential and is so definitive is that it successfully splices two genres together - science fiction and comedy - in such a way that neither genre's use works without the other. It's all tied up in a wonderfully ridiculous and meaningful way and the lunacy propels things along at a very readable and fun pace.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy actually started life as a radio play in the late 70s. From here Adams adapted it into book form (1979) and a television series (1981). It has also been released as a computer game (1984), comic books (1993-1996) and a film (2005 - Adams wrote the script but sadly died before the film eventuated). All of these adaptations deviate from one another... the ideas and characters remain the same but the structure of the plot and various bits and pieces have been tweaked and fiddled with in each case to best suit the medium. I don't think any version is better or worse than another, each has their own strong points, but if you're new to the whole Hitchhiker's thing than it's probably most easily understood (and dare I say best appreciated!) in it's book form.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was followed by four more books - 'The Restaurant at the End of the Universe' (1980), 'Life, The Universe and Everything' (1982), 'So Long and Thanks for All The Fish' (1984) and 'Mostly Harmless (1992).
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Comment by Anthony
I dug your review of Hitchhikers. At this stage, i've only seen the movie, and the book is on my list - but i wondered - being a fan of melded genres, have you read (or reviewed) any Jasper Fforde?
The Eyre Affair is the first in a series similar in style to Adams' series of books, although this time the subject matter is literature itself, not space/sci-fi action.
Anthony
Comment by Luke
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