The Legion of Time by jack williamson

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

Another of the Best Novel nominees for the Retro Hugos.

It didn't thrill me, I'm afraid. The basic concept is sound, though.

Denny Lanning is a college student who's visited by a hologram from the future. This beautiful girl tells him he has to save the future so that her beautiful, perfect city (Jonbar) can exist instead of the foul, evil city (Gyronchi) that has its own beautiful girl that tries to convince him to go their way.

Eventually he's about to die in the Spanish Civil War, and then he gets scooped up by a time ship with the inevitable name "Chronion."

And the rest of the book is made up of action scenes in which this ship full of random guys from across history fights the bad guys until they get to the Ultimate Maguffin.

In 1921, will a young boy named John Barr pick up a magnet (setting him on the path of science, eventually leading to the city named after him: Jonbarr) or a pebble (so atomic power gets discovered instead by a Russian named Ivor Gyros)?

Then it's all action scenes again. And the two beautiful women end up being the same person. It sounds exciting, but the action scenes struck me as fairly tedious after a while.

Perhaps if the characters had been more developed or the action scenes had been more varied, I would have been more engaged. As it is, it was an okay read, but not one that I'll remember for a long time.

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ilanxya

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

1982 grade D.

In 1938, it was already old and out of date.

This grade D in 1982 seems to have a certain connection with the situation in 1938. Perhaps it was a continuation or a reference to that earlier time.

The series book LT1 might also play a role in this context. Maybe it contains more information about the grade D and its significance.

It could be that the author is using these details to create a sense of history or to explore the evolution of a particular concept or idea.

Overall, the combination of the grade D, the mention of 1938, and the series book LT1 presents an interesting starting point for further exploration and analysis.

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Manime8freak

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

The Legion of Time is a collection that consists of two captivating novellas penned by Jack Williamson in the late 1930s. These novellas have no connection to his Legion of Space novels from the same period. Both are written in the pulpy prose typical of Golden Age sci-fi, offering colorful, fast-paced, and action-packed adventures that any fan would relish. Williamson seemed to possess the elusive "sense of wonder" effortlessly, and while the style may be crude by today's standards and the descriptions a bit fuzzy at times, his hypercreative imagination more than makes up for it.

The first novella, also titled "The Legion of Time," originally appeared in the May, June, and July 1938 issues of "Astounding Science-Fiction." It presents a mind-blowing scenario where Earth has two possible futures. In one, the Eden-like city state of Jonbar flourishes, and mankind evolves into winged superbeings. In the other, the city of Gyronchi, ruled by the warrior queen Sorainya and the dark priest Glarath, enslaves humanity with the help of their hybrid half-human/half-ant soldiers. The rivalry between these two futures leads to a tense stalemate, which Sorainya tips in Gyronchi's favor by making a subtle alteration in the past. Meanwhile, physicist Wil McLan assembles a team of deceased soldiers from different wars to man his timeship, the Chronion, and fight for the existence of Jonbar. The story is filled with time paradoxes, exciting action, and memorable touches, such as a daring raid on Sorainya's castle and a unique variation on a burial at sea. The warrior queen herself is a wonderful villainess, and the nearly insuperable odds faced by McLan's team add to the excitement.

The second novella, "After World's End," first appeared in the February 1939 issue of "Marvel Science Stories." It introduces us to Barry Horn, the first man to fly into space. Due to a uranium-salts concoction, he becomes a Rip van Winkle of the spaceways and wakes up 1.2 million years in the future. He discovers that the Earth and the civilized galaxy are at war with Malgarth, a robot created by his descendant. With his robot hordes, Malgarth threatens to exterminate mankind, unless Barry and a group of renegades can find the Dondara Stone, which holds the key to Malgarth's weakness. The novella's title refers to the destruction of Earth, which Williamson describes in a thrilling manner. Malgarth and his hordes are a far cry from the peaceful robots in Williamson's other works, and the story is filled with action, suspense, and an original alien character, Setsi the rum-guzzling sandbat. Although Williamson makes a few mistakes in the story, such as incorrect dates and implausible travel times, these flaws do not detract from the overall enjoyment. Taken together, these two tales showcase Williamson's great storytelling prowess and are highly recommended for fans of Golden Age sci-fi.

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FreeFloch

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

Denny Lanning and his Harvard roommates have a remarkable encounter later in life. They are rescued at the brink of death and embark on a journey through time, joined by eight other warriors recruited in the same way. Their objective is a battle that will determine the cosmic probability in favor of Jonbar, a utopia. In this utopia, (naturally) there is a beautiful woman who visits Denny at various points in his life and warns him. The antagonist is an evil woman (still beautiful), who desires immortality in the other probability option. She commands an army of insectoid warriors.

This book was initially published as a serial in 1938 and introduced the first science fiction concept of a crucial decision point in time travel novels. Look up the Jonbar Hinge on Wikipedia. It is executed well here, especially since the utopian outcome stems from a scientific mind that lacks science in the other choice. The scenes of the rescued warriors are also well crafted, although each is mostly a caricature of their respective eras. Incidentally, this concept gave rise to a time-traveling role-playing game called Timemaster.

After the legion is assembled, they gather intelligence and engage in skirmishes against the insects and their evil queen. Once they discover what they need (and its location), they launch an all-out assault on the queen's palace, with the warriors dying one by one in their quest to reach the sacred object. These battle scenes are not as well written and are more difficult to follow. The final confrontation also feels somewhat rushed. I wonder if the author compressed it all into one last episode for other reasons.

As expected from a story written in 1938, there is gender bias. The characters are mostly one-dimensional, although Denny and his roommate, physicist Wil McLan, do show some growth. It is a relatively quick read. Perhaps the story was revised before being published standalone in 1952; it could have benefited from a bit more development.

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H-Callahan_XXII

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

While the title story might deserve an extra half star, the companion piece is enough weaker that it only averages three.
Legion of Time is a captivating story about alternate futures and probability. It was one of the earliest SF stories to explore the implications of what we now call quantum mechanics. The story revolves around a version of the observer effect and a time-travel version of Schrodinger's cat. An unfortunate scientist, by watching a horrific future from the past, unknowingly helps cause it. Undoing this requires time travel, unraveling alternate futures, and a host of other exciting elements, making it a lot of fun.
The second story, After World's End, is very dramatic and sweeping in scope. However, I had difficulty believing a word of it. The drama all hinges on a safety measure not being employed until humanity is almost wiped out. Billions of lives are lost because someone says "nah, I don't think I'll destroy the robot tyrant until absolutely everything lines up with this vague prophecy." The story wasn't as trite when it was written as it seems now. The basic idea of an inventor creating a robot so advanced that it doesn't need humanity and without bothering to program in safeguards is a common one. Another flaw, besides the safeguard issue, is that such an advanced robot would succumb to so many of the flaws of an ego-driven human tyrant.
Still, both stories are enjoyable Golden Age science fiction adventures and very quick to read.

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Enmora

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

Fun short novel about a regular Joe whose fate will determine whether the future will be a Utopia, or a dead world ruled by an evil queen. It is very pulp and was written in the late 30s. I still have to read After Worlds End, the "second half" of the book. Jack Williamson is one of my favorites of the old school science fiction writers. His works are full of imagination and creativity. In this short novel, the story of the regular Joe is both exciting and thought-provoking. The description of the possible future, whether it is a Utopia or a world ruled by an evil queen, makes readers wonder about the direction of human development. I am looking forward to reading the "second half" of the book to see how the story will unfold and what kind of ending it will have.

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EternalSunboop

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

This book presents two engaging short novels.

The first one is the titular "The Legion of Time". It delves into the realm of science fantasy or scientific romance rather than pure science fiction. In this story, the hero and his comrades find themselves in a crucial situation where they must manipulate the geodesics of time. Their objective is to ensure the birth of a Utopia instead of a malevolent and cruel empire. Interestingly, it anticipates certain aspects of John Varley's novel "Millennium" as the members of the legion are rescued precisely at the moment of their deaths.

The second novel, "After World's End", is an unashamed space opera. It makes little effort to maintain plausibility. In this tale, Earth is catastrophically cast into the sun, and characters effortlessly travel across the universe. Moreover, the initially invincible robot villain turns out to have vulnerabilities.

Despite their lack of strict adherence to the norms of traditional science fiction, both novels can still provide an enjoyable reading experience if the reader is in the appropriate frame of mind. They offer unique and imaginative scenarios that can transport the reader to fascinating worlds.

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TheScarletCutter

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

July 15,2025

Fun pulpy adventures from the golden age

Williamson's writing stands out among most of his peers, yet it still adheres to a rather formulaic pattern. The book is only about 100 pages long, which means he doesn't waste any time in plunging into the action. Surprisingly, the action can be quite bloody and gruesome at times. It provides a quick and engaging read that is perfect for those in need of a break between longer books. It offers a lighthearted escape into a world of adventure and excitement. The story moves along at a brisk pace, keeping the reader entertained from start to finish. Overall, it's a fun and enjoyable read that is sure to satisfy fans of pulpy adventures.

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The Legion of Time

jack williamson

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