Downbelow Station

What is the Science Fiction Premise?

Downbelow Station is one of the clearest examples of Space Opera that I have read in some time. While many of the familiar devices of Science Fiction are present -- including starships, aliens, space stations, and hyperspace jumps -- these are simply accepted; little or no effort is made to explain them scientifically. I cannot think of any fantastic idea that is "rendered" plausible through scientific explanation. There are many fantastic ideas, but we accept them because of their familiarity as revealed through the whole genre of Science Fiction.

Having said that, there are three concepts that are explored more deeply than others. We are offered an alien race and some depiction of their culture. We are asked to think about life on a space station. And, we are presented the notion of mind manipulation.

Is the science of the premise explored?

Science explanations do not play a very big role in Downbelow Station. There are appeals to familiar concepts, like the need to accelerate and decelerate or the ability to spot life through infrared sensing. Generally speaking, Downbelow Station is not abusive of the science we already know. There just is not much recourse to unfamiliar science to gain acceptance of an idea.

The aliens are conveniently similar to humans and can speak a pidgin English. We are told about them without any explanation about why they are similar to us or how they fit into the ecosystem of Downbelow. (In fact, there is little effort to explain the ecosystem of Downbelow.)

As for station life, this is portrayed somewhat thoroughly, but does not require any new science. We are simply told how things work and accept it.

Finally, the mind manipulation is presented in some detail, but it is not really explained in any scientific way.

Is the impact of the premise on an individual explored?

We do get to see the lives of many different types of people, but not much is very different because of any particular Science Fiction premise. The Downbelow aliens are among the most interesting and different individuals, but what we are told about them simply reveals their character; it is not a consequence of some aspect of their nature that was revealed earlier. Similarly, we learn about living on a station, but this is not vastly different from what one might expect at any highly technical port facility. As for the mind manipulation, since there is no science behind it, there are no real rules explaining its limits.

Is the impact of the premise on society explored?

Downbelow Station is very interested in revealing how mankind's presence in space might play out and in this sense it is interested in society. Nevertheless, there is very little about space that governs the outcome of the story. The story could be remapped onto European exploration and settlement of the Pacific ocean with very little change in the major themes and conclusions about mankind.

How well written is the story?

For the most part, the book is quite readable, but I found it a little more difficult for a collection of small reasons. Least among these was that the version I was reading needed some copy editing. There were many typos, missing articles, and the occasional word out of place. It was probably not worse than most newspapers, but worse than most novels.

Second, the author uses a jargon throughout the book with very little explanation to help the reader tune into the new usages. I confess I feel rather stupid for how long it took me to figure out that Comp referred to computers.

Finally, there were numerous action scenes that I found confusing. I think the author probably had a clear mental picture of the station and of the battles in space, but I found the descriptions difficult to follow. I would have loved to have had diagrams of the station and the battles.

Can I recommend the book?

If you like Star Wars and most Science Fiction movies, then you will enjoy Downbelow Station. If, in addition, you enjoy complex political intrigue, you will really enjoy it. Frankly, with a good scriptwriter and possibly a separation into multiple stories, Dowbelow Station would make a good Science Fiction movie or trilogy.

If, on the other hand, you come to Science Fiction for the science rather than the adventure, then you will find Downbelow Station disappointing. It is Space Opera, pure and simple.

Tar Daddoo