Thinking along the lines of Gamma World as opposed to Twilight:2000, what works define the genre for you?
This is very off the cuff but I will list a few things I thought of to get the ball rolling:
Books
Hiero's Journey, Sterling Lanier
The Pastel City, M. John Harrison
Witherwing, David Jarrett
Visual Media
Wizards, Ralph Bakshi
Thundarr the Barbarian, Steve Gerber, Jack Kirby, Alex Toth, etc.
Games
Gamma World, James M. Ward and Gary Jaquet
Encounter Critical, Hank Riley and Jim Ireland
Mutant Future, Ryan Denison and Daniel Proctor
Like I said, super-quick. What works define the genre for you?
I... Love... Wizards.
Books
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller, Jr
Orphans of the Sky, Farnham's Freehold by Robert A, Heinlein
Comics/Graphic Novels
Heavy Metal
Epic Illustrated
-Generation Zero (story)
Doomsday +1 (Wow, I haven't thought of that one in a long time...)
Movies/Television
A Boy and His Dog
Mad Max
The Road Warrior
Ark 2
Thundarr the Barbarian
RPG Modules
Expedition to the Barrier Peaks
RPGs
Gamma World
Mutant Future
Other Games
Car Wars
Books:
The Dying Earth by Jack Vance
Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
All the various post-apocalyptic novels and short stories by PKD (too many to list individually)
Feersum Endjinn by Ian M. Banks
The Open: Man and Animal by Giorgio Agamben
Canticle for Liebowitz by Walter Miller
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster
I recently picked up a copy of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and it may go on list.
Visual:
Codex Seraphinianus by Luigi Serafini
Moebius
Brom
H.R. Giger
Heavy Metal
Movies:
The Road Warrior, Mad Max, Mad Max: Beyond the Thunderdome
Zardoz
12 Monkeys
Damnation Alley
Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead
Children of Men
All Quiet on the Western Front
Games:
Fallout 1-4
Warhammer 40K
Stars Without Number (the most recent addition to this list)
After the Bomb
Killzone 1-3
Alternity
These are all influences in one way or another. I'm thinking of picking up The Company when it comes out and seeing if it's any good for post-apocalyptic stuff.
Quote from: jeff37923;502073Movies/Television
A Boy and His Dog
This is actually based on a better short story. I can't recall who by at the moment however.
Isn't it Harlan Ellison? Yes, it is.
Movies:
Hell comes to Frogtown
Planet of the Apes
Books:
Tomorrow's Children (Poul Anderson)
Worlds Apart
Dinner at Deviant's Palace
(Mad Max, Damnation Alley came to me as well, but scooped)
Logan's Run
Chrysalids, The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham
The Tripods Trilogy - John Christopher
Dark Tower - Stephen King
The Jon Shannow books by David Gemmell
Quote from: Silverlion;502096This is actually based on a better short story. I can't recall who by at the moment however.
Quote from: Elliot Wilen;502097Isn't it Harlan Ellison? Yes, it is.
Yup, Harlan Ellison.
The best rendition of this story I've seen is a graphic novel that came out about a decade ago IIRC.
It's just that the movie has that funny-as-Hell scene with a young pre-
Miami Vice Don Johnson with his pecker plugged into a milking machine. That always makes me laugh.
A few I would add to the list here...
2142, Andre Norton
Witch World, Andre Norton
Aftermath, Levar Burton
Cemetary World, Clifford D. Simak, originally published in analog magazine in 1972.
Neuromancer, William Gibson
I don't have much, books and films I remember....
Books of the New Earth by Gene Wolfe
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
La jetee
Omega Man
No Blade of Grass
Escape From New York
Death Race 2000
Reign of Fire
Regards,
David R
RIFTS.
RPGPundit
Most of what I use as inspiration was already said, but I can't believe nobody mentioned The Postman.
I know the movie is mediocre at best, but the book. Is. Awesome. Seriously, go and read it if you did not.
So far, I'm struggling to read through Wasteland as I heard it is quite good Post Apocalyptic, if ancient, system. Other then that, I use the free Fallout rpg released.
I am generally a fan of "serious" post - apocalyptic setting. Mutants are usually outcasts, and mutations aren't that common as you are more likely to die from radiation then grow additional arm. What I like to do is to imagine that since travel is now very hard, each village/town is basically it's own culture. Allows fun, freeform world creation.
Quote from: Rincewind1;502349Most of what I use as inspiration was already said, but I can't believe nobody mentioned The Postman.
I can. The OP specifically asked for 'science fantasy' in the vein of Gamma World, and The Postman ain't that. Neither are many of the other things mentioned upthread. Of course, the OP did also ask for 'inspiration', so in that sense almost anything could apply, I guess. :)
Quote from: Thalaba;502352I can. The OP specifically asked for 'science fantasy' in the vein of Gamma World, and The Postman ain't that. Neither are many of the other things mentioned upthread. Of course, the OP did also ask for 'inspiration', so in that sense almost anything could apply, I guess. :)
D'oh, reading fail, but not just mine tis seems ;).
Not exactly Gamma World neither, but No Truce with Kings (had to check a bit since I always forget the exact Polish title) is a great short story by Poul Anderson. Great for some political Post Apocalypse.
I'd say Waterworld'd be good for Gamma World's setting - just crank up the Mutation Valve.
Purely for the sake of pedantry, Damnation Alley was actually a novel by Roger Zelazny before being adapted into a movie. I think the novel was much better.
Gianluigi Zuddas: Balthis l'Avventuriera (Balthis the Adventuress). One of the most vancian books not actually by Vance. Never translated into English.
Jeffrey Stone: Struggle for the Nightstone, The Sword of Night, The God of Night. Dragons vs. helicopters vs. black magic vs. mutants vs. psionic super-intelligent giant bats vs. tanks vs. lizardmen vs. chaos knights (etc.). The quintessential RIFTS novel, although it predates it. Never translated into English ("Jeffrey Stone" is a pseudonym). This is where the name "Melan" (originally "Melan the Technocrat") comes from.
Daniel Keys Moran: The Ring. Wagnerian postapocaliptica. In English, but weirdly obscure.
I didn't see Moorcock's Hawkmoon books mentioned above, or the game of the same name by Chaosium.
There's also a setting called Chronicles of the Future Earth for BRP by Sarah Newton.
There's some novel series but I forgot the name of them, supposedly good - the civilisation's destroyed, and most human contact comes in "taverns" that have some sort of fighting rings outside of them, and there's some mysterious Brotherhood that supplies the victors of those fights with food.
Anyone remembers this? It had titles like Sick the Stick Fighter.
The Battle Circle Trilogy by Piers Anthony.
Seriously, it's so Gamma World.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Circle_(novels)
Thanks a lot Werekoala - I heard they were great, and forgot about them. From what I read - yes, they are very Gamma World indeed :).
Super-pulpy post-apoc goodness. Gotta love a world with mountain ranges of twisted glass and metal that are the melted remains of pre-war cities.
I would throw in
Waterworld
Terminator
Glass Hand episode of Outer Limits
And Ellison's true name is The Midget God of Thunder !!
Movies is the really answer for me-when it comes to books (And keep in mind I like Shadowrun's mixture of magic and machine...):
- Falkenberg's Legion by Pournelle
- Some elements of the John Ringo Posleen War books
- Some Shadowrun books-the novella stuff like Burning Bright by Tom Dowd; Lone by Nigel Findley and Shadowplay by him as well.
- Christopher Kubasik's section (A short story that the movie the Matrix was in part based on.) in the Virtual Realities and his story for Universal Brotherhood were literally life altering for me.
- John M Ford's Princes of Air
- Some elements of Neil Gaiman's American Gods
- So many comic books I can't even begin to list them. Ranging from the Uncanny X-Men in the early 90's, to Image's Wild CAT's, to DMZ and Y the Last Man, to the awesome Terminator comics by Dark Horse.
There's more mind you. There's no end to the inspiration I find.
Webcomic:
American Barbarian.
Books
The Night Land (Hodgson)
Comics:
Kamandi (Kirby)- pretty much just like GW. I can't recall any exact incidence of mutant plants, but I am certain they're in there.
Bloodstar (Corben)
Mutant World (Corben)
Blogs:
Mine
Visual Media:
Genesis II (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genesis_II_(film))
Planet Earth (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Earth_(TV_pilot))
Strange New World (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_New_World_(television_pilot))
And I suppose I should add an obvious inspiration for the Gamma World precursor Metamorphosis Alpha:
The Starlost (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlost)
With respect to Planet of the Apes, don't forget the TV Series (which includes a picture of New York City in 2505) and the cartoon (which included trucks and airplanes):
Planet of the Apes TV Show (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_(TV_series))
Return to the Planet of the Apes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Return_to_the_Planet_of_the_Apes)
The Time Travelers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpJwKMnBS0E) is also worth a look.
Oh, and don't forget Yor: Hunter from the Future (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PWaJ6URRU0).
Here's his theme song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYBfnfWsnX0):
Yor's world! He's the Man!
Yor's world! He's the Man!
Yor's World!
Lost in the world of past
The echo of ancient blast
Yor's World!
There is a man from future
A man of mystery
Yor's World!
No trails to lead the way
He search for a yesterday
Yor's World!
Misty illusions hiding his famous destiny
Yor's World!
Yor, the touch of fire
Yor, the proud and free desire!
He never sees the sun
He's always on the run
Him and his days are gone
They say he will go on
His search goes on and on
Yor's World!
Here to stay, come what may
Yor's World!
And the world goes like fire
He's gonna make all them wild beasts look tame tonight
In his pride
Yor's world! He's the Man!
Yor's world! He's the Man!
(Her's a four-and-a-half minute version if you want more of it's '80s goodness (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dx-F6VnLezM) -- hmmm, this gem is available on iTunes...)
Some great suggestions people!
Here's more...
Books:
Masters of Solitude & Wintermind...Marvin Kaye/Parke Godwin
Erthring Cycle & Wabeno Feast...Wayland Drew
The Lost Traveller...Steve Wilson
Still I persist In Wondering...Edgar Pangborn
Ice Prophet Trilogy...William Forstchen
The Realms of Tartarus...Brian Stableford
Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang...Kate Wilhelm
The Stand...Stephen King
Wow, these are a lot of great suggestions. Stuff I had heard of and even more that I hadn't, which is rare for an old salt like me. Time to do some research!
The game setting Mutant Bikers of the Atomic Wastelands (http://www.savageheroes.com/conversions/Savaged%20MBAW.pdf) is short and worth reading, particularly the advice on running the setting.