Roswell, Texas (graphic novel)
Encyclopedia
Roswell, Texas is a serial
ized, online graphic novel
which started in 2006 and was completed early in 2008. It appeared in installments on the web site of Big Head Press.
Written by science fiction novelist L. Neil Smith
with Rex F. May (better known as the cartoonist Baloo
) and illustrated by artist Scott Bieser
, with coloring by Jen Zach and lettering by Zeke Bieser, Roswell, Texas is an alternate history set in a universe in which Davy Crockett
survived the Alamo
and Santa Anna
didn't, and in which an expanded Texas eventually became the "Federated States of Texas" rather than one of the United States.
The novel's plot centers around the 1947 crash of an unidentified flying object
(analogous to the "real-world" Roswell UFO incident
) near Roswell, the westernmost city of the Federated States of Texas (analogous to the real-world town of Roswell, New Mexico
). Its theme incorporates Smith's well-known libertarian
philosophy and sensibilities.
Like many alternate histories, Roswell, Texas makes extensive use of anachronism
and anatopism
in its story line. Historical personalities including Charles Lindbergh
(and his son, Charles Lindbergh III, who in real life was abducted and murdered as an infant
), Audie Murphy
, Malcolm X
, Pope John Paul II
, Gene Roddenberry
, Elliot Ness, Lawrence of Arabia and others appear in roles often tangentially related to, but always significantly different from, their "real-world" biographies. Additionally, characters from Smith's other works (notably William "Win" Bear, protagonist of The Probability Broach
and other novels in Smith's "North American Confederacy
" series) appear in key or supporting roles as "alternate history" versions of their own fictional selves.
As of March 18, 2008, Roswell, Texas was complete at 640 pages -- some consisting of a single illustration, others of multiple panels.
In June, 2008, a gray-scale paperback reprint of Roswell, Texas was published by Big Head Press. ISBN 0974381454
Webserial
Web fiction is written work of literature available primarily or solely on the Internet. A common type of web fiction is the webserial. The term comes from old serial stories that were once published regularly in newspapers and magazines...
ized, online graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
which started in 2006 and was completed early in 2008. It appeared in installments on the web site of Big Head Press.
Written by science fiction novelist L. Neil Smith
L. Neil Smith
L. Neil Smith , also known to readers and fans as El Neil, is a libertarian science fiction author and political activist. He was born on May 12, 1946 in Denver...
with Rex F. May (better known as the cartoonist Baloo
Baloo
Baloo is the fictional bear featured in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book from 1894 and The Second Jungle Book from 1895.-Name and species:He is described in Kipling's work as "the sleepy brown bear"...
) and illustrated by artist Scott Bieser
Scott Bieser
Scott Bieser is an illustrator and writer of comics, and a former computer game animator.His credits for Interplay Productions include the Amiga version of Battle Chess, Chinese Battle Chess, Battle Chess 4000 , Total Recall , Booger-Man, Lord of the Rings, Star Trek: The 25th Anniversary Game,...
, with coloring by Jen Zach and lettering by Zeke Bieser, Roswell, Texas is an alternate history set in a universe in which Davy Crockett
Davy Crockett
David "Davy" Crockett was a celebrated 19th century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier and politician. He is commonly referred to in popular culture by the epithet "King of the Wild Frontier". He represented Tennessee in the U.S...
survived the Alamo
Alamo
The Battle of the Alamo was a battle fought during the Texas Revolution.Alamo may also refer to:-Places:*Alamo Mission in San Antonio, Texas*Alamo, California*Alamo, Georgia*Alamo Township, Michigan*Alamo, Nevada*Alamo, New Mexico...
and Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón , often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, known as "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican political leader, general, and president who greatly influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and government...
didn't, and in which an expanded Texas eventually became the "Federated States of Texas" rather than one of the United States.
The novel's plot centers around the 1947 crash of an unidentified flying object
Unidentified flying object
A term originally coined by the military, an unidentified flying object is an unusual apparent anomaly in the sky that is not readily identifiable to the observer as any known object...
(analogous to the "real-world" Roswell UFO incident
Roswell UFO incident
The Roswell UFO Incident was the recovery of an object that crashed in the general vicinity of Roswell, New Mexico, in June or July 1947, allegedly an extra-terrestrial spacecraft and its alien occupants. Since the late 1970s the incident has been the subject of intense controversy and of...
) near Roswell, the westernmost city of the Federated States of Texas (analogous to the real-world town of Roswell, New Mexico
Roswell, New Mexico
Roswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...
). Its theme incorporates Smith's well-known libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
philosophy and sensibilities.
Like many alternate histories, Roswell, Texas makes extensive use of anachronism
Anachronism
An anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
and anatopism
Anatopism
An anatopism is something that is out of its proper place. Thus, for example, an outrigger canoe would be an anatopism in ancient Rome....
in its story line. Historical personalities including Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
(and his son, Charles Lindbergh III, who in real life was abducted and murdered as an infant
Lindbergh kidnapping
The kidnapping of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., was the abduction of the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The toddler, 18 months old at the time, was abducted from his family home in East Amwell, New Jersey, near the town of Hopewell, New Jersey, on the evening of...
), Audie Murphy
Audie Murphy
Audie Leon Murphy was a highly decorated and famous soldier. Through LIFE magazine's July 16, 1945 issue , he became one the most famous soldiers of World War II and widely regarded as the most decorated American soldier of the war...
, Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Malcolm X , born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz , was an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its...
, Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
, Gene Roddenberry
Gene Roddenberry
Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer and futurist, best known for creating the American science fiction series Star Trek. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer...
, Elliot Ness, Lawrence of Arabia and others appear in roles often tangentially related to, but always significantly different from, their "real-world" biographies. Additionally, characters from Smith's other works (notably William "Win" Bear, protagonist of The Probability Broach
The Probability Broach
The Probability Broach is the first novel by science fiction writer L. Neil Smith. It is set in an alternate history, the so-called Gallatin Universe, where a libertarian society has formed on the North American continent, styled the North American Confederacy.-Plot summary:Edward William "Win"...
and other novels in Smith's "North American Confederacy
North American Confederacy
North American Confederacy is an alternate history series of novels created by L. Neil Smith. The series includes the novel The Probability Broach and its sequels, and takes place in a country of the same name.-By Publication:...
" series) appear in key or supporting roles as "alternate history" versions of their own fictional selves.
As of March 18, 2008, Roswell, Texas was complete at 640 pages -- some consisting of a single illustration, others of multiple panels.
In June, 2008, a gray-scale paperback reprint of Roswell, Texas was published by Big Head Press. ISBN 0974381454