Space western
Encyclopedia
Space Western is a subgenre of science fiction
, primarily grounded in film and television program
ming, that transposes themes of American Western
books and film to a backdrop of futuristic space frontiers; it is the complement of the science fiction Western
, which transposes science fiction themes onto an American Western setting.
, train heists
, and horse
s.
To some viewers, Western frontier themes or "cowboyish" characters are enough to establish a story or setting as a space Western. When Gene Roddenberry
first pitched Star Trek
, which depicts space as "the Final Frontier", his sales pitches to the Western-fixated TV network executives of the 1960s described his science fiction TV show as a "Wagon Train
to the Stars", based on the 1950s-60s Western TV series of the same name.
The Turkey City Lexicon, a document produced by the Turkey City science fiction writers' workshop
, condemns the space Western as "The most pernicious suite of 'Used Furniture' [that is, use of a pre-established background instead of a freshly created world]."
Galaxy Science Fiction
ran an advertisement on its back cover, "You'll never see it in Galaxy," which gave the beginnings of make-believe parallel Western and SF stories featuring a character named Bat Durston. The genre of space Westerns has been informally—and often derisively—known as "Bat Durston" stories since.
's original concept for Star Trek
can be seen in the series' opening narration: "Space, the final frontier
...". Roddenberry pitched Star Trek to network executives as "Wagon Train
to the stars."
George Lucas
attributes the character of Boba Fett
to the Man with No Name
in the DVD commentary on The Empire Strikes Back. Han Solo
's original costume and charming rogue gunslinger mannerisms also reflects the Western's influence on Star Wars
.
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers
is a cartoon example of the Space Western theme. The opening trailer shows Texas Rangers
-like heroes riding across a prairie landscape on robotic horses. Spaceships and sixguns both figure prominently throughout.
In the Bravestarr
universe, the culture and landscape of the colony world where the series is set bears a remarkable resemblance to the culture of the American Old West.
One notable hybrid of Westerns and science fiction is the television series Firefly
and its cinematic follow-up Serenity
. This series not only used Western ideas such as the lawless frontier and the spiritually wounded veteran, but also included Western elements in costuming, design and dialogue (such as the Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B). The back-story of Firefly has been called a deliberate echo of the post-American-Civil-War
setting of many Westerns, with a hero who fought for the losing side. Director Joss Whedon
remarks in the audio commentary about the various Westerns which influenced him and which techniques–from dialogue to camerawork–he tried to capture.
The most notable space western anime is Cowboy Bebop
, which precedes and is similar to Firefly and Serenity in some respects. Another notable example would be the anime/manga Trigun
, which differs from most space westerns by taking place entirely on one planet, that planet just happens to not be Earth.
The film Outland
is often referred to as "High Noon
in space". In both films, the new marshal is abandoned by the town when word spreads of his inevitable confrontation with a group of assassins coming to set him straight.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
, primarily grounded in film and television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
ming, that transposes themes of American Western
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
books and film to a backdrop of futuristic space frontiers; it is the complement of the science fiction Western
Science fiction Western
A science fiction Western is a work of fiction which has elements of science fiction in a Western setting. It is different from a Space Western, which is a frontier story indicative of American Westerns, except transposed to a backdrop of space exploration and settlement.A science fiction Western...
, which transposes science fiction themes onto an American Western setting.
"The Final Frontier" as a backdrop
This term supposes that the future of space exploration will be much like the taming of the old west of America. In some cases this may quite literally include frontier townsSettler
A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...
, train heists
Train robbery
Train robbery is a type of robbery, in which the goal is to steal money or other valuables being carried aboard trains.-History:Train robberies were more common in the past than today, and often occurred in the American Old West. Trains carrying payroll shipments were a major target...
, and horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s.
To some viewers, Western frontier themes or "cowboyish" characters are enough to establish a story or setting as a space Western. When 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...
first pitched Star Trek
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
, which depicts space as "the Final Frontier", his sales pitches to the Western-fixated TV network executives of the 1960s described his science fiction TV show as a "Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
to the Stars", based on the 1950s-60s Western TV series of the same name.
Criticisms
This "frontier stories" view of the future is only one of many ways to look at space exploration, and not one embraced by all science fiction writers.The Turkey City Lexicon, a document produced by the Turkey City science fiction writers' workshop
Turkey City Writer's Workshop
Turkey City Writer's Workshop is a peer-to-peer, professional science fiction writer's workshop in Texas. Founded in 1973 and still ongoing today, it was consciously modeled after the east coast Milford Writer's Workshop...
, condemns the space Western as "The most pernicious suite of 'Used Furniture' [that is, use of a pre-established background instead of a freshly created world]."
Galaxy Science Fiction
Galaxy Science Fiction
Galaxy Science Fiction was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by an Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break in to the American market. World Editions hired as editor H. L...
ran an advertisement on its back cover, "You'll never see it in Galaxy," which gave the beginnings of make-believe parallel Western and SF stories featuring a character named Bat Durston. The genre of space Westerns has been informally—and often derisively—known as "Bat Durston" stories since.
Notable examples
The influence of Westerns on Gene RoddenberryGene 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...
's original concept for Star Trek
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
can be seen in the series' opening narration: "Space, the final frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...
...". Roddenberry pitched Star Trek to network executives as "Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
to the stars."
George Lucas
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
attributes the character of Boba Fett
Boba Fett
Boba Fett is a character in Star Wars. A bounty hunter hired by Darth Vader to find the Millennium Falcon, he is a minor villain in both Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi....
to the Man with No Name
Man with No Name
The man with no name is a stock character in Western films, but the term usually applies specifically to the character played by Clint Eastwood in Sergio Leone's "Dollars Trilogy."...
in the DVD commentary on The Empire Strikes Back. Han Solo
Han Solo
Han Solo is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise played by Harrison Ford. Introduced in the film Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope , Solo and his Wookiee co-pilot, Chewbacca , become involved in the Rebel Alliance against the Galactic Empire...
's original costume and charming rogue gunslinger mannerisms also reflects the Western's influence on Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
.
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers was an American animated Space Western television series created by Robert Mandell and Gaylord Entertainment Company....
is a cartoon example of the Space Western theme. The opening trailer shows Texas Rangers
Texas Ranger Division
The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers, is a law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in Texas, and is based in Austin, Texas...
-like heroes riding across a prairie landscape on robotic horses. Spaceships and sixguns both figure prominently throughout.
In the Bravestarr
Bravestarr
BraveStarr is an American space Western animated television series. The original episodes aired from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. It was created simultaneously with a collection of action figures. BraveStarr was the last animated series produced by Filmation and Group W...
universe, the culture and landscape of the colony world where the series is set bears a remarkable resemblance to the culture of the American Old West.
One notable hybrid of Westerns and science fiction is the television series Firefly
Firefly (TV series)
Firefly is an American space western television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon, under his Mutant Enemy Productions label. Whedon served as executive producer, along with Tim Minear....
and its cinematic follow-up Serenity
Serenity (film)
Serenity is a 2005 space western film written and directed by Joss Whedon. It is a continuation of the short-lived 2002 Fox science fiction television series Firefly, taking place after the events of the final episode. Set in 2518, Serenity is the story of the captain and crew of a cargo ship...
. This series not only used Western ideas such as the lawless frontier and the spiritually wounded veteran, but also included Western elements in costuming, design and dialogue (such as the Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B). The back-story of Firefly has been called a deliberate echo of the post-American-Civil-War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
setting of many Westerns, with a hero who fought for the losing side. Director Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
remarks in the audio commentary about the various Westerns which influenced him and which techniques–from dialogue to camerawork–he tried to capture.
The most notable space western anime is Cowboy Bebop
Cowboy Bebop
is a critically acclaimed and award-winning 1998 Japanese anime series directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, written by Keiko Nobumoto, and produced by Sunrise. Its 26 episodes comprise a complete storyline: set in 2071, the series follows the adventures, misadventures and tragedies of five bounty...
, which precedes and is similar to Firefly and Serenity in some respects. Another notable example would be the anime/manga Trigun
Trigun
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yasuhiro Nightow, published from 1996 to 2008 and spanning 17 collected volumes....
, which differs from most space westerns by taking place entirely on one planet, that planet just happens to not be Earth.
The film Outland
Outland (film)
Outland is a 1981 British science fiction thriller film written and directed by Peter Hyams.Set on Jupiter's moon Io, it has been described as a space Western, and bears thematic resemblances to High Noon....
is often referred to as "High Noon
High Noon
High Noon is a 1952 American Western film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly. The film tells in real time the story of a town marshal forced to face a gang of killers by himself...
in space". In both films, the new marshal is abandoned by the town when word spreads of his inevitable confrontation with a group of assassins coming to set him straight.
Books
- The Beast MasterThe Beast MasterThe Beast Master is a science fiction novel by Grand Master Andre Norton, first published in 1959.-Plot:It tells the story of Hosteen Storm, an ex-soldier who travels to a distant planet with his comrades, a group of genetically altered animals with whom he has empathic and telepathic connections...
by Andre NortonAndre NortonAndre Alice Norton, née Alice Mary Norton was an American science fiction and fantasy author under the noms de plume Andre Norton, Andrew North and Allen Weston... - Santiago: a Myth of the Far FutureSantiago: a Myth of the Far FutureSantiago: A Myth of the Far Future is a novel by American science fiction author Mike Resnick. It was first published in 1986 and reprinted in 2004...
by Mike ResnickMike ResnickMichael Diamond Resnick , better known by his published name Mike Resnick, is an American science fiction author. He was executive editor of Jim Baen's Universe.-Biography:... - Northwest of EarthNorthwest of EarthNorthwest of Earth is a 1954 collection of science fiction and fantasy short stories by C. L. Moore. It was first published by Gnome Press in 1954 in an edition of 4,000 copies. The collections contains stories about Moore's characters Northwest Smith and Jirel of Joiry...
by C.L. Moore (short story collection) - Time Enough for LoveTime Enough for LoveTime Enough for Love is a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, first published in 1973. The work was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1973 and both the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1974.-Plot:...
by Robert A. HeinleinRobert A. HeinleinRobert Anson Heinlein was an American science fiction writer. Often called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was one of the most influential and controversial authors of the genre. He set a standard for science and engineering plausibility and helped to raise the genre's standards of... - Girl in LandscapeGirl in LandscapeGirl in Landscape is a science fiction novel by Jonathan Lethem, originally published as a 280-page hardback in 1998, by Doubleday Publishing Group...
by Jonathan LethemJonathan LethemJonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. It was followed by three more science fiction novels... - Earthman's BurdenEarthman's BurdenEarthman's Burden is a collection of science fiction and fantasy stories by Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. It was first published by Gnome Press in 1957. The story "Don Jones" was original to this collection...
sequence by Poul AndersonPoul AndersonPoul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories...
and Gordon R. DicksonGordon R. DicksonGordon Rupert Dickson was an American science fiction author.- Biography :Dickson was born in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1923. After the death of his father, he moved with his mother to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1937... - A Princess of MarsA Princess of MarsA Princess of Mars is a science fiction novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the first of his Barsoom series. It is also Burroughs' first novel, predating his famous Tarzan series. Full of swordplay and daring feats, the novel is considered a classic example of 20th century pulp fiction...
by Edgar Rice BurroughsEdgar Rice BurroughsEdgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:... - A Whisper in Space by David C. Drizzit
Short stories
- "On The High Frontier" by Michael F. Flynn, Analog, April 1992
Anime
- Captain HarlockCaptain Harlockis a fictional character created by manga artist Leiji Matsumoto.Harlock is the archetypical romantic hero, a space pirate with an individualist philosophy of life. He is as noble as he is taciturn, rebellious, stoically fighting against totalitarian regimes, whether they be earthborn or alien...
- Leiji MatsumotoLeiji Matsumotois a well-known creator of several anime and manga series. His wife is also known as a manga artist.-Space opera:Matsumoto is famous for his space operas such as Space Battleship Yamato...
combines elements from space opera, western, and samurai genres - Combat Mecha XabungleCombat Mecha Xabungle, infrequently called Blue Gale Xabungle, is a mecha anime television series by Sunrise, and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino. It was broadcast on the Nagoya TV and TV Asahi networks at 5:30 PM each Saturday from February 6, 1982 through January 29, 1983. Promotional toys were produced by Clover...
- Real robotReal Robotis a genre of Japanese animation. The genre contains mecha robots that are powered by conventional power sources and weapons explainable by real world science, and that use ranged weapons and speed to survive battle situations....
anime set in a wild West-style far-future Earth - Cowboy BebopCowboy Bebopis a critically acclaimed and award-winning 1998 Japanese anime series directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, written by Keiko Nobumoto, and produced by Sunrise. Its 26 episodes comprise a complete storyline: set in 2071, the series follows the adventures, misadventures and tragedies of five bounty...
- Galaxy Express 999Galaxy Express 999is a manga written and drawn by Leiji Matsumoto, as well as various anime films and TV series based on it. It is set in a space-faring, high-tech future in which humans have learned how to transfer their minds into mechanical bodies, thus achieving practical immortality.The manga won the...
- Gun FrontierGun Frontieris a 1972 manga by Leiji Matsumoto. It introduces Tochiro Oyama, best friend to Matsumoto's classic hero, Captain Harlock, who is in turn depicted as a gunslinger in the Old West. In sharp contrast to other Matsumoto's stories, Gun Frontier is a comedy adventure rather than a space opera.It is a...
- Gun X SwordGun X Sword, is a Japanese animated television series produced by AIC A.S.T.A. The series is directed by Gorō Taniguchi and written by Hideyuki Kurata.The story is set on the "Planet of Endless Illusion", a place where rogues of all sorts gather. The protagonist, Van, travels the world searching for a man...
- Outlaw StarOutlaw Staris a seinen manga series written and illustrated by Takehiko Itō and his affiliated Morning Star Studio. The series is a space opera/Space Western that takes place in the "Toward Stars Era" universe in which spacecraft are capable of traveling faster than the speed of light...
- Saber Rider and the Star SheriffsSaber Rider and the Star SheriffsSaber Rider and the Star Sheriffs is a 1987 animated space western following a similar theme as Galaxy Rangers and Bravestarr. Originally a 1984 anime series known as created by Studio Pierrot, it achieved moderate success in Japan...
- TrigunTrigunis a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yasuhiro Nightow, published from 1996 to 2008 and spanning 17 collected volumes....
- Wild ArmsWild Arms (anime)is a Japanese animated television series based on the Wild Arms series of video games. The series was animated by Bee Train, and directed by Itsuro Kawasaki and Kōichi Mashimo....
Film
- The American AstronautThe American AstronautThe American Astronaut is a 2001 space-western/musical, directed by and starring Cory McAbee. The film was released on DVD in Spring of 2005. The band Billy Nayer Show, helmed by McAbee, wrote and performed the film's soundtrack.- Plot Summary :...
- Battle Beyond the StarsBattle Beyond the StarsBattle Beyond the Stars is a Roger Corman-produced science fiction film, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and released in 1980. The film, intended as a "Magnificent Seven in outer space," is a pastiche of The Magnificent Seven, the Western remake of Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai...
, a pastichePasticheA pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
of The Magnificent SevenThe Magnificent SevenThe Magnificent Seven is an American Western film directed by John Sturges, and released in 1960. It is a fictional tale of a group of seven American gunmen who are hired to protect a small agricultural village in Mexico from a group of marauding Mexican bandits...
in space - Bravestarr: The Legend
- GalaxinaGalaxinaGalaxina is a low-budget 1980 American comedy/science fiction film, best remembered for its lead actress, Playboy Playmate of the Year for 1980 Dorothy Stratten, who was murdered shortly after the movie's release....
- Ghosts of MarsGhosts of MarsJohn Carpenter's Ghosts of Mars is a 2001 American science fiction action horror film composed, written, and directed by John Carpenter. The film stars Ice Cube, Natasha Henstridge, Jason Statham, Pam Grier, Clea DuVall, and Joanna Cassidy...
- Moon Zero TwoMoon Zero TwoMoon Zero Two is a science fiction film produced by Hammer Films and released in 1969. It was billed as a 'space western' and followed shortly after the release of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968...
- OblivionOblivion (film)Oblivion is a 1994 western science fiction dark comedy film by Full Moon Entertainment. Directed by Sam Irvin, the film stars Richard Joseph Paul, Andrew Divoff, George Takei, Julie Newmar, Musetta Vander, Isaac Hayes and Meg Foster....
- OutlandOutland (film)Outland is a 1981 British science fiction thriller film written and directed by Peter Hyams.Set on Jupiter's moon Io, it has been described as a space Western, and bears thematic resemblances to High Noon....
- SerenitySerenity (film)Serenity is a 2005 space western film written and directed by Joss Whedon. It is a continuation of the short-lived 2002 Fox science fiction television series Firefly, taking place after the events of the final episode. Set in 2518, Serenity is the story of the captain and crew of a cargo ship...
- The movie sequel of the Firefly series. - Star Trek V: The Final FrontierStar Trek V: The Final FrontierStar Trek V: The Final Frontier is a 1989 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fifth feature in the franchise and the penultimate to star the cast of the original Star Trek science fiction television series...
- the scenes on Nimbus III are heavily influenced by Westerns - Star WarsStar WarsStar Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
- Stingray SamStingray SamStingray Sam is a 2009 space-western/musical serial film, directed by and starring Cory McAbee. The film premiered on January 20, 2009 at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival as part of the New Frontier program...
Games
- Wing Commander: PrivateerWing Commander: PrivateerWing Commander: Privateer is an adventure space flight simulation computer game released by Origin Systems in 1993. Privateer and its storyline is part of the Wing Commander series...
- BorderlandsBorderlands (video game)Borderlands is a science fiction based first-person shooter with RPG elements that was developed by Gearbox Software for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It was first revealed in the September 2007 issue of Game Informer magazine...
- Gunman ChroniclesGunman ChroniclesGunman Chronicles or Half-Life: Gunman is a futuristic first-person shooter video game originally created as a mod by the now defunct Rewolf Software. Gunman Chronicles was originally a Quake deathmatch mod named Gunmanship 101, then it was moved to Quake II's engine before becoming a Half-Life mod...
- Mace Griffin Bounty Hunter
- PolicenautsPolicenautsis a cinematic adventure game with a hard science fiction storyline, written and directed by Hideo Kojima, and published by Konami. It was initially released for the PC-9821 computer platform in 1994, followed by remade versions for the 3DO in 1995, and the PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1996...
- StarCraftStarCraftStarCraft is a military science fiction real-time strategy video game developed by Blizzard Entertainment. The first game of the StarCraft series was released for Microsoft Windows on 31 March 1998. With more than 11 million copies sold worldwide as of February 2009, it is one of the best-selling...
- StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
- Wild ArmsWild Arms seriesThe series, also known by the title Wild ARMs, is a collection of role-playing video games and related media developed by Japanese software company Media.Vision. Since the launch of the original Wild Arms title in 1996, the series has gone on to encompass several media, including toys, manga,...
Television
- The Adventures of the Galaxy RangersThe Adventures of the Galaxy RangersThe Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers was an American animated Space Western television series created by Robert Mandell and Gaylord Entertainment Company....
- Syndicated 80s cartoon about interplanetary law enforcers with wild West aesthetics - BraveStarrBravestarrBraveStarr is an American space Western animated television series. The original episodes aired from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. It was created simultaneously with a collection of action figures. BraveStarr was the last animated series produced by Filmation and Group W...
- Syndicated 80s cartoon about high-tech action on a wild West-style colony planet - FireflyFirefly (TV series)Firefly is an American space western television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon, under his Mutant Enemy Productions label. Whedon served as executive producer, along with Tim Minear....
- A series set in the year 2517 where outlying settlements resemble the wild west. - SilverhawksSilverhawksSilverHawks is an American animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Japanese studio Pacific Animation Corporation. In total, 65 episodes were made...
- Animated science fiction series that included a guitar-playing cyborg cowboy named Bluegrass. - Space RangersSpace Rangers (television)Space Rangers is an American futuristic science fiction drama. The short lived series aired on CBS in 1993. The show was created by Pen Densham and Trilogy Entertainment Group.- Synopsis :...
- Short run series about maintaining law and order in the frontier of space in the year 2104 - Star TrekStar TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
- Originally pitched by Gene Roddenberry as a "wagon train to the stars" - OutcastsOutcasts (TV series)Outcasts is an eight-part 2011 British television science-fiction drama serial, starring Liam Cunningham, Hermione Norris, Amy Manson, Daniel Mays, Jamie Bamber, Eric Mabius and Ashley Walters. It originally aired on BBC One, and BBC HD.-Plot:...
- British serial set on the fictional frontier planet Carpathia
See also
- Cross-genreCross-genreA cross-genre is a genre in fiction that blends themes and elements from two or more different genres.-Examples:*Action comedy *Comedy-drama or dramedy *Comedy-horror...
- Space operaSpace operaSpace opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes romantic, often melodramatic adventure, set mainly or entirely in outer space, generally involving conflict between opponents possessing advanced technologies and abilities. The term has no relation to music and it is analogous to "soap...
- CyberpunkCyberpunkCyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
- SteampunkSteampunkSteampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United...
- Weird WestWeird WestWeird West is used to describe a combination of the Western with another literary genre, usually horror, occult, or fantasy.DC's Weird Western Tales appeared in the early 1970s and the weird Western was further popularized by Joe R...
- Science fiction WesternScience fiction WesternA science fiction Western is a work of fiction which has elements of science fiction in a Western setting. It is different from a Space Western, which is a frontier story indicative of American Westerns, except transposed to a backdrop of space exploration and settlement.A science fiction Western...
Further reading
- Abbott, Carl, Frontiers Past and Future: Science Fiction and the American West, University Press of KansasUniversity Press of KansasThe University Press of Kansas is a publisher that represents the six state universities in the US state of Kansas — Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University, Kansas State University, Pittsburg State University, the University of Kansas, and Wichita State University...
, 2006. - Katerberg, William H., Future West: Utopia and Apocalypse in Frontier Science Fiction, University Press of KansasUniversity Press of KansasThe University Press of Kansas is a publisher that represents the six state universities in the US state of Kansas — Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University, Kansas State University, Pittsburg State University, the University of Kansas, and Wichita State University...
, 2008. - Mogen, David, Wilderness Visions: The Western Theme in Science Fiction Literature, Borgo PressBorgo PressThe Borgo Press was a small publishing company founded by Robert Reginald in 1975 funded by the royalties gained from his first major reference work.The same year Borgo Press was founded, Robert Reginald met Mary Wickizer Rogers, a student at Cal State...
, 1993. - Westfahl, GaryGary WestfahlGary Westfahl is a scholarly author and reviewer of science fiction. He has written reviews for the Los Angeles Times, Internet Review of Science Fiction and Locus Online. He is a professor at the University of California in Riverside....
, Space and Beyond: The Frontier Theme in Science Fiction, Greenwood Press, 2000.