WEBVTT 00:00:01.379 --> 00:00:04.040 Imagine you are standing at the altar, like you're 00:00:04.040 --> 00:00:07.040 literally moments away from saying, I do. And 00:00:07.040 --> 00:00:10.320 then out of nowhere, a hyper -advanced alien 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:12.699 intellect just violently hijacks your brain. 00:00:12.699 --> 00:00:15.060 Oh, wow. Right. And it just tells you to stop. 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:18.300 Just like that. Just like that. Well, for Galactic 00:00:18.300 --> 00:00:20.920 Patrol hero Kimble Kinison, saving the universe 00:00:20.920 --> 00:00:23.399 meant literally putting his own wedding on hold. 00:00:23.960 --> 00:00:26.420 So welcome to this deep dive. Custom Taylor, 00:00:26.500 --> 00:00:29.309 just for you. Glad to be here. Today we are looking 00:00:29.309 --> 00:00:32.590 at E. E. Smith's 1953 classic science fiction 00:00:32.590 --> 00:00:36.020 novel, Second Stage Lensmen. We're really going 00:00:36.020 --> 00:00:38.420 to figure out how this abruptly interrupted wedding 00:00:38.420 --> 00:00:41.380 sparked the blueprint for, well, the modern sci 00:00:41.380 --> 00:00:43.960 -fi arms race. Yeah, and we really need to contextualize 00:00:43.960 --> 00:00:45.719 exactly what kind of story we are jumping into 00:00:45.719 --> 00:00:47.219 today because, you know, the publication history 00:00:47.219 --> 00:00:49.299 of this book tells a parallel story of its own. 00:00:49.359 --> 00:00:51.759 Oh, for sure. It was originally serialized in 00:00:51.759 --> 00:00:54.619 an astounding magazine back in 1941. And if you 00:00:54.619 --> 00:00:57.359 think about that year, that is right as the real 00:00:57.359 --> 00:01:00.259 world was plunging into a massive global conflict. 00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:03.310 World War II is just roaring. Exactly. But it 00:01:03.310 --> 00:01:05.689 wasn't actually published as a complete hardcover 00:01:05.689 --> 00:01:08.409 book until 1953. By Fantasy Press, right? Yep, 00:01:08.609 --> 00:01:10.730 Fantasy Press. And I love this detail from the 00:01:10.730 --> 00:01:13.909 source material that first edition had a very 00:01:13.909 --> 00:01:18.769 specific print run of exactly 4 ,934 copies. 00:01:18.969 --> 00:01:22.209 4 ,934. I know, right? It's such a strangely 00:01:22.209 --> 00:01:24.370 precise number, like you really have to wonder 00:01:24.370 --> 00:01:29.010 who managed to snag copy number 4 ,934. Probably 00:01:29.010 --> 00:01:31.909 someone very lucky. Totally. But before we get 00:01:31.909 --> 00:01:33.769 into the weeds here, let's do a quick foundational 00:01:33.769 --> 00:01:36.170 breakdown for anyone who hasn't lived and breathed 00:01:36.170 --> 00:01:38.510 golden age pulp sci -fi. Good idea. Because E. 00:01:38.609 --> 00:01:40.689 Smith just throws a lot of massive concepts at 00:01:40.689 --> 00:01:44.670 you. So what even is a lensman? That is the perfect 00:01:44.670 --> 00:01:47.510 place to start. So in this universe, a lens is 00:01:47.510 --> 00:01:50.689 essentially. a telepathic badge of office. Like 00:01:50.689 --> 00:01:52.849 a literal badge. Well, a physical device, yeah. 00:01:53.150 --> 00:01:55.769 It's granted by this hyper -advanced alien race 00:01:55.769 --> 00:01:58.129 known as the Eryzians, and they only give it 00:01:58.129 --> 00:02:00.189 to the absolute best of the best in the Galactic 00:02:00.189 --> 00:02:02.650 Patrol. Okay, got it. And it grants immense telepathic 00:02:02.650 --> 00:02:04.890 powers, plus it acts as a universal translator. 00:02:05.010 --> 00:02:08.110 Very handy. It's extremely. The Patrol is basically 00:02:08.110 --> 00:02:11.069 this ultimate interstellar police force, and 00:02:11.069 --> 00:02:14.310 they are locked in a relentless multi -galactic 00:02:14.310 --> 00:02:17.270 war against Boscon. Boscon, that's the bad guys. 00:02:17.289 --> 00:02:22.060 Right. is this sprawling mafia -like evil empire. 00:02:22.869 --> 00:02:25.909 And this specific book, Second Stage Lensmen, 00:02:26.050 --> 00:02:28.750 is the fifth volume in the series. Number five. 00:02:29.129 --> 00:02:31.469 Yeah. And it's the final one to feature Kimball 00:02:31.469 --> 00:02:34.289 Kinnison as the single most powerful active lensman 00:02:34.289 --> 00:02:36.669 in the galaxy. OK. Let's unpack this. Right. 00:02:36.889 --> 00:02:38.650 Because the way the conflict kicks off here really 00:02:38.650 --> 00:02:41.789 sets the tone for the entire genre. We've got 00:02:41.789 --> 00:02:44.729 our heroes, Kinnison and Clarissa McDougal. They're 00:02:44.729 --> 00:02:46.509 literally heading off to get ready for their 00:02:46.509 --> 00:02:49.189 impending marriage. Mentor of Aurigia the alien. 00:02:49.360 --> 00:02:52.159 who issues the lenses, he commands Kinnison to 00:02:52.159 --> 00:02:54.659 think before he acts. This forces him to pause. 00:02:54.819 --> 00:02:57.860 Yeah. And why? Because Kinnison suddenly deduces 00:02:57.860 --> 00:02:59.800 that their massive victory in the previous book 00:02:59.800 --> 00:03:02.000 wasn't actually final. Right. Because at the 00:03:02.000 --> 00:03:03.979 end of the previous installment, the Bosconian 00:03:03.979 --> 00:03:06.919 home planet Jarnivan was literally crushed between 00:03:06.919 --> 00:03:09.819 two other planets. A planetary vice script. Exactly. 00:03:10.020 --> 00:03:12.180 You would assume that ends the war. I mean, their 00:03:12.180 --> 00:03:14.319 planet is gone. Right. You'd think that's game 00:03:14.319 --> 00:03:17.509 over. But Mentor's prompting makes Kinnison realize 00:03:17.509 --> 00:03:20.949 the overarching Busconian command structure survived 00:03:20.949 --> 00:03:23.490 that cosmic collision. They are still out there, 00:03:23.569 --> 00:03:26.629 and they are actively preparing this overwhelming 00:03:26.629 --> 00:03:29.250 assault on Earth. And the way E .E. Smith handles 00:03:29.250 --> 00:03:32.569 this impending assault is, well, it's basically 00:03:32.569 --> 00:03:34.610 the sci -fi equivalent of the modern tech industry. 00:03:34.830 --> 00:03:37.780 How so? You know how last year's cutting edge, 00:03:37.900 --> 00:03:40.439 thousand dollar smartphone, is suddenly this 00:03:40.439 --> 00:03:43.259 year's clunky, obsolete base model. Oh, absolutely. 00:03:43.460 --> 00:03:47.080 In the Lensman universe, that planned obsolescence 00:03:47.080 --> 00:03:49.919 is applied to weapons of mass destruction. That's 00:03:49.919 --> 00:03:51.620 a great way to put it. Whatever the ultimate, 00:03:51.900 --> 00:03:54.060 unbeatable, world ending super weapon was in 00:03:54.060 --> 00:03:56.419 the last book, that just becomes the standard 00:03:56.419 --> 00:03:58.740 opening salvo technology in the next one. It 00:03:58.740 --> 00:04:01.960 creates a brilliant narrative engine of escalation. 00:04:02.199 --> 00:04:04.740 The lensmen have to anticipate what Earth will 00:04:04.740 --> 00:04:07.560 be hit with next, knowing the enemy has upgraded. 00:04:07.780 --> 00:04:11.020 Because they always upgrade. Always. The text 00:04:11.020 --> 00:04:14.120 notes, they predict an attack using either a 00:04:14.120 --> 00:04:16.300 negosphere, which is this sphere of negative 00:04:16.300 --> 00:04:19.240 energy that fundamentally consumes and annihilates 00:04:19.240 --> 00:04:21.360 absolutely anything it touches, or something 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:23.920 called a nutcracker. Which, just to be clear 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:26.060 for everyone listening, does not mean a little 00:04:26.060 --> 00:04:27.920 wooden soldier you put on your mantle at the 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:32.220 holidays. Far from it. A nutcracker in E .E. 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:35.180 Smith's vocabulary means taking two high -velocity 00:04:35.180 --> 00:04:38.300 planets, weaponizing their orbits, and smashing 00:04:38.300 --> 00:04:40.879 them together with your target caught squarely 00:04:40.879 --> 00:04:44.029 in the middle. It's insane. The sheer scale of 00:04:44.029 --> 00:04:46.750 that aggression is staggering. It's basically 00:04:46.750 --> 00:04:48.949 planetary billiards played for keeps. Wait, I 00:04:48.949 --> 00:04:50.889 need to stop you there. Because the Galactic 00:04:50.889 --> 00:04:53.089 Patrol's countermeasure to flying planets is 00:04:53.089 --> 00:04:55.649 a weapon called the sunbeam. Yes, the sunbeam. 00:04:55.689 --> 00:04:58.290 They literally convert the entire energy output 00:04:58.290 --> 00:05:01.329 of the sun into a single concentrated beam of 00:05:01.329 --> 00:05:03.230 energy. That's right. And when the Bosconian 00:05:03.230 --> 00:05:06.870 fleet shows up, the patrol uses a star as a laser 00:05:06.870 --> 00:05:09.870 pointer of death and just vaporizes them. It's 00:05:09.870 --> 00:05:12.660 incredibly effective. But, like, If you have 00:05:12.660 --> 00:05:14.819 the technology to harness a star and fire it 00:05:14.819 --> 00:05:17.560 like a sniper rifle, why do you even need ground 00:05:17.560 --> 00:05:20.019 troops or spies anymore? It feels like they skipped 00:05:20.019 --> 00:05:22.139 a few steps on the technology tray. Well, that 00:05:22.139 --> 00:05:24.819 is exactly the thematic pivot of the entire book. 00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:27.480 Really? Yeah. You've hit on the ceiling of physical 00:05:27.480 --> 00:05:31.319 warfare. The sunbeam proves that physical weapons 00:05:31.319 --> 00:05:33.939 of mass destruction have peaked. Because what's 00:05:33.939 --> 00:05:37.290 bigger than a sun? Precisely. You cannot practically 00:05:37.290 --> 00:05:41.170 escalate past we shoot the sun at you. So the 00:05:41.170 --> 00:05:43.689 arms race has to evolve. It has to move inward 00:05:43.689 --> 00:05:47.329 into the mind. Furthermore, there's been a massive 00:05:47.329 --> 00:05:49.529 defensive escalation alongside the offensive 00:05:49.529 --> 00:05:52.709 one. Everyone in the galaxy now utilizes thought 00:05:52.709 --> 00:05:55.009 screens. Thought screens. Yeah, which were developed 00:05:55.009 --> 00:05:57.769 by an allied race called the Volantians. Meaning 00:05:57.769 --> 00:06:01.149 you can't just casually read an enemy commander's 00:06:01.149 --> 00:06:03.889 mind anymore to get their secrets. Right. The 00:06:03.889 --> 00:06:05.949 easy intelligence gathering is totally blocked. 00:06:06.569 --> 00:06:09.430 Precisely. Brute force is blocked by the sunbeam. 00:06:09.730 --> 00:06:11.810 Basic telepathy is blocked by thought screens. 00:06:12.250 --> 00:06:14.149 So the Galactic Patrol has to change tactics 00:06:14.149 --> 00:06:17.790 entirely. Makes sense. The second stage. Lensmen, 00:06:18.069 --> 00:06:20.910 this incredibly elite group consisting of Kinnison, 00:06:21.110 --> 00:06:23.269 the alien war soul, Tree Gun C, and Nadrick, 00:06:23.709 --> 00:06:26.189 they must rely on their advanced Eryzian training. 00:06:26.709 --> 00:06:29.269 They possess an ability called the sense of perception. 00:06:29.529 --> 00:06:31.689 And how does that actually work? Because the 00:06:31.689 --> 00:06:33.990 source material describes it as being able to 00:06:33.990 --> 00:06:37.689 see, hear, and feel without using physical senses. 00:06:38.629 --> 00:06:40.759 But like... What does that look like in practice? 00:06:41.100 --> 00:06:42.920 Think of the Eryzian sense of perception not 00:06:42.920 --> 00:06:45.420 as having invisible eyes, but like a localized 00:06:45.420 --> 00:06:47.720 omniscience. Okay. Kinnison isn't just looking 00:06:47.720 --> 00:06:51.040 at a room. His mind is simultaneously occupying 00:06:51.040 --> 00:06:53.639 every cubic inch of space in that room. Wow. 00:06:53.939 --> 00:06:56.540 He is processing the internal atomic structure 00:06:56.540 --> 00:06:59.279 of a locked safe just as easily as he processes 00:06:59.279 --> 00:07:01.540 the air around it. That is wild. It really is. 00:07:01.660 --> 00:07:03.899 And this cognitive lead completely pivots the 00:07:03.899 --> 00:07:06.180 war from giant fleets shooting sun beams at each 00:07:06.180 --> 00:07:09.550 other into a war of deep, covert mental - espionage. 00:07:09.709 --> 00:07:12.189 Which perfectly transitions into Kinnison's solo 00:07:12.189 --> 00:07:14.389 undercover mission. Yeah. Because of this new 00:07:14.389 --> 00:07:17.029 espionage focus, he investigates a planet called 00:07:17.029 --> 00:07:21.009 Lyraean II. Yes, Lyraean II. And this place is 00:07:21.009 --> 00:07:23.850 intense. It's ruled by a matriarchy of women 00:07:23.850 --> 00:07:26.889 who possess incredibly advanced mental abilities. 00:07:27.430 --> 00:07:30.449 But bizarrely, the source notes, they have absolutely 00:07:30.449 --> 00:07:34.269 zero art, literature, music, or any cultural 00:07:34.269 --> 00:07:37.430 assets. Not at all. Just pure functional telepathic 00:07:37.430 --> 00:07:40.649 aggression. It is a stark, strictly utilitarian 00:07:40.649 --> 00:07:44.589 society. The moment Kinnison lands, the Loranian 00:07:44.589 --> 00:07:47.089 who meets him immediately tries to mentally kill 00:07:47.089 --> 00:07:49.149 him. Just right off the bat. Right off the bat. 00:07:49.230 --> 00:07:51.449 In fact, every single Loranian he encounters 00:07:51.449 --> 00:07:54.189 tries to end his life telepathically. And Kinnison 00:07:54.189 --> 00:07:57.290 just brushes it off. Like, how is he not instantly 00:07:57.290 --> 00:07:59.509 fried? Because of that second stage training, 00:07:59.949 --> 00:08:02.310 his mental shields are so hardened that their 00:08:02.310 --> 00:08:04.490 telepathic daggers basically shatter against 00:08:04.490 --> 00:08:06.829 his mind. He just tanks it. He completely ignores 00:08:06.829 --> 00:08:09.230 their mental barrage and demands they hand over 00:08:09.230 --> 00:08:11.370 a zwilnik. I love that piece of serious slang. 00:08:11.889 --> 00:08:14.689 A zwilnik is a Bosconian drug dealer. Yes. So 00:08:14.689 --> 00:08:17.050 the matriarchs refuse to cooperate with Kinnison, 00:08:17.350 --> 00:08:19.509 but they quickly realize their mental attacks 00:08:19.509 --> 00:08:21.209 are useless against him, so they just let him 00:08:21.209 --> 00:08:23.750 leave of her. But here is the critical vulnerability 00:08:23.750 --> 00:08:26.930 of their isolated society. As soon as Kinnison 00:08:26.930 --> 00:08:30.829 leaves, Lairain II is attacked by Bosconian pirates. 00:08:30.850 --> 00:08:33.350 Of course they are. Now these pirates are equipped 00:08:33.350 --> 00:08:35.509 with those Volantian thought screens we discussed 00:08:35.509 --> 00:08:38.750 earlier, plus advanced physical weapons. Which 00:08:38.750 --> 00:08:41.710 is a bad combo for the Matriarchs. Exactly. The 00:08:41.710 --> 00:08:44.529 Matriarchs' incredible mental powers cannot penetrate 00:08:44.529 --> 00:08:47.070 the screens. They are totally helpless. Oh man. 00:08:47.110 --> 00:08:49.190 They actually have to swallow their pride and 00:08:49.190 --> 00:08:51.539 call Kinnison and the patrol to come come back 00:08:51.539 --> 00:08:53.779 and save them. OK, I have to push back on the 00:08:53.779 --> 00:08:56.980 underlying plot mechanics here, because it feels 00:08:56.980 --> 00:08:59.720 incredibly contrived. Let's hear it. So Kinnison 00:08:59.720 --> 00:09:02.600 figures out that Lyraene II is connected to the 00:09:02.600 --> 00:09:06.799 Bosco network. But he deduces that no male could 00:09:06.799 --> 00:09:09.379 survive this aggressively anti -male culture 00:09:09.379 --> 00:09:12.080 for more than a minute without exhausting themselves 00:09:12.080 --> 00:09:15.019 defending against constant mental attacks. Right. 00:09:15.019 --> 00:09:17.820 That's his logic. So he decides only a female 00:09:17.820 --> 00:09:20.539 operative could possibly infiltrate them. But 00:09:20.539 --> 00:09:23.340 up to this point, there are zero female lensmen 00:09:23.340 --> 00:09:26.460 in the entire universe. Does it really take the 00:09:26.460 --> 00:09:29.860 invention of an entire planet of cultureless, 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:33.220 hyper -aggressive matriarchs just to justify 00:09:33.220 --> 00:09:35.720 the necessity of finally recruiting a woman? 00:09:35.879 --> 00:09:38.220 What's fascinating here is viewing this through 00:09:38.220 --> 00:09:40.840 the lens of 1950s publishing. Honestly, it's 00:09:40.840 --> 00:09:43.840 a very pulp sci -fi way to solve a problem. Yeah, 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:46.460 that makes sense. E. Smith had built this universe 00:09:46.460 --> 00:09:50.129 as an ultimate boys club. To break his own established 00:09:50.129 --> 00:09:53.309 rule and introduce a female lensman, he clearly 00:09:53.309 --> 00:09:55.990 felt he had to engineer a literal biological 00:09:55.990 --> 00:09:58.470 lock that only a woman could pick. Wow. Is it 00:09:58.470 --> 00:10:01.169 contrived? Absolutely. But historically, this 00:10:01.169 --> 00:10:04.029 was a massive crack in the glass ceiling of Golden 00:10:04.029 --> 00:10:06.950 Age space operas. The institution of the lensman 00:10:06.950 --> 00:10:09.909 has to adapt or fail, and that adaptation is 00:10:09.909 --> 00:10:12.169 Clarissa MacDougall. Civilization's very first 00:10:12.169 --> 00:10:14.690 female lensman. Exactly. But it's not a simple 00:10:14.690 --> 00:10:17.370 process. Clarissa flatly refuses to have any 00:10:17.370 --> 00:10:20.269 contact with Mentor Averizia, the alien who normally 00:10:20.269 --> 00:10:22.470 grants the lens. She just says no. Yeah. Because 00:10:22.470 --> 00:10:24.909 she refuses, Kinnison himself has to step up 00:10:24.909 --> 00:10:27.350 and give her the intensive mental training required 00:10:27.350 --> 00:10:29.370 to make her almost a full second stage lensman. 00:10:29.669 --> 00:10:32.950 So he trains her himself. Yep. Mentor simply 00:10:32.950 --> 00:10:34.809 delivers the physical lens once she's ready, 00:10:35.110 --> 00:10:37.950 and she immediately deploys to Lorraine II to 00:10:37.950 --> 00:10:40.889 uncover the Boscon connection. So Clarissa is 00:10:40.889 --> 00:10:43.460 off handling the hostile matriarchy. And with 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:46.620 her taking point on Lorraine II, Kinnison and 00:10:46.620 --> 00:10:49.480 his alien counterpart, Nadric, are completely 00:10:49.480 --> 00:10:52.940 freed up to trace the main Bosconian threat straight 00:10:52.940 --> 00:10:55.659 into the second galaxy. Right. This is a beautifully 00:10:55.659 --> 00:10:59.100 coordinated, dual -pronged infiltration. On one 00:10:59.100 --> 00:11:01.500 hand, you have Port Admiral Haynes mobilizing 00:11:01.500 --> 00:11:03.840 the entire grand fleet of the Galactic Patrol 00:11:03.840 --> 00:11:07.620 to launch a massive, overwhelming invasion of 00:11:07.620 --> 00:11:09.960 the enemy's home galaxy. A huge invasion. But 00:11:09.960 --> 00:11:12.210 it's practically a slight at hand. The Bosconians 00:11:12.210 --> 00:11:14.809 are so distracted by this massive force knocking 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:17.090 on their front door that they ignore a vital 00:11:17.090 --> 00:11:19.190 communications line leading to the thrallus system 00:11:19.190 --> 00:11:21.389 in the second galaxy. And this is where we really 00:11:21.389 --> 00:11:23.429 see the different methodologies of the second 00:11:23.429 --> 00:11:26.610 stage lensman. Nadric heads to the frigid world 00:11:26.610 --> 00:11:29.750 of Onlo. He does. And he operates completely 00:11:29.750 --> 00:11:31.990 in the shadows. He doesn't fire a single physical 00:11:31.990 --> 00:11:34.789 shot. Instead, he just quietly, carefully foments 00:11:34.789 --> 00:11:36.870 discord by subtly tampering with the minds of 00:11:36.870 --> 00:11:40.100 the Onlonians. Just subtle pushes. Right. Literally 00:11:40.100 --> 00:11:43.200 turning the enemy against itself from the inside 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:46.480 out through psychological sabotage. Natric proves 00:11:46.480 --> 00:11:49.080 you don't need to be loud to be utterly devastating. 00:11:49.639 --> 00:11:51.700 But Kinnison's approach to the core world of 00:11:51.700 --> 00:11:55.080 Thrale is the complete opposite. Thrale is inhabited 00:11:55.080 --> 00:11:58.360 by a near -human race that serves as the muscular 00:11:58.360 --> 00:12:01.059 core of the Bascon empire. The heavy hitters. 00:12:01.210 --> 00:12:04.909 Exactly. Kinesen goes in disguise. It is basically 00:12:04.909 --> 00:12:07.389 the most lethal version of Undercover Boss you 00:12:07.389 --> 00:12:09.830 can imagine. That's a great comparison. Instead 00:12:09.830 --> 00:12:11.929 of putting on a fake mustache and handing out 00:12:11.929 --> 00:12:14.549 gift cards, Kinesen infiltrates the personal 00:12:14.549 --> 00:12:16.889 guards of the Tyrant of Thrale. And he succeeds 00:12:16.889 --> 00:12:20.009 by playing entirely by their rules. Advancement 00:12:20.009 --> 00:12:22.830 within the Bosconian hierarchy is a pure Darwinian 00:12:22.830 --> 00:12:24.929 nightmare. Survival of the fittest. Totally. 00:12:25.370 --> 00:12:28.129 Promotions are entirely based on deceit, betrayal, 00:12:28.190 --> 00:12:30.929 and assassination. But Kinesen... armed with 00:12:30.929 --> 00:12:32.830 the intelligence and sense of perception of a 00:12:32.830 --> 00:12:35.590 second stage lensman is vastly superior at this 00:12:35.590 --> 00:12:37.990 game. He just beats them at their own game. He 00:12:37.990 --> 00:12:40.389 simply out deceives the deceivers. He literally 00:12:40.389 --> 00:12:42.409 assassinates the tyrant and just takes his place. 00:12:42.830 --> 00:12:45.450 He becomes the new boss. He does. But and I love 00:12:45.450 --> 00:12:47.909 this twist he sits on the throne only to realize 00:12:47.909 --> 00:12:51.370 he's a figurehead. The real power, the actual 00:12:51.370 --> 00:12:54.090 puppet master of this entire hostile civilization 00:12:54.090 --> 00:12:58.409 is the prime minister. a being named Faustin. 00:12:58.570 --> 00:13:01.730 Which puts Kinnison in an incredibly precarious 00:13:01.730 --> 00:13:04.970 position. Faustin is mentally super powerful. 00:13:05.049 --> 00:13:07.490 So Kinnison has to hide. Exactly. To keep his 00:13:07.490 --> 00:13:09.669 cover from being blown, Kinnison has to play 00:13:09.669 --> 00:13:11.730 the part of the tyrant with absolute perfection. 00:13:12.129 --> 00:13:14.789 He can't show a single sliver of hesitation. 00:13:15.110 --> 00:13:17.509 Right. Any hesitation. and he's dead. This means 00:13:17.509 --> 00:13:20.450 he has to actively execute the former tyrant's 00:13:20.450 --> 00:13:22.970 ongoing military plans, which involves building 00:13:22.970 --> 00:13:26.230 a massive, unstoppable fleet of warships designed 00:13:26.230 --> 00:13:29.049 to attack Clovia. And Clovia is the Galactic 00:13:29.049 --> 00:13:31.129 Patrol's most heavily fortified planet in the 00:13:31.129 --> 00:13:33.870 second galaxy. He has to actually build the weapons 00:13:33.870 --> 00:13:35.690 that are meant to destroy his own people just 00:13:35.690 --> 00:13:37.990 to maintain his disguise. It's the ultimate tightrope 00:13:37.990 --> 00:13:40.330 walk. But Kinnison is always one step ahead. 00:13:40.350 --> 00:13:42.850 As he's ordering the construction of this doom 00:13:42.850 --> 00:13:45.789 fleet, he is secretly using his lens to keep 00:13:45.639 --> 00:13:48.659 the patrol completely updated. Feeding them everything. 00:13:48.980 --> 00:13:51.320 Right. He's given them the blueprints, the deployment 00:13:51.320 --> 00:13:53.320 schedules, the hyperspace routes, everything. 00:13:53.419 --> 00:13:55.700 It's the perfect trap. The Busconians think they 00:13:55.700 --> 00:13:57.700 are launching a surprise decapitation strike 00:13:57.700 --> 00:14:00.899 against Clovia. But they really are. Not at all. 00:14:01.240 --> 00:14:04.379 Because the patrol wiped out the previous Busconian 00:14:04.379 --> 00:14:07.379 fleet with the sunbeam and left absolutely no 00:14:07.379 --> 00:14:09.639 survivors to report back on the weapon's existence, 00:14:10.240 --> 00:14:13.500 the tyrant's new fleet is flying completely blind. 00:14:13.580 --> 00:14:15.960 They sail straight into the meat grinder. The 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:18.080 Grand Fleet and the Sunbeam are waiting and the 00:14:18.080 --> 00:14:21.059 Voskonian Armada is just totally obliterated. 00:14:21.159 --> 00:14:23.960 Wiped out. But Kinnison intentionally disables 00:14:23.960 --> 00:14:26.600 the drive on his own command ship so it drops 00:14:26.600 --> 00:14:29.019 out of the fleet formation just before the battle 00:14:29.019 --> 00:14:32.559 starts. Meaning he is now trapped on a dead ship 00:14:32.559 --> 00:14:35.240 completely alone with the super powerful Prime 00:14:35.240 --> 00:14:38.279 Minister, Faustin. The stage is set for the climax. 00:14:38.519 --> 00:14:40.519 Okay, here's where it gets really interesting. 00:14:41.159 --> 00:14:43.759 Kinnison and Faustin face off. It is a battle 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:47.120 royal. but not with fists or blasters. Purely 00:14:47.120 --> 00:14:49.440 mental. Fought entirely with mental weapons. 00:14:50.340 --> 00:14:52.360 And we aren't just talking about intense mind 00:14:52.360 --> 00:14:54.799 reading here. Their minds are clashing with such 00:14:54.799 --> 00:14:57.919 unbelievable kinetic force that the spent energy, 00:14:58.120 --> 00:15:00.179 just the physical ricochets bouncing off their 00:15:00.179 --> 00:15:03.019 mental shields is so intense that it literally 00:15:03.019 --> 00:15:05.820 destroys the minds of every single crew member 00:15:05.820 --> 00:15:07.909 trapped on the ship with them. The collateral 00:15:07.909 --> 00:15:10.809 damage of their telepathic warfare is horrifying. 00:15:10.850 --> 00:15:13.710 It's just brutal. It really emphasizes the sheer 00:15:13.710 --> 00:15:16.830 godlike scale of power these second stage lensmen 00:15:16.830 --> 00:15:19.190 are wielding. The crew members aren't even targeted. 00:15:19.470 --> 00:15:21.669 Their brains are just short circuited by being 00:15:21.669 --> 00:15:24.409 in the proximity of that much psychic kinetic 00:15:24.409 --> 00:15:27.409 energy. Kinnison finally manages to batter down 00:15:27.409 --> 00:15:30.230 Faustin's mental shield. And when he breaks through, 00:15:30.529 --> 00:15:33.090 the physical humanoid form of Faustin drops away. 00:15:33.309 --> 00:15:35.909 Mask comes off. Exactly. What Kinnison sees sitting 00:15:35.909 --> 00:15:38.429 there is basically just a giant brain. And it 00:15:38.429 --> 00:15:40.570 looks exactly like the brother of Mentor of Orishin. 00:15:40.649 --> 00:15:42.750 Which is quite a shock. Kinnison is reeling. 00:15:43.029 --> 00:15:45.309 He immediately sends a lensed thought across 00:15:45.309 --> 00:15:47.850 the galaxy to Mentor, demanding to know what 00:15:47.850 --> 00:15:50.769 an Orishin is doing leading the evil Buscon Empire. 00:15:50.990 --> 00:15:54.090 It's a very fair question. I mean, if your ultimate 00:15:54.090 --> 00:15:56.370 boss's brother is running the enemy syndicate, 00:15:56.490 --> 00:15:59.529 you want answers. Definitely. And Mentor provides 00:15:59.529 --> 00:16:02.690 an explanation. An explanation that completely 00:16:02.690 --> 00:16:05.950 satisfies Kinnison, putting his doubts entirely 00:16:05.950 --> 00:16:09.230 to rest. But, and this absolutely blew my mind 00:16:09.230 --> 00:16:12.350 reading the source text, Mentor's explanation 00:16:12.350 --> 00:16:16.570 was a complete 100 % lie. A total fabrication. 00:16:16.970 --> 00:16:19.309 Kinnison did not just fight a rogue Erysian. 00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:22.580 He actually just fought, defeated, and destroyed 00:16:22.580 --> 00:16:26.070 a being named Garlane of Eddor. Yep. This entity 00:16:26.070 --> 00:16:28.830 was an immortal being historically responsible 00:16:28.830 --> 00:16:31.350 for most of the death and misery in Earth's history. 00:16:31.549 --> 00:16:34.090 Like, he was the Roman Emperor Nero. He was the 00:16:34.090 --> 00:16:36.330 villain Grey Roger. If we connect this to the 00:16:36.330 --> 00:16:38.950 bigger picture, this is a profound moment of 00:16:38.950 --> 00:16:41.669 paternalistic deception by the supposedly benevolent 00:16:41.669 --> 00:16:43.250 Erisians. Yeah, that's a good way to phrase it. 00:16:43.590 --> 00:16:45.750 Mentor literally casts a mental illusion into 00:16:45.750 --> 00:16:48.330 Kinnison's mind, making him see an Erisian brain 00:16:48.330 --> 00:16:51.029 instead of Garland's true, horrifying Adorian 00:16:51.029 --> 00:16:54.450 form. He just fakes it. He does. Mentor justifies 00:16:54.450 --> 00:16:56.789 - this gaslighting by deciding that the time 00:16:56.789 --> 00:16:59.970 has not yet come for anyone in civilization to 00:16:59.970 --> 00:17:02.429 see what the ultimate leaders of Buscon actually 00:17:02.429 --> 00:17:05.410 look like. But why? Like why go through the trouble 00:17:05.410 --> 00:17:08.369 of casting an illusion after Kinnison just won 00:17:08.369 --> 00:17:11.789 the fight? Because Mentor believes that the sheer 00:17:11.789 --> 00:17:14.890 incomprehensible alien malice of an Adorian's 00:17:14.890 --> 00:17:17.589 true form would literally break a human mind. 00:17:17.609 --> 00:17:20.869 Oh, wow. Even a mind as strong as Kineson's. 00:17:21.089 --> 00:17:23.269 Mentor operates on the premise that humanity 00:17:23.269 --> 00:17:25.829 simply isn't ready for the unvarnished truth 00:17:25.829 --> 00:17:27.829 of the universe. That's pretty arrogant. It's 00:17:27.829 --> 00:17:30.589 remarkably similar to modern debates over classified 00:17:30.589 --> 00:17:33.289 intelligence. Think about governments hiding 00:17:33.289 --> 00:17:36.329 UFO data or wartime secrets because they believe 00:17:36.329 --> 00:17:39.160 the public would panic. Mentor is doing that, 00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:42.339 but telepathically to his top general. It's gaslighting 00:17:42.339 --> 00:17:45.039 on a galactic scale. They let him fight the ultimate 00:17:45.039 --> 00:17:47.019 evil, but they won't let him see it. It truly 00:17:47.019 --> 00:17:50.000 is. But practically speaking, the patrol wins 00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:52.700 the immediate conflict. Kinnison and his agents 00:17:52.700 --> 00:17:54.880 bring the warm -blooded world of Thrale into 00:17:54.880 --> 00:17:57.539 civilization. Meanwhile, Nadric successfully 00:17:57.539 --> 00:18:00.119 assimilates the frigid world faction on Onlo. 00:18:01.360 --> 00:18:03.460 Civilization and the Galactic Patrol are now 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:05.660 the undisputed controllers of both the first 00:18:05.660 --> 00:18:08.359 and second galaxies. And the personal objectives 00:18:08.359 --> 00:18:10.420 are met too. That wedding we talked about at 00:18:10.420 --> 00:18:12.559 the very beginning, it finally happens. Who's 00:18:12.559 --> 00:18:15.829 last? Kinnison is promoted to Galactic Coordinator 00:18:15.829 --> 00:18:18.549 of the Second Galaxy, and he and Clarissa McDougal 00:18:18.549 --> 00:18:21.190 finally tie the knot. A happy ending, at least 00:18:21.190 --> 00:18:24.289 on the surface. But when this book hit the shelves 00:18:24.289 --> 00:18:27.549 in 1953, the critical reception was incredibly 00:18:27.549 --> 00:18:29.809 polarizing. Really? People didn't love it. Well, 00:18:29.869 --> 00:18:32.250 Groff Conklin reviewing it that year called Smith's 00:18:32.250 --> 00:18:34.410 writing, pretty dull going for people who want 00:18:34.410 --> 00:18:36.980 a bit more than thud and blunder. He clearly 00:18:36.980 --> 00:18:39.279 wasn't impressed by the planetary nutcrackers. 00:18:39.319 --> 00:18:43.000 Sudden blunder. Ouch. That is a brutal 1950s 00:18:43.000 --> 00:18:45.480 burn. But then you has P. Skyler Miller, who 00:18:45.480 --> 00:18:47.500 completely embraced what the book was trying 00:18:47.500 --> 00:18:50.980 to be. He called it space opera to the nth degree 00:18:50.980 --> 00:18:53.740 and accurately predicted that you either like 00:18:53.740 --> 00:18:55.900 it a lot, even if you probably won't believe 00:18:55.900 --> 00:18:57.859 a word of it or you simply can't stand it at 00:18:57.859 --> 00:18:59.500 all. It's a love it or hate it kind of thing. 00:18:59.880 --> 00:19:02.220 Exactly. It's unapologetic in its scale and its 00:19:02.220 --> 00:19:04.660 ambition. So what does this all mean for us today? 00:19:05.099 --> 00:19:07.559 When you look at Second Stage Lensman, you are 00:19:07.559 --> 00:19:10.099 looking at the fossil record of modern science 00:19:10.099 --> 00:19:12.759 fiction. Absolutely. You can see the genre actively 00:19:12.759 --> 00:19:16.400 evolving right there on the page. We moved from 00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:19.759 simple physical destruction, you know, smashing 00:19:19.759 --> 00:19:23.420 planets together like toys, into complex mental 00:19:23.420 --> 00:19:26.420 espionage. A huge leap. We explored the logical 00:19:26.420 --> 00:19:29.119 ceiling. of an arms race. And most importantly, 00:19:29.299 --> 00:19:32.079 we saw the introduction of the very first female 00:19:32.079 --> 00:19:36.400 lensman, which was a critical, if clunkily executed, 00:19:36.779 --> 00:19:38.720 step forward for the universe Smith created. 00:19:39.140 --> 00:19:41.980 It laid the groundwork for so much of the sprawling 00:19:41.980 --> 00:19:44.900 complex media we consume today. But this raises 00:19:44.900 --> 00:19:46.740 an important question for you, the listener, 00:19:47.180 --> 00:19:49.759 to mull over as we close. Let's hear it. We live 00:19:49.759 --> 00:19:52.339 in an era of constant information flow, where 00:19:52.339 --> 00:19:54.859 narratives are shaped by algorithms, media outlets, 00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:57.680 and leaders. What are the implications of relying 00:19:57.680 --> 00:20:00.519 on a mentor who fundamentally believes that manipulating 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:02.619 your perception of reality is for your own good? 00:20:02.740 --> 00:20:04.799 Oh, that's a chilling thought. If your ultimate 00:20:04.799 --> 00:20:07.579 victory, your very understanding of the world, 00:20:08.039 --> 00:20:10.380 is built on a fundamental illusion cast by your 00:20:10.380 --> 00:20:13.119 own side, who really won the war? It really makes 00:20:13.119 --> 00:20:16.420 you wonder if your reality is being managed from 00:20:16.420 --> 00:20:18.119 above by someone who thinks you aren't ready 00:20:18.119 --> 00:20:20.609 for the truth. Maybe those little hiccups in 00:20:20.609 --> 00:20:22.470 life we talked about, the missing floral arrangements, 00:20:22.769 --> 00:20:25.329 the interrupted weddings, are the only truly 00:20:25.329 --> 00:20:28.650 real unscripted things we have. Keep questioning 00:20:28.650 --> 00:20:30.710 those illusions, and thanks for joining us on 00:20:30.710 --> 00:20:31.390 this deep dive.