Most genre shows worth their salt will feature a story with character shrunk down a bit - in fact, Doctor Who did it at least twice that I can think of during the classic series run. The concept of shrinking down people to go inside a person and help break up a clot in a near inoperable place is a fascinating and intriguing and it was apparently very influential. As I said before, it’s interesting to watch as Asimov attempts to reconcile the fantastic premise with real-world science of the day and to speculate on if this could or would happen in the future. Just as the film spends the first half hour or so setting up the situation and the characters, so does the book spend its first third or so setting up the background. The Enemy (they are always capitalized by Asimov) try to take him out on the way to the top-secret installation where he will reveal his secrets to our side and help us either keep up with our Enemy and maintain the balance of mutually assured destruction. The man in question is a high ranking scientist who is defecting and could help keep the balance of power in check for both sides during the Cold War. My research leads me to believe that Asimov had to be talked into adapting the movie’s script for the printed page and that he agreed to do it if he could be allowed to at least bring some put some science in the science fiction of the plot and premise.Īnd you can certain see Asimov trying to put some credible science into the concept of miniaturizing a top-secret, top-of-the-line submarine with five people inside down to the point where they can be injected into the body of an injured man.

But a quick clicks of the keyboard quickly helped me discover that Isaac Asimov’s adaptation of the 20th Century Fox blockbuster hit the shelves a few weeks before the movie opened, so I felt comfortable in my decision to read the book first and then see the movie.Īnd I think it all worked out for the best. The novel is a tie-in into the movie and it’s likely the book wouldn’t exist without the movie. But in the case of Fantastic Voyage, it isn’t necessarily that simple. You’ll find some great stuff!īeing a bibliophile (aka literary snob), I generally like to read the book (or short story as the case may be) before I see the movie. If you want to read what others have done for the month, check out Red’s page. It’s Isaac Asimov’s adaptation of Fantastic Voyage.

However, I was able to pull a book off the TBR pile and read it, as well as watch the movie. I had intended to read a few more vintage sci-fi novels during the month to participate, but the best laid plans often go astray…. January is the Vintage Science-Fiction Non-Challenge month hosted by Little Red Reviewer.

Fantastic voyage asimov