Escape Artists
Escape Pod => About Escape Pod => Topic started by: stePH on February 20, 2011, 08:54:15 PM
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Would somebody help me here please? I'm trying to retrieve the title of a story featured on one of the EA 'casts (most likely Escape Pod); I don't remember the plot -- what I mostly remember is that the readers were probably supposed to assume the characters were typical humans, but at the end it was revealed that they were some completely different not-even-remotely-human species. Furthermore, this kind of device could only work within the written (or spoken) word; presenting it as a graphic novel or teleplay would have made the "twist" obvious.
I ask because the book I'm currently reading, Sheri S. Tepper's The Family Tree, is revealed to be doing exactly the same thing about three-quarters into the book, and that EA story came to mind when I reached the reveal in The Family Tree.
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Was it the one with the aliens who smelled everything and had no ability to receive sound or visual information? (Was that even on Escape Pod?)
I know the trope you're talking about, definitely...
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The story "Planet of the Apes" does that too. I'm not sure the trope has a name beyond "withheld information" - or maybe "pissing off the reader."
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The trope is called Tomato Surprise (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TomatoSurprise).
Originally named by Analog, interestingly enough.
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Was it the one with the aliens who smelled everything and had no ability to receive sound or visual information? (Was that even on Escape Pod?)
Can't be sure; all I remember is that the physical description of the characters suddenly became relevant at the very end and that's when it was revealed that they weren't humans. I don't even recall whether they were extraterrestrials, or some other earth-bound species.
And it was almost certainly on EP, possibly on PP or PC, but since those are the only story podcasts I listen to now, it couldn't have been any other. Well, maybe Variant Frequencies but the Stringers and Wallace closed up shop quite some time ago; I don't think it was there.
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The story "Planet of the Apes" does that too. I'm not sure the trope has a name beyond "withheld information" - or maybe "pissing off the reader."
Not quite; Planet of the Apes uses a "withheld info" trope as well, but it's the "Earth All Along" trope, not the one I'm talking about above.
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Did you read last year's Flash Fiction entries? If so, it might be you're thinking of this story (http://forum.escapeartists.net/index.php?topic=4117.0).
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Did you read last year's Flash Fiction entries? If so, it might be you're thinking of this story (http://forum.escapeartists.net/index.php?topic=4117.0).
If it didn't make it into audio form, then I don't know that story.