 |
Journey to the Planet of the Blawps
Lost in Space: The New Journeys Book 4
Written by Nancy Krulik
(Page numbers come from the 1st printing, November
1998) |
Blarp begins to run wild.
Story Summary
Read the brief story summary at the Lost In Space Movie Timeline
Notes from the Lost in Space chronology
Passages in this book suggest that the Robot is no longer on treads
and has legs instead. This may place the book some time after
The Vault, in which Will has replaced the
Robot's treads with
multijointed,
gyrostabilized legs.
Didja Know?
Lost in Space: The New Journeys was a series of six
books for young readers, published by Scholastic.
Didja Notice?
Pages 1 references the time machine invented by Will. This is a
reference to the one young Will theorized and future-Will brought to
life in an alternate future in
Lost in Space.
Page 3 suggests that the Robinsons believe they are not within their
own galaxy (the Milky Way).
Page 3 reveals that Maureen has assigned Penny and Will to read
Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet
is a 1597 play written by William Shakespeare. Will complains that a
400 year old play doesn't have anything to do with their lives now
and his mother corrects him about the common themes that still
affect humanity today. But, from the Robinson's standpoint in about
2168, it would be closer to 500 years than 400.
Chapter 1 reveals that Penny has a scholastic interest in
literature, unlike her science-minded brother, and even feels an
identification with the 14-year old Juliet in the play, the same age
as her; however, Juliet is clearly mentioned as 13 years old in
Shakespeare's play.
Page 9 reveals that Maureen was a life sciences professor at a
university back on Earth.
With the ship being pulled toward a newly-forming star, Will asks
why they can't just hyperspeed through it like they did last time.
This is a reference to John and Don piloting the ship through
Earth's sun near the beginning of
Lost in Space.
During the fight against the gravity of the new star, the Robot is
left in a damaged heap in Penny's quarters. Among the Robot's
listed
damage is a broken kneecap. In the Robot's original treaded
incarnation,
as seen in most LIS stories, it does not have kneecaps, so the story may be interpreted as taking
place after the events of The Vault, in which Will has replaced the
Robot's treads with
multijointed,
gyrostabilized legs. However, later on, on page 36, it is described
that Robot "wheeled himself onto the bridge", suggesting something
other than legs providing his motion; possibly this description is
in error and was simply missed in editing.
On page 23, John tells Don to pilot the ship to the newly discovered
planet for repairs, saying, "Go west, young man!" This is a famous
phrase penned by American author Horace Greeley (1811-1872) in reference to the
United States' so-called Manifest Destiny to expand westward across
the North American continent.
Page 30 reveals that Blarp requires very little liquid intake to
survive.
A couple times in the book, Dr. Smith refers to Penny as "Penny,
precious". He also used this "pet name" for her in
Lost in Space.
On page 47, Penny makes reference to two alien beings the Robinsons
brought on board the ship a few months ago. This is a reference to
the events of The Passengers.
Page 67 also references this novel, in its description of Blarp
attacking the aliens when they tried to hurt Penny. That book was
also authored by Nancy Krulik.
Page 61 reveals that Blarp is afraid of the dark.
Page 70 reveals that Judy's study of Blarp in the past has revealed
that the species is self-replicating.
This book reveals that Will has been practicing the drums and
Maureen knows how to play some guitar.
A few times in this book, the Blarps are making a "bloop" sound among
their blarps. This may be a reference to the space-chimp that became
Penny's pet in the original LIS TV series, which would make a "bloop"
sound.
