Re: (ReacTor) Five Stories About Aliens Attempting to Govern Humans

On 9/1/25 14:19, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:

In article <vlnd17$32frc$1@dont-email.me>,
Mike Van Pelt  <usenet@mikevanpelt.com> wrote:

In article <vlh6q0$hp1$1@reader2.panix.com>,
James Nicoll <jdnicoll@panix.com> wrote:

Five Stories About Aliens Attempting to Govern Humans
>
Maybe conquering humans is a bad idea?
>
https://reactormag.com/five-stories-about-aliens-attempting-to-govern-humans/

>
I fondly remember "Pandora's Planet".  Christopher Anvil was
always a hoot.  It's been some 50 years since I read it though;
I'm not sure how well it'd hold up.  Interesting concept...
The aliens have been doing their thing for a very long time,
but they're not quite as intelligent, on average, as humans.
>
I must have read the Asimov story, but I don't remember
anything about it.

 _Pandora's Planet_ was most recently (as far as I know) re-issued
from Baen with an extra story set in the same universe.  I wish
Anvil had done some more on the main storyline, as he had kind of
set up the Humans & Centrans as a useful sparkplug/flywheel combo
at the end of the book, but then introduced a new complication which
he never addressed.

Oh yes, "Pandora's Legions", which collects the subsequent short stories set in the Centran Empire.
And it does have a lovely twist and it is a shame he never went on with it.
Cheers,
Gary B-)