WARNING -- MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Gray Lensman

This is the fourth book in the Lensman series.

Gray Lensman begins where Galactic Patrol ends, and focusses on Kimball Kinnison's attack on Boskone via the zwilniks. It begins with the discovery that Helmuth's Grand Base was not Boskone's headquarters, but only a fleet base for the First (Milky Way) Galaxy, and that Helmuth's superiors were in fact in the Second Galaxy (Lundmark's Nebula). Taking the Dauntless, our hero heads for the Second Galaxy and discovers that the Second Galaxy is under Boskone's thumb.

Returning home, with the planet Medon in tow, Kinnison calls for a scientific conference which produces the Negasphere. He then decides to try and trace Boskone by following the drug trade, ultimately becoming the meteor miner Wild Bill Williams. Following the hierarchy of drug lords, he finds the base in the First Galaxy, and follows a lead there to the home planet of the Eich, the nine most powerful of whom form the Council of Boskone. In the process he is discovered and tortured, but is rescued by Worsel after leaving a false trail with the Eich.

Returning again to Prime Base on Tellus, Kinnison leads the entire Patrol against the Milky Way drug headquarters, destroying it with a Negasphere of planetary anti-mass, and from thence to the Second Galaxy, where the home planet of the Eich is destroyed by hitting it with two rogue planets, brought into place with planet size Bergenholms. Thus passed the Council of Boskone, leaving Kinnison free to settle down with the lovely Clarissa MacDougal.

The End. Or Is It?


This book is sort of archetypal E. E. "Doc" Smith in the progression of the scale of destruction. It begins with taking out Helmuth's Grand Base with the energy beams of the Patrol, and ends using free planets and a planetary negasphere to take out the enemy's planets themselves. Look out for more in the next installment. Also, it is intersting to look at how fast the plot advances. If written today, I have a feeling this single volume would be a trilogy. Brevity is the soul of wit. Reading this volume, I tend to think this and First Lensman may be my two favorites in the series. I particularly like the "Meteor Miner" episode in this volume, and the "Assassinate Samms" episode in First Lensman.

Quotes


Last read: 22/3/95


Author
Last updated 8/31/95.
Douglas Stuart
Department of Computer Sciences
The University of Texas at Austin
dastuart@cs.utexas.edu