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Sunday 19 July 2026
Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Fourth Edition. Some sample entries appear below. Click here for the Introduction; here for what we mean by Science Fiction; here for the masthead; here for some Statistics; here for the Acknowledgments; here for the FAQ; here for advice on citations. Find entries via the search box above (more details here) or browse the menu categories in the grey bar at the top of this page.
Site updated on 14 July 2026
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Xenoblade Chronicles
Videogame (2011; vt Xenoblade in Japan). Monolith Soft. Designed by Tetsuya Takahashi, Koh Kojima. Platforms: Wii. / Xenoblade Chronicles is a Console Role Playing Game (see Computer Role Playing Games), much influenced by the Final Fantasy series and (especially) by one of its designer's previous works, Xenogears (1998). ...
Plastic Man
US Comic (1943-1956) and its title character. Quality Comics. 64 issues. Plastic Man created by Jack Cole. Artists include Jack Cole, Dick Dillin, Alex Kotzky, André LeBlanc, Charles Nicholas and Jack Spranger. Scriptwriters include Jack Cole, Gwen Hansen, Joe Millard and Bill Woolfolk. Initially 60 pages but falling to 36 by #17, with a brief increase to 52 #26-#31, before returning to 36. Each issue would have 3-5 long ...
Poyser, Victoria
Earlier name of the American artist now known as Victoria Lisi (1949- ), and the name used for her sf art. The former wife of sf fan Kennedy "Kippy" Poyser (1945-2009), she married artist Julius Lisi in 1987 and then went by Victoria Poyser-Lisi or Victoria (Poyser) Lisi before adopting her current name. She received a BFA from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, and although she has attributed her interest in sf art to her attendance at the World Fantasy ...
McLandburgh, Florence
(1850-1934) US author, who wrote poetry as by McLandburgh Wilson. In The Automaton Ear and Other Stories (coll 1876), the title story "The Automaton Ear" (May 1873 Scribner's Monthly) is of sf interest for its description of a device capable – since sound never in fact dies – of recovering all the sounds that ever existed; the sonic equivalent of a Time Viewer. [JC]
Night Man
US tv series (1997-1999; vt NightMan). Syndicated. Glen A Larson Production/Alliance Atlantic Communications. Character created by Steve Englehart. Developed for television by Glen A Larson. Produced by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, Janet Curtis-Larson, Scott Thomas. Directors included Allan Eastman, Robert Monica and George Mendeluk. Writers included Englehart, D G Larson and Steven Kriozere. Cast includes Jayne Heitmeyer, Earl Holliman, Derwin ...
Langford, David
(1953- ) UK author, critic, editor, publisher and sf fan, in the latter capacity recipient of 21 Hugo awards for fan writing – some of the best of his several hundred pieces are assembled as Let's Hear It for the Deaf Man (coll 1992 chap US; much exp vt The Silence of the Langford 1996; exp 2015 ebook) as Dave Langford, edited by Ben Yalow – plus five Best Fanzine Hugos ...