Star Trek: Voyager: Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth

Somewhere, I’m certain there’s an audience for this one. I’m sure, however, that it’s not me. This was very campy and just didn’t hold my attention at all. It’s more of a spoof or satire than an actual story. I will admit that I chose to DNF it part of the way through the book.

This is probably a good example of the type of book Captain Proton was based on, but if you are expecting any reference to Voyager, Tom or Harry, you won't find it. I at least would have liked for the pictures of Tom and Harry that were in the paperback to be included but they weren't.

Not sure whether this was supposed to be a parody or an homage, but in either case, it failed. Maybe it would work as a comedy holonovel.

I like it

Book arrived in good condition. The book itself is like an old sci-fi pulp novel, featuring the character of Captain Proton. Having knowledge of the Voyage episodes is nice, but not neccessary!

Fan fiction at best.

good trek

Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth plays off of a very good concept. It puts the hero of Tom Paris' holodeck adventures into written fiction. The fifties-flavored hero emulates classic spacemen like Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. Thus, it is logical to make the suggestion that if he had been an actual fictional character, he may well have started out in print before moving to the silver screen. This book could have made use of the Captain Proton character a few different ways; it could have written a serious, full-length novel starring the character, or it could have been a novel about the crew of the U.S.S. Voyager framing another Captain Proton holodeck adventure. However, what Dean Wesley Smith and the other writers (unless those other credits are just pen names for Smith) chose to do was emulate the style of the pulp magazines of yesteryear. These magazines thrived on science-fiction and "rocketmen," so they would be a likely place to find our good Captain.In the main feature, "Children of the Glass," Smith does go a little over the top in reflecting this style, taking a somewhat tongue-in-cheek attitude in doing so. While I haven't read much else that he has written, it certainly appears that he is dumbing down his writing. The excessive use of single-sentence paragraphs that end in exclamation points can be incredibly annoying, as can the overuse of exclamation points in general. However, as I progressed through the story, I found that I got used to it slowly, and by the end, it really didn't bother me as much. That said, I think the story could have been much more enjoyable if he had curbed that just a little. All in all, though, the nineteen-chapter serial does do a very good job of reflecting the fast-paced and carefree stories of the Golden Age. Reflecting a worldview where good and evil were easily defined and the good guys always win, Smith keeps the action rolling, if not especially intense. If the reader can accept the pervasive purple prose, "Children of the Glass" will be enjoyable to fans of Captain Proton or any tribute to classic Sci-Fi.After "Children of the Glass," there are six backup features that serve to fill in a little more space, and also help give this the feel of a real Golden Age pulp magazine. There are three shorter backup stories and three featurettes. The first backup story, "Death of the Patrol," is the second part of a serial. It continues from "Space Vortex of Doom," which appeared in Amazing Stories, I believe. The second backup story focuses on Captain Proton's secretary, Constance Goodheart, and the third focuses on his sidekick, Buster Kincaid. The three featurettes replicate nonfiction pieces that appeared in these kinds of magazines. The first is a description of the planet Mercury, the second details Seattle in the future, and the third is a number of letters to the editor. All of these did a very good job of emulating the style and feel of such features, and contribute well to the atmosphere of this book.All in all, these backup features are really more of the same as the main story. If you liked "Children of the Glass," you'll probably enjoy these. If not, don't get your hopes up. But overall, I'd say that "Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth" is a good tribute to those good old days when you could spend a dime or so for a good magazine chock full of exciting stories like these. This book was by no means great literature, but it was certainly a nice dose of escapist fun.

This was a book I wanted to read for few years and it didn't disapoint at all I recommend this book to both star trek and none star trek fans