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Final Stage: The Ultimate Science Fiction Anthology
Thirteen fantastic new stories on the classic themes of Science Fiction by Isaac Asimov, Poul Anderson, Robert Silverberg, HarlanEllison, Frederick Pohl, Brian Aldiss, Harry Harrison, Philip K. Dick, and others.
Between them the contributors have won all the awards bestowed by Science Fiction: seventeen Hugos, ten Nebulas and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. In this very special original collection, each writer is at the top of his form, each attempting to create the ultimate on a given theme.
Edited by Edward L. Ferman and Barry N. Malzberg. Cover illustration by David Pelham.
Between them the contributors have won all the awards bestowed by Science Fiction: seventeen Hugos, ten Nebulas and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. In this very special original collection, each writer is at the top of his form, each attempting to create the ultimate on a given theme.
Edited by Edward L. Ferman and Barry N. Malzberg. Cover illustration by David Pelham.
284 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1974
4 people are currently reading
129 people want to read
About the author
Edward L. Ferman
634 books7 followersEdward Ferman (born 1937) was an American science fiction and fantasy fiction editor and magazine publisher.
Ferman is the son of Joseph W. Ferman, and took over as editor of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1964 when Avram Davidson, due to his residence in various Latin American locales with unreliable postal delivery, could no longer practically continue editing; on the masthead, Joseph Ferman was listed as editor and publisher for Edward Ferman's first two years. Edward Ferman would take on the role of publisher, as well, by 1970, as his father gradually retired. He remained as editor until 1991 when he hired his replacement, Kristine Kathryn Rusch. He remained as publisher of the magazine until he sold it to Gordon Van Gelder in 2000. While Ferman was the editor, many other magazines in the field began to fold or were shortlived, and his magazine, along with Analog, was one of the few which maintained a regular schedule and sustained critical appreciation for its contents.
From 1969-1970, he was the editor of Fantasy & Science Fiction's sister publication Venture Science Fiction Magazine. Together, the Fermans had also edited and published the short-lived nostalgia and humor magazine P.S. and a similarly brief run of a magazine about mysticism and other proto-New Age matters, Inner Space.
Ferman received the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor three years in a row, from 1981 through 1983. F&SF had previously won several other Hugos under his editorship, which had been famously conducted, at least in the last decade of his tenure, from a table in the Ferman family's Connecticut house. He edited or co-edited several volumes of stories from F&SF and co-edited Final Stage with Barry N. Malzberg. It is probable that he also ghost-edited No Limits for or with Joseph Ferman, an anthology drawn from the pages of the first run of Venture.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L..."
Ferman is the son of Joseph W. Ferman, and took over as editor of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1964 when Avram Davidson, due to his residence in various Latin American locales with unreliable postal delivery, could no longer practically continue editing; on the masthead, Joseph Ferman was listed as editor and publisher for Edward Ferman's first two years. Edward Ferman would take on the role of publisher, as well, by 1970, as his father gradually retired. He remained as editor until 1991 when he hired his replacement, Kristine Kathryn Rusch. He remained as publisher of the magazine until he sold it to Gordon Van Gelder in 2000. While Ferman was the editor, many other magazines in the field began to fold or were shortlived, and his magazine, along with Analog, was one of the few which maintained a regular schedule and sustained critical appreciation for its contents.
From 1969-1970, he was the editor of Fantasy & Science Fiction's sister publication Venture Science Fiction Magazine. Together, the Fermans had also edited and published the short-lived nostalgia and humor magazine P.S. and a similarly brief run of a magazine about mysticism and other proto-New Age matters, Inner Space.
Ferman received the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor three years in a row, from 1981 through 1983. F&SF had previously won several other Hugos under his editorship, which had been famously conducted, at least in the last decade of his tenure, from a table in the Ferman family's Connecticut house. He edited or co-edited several volumes of stories from F&SF and co-edited Final Stage with Barry N. Malzberg. It is probable that he also ghost-edited No Limits for or with Joseph Ferman, an anthology drawn from the pages of the first run of Venture.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L..."
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 1, 2021
Auftragsarbeiten von sehr bekannten SF-Autoren, die die ultimative Geschichte in "ihrem" Subgenre schreiben sollten. Teil 1/2.
Am besten: die bekannte Story von Frederik Pohl über einen Sexualmörder, der seinen Körper an ETs vermietet, um aus der Anstalt rauszukommen, zum Thema "der erste Kontakt"!.
Und die von Silverberg über einen Mann, der durch die Parallelwelten reisen kann.
Asimov ist natürlich für Roboter zuständig und dekonstruiert hier überraschenderweise seine 3 Gesetze.
Poul Andersons Beitrag zum Theme "Eroberung des Weltalls" ist poetisch und schwer verständlich. Harry Harrison hasst "sein" Subgenre Space Opera und produziert deshalb eine dick aufgetragene Parodie.
Am besten: die bekannte Story von Frederik Pohl über einen Sexualmörder, der seinen Körper an ETs vermietet, um aus der Anstalt rauszukommen, zum Thema "der erste Kontakt"!.
Und die von Silverberg über einen Mann, der durch die Parallelwelten reisen kann.
Asimov ist natürlich für Roboter zuständig und dekonstruiert hier überraschenderweise seine 3 Gesetze.
Poul Andersons Beitrag zum Theme "Eroberung des Weltalls" ist poetisch und schwer verständlich. Harry Harrison hasst "sein" Subgenre Space Opera und produziert deshalb eine dick aufgetragene Parodie.
May 21, 2025
Harlan Ellison actually invented catboys, if ya weren't aware.
March 25, 2021
I picked this up due to a tweet from a great Sci-Fi review site, Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations. It’s run by Joachim Boaz. Do check it out. As usual with collections, there are some great stories, some good ones, some okay ones and some awful ones. This volume is no different. I’ll go through the stories in order.
I didn’t like Frederik Pohl’s “We Purchased People”. It felt a little disgusting on a couple of levels. Poul Anderson’s “The Voortrekkers” was just okay.
Kit Reed’s “Great Escape Tours, Inc.” was pretty good even though it was sad. Old age and thoughts of youth seem so good, but nostalgia isn’t always what you thought it was if you get to go back to it. Interesting, this was the first story in the collection I liked and it was a woman sci-fi writer. 1960s and 70s sci-fi, especially the New Wave, had some fantastic women writers that I never heard of even though I was a hardcore addict of sci-fi growing up in the 70s and 80s. I’m glad I’m able to read them now but so sad that I missed some of these woman who died only in the last 5-10 years.
Brian Aldiss’s “Diagram for Three Enigmatic Stories” felt like a pre-MFA MFA entry. It read a little “too cool for school”, at least for me.
I was surprised I liked Isaac Asimov’s “That Thou Art Mindful of Him!”. I loved Asimov growing up and still re-read The Foundation Trilogy from time to time, but I figured that once I dove into the New Wave, especially the social sci-fi (as opposed to hard sci-fi), I wouldn’t enjoy him as much. But, Asimov is a great story teller. He’s like Stephen King for me, in that I don’t always like the subject matter, but both are great at writing and telling a story. This Asimov story was also darker than his normal work. I enjoyed it.
Dean R. Koontz’s “We Three” had some interesting ideas with a bit of a creepy plot. Once I remembered that Koontz wrote the novel Demon Seed, I was able to adjust to it. I think of him as your sick, weird uncle in a trench coat who has some really good ideas for a story.
Joanna Russ delivers as usual. “An Old Fashioned Girl” is unusual but beautifully written, really making you think. It’s amazing she did it in such a short story; it’s only 5 pages long.
Harlan Ellison irks me. He is very cocky but he does have good chops. “Catman” is a good, and twisted, story. It reminded me of the types of pieces he chose for his own anthology, “Again, Dangerous Visions”.
Harry Harrison’s “Space Rats of the CCC” is an hilarious parody that nails space opera sci-fi. It’s even more tongue in cheek than his Stainless Steel Rat series. I loved space opera growing up but don’t enjoy it now. However, this parody of it was perfect. Nicely skewered. His afterword is excellent and basically notes all the tropes of space opera that I was thinking of as I read his story.
I didn’t care as much for Robert Silverberg’s “Trips”. I really enjoyed his novel “Dying Inside”, but this short story is more of a clever exercise that a good story.
“The Wonderful, All-Purpose Transmogrifier” by Barry N. Malzberg is full of his typical Malzbergian insights. As I read it, I wondered if today’s Transmogrifier is the mobile phone or binging streaming shows. Malzberg includes his usual sex and violence bits, but with a twist as the end that can’t undo the violence but shifts the understanding of it. It’s classic Malzberg. Definitely check out his novels “The Falling Astronauts”, “Beyond Apollo”, and “Revelations”. But, be warned.
James Tiptree, Jr. (aka Alice Bradley Sheldon) has given us a good but not her best work with “Her Smoke Rose Up Forever”. It started slow but did pick up.
Finally, I turn to Philip K. Dick’s "A Little Something for Us Tempunauts”. This is actually the first Dick piece I’ve ever read. I’ve seen adaptations in movies and heard about his work, but never actually read any. This piece is excellent. It reads like Malzberg but without the profanity and violence. This was a perfect story to end the Final Stage anthology.
I didn’t like Frederik Pohl’s “We Purchased People”. It felt a little disgusting on a couple of levels. Poul Anderson’s “The Voortrekkers” was just okay.
Kit Reed’s “Great Escape Tours, Inc.” was pretty good even though it was sad. Old age and thoughts of youth seem so good, but nostalgia isn’t always what you thought it was if you get to go back to it. Interesting, this was the first story in the collection I liked and it was a woman sci-fi writer. 1960s and 70s sci-fi, especially the New Wave, had some fantastic women writers that I never heard of even though I was a hardcore addict of sci-fi growing up in the 70s and 80s. I’m glad I’m able to read them now but so sad that I missed some of these woman who died only in the last 5-10 years.
Brian Aldiss’s “Diagram for Three Enigmatic Stories” felt like a pre-MFA MFA entry. It read a little “too cool for school”, at least for me.
I was surprised I liked Isaac Asimov’s “That Thou Art Mindful of Him!”. I loved Asimov growing up and still re-read The Foundation Trilogy from time to time, but I figured that once I dove into the New Wave, especially the social sci-fi (as opposed to hard sci-fi), I wouldn’t enjoy him as much. But, Asimov is a great story teller. He’s like Stephen King for me, in that I don’t always like the subject matter, but both are great at writing and telling a story. This Asimov story was also darker than his normal work. I enjoyed it.
Dean R. Koontz’s “We Three” had some interesting ideas with a bit of a creepy plot. Once I remembered that Koontz wrote the novel Demon Seed, I was able to adjust to it. I think of him as your sick, weird uncle in a trench coat who has some really good ideas for a story.
Joanna Russ delivers as usual. “An Old Fashioned Girl” is unusual but beautifully written, really making you think. It’s amazing she did it in such a short story; it’s only 5 pages long.
Harlan Ellison irks me. He is very cocky but he does have good chops. “Catman” is a good, and twisted, story. It reminded me of the types of pieces he chose for his own anthology, “Again, Dangerous Visions”.
Harry Harrison’s “Space Rats of the CCC” is an hilarious parody that nails space opera sci-fi. It’s even more tongue in cheek than his Stainless Steel Rat series. I loved space opera growing up but don’t enjoy it now. However, this parody of it was perfect. Nicely skewered. His afterword is excellent and basically notes all the tropes of space opera that I was thinking of as I read his story.
I didn’t care as much for Robert Silverberg’s “Trips”. I really enjoyed his novel “Dying Inside”, but this short story is more of a clever exercise that a good story.
“The Wonderful, All-Purpose Transmogrifier” by Barry N. Malzberg is full of his typical Malzbergian insights. As I read it, I wondered if today’s Transmogrifier is the mobile phone or binging streaming shows. Malzberg includes his usual sex and violence bits, but with a twist as the end that can’t undo the violence but shifts the understanding of it. It’s classic Malzberg. Definitely check out his novels “The Falling Astronauts”, “Beyond Apollo”, and “Revelations”. But, be warned.
James Tiptree, Jr. (aka Alice Bradley Sheldon) has given us a good but not her best work with “Her Smoke Rose Up Forever”. It started slow but did pick up.
Finally, I turn to Philip K. Dick’s "A Little Something for Us Tempunauts”. This is actually the first Dick piece I’ve ever read. I’ve seen adaptations in movies and heard about his work, but never actually read any. This piece is excellent. It reads like Malzberg but without the profanity and violence. This was a perfect story to end the Final Stage anthology.
May 5, 2015
Un bon llibre de relats de sci-fi, que no són, òbviament, definitius, però que sí que capturen el moment al qual ja s'havien plantejat els grans temes del gènere i havien assumit certa maduresa. Relats desiguals, en qualitat i en interès, perquè la sci-fi no és homogènia, i et poden agradar els bucles temporals i detestar les space-opera (com em passa a mi). En general, els textos dels autors més coneguts són els millors; per algun motiu destacaven!
March 7, 2011
A decent collection of twelve science fiction short stories.
August 13, 2016
Another Amazon delete substitute. Merely reprsentative of another anthology read. One among many whose titles are lost to memory.
February 7, 2019
Un montón de monstruos de la CF en esta recopilación, pero tb un montón de cosas olvidables. Un injusto, lo sé, 5/10 sería la media aunque hay alguna pequeña joya.
December 30, 2024
Leído el "Compramos gente" de Frederik Pohl, perturbador:
Los extraterrestres de planetas lejanos tienen la capacidad de comunicarse más rápido que la luz, lo que utilizan para apoyar una tecnología que les permite comprar convictos en la Tierra, a los que luego pueden controlar para que realicen tareas para ellos. Wayne y Carolyn son esos convictos, y a veces pueden pasar unos minutos juntos.
Los extraterrestres de planetas lejanos tienen la capacidad de comunicarse más rápido que la luz, lo que utilizan para apoyar una tecnología que les permite comprar convictos en la Tierra, a los que luego pueden controlar para que realicen tareas para ellos. Wayne y Carolyn son esos convictos, y a veces pueden pasar unos minutos juntos.
December 11, 2021
A snapshot of the moment when New Wave collapsed... A thing of its time, largely not holding up too well. That's the problem with the edgy stuff - it ceases being edgy immediately on publication.
November 6, 2025
Became torturous to push myself to finish some of these stories, although quite a few were worth the read.
November 7, 2014
a good anthology.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews