Anyone else read this book? Got to say, having grown up watching the Starship Troopers cartoon series it was a bit of a shock to me that this thing was primarily a political/philosophical novel.

Also was very fond of how they write about the army, which makes it show that Abnett, Zhou, McNeil, and all the other current 40k writers wouldn't last a day in the field. Heinlein represented all militaries in the most dystopic manner I have ever seen. He both glorified it and vilified it at the same exact time. He also showed that wars weren't won/lost with arms, but instead through psychology and morale. Of course, being Heinlein, he had to present a race that were such things as psychology and morale matter next to nothing (i.e. The Bugs).

Anyone else's thoughts?

A classic in the genre and something that I think was as much a template for 40k as the Dune books. I really enjoyed the novel and found the philosophy behind it extremely fascinating. And the Bugs are a very interesting and alien breed, especially coming from a time when everything was 'space people'.

I don't even remember them fighting the Bugs in the book. They were at war with the Bugs but I only remember the raid on the Skinny's city. With the type of armor they used the Bugs must have been spectacular otherwise it would have been a very short war.

hehe, funny you mention the raid on the Skinny's City, that was the only thing I remembered as well, beyond the fact that they hated fighting bugs the most...


I think the best way to sum up the bugs is to quote a bit from Space Cadet. In Space Cadet they have the Venusian people who are basically giant amphibians that live in a purely matriarchal society due to the fact that they have very few males and they're small/diminutive. In addition they live very simple lives, using almost no machinery, and making their dwellings out of the simplest materials. Spoiler alert, at one point they realize that the Venusians are capable of synthesizing any comprehensible chemical with no difficulty what-so-ever. The Texan of the group put it bluntly saying

"These little guys have forgotten more about chemistry than any of us or our ancestors have ever known. We shouldina assumed just 'cause they seem primitive ta us that they are."

The bugs know more about biology than we'll ever know. This means that they can create increasing powerful creatures with bio-acids, natural electric impulses ALA Electric Eels, Projectile Needle-like apendages, etc. that can penetrate Mobile Infantry (M.I.) Combat Suits or at least gradually wear it down over time.

The other advantage they had was the ability to produce truly massive amounts of footsoldiers and workers. In short: They used the infamous proposed "Fireboat" tactic (Having a large group of lightly armored craft with extremely heavy weaponry capable of hurting a ship at least two times the size). If all it takes is one shot to hurt, disable, or destroy a Combat Suit, then all they need to do is have a single one of their soldiers get close enough. Thus they send in forces that outnumber their enemy 12 to 1 at the very least.

The big issue, on top of everything, as Heinlein made sure to point out to the reader, is that only by killing a "Brain Bug" (think Hive Tyrant or other synapse beast with Tyranids) or a "Hive Queen" (Norn Queen for Tyranids) do you actually do any damage to the swarm. He then pointed out that, in about twenty years of war, the bugs had killed hundreds of thousands of troops, while the M.I. had only managed to kill about 16 brain bugs.


Interesting, Heinlein was astute enough to realize that a biological enemy could be fought well with biological weapons, which were used in massive quantities to great effect against the bugs. Though Heinlein, again, makes sure to point out that the bugs never had their warriors/workers/etc. evolve resistances to these biological weapons, because they weren't permanently damaging (diffusion) and the loss of anywhere from 100-1,000 of them was a Stalinesque "Meh" moment.



Interestingly, if you read Space Cadet Heinlein *VERY MUCH* puts down the marines he built up so much in Starship Troopers and makes a comment about how future wars among humans and humanoid creatures will require troops trained in diplomacy, sociology, religion, and psychology (irony how right he was there ).

When anyone asks me who my all-time favorite author is, my answer is always Robert Heinlein.

I was so thrilled when Starship Troopers was in production for the movie theaters. I was so disappointed at the changes made. Though the special effects were very good, imho. Good way to end the movie too, but I wish the whole book had been done true to form.

Remember the recruiter in the movie? He said something like, "Yeah, the Corps made me into the man I am today." Then rolled back for something behind him and he had no legs. I kept waiting for the scene in the book where the cadets saw him again, with his legs. When asked about that, the recruiter said something like, "Yeah, we just do that to make those not serious back out." But they cut it out of the movie. Bummer.

The very first Heinlein book I read was FRIDAY.

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." -- Robert A. Heinlein

I have mixed feelings on the movie. While the loss of scenes like you mention is tragic and the loss of the armour even more so, I felt they did manage to keep the spirit of the book in the film. Of course, they then went and started saying it was a parody or something, basically making fun of the themes Heinlein expounded in the novel. That didn't sit well with me. What is so wrong with the idea of citizenship carrying responsibility? Something given for free has no value. Something earned does. To me, that's a very profound concept.

Anybody ever read Starship Gallileo? I'm thinking of picking it up because I find the idea of a pre-Apollo moon-landing sci-fi story quite appealing.