"Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye"

Steampunk Volume Two: a little bit farther from the core world.

First things first, I called the last Steampunk post Mad Dogs and Englishmen because that is the title of the issue of The Invisibles that the picture I used is the cover for. That sentence was the sentence of the most poor construction ever seen on this blog; until the one following it.

It's also a song title, so I get to use it and not break my naming convention. The cover is sort of "on the line" Steampunk, and so is the issue. A rebel cell leader from our time (which was the 90s) sends an astral projection of himself into the 1920s to meet with a rebel cell of that time. What makes it sort of Steampunk is that even though it is the 20s, the bad guys have rayguns and cloning, and enjoy a little gas mask fashion.

Not Steampunk enough for you huh? Well then you are going to hate this post. Like I said in the last volume, I feel that Steampunk is less of a strict setting, and more of a flexible genre. It is about the aesthetic look, and also the rebellion. There is an interesting forum thread over on Story Games if you're interested in what a dozen or so gamers think. One of the things that comes up a few times is the Star Wars crossover appeal. This is a world where the decadence of the republic, lead to a takeover by a powerful empire, which now must be brought down by a plucky group of heroes with little more than their wits, their growing faith in a hero, and some sweet gear.

I've found some great Star Wars meets Steampunk stuff:

This guy has put some extraordinary thought into creating action figures in the Steampunk setting. He's done Justice League and The Avengers, but his Star Wars stuff seems to get the most linkage.

This fellow has done some drawings that really help imagine Star Wars differently. My clear favorite is his Han and Chewie.

The best Star Wars/Steampunk site though is this one. The Grainy quality of the pictures and the overall feel of this site is great. Sort of a what if Star Wars universe had been interacting with ours since the 1800s and particularly since the second world war.

Along with that World War theme, keep scrolling down this page. You'll see some great stuff that covers all types of Steampunk designs, and then, near the bottom, you'll find the horrors that would have awaited us had Nazi scientists been more devoted to Steampunk style transformers, rather than rockets.

So what happens when you follow a timeline forward that started with Steampunk? Well that last link gives you an idea. You get kind of a retro futurist thing going on. Like the Jetsons, or Warren Ellis' Ministry of Space, or this cool t-shirt site. Alternative history is a favorite of mine. My friend Mark and I will regularly play the For Want of a Nail game at Denny's. Alternative history and Stampunk are compatible genres, as long as you keep that whole small group against the oppressor mindset.

This site is dedicated to people in the past's view of the future. Is it strictly Steampunk? No, but it is a great way to look for ideas to set your next Steampunk-ish story.

Well that's all the time I have today...

Did I promise you Rayguns? [checking] I did. Oh well! Watch out for Volume Three: Things that make you go poof!