Space Opera: SF on the Grand Scale - Page 3

Originally coined as a derogatory term for that "Buck Rogers stuff" in pulp magazines and comic books, Space Opera has evolved into a series of SF concepts, tropes, and motifs that constitute almost a sub-genre of its own. It's principle characteristics are a focus on big concepts and ideas presented on a huge, interstellar canvas that can encompass all of space and time, and a grounding in some scientific plausibility. Often it involves multi-volume story arcs, or, as in the case of Le Guin's Hainish novels, stand-alone stories set in the same universe. Here are 100 prime examples. Our compiler has limited this list to only works by the original creators, and has omitted series that are fantasy based. He has also excluded movie and TV tie-ins.