Literature Atlas

How Stories Are Told
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Genre

Science Fiction Comedy

Speculative and Fantastic Fiction

Science fiction comedy, or comic science fiction, is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that exploits the science fiction genre conventions for comedic effect. The genre often mocks or satirizes standard science fiction conventions, concepts and tropes, such as alien invasion of Earth, interstellar travel or futuristic technology, and it can also satirize and criticize present-day society.

Facts
Partially Attested
Place of Origin
United States 1
Source names the pulp magazine Thrilling Wonder Stories, an American publication, as the venue for an early example but does not explicitly state a country of origin for the genre.
Notable Example
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams 1
Defining Trait
Exploits science fiction genre conventions for comedic effect 1
Connections

Form Of Genre

In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Science fiction comedy - Wikipedia
  • Main body, Pete Manx paragraph
    Published in Thrilling Wonder Stories in the late 1930s and early 1940s, the series featured a time-traveling carnival barker who uses his con-man abilities to get out of trouble.
  • Main body, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy paragraph
    Originally a radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1978, it later morphed into other formats, including stage shows, novels, comic books, a 1981 TV series, a 1984 computer game, and 2005 feature film.
  • Lead section, paragraph 1
    Science fiction comedy (sci-fi comedy) or comic science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that exploits the science fiction genre's conventions for comedic effect.
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.