A Princess Of Mars - I Can't Believe This Book Was Published In 1912

#JohnCarter #APrincessOfMars #DejahThoris
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[@RogersBenjamin]

My Dad read these when he was a boy (in the 1930s) and he gave them to me when I was about 12. I loved these books as a boy and frequently saw the parallels in modern fiction that "stole" their ideas and concepts from Burroughs' stories. Highly recommended to everyone - with only one caution: when you think "oh, that's an old trope, I've seen that everywhere...." realize that it was in these books *FIRST* and everyone else stole it and recycled it.

[@williammeek7218]

Yes Burroughs pretty much started it all. I read these in the early 70s. Lin Carter a author who helped finish the Conan saga wrote a series of books called “Jandar of Callisto” check those out. They owe they existence to Burroughs.

[@elusiveDEVIANT]

It's wild how crazy ahead of their times these books were. John Carter is truly an amazing movie and should have gotten a series

[@darkroninmarvel]

I once joked that the best way to introduce a weeb to John Carter was the following: 1-say John Carter of mars is an isekai 2-profit

[@SailorBarsoom]

Oh it's an isekai alright. JC didn't get hit by a truck, but dead is dead.

[@Sejikan]

I would love an anime adaptation of the series

[@NormanTRAY]

I fell in love with A Princess of Mars in 1988, and hasn't looked back since. The whole series of books is just amazing. You can tell how much Burroughs cared about that universe. I regularly read the entire series. It's like going back to your favorite rollercoaster. You know all the turns by heart, but there's something unique in experiencing them again and again. :) Great video!

[@RonReviews2]

Thanks!

[@timtrowbridge6787]

One of my very first SciFi loves! ❤ Re-read it after the John Carter movie came out and was surprised how much I remembered. Still loved it even as I now recognize the dated language.

[@WickedPrince3D]

I've had the series for over 40 years, read it several times. John Carter was essentially the prototype for every SciFi action-adventure-romance combo story.

[@longwlenguyen4214]

And the predecessor and founder of the Sword and Sorcery genre.

[@WickedPrince3D]

@@longwlenguyen4214 At least the modern one. One could argue that dark age poets who invented stories like King Arthur, Charlemagne and ETC beat him out.

[@longwlenguyen4214]

@@WickedPrince3D If I remember correctly those books were called Chivalrous Romance and the Western first modern novel Don Quixote brutally parody the genre.

[@WickedPrince3D]

@@longwlenguyen4214 You are more or less correct, though I don't believe the author of DQ intended them as comedy, it's just that many people interpreted it that way as Don's adventures are fairly ludicrous. But think about it, how many wizard characters have you seen that weren't just reinterpretations of Merlin? How many of the other characters have been reinterpreted in new clothes? These ancient authors created the storytelling process called The Heroes Journey that Tolkien consciously followed with both the Hobbit and LotR. Tolkien was the modern master of fantasy that every other fantasy author is measured against. He's the father of modern fantasy and yet he proved that this ancient process of storytelling still resonates with us. Tolkien used to meet with author friends to discuss their stories. One of these fellows heckled him when Tolkien discussed his story idea: "God save me from elves!" was his fellows comment if I remember correctly, so even in his own lifetime he had critics. I wonder how many authors had their works misunderstood by some member of the audience?

[@longwlenguyen4214]

@@WickedPrince3D Too many I guess ironically Michael Moorcock the author of Elric of Melnibone (and had a weird hatred of Tolkien for some reason) compares Fantasy to Heavy Metal, when those works become mainstream to wider audience and market it become saturated, bland, cliché and boring and Moorcock was right. Those same cliche can be found in Chivalrous Romance that Don Quixote made fun of, and Cervantes always intended for DQ to be a parody since he himself were once a Chivalrous Romance fan and hated the idealism of it due to him went through a war and become a POW, I remember people said you have to be a Spanish speaker to understand the jokes on DQ so I guessed the bad translation faults why you don’t think DQ a comedy.

[@DaveKraft1]

As a kid, read the series over and over, especially the first 3 books. I was in a club of fellow readers in grade school, where each of us adopted a book character as their own identity. Later in life, I met a woman who had 2 young boys (4 and 8), and remembered the stories so well I started NARRATING the first book (A Princess of Mars) to them as a bedtime story. I was very pleased that not only had I remembered it so accurately, but that they enjoyed hearing it.

[@srose1088]

At 1:43 I love how the artist gives the MC this combination of old and new world by including his silk stockings in tatters.

[@gungadin406]

This is a very good summation of A princess of mars, thank you, it really was a smashing read. You quite rightly pointed out the plagiarism's of Dune and princess Leia, for Star Wars. This can also be observed with musician's that did the very same thing with the American Blues masters, namely Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton etc. It seems to be a natural progression to things. Burroughs' was trully an exeptional writer that told us tales over a hundred years ago when the car was still in its infancy. Unfortunately in my opinion, the Writers in the last 30 years, have not been so prolifilic as the musicians have. I was and still am an old and avid SF and Fantasy fan. I can still remember buying and reading Spider Man 1.

[@halaneverson4549]

I had a similar experience about Star Wars tbh. Episode 3 was enough for me, so i was literally going backwards, checking John Carter (i actually read princess of mars last year), Flash Gordon, Valerian, Dune, Incal etc. Is sad most people barely know this actually exists. A similar thing happens with Dark Fantasy reader that only cares for Berserk Anyway, great review!

[@RonReviews2]

Thanks for watching!

[@mrnukes797]

​@RonReviews2 If you like Dune, I recommend The Three Body Problem trilogy the other book redemption of time is literal fanfiction that the author approved as apart of official continuity but be warned just as how the final two books for Dune were handled plus the current state of said franchise read at you're own risk. Just three body problem is written by a Chinese author but also the cultural aspect and tone like Dune can be seen as depressing and apathetic with the series of the hypothetical Fermi paradox theory also the creator like Frank Herbert does care about being politically correct but mainly the cautions of nature in general I tried to do my best not to spoil the first book of the trilogy and series but also with youtube's strict stupid censorship.

[@JNM11787]

The Princess of Mars series is one of my all time favs.. also loved his Tarzan series. There are actually many books in the Princess of Mars series... Chessmen of Mars, Warlord of Mars, and a couple others. It's a fantastic universe. Great descriptions of things too! ERB really gets ur imagination going, be it this or Tarzan. audio books ftw

[@valentinemichaelsmith8219]

I loved it! Thanks, Ron!

[@deananderson6896]

I love this story too, I hope you read the whole series of novels too. Great stories.

[@deananderson6896]

One other thing, Edgar Burrows made a slight error in one of his descriptions of mars. He wrote that no where on mars does the elevation exceed 4,000 feet. Keep in mind he wrote this in 1912. The discovery of Oylmpus Mons the tallest vulcano in the solar system happened in 1971. At almost 14 MILES tall it dwarfs everything around it. So I guess just imagine the look on Edgars face if you could tell him about it. Imagination is fun.

[@RonReviews2]

I’ve reviewed up to Thuvia, maid of mars so far on my channel. Next up is Chessmen. Thanks for watching!

[@CD0722]

Love it, love it, love it!!

[@derekgreen7319]

I'm happy to see someone talk about these old books. I also recommend Conan by Robert e Howard. To me this era of pulp is so fascinating and deserves to be remembered!

[@markhill9275]

Ok, all the comments here comparing this or that to John Carter, forget one thing, Dejah Thoris was incomparable!

[@jamesraykenney]

I am about to watch your next review of this series, but i will say that there is an AMAZING amount of deep backstory to this series!

[@travisgray8376]

My favourite pulp writers n my favourite writers in general are Robert E Howard and HP Lovecraft I love them.

[@sylvanaire]

My dad was a big Tarzan fan as a kid (1930s-40s), so much so he refused to read the last couple of books in the series because he didn‘t want to finish it, lol. Then his mother sold/gave away all his books & records when he joined the army w/out telling him. He was so mad! So I had to start over & buy my own books when I was the right age, which was sad because I would‘ve loved to have had my dad‘s books to read. I guess you could say I wasn‘t as big of a fan because I read them all, lol! When I was finished I looked around & found the Barsoom books & fell just as deeply for them as I had the Tarzan books & I still have them in my bookcase some 50+ years later. One of the things I love best about the series has nothing at all to do w/the story & everything to do w/the cover art. So many of the depictions in your video just capture my imagination & I love them to pieces. I wish I had a wall I could mount all the wild warrior/damsel prints on, they are so powerful!

[@Johnny-Thunder]

I read it recently and I loved the hell out of it! Thanks for this review.

[@RonReviews2]

No problem. Thanks for watching!

[@NealeBaxter]

If you are looking for classic early 20th Century science fiction books that had a massive influence upon later works, then treat yourself to the "Skylark" and "Lensmen" series by E. E. 'Doc' Smith. He basically invented all the technology of modern science fiction which is now so common that you would see it as a cliche. Beam weapons, force shields, tractor beams etcetera.

[@user-gy8gg7wm2j]

John Carter has been strip mined by everybody. Ray Bradbury claimed that Edgar Rice Burroughs was the most influential writer ever because of the many writers and scientists he inspired. Many of the first NASA astronauts were Burroughs fans as was Carl Sagan. And of course, one of the big reasons Dejah Thoris makes a great impression is that when we encounter her she is essentially naked. Her entrance simply wouldn't go over today and the Disney movie put A LOT more clothes on her than the books did.

[@docsavage8640]

Excellent and fairly thorough review. So glad you didn't feel compelled to get on a moral high horse like so many modern reviewers like to do in search of virtual pats on the back. ERB was the master of adventure. You might try his Venus and Pellucidar stories next! Or Tarzan!

[@RonReviews2]

I just reviewed Tarzan on the channel! Loved it.

[@RhiannonSenpai]

2:10 So you're telling me Princess of Mars was the first isekai? Sweet.

[@SailorBarsoom]

_The Wonderful Wizard of Oz_ is another, but yeah.

[@melvinlemay7366]

The earliest I'm aware of is A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain. But in general American media and writing has historically loved portal fiction, or as the weebs have come to call it, Isekai. From classics like the aforementioned Twain novel and Oz to much of early pulp science fiction, to the newer ISOT genre, to even Hollywood films like planet of the apes (though I suppose that is technically based on a French novel), army of darkness, Final Countdown, and Stargate.

[@jamesholland8057]

@@melvinlemay7366 loved Stargate.

[@lanceash]

The first book in the series I got was "The Mastermind of Mars," when I was about 14, a brilliant beginning to my obsession with reading and collecting everything ERB wrote. I had a couple of issues of the Marvel comic book before then, so I knew of the books, but had never read them.

[@macker33]

I love the whole princess of mars series

[@mrDjuroman]

Very good review, I always enjoy hearing thoughts about books I've read, and you provide more than just a recap. I also like the sound of your music

[@RonReviews2]

Thanks for watching. Glad you enjoyed it!

[@AshTheDuke]

the creator is so creative back then

[@kaspersaldell]

Splendid cover art I must say

[@timbuktu8069]

Frank Frazzetta is king.

[@timbuktu8069]

Right now I'm up to The Synthetic Men of Mars. One of the oddities of the stories is that Burroughs will toss out a concept and then never put it to use. For instance: the buildings on Mars are built on posts that rise up into the sky at night. yet frequently people skulk around at night and sneak into buildings. Also Burroughs makes a point that Martians wear no clothes. This creates a lot of difficult for artists who want to stay family friendly.

[@musshwins412]

I liked John Carter.

[@nbhubbard]

I've read Princess of Mars a few times now, picking up new things every time. The hallmark of Great Literature (as my high school English teacher used to say) is that it opens itself to re-interpretation. An occult theory popular at the time Burroughs flourished was Astral Projection, championed by the Theosophists and Doctor Strange, the ability to send your astral body (whatever that is) across space. In essence, John Carter wished upon a star and sent his as to Mars.

[@GallantSector]

Saw the preview trailer of John Carter at the theater, and said to myself “So who is this dude and was makes him special because that didn’t tell us anything” Went home and looked it up online and was interested immediately at the series and character that inspired most of science fiction and Superman along with Star Wars. Saw the film and was like “hmmm” Went right to Barnes and Noble and got the book and said “WOW” Became my favorite book series. I was hooked. Read the first 3 book and taking my time going through the rest

[@mrmap4875]

When did you saw it in theater 10 years ago?

[@GallantSector]

@@mrmap4875 it was a preview when I went to see Captain America:The First Avenger, I believe. Which was in 2011

[@majorgrubert5887]

I really liked the movie and I’ll check out the audible if theirs a good one… I have a graveyard job that allows me to listen to audibles like lol a lot

[@maverickwonder2477]

Same here. I was a huge comic book fan and no don’t bother with them for the same reasons. Happily that sent me off in search of alternatives and lead me to old school and similar classics. I discovered ERB (among many others) and love the Barsoom series.

[@johnjohnon8767]

In truth, his books made me the person I am now. Honest, gentlemanly, respectful of others. Though sometimes its a detriment in todays values. Even conan had some of these values.

[@lordvalentine471]

I have a copy of the Princess of Mars from 1917 it was a gift from my mother she bought it at a flea market what was cool was it had a drugstore business card in it that on the other side had the 1917 Detroit Tigers baseball schedule on it that actually appraised for more than the book

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

great novel

[@MrSprigg]

Modern pulp culture starts with this book. Princess of Mars leads directly to Superman, Dungeons & Dragons, and Star Wars. Gary Gygax listed Burroughs as his most important influence when creating D&D, not Tolkien.

[@markhill9275]

I have the whole series, and read the entire collection at least a dozen times. But as much as i love the series, even better is the original civalrous series by ERB. TARZAN! Absolutely the best! I have read Tarzan once a year since i was 7, and thats a long time ago. Always find sonething new, always a subtlety ive previously missed. Tarzan is indeed,"Lord Of The Jungle"!

[@RonReviews2]

I just made a Tarzan video! Check my latest video on the channel.

[@jamesholland8057]

I liked the movie. Better than I expected. Didn’t think it would work for most audiences, but I read when a child.

[@joonbugstudioltd1689]

Can’t wait for gods of mars

[@ScottWKimak]

ERB inspired me to become an author

[@davenewhouse1708]

Read Princess. Reading Gods now. Love it.

[@flatebo1]

A Princess of Mars is basically structured as a captivity narrative. Captivity narratives were popular when Burroughs was growing up, so he would have been familiar with the genre. Basically they were accounts by white settles abducted by Indians detailing the events of their captivity and eventual rescue. They typically included extensive descrictions of life among the "savages", their cultural practices, etc. A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (1682) is one example of an early classic captivity narrative. The Falcon by John Tanner is an 1800s account by Tanner of his life among the Ojibwa in Minnesota/Canada from his abduction in Arkansas (?) at the age of 9 to his mid 40s. These are a couple examples of the captivity narrative. They don't have a normal story arc, and the protagonist is often a rather passive observer of the culture s/he is trapped in, much like John Carter observes and comments on Thark culture until "rescued" by Dejah Thoris who motivates him to escape the Tharks and rejoin civilization.

[@hangmann747tinmann8]

The day I went to see the movie, I was the only person in the theater. It was such a good movie, I was wondering why the theater wasn't packed. Eventually I did read the first 3 books. And while most don't like the movie as it doesn't follow the book 100%. I realized that with so much sci fi over the years, and so much stolen from the book, they needed to bump up the story. And what most never get is the movie does follow the first two books, as it hold elements of both. Take the Therns, they are from the second book. I really wanted a second movie, and with the end of the first saying it took him 10 years to return to mars, in real life it's been just over that, so the ages of the characters would be very much in line. And I bet the low O2 and O2 generators would have played a role in the second movie, thus completing the story line of the first book!

[@jolierouge2463]

This book is basically Pride and Prejudice for dudes.

[@ArturWojciechowicz]

It's called pulp fiction but it is really charming story so 19th century climate , like Bram Stoker's Dracula .

[@garyperkovac1002]

Movies can be magnificent. However, the original books, which deserve their due, are so very different. As you read them, your own imagination is an active participant.

[@markhill9275]

The whole John Carter series is absolutely fantastic. The movie was rubbish. Always thought if they made a movie of it they should use exclusively Led Zeppelin for the soundtrack!

[@Nocuadra66]

Just came across this video. John Carter has been my hero and influence since around 1980. I even have a John Carter tattoo from 1988. The movie was awful in my opinion but... I've read everything ERB wrote.

[@lanceash]

You got that right about the movie. My son and I had read the books and we hated it; my wife and daughter hadn't and they didn't see anything wrong with it.

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

I was 15 When i read Princess of Mars

[@jamesholland8057]

Against the Fall of Night or The City and the Stars by A.C. Clark.

[@ArturWojciechowicz]

Varufakis writes about new fuedalism ,but it is much more deeper.

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

That’s like your HeMan & Conan. Flash Gordon

[@valdemarjakobsen9553]

Great book.

[@peacehunter26]

Almost all .kdern Sci fi... golden age through the 1990s is a variation or expansion of. Burroughs,Verne and wells.

[@KandaJE]

Yes, The Stories were wonderful (at first) but after about book 4 you start thinking that Burroughs was just phoning it in. Ah, the 1970s... The Golden Age of the Paperback! Either his drinking was catching up, or he was seriously expecting to get his stories into the movies. After the 5th time Deja Thoris gets trapped and Carter saves her YET AGAIN only for her to get trapped yet again, I finally asked my buddy to take back the stack of unread novellas. He said he liked them because they were such quick reads. I was trying to get him into the ever larger and thicker John Norman Gor series...

[@lanceash]

That's true of the Tarzan books as well. After book 9 or 10 or so, the plots become the same every time. The whole "misunderstood romance" angle between a male character and a female character gets old very fast. Also, have you noticed that in Tarzan, Barsoom, and the Venus series, there is an immortality or near-immortality theme to each one? There might be one in Pellucidar too, I think. I really liked the Tarzan/Pellucidar crossover.

[@KandaJE]

@@lanceash I confess that I just didn't get into Burroughs as young as I likely should have. He wrote pretty much to fund his Drinking, and I just never got into the whole drinking lifestyle. I'm pretty sure that I only ever read At the Earth's Core, just one of the Pellucidor series. And by the time I had found it, (early twenties) I was already a bit turned off by Burroughs lack of effort.

[@lanceash]

@@KandaJE I've been into Burroughs for 40 years and I never heard he had a drinking problem. Where did you get that from?

[@KandaJE]

​@@lanceash Oh, no doubt I read it in some article way back in the stone age (1970s). It may have been a tale told by some reviewer to justify it's own existence... I do recall that it was accepted as common knowledge by many supposedly well read people back in that time. (librarians!) As to it's truth, at this time, I call only call it speculation...

[@flatebo1]

@@lanceash The immortality aspect of the Pellucidar series is that, since the sun never moves, there is not readily visible marker of the passage of time. So the speed at which time flows is relative to each individual. As is their age, pretty much. At one point ERB mentions that in Pellucidar a guy can go out hunting and discover upon his return that his family has long since grown old and died. In part this idea serves to liberate Burroughs from having to pay any attention to the timing of events. So you never have to deal with questions like "What was X doing while Y was out doing all this running around?" Realistically this makes no sense, of course. But Burroughs didn't really care about strict accuracy or even plausibility. He just kept the story moving and you either went along for the ride or you didn't.

[@tiplady44]

Read them all ,Mars ,Venus,Caprona ,Pelucidar Moon etc Think his last one was Beyond the furthest star ,

[@majorgrubert5887]

I’ve been into Moebius lately which would be a awesome topic for a video.. Air Tight Garage and the Incal stuff like that oh and Heavy Metal or in French Metal Hurlant

[@RonReviews2]

I looked up a copy of Air Tight Garage on Amazon the other day it was like 127 bucks. A lot of Moebius stuff is hard to find for a decent price.

[@larrybridgewaterjr2841]

Hollywood did not do the book justice with a weak script and a better director. James Cameron or Ridley Scott, ect. The ERB book series has the making of a Franchise movie series if done right.

[@Avzigoyhbasilsikos]

Pls do a Brian Herbert dune review

[@RonReviews2]

Check out my Dune playlist. I’ve done reviews of House Atreides and House Harkonnen so far. Both co written by Brian Herbert.

[@BennekZero]

"Imagination" 😏😏

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

dhe was a Red Martian

[@dazbry7612]

Read the dying earth series by jack vance👍

[@RonReviews2]

Thanks for the recommendation!

[@izenguarr5236]

The entire Mars series are the best and most important books I've ever read. The Venus series is also just as excellent.

[@Nocuadra66]

Absolutely... I add the Pellucidar series too.

[@tiplady44]

Read 95% ERB books my older brother has the other 5%

[@darthcerebrus5074]

Its a shame disney still has the film rights.Under a different studio the films could be epic.

[@dazbry7612]

Yhea i feel the same as you when it came to star wars, i started to get in to other things, i just don't really care about star wars anymore

[@BUSHIDO117]

Everyone in the comments old af am I the only 21 year old here?

[@tedytarrify]

New viewer. Share your sci fi sentiments; disillusioned with modern science fiction and especially Star Wars. As a result I have begun looking further afield... and I found your channel. So I guess I came out ahead.

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

when he woke up on or found himself. naked

[@petrameyer1121]

Please! Gravity does not work differently on Mars it is simply weaker because Mars is smaller than Earth.

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

he was naked on Mars

[@benquirobiequiratman4646]

Hey George Lucas was influenced by the book

[@ArtorGrael]

Star Wars sux. Lucas owes his entire fortune to Herbert.

[@williamwallace9826]

Mediocre review of a great book.

[@Kinuhbud]

I am also done with Star Wars for the most part. I've been thinking about reading John Carter books for a few years now so I better finally do it! also, JesterBell's video on star wars says it all better than I ever could. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqnZpp-AnsR9lcU

[@RonReviews2]

You should, I think you’d really like them!

[@robertrains7029]

If you love this book I highly recommend the dark tower novels it the multiverse of Stephen king