Re:Good scifi (Score 2, Insightful)

That's why people still care about "The Martian Chronicles", even so far as to make it required reading in some schools. The sense of wonder and the unknown and opportunity that the characters feel really jumps out and makes the reader feel the same wonder, even though we know none of that stuff is really going to happen in the time frame laid out by the book (or maybe ever).

All the aliens and doodads and gizmos and bending universes and lasers and exploding planets in the world don't make up for a shitty story and paper doll characters.