Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe

Title:	Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe
Creator:	George Takei and Robert Asprin
Date(s):	1979
Medium:	print
Fandom:	science fiction, fantasy
Language:	English
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Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe is a 1979 for-profit novel written by George Takei and Robert Asprin.

cover of the first edition

It is the story of a Japanese man named Hosato (just one of three separate identities he maintained), a saboteur and a duelist, part of his family's business going back seven hundred years. He winds up facing an army of killer robots who want to see the destruction of humankind.

There was a planned sequel called "Stellar Flower, Savage Flower," but it was never published.

art portraying Sulu in the episode, "The Naked Time," artist is [L L], the zine is Alpha Touch #1 (1979), a visual that is a nod to the cover of the 1979 edition of "Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe"

Some fans read this book because 1) Takei wrote it, 2) they were hungry for anything Trek related, and 3) the hero (a shirtless Samurai was pictured on the cover of the original edition) likely reminded them of Sulu's portrayal in the Star Trek: TOS episode "The Naked Time."

The hero also shares Takei's real life middle name, Hosato. It was probably no accident, either, that the title reminded fans of the popular episode "Mirror, Mirror" and the fanworks it inspired: Mirror Universe.

Deciding on a Title

Before it had an official title, Takei talked about this book at AussieCon:

George came on again for a Q£A session.... He spoke of his forthcoming book and asked us to back him up over its title. He originally wanted to call it 'In the Image of...' but that didn't suit the publisher who thought 'Revolt of the Robots' sounded better. Then she suggested 'Star Killer' as trendier and wants it to come out along with the ST movie but he doesn't want that kind of exploitation. He want us to support him in calling it 'Terminal Saboteur' by writing to Sharon Jarvis, Playboy Book Division...

The Planned Sequel

The planned sequel canceled due to Playboy Press going bankrupt and being ingested by Berkeley Books.

In 1983, Takei wrote:

Takei's note from G.H.T. Journal #4 (1983)

The sequel to "Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe" is finished and titled "Stellar Flower, Savage Flower." The initials of this one reads, "S.F., S.F." -- get it? However, the original publisher of "M.F., M.F.", Playboy Press went bankrupt and their rights to the "property" as they call it has been bought up by another publishing group called Berkeley-Jove. Because the dust has yet to settle with the changeover, they have made no decision on the publication date. Very frustrating. Will keep you all posted.

Fan Comments

1979

Before we go any further I think I should point out that this novel has no connection with the Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror", nor in fact any connection with Star Trek whatsoever. It is science-fiction, and good science-fiction at that. As far as I know it is George Takei's first venture into writing and how ever he and Robert Asprin have combined the result, as far as I am concerned, was worth the effort.

The story centres around two main characters. First there is Hosato, an expert saboteur who is available for hire at the right price, and who will kill if necessary. He is a member of a Ninja family that goes back over many generations. Next there is Ilayama, who is an expert in the art of fencing and makes his living as a professional duelist. The minor (?) complication is that they are one and the same person.

The action, and there is plenty of it, takes place on Grunbecker's Planet (not Class M thank goodness!) which is the home of the Ravensteel Corporation and McCrae Enterprises. These corporations are the largest manufacturers of robots and there is an intense rivalry between them as each jealously guards its own secrets. Hosato is hired by Ravensteel to sabotage the McCrae complex and make it inoperative. His passport into McCrae is his Hayama identity. One of the McCrae Vice-Presidents, Turner, is looking for someone to teach his son, James, how to handle a sword. Hosato is accompanied his custom built robot, Suzi. Suzi has many hidden talents and. it is easy to think of her as human rather than a machine, because she is well sketched as a character in her own right.

Getting established at McCrae is the least of Hosato's problems. Once there he has to deal with Sasha, the female chief of security, who suspects him from the start. Then comes trouble in the shape of the new robots being developed by Turner to take over the security function from the human security team. In the development there is a programming error which unleashes a series of robots who have no thought of the Laws of Robotics and are quite capable of killing humans. Hosato must now attempt to prove that man is superior to machine in a kill or be killed situation. It was a pleasure to re-read this book for the review. It could never be described as dull and the outcome of situations is not predictable, which makes a pleasant change.There is a marvellous blend of characters combined with plenty of good action. The book is set out in a lot of small chapters, but I do not recommend it as a bedtime story. When you reach the end of one chapter you think "I'll just read another one before going to sleep." and so it goes on. Before you know where you are you've read far more than you intended, and it's way past midnight. But that's what happens with a good book.

I don't know if "Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe" is still in print, but I hope you can get your hands on it by some means. The sequel,"Stellar Flower, Savage Flower", has been written but so far the publishers have yet to get it into print, which is a pity.

As a final thought I hope there is someone in Hollywood who still has enough brainpower and insight to want to make this story into a film. It has the potential to be a really good science-fiction film and Hosato could become a screen hero every bit as popular as Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, or those people from the Enterprise. Now I wonder who could play Hosato???

1999

If they made a movie of this book, they would probably re-title it "Ninja in Space". This is a pretty entertaining read, if you go in for this sort of thing.

2002

This is the best book that I have ever read that was written by a celebrity. It was written many years before it became the fashion for Star Trek stars to write science fiction books. I have read many of the other ones that have come out over the years and Mirror Friend Mirror Foe is the best so far. Of course with a co-author as good as Robert Asprin it would be hard to go wrong. The is a very good science fiction book to read even if you don't consider who the authors are.

2012

MIRROR FRIEND, MIRROR FOE came out in 1979. At StellarCon in Greensboro, N.C. that year, I met both authors, though I'm not sure they were promoting this one as the first Trek movie hadn't been out long and I never actually saw them together the weekend.

2015

Great early outing for the esteemed George Takei as an author, and a good example of some of Robert Aspirin's earlier work, before he really made his name in the fantasy genre. I'm not going to call this an earth-shattering contribution to printed sci-fi of the era, because it was I don't think that's what the authors collectively intended. It seemed a lot more like two die-hard fans having a romp through the limitless world of science fiction entertainment and bringing us along for the rise. It works perfectly as that, and doesn't need anything that it doesn't already have. It's quick, it's fun, it's punchy, it's pulpy. Read it and have a great time.

Great early outing for the esteemed George Takei as an author, and a good example of some of Robert Aspirin's earlier work, before he really made his name in the fantasy genre. I'm not going to call this an earth-shattering contribution to printed sci-fi of the era, because it was I don't think that's what the authors collectively intended. It seemed a lot more like two die-hard fans having a romp through the limitless world of science fiction entertainment and bringing us along for the rise. It works perfectly as that, and doesn't need anything that it doesn't already have. It's quick, it's fun, it's punchy, it's pulpy. Read it and have a great time.

2019

A quick sci fi book of fencing and robots that doesn't overstay it's welcome. Not deep, but a nice popcorn affair.

2021

I don’t remember where I ran across this - I suspect I picked it up at a used book store during my “read literally anything Star Trek related” phase. Anyway I think it’s a bit of a hidden gem. It’s more restrained than I think I would have assumed based on either author’s later work/personality. The characters are likeable and nuanced (especially by 1970s hard sci fi standards). The style is a nice mix of sci fi/robot/ninja hijinks with a light, wry tone from the pragmatic protagonist that keeps it from feeling too pulpy.