Second Chance (Star Wars story by Hill)
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| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Second Chance |
| Author(s): | Kelly Hill |
| Date(s): | 1981 |
| Length: | |
| Genre(s): | het |
| Fandom(s): | Star Wars |
| Relationship(s): | |
| External Links: | |
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Second Chance is a Star Wars story by Kelly Hill.
It was published in Warped Space #46 in September 1981.
Fan Comments
'Second Chance' provides this issue of Warped Space with its example of fictional sludge, the sort of error in editorial judgement that consistency reduces WS from an outstanding zine to an average one. It is an interminable and totally predictable hurt/comfort Han story which seems to be cobbled together from every old fan fiction cliche at hand. The writing is adequate but lackluster, and the standard plot announces itself so clearly by the third page that you don't have to read any further to know exactly what is going to happen. This is probably just as well, for the reader's best bet is to simply skip this story entirely. [1]
...this is the one where "I been there myself: it is obvious that the author has never known anyone actually deprived of their legs, or hands, or eyes, because that anger/depression/ determination sequence works fine in melodrama but just ain't so in real life. The writing was okay, but the path was meaningless. I expect more insight, or at least more experimentation, from fanfic. [2]
"Second Chance" — okay, folks, here we go. I thought I'd left this stuff behind when I gave up reading Kirk/Spock hurt/comfort 'zines, no matter how beautifully written and illoed. Now we have a "get-Han" story, complete with suffer, suffer, suffer, and heal, heal, heal, and the obligatory sex scene so that Han can prove he's still a man, even without legs -- I guess if Luke's got a fake hand and Han's got plastic legs, we’re ready for the Year of the Handicapped. Sorry, folks, I just don't buy it. The hospital scenes were good—but I sincerely hope we’re not in for a cycle of stories in which we get to see Our Boys maimed, butchered, etc. for the vicarious pleasures of their fans, And don’t tell me about the scene in TESB — Luke got out of there, fast, and the suffering was held to a minimum. Let's keep 'em whole, ladies, that's the way they work best. [3]
The Han-amputee story was so maudlin, silly, and starkly unbelievable (really — in a Galaxy that has 'droids and cybernetic prostheses of the quality of Luke's replacement hand, Han is going to faunch and creeb about a pair of replacement legs? Ghu preserve us from wheatena-brained authors who haven't even a cursory knowledge of SF!) that I haven't yet gotten around to the telepathic green gorilla story. [4]
Did not care much for "Second Chance." I'm so tired of let's-crunch-Han stories, and Kelly Hill can write much better than this. [5]
regarding Kelly Hill's "Second Chance" ... Hmm — I have a couple of points and I hope I can present them coherently. First, it was pretty obvious that Kelly added that bit about Han's final prostheses after viewing the pretty nifty slight-of-new-hand performed by Luke in TESB. This was unfortunate, as lit only made a weak story weaker. Sorry Kelly, I luv ya, but this story don't work! And it doesn't work because:
1) all this angst Han goes through in the first part of the story is phony as hell — his main gripe seems to be that he'll never fly again. Well, unless the Falcon's got rudder pedals, I don't see how that has barma beans to do with flying. Hell, even if it did, he does have prostheses. He uses his hands, eyes and mind, not his feet! Now if he'd been blinded, that might have been different ...
2) In adding that addendum with those fool-proof, invisible, all-purpose, no-tell feet and ankles that Han wound up with, you made all that previous suffering ludicrous! Not only that, but why the hell didn't the doctor tell Han about them in the beginning? Why have Han believe he was going to go through the rest of his life looking like Peg Leg Pete if it wasn't necessary?
3) My major objection to the story is, that you can't carry a SW story which is totally dependent on terrestrian medical terminology. This I say from experience, resulting from a great deal of flak I received after I wrote "Resurgence," and had Han bleeding to the point of death. I even had one irate Registered Nurse phone me from California to tell me that there was no way Han could have survived that amount of blood lose. And what could I answer? "Well, after all, Han isn't human?" But that's a cop out, and Kelly's done the same thing. She's used Han's legs as a plot contrivance, and a poor one. At least in STAR TREK you are dealing with humans. Earth humans even, and the technology is pretty well defined. But in STAR WARS you've got a very different and varied technology. The galaxy is not our own, there are droids and light sabres and fully functioning, sensory perfect limb prostheses which seem to be an accepted part of the SW culture. Luke hardly looked appalled or even depressed about his replacement hand in TESB, and I hardly believe that Han, considering the scope of his travels across the galaxy, would be so totally devastated at the loss of his lower limbs — he didn't even lose his knees, for gods' sake! He would be angry, certainly, perturbed at the delay in getting back on his feet (whatever they were made of) but he'd certainly not crack up, contemplate suicide, and have to prove his manhood by sleeping with the first female he met after his hospital discharge, and confirm his lightning reflexes by saving a little boy from the path of an oncoming vehicle. The plot should have been the destruction of the Falcon. That would have been the main reason for his grief. But that Kelly treated superfluously by the Alliance giving him anew ship "on condition." I think she would have done better to play down the medical aspects and play up the psychological trauma of Han's having to accept the demise of the only possession he had. Ironic in fact, since then the ship would have seemed more important to him than his own physical predicament. As it is, there's no pity for Han, no gut-wrenching sympathy to carry us along with him in his grief; only a little what-the-hell's-he-making-such-a-stink-about? attitude. Oh, and Kelly — one of your objections to TESB was that the loss of Luke's hand had nothing to do with the plot? Granted — but what does the loss of Han's feet have to do with yours? [6]
About WS 46 ... there is ... one story that really bugged me. It was Kelly's "Second Chance." For the first time, you printed a story 1don't think I would have. The basic story was fine, but it had a few gaping holes in it. The one most people will pick out is that TESB rendered the medical stuff obsolete. That doesn't bother me so much. Kelly, according to her LoC, didn't care for that business anyway, so I can understand why she would write aversion her way. My complaints are as follows: 1) Vader is after Solo, so the Imperial cruiser shoots the Falcon down. This part is fine, but the commander of the cruiser is an ass if he doesn't check out the wreckage. After what happened in TESB, Vader would want proof positive that Solo is dead. 2) Chewie fakes a crash landing, but manages to land the ship in the docking bay. "Well, here we are, folks, the Falcon has landed! And passengers are all alive, worse for wear, but alive!" We are assuming that this is not an Imperial planet, I guess. This is never clear, but with an Imperial cruiser floating around, one would assume there must be agents on the planet. After all, the Empire is taking over ... or wants to. The rebels have gone underground. Even systems which are not part of the Empire proper would have some Imperial presence. 3) They take Han to the hospital. Which, is where he should be, heaven knows, but he enters under his own name! Okay, let's assume the best. The word gets out he's dead. No one notices a ship matching the Falcon's description, landing in the docking bay with a man matching Han Solo's description and a Wookiee aboard her. But when they arrive at the hospital, with everyone in tow, they make no attempt to conceal who they are! The doctor seemed like a nice guy, but what about the others in the hospital? When Leia showed up and the doctor started calling her "Princess," I almost died. He didn't even make a comment about thinking she was dead or something! I really have a hard time understanding this. If it had been for real, someone would have come gunning for Solo and it all would have been over. (While they were at it, they could have knocked off Luke, Chewie, and Leia during one of her visits.) I found little flaws with the writing and the story was fine, if you ignore the stuff that bugged me. I just couldn't believe it! [7]
"Second Chance" by Kelly Hill wasn't so funny, as it wasn't meant to be. It sounded like it was taking place on 20th Century Earth rather than "a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away." It also lacked plausibility. What was the purpose of putting Han through all that conflict if the doctor was walking around on perfect prosthetic devices all along? [8]
I was fascinated by "Second Chance." However, it seemed a story that had been set among SW characters to provide a “reader hook." As a non-SW story it was excellent — and I can imagine Han reacting that way in such a situation. (However, I think the medical technology was a lot closer in the story to 20th Century techniques than to the actual advanced technology of the SW setting. Remember the lifelike bionic hand grafted onto Luke in TESB — it even had a pain sense!) However, I can see the rationale behind the story of Han's long struggle to come to terms with having both legs amputated. Incidentally, I was surprised in TESB that bionic hands were still in use — they'd probably have regeneration. Perhaps the Rebels simply couldn't afford first rate medical treatment! Another medical possibility would be using the Force to heal. This hasn't been treated in the films yet, but seems quite obvious. Turning to the Dark Side would warp this healing ability, though not destroy it utterly — hence Darth's scars, which cosmetic surgery can't do much about, as his subconscious actually hampers the healing. [9]
I thought Kelly Hill's "Second Chance" showed insight and either extensive research or experience with amputees. Reactions to the situation and steps in recovery, physically and psychologically, seemed realistic to me. I actually didn't care for the story until I got into it; it seemed to grow on me. [10]
Kelly Hill's "Second Chance" is good, but she forgot one small item, or perhaps I ought to say two: limb rejuvenation, and cyber limbs (like the one Luke received). The former is possible when caught in time to prevent serious cell loss, and arterial and vein collapse. The latter, necessary when the previous is unavoidably out of reach (like Luke's case) and requires the trimming of said limb sufficiently to implant sensory equipment to detect nerve signals. Anyone who read the original STAR WARS novel should be aware of this. Otherwise; not bad on story, boring on conversation. The artwork was the stand-by variety seen in lower quality 'zines. [11]
I had the privilege of reading several drafts of Kelly's "Second Chance" way back when the idea was first conceived of and this final version showed a lot of improvement over an already well-wrought story. I still have the same two problems getting into the story: first, suspending my disbelief that there is room in the Falcon's cockpit for anything to fall over and even if there were there is no panel visible in any photos I've seen large enough to crush a human; and secondly, I have a definite aversion to Get Han stories. The latter impediments notwithstanding, the rest of the story is a very believable character study of Han laced with some excellent insights on Chewie and Luke, and that likeable new character, Dr. Zaire. Kelly had a nifty idea of cloning or regenerating limbs for Han and the psychological aversion Solo would have to the process itself and the long recovery time needed, but the bionic legs solution worked well too, fit in just as well with SW-TESB technology and saved Han a lot of waiting. It still bothers me to notice "wheelchair" and "parallel bars" and "gurney" references in a universe like SW where anti-grav devices are in common usage. Darned if I could think of away to replace a cane, though! Some things will probably never change. I did like the way Kelly treated Han's relationship to his friends, old and new, after the accident, especially Chewie who would have to take an active part in the rehabilitation, if only to bully his partner into action. I know the story was written before TESB and Kelly is not a Leia fan, but I can't imagine Han passing up this opportunity to elicit more royal attention from the Princess, once he's on the mend and assured his sexual prowess is intact, rather than pushing her graciously at Luke every time she visits. Leia is well-characterized, though. So, regardless of the unpleasant premise of the story, "Second Chance" is a worthwhile psychological piece with enough of the medical sf trimmings to put it above the level of a mere "get" story and satisfying in the end, within its own context.I [12]
"Second Chance" by Kelly Hill in 46 was also good, well-written. A story on this theme could have easily become maudlin, but this one remained straightforward and even optimistic. [13]
Michael Goodwin's illo for Kelly Hill's "Second Chance" is beautiful — the destroyer almost flies off the page. [14]
Kelly Hill's "Second Chance" would have been more enjoyable if it didn't remind me so much of Maggie Nowakowska's "Nothing Left to Lose" in the characterization of Han and his problems. Ok, the characterization fits the situation, but the situation itself, Han crippled in some way and without the Falcon, is too familiar. Her treatment of it is fine, well worked-out, it's just that I couldn't help making the comparison as I read. Maybe if I hadn’t liked NLTL so much ... [15]
References
- ^ from Jundland Wastes #5/6
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)
- ^ from Warped Space Supplement, LOCs for #46-#47 (letters were written in 1981-82, but not printed until 1983)