Our Friends From Frolix 8. Such a strange little title. It reminds me of a Dr. Seuss book, or some Saturday morning kids' cartoon complete with loud and garishly drawn characters.
“LOOK OUT KIDS!!! Woo-hoo-hoo-hooo!!! I'm Froopy, your friend from Frolix 8! Ready to have some fun?”
It's stranger still when thought of in context to the story it titles. The title conjures images of an old-fashioned science fiction story, perhaps one a little light-hearted and playful. It definitely doesn't describe the kind of story old Phil Dick presents here: a fast-paced political thriller.
Yeah that's right, this is, for lack of a better term, a political thriller. Of course it's one filtered through Dick's elaborate and creative imagination, but a rose by any other name...
In typical phildickian fashion, the book is brimming with ideas and fascinating characters.
A partial list:
In the distant future, the Earth's political parties are defined by a set of physical traits, or mutations. There are three major parties (re: classes): the New Men, the Unusuals, and the Old Men/Regulars.
The New Men possesses vastly superior cognitive powers. Their minds are highly evolved and they are capable of incredibly complex thoughts. The New Men are at the top of the political ladder.
The Unusuals possesses telekinetic powers, namely telepathy and precognition. They work in tandem with the New Men and together these highly evolved humans have created a world thick with bureaucracy and political corruption.
The Old Men/Regulars are just that: old-school humans. These poor guys don't have any special powers or abilities and are thus relegated to menial tasks such as tire re-treading, the job of the novel's protagonist, Nick Appleton.
There is also another group, a subversive group known as the Under Men. The Under Men are Old Men revolutionaries hell-bent on overthrowing the corrupt power of the New Men and Unusuals. The Under Men distribute tracts and literature in hopes of spreading the gospel of their number-one super-delegate, Thors Provoni.
Unfortunately, Provoni has been away from the Earth for many years. He left in hopes of discovering something strong enough to combat the New Men and the Unusuals. The Under Men have begun to lose hope in their savior. However, just when the hour is darkest, a message is received from the deep regions of outer space, a message ringing with hope! Thors Provoni is returning, and with him, a friend, a friend from Frolix 8! The audacity of hope!
I love these kinds of stories. I'm not really sure what to call them, but I'm sure they have a name. This is a “count-down story.” Like the films Strange Days, or Southland Tales, or Donny Darko for example. In these stories, we know that a super-cool, uber-event is going to happen at the narrative's climax, and half the fun is anticipating the event's outcome and watching as everything unravels and gets revealed in light of this event.
In Friends, we know that Thors Provoni is returning to the Earth, and we know that he is bringing with him an alien entity capable of destroying the current regime. But how? Why? What do our new friends from Frolix 8 want in return? And what is going to happen when he finally gets here? What will happen to Nick Appleton and his arch enemy, the Unusual Willis Gram? And just who in the hell is that freak Amos Ild, a New Man with a cranium so massive he needs head stilts to keep it from toppling over?
So many questions...
So many fascinating characters...
So many outlandish situations...
And what is most incredible is the way in which Dick keeps everything tied together; he fashions all of these ideas, situations, and characters into a tightly knit, cohesive narrative that moves with a well-paced purpose and rhythm. Dick was a master of the Big Idea, but he was also a master at composing entertaining and thoughtful narratives; he rarely sacrificed one for the other.
Our Friends From Frolix 8 is top tier Dick. The way he examines our current political structure through outlandish notions is absurd and poignant, and the trials and tribulations he puts his characters through are timely and thought provoking. This book is especially revealing now, in the midst of this 2008 election season. During these times that try our patience, these times that can make even the most optimistic man a grumbling a cynic, it is good to turn to PKD to see the humor and humanity in these seemingly out-of-our-control situations.
