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Dying Earth stories are those Sci Fi (but often fantasy) stories set in a far future where high technology civilization has faded away, leaving behind strange relics and mutants, where science has given Sy to superscience and the supernatural. These stories are often characterized by a sense of moral exhaustion, melancholia or ennui mixed with the wonder of finding relics from a more vibrant age.

Anyway, I’d like some recommendations for books or even movies fitting into the category. I’ve got the Jack Vance collection that gave the subgenre its name, as well as the Viriconium omnibus, some of the Xothique stories* and the CJ Cherry collection with her short stories.

Are the Gene Wolfe books worth reading? I’ve heard Saberhagen has some books in the genre, too—are they good?

Is the cartoon Wizards good to watch with a teen? Is it good in general? Are there any other cartoons in the genre besides Thundarr?

Are there any live action movies or TV shows in this genre?

What are the best Dying Earth type stories?

Wizards is good maybe. Light nudity or less than I remember. I have it on dvd somewhere. Love it. A work of it's time but I wouldn't say it's bad. The elf warrior is a wild man which I always find cool. Very not how we usually see them.

Dying earth movies, I started the wondering earth but gave up on it for some reason. I think it must have annoyed me. The idea was interesting. It was very grim and they tried to maybe make some aspects over the top where it seemed just too much.

There's an animation, Earth 2 I think might be called. All I remember is they named the new earth Bob. Not sure if that qualifies.

What about Core?

And maybe Armageddon?


I'm sure I've seen more. I'm drawing a blank.

 warhead01 wrote:
Wizards is good maybe. Light nudity or less than I remember. I have it on dvd somewhere. Love it. A work of it's time but I wouldn't say it's bad. The elf warrior is a wild man which I always find cool. Very not how we usually see them.

Dying earth movies, I started the wondering earth but gave up on it for some reason. I think it must have annoyed me. The idea was interesting. It was very grim and they tried to maybe make some aspects over the top where it seemed just too much.

There's an animation, Earth 2 I think might be called. All I remember is they named the new earth Bob. Not sure if that qualifies.

What about Core?

And maybe Armageddon?


I'm sure I've seen more. I'm drawing a blank.

Planet Bob is from Titan AE. Earth 2 I think was a TV series about interstellar colonists.

Michael Shea – Nifft the Lean etc are a fun read, and pretty much a pastiche of Vances' stuff

Gene Wolf was an author i never managed to get to click, but i could see there was something worthwhile there so i tried several times

Clark Ashton Smith's Zothique stories are good (although i came to him via Lovecraft and Howard so i saw them in a Cthulhu mythos rather than dying earth light, but apparently Vance took a fair amount of inpiration from them)

similarly William Hope Hodgeson's House on the Borderlands

There was a Justice League (cartoon) episode where Superman is thrown forward in time straight into a Thundarr Earth. That's... all I can think of besides actual Thundarr.

Wait, does Samurai Jack count?

I liked Gene Wolfe's Claw of the Conciliator series, but I can see how he's an acquired taste.

Edit: the series is actually called Book of the New Sun. Claw of the Conciliator is one of the books in the series.

I admit I was struggling with the Gene Wolfe books. Then my sister in law borrowed and lost the book and I’ve been wondering if it’s worth buying another copy to try again.

Oh! Forgot to mention the Storm comics by DH Lawrence.

And Michael Moorcock's Dancers at the End of Time.

Revenger by Alistair Reynolds probably fits into this genre. There a couple of sequel books as well, but the first one is a satisfying stand alone story.

 BobtheInquisitor wrote:
I admit I was struggling with the Gene Wolfe books. Then my sister in law borrowed and lost the book and I’ve been wondering if it’s worth buying another copy to try again.

I'd say no the folk i knew who (really) liked it seemed to do so from the first read, and i don't think i know anybody who managed to get into them by forcing their way through

they're also not a quick and easy read and will eat time as you slowly plod though them