River Song, the Time Traveler’s Wife, Borges and The Joshua Files.
Yeah that’s right. I can use all those things in a sentence. Because all four have used one very lovely device of the time-traveling story genre:
Two time-traveling characters who meet up with each other across different time-streams.
The earliest story that does this than Richard Matheson’s Bid Time Return, which was the basis for the adorable time-travel romance starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour; Somewhere In Time. (You haven’t seen it? Rent it now! For more about Richard Matheson and time-travel romances, see the comments below.)
The Time-Traveler’s Wife takes the concept further, criss-crossing ages and stages of the characters as they share a sort of life together across decades. I watched the amazing Doctor Who episode Silence In the Library for the first time last week – and finally saw the story which introduces Professor River Song. Is she our own time-traveler’s wife?
Yeah…maybe! But was she always his friend? Maybe not. Maybe when she first meets the Doctor, they are enemies.
Because he has an inkling of who she’ll become, it’s more interesting.
Anyway, we’ll see. I’m just guessing.
Jorge Luis Borges wrote a short story where a young Borges finds himself next to an old Borges, asking the older one about life. They don’t understand each other too well.
And in The Joshua Files?
Well, by the end of Joshua Files #3, Zero Moment, lovers and time-travelers have already crossed paths. There’s more to come in Joshua #4, Dark Parallel. Beady-eyed readers might have guessed it was happening.
Everyone else will have to wait until 2012 and Joshua #5 to know for sure…
As River Song would say…Spoilers!
4 replies on “River Song, the Time Traveler’s Wife, Borges and The Joshua Files”
There’s certainly no shortage of subsequent films with premises similar to that of SOMEWHERE IN TIME, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Examples include the TV-movies THE TWO WORLDS OF JENNIE LOGAN and THE LOVE LETTER and the feature film HAPPY ACCIDENTS. THE LOVE LETTER was based on a story by Jack Finney, whom Matheson acknowledged as the master of the time-travel romance by including a “Professor Finney” in the film. Interestingly, he had adapted Finney’s story for the script of an anthology pilot film that was never made. You can read more in my forthcoming book RICHARD MATHESON ON SCREEN.
Thanks for this Matthew, that sounds really interesting! Will check that book out, please feel free to post an Amazon link. Love Matheson!
Much obliged! Here it is:
http://www.amazon.com/Richard-Matheson-Screen-History-Filmed/dp/0786442166
hi Most Glamorous
One day, I’ll get to read all of these! It’s getting closer, but one day…
es x
ps you’re doing fabulously well! When’s the first film????