Tom Swift And His Giant Robot (2015) - Plot & Excerpts
Semi-Spoiler ReviewI suppose now is as good a time as any to state my intentions reading all of these old adventure stories. Soon, you'll see my GoodReads book reviews flooded with more Nancy Drew, more Hardy Boys, more Tintin, more Tom Swift Jr, more Ken Holt, etc, than ever assembled on this site. The reason for this sudden influx is research: I'm working on a comic strip serializing the exploits of a young Boy Adventurer, and so I want to go to those who wrote the book(s) on the subject.Anyway.When one sits down to read a Tom Swift Jr. story, there are certain expectations one has. One, there will be fun with super-science. Two, there will be danger with super-science. And three, the danger will be solved with super-science. With those expectations in hand, I'd say Tom Swift and His Giant Robot was a success.The problem I have with Tom Swift Jr is the problem I have with Nancy Drew. He's perfect. He's a genius inventor at the age of 18, a skilled pilot, a popular and sociable boy around town, a business confidant of his fathers company, a wonderful son for his mother, and, most importantly, he never miscalculates. That's a tall order for a boy on the verge of his High School Graduation.Nevertheless, "Victor Appleton Jr" sets Tom up in a ridiculous world where this all seems possible. Nancy Drew suffers from being set in the "real" world, and thus her perfection just comes across as completely phony. Tom, however, lives in a world with space aliens, experimental aircraft, and fully functional and articulate robots. This particular book hits some touchy political points, as well. The main story revolves around a danger threatened on Tom Swift Sr.'s new Nuclear Power Plant. At first Tom suspects those dastardly nut job protesters who hate scientific progress and would rather see mankind back in caves (his words). By the end, though, "Appleton" proves that with science and with bravery, mankind will stride boldly into the future.The mystery, though, was almost as transparent as the one in The Mystery of the 99 Steps. Once I learned that there was a mentally unstable, scientific genius twin of a Swift Co. employee in the mix, it was so glaringly obvious he was the culprit, the rest of the story seemed tacked on and pointless. Even kids know to never trust an evil twin. Some genius Tom is.But when it's all said and done, this book has Native American treasure, giant, fighting robots, flying mechanical crows, glorious helicopter crashes, and several unnecessary explosions. Yes, it's a bit uneven and unwieldy, but once you look past the inherent problems of the genre, Tom Swift and His Giant Robot will prove a good time.
I read a Tom Swift book a couple of years ago and was really impressed, and I just found out that President Ronald Reagan read a lot of Tom Swift when he was growing up!
What do You think about Tom Swift And His Giant Robot (2015)?
A giant robot! Come on, what else do we need? Another in the great Tom Swift, Jr. series I have revisited as an adult. I loved them when I was a pre-teen and collect them now. Simple plots that include some technology and some mystery, but always show that industrial inventiveness saves the day. These are from the mid-20th century, so much use is made of atomic energy in portable forms. This story deals with a robot Tom has built to work with dangerous atomic fuel in a bigger plant his father has designed. It is not very "giant" -- we aren't talking "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." it's just bigger than your average human. The series at the start had to touch on all the new sci fi ideas like rockets and robots. This one is not one of my favorites, but its cool.
—James
