They say you can never go back... Ringworld

Back in April, SyFy announced that they were commissioning a mini series of Ringworld, one of my favourite novels.  It holds a dear place in my heart, as at the age of 14, Ringworld, along with Clarke's, 2001 A Space Odyssey, brought me to the fascinating world of SF. 

As the mini series was announced, I decided to read the original series again. I'd read the books many times before, but never in one sitting; Ringworld through to Ringworld's Children.

Ringworld and The Ringworld Engineers hold up well, demonstrating rightly so, why Niven's creation was and is the quintessential big dumb object. Vast distances are handled with skill and style at once awing the reader but never leaving them behind. You feel immersed in the landscape.  The story while being a relatively simple quest, never fails to surprise and intrigue.  A background read of Protector and The Tales of Known Space may orientate the new reader, but they are not required.

Niven mentions that he never intended to return to his creation but that circumstance and some die hard fans provided renewed interest.  That worked well for The Ringworld Engineers.

No so well for The Ringworld Throne.  This novel starts with and extended section dealing with Ringworld natives, where Niven's hero, Louis Gridley Wu, remains on the sidelines.  While the story is interesting it is bogged down by the constant reference to Rishathra - sexual practise outside of one's species but within the intelligent hominids that make up the Ringworld natives. Not as weird as it sounds, but the novel hits you over the head with it over and over again.  That doesn't mean the novel's terrible, but it's not like the others.

Ringworld's Children finds the Ringworld besieged by the other races of knownspace and there's a race on to save the billions of natives populating the giant structure.  The novel ends with what in my opinion is the only way it could. The lead character makes a great sacrifice. 

Interestingly, the writing is superior in The Ringworld Throne, Niven obviously improving with age.

Over all the series holds up well and draws you in with interesting characters, a neat plot, and mind bending locations. The first two books are good, the following books not so, but still good enough to hold one's attention.

Can SyFy make a mini series out of the first two novels. Well, I guess the technical ability's there and I have no doubt a good script can be written, but whether the TV watching public can handle the odd aliens, the strange locations and the crazy plot devices only time will tell.

Of course I'll watch it. But nothing will hit me as much as the first time I visited Ringworld all those years ago.  You can go back, but it's not always quite how you remember it.