The Big Time

Fritz Leiber

The Big Time is the Hugo award winning novel for 1958.  This story is written almost like a play. This style was likely inspired by Fritz Leiber's parents who were both Shakespearean Actors. It is an odd choice though is this is a story about a war that seems to stretch across both time and space and yet takes place almost entirely is a single room.

The story is told from the point of view of Greta a nurse and 'entertainer' who works in a rest house which is outside of the time stream or the little time. They call this area The Big Time. It is strongly implied that the type of entertaining she does is of an adult nature.  The reason that she is hear is become of The Change War. The Change War is fought between the Snakes and the Spiders two groups the fighters know almost nothing about. They are attempting to alter time so that the others do not exist.  This is not easy because of a force of nature called the conservation of reality.

The story is in large part a mystery with all of the characters locked in the same room. This means that one of the characters in the room had to be the one to commit the 'crime'. This leads to a lot of accusations and character development though the ultimate reveal is a bit disappointing.

Things The Big Time has Influanced

The idea of a time war is one that has been used many times. The most obvious of these is Dr. Who. It seems quite clear that the Dr. was influenced by Fritz Leiber and the Change war. In addition the idea of a time war has been in a number of Star Trek episodes including a large amount in Enterprise. Finally the sound of thunder which is based on a story by Ray Bradbury has some interesting connections to the winds of time which are in this story.