About the epilogue (Nasa control)

[Gnorn]

Allthough I've got no problems with the Nasa epilogue, it is kind of silly. Sending space exploraition vehicles to Mars, and then being surprised as to discover Martians over there. Like there never has been a War of the Worlds.

Like sending the AEF to France in '44, to find out "What?! There's Germans here?!"

I asume the epilogue was put in because of the actual Mars exploration at that time, but didn't Jeff Wayne realise it was a bit odd? Hopefully H_C can talk a bit about this? Thanks.

-Gnorn

[ScarletFeelers]

Yes I always thought it very odd too.

Oh no! Not the mass amnesia scenario again

[jeffwaynefan]

The NASA ending for the album is really a mixture of things - bringing the storry upto date due to the early Mars VIKING landing by NASA at the time of the albums concept I guess its Jeff paying homage to their work, bringing the acting abilities of his father into play, but really can you imagine the album without that ending. . . Artistic licensing at its best. If you listen to the ending you will notice that the radio announcer is not commenting on seeing Martians, its the green gasses on Mars is he referring too.

H_C

[Gnorn]

Thanks H_C, and I stand corrected. They never mentioned the Martians indeed, only the dust and the green flare.

Do you know who's Jeff's father by the way? Is he the first or second observer? I asume he's the first?

-Gnorn

[jeffwaynefan]

I may be wrong, but Jeff's late father - Jerry Wayne - plays both the charactors at the end. Jerry Wayne was an actor and a producer who's work included the Broadway hit musical Guys And Dolls.

Jeffs father was an American, his mother was British and Jeff was born and raised in America until moving over to the UK.

H_C

[Gnorn]

It was just a couple of days ago I read his father credited for the epilogue voice(s) in the booklet.

I haven't played the album for ages, but with all this WOTW news, it got me eager and excited to play it again. And I haven't played anything else for the past days :-) Allthough I'm having a little brake now from Jeff Wayne's WOTW... and am playing Jeff Wayne's Spartacus :-)

-Gnorn

[Bayne]

[glow=red,2,300]For me the NASA section has always been the weakest part of the musical.

I have to admit though, I did love the epilogue featured in the end credits of the Martian campain in the PC game! Very cool indeed.

Didn't Jeffs brother provide the voices of the Martians in the PC game?
[/glow]

[malfunkshun]

Bayne said:

[glow=red,2,300]For me the NASA section has always been the weakest part of the musical.[/glow]

well, yeah, thankfully it is only a very small part, and you can listen to the entire album and skip the epilogue and it doesn't matter at all. when you're 8 years old however, the epilogue is pretty cool

[Curate]

The way it abruptly cuts off made me think the needle had fallen off the edge of the LP
I like the epilogue... although given that human technology would have received a huge boost from plundered Martian equipment, I suspect the first probes to Mars would have been launched prior to 1920. Or perhaps the British Empire has colonised most of the solar system and left Mars until last.

[Gnorn]

I do hope, in the CGI movie, Jeff Wayne keeps this epilogue play around the Viking landings. Not the recent Rover ones.

Let me repeat that.

I do hope, in the CGI movie, Jeff Wayne keeps this epilogue play around the Viking landings. Not the recent Rover ones.

-Gnorn

[Killraven]

Gnorn said:

I do hope, in the CGI movie, Jeff Wayne keeps this epilogue play around the Viking landings. Not the recent Rover ones.

Let me repeat that.

I do hope, in the CGI movie, Jeff Wayne keeps this epilogue play around the Viking landings. Not the recent Rover ones.

-Gnorn

Latest news in. Rover, having failed in their bid to sign a deal with Shanghai Automotive to build their new mid-range car, and unable to find another multinational willing to work with them, have signed a deal with the Martians. The new vehicle is to be tentatively named "Rover 45,000,000 miles"

[jeffwaynefan]

"Rover 45,000,000 miles"

There's no way I would buy a Rover with 45,000,000 miles on the clock.

H_C

[Killraven]

Horsell_Common said:

"Rover 45,000,000 miles"

There's no way I would buy a Rover with 45,000,000 miles on the clock.

H_C

H_C - you're assuming a Rover capable of travelling 45,000,000 miles!

[malfunkshun]

i could have sworn two of em did that just about a year ago

[Herulian Martian]

Curate said:

The way it abruptly cuts off made me think the needle had fallen off the edge of the LP
I like the epilogue... although given that human technology would have received a huge boost from plundered Martian equipment, I suspect the first probes to Mars would have been launched prior to 1920. Or perhaps the British Empire has colonised most of the solar system and left Mars until last.

Perhaps Man did not try to land a pair of landers until the 70s in that timeline. They would have known that the Martians regarded us as their enemies, especially since we have used and cannibalized their fallen technology. Perhaps the twin probes were stealthed and the Martians were able to counter the stealthing tech.

With a hostile planet like Mars, a space probe with a huge telescope to study mars from afar would be used in the earliest missions to Mars, let's say around 1920-1930. The Martians would not likely do much about a distant probe. An HST space telescope type probe could have been developed by 1925 and sent to Mars. Good CCD chips and CID chips might have come out by 1920. Also, our level of tech in 1920 might be comparable to the real world of 2005. Marvel comics has Mars re-invade earth in 2001, so by then, Earths tech would be far higher still. We might have sent a manned or unmanned probe to Alpha Centauri by then.

[TOMAHAWK]

Hmm I cannot fathom the epiloque really

Ok the announcer is on Earth...landers land on Mars...green gas is seen, then all communication between various stations is lost. Why would it effect Earth so fast!!!!!!

Unless the annoucer was on some sort of Mother spacecraft and the other stations were smaller craft orbiting Mars.

[djmatt82]

I always thought the NASA epilogue was, us going to mars to find out what we can about the Martians, and about them starting an invasion again.

[Gnorn]

I've allways interpreted it as being the actual Viking landings.

-Gnorn

[djmatt82]

combined with that
i just thought my idea made sense!

[HTT]

There is another explanation. In the book, shortly after the invasion ended, it states that after observing one of the other planets (Jupiter?), Earth's scientists thought that the Martians had turned to an easier planet to colonize. Therefore, modern day NASA could think "Hey-ho, abandoned planet, perhaps we can do some extra terrestrial archaeology and nick some of their abandoned technology, in case they try and spring another attack from Jupiter". (This concept is in Babylon 5, where teams of intersellar archaologists salvage abandoned and destroyed words for new military technology). Problem is - the scientists were wrong and they're on both planets.

As Jeff had to cut some recorded material out of the album for space, perhaps there is some material in the archives saying how the scientists believe the martians left their dying world and took over Venus?

As for the cut-out in communications - as we're being watched keenly and closely, my guess would be that over 90 years they would try and counter any developments, such as communications.