Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* IstanbulNotConstantinople: During one universe change, Hilda suspects the planet they have arrived on in this universe is the one named Barsoom, rather than the name from their own universe. Mars.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Cross Wicking new article
Added DiffLines:
* NudityEqualsHonesty: One of the alternate dimensions the protagonists spend a lot of time in is home to a variant of Christianity that equates nudity (as in the Garden of Eden) to innocence. So every Sunday you'll see families heading to church in their best clothes, only to strip before entering the sanctuary.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 61 (click to see context) from:
* RedheadInGreen: With the Long extended family having multiple redheads, a nontrivial proportion of its cargo capacity is dedicated to storing their wardrobe of "endless formals in green". Even though they mostly go nude.
to:
* RedheadInGreen: With the Long extended family having multiple redheads, a nontrivial proportion of its their starship's cargo capacity is dedicated to storing their wardrobe of "endless formals in green". Even though they mostly go nude.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* RedheadInGreen: With the Long extended family having multiple redheads, a nontrivial proportion of its cargo capacity is dedicated to storing their wardrobe of "endless formals in green". Even though they mostly go nude.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 8,9 (click to see context) from:
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the Literature/{{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
to:
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the Literature/{{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, Literature/JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
Changed line(s) 28 (click to see context) from:
* DiamondsInTheBuff: Deety does this in direct {{Homage}} to ''JohnCarterOfMars''.
to:
* DiamondsInTheBuff: Deety does this in direct {{Homage}} to ''JohnCarterOfMars''.''Literature/JohnCarterOfMars''.
Changed line(s) 45 (click to see context) from:
* MeaningfulName: Zebediah ''John Carter'' and ''Dejah Thoris'' Burroughs were both intentionally named (by their parents) for characters in the ''JohnCarterOfMars'' series. This is {{Lampshaded}} by the characters themselves, who are naturally both fans of it.
to:
* MeaningfulName: Zebediah ''John Carter'' and ''Dejah Thoris'' Burroughs were both intentionally named (by their parents) for characters in the ''JohnCarterOfMars'' ''Literature/JohnCarterOfMars'' series. This is {{Lampshaded}} by the characters themselves, who are naturally both fans of it.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Crosswicking.
Added DiffLines:
* MoreThanThreeDimensions: ''Six''-dimensional travel is enabled by pushing on a gyroscope in just the right way.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Unnecessary RL commentary.
Changed line(s) 58 (click to see context) from:
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is poly. The Burroughs join them. Most of the details are not "good polyamory" as currently understood; there's a lot of "don't ask don't tell" (as opposed to open communication and consent). See also FreeLoveFuture.
to:
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is poly. The Burroughs join them. Most of the details are not "good polyamory" as currently understood; there's a lot of "don't ask don't tell" (as opposed to open communication and consent). See also FreeLoveFuture.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 36 (click to see context) from:
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.[[note: Heinlein actually wrote this with a fair degree of subtlety. What twigs our heroes to the alien-ness isn't that he refused to look at her naked body at all (as that might simply have been out of politeness) -- its that the alien looked right at her strip-tease because her sudden hand movement drew his eye, then looked away from her as soon as he realized she wasn't reaching for a weapon. In other words, that he had zero emotional reaction to the difference between a naked woman and a clothed one, which was a glaring clue that he wasn't actually the white middle-class American he was pretending to be.]]
to:
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.[[note: [[note]] Heinlein actually wrote this with a fair degree of subtlety. What twigs our heroes to the alien-ness isn't that he refused to look at her naked body at all (as that might simply have been out of politeness) -- its that the alien looked right at her strip-tease because her sudden hand movement drew his eye, then looked away from her as soon as he realized she wasn't reaching for a weapon. In other words, that he had zero emotional reaction to the difference between a naked woman and a clothed one, which was a glaring clue that he wasn't actually the white middle-class American he was pretending to be.]][[/note]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Technique should be praised.
Changed line(s) 36 (click to see context) from:
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.
to:
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.[[note: Heinlein actually wrote this with a fair degree of subtlety. What twigs our heroes to the alien-ness isn't that he refused to look at her naked body at all (as that might simply have been out of politeness) -- its that the alien looked right at her strip-tease because her sudden hand movement drew his eye, then looked away from her as soon as he realized she wasn't reaching for a weapon. In other words, that he had zero emotional reaction to the difference between a naked woman and a clothed one, which was a glaring clue that he wasn't actually the white middle-class American he was pretending to be.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 58 (click to see context) from:
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is this. The Burroughs join them. See also FreeLoveFuture.
to:
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is this.poly. The Burroughs join them. Most of the details are not "good polyamory" as currently understood; there's a lot of "don't ask don't tell" (as opposed to open communication and consent). See also FreeLoveFuture.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Deleted line(s) 48 (click to see context) :
* MutuallyFictional: A core principle of the "World as Myth". See RecursiveCanon for more fun with this.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* OrganTheft: While if they need a body to substitute for someone who is rescued through time travel before they are killed and they must be replaced by a corpse so as not to create a time paradox, they can use a clone, Lazarus mentions how on some planets, you could order any organs you wanted from a specific person - or even their dead body if you wanted it - from your local organ/body snatcher, as casually as ordering from an office supply store.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
better quality version
Changed line(s) 1,2 (click to see context) from:
[[quoteright:234:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/TheNumberOfTheBeast_5152.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:234:]]
[[caption-width-right:234:]]
to:
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 16 (click to see context) from:
* TheAce: Deconstructed with Lazarus, who has grown accustomed to having his every whim obeyed (and usually always being right to boot), and is rather flustered when his patronizing behaviour causes the Burroughs to leave in a snit. Hilda then proceeds to read him the riot act, at which she is applauded by Lazarus' own family, who've apparently been waiting for someone to finally put him in his place. Lazarus then tries to brush it off by claiming it was a SecretTestOfCharacter and he doesn't respect anyone who won't stand up for themselves.
to:
* TheAce: Deconstructed with Lazarus, who has grown accustomed to having his every whim obeyed (and usually always being right to boot), and is rather flustered when his patronizing behaviour causes the Burroughs to leave in a snit. Hilda then proceeds to read him the riot act, at which she is applauded by Lazarus' own family, who've apparently been waiting for someone to finally put him in his place. Lazarus then tries to brush it off by claiming it was a SecretTestOfCharacter and he doesn't respect anyone who won't stand up for themselves.themselves (true) and it was a SecretTestOfCharacter (false).
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 40 (click to see context) from:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[Literature/{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
to:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[Literature/{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll [[Creator/LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* PhonyDegree: Zeb twists this trope into a pretzel. His doctorate in education came from a legitimate university, and he met all academic requirements. He freely admits to deliberately gaming the system to get that degree, to show that degrees ''per se'' are meaningless.
** Apparently Lazarus owns a diploma mill in his home timeline/universe.
** Apparently Lazarus owns a diploma mill in his home timeline/universe.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 51 (click to see context) from:
* NumberOfTheBeast: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by the protagonists for in-universe ParanoiaFuel, as the total number of accessible universes in the six-axis dimensional system employed by the Burroughs device is postulated to be 6^6^6 [[hottip:*:(10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056)]]. This of course inspires the title of the book.
to:
* NumberOfTheBeast: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by the protagonists for in-universe ParanoiaFuel, as the total number of accessible universes in the six-axis dimensional system employed by the Burroughs device is postulated to be 6^6^6 [[hottip:*:(10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056)]].[[note]](10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056)[[/note]]. This of course inspires the title of the book.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
adding trope
Added DiffLines:
*SteamPunk: The original Mars-Ten, which they spend a large portion of time in, is a steampunk world.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* SwitchingPOV: We get chapters narrated in first person by each of the four, and Lazarus Long gets a chapter too.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 40 (click to see context) from:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
to:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} [[Literature/{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 8,9 (click to see context) from:
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the {{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
to:
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the {{Lensman}} Literature/{{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Deleted line(s) 35 (click to see context) :
* GunInMyPocket: Hilariously lampshaded by Zeb, who freely admits that his HandCannon is indeed a penis substitute; he carries it specifically to compensate for the fact that he can't kill someone from thirty meters away with his dick.
Added DiffLines:
* PhallicWeapon: Hilariously lampshaded by Zeb, who freely admits that his HandCannon is indeed a penis substitute; he carries it specifically to compensate for the fact that he can't kill someone from thirty meters away with his dick.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 41 (click to see context) from:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [Literature/[StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
to:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [Literature/[StrangerInAStrangeLand [[Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 13,14 (click to see context) from:
!!Provides Examples Of:
to:
Changed line(s) 41 (click to see context) from:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
to:
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[StrangerInAStrangeLand [Literature/[StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
Changed line(s) 60 (click to see context) from:
* SelfDeprecation: When the main characters realize that they're traveling to worlds from their favorite works of fiction, Hilda asks that they all write lists of their favorite works. After the tally is completed, Zeb asks if Creator/RobertAHeinlein got any votes. Hilda says that he got two votes for his Future History stories, and two for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Zeb says that he has no intention of asking who voted for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand'', disparaging the book by saying "[[MoneyDearBoy The things some people will do for money]]."
to:
* SelfDeprecation: When the main characters realize that they're traveling to worlds from their favorite works of fiction, Hilda asks that they all write lists of their favorite works. After the tally is completed, Zeb asks if Creator/RobertAHeinlein got any votes. Hilda says that he got two votes for his Future History stories, and two for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. ''Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Zeb says that he has no intention of asking who voted for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand'', ''Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand'', disparaging the book by saying "[[MoneyDearBoy The things some people will do for money]]."
Changed line(s) 70 (click to see context) from:
* TitleDrop: The "NumberOfTheBeast" is mentioned several times. Also, at one point near the end, Jubal Harshaw is discussing culture shock, and calls himself a "StrangerInAStrangeLand," which is the title of the book that he's from. Deety also claims ''not'' to be a "stranger in a strange land" in Oz, as she is so familiar with the stories.
to:
* TitleDrop: The "NumberOfTheBeast" is mentioned several times. Also, at one point near the end, Jubal Harshaw is discussing culture shock, and calls himself a "StrangerInAStrangeLand," "Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand," which is the title of the book that he's from. Deety also claims ''not'' to be a "stranger in a strange land" in Oz, as she is so familiar with the stories.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 24 (click to see context) from:
* CasualInterstellarTravel: The obvious consequence of a device that allows one to travel anywhere, anywhen, in any universe, in the blink of an eye with zero power consumption. The corollary, of course, is that it makes interstellar/interuniversal war practical for the first time in human history, which [[SequelHook segues directly into the sequel]].
to:
* CasualInterstellarTravel: The obvious consequence of a device that allows one to travel anywhere, anywhen, in any universe, in the blink of an eye zero time, with zero power consumption. The corollary, of course, is that it makes interstellar/interuniversal war practical for the first time in human history, which [[SequelHook segues directly into the sequel]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 6,7 (click to see context) from:
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion of TheWorldAsMyth that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
to:
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion concept of TheWorldAsMyth that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', ''Literature/TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 6,7 (click to see context) from:
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion of the [[MutuallyFictional "World as Myth"]] that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
to:
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion of the [[MutuallyFictional "World as Myth"]] TheWorldAsMyth that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Namespace shift
Added DiffLines:
[[quoteright:234:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/TheNumberOfTheBeast_5152.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:234:]]
->''"He's a mad scientist and I'm his beautiful daughter."''
-->--'''Deety Burroughs'''
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion of the [[MutuallyFictional "World as Myth"]] that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the {{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
Not to be confused with NumberOfTheBeast, the fictional use of the dread "666", although it is referenced by the characters.
----
!!Provides Examples Of:
* AbsentMindedProfessor: Jacob can do multidimensional calculus in his head but requires a calculator to get 2+2=4 and often needs Deety or Hilda to [[ForgetsToEat remind him to eat]] or sleep.
* TheAce: Deconstructed with Lazarus, who has grown accustomed to having his every whim obeyed (and usually always being right to boot), and is rather flustered when his patronizing behaviour causes the Burroughs to leave in a snit. Hilda then proceeds to read him the riot act, at which she is applauded by Lazarus' own family, who've apparently been waiting for someone to finally put him in his place. Lazarus then tries to brush it off by claiming it was a SecretTestOfCharacter and he doesn't respect anyone who won't stand up for themselves.
* AIIsACrapshoot: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] after Lazarus gets into hot water because Dora refuses to obey his command to lie; he observes that it's for the best, as trusting your life to a computer capable of lying would be really foolish.
* AllMythsAreTrue: An obvious corollary to the "World as Myth" is that, if someone ever wrote it, it exists in TheMultiverse. However, any given person's ability to travel there is based on their own subjective experience; in other words, you can only get to "fictional" worlds you're personally familiar with unless someone else has gone there first and recorded the coordinates. Zeb remarks that this can be a very good thing indeed when he finds out that he's the only one of the four who's ever read [[Creator/HPLovecraft The Necronomicon]].
* AlternateHistory: Each universe is delineated by when it got space travel, and is usually named for the first person to walk on Earth's moon in that universe. Some universes diverged at earlier dates (such as 1500), but space travel seems to be the main point of delineation. Some HilarityEnsues when the particulars of these histories get compared.
* AuthorAppeal: As with many of Heinlein's later novels, features heavy helpings of nudism, {{polyamory}}, incest, and sentient female computers. As just one example, the Burroughs don't wear clothes except when they are meeting with other people, and Lazarus' family only wears them for formal occasions. Not to mention the entire "World as Myth" concept which lets Heinlein get all his characters together into one massive continuity crossover.
* BiTheWay: Pretty much all the major characters. Deety and Hilda kiss several times and clearly enjoy it, Jake has a quick flashback to a gay encounter from his youth. Only Zeb expresses any significant discomfort with homosexuality. The Longs, of course, have long since discarded any inhibitions in this regard.
* BiggerOnTheInside: Glinda's magic renders Gay Deceiver into this by adding a few extradimensional rooms to her rear compartment.
* BotheringByTheBook: When Jacob takes his turn as commanding officer, the others (instigated by Hilda) subject him to a "white mutiny" as payback for his antics during Zeb's and Hilda's turns.
* CasualInterstellarTravel: The obvious consequence of a device that allows one to travel anywhere, anywhen, in any universe, in the blink of an eye with zero power consumption. The corollary, of course, is that it makes interstellar/interuniversal war practical for the first time in human history, which [[SequelHook segues directly into the sequel]].
* CommunicationsOfficer: When Hilda is captain of the ''Gay Deceiver'', Zeb acts as her comm officer, especially when talking with the British colonists on Mars.
* CosmicRetcon: Explicitly enabled by the Burroughs device; a variant of this helps the team rescue Lazarus' mother, Maureen, from 20th century Earth. Several minor story elements from ''Literature/MethuselahsChildren'' and ''Literature/TimeEnoughForLove'' get worked over in this manner in this and subsequent novels.
* CrapsackOnlyByComparison: Our protagonists run into several such worlds. One of these, merely described, indicates abrupt Earth Drift.
* DiamondsInTheBuff: Deety does this in direct {{Homage}} to ''JohnCarterOfMars''.
* ForgetsToEat: Jacob, frequently.
* FreeLoveFuture: The Burroughs start out fairly conventional, but end up being decidedly casual about who sleeps with whom, and Lazarus takes this UpToEleven in his extended family, with just about everyone sleeping with everyone else by the end.
* GainaxEnding: Does the subplot with the Black Hats ever get resolved? Not really, the protagonists just shrug off their RetGone status back home and hold a big party. However, ''The Cat Who Walks Through Walls'' does take this up and deal with it.
* GenderBender: Among Lazarus Long's family, the Burroughs are surprised to meet a ''female'', resurrected Libby Andrew Long, formerly ''Andy'' Libby and a major figure in ''Methuselah's Children''. It turns out that Lazarus used TimeTravel to find Andy's corpse (which was [[BurialInSpace buried in space]]) in order to rejuvenate/resurrect him with modern technology. In the process of doing so, it was discovered that Andy had a female gender identity (and XXY sex chromosomes), and so they worked some genetic magic to make "him" into Libby Andy.
* GoodWithNumbers: Deety can do extremely complicated math in her head. Libby has the same talent, and when they meet they each (modestly) say that the other is a hair faster. Of course, they're so much faster than any normal person that only they could tell. Jake, by contrast, can only handle figures when expressed geometrically; Deety says he's no good at "kitchen math".
* GeniusBreedingAct: It's briefly suggested that the four members of the ''Gay Deceiver'' crew ought to have babies together, as they're all extremely intelligent and would presumably pass that on to their offspring. In ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls'', they and the Longs have had several communal children, all of whom are hypergeniuses.
* GunInMyPocket: Hilariously lampshaded by Zeb, who freely admits that his HandCannon is indeed a penis substitute; he carries it specifically to compensate for the fact that he can't kill someone from thirty meters away with his dick.
* HaveAGayOldTime: Gay Deceiver is a car-turned-spaceship, that Zeb named. There are ''many'' reasons why she can't be homosexual.
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.
* InfiniteSupplies: Averted initially, as the travelers worry a great deal about "juice" (fuel) for Gay Deceiver and how much they've managed to pack in terms of food and clothing. Hilda in particular has barely anything when they first set off. After they visit Oz, however, Glinda uses her magic to bestow Gay with an infinite supply of fuel (in addition to [[BiggerOnTheInside several extra compartments]] she didn't have before) and the Burroughs with a picnic basket containing infinite food.
* InterdimensionalTravelDevice: Professor Burroughs' invention of one (by [[WritersCannotDoMath blatantly ignoring the rules of vector arithmetic]]) is what drives the plot.
* LiteralGenie: Being just a computer before becoming a fully-fledged SpaceshipGirl, Gay causes a few issues by being this. In particular, an incautiously-worded sentence can activate her [[WarpWhistle command codes]] unintentionally.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
** Heinlein even takes the opportunity to poke some fun at Asimov, mentioning that he's "slowed down" to only writing about 20 books a year, and that he can have his head turned simply by having an attractive woman sit on his lap.
* MadScientist: Jacob identifies as this, in a self-deprecating way. He turns out to be anything but mad.
* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] word-for-word by Deety, in the first line of the novel quoted above. It's a pick up line to Zeb.
* MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover: The Convention for Pantheistic Multiperson Solipsism.
* MeaningfulName: Zebediah ''John Carter'' and ''Dejah Thoris'' Burroughs were both intentionally named (by their parents) for characters in the ''JohnCarterOfMars'' series. This is {{Lampshaded}} by the characters themselves, who are naturally both fans of it.
** Every villain's name is an anagram of either Heinlein's name, or of his wife Virginia's.
* TheMultiverse: The basic premise of the book.
* MutuallyFictional: A core principle of the "World as Myth". See RecursiveCanon for more fun with this.
* TheNapoleon: Hilda Mae Burroughs - small, check. Bullheaded, check. Gets all MamaBear when you mess with her family. Very check. Do not patronize or fuck with her.
* NukeEm: Employed by the Black Hats as a desperation measure to kill the protagonists before they can make an escape with the Burroughs Device. Zeb's precognition barely saves them.
* NumberOfTheBeast: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by the protagonists for in-universe ParanoiaFuel, as the total number of accessible universes in the six-axis dimensional system employed by the Burroughs device is postulated to be 6^6^6 [[hottip:*:(10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056)]]. This of course inspires the title of the book.
* ParentalIncest:
** It is implied that Deety and Jacob might do this. She says early on that she would never refuse her father if he approached her, and when the Longs suggest she and Jake should mate to [[GeniusBreedingAct create a super-smart baby]], she says that the matter will have to be resolved between Jake and Zeb.
** Lazarus and his mother resume the relationship they started in ''Time Enough for Love'', after the group rescues Maureen from 20th century Earth and she is rejuvenated. The difference is that this time, she knows he's her son.
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is this. The Burroughs join them. See also FreeLoveFuture.
* RecursiveCanon: A necessary part of the "World as Myth"; it is all but directly stated that the Burroughs' world is also the creation of an Author (and, of course, Lazarus Long's stories exist in the Burroughs' universe), but there is apparently some unwritten rule that you can't read your own story in someone else's universe, lest a paradox be created. To make things even more entertaining, Lazarus apparently knows where/when to meet the Burroughs ''by reading this book'', at least up to the point where he gets involved. Also, the notion of a malevolent Author messing with the Burroughs takes on multiple levels of recursive MindScrew when one realizes that the author in question is Heinlein himself.
* RetGone: When the Burroughs try to return to their own universe after meeting with Lazarus Long, they find out that this has happened to them there, possibly at the hands of the Author who was pursuing them in the first place.
* RetroactivePrecognition: Used all over the place, particularly when the protagonists use their knowledge of the past to stage the rescue of Lazarus' mother, Maureen, from the late 20th century.
* SelfDeprecation: When the main characters realize that they're traveling to worlds from their favorite works of fiction, Hilda asks that they all write lists of their favorite works. After the tally is completed, Zeb asks if Creator/RobertAHeinlein got any votes. Hilda says that he got two votes for his Future History stories, and two for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Zeb says that he has no intention of asking who voted for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand'', disparaging the book by saying "[[MoneyDearBoy The things some people will do for money]]."
* SpaceshipGirl: Zeb's car, Gay Deceiver, who starts out nonsentient but, thanks to upgrades from the team (and later [[AWizardDidIt Glinda]]), takes on a full-fledged personality later in the story. Then they meet up with Lazarus Long and his spaceship Dora, who is fully intelligent as well.
* SpiderSense: Zeb's {{Psychic Power|s}}, allowing him to react instinctively in the split second before danger strikes. It saves the team's lives on multiple occasions, including from the nuclear blast that destroys their home.
* TeleportationTropes: The method of time/dimensional travel used lends itself to a lot of these.
** TeleportersAndTransporters: The Borroughs device. Also Gay Deceiver after the device is mounted in her.
** TeleFrag: After a moment of in-universe FridgeHorror, Gay gets programmed with steps to avoid this. Not that it keeps them from almost crashing into things at their destination by normal means...
** WarpWhistle: Gay's command codes. Many lead to safe or relatively safe positions ("Gay Bug Out" leads to an uninhabited field on Mars, for instance); "Gay Bounce" just goes ten kilometers straight up, and is used as part of the failsafe against TeleFrag incidents.
* ThisPageWillSelfDestruct: Deety (a computer scientist) mentions that their family's account records are rigged such that if anyone unauthorized tries to access them, they'll get a cooked "clean" copy while the real records quietly erase themselves.
* TimeTravel: Thanks to the Burroughs device. It turns out that time is only one of the major dimensional axes that one can travel on; there are two others in addition to the traditional four, and any of them can be accessed by rotation or translation, providing a number of possible universes approaching infinity.
** It is notable that Lazarus' universe ''already'' featured TimeTravel prior to the Burroughs' arrival; it was merely inconvenient and difficult to calculate properly, and only worked within the one universe.
* TitleDrop: The "NumberOfTheBeast" is mentioned several times. Also, at one point near the end, Jubal Harshaw is discussing culture shock, and calls himself a "StrangerInAStrangeLand," which is the title of the book that he's from. Deety also claims ''not'' to be a "stranger in a strange land" in Oz, as she is so familiar with the stories.
* YearInsideHourOutside: More like "infinite time inside, zero time outside" since the Burroughs device allows you to shift your time axes as well as your space axes. The protagonists speculate that it would make a great enterprise to sell students extra time to study for their exams, or vacations that take zero time away from work. The sequels find the technology being put to a very similar use.
----
[[caption-width-right:234:]]
->''"He's a mad scientist and I'm his beautiful daughter."''
-->--'''Deety Burroughs'''
''The Number of the Beast'' is a 1980 ScienceFiction novel written by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. It is best known for being a MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover that unites every single fictional timeline he had ever written and those of multiple other authors, introducing the notion of the [[MutuallyFictional "World as Myth"]] that would be featured in all his subsequent works until his death. When plotted against his "Future History" series, this book is a sequel to ''TimeEnoughForLove'', and is followed by ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls''.
The plot centers around four geniuses, Zebediah ("Zeb") John Carter, Dejah Thoris ("Deety") Burroughs, her father Jacob, and their friend Hilda Mae, who find themselves embarking on a zany romp through TheMultiverse thanks to Jacob's newly invented time machine. Along the way, they discover that every single fictional universe ever invented by anyone is real and can be accessed by shifting one's dimensional coordinates appropriately, which ends up taking them into the {{Lensman}} series, JohnCarterOfMars, the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz stories]], and many other fictional worlds before they end up in the world of Heinlein's own archprotagonist Lazarus Long. Throughout this process, they are pursued by marauding interdimensional adversaries with the power to rewrite history, who end up possibly being controlled by a rival Author. The book ends with the Burroughs (as Zeb and Hilda have married Deety and Jacob, respectively) joining Lazarus Long's extended family and staging a convention for all the fictional heroes of the multiverse.
Not to be confused with NumberOfTheBeast, the fictional use of the dread "666", although it is referenced by the characters.
----
!!Provides Examples Of:
* AbsentMindedProfessor: Jacob can do multidimensional calculus in his head but requires a calculator to get 2+2=4 and often needs Deety or Hilda to [[ForgetsToEat remind him to eat]] or sleep.
* TheAce: Deconstructed with Lazarus, who has grown accustomed to having his every whim obeyed (and usually always being right to boot), and is rather flustered when his patronizing behaviour causes the Burroughs to leave in a snit. Hilda then proceeds to read him the riot act, at which she is applauded by Lazarus' own family, who've apparently been waiting for someone to finally put him in his place. Lazarus then tries to brush it off by claiming it was a SecretTestOfCharacter and he doesn't respect anyone who won't stand up for themselves.
* AIIsACrapshoot: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] after Lazarus gets into hot water because Dora refuses to obey his command to lie; he observes that it's for the best, as trusting your life to a computer capable of lying would be really foolish.
* AllMythsAreTrue: An obvious corollary to the "World as Myth" is that, if someone ever wrote it, it exists in TheMultiverse. However, any given person's ability to travel there is based on their own subjective experience; in other words, you can only get to "fictional" worlds you're personally familiar with unless someone else has gone there first and recorded the coordinates. Zeb remarks that this can be a very good thing indeed when he finds out that he's the only one of the four who's ever read [[Creator/HPLovecraft The Necronomicon]].
* AlternateHistory: Each universe is delineated by when it got space travel, and is usually named for the first person to walk on Earth's moon in that universe. Some universes diverged at earlier dates (such as 1500), but space travel seems to be the main point of delineation. Some HilarityEnsues when the particulars of these histories get compared.
* AuthorAppeal: As with many of Heinlein's later novels, features heavy helpings of nudism, {{polyamory}}, incest, and sentient female computers. As just one example, the Burroughs don't wear clothes except when they are meeting with other people, and Lazarus' family only wears them for formal occasions. Not to mention the entire "World as Myth" concept which lets Heinlein get all his characters together into one massive continuity crossover.
* BiTheWay: Pretty much all the major characters. Deety and Hilda kiss several times and clearly enjoy it, Jake has a quick flashback to a gay encounter from his youth. Only Zeb expresses any significant discomfort with homosexuality. The Longs, of course, have long since discarded any inhibitions in this regard.
* BiggerOnTheInside: Glinda's magic renders Gay Deceiver into this by adding a few extradimensional rooms to her rear compartment.
* BotheringByTheBook: When Jacob takes his turn as commanding officer, the others (instigated by Hilda) subject him to a "white mutiny" as payback for his antics during Zeb's and Hilda's turns.
* CasualInterstellarTravel: The obvious consequence of a device that allows one to travel anywhere, anywhen, in any universe, in the blink of an eye with zero power consumption. The corollary, of course, is that it makes interstellar/interuniversal war practical for the first time in human history, which [[SequelHook segues directly into the sequel]].
* CommunicationsOfficer: When Hilda is captain of the ''Gay Deceiver'', Zeb acts as her comm officer, especially when talking with the British colonists on Mars.
* CosmicRetcon: Explicitly enabled by the Burroughs device; a variant of this helps the team rescue Lazarus' mother, Maureen, from 20th century Earth. Several minor story elements from ''Literature/MethuselahsChildren'' and ''Literature/TimeEnoughForLove'' get worked over in this manner in this and subsequent novels.
* CrapsackOnlyByComparison: Our protagonists run into several such worlds. One of these, merely described, indicates abrupt Earth Drift.
* DiamondsInTheBuff: Deety does this in direct {{Homage}} to ''JohnCarterOfMars''.
* ForgetsToEat: Jacob, frequently.
* FreeLoveFuture: The Burroughs start out fairly conventional, but end up being decidedly casual about who sleeps with whom, and Lazarus takes this UpToEleven in his extended family, with just about everyone sleeping with everyone else by the end.
* GainaxEnding: Does the subplot with the Black Hats ever get resolved? Not really, the protagonists just shrug off their RetGone status back home and hold a big party. However, ''The Cat Who Walks Through Walls'' does take this up and deal with it.
* GenderBender: Among Lazarus Long's family, the Burroughs are surprised to meet a ''female'', resurrected Libby Andrew Long, formerly ''Andy'' Libby and a major figure in ''Methuselah's Children''. It turns out that Lazarus used TimeTravel to find Andy's corpse (which was [[BurialInSpace buried in space]]) in order to rejuvenate/resurrect him with modern technology. In the process of doing so, it was discovered that Andy had a female gender identity (and XXY sex chromosomes), and so they worked some genetic magic to make "him" into Libby Andy.
* GoodWithNumbers: Deety can do extremely complicated math in her head. Libby has the same talent, and when they meet they each (modestly) say that the other is a hair faster. Of course, they're so much faster than any normal person that only they could tell. Jake, by contrast, can only handle figures when expressed geometrically; Deety says he's no good at "kitchen math".
* GeniusBreedingAct: It's briefly suggested that the four members of the ''Gay Deceiver'' crew ought to have babies together, as they're all extremely intelligent and would presumably pass that on to their offspring. In ''Literature/TheCatWhoWalksThroughWalls'', they and the Longs have had several communal children, all of whom are hypergeniuses.
* GunInMyPocket: Hilariously lampshaded by Zeb, who freely admits that his HandCannon is indeed a penis substitute; he carries it specifically to compensate for the fact that he can't kill someone from thirty meters away with his dick.
* HaveAGayOldTime: Gay Deceiver is a car-turned-spaceship, that Zeb named. There are ''many'' reasons why she can't be homosexual.
* IgnoreTheFanservice: This is how Zeb and Deety clue to the fact that the "park ranger" accosting them is an alien; Deety's abrupt strip tease does not distract him or even engage his interest.
* InfiniteSupplies: Averted initially, as the travelers worry a great deal about "juice" (fuel) for Gay Deceiver and how much they've managed to pack in terms of food and clothing. Hilda in particular has barely anything when they first set off. After they visit Oz, however, Glinda uses her magic to bestow Gay with an infinite supply of fuel (in addition to [[BiggerOnTheInside several extra compartments]] she didn't have before) and the Burroughs with a picnic basket containing infinite food.
* InterdimensionalTravelDevice: Professor Burroughs' invention of one (by [[WritersCannotDoMath blatantly ignoring the rules of vector arithmetic]]) is what drives the plot.
* LiteralGenie: Being just a computer before becoming a fully-fledged SpaceshipGirl, Gay causes a few issues by being this. In particular, an incautiously-worded sentence can activate her [[WarpWhistle command codes]] unintentionally.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: In the last third of the book, many characters from other Heinlein books are encountered; including Lazarus Long, [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Hazel Stone]], [[StrangerInAStrangeLand Jubal Harshaw]], [[Literature/GloryRoad Oscar Gordon, Star, Dr. Rufo]], et al. Earlier on, characters from non-Heinlein books are seen or mentioned; including about a dozen [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz]] characters, [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the White Rabbit]], and [[{{Lensman}} Worsel]]. Most notably, some real people are mentioned, such as [[LewisCarroll Charles Dodgson]]. At the convention in the end of the book, several mentions are made that the characters are waiting for "Isaac, Bob, and Arthur," which is a not-so-subtle reference to the "Big Three" authors of the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Creator/IsaacAsimov, Creator/RobertAHeinlein, and ArthurCClarke. Asimov actually gets discussed more than Heinlein, which is fitting as the two were old friends and colleagues.
** Heinlein even takes the opportunity to poke some fun at Asimov, mentioning that he's "slowed down" to only writing about 20 books a year, and that he can have his head turned simply by having an attractive woman sit on his lap.
* MadScientist: Jacob identifies as this, in a self-deprecating way. He turns out to be anything but mad.
* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] word-for-word by Deety, in the first line of the novel quoted above. It's a pick up line to Zeb.
* MassivelyMultiplayerCrossover: The Convention for Pantheistic Multiperson Solipsism.
* MeaningfulName: Zebediah ''John Carter'' and ''Dejah Thoris'' Burroughs were both intentionally named (by their parents) for characters in the ''JohnCarterOfMars'' series. This is {{Lampshaded}} by the characters themselves, who are naturally both fans of it.
** Every villain's name is an anagram of either Heinlein's name, or of his wife Virginia's.
* TheMultiverse: The basic premise of the book.
* MutuallyFictional: A core principle of the "World as Myth". See RecursiveCanon for more fun with this.
* TheNapoleon: Hilda Mae Burroughs - small, check. Bullheaded, check. Gets all MamaBear when you mess with her family. Very check. Do not patronize or fuck with her.
* NukeEm: Employed by the Black Hats as a desperation measure to kill the protagonists before they can make an escape with the Burroughs Device. Zeb's precognition barely saves them.
* NumberOfTheBeast: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by the protagonists for in-universe ParanoiaFuel, as the total number of accessible universes in the six-axis dimensional system employed by the Burroughs device is postulated to be 6^6^6 [[hottip:*:(10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056)]]. This of course inspires the title of the book.
* ParentalIncest:
** It is implied that Deety and Jacob might do this. She says early on that she would never refuse her father if he approached her, and when the Longs suggest she and Jake should mate to [[GeniusBreedingAct create a super-smart baby]], she says that the matter will have to be resolved between Jake and Zeb.
** Lazarus and his mother resume the relationship they started in ''Time Enough for Love'', after the group rescues Maureen from 20th century Earth and she is rejuvenated. The difference is that this time, she knows he's her son.
* {{Polyamory}}: Lazarus Long's extended family is this. The Burroughs join them. See also FreeLoveFuture.
* RecursiveCanon: A necessary part of the "World as Myth"; it is all but directly stated that the Burroughs' world is also the creation of an Author (and, of course, Lazarus Long's stories exist in the Burroughs' universe), but there is apparently some unwritten rule that you can't read your own story in someone else's universe, lest a paradox be created. To make things even more entertaining, Lazarus apparently knows where/when to meet the Burroughs ''by reading this book'', at least up to the point where he gets involved. Also, the notion of a malevolent Author messing with the Burroughs takes on multiple levels of recursive MindScrew when one realizes that the author in question is Heinlein himself.
* RetGone: When the Burroughs try to return to their own universe after meeting with Lazarus Long, they find out that this has happened to them there, possibly at the hands of the Author who was pursuing them in the first place.
* RetroactivePrecognition: Used all over the place, particularly when the protagonists use their knowledge of the past to stage the rescue of Lazarus' mother, Maureen, from the late 20th century.
* SelfDeprecation: When the main characters realize that they're traveling to worlds from their favorite works of fiction, Hilda asks that they all write lists of their favorite works. After the tally is completed, Zeb asks if Creator/RobertAHeinlein got any votes. Hilda says that he got two votes for his Future History stories, and two for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Zeb says that he has no intention of asking who voted for ''StrangerInAStrangeLand'', disparaging the book by saying "[[MoneyDearBoy The things some people will do for money]]."
* SpaceshipGirl: Zeb's car, Gay Deceiver, who starts out nonsentient but, thanks to upgrades from the team (and later [[AWizardDidIt Glinda]]), takes on a full-fledged personality later in the story. Then they meet up with Lazarus Long and his spaceship Dora, who is fully intelligent as well.
* SpiderSense: Zeb's {{Psychic Power|s}}, allowing him to react instinctively in the split second before danger strikes. It saves the team's lives on multiple occasions, including from the nuclear blast that destroys their home.
* TeleportationTropes: The method of time/dimensional travel used lends itself to a lot of these.
** TeleportersAndTransporters: The Borroughs device. Also Gay Deceiver after the device is mounted in her.
** TeleFrag: After a moment of in-universe FridgeHorror, Gay gets programmed with steps to avoid this. Not that it keeps them from almost crashing into things at their destination by normal means...
** WarpWhistle: Gay's command codes. Many lead to safe or relatively safe positions ("Gay Bug Out" leads to an uninhabited field on Mars, for instance); "Gay Bounce" just goes ten kilometers straight up, and is used as part of the failsafe against TeleFrag incidents.
* ThisPageWillSelfDestruct: Deety (a computer scientist) mentions that their family's account records are rigged such that if anyone unauthorized tries to access them, they'll get a cooked "clean" copy while the real records quietly erase themselves.
* TimeTravel: Thanks to the Burroughs device. It turns out that time is only one of the major dimensional axes that one can travel on; there are two others in addition to the traditional four, and any of them can be accessed by rotation or translation, providing a number of possible universes approaching infinity.
** It is notable that Lazarus' universe ''already'' featured TimeTravel prior to the Burroughs' arrival; it was merely inconvenient and difficult to calculate properly, and only worked within the one universe.
* TitleDrop: The "NumberOfTheBeast" is mentioned several times. Also, at one point near the end, Jubal Harshaw is discussing culture shock, and calls himself a "StrangerInAStrangeLand," which is the title of the book that he's from. Deety also claims ''not'' to be a "stranger in a strange land" in Oz, as she is so familiar with the stories.
* YearInsideHourOutside: More like "infinite time inside, zero time outside" since the Burroughs device allows you to shift your time axes as well as your space axes. The protagonists speculate that it would make a great enterprise to sell students extra time to study for their exams, or vacations that take zero time away from work. The sequels find the technology being put to a very similar use.
----
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Deleted line(s) 1 (click to see context) :
[[redirect:TheNumberOfTheBeast]]
