History Literature / WhoGoesThere

''Who Goes There?'' is a {{science fiction}} novella written by Creator/JohnWCampbell. Originally an unpublished full-length novel titled ''Literature/FrozenHell'', it was shortened and renamed and published under the pen name Don A. Stuart in 1938 in the magazine ''Magazine/AstoundingStories''. It directly inspired three feature films--1951's ''Film/TheThingFromAnotherWorld'', Creator/JohnCarpenter's 1982 movie ''[[Film/TheThing1982 The Thing]]'', and the latter's 2011 [[Film/TheThing2011 prequel of the same name]] (and more loosely inspired 1972's ''Film/HorrorExpress'')--and indirectly influenced several decades of science fiction works by inspiring other authors to rip it off. ''Series/TheXFiles'' adapted it ''twice'', for instance, while ''Literature/TheTerror'' is something of a Victorian-era homage.

* TheAssimilator: While the thing can absorb people and create multiple copies, the creature is less like a virus and more of [[BlobMonster highly morphological plasticity]]. The thing seems to envelop and [[YouAreWhoYouEat digest organisms to copy them]] and grow more copies. The dogs are theorized to have bitten off pieces large enough that the pieces were still alive and could digest them from within.

* DissonantLaughter: Happens to almost everybody.
* DoWrongRight: [[spoiler:"Boys, meet Clark, the only one we know is human -- by trying to commit murder and failing."]]

* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler:Kinner.]]

* KilledOffscreen: The last time we see Clark, [=McNeily=]'s talking about how he's the only one they know has to be human on account of him murdering Kinner. The only mention after that is them naming him in a list of people who turned out to be Things -- presumably, he was caught out by the blood test.

* LockingMacGyverInTheStoreCupboard: [[spoiler:Blair.]]
%% * MauveShirt: Bennings.

* RedHerring: The serum test Dr. Copper develops turns out to be useless in detecting humans because one of the human blood contributors was already a thing and the things didn't leave any other dogs to start over with.

* WindowsOfTheSoul: When one character looks the alien's original form in the eye, he decides that its favorite pastime was "torturing the local equivalent of kittens".

* TheAssimilator: While the thing can absorb people and create multiple copies, the creature is less like a virus and more of [[BlobMonster highly morphological plasticity]]. The thing seems to envelop and [[YouAreWhoYouEat digest organisms to copy them]] and grown more copies. The dogs are theorized to have bitten off pieces large enough that the pieces were still alive and could digest them from within.

* AudioAdaptation: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcn9Z0xrQhA by the BBC]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM--e5Tm5uM&t=159s and Must Be Nice Studios]]

* BewareTheMindReader: The Thing has {{Telepathy}} and VoluntaryShapeshifter abilities. It uses them to copy both the minds and bodies of its victims before performing a KillAndReplace on them.

* BottomlessMagazines: Averted; [=MacReady=] fires his revolver [[spoiler:twice at the albatross to drive it off, once to destroy the hand-held death ray the Blair Thing was pointing at him, and once into each of its three eyes before throwing the empty gun at its face.]]

* CopiedTheMoralsToo: The Thing acts ''exactly'' like whatever it’s imitating, right down to the victim’s feelings and morals. None of the Things ever attempt to sabotage the investigation, and Connant-Thing raises the alarm on the original’s escape for no other reason than that’s what the real Connant would have done.
* DreamingOfThingsToCome: Norris's nightmares. Turns out he's just picking up on The Thing's thoughts.
* DissonantLaughter / LaughingMad: happens to almost everybody.
* DoWrongRight: [[spoiler: "Boys, meet Clark, the only one we know is human--by trying to commit murder and failing."]]

* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler: Kinner.]]
* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: Several of the men lose it, particularly Blair and Kinner. If they were still men at that point, that is.

* IncendiaryExponent: The alien's spaceship is made of magnesium-alloy metal. It reacts...poorly... to the thermite-based attempts to enter it.
* JustThinkOfThePotential: [=MacReady=] laments having accidentally destroyed the alien's spaceship. [[spoiler: They get hold of some alien tech in the end, however.]]
* KilledOffScreen: The last time we see Clark, [=McNeily=]’s talking about how he’s the only one they know has to be human on account of him murdering Kinner. The only mention after that is them naming him in a list of people who turned out to be Things - presumably he was caught out by the blood test.
* KillItWithFire: The initial attempts to kill The Thing using a blowtorch; and then later, the bodies.

* LockingMacGyverInTheStoreCupboard: [[spoiler: Blair.]]

* MonsterInTheIce: And why it's a bad idea to thaw one out. To their credit, some of the base personnel want to do this in formalin, which probably would have killed it before it had a chance to revive. [[spoiler: Blair dissuades them, arguing that it's almost certainly the last of its kind in the universe and that only a careful slow thaw will leave it amenable to proper study.]]

* NoBiochemicalBarriers: A DiscussedTrope here. Most of them think it's illogical for something from another planet to be compatible enough with humans to eat and/or infect them. They learn the hard way that the universe is always one step beyond logic.
* PanUpToTheSkyEnding: Combines with TheEndOrIsIt, as [[spoiler: The Blair-Thing is killed, but there is a possibility another Thing might have escaped as an albatross.]] However, the characters discuss this possibility and decide that it is very unlikely [[spoiler: having shot the only albatross that they saw to prevent that]].

* RightHandVersusLeftHand: The protagonists assume--incorrectly--that you can't be a Thing if you attack a Thing. As it turns out, its imitation is so good that it won't break character if another Thing gets outed, and ''will'' attack it just to keep up its own appearance. Once separated, every individual Thing has its own survival as its own priority. That's why the blood test works.
* ShockAndAwe: the best way of permanently killing The Thing is electricity, high voltage, for as long as it takes.

* TheSociopath: {{Invoked}}; Connant is so freaked out by the alien that he insists "The thing grew up on evil, adolesced slowly roasting alive the local equivalent of kittens, and amused itself through maturity on new and ingenious torture."

* TooDumbToLive: Invoked. [=McNeily=] points out that if Connant-Thing hadn’t woken everyone up after being assimilated, the original Thing would have finished assimilating the dogs and nobody would have been any the wiser. Copper suggests that the Things simply don’t have any priorities beyond being perfect imitations, and since Connant would have raised the alarm that’s what Connant-Thing does too.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:[[spoiler: Benning is a mauve shirt throughout, but generally tags along with Barclay and [=MacReady=], but his final fate isn't revealed. It can be assumed he survived, as he was not mentioned by [=MacReady=] when he lists the dead and the men turned into Things, and the odds were generally in his favor.]]
* WindowsOfTheSoul: When one character looks the alien's original form in the eye, he decides that its favorite pastime was "torturing the local equivalent of kittens."

%% * MysteriousAntarctica: The setting.

%% * VoluntaryShapeshifting - and how.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:[[spoiler: Benning is a mauve shirt throughout, but generally tags along with Barclay and [=MacReady=], but his final fate isn't revealed. It can be assumed he survived, as he was not mentioned by [=MacReady=] when he lists a few things, and the odds were generally in his favor.]]

The story follows a group of scientific researchers in Antarctica who stumble upon an alien life form, which revives after they thaw it from the ice it's been encased in for twenty million years. The alien has the ability to assume the form, memories, and mannerisms of any living thing it comes in contact with, as well as to read their minds and project their thoughts. Which members of the expedition are still human, and which are alien impostors? As the ice that's been keeping them isolated from the rest of the world begins to thaw, the remaining humans realize they'd better figure it out soon, because the fate of humanity is very much at stake.

Author Alec Nevalla-Lee rediscovered the original manuscript for ''Frozen Hell'', and it was published following a successful Kickstarter campaign.

The story follows a group of scientific researchers in Antarctica who stumble upon an alien life form, which revives after they thaw it from the ice it's been encased in for twenty million years. The alien has the ability to assume the identity, memories, and mannerisms of any living thing it comes in contact with, as well as read their minds and project their thoughts. Which members of the expedition are still human, and which are merely alien impostors? As the ice that's keeping them isolated begins to thaw, the remaining humans realize they'd better figure it out soon, because the fate of humanity is very much at stake.

''Who Goes There?'' is a {{science fiction}} novella written by Creator/JohnWCampbell. Originally an unpublished full-length novel titled ''Literature/FrozenHell'', it was shortened and renamed and published under the pen name Don A. Stuart in 1938 in the magazine ''Magazine/AstoundingStories''. It directly inspired three feature films--1951's ''Film/TheThingFromAnotherWorld'', Creator/JohnCarpenter's 1982 movie ''[[Film/TheThing1982 The Thing]]'', and the latter's 2011 [[Film/TheThing2011 prequel of the same name]] (and more loosely inspired 1972's ''Film/HorrorExpress'')--and indirectly influenced several decades of science fiction works by inspiring other authors to rip it off. ''Series/TheXFiles'' adapted it ''twice'', for instance, and ''Literature/TheTerror'' is something of a Victorian-era homage.

''Who Goes There?'' is a {{science fiction}} novella written by Creator/JohnWCampbell. Originally an unpublished full-length novel titled ''Literature/FrozenHell'', it was shortened and renamed and published under the pen name Don A. Stuart in 1938 in the magazine ''Magazine/AstoundingStories''. It directly inspired the 1951 movie ''Film/TheThingFromAnotherWorld'' and the 1982 Creator/JohnCarpenter movie ''[[Film/TheThing1982 The Thing]]'' (and more loosely inspired 1972's ''Film/HorrorExpress''), and indirectly influenced the next few decades of science fiction by inspiring other authors to rip it off. ''Series/TheXFiles'', for instance, adapted it ''twice'', and ''Literature/TheTerror'' is something of a Victorian-era homage.

The story follows a group of scientific researchers in Antarctica who stumble upon an alien life form. The alien has the ability to assume the identity, memories, and mannerisms of the humans. Which members of the expedition are still human, and which are aliens pretending? As the ice that's keeping them isolated begins to thaw, they'd better figure it out soon, because the fate of humanity is very much at stake.

* AnAxeToGrind: When they discover the alien, an axe has been embedded in its body from some past encounter with humanity prior to freezing.

%% * LockingMacGyverInTheStoreCupboard: [[spoiler: Blair.]]

%% * MonsterInTheIce: And why it's a bad idea to thaw one out.

* CopiedTheMoralsToo: The Thing acts *exactly* like whatever it’s imitating, right down to the victim’s feelings and morals. None of the Things ever attempt to sabotage the investigation, and Connant-Thing raises the alarm on the original’s escape for no other reason than that’s what the real Connant would have done.