History Series / TomesAndTalismans

* ScientificAndTechnologicalThemeNaming: The Users, being technophiles, have many names which are scientific in nature: Tesla, Abakas (abacus), Varian(t), Chroma, Pixel...

* ThemeNaming: The Users, being technophiles, have many names which are scientific in nature: Tesla, Abakas (abacus), Varian(t), Chroma, Pixel... Interestingly, the family descended from Wipers who performed a HeelFaceTurn has the last name Byte, implying that interbreeding with humans has not only culled out any conquering and destructive tendencies in them, but given them education so that they have an appreciation of science, learning, and knowledge (aside from, obviously, the ability to read at all).

* [[GivingRadioToTheRomans Giving Books to the Users]]: And with as awed and amazed as they are by the card catalogue, the Dewey Decimal System, and all other aspects of the library, one has to wonder just what the Users' own information storage and retrieval system is like, and exactly [[InformedAbility how intelligent and technological they actually are]].
** In a surprisingly clever moment, the Users imply that their headbands act as an indexing system to their photographic memories, meaning that they very likely ''don't'' need to organize information in any straightforward way because their brains work along a Google-esque "search, don't sort" paradigm. If this is the case, it makes it even odder that they would be so impressed by the card catalogue and the Dewey Decimal System, other than perhaps for its novelty.

* DescriptivelyNamedSpecies: Both the Users and Wipers, [[TheOldestOnesInTheBook of course]], although in this case it is due to their behavior and activities rather than looks or home planet. Even the aliens themselves use the terms, although for the Users it is likely a TranslationConvention courtesy of their headbands, while for the Wipers it is a narrative device for the sake of the audience ([[RuleOfDrama except]] for when [[CallARabbitASmeerp not knowing the translation of a particular word]] is important to the plot). Whatever their names may be in their native languages is never revealed (even the Users' home system is still called Alpha Centauri, and the great and feared Wiper general is Scourge the First). See also MeaningfulName, and NamedAfterTheirPlanet.

* DescriptivelyNamedSpecies: Both the Users and Wipers, [[TheOldestOnesInTheBook of course]], although in this case it is due to their behavior and activities rather than looks or home planet. Even the aliens themselves use the terms, although for the Users it is likely a TranslationConvention courtesy of their headbands, while for the Wipers it is a narrative device for the sake of the audience ([[RuleOfDrama except]] for when [[CallARabbitASmeerp not knowing the translation of a particular word]] is important to the plot). Whatever their names may be in their native languages is never revealed (even the Users' home system is still called Alpha Centauri, and the great and feared Wiper general is Scourge the First). See also LawOfAlienNames, MeaningfulName, and NamedAfterTheirPlanet.

* LawOfAlienNames: Completely averted. Not only are the Users and Wipers themselves given [[DescriptivelyNamedSpecies descriptive names]], even used by the aliens as TranslationConvention, but both the Wipers' home system and the one Earth's people evacuate to are called, respectively, [[BlackAndWhiteMorality the Dark Star and White Crystal]] solar systems--clearly [[MostWritersAreHuman named by the humans who discovered them]], and just as clearly not showing much scientific acumen or imagination. [[JustifiedTrope Some of this may be justified]], however, by the aesop and meta purpose of the show: by translating everything into English and allowing humans and Users to instantly understand each other, as well as the past histories of both Users and Wipers, it allows the characters to focus on research and education, and makes it easier for them to learn what they need to in order to win instead of time being lost or bogged down in complex issues of language and communication. So, less about linguistic realism and more about the symbolism and morality of the series--by making it easier for the characters to understand each other and get along, the writers emphasize that underneath it all, we're really all the same. And to judge from the books written about Wipers thanks to members of the race who performed a HeelFaceTurn and interbred with humans, it's entirely possible that the cultures and languages are more compatible than would seem on the surface.

* SciFiNameBuzzwords: The film camera Ms. Bookhart gives to Holon to film their hologram is called the "[=SuperRobomatic=]". And the gauge on the controls of the Wipers' magnetic field generator says it's manufactured by, of all things, the "Futurecraft" company.

* {{Zeerust}}: The teleporter technology looks like something right out of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' or ''Series/{{Space 1999}}''. Meanwhile, the computers all have incredibly large screens and colored buttons (even after the 100-year time jump), the Users have processed rations, the future human society still uses physical books and a card catalogue, and let's not even get started on the Wipers' weapons.

* AliensSpeakingEnglish: The Users have translator headbands as well as computers to aid them, so this is a no-brainer. Why the Wipers still speak it however is a mystery; scenes meant for the viewer are also likely a TranslationConvention (the same explains the BigBad using English when he taunts Tesla over the viewscreen), but it is not clear why or how Wipers would speak it to humans. Perhaps learning the language of the conquered race is another concession Wipers make to communication, so as to inform them of their actions/mock them. This could even explain why they all speak and act like dumb redneck stereotypes, a sign of their limitations as a communication-hating species as well as their contempt for humans.

* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: To a degree, everyone except the Wipers seems to speak this way in the future, but this is especially true of the Universal Being whose diction and vocabulary are so complex and archaic that even the {{Spock Speak}}ing Users have to use a dictionary to translate much of what he says. This is notable because they already have headbands that act as a UniversalTranslator, and yet they still can't understand his high-flown speech.

* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: To a degree, everyone [[CorruptHick except the Wipers]] seems to speak this way in the future, but this is especially true of the Universal Being whose diction and vocabulary are so complex and archaic that even the {{Spock Speak}}ing Users have to use a dictionary to translate much of what he says. This is notable because they already have headbands that act as a UniversalTranslator, and yet they still can't understand his high-flown speech.

Made in 1985 as a 13-episode serial drama, and (obviously) intended to teach children about various library and research concepts, ''Tomes & Talismans'' [[UnintentionalPeriodPiece is now extremely dated]] and clearly had a rather limited budget, but it gets the job done and remains surprisingly entertaining and even intriguing throughout, less because of the educational segments and more because of the ongoing mystery that must be solved.