Burroughs is the next step after Jules Verne and H. G. Wells. Look for some parallel names that have been adapted in Star Wars. Warriors are called jed; their leader jeddak (jeddi). The great beast of Bantoom is the banth (bantha). The hero, John Carter, dies at the onset of each book to be mysteriously reincarnated on Mars (called Barsoom by the Martians), alternating for ten-year periods. Look for vivid descriptions of wield aliens and creatures of Mars as well a sketchy technological advancement. On land they move around on beasts (called thoats) but also have large number of airframesreferred to as ships and thus have navies, not air forces (again Star Wars)ranging from battle ships to one-person fliers (These seem to be merely open-air platforms: no cabin whatsoever). In spite of this, most fightingand there is a wealth of itis done with long-swords (the early Star Wars light sabers). The butchery seems to have no end; it is the major vocation and pastime. How to play chess the hard way. With live pieces. With swords. Death to those taken. As in all of his Mars series, space travel is possible, yet in other ways civilization on Mars ranges from primitive to Romanish, to advanced, to weird. They still fight brandish swords. They fly around, but in some sort of propeller-driven craft. Mars is populated by all sorts of creatures; some headless, others merely heads. Most seem to be human though, except that they red-skinned (What else could they be on the red planet?) and are all built like Adonis and Aphrodite. So here you have it, a society, not unlike our own, coincidentally primitive and highly evolved, ever at war. Burroughs is the next step after Jules Verne and H. G. Wells.

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