Tuesday, April 18, 2000
brief fiction prize winner
back and forth through time
Bobby Gale ‘01
Marty McFly’s head hurt. He had only been in the past an hour and he already found himself in bed with his own mother. He tried to think how things could have gotten so screwed up. He remembered Christopher Lloyd playing the professor, and a silver car that ran on trash. The doors opened up and made it look like a stainless steel bird-car. Marty resented Biff, his Dad’s tormentor. And he loved to rock out. That much was for sure. 

If that much had already happened already, what could possibly happen next? Would Marty have to go into the future with the car so that he could rescue the professor from future Biff? He didn’t have time to think about that now, his mom’s face was disappearing from his snapshot! He’d have to work quick to save her. Even while she’s coming onto him? Gross! But how could she know? It’s not like there are two of her. Not yet, anyway. And then lightning strikes and somebody calls somebody else a ‘chicken.’ Damn, the flux capacitor broke! Looks like we’re stuck in the wild, wild west.


 
AARON: "Back and Forth Through TIme '' was written by Robert Gale, who shows not only a fine comic touch but also some of the lighthearted humanism of a Frank Capra. The brief story, in fact, resembles Capra's ``It's a Wonderful Life'' more than other, conventional time-travel short stories. It's about a character who begins with one view of his life and reality, and is allowed, through magical intervention, to discover another. 

LUKE: Agreed.