Greenslaves and Occupation Force: Frank Herbert Before Dune

Abu and Leo dig into "Greenslaves" and "Occupation Force," two stories Herbert wrote in the decade before Dune made him famous, to see what they reveal about the mind behind the books.

"Greenslaves," published in Amazing in March 1965 and later expanded into the novel The Green Brain, follows a Brazilian extermination program built to wipe out every last insect, and the swarm that has learned to disguise itself to survive it. In "Occupation Force," published in Fantastic in 1955, a U.S. general readies the nukes against an alien ship parked over Washington, only for its ambassador to deliver a reveal about exactly how long humans have actually been under alien rule.

This episode contains SPOILERS for Frank Herbert's short stories Greenslaves and Occupation Force. There are NO SPOILERS for the Dune novels.

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