Reconstructing or Re-Emergence of the Past

Tag Area: Time-Related Situation
Short Story

Hindsight

Years ago, engineer Bill Webster abandoned Earth for the employ of the piratical Astrarch far beyond the orbit of Mars; now the Astrarch is aiming the final blow at a defeated Earth, and Bill wonders whether the gun sights he invented can spot—and change!—events in the past. —Michael Main
The tracer fields are following all the world lines that intersected at the battle, back across the months and years. The analyzers will isolate the smallest—hence most easily altered—essential factor.
Pen-and-ink drawing of a man standing at a futuristic control panel, looking at a wall-sized hatched screen displaying a flying ship.
  • Science Fiction
  • War
  • Definite Time Travel
Short Story

There Is a Tide

A sleepless man, struggling with a business decision, sees an earlier occupant of his apartment who is struggling with a decision of his own. —Michael Main
I saw the ghost in my own living room, alone, between three and four in the morning, and I was there, wide awake, for a perfectly sound reason: I was worrying.
Color photo of young twin girls climbing high in the rigging of a ship’s mast.
  • Eloi Silver Medal
  • Fantasy
  • Debatable Time Travel
Short Story

Light of Other Days

  • by Bob Shaw
  • Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact, August 1966
On a driving holiday in Argyll, Mr. and Mrs. Garland hope to find a way out of their hateful marriage, but instead they find a field of slow glass harvesting the light of other days. —Michael Main
Apart from its stupendous novelty value, the commercial success of slow glass was founded on the fact that having a scenedow was the exact emotional equivalent of owning land.
Pen-and-ink drawing of a cottage at the foot of a hill that’s covered in large panes of glass.
  • Eloi Silver Medal
  • Science Fiction
  • Time Phenomena
Comic Book

Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction #1

Light of Other Days

Until the last page, this was a nice adaptation of Bob Shaw’s original story. Don’t know why they felt a need to change it or add an epilogue. —Michael Main
The commercial success of slow glass was founded on the fact that owning a scnedow was the exact emotional equivalent of owning land.
In the large panel, a sporty car zips past a hillside covered with large panes of glass.
  • Science Fiction
  • Time Phenomena
Novelette

Bank and Shoal of Time

  • by R. A. Lafferty
  • in A Spadeful of Spacetime, edited by Fred Saberhagen (Ace Books, February 1981)
Peter Luna brings five “time attempter” experts to his estate, hoping that he’ll be able to pass on his secret for getting over the time shoal that prevents them from exploring the past. —Michael Main
This was the message received by a dozen or so experts in the "time attempters" field:

"I have succeeded in establishing a creeping time-satellite or time-shuttle at my estate of Moonwick near Lunel in the Herault Department of the Peoples Republic of France. If you are really experts in your field, you will appreciate the importance of this. From this time-shuttle, which is just beyond the ‘shoal’ of all of you to whom I am sending this message, it will be possible for you to launch genuine time probes. I am sending this to a dozen or so and I hope for acceptance from at least five. I must have a matched set of at least five. Some soon. A very little bit after ‘soon’ will be too late for me to transmit the shuttle to you. Bring ideas only. Everything else for frugal and break-through living is provided. You will receive various transportation chits and enabling papers. Peter Luna.”

The World Courier Service (“No questions asked. Messages carried anywhere or anywhen in the world”) delivered these messages to the dozen or so persons who were experts in the time field. And some of the people gave assent and some didn’t. So, the next day, the Courier Service delivered airline tickets, train tickets, and International Taxi Coupons to five of the experts who had agreed to go to Moonwick.
No image currently available.
  • Science Fiction
  • Definite Time Travel
TV Episode

Star Trek: The Next Generation (s01e06)

Where No One Has Gone Before

Yes, we see minor time phenomena when Picard and other members of the crew vividly experience moments and beings from their pasts, possibly created by their thoughts, but the real import of the episode is the introduction of The Traveler, who among other things is able to alter spacetime and is always on the lookout for promising individuals such as Wesley Crusher. —Michael Main
The Traveler to Picard about Wesley: In such musical geniuses I saw in one of your ship’s libraries—one called Mozart, who as a small child wrote astonishing symphonies, a genius who made music not only to be heard, but seen and felt beyond the understanding, the ability of others. Wesley is such a person, not with music, but with the equally lovely intricacies of time, energy, propulsion, and the instruments of this vessel, which allow all that to be played . . .
Eric Menyuk (as the Traveler) looks knowingly at young Wil Wheaton (as Acting Ensign Wesley Crusher).
  • Eloi Honorable Mention
  • Science Fiction
  • Time Phenomena
Feature Film

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy (as Spider-Man and Spider-Gwen) swing through various spider-verses, become close to each other, struggle to stave off the Spot, and learn of the thoughse of spider-heroes, some of who exhibit technology to reconstruct the past and possibly predict the future. —Michael Main
Well, maybe some things are supposed to be just for us.
No image currently available.
  • Superhero
  • Audience: YA and Up
  • Time Phenomena