The Tripods

The Tripods

Company type	Book series
Industry	Publishing
Founded	1967 (1967)
Founder	John Christopher
Products	Young adult science fiction novels

The Tripods is a collection of young adult science fiction novels authored by John Christopher. The narrative unfolds in a post-apocalyptic setting where humanity is subjugated by colossal three-legged machines called "Tripods," controlled by an alien species known as the "Masters." The initial two novels served as the foundation for a 1980s British science fiction television adaptation.

Synopsis

Within The Tripods, human civilization resembles a rural, medieval-like existence, persistently monitored by the Tripods. Industrial development is scarce, and relics of modernity are considered rare symbols of prestige. At age 14, humans undergo "Capping," receiving implants that suppress autonomy and individuality. Some individuals become "Vagrants," their minds fractured by these implants. The Masters contemplate earlier Capping to thwart uprisings but are constrained by biological growth factors.

The White Mountains (1967)

Set against a backdrop of a pre-industrial world ruled by Tripods, thirteen-year-old Will Parker from the English village of Wherton eagerly awaits his imminent Capping Day. After encountering a mysterious man who feigns being Capped named Ozymandias, Will, along with his cousin Henry and French youth Jean-Paul "Beanpole" Deliet, flee toward the White Mountains—a region beyond Tripod domination. Along their journey, they meet Eloise, a girl already Capped, which motivates them to press onward. The story reaches its climax when Henry and Beanpole remove an implanted tracking device from Will, leading to a successful battle against a Tripod before joining the resistance in the White Mountains.

The City of Gold and Lead (1967)

Following a year spent in the White Mountains resistance, Will, Beanpole, and a German boy named Fritz are dispatched with counterfeit Caps to infiltrate a Tripod city by winning a regional athletic competition whose champions are taken by the Tripods. Will excels as a boxer and Fritz as a runner, while Beanpole fails in jumping events.

The victors are transported to a Tripod city enclosed within a pressurized dome over a river. There, they come face-to-face with the operators of the Tripods—the "Masters." Human males serve as slaves inside these cities; attractive females are killed and preserved for the Masters’ use. Will recognizes Eloise among them. Slaves must wear breathing apparatuses to survive the alien atmosphere but quickly tire due to intensified artificial gravity—explaining the athletic selection process. The title’s "gold" pertains to the city's hue; both "gold" and "lead" allude to the increased gravity.

While Fritz suffers mistreatment from his Master, Will enjoys privileged treatment as a favored pet. Will’s Master reveals intentions to replace Earth's atmosphere with their own toxic air to achieve total domination. When Will’s diary is uncovered, he kills his Master to safeguard this secret. With Fritz’s assistance—who remains behind to uphold Will’s alibi—Will escapes. The narrative concludes with Will and Beanpole believing Fritz has perished as they return to the White Mountains.

The Pool of Fire (1968)

Will and Fritz (who eventually escapes) traverse Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and the Middle East aiming to organize resistance against the Tripods. The resistance captures one of the Masters and learns that alcohol acts as a powerful sedative on them. Leveraging this knowledge, coordinated assaults are launched on their cities by contaminating water supplies with alcohol. Raiding teams eliminate Masters in two out of three cities by exposing them to Earth's atmosphere through forced airlocks. However, an attack on the third city in Panama fails.

Following unsuccessful attempts using airplanes and aerial bombs, another offensive employs hot air balloons developed by Beanpole. Henry sacrifices himself by holding a bomb against the dome's roof until it detonates, shattering it and killing the Masters inside. Henry is celebrated as a hero.

Subsequently, the Masters’ atmosphere-seeding spaceship arrives, destroys what remains of their cities, then departs—to prevent humans from reverse-engineering their technology—although Beanpole notes that significant knowledge has already been acquired. Human technological advancement swiftly rebounds, including progress in space travel theory.

The series concludes with Resistance leader Julius being overthrown at an international summit. Despite his efforts to foster unity during the struggle, alliances collapse into nationalism. Will, Beanpole, and Fritz reunite in Julius’s honor to continue striving for a better future.

When the Tripods Came (1988)

Serving as a prequel released twenty years after the original trilogy, When the Tripods Came explores the Masters' initial invasion, as depicted in The City of Gold and Lead.

Unable to conquer humanity through military means, the Masters resort to a television broadcast called The Trippy Show to hypnotize the population, ultimately controlling them permanently via Caps. The narrative centers on a young English boy who observes an unsuccessful first assault by a Tripod in rural Britain. As the Masters tighten their grip on society, he and his family escape first to Guernsey and later to Switzerland, a nation initially more resistant to hypnosis than other parts of Europe. Following Switzerland’s collapse, they help establish the "White Mountains" resistance movement that features prominently in the original trilogy.

Editions

The book has been issued by various publishers, including:

• Hamish Hamilton (UK First Edition)
• Simon & Schuster (USA First Edition)
• Collier Books
• E. P. Dutton
• Thorndike Press
• Knight Books
• Turtleback Books
• Beaver Books
• Audible Studios (audiobook)

Translations of the series exist in Arabic, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, French, German, Hebrew, Persian, Spanish, Greek, and Mandarin Chinese (Taiwan).

Comic books

Significant graphic renditions include:

• The Boy Scouts of America publication Boys' Life serialized all three books from May 1981 through August 1986. Artist Frank Bolle created black-and-white sketches inked by another contributor.
• In 1985, the BBC's BEEB magazine presented comic-strip adventures featuring Will, Henry, and Beanpole on their journey to the White Mountains. Beginning midway through the first BBC serial episode, this storyline introduced an original character named Fizzio and was illustrated by John M. Burns. Each issue contained three pages—two in color and one in monochrome. The plotline remained unfinished due to BEEB’s cancellation after only 20 issues.
• The Masters species is further described in Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials.

Television series

The TV adaptation of The Tripods was a joint production between the UK’s BBC and Australia’s Seven Network. The musical score was composed by Ken Freeman. This series was among the pioneers in utilizing computer-generated imagery and special effects.

Alick Rowe wrote the 13-episode first season aired in 1984, which covers events from The White Mountains. The second season, consisting of 12 episodes penned by Christopher Penfold (1985), adapts The City of Gold and Lead. Although a script for a third season based on The Pool of Fire was developed, it was never filmed.

Both seasons were released on VHS and DVD formats; notably, the BBC issued a combined DVD set titled Tripods—The Complete Series 1 & 2 in March 2009.

Comparison with the novels

The BBC adaptation departs significantly from Christopher’s original portrayal of the Masters. In this version, Masters physically resemble their Tripod machines, giving them a robotic appearance reminiscent of those seen in The War of the Worlds. Unlike in the books, these beings do not require sustenance such as food or water nor need sleep; they serve higher entities known as Cognoscs and originate from Trion—a planet orbiting a triple star system.

Masters are designated by addresses instead of personal names; for instance, Will’s Master is identified as West Avenue 4, Sector 6, Level 8 (West 468). Their habitat is characterized by higher temperatures than Earth’s environment, which causes humans to age prematurely. The treatment of human captives varies considerably—from severe conditions endured by "miners" to relatively comfortable living quarters provided for members of the "power elite."

To lessen dependence on mechanical Tripods for enforcement, the producers introduced an additional human police force called the "Black Guards," tasked with upholding Masters’ authority and posing an immediate danger to both protagonists and resistance fighters.

Potential film adaptation

On 4 January 2005, Gregor Johnson was appointed to direct a movie version of The Tripods, with a revised script developed for Don Murphy and Touchstone Pictures. Later, in 2009, Alex Proyas assumed the role of director while Stuart Hazeldine began adapting the screenplay, starting from The White Mountains.

External links

• The White Mountains on the Simon & Schuster website
• The City of Gold and Lead available at Simon & Schuster
• The Pool of Fire listed on Simon & Schuster's site
• When the Tripods Came hosted by Simon & Schuster
• Christopher, John. The Tripods Trilogy. London: Penguin Books under Puffin Books, 1984 at the Internet Archive
• Christopher, John. The Tripods Trilogy graphic novel adaptation in Boy's Life, 1981–1984 at the Internet Archive