Ed Emshwiller's Mobile Infantry Combat, F&SF November 1959 – Starship Soldier
Scorching rivers of orange and gold dominate this kinetic battlefield scene, where armored soldiers in bulky powered suits fire jets of flame across an alien landscape under a sky torn apart by streaks of fire. A jetpack trooper rockets upward at upper right while comrades advance on a domed structure in the smoldering middle distance. This is the first serialized appearance of Heinlein's 'Starship Troopers,' captured at maximum intensity by Emsh's signature loose, energetic brushwork and masterful use of hellish backlighting.
Every square inch crackles with kinetic chaos — jetpacks, flamethrowers, explosions, and armored infantry all competing for attention across a hellscape battlefield. Emsh packs the imagination-per-square-inch ratio to near-maximum, delivering the birth of the Mobile Infantry in maximum pulp style.
“PDC THE MAGAZINE OF Fantasy AND Science Fiction NOVEMBER 40¢ Starship Soldier ROBERT A. HEINLEIN The Martian Shop HOWARD FAST EMSH”
