History SoYouWantTo / WriteASpaceOpera

* '''Blood must rain down the palace steps:''' This line serves two purposes. The first part indicates the stakes of the adventure. Lives will be lost, and there will often be some kind of BigBadassBattleSequence between the villain's army, and whoever the hero can rally to help him. [[BloodlessCarnage It's admittedly rare for blood to be shown onscreen, though.]] The second part mentions a palace, and refers to the fantasy-esque nature of the genre. Space Operas are basically fantasies that use science-fiction elements. Planets are effectively just different cities, in a narrative sense, hence the propagation of the SingleBiomePlanet. Many of them still use magic, and castles, and [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses royalty]] as major plot devices. It's just that instead of [[FiveRaces elves and dwarves]], you have aliens.

* '''There must be a woman or man fairer than the skies:''' Generally the story features a QuestGiver, more often than not in the form of [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses a princess]], although [[TheGoodKing kings]] are not unheard of. This character will invariably be [[NonActionGuy someone who stays out of the action]], although sometimes they will [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething accompany the hero]] on their journey, despite being largely unskilled in combat. Just because the trope is implicitly about royalty doesn't mean it has to be; in ''Series/{{Firefly}}'', Simon Tam is very much an example of this trope, coming from a privileged background, having to learn from the ground up how to be helpful, and presenting the problem that carries the whole season.

* '''The ProudWarriorRaceGuy''': A stock alien character, this guy--or girl, if combined with ActionGirl--will sometimes be the TokenNonHuman, and provide some world-building through juxtaposing their culture against human culture. Will often be either TheStoic or a BoisterousBruiser, and will always be TheBigGuy. Expect them to [[HaveIMentionedIAmADwarfToday talk about their alien culture all the time]], and any personality quirks will be related to their culture. Might [[FantasyCounterpartCulture take their cues]] from famous Real Life Examples, most likely Feudal Japan. (Examples: [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Worf]], [[Series/{{Andromeda}} Tyr Asanazi]], [[Film/JupiterAscending Caine Wise]]).

As mentioned above, part of the appeal of a Space Opera over any other type of science fiction is that you get to explore all sorts of exciting new planets. If that's not something you think you can have fun with, you might be better off working with a different sort of sci-fi genre. You're going to have to design at least two; if you only design one alien planet and set your entire story there, then we're dealing with a PlanetaryRomance. If you're dealing with a movie, you might want to rely on the ThreeActStructure to dictate your settings, because many films will have location changes coincide with act changes[[note]]Easy example; in ''Star Wars'', the first act is primarily on Tatooine, the second act are interiors for the Death Star and the Millennium Falcon, and the final act is the space battle around the Death Star.[[/note]] This will leave you with about three planets. If you're working in a more serial format, you'll have dozens of planets, and can expect to create as much as a new planet for each installment. To make this process easier, you'll probably have to rely a bit on PlanetOfHats. This is a good time for the reminder that TropesAreNotBad, and a couple shortcuts like Planet Of Hats or the SingleBiomePlanet exist for a reason. If you're only going to be on this planet for a couple scenes, there's no reason that you have to stress about every single detail of the planet when a nice, memorable gimmick will suffice.

This is also a good place to talk about alien designs. There's a lot of standard alien types that viewers will expect to see. You'll want to have [[TheReptilians Reptilian Aliens]] and InsectoidAliens, which are some pretty typical [[AlwaysChaoticEvil enemy races]]. TheGreys and some form of LittleGreenMen are also a solid inclusion, with the former working well as [[MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate mysterious scientists]] while the latter makes a good quirky sidekick. Then, of course, you have your RubberForeheadAliens; these are great on a budget, if you plan for your story to be filmed in live action--a bit of amateur prosthetics is all that's needed. And much like anime, [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair You Gotta Have Green Skin]]. A GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe is a classic Space Opera trope. Her skin doesn't have to be green specifically--purple, blue, anything works so long [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign as long as it looks alien]] enough. It's also become common to feature furry, mammalian aliens--UrsineAliens is the closest tropes, but nothing says they have to be bears. This is without getting into your PlantAliens and your BlobMonsters and various other types of aliens you can design. The point is to have fun with it, and let your imagination roam free!

This is also a good place to talk about alien designs. There's a lot of standard alien types that viewers will expect to see. You'll want to have [[TheReptilians Reptilian Aliens]] and InsectoidAliens, which are some pretty typical [[AlwaysChaoticEvil enemy races]]. TheGreys and some form of LittleGreenMen are also a solid inclusion, with the former working well as [[MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate mysterious scientists]] while the latter makes a good quirky sidekick. Then, of course, you have your RubberForeheadAliens; these are great on a budget, if you plan for your story to be filmed in live action--a bit of amateur prosthetics is all that's needed. And much like anime, [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair You Gotta Have Green Skin]]. A GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe is a classic Space Opera trope. Her skin doesn't have to be green specifically--purple, blue, anything works so long [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign as long as it looks alien]] enough. It's also become common to feature furry, mammalian aliens--UrsineAliens is the closest tropes, but nothing says they have to be bears. This is without getting into your PlantAliens and your BlobMonsters and various other types of aliens you can design. The point is to have fun with it!

That's another important thing to note; much like the [[SuperHero superhero genre]], Space Operas can get boring if you treat them as having a set plotline. Space Operas really lend themselves to GenreBlending, hence the RecycledInSpace gag; it's not hard at all to take something like ''Shakespeare/{{Macbeth}}'' and retell it as a Space Opera. Most Space Operas follow the basic set-up of a HeroicFantasy, and transmute the tropes into space. You could structure your story as a typical [[TheCaper Heist Movie]], but instead of a TrainJob it's an [[FasterThanLightTravel FTL]] spaceship. You could base your story on classic {{Pirate}} movies, but with [[SpaceIsAnOcean the void of space replacing the ocean]]. Or you could base your Space Opera on a [[TheWestern cowboy movie]], but then you run the risk of sliding into a SpaceWestern, which is different from a Space Opera. Then again, you could always just combine the tropes of a Space Opera with a Space Western and see how it works out!

This is also a good place to talk about alien designs.

* '''The InnocentFanserviceGirl''': Despite being a bit dated, this is a trope that has managed to endure into the modern era. There is some [[JustifiedTrope justifiable]] logic to it; there's no reason why an alien race [[ValuesDissonance would have the same taboos]] concerning sex that humans do, especially when many cultures acknowledge how wonky they are. Nonetheless, there's no mistaking why this character exists; it's because SexSells. Usually the conceit of the character is that she has NoNudityTaboo, and often has a bubbly, naive personality. Obviously, this trope is almost always a MsFanservice, but it could be refreshing to see a [[MrFanservice male version]] instead. (Examples: [[Film/TheFifthElement Leeloo]], [[Series/{{Farscape}} Chiana]], [[Film/{{Barbarella}} Barbarella]])

The second thing to remember is that ArtisticLicense exists. While it's always fun to notice scientific accuracy in science fiction, it's not completely necessary. The fun of Speculative Fiction is the speculative part, so feel free to come up with things that are not entirely plausible according to modern science. Don't go overboard

* '''The InnocentFanserviceGirl''': Despite being a bit dated, this is a trope that has managed to endure into the modern era. There is some [[JustifiedTrope justifiable]] logic to it; there's no reason why an alien race [[ValuesDisonnance would have the same taboos]] concerning sex that humans do, especially when many cultures acknowledge how wonky they are. Nonetheless, there's no mistaking why this character exists; it's because SexSells. Usually the conceit of the character is that she has NoNudityTaboo, and often has a bubbly, naive personality. Obviously, this trope is almost always a MsFanservice, but it could be refreshing to see a [[MrFanservice male version]] instead. (Examples: [[Film/TheFifthElement Leeloo]], [[Series/{{Farscape}} Chiana]], [[Film/{{Barbarella}} Barbarella]])

* '''[[TelepathicSpacemen The Psychic]]''': Another stock alien, it's pretty common to see alien telepaths--or, more commonly, [[TheEmpath empaths]]--as the TokenNonHuman. When paired with a ProudWarriorRaceGuy, they'll often have an ElvesVersusDwarves relationship, with the telepathic aliens usually serving as something like SpaceElves. This trope is often female, so you can expect this character to be the resident GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe.

As mentioned above, part of the appeal of a Space Opera over any other type of science fiction is that you get to explore all sorts of exciting new planets. If that's not something you think you can have fun with, you might be better off working with a different sort of sci-fi genre.

* '''ActionGirl''': Since the protagonists of these series are so often male, there is often also a badass female character for them to play off of. These characters are often [[HyperCompetentSidekick more skilled than the hero]], so as to prevent them from being [[TheChick the useless chick]], and will often avert the GuysSmashGirlsShoot trope. Expect them to have some sort of [[BrokenBird tragic backstory]]. This trope is obviously AlwaysFemale, but is much more likely to be [[GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe some kind of alien]]. (Examples: [[Film/TheFifthElement Leeloo]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Gamora]], [[Anime/CowboyBebop Faye Valentine]]).

* '''ProudWarriorRaceGuy''': A stock alien character, this guy--or girl, if combined with ActionGirl--will sometimes be the TokenNonHuman, and provide some world-building through juxtaposing their culture against human culture. Will often be either TheStoic or a BoisterousBruiser, and will always be TheBigGuy. Expect them to [[HaveIMentionedIAmADwarfToday talk about their alien culture all the time]], and any personality quirks will be related to their culture. Might [[FantasyCounterpartCulture take their cues]] from famous Real Life Examples, most likely Feudal Japan. (Examples: [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Worf]], [[Series/{{Andromeda}} Tyr Asanazi]], [[Film/JupiterAscending Caine Wise]]).

** One popular subversion is to turn this character into a KidHero, and have them be a NaiveNewcomer to the larger world of the Space Opera, serving as something as an AudienceSurrogate both in that the audience learns about the world alongside them, and the target audience is usually teens. Eventually they're expected to grow into this sort of role. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Luke Skywalker]], [[Disney/TreasurePlanet Jim Hawkins]], [[Film/TheLastStarfighter Alex Rogan]]).

* '''And a man or woman to meet the mighty hour:''' At the center of this story must be the main character. Space Opera heroes are rarely very complex; they don't have a lot of moral quandaries, and even when they're a LovableRogue, they tend to be [[ButNotTooEvil just a click beneath]] your run-of-the-mill hero types, meaning they're a little more prone to being snarky and are open about their selfish interests, even though they're willing to put them aside for the greater good[[note]][[Film/HotFuzz THE GREATER GOOD]][[/note]]. Most examples of Space Operas tend to feature a man in the central role, but don't let that stop you from creating a kick-ass heroine. On the other hand, it's almost unheard of for Space Operas to [[MostWritersAreHuman star an alien]]; your story is guaranteed to be marketed to humans, and starring a fellow human makes them easier to sympathize with. Sometimes the humans [[AmbiguouslyHuman aren't even from Earth]]; in ''Franchise/StarWars'', despite taking place in a galaxy far, far away, humans that are identical to Earthlings are all over the galaxy without so much as an explanation. In ''Film/FlashGordon'', Earth explicitly ''exists'', but all the aliens encountered in the story are HumanAliens (with the exception of [[Creator/BrianBlessed BRIAN BLESSED]]'s [[WingedHumanoid Winged Humanoids]]), although the titular hero is still from Earth.

* ''VideoGame/MassEffect'' is a great {{Reconstruction}} of the classic Space Opera and all its usual tropes: It makes a straight example of CaptainSpaceDefenderOfTheEarth believable in Commander Shepard and does away entirely with the PlanetOfHats trope by making your two closest allies, [[TheLancer Garrus]] and [[TheEngineer Tali]], respectively the same races as the BigBad of the first game and the creators of the Geth, who in turn are revealed to be GoodAllAlong come the second game.

* '''TheHero''': The [[LanternJawOfJustice square-jawed]] protagonist of the story. They are usually TheCaptain of their spaceship, armed with a RayGun and a [[GuileHero sharp wit]] with which to outsmart their enemies. This character has a trick up their sleeve for nearly every situation, and is often staunchly just and good, to the point of skirting the edge of being a BoringInvincibleHero. Sometimes they have a background in the military or law enforcement. Traditionally presented as AlwaysMale, but nothing's stopping you from creating a [[ActionGirl heroine]] in the same vein. A little harder to subvert is that this character is Always Human; after all, your audience is [[MostWritersAreHuman almost always human]], and you want them to be able to empathize with and project onto this character. (Examples: ComicStrip/BuckRogers, ComicStrip/FlashGordon, ComicBook/{{Valerian}}).

As much as the above poem indicates some generalized requirements, by no means are you expected to use ''all'' of them. [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanTheCurseOfTheBlackPearl The poem is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules]]. Do you want your story to involve the End of the Galaxy As We Know It? That's great! But if you'd rather tell a story about a [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits Ragtag Bunch of]] [[SpacePirates Scavengers]], traversing the galaxy and stealing from other ships, that's fine, too. And if you're not sure which one appeals to you more, well, [[XMeetsY why not both?]]

As much as the above poem indicates some generalized requirements, by no means are you expected to use ''all'' of them. [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanTheCurseOfTheBlackPearl The poem is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules]].

!!'''Set Designer''' / '''Location Scout'''

!!'''Costume Designer'''

* '''And a villain darker than a Black Hole:''' [[LoveToHate It's amazing that we've gotten this far without talking about the villain.]] Villains in Space Operas tend to be pretty unambiguous. Just as heroes tend to be all-around good guys, the villains are almost never anti-heroes. They tend to be pretty loose with the FinalSolution, and usually [[OrcusOnHisThrone stay pretty close to their empire]], preferring to send [[FacelessGoons minions]] to do their bidding. But this lack of ambiguity doesn't mean they're boring; in fact, the villain is sometimes [[EnsembleDarkhorse the most popular figure]] in a Space Opera. Usually a human, but sometimes the evil empire are made up of a [[AlwaysChaoticEvil villainous alien race]]. Alternatively, the villain may be a human that commands an army of aliens. Usually ends up dying pretty spectacularly, but if their cause is shown to be [[AlasPoorVillain at least somewhat reasonable]], they may end up [[HeelFaceTurn redeeming themselves]] or coming to some sort of [[TalkingDownTheMonster peaceful agreement]].

* '''And a villain darker than a Black Hole:''' [[LoveToHate It's amazing that we've gotten this far without talking about the villain.]] Villains in Space Operas tend to be pretty unambiguous.
* '''And all must come right in the end.'''

* '''TheHero''': The [[LanternJawOfJustice square-jawed]] protagonist of the story. They are usually TheCaptain of their spaceship, armed with a RayGun and a [[GuileHero sharp wit]] with which to outsmart their enemies. This character has a trick up their sleeve for nearly every situation, and is often staunchly just and good, to the point of skirting the edge of being a BoringInvincibleHero. Sometimes they have a background in the military or law enforcement. Traditionally presented as AlwaysMale, but nothing's stopping you from creating a [[ActionGirl heroine]] in the same vein. A little harder to subvert is that this character is Always Human; after all, your audience is [[MostWritersAreHuman almost always human]], and you want them to be able to empathize with and project onto this character. (Examples: ComicStrip/BuckRogers, ComicStrip/FlashGordon, ComicBook/Valerian).

* While certainly not the first Space Opera, the French comic ''[[ComicBook/{{Valerian}} Valerian and Laureline]]'' is arguably one of the most influential examples of the genre in modern times, inspiring some of the most well-remembered Space Operas in recent memory, including ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Film/TheFifthElement'', and providing a near-universal "look" to the worlds that were yet to come. Take special note of the colorful aliens and intricate planets of artist Jean-Claude Mézières, as well as the banter between the main characters as written by Pierre Christin. These elements would go on to be mimicked in many noteworthy space operas.

** One popular subversion is to turn this character into a TeenHero, and have them be a NaiveNewcomer to the larger world of the Space Opera, serving as something as an AudienceSurrogate both in that the audience learns about the world alongside them, and the target audience is usually teens. Eventually they're expected to grow into this sort of role. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Luke Skywalker]], [[Disney/TreasurePlanet Jim Hawkins]], [[Film/TheLastStarfighter Alex Rogan]]).

* '''ProudWarriorRaceGuy''': A stock alien character, this guy--or girl, if combined with ActionGirl--will sometimes be the TokenNonHuman, and provide some world-building through juxtaposing their culture against human culture. Will often be either TheStoic or a BoisterousBruiser, and will always be TheBigGuy. Expect them to [[HaveIMentionedImADwarfToday talk about their alien culture all the time]], and any personality quirks will be related to their culture. Might [[FantasyCounterpartCulture take their cues]] from famous RealLifeExamples, most likely UsefulNotes/FeudalJapan. (Examples: [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Worf]], [[Series/{{Andromeda}} Tyr Asanazi]], [[Film/JupiterAscending Caine Wise]]).

* While certainly not the first Space Opera, the French comic ''[[ComicBook/Valérian Valérian and Laureline]]'' is arguably one of the most influential examples of the genre in modern times, inspiring some of the most well-remembered Space Operas in recent memory, including ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Film/TheFifthElement'', and providing a near-universal "look" to the worlds that were yet to come. Take special note of the colorful aliens and intricate planets of artist Jean-Claude Mézières, as well as the banter between the main characters as written by Pierre Christin. These elements would go on to be mimicked in many noteworthy space operas.

* For a more self-contained modern Space Opera, look no further than Luc Besson's ''Valérian''-inspired ''Film/TheFifthElement'', which is a great example of a story taking inspiration from past works without being overtly derivative. You get a host of colorful characters between Leeloo, Cornelius, and especially Ruby Rhod, a properly evil but no less entertaining villain in Zorg, and some memorable alien designs. On top of all that, the plot is properly grand in scale without overwhelming the heroes' journey.

* '''There must be a quest:''' In order to prevent the End of the World, the hero will invariably have to go on a journey. As mentioned above, it's usually a matter of escorting a MacGuffin across the galaxy to get it to a hiding place or to be able to use it against the villains. The important point, though, is travel; people read and watch Space Operas to see the exotic locations. Popular locales are [[MultiCulturalPlanet cities where a multitude of races intermingle]], often with a [[BarFullOfAliens hive of scum and villany]], or any variety of SingleBiomePlanets; [[SlippySlideyIceWorld ice planets]], [[LostWoods forest planets]], [[ShiftingSandLand desert planets]], [[BubblyClouds cloud planets]], [[LethalLavaLand volcanic planets]]...the limits are your own imagination. The only requirement is that you choose a couple of diverse locales to bounce between.
* '''And a man or woman to meet the mighty hour:''' At the center of this story must be the main character. Space Opera heroes are rarely very complex; they don't have a lot of moral quandaries, and even when they're a LovableRogue, they tend to be [[ButNotTooEvil just a click beneath]] your run-of-the-mill hero types, meaning they're a little more prone to being snarky and are open about their selfish interests, even though they're willing to put them aside for the greater good[[note]][[Film/HotFuzz THE GREATER GOOD]][[/note]]. Most examples of Space Operas tend to feature a man in the central role, but don't let that stop you from creating a kick-ass heroine. On the other hand, it's almost unheard of for Space Operas to [[MostWritersAreHuman star an alien]]; your story is guaranteed to be marketed to humans, and starring a fellow human makes them easier to sympathize with. Sometimes the humans [[AmbiguouslyHuman aren't even from Earth]]; in ''Franchise/StarWars'', despite taking place in a galaxy far, far away, humans that are identical to Earthlings are all over the galaxy without so much as an explanation. In ''Film/FlashGordon'', Earth explicitly ''exists'', but all the aliens encountered in the story are HumanAliens (with the exception of Creator/BRIANBLESSED's WingedHumanoids), although the titular hero is still from Earth.

* '''Blood must rain down the palace steps:''' This line serves two purposes. The first part indicates the stakes of the adventure. Lives will be lost, and there will often be some kind of BigBadassBattleSequence between the villain's army, and whoever the hero can rally to help him. [[BloodlessCarnage It's admittedly rare for blood to be shown onscreen, though.]] The second part mentions a palace, and refers to the fantasy-esque nature of the genre. Space Operas are basically fantasies that use science-fiction elements. Planets are effectively just different cities, in a narrative sense, hence the propagation of the SingleBiomePlanet. Many of them still use magic, and castles, and [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses royalty]] as major plot devices. It's just that instead of [[TheFiveRaces elves and dwarves]], you have aliens.

* '''TheHero''': The [[LanternJawOfJustice square-jawed]] protagonist of the story. They are usually TheCaptain of their spaceship, armed with a RayGun and a [[GuileHero sharp wit]] with which to outsmart their enemies. This character has a trick up their sleeve for nearly every situation, and is often staunchly just and good, to the point of skirting the edge of being a BoringInvincibleHero. Sometimes they have a background in the military or law enforcement. Traditionally presented as AlwaysMale, but nothing's stopping you from creating a [[ActionGirl heroine]] in the same vein. A little harder to subvert is that this character is Always Human; after all, your audience is [[MostWritersAreHuman almost always human]], and you want them to be able to empathize with and project onto this character. (Examples: ComicStrip/BuckRogers, ComicStrip/FlashGordon, [[Literature/JohnCarterOfMars John Carter]], ComicBook/Valerian).

* '''The LovableRogue''': Diametrically opposed to the staunch, just hero is this character, the amoral JerkWithAHeartOfGold. They are always portrayed as [[MoneyDearBoy in it for the money]], and don't much care about SavingTheWorld or [[NotInThisForYourRevolution overthrowing the empire]]. Expect them to be [[EnsembleDarkHorse the coolest character]], with the [[DeadpanSnarker best one-liners]] and the [[GuileHero best solutions to bad situations]]. If put on the same crew as TheHero, they will often be TheLancer, and the Hero might be presented as less witty by comparison and more of a stickler for the rules. This is another trope that is [[AlwaysMale usually male]] and [[MostWritersAreHuman always human]]. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Han Solo]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Peter Quill]], [[Anime/CowboyBebop Spike Spiegel]]).

* '''TheEngineer''': If you're spending most of your time on a spaceship, you'd better have someone on your crew who can deal with the AppliedPhlebotinum that runs it. This character is the GadgeteerGenius, often far more familiar with the inner workings of a spaceship than anyone else onboard. They tend to be something of a [[NonActionGuy Non-Action Hero]], focusing on keeping the ship running. This trope is rarely the protagonist, varies in species as well as gender, with [[MrFixit Mr. Fixits]] being about as common as [[WrenchWench Wrench Wenches]]. (Examples: [[Film/StarTrek2009 Montgomery Scott]], [[Series/{{Firefly}} Kaylee Frye]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Rocket Raccoon]])
* '''ProudWarriorRaceGuy'''
* '''TeamPet'''

* '''TheEngineer''': If you're spending most of your time on a spaceship, you'd better have someone on your crew who can deal with the AppliedPhlebotinum that runs it. This character is the GadgeteerGenius, often far more familiar with the inner workings of a spaceship than anyone else onboard. They tend to be something of a [[NonActionGuy Non-Action Hero]], focusing on keeping the ship running. This trope is rarely the protagonist, varies in species as well as gender, with [[MrFixit Mr. Fixits]] being about as common as [[WrenchWench Wrench Wenches]]. (Examples: [[Film/StarTrek2009 Montgomery Scott]], [[Series/Firefly Kaylee Frye]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Rocket Raccoon]])

** One popular subversion is to turn this character into a TeenHero, and have them be a NaiveNewcomer to the larger world of the Space Opera, serving as something as an AudienceSurrogate both in that the audience learns about the world alongside them, and the target audience is usually teens. Eventually they're expected to grow into this sort of role. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Luke Skywalker]], [[Disney/TreasurePlanet Jim Hawkins]], [[Film/LastStarfighter Alex Rogan]])
* '''The LovableRogue''': Diametrically opposed to the staunch, just hero is this character, the amoral JerkWithAHeartOfGold. They are always portrayed as [[MoneyDearBoy in it for the money]], and don't much care about SavingTheWorld or [[NotInThisForYourRevolution overthrowing the empire]]. Expect them to be [[EnsembleDarkHorse the coolest character]], with the [[DeadpanSnarker best one-liners]] and the [[GuileHero best solutions to bad situations]]. If put on the same crew as TheHero, they will often be TheLancer, and the Hero might be presented as less witty by comparison and more of a stickler for the rules. This is another trope that is [[AlwaysMale usually male]] and [[MostWritersAreHuman always human]]. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Han Solo]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Peter Quill]]).

* '''The LovableRogue'': Diametrically opposed to the staunch, just hero is this character, the amoral JerkWithAHeartOfGold. They are always portrayed as [[MoneyDearBoy in it for the money]], and don't much care about SavingTheWorld or [[NotInThisForYourRevolution overthrowing the empire]]. Expect them to be [[EnsembleDarkHorse the coolest character]], with the [[DeadpanSnarker best one-liners]] and the [[GuileHero best solutions to bad situations]]. If put on the same crew as TheHero, they will often be TheLancer, and the Hero might be presented as less witty by comparison and more of a stickler for the rules. This is another trope that is [[AlwaysMale usually male]] and [[MostWritersAreHuman always human]]. (Examples: [[Film/ANewHope Han Solo]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy Peter Quill]]).

-->-- '''[[Franchise/StarWars]]'''

* '''TheHero''': The [[LanternJawOfJustice square-jawed]] protagonist of the story. This person is often TheCaptain of their spaceship, armed with a RayGun and a [[GuileHero sharp wit]] with which to outsmart their enemies. Traditionally presented as AlwaysMale, but nothing's stopping you from creating a [[ActionGirl heroine]] in the same vein. A little harder to subvert is that this character is Always Human; after all, your audience is [[MostWritersAreHuman almost always human]], and you want them to be able to empathize with and project onto this character. (Examples: ComicStrip/BuckRogers, ComicStrip/FlashGordon, [[Literature/JohnCarterOfMars John Carter]]).

!'''Potential Subversions'''

!'''Writers' Lounge'''

!!'''Suggested Themes and Aesops'''

!!'''Potential Motifs'''

!!'''Suggested Plots'''

----

!!'''Casting Director'''

* To shift gears for a moment, another great Space Opera to delve into is ''Anime/CowboyBebop'', which presents a very different image of outer space, where things are just [[UsedFuture a little bit dingier]]. Whereas ''Star Wars'' and ''Valérian'' are based firmly in adventure stories and fantasy, ''Bebop'' builds off of the Western and [[FilmNoir]] genres, but setting it in space and centering on a cast that includes a cyborg and a [[FishOutOfTemporalWater cryogenic time-traveler]]. ''Bebop'' features no aliens, but its main focus is on the banter between its main characters, which makes it one of the seminal Space Operas.
* If any work can be considered Space Opera concentrate, it's [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse Marvel's]] ''[[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy]]''. This film really captures the feel of the classic Space Operas, but makes use of modern CGI technology to present a vast array of colorful aliens, both in the background and among the main characters, including two of the weirdest characters in the genre; a [[FunnyAnimal mutant raccoon]] and a [[PlantPerson a walking tree]] that [[PokemonSpeak can only say one phrase]]. Between these two, and Star-Lord's [[NoSuchThingAsAlienPopCulture obsession with nostalgia]] and Drax's [[BluntMetaphorsTrauma inability to understand metaphors]], the film really showcases how weird this genre can be. At the same time, the plot is a great example of a solid MacGuffin story, and the interplay between the various characters, as well as the culture clash inherent in Drax's premise, makes for a [[{{Reconstruction}} great use]] of the genre's conventions.

The world is in peril. There is a quest to save the world, and a hero to undertake it. They meet aliens and exotic creatures, they travel from planet to planet, and fight armies of insurmountable odds to great personal cost, all to beat a powerful and evil villain. The genre is the SpaceOpera, one of the most beloved subgenres in science fiction. Everyone knows a Space Opera when they see it, but then, not everyone can name what elements separate it from any other sci-fi story set in space. How does one write a Space Opera? And more importantly, how does one write a ''good'' Space Opera? Below you'll find some tips to help you do just that...