Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 50: Impostor by Philip K. Dick

Dick, Philip K. "Impostor." Astounding Science Fiction, June 1953.

This article is part of my attempt to read the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

"Impostor" at the ISFdb

ISFdb Rating:   8.67/10

My Rating:        9/10

" “One of these days I’m going to take time off,” Spence Olham said at first-meal. "

Earth was ravaged by war, attacked by the powerful Outspacers from Alpha Centauri. The Outspacers reached Earth easily, but Terran scientists developed a protec-bubble that enveloped the planet, protecting humans from enemy attack. Humans worked relentlessly on developing weapons to fight the Outspacers, and protagonist Spence Olham is working on the Project.

Early this morning, like every morning, he gets into the "bug" with friend and colleague Nelson, heading into work. This morning, however, an older military man is accompanying Nelson, a Major Peters. When the vehicle is airborne, Peters and Nelson grab ahold of Olham, accuse him of being a spy for the Outpacers, and head quickly into space with the intention of disposing Olham. It turns out that the Outspacers managed to infiltrate the protec-bubble and send an android to eliminate the real Olham, then to masquerade as the man until it sets off a massive explosive device, intending to wreak havoc on the human weapons development project. The men want to eliminate the impostor far away from Earth in order to prevent the explosive from going off near civilization.

But like a proper protagonist, Olham knows he is Olham, and not an android. And in order to give us a proper story, he manages to escape from his captives and return to Earth, where he is determined to locate proof of his identity, while evading his captors.

Like many a story by Philip K. Dick, this one toys with the notion of identity alongside the safety of the human race. Here the global threat is from outer space, yet the men who chase Olham, who were once trusted colleagues, are out to kill him, and like any existential crisis, this one begins with the protagonist's world turning topsy-turvy.

And like many a story by Philip K. Dick, this one features some nice twists. Having read much of his work, a reader can figure out fairly early how this one will end. Dick nonetheless presents us with a great finish, here in the form of a wonderful last line that nicely imbues tragedy with a dash of humour.

An excellent story.