Punk Punk

Punk Punk genres are a generalization of Cyberpunk into other periods or with other genres mixed in. In the 1980s, authors like William Gibson and Bruce Sterling wrote dystopian novels set Twenty Minutes Into the Future, where they explored themes such as the impact of modern technology on everyday life, the rise of the global datasphere as an arena for communication, commerce, conflict, and crime, and invasive cybernetic body modifications. The heroes of these stories were marginalized, seedy, and rebellious, in other words "punks". Bruce Bethke called this Cyberpunk, and it was good.

The original noir flavor of Cyber Punk had disillusioned, cynical protagonists striving against overwhelming odds to avoid total defeat. As other authors latched onto the genre they added another, more optimistic, flavor with badass longcoats wearing mirrorshades and using Impossibly Cool Weapons and other gadgets to wipe out the opposition. They also took the Punk to other time periods and settings, creating Punk Punk genres. Common for all such genres is that the technology (and/or magic) level is turned way up, an ultra-modern sensibility is grafted on, and that the protagonists are somewhere along the Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes living in a Privately-Owned Society. The world is also on a sliding scale, from a World Half Empty to A World Half Full (or, rarely, even more optimistic).

Shared genre conventions
Technology (and/or Magitech)...
 * ... is ubiquitous and, in retro-futuristic settings, considerably more advanced than that available in the corresponding period.
 * ... is a means to control the public. The actual form of government varies, but it is usually somewhat sinister and oppressive (Dystopia, duh?).
 * ... provides some kind of medium for global or at least wide-ranging communication that is driven by research and/or business, piggybacked by military/political needs.
 * ... is a strategic resource. In our timeline, this started in the 19th century with railroads, the telegraph, and the machine gun; in later settings wars are lost and won in cyberspace, before the army even leaves its barracks. Speaking of the army, while most of the soldiers are using relatively crude weaponry, there will often be an organization whose units pack state-of-the-art weapons and equipment for black-ops work.
 * ... is regularly applied in transhumanistic ways, i.e. to make people stronger, faster, more perceptive, etc -- for instance through body modifications/prosthetics. The science of medicine is typically quite sophisticated.
 * ... can create Artificial Humans, Clockwork Creatures, or Ridiculously Human Robots.
 * ... is developed with little regard for harmful consequences to society or nature.

If there is magic, it may...
 * ... be simply another branch of science that provides Magitech, or
 * ... be Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane, or
 * ... have to do with powers and beings beyond human experience.

In particular, it does not involve divine miracles, and will not depend on faith. Nor does it require a Deal With the Devil. Magic users might suffer deleterious sideeffects.

Character archetypes
Characters in a Punk Punk narrative can include:


 * Action Survivor
 * Adventurer Archaeologist
 * Anti-Hero
 * Femme Fatale
 * Knight in Sour Armor
 * Loveable Rogue
 * Rebel Leader
 * Rebellious Spirit
 * Reluctant Monster
 * Seekers
 * Shadow Archetype
 * The Atoner
 * Threshold Guardians
 * Tricksters

A Punk Punk variant either exchanges the basic technology for that of another historical period or mixes in another genre.

By period

 * Stone Punk: (Stone Age) Bamboo Technology based Punk. The Flintstones plays this for laughs, and is probably the most famous version.
 * Sandal Punk: (Bronze and Iron Age) Ancient Astronauts (or Atlantis) impact the dawning classical civilization.
 * Clock Punk: (Renaissance/Baroque) Leonardo da Vinci-style clockwork mechanica and gunpowder. Gormenghast, some of the Discworld novels. Assassin's Creed II plays it literally by having Da Vinci himself build some Clockpunk machines.
 * Steampunk: (Victorian Era) Steam-powered machinery in the vein of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. This setting is often more romantic, heroic, and optimistic than other Punk Punk settings, but some works in this genre are every bit as cynical as the darkest Cyberpunk.
 * Stitchpunk: A recent subgenre of Steampunk. "Fiction influenced by the DIY and crafts element of Steampunk, with a prime example being Shane Acker's Nine, in which cute Frankenstein doll-creatures stitched together from bits of burlap sack try to save the world. In a wider context, Stitchpunk emphasizes the role of weavers, tinkers, and darners in Steampunk." Termed by Acker and outlined as such officially in The Steampunk Bible (page 55). More details and examples (mixed in with other genres) may be found here.
 * Diesel Punk: (1920s - 1940s) Internal combustion engines and electricity. A fairly rare setting (well, compared to Steam, Atom, Cyber, and Bio); until the release of Bio Shock (which blends Diesel with Bio Punk) the most famous example was probably 2004's Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow.
 * Atom Punk, aka Raygun Gothic : (1940s - 1960s) The world of pulp sci-fi where everything from inter-galactic space ships to pens is atomic powered. The Fallout series is a great example, running on Science!
 * Cyberpunk: (1980s - 1990s) The original Punk Punk setting, see the first paragraphs on this page. It used to be a futuristic genre, but Society Marches On.
 * Post Cyber Punk: (Twenty Minutes Into the Future) a much less dystopian successor to Cyber Punk. Appears in this list for completeness, but one of its defining elements is the absence of any 'punk' elements and in some cases even manages to almost completely dump the 'cyber' as well. It is now extremely popular to combine this with The Great Politics Mess-Up or The War On Terror. Examples: Appleseed, Ghost in The Shell (both by Shirow Masamune).
 * Bio Punk: (Twenty Minutes Into the Future) An alternative to Cyberpunk with genetic engineering instead of computing. Gattaca might be the most recognizable example of Bio Punk, although The Island of Doctor Moreau is a notable precursor. eXistenZ also comes to mind.
 * Everything Is an iPod In The Future: the current design for the future where all technology is touchscreen based and can be used anywhere you have access to glass. The architecture is formulated to provide easy access to this technology and be aesthetically pleasing in a zen sort of way.
 * Crystal Spires and Togas: (far future) a setting filled with Sufficiently Advanced Technology that is reminiscent of the great empires of the ancient world.
 * Used Future: (far future) futuristic technology is already old in this setting; you can find rusting androids and rayguns in junkyards. The premier example is probably the first Star Wars film.

By genre:

 * The Apunkalypse: Punk meets After the End, as disaster reduces civilization to tribes of marauding scavengers.
 * Cattle Punk: (The Western/Space Western) A typical John Ford film setting, only with things like robots, super-weapons, and wacky gadgets tossed in.
 * Desert Punk: Punk + survival in a super-harsh environment. The desert may be Desert Planet or Burned-out Earth.
 * Dungeon Punk: (Medieval European Fantasy) A heavily magical world where spells and enchanted artifacts take the place of modern technology.
 * Fantastic Noir: (Urban--usually) a mixture of the Noir detective story with the more colorful aspects of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
 * Gothic Punk: (Urban Fantasy) The punks are also goths. The world is secretly controlled by various supernatural creatures to whom humans are merely pawns.
 * Ocean Punk: (Pirate) Punk in a mostly (or wholly) oceanic setting.
 * Sky Punk: Punk that mostly takes place in the sky, Sky Pirates included.

A full list of Punk Punk settings is here.