In the vast landscape of speculative fiction, few works have captured the imagination and existential dread of readers quite like All Tomorrows: The Myriad Species and Mixed Fortunes of Man. This seminal book, often simply referred to as All Tomorrows, presents a breathtaking and terrifying vision of humanity's far future, reshaped by alien intervention and millions of years of evolution. It's a cornerstone of biological fiction and evolutionary horror, exploring themes that resonate deeply with fans of cosmic dread and speculative science.
The Legacy of Speculative Biology
The creative mind behind All Tomorrows, C.M. Kosemen (writing as Nemo Ramjet), didn't stop with humanity's future. He also co-authored All Yesterdays: Unique and Speculative Views of Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Animals. This paleoart book applies the same imaginative, speculative lens to the prehistoric past, challenging conventional depictions of dinosaurs. Together, these works form twin pillars of speculative biology, asking "what if?" about life in both deep time and the distant future. For a deeper comparison, check out the blog post All Yesterdays vs. All Tomorrows: Speculative Biology's Twin Masterpieces.
Crossing Genres: From Cosmic Horror to Manga
The themes of All Tomorrows—powerless humanity, alien gods, and existential transformation—share a clear lineage with the works of H.P. Lovecraft. This connection is made visually stunning in adaptations like H.P. Lovecraft's The Call of Cthulhu (Manga). The cosmic horror found in both Lovecraft's tales and Kosemen's evolutionary epic taps into a profound fear of the unknown and the insignificance of humankind. Exploring this thematic bridge can be fascinating, as discussed in All Tomorrows & Lovecraftian Horror: Exploring Cosmic Dread in Manga.
Another visceral intersection of art and biological horror is found in the work of H.R. Giger. The nightmarish, biomechanical aesthetic of Giger's art, celebrated in volumes like HR Giger. 45th Ed., echoes the bodily transformations and alien designs in All Tomorrows. Both explore the horror of the flesh being remade by external, incomprehensible forces. This artistic kinship is explored in guides like All Tomorrows & HR Giger: A Guide to Sci-Fi's Evolutionary & Biomechanical Nightmares.
Gaming the Apocalypse: All Tomorrows Meets Tabletop RPGs
The concept of transformed humanity and existential threat naturally extends into the realm of tabletop role-playing games. The horror RPG supplement All Flesh Must be Eaten: All Tomorrows Zombies from Eden Studios directly brings the themes of Kosemen's work into the popular All Flesh Must Be Eaten system. It allows players to experience a universe where the zombie apocalypse is just one of many horrific evolutionary endpoints for mankind. For players and Game Masters, a review and guide to this supplement is an invaluable resource.
The Literary Spectrum: From Family Sagas to Cyberpunk
The phrase "All Tomorrows" evokes more than just biological speculation. It appears across a wide spectrum of literature. All the Tomorrows After is a poignant work of contemporary fiction and a moving emotional novel that explores family, time, and resilience. In stark contrast, William Gibson's All Tomorrow's Parties is the finale of his iconic cyberpunk Bridge Trilogy, a visionary take on near-future technology and society. Then there's All Tomorrow's Parties: The Velvet Underground Story, a definitive music biography capturing the spirit of 1960s Music and counterculture.
This demonstrates the incredible versatility of the core idea. Whether it's the intimate drama of a family saga, the high-tech sprawl of a cyberpunk thriller, or the raw history of a rock band, stories about "all tomorrows" grapple with the future's uncertainty and the legacy of the present.
Why All Tomorrows Endures
All Tomorrows endures because it taps into fundamental questions about identity, change, and survival. It's a masterclass in speculative evolution and a powerful piece of apocalyptic fiction. Its influence radiates outwards, connecting to graphic novels, art books, RPGs, and diverse literary genres. For anyone fascinated by the ultimate fate of future humanity, the deep time of paleontology, or the chilling aesthetics of cosmic horror, the world of All Tomorrows and its related works offers a rich, unsettling, and profoundly thought-provoking universe to explore. To begin your journey, delve into the evolutionary sci-fi epic explained or read a comprehensive review of this modern classic.