...Local Boy Makes Good by Ray Tabler provides a solution to the problem of an overpowering enemy...

...but it’s really the new writers like Pam Uphoff, Tony Frazier, and Ray Tabler that turned in the best pieces... Ray Tabler turned is one of my favorite stories in this issue with “Local Boy Makes Good.” It’s a fast-moving, military sci-fi story about a group of genetically-engineered soldiers raiding an alien base. Like many stories in this sub-genre, it has a World War II-in-space feel. But Tabler manages to transcend the trappings of the sub-genre, producing a story about what it means to be human. It’s an interesting take on the genetically-engineered soldiers concept, and he deftly injects the nature verses nurture debate into a combat story. Tabler's writing is fast and clean, and he dumps a good amount of backstory into the narrative once it's moving and keeps zipping along. He also provides a strong ending that is probably the best image in the whole issue....