Title: Last Train

Author: Guy N. Smith

Date of First Publication: 1994

Place of Publication: The Mammoth Book of Frankenstein

Type: Short Story

Characters: No character

Themes: MAD SCIENTIST/MONSTER; ANDROID

Critical Summary: “Last Train” revolves around a boy named Jeremy, who after being sheltered his entire life, ventures out in search of sexual experience. Jeremy had been a farmhand his entire life, helping out his parents who coddled him as if he never aged past year five. His mother and father constantly remind Jeremy of his luck, to be born in and raised in an environment where he can live safely and without fear. Jeremy however, does not feel the same way about his situation. Jeremy’s constraints made him hungry, hungry to explore, more specifically, to explore his sexual frustrations. Much to his parents’ dismay, Jeremy purchases a ticket to a show in the city, which he uses as a front in order to find himself a prostitute. Whilst in the city, Jeremy finds his prostitute, but experiences erectile dysfunction, which crushes his spirit. As his sex worker partner decides Jeremy is no longer worth her time, she leaves Jeremy to his paranoia due to his sheltered lifestyle. Jeremy runs, with no direction until he reaches a lonely train. Inside the train he sees what he perceives to be a pimp and his two beautiful employees. Jeremy then feels desire surge through him once again, after being captivated by the two women on the train and their beauty. His manhood then becomes a subject of observation as the pimp notes it along with his two companions. He tells Jeremy today is his lucky day and he offers him companionship from his two employees. The two women lunge at him and begin to devour him whole. As Jeremy’s flesh tears, so does the women’s clothing, revealing them to be creations of the man thought to be a pimp. At this point Jeremy’s consciousness begins to fade and his moans of agony match the creator’s as he realizes today will be his final day as well.

The “Last Train” is a story about attempting to control urges. The most prevalent theme throughout the story is that of the Mad Scientists/Monsters. In this story, the Creatures created by the man on the train move beyond his control, paralleling the ways Jeremy’s creators (his parents), lose control of him as he seeks to develop a new consciousness for himself, one that makes him question why sanctions exist, testing the limits of the human.

Administrative Notes:  Ivan Garcia, CSUF; Dr. David Sandner, CSUF (editing)