Space Nazis

Space Nazis (or sometimes Evil Alien Space Nazis) is a recurring theme among many science fiction works dealing with World War II or World War II like situations.

Novels

The theme is already evident in Robert A. Heinlein's Rocket Ship Galileo, published just two years after the end of WWII, where Nazis found on the Moon originated from the just-defeated Nazi Germany on Earth.

In later books with a similar premise, the major story elements often involve an alternate history being realized: the Nazis winning World War II or aliens traveling back in time to give/sell advanced technology to one side (usually Germany). Other premises include a splinter group of Nazis (or their ideology) being introduced to a previously benign planet.

Games

The term "Space Nazis" is also a Killzone fan-coined term referring to the game series' spacefaring enemy faction, the Helghast. The emblem of the Helghast resembles the symbols of far-right nationalist groups like the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging and the Nazi Party, and there are notable similarities in helmet shape and officer uniform design between the Helghast and Nazi Germany. Furthermore, all games in the series have cutscenes of Helghast leaders giving speeches at large rallies, with strong visual and thematic allusions to Nazi rallies.

The 1988 computer game Rocket Ranger from Cinemaware featured a storyline where the Nazis attempted to dominate the world from a lunar base. The gameplay involved using a rocket pack to capture enough equipment to build a rocket, fly to the moon and thwart their plans.

Television and movies

• Attack from Space (1964): Benevolent aliens from the planet Emerald send superhero Starman to protect Earth from invasion by an evil alien race called the Spherions, warlike creatures of the Sapphire Galaxy, who are in fact evil Space Nazis. When Starman arrives on Earth, he discovers a conspiracy involving Earth's top scientists, and he must root-out the traitors and also stop the impending alien invasion.

• "Patterns of Force", an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series: The Ekosian civilization copied the Nazi Regime right down to similar ideologies, clothing, symbols, etc., in an attempt to emulate Germany's rapid economic recovery during the 1930s.

• In the Star Trek: Enterprise episodes Storm Front, parts I and II, a species called the Vosk time-travels to WWII Earth and helps the Nazis conquer America.

• In the Star Trek: Voyager episode The Killing Game, a species called the Hirogen emulated Nazis using Holodeck technology in order to beteer understand Earth's history and culture.

• Iron Sky (2012): Nazis who escaped the fall of Germany in 1945, travel to the moon's dark side and establish a base. They return in the year 2018 as an invasion force in order to establish the Fourth Reich. During the invasion, they end up battling with a President of the United States who coincidentally resembles Sarah Palin. The movie is currently billed as a sci-fi, action, comedy film.

See also

• Iron Sky
• "Patterns of Force", an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series
• Nazi UFOs
• Die Glocke
• The Iron Dream
• The Man in the High Castle