An online review posted about Disney's 2012 John Carter of Earth movie runs thus: "John Carter evokes pretty much every sci-fi classic from the past 50 years without having any real personality of its own." The essential thing to keep in mind, however, is that Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess of Mars was first published almost a century ago in 1917! Science fiction and fantasy novels and stories since then are deeply indebted to John Carter. Others ...