Retief the character is a two-fisted interstellar diplomat. Think Captain Kirk by way of a Warren Zevon song. His stories are based in the experiences of Laumer as a junior State department attache in Burma in the 1950s, out on the wild and wooly frontier of US anti-communism.

I read the first story, which has Retief as an old man facing down a revanchist emperor planning to conquer the galaxy, and thought it was pretty good. So why the two stars--well, the stories go downhill fast. Not all science-fiction has to be deep, or compelling or have outstanding world-building or characters. But light adventure fiction has to pleasurable or exciting, and the Retief canon fail on that account. I found the stories a trudge, and mostly indistinguishable. Retief is so exceptional (the best fighter, a natural linguist, a perfect judge of culture and character, an encyclopedia-like memory for the law), and his opponents so cowardly and incompetent that there's no tension, no drama. It's just boozy wish fulfillment. I wish this stories were better, because we need more fiction about space diplomats as opposed to space marines, but Retief never meets a problem he can't punch his way out of.