The editorial introducing this, the first issue, declares itself "For Adults Only", by which Gold means:
GALAXY Science Fiction proposes to carry the maturity of this type of literature into the science fiction magazine field, where it is now, unfortunately, somewhat hard to find. It establishes a compound break with both the lurid and the stodgy traditions of s-f magazine publishing. From cover design to advertising selections, GALAXY Science Fiction intends to be a mature magazine for mature readers . . . mature in reading; age alone is no assurance of maturity.
Regarding the cover design, Gold further explains:
The cover, by David Stone, is the resolution of several personal conflicts. Long a science fiction fan, Stone is also an excellent artist who was weary of tearing covers off magazines to avoid embarrassment. His cover, he resolved, would not have to be hidden from either parents or friends. Having suffered thus ourselves, we agreed, and no reader will be ashamed to carry GALAXY.
Groff Conklin reviews two novels, Shadow on the Hearth and The Rat Race, and three anthologies, Beyond Time and Space, Flight Into Space, and his own The Big Book of Science Fiction. He also writes briefly about Seven Science Fiction Novels of H. G. Wells.