Page 175 • TrekCore.com

Mary Wiseman Brings Cadet Tilly to AGE OF DISCOVERY in Upcoming STAR TREK ONLINE Expansion

Bob Stutzman

-

July 26, 2018

Mary Wiseman Brings Cadet Tilly to AGE OF DISCOVERY in Upcoming STAR TREK ONLINE Expansion

Many of the Star Trek cast have returned to their live-action characters in the long-running Star Trek Online game over the past several years, including most recently the big actor reunion featured in the Deep Space Nine-themed Victory is Life expansion earlier this summer.

Now, Cryptic Studios and Perfect World Entertainment have announced that the game will expand into Star Trek: Discovery territory this fall, with series actress Mary Wiseman joining the cast as young Sylvia Tilly of the USS Discovery.

This fall, Star Trek Online will launch the first chapter in Age of Discovery, a new story arc set in the newest Trek television series’ chronology. The update gives players the opportunity to create their very own Discovery-era captain and team up with Cadet Sylvia Tilly (voiced by Wiseman) for the ongoing adventure.

Age of Discovery’s first installment will also introduce a new Discovery-era tutorial, two episodes, new Reputation Tiers, a new queue (now referred to as a ‘Task Force Operation’), along with several other new gameplay features.

Age of Discovery opens in the year 2256, just after the Battle at the Binary Stars as seen in the Discovery series opener.. In the wake of a brutal war against the Klingons, Starfleet captains now face J’Ula — matriarch of the House of Mo’Kai and sister of T’Kuvma — who seeks to alter the destiny of the Alpha Quadrant.

Players must rely on the help of fellow Starfleet Academy Cadet Sylvia Tilly, who has come home to assist with training and see them off on their first assignment. From there, they will journey to iconic locations from Star Trek: Discovery, like the dilithium mines of Corvan II, explore the new experimental Crossfield-class starship USS Glenn, and defend Starbase 1 from a fearsome attack by the Klingon House of D’Ghor.

The update also includes two new Discovery episodes available to all characters: a new Task Force Operation to defend Starbase 1, and an expansion to the game’s Reputation System to Tier 6 which unlocks powerful new rewards.

Additional details, including the release date for Age of Discovery’s first installment on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 systems, will be announced later this year — so keep coming back to TrekCore for all the latest news on this new Star Trek Online expansion!

New DEEP SPACE NINE-Themed Beer to Debut at STLV

TrekCore Staff

-

July 25, 2018

1

New DEEP SPACE NINE-Themed Beer to Debut at STLV

Continuing their line of Star Trek-themed beers this summer, New York-based Shmaltz Brewing Company is taking a trip to the edge of the final frontier with a new Star Trek: Deep Space Nine-inspired beer set to debut next week.

Profet Motive Hopped Up Golden Ale makes its first debut at the Rio Hotel when the annual Star Trek Convention kicks off on August 1 in Las Vegas, released to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Deep Space Nine’s 1993 premiere — and labeled with the distinctive logo of Quark’s Bar.

For Trek fans located near Shmaltz’s home facility, the beer is available for sale directly — TrekCore reader Tess Stoklosa already picked up a four-pack from the brewery.

Like last year’s Next Generation-themed “Symbiosis” 30th Anniversary Ale, the beer is expected to be available at several of the on-site bars and shops inside the Rio Hotel for fans to purchase, and to make its way to a wider release after the convention.

Keep checking back here at TrekCore for the latest in Star Trek product news!

Pegg: TREK 4 Director S.J. Clarkson is a “Real Ball of Ideas”

TrekCore Staff

-

July 25, 2018

58

We’re still quite a while from any production progress on the forthcoming fourth Kelvin Timeline Star Trek film, but series actor and writer Simon Pegg shared his thoughts on incoming director S.J. Clarkson in a new interview today — as well as his feedback on the potential Quentin Tarantino Trek film in early development.

Speaking today with Nerdist News for the Mission: Impossible — Fallout press tour, Pegg — who co-wrote 2016’s Star Trek Beyond — described a recent meeting with Clarkson for an early discussion on the next movie, and spoke highly of the director:

I met S.J. in London recently, and she’s just great. She’s a real ball of ideas; she’s so into it. We had lunch and had a chat — having co-written ‘Beyond’ [and having] been part of the growth of the characters to a point, we were going to talk any way, [but] I just wanted to meet her and say “Hi.”

As soon as I talked to her for half an hour, I just thought she [is] gonna be great. She’s super, super into it, and very smart. It’s exciting stuff.

Pegg also commented on Clarkson’s place as the first female director slated to helm a Star Trek film, praising the accomplishment but wishing it had come sooner.

About time, you know? It’s a shame that it’s a big thing that [Clarkson is] the first female director — come on, this is 2018!

The actor also spoke to Hey U Guys a few weeks back detailing his expectation that the film project was “in prep,” but spoke to the headaches of coordinating the availability of all his Starfleet castmates. Back in April it was also reported that the cast is no longer under contract with Paramount Pictures — another hurdle to overcome.

Simon with SJ Clarkson at the UK premiere of #MissionImpossibleFallout, talking about the future…🖖🏻 pic.twitter.com/pcmuP8BNfB

— Pegg News (@simonpegg) July 14, 2018

He also shared his thoughts on the potential Quentin Tarantino-crafted Trek film rumored to be in development, which is generally thought to involve the Kelvin Timeline Enterprise crew as well — though Pegg clearly isn’t looking at the project as a done deal:

As far as we know, Quentin came in an pitched an idea. Obviously, he’s real busy at the moment with “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” and that’s what he’ll be doing for the next few years. [sic]

If there comes a time when [his Trek film] becomes a reality, then that would be incredibly exciting. I imagine it would be a passionate and very faithful take, you know. Quentin’s a big “Star Trek” fan, and wouldn’t just come in and… I think people [thought], ‘Oh, he’ll just come in and dismantle it.’

He’ll do something extraordinary with it, I’m absolutely certain of that. If that happens, that would be great.

You can see the entire interview in the video below, with Pegg’s comments on Star Trek beginning approximately 20 minutes into the conversation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enTQkHM3onU

Keep coming back to TrekCore for more Star Trek movie news as it breaks!

Star Trek:
The Art of the Film

Star Trek Beyond:
The Makeup of Joel Harlow

The Art of Star Trek:
The Kelvin Timeline

INTERVIEW: Mary Wiseman on Tilly’s “Maturation,” and Having More Fun in STAR TREK: DISCOVERY Season 2

John Kirk

-

July 24, 2018

4

INTERVIEW: Mary Wiseman on Tilly’s “Maturation,” and Having More Fun in STAR TREK: DISCOVERY Season 2

Promoted to full-fledged Ensign at the end of last season, Star Trek: Discovery’s Sylvia Tilly quickly became a fan favorite after her introduction early in the year — and as the character moves forward in her Starfleet career, we asked actress Mary Wiseman how her outer-space counterpart grows as we move to Season 2.

“There’s a lot of Tilly,” she laughed. “It’s going to be fun!”

After spending a year as the young cadet who found herself occasionally overstepping her bounds or speaking out of turn — including dropping the first “F bomb” in Trek history — the character found a bit of unexpected ferocity when Tilly was forced to playact as the evil ‘Captain Killy’ of the Terran Empire.

I wanted to know what it was like to shift between the two versions of the character.

“[Playing ‘Captain Killy’] was fun and something different, but it was important that it showed that Tilly had a lot more going on,” Wiseman told me. “She has a commanding side that could be tough and no-nonsense and while she doesn’t exercise it as much, maybe we’ll get to see more.”

Tilly (Mary Wiseman) and Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) in their Terran uniforms. (CBS)

After finding the confidence to ask Saru to recommend her for Starfleet’s Command Training Program late in the season, will Tilly’s newfound backbone resurface in the upcoming season?

“I think so,” she acknowledged. “It’s a part of her, and her maturation. We’re going to have to see how she rounds out her personality; she will have to develop more skills to be a captain.”

It won’t be an easy period of growth, though, as the actor described some challenges the young ensign will need to work through as the Discovery story continues.

“She’s going to come up against a bunch of stuff in herself [and] have some personal challenges that will be isolating and be painful for her, but also will, ultimately, make her grow,” Wiseman said. “Tilly’s a very supportive and empathetic character, but I think in this season she comes more into her own – and has a little bit [more] of her own life.”

With the arrival of the USS Enterprise — a canon connection that continues into Season 2 — how will Tilly fit into this brush with Trek history?

“She’s on the ship,” she laughed, not letting slip any story secrets. “She’s going to have a role in all that!”

Tilly and Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) celebrate the power of math. (CBS)

Wiseman’s bubbly mood permeated the conversation, which led well into a discussion about how Discovery will lighten up a bit in its second year, following 15 episodes of mutiny, war with the Klingons, and a detour into the evil Mirror Universe.

“There’s going to be more buoyancy [next season],” she said, referencing comments made by executive producer Alex Kurtzman during Friday’s panel at Comic Con. “There are moments of lightness because we’re in a time of peace — and Tilly definitely responds to that. It allows for moments of self-reflection, which can be painful but common.”

As for “the power of math” which Tilly notably cheered in the Season 2 trailer?

“There will be more discovery, because you can do that when you’re not in a time of war and we’re able to employ science which she loves,” Wiseman finished with a thoroughly Tilly-esque smile. “It’ll be cool!”

Mary Wiseman will be joining the rest of her Star Trek: Discovery castmates next week for a first visit to the Las Vegas Star Trek convention.

Watch for more Discovery news over the next two weeks as we continue our post-Comic Con interview series, and ramp up our STLV coverage!

INTERVIEW: Doug Jones on Saru and DISCOVERY Season 2

John Kirk

-

July 24, 2018

2

INTERVIEW: Doug Jones on Saru and DISCOVERY Season 2

Above: Doug Jones poses with a fan at San Diego Comic Con. (CBS)

Doug Jones’ happiness is explosively contagious — he’s got the affable joy of a mythical creature who has never known sadness — and as he sauntered over to me at the Star Trek: Discovery press event following Friday’s panel at San Diego Comic Con, I was nearly swept up in his tidal wave of enthusiasm.

“John Kirk!” he shouts. “I’ve seen you all over the webber-net! How great to meet you!”

It’s a stark contrast to the doom-and-gloom attitude usually emanating from his Kelpien alter ego, Star Trek: Discovery’s Commander Saru — someone whom we’ll finally learn more about as the series moves into it’s second season in 2019.

“Yes, there will be at least a couple of times when I ‘peek up,’ for sure,” Jones declared.
“We get a home planet visit, and how we get there — why we get there — I cannot reveal, but it’s a part of the entire arc of the whole season.”

Saru (Jones) is relieved of command by Captain Pike (Anson Mount). (CBS)

Discovery Season 1 concluded with Saru in temporary command of the USS Discovery after the demise of evil Gabriel Lorca (Jason Isaacs) in the Mirror Universe — but thanks to the new Season 2 trailer, we know that his time in the captain’s chair doesn’t last long as Captain Pike (Anson Mount) takes over the ship under Starfleet’s direction.

With Saru shifted out of his ‘acting captain’ role, I asked Jones if he could elaborate further on the Kelpien officer’s involvement in the direction of the upcoming season.

“We’re back to the original mission of Starfleet, which is exploration, right?” he said. “So we have a trail of bread crumbs that are being left for us all over the universe — and one of those leads us right back to my home planet!”

It was clear that Jones was excited that Saru is getting some time in the spotlight this year, something many fans have been hoping for after his character found such a following last season — while he had moments to shine in Season 1, the most amount of character exploration for the Kelpien can be found in Discovery novels Desperate Hours and Fear Itself.

“I want to share the name of my home planet,” he cautioned, “but it’s not been said out loud yet — so I’m sure that I can’t. In the novels and comics there are some names, but I don’t think that’s right, so I don’t know how [the stories will] link up.”

Saru on the cover of James Swallow’s “Fear Itself.” (Simon & Schuster)

Doug went on, his face took on an expression of wonder as he gave one more though to Saru’s story for the upcoming year.

“Why is there only one Kelpien in Starfleet? I think that’s also going to be answered this season – how I came to be a part of Starfleet and broke the mould of my people.”

One of the biggest components of the new season is the appearance of the Enterprise, and is set during a period not seen in the classic Trek series — the Season 2 premiere takes place in 2257, nearly eight years before Captain Kirk takes command of the ship and three years after “The Cage.”

“The fact that this is ten years before the Original Series,” Jones continued, “ten years is not a great amount of time! The timelines are getting closer, and the farther our season goes — well, [if Discovery runs] five seasons, [it] means that we’re getting five years closer to the Original Series.”

Commenting on some of the news shared by executive producer Alex Kurtzman during the Hall H panel on Friday — regarding Spock’s appearance in the new season, and “syncing up with canon” — Jones looked ahead to what we can expect from Season 2’s Enterprise connection.

“The characters are in place; their backstories are getting built and we have Captain Pike with us — we get to see a part of him that we didn’t see in the Original Series. We’ll see Spock that we didn’t in the Original Series [and] get to learn why he never spoke of his foster sister. I think that the writers are taking very good care to address all of those questions for you.”

As we concluded our conversation, I mentioned that I was from Toronto, where the actor has spent most of his last 18 months filming Star Trek: Discovery.

The great thing about talking to Doug Jones is that he likes to demonstrate his happiness in a tactile way — and sure enough, this bit of personal information initiated the grips of a true Doug Jones hug as he shared with me all his favorite haunts in my home city.

“Oh my gosh!” he shouted. “I don’t get around too much there as I’m a hermit who likes to stay indoors and rock back and forth to myself — but I do love the Imagine Cinemas close to Front Street! I love to watch a matinee by myself and eat at Scaddabush! It’s awesome! And in terms of coffee, I’m a Tim Hortons guy who loves their chili!”

Happiness abounds with Doug Jones, his infectious enthusiasm is sure to make a mark at next week’s Star Trek Las Vegas convention, where he’ll be joining the rest of his crewmates as the Discovery cast for their first trek to the annual event.

We’ve got more from the Star Trek: Discovery cast coming soon, so keep checking back to TrekCore for all the latest updates!

2018 STAR TREK Comic Con Merchandise Roundup

TrekCore Staff

-

July 23, 2018

0

2018 STAR TREK Comic Con Merchandise Roundup

We’ve got one last roundup of Star Trek goodies from this past weekend’s San Diego Comic Con out in California, where a few more licensees got to show off their Trek wares to the throngs of genre fans flooding the convention center.

First up, our pals over at Eaglemoss showcased their first four Star Trek character busts which we told you about the other week — Kirk, Spock, Worf, and Data — sculpted into appropriate poses.

We don’t yet have details on pricing or availability of these pieces, but we’ll see what we can find out when we get another look next week in Las Vegas.

Along with these busts, the company also showcased some of their upcoming Official Starships Collection ships, including the XL-sized USS Reliant and USS Enterprise-B, the USS Europa and Vulcan flyer from Discovery, the Kobayashi Maru from Star Trek ’09, and some of the special releases we first told you about back in April.

Eaglemoss SDCC 2018 Previews

1 of 7

Eaglemoss will be on site at STLV next weekend, and we’ll bring you much more on these models from Las Vegas.

* * *

Gentle Giant Ltd. showcased a number of Trek sculpted products, starting with the 8″ Saru bust we first told you about back in June — our SDCC correspondent John Kirk managed to catch Saru actor Doug Jones at a signing during the convention, taking home one of these busts with a personal touch.

Gentle Giant also had a few other Trek items behind glass — so new that the company told us they had just finished the display pieces in time for the convention, and that “the paint wasn’t even dry” the day before SDCC kicked off: a set of Michael Burnham and Klingon Torchbearer statuettes, based off of the confrontation in the Discovery pilot.

Gentle Giant SDCC 2018

1 of 4

The company also showcased a pair of matching bookends, carved with the symbols of Starfleet and the Klingon Empire. Pricing and availability on these new products are not yet known.

* * *

Finally, over at the Star Trek: Discovery gallery, CBS representatives spent the weekend handing out these miniature replica pins of Discovery‘s Starfleet admiral badge, produced by QMx, free to attendees:

These aren’t for sale (outside of eBay) at the moment, but perhaps they might be available to fans attending next week’s STLV convention in Las Vegas.

Check back to TrekCore often for the latest in Star Trek product news!

Upcoming DISCOVERY: SHORT TREK “Calypso” Written by Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Michael Chabon

TrekCore Staff

-

July 23, 2018

13

At Friday afternoon’s Star Trek: Discovery Comic Con panel, executive producer Alex Kurtzman first revealed that Season 2 of the series would be preceded by a set of four “short films,” called Short Treks, starting this Fall.

Two of the 10-15 minute entries will focus on Tilly (Mary Wiseman) and Saru (Doug Jones) — and a third will be directed by Rainn Wilson and center on Harry Mudd — but the fourth will be the first to feature a yet-unseen character in the Discovery universe.

Aldis Hodge, best known for his work on “Leverage” and “Turn: Washington’s Spies.”

The new character, called Craft, will be portrayed by actor Aldis Hodge, and tell the story of “a man who finds himself the only human on board a deserted ship” — and that story will be told by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Michael Chabon.

While his contribution was first revealed over the weekend, the author himself shared his involvement on Instagram today, posting an image of himself on the Star Trek: Discovery set from earlier this summer to see his Short Trek — revealed to be called “Calypso” — filmed under the direction of Discovery resident executive producer Olatunde Osunsanmi, who also helmed two episodes of the first season.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlkqtF-BrUt/

While there isn’t much more known about Chabon’s episode at this time, the title “Calypso” may refer to the name of Craft’s vessel — but that’s just our speculation.

We’ll bring you more information on Discovery’s “Short Treks” as it breaks, so keep coming back to TrekCore for all the latest on the show.

Novel #4:
"The Way to the Stars"

Novel #5:
"The Enterprise War"

Novel #6:
"Dead Endless"

Diamond Select Kelvin Timeline TREK Figures & More

TrekCore Staff

-

July 23, 2018

10

Diamond Select Kelvin Timeline TREK Figures & More

San Diego Comic Con may be all wrapped up, but there’s still some Star Trek product news which made its way from the West Coast this weekend!

Diamond Select Toys revealed a few new upcoming items at the massive convention, starting with the first set of Star Trek Kelvin Timeline character action figures since the original Playmates line of Star Trek ’09 toys nearly a decade ago.

Styled after Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto’s characters, this pair of 7″ figures features Captain Kirk and Commander Spock as they appeared in 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness, complete with dleta-pattern Starfleet uniforms as created by costume designer Michael Kaplan.

These figures are set to include interchangeable hands, so the characters can hold both communicators, phasers, and phaser rifles (with ‘blaster’ effect plastic attachments), and will come with bases styled like the red transporter pads on the Kelvin Timeline USS Enterprise.

The Into Darkness figure pairing are already available for preorder at Diamond Select’s web shop at a price of $49.98, and are targeted for a “Winter 2018” release.

The company also teased a look at an upcoming Borg drone figure, which is still being finalized — tentatively scheduled for “Winter 2019,” the figure is set to come with interchangeable components (including Borg arm, heads, and cybernetic eyepieces) and a removable ‘vest’ to showcase a second layer of assimilation.

Photo credits: **Toy News International** (top); **Figures.com** (bottom)

Finally, the biggest reveal at the Diamond Select booth was the debut of their forthcoming Ambassador-class USS Enterprise-C model, tentatively planned for a formal release sometime in 2019 (with preorders expected to go live before the end of 2018).

The ship seems to differ somewhat from the studio model used for production of The Next Generation, especially in regards to the shape of the bussard collectors, but it’s not yet clear if this display model is a true representation of the final product, or if it is still a development build used for promotion.

Regarding their long-awaited USS Reliant model, Diamond Select does still say that they are continuing to work through final development on the ship — but no release date or approve model for public display has yet been revealed.

Keep checking back to TrekCore for more Star Trek product news!

Season 2 STAR TREK: DISCOVERY News From Comic-Con

TrekCore Staff

-

July 20, 2018

20

Season 2 STAR TREK: DISCOVERY News From Comic-Con

Today marked Star Trek: Discovery’s return to San Diego Comic Con, with promises of updates on the progress of production, new details on Season 2, and a hope for a look ahead to new episodes — and perhaps even an update on those franchise expansion rumors.

After kicking off the morning passing out donuts to weary fans waiting in line for entrance to SDCC’s famous Hall H, the cast made their way to surprise fans at the off-site Mirror Universe prop and costume exhibit – a repeat of their journey last summer.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BldIKipFRPL/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BldlDHIhfFz/

Following the morning excursions, the Discovery cast including Sonequa Martin-Green, Anthony Rapp, Shazad Latif, Doug Jones, Wilson Cruz, Mary Wiseman, Mary Chieffo, and Anson Mount — joined by producers Alex Kurtzman and Heather Kadin — made their way to Comic Con’s biggest stage where a crowd of 6,000 fans packed Hall H.

Discovery Season 2 guest star Tig Notaro hosted the hour-long panel, the first for any Star Trek film or television series to be held in Hall H, which of course kicked off with our first real look at the season, now officially targeted for January 2019, in a new trailer:

In other casting news, Rebecca Romijn has been set to play the Enterprise first officer ‘Number One’ (as we reported earlier today), and Aldis Hodge will be joining the show in one of the four ‘Short Trek’ mini-films set to debut in December.

As for the characters returning from Season 1, Wilson Cruz was on hand to repeat to the crowd that — as he’s been saying publicly for months — his murdered character Dr. Hugh Culber will be part of the Discovery story in Season 2.

Mary Chieffo’s L’Rell has her sights set on “being the best chancellor she can be,” after grabbing the reigns of power on Qo’noS last season, and exploration of her relationship with Shazad Latif’s Ash Tyler will continue, as “a Beauty and the Beast story – with a female ‘beast.'”

At the post-panel press-conference, Kurtzman shared that the Tyler/L’Rell storyline will “interconnect” with the Discovery ship-bound story as the season progresses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-k7XGBluxw4

Regarding everyone’s favorite Kelpien, we learned that Discovery plans to visit the homeworld of Doug Jones’ Saru — something many fans have been asking for — but we don’t yet know more details on that just yet. “Who’s the prey? Who’s the predator?,” said Jones.

While he wouldn’t offer any specifics, Kurtzman did tease that “maybe” we will see Jason Isaacs’ Gabriel Lorca again — perhaps we’ll see the ‘good’ prime-universe counterpart of Season 1’s Terran impostor? (It might be a good time to go read Drastic Measures!)

In another note, Kurztman continued to reiterate that Season 2 will be “syncing with canon” as Discovery gets closer to the timeframe of the Original Series — but some canon-related questions will get answered in ways not expected by fans, said the producer. (Anthony Rapp was excited for some upcoming “fun with red shirts.”)

As for the newcomer to the cast, Anson Mount’s Christopher Pike, Kurtzman described the captain as the “opposite” of Lorca, a man who can “apologize when he’s wrong” and that based upon the authority of original actor Jeffrey Hunter’s performance. Pike has “tremendous optimism” and “a good heart” said Mount.

Finally Kurtzman also finally confirmed the rumors that we will be seeing Spock sometime in the upcoming season — which could be the “young Spock” which director Jonathan Frakes first let slip back in April — or perhaps, as the trailer suggests, an adult Spock yet to be announced.

We’re hoping more might information may come from the post-panel red carpet interviews, so keep watching for more Star Trek: Discovery news from Comic Con as it breaks!

Pike Takes Command in New DISCOVERY Season 2 Photos

TrekCore Staff

-

July 20, 2018

17

Pike Takes Command in New DISCOVERY Season 2 Photos

Phew — the whirlwind of Star Trek: Discovery news coming out of San Diego Comic Con isn’t stopping yet, as a set of brand-new production photos from the Season 2 premiere just arrived from CBS!

Six new images from the opening adventure of Discovery’s second season feature Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) in command of the starship — as seen in the just-released Season 2 trailer — leading Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and crew on a dangerous mission.

In addition, the photos include our first look at guest star Tig Notaro in her role as Chief Engineer Reno, and more of Saurian Lieutenant Linus (David Benjamin Tomlinson) interacting with the Enterprise crew, in their traditional TOS-era uniform colors — including redshirt Lt. Naan (Rachael Ancheril) and blue-shirt Lt. Connelly (Sean Connolly Affleck).

DISCOVERY Season 2 Photos

1 of 6

We’ll have much more from Discovery at Comic Con soon, so keep checking back here at TrekCore!