Beginning on November 9, Prop Store will begin their next big three-day auction of over 1,110 sets of props, costumes, and entertainment memorabilia from a wide variety of media properties — and as usual, they’ve got a fair number of Star Trek items in their offerings.
After September’s Star Trek: Discovery auction included a number of lots of tribbles from “The Trouble with Edward,” Prop Store is now offering one of the tribbles from the episode that started it all: 1967’s “The Trouble with Tribbles.”
There were several different kind of tribbles made for the episode to give the impression that the furry creatures are alive — including tribbles that had mechanical components that allowed them to walk — and this one: the breathing tribble.
A hose connects to an internal air bladder that allows for it to be inflated and deflated, given the appearance that the tribble is breathing.
Worn by Leonard Nimoy in the first Star Trek film, this costume was worn by Spock in sickbay after his mind-meld experience with V’Ger. What’s most interesting about this costume is that it is actually a hoodie! When it appears in the film, the hood is bunched up around Spock’s neck to look like some kind of futuristic medical collar.
But now we can see in all its glory; it’s a cozy Spock hoodie… with a $20,000 minimum selling price.
I’ve always loved this phaser rifle design, which was introduced in Star Trek: First Contact.
This piece from Star Trek: Nemesis lights up, which will make it highly sought after, and I fully expect it to meet or exceed the $6,000 price estimate — given that it appears to be complete, with working lighting components and carry strap still attached.
The next ‘hero’ prop comes from 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness: a ‘working’ hand phaser from the second Kelvin Timeline film. While the movies themselves have both their fans and detractors, the sleek metallic finish of the Kelvin Timeline-era props seem to be quite popular.
Prop Store is clearly hoping that’s still the case, even though they’ve sold a few of these light up hero phasers in the last couple of years. This one’s got a minimum sale price of approximately $10,000 — personally, I think the Nemesis rifle will be more popular.
It’s a lovely work, especially in the way that it blends the iconic Klingon Bird-of-Prey with Mount Seleya. Measuring approximately 18 inches by 9 inches, this piece will look very impressive appropriately framed and mounted on your wall.
There are impressive pieces, and then there are pieces that send a chill down your spine — certainly this is one of the latter!
Created for the traveling Star Trek: Federation Science exhibit which toured museums throughout North America and Europe in the late 1990s, this Ferengi bust definitely shows off the intricate Ferengi makeup design and headskirt costuming… but the fixed, unyielding stare is going to leave me with nightmares.
Art is in the eye of the beholder, I suppose, and if you win this piece, I hope it brings you joy (and profit) for years to come! [td_smart_list_end]
To see the complete list of Star Trek lots up for sale, along with more information on the auction itself and to browse through the hundreds of offerings the company has available for bidding, head over to Prop Store’s auction site.
The Star Trek: Coda trilogy, the biggest Star Trek book event since 2008’s Borg-ending Destiny trilogy, continued into its second chapter last week with author James Swallow’s The Ashes of Tomorrow.
As we noted in our review last week, the book significantly expands the scope and scale of the Coda story that will bring an end to 20 years of the Star Trek literary continuity – a shared continuity across many of the Star Trek books that have been released since 2001.
Last month, we got the chance to talk to Dayton Ward ahead of the release of his first book in the trilogy, Moments Asunder (read our review here) about the genesis for Coda and the approach that fellow collaborators James Swallow and David Mack took to developing the trilogy.
This month, we’re pleased to bring you an interview with James Swallow himself, where we dive deeper into the Coda story and look at some of the creative choices made along the way.
There are some MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for both Moments Asunder and The Ashes of Tomorrow in our discussion, so if you haven’t read the books yet… you’ve been warned!
TREKCORE: How did you become part of the collaborative team behind the Coda trilogy?
JAMES SWALLOW: Well, to be honest, when I was first approached I actually said no! I had a very strong reaction against it — I thought it was a terrible idea. “We can’t do this,” I thought, with the fanboy part of me just like “No, no, no, we can’t turn the lights off on this. We’ve done too much work. It’s too good. It’s too big. We can’t end it!”
It was Dave Mack who actually brought me around. He said the thing that, really in the end, got me to come on board which is, “If we don’t do this, who will? Who’s going to come and step up and do this? We have to do it with the right kind of hand on the tiller.” He pitched that we had to do it with a degree of respect, and a degree of craft, and we have to tell a new story as well that takes things forward to this conclusion, to run down the curtain as it were.
He said, “Do you really want to miss out on that opportunity to write something that’s epic?” And he was right. I didn’t want to miss out on that. Even if I was reluctant at the beginning, when we got into the idea, I realized there was so much opportunity to tell some really great stories, so how can I not? That was it.
Together with Dayton Ward we collaborated on the entire Coda narrative. If you look at the opening title pages of the book, it doesn’t just say the title of the book and the author name — underneath it says, ‘Star Trek: Coda’ by Dayton Ward, James Swallow and David Mack, because we all collaborated on the overarching story and all of us have our fingerprints on every single story in the trilogy.
Captain Ezri Dax, the first major casualty of the CODA trilogy.
TREKCORE: After reading Moments Asunder, it feels like The Ashes of Tomorrow really expands the scope of the story. What role do the first two books play within the trilogy as a whole?
SWALLOW: Moments Asunder is the firm, concrete base on which the other books build. It gives you an idea that this is going to be big, this is going to be epic — and of course, in the conclusion of that first novel, Ezri Dax is killed.
One of the reasons we decided to take a main cast member and do away with them in this dramatic fashion, is we wanted to say to the readers, “All bets are off.” Nobody is safe, and you’re not going to know how this is going to play out.
There’s no reset button, there is no safe haven for anybody in this story. It sets the tone for the narrative. Once Dayton did that, my job was to broaden things out in The Ashes of Tomorrow and to unfold the narrative. You’ve seen what was going on with the Enterprise and Aventine characters in Book 1, but in Book 2 here’s some of our other favorite characters, what they’re doing, how this situation is affecting them, and gradually broadening out and expanding.
And what Dave is going to do in Oblivion’s Gate is he’s going to build on what I’ve done in The Ashes of Tomorrow as we start heading towards the final conclusion at the end of that novel.
“Perhaps the most important person in Starfleet history…”
TREKCORE: There are a lot of major deaths in Ashes, including Miles O’Brien. How did you decide who to keep — and who to kill?
SWALLOW: It’s not like we sat there just gleefully killing off characters and rubbing our hands with glee for shock value. We’ve done it because we feel that we want to give these characters their heroic moments — and at times that involves heroic sacrifice.
One of the characters that I was really invested in giving a strong heroic send-off to was Nog. Thinking back to Aron Eisenberg, and wanting to do something to pay tribute to that actor and that character. Once we started giving him a pivotal position, that sort of role for that character grew in the telling and it gave him an opportunity to do something heroic, to show some nobility that we’ve only ever seen glimpses of in the TV show. I really enjoyed writing that.
With the other characters, there were circumstances in the story where it just felt like this is a good exit point for this character, because otherwise we’re just going to put them on a shelf and move on. The question was, “Do we want to just have that character step off stage, get on a bus and leave?” Some of the characters do that. But there were some characters that we felt we really wanted to give a heroic finale to.
Certainly with Miles O’Brien, I wanted to write a scene that makes him worthy of that statue he gets in Lower Decks. I actually wanted to put a line in at the end of the story where O’Brien says, “If I don’t get out of this alive, tell them to build a statute of me.” But it was just a little bit too on the nose.
When we start off, we kill a few characters in Moments, then the body count goes up a little bit in Ashes — and I don’t want to tell you what’s going to happen in Oblivion’s Gate! When we saw reviews for Moments, people were saying “This is really harsh!,” and Dayton said to us, “People don’t realize my book is the easy one!”
This is not a story where we’ve pulled any of our punches. We’re going to tell a story that is epic with a capital epic. It’s something that’s true to the Star Trek mythology. I can’t see this saga ending with a whimper. It has to go out with a bang… and we’re going for a pretty big bang here.
A trio of Devidians seen in “Time’s Arrow.”
TREKCORE: How did you land on the Devidians as the ‘big bads’ for the tale — especially after the last Voyager book made it seem the Krenim were going to be the big players?
Swallow: With the Krenim — and with the Voyager stuff overall — we wanted to respect what Kirsten Beyer had done with the Voyager novels, which ends with the majority of the Voyager characters leaving the galaxy. We respect her choices, and we didn’t want to have to just suddenly pull them all back to the Alpha Quadrant after Kirsten has spent years and books setting up this story.
To pay respect to that, we didn’t want to mess with any of that whatsoever — and part of that storyline is very much intertwined with the storyline of the Krenim and what she did with them. We did look at the Krenim as possible villains, but we felt like Kirsten had done a lot of work with them as characters and we didn’t want to tread the same ground.
So, we started looking around at finding other possibilities. How are we going to play the villain out? Were we going to have like a focal character villain? Somebody like Q or Khan or the Borg Queen; somebody who would encapsulate the villain’s motives, who you can actually have a conversation with. But in the end, what we came back to was something about the Devidians, and the idea of them being this faceless, terrible threat.
We talked about how you can’t argue with a hurricane. You can’t reason with this elemental force. So the idea is that the Devidians are essentially a force of greed and corruption and consumption that you can’t argue with. You can only try to fight against them. That’s quite terrifying! It has quite a sort of big cosmic threat feel to it.
We decided we were going to go with them mostly because they don’t have any backstory. They haven’t been touched on before. We had a pretty clean slate to be able to build up more of their background. When we started looking into the nuances of the characters, if you watch “Time’s Arrow,” it’s three guys in a cave and Picard deals with it and it’s like, “Oh, well, that’s done and off we go.”
But we thought that can’t be all there are. There’s got to be more of them. Because we know they can travel throughout time and space, we started to wonder; what if they’re everywhere? What if these guys and in fact like termites in wood, they’re kind of infesting the background of the universe and they’ve been there all along?
That ties in nicely to this idea of this cosmic existential threat. Because part of the subtext of this story is we’re touching on deeper issues of kind of what it means to be old, what it means to face loss and death and all of these deep human issues that is Star Trek’s bread and butter.
Admiral William T. Riker, as seen in the “All Good Things” alternate future.
TREKCORE: The Devidians might be ‘faceless,’ but a much more familiar antagonist is Admiral Riker. What lead to putting him in that role — and pitting him against Picard?
SWALLOW: I pitched it to the other guys as let’s do what they did with Captain America: Civil War — but back to the original Marvel Comics idea of splitting superhero teams in half, and not along the divisions that you’d expect. I really liked that. I thought we’d never seen that in Star Trek.
We’ve never really seen our heroes facing off against each other, having something so fundamental that they take opposite sides on an argument. In the initial earlier sequences, we even talked about splitting more of the characters off and making it a much more defined, sort of one group against another group.
As the story evolved, we realized that it worked better if we brought that all into one character. Riker has his own story which is going to be played out towards the end. It plays out a little bit towards the end of Moments, and will be fully resolved in Oblivion’s Gate.
It was fun to just place Riker and Picard on opposite sides of the coin and give Riker the opportunity to go full Star Trek ‘bad-miral’ — it was about time!
It’s a trope, but it’s one we love.
Commander Troi and Captain Riker in the PICARD continuity.
TREKCORE: Your last book before Ashes was the Picard novel The Dark Veil, focused on Riker and Troi aboard the Titan. What was it like working with these characters back to back, while each existed in a separate continuity?
SWALLOW: The funny thing about The Dark Veil is that originally, the concept wasn’t anything to do with Riker and Troi — it was going to be the story of Seven of Nine’s time after Voyager leading up to her return in Star Trek: Picard.
I really liked the idea of that. We talked a lot about it, but in the end the producers on the show said they wanted to save that for potential use in the Picard television series. That was a great disappointment for me because it would been such a cool story to write, so I hope we do get to see it at some point.
We had some other ideas we talked about. One of them was the idea of Worf becoming captain of the Enterprise when Picard is promoted quite suddenly, which we hear about in Una McCormack’s The Last Best Hope. He’s given captaincy of the Enterprise in a way that he probably didn’t want because he’s going to feel like he didn’t earn it — it’s just given to him.
The other idea we talked about was to look at what Riker and Troi were up to, and to see their son Thaddeus Riker who is discussed a lot in “Nepenthe.” I have a lot of affinity for Riker and Troi characters, so I pitched just going do their story, and that’s how we got to writing The Dark Veil. I was putting that book together at the same time as we were developing the arching narrative for Coda.
A retired Riker and Troi in planet Nepenthe in 2399.
It was weird for me to write a book about the Titan that wasn’t a Star Trek: Titan novel — and while I’ve seen some comments calling it “A Titan novel with a Picard label on it,” it’s really not — it’s wholly a Star Trek: Picard story.
I did what I could to bring over characters from the existing novel universe; Christine Vale was always at the top of that list, because she’s one of my favorite creations from the books. We also brought across Ranul Keru as well, who is a personal favorite of Kirsten Beyer’s, and I also brought across Karen McCreedy, who is named after a good friend of mine who’s a fellow science fiction writer.
I also tried to tip my hat towards the literary incarnation of the Titan as well. There’s a scene in The Dark Veil where someone says, “Well we originally had a plan to send the Titan out on this mission, but we did a different thing instead,” which is my attempt to highlight the point where where the literary continuity went one way — and Star Trek: Picard went another way.
It was interesting to do that, and at the same time still be juggling everything with Coda and keeping it straight in your head. It’s two parallel lines of continuity. It’s weird having those two different streams remembering, I can’t certain characters in one version because we haven’t established if they exist in that timeline. Suddenly everything old is new again.
Stuff that we’ve done in the novel universe we can now tell in a different way — if we wanted to — in the new Picard continuity, or whatever we’re going call the new version of the novels. It was a very interesting challenge. I’ve never had any experience of anything like that.
TREKCORE: I asked Dayton about this — I’d love to hear what you’re hoping fans will react about the trilogy as a whole after it concludes.
SWALLOW: I’d like to think that there won’t be a dry eye in the house. I want them to be sad it’s gone — but be happy that they took the journey.
I’m sure they’re going to be angry with us. I’m sure there’ll be plenty of people who will be annoyed about what we’ve done, and that’s fine, and I’m quite happy to take it on the chin. At the end of the day, what we’re trying to do with these books is go out with a bang and just salute and pay respect to everything that’s gone before.
Some people have said to me, “Why didn’t you just have everybody like get into their ships and fly off into the sunset?” To me, I felt like that just didn’t feel true to Star Trek. I don’t see these characters ending their days sitting on a rocking chair on their porch somewhere watching the sunset.
I’ve never felt like Star Trek is that kind of world. To me it’s always a storyline; it’s always a setting where the characters are striving, they’re fighting against adversity. It’s like every step is pushing against the wind, pushing against whatever threats and dangers are out there to try and be better, to work together and do all the great stuff that you can when you follow that ethos of like infinite diversity and infinite combinations.
The idea of just “ending it quietly” never really entered my mind. I’m hoping that the readers will see where we were coming from and understand that it comes from a place of love and respect.
STAR TREK EXPLORER magazine will feature ‘Trek’ short fiction in each issue.
TREKCORE: Now that Coda is here, what’s next for James Swallow in the Star Trek world, or beyond?
SWALLOW: Well, I’ve just done a Star Trek short story for the Star Trek Explorer magazine, which is the new rebranding of Titan’s official Star Trek Magazine, which is great. It’s so cool to see that they’re doing loads of short fiction.
I love doing short fiction because it’s like exercising a different muscle. This is like 2,000 words long. It’s like telling a good joke. You’ve got to get in there and come up with a cool story or idea.
One thing I’ve been trying to do throughout my writing career is I want to write a story in every single iteration of the Star Trek franchise. One of the ones that I haven’t done is I’ve never told an Enterprise story before.
So for the first issue of Star Trek Explorer, there’s a short story I wrote called The Offer, which is a Q story that involves Jonathan Archer. It’s me just doing a little nod to Enterprise, so I had a lot of fun doing that. I’m hoping that I can do some more stories with them in the future because they’re such fun to get into.
Beyond the final frontier, I’m also writing a series of modern-day espionage thrillers. The sixth book in my Outlaw series is coming out this week. It’s really nice too that a lot of my Star Trek reader fans are crossing over to read my non-Trek stuff, so that’s really cool.
The other big project that’s come out this month as well is Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy video game, based on the comics and the Marvel movies. It was really fun to be involved in a cool franchise like that. The game just came out and it’s already getting really great reviews. That’s really rewarding to see that.
As more Star Trek storytelling, there’s nothing I can talk about at this stage, but I certainly hope this isn’t the end of my Trek odyssey! I love writing Star Trek fiction because for me, it’s like coming home every time I do it.
I’m definitely hoping I can come back and do more for the franchise.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
While the episode’s greater purpose is for the audience to get to know this new, holographic version of Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) — and to get more familiar with the USS Protostar itself — “Starstruck” also manages to fit in both a classic Star Trek science dilemma and a classic Star Trek moral dilemma.
If this is representative of what we can expect from the majority of Prodigy episodes, this show will be pure Trek goodness, in addition to being an outstanding children’s program.
Janeway isn’t sure what to make of these new crewmembers. (Paramount+)
The episode picks up just a moment after “Lost and Found” ended, as our young crew finds themselves mystified by the suddenly-appearing Starfleet representative. Janeway explains to the confused group that she is a training advisor, aboard ship to do nothing more than offer advice and maintain the ship’s lower level functions — a nice clarification of her role, proactively explaining how these kids manage to keep a starship running.
With the graceful mannerisms of her human counterpart, Janeway introduces them to the concept of the United Federation of Planets, and the role of Starfleet. Hearing her put into words what that means was quite touching to me, and quite awe-inspiring to the Protostar crew (“Equality? That sounds nice!”).
Hearing Janeway speak lines from the famous captain’s oath affected me more than I thought it would have. Long overdue.
Dal plans to get as far away from Federation space as he can. (Paramount+)
Dal (Brett Gray) is skeptical of the Federation, calling it “just another name for someone else in charge,” and makes the executive decision to send the ship in the exact opposite direction. He assumes Janeway is lying (“If it sounds to good to be true, it is!”), and even when things go bad later in the episode, Dal’s desire for the group to make it on their own keeps him from taking Janeway’s advice.
All of Dal’s reactions here remind us that these aren’t just happy-go-lucky children on a joy ride — they are first and foremost survivors of terrible abuse. It makes sense that Dal would be so weary of authority that he would run across the galaxy to stay away from even an implication of another one. He’s survived on this own for this long, so asking for help —being able to trust even a friendly neighborhood training hologram — is something he has to learn.
This all feels really natural to his character and adds a lot of weight to the journey we are on with all these characters.
Rok-Tahk has a journey of self-discovery ahead of her, it seems. (Paramount+)
This thread of learning and unlearning things after trauma is continued in the most poignant scene in the episode, as Jankom Pog (Jason Mantzoukas) and Rok-Tahk (Rylee Alazraqui) discover one of the coolest pieces of Trek tech: the food replicator!
Jankom orders what we can only assume is a Tellarite delicacy, as close to pig slop as you might imagine — but Rok-Tahk faces quite a struggle when it comes time to choose her meal, ultimately resigning herself to the same Nutri-Goop served to prisoners back on Tars Lamora. When she admits to Janeway that the goop is the only thing she’s ever eaten, it’s a gut-wrenching moment that serves to to show us just how far these kids will really have to go to process and recover from their tragic pasts.
Framing this idea through the replicators was so smart, as it was done in a way younger viewers of the show can grasp — my kids really understood the contrast between Rok-Tahk’s experience, and the easy choices they’d make in the mess hall (ice cream and Lucky Charms cereal, naturally).
A look at some of the USS Protostar’s physical layout. (Paramount+)
Branching out from the mess hall, we also got to see much more of the Protostar interior this week — including the crew bunks, the brig, main engineering, and the captain’s quarters (which of course Dal claims for himself).
My kids were absolutely riveted! Introducing all of these new spaces through a ‘tour’ of the ship was a really good way to sell them on how cool the Protostar is, and they were really interested in seeing all the different-purposed areas. The look and feel of the Protostar is big enough to be impressive, but not so big that it’s overwhelming.
Engineering, especially, was great to see, and the scene there did a nice job of setting up the mystery of the still-unknown prototype engine for another day. We did learn, though, the Protostar has not just a standard impulse drive, but also two warp cores — and I am very invested in finding out what else this ship has under the hood.
“What a rare and exciting way to meet our doom!” (Paramount+)
After the tour we are introduced to another classic part of life on a Federation starship: a red alert! Here the episode veers into a scientific problem that felt straight out of a live-action episode: Dal’s erratic course has taken the ship right into the gravity well of a dying star.
The animation of the stellar phenomenon is exquisite and the danger is palpable, and when Dal finally gives in and admit he needs Janeway’s help, she obliges… but not until after she takes a swig of holo-coffee. She guides them from the sidelines, but lets them work out and implement the solution themselves — the solution of not being able to run away from some problems, but rather having to face them head on, doubled as a lovely lesson for Dal.
This episode is packed, and while all this is happening, we also have a really interesting and thought-provoking moment happening below decks.
“Why didn’t you stop them?” (Paramount+)
During the confusion, Gwyn (Ella Purnell) escapes from the brig where she’s still being held captive, and while looking for a way off the ship, finds the Protostar’s shuttlebay, which contains a fascinating vehicle replicator—a hilarious nod to Voyager’s never ending supply of shuttles.
And while this gigantic 3D printer is working it’s magic, Gwyn and Rok have a really well-choreographed fight in and around the emerging shuttle that would feel right at home in any big-budget live-action movie, as Rok must battle Gwyn as the shuttlecraft is being constructed around her.
As Rok tries to subdue Gwyn, they argue about how she never helped the prisoners during their time on Tars Lamora, while Gwyn maintains that was only doing what the Diviner commanded.
“You never helped us… you’re a bad lady!” (Paramount+)
This question of personal responsibility, of what it means and who is considered to be a collaborator or complicit, is a thread that is weaved throughout Star Trek, explored especially through the entire run of Deep Space Nine. Putting this complex topic against the backdrop of a fight scene was an excellent choice, making it seem more off-handed than a classic ‘debate’ with a right or wrong answer.
In fact, it wasn’t a debate; the episode didn’t answer the question at all, just putting it out there — in a very kid-friendly way — for both the audience to think about and for the characters to think about in their relationships to each other and introspectively.
As the episode ends, we see the Diviner fly off from the Tars Lamora base in a ship reminiscent of the Narada, on his way to chase after both Gwyn and the Protostar itself. So while the show might be episodic, the Prodigy writing team is just getting started with the ongoing threat from the Diviner’s obsession — and now we know why chimerium is so valuable: it’s used in cloaking technology, as the villain hides his asteroid base once off the surface.
“Take me to that ship!” (Paramount+)
OBSERVATION LOUNGE
After debuting at the end of “Lost and Found,” the Prodigy title sequence moves to its standard episode-opening placement this week.
Along with Enterprise Season 4’s “Observer Effect,” this episode is one of the very rare Star Trek entries with zero credited guest stars.
Janeway describes her role as an assistant to the Protostar crew while they “journey back to Federation space,” which seems to indicate the ship was always intended to end up a distance away from the Alpha Quadrant.
Below the Federation logo are the emblems of United Earth, Vulcan, Tellar, and Andoria. (Paramount+)
Janeway’s introduction to the Federation includes sketches of typical human, Andorian, Vulcan, and Tellarite citizens, along with their planetary logos that we’ve seen across the franchise.
The kids also get a passing glance at many familiar starships, from the Enterprise NX-01 to the USS Defiant to a Crossfield-class starship that, while its registry number is difficult to read, is likely meant to be the USS Discovery. (While the Discovery’s time travel journey and spore drive were classified, the ship’s general existence was not.)
The holographic map of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants gives sector names to the various segments of Federation space, such as “Terran,” “Cabral,” “Zalkon,” “Melona,” “Mutara,” “Maxia,” and more — along with identifying Klingon and Romulan territories with their familiar logos.
A delightful bowl of Nutri-Goop. (Paramount+)
Gwyn is resistant to telepathy, a trait which seems to be inherent to the Vau N’Akat species.
The Diviner’s ship is called the REV-12.
While Rok-Tahk sticks to her Nutri-Goop, Jankom Pog orders “blood truffle biscuits, sweet radish pie, and sour gravy.”
Utensils generated by the Protostar replicators include a tiny Starfleet delta (naturally).
Rok-Tahk’s cute “I’d like to boldly go!” is tailor-made for a Prodigy commercial.
“Equality? That sounds nice.” (Paramount+)
While “Lost and Found” was a wonderful introduction to the Star Trek: Prodigy premise and characters, my kids and I preferred “Starstruck” as the new adventure really found its start aboard the Protostar.
They loved getting the tour of the ship, which reminded me that all of these familiar Trek settings are brand new to them! This really is a whole new adventure, and in this episode Prodigy has set them up for the unique way Star Trek manages to weave science, action, and ethical concepts together.
My guess is that this episode is more indicative of the show as a whole, and if this is what we can expect week to week, I think we’ll all be in for quite a ride.
Star Trek: Prodigy returns next week on Paramount+ in the United States, Australia, Latin America, and the Nordics, as well as on CTV Sci Fi Channel in Canada.
But Fan Fiction isn’t a book that could exist without Star Trek either, and explores the actor’s complicated relationship between stardom and fandom through a self-deprecating and oftentimes hilarious fictionalized telling of some of Spiner’s android days working on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
For a number of years, Spiner has clearly been fascinated with the impact of stardom on his life in his own creative works. His web series Fresh Hell covered themes of fame, loss of fame, and how uncomfortably awkward it can be to be loved by many.
Fan Fiction explores the same themes through a different medium, approaching the topic not by looking at a version of Brent Spiner at a decade past the height of his fame, but by way of a fictionalized version of the actor right in the middle of the most important chapter of his career.
Set around the 1991, right in the middle of his run on The Next Generation, the book is a first-person-perspective noir dark comedy thriller in which Brent Spiner discovers he has a stalker — one who sends the actor death threats signed by Data’s android daughter Lal. Hijinks ensue as Spiner tries to navigate his life, meet the acting demands of his Trek career, and work with law enforcement to uncover Spiner’s stalker before they can make good on their threats.
Fan Fiction stresses that it is exactly that — fiction. And while the specific details of the story are very much fictional, part of what makes the book work so well is that Spiner clearly does not have to reach too far to describe some of his written alter ego’s emotions about the the uncomfortable relationship any star has with their fans.
Has Brent Spiner ever actually been stalked by a person masquerading as his character’s fictional dead daughter? One would hope not — but it’s not hard to imagine that after encountering so many devoted fans over the last thirty-plus years, Spiner has likely had more than a few unpleasant experiences along the way.
Spiner on the Paramount lot during production on ‘The Next Generation.’
The emotional reaction to the situation Spiner crafts in the book feels very real, even if the specific events don’t necessarily line up with reality — and while told with lots of humor, there is a serious point that underlines this narrative: actors are people. We may demand time and attention from them that we are not entitled to, and it is important that those boundaries be maintained.
(It’s also important to note that that despite the book’s serious situation, none of the tale’s humorous moments denigrate Star Trek fans as a whole; the author writes positively and with appreciation for the those who genuinely love the show — and who maintain appropriate boundaries — while savaging those who do not.)
Fictional Spiner is also definitely not the hero of the story. Drawing from a form of comedy that Spiner clearly relishes in — making the audience as uncomfortable in their laughter as possible, Larry David-style — the fictional Spiner is a deeply wounded, anxious, and awkward man, who never seems to have it quite figured out.
He bumbles through the story as a guy who is at the mercy of the whims of those around him rather than in control of his own destiny, and it works very well – author Spiner makes fictional Spiner the butt of most of the jokes in the book, and they are very funny.
Are you going to learn anything about the production of Star Trek? Not really. This is a fictional narrative, where real life events are incorporated only insofar as they serve the tale. A visit to the set by Ronald Reagan and the death of Gene Roddenberry make it into the story, but though these events happened six months apart in reality, they are presented here as happening in a very short period of time.
But you shouldn’t be approaching Fan Fiction wanting that. This is a funny book, but it’s made up — it’s not a memoir, as much as the title might wink at being so.
Spiner in rehearsal with Jonathan Frakes and Patrick Stewart.
While the book isn’t about Trek, there is still a lot that franchise fans are going to enjoy, as Spiner brings in his own fictionalized take on his Next Generation castmastes, too, with humorous versions of Jonathan Frakes and LeVar Burton as the standout characters.
And if you’re an audiobook fan, Spiner enlisted the participation of his TNG pals to voice their character’s dialogue from the book, and even a chapter in which Spiner visits a Star Trek convention that feels very familiar to anyone with a similar experience!
Overall, I found Fan Fiction: A Mem-oir Inspired by True Events to be a funny read that will make you wonder if celebrity life is all its cracked up to be, in a darkly humorous style that’s reflective of a lot of Brent Spiner’s work — and his convention appearances — since The Next Generation.
You’ll laugh, you’ll feel awkward, and you might even feel a little disturbed… which, I think, is exactly what Brent Spiner wants you to feel.
Fan Fiction: A Mem-oir Inspired by True Events is in stores now.
First announced back on Star Trek Day in September, the new Star Trek: Lower Decks Official Starships Collection has just made its first first contact!
Launching officially in JANUARY and available for preorders for the first time today, the first ship in the larger XL-size model collection is the hero starship of Lower Decks, the California-class USS Cerritos (NCC-75567).
Set to measure in at a length of nearly 10 inches (250mm), the XL-sized Cerritos kicks off a new line of starship models from Eaglemoss/Hero Collector based upon the fan-favorite animated series which ended its second season in October.
Unlike the Star Trek Universe Official Starships Collection, which includes Discovery, Picard, the legacy Trek shows, and Strange New Worlds (once that show launches), the Lower Decks ships will be operating under its own standalone model ship series.
STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS
THE OFFICIAL STARSHIPS COLLECTION
* * *
SPECIAL #1: USS CERRITOS (NCC-75567) — A California-class vessel operated by Starfleet, the USS Cerritos specialized in second contact missions, as indicated by its yellow markings. Its crew were charged with boldly going where others had gone before – following up on all the exciting first contact missions performed by other, more important ships.
Battered by meteors, black holes, giant ice formations, space pirates and parasitic grubs, the Cerritos was helmed by Captain Carol Freeman. An upstanding officer and an old friend of William Riker, Freeman took her duties as seriously as possible – often more than was healthy – in sharp contrast to her daughter, Ensign Beckett Mariner.
The Cerritos was named for the city of Cerritos, in California – a reference to its ship class. Its shuttlebay also carried a complement of Type 6A shuttlecraft, similarly named after Californian national parks – such as Yosemite, Redwood, and Death Valley.
Captain Riker’s Luna-class USS Titan has already been announced as the second entry in the Lower Decks Official Starship Collection — and it’s reasonable to assume that we’ll see ships like the Parliament-class USS Vancouver, the angular Division 14 starship USS Osler,the Pakled Clumpship Pakled, the Vulcan starship Sh’vhal, the Obena-class USS Archimedes, and many more designs from the popular show as the collection expands.
We’ll learn more about the soon-to-grow Star Trek: Lower Decks Official Starships Collection in the coming months — but in the meantime, if you’d like to dock the Cerritos at your own spaceport, the ship is available for preorder now in Hero Collector’s USA webshop for $74.95, and in their UK webshop for £59.99.
In addition, stick around to listen to Carlos’s theory about whether other characters from Star Trek: Voyager will show up in Star Trek: Prodigy — in addition to those that have already been announced — and Alex trying to read between the lines of cryptic statements from the head of Paramount Pictures on the future of Star Trek movies.
WeeklyTrek is available to subscribe and download each week on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, YouTube, and Spotify— and we’ll be sharing the details of each new episode right here on TrekCore each week if you’re simply just looking to listen in from the web.
Do you have a wish or theory you’d like to share on the show? Tweet to Alex at @WeeklyTrek, or email us with your thoughts about wishes, theories, or anything else about the latest in Star Trek news!
Star Trek: Coda, the three-part conclusion to the Star Trek literary continuity that has captured the imagination of readers for the last two decades, continues this month with its second installment, James Swallow’s The Ashes of Tomorrow.
Moments Asunder established the threat facing the galaxy: the Devidians, an under-explored temporal race who feed on the energy of dying sentient beings and appeared the “Time’s Arrow” Next Generation two-parter, have found a way to feed on the neural energy of entire timelines, collapsing them as they consume.
The Ashes of Tomorrow continues to build on that threat, as Picard and crew must convince Starfleet and the Federation that the Devidian threat must be dealt with… or they run the risk of watching their timeline be demolished.
The Devidians were a really interesting choice of villain for the trilogy as a whole, and quite unexpected! But that is part of what makes them scary — unlike, say, the Borg — we don’t have too much experience with this race. We don’t know them any better than the characters in the book do, and as they learn about how the Devidians are feeding on entire timelines we as the readers are just as shocked as the characters.
It’s a really effective choice, as the enemy remains hidden and removed, increasing the sense of foreboding about what the future might hold.
The Ashes of Tomorrow also significantly expands (and then reduces) the cast of characters from across the Star Trek literary continuity who are engaged in the story. For this book, many more characters from Deep Space Nine, including Captain Benjamin Sisko, become key players as the Devidian threat comes to Bajor. The scope of the book is significantly increased from Moments Asunder giving us more glimpses at different characters and how they are dealing with the threat before them.
In Moments Asunder, the Enterprise and Aventine crews felt somewhat isolated in dealing with the threat of the Devidians. But The Ashes of Tomorrow has more of an Avengers vibe to it, with a number of important characters from the books and shows interacting in fun ways.
We get a rare Picard / Sisko team up, for example, and a seminal Star Trek character has a surprising and unexpected role to play that was very welcome in the way it brought together the different generations of Star Trek under one roof.
But while there is joy about all the series crossovers and character team ups in The Ashes of Tomorrow the book also has a significantly higher body count than Moments Asunder. If you were displeased at some of the major character deaths in the first book, you’ll be even more displeased by the end of this book, as there are some major and shocking character deaths that are movingly told and significant to the story.
And while a book like this does not have time to completely wrap up dangling storylines from previous novels — it has its own story to tell, after all — there are some notable storylines that draw themselves to a natural conclusion here and will hopefully provide some closure for book fans.
Though The Ashes of Tomorrow is the middle book in the trilogy, it still has a defined beginning, middle and end that worked for the story. And while it does not entirely signpost the way to the trilogy’s conclusion, there are hints about where things might be headed in Oblivion’s Gate, the trilogy’s final installment.
This book also includes several important and some fun crossovers with ideas from the new canon Star Trek installments, includingconnections to both Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks which appear to begin moving pieces into position to close this story down.
To say much more would be to spoil a story that really deserves going in as fresh as possible; check out my forthcoming review with author James Swallow where we go into more details on the events of this novel. But The Ashes of Tomorrow builds on the Star Trek: Coda tale to set up a huge finale from David Mack next month.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited for an upcoming Star Trek novel, and it might be some time before another installment tops this level of anticipation — the Star Trek literary continuity ride is almost over, and what’s a journey it’s been.
Star Trek: Prodigy only just took its first flight this morning, but it’s already setting a course to what may be a potential big-screen destination — if the new animated show finds success in the way Alex Kurtzman and Paramount Pictures hope.
Alex Kurtzman: “[CBS Studios president David Stapf] and I and I went to see Brian Robbins and [Nickelodeon animation head] Ramsey Naito when the company was still bifurcated. It was an instant connection. We felt comfortable given their vast knowledge of the children’s landscape but also the infrastructure that they have in Nickelodeon was so specific and we knew we needed that. Our great hope was that there would be a merger down the line and it would make things easier for everybody.
What told Brian and Ramsey that we felt that it was important to make it a cinematic experience to make it special for kids. There was no hesitation on their part about that. The lack of a merger didn’t stop Brian from saying yes in that moment.
We felt that the key was to invest both in children and their parents in these characters and to take the time at a deeper level to get to know them, get to love them. The creators, Dan and Kevin Hageman, had this brilliant concept from the start, which was the idea that these children don’t understand each other for the first part of it.
It wasn’t until they’re around a universal translator that they suddenly realize that all their preconceived notions about who they were, were all wrong. That is a core message of ‘Star Trek. I don’t think’ the impact of that revelation would have worked if we hadn’t been able to take the time to set those characters up that way.”
The franchise foreman also hinted that while Prodigy may be the first Star Trek series specifically aimed towards kids, it’s not the only idea for a younger-skewing project:
Kurtzman: “I won’t spoil them, but we’ve talked about a bunch [of ideas]. If ‘Prodigy’ is a success and works for everybody, then hopefully there will be lots of conversations about how to build it out from there, because it’s just going to make sense for the company.”
The conversation shifted towards the Prodigy’s own future as Robbins and Kurtzman shared some of their own hopes that the adventures of the USS Protostar crew may one day warp into movie theaters — building on the cinematic look of the animated series.
Brian Robbins (CEO, Paramount Pictures): “The data [on measuring ‘Prodigy’ as a success] is pretty obvious. We’re going to be patient because we think the show is fantastic and creatively just exceeds all expectations. I have no doubt that we’ll be doing more. Alex and I have talked about what the theatrical film version of this show is and the likes of that. We’re really excited. Ramsey and our Nick team could not be more thrilled to explore more.”
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: So a ‘Prodigy’ animated kids movie?
Robbins: “I wouldn’t say kids. My bet would be that that’s a four-quadrant family movie.”
THR: For an animated ‘Star Trek’ film?
Kurtzman: “Potentially, yes. ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ is still one of the best movies over the past decade, animated or not. It’s just an unbelievable piece of artistry. I went with my whole family and another family and we all sat there with our jaws on the floor.
Ultimately, ‘Star Trek’ is about family, it’s about these giant universal themes. Getting to tell a story like that, especially given the level of cinema we’ve already brought to the television show is a wonderful opportunity. It would thrill me to do that.”
THR: Brian, part of your plans for Paramount+ is building out a movie slate that’s exclusive for the streamer and now you’re also running the Paramount film studio. Would a hypothetical ‘Star Trek’ animated film be a theatrical release or a Paramount+ debut?
Robbins: “To be honest, we’ve talked about it as a theatrical movie. I can’t lie, when I sat there at [New York] Comic-Con, I wished it was.”
Expanding the discussion past Star Trek: Prodigy, Robbins also spoke briefly about the state of Star Trek as a feature film property — one that’s had many false starts in the five years since Star Trek Beyond left theaters.
If the two halves of the Star Trek franchise are going to find a way to come together, Robbins will be right in the middle — and it’s clear there are still many questions to be answered on that front — as he deftly avoided giving any specifics on the two-front state the Trek world.
THR: What are you looking at in terms of growth potential and where this franchise goes next?
Robbins: “Where we go with the franchise next theatrically is crucial to the health of the overall franchise. There’s no doubt that big theatrical movies are the beacon that ignite franchises. We’re in it and I don’t really have anything to say because I’m waiting for the development to be delivered. I can’t wait to get going on it, but we’re not there yet but we need to get there soon.”
THR: Are you speaking specifically about the animated feature?
Robbins: “I’m talking about what could be the next live-action movie.”
THR: Is that something that would involve Alex or is that a J.J. Abrams thing?
Robbins: “We don’t know enough yet. We’re working on several fronts and obviously Alex is the key for the franchise [on Paramount+]. J.J. has been the keeper of the franchise on the film side. We hope that as a company that we do what’s right for the franchise altogether.”
THR: Are you getting scripts for a live-action feature from both camps?
Robbins: “There’s a lot going on and I’m just going to leave it at that.”
THR: How does the data you have from Paramount+ impact what you want to do next with ‘Trek?’
Robbins: “The idea is what do we do next for the franchise that’s going to work for the next five and 10 years, not just one movie at a time like Alex has talked about. That’s what we really have to figure out.”
Kurtzman: “That’s the ball game. It’s not just about the one thing that comes next. It’s about laying out a strategy for the next decade.”
THR: How far along are in planning are you?
Robbins: “Well, I’ve been in a job for seven minutes, so not that far (laughs).”
While it’s clearly too early to be discussing Prodigy as a theatrical certainty, it’s quite fascinating to hear these two speak so openly about their desire to see the show make the leap to the big screen — though as the last several years have proven, it’s always better to not get too excited about Star Trek movie news until some concrete movement takes place.
What are your thoughts on this interview, and the idea of an animated family Star Trek movie? Let us know in the comments below!
Star Trek: Prodigy has set itself an ambitious task: be a kids show, but one that can also appeal to just about everyone else, regardless of age or familiarity with the Star Trek universe.
With “Lost and Found,” its premiere episode, the Prodigy creative team has managed to strike a nice balance between this variety of interests. There is enough intrigue to keep adults entertained while also just the right amount of fun to keep children engaged. I watched with my three children (ages 7, 9, and 11), and while some parts moved a little slow for them — especially for my 7 year old — by the time the USS Protostar made its triumphant first flight, all four of us were ready for the adventure to continue.
‘Star Trek’ sets course for a new adventure with this new motley crew. (Paramount+)
Nickelodeon’s animation is stunningly beautiful, to the point that some scenes almost feel like the artists are showing off. Our young heroes’ escape from the Tars Lamora prison colony introduces us to Prodigy’s visual language; it’s an expansive, intricately-detailed world filled with both natural and mechanical wonders.
Everything is meticulously rendered, from the smallest speck of chipped paint on mining equipment, all the way to the blanket of stars in the vastness of space.
Tars Lamora is the asteroid domain of The Diviner (John Noble), a ruthless villain who uses prisoners of all species — and all ages — to mine for a valuable crystalline substance known as chimerium that has an inner glow similar to dilithium crystals.
“Get me my ship!” (Paramount+)
Managed by shifty robotic henchman Drednok (Jimmi Simpson), the mining operation’s real goal is to find the USS Protostar, a Federation starship that somehow found its way deep into the interior of the asteroid.
We don’t know yet why The Diviner is so desperate to find it, but from his concern about the Federation, it’s clear he knows where the starship comes from — and that he wants to keep knowledge of the Federation away from his progeny, the only other remaining member of the Vau N’ Akat species.
The Diviner’s abusive sheltering extends to the entire colony, as all translation devices are banned from the facility — adding a terrifyingly lonely touch to life on the planetoid, since all of the different prisoners (referred to as “the unwanted”) are prevented from understanding each other.
“…you always wanted to see the stars.” (Paramount+)
It’s a beautiful choice, then, to have Gwyn (Ella Purnell) serve as the living translator for visitors to Tars Lemora — showing offer her skills when a visiting Kazon arrives at the colony, in perhaps the first time the Kazon language has been heard aloud.
She speaks of language as “a window into a new culture,” and while she ostensibly works for her father, Gwyn tries to act as a barrier to much of the violence and mistreatment of the prisoners that Dreadnok and The Diviner would see come to them. (The very first thing we see her do is show compassion for a young Caitian brought to the colony by a Kazon, even purring the native language spoken by the cat-like race.)
Her internal conflicts are evident. Her loyalty is to her father, but the fear which incentivizes this loyalty is shown when they speak to each other. She literally bows down to him, and certainly feels burdened with expectations of being the last of their race.
The first of a few new Prodigy alien races, the unique Vau N’ Akat character design quite interesting as both Gwyn and the Diviner have ridges on their faces that, along with their eyes, glow as they interact — connecting the elegant and austere Gwyn with her aged father in a very visceral way.
When she goes into combat later in the episode, we also learn that the metallic design worn on her upper arm is actually reminiscent of the “programmable matter” introduced last season on Star Trek: Discovery. Disguising her bladed weapon as jewelry is an excellent choice for this character, showing us immediately that anyone who underestimates her is making a formidable mistake.
“I saw my chance, so I took it.” (Paramount+)
One of the prisoners Gwyn begrudgingly tries to protect is the purple-hued main protagonist of the series, Dal R’EL (Brett Gray), who when we first meet him isn’t bogged down by the hopelessness of his situation — but already showing Starfleet-level optimism about escaping from Tars Lemora, and I found myself rooting for him right from the start.
He also maintains a unique sense of humor, as Brett Gray’s easygoing delivery gives Dal a true relatability — he’s confident, but not cocky; funny but not farcical; clever, but not a genius. He’s a natural leader, albeit a bit rough around the edges, but with so many of the raw qualities our most beloved Starfleet captains possess.
I suspect that the Protostar’s training hologram will see that potential in him as well, and I look forward to seeing what kind of relationship the pair forms as the series moves forward.
“I’m flattered you think I know what I’m doing.” (Paramount+)
Another relationship I’m interested in seeing more of is that between Dal and Zero (Angus Imrie), who already have shades of the classic Star Trek friendship pairing between a headstrong character and a more logical partner — like the genuinely funny moments when Zero calls out Dal for lying, and Dal making funny faces to catch Zero’s attention.
Zero is a Medusan: a genderless, non-corporeal telepathic race introduced all the way back in “Is There in Truth No Beauty?” Housed inside a mechanical encounter suit of their own design, Zero must stay out of sight — as any humanoid who catches a glimpse of a Medusan’s natural form is driven mad (as we see in a disturbing flashback midway through the premiere).
Prodigy didn’t shy away from showing just how terrible it is to see a Medusan up close, as it added weight to Zero’s heroics, managing away to build a body (without using hands!), and finding a way to escape from Dreadnok and the Diviner’s clutches.
I love Zero’s suit, which feels vaguely steampunk, and it reminds me of an old-fashioned diving helmet. The suit has mismatched, detachable limbs, and we see them both walking and floating throughout the episode.
My 9 year old asked me if Zero was a ghost, and I could almost see the gears turning in his mind as he tried to ration out what it would mean to be a non-corporeal being. I love that the creators are mining Star Trek lore for just these kind of nuggets that can really appeal to the imagination of kids.
“He’s probably too smart for translators.” (Paramount+)
While the ghostly Zero is delightful thought experiment, it was Murf (Dee Bradley Baker) that was the biggest hit in my house as the happy, iridescent blob elicited squeals of delight from my kids when he made his first appearance on the ship.
His gelatinous movements are rendered beautifully in CG, with the real-world “goo” physics obviously being taken into account. While we don’t know what he is made of, the colors and dotting give him the appearance of being born from a nebula, which makes him a perfect “star stuff” mascot for the Protostar and its crew.
Even though the group (or the viewers) can’t understand him, Murf’s moment of landing in just the right spot at the right time to activate the phasers gives me the impression that there is more than meets the eye to this adorable glob.
“I’m big — not dumb.” (Paramount+)
The biggest surprise comes from the hulking “rock monster” Rok-Tahk (Rylee Alarzaqui), whose deep growls and roars magically turn into a delightful young voice once the Protostar translators kick in.
Once we finally get to hear the sweet tones of the eight-year-old voice actress, the incongruity between her looks and Rok-Tahk’s “real” voice really surprised my kids and immediately endeared the character to them.
Everything about the big red Brikar is scene-stealing, from her enormous size to the icy-blue eyes that pop against the reddish tones of her pebbled skin — she is uniquely lovely.
“He’s Tellarite — that’s what they do.” (Paramount+)
The last member of Prodigy’s alien crew is the contrarian engineer Jankom Pog (Jason Mantzoukas), the rascally Tellarate, who was also a hit with the youngsters in my house. They found the gimmick of him always taking the opposing viewpoint hilarious, and while I’m sure it’s a characteristic that will come in handy in the future — perhaps when our crew needs to brainstorm for an idea to save the day.
I’m also interested to learn more about him, his backstory, and if he’ll continue to keep referring to himself in the third person!
In a metaphor for his fungibility, Pog also has an extremely cool gadget arm that we see transform into various tools depending on his engineering needs — a multi-tool that’s surely the envy of any Starfleet technician — and he seems perfectly at home repairing both Class-D loaders and the USS Protostar.
“A reason for hope.” (Paramount+)
As for that mysterious ship, the USS Protostar (NX-76884) is sleek and sparse, limited to only a few decks and filled with technical wonders that our young adventurers have never seen — from the food replicators, surprising shuttlebay systems, and the visually-impressive LCARS displays seen around the ship. (Get ready to screencap, Trek tech fans!)
Building on the “window” viewscreen that’s been part of Trek starships over the last decade-plus, the Protostar has an expansive wraparound canopy that truly hammers home the awe-inspiring vastness of space for our young crew, who were trapped for so long in their dark little corner of the universe.
Our primary vantage point on the bridge is forward-facing, allowing us to experience the beauty of space along with our heroes — but it also mimics the idea of pupils in a classroom, facing what is ostensibly the galaxy’s coolest chalkboard…
“Did someone ask for help?” (Paramount+)
…and it’s here in this space-worthy “classroom” that we finally get to meet the Protostar’s resident educator: a holographic version of Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew).
We only spend a moment with “Hologram Janeway,” as she introduces herself in the final moment of the premiere, and I think that was an excellent choice. Saving the returning franchise star for next week — where she certainly gets her time in the spotlight! — really allowed these new characters time to own their introductions, setting a nice stage for the story to come.
OBSERVATION LOUNGE
Tars Lemora is located in the Delta Quadrant — somewhere along the USS Voyager’s path home — as The Diviner is well aware of the Federation, and Gwyn references their location “this side of the Delta.”
Gwyn is a master of languages, speaking Caitian, Kazon, and “Standard” — or English — among others. Her holographic language database also features several Klingon glyphs.
Prodigy follows both the original Animated Series and Star Trek: Lower Decks in featuring the feline Caitianrace; the child (or kitten?) delivered to Tars Lemora is one of the few Caitian youths we’ve seen.
Gwyn and the young Caitian, surrounded by Klingon-language holograms. (Paramount+)
The trader who delivers the Caitian child is the first Kazon seen in over twenty years (and the first we’ve heard speak the native Kazon language); the last time the less-than-successful Voyager species appeared was in 2001’s “Shattered.”
A member of Morn’s species, this time a poor Lurianis the victim of Medusan exposure, later put to work on the airless surface of the asteroid. Following Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Lurians have since been seen in Discovery and Lower Decks as well.
A Lurian is exposed to Zero’s true Medusan form. (Paramount+)
As Rok-Tahk activates the Protostar’s system, the musical score is quite reminiscent of the Star Trek: Voyager opening theme — and when Hologram Janeway appears, a pair of loud beats from a tympany drum can be heard… a primary instrument in the Voyager theme.
Dal doesn’t know anything about his own species, but even without a universal translator, he seems to know that Tellarites love to argue, and that Medusans are telepaths.
Among the Protostar’s many systems are a few clues to the mysterious “third nacelle” engine that appears to kick the ship into super-high speeds (as seen in the opening credits sequence), as a panel on the bridge contains a “Trans Warp” control — and a few graphics at the October 28 series premiere event in Los Angeles seem to indicate a “Proto Core” engine powers “Proto Warp” speeds.
A clue to the Protostar’s hidden technology? (Paramount+)
This display at the #StarTrekProdigy premiere event actually may give us the first clue about the USS Protostar's third engine: something called the "Proto Engine" that's powered by a "Proto Core"#StarTrekpic.twitter.com/cljSB5HCFe
While “Lost and Found” absolutely needed the setup on Tars Lemora to launch the series, by far my children were most invested in the tale when our new young friends finally boarded the Protostar, and were enthralled by the time they began their daring escape with high-flying starship action.
While the flight of the Protostar held a perfect mix of danger and action, it wasn’t just the “pew-pew-pew button” that got them invested — every character had a chance to contribute to the escape, with just the right amount of levity in the mix.
These scenes are what cemented the Star Trek: Prodigy premise in my children’s minds as something they would like to see more of, and after the last two years have forced us all to experience some extreme family togetherness, they’re primed to immerse themselves in such a kid-powered adventure into the unknown.
All of us could use a little bit of Federation ideals right about now, too, and I can’t wait to see where this journey takes them — and where the Protostar crew goes, too.
Set a course to…. somewhere! (Paramount+)
Star Trek: Prodigy returns next week with “Starstruck” on Paramount+ in the United States, Australia, Latin America, and the Nordics, as well as on CTV Sci Fi Channel in Canada.
The upcoming Star Trek documentary series The Center Seat — 55 Years of Star Trek finally has a premiere date, and it’s right around the corner!
First announced back in March, the ten-part series is set to debut Friday, November 5 on The History Channel with a weekly run of four episodes — after which the remaining six chapters in The Center Seat series will follow on The History Channel’s subscription streaming service History Vault.
Each of the ten episodes centers around a chapter in the Star Trek franchise, from the Original Series and Animated Series, the classic Trek films, and the Berman era of Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise shows and Next Gen films.
Here’s the formal announcement about the series’ debut:
THE HISTORY® CHANNEL TO CELEBRATE STAR TREK’S 55TH ANNIVERSARY WITH TEN-PART DOCUSERIES
‘THE CENTER SEAT: 55 YEARS OF STAR TREK’ PREMIERING FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5 AT 10PM ET/PT
Six Additional Episodes Also Available on Network’s Subscription Video Service ‘HISTORY Vault®’
NEW YORK, NY – October 25, 2021 – The HISTORY® Channel is celebrating the 55th anniversary of the iconic and popular “Star Trek” franchise with the Brian Volk-Weiss directed ten-part docuseries from The Nacelle Company “The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek.”
Narrated and executive produced by Gates McFadden (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”, “InvestiGates: Who Do You Think You Are?”), the docuseries shares rare, fascinating details of how “Star Trek” began, where it’s been, and how it’s boldly going where no television series has gone before! The first four episodes will premiere on the HISTORY® Channel each week beginning on Friday, November 5 at 10pm ET/PT — with six additional episodes also available on “HISTORY Vault®,” the network’s subscription video service.
Each episode focuses on a different chapter in the sci-fi drama’s groundbreaking history chronicling its inception at Lucille Ball’s legendary production company Desilu to more recent film, television adaptations and projects like The Animated Series and Phase II. The definitive in-depth journey honors the creative pioneers in sci-fi excellency and shares the impactful, sometimes risky, decisions behind pivotal moments in television history and how they ultimately made it to the small screen.
In the Fall of 1964, the pilot for what would become “Star Trek” was commissioned. From the start, “The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek” unveils lesser-known stories about the franchise from the importance of addressing timely topics, the creation of the character Spock, the unrelenting fans that kept the show on air and the reruns that gave it new life. These behind-the scenes stories among thousands of hours of show footage will be coupled with interviews from the cast, crew and experts who worked on set.
The show includes candid interviews with Star Trek legends such as Nichelle Nichols, Brent Spiner, Kirstie Alley, Walter Koenig, Kate Mulgrew, Denise Crosby, Wil Wheaton, John De Lancie, Nicholas Meyer, Ronald D. Moore, Brannon Braga, Nana Visitor, Robert Picardo, Penny Johnson, Ethan Phillips, Diana Muldaur, Nicole de Boer, Roxann Dawson, Robert Beltran, Tim Russ, John Billingsley, John Dykstra, D.C. Fontana, Rick Berman and F. Murray Abraham.
Watch for our review of the first episode from The Center Seat as we approach the show’s debut, as well as an interview with the series’ creator and director Brian Volk-Weiss.
