Star Trek

10621 readers
114 users here now

r/startrek: The Next Generation

Star Trek news and discussion. No slash fic...

Maybe a little slash fic.


New to Star Trek and wondering where to start?


Rules

1 Be constructiveAll posts/comments must be thoughtful and balanced.


2 Be welcomingIt is important that everyone from newbies to OG Trekkers feel welcome, no matter their gender, sexual orientation, religion or race.


3 Be truthfulAll posts/comments must be factually accurate and verifiable. We are not a place for gossip, rumors, or manipulative or misleading content.


4 Be niceIf a polite way cannot be found to phrase what it is you want to say, don't say anything at all. Insulting or disparaging remarks about any human being are expressly not allowed.


5 SpoilersUtilize the spoiler system for any and all spoilers relating to the most recently-aired episodes, as well as previews for upcoming episodes. There is no formal spoiler protection for episodes/films after they have been available for approximately one week.


6 Keep on-topicAll submissions must be directly about the Star Trek franchise (the shows, movies, books etc.). Off-topic discussions are welcome at c/quarks.


7 MetaQuestions and concerns about moderator actions should be brought forward via DM.


Upcoming Episodes

Date Episode Title
11-28 LD 5x07 "Fully Dilated"
12-05 LD 5x08 "Upper Decks"
12-12 LD 5x09 "Fissue Quest"
12-19 LD 5x10 "The New Next Generation"
01-24 Film "Section 31"

Episode Discussion Archive


In Production

Strange New Worlds (2025)

Section 31 (2025-01-24)

Starfleet Academy (TBA)

In Development

Untitled comedy series


Wondering where to stream a series? Check here.


Allied Discord Server


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
801
802
803
 
 

• Like many Trek episodes, this one’s title was inspired by a great work of art, specifically “Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace”.

• The Ferengi lower deckers we see are cataloguing Cardassian, Klingon and Romulan handheld disruptors before apparently throwing them out.

    • Cardassian weapons were frequently called phasers, not disruptors in dialogue in DS9, such as in the episodes “Profit and Loss”, though in “Return to Grace” Kira refers to them as ”phase-disruptor” weapons.

• The Ferengi have a scaled down Genesis device which among the weapons they’re discarding. In “Star Trek: The Search for Spock”, Commander Kruge believed Genesis was designed as a Federation weapon.

• The Mysterious Threat appears again, making this the fourth attack since its introduction in “Twovix”.

    • The Ferengi, Jeef, implies that he was aware that the Mysterious Threat was going to be there and he’d made a deal with whomever is operating it.

• The bridge of the Ferengi ship appears to be a recreation of the one seen aboard Quark’s shuttle, Quark’s Treasure in “Little Green Men”, which was later used for Brunt’s shuttle in “The Magnificent Ferengi”.

• As is tradition with Ferengi episodes, we’re going to get some Rules of Acquisition. The Rules of Acquisition were first mentioned in “The Nagus”.

    • Rule 62: ”The riskier the road, the greater the profit.” - “Rules of Acquisition”

    • Rule 10: *”Greed is eternal.” - “Prophet Motive”

    • Rule 8: ”Small print leads to large risk.” - This is the first time it’s been said in canon, but was included in the “The Ferengi Rules of Acquisition” reference book written by Ira Steven Behr

• The USS Toronto NCC-70494 is a Parliament-class starship. We first saw the USS Vancouver in “Cupid’s Errant Arrow”.

    • Despite the fact that Parliament-class ships appear to all take their names from Canadian capital cities, the USS Winnipeg is a Daedalus-class, and the USS Regina is an Oberth-class, seen in “An Embarrassment of Dooplers” and “First First Contact” respectively.

• Cap’n Freeman records the Stardate as 58901.5 in her log.

• This is our first view of Ferenginar from orbit.

• Admiral Vassery was introduced in “Moist Vessel”.

”It makes Moab IV inside the dome look like Moab IV outside the dome.” Moab IV was a human colony built as a planned society fostered with eugenics introduced in “The Masterpiece Society”.

• It’s Rom! From Star Trek! Rom is played by Max Grodénchik, who played Rom in DS9, showing up in the series premiere, “The Emissary”.

    • Grodénchik played several other Frenengi as well: his first Trek role was as Sovak in “Captain’s Holiday”; he played Par Lenor in “The Perfect Mate”; finally he appeared as Grand Nagus Gint in Quark’s dream in “Body Parts”.

• It’s Leeta! From Star Trek! Leeta once again portrayed by Chase Masterson. The character first appeared in “Explorers”.

• Rom and Leeta are accompanied by a Hupyrian attendant, as both Zek and Brunt were when they were Grand Nagus. This one is the first female Hupyrian we’ve seen.

• The Ceremonial Invoice for the Bust of Good Fortune features Ferengi script, first seen in “Ménage à Troi”.

• We see the Lower Deckers working on the Sequoia, the shuttle introduced in “Second Contact”. This is the first time we’ve seen the shuttle this season.

• Mariner is weathering a self-sealing stembolt, a device introduced in “Progress” which use has never been made entirely clear.

”The Cerritos *is statistically the horniest and least romantically committed crew in Starfleet,” I’d like to know what metrics they use for gauging that, but Starfleet is a notoriously horny organization. See: All of TOS, TNG, DS9, VOY, ENT, and SNW.

”Maybe I should have Honus and nurse Westlake take a crack at it.” Honus, Westlake, along with Matt are Ransom’s self described ”Friends for life.”

• The skyline of Ferenginar includes the Tower of Commerce, first mentioned in “Prophet Motive” and seen in “Family Business”. The angle here is different, showing more of the capital city and less marshland.

    • It is raining pretty heavily on Ferenginar. According to Quark in “Let He Who is Without Sin…” there are 178 different words in the Ferengi language for types of rain.

    • There’s a Ferengi shuttle flying over the city. The first Ferengi shuttle on screen was seen in “The Price”

• Among the business and billboards we signs for:

    • All You Can @#$%!

    • Slug-O Cola - “Profit and Lace”

    • Acquire Pour Homme

    • Now Playing: Latinum Lost

    • Maximum Oo-Mox Rub Dungeon

    • Uncle Quark’s Youth Casino

    • Lobe’s Lodge

    • The Museum of Gambling

    • The Museum of Haggling

    • Slug-Nasium

    • The Ferenginar Historic Public Library

    • Quark’s Federation Experience Bar & Grill

• One of the ships parked at Lobe’s Lodge is one resembling the ship the Ferengi used when they attacked the NX-01 Enterprise in “Acquisition”.

• There are payboxes for several amenities on Ferenginar for depositing latinum, which we saw introduced in “Family Business”.

    • Shuttle parking

    • Mini bar

    • Hotel bed

    • Toilet

    • Bathroom access

    • Hotel viewscreen

    • Brunch restaurant

    • Dressing rooms

• The confetti canon Parth fires off is shaped similar to a Ferengi hand phaser, like the ones seen in “Ménage à Troi”.

• The viewscreen in in Boimler’s hotel room is very suspiciously familiar, but I can’t quite put my finger on it.

• Mariner meets up with Quimp whom we previously saw in “Envoys” helping her to scam Boimler into believing he was a capable officer.

”I never thought you’d dig your way out of crashing that Oberth.” Was it the USS Regina? We may never know.

    • Presumably the incident with the Oberth-class happened prior to the start of the series, which means that Mariner has been promoted and demoted at least once since then, during the events of “Moist Vessel”, and Quimp is merely unaware that happened.

• Mariner Orders two shots of Cardassian tequila, which presumably can only be produced in the Tequila region of Cardassia Prime.

• Mariner also orders a ”dagger of the mind on the rocks.” “Dagger of the Mind” was a first season TOS episode, but also part of a line from “Macbeth”.

”I like baseball. It’s fun.” Rom was the worst player on the Niners in “Take Me Out to the Holosuite” but Max Grodénchik played in high school and was good enough that he considered going pro before pursuing a career in acting. During the filming of “Take Me Out to the Holosuite” he had to play left handed because he couldn’t convincingly look bad while playing the game with his dominant hand.

• Boimler is watching “Pog & Dar: Cop Landlords” and one of the tenants has a dog-like pet with horns and antenna like the one seen in “The Enemy Within”

    • Pog, Dar, and the tenant all have Ferengi hand phasers, which were last seen in the TNG episode “Bloodlines”.

    • The tenant has muttonchops, and is the only Ferengi we’ve seen to have hair of any kind.

”Haha, they put commercials in the shows? It’s like mind control.” When Boimler says this line, the wall art of a mountain with some stars above it twinkles, and I can’t quite place why it’s familiar.

• Quark’s Federation Experience Bar & Grill is based on Star Trek: The Experience, a now defunct attraction that used to be at the Hilton in Las Vegas, which did include a Quark’s Bar. Among the features here are:

    • Models of the USS Enterprise D and the USS Voyager hanging from the ceiling, both of which were in Star Trek: The Experience.

    • A Mugato - “A Private Little War”

    • The Guardian of Forever - “The City on the Edge of Forever”

    • A Vulcan wedding venue/gladiatorial arena - “Amok Time”

    • One of the primitive peoples encountered on Taurus II - “The Galileo Seven”

    • A holodeck arcade - Ferengi generally refer to them as holosuites

    • A rack of red shirts

    • A Jefferies Tube entrance

    • A Ten Forward exhibit

    • A ”blind box” shaped like a Class-F shuttlecraft

• Production Error: Despite what the sign says, Rutherford refers to it as *”The Starfleet Experience Bar & Grill”.

• One of the Ferengi women eating in the background of Quark’s Federation Experience is nude. Before Zek changed the law leading to the events of “Profit and Lace”, it was illegal for Ferengi omen to wear clothes.

• Rom and Leeta host Vassery and Freeman in the Chamber of Petitioners, seen in “Ferengi Love Songs”.

• Cap’n Freeman tricks Rom into signing a contract which hinges on him bringing Qo’noS into the Federation. In the TNG episode, “Samaritan Snare”, Wesley asks Picard “Was this before the Klingons joined the Federation?” regarding a story of his Academy days, and in “Heart of Glory” we see a Klingon bridge displaying the Federation Emblem alongside that of the Klingon Empire.

• Rom reveals that his outrageous demands were all part of a test to see if there were those in the Federation who would respect Ferengi culture. Captain Pike realized the delegation from the R’ongovian Protectorate were doing something similar in “Spock Amok”.

• The Ferengi ”local authorities” is wearing a simplified version of the Ferengi uniform introduced in “Peak Performance” and has a military tattoo on his forehead, which we haven’t seen since “Bloodlines”. He’s also wielding an energy whip, introduced in “The Last Outpost”.

804
 
 

Rob & Kev lose control of their emotions and, after breaking down the highlights of "Empathological Fallacies", cannot resist their powerful urges to revisit two classic episodes of The Original Series, "The Naked Time" (TOS) and "Day of the Dove" (TOS).

805
806
807
 
 

For those not subscribed to Master Replicas email notifications of releases of Eaglemoss Star Trek models, this Tuesday October 10th will be the launch of a special ‘signature’ release with plaques signed by Nana Visitor, Adam Probert, & William Shatner.

808
19
October 2023 Star Trek ebook deals (www.simonandschuster.com)
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website to c/startrek@startrek.website
 
 

Here’s the Simon & Schuster listing of ebook deals for this month. $0.99 in the United States.

There’s a heavy focus on TOS Spock focused books, with several classics featured by Diane Diane, AC Crispin and others. There’s also Una McCormack’s excellent Star Trek Picard prequel novel ‘The Last Best Hope.’

Pricing expires on October 29th in the United States.

Other countries - deals are available but not necessarily all the same books. And there may be others on low feature prices!

How to figure out what deals are available where?

Option 1: for UK, Canada, Australia and India, there are links at the bottom of the page that take you to the Simon & Schuster country sites.

  1. Go to your country

  2. Search for “Star Trek” in the search field

  3. Filter by lowest price to highest.

Pro. If you’re on the Simon & Schuster page you’ll be offered a free ebook.

Con. There are sometimes more books available at the lowest prices through Amazon Kindle and Kobo. And in some cases the full US ebook special list is in effect on other countries’ Amazon, but not on the publisher’s own site.

Option 2: go to a major ebook seller for your country

  1. Search for “Star Trek” in books

  2. Filter by ebooks

  3. Filter by either ‘lowest to highest price’ or just by a low maximum price e.g., £ 2 for the UK.

This yields a lot of IDW single issue comics as well as novels, but it’s viable.

I’ve checked for Canada, Amazon Kindle .ca has the full US list plus a few more. David Mack’s excellent Kelvin Universe book ‘More Beautiful than Death’ is at $CDN 0.99, among others.

Enjoy!

809
 
 

I've been watching the Next Generation for a while but on my dad's recommendation I started SNW and I love it. I'm getting through it really quickly and thought about jumping straight to TOS after.

Is it going to be really jarring or do the two sync quite nicely? Do the characters feel a bit flat after all the exploration they get in SNW?

810
811
812
16
Did anyone catch that? (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by enteroninternet@lemmy.dbzer0.com to c/startrek@startrek.website
 
 

I just saw the latest LD episode 6: Parth Ferengi's Heart Place. The poking fun on modern capitalism was one point.

spoilerThe bit about predatory landlords.

Anybody catch "The Office" parody?

The charrecter arc of Leeta and Rom was really great to watch.

Boimler getting caught on modern TV consumption.

The restourant keeps making up various pointless discounts to attact customers (lol)

Personally I do not want Tendi and Rutherford to be in romantic relationship but I think the show is going with that one.

This is what star trek was supposed to be. One of the greatest episode IMHO.

813
 
 

The title is a pun on the 2004 British horror parody television series Garth Merenghi’s Darkplace. The Ferengi dragging Boimler out of his room is using a Ferengithe Ferengi merchant Ulis in 2151 (ENT: “Acquisition”).

Rom became the Grand Nagus in DS9: “The Dogs of War”, Zek appointing Rom as his successor to carry on his reforms to create a kinder, gentler Ferenginar.

The Genesis Device is of course the central McGuffin of ST II. The one that blew up and created the Genesis Planet was thought to be the only one, but we’ve seen another model stored in Daystrom Station (PIC: “The Bounty”).

“He thinks Rom is the next Lonz.” A deep cut, Lonz was the most famous nose flute player in Ferengi history, also known as “Old Golden Nostril” (DS9 book: Legends of the Ferengi).

Rule of Acquisition No. 62: “The riskier the road, the greater the profit”, was first mentioned in DS9: “Rules of Acquisition”, among other episodes.

The Stardate is 58901.5. The Ferengi Alliance wanting to join the Federation is a huge deal. Although Nog was the first Ferengi in Starfleet (DS9: “Heart of Stone”), by 2400, there will be more Ferengi cadets in Starfleet Academy (PIC: “The Star Gazer”, a Ferengi flag is being flown during commencement among other flags showing the composition of the graduating class), and by the 32nd Century, Ferengi officers are seen frequently, even a Captain (DIS: “Anomaly”).

The foods being served on board the Parliament-class (LD: “Cupid’s Errant Arrow”) USS Toronto (NCC-70494) include a bowl of Ferengi tube grubs (DS9: “Homefront”), cheese cut out in Starfleet delta shapes and a wooden serving board in the shape of a Galaxy-class cruiser.

The bald Admiral is Vassery, who commanded Douglas Station and was the one Mariner mocked for his pronunciation of “sen-soar” (LD: “Moist Vessel”). He also appeared in Mariner’s holoprogram (LD: “Crisis Point”).

Moab IV is the location of the Genome Colony, a self-contained domed enclosing a genetically and socially-engineered society (TNG: “The Masterpiece Society”). The environment outside the dome was uninhabitable at the time the Enterprise-D visited, so Vassery’s joke might mean that has changed. Or is just a bad joke.

The 10th Rule of Acquisition is “Greed is eternal” (DS9: “Prophet Motive”); Freeman trying to quote this expresses her skepticism about Ferenginar’s application.

Leeta’s title as “First Clerk” is the title of the Nagus’ personal financial assistant (DS9: “Ferengi Love Songs”). Rom and her are accompanied by what seems to be a female Hupyrian. The species is known to be favorites of the Grand Naguses as servants, bodyguards and food tasters due to their devotion to their masters and their vows of silence to anyone other than their master. Zek’s male servant was Maihar’du (DS9: “The Nagus”).

I got to admit, the Ceremonial Invoice and the “Friends and Family Discount” made me spit out my soda. God, I’ve missed the Ferengi - the DS9 development of them, specifically. Yes, Quark made an appearance in DS9: “Hear All, Trust Nothing”, but still.

Self-sealing stem bolts are a component that nobody is quite sure what they do or what they’re for, except that they’re self-sealing. And are stem bolts (DS9: “Progress”).

For the record, “Lieutenants junior grade” is the grammatically correct usage. Much like it’s “Attorneys-General” and not “Attorney-Generals”.

There have been two travel guides published in the real world for Star Trek under the Hidden Universe Travel Guides banner: one for the Klingon Empire and the other for Vulcan. I also love the fact that the Cerritos is statistically the horniest and least committed crew in Starfleet because that tracks so much.

Finishing each other’s diophantine equations (polynomial equations where only integer solutions are allowed) could be a reference to a classic gag from Arrested Development where Michael says about Nellie, that they finish each other’s… and Lindsay chimes in with “Sandwiches?” to Michael’s bewilderment. The same joke coincidentally shows up in That 70s Show and as part of the song “Love is an Open Door” in Frozen.

Honus is the ship’s bartender (LD: “Mugato, Gumato”) and Nurse Westlake (LD: “Second Contact”) is named for Chris Westlake, the composer for LD.

We see a Ferengi shuttle (DS9: “Little Green Men”) flying by as we approach Ferenginar, on which it is always raining (DS9: “Family Business”). The Ferengi language has 178 words for rain (and none for “crisp”), rather like the hundreds of words Inuits use to describe various types of snow (DS9: “Let He Who is Without Sin”). The tall building dominating the skyline is the Ferengi Tower of Commerce, the capital building of the government (“Prophet Motive”).

Signs advertise All You Can @#S%!, Slug-O-Cola (DS9: “Profit and Lace”), Uncle Quark’s Youth Casino, Maxium Oo-Mox Rub Dungeon, Acquire Pour Homme, Lobe’s Lodge, Slug-Nasium. A marquee says “Now Playing: Latinum Lost!!!” which may be a reference to the Litverse novella Lust’s Latinum Lost (and Found), which centers around the erotic holonovel of the same title.

The aFerengi shuttle (DS9: “Little Green Men”) flying by as we approach Ferenginar, on which it is always raining (DS9: “Family Business”). which may be a reference to the Litverse novella Lust’s Latinum Lost (and Found), which centers around the erotic holonovelgi lobes is a symbol of virility and business acumen, which is what the Slug-O-Cola commercial plays on.

Quimp appeared in LD: “Envoys”, meeting Mariner on Tulgana IV, staging a fake attack to boost Boimler’s confidence.

Oberth-classes (like the USS Grissom from ST III) take a lot of flak. T’Ana once screamed that she didn’t spend 7 years on one just to get reassigned to a station (LD: “The Stars at Night”).

The “dagger of the mind” drink probably refers to TOS: “Dagger of the Mind” where a neural neutralizer empties a mind and makes it susceptible to suggestion.

Rom was on Sisko’s baseball team, the Niners, in DS9: “Take Me Out to the Holosuite” and scored the only run for the team in that game.

The unicorn dog in the Ferengi landlord cop show is of the species from Alfa 177 (TOS: “The Enemy Within”). We last saw one of them in the menagerie in LD: “I Have No Bones Yet I Must Flee”.

As Boimler laughs about product placement he is sitting in front of the Paramount logo. The screen also resembles the CBS eye logo.

Parth is using a holographic imager, but oddly enough closer to the Starfleet design (last seen in SNW: “Those Old Scientists”) rather than a Ferengi one (DS9: “Meridian”).

Mariner and Quimp play dabo (DS9: “Babel”) at the Ferenginar Historical Library.

Quark’s Federation Experience Bar & Grill (referring to the late lamented Las Vegas Star Trek: The Experience), has models of the Voyager and Enterprise-D hanging from the ceiling as the TNG theme tune plays. Among the decor are signs that say Engineering, Ten Forward, Where No Gift Has Gone Before, Jeffries Tube Entrance, Red Shirts and Holodeck Arcade.

Patrons enter the place between two TOS-style nacelles and are greeted by a Ferengi with a Vulcan hairstyle and eyebrows in a blue science division uniform. In a blink and you’ll miss it moment, there is a naked female Ferengi (head and shoulders visible) at one of the tables as we initially pan towards Tendi and Rutherford. Ferengi females were traditionally not allowed to wear clothes, but this began to change with Zak’s reforms, helped along by Quark and Rom’s mother Ishka.

On display are a Mugato (TOS: “A Private Little War”), the Guardian of Forever (TOS: “The City on the Edge of Forever”), a Vulcan gong in the arena from TOS: “Amok Time” and a Taurean ape-man with a spear from TOS: “The Galileo Seven”.

Tendi and Rutherford are seated at a table whose wall panels have a TOS-style red trim and chairs from that era. The Red Alert sound has of course been standard since TOS. The Ferengi bouncers are dressed in TNG-era security uniforms.

Tendi’s comment about the velour uniforms catching fire is similar to Boimler talking about exploding tricorders in LD: “Those Old Scientists”.

Sitting weird in chairs is a stereotype for bisexuals, of which Mariner is one. Naturally, the Ferengi Dominion War Memorial remembers the profits lost during that conflict.

The blind box is modeled on a TOS-era shuttle. We see a rocky backdrop for one of the tables that might be Sarpeidon from TOS: “All Our Yesterdays”.

The 8th Rule of Acquisition, “Small print leads to large risk” is from the beta canon book The Ferengi Rules of Acquisition.

The Ferengi dragging Boimler out of his room is using a Ferengi energy whip (TNG: “The Last Outpost).

814
 
 

LoglineThe Cerritos visits the Ferengi homeworld.


Written by: Cullen Crawford

Directed by: Brandon Williams

815
816
 
 

I'm truly enjoying all these interviews that are coming out as Patrick Stewart goes around on the promotion circuit.

817
818
 
 

Clearly there is some chemistry between the characters, but it often appears that Shaxs is putting up with a lot that he is not interested in, or is even finds unpleasant.

Specifically in “Room For Growth” and “I Have No Bones Yet I Must Flee” we get insight into their off duty time together, which appears to be running a holodeck program where Doctor T’Ana escalates the violence and then wants Shaxs participate in sexual activity, while making their holographic victims watch. In both episodes Shaxs implies that this is not something he enjoys. In “Room For Growth” we see Shaxs open up to Doctor T’Ana about things he’s going through and she mocks him for it.

And obviously Shaxs is a character capable of tremendous violence, and it’s something he enjoys, but unlike Doctor T’Ana, he’s also interested in wellness. In “Envoys” we see that Shaxs is concerned about the job satisfaction of his subordinates, and in “Empathological Fallacies” he makes it clear that he views part of his responsibilities as the Cerritos chief of security to see to the mental wellbeing of the crew as well as their physical wellbeing. He puts that in action for himself as well, which we see in “wej Duj” where he’s using art therapy to deal with his own trauma. T’Ana, by contrast, is hostile to the idea. In “Mugato, Gumato” we see that she’s removed her own name from the list of patients aboard the Cerritos.

It seems as though Shaxs is the one putting in all the effort, and Doctor T’Ana is somewhat toxic.I feel like Shaxs could do better.

819
 
 

Amidst Franchise Changes, Star Trek: Lower Decks' Mike McMahan Gave Us His Worried Perspective On The Show's Future

Pretty self-explanatory tl/dr: if you like the show, watch it (and get your friends onboard).

https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/amidst-franchise-changes-star-trek-lower-decks-mike-mcmahan-worried-perspective-shows-future

@startrek #StarTrek

820
821
 
 

Taking place a day after Brad Boimler undies, the same happens to Spike the dragon only it was near-death.

For reasons only the space-koala understands, both swap places.

More info on my blog! https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1023724/a-star-trek-ld-crossover-idea

822
 
 

Hello,

In the recent years, I have had much less time available to watch new shows (I have a young kid). So I am quite lagging behind: I haven't seen PIC, nor the last season of DIS, nor SNW. I tended to not find the right moment to read books either. I finally started reading e-books and I realise how convenient they are to take advantage of 15 minutes of calm and discretly (and without noise) read a chapter or two. I used to read books on paper exclusively, and to find reading on screen difficult, but it turns out that I am now becoming an e-book reader and they allow me to spend much more time reading.

So, I've started with Robinson's Stitch In Time because I heard a lot of good reviews. And it is indeed GREAT. Beautifully written. I wanted to read more, so I looked up what else Robinson had written, and bought "Prophecy and change Anthology". I read it entirely though I was initially interested only in "The Calling". But I was a bit disappointed as I found "The Calling" too esoteric for my liking. Nevertheless, I was eager to read more about Garak. So I bought and read "Enigma Tales" by Una McCormack, and it is AWESOME! Very well written. I like her writting style.

I am aware that I am not reading in the proper order, but I then decided I wanted more from Una McCormack, so I read "The Fall: Crimson shadow". But I decided to read The Fall in order, so I read Revelation and Dust before. I liked "Revelation and Dust" much much less than Enigma Tales. The writer style is quite heavy, especially when it comes to describing female characters. But it was OK. "Crimson shadow" was AWESOME. I found the description of the transition towards democracy on Cardassia, and the challenge with the facist old guard trying to take back control by various demagogical means very well written. And with a lot of references to real world issues: Starfleet leaving Cardassia somewhat reminiscent of western forces leaving occupied countries in the middle east, the fascist rethoric of Cardassia First reminiscent of some policians IRL. This is SF like I like it: the reader escapes into the Star Trek world, and at the same time is invited to reflect on IRL issues (a bit like Persian letters).

I was less impressed by the rest of the mini-series. The shenanigans on Andor were ok and I finally longed for the characters. But the conspiracy inside the Federation with the moustache-twirling villains that are Velk and Ishan made little sense to me. How could it be that the Federation which has existed for so long has so little counter-powers? How could an unelected person (president pro tempore) be allowed to wield that much power and make decisions without democratic oversight? Why do so many Starfleet personnels obey direct orders if this is illegal to do so? Why not telling him that he isn't authorized to issue them direct orders if that is so?

The shenanigans made sense on Cardassia which was a military dictatorship for at least a century. It made sorta sense on Andor because of what they endured in their recent past and the dangers for their survival (though it was already far fetched that people would be so uninformed after 200 years in the Federation). To top it up, the last book (poisoned chalice) is much too predictable. You know the answer basically after the first few pages, and the story is just lagging. It almost felt like the author is just trying to fill pages (though I was still willing to keep reading until the end). There is also (I don't remember in which books in the mini series) all this discussion about Kira in the wormhole and things she experience there, but it is an unused Chekov gun. There are chapters about her, and then nothing.

So my question is: what to read next? What are good series worth reading? Are there more featuring Garak? Is there a book with Kira coming back from the Wormhole? Do we get to see Crusher under Captain Ro on DS9?

As I stated in introduction, I haven't been able to keep up with the new shows, and I don't want to get spoilt. So, I'd rather not go with books taking place after the events of PIC until I have had to opportunity to watch the shows (unless they don't spoil anyway).

Any advice?

823
 
 

• Captain Sokel and the VCF Sh’vhal were both introduced in “wej Duj” the same episode in which we first saw T’Lyn.

     • This is the first time the prefix VCF has been applied to a ship. Presumably it is Vulcan specific.

• The Betazoid diplomats the USS Cerritos is ferrying spent three weeks on Angel I, a planet with a matriarchal society introduced in the episode Angel One.

     • The diplomats’ whalebones have labels that read ”Angel 1” in front of a flower-like emblem that was seen on the surface of Angel I.

     • When the USS Enterprise D visited Angel I in “Angel One”, Data described their technological development as being similar to that of mid-20th century Earth. It’s never explicitly stated that they’re pre-warp, though. The Federation considered it important to maintain excellent diplomatic relations with the planet.

• The Cerritos is taking the diplomats to Risa, a ”pleasure planet” first introduced in “Captain’s Holiday”. It’s a popular destination for Starfleet officers engaging in sex tourism.

• We learn that ancient Catians used to hunt ancient Betazoids for food.

• Katrot has a cap that reads, *”It’s Romulan ale o’clock somewhere,” which she purchased from a woman on Angel I. Romulan ale was introduced in “Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan”, and is illegal in the Federation. Of course, Angel I is not a Federation world, and it is very close to the Romulan neutral zone.

• In her personal correspondence to Sokel, T’Lyn makes note of her ”chaotic tendencies” and ”punishment,” both of which were plot points in “wej Duj”; Sokel recommended T’Lyn be reassigned to a Starfleet due to her inability to control her emotions.

”I know you don’t drink, but there’s going to be a chocolate fountain if you want to get wild.” It has become a bit of fan canon that Vulcans become intoxicated consuming chocolate, though it’s not actually supported by anything we’ve seen on screen.

     • Vulcans do drink, however, despite Spock’s claim that they don’t experience the ”dubious benefits” of alcohol. Spock drinks in “The Enterprise Incident”, “Requiem for Methuselah”, and “The Broken Circle”. Sakonna drinks Bajoran spring wine and we learn that there’s a Vulcan port in “The Maquis, Part I”, which is where people think Quark offers Sakonna chocolate, but does not actually happen in the episode. Tuvok and Chakotay share some Vulcan brandy in “Repression”. And, of course, the Vulcans who made official first contact with Earth drank with Zefram Cochrane in “Star Trek: First Contact”.

• T’Lyn has a painting on her wall depicting a large statue carrying a lirpa. The painting is based on a matte painting of Vulcan made for “Star Trek: The Motion Picture”.

• Boimler is quizzing himself on the names of everyone aboard the Cerritos, and we find out the blue woman with barbels is named Sleepy Merp, making her the third named Merp on the ship, along with Big Merp and adjectiveless Merp, and I have several questions.

     • Boimler does say he’s trying to remember ”every single crew member’s name,” but one of the people in his quiz is Honus the bartender.

”This crew is always weird and yelling.” T’Lyn has summed out three and a half seasons of “Star Trek: Lower Decks” in a single sentence.

• Boimler asks Shaxs if he’s going to learn tsunkatse, a popular bloodsport on the planet Norcadia Prime in the Delta Quadrant that Seven of Nine was press ganged into participating in, in the episode “Tusnkatse”.

• The Bear Pack engages in activities related other security officers in or related to Starfleet.

     • Haubold shares her slam poetry about Worf, who became chief of security aboard the Enterprise D after Yar’s death in “Skin of Evil”.

     • Kayshon uses charades to depict constable Odo, the security chief on Deep Space 9, introduced in “Emissary”.

• T’Lyn proposes that Zanthi fever could be affected the Betazoids, which would then cause the crew’s increased emotional instability. In “Fascination” Lawaxana Troi’s Zanthi fever affected several of the people aboard Deep Space 9.

• This is the first time we’ve learned ensign Haubold’s name, despite her being a background character since the series premiere, “Second Contact”.

• Shaxs’ ritual box is not the same as the containers holding the Tears of the Prophets, but it shares many of the same elements.

• Shaxs’ puzzle depicts captain Malcolm Reed and the NX-01 Enterprise.

• Shaxs’ Bajoran tarot deck has art based on the Rider-Waite deck, and features several Bajor specific cards:

     • Celestial Temple i.e. Bajoran Wormhole

     • Orbs - This card is based on the Ten of Pentacles and depicts ten orbs; originally it was believed there were only nine Tears of the Prophets, but Captain Sisko discovered the Orb of the Emissary in "Shadows and Symbols"; because not all the orbs have been named on screen, with books, comics, and video games we have names for 16 different orbs.

     • Invasion - A Bajoran in a field with a sword, facing down what I believe we can assume to be a Cardassian based on the legs and boots.

     • Derna - Bajor’s fourth moon, seen in “Image in the Sand”

     • The Emissary - The cars is based on The Magician; we see Sisko wearing what appears to be the a hat Winn Adami wore as a vedek, and robes similar to those of Kai Opaka except in white and red.

     • Borhya - In “The Next Phase” Ro tells Geordi of the Bajoran spirits of the dead.

• The Betazoid delegates turn out to have been officers of the Betazed Intelligence Agency the whole time.

• The starmap depicting the Cerritos’ proximity to the Neutral Zone also show Romulus, and, notably, the planet Cheron, which was seen in “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” and was the homeworld of Bele and Lokai.

     • The map is a recreation of the one seen in “Balance of Terror”.

• T’Lyn is actually the cause of the emotional outbursts aboard the Cerritos, and she notes that Vulcans can suffer similar afflictions to Zanthi fever such as Bendii syndrome, the same condition which affected Sarek in “Sarek”.

     • T’Lyn states that Bendii syndrome ”is mostly observed in the elderly,” and lets Mariner know she is only 62 years old. Sarek was 201 when he became afflicted.

• We learn that Boimler was aboard the Cerritos when he turned 25.

• T’Lyn’s running with ridged arms bent at 90° may have been inspired by Spock’s running in “Star Trek: Into Darkness”.

“Phasers? Big phasers?” In “Where Pleasant Fountains Lie” when Mariner asked Boimler how the type-3 phaser differed from others, his response was, “They take two hands.” • Big Merp is playing the titular game from “The Game”.

• Steve Stevens and another person are wearing anbo-jyutsu gear introduced in “The Icarus Factor”. According to Kyle Riker, anbo-jyutsu is ”the ultimate evolution of the martial arts.”

• Dolorex gives Cap’n Freeman a Betazoid PADD with an image of the Mysterious Threat on it. The PADD has the emblem previously seen on the Betazoid flag in “The Star Gazer” on it.

”Maybe all three of us could go to the pottery shop and throw some clay?” We learned the Cerritos has a pottery room in “wej Duj”.

824
825
 
 

I've always wanted to use the world behold.

The video I posted is the extended version. If you'd like to watch the 31 minute edited version, the link is here!

view more: ‹ prev next ›