Species Focus: Vulcans Vulcans are everywhere in Star Trek - from the first appearance of Spock to later iterations with Tuvok, T'Pol, and T'Lyn. But how much do we really know about them? And does what we know actually raise even more questions about the way the Federation works? The trio braves the high heat of the desert planet and dives into all things Vulcan. Are they the only major Federation race to maintain their own Fleet? What do the Vulcans do outside of Starfleet? How do we think we'...
Feb 02, 2024•47 min
Species Focus: Cardassians They are the villains of the Alpha Quadrant, the occupiers of Bajor, the makers of Terok Nor, the torturers of Picard ... the Cardassians! Introduced in "The Next Generation," fans learned more about this militaristic society in "Deep Space Nine" through characters like Garak and Gul Dukat. But is there more to this species than first meets the eye? Are they only the military and the Obsidian Order? What are "everyday" Cardassians like? What do we know about the histor...
Jan 26, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Games in the Franchise: Star Trek: Resurgence It's been a few months since the release of the adventure game "Star Trek: Resurgence" from Dramatic Labs. Players control two different characters in this story-driven game: Commander Jara Rydek, a Kobliad first officer just joining the USS Resolute, and Petty Officer Carter Diaz, a young but experienced engineering technician. Players decide what actions these characters take in this epic story featuring Ambassador Spock, Captain Riker, other (surp...
Jan 19, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Discovery and Series Finales Fans have said goodbye to many Star Trek series during the life of the franchise. Some shows ended more suddenly than others, e.g., The Original Series and Enterprise, whilst others had time to plan their ending, e.g., the seven-year series of The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. In the 21st Century, "Star Trek: Picard" has been the first show to say goodbye with a planned series finale. Given all this experience, how do we think Discovery will end? The...
Jan 12, 2024•48 min
What's to come in Star Trek It's been a long road ... from 2023 to what we look towards next year for Star Trek. This past year saw the ending of "Star Trek: Picard", the continuation of "Star Trek: Strange New, Worlds" and "Star Trek: Lower Decks." There was the controversy around "Star Trek: Prodigy", a series that now lives on Netflix. The trio look at what the franchise will bring in 2024. How will we literally watch Star Trek in the months and years to come? They look at the worries about t...
Dec 29, 2023•48 min
Computer Operations in Starfleet There is a lot that goes on aboard starships and starbases that we never see. There is no question that one of the most important systems in Starfleet is the computer - it runs all systems and yet we never meet the team who are in charge of maintaining it. Who is the master/mistress of the LCARS? The trio reviews the many computer malfunctions in Trek, and why the IT department was surely ignored by the command team. Who is the ultimate commander of the computer?...
Nov 24, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Characters' Holodeck Preferences In the Trek franchise, fans have seen our favorite characters enjoy many programs in the Holodeck (including those that try to kill them). But for time (and copyright) reasons, we know that there are more holographic programs in the starship or space station catalog than we ever see on screen. The trio hits the random character generator button and guesses what are the real Holodeck programs that people use during their recreation time periods. From debating whet...
Nov 17, 2023•55 min
Season Four - Star Trek: Lower Decks The season four finale of the second Trek animated series provided endings, new beginnings, and some mystery for our USS Cerritos crew. The trio looks at what happened with the unexpected return of Nick Lacarno (and how he looks ... familiar ...), the story arc of Lt(jg) Beckett Mariner, and what the future holds for everyone else. This era of Star Trek tends to have season-ending stories with galaxy-wide consequences, impressive battle sequences, and final a...
Nov 10, 2023•56 min
Main Actors in Other Trek Roles We all know and love the Trek phenom that is Jeffrey Combs. His many notable Trek roles have led fans to think he may be playing them in everyday life! What is even more noticable about actors who play multiple roles is when it is someone who plays a "main character." A recent "Lower Decks" reminded fans about the Nick Locarno/Tom Paris double-billing. The trio looks at the "main" actors in Trek who have played multiple roles. Remember seeing Ensign Ro before we s...
Nov 03, 2023•56 min
Creating a Section 31 TV Movie With the end of the writers' strike, pre-production continues on various new (and current) Star Trek projects. One such idea that keeps popping up from official channels is the idea of a "Section 31" story. From the initial promise of a series to the new evolution of a "TV Movie Event", it remains unclear what this will look like in the end. The trio try their hand at shaping a story that would become a Section 31 TV movie. They turn their attention to Julian Bashi...
Oct 20, 2023•53 min
Ferengi Federation Membership In the "Lower Decks" episode "Parth Ferengi's Heart Place", viewers are surprised to see Grand Nagus Rom (and his wife Leeta) spearheading efforts for the Ferengi Alliance to join the United Federation of Planets. The trio looks at how Ferengi culture does (and does not) fit into what we understand of the Federation. From the extremes of capitalism to the "opportunities" available to Federation members, why should the Ferengi join the Federation? Or is it actually a...
Oct 13, 2023•56 min
Star Trek Toy Pitches First, there was Star Trek. Quite quickly thereafter, there was ... merchandise! Trek has been a franchise full of toys for over 50 years. From Mego to Playmates to Diamond Select to Eaglemoss, there have been many manufacturers of Trek action figures, playsets, accessories, and more. The trio looks back at the 90s era of Trek and asks - what would have been other great choices down the Trek toy aisle?
Oct 06, 2023•53 min
The Evolution of Fandom The trio are all (on a spectrum...) children of the 90s. They all embraced "Star Trek: The Next Generation" as their first Trek and expanded their love of the Trek franchise from there. They discuss how they entered the fandom and how it evolved over the decades until the 2009 "reboot" movie. Did their favorite series remain the same? How did they get to know The Original Series' episodes and movies? How did they engage with "Deep Space Nine," "Voyager," and "Enterprise"?...
Sep 29, 2023•1 hr 5 min
What If ... All Series Had Season 6 Character Deaths? In the last episode of season six of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," audiences were in for the shock of their lives - Lt. Cmdr. Jadzia Dax was killed by a possessed Gul Dukat. No one saw it coming, and many fans were left bereft that one of their favorite main characters had been taken away. Whatever the behind the scenes story was of contracts and labor-management negotiations, this meant the final season of the series would be missing one its...
Sep 22, 2023•54 min
Lower Decks Update It has been a celebration of Star Trek animation this month with the 50th anniversary of "Star Trek: The Animated Series." The trio talks about the state of animation in the franchise, as well as the beginning of season four of "Star Trek: Lower Decks." The current animated series dropped its first two episodes, and not only featured everyone's favorite Intrepid-class starship but also some promotions for our USS Cerritos heroes. Join us for how this changes the Lower Decks un...
Sep 15, 2023•51 min
Fixing "Code of Honor" It's the worst episode of Star Trek. Or, at least, one of the worst. "Code of Honor" from the first season of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" has been written off by most of the cast as a racist, inappropriate episode that should never be included in the series canon again. The trio dips their toes dangerously into the waters of ... could this episode have been saved? This heavily TOS-influenced episode features many cliche elements and unfortunate casts & cultural re...
Sep 09, 2023•45 min
Writing a DS9 "Q" Episode The trickster Q bedeviled both Captains Picard and Janeway in his many outrageous appearances. However, there was only one "Deep Space Nine" episode that featured the omnipotent being in "Q-Less", a first season episode that is largely forgettable. It seemed for most that Q just didn't work in the world of Sisko and the tone of DS9 stories. The trio put on their writing hats and tackle another outing for Q on the space station - how could it work in the later seasons of...
Sep 01, 2023•50 min
Megaprojects in Trek It takes a lot of resources to build a starship - but starships are not the biggest infrastruture in the Trek franchise. The trio look at the mega projects we see in the Star Trek future, from the shipbuilding facilities at Utopia Planetia to moving Deep Space Nine. What does it take the move a starbase from planet to planet, like we see in "Star Trek: Picard"? What about terraforming efforts? All these future endeavours and more may be beyond today's techonogy, but what are...
Aug 26, 2023•44 min
Strange, New Worlds Season Two Wrap-Up Captain Pike and his crew of the NCC-1701 complete their second season with some very memorable highlights. "Star Trek: Strange, New Worlds" has received plenty of acclaim as the leading live-action Star Trek series, but what's behind these past 10 episodes? From musicals to "Lower Decks" crossovers, what journey and complications did we encouter? What makes this series unique and what does it mean for the future? The trio look back at season two of "Strang...
Aug 18, 2023•1 hr 4 min
A Look Back at Star Trek: Prodigy, Season 1, Part 2 Not since the cancelation of "Star Trek: Enterprise" has a Trek series been in quite the challenge that "Prodigy" currently faces. It completed its (delayed?) second half to its first season, and then, just a few months later, it was removed from the Paramount+ streaming service. While its second season is nearing production completion, the series' future remains stuck in a time anamoly. The trio look back at the last 10 episodes of "Prodigy" t...
Aug 11, 2023•54 min
Today's Trek and Animation With the "Strange News Worlds" crossover with the animated "Lower Decks", the history of "two-dimensional" Trek took the next step. The trio re-visit the most significant recent moments from the many shows, as well as what's to come. Several trailers and teasers dropped featuring season four of "Lower Decks," upcoming SNW episodes, and a taste of the final season of "Discovery." There's lots still happening with Star Trek in 2023 (and 2024) - what are you looking forwa...
Jul 27, 2023•56 min
Star Trek: Writers and Actors on Strike With the WGA and SAG-AFTRA on strike, there are both immediate and potential future effects on the Star Trek franchise and fandom. With the caveat that these are minor matters compared to the larger issues labor-management issues involved, the trio looks at how current, completed (but unaired), and planned Trek series will be changed. Adding these issues to the current challenges facing Paramount+ (and Paramount, in general) ... it's a strange, new world o...
Jul 21, 2023•1 hr 1 min
DS9/TNG Crossover - Creating an Episode In the late 90s, we had our first instance of two Star Trek television series airing at the same time. As "Star Trek: The Next Generation" began to end, "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" took its first few steps into the franchise. There were some small crossovers of major characters - with Dr. Bashir and Quark making small appearances with the Enterprise-D, and Picard and "a" Riker showing up on Deep Space Nine (not counting O'Brien and Worf's ultimate transfe...
Jul 14, 2023•51 min
The Past, Present, and Future of Star Trek Streaming The Great Trek War begins. Or so it seems. Fans were shook when it was announced that not only was "Star Trek: Prodigy" seemingly canceled (with a season two still hanging in post-production), but that it would be almost instantly removed from Paramount+. Only a few days later, episodes 11-20 of "Star Trek: Prodigy" no longer existed in any format (except for purchase as a digital download on a few services). The trio tackles this debacle, as ...
Jul 07, 2023•52 min
Previously on ... "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" It's new Star Trek time! Season two of "Strange New Worlds" begins, as we ended on a cliffhanger last year, and we all await the new adventures of Captain Pike and the Enterprise. The trio revists season one (some of us watching it for the first time!) and go through all the characters and storylines. What made this new live action series such a hit? How does it work as both a new and a prequel series? How does it depart as a "spin-off" of "Disco...
Jun 16, 2023•1 hr 18 min
Creating a New Trek Series: Gamma Station One In the wake of "Star Trek: Picard," and fan hopes for a "Star Trek: Legacy" series with the Enterprise-G, the trio create the next 25th Century live action Trek series. They begin with the initial premise of a "Star Trek: Janeway" but quickly find themselves in the Gamma Quadrant, as a new Bajoran space station is completed. This quadrant, formerly dominated by the Founder-led Dominion, is now in crisis. The changelings have disappeared, and the form...
Jun 09, 2023•56 min
Best of ... Star Trek! With the arrival of 300 episodes, stranded here on Ceti Alpha 3, the trio opens up about their favorite scenes from almost 60 years of Star Trek. They span the centuries of the franchise for moments that continue to echo throughout the years. Join us in this retrospective of the Best of Star Trek!
Jun 02, 2023•57 min
The Next Generation Season One - Trivia Time! With the closing(?) of The Next Generation story with season three of "Star Trek: Picard," let us go back to the beginning - how well do we know how it all started! The trio is split up for some trivia questions involving pre-production of TNG, as well as the going-ons of the 1987-1988 premiere season of Next Gen. How well do you know about origins of all the characters? Including names that eventually evolved into the ones we know today? How about t...
May 26, 2023•1 hr 7 min
Mothers in Trek WIth Mothers' Day being celebrated in many countries this past week, the trio looks at the many mothers in Trek. The definition can be narrow or liberal (is the Borg Queen a mother???), but many characters have raised offspring of various sorts throughout the franchise. No matter what century you find yourself, you'll find a mother for our favorite Trek characters.
May 19, 2023•53 min
Recreation in Trek Space exploration is great but everyone onboard a starship (or space station) needs a chance to relax. The trio asks - where can you get away from it all in space? They look at the countless facilities we've been shown on Federation starships, from holodecks to anbo-jyutsu and from gyms to springball. Which would you choose during your time off? And then there's the vacation spots of the galaxy. From Risa to the shore leave planet, where would you schedule an annual holiday? S...
May 12, 2023•49 min
