Star Trek Into Darkness: Berlin Done

trekmovie.com

Another location ticked off and a glam premiere night held in the German capital. 

Apparently this was the biggest launch night of the movie yet with five of the cast (above) and JJ in attendance. I suspect the official world premiere in London might just top it in a couple of days time! You can also check the dates of release here with a handy link through to the full listing. Luckily Abrams has still got time to slot an interview or two in (filmed in Australia) and he's been talking to IGN recently about how he's making Star Trek for non-Star Trek fans. I think initially this can be seen by the phenomenal takings that the 2009 film managed in comparison to all the previous 10 movies. 

JJ openly admits that he's not a fan but went into it looking at what he would want from a film and then combining it with Star Trek lore but still ensure you didn't need to know a massive backstory to enjoy it. Essentially, he's made it his own and you don't need to see anything other than the 2009 reboot. If you're already thinking about what's going to be happening with the undoubted third installment from the JJ-verse, you could do no worse than drop over to a great site, io9 and their new blog regarding who might be in the running - or should be int he running to direct Star Trek Into Darkness' follow up if Abrams is out of the frame.

Anyway, before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let's round up what's going on today.

SKoST

"You're much cleverer than your reputation suggests." - Carol Marcus

"I have a reputation?!" - Kirk

A new TV spot entitled Reputation has also hit the screens today. The majority of it we've seen before but there are a couple of new shots buried in there as well as some new dialogue between Kirk and Pike. I'm liking the setup concept behind these trailers as it's giving us an impression of where the characters are within their personal journeys. In the case of Kirk were seeing how he's not totally matured into the legendary captain  we knew from the Original Series (parallel universes aside)  and you get the hint that this movie is not only a step into darkness but also a significant turning point in Kirk's life. It seems this could be his boy-to-man event much more-so than the first film. 

A large amount of the promotional material has spot-lit either Kirk or nemesis Harrison. Short, sweet and it's impressive how much mileage Paramount and Bad Robot are getting out of a fairly limited amount of trailer material. Here we get a shot of Kirk eyeing up the ladies at Starfleet Command, Pike and Kirk having a chat over a drink (probably a Bud) and some more of Carol Marcus bearing all while Kirk averts his wandering eyes. You just have to watch everything now just to spot a new shot or hear a new line of dialogue!

SKoST

"You have any idea what a pain you are?" - Admiral Pike

"I thought that's why you talked me into signing up in the first place?" - Kirk

If you've not caught it already, here's the direct link to the video posted by trekmovie.com

FIGHT FOR OUR FUTURE

There's also a fantastic new IMAX poster which those lucky few who view it on Wednesday 8th or midnight on Thursday 9th will receive as part of their unique movie experience. Little bit jealous but I'll survive I guess! It's a gorgeous piece and if anyone out there who gets one doesn't like it,  I can suggest a very accepting home,  postage paid....! This print is part of a a new IMAX FANFLIX program around the sneak peek showings that are taking place at 8pm on the Wednesday night with Star Trek getting the first new image. 

Some sites have also suggested that these will be available at midnight showings on the Thursday but my inclination is more towards the former. The poster was commissioned by Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot in association with Gallery 1988 and artist Mark Englert so it's not your average cinema flyer poster - take good care fellow Trek fans! Just to add to your desires - it glows in the dark!!! (Way too cool!). Here's the image which, sadly here, doesn't glow. (this came in a bit late last night so apologies for the delay!)

How about adding this to the promo campaign - shot on the Enterprise bridge set, there's now an insurance advert for Esurance  - it's an amusing diversion for a few seconds if only to see the bridge set again and remember Spock's teaching in The Wrath of Khan that he is not thinking in three dimensions....!

How about this to add some Star Trek to your day perhaps? A BRILLIANT snippet of an interview with Simon "Scotty" Pegg which includes some great new footage ("D'ya hear that, I called him Perfect Hair!"). It certainly highlights Scotty as a larger than life character and Pegg has certainly added his own tweaks to the established image created by James Doohan.  (from Megatrailer.tv)

There's some new scenes of Scotty worrying about the ship sitting on the bottom of an ocean, getting a call from Kirk while in the bar with Keenser and a final addition with the engineer attempting to navigate the inclining corridors as the Enterprise begins her nosedive ("One day I've been off this ship! One bloody day!"). Check it out, what do you think? It's a complete turnaround from earlier in the campaign when he was blatantly absent but now the European leg is kicking in they seem to be wheeling Scotty out on every occasion - posters, premieres....It's great to see.

The UK Guardian newspaper has dropped a piece on line this afternoon looking for people to provide them with questions to ask JJ Abrams, Alice Eve, Simon Pegg and Benedict Cumberbatch when they interview them next week. If you're interested in adding your suggestion to the pot. The Guardian have asked that the questions be Star Trek and not Star Wars related...@Googleplay are also going to be doing something similar so you can tweet your questions to #AskBenedict (wonder who that could be for?!)

Just for note - if any of you are missing your #1701 email, make sure to check your spam. That's where mine seems to be ending up at the moment. Three emails in there today....! Has anyone posted to this and if so, what have you snapped or filmed? What's the draw and are we going to get something equivalent in the UK (as with the mobile app).

In the meantime, here are a couple more shots of the extra bits from the new promotional Scotty Speaks vid just to add to your mouth-watering, nail-biting and seemingly excrucitatingly long wait for Star Trek Into Darkness. (all captured by SKoST)

 "Do you have any idea how ridiculous it is to hide a starship on the bottom of the ocean?! We've been down here since last night!"

If it isn't Captain James Tiberius Perfect Hair..."

Don't forget to check back during the day for updates - are we going to get another Harrison Viral today? Is it Uhura? Also you can follow the promotional trail via the Countdown to Star Trek Into Darkness label below.

Star Trek Into Darkness: It's Monday; Berlin

It's Monday and tonight is the Berlin premiere of the movie.

After a quiet Sunday where I got to post something else other than mad Star Trek Into Darkness news we're back on the high-speed train to fan-frenzy-dom. There'll be a livestream of the red carpet on the Star Trek Facebook page and the film opens this evening. A lot seems to be being made of Zoe Saldana and Alice Eve's attire during the promo campaign and you can read more about it via The Daily Mail if fashion tips are more your thing. Nice to see Mr Pegg in attendance as well - not as neglected as he was earlier in the campaign trail although I'd have preferred him to be rocking out that funky leisure suit look from the recent Latin American trailer!

For UK fans we're just TEN days away from the opening and I've now booked my ticket for the first showing at midnight in Stoke. Can't wait and still successfully avoiding those terrible internet spoilers that are multiplying faster than a tribble feeding on quadrotriticale (quadrotrit-what?!)

Also we've been treated to two new stills from the film (although the one at the top here almost looks like Cumberbatch is taking a breather from filming rather than taking part on a scene. The second comes from sometime around "Clip 2" with Kirk, Spock and Uhura on the Klingon ship. Neither are particularly groundbreaking shots (again) but it's a nice addition to keep us hooked. This second shot also looks a bit more candid than being a still from the movie.

This morning the Australian The Vine website launched a third clip from the film entitled "I allow it" featuring the Harrison and Kirk detention cell interchange - UPDATE it's now live on Paramount's YouTube channel! Just for you, here's the direct link through to watch what will be termed as "Clip 3"!

Finally we get to see some decent levels of Harrison posturing and rumbling. Kirk has, for some reason not killed him and this is a brilliant little interchange which IS POSSIBLY A LITTLE SPOILERY!!!! so beware - skip this paragraph if you wish!!!  

"Let me explain what is happening here...You are a criminal...I watched you murder innocent men and women. I was authorised to end you....and the only reason you are still alive is because I am allowing it so shut your mouth."

I'd suggest that this minute snippet is quite essential viewing as part of the whole film and really does give a huge suggestion of a potential plot-point - an interesting choice of clip to provide at this time. I won't reveal any more but it's a great scene which shows how dark, calm and intelligent Harrison really is. The emotions of Kirk against this sea of methodical tranquility is definitely a joy to watch and I look forward to seeing how this relationship pans out over two hours. The two of them seem to play off each other well as it becomes apparent that Harrison's surrender is part of a much bigger plan and something he has apparently been working on. I think it's actually fitting that we get this scene now as it harks back to the start of the campaign in December last year when we got our first official shot of Harrison in this very room. I really like Cumberbatch here; might we be hoping this isn't his only Star Trek appearance? Oh - 72...Nice line drop there. Also over on Bleeding Cool, they've spotted a few similarities to this scene and some other blockbusters...not sure that's a fair take but I can see where they've gone with this - the one-on-one testosterone moment that seems to be a popular plot-explaining moment.

"2-3, 1-7, 4-6, 1-1. Coordinates not far from Earth. If you want to know why I did what I did. Go and take a look..."

Screen-captured from Paramount International trailer

Finally, the ArcLight Hollywood (a 14 screen multiplex at 6360 Sunset Boulevard stuck up this stunning Star Trek Into Darkness collage - dribble. What a great promotion! I can spot three new additional images in there - the picture of the crew on the bridge (centre), Uhura (second down right) and Harrison seated at the command chair of (most likely) the USS Vengeance (second pic up bottom left).

trekmovie.com

I can now also confirm that Some Kind of Star Trek will be reviewing the new Revell USS Enterprise kit as soon as it is dispatched - this is news I've just received this morning and I'm fairly excited by this prospect. I look forward to getting it out of the box, built and written about!

As always, check back during the day for more updates as they come in (new clip please!!!) or look back over the last week of marketing by using the Countdown to Star Trek Into Darkness label below.

Coming Soon from Simon and Schuster

There's been a slight pause in the production line but +SimonandSchuster publishers have a few more Star Trek titles lined up over the next few months for us to get our teeth into.

Of course there's a little movie tie-in due for May as well. I'm looking forward to finding out if there are any additional scenes here as per previous screen to page adaptations with The Wrath of Khan and The Search for Spock being two of the more prominent in my mind.

Following on from his brilliant Allegiance in Exile, David R George III's Star Trek: The Fall: Revelations and Dust will hopefully be another irresistible page-turner. We'll be covering all of these (and hopefully more) before release to give you the best opinion before purchase. Here's the synopses as available with a few of my thoughts thrown in form good measure (plot details from www.startrek.com unless stated otherwise. Cover images supplied by Simon and Schuster).

May

Star Trek: The Original Series: The Folded World
Jeff Mariotte
ISBN 9781476702827 

En route to a diplomatic mission, the Enterprise receives a distress call from the USS McRaven. As the Enterprise approaches the area where the McRaven appears to be, the crew encounters an anomaly unlike anything they've ever experienced. Space itself seems inconsistent - warping; changing appearance. During the brief periods of calm, they locate the McRaven - along with other ships of various origins, all tightly surrounding and being held in place by an enormous unidentified vessel....

OK....hmmm. Doesn't this seem a little similar to the animated series episode The Lorelei Signal and the Star Trek: Voyager episode One Small Step? Or is it just me? Only a few weeks until this one comes out so I'm keen to find out what the twist is - also the McRaven looks like it's a Constitution Class ship if you analyse the cover a little. Spot the Romulan Warbird in there as well?

Star Trek Into Darkness
Alan Dean Foster

(23rd May 2013)
ISBN 9781471128899

No details currently available but let's hope it's a good transfer from screen to page. The last novelisation of a film I read was Star Trek: Generations by J M Dillard in 1994...so it's been a while.

July

Star Trek: The Original Series: The Shocks of Adversity
William Leisner
ISBN 9781476722405

Located far beyond the boundaries of explored space, the Goeg Domain is a political union of dozens of planets and races. When the USS Enterprise arrives in its territory to investigate an interstellar phenomenon, Commander Laspas of the Domain Defense Corps is at first guarded, then fascinated to discover the existence of an alliance of worlds much like his own and finds a kindred spirit in Captain James T. Kirk. When the Enterprise is attacked by the Domain’s enemies, crippling the starship’s warp capability and leaving its crew facing the prospect of a slow, months-long journey home, the Goeg leader volunteers the help of his own ship, offering to combine the resources of both vessels to bring the Enterprise to a nearby Domain facility to make the necessary repairs.

But what at first seems to be an act of peace and friendship soon turns out to be a devil’s bargain, as Kirk and the Enterprise crew learn that there are perhaps more differences than similarities between the Federation and the Domain. When the Goeg’s adversaries strike again, the Enterprise is drawn deeper and inexorably into the conflict, and Kirk begins to realize that they may have allied themselves with the wrong side…

This looks a bit different. Not necessarily the Enterprise in major danger as the crew in a powerless position and having to accept help to get back home. The alliance between Kirk and the Geog could be intriguing if Leisner examines the differences in character. I'm moderately interested here.

Star Trek: Enterprise: Rise of the Federation

Christopher L. Bennett

ISBN 9781476706740

A new nation has arisen from the ashes of the Romulan War: the United Federation of Planets, an unprecedented union of diverse species cooperating for the good of all. Admiral Jonathan Archer—the former captain of the Earth starship Enterprise, whose efforts made this union possible—envisions a vibrant Federation promoting galactic peace and a multi-species Starfleet dedicated to exploring strange new worlds. Archer’s former crew-mates, including Captain T’Pol of the USS Endeavour and Captain Malcolm Reed of the USS Pioneer, work with him to secure that bright future. Yet others within the Federation see its purpose as chiefly military, a united defense against a dangerous galaxy, while some of its neighbours view that military might with suspicion and fear. And getting the member nations, their space fleets, and even their technologies to work together as a unified whole is an ongoing challenge.

When a new threat emerges from a force so alien and hostile that negotiation seems impossible, a group of unaligned worlds asks Starfleet to come to its defense, and the Federation’s leaders seize the opportunity to build their reputation as an interstellar power. But Archer fears the conflict is building toward an unnecessary war, potentially taking the young nation down a path it was never meant to follow. Archer and his allies strive to find a better solution...but old foes are working secretly to sabotage their efforts and ensure that the great experiment called the Federation comes to a quick and bloody end.

Given that Enterprise missed a lot of opportunities due to a shorter run and some less than stellar episodes during that,  the novels appear to have expanded the story beyond the starship-crash of These Are The Voyages.... I've not read anything of Enterprise in novel-form so this will be a new frontier for my Star Trek reading experience and is probably the one I'm most fascinated by in prospect.

August

Star Trek: The Original Series: From History's Shadow 

Dayton Ward

ISBN 9781476719009

Set in the Original Series universe, this standalone story utilizes 1950's UFO paranoia, the Cold War, and the escalating "space race" of the 1960's as a backdrop for a Star Trek tale in a vein similar to that of the New York Times bestselling Eugenics Wars duology (Simon and Schuster press release)

2268: Following their encounter with the mysterious Gary Seven in the twentieth century, the crew of the USS Enterprise is startled by two intruders who have transported through space and time from Earth circa 1968. Incredibly, one of the infiltrators is a Vulcan, who asserts that he’s lived among Earth's population for over a decade. The other represents a little-known race and reveals to Captain James T. Kirk that she has spent that last twenty years working to bring about humanity’s destruction. It is then that Gary Seven’s young protégé, Roberta Lincoln, arrives seeking Kirk’s help.... 

1947: In the wake of the infamous “Roswell Incident” involving a crashed alien craft and beings from another world, Captain James Wainwright finds himself recruited as one of the first members of Majestic 12, a secret organization with two goals: Collect evidence of extraterrestrial activity on Earth, and develop strategies to combat alien invaders. And it is this very mission that will consume Wainwright’s life for the next two decades, driven by the knowledge that the danger is as real as the aliens living among us.... 

The cover is awesome and properly 1940's/50's retro. It's distinctly different to the usual artwork we get and is carrying the intended atmosphere from the pages within. It's time travel (again) but it seems that Ward is putting a spin on it so we'll see events in the 40's from that perspective rather than the crew of the Enterprise?

Given the information in the first paragraph here, could this not only be a sequel to Assignment: Earth but also to the Enterprise segment, Carbon Creek? Majestic 12 really sends a shiver down my spine. I'm thinking we'll see numerous links to Star Trek as Wainwright encounters them in different scenarios from the series? How many references to Little Green Men from Deep Space Nine do you think we'll get?!

September

Star Trek: The Fall: Revelations and Dust 

David R George III

ISBN 9781476722177

The Federation is rocked to its core as the Typhon Pact is suspected of being behind a barbarous act that shatters the fragile peace of the Alpha Quadrant. An original Star Trek novel, this is part of a five-book story arc that takes place over a sixty-day period, but it is not necessary to read each novel in order to follow the storyline, which involves all aspects of The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine universe.

No image available and I'm still looking forward to this one even though I've not read any of the previousThe Fall series. Anything that involves The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine and written by DRG III has to be a good one"

Star Trek Into Darkness: Marcus Approaches

Sulu and McCoy got their flashy character posters yesterday so this one was probably inevitable. 

Here's Carol looking as though she might be hunting through the corridors of a certain gigantic starship for a rogue Starfleet agent. I think that means we have posters for all the main cast now so there's bound to be another phase of the campaign starting this week. JJ is going for strong female characters in this movie with both Marcus and Uhura striking fearsome action poses in the marketing material.

We also gained a nice new piccie of Kirk and Spock in their dress uniforms (above) most likely after their initial observation mission which goes a little wrong on the Nibiru planet. These uniforms are certainly a lot better than the formal uniforms created for the Prime Universe!

Also some sad news that's not too much of a surprise this weekend from the mouth of one Brian Fuller - his Star Trek TV series won't be forthcoming soon. Will we get a new series this side of 2020? I would like to say yes however the harsh reality is that we're probably more likely to see a third and fourth movies from the Abrams stable before that happens.

As always this will be updated with info during the weekend - subscribe and you'll just get it sent to your inbox! You can also click on the Countdown to Star Trek Into Darkness label below to catch up on all this week's updates.

Big? No...THAT'S BIG: Starships Into Darkness

Star Trek Into Darkness: Where's Scotty?!

Picture from trekmovie.com

One more day struck from the countdown and just a few bits to highlight today.

Fearing that the marketing campaign is now veering in the direction of Scotty and Chekhov, John Cho's Sulu has managed to get himself a rather striking new character poster. Staring into the mid-distance on the bridge of the Enterprise it's probably one for a caption competition. I would run it but I've got nothing to give away as a prize. Sorry. I also think he needs to sort his priorities out - can't be sensible standing there posing and pondering the meaning of life when the bridge is exploding around you....

Just as the day in the UK was drawing to a close we were treated to a new McCoy poster as well. Different again, this looks more as though it's "set" during the early section of the movie with the good doctor attired in that rather fetching silver away mission suit. No fear, it's already on my Christmas list. It's a good shot although I'm not sure where it's supposed to be - is this just after he's clambered back onto the Enterprise after taking a running jump off the cliffs?

If you've got keen eyesight I'd recommend you get yourself over to Paramount Pictures UK and check out their Search for Scotty poster campaign which could win you tickets to the world premiere of Star Trek Into Darkness on May 2nd in central London. Find one of the Scotty posters before Harrison does, enter the code that's displayed into the site and you could be there for the Big Event. If you spot one of these, send me a picture or drop a link to it - I've only got the website one to go by and here it is so you know what you're looking for - if you find the locations start sharing them!!! Now this does suggest that the reason Simon Pegg's engineer wasn't prominent within the marketing so far was because of this new twist. Clever move, Paramount and it's keeping the promotional juggernaut in motion. 

Talking of that, now they've done Australia and Moscow, the Star Trek Into Darkness premiere machine is moving to the City of Love and Romance, Paris (pic below from Moscow from startrek.com). Over in the US there's also life being breathed into the campaign trail with these buildings (top) draped in fetching character posters ready for mid-May - no space for Spock here though however he is managing to show his face along with the plummeting Enterprise (below) on Time Square!!!

It's all getting very real now isn't it and not that long ago we were getting hot under the collar over some poster of Benedict Cumberbatch looking across a desolate city....still waiting for the Uhura/Harrison viral to hit the internet as well as some more character posters. Are we going to get any mega-surprises in the next few weeks? Has anyone uploaded anything to the #1701? Let me know your thoughts!

trekmovie.com

Just while we're looking at the immediate future, what's JJ going to be doing next? How is Star Wars going to affect his time with Star Trek? At the moment and according to this article on Hitflix he'll consider it at the least - but do you think the franchise could manage another change of director? I think we'd like to see him in a producing role at the very least but it can't be easy when you're in this much demand between the biggest two sci-fi/fantasy franchises in the known universe!

Picture from startrek.com

For those of you who like a good number crunch at lunch, here's the opening weekend figures from the Star Trek films courtesy of Variety magazine. There are expectations that the $70 million the 2009 reboot made will be blown wide open with $90 million from Star Trek Into Darkness. It's also got a PG-13 rating too as was expected. Means you can drag the kids along now with no excuses - some violence but that's what you'd expect! The big challenge will be to see how the film traverses the Atlantic as traditionally it's not done that well away from the USA - probably hence the Scotty marketing campaign (above).

If you like your Star Trek Into Darkness merchandise I can thoroughly recommend stopping by Cultbox and see if you can win yourself the Revell model kit of the new USS Enterprise from the movie. I think she's a beauty and would probably kill a few targs to get hold of one. All you'll need is a Twitter account, follow Cultbox on Twitter and retweet the following text: Follow @cultboxtv and RT for a chance to win a 'Star Trek' U.S.S. Enterprise model kit - Info: http://bit.ly/YYhWZ0 #TrekCB and you could be in with a chance!!! The winner will be selected at 11:59pm on Monday 13 May 2013.

Follow the Countdown to Star Trek Into Darkness label below to look back over the last few days of promotional materials

This will be updated during the day so check back!!!

Star Trek Into Darkness: Marketing Justice - now with added clips and virals

Finally we get to see some marketing material featuring Scotty and Chekhov.

Is this due to fan pressure or was this the intention all along? Probably a question we'll never get answered however it does cement the fact that for at least some of this film the young Ensign will be trading command yellow for support services red in another striking departure from the Original Series. Interestingly both the promo images of Simon Pegg as Scotty have him in that off-ship away-mission kit. The far left one seems to be aboard the Vengeance if I was to hazard a guess. Both this and the Chekov one seem to be more in line with the Kirk/Spock/Uhura/Harrison line that was released a while back rather than the more subdued cast shots we got earlier this week. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is a sign that their time in the shadows has come to an end and they'll be getting their fair share of attention.

In other news, Are You the 1701? has gone live (amazingly it's been active (dormant) since December 17th) with requests for fans to post images inspired by Star Trek or the future using #1701. I'm kinda disappointed that this is all it's being used for actually. I'd hoped for a lot more than that but that's what it is for now.  Some of the images/videos on there are decidedly un-Star Trek such as a pot of cress and a green light. I'm thinking they'll be getting someone to filter out the garbage at some point. Soon would be good. If you've registered you'll need to complete the process but that's fairly straight forward. The joyous thing about it is that if you're outside of the US or Canada then you might as well stick your finger in the wind and whistle because we're not invited to the party. Will there be a turnaround as there was with the mobile app after a short time? Not that the app works (as I've grumbled about previously). The site asks if you will be one of the "chosen few" (1701?) but what you're going to get if you win/get selected is a total and utter mystery....just make sure you're in the right country.

Wow - also - just managed to spot the Latin American TV spot (whhaaaaaat?) And it's going for a lighter tone with Kirk shooting their getaway ride in the opening segment of the movie. That is some weird beast and I doubt we're going to get to see a lot more of it than this seeing it meets the business end of Kirk's phaser. I believe the creatures they're running from are called the Nibiru. I've included the link to the 30 second clip below which gives us zip all else to get excited about. Thanks to trekmovie.com for pointing these out!!! 

Not only that but they're really ramping up the focus on Scotty and his little grey pal, Keenser with this post-titles clip of them having some downtime and doing it casual....stick with the trailer past the Star Trek Into Darkness caption! I didn't the first time!!! (Nice glasses for the guy far left don't you think - and right in the centre, a bottle of Bud....)

trekmovie.com

It was only a matter of time before we got a second one of these - Harrison's back with his own analysis of Spock this time. He's as scathing and rumbling as he was with Kirk but the benefit of this little viral is a few new shots of the XO fighting on Qo'nos as well as feeling a bit emotional. Additionally there's an extended sequence of the Vulcan science office running through the streets after Harrison an leaping oto that sky-bound contraption for a bit of fisticuffs. All seems to be too much for him so a good thing that Harrison's on hand to help him sort it all out. Why do I get the feeling that this guy is going to be getting right under the skin of the Enterprise crew right from the off?!

Here's a link to the latest viral - bit of a mad day for new stuff isn't it???!!! While I was bemoaning a lack of Harrison clips I'd kinda forgotten he's got a whole viral campaign going off in the background. This guy gives me shivers. Serious shivers. He's clearly analysing the characters which gives new viewers something to latch onto and reminds older viewers what is beneath the surface and motivates the crew. With Spock though a friend of mine noted he seems more irritated by the Vulcan than trash talking as he did against Kirk. We've now had HEART and MIND so I'm open to suggestions of what the (inevitable) Uhura one will be which will undoubtedly follow in the next few days...

This post will be updated during the day as I capture any more details on Star Trek Into Darkness. You can also refer to my previous blogs as we get nearer to launch date by clicking the Countdown to Star Trek Into Darkness label below.

We'll fit!!! Star Trek Into a Small Space

The onslaught of material from the new movie continues in what can only be described as the "Clips Phase" with the second in just three days.

This time it's off to Qo'nos for us to see Kirk, Spock and Uhura on their (apparent) mission to capture Harrison, chased at speed by one heck of an awesome looking Klingon Bird of Prey. That thing can sure pack a punch and looks like a true aerial predator with the some serious maneuverability to boot. It's a straight forward chase sequence and we've seen the "joke" of that little unarmed ship fitting more than once already. Cleverly it seems we'll just be getting longer clips expanded from trailer material rather than anything substantially new. However there is one thing this 61 second burst did make me ask -  I would like to know who the guy I clipped is (here, above)! Is he some sort of guide? Is it an Augment or a Starfleet commando; an associate of Harrison or even (gasp) a Klingon sans helmet?!

For those who would like to refer, here's the shot...

All that said, great to see another action sequence from the movie played out for us to enjoy (even at just over one minute). Still no sign of Harrison in these clips and once again more emphasis on the Kirk/Spock/Uhura trio that we got from the first clip - notice a theme starting to develop here already? Will it dominate the film as it is the previews? Loving the power of that Klingon ship and how it comes to a very bird-like screeching halt before getting squeezed to the size of a bar of latinum. Are those Klingon displays on the ship as everything is red rather than being sensual Starfleet blue. Also they're out of uniform so it can't be that above board and would a trip to the Klingons in this time frame be anything BUT hostile! I'm assuming they're borrowing this ship to fit in on the mission and avoid detection although it seems they're done a pretty poor job at it. The CGI is crystal clear and that's just the impression from the small screen. On a cinema screen and in 3D I can but imagine....!

Just a minor aside - I managed to get a glimpse of the Japanese third trailer thanks to http://trekmovie.com today. It's certainly heading for the more adult edge with the music and one additional line from Admiral Marcus in reference to the London bombing; ...for the sake of those we lost, we will run this bastard down... Aside from that there's not much difference apart from right at the end where we see the Vengeance falling to Earth just after a blink-and-miss shot of the Enterprise looking pretty battered. Interestingly this trailer does lean more towards this segment of the movie with even some of Harrison's dialogue seeming to be taken from scenes aboard the dreadnaught. I find it quite interesting that the Japanese trailer is ever so slightly different but the choice of music and micro-clip changes twists the focus more onto the Vengeance and the crash sequence almost from the off rather than any other aspect of the soon-to-be-released movie. In fact all the scenes in Starfleet where Harrison attacks are washed over in seconds before we focus on the chase to find the fugitive. Actually one more error as we do get one new image of a rank of assembled Klingons in battle armour looking like they're about to strike.

I'll leave you for now with this image of the stricken Enterprise taking a nose-dive. Not a metaphor for the movie I hope...Anyway, I think we'll be seeing something new every day now whether it's a photo, a clip or a poster. I have a significant media library building up on this one now!

Also managing to avoid any of those Aussie reviews. Glanced one and everything looks promising - apparently one of the great sci-fi movies of our time if it's anything to go by. Right, back off under the rock again for a bit...

You can see my thoughts on the first clip HERE and new posters as well as some musings on the USS Vengeance HERE

Images screen clipped by SKoST
Clip 2 Video from Hardy Schofield on YouTube