Journey to Picard: Short Trek's Children of Mars

Expectations for Picard are understandably high.

Now with Patrick Stewart's recent revelation that this show is definitely nothing like The Next Generation and that time has definitely moved on (and we mean on and offscreen), Children of Mars is our first, real non-trailer Star Trek that offers an insight into just what will be different about the new series.

Another sub-ten minute tale, Children of Mars contains only a few lines of dialogue early on as school pupils Kima (Ilamaria Ebrahim) and Lil (Sadie Munroe) briefly converse with their mother and father respectively who are both stationed on Utopia Planitia, Mars.

For those in the know, that name will immediately ring bells but for those new to the franchise, it's worth noting that this is one of Starfleet's major ship-building facilities and where the Enterprise-D was constructed. Nicely we've also got a few cool ship shots of the facility swung in here for good measure which should get anyone who's a starship fan into a right tizzy (see bottom!)

Set to a version of David Bowie's Heroes, we see the two girls are not the best of friends, causing each other no end of pain and trouble culminating in an intense fight.

Children of Mars is a beautifully made short, documenting two children from very different backgrounds and cultures with very different relationships with their distant parents. What you do come to see is that both are initially loners, outsiders who aren't "in" possibly due to their absent parents and almost seem to take pride in causing anguish for the other as a form of personal entertainment.

The fight is their Waterloo if you will, a breaking point at which they realise they are potentially more alike than they would readily admit. While the looks from one to another suggests they regret their violent actions, it is an offworld incident that truly draws them together in the closing seconds.

All credit to the two girls here as they have a range of emotions to play out visually with absolutely no words to fall back on to explain their motives and actions. Also to be the focus of an Earth-based Star Trek short that is once more outside the main story is a gem to add context and body to the larger universe which this Kurtzman era seems very focused and dedicated to nurturing. In fact, this marks possibly the biggest step away from the main body of story with only a brief shot of Jean-Luc Picard to tie it in to the upcoming show with any certainly.

We knew that Picard would open our eyes to a different Federation just as the 900 year time jump will do for Discovery and here in Children of Mars we have another twist to the story which explains some of the material we have seen in the trailers and comes totally from left field. Plus, we all noticed the "First Contact Day" celebration banner in the school? How great was it to see a major historical event tied in?!

Mars is attacked by what the news footage refers to as "Synths" leaving at least 3000 dead on the red planet. This may well refer to the "F-8" we saw in the first teaser and may well rope the Borg as well as Data, Lore and B-4 into the Picard story. It's a huge, unforeseen kick and one that sits between this and when we will next see Picard. I'd lean towards this theory rather than these are "reformed" Borg on a rampage and would indicate that humanity's search for android perfection has gone off the scale in the wrong direction.

In fact, it's not hard to see since Admiral Picard's reaction is recorded in the FNN news footage which also contains some shots of attacking ships we have seen in the trailers.  Children of Mars is an absolute kicker, turning our expectations over and revealing that the Federation is not in as rosy a state as we might have thought - and might even be in the first stages of crumbling to the form we have seen it in during the Discovery trailer.

There has to be a link into the inclusion of Alison Pill as a character here too since she is an expert in cybernetics and this story easter egg also adds weight to just why Picard is having visions of Data and visiting the boxed up B-4 (or Lore?). 

For the time being, Children of Mars has become one of the furthest points of continuity in the Star Trek universe behind the destruction of Romulus in flashback during the 2009 reboot and Calypso from last year's four shorts - but this will be eclipsed in a matter of 13 days with the premiere of Picard on January 23rd.

Go watch this one as soon as possible because it's going to be the last, big precursor to the new series especially with the news that issue three of the Picard: Countdown graphic novel has been delayed until the 29th January and therefore after the series has premiered...now why might that be....secrets revealed too early perhaps...?

Utopia Planitia with two distinct new starship classes front right and left. The docks appear to be an upgrade of the version seen at the end of Nemesis.

Earth shuttleport - the shuttle looks suspiciously like a refresh of the Discovery shuttle.

Synth ships attack Utopia Planitia (note the label bottom left)

Welcome to Picard!!! What are your thoughts on the latest Short?

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A Bold Frontier to Explore: The Animated Short Treks

I wasn’t expecting much from the last of this batch of Short Treks but my under-expectation has been trounced with over delivery. 

Launching on the same day, Ephriam and Dot and The Girl Who Made the Stars represent a daring and brave move from the Star Trek Universe, offering up the first animated instalments since the revered series of the mid-1970’s and its first CG stories EVER. 

Tonally the two are chalk and cheese with one airing towards an element of slapstick comedy with an emotional end kick directed by Star Trek composer Michael Giacchino while the other boasts a tale of legend and adventure wrapped within a bedtime story from writer Brandon Schultz and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi.

I want to tackle Ephriam and Dot first. I was absolutely blown away by this one. It tells the story of a female Tardigrade and how her life is entwined with the USS Enterprise from the first season of The Original Series through to her fiery demise above the Genesis Planet.

Containing barely any dialogue (and any there is, it’s taken from classic episodes), the seven minute story takes us chasing through future history to catch the starship at various points in its famous lifespan.  The animation is crisp and colourful, matching the smattering of slapstick comedy sprinkled into the story in almost a cat and mouse game between the tardigrade and a Dot-9 repair unit. 

While the story has a happy ending which might even draw a speck of a tear, the pace of this short is incredible as we are bounced from one event to another there are a few "issues" we have to address.

Firstly, the events from Star Trek history play out in the incorrect order - Khan, Tribbles, The Naked Time - didn't happen like that and shows a worrying level of disregard and lack of basic knowledge of the source materal. This is "corrected" as we spin past Apollo's green hand, the Doomsday Machine, the Tholians and Abraham Lincoln. No sign of V'Ger as we skip to the Mutara Nebula and then onto Genesis - where the Enterprise is inexplicably labelled as NCC-1701-A and sent fandom into an animated meltdown. 

Now normally errors wouldn't bother me but this is inexcusable and downright lazy. In fact I'd go as far as saying it's on the verge of ruining the fine work put into making this such a damn enjoyable piece of Star Trek. It proves the format still works but the inconsistency is almost a raised mid-digit to the fans and for some might just add fuel to the fire that the current administration don't give a damn about canon and 50 years of universe building.

I love the concept and the humour here; it really works and is Star Trek that might appeal to a far younger audience than ever before and if it does then it has absolutely succeeded as a test bed for future projects (which I fully believe that the shorts should be to gauge audience engagement) but for older and more established fans it may have missed the mark because of the lack of attention to detail.

Over with The Girl Who Made the Stars we have a very different style of animation. It's darker in tone, following a more recognisable narrative structure with Michael Burnham's father telling her a bedtime story of a brave young girl.

An inspiring and empowering tale, the visual quality of this one is stunning. The CG is gorgeous with the young Burnham all wide-eyed in awe and fascination as she "plays" the lead character in the tale (eagle-eyed will notice she's in bed with a cuddly tardigrade...nudge nudge...!). This is a journey, again a direct contrast to the previous Short Trek, providing a spotlight on a key character in the franchise at an unexpected moment in her life. 

There is a nice twist to the story (which I won't ruin) but where this one wins against the more colourful, lighter Ephriam and Dot is that it offers something a little more mature, more shadowy and a little bit more what I would term as traditionally Star Trek in the way it is presented. It's a coming of age piece that also offers positivity and inspiration (perhaps) to a younger audience once again and also demonstrates that Star Trek can do a broad range of material using this medium rather than relying on live action alone again and again.

The Girl Who Made the Stars looks great, narrates perfectly and feels incredibly solid. There is an alien aspect to it, there is a space link but for me it's more about an overall experience with this short, there's almost a sense of something quite personal. Maybe its only shortcoming is that it isn't something I would usually class as a Star Trek story BUT that's the quirk of the shorts - they can go a little off track and do something we wouldn't expect thus expanding the Universe that extra few inches to help round out the overall vision. 

Did you enjoy this time's shorts? What has been the highlight of these latest six?

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Tough Decisions: Short Trek's Ask Not

Would you disobey an order?

Cadet Thira Sidhu is challenged with that very question when Starbase 28 is suddenly attacked and an in custody Captain Christopher Pike is handed to her to guard.

Clocking in at under ten minutes, Ask Not is the shortest Star Trek instalment ever but that can't take away from the more than welcome return of Anson Mount alongside Amrit Kaur's green cadet. Also, for those of you wondering, it's a clip from a John F Kennedy quote; "Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your country." which was part of his inauguration of 21 January 1961.

The premise is simple - does she release Pike from his restraints so he can "help" combat the attack or does she stand firm because he's been charged with mutiny and as such holds no power of rank? 

Kaur holds her own valiantly here with the moral decision that could ultimately decide her career in Starfleet. For anyone with a modicum of sense you'll spot something close to a Kobayashi Maru scenario right away.

Ask Not beautifully plays these two characters in a tight, confined space with each trading regulation and right  - Pike citing that he needs to regain command because the Enterprise has tactical superiority (a point "later" made by Janeway in regards to the USS Equinox's position versus Voyager) or that he can be reinstated by an active officer given circumstances.

However Sidhu remains firm, counters Pike and sticks to her guns in a very quickfire event which is almost over before it's even started. For a short story there's a lot of background, event and sparring crammed into the ten minutes of film and I also think this is one worth a second viewing just to catch all the rules and regulations plus the offence and defence of the conversation.

Ask Not isn't one of this generation of Star Trek's pinnacles but it does satisfy fans' hunger to see Anson Mount turn out as Captain Christopher Pike one more time and remind us all just why there's that demand for a Pike/Spock/Number One series sooner rather than later. Plus, if we've learnt anything from Short Treks it's never underestimate how they will all link in to later series or episodes...still looking at you Calypso....

Next month - December 12th - TWO Short Treks with Ephraim and Dot and The Girl Who Made the Stars...

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Short Treks: Q&A and The Trouble with Edward

After successfully keeping our attention on the franchise between seasons one and two of Discovery, Short Treks returned in October to satisfy our hunger for new content ahead of Picard in January 2020.

What better way to kick off this series of six 15 minute stories than with one of the most popular elements of Discovery’s sophomore year in Ethan Peck’s Spock and Rebecca Romjin’s Number One. 

The premise covers Ensign Spock’s first day on the USS Enterprise, reporting to Number One - and then proceeding to get stuck in a turbolift. Ok, its an old story trick - confine two characters in a small space and let them talk and in this case it’s even more interesting because Spock took on a lot of Number One’s emotional character traits for the second commissioned pilot and beyond back in the 1960’s. 

These two characters have a lot in common and this is played out almost straight off the transporter pad with Romjin’s character pushing Spock to ask questions. Her computer-like mind is akin to the Vulcan’s and their confinement in the turbolift gives the pair a chance to see the similarities and realise for a moment that Number One might have bitten off more than she can chew. 

Spock is certainly thorough in his line of investigation leading to both characters in fact acting out of character for a moment. While welcoming back Spock and Number One was something we were clamouring for (as well as Anson Mount’s exceptional Chris Pike), the inclusion of a Gilbert and Sullivan rendition might have just been pushing us to the limit - and there are many of us still in counselling after Insurrection’s HMS Pinafore. 

Here’s the thing; at this point the two have realised how they are both in control of their emotions, exuding logic at every occasion and remaining absolutely to the letter on rules and regulations and at ease with strict routine and organisation. For one minute in the presence of the other they are able to have a release that can never be spoken of and sort of explains Spock’s apparent emotions during The Cage. 

Number One at this time is more in control, more heavily restricted and potentially provides support to the young ensign in terms of emotional control. This is the youngest we have seen Spock; Q&A is very effective, simple and straight to the point but that musical rendition still, even with me trying to justify it, seems very out of place. 

Released on 12th October, The Trouble with Edward is a huge Marmite of an episode. Pike is back to send Captain Lynne Lucerno (Rosa Salazar) off on her first command aboard the USS Cabot. 

What appears to initially be a routine science mission is turned upside down thanks to Lieutenant Edward Larkin (H Jon  Benjamin) and his discovery of the Tribbles. Initally there is the suggestion to use them as a food source however Lucerno redirects Larkin’s efforts towards the mission. 

This however drives the scientist against the captain’s wishes as he increases the Tribbles’ reproductive abilities, leading to them, unsurprisingly for us veteran Trekkies, overwhelming the ship and leading to the end of Lucerno’s first command after just two weeks.

The Trouble with Edward is played for humour with Larkin’s head to head with Lucerno being a particular highlight. H Jon Benjamin is excellent as the insubordinate lieutenant. I can see where the hints of Reg Barclay have been suggested with Larkin disobeying orders to work on the Tribbles rather than the work that the crew is meant to be pursuing.  

He’s not your typical Starfleet officer, attempting to spread discontent and believing his own self-importance and brilliance above everyone else.  His incompetence ultimately destroys the Cabot, but its not without a bit of tongue in cheek humour to line up aside this shoehorning origin story.   Advances in technology definitely help to emphasise the Tribble menace with their final, explosive breeding expansion right to the doors of the escape pod being particularly effective. 

However.... the explanation of their origin as just pretty boring if cute balls of fluff with a meaty core is a bit puzzling. How did Kirk and the Enterprise crew not know about them and their appetites and reproductive agility? How did they not know that this was a creature that could breed at such a ridiculously alarming rate that had been meddled with by Starfleet?  This makes absolutely no sense given the severity of their offspring-popping. 

It’s an entertaining 15 minutes and one of the most comedic segments of the latest age of the franchise but don’t look too deeply as it doesn’t quite make sense why Starfleet would bury all information on them (unless they were just damn embarrassed that one of their number was responsible for their genetic alteration!) I thoroughly recommend sticking around for the post-credits advert set aboard the USS Ravenous - a highlight without question but one more piece to 100% take with a pinch of salt...but not a Tribble (and read the small print in the pic below...)

Strangely both of the most recent Short Treks have chosen to travel a more light hearted path than anything we have seen from the franchise in the Kurtzman era. Perhaps a respectable choice in hindsight to the rather serious and at times almost pitch black first two seasons of Discovery.

Picard too appears to be treading a similar serious path and its refreshing to see that Star Trek can still afford not to take itself far too seriously. On many occasions the franchise has nearly disappeared up itself in heavy political statements and instalments like this remind us that it does have a heart after all. Honestly, it does and its here for us all to see.  

A good pair to kick us off into the next phase of Star Trek’s evolution which makes me hungry for more...content that is and not Tribble cereal even if the fun never stops...!

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SDCC - Discovery

You might be forgiven that Lower Decks and Picard overshadowed the news from the Discovery camp however it probably had more to announce than the other two combined.

As you may remember (SPOILERS) the crew have now jumped around 1000 years into the future to secure the data contained within Discovery's computers which will mark a major change in the direction of the show for its third season.

SDCC revealed that the crew may not have all ended up in the same place and that Terralysium wasn't their final destination. The cast itself will be adding David Ajala as Cleveland Booker who will be setting the cat amongst the pigeons (shake things up) with his arrival. 

Several new shots from filming in Iceland had emerged since SDCC but plot details other than the new arrival in the cast and that it's going to be in the far flung future have been kept a close secret. The only thing I can be almost certain of is that it'll pick up right after Such Sweet Sorrow since Burnham is still in the Red Angel suit.

That said, the Short Treks will be returning with six new adventures to bide us over until there's new Discovery. To our delight these will feature Pike, Number One and Spock with the trailer confirming this straight off. There will be three live action shorts featuring the trio plus two animated shorts and a final one which will spin into Picard.

Now it also appears that the two animated shorts will not be in the style of Lower Decks but will instead focus on Discovery to answer some questions left over from season two. The six announced titles are... 

The Girl Who Made the Stars

I'd suggest this is the one in which Pike is captured and attempting to escape. His cellmate seems to be a Starfleet officer too but is unwilling to help. More of the trailer is devoted to the following pair...

Q&A

Money's on this one being the Ensign Spock and Number One discussion in the turbolift. Trailer details for this show the pair stuck in the transport tube just as Spock comes aboard for the first time. All sorts of questions - what OS does the ship run and most importantly, does Number One like eggplant? I would see this as being the highlight of the six even if the stuck-in-alift trope is a very old and well used one. 

The Trouble with Edward

The trouble with...tribbles? Man-eating ones at that if the trailer is to be believed with a whole pile of them devouring an individual. One lab breach later and they're all over the ship featured although that doesn't seem to be the Enterprise as there's a different captain at the head of the conference table and this might be whom Pike is speaking to right at the end of the minute and a half clip compilation. There's some interesting shots in here - the floor of Tribbles in the corridor, a girl bizarrely devouring a small furry tribble...could be a first diversion into mild horror/comedy?

Ask Not

Possible animated short - no footage of either animated installment was shown.

Ephaim and Dot

As previous - suspect it's the other animated short.

Children of Mars

Might this be already filmed and ready to go as a tease in to Picard or is it going to be aired after season one closes out? Given the secrecy around the show I'd rather not put money on any option here.

The variety of the Short Treks is incredible, hopefully explaining loose ends, offering up new ways of telling Star Trek stories and even perhaps laying foundations for the next big thing from the franchise. They provide a snapshot of the universe and if there's anything to learn from the initial group of four we had during the Discovery season one/two gap, it's to expect the unexpected and that everything, no matter how insignificant or off the wall, might actually have a goddamn point for being there - even if we're categorically told that it doesn't!!!

What do you think to the new Short Treks and what would you like to see from them?

Catch up on our three SDCC 2019 posts HERE

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Dangerous Contact: An Obol to Charon S02 E04

The long awaited arrival of Rebecca Romjin’s Number One might have been substantially overmilked in what was otherwise a damn fine episode of Discovery.

On the hunt for the shuttle-stealing Spock, Discovery gets cornered by a huge alien creature that plays havoc with the ship’s systems and counting down to destruction. While all this is going on, Saru is fighting off a virus which, he later reveals, is terminal. Elsewhere we have Stamets, Tilly and a returning Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) dealing with the creature from the mycelial network.

Let’s start at the beginning. Number One’s appearance is pretty cool if brief, serving as a plot mover more than anything else. We get very little character in the few moments she has with Pike and I think it will be a lost opportunity if she doesn’t turn up again to fill us in on the repair work aboard the Enterprise. Lovely little twist around the removal of the holographic comms systems that are causing havoc with Pike wanting to go back to using monitors. Nice ret-con there.

The episode has some cracking twists beginning with a malfunctioning universal translator causing all sorts of havoc as the crew try to work out what an apparently malevolent alien creature wants with the Discovery. The effects of this alien are overwhelming and what seems to be three unconnected storylines actually all intertwine. Let's take Stamets/Tilly/Reno first.

The sparks do fly quite quickly between Stamets and Reno in the engineering bay with some quality bickering that Spock and McCoy would have been proud of. Due to a change in circumstances though as the mycelial creature escapes and reattaches itself to Tilly they set aside their rather engaging differences at a frighteningly rapid pace to save the day. 

Notaro is on excellent form as the rather casual engineer contrasting brilliantly against Stamets' much more prim and proper approach to his job but their partnership could well be one of the season's best character highlights and is an amusing aside to the plot. Mary Wise gets to play an even more nervous and distracted Tilly here with one chilling point backed with a rendition of David Bowie's Space Oddity that might rank as one of Star Trek's most unsettling. Cleverly there's a double ending to this piece of the episode which means that this creature which joy-rode back from the Mirror Universe is set for another guest appearance next week. 

It is a real emotional rollercoaster with Saru providing the real kick to the episode.  Starting out with just a cold at a staff meeting (welcome back to the Saurian Linus by the way) the Kelpien's health rapidly deteriorates over the course of the story and while we as the viewer might realise that the intervention of the alien creature and Saru's ailment are linked pretty soon into the action, Doug Jones is a true tour de force here as the weakened Saru. 

It truly does seem that all is lost with Saru ultimately giving in to the belief that he will die and invokes the desire to be killed by Burnham. We learn a lot about the Kelpien here and while we were led to believe that the Short Treks were to be totally standalone, The Brightest Star  now seems deeply linked into the events of the season with Saru's homeworld and his reasons for not being able to return now featured in two episodes from the four released.

The predatory Ba'ul have worked a treat over the Kelpiens making them believe that once the illness takes hold it's game over but ultimately it turns out that the result of the Vahar'ai (had to Google it) actually means that his threat ganglia drop out and shrivel up and also relieve him of his inbred fear.

Ok, so this does effectively remove one of the key factors that made Saru right from the first episode but it opens up a whole new perspective on the Kelpiens and just what this revelation - that the Ba'ul had been lying - could mean for his future actions. Jones is mesmerising as Saru right from the start here and working in not just the facial but upper body prosthetics for such an emotional scene is mind-blowing. Both he and Sonequa Martin-Green smashed it out of the park here and for a second I didn't know which way this was going. 

Online it seems there's a lot of thought that both this and New Eden are trying to tread the "proper" Star Trek path but for me the second episode of the season still just doesn't quite work. An Obol for Charon on the other hand is superb. Full of character, packed with emotion and all with a recognisable tale around first (or is it?) contact shows that Discovery really does have a heart and has learnt from the action heavy first season. It can have its moments of being new and different to the series before but this proves that it is Star Trek at its core and slips Saru into being one of the franchise's best creations. 

Episode four opens even more doors for the season to explore and doesn't appear to have shut any at all. The chase to catch up with the errant Spock is still on and actually assisted by the alien that stopped Discovery in its tracks. Saru's life has changed forever (still not sure if this is a good move so early into the show's lifetime) and Tilly is literally in it up to...well..here.

This year is offering up a much wider diversity of stories and character points than season one while not really focusing on the Red Angel story so far. It appears that the show has taken a good look at its predecessors and seen what made them great - it's not all about battles and explosions and with An Obol to Charon we have what could well be one of the best episodes of Discovery that will ever be made. A new classic for a new generation if ever there was one.

How do you rate the fourth episode of Discovery's new season?

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Out and About with The Escape Artist

The Short Treks have reached their end with the return of one Harcourt Fenton Mudd.

Now I never "got" the character back when he was played by Roger C Carmel thanks to the poor attempt at humour that surrounded the two episodes in which he appeared but the reinvention of the role from Rainn Wilson has been eye-opening and fantastically watchable in every way. 

To be graced with 15 minutes purely on this individual is more than welcome in a story directed by Wilson himself and written by future Lower Decks creator Mike McMahan. It's absolutely spot on, giving us a much lighter instalment and spinning off in a new direction. If there's something to be said for these bites of Trek its that each one has had a very distinct identity with, ironically the two featuring characters away from the main cast probably being the strongest.  

Captured by a Tellarite - yep, we’ve delved into The Original Series canon again - Harry Mudd is on his way into the hands of Starfleet for a substantial bounty. As the story develops we see how he has used the approach several times on other parties with, you would guess, some modicum of success.  Fortunately the more humorous aspect of the narrative is subtlety downplayed and there's a noticeable absence of comedy incidental music which usually confounded an event in a Mudd episode. Wilson is just as loud and cunning as before in the role with the Tellarite captain, a Klingon, the Orions (rather shocking!) and another undetermined alien bounty hunter all playing supporting roles as we explore his murky past and difficult situations. 

The script is rather sparkling and of the four this is the one which seems to have the most life and spring to its step. Wilson's energy as Mudd leaps off the screen reinforcing just why he was such a big part of season one and therefore deserved this return to the Star Trek universe. Gifted with a silver tongue he might be but it's pretty much the same routine every time!

The trouble with The Escape Artist doesn't come from the bulk of the story which works very well but from the ending. While it is a playful twist which does also tip the hat to I, Mudd, it all doesn’t make a whole heap of sense when you put it together. If these were androids given just enough programming to fool his captors for a short time where are these flashbacks coming from? Are they indeed flashbacks or are they instances of other replicas of Mudd being captured and taken to Starfleet? 

Either way it doesn’t quite compute. Sipping jippers or not, these recreations are just too advanced in some respects but then totally downplayed in their abilities by the conclusion. If you do step over this bit of the script its incredibly enjoyable and makes perfect sense that Mudd would want to divert attention away from himself to continue his nefarious activities.

Of the Short Treks this is probably number two in my list with Calypso still being the one to beat and also being one of Discovery's best moments to date. The news is that the Short Treks tag will be living on with the second animated show - but could it be used on all the new series to add in extra bits here and there and expand that galaxy we talked about the other day even more?

With Short Treks the Kurtzman stable can experiment with different characters, reuse sets (which they did in abundance with The Escape Artist, Calypso and Runaway) plus add new angles to existing characters, do things that can remain unconnected to the main shows but still be canon and, as demonstrated here, be successful and not be a Starfleet episode in almost any way.

Was The Escape Artist your sipping jipper or something else? Best of the four? Let us know below and if you've enjoyed the read, why not share us!!!

You can check out the other Short Trek reviews HERE

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