Revealing Kitumba

The first day in January was set as the premiere day for the latest of the Star Trek: Phase II stories but being the good souls that they are, we got it a little earlier on New Year's Eve.

Dutifully we dropped it around our networks as many other blogs and site did and I slotted in some time to sit down and watch this hour and a bit long episode. After all, this episode has been in Development Hell for what, four years? Jeez. That's a long time to wait for some new material but let's avoid all the background rumbles and focus on what we get to see.

As always please be aware that the following MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS so don't say we haven't warned you. See, we just have. In Bold RED text too so it's unmissable...

Oh and just for the record, this week I was talking to one of my co-contributors and here's the conversation (abridged):

Mark: So, well, I tried to watch that new episode of Phase II the other day...

Clive: Cool! What did you think? I've still got to watch it.

Mark: Erm...I kinda started watching it and then, erm, gave up after about two minutes. I was never the greatest fan of The Original Series....

Clive: Oh. Right....

As you can see I wasn't getting a good vibe. Mark only managed two minutes? Uh oh. This was not looking at all good. Nevertheless I persevered and, securing an hour to stick YouTube through the TV I knuckled down.

So Mark - you should've stuck with it and I'm going to use this post to prove just why your two minutes wasn't enough.

Kitumba is one of THE mythical Star Trek stories that never made it from the page alongside Blood and Fire. We all know it was among the first 12 scripts for Phase II back in the 1970's and would have been a two part story. In fact it would have been one of the highlights of the never-made first season. Here, most likely due to budget and time, it's trimmed back into a one hour and five minute episode and they've done it justice.

The Phase II crew really are mashing up the realms of the motion pictures and The Original Series with both "types" of Klingons along with their different dress styles. Managing to reference back to the Augment virus is a big help as the series begins to make transitions towards the feel of the six classic bigger screen outings yet retaining a wonderful feel of the 23rd Century as envisaged in the 1960's.

The Klingons themselves receive an immense amount of flesh on their backstory here. The concept of honour, the House system and the political makeup of the Empire are all addressed here and you can see how it effectively bridges the generations by taking the Enterprise to Qo'noS. At the heart of the story is a potential attempt to cause a coup which focuses on several key members of the race, the Sacred Leader, the Kitumba, his teacher K'Sia and rallying against them most dishonourably of course, General Malkthon. It's excellently paced from start to finish and I would have had trouble seeing it in it's original two part form. It works very well being slightly extended just over that hour mark.

For anyone familiar with the world of The Next Generation and The Undiscovered Country this actually answers a few questions - but not as many as you might be asking about ten minutes in around the Klingon hierarchy. Bear with it because it all gets unravelled and makes total sense by the time the strains of the closing credits theme are running through your speakers. The costumes particularly for the well-meaning Klingon defector Kali are wonderful (if a little baggy!) and you'll have this nagging feeling you've seen something like it before. Yes - you have. 

The Kitumba is a bit of a spoiled brat role which is nicely played by Kario Pereria Bailey and certainly shows a progression of growth through the story. Malkthon though is a almost a pantomime villain at times and I did expect some mustache twirling at times. However, saying that it is a wonderful role to chew out everything around him although some fans might be more familiar with actor Vic Mignogna as Captain Kirk in Star Trek Continues.

I have to commend the team working on Kitumba because the sets are simply magnificent, transcending time almost with updated computer displays dotted in among the distinctly retro-feel technology of the classic Enterprise bridge or briefing room. At times I genuinely couldn't believe I was watching a fan-made production because the set-up was so good. Yes, there's some slightly hammy accents in there (Scotty for one) but luckily that's outweighed by some great performances elsewhere. 

James Cawley, in his final appearance as Kirk, seems to have channelled just a smattering of Shatner in there for good measure but still keeps this Kirk as his own interpretation and I think makes the captain a touch stronger and more believable than before. Spock and McCoy aren't around that much if I'm honest and both actors, Brandon Stacey and John M Kelley respectively do fine jobs of the parts. Personally I think Stacey is a much better fit for Spock than Jeffrey Quinn. Nothing against Quinn but the nuances of the Vulcan seem to suit the "newer" Spock just that little more comfortably.

Jonathan Zungre as Chekov, Kim Stinger as Uhura and Bobby Quinn Rice as Peter Kirk actually share a lot more of the limelight with Kirk especially during the away mission to the Klingon homeworld as the story develops and hold the show together very well. I found their scenes very easy to watch and certainly it's a group that has developed over time and through several key personnel changes.

While we're talking of cast it's not only a pleasure to see Kirk's nephew Peter on the ship as part of security (yep a redshirt), but also the full Vulcan Xon on the bridge. While it's definitely showing the tip of continuity it's a shame we all know where this character is going to end up. Talking of cast - guest stars - wow. These guys can pull them in. In the past they're featured many legends of sci-fi and Star Trek most notably both George Takei and Walter Koenig (and that's only two). Here we get both franchise design master Andrew Probert and Buck Rogers himself Gil Gerrard early on as Starfleet admirals.. How Phase II got them I'll never kno The quality clearly speaks volumes that means these types of reverred actors want to be involved. It's a big bonus that shows the calibre of fans this show has garnered since its premiere. Take a look at their site for the full list!

The only thing that I could really quibble with is one fight scene towards the conclusion. Everything goes really well to this point; theres great dialogue, tightly directed scenes, mind-blowingly big crowd scenes (those Klingons ain't CGI my friends) and a captured essence of The Original Series of which Roddenberry would be proud. So why oh why is such an important sequence at such a late stage in Kitumba, which has been totally serious and played straight since the first second played slightly for laughs reminiscent of The Trouble with Tribbles?! Fortunately the rest of the episode kept me so glued that I'm almost happy to overlook it but for some it might tip them the other direction. Perhaps a slight misstep in an otherwise brilliant outing.

So we can nail on about great performances but there's more to Kitumba than that. At times I was reminded of Babylon 5 in the way it was filmed and the feel of the sets to some degree (it too had somewhat limited funds) but also the way in which CGI is so magnificantly utilised. I was expecting some form of sets by Bacofoil and starships by Kelloggs but this almost made me lick the TV in Enterprise Envy. The work here by Tobias Richter is staggering by any standard. No more is the Klingon fleet a series of blips on a sensor screen; they are there to be seen whether Birds-of-Prey or battle cruisers, all are immaculately rendered and just lift this production to another level. Seeing a firefight between the Klingons and the TV Enterprise cannot but make your day once you've seen it - and that's not even halfway through. There's more after that. Perhaps some of the more clever moments are the starships in the Qo'noS sky that are occasionally glimpsed or perhaps it's the recreation of a slightly-busier-than-we-remember K-7 space station as the titles roll. Whatever it is, you have to see them.

The music too adds a ton of weight to the experience. Drawing on the classic incidental score and theme there is no doubt where this series is throwing it's weight. It adds to the sense that this is fully in keeping with the feel of the 1960's show. Remember those end of act dah dah daaaaahs? Yep, they're here for you and a total pleasure it is to hear them over the fade out.

I have to say that having watched some of the earlier episodes, watching Kitumba, even for the music was such a dramatic difference. It's not as light nor is the "comedic" music from The Original Series used quite as heavily - nor do we have the occasional swing into the tones of The Next Generation as I noticed in the pilot episode recently. Indeed, Come What May is a slightly prophetic title now in hindsight as this is a show which has definitely come of age, matured and honed its brand if you will. 

The acting, effects and stories are much tighter and exceptional considering the restraints that the Phase II team must be under. It's a marvellous experience and ten years is like chalk and cheese. With the remastering that took place a few years back on The Original Series the mix of '60's style uniforms and sets doesn't seem out of place with the gorgeous CGI starships and scenes. Seemless. What's even nicer is that the stories themselves are getting better with this being a real tour de force for the Phase II production team. It has soul, adds background to the franchise and could easily fit into the canon universe - and that's probably the biggest issue. It never will be and that's a shame. We have JJ Abrams ramping up the big guns and the action heroes in the latest movies while attempts to bring back the essence of the Roddenberry vision have to skrimp and scrape a few dollars to make an hour of TV. That's not justice if you ask me.

So, Mark, if you are still reading and didn't give up after two minutes (!) I hope you'll take an hour our, plug YouTube through your tellybox and watch this story. As I've noted, it's a different ballgame to where New Voyages started and there are more than a few cringeworthy moments in those early shows but time and experience has ironed out the issues to make this a great fan-made series.

Best of all? We only have to wait for February for episode nine, The Holiest Thing, and not another near-five years and the trailer is already very tempting with the introduction of one Carol Marcus.....

You can follow the voyages by dropping by the Phase II website right now and learning more about the show. While you're there, watch an episode or eight...

All images reproduced by kind permission of Phase II

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Three in Three

This week has seen three birthdays associated with the Star Trek franchise.

The 6th saw another year through for Nog, Aron Eisenberg (44) while the 8th saw Michelle Forbes, aka Ro Laren, celebrating.

Both are key characters in the franchise and I have something planned in regards to Nog for the coming months. It would have been live today but there are other things to sort aside from writing on here! For the record Eisenberg played Nog right from Emissary through to What You Leave Behind as one of the recurring guest cast. His is probably one of the most developed and expanded roles that Deep Space Nine brought to the franchise taking him from medical supply thief to Starfleet officer and war veteran in seven years. Oh - and Aron even turned up in one episode of Voyager as a Kazon in season two's Initiations. All the (belated) best wishes!

Michelle Forbes also guested - but before she became Ro - in The Next Generation as Dara, the daughter of Doctor Timicin in Half a Life. That role helped secure the role of the Bajoran ensign who would appear sporadically through the fifth, early sixth and penultimate episode of the seventh seasons. While Forbes is reknowned for turning down the chance to move across as first officer on Deep Space Nine there were a few key moments that defined her, namely her first appearance which brought the Bajorans immediately springs to mind. I'd probably add her interlude with Riker in Conundrum into the mix and would absolutely add her swansong of Preemptive Strike in the top three. In the show we never got to find out if she was among the casualties when the Jem'Hadar wiped out the Maquis however the novel series has her back in Starfleet and most recently commanding the brand new Deep Space Nine station in The Fall.

The 7th however is probably the most interesting of the three as it would have seen the 90th birthday of Gene L Coon. While his link to Star Trek is solely in the realms of The Original Series if it wasn't for this man then the landscape of show may have been very different. Coon produced the show from Miri to Operation: Annihilate! and then Catspaw through Bread and Circuses. That's a pretty impressive resume to begin with however spin that just one step further - Coon was responsible for some of the biggest introductions and original "game changers" of the show. Ever.

Take a look at the list here (right) of his writing credits. Yes, some of them are teleplays (co-credited) but what a list to have your name on. You're the man responsible for bringing the Gorn, the Klingons , the Horta (in a frantic four day writing session), Zephram Cochrane and (take a breath), Khan Noonien Singh (version one) to the screen. The mind boggles at the genius that was and the mind that was lost so abruptly in 1973 at the age of 49. It's made even more tragic in the note that Coon only discovered he was terminally ill a week before his death.

He was offered a spot on The Animated Series  but declined and I would love to speculate what he would have brought to The Next Generation - might the Klingons have been more prominent in the first season? Would the Borg have become a lesser villain? Who knows. What we can say is that he was essential in shaping the franchise in it's formative years and for that we must thank him.

On a slight flipside however and under the pseudonym of Lee Cronin, Coon was responsible for some of the antics of the crew in season three. While budget restraints brought about the basic and unfinished look of Spectre of the Gun, there is little that can't - or hasn't - been said about Spock's Brain. It's a shame that such an episode does blot a phenomenal portfolio of stories that have become much lauded over time. Could you imagine Star Trek without Kirk fighting the Gorn on Cestus III? Neither can we. More than that, Coon's mind inadvertently meant that The Wrath of Khan would be made  when Nicholas Meyer chose Khan as an interesting villain to build a movie around. In turn that means we have to give Coon a nod when it comes to Star Trek Into Darkness as well. Not bad to think that his legacy has lasted since 1966 is it?

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Ensuring Dominion: Arise Big Threat

No other way about it; I am a bigger fan of the Dominion than I am of the Borg.

Which means that hitting the second season of Deep Space Nine meant I could hunt out those blink-and-miss references that pervaded the series and marked a brand new direction for the space station drama. First off it was rare for Star Trek to lay any kind of clues as to what might be coming in the future. The Original Series certainly avoided it and the only time The Next Generation attempted something along these lines was in The Neutral Zone and the lines referring to the attacks on the outposts which was intended as a nod to the upcoming Borg of Q Who?

Indeed these dropped lines have been used a lot and the two that I am most aware of would be the Shadows of Babylon 5 and more recently Bad Wolf in the first series of the relaunched Doctor Who. It's become a bit of a staple but I remember that I didn't even catch some of the references until I returned to the second season in the last few months.

The first line is in Rules of Acquisition where Quark travels to the Gamma Quadrant to do business. To acquire tulaberry wine the Ferengi must meet with the Karemma (whom we would see later in Starship Down)  and if you deal with them, you deal with the Dominion of which they are a part. Nice one liner, thrown in there and easily forgotten. In fact it wasn't until a few episodes later in Sanctuary that the senior officers first hear of the force on the other side of the wormhole and again it's done marvelously off the cuff as though we've known about this organisation all along. The Skrreea had fled through the wormhole after their homeworld was conquered by the Gamma Quadrant power, leaving them refugees.

While the Skrreea are a tragic civilisation it is an important note that the Dominion have displaced such a large number of people, demonstrating possibly their mercy as well as their might. A similar situation is suggested when Odo and Dax investigate a mysterious world in Shadowplay. Not only do we have a reference that Rurigan, the only person in the Yaderan village to be real, travelled there after his home planet was conquered but also the fact that the word "Changeling" is clearly known although putting the two pieces together would take until the beginning of the following year.

Notably the season is actually light on the references - the first forgettable but the later more prominent in the script. Babylon 5 more than slammed home the references to the Shadows in its first and second season but here the time between announcement and reveal seems about right. The only way that could be done is with the season finale and one of the episodes that can proudly wear a badge saying "Game Changer".

Let's set the scene a little before we talk about it.The Jem'Hadar aired on June 12th 1994 with The Next Generation's finale All Good Things... having only been premiered weeks before on May 23rd. In some respects the build up had to pay off here as for the first time since it's arrival, Deep Space Nine was on its own and would be until Voyager turned up in January of 1995. There was something for the episode to prove and make fans want to remain engaged with this more diverse offering from the Star Trek universe. This was the flagship now and there had to be a kick, something to draw in the attention; a viable threat to the stability of the Star Trek universe. A reason for its very existence.


Introducing both the Jem'Hadar and, although we don't appreciate it at this point, the supervisory Vorta replete with never-seen-again telekinetic powers. Also here the Jem'Hadar have black tubes for their ketracelwhite intake. By The Search these would have turned clear with the controlling substance pulsing through. Again it would take some time (The Abandoned) before we appreciated what that was all about. Their appearance and demeanour were set clearly from this point and even the suggestion that we might get to see a Klingon fight one was just another dose of temptation. Indeed, The Jem'Hadar is all about feeding fandom titbits of information and could-be's to build and secure the audience for season three. 

The key destruction of the USS Odyssey was not only that key game-changing moment when we realised that not even a Galaxy Class starship could strike fear into the Dominion but perhaps something of a salute to The Next Generation fans that the voyages of Picard and crew were over on the small screen. The Dominion were coming and through the actions of the Jem'Hadar and Eris (whatever happened to...) they were going to be a force that would pose a considerable threat. Maybe at this early stage of proceedings we didn't realise just HOW much of a threat. Could we have envisoned a galactic war or were our thoughts that it would all be over by the conclusion of the following year? That explosion and the suicide run still send a shiver down my spine two decades later. This was true danger and right on the doorstep; not everyone could blow up a Federation starship with such ease. I always manage a small chuckle when Captain Keogh expects the Dominion to have "sharper teeth" than the Maquis. Oh dear is he going to be proved right.

The Dominion themselves were the ultimate deep space gangsters when fully fleshed out. Here they simply seem to be brutal - the seemingly unstoppable edge of the Borg coupled with the individuality of the Klingons or the Romulans. That attack on the Odyssey would have been unthinkable from the Borg but here that pure drive is about winning no matter the cost. Enterprise tried something similar with the Xindi and effectively buried the show even though I personally felt the show got better in the last two years. Voyager meanwhile fell back on old faithful the Borg while also passing through Kazon, Hirogen and Vidiian space amongst others - here were several big evils rather than one. In the sense of nemeses Deep Space Nine here created a great that would affect and be referenced in the movies and later fiction - most recently in The Fall series.


The Jem'Hadar might not have had "cliffhanger" labelled on it and the traditional season-closing To Be Continued... tag but there was no question that the story here would have to be concluded and at the very least continued. The structure of the Dominion would be explained over the next few seasons and the Vorta cloning process would only arrive in season five with the second appearance of Weyoun but this was a story showing that there was real grit and danger in the Gamma Quadrant. The days of exploring and meeting cuddly aliens was over; now there would be a reason for heightened alert. Sisko's role as a builder would be truly explored and even deconstructed. 

In The Jem'Hadar it's just the beginning of that realisation for the commander (above) and it is he who will face the most changes following the events of the story. Initially it seems just a nice trip out to an uninhabited world and some father/son time but at that key moment where he and Quark finally start to talk the show is spun on its head and the real action begins. While Quark might bear a phaser rifle and the boys, Jake and Nog, come of age to some degree this is definitely all about Ben Sisko. As we see in season three he certainly handles change well.

Think of the change of direction that the introduction of the Dominion would bring about. The revelations of Odo's past, the arrival of the Defiant and later Worf, In the Pale Moonlight...I could go on and probably will in the next few months. While we'll look at the rest of season two another time it's important to appreciate how significant that final episode really was. 

The edge of the frontier was a lot sharper than we might have been led to believe and there was a lot more to the show than a lot of Bajoran religious mysticism, Quark's dodgy dealings and Bashir's overexuberance. For fans who had been watching from Emissary this was pay day. I personally felt that we'd been given a fitting end to the year which showed an abundance of promise and meant that my faith in continuing to watch Deep Space Nine had been vindicated.

Yet I've failed to answer that original point - better than the Borg? In my mind, yes. While Voyager diluted the lethal assimilators over the course of seasons four to seven when they should have stayed property of The Next Generation, the Dominion were solely the responsibility of Deep Space Nine. The show deserved this strength of enemy and used it in so many ways thanks to the layers of story that could be built in over six years, bringing in brilliant recurring characters such as the Female Shapeshifter and Weyoun. Remember as well that the Borg were focused on Earth but here everything was at stake. While Deep Space Nine might be noted as the dark, unloved child of the franchise, the Dominion were responsible for shaping the quadrant and therefore the Star Trek universe forever after.

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Deep Space Nine @21

You can also view our articles on Emissary and the first season of Deep Space Nine right now by clicking on the links. What are your thoughts 21 years on? Is it just as good, worse or better than ever?

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James Avery

With the passing of Joseph Ruskin only a few days ago, another actor who graced the Star Trek universe has departed.

Probably better remembered as Uncle Phil in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, James Avery passed away following complications during surgery on New Year's Eve.

Google images

Avery appeared during the fourth (and best) season of Enterprise as Klingon General K'Vagh in Affliction and Divergence which dealt with the Augment virus. Notably he also provided his voice to the cartoon series Gargoyles which featured a hefty number of The Next Generation cast. Interestingly Michael Dorn featured in that animated series - the man who beat Avery to the role of Worf.

James Avery's vocal talents didn't stop with Gargoyles though and among other roles I also recall him as the voice of Shredder in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon - a staple of my weekday afternoon kids television viewing in the late 1980's (da-da da-da da-da dah-da). That in turn means it's a good excuse to add in a relevant picture....

RIP James Avery.

Joseph Ruskin

Sadly the end of 2013 also saw the death of Star Trek actor Joseph Ruskin.

While most fans will immediately associate him with the role of Galt in the episode The Gamesters of Triskelion he has many more links to the franchise. 

His other more well-known role was of Tumek in The House of Quark and Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places (above) but there were also three lesser roles which saw Ruskin on screen.

He stepped into the shadows briefly to play Odo's Cardassian informant in Improbable Cause, portrayed a Sona officer in Insurrection, a Vulcan Master in Voyager's Gravity and finally took a turn in the Enteprise pilot Broken Bow as a Suliban doctor which means the only show he never touched base with was The Next Generation - well, not on TV at least. Still, this places him as one of the very few to have been onscreen with every generation even if not every series. When you consider that Majel Barrett only acted as a computer voice in Enterprise he might even out do her!

For me he will always be Galt although oddly I only watched The House of Quark on December 28th which is a little spooky in every way possible. Galt was a strange, stoic character that featured in one of the classic stories so his place among Star Trek lore is firmly established just from that appearance. 

However, I never actually appreciated that his association had been so big with the show or that he had appeared in so many guises. In fact looking over his IMDB file he also lent his voice as Master Si'tann in the Star Trek game Hidden Evil alongside other franchise luminaries including Salome Jens (Female Shapeshifter), Gary Graham (Soval) and The Next Generation's Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner.

Thanks for the memories Mr Ruskin, they will live with us forever.

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Hot for 2014

With a new year we have to ask what is there to look forward to in the Star Trek universe and the answers might just lie here. Read on and discover what our top tips for 2014 could be...

Star Trek: Axanar

Billed as the story of Garth of Izar this is one that we really wanted to find out more about as soon as whispers of its existence found their way onto the internet. Luckily it looks like we're going to see this project through almost from its inception. Checking out out calendar we think there will be a lot on this in the next few months with some access to cast and creators (we hope) through this site.

Set 21 years before the adventures of Kirk and the USS Enterprise we're in the midst of the Klingon war at an event that would shape one of the most important figures in Starfleet history.

Already signed, according to the website, are Richard Hatch, J G Hertzler and Gary Graham. Having been in contact with those behind the scenes we know there's more amazing news to come in regards to Axanar but even now it looks like a real winner. I just can't wait and we will be covering this as events progress.

Star Trek: Renegades

Every man and his beagle know about this sort-of sequel to Of Gods and Men. Directed by Tim Russ and starring both him and Walter Koenig as well as a host of well known names from both inside and out of the Star Trek universe it looks set to be available very, very soon judging from the two trailers we've already seen recently. Add into that we'll be looking back at Of Gods... too.

As with the Axanar project we fully intend to be giving this movie the coverage it deserves in 2014. From what we've seen the quality looks pretty impressive as does the cast but will it mean the start of something new for the franchise or is this going to be another one off that ends up sitting in the YouTube archives until the end of time? Is the world ready for another twist on live-action TV-based Star Trek - and I don't want to hear anyone mentioning Captain Worf or Captain Sulu thanks. One notable point is that this show doesn't seem to be totally leaning in the direction of Starfleet which will definitely be a first for the Star Trek universe.

Star Trek: Seekers

The big novel release of the year could well be Seekers. From the minds of David Mack, Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore this series will be numbered - and have no titles as the anthologies of the 1970s did. Set on two starships - the USS Endeavour and the USS Sagittarius - in the Original Series era, the books are a direct sequel to the earlier Vanguard novels. 

Even the covers have a retro 1970's style to their artwork from the illustrator Rob Caswell. The first two volumes will make their debuts in August and September 2014 with more to follow. While I missed out on Vanguard I find the whole concept of Seekers really intriguing and it's definitely a read I'm eager to dive in to. Indeed, since my return to Trekdom this will be the first non-canon material I will have read that doesn't deal with characters already established on the TV. At present we've not had any plot or character details however it's certainly going to give the Kirk/Seven crossover novel a run for it's money when we look back at what titles were the top for the year.

Star Trek: Equinox

We only discovered this gem in the last 24 hours or this post would've gone live earlier. Yes, it's true - there is work in progress to return us to the Nova Class USS Equinox in 2014.

First up there's the news of a "possible" TV movie starring John (Captain Ransom) Savage (read that as fan-made movie) which appears to be in pre-production now. Entitled The Night of Time it includes Gary (Gary Mitchell) Lockwood among the cast and has signed WWE's Matt Striker as a Romulan. Secondly the starship is reaching our ears via an audio series from the same stable. You can check out their progress in both areas via the Facebook page and the website which is gradually taking shape. Indeed, it appears to be focusing on two different  ships from two different eras - the one we know and a Miranda Class version in The Original Series era. Fascinating as one might say.

Are we excited? You bet - and a great find on New Year's Eve thanks to a news search. We're thinking this could be one of the big developing Star Trek stories of the year!

These are the Voyages Seasons Two and Three

The first book was a revelation and we fully expect the concluding two volumes to be just as indepth and jaw-dropping as the initial edition. Once again scribed and researched by Star Trek luminary Marc Cushman along with Susan Osborn, we can expect more of the same. Now that phrase usually instils fear and dread in most people but not here. More of the same with Cushman means intricate attention to detail and then some to bring together the best resource books on The Original Series. Fact.

Aside from actually having been on set and in every meeting during production which would have been physically impossible, this is as good as it gets. We'll also be covering the expanded work that's been going on with the first book in an extra little blog piece in the next few weeks. Amazingly Leonard Nimoy has helped add a further 80 pages to the tome, bringing personal recollections into the mix. Season Two will over some of my favourites including The Doomsday Machine and A Piece of the Action but the real intrigue will surely be the car-crash third season with budget cuts and management changes. Better clear a few weeks in the diary to read them. If you want more information our review has been featured on the Jacobs Media Publishing site and you can buy the first book direct here.

Star Trek: Phase II

Formerly New Voyages this show is now in its tenth year, releasing Kitumba on New Year's Day 2014. Picking up, as with Continues, after season three of The Original Series these guys are looking to bridge the gap between Turnabout Intruder and The Motion Picture and show the transitions that took place from one to the other. 

We'll be honest we found it really difficult to split the two because of their differences (Continues/Phase II) and what they have to offer. While Continues goes for total originality, Phase II offers a chance to see some classics that never made the screen and has David Gerrold as it's showrunner. That's clout right there.

It looks like a great prospect and we'll hope to get stuck in to the library of episodes that already exist as well as looking at the future of this fan-made series which seems to have done extremely well. Using scripts from luminaries including David Gerrold, the Phase II team have even filmed the legendary Blood and Fire as well as their own version of The Child. The newly released Kitumba was, as you will probably know, a script for the original version of Phase II.  2014 is likely to see a lot of work on the production of their next episode, The Holiest Thing. Exciting times indeed!

The Green Girl

The brainchild of George Pappy this movie had massive impact last year across the internet as it went into production. Detailing the life and times of the original Orion slave girl, Vina, it looks set to be launched this year with much anticipation. We're hoping to bring you a review of the movie as soon as we can get our hands on a copy plus (we hope) some inside information on The Green Girl project. It's perhaps not our usual fare but Oliver had such a big presence back in The Cage and graced the closing credits of the first season that we felt it was important to give this production the time and space it deserves - and we're intending to find out a lot more about the life and times of the actress into the bargain.  

...And More

Those might be the things we've highlighted as hot topics for 2014 but let's not forget some of the other elements of the Star Trek universe that we'll no doubt encounter in the next twelve months. In fact we're probably already finding new stuff as you're reading!

For certain the rumour mill around Star Trek 3, it's script, cast and director will kick into second gear with the 2016 launch not that far away oh and anyone fancy mentioning the Netflix Enterprise season five campaign too?!

Stick with us in 2014 as we take some new steps forward and introduce a few new faces to the Some Kind of Star Trek contingent who will bring their own twist on the franchise in its many different forms.

Is there anything we've failed to pick up on? Is there an element of the Star Trek universe that has evaded our sensors? Let us know.

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