Into the Trek Universe: Section 31

 

Where to start on this one.

Firstly, it's not as bad as the slew of reviews have made fans believe. It's (and I've said this a few times today) not as great as it could have been but by no means is it absolutely horrific.

Originally planned as a full series, Section 31 was retooled into a 95 minute made-for-streaming movie following COVID-19, the writers' strike and also Michelle Yeoh winning an Oscar.

Major factors indeed which have led to the first Trek movie since Star Trek Beyond and the first to premiere outside of a cinema. The world has indeed changed since Beyond and this is definitely a sign of how Star Trek is attempting to fit into this new age and find, probably, a new audience.

Let's be honest, Star Trek fans aren't the youngsters they once were. The franchise is on the cusp of its 60th birthday and the recent Prodigy proved to be a bigger hit with the existing fanbase than attracting a new and younger audience. Kurtzman and co are about to try again with their young adult show, Academy but I fear the same result again.

But to Section 31 and to term it quickly, it's a fairly run of the mill action flick that is set in the Star Trek universe. Returning Michelle Yeoh as Terran Emperor Phillipa Georgiou, she is teamed with a group of Section 31 agents sent to track down a typically dangerous weapon.

As it turns out, Georgiou is more than familiar with the weapon, named Godsend, since she ordered its creation in the Mirror Universe. How inconvenient to run into it again during Star Trek's Lost Era.

Add in a bit of Georgiou backstory as to how she became Emperor and you have a fairly briskly paced and explosive hour and half to settle in for. But that's really about it. Section 31 is OK at best and disappointing at worst. It's not that its bland but something here just doesn't quite work. The movie is certainly an attempt to tell a story outside of the "norms" of Star Trek's Starfleet crew and starship combo but the nuances and subterfuge that made Section 31 so interesting in DS9 and Enterprise are long gone. Their activities are about as subtle as using a sledgehammer to open an envelope and we've diverged into areas of high tech and gunslinging rather than the shadowy manipulation and dealings that made Sloan such a great foil for the DS9 crew. Tailored more for the Fast and Furious audience, Section 31 is short and snappy with little to think about beyond the superficial action and pedestrian plot. Don't expect lengthy debates on the morality of the universe or one to ones that build on relationships because this is a very disposable cast.

Comprising of an Augment, a mech-suited soldier, a badly accented Irish robot piloted by a nano-being, a Chameloid and a Deltan, it's the perfect mismatch team accompanied by Starfleet observer Lt Rachel Garrett. The potential is great but just when you feel like it's getting going or there's another chance for Michelle Yeoh to perform some of her trademark martial arts work, someone drops an attempt at a joke or there's a humorous twist on a moment which just rips the heart out of the story and believability. In respect to the characters themselves there's very little if any form of development for them and Garrett's turn from "stick up her ass" scientist to embracing chaos is limited and rushed in seconds when it happens. 

None of the characters are dislikeable but none of them are particularly memorable either, maybe with the exception of Garrett because we know the name. Indeed, if it wasn't for the fact that fans will know she becomes the captain of the ill-fated USS Enterprise-C, you'd never know what era of the Trek franchise this is set in. Garrett could be interchanged for any other Starfleet officer from any era and the story would still work. It's a terrible use of what should be an enthralling experience to see this time period but there's generic rock planet, space station with bar and dark ship interiors which give no real feel to the setting. 

That's really the problem here. It's just OK. The effects are OK, the ships are OK, the script is meh and the use of the Godsend is another "weapon-o-mass-destruction" that is a path so heavily trodden it's turned into a ditch. A shame in a big way and I did wonder how this would have played out over a full series as I can't imagine they wrote the whole thing off and started again. Maybe the characters would have received more time to flex their wings and allow us to care more about them and that's perhaps another fail here in that for the first time we have a brand new set of characters (bar two at a stretch) who are brought in for 95 minutes and that's it. Every Star Trek movie before this has utilised an existing set of characters and built on the audience's knowledge of them. Section 31 has not been afforded that luxury which means that you're only really invested in Georgiou to any degree but then Michelle Yeoh isn't given the greatest script to work with.

The door is left open for a sequel as you would expect but I can't see it getting a green light. I'm not even sure if it justifies a rewatch for a considerable time if ever and that's not something I wanted to say. Kudos though to Kurtzman and al for their balls to try something different which has definitely been a hallmark of their journey from Discovery's first episode to this moment. Each show has been different, each iteration has offered a new perspective and stretched the Star Trek franchise in new ways that the Berman era of the '80's and '90's never really dared to. That's one thing to applaud as they've never shied away from being unique. But Section 31 just doesn't seem to fit in aside from a vehicle to bring Michelle Yeoh back and round of Georgiou's story  bit more neatly than it was in Discovery. Maybe reaching too far outside the original vision of Star Trek has now been proven to be a move too much and that this isn't what fans signed up for.

The counter problem to that is, TV and film have moved on a lot since 1966, 1987 and even 2009. Production is a machine turning out content at an alarming rate and Kurtzman's factory has produced more Star Trek variants since 2017 than were made between 1966 and 2005. That's a frightening amount of diversity if not equalling the number of episodes across those original four decades.

As a diversion until Strange New Worlds' third season drops later this year, this will make do but I suspect it will be some time before another of these one-off movie projects drops given the reception to this entry to the franchise. 

How did it got for you? Is this the worst Trek ever or a sign of the franchise stretching its wings that little bit further into the universe rather than just Starfleet?

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The Core: The Sign of Four?

Damn rumour mill.

I don't want to credit one of those torrid Facebook pages or YouTube channels that pumps out rubbish but could there be any truth in the rumour that Kruge is being considered as the antagonist for Star Trek 4? Add into that the speculation that Hawley might even take the fourth movie into new directions with a totally new crew.

Director in waiting Noah Hawley is RUMOURED to be thinking about these as possibilities but that will mean for the third out of the four reboot movies the production will rely on retelling stories of characters from the Prime Timeline - Spock and the Romulans then Khan for Into Darkness if he goes with Kruge. In terms of the characters, the suggestion might actually be more based around the difficulty in securing Pine and Hemsworth as billed when the next movie was greenlit before Beyond had even appeared in cinemas. 

Personal opinion - Beyond worked because it did its own thing, referencing the back catalogue and still coming up with something new for the franchise to explore - although tragically it wasn't the massive success fans and the studio desired. I'd add a bucket of salt to that Kruge rumour but the one about the new cast...? Well, it's perhaps more reasonable and might even be a new piece of the Universe that is being forged with Kurtzman and co, bringing the cinematic Star Trek into the bigger picture.

Now if Paramount decide to use the rebooted JJ Abrahms universe to revamp some of its more classic foes then surely there are more opportune characters in the wings? Let's explore a few possibilities...

Kor, Koloth, Kang

I mean is there a more iconic Klingon trio? (Is there another Klingon trio?!). The classic Klingons from The Original Series and latterly Deep Space Nine would be a perfect foil for the Enterprise crew plus it would provide a second and potentially more fulfilling chance to get the Klingons "right" that was missed in their messy Into Darkness appearance.

The Planet Killer

What about this one? A near unstoppable force, a crazed starship captain, the very existence of the Federation at stake? Could the Doomsday Machine be responsible for obliterating a few more notable worlds in the Alpha Quadrant and really change the layout of the Kelvin Timeline? I can certainly imagine that the graphics would be a big step forward and provide an impressive spectacle on the big screen.

The Gorn

Already mentioned in Into Darkness and featured in the video game that launched around the same time as the movie, their sole appearance in The Original Series is as iconic as the filming location the encounter took place at. No more rubber suits but this would guarantee a lot of action and could spin out well from Arena into its own creation. 

I'm just not sure how much faith I put into these kind of rumours because we're not even close to seeing a camera roll or a casting announcement. Thing is that in Star Trek we know anything can happen - after all, a TV series became The Motion Picture and that's just the tip of the proverbial iceberg here...


Lest we also forget that it's just two weeks until the arrival of Picard and we're already been successfully teased with a morsel of background information through the exceptional Short, Children of Mars.  While there's been all sorts of grumbles about the reuse of starship designs from Discovery I was personally a lot more invested in the narrative and that bit right at the end. 

Anyway, we know that season two of Picard is on the way with a new exec producer in the form of Terry Matalas who is replacing season one's Michael Chabon. Matalas has been show runner on both the TV 12 Monkeys series and more recently MacGyver.

Picard, as Patrick Stewart has indicated, will NOT be The Next Generation and it seems that there is a distinct visual identity being forged with the current slew of Star Trek series. Section 31 is now deep into production and Alex Kurtzman has now confirmed there are a further TWO live action series to come which are in the process of formation now. 

These will sit alongside not just Discovery, Picard and Section 31 but also the Lower Decks animated series and the Nickleodeon cartoon. Might one of these two be the in-demand Pike series? Could the second be the fruition of Nicholas Meyer's project to bring Ceti Alpha V to screens as a miniseries focusing on the exile of Khan Noonien Singh?

The first is one fans have been clamouring for since Anson Mount stepped into the role for Discovery's second season and the latter has been floating around for about four years and was the reason Meyer (apparently) detached himself from Discovery early on.

Fever pitch - we are reaching a real pinnacle of Star Trek but the proof will be in whether or not we can survive what will be a 52 week a year onslaught of content with some form of the franchise being on TV and in production. Does this foreshadow a loss of quality? A time when the amount of content will outweigh the quality of the shows we are receiving? 

Franchise fatigue set in with Enterprise back in the early 2000's and while that was a culmination of continuous Star Trek since 1987 it was spread across 15 years, four series and six movies in that frame. Now we're getting all that again but within five years... will Star Trek from the Kurtzman era have a short shelf life?

What do you think about Star Trek's longevity in its current forms?

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Tying Up Those Threads: Section 31: Control

Ahead of the rise of Picard in January, I've managed to cram in some reading and that's included the rather brilliant Control.

Section 31 have played a huge part in the franchise since the late 1990's. Entwined with the Dominion War in Deep Space Nine we thought we had explored some of their origins with Enterprise, were a little befuddled when they turned up in the Kelvin Universe for Into Darkness and have stamped a firm foothold in the second season of newbie Discovery.

Lo, the novel series likewise has paved a dark path thanks to the dealings of one Julian Bashir especially in the last couple of years since his involvement with curing the Andorian people and then working as a double agent to get to the heart of the organisation through The Fall and then Section 31: Disavowed.

Now we've reached an impasse and Control finally takes us to the very beating heart of Section 31 in the 24th Century and also back to the very spark of its origins in the 22nd Century.

Not to give too much away but this is a must read in every sense and I kind of kicked myself for not having read it a lot sooner. Section 31: Control slips the story back into key Federation moments from the foundation of the galactic organisation and how it became a key component of the Alpha Quadrant.

David Mack is an unquestionable master of the Star Trek literary universe penning many of the finest instalments of the franchise but my god has he ramped it up again. What it doesn't feel like is that the stories are being over stretched and with the impending Picard and Discovery time jumping there's a palatable feeling that we are reaching the end of a journey - and that's very real in another sense that we will no doubt touch on in a future post.

Control maxes out on its tying of loose ends with the return of Sarina Douglas plus assistance from the resurrected super-Data and his daughter Lal in finally attempting to shut down the secretive/disruptive organisation.

The action here is brilliantly free-flowing and by keeping the story to a minimal amount of characters we aren't lumbered with anything excessive. I would warn that you will need to have a decent knowledge of the existing literary Star Trek universe to get a good hold on events. The paralleling of the 22nd and 24th Century stories does help to remove some of the potential confusion but there's a lot of "inside" Star Trek information you'll probably need to be at least aware of to truly appreciate the impact made by Section 31 and not just inside the Federation.

Considering how the onscreen Star Trek universe is about to take onboard a big jump and the return of Jean-Luc, it does feel that the literary series is beginning to tie up some of its more ongoing loose ends as well as perhaps explain some of the bigger TV elements of the franchise which fans have been asking about for many years, especially the increasingly popular Section 31.

Mack's characters too continue to be believable with Bashir a far cry from the stuttering youngster of Emissary and a fair distance away from the more arrogant "superman" of the latter Deep Space Nine years. His experiences since then as part of the books series has had a great impact on him as has his relationship with Sarina turning Bashir into even more of a torchbearer for the upkeep of Federation standards. 

Nor is he vehemently against Section 31; his visible distrust of the organisation seen on screen has become more channelled and focused to resemble a more tangible plan but one he will sacrifice all to complete.

Data on the other hand continues to be something of a mystery. His rebirth in the android body used by Noonien Soong to escape following his critical assault by Lore in Brothers has been a bone of contention with me for nearly six years. It was one of the first stories I read (the Cold Equations trilogy) back in 2013 with Data's resurrection seeming to be an unavoidable part of the Star Trek story whether we wanted it to happen or not.

Here he and Lal are more human than ever and almost unrecognisable from their TV personas. Lal is perhaps excused since her appearance was limited to one 45 minute story but Data's journey to become more human is more complete than ever with him distinctly different to the being we knew. For me, however this character is written he is not "that" Data. For better or worse the original wasn't brought back exactly the same instead with some significant character trait leaps which even now are fairly jarring.

Section 31: Control however must be viewed in the bigger scheme of things and perhaps not have as much drawn from it to parallel to upcoming franchise events. Whether I'm a fan of Human Data or not, this is one of those Star Trek novels that you have to get hold of and is well worth a read. While Deep Space Nine: Gamma might have taken a long while to get through, this was a page turner without doubt. 

One more winner from David Mack. Looking forward to seeing how his upcoming work from the franchise pans out!

Section 31: Control is available now from Simon and Schuster priced £7.99 

What's been your favourite part of the novels story? What do you think will happen going forward into 2020?

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Close to the Edge: Project Daedalus S02 E09

WTF

Spock's all fixed up however the attention this week turns from him - placing him almost into a B story with the main line being taken up by the little-addressed Lieutenant Commander Airiam.

Enigmatic doesn't come close since we've learnt absolutely nothing about this visually striking member of the Discovery crew since her appearance in the third episode of season one. Now in Project Daedalus we finally get some answers - she is an augmented human - plus we are hinted at just what has led to her current appearance.

Hannah Cheesman gets to play Airiam in and out of makeup this week as we explore a little of what it's like to be augmented but there's something lurking in the background waiting to awaken. When the Discovery heads to complete its rogue mission things begin to heat up.

Also returning this week is Jane Brook as Admiral Cornwell whose allegiance remains with Starfleet and not, as we might have suspected from an earlier encounter, with the dark Section 31. Looks like Starfleet itself is having issues with Control; the Section 31 computer system that has stopped relaying data from the organisation's headquarters located at a former penal colony...located in the middle of the universe's most intuitive minefield. Get in, solve the problem and speak to the admiral aboard; no problem.  

Additional bonus points for this week as Lieutenant Nhan (Rachel Ancheril) from the Enterprise returns to assist Burnham and Airiam on their away mission to the inhospitable Section 31 headquarters. Now Discovery's chief of security the Barzan gets a bit of a rough deal but manages to survive longer than her predecessor in season one...

But of course there is because the mines are being controlled and are anticipating the moves of the Crossfield Class starship. Blade mines cut the hull, blackout mines fool sensors and there are even ones attracted to shields meaning Discovery has to go in with its pants down and Detmer steering very, very carefully.

In parallel to this we have Burnham and Spock sparring as they attempt to crack the mystery of the Red Angel and why it contacted the Enterprise science officer in the first place. It leads to some incredibly charged moments between the estranged brother and sister over a hard fought - or maybe hard lost - game of three-dimensional chess. That repeated reminder that this isn't the Spock we know and love rears its head prominently here and Ethan Peck gets a lot of meat to dig into, unhindered by Spock's usually logical and stoic personality. He gets angry, riled, on the offensive almost bordering on emotional as Burnham starts to push his buttons in relation to the game and family matters.

Peck is great in the role. He really has taken it to be his own and make this iteration of the character different from the previous incumbents. He has the benefit of a more open canvas thanks to the nature of this season's story plus he is playing Spock at a time in his career that we have only seen in one episode many moons ago. This is unknown territory that he can build for the character and in an unusual move, expose his human side to the Star Trek audience. But he really does step aside from the limelight this week in favour of that other character; one that we knew would become more significant after a certain moment from a previous moment.

With Airiam you don't actually realise how much you've become attached and used to this character being around in the series. We do get to see more of what she's actually doing but this all ties in with the trip to the Section 31 HQ and also back to the lifeform we encountered earlier in the season that downloaded its lifetime of knowledge into Discovery's memory banks. Hannah Cheesman's portrayal has been incredibly minimal throughout season two since taking over the role from Sarah Mitich and while the bridge crew have been receiving a lot more screentime it's amazing to see a character plucked out and used in such a huge game changing way for the series. 

The visuals for the station as well as Discovery's journey through the minefield are spectacular but I was actually more struck with the arrival of Cornwell's shuttle at the very beginning as well as the starship gearing up for and jumping to warp speed. The upgrades to the Discovery CG model are amazing with such strong definition to the panelling and lighting that you can almost reach out and touch it on the TV. 

Project Daedalus, the namesake of the episode is itself still a secret even when we do reach the Section 31 headquarters. This looks like another thread in the Red Angel story but where does it all link in and how does Control fit with the overall arc for the season? This is a piece only recently introduced but I can't believe it's not there for a reason. In the same way it does mean I'm considering at least Calypso as a more significant segment of the Discovery story since it deals with the (far) future and time travel is without question a part of the tale and revelations yet to come from the series.

Another great episode here with one of Discovery's most shocking scenes to date. I didn't believe that it could happen but that may have been since we were lured into a similar eventuality with the Saru homeworld visit in The Sound of Thunder.  New Star Trek is taking risks and is grasping at the new form of televised storytelling; nothing is safe or sacred and Discovery is all the better for it.

Is Project Daedalus one of Discovery's most unexpected milestones?

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You'll Never Guess... : S02 E05 Saints of Imperfection

Tilly is gone and the Discovery is back in pursuit of Spock's shuttle.

However just when you think the chase is over, who should step out of the cornered craft but one Phillipa Georgiou.

Seems that Section 31 have also been on the hunt for the evasive Vulcan having found the shuttle adrift. Georgiou is less than forthcoming with information leading Pike to face off with her 31 collaborator and former associate of Pike, Leland. After the Section 31 ship assists Discovery to complete its work later in the episode, Ash Tyler is assigned as the liaison between the two vessels ensuring we're going to get lots of conflict for the rest of the year.

But this is a minor issue when faced with the realisation that Tilly has vanished. Not dead as it turns out but instead secreted away into the mycelial network by the beings within it who have been damaged with contact from the Discovery every time it jumps.

Stamets comes up with the creative idea of using the Crossfield Class starship to wedge open the door into the network to be able to retrieve Tilly who is seemingly on the other side with a recreation of her primary school classmate May. 

Stamets and Burnham cross the threshold and enact a rescue but it turns out that a monster that has been terrorizing the network is - and that would be telling.

Goddamn Discovery you went and did it again. I already lauded a ton of praise on episode four, An Obol to Charon with its tour de force performances from Doug Jones (taking a bit of a back seat this week bless him) and Sonequa Martin-Green yet this week's hour of TV seems to have blitzed it again.

So much more is happening this season and each episode is rammed with story, off the cuff references to the rest of the franchise, superb acting and some of the best twists and turns Star Trek has ever pulled off. Even just taking into account the conversations between Pike and his opposite number on the Section 31 ship you can pick up the undertones of distrust between them even when the talk is all about working together for a common goal in securing Lieutenant Spock.

While it's all seen from the perspective of Burnham, the real stars this week have to be Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman and - shock - Wilson Cruz.

Yes, Doctor Culber is back via one hell of a warped mycelial explanation and a whole lot of emotional turbulence. Rapp is brilliant as Stamets this week, driving forward the way to cross the boundary "safely" which leaves the Discovery acting as a doorstop and gradually being eaten away by the creatures in the network. 

Of course we knew that Culber was coming back for season two but after his brief appearance in episode one I thought we were in line for flashbacks and the like however the writers have pulled a true Kobayashi Maru with this being his full return rather than the tease. Cruz plays out a tormented Culber exceedingly well with all of his experiences under attack from the native lifeforms although they might be seeing it from a very different perspective.

It might be a way to up the tension and impress the time limit of the rescue operation but visually it's amazing when coupled with the "fizzy bubbles" effect that permeates the ship in the sections that are trapped in the network. The look of the jammed Discovery too is magnificent with it seemingly beached in the network with that in turn gradually encroaching further onto the starship. 

The reveal that Section 31 have been watching all this time is certainly unnerving and it seems that in the era of Discovery they aren't as secretive as they would become nor as they were during Enterprise since Admiral Cornwell knows all about them and they aren't exactly being very inconspicuous with that decloaking ship. Perhaps Discovery has some more defining of the organisation to work out. It seems here they are more an intelligence gathering operation rather than shadowy dealings that Starfleet doesn't need to know are happening. As for their technology, it's about a century ahead of "regular" Starfleet here with the inclusion of the badge communicator nod. All seems too flash for the Section 31 that we will "later" see in Deep Space Nine. Is there a plan here or have the writers just chosen to take a more overt look at the covert group?

It does feel that Discovery has chosen this point to resolve the Tilly/May/network story and I do feel that it's run its course this season. Potentially this spells the end for the use of the spore drive since it's endangering another race and attempts to align the series with the rest of the franchise at least in some small way. Good choice as well to have Tilly toned down this week from the manic character she was becoming due in part to the spores which had sent her mind tripping. Wiseman has her controlling the situation here in something/somewhere she is completely out of her comfort zone of the Discovery's science labs.

To be honest, I'm not that fussed if there are a few loose ends if the series is going to be producing stories of this calibre. The characterisation is a lot stronger with less reliance on Martin-Green to pull you through an episode. The whole cast is capable of carrying their own material now and season two is becoming more an ensemble piece where everyone gets to share in the meat of the stories. 

Saints of Imperfection has pushed Discovery further forward with more backdoor pilot material for the Georgiou spinoff. This may well be just an emotional sledgehammer of an episode as with Saru's near demise last week and I don't know if I could cope with the series delivering a third such instance next week as well. Discovery isn't holding back at the moment and by the end of Saints of Imperfection it feels that pieces are set in place ready for Spock's first appearance.

Great episode? Season high so far? What do you think?

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Kelvin Out/31 In

SJ Clarkson is now assigned to the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel and with no resolution to the Pine/Hemsworth contract dispute (probably) among other things, Star Trek 4 is now officially shelved. 

I'm not hugely shocked by this news as it seems none of the puzzle pieces were fitting together well and there was zero sign of a script.

It means that the Kelvin Timeline may well become known as the Kelvin Trilogy and remain one of Star Trek's more unique spin off elements. 

But the influence of those films, or at least a key part of them will live on in the Kurtzman Era as the destruction of Romulus is set to have had a profound effect on Picard in his as yet unnamed series which will, along with the transference of Prime Spock over to that timeline, cement the three movies firmly as part of canon.

While it seems like the behind the scenes dilemmas are the reason for the seeming end to the adventures of alt-Kirk and co, it's been a pretty good run. While I openly admit that Into Darkness isn't a masterpiece and borrows chunks from another Star Trek movie you have to admit that the visual quality, the acting and the very feel of these three stories has been exceptional. 

The 2009 movie is one of the best Star Trek movies to have ever been made. Doing something that was a possibility back in the days of The Undiscovered Country, it took the crew back to the Academy and their first meetings. It reset our expectations of Star Trek while simultaneously and subconsciously updating it for a new generation of fans. In fact this would be a generation of fans that would have never seen The Original Series or heard of Deep Space Nine. At its heart it was just a damn good sci-fi movie that happened to be Star Trek at the same time. 

Beyond rounded out the three with the destruction of the Enterprise which kind of means these three films become the story of that singular ship but of the trilogy its probably the one closest to the feel of The Original Series in its look and feel. 

However as one door appears to have closed, another one has sprung open with the official announcement that we've all been expecting for a little while; that Michelle Yeoh is getting her own series as Mirror Georgiou in a new Section 31 show.

Hardly surprising which means there must be some meat on the bones that we'll be getting a second animated series plus something to do with Starfleet Academy in the (very close) years to come. Due to be produced by Discovery writers Yeon Kim and Erica Lippoldt who were responsible for the Saru episode Into the Forest I Go in season one. 

That now brings the confirmed series total to four including Discovery, Picard and Lower Decks. plus there are supposed to be seven in play by 2020. So...we're just over half the planned amount of shows which will definitely solidify Star Trek's place back on the small screen.

From chatrooms/boards it's clear that fans are naturally concerned about the number of shows online and are having flashbacks to the mid-'90's "Golden Age". If managed well then there shouldn't be a problem - but look at the diversity too.

In the '90's the style of the shows and movies were all very similar visually, in the way they told their stories and most notably in their focus on Starfleet. What we seem to be getting from the Kurtzman era is a galactic sandbox in which we are going to see different aspects of every corner of the Alpha Quadrant (and maybe more) with neither Picard nor Georgiou part of Starfleet directly. This new Section 31 show will certainly be exploring the darker corners of the galactic landscape away from the sharp, duty bound lines of the Federation.

But does this mean that our Star Trek is going to be less Star Trek? Will this massive expansion dilute the brand and the strength of the storytelling? If they are going to branch out I believe this will be a bold and brilliant step to offer something refreshing to the franchise. If every series was, as you might recall from 20 years ago, a Starfleet crew out exploring the galaxy then yes, we'd be in some serious trouble but this new approach has chosen to give each new show a completely fresh identity and path to travel. Wise move and a very sensible one to boot.

Which of the new shows are you looking forward to? Are you lamenting the potential end to the Kelvin Universe?

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The Fall: A Ceremony Of Losses - Mack is Back

I like to say I have a linear mind, I like to know the beginning before the middle, or even the end. I even went back to watching Deep Space Nine in anticipation of reading this.

I have read series books from the end, or even the middle, previously. You can always tell proficient writers from experienced writers by reading non-linear – truly experienced writers have the ability to draw you in from any point in their story, even half-way through a particular book. This is especially true when writing about characters you already know, or have grown up getting to know.

Such is the case with this book – A Ceremony of Losses. I had no idea what to expect, nor what to write about, it being my first review. So let me start, at the beginning, of the middle...and be warned I might drop some of those pesky SPOILERS in along the way.

Perseverance is the key to this story's start. For someone starting on this book, David Mack does a admirable job of filling in the blanks. Not so much to believe you know all the previous stories, but enough to make you want to explore the detail of them – a tricky balance to achieve, to be sure.

The negative here being that with so many Andorian names, references, titles and terms to grasp so early on, you actually have to be Andorian just to make it through the first chapter without a headache, or the literacy version of brain-freeze.

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As a newcomer to the non-canon series of novels, I have to admit, a little catch up was necessary in order to put the novel into perspective. For example; the new Deep Space Nine space station, a new 'Frontier Class' station. Another addition is the USS Aventine; a rather impressive new Vesta class starship equipped with slipstream technology. I was however unaware of precisely how much I'd missed ...

Mack's use of characters – Dr Bashir, to name one of many old faces, is done well. Capturing Julian's childish demeanour whilst keeping his suppressed ego has been done remarkably well. This should come as no surprise to those who know the author though, as history recalls, he did have a writing hand in two interesting Deep Space Nine episodes - season four's Starship Down and season seven's It's Only a Paper Moon. 

I did have a puzzling moment with one Captain Ezri Dax, I first picked up on it from +Clive Burrell's review. I struggled to see how Dax has gone from a jittery councillor, to a commanding, confident captain, without a massive personality change. I do not wish to dwell on this though, as after catching up a little background reading (no spoilers), Ezri's character actually has gone through an extreme makeover.

Beyond the old faces, there are some very well defined characters alongside and supporting. With moderate access to certain characters' features and a background or two, it serves to understand them, but not emphasise them. One who I'm sure will catch your attention, and who has already been made known to us of the 'TV series only' bunch - Sarina Douglas (Deep Space Nine - Statistical Probabilities, Chrysalis). I'm sorry, a little spoiler alert here... Again, another person who has undergone a huge transformation. Here we had a reclusive, socio-phobic person - turned Section 31 super spy! It's the Trek version of 007 starting off in the loony bin, asking for his medication to be 'shaken, no stirred'...

Away from familiar faces, and for spoilers sake I won't dwell on this, but if you're looking for clues to forthcoming installments - pay close attention to Admiral Akaar, especially towards the end. I won't say much but I would say it is definitely David Mack's clear nod to the starting of book four.

The plot, without giving too much information away, centers around a major upheaval in the Federation, contemplating the extinction of the Andorians. The politics within this story can at times, make for tough reading. Again, perseverance is the key here. If you were after a book to 'settle in bed' with - this is not it. There is too much detail and too many (multi-layer) political plots to grasp. Try speed reading through this and I guarantee you'll spend twice as long having to reread the last paragraph, only to forget what happened previously. Or, as my colleague eloquently put; a "Thinking Man's Star Trek". After looking over book one's review, plus a few group discussions, it does seem that this is going to a common theme along the entire series. They all give you the impression you're in way over your head, that you don't have the attention span of a nuclear physicist and you're going to be brutally brow-beaten for not having so.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not condemning the detail throughout the whole book; most is quite relevant and informative. I especially like the build up near the end; everything balancing on a whim, an entire species hanging in the balance, a beautifully described orbital action scene. I was quite gratified at that moment to find I had, for the first time in the book, suspended all of my other senses, just temporarily until I was confident it had passed.

Only one terrible grievance remains from this whole experience - but it's as big as Bajor itself. As I mentioned before, the plot focuses around the Andorians and their cessation from the Federation. After this, the Federation interim President has declared an embargo of Andor. No food, medicine, commerce or communication to or from the Federation. 

To be quite frank - I just cannot see this. I understand that from a story perspective, it is a key plot line and there are the political aspects that give it cause, but the Federation is by nature a peacekeeping force. I just can't imagine the democratic processes allowing for such an action, even with a despotic President at the helm. There are too many allies and political elements within the Federation that would resist such a move. It is as if David Mack has thrown much politics into this, but failed to grasp the true nature of Federation politics.

That being said, if you can overlook this flaw (if it is indeed one at all for you), the rest of this book is very well thought out, structured and written. Yes, there are some moments that really test you, but you are rewarded for your persistence at the end. Pros and cons considered, here's my conclusion:

The story as a whole is actually quite riveting - a medical mystery, wrapped up in political turmoil, lightly sprinkled with well played espionage, finished with a good side helping of action.

I'll be having a ceremony of loss if I don't read them all, but I won't stand on ceremony over this – until I've read them all. Is it fundamentally flawed? Too political? Perhaps, but also perhaps that's just me, and I'd happily read it again. In fact, I intend to. Whilst I'm doing that - you decide!

Next up in The Fall we have The Poisoned Chalice. Time to head back aboard the USS Titan.

Image by Tobias Richter

A Ceremony of Losses is available now from Simon and Schuster priced £6.99; ISBN 9781476722245.

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