Renegades: Rubbish or Revelation?

I'm finally putting finger to keyboard about this one but it did take me until the eve of Star Trek's 49th birthday to do so.

There have already been a ton of reviews of Renegades out there especially since it's more public release on YouTube a couple of weeks ago, but with September's anniversary coming along I thought; "OK, what would Gene have thought of this? Is this truly what Star Trek is now and will be in the future?"

Flashback; it's taken around two years and then some to bring Renegades to reality and there have been some sizeable breaks between pre-production, then filming and finally the good old post-production polish but is it living up to the hype that the stellar Star Trek cast and co. have brought whether it was wanted or not? 

At a surface level it looks great. Renegades is a really shiny production that takes the Star Trek universe beyond Nemesis and into much darker times for the Federation. There's a ton of action, phaser battles, CG space combat and some seriously gorgeous ship sequences that rival anything we ever saw in Voyager and Enterprise. You certainly won't get bored watching it as the journey to the credits is one event after another with lots to keep you occupied visually. However it's when you start to get past the screen gloss and look into the heart of the movie that my appreciation begins to waiver. 

Let's handle the plot itself just to get us all on the same page. Renegades sees still-active 147 year old Admiral Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) and apparent Section 31 chief Commander Tuvok (Tim Russ who also pulls directorial duties) releasing genetic super-person Lexxa Singh (played by Adrienne Wilkinson and yes, a relation to Khan) from an Orion prison so she can lead her "motley crew" and stop a deadly super force from wreaking havoc on the galaxy. That's basically it in a nutshell aside from the array of set pieces which drop in to make this last more than 15 minutes. 

Koenig's involvement will certainly have bolstered interest but his scenes are very, very average and he's playing Chekov in his sleep here albeit carrying some big troubles on his experienced shoulders. When I watch his performance and compare it to something that I might see in Valiant, Continues or Dreadnought Dominion there's a passion that I see in those productions which I don't see within Walter's eyes or many others for that instance. I just don't believe in the characters nor in the desire of some actors to do this. 

On that note, what was with the great-granddaughter element in this? I wasn't sure where that was going but there is a moment which actually did shock me and was totally unexpected. Again, the acting is OK from this younger actress and I suspect we will see - and I would like to see - her story expanded in future episodes of Renegades.

Aiding Chekov is Andorian hacker Shree (Courtney Peldon) and Romulan assassin T'Leah (Larissa Gomez). Their appearance might seem like window-dressing to some degree but they are fairly important to protecting the admiral and uncovering some of the darker plot elements. The problem with both characters is that due to the other events and the cast size they really don't get a lot to do once they've had their "moment".

The Syphon, just to fill that in, is a race attacking planets, including ones which provide vital dilithium for the Federation, and  are therefore threatening the survival of the inter-planetary organisation. Since the activities of the Syphon are happening outside of Federation jurisdiction and they are not controlled by Federation laws the situation will need to be handled by someone else so if you can find them and no-body else can help maybe you can hire the - sorry slipped into another show there for a second but I'm sure you get the drift. They get shockingly little time here and the concluding events of the movie seem rushed and I didn't have any strong desire for the Syphon to be defeated. Their motives seemed lacklustre and they received little to work with. 

So let's look at the renegades themselves. Enter Lexxa; driven by the possibility that her mother, killed by Section 31, might still be around(?) and lots of angst all built up ready to let fly at the first opportunity. She's also the (deposed) captain of the renegade vessel, Icarus and is certainly keep to reacquire her position from it's Nausicaan encumbant. Lexxa's feisty, ass-kicking leader you'd expect to lead such a band and it gives Adrienne Wilkinson the chance to snarl at the camera and do some slow-mo walking. You know she's important because no-one else gets that treatment and her return to the bridge of the Icarus is fairly swift after a brief punch-up in an Orion prison and Tuvok letting her out. Adrienne Wilkinson does a fine job to work with what she gets and her story is at least interesting. I pray she gets better material to work with in the future of the series as once the prison fight had gone I didn't think her supposed superior skills were utilised to any degree.

There's an impressive ensemble just in the crew itself; Sean Young, probably most memorable for her performance as the Replicant Rachel in Bladerunner is Doctor Lucien an expert in holographic technology and typically on the run it seems although she has regular contact with guest-starring Robert Picardo's Lewis Zimmerman. The Young/Picardo scenes are probably the best pairing in the movie and are certainly played with a little more emotion and care.  Seeing Picardo back is a pleasure and he does genuinely look like he's enjoying being on the screen and back in Star Trek. Mind you, the Zimmerman we see here is nothing at all like the grouch we became familiar with in Voyager. 

We also get introduced to Chasty Ballasteros as Betazoid Ronara. Not quite what you might expect, Ronara can't do that whole empathic emotional bit that Troi was so good at in The Next Generation, rather she can manipulate people using her mental abilities. Nice trick and a nice twist on an established trope but it doesn't make her character any more memorable. Y'see, there are a lot of people in this production, a lot of main and guest characters and the 90 minute duration only just gives them all time to get a few lines and some shoe-horned character exposition. Given that these guys are supposed to have known each other for a while they spend a lot of the movie talking about basic information you would assume they already know. It's obviously for the audience but perhaps they didn't need to do as much and leave a lot of stuff unsaid to be explained in future installments? I actually felt this detracted from the pace of Renegades and stalled the motion of the story.

Also on board is Edward "Terminator 2" Furlong as Fixer. Seemingly the Icarus chief engineer, Furlong only really comes into his own towards the last 15 minutes of the film. He's OK but the performance is fairly forgettable except for that key section of the movie. At least he fares better than Manu Intiraymi as Icheb. While it's great to see a second Voyager character back in the fray and for Manu to be onboard, the Icheb character betrays a lot about what is critically wrong with Renegades. 

Gone is the intelligent, slightly withdrawn teenager from Voyager replaced by an almost vengeful soldier. Ok I get the whole Section 31 piece surrounding his evolution since Endgame but it seems a bit too far and nothing like the person we knew. Intiraymi does the best with the material he's given - in fact having spoken to him about Renegades I understand some of the issues a lot more and seriously feel that his character is underused and under-explored. He should be a major player but is at times relegated to a background role.

Same goes for Tuvok in that Russ seems to be playing him by rote and forgetting all the nuances that made him interesting particularly towards the end of the show. These character changes feel forced and likewise this movie feels forced. I enjoyed it but I couldn't buy into the nature of the renegade force or their very existence. Nor do I feel that anyone was done full justice or written properly given the numerous returning characters we had here. The whole point of Section 31 I thought was to deal with these kind of problems so that the Federation could deny all knowledge should anything go wrong. I'm really not sure if the writers got to grips with their source material properly here as it's much more a guns-blazing action piece than anything else. 

What they have attempted with Renegades is admirable but the cast is wasted on a basic action flick. Vic Mignogna's Cardassian is killed off early and could have been a fairly interesting character but now we'll never know.  Worst is that it's also taken me this long through the cast to remember that Gary Graham is in here as Ragnar, some form of mercenary type. I have a feeling he's going to be better treated as a character in Axanar than he does here. Truth be told both Ragnar and Sean Penn's Doctor Lucien benefit the most when they are alone aboard the Icarus evading the Archer. Again, a bit of a token character with not enough screen time to be fully developed in this installment.

From the very opening this feels like a 90's episode of Babylon 5 in the style of filming, the low tech sets and the amount of very evident green-screen really made this feel a little bit raw and retro. It's not a complaint because, hey, they have to reduce costs and this is never going to have quite the same feel as a TV episode but it's very telling what an independent production can complete versus the power of somewhere like CBS. Nor am I a great fan of the Syphon. The make-up is not that great, as an enemy I didn't buy into them and all we seemed to get was a lot of grunts and snorts through the monkey-esque mouthpieces. Borrada, their leader played by Bruce Young, could have been much better developed than just the archetypical villain role. I know he could have brought more depth to the role but the script, once again, is just as unforgiving and inflexible as his excessive makeup.

The plot point surrounding the use of portals to collapse planets into space and time is a really neat concept. It's not exactly new but the idea of encasing or destroying planets using it was fairly cool to see and did enhance the sense of danger especially when it turned to Earth as a potential target. The effects with this part were a bit iffy and some of the tension build up seemed to drag on a little longer than necessary. That's actually one of the directional points that did grate since it happened a few times - an angle lingered too long, a scene could have cut earlier or started just a fraction later.

There's a lot of blasting and battles but there doesn't feel like any form of Star Trek core; no morality, no deeper meaning that you would expect. It's almost as though Renegades is attempting the fast, visual gratification that modern blockbuster movies attempt, possibly aiming for a younger newer audience a la JJ's movies? I just found it lacking anything substantial. Many other popular fan series chose to stay in The Original Series era because it can be done less expensively and still look pretty good which is where Renegades vision and ability come into conflict quite drastically. With Renegades the intention is to make it look 24th Century but given the budget it just doesn't hit the mark. I'm sorry but unless you've got the millions that produced The Next Generation and the rest it's always going to look like a cheap knock-off however hard you try. Walls are a bit plain and shaky, sets look empty and there's a lot of obvious green-screen however, a lot of the visual effects added in post-production look great especially the tech on Icheb, some of the clear padd devices and the intensity of the ground battles.

Costuming too really bugged me. Not so much the renegades attire but the production's take on Starfleet's uniform which,  in every case be it Corin Nemec on the Archer,  Tuvok or Chekov looks like something you would buy from a fancy dress shop. It seems strangely oversized and in comparison to the clothes the main renegade characters receive they look really shoddy and poorly made. Sorry,  just an opinion but they aren't the best. The bridge set for the Archer too was very cramped, oddly shot and felt like it had been constructed in about five minutes. Sorry, I have major gripes with this as you can see....

Renegades is a heck of a lot darker and much less Starfleet than you will have experienced with even the conflict-filled world of Deep Space Nine. The appearance of the USS Archer with it's oddly wide deflector dish, as well as the inclusion of admirals Chekov and Paris (Richard Herd) keep a tag that we are still in the same Star Trek universe but I can't shake the feeling that this isn't quite Star Trek. Indeed as I asked at the start, would Gene have approved? I'm not sure he would have.

We know from interviews Roddenberry gave that he wanted other people to take on the franchise, to add their twist to it but the hopeful future he spoke of and believed in which in turn brought life to the Star Trek universe does not seem to exist in Renegades. The universe seems to have gone Bad (purposeful capital "B" there) and is only getting worse. Even Starfleet seems less optimistic and after the Dominion War, the multiple Borg attacks and the rest you'd probably not blame them but it there was always a sense of hope that seems to have been sapped from Renegades. If I was to understand the universe from this perspective I'd assume that s**t happens and deal with it.

We always knew that Renegades would not look as good as the TV show but I personally expected better given the time, effort and names associated with the project. It may not be the Star Trek we could have expected nor will it ever be canon but fans deserved something much more in keeping with the feel of the franchise. It's all well and good taking the idea in different directions but at its core anything Star Trek still needs to remain true to its founding principles to be truly considered Star Trek and I think that Renegades falls short of the mark with its desire for action over genuine character interaction and development.

I'll be the first to admit that I didn't donate to the project. OK, say what you will, I didn't and regretted it to the point where I did donate to Axanar. My problem is that I'm not sure how all the cash really was spent here. The cast is incredible but it just seems bloated in comparison to the plot needs, development (written that word A LOT here) and pacing. Less characters would have given more exposure to the necessary ones and potentially helped thicken out the story with something more meaningful. I know this comes across as an utter slating but it is still an improvement on productions from the 00's however while Renegades has been in production other units have caught up and passed what this movie has attempted to do in so many ways. 

Admittedly there's no-one trying to do post-Nemesis Star Trek so they do get a gold star for that and for effort but without the backing of a proper studio it's never going to hit the heights it needs to. Yes, yes, I know that's the point of the web-pilot to get that interest but so far I've not heard anything to suggest it's going to get that. Even more concerning is that the cast is going to be increased with the recent announcement that Terry (Jadzia Dax) Farrell will be boarding ship for the next episode - even less time for the existing crew to blossom?!

Renegades may well not be the optimistic future that Gene Roddenberry envisaged and brought to the screen on September 8th 1966 but it is still a vehicle to carry the name and keep the franchise alive in some form. While we are getting numerous series expanding the tales in the era of The Original Series, Renegades has been brave enough to move forward into new, uncharted visual territory and stake a claim. 

I look forward to the next phase of it's evolution and expect that a lot of lessons will be learned from the production of this movie. I have felt this has been a huge disappointment given all the factors that have gone into making a "new" Star Trek but I am hopefully confident that Renegades II will certainly be a step forward from here. Heck, we can't go backwards can we? 

How did you feel about Renegades? Was it as "miss" as I felt it was or am I being unjustly critical on something that's keeping Star Trek alive?

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The Renegades Trailer: The Wait Is Nearly Over

Broken by several of its cast,  the Star Trek: Renegades trailer may well offer hope that the future of fan films doesn't just lie in the realms of The Original Series.

It seems to have taken an eternity to get to this stage but it now feels that we're within reach of seeing the finished product - but what does this brand spanking new trailer tell us about the upcoming Tim Russ movie?

"...Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade..."

It's a slow opener with some non-descript shots of seemingly alien tech, their ships (possibly) and introductory snaps of Lexxa Singh (Adrienne Wilkinson) and Voyager's Manu Intiraymi.

The notable bit we get first though is a young Lexxa with her mother, played by singer Cela Scott from Automatik Eden and it tends to indicate that those two phaser-rifle wielding gents that we've seen in teasers before are out to kill the pair. Linking this to the susequent scene where Tuvok meets Lexxa in prison it's pretty clear that she believes her mother was murdered by the pair of phaser-toters. Finding out if she's still alive provides some motivation for her involvement in Tuvok's Big Plan.

The 143-year old Admiral Pavel Chekov certainly looks good for his age although the Starfleet uniforms we've seen in promo shots and here in the trailer do seem to be ill-fitting which is a surprise. Something that might also be levelled at Robert Picardo's outfit as Doctor Lewis Zimmerman - looking unusually happy for once as well you would be too getting to share the screen with Sean Young as Doctor Lucien - or Rachel from Blade Runner as you may know her better. Neither actually get any lines to say in this trailer so I can't pinpoint what their role within the Renegades framework actually is.

The USS Archer looks stunning in her first fly-by, giving us a shot of her registry, NCC-78101 and the detail is certainly impressive, even down to the numbering of the escape pod hatches. The ship gets her first appearance as we're introduced to the new alien race playing nemesis in Renegades and they're stopping at nothing to prove a point, dragging unnamed round corners screaming or killing those who get in the way. Called the Syphon, their introduction isn't the best here and nor does the make-up seem to have any amount of flexibility around the mouth area which could prove difficult in the longer movie.

"The Federation has made a great mistake of interfering. We will not be stopped by you."

That said, they do have a different look and seem to provide a genuine threat, destroying worlds and causing a headache for Admiral Chekov. I'd really like to know what "interfering" the Federation has been doing to get them unsettled and lead into this tale. Certainly there's a lot to fill in about this and more importantly about the crew of characters on the Renegades' ship. What is the path that leads Lexxa from punching seven shades out of Vic Mignogna's Cardassian prisoner Garis to the bridge of that same vessel?

Opposing her or at the least getting in the way for some of this is Corin Nemec as Captain Alvarez on the USS Archer - again in that ill fitting uniform style that everyone in Starfleet appears to be taking on. Note the homage to the Enterprise-D in the style of the bridge console right behind him when we get a glimpse on board as he faces off against Lexxa. Tarah Page gets a brief snapshot on screen in security mustard as Commander Petrona but blink and you'll miss her. Indeed, trawling the main cast there are a few notables who get no screen-time at all but I like that as it means we still have tons to look forward to.

One person who does crop up in a flash here and there as well as on the bridge of the Renegades ship is Edward Furlong, almost unrecognisable as Fixer. So much so I had to cross-check it against the movie's website cast list to reassure myself. From a later shot in the trailer it might be he doesn't last the whole movie since that looks like one of the Syphon is coming up from behind him.

"You will be hunted."

"That's the way we like it."

Also on that rag-tag crew is Gary Graham as Ragnar but more significantly shown in the trailer is Icheb wielding some impressive Borg technology and a neat little effect where the weaponry appears to grow around his arm while Lexxa and a Bajoran look on. Talking of Voyager characters here, Richard Herd's Admiral Paris also pops up, giving some sage words of wisdom to Admiral Chekov as the screen erupts with explosions and phaser fights. Those scenes tend to indicate the team's very survival could be at stake here - will they all make it to the end credits? I'm not convinced that everyone will.

From the latter moments of the trailer there's a heavy sense that this is going to be very, very action orientated with Lexxa and Icheb being in the thick of it accompanied by one Breen at the least while Courtney Peldon's Shree and Chasty Ballesteros' Ronara do get a few seconds of screentime but little more than lip service to their involvement at this point. I suppose the good thing about that is that we'll discover more about them with the arrival of the finished product.. The effects look good so far with the space shots of the Renegades ship and the USS Archer twisting around Klingon battlecruisers demonstrates how far tech has come since Of Gods and Men. 


As a trailer it does reveal that this crew have been placed together to assassinate the leader of the Syphon before he destroys more worlds. The Federation has to remain whiter than white so Lexxa's crew become their only, unlikely, option to resolve matters.

This movie certainly won't be Star Trek precisely as we're used to and for once it does feel that we'll be viewing the universe from the wrong side of the fence if you excuse the cliche. My fear is that this is a very sketchy trailer only really giving us a nod that the effects are complete and that it's going to have some pace to it. A few of the more static scenes did feel a little stale - those with Admiral Paris or Chekov for example and those featuring characters on more brightly lit stages did feel more false than I would have expected. 

Renegades has certainly become one of the most anticipated fan films of the last few years if only for the interstellar Star Trek alumni associated with its creation. The premier is indeed set for the German FedCon in May less than a month away and then the rest of us mortals will be able to see if the wait has been worth it. Heck, it was mid-2013 when the original Kickstarter campaign closed! The trailer is one of the most opaque pieces of promo material ever. There's no real idea of the story here (expected) but there is a lot going on, a lot to anticipate and the potential to be the fastest-paced, darkest fan spin-off ever. Here's hoping.

"Be careful Pavel; this could get out of hand very easily..."

What did you think of the official full-length Renegades trailer? Did it meet your expectations or is it falling short of the target or other fan productions? Let us know below!

Images screenshot from the Renegades trailer. No copyright infringement intended.

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Soul Searching: News from Renegades and Star Trek 3

In the US or Canada and happen to be an actor available for work in the next few months?

Why not try out for casting in Star Trek 3 which is looking for people to fill all sorts of roles right this cotton-picking minute.

You can check out the ad right now and as long as you're free between June 1st and October 1st this year, the odds could be in your favour. The important thing to note is that they're looking for both starring and supporting roles which makes it a very open field.

That may mean that rumours around Bryan Cranston/a Bryan Cranston-type baddie are just that; rumours until better substantiated. From memory I think there were some indications they were looking to fill two female main cast roles as well but with the change in script and director, who is to say that these are even being considered anymore? How old were the rumours by the time we heard them?

Certainly news in relation to the movie is sketchy yet it is still 15 months until release - something that can't be said of Star Trek: Renegades which continues not to be available.

The news on this one is that March 15th saw the release of - and I couldn't quite believe this - a music video to promote the film. Serious. A music video from Automatik Eden. (who?)

Filled with some sunny, rocky imagery and front woman Cela Scott (who plays Lexxa's mum) in suitably futuristic/post-apocalypse attire, I never saw this one coming. It manages to spin in quotes from the trailers we've seen but I don't know if this was a good move. We've been teased, we've been appeased but there's still nothing substantial after all the waiting. 

Captain of my Soul is a bit samey if I do say so and while elegantly performed by the duo it's not a move I would expect from anything in Star Trek and will probably draw direct comparisons to a certain Russell Watson-vocalised main title from the early 00's.  Directed by Tim Russ and starring Automatik Eden's singer - probably at Vasquez Rocks - the song includes the rote from the second trailer and even bears it as a title which in itself is from Invictus by William Ernest Henley. 

Commenting on music isn't one of my strong points but the video does include some great shots of the Renegades ship seemingly in combat with the USS Archer as well as some more shots of Adrienne Wilkinson's Lexxa Singh taking on Vic Mignogna's Cardassian prisoner as per last year's clip and a couple of snaps of Tuvok and Chekov looking all anxious. There's also a shot of two black-clad heavies walking through the desert wielding phaser rifles. I've no idea how these guys fit in to the plot as it's the first time I've spotted them in all the materials to come out of the project.


The action sequences don't really give us a lot to go on especially where Lexxa is concerned as most of her clips involve some form of fist fight latterly with the new enemy featured in the movie.

There's also a few shots of Manu Intiraymi facing off against some opposition with one heck of an impressive piece of weaponry. Shame that we don't get much more to go on than stolen moments which don't appear to directly link. However, the shots of the key ships within Renegades does mean we get some glorious passing shots of the two vessels and gives us a good look at the unusual design of the Archer's secondary hull and gaping maw of a deflector dish. From the top, sleek and sexy but butt ugly from the front.

Automatik Eden's video is nice and glossy and relates directly to the Renegades movie. As a singer Cela Scott seems pretty good although I'm unfamiliar with anything else she and music partner David Crocco have done before this (heck - I had to check the web just to see if Automatik Eden is just one person or a group...). I will now have to go and check out other tracks they've done via their website.

But that aside which has opened me up to a new musical avenue, why do I feel like this is another stall in a process which seems to have taken an age to get anywhere? Just checking out the Renegades page on YouTube you can see how long it is since there was any serious activity and the same can be said of the website and Facebook pages. Apparently the visual effects are being sorted as we write with only 20 of the 627 left to finish and while this promo video does drop a few nice shots of makeup and CGI, I for one am right on the edge waiting to see the finished result...and soon please.

Have you watched the Automatik Eden video? Is it what you would have wanted to come from the Renegades stable? Check it out HERE.

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Renegades: Will it Beat Of Gods and Men?

I'll get a massive amount of heckling for this I suspect but it's taken me until 2014 to watch the 2006 production Of Gods and Men.

Sorry, sorry, sorry I am not worthy to be called a True Fan and I'll be flogging myself ritually for months as penance. Why it's taken so long is a story in itself. However before I divert away to cause myself extreme pain, there's more to explain.

Like many fan projects, Of Gods and Men took an age to get made and released. At the time it came out my internet connection was one step away from dial-up and over the years I just forgot it existed until the Renegades movie machine powered up and thundered into life.

While Axanar might have the imaginative twist and flair to do something totally different, Renegades is the one that seems to get the airtime due to its heritage and cast. The release date is just getting closer and closer and gradually more information is starting to head our way. What's my point here? Well, both Of Gods and Men and Renegades are directed by one Tim Russ and are, perhaps, the closest thing to "real" Star Trek that you can get given that the characters on screen are being played by the same people who portrayed them in Voyager and the other televised series.

Right - quick memory jog for you on the show - set in a time after Voyager, Tuvok brings together a band of rogues, outcasts and criminals that can work outside of the rules and regulations of Starfleet to investigate the strange folding of space and time which has occurred around several planets, cutting them off from the rest of the universe. The trouble is these planets are the main suppliers of the vital dilithium. Tuvok will lead his assembled team to find out what is causing the folds while also having to deal with the conflicts within the group.

So far we've had two trailers which are, admittedly, unfinished tasters of the end product and very little else. There's more fundraising going on via Indegogo as we speak to raise cash for the visual effects and you have to wonder how much more is needed to get the movie finished. Does it seem to you that this keeps on going? I'm staying positive that this is to ensure the best Star Trek independent spin-off ever.

Ok, so it's going to cost a lot but the perks of donating are good and they're only about $3000 off the of $25,000 target. The continued support of fans through donations does show you how much faith the fan community has in Russ' work.

Almost as a bit of a thank you and a reminder that it is nearly finished, something new popped up on the Renegades YouTube channel last week; the first character trailer entitled Introducing Lexxa and starring not only Adrienne Wilkinson but also Tim Russ as Tuvok and Star Trek Continues' Captain Kirk himself, Vic Mignogna as her Cardassian opponent.

The fact is that it's the most complete footage we've had thus far and justifies the work and funds that are going into this project. The trailers were great but we can finally see some dialogue and action in sequence. So does it look any better than it's near-decade old predecessor? I think so and now is the time to talk about it.

Some fans are probably already ruing that we're getting cut-price spin offs from people who should know better and were involved with the "real" thing but this looks anything but cheap and I wouldn't expect the talent in front and behind the camera to be taking part if they didn't believe they could produce something of excellent quality.

As you'll have no doubt spotted, this little Renegades piece has been sprinkled with some screenshots from the snippet and we are geniunely impressed. I found Of Gods of Men a tad shoddy and at times overly cheesy with some truly wobbly sets that Blakes 7 would have distanced themselves from and horribly ill-fitting uniforms. This on the other hand is Star Trek with dirt under its nails and maybe a tooth missing for good measure.

Wilkinson and Mignogna are brilliant here in what is a particularly well choreographed fight scene. While Lexxa is more animalistic and raw, Mignogna's Cardassian prisoner Garis seems to be channelling some strains of Garak in his goading of the female Augment. He knows which buttons to press especially in relationship to her lineage. Also, does anyone else think that he bears a scarily close resemblance to one Dumar?

From a character perspective this gives us some basics on who Captain Lexxa Singh is (which makes sense when you consider this is an Introducing... video) while showing off just how good and serious this production is about making quality Star Trek for the fans.

The more I see of Vic Mignogna the more I'm impressed. His Kirk was a little too Kirk for me originally but after a couple more viewings I've appreciated his work a lot more and here as a Cardassian he's superb and the makeup is faultless. The set lighting and dressing are as equally impressive and for a moment you'd be forgiven for thinking you're watching an episode of Deep Space Nine or Voyager (whatever your fancy) - it's only when an older Tuvok shows up that you realise this is something new.

Russ hasn't lost any of the Tuvok charm (!) since leaving Voyager and his discourse with Lexxa confirms that he's working on something that's going to need a very specialised person to get the job done. While this scene isn't about Tuvok it is about Tim Russ in some respects because this is the first glimpses of his work - and it's a good job.

Certainly more adult in its use of language than your average Star Trek episode, whatever the something big that's going down is, I hope we get to see a bit of it in the next trailers that come forth from the Renegades stable. My other query is as to when we'll get to see our first look at some of the CGI for the pilot? We've seen stills of the Archer and the Icarus but let's see them out in the great blackness where they belong, in motion.


So will it beat Of Gods and Men? Unquestionably in everything from sets to script to costumes to score - nay, it has to beat it given the time elapsed since that movie premiered. The production here feels tighter and the acting certainly come across a darn sight more believable than in its predecessor. we have only seen a minimal amount of footage so I might be getting my hopes up too soon. Good news on that front is that we will be seeing a trailer entitled The Mission sometime in June which might answer a few more questions - and pose a few more at the same time. Fingers crossed this will introduce us to a few more of the motley crew that are aboard our Renegades starship, the Icarus (above).


Aside from the new trailer little else has been seen from the Renegades team recently as they work on this (potential) web-series pilot. There have been some cast shots but, like the Introducing spot they have focused on Lexxa, Garis and Tim Russ' Tuvok. Not a bad thing but it means there's still more to be drip-fed for our unquenchable thirst for Star Trek knowledge.

The more I do see the more I hope it goes beyond just the one adventure if only to flesh out the story and not leave too much unfinished business. If the reboot movies are going to be the ignition for a new TV series then there has to be something keeping the 24th Century Prime Universe alive and this is the best candidate to date - make that the only candidate. Fans out there might bitch and moan about it looking cheaper than the TV series we're used to but times have changed and keeping the vision alive has to be done with tighter purse strings.

Of Gods and Men marked a big turning point in the production of fan films and certainly raised awareness of their existence. It marked the 40th anniversary and demonstrated that Star Trek could be kept alive for a fraction of its original onscreen costs. Without it maybe a lot of fan-made movies wouldn't have even been conceived. For that we should be thankful and hope that the existing cast members of every generation keep wanting to produce new material featuring their characters, however it is made.

Images from startrekrenegades.com and the Renegades Facebook page.

You can head over to the official site HERE to learn more about Star Trek: Renegades

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Russ, Renegades and a Review

This begins our dark introduction into the world of Star Trek: Renegades, the trailer descends on what appears to be a jail cell; a lone woman chalks her words onto a wall... 

As this trailer unfolds it becomes very clear that this will be more than your average Trek. Tim Russ definitely intends to take us to the outer edges of the Federation, and possibly beyond.

This is just the beginning of both the teaser trailers, click here to see them both in full length, plus some very fascinating interviews with cast members! 

Maybe it's the unexpected all star cast? It's quite one thing to have Tim Russ directing this, let alone reprising his role as Tuvok (Voyager). Then we look at the caliber of actors all along for the ride, the mix of talent available to this production is truly impressive. You'd be forgiven thinking that this is your run-of-the-mill fan fiction. Don't be fooled however, as we have truly seasoned Star Trek actors involved...

Tim Russ - That's right, he's not only the director, but he'll also be slapping those pointed ears back on (and likely slapping down some more ensigns too!). Logic has never been so dark.This will be Tuvok's first on screen appearance since 2001 and Voyager's finale, Endgame. 

No pressure then. In the intervening years it's good to see Mr Russ has been honing his skills on such wonderous TV programmes as I, Carly... Seriously, should be awesome to see him back in action as the joint lead with...

Walter Koenig - It's nice to see him beyond commander, but whatever you do, please don't ask him to say Nuclear Wessels or he vill haf to stun you.

Yes, the original Chekov will be back on screen for the first time since 1994 (Star Trek: Generations) because officially we don't class his appearance in Phase II ...although we probably should if we're talking about another fan-made production. Oh, hang on. We are.

Robert Picardo - Stop the press... He won't be playing our neighbourhood EMH so we won't get to know the nature of the medical emergency this time around.

Instead, he'll be reprising his brief role as Dr Lewis Zimmerman, a character not seen on our screens since 2000 in Lifeline from season six of Voyager. Actually Zimmerman wasn't around that much at all - fleetingly in the first few years - Projections, The Swarm to name a few before he turned up in Deep Space Nine's Doctor Bashir, I Presume as an actual real person. How Zimmerman is going to fit into what looks like Star Trek mixed with Rambo is up for discussion.

Now I imagine at this point you're thinking "Great, but why am I going to bother with ANOTHER spin off?"

Well, as the full teaser suggests, the Federation is faced with yet another threat, however this new nemesis is beyond the reach of the Federation's typical 'good will politics'. 

Tuvok, now head of Section 31, is tasked with answering this unknown enemy head on. Not an easy job considering this adversary has the ability of cutting the Federation off from dilithium, and also appears to be annexing planets from space and time. Nice.

As you peruse through the library of information on the Renegades website, the trailers, masses of interview footage, promo videos, even the new comedy segments. You definitely get an idea of the work that has gone into making this a reality. 

Although I was a little disappointed with the second trailer if I can be honest. How can I put this... it was a Transformers take on Star Trek. The deep soundtrack behind it, the transforming title at the end, the mash of apparently random scenes. I was intrigued, but not satisfied. It felt, incomplete. 

Now, as you can tell, I watched both trailers in completely the wrong order, something in fact I recommend as an introduction to Renegades. The first trailer, whilst it lacks the 'epic' text segments, does trump the second. There is better introduction and explanation, they haven't tried to mash it together and hope for the best. The structure is very well done for this, a short briefing, melding into an invigorating and progressive background sound piece, with the scenes building up into... *enter transforming title sequence.*

So what's exactly in the trailers? What can we take from the limited glimpse? Well, you have some curious segments from Chekov and Tuvok, setting the story, it leads us to believe that this new threat could provide a tipping point in the Federation's affairs. The fact they have resorted to bringing Section 31 in to deal with the crisis I believe is meant to portray the seriousness of the situation. So what of moving forward? 

At present, we know of this new enemy the Syphons, we don't know anything of them other than one Syphon in particular, Borrada, has a serious grudge with the Federation for an incident with portals? This is the full detail at present, other than this new species appears to be particularly aggressive. I guess we'll have to wait and see as more information feeds through.

When +Clive Burrell and I were discussing Renegades (amongst many other upcoming titles), it became clear from the outset that this was something special. It immediately gave you a 'Where No Man has Gone Before' thrill. Sure, you can throw many examples of promising fan fiction at us, but there is something quite different about Renegades - something I'm yet to put my finger on.

To say that these are just the tip of the iceberg would be quite an understatement, having looked at the accompanying cast, we can see echoes of other popular shows.. Stargate SG-1, Charmed, ER, That 70's Show, CSI: Miami, this list is endless and well worth a click here for the full cast listing, we think you'll be surprised and excited (Edward Furlong?!).

It's a unique situation, which requires a unique crew. Cue the Renegades (would have screwed the title if this wasn't the case...). A rag-tag crew whose abilities - and lack of restriction to Starfleet regulations - are just the right kind of crazy to possibly get the job done. Even the audio wasn't up to scratch, with imbalances between the background and the scene audio. Not to say it wasn't good, I was thoroughly hooked on the first scene. It certainly teased my curiosity. If this is their worst, then it would appear promising.

But I can't shake the feeling that Tim and Walter's involvement in this story will actually be quite limited, the Hors d'oeuvre to the Renegades crew. I can certainly understand though, given how much time Tim must be putting in to direct this as well as acting in it. 

Captain Lexxa Singh (Adrienne Wilkinson pictured left) on the other hand... she appears to have quite a major role and back-story in this. Even from the first trailer it is clear she will be a lead role as (the sexy) captain of the renegade starship, her appearances in this trailer alone are quite a few. 

It's curious to find from the website and trailers, this character delves once again into the Eugenics Wars sub-story that has been present throughout canon Trek. However, this time there's an interesting twist - her character is apparently a direct decendant of one Khan Noonien Singh. I certainly hope moving forward, there is good explanation for this, as at present there is no evidence that Khan had any siblings or indeed lineage (being genetically engineered). For the moment, I'll stick to saying Kirk would be crushed to hear this...

Hang on a moment, surely if Admiral Chekov knew of this, he'd never let her out of that cell in the first place? Wow, the explanation had better be award winning to explain away this curve-ball! One other thing I have noticed even though principle photography finished in October 2013 is the lack of CGI - ships, planets...or anything aside from a glowy globe (trailer one) and the title effect...I suspect that's being kept under wraps and will need to be pretty impressive to beat Axanar's CGI tests and the work of Phase II among others.

All of this leaves me (I'm almost ashamed to admit), priapic with anticipation. You can blame the influences of one Jeremy Clarkson for that...

But where does this leave us? I'm sure by now you've watched both the trailers, and have come to your own conclusions. But it would be very remiss of me not too provide my own thoughts, in true SKoST tradition. We aren't however, above reproach. If you feel there's even more than meets the eye, why not get involved? Drop us a comment below!

All images taken from the Star Trek: Renegades trailers available on YouTube. No infringement of copyright is intended.
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