Tag: Internet

Categories
Phase II / New Voyages Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

To Serve All My Days

Star Trek: Phase II

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 6031.2: Bringing Ambassador Rayna Morgan to the Enterprise from Babel via shuttlepod, Chekov has to do some fancy flying to avoid a Klingon warship. The Enterprise arrives just in time, but Captain Kirk and Captain Kargh only exchange a volley of words in this battle. A later visit to engineering puts Chekov in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he receives what should be a nearly lethal dose of radiation, though Dr. McCoy is startled to see no ill effects – at least at first. A day later, Chekov has aged 25 years, and McCoy can find no way to stop his rapid aging. A ship which appears to be a Klingon battlecruiser attacks the Enterprise, doing serious damage, and Kirk finds himself on the brink of plunging the Federation into war – and his best weapons officer is marching inexorably toward death’s door.

Watch Itwritten by D.C. Fontana
director not credited (most likely Erik J. Goodrich)
music by Patrick Phillips

Cast: James Cawley (Captain Kirk), Jeffery Scott (Mr. Spock), John Kelley (Dr. McCoy), Walter Koenig (Chekov), Mary-Linda Rapelye (Ambassador Rayna Morgan), John Carrigan (Captain Kargh), Andy Bray (Lt. Chekov), Julienne Irons (Lt. Uhura), John Lim (Lt. Cmdr. Sulu), Charles Root (Cmdr. Scott), Ron Boyd (Lt. DeSalle), Shannon Giles (Nurse Chapel), Jeff Mailhotte (Sentell), Jay Storey (Lt. Kyle), Giovanna Contini (Ensign Carr), Mari Okumara (Yeoman Okuda), David Dufrane (Cadet), Tim Brazeal (Klingon 1), Kent Schmidt (Klingon 2), Larry Nemecek (Esterion), James Lowe, Debbie Mailhotte, John Whiting, Patrick Cleveland, Linda Cleveland, Amanda Root, Steve LeClerc, Chris Lunderman, Jessie Mailhotte, Anne Carrigan (Federation Ambassadors), Ed Abbate, Ron M. Gates, Michael Struck, Ian Peters, Nathan Gastineau, Riva Gijanto, Steve LeClerc, Danielle Porter, Ralph Miller, Max Kiserman, Michael Tavares, Jerry Storey, Paul Seiber (Starfleet Personnel)

Notes: The shuttle piloted by Chekov is the Archer, and it’s pursued by a Klingon vessel seen in Star Trek: Enterprise and identified there as a Klingon Warbird; though it resembles the Bird of Prey, there are significant differences, and it could conceivably still be in service by the fourth year of Kirk’s original mission (after all, the D7 cruiser is still around in the 24th century). Chekov came into contact with the rapid aging virus in The Deadly Years; when reminiscing about his younger days, he refers to events in The Apple and Spectre Of The Gun. Guest player Tim Brazeal headed the controversial TrekUnited.com movement, which tried to raise enough money to convince Paramount to produce a fifth season of Star Trek: Enterprise, while Larry Nemecek is the author of such books as the “Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion.”

Review: In the New Voyages gang’s third outing (or second, depending on how sacred you hold their insistence that Come What May has been jettisoned from their canon), there’s some all-star help on hand – Walter Koenig reprises the role of Chekov, and D.C. Fontana does the honors as the writer of his return engagement. It’s a marked departure from previous New Voyages installments in that character development and internal drama are very much to the fore, rather than the admittedly neat spectacle of “wow, we’re restarting and updating original Trek!” Sure, there are some extravagant special effects sequences (the opening chase with the Klingon ship, even with its slightly anachronistic proto-Bird of Prey from the Star Trek: Enterprise era, is a dazzling piece for a fan production), but at the story’s heart are a mystery and a character story which would’ve done a production of any budget level proud.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Starship Farragut

The Captaincy

Starship Farragut

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 4625.1: Captain John Carter assumes command of the Constitution Class starship U.S.S. Farragut after a tragic incident forces her previous captain into retirement. His hand-picked choices for his chief engineer and first officer are also aboard, though he’s a little bit put off by the by-the-books demeanor of the security chief he’s inherited. The Farragut is ordered to investigate the disappearance of another Federation vessel and a survey team headed by the headstrong Commodore Broughton – and what Captain Carter and his crew find waiting for them is a party of Klingons, led by Commander Kruge and guarding a secret weapon. Focusing the energy of an entire planet on its targets, the Klingons’ new weapon could threaten any world in the Federation on a planetary scale. With the Farragut searching for survivors from the destroyed ship elsewhere, it’s up to Carter and his crew to put the Klingons out of commission.

Watch Itwritten by John Broughton & Paul Sieber
directed by Paul Sieber
music by John Seguin / additional music by Patrick Phillips

Cast: John Broughton (Captain John T. Carter), Michael Bednar (Commander Robert Tacket), Holly Bednar (Lt. Commander Michelle Smithfield), Paul R. Sieber (Lt. Prescott / Klingon voice), Tonya Bacon (Lt. Alissa Moretti), David Sepan (Baker), Amy Sepan (Dr. Holley), John Broughton Sr. (Commodore Broughton), Mark Hildebrand (Kruge), Chris Carothers (Karek), Trey Thomas (Kray), Larry Manzare (Admiral Wainwright), Amanda Root (Bell), Bob McDonough (Galway), Cherise Rosemond (Shuttlecraft Pilot), Daniel Awkward (Nash / Klingon voice), Ralph Miller (Computer voice), Michael Struck (Jennings / Strickland), James Cawley (Captain Kirk), Jeff Quinn (Mr. Spock), John Kelly (Dr. McCoy), Sally Arkulari, Daniel Awkward, Ken Brison, Nancy Ellis, Brad Graper, Steve Kaserman, Dan Manherz, John Miller, Roger Miller, Michael Oetting, Tracy Phelps, Laird Sheep, Eric Van Arsale, John Winsley (Klingon Warriors), Patrick Bell, Bruce Dennis, David Dufrane, Denis Durand, Ron Gates, Natalie Montgomery, Ian Peters, Trey Thomas, Rob Turner, Jessica Young (Farragut Crew)

Review: The premiere of a new fan series set in the classic Trek era, Starship Farragut has a roughly equal number of things going for it and things that need improvement. But it’s a very impressive first effort, and the people who put it together can hold their heads high with this latest addition to the Trek universe. Though it seems as though the ranks of Kirk-era fan films are swelling, each series is unique enough to provide a different experience, and Farragut is no exception.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Star Trek: Intrepid

Heavy Lies The Crown

Star Trek: Intrepid

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 59422.9: Assigned to a routine colony patrol in the Charybdis Sector, the U.S.S. Intrepid’s chain of command is disrupted when Captain Talath, making a shuttle supply run to carry power equipment to the surface of Chiron IV, encounters inexplicable interference on her final approach. Faced with a choice between killing his own captain when transporters and tractor beams can’t lock onto the shuttle, or letting it crash near a Federation colony and cause widespread destruction, Intrepid’s first officer, Commander Hunter, orders the destruction of the shuttle – and his captain. Though Starfleet praises him for quick and selfless action, Hunter is riddled by guilt and reluctant to accept a promotion to captain of the Intrepid. An unknown enemy strikes, leaving several ships near the colony without power – and without power for life support, over a thousand aboard those ships will die. Hunter gambles that since Chiron IV is the site of these disruptions, the source must be on its surface, and takes several of his senior officers on an away mission to find the cause before time runs out. But once he beams down, Hunter finds that the colonists are so terrified by the attacks that they’re ready to lash out against anyone they don’t know – including an unfamiliar Starfleet crew.

Watch Itwritten by Nick Cook
directed by Steve Hammond
music by David Beukes / Intrepid theme by Dylan Feeney

Cast: Nick Cook (Commander Hunter), Risha Denney (Captain Shelby), Mike Cugley (Rick Garran, PhD), Steven Pasqua (Lt. Cole), Lorraine Kelly (Watch Officer), Lucie Cook (Lt. Caed), Jen Graham (Ensign Stiles), Ferdos Ahmed (Ms. Raman), Shire Smith (Captain Talath), Alan Score (Commodore Prentice), Lyn McGarity (Governor Finney), Steve Hammond (Captain Merik), Lee Andrews (P.O. Kreiger), Gordon Dickson (Lt. Commander Garran), David Reid (Lt. S’Ceris), Alan Christison (Lt. Commander Navar), Jeff Hayes (Admiral T’Yla), Brandy Seymour (Computer Voice), Roy MacPhail (Chief Gaines), David Beukes (P.O. Zondag), Martin Lejeune (Ensign Faldor), Kara Dennison (Captain Dalonna), Elie Hirschman (Tom Backus), Eric Busby (Bishop), Judah Friese (Judah), Sean Koury (Freman)

Review: The flagship production of a group of dedicated fans based in Scotland, Intrepid is the first Star Trek fan film I’ve watched to skip past the Kirk era and go beyond the end of Voyager and Star Trek: Nemesis. Depending on who you ask, that’s the direction in which future Star Trek tales should be headed, rather than revisiting the past. I’m not sure I entirely agree with that school of thought, but there’s something about returning to the 24th century that’s just reassuring – it takes me back to fond memories of my teens and twenties.

Categories
Phase II / New Voyages Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

World Enough And Time

Star Trek: Phase II

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 6283.4: A distress call takes the Enterprise into the Neutral Zone, where they see a helpless cargo ship destroyed by Romulan Birds of Prey using a new weapon not seen before by the Federation. After it destroys that ship, however, the weapon backfires, enveloping everything nearby in an energy field, including the Enterprise. Sulu and exo-tech expert Lt. Chandris take a shuttlecraft to the wreckage of the lead Romulan ship to learn more about the weapon, but waves of instability wreak havoc with the ship’s structure, tearing it apart and leaving only seconds before the warp core breaches. Sulu and Chandris run back to find their shuttle has been lost, and when Sulu calls the Enterprise for an emergency transport, he’s literally a different man when he returns: he has aged over 30 years, and Chandris doesn’t rematerialize at all. Sulu explains that a rift led them to safety on a habitable world in another dimension, and they spent that time settling down and starting a family. Sulu introduces his crewmates to his daughter, Alana, whose transporter pattern Scotty can barely lock onto. The only way to keep her molecules from scattering is to create a field that stabilizes her pattern. Every time Kirk orders the Enterprise to try to break away from the distortion generated by the Romulans’ weapon, Alana starts to fade out of existence. With mere hours before the distortion destabilizes the space within it enough to destroy the Enterprise, Sulu must try to recover his memory of how to navigate a ship through the distortion – with the full knowledge that escape may condemn his daughter to death.

Watch Itwritten by Michael Reaves & Marc Scott Zicree
directed by Marc Scott Zicree
music by Alan Derian

Cast: James Cawley (Captain Kirk), Jeffery Scott (Mr. Spock), John Kelley (Dr. McCoy), George Takei (Sulu), Grace Lee Whitney (Commander Janice Rand), Christina Moses (Alana), John Lim (Lt. Cmdr. Sulu), Andy Bray (Lt. Chekov), Julienne Irons (Lt. Uhura), Charles Root (Scotty), Ron Boyd (DeSalle), Lia Johnson (Dr. Chandris), Mimi Chong (Demora Sulu), Natasha Soudek (Lt. Soudek), Mallory Reaves (Ensign Mallory), Kaley Pusateri (Sulu Granddaughter), Kurt Carley (Stunt Guard #1), Brian Holloway (Stunt Guard #2), Cali Ross (Ensign Juvenia), Cynthia Wilber (Lt. Wyndham), Kitty Kavey (Lt. Turkel), Katrina Kernodle (Yeoman), Katia Mangani (Dead Romulan #1), R.M. Martin (Dead Romulan #2), Don Balderamos (Dead Romulan #3), Steve Perry (voice of Pilot), Majel Barrett Roddenberry (Computer Voice)

Notes: The costumes for Sulu and his daughter were designed by Star Wars prequel art director Iain McCaig, along with his own daughter, Mishi McCaig. Fencing coach Tom Morga is also a stuntman who has featured in past Star Trek adventures, including Star Trek VI, Deep Space Nine and Enterprise. Michael Okuda is credited with “graphics” for this episode.

Review: The second New Voyages episode in a row to feature a crew member’s miraculous aging and the return of the original actor, World Enough And Time thrills me and bugs me in equal measure. It’s actually a much more effective story, in many places, than To Serve All My Days (the installment which brough back Walter Koenig as Chekov) – there’s some real emotional resonance here, rather than an odd conversation between the character’s old and young incarnations. It certainly doesn’t hurt that George Takei is simply magnificent as Sulu, giving the character more depth than his appearances in the original series and all of the original movies ever allowed. Helping matters considerably is that he’s not the only one – Christina Moses, as Sulu’s daughter from another dimension, is outstanding. Between these two, everyone else has to bring their “A” game to the table, especially James Cawley. If nothing else, these “special guest” episodes have helped to raise the acting bar on New Voyages.

Categories
Hidden Frontier Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Star Trek: Intrepid

Orphans Of War

Star Trek: Orphans Of War

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate not given: Following the Archein’s attempt to conquer and colonize Romulan space (see Star Trek: Odyssey’s Iliad episode), the U.S.S. Excelsior and U.S.S. Intrepid land the unenviable task of trying to remove robotic Archein weapons platforms which are trained to instantly fire on any Romulan ships they detect. The Federation ships slip through those detectors – at first – but then they’re fired upon, and key crew members are beamed off of both ships and into the automated control vessel for the weapons platforms. Captain Hunter and Lt. Caed from the Intrepid find themselves stranded alongside two of Excelsior’s crew, watching an “indoctrination” message recorded by one of the Archein’s leaders. Hunter decides that no one in Starfleet uniform will be indoctrinated today, but putting up a fight – even against a completely unmanned automated station – may be more difficult than either crew imagines.

Watch Itstory by Brian Matthews, Rob Caves and Nick Cook
teleplay by Brian Matthews
directed by Jennifer Cole
music by David Beukes

Cast: Risha Denney (Captain Elizabeth Shelby), Nick Cook (Captain Daniel Hunter), Joanne Busch (Commander Robin Lefler), Lucy Faria-Cook (Lt. Commander Yanis Caed), Rick Corbett (Commander Ben Nostrom), Wayne Webb (Lt. Commander Matt McCabe), David Reid (Lt. C’Seris), John Whiting (General Morrigu), Nick Beckwith (Lt. Simmons), Tyler Bosserman (Lt. Commander Andrew Barrett)

Review: This clever little vignette, weighing in at around the 15-minute mark, brings together the crew of Hidden Frontier‘s Excelsior and the crew of the U.S.S. Intrepid, a 24th century Trek fan series made in Scotland (see our review of Intrepid’s first episode, Heavy Lies The Crown). As much as I gripe about an entire story being shot against a chromakey background so CGI “sets” can be inserted later, Orphans Of War points up what may be one of the few advantages of shooting that way: an international cast can be in the same production without a budget big enough to cause an international incident.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Starship Farragut

For Want Of A Nail

Starship Farragut

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 4847.3: Farragut arrives in the Solon system, home to a society where scholarship and the study of history have attained a level of importance beyond anything in the Federation. The Solonai are now making diplomatic overtures toward the Federation, and Captain Carter and his crew have the honor of making first contact – despite Science Officer Tacket’s misgivings about unusual background radiation near the planet. When they go to beam down, though, Carter and his small landing party find themselves not on an alien world, but on Earth, specifically Pennsylvania, 1776, on the eve of Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River. Their attempts to stay out of history’s way are thwarted when a member of the landing party is shot by a revolutionary’s musket; now, contrary to staying out of history’s way, Carter now has an audience with General Washington himself, and worries that anything he says could alter history. In orbit, Tacket and Chief Engineer Smithfield grow increasingly suspicious of the Solonai’s lack of concern about their missing landing party…and their lack of knowledge of how to get them back.

Watch Itstory by John Broughton
screenplay by John Broughton & Mark Hildebrand
directed by Mark Hildebrand
music by Hetoreyn

Cast: John Broughton (Captain John T. Carter), Michael Bednar (Commander Robert Tacket), Holly Bednar (Lt. Commander Michelle Smithfield), Paul R. Sieber (Lt. Prescott), Amy Sepan (Dr. Holley), Mark Hildebrand (General George Washington), Sean Mullin (Washington’s Aide), Jamie Hanna (Caleb), John Kirby (Alondar), Trey Thomas (Batarus), David Sepan (Baker), Bob McDonough (Galway), Jake Azachi (Akiva), Bruce Dennis (Hayes), Eric Lund (Michaels), Case Aiken (Anderson), Ron Gates (Gates), Dean Rogers (Morris), John Lenwell (Adams), Robin Madel (Solonai Tech 1), Richard Sprague (Fowler / Solonai Tech 2), Kevin Barber, Paula Barber, Adam Beal, Sue Gilmour, Christian Huet, Jim Rockwell, Anna Schlueter, Dan Schlueter, Julia Selwyn, Michael Steen, Helen Wheeler, Jeanette Wheeler, Nathan Yessler (Colonial Re-enactors)

Review: Another confident entry from the Starship Farragut team, it’s hard to look at For Want Of A Nail and spot anything major that screams “only the second episode produced”. There are minor issues, sure – it wouldn’t be a fan production without them – but the degree of polish here is impressive. The script demonstrates a sophisticated knowledge of the era of history being recreated, and the production makes a wise move by involving people who recreate that time period on their own time. Even if you’re not crazy about a “historical” adventure, you have to admire the shrewdness of that move – you instantly get performers, period costumes and props, a certain degree of authenticity, and a real feel of local color that you just don’t get in Hollywood.

Categories
Of Gods And Men Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

Of Gods And Men – Part One

Star Trek: Of Gods And Men

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 6712.4: Captains Uhura, Chekov and Harriman convene for the dedication of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-M – a museum aboard a fully functional replica of the Constitution-class Enterprise – 12 years after the death of Captain Kirk aboard Harriman’s first command, the Enterprise-B. Echoing that tragic incident, a priority one distress call is received, and the Enterprise-M is the only ship capable of responding. As the museum’s Commander Kirk – the legendary captain’s nephew – remains aboard his ship, the three visiting captains beam down, discovering two reminders of the Enterprise’s past that they would rather have forgotten: the Guardian of Forever, and an adult Charlie Evans, who was left in the less-than-gentle care of the Thasians by Captain Kirk decades ago. Charlie sets out to change his own history, and starts by making sure that James T. Kirk will never be born.

Stardate not given: Captain John Harriman of the G.S.S. Conqueror captures two terrorists whose names are at the top of the Galactic Order’s most wanted list. With his mixed crew of humans, Klingons and Romulans, Harriman moves on to his next assignment: to deliver a message to the pacifistic secessionists of Vulcan. On Vulcan, Nyota Uhura feels an unusual twinge of worry about the planet’s secession from the Galactic Order, and after Vulcan’s orbital defenses are wiped out, it seems she has good reason to worry. The Conqueror is about to launch the devastating Omega Device to make an object lesson of the Vulcans: defy the Order at your own peril…

Watch Itstory by Sky Conway & Tim Russ and Jack Trevino & Ethan H. Calk
teleplay by Ethan H. Calk, Sky Conway & Jack Trevino
directed by Tim Russ
music by Justin R. Durban

Cast: Walter Koenig (Capt. Pavel Chekov), Nichelle Nichols (Capt. Nyota Uhura), Alan Ruck (Capt. John Harriman), Garrett Wang (Commander Garan), William Wellman Jr. (Charlie Evans), J.G. Hertzler (Koval), Gary Graham (Ragnar), Tim Russ (Tuvok), Chase Masterson (Xela), Crystal Allen (Conqueror Navigator Yara), Ethan Phillips (Data Clerk), Cirroc Lofton (Sevar), Lawrence Montaigne (Stonn), James Cawley (Commander Kirk), Jeff Quinn (Conqueror Helmsman), Seth Shostak (Enterprise Communications Officer), Shawn Shelton (voice of the Guardian of Forever), Crystal Conway (Grandchild), Madison Russ (Grandchild), Keith Batt (Navigator), Patrick Bell (Enterprise Helmsman), Giovanna Contini, David deFrane, Ronald Gates, Deborah Huth, Danielle Porter (Enterprise Bridge Crew), Sky Conway, Travis Sentell (Enterprise Security Officers), Jeanine Camargo, Heather C. Harris, Mindy Iden, Luke McRoberts, Moses Shepard (Vulcan Initiates), Elizabeth Cortez (T’Liel), Amy Ulen (Teacher), Rob Leslie, Joanna Mendoza, Linda Zaruches (Vulcan Citizens), Stewart Lucas, Scott Nakada (Conqueror Klingon Officers), Joel Bellucci, Tony Pavone (Conqueror Romulan Officers), Giovanna Contini (Conqueror Science Officer)

Review: Possibly the most eagerly anticipated Star Trek fan film project since New Voyages started welcoming top-line guests from the original series, Of Gods And Men is the brainchild of Tim “Tuvok” Russ, convention promoter/organizer Sky Conway, and two former DS9 scriptwriters, Ethan Calk and Jack Trevino. As with a great many Trek tributes centered around the Kirk era, Gods – or at least this first part of it – pivots on plot points introduced, but never resolved, by the original series. In this case, it’s the Guardian of Forever – which surely has to rank as the most imagination-stirring element to emerge from classic Trek, considering the number of books, fan films and other fiction that has revisited it – and Charlie X himself.

Categories
Of Gods And Men Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

Of Gods And Men – Part 2

Star Trek: Of Gods And Men

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate not given: The G.S.S. Conqueror captures a shuttle fleeing from the rubble that was the planet Vulcan, and its crew of two – Tuvok and Uhura – are thrown into a cell with the freedom fighters Kitrick and Ragnar. Though Uhura condemns Kitrick’s track record of death and mayhem, saying he’s no better than the Galactic Order itself, she finds herself remembering him as well, though the two have never met. Tuvok performs a mind-meld on Uhura, and stumbles across parallel memories – memories in which she has lived on Vulcan for so long, and memories in which she served aboard a starship with the man who appears to be Kitrick. She calls him Pavel, a name that Kitrick says he hasn’t used in years, and tries to convince him that they should work together – but she runs into trouble when she tries to convince him that they’ll also need Harriman, who she also remembers.

Watch Itstory by Sky Conway & Tim Russ and Jack Trevino & Ethan H. Calk
teleplay by Ethan H. Calk, Sky Conway & Jack Trevino
directed by Tim Russ
music by Justin R. Durban

Cast: Walter Koenig (Capt. Pavel Chekov), Nichelle Nichols (Capt. Nyota Uhura), Alan Ruck (Capt. John Harriman), Garrett Wang (Commander Garan), William Wellman Jr. (Charlie Evans), J.G. Hertzler (Koval), Gary Graham (Ragnar), Tim Russ (Tuvok), Chase Masterson (Xela), Crystal Allen (Conqueror Navigator Yara), Ethan Phillips (Data Clerk), Cirroc Lofton (Sevar), Lawrence Montaigne (Stonn), James Cawley (Commander Kirk), Jeff Quinn (Conqueror Helmsman), Seth Shostak (Enterprise Communications Officer), Shawn Shelton (voice of the Guardian of Forever), Crystal Conway (Grandchild), Madison Russ (Grandchild), Keith Batt (Navigator), Patrick Bell (Enterprise Helmsman), Giovanna Contini, David deFrane, Ronald Gates, Deborah Huth, Danielle Porter (Enterprise Bridge Crew), Sky Conway, Travis Sentell (Enterprise Security Officers), Jeanine Camargo, Heather C. Harris, Mindy Iden, Luke McRoberts, Moses Shepard (Vulcan Initiates), Elizabeth Cortez (T’Liel), Amy Ulen (Teacher), Rob Leslie, Joanna Mendoza, Linda Zaruches (Vulcan Citizens), Stewart Lucas, Scott Nakada (Conqueror Klingon Officers), Joel Bellucci, Tony Pavone (Conqueror Romulan Officers), Giovanna Contini (Conqueror Science Officer)

Review: Sometimes I shouldn’t open my big mouth. Remember how I was praising the first part of Of Gods And Men for not “doing a Guinan” and giving us someone who mystically remembers that history has been put out of joint and needs to be fixed? Not even ten minutes into the second segment, Gods did a Guinan.

Categories
Of Gods And Men Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

Of Gods And Men – Part 3

Star Trek: Of Gods And Men

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate not given: Convinced to join Uhura and Kitrick (a man whose real name, before his freedom fighter days, was Pavel Chekov) on the planet surface, Harriman is branded a traitor by the crew of the Conqueror and sentenced to execution…as soon as he returns to the ship. But for now, he and the others have encountered a different version of Charlie Evans, one whose destiny was not interrupted by James T. Kirk. Convinced to set history back on its original path, Charlie discovers that there’s an obstacle in his way – another being with godlike powers. Harriman and Kitrick know him as the ruler of the empire; Uhura somehow recognizes the same man as Gary Mitchell. Harriman and the others are beamed back to the Conqueror, and they’re only able to escape with one last act of heroism by Ragnar and his shape-shifting ability. Harriman and Kitrick commandeer the bridge and take on the forces of the empire with just a single ship, but the two men’s fierce cunning and skill allows them to inflict more damage in the ensuing battle than anyone expects. Charlie makes one last sacrifice to stop Mitchell, but it will cost him everything.

Watch Itstory by Sky Conway & Tim Russ and Jack Trevino & Ethan H. Calk
teleplay by Ethan H. Calk, Sky Conway & Jack Trevino
directed by Tim Russ
music by Justin R. Durban

Cast: Walter Koenig (Capt. Pavel Chekov), Nichelle Nichols (Capt. Nyota Uhura), Alan Ruck (Capt. John Harriman), Garrett Wang (Commander Garan), William Wellman Jr. (Charlie Evans), J.G. Hertzler (Koval), Gary Graham (Ragnar), Tim Russ (Tuvok), Chase Masterson (Xela), Daamen Krall (Gary Mitchell), Crystal Allen (Conqueror Navigator Yara), Ethan Phillips (Data Clerk), Cirroc Lofton (Sevar), Lawrence Montaigne (Stonn), Ralph M. Miller (Computer voice), James Cawley (Commander Kirk), John Carrigan (Klingon Officer Kel’mag), Jeff Quinn (Conqueror Helmsman), Grace Lee Whitney (Janice Rand), Janet Po (Destroyer Tactical Officer), Herbert Jefferson (Captain Galt), Seth Shostak (Enterprise Communications Officer), Arlene Martel (Vulcan Priestess), Shawn Shelton (voice of the Guardian of Forever), Crystal Conway (Grandchild), Madison Russ (Grandchild), Keith Batt (Navigator), Patrick Bell (Enterprise Helmsman), Giovanna Contini, David deFrane, Ronald Gates, Deborah Huth, Danielle Porter (Enterprise Bridge Crew), Sky Conway, Travis Sentell (Enterprise Security Officers), Jeanine Camargo, Heather C. Harris, Mindy Iden, Luke McRoberts, Moses Shepard (Vulcan Initiates), Elizabeth Cortez (T’Liel), Amy Ulen (Teacher), Rob Leslie, Joanna Mendoza, Linda Zaruches (Vulcan Citizens), Stewart Lucas, Scott Nakada (Conqueror Klingon Officers), Joel Bellucci, Tony Pavone (Conqueror Romulan Officers), Giovanna Contini (Conqueror Science Officer), Jack Donner, Tania Lemani, Celeste Yarnall (Special Wedding Guests)

Review: When I started doing fan film reviews, I set out very early that I will attempt to be constructive in my criticisms, and I really intend to stick to that where fan-made productions are concerned. But Gods is obviously at least a semi-pro production, so I’m inclined to be a bit more direct with my criticsm rather than dancing around it verbally. Simply put, having gotten to the end of Gods, I’m having a hard time believing that the fan film community has embraced this thing so whole-heartedly, giving it plaudits over and above what New Voyages, Starship Farragut, Odyssey and Exeter have gotten. Have I been watching the same thing as the rest of fandom?

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Star Trek: Intrepid

Where There’s A Sea…

Star Trek: Intrepid

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 59823.4: Captain Hunter and the Intrepid are roped into a “special mission” by Admiral Prentice. The objective – though not the direct order – is to sit idly by and allow one of the local merchant ships to fall victim to an Orion boarding party which is unwittingly delivering a prize into Starfleet’s midst. At the end of the day, very few will be happy with the mission’s outcome.

Watch Itwritten by Nick Cook
directed by Steve Hammond
music by David Beukes / Intrepid theme by Dylan Feeney

Cast: Nick Cook (Captain Hunter), Steven Pasqua (Lt. Cole), Lucie Cook (Lt. Caed / Orion), Steve Hammond (Captain Merik), Alain DeMol (Erik De Meyer / CPO D’Gor), Marco Piva (Rafael Batista), David Robertson (PO Josh Taylor), Dave Lees (CPO Alex Quint), Alan Score (Admiral Prentice), Gordon Dickson (Kashid-Zar), Jay Clark (PO Jaden Antos), Gary Paterson (Duffy), Alison Dickson (Kendrick), Nick Beckwith (Orion), Ann Dixon (Orion)

Review: An interesting short subject set in the Intrepid‘s “universe”, Where There’s A Sea… advances the complicated political situation introduced in the first episode and delivers a hell of a shoot ’em up in the space of about 11 minutes.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Star Trek: Intrepid

Turning Point

Star Trek: Intrepid

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate not given: Shortly after the capture of a group of Orion Syndicate raiders aboard a Federation merchant navy ship, Lt. Cole is interrogating the Orion leader. As it turns out, the only information the Orion cares to divulge has to do with Cole’s own checkered past. It’s an encounter that puts Cole’s past in a new light – and his future in doubt.

Watch Itwritten by Nick Cook
directed by Alan Christison, Stephen Pasqua & Nick Cook
music by Bodo Hartwig / Intrepid theme by Dylan Feeney

Cast: Alan Christison (Commander Navar), Steven Pasqua (Lt. Cole), Gordon Dickson (Kashid-Zar), Jay Clark (PO Jaden Antos), Chris Cassell (Security Guard)

Review: Following on directly from the previous short, Where There’s A Sea…, Turning Point delivers another compact, economic piece of drama that moves the plot – both political and character-oriented – of Intrepid forward significantly. In six minutes and change.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Starship Farragut

Crew Logs: A Rock And A Hard Place

Starship Farragut

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 4901.2: Investigating dilithium readings on an otherwise unremarkable planet, Captain Carter and geologist Dr. Bishop find indications of vast mineral wealth both promising and dangerous – not only is starship-powering dilithium abundant, but so is tricobalt, an ingredient for destructive weaponry. And it turns out that the planet’s mineral riches haven’t gone unnoticed by the Klingons…a fact that almost escapes Carter as he and Bishop – who were an item earlier in their Starfleet careers – enjoy a romantic moment. Not only are the Klingons killing the mood, but they might kill a Starfleet captain as well.

Watch Itscreenplay by John Broughton
directed by Mark Hildebrand
music by Hetoreyn

Cast: John Broughton (Captain Jack Carter), Michael Bednar (Commander Tacket), Holly Bednar (Lt. Commander Smithfield), D.D. Hatcher (Dr. Angela Bishop), Jamie Hanna (Klingon Commander), Eddie Lao (Borok), Jake Azachi (Akiva), David Sepan (Baker)

Review: A bite-sized 17-minute chunk of adventure that requires a little less investment of time than a full episode, with slightly less story as a result, Rock And A Hard Place is a neat little adventure, highlighting both the strengths and weaknesses of the Starship Farragut project as a whole.

Categories
Phase II / New Voyages Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films

Blood And Fire – Part I

Star Trek: Phase II

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate not given: After a pitched battle with a Klingon cruiser, the Enterprise is left battered, but a distress call from the U.S.S. Copernicus prevents Kirk from putting in for repairs. The Enterprise limps to the Copernicus’ aid at a low warp speed as a result of the damage, but what the crew finds is almost beyond explanation: the Copernicus is adrift, only a few hours away from sliding into a stream of matter connecting a binary star system. The Copernicus will be destroyed, but it appears that something has already killed the crew. As Kirk selects a boarding party to find out what happened on the Copernicus, he carefully omits his nephew, the recently-arrived Ensign Peter Kirk, from the mission. This draws a note of caution from Spock, and an anguished protest from Peter: if the crew feels that he’s receiving preferential treatment keeping him out of harm’s way, Peter will have to request reassignment. Peter wants to be treated as just another member of the crew – and that includes requesting that Captain Kirk officiate his upcoming wedding to another crewman, medic Alex Freeman. Kirk accedes to both requests, assigning both Peter and Freeman to the Copernicus mission. Soon after arriving, they both wish they’d stayed on the Enterprise: the Copernicus is infested with Regulan bloodworms, a life form so fast-speading and deadly that Starfleet has only one protocol for dealing with them – the immediate destruction of any ship found to be infested. With both his nephew and Spock aboard the Copernicus, Kirk has no plans to follow that order, but it may be too late to save his boarding party anyway, as they’re surrounded by swarming bloodworms.

Watch Itwritten by Carlos Pedraza & David Gerrold
directed by David Gerrold
music by Fred Steiner

Cast: James Cawley (Captain Kirk), Ben Toplin (Mr. Spock), John Kelley (Dr. McCoy), Bobby Quinn Rice (Ensign Peter Kirk), Evan Fowler (Alex Freeman), Charles Root (Scotty), Jay Storey (Kyle), Kim Stinger (Uhura), Ron Boyd (DeSalle), Andy Bray (Chekov), Megan King Johnson (Rand), Nick Cook (Hodel), Paul R. Sieber (Ahrens), Patrick Bell (Xon), Debbie Huth (Fontana), Jeff Mailhotte (Sentell), Joel Belucci (Bren), Phil Koeghen (Admiral Koeghen), Scott Danni, Rich Lundy, George Wilhelm, Gwen Wilkins, Rick Bruns, Danielle Porter, Robert Mauro, Dan Wright, Melissa Wright, Elizabeth Peterson, Mabel Vilagro, Greg Schnitzer, Betsy Durkee, Jeff Collingsworth, Brian Holloway, Pat Heward, Amanda Root, Ralph M. Miller, Joe Nazzarro, John Hermann, Jessica Mailhotte, Glenn Smith, Ed Abbatte, Giovana Contini, Ron Gates, Ryan Storey, Jerry Storey, Paula Bailey, Erik Goodrich, Tom Brown, Howard Huth, Riva Gijanto, Carol Mazur, Howard Miller (Extras), Majel Barrett Roddenberry (Computer Voice)

Notes: Blood And Fire was originally written by David Gerrold (writer of the classic Trek favorite The Trouble With Tribbles) as an episode for the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, allegorically dealing with AIDS, the search for a cure, and its effect on the gay community. In many an interview and convention appearance, Gerrold has said that Gene Roddenberry verbally agreed to pursue these issues in the then-new show, but would never approve Blood And Fire for production, which eventually lead to Gerrold’s departure from the writing staff. It has also been adapted into a non-Star Trek novel. Fan writer Carlos Pedraza, previously a writer on the fan series Star Trek: Hidden Frontier (which prominently featured gay characters in a way that Paramount’s officially produced episodes and series never addressed), adapted Gerrold’s original script for the Kirk era. This is the first episode to carry the “Star Trek: Phase II” banner, though the opening titles still display “New Voyages” before “beaming” in “Phase II.” (Phase II was a semi-official subtitle applied to the aborted late ’70s TV revival of classic Trek, as chronicled in the excellent book of the same name by Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens.) Early publicity indicated that Blood And Fire would feature an original score by Neil Norman, the producer behind many Star Trek soundtracks released on CD in the 1990s by his father’s GNP Crescendo label, as well as a composer in his own right, but the finished episode instead features original series music by composer Fred Steiner.

Review: For years we’ve been hearing about Blood And Fire and how great it would’ve been in the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and after a while it’s natural to wonder how much of the hype is warranted. But after seeing the episode itself, and finding that about 2/3 of the way in I was on the edge of my seat, I think it’s safe to say that this is New Voyages/Phase II firing on all cylinders with no casting gimmicks to use as a crutch. It’s just a good story, told and acted well, with one hell of a cliffhanger.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Star Trek: Intrepid

Transitions And Lamentations

Star Trek: Intrepid

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 59041.2: Summoned to Farius Prime for a private meeting, Commander Navar is given information on an upcoming raid – and he’s given orders to say nothing to the crew of the Intrepid, which will be caught in the middle of the attack. On the eve of the attack, Captain Hunter leaves Navar in command as he joins an away team – and that puts Hunter on the surface, defenseless, just in time for the attack. Will Navar turn his back on his past and save his shipmates, or allow them to fall to protect his secret?

Watch Itwritten by Nick Cook
directed by Steve Hammond
music by David Beukes and Bodo Hartwig / Intrepid theme by Dylan Feeney

Cast: Alan Christison (Lt. Commander Jacen Navar), Alan Johnston (Chief Thug), Gary Paterson (Fleeing Thug / Bar Patron), Mark Masson (Capt. Zobrin Navar), David Reid (Bar Patron), Jay Clark (Crewman Leighton / Bar Patron), Lucie Cook (Lt. Commander Yanis Caed / Bar Patron), Hilary Tasker (Vanya), Stephen Pasqua (Lt. Matthew Cole / Bartender), Lee Andrew (Bartender voice), David Reid (Lt. S’Ceris), Nick Cook (Capt. Daniel Hunter), Alex Matthews (Lt. Keran Azhan), Lynn Robinson (Lt. Commander Xara Tagen), Alain DeMol (CPO D’Gor), Nick Beckwith (Lt. Michael Simmons), Steve Hammond (Capt. Merik), Dave Lees (CPO Alex Quint), Bodo Hartwig (Lt. Solek), Michael Hudson (Lt. Ellis Gibbs), Martin Lejeune (Ensign Faldor), David Robertson (PO Josh Taylor), Ann Dixon (Scientist), Laura Mayne (Ensign Niraan), Chris Cassell (Lt. Mitchell)

Review: After a number of short vignettes that advanced the story surprisingly well, Scotland-based Star Trek: Intrepid returns with its first full-length episode in some time, and this post-Voyager-era production quickly reminds us why it’s such a welcome addition to the Trek fan film roster.

Categories
Star Trek Star Trek Fan Films Starship Farragut

Power Source

Starship Farragut

This is an episode of a fan-made series whose storyline may be invalidated by later official studio productions.

Stardate 6050.5: The Farragut is dispatched to the vicinity of an enormous gas giant, the last known location of the Federation starship U.S.S. Azrael, which was initially sent to study it. The Azrael is discovered intact, but it fires torpedoes at the Farragut with surgical precision: the ship’s ability to move and fight are damaged, but that’s all. Smithfield and her engineering crew begin repairs, while Captain Carter quizzes Prescott about the service record of the Azrael’s Captain Glenn, under whom Prescott served on a training mission. Tacket and Carter find an interesting mention in the log entries transmitted to Starfleet from the Azrael before the ship fell silent: alien devices are surrounding the gas planet and gradually sapping it of its energy. They may also be behind the behavior of the Azrael’s captain and crew…but how can Carter stop the same from happening to his own ship?

Watch Itwritten by Thomas J. Scott
directed by Michael Struck
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael
Farragut theme by Hetoreyn

Voice Cast: John Broughton (Captain John T. Carter), Michael Bednar (Commander Robert Tacket), Holly Bednar (Lt. Commander Michelle Smithfield), Paul R. Sieber (Lt. Prescott), Tonya Bacon (Lt. Moretti), Amy McDonough (Dr. Holley), Bob McDonough (Galway)

Special Guest Voices: Chris Doohan, Hetoreyn, Jason LeBlanc, Chase Masterson, Vic Mognogna, Ralph M. Miller, Lou Scheimer

Review: A first of its kind in the world of Star Trek fan films, Power Source takes the already well-regarded (and deservedly so) fan series Starship Farragut and turns it into an homage to Filmation’s early ’70s Saturday morning Star Trek cartoon. The result is more than an homage – not only does it look like Filmation’s animated Trek, it even sounds like it, thanks to Filmation producer Lou Scheimer giving the production access to the actual background music and even some artwork elements used in the ’70s.