Search Results for: walter koenig

Strange Relations

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Babylon 5When Bester arrives to arrest the rogue telepaths, Lochley is caught between orders from Earthdome to cooperate and orders from Sheridan to keep them away from the Psi Cop, while fending off Garibaldi’s attempts to hurl his tormentor through a bulkhead. Lyta draws closer to Byron and the telepaths, but even her powers may not be enough to stop Psi Cop bloodhound units working with B5 security. Franklin begins a new project for the Alliance, and G’Kar and Delenn devise an unusual arrangement to protect Londo from his enemies.

Order now!Download this episodewritten by J. Michael Straczynski
directed by John C. Flinn III
music by Christopher Franke

Guest Cast: Walter Koenig (Bester), Robin Atkin Downes (Byron), Joshua Cox (Lt. Corwin), Clynell Jackson III (Security Guard), James Lew (Bloodhound Teep #1), Clarke Coleman (Telepath), Steven Hal Lambert (Bloodhound Teep #2)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

A Tragedy of Telepaths

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Babylon 5The telepath crisis deteriorates seriously as Byron and many of his followers go on a hunger strike in DownBelow after another attack on one of his people, but some of the telepaths have taken up arms in order to force the issue of their freedom. Lochley crawls into DownBelow, unarmed, in the futile hope of negotiating, as the Alliance worlds threaten each other as Sheridan and Delenn struggle to keep them from declaring war – and Lochley is left with no choice but to ask for Bester’s help again. On Centauri Prime, G’Kar discovers a prisoner who has spent two years rotting away in a cell under the palace.

Order now!Download this episodewritten by J. Michael Straczynski
directed by Tony Dow
music by Christopher Franke

Guest Cast: Julie Caitlin Brown (Na’Toth), Robin Atkin Downes (Byron), Leigh J. McCloskey (Thomas), Kim Strauss (Drazi Ambassador), Walter Koenig (Bester), Caroline Ambrose (Lara), Freddy Andreiuci (Worker), Jonathan Chapman (Brakiri Ambassador), Tom Billet (Centauri Guard), Christina Gavin (Telepath)

Original title: Cat And Mouse

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Phoenix Rising

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Babylon 5Bloodhound telepaths and the violent faction of Byron’s rogues are engaging in guerilla warface aboard Babylon 5, and Bester’s arrival – and his unusual personal interest in Byron – have only made the situation worse. Garibaldi decides to renew his vendetta against the Psi Cop, only to discover that not all of Bester’s mental conditioning has been removed. The rogues storm medlab and take hostages, demanding that their terms be met, raising the stakes to a deadly level. Sheridan can only watch as Bester tries to crush Byron’s telepaths in his vise, unaware that Garibaldi – powerless to take revenge on Bester – may allow himself to be crushed by an old vice of his own.

Order now!Download this episodewritten by J. Michael Straczynski
directed by David J. Eagle
music by Christopher Franke

Guest Cast: Robin Atkin Downes (Byron), Jack Hannibal (Peter), Victor Love (Telepath), Leigh J. McCloskey (Thomas), Walter Koenig (Bester)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Corps Is Mother, The Corps Is Father

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Babylon 5Bester takes two rookie Psi Cops under his wing just as a disturbed telepath with a multiple personality disorder breaks out of the Psi Corps headquarters, killing a fellow telepath on his way out. With his new charges in tow, Bester tracks the renegade to Babylon 5, where more people have already been murdered. The new Psi Cops try to show some initiative, quickly landing themselves in mortal danger. And Bester is annoyed further when station security – in the person of Zack Allan – is less than supportive of the Psi Cops’ quest to bring down the killer.

Order now!Download this episodewritten by J. Michael Straczynski
directed by Stephen Furst
music by Christopher Franke

Guest Cast: Walter Koenig (Bester), Dana Barron (Lauren Ashley), Mike Genovese (Drake), Reggie Lee (Chen Hikaru), Dex Elliott Sanders (Jonathan Harris), Brendan Ford (Gordon), Don McMillan (Bartender), Jeremy Thomas (Man), Michael Max Charles Ciano (Roommate), Michael Jeffrie Stanton (Dealer)

LogBook entry by Dave Thomer

Value Judgements

CrusadeThe Excalibur visits a planet where Max Eilserson’s IPX team is due to investigate some local artifacts. Gideon is most annoyed to learn that, not having made any prior arrangements (or payments) to the planet’s governor as IPX has, any Earthforce personnel wishing to visit the surface must pay a fee. Thus far, this policy has kept Earthforce away, but the governor has never met anyone like Gideon (who is willing to play poker for permission to send a team down). In the meantime, something goes horribly wrong at the dig site, leaving two of Eilerson’s team members in critical condition, permanently brain-damaged. Dr. Chambers and Lt. Matheson both conclude that the attack, which emanated from behind a locked door, is telepathic. Dureena examines the lock which caused the incident in the first place, and gives her professional appraisal of it as an obvious booby trap – and says it’s not even the real lock. Even Matheson can’t hack the psychic defense mechanism that really locks the door. However, over his game of poker with the governor, Gideon learns that there is a telepath who lives on this planet, someone from whom the locals keep their distance. And with good reason – the telepath is Al Bester, former Psi Cop and fugitive war criminal from the fall of the Psi Corps. Far from being alarmed at the sight of an Earthforce team at his door, Bester cordially invites Gideon and the others in for tea, showing little interest in the dilemma of the vault’s telepathic defense mechanism – until Max starts to talk money. Bester, however, wants something else. He wants transport to the Excalibur’s next stop, and then wants to be allowed to disembark quietly, all without a word to Earthforce. Bester’s request grows in urgency as bounty hunters track him down, and he resorts to blackmailing Lt. Matheson – threatening to implicate the Excalibur’s telepathic first officer in Bester’s war crimes – to get what he wants. And in the meantime, an old enemy of Bester’s is hot on his heels.

written by Fiona Avery

Guest Cast/Characters: Walter Koenig (Bester), ? (Governor), ? (Thug #1), ? (Thug #2), ? (Pilot #1), ? (Shuttle Pilot), ? (Rogue telepath), ? (Pilot #2)

Notes: This episode was never filmed due to the cancellation of the series. This episode would have featured the return of Bester, on the run after the dissolution of the Psi Corps – which, at the end of the episode, would appear to be not quite as dissolved as Earthgov would like to think. Garibaldi, while not slated to actually appear in the flesh, would’ve been revealed by dialogue to be the person trying to capture Bester – no doubt using the wealth, influence and power of the Edgars estate to further his quest.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

To Serve All My Days

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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.

World Enough And Time

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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.

Of Gods And Men – Part One

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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.

Of Gods And Men – Part 2

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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.

Of Gods And Men – Part 3

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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?

Enemy: Starfleet!

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Star Trek: Phase II

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

Stardate 7232.5: A landing party from the Enterprise examines volatile mineral deposits, but suddenly comes under attack from a fleet of Peshan raiders. Kirk’s nephew unwisely puts himself in the line of fire on the surface as the under-armed Peshan ships launch futile strafing runs on the Enterprise in orbit. The landing party captures a Peshan on the planet and retuns to the Enterprise during a brief lull in the hostilities. The captured Peshan accuses Captain Kirk and Starfleet of trying to wipe out his people. Another Constitution class ship appears, heavily modified, and begins brutally picking off Peshan ships: the long-lost U.S.S. Eagle, now commanded by the pirate captain Alersa. The Enterprise and the Eagle battle it out until more ships arrive, built by Alersa’s people and based on reverse-engineered Starfleet technology from the Eagle. Kirk denies Starfleet’s involvement, but realizes he’ll have to risk the Enterprise and everyone aboard so he can clear Starfleet’s name and destroy Alersa’s pirate fleet.

Watch Itteleplay by Dave Galanter & Patty Wright
story by Dave Galanter & Gregory Brodeur
directed by Ben Tolpin / additional shots directed by Vic Mignogna
music by Fred Steiner

Cast: James Cawley (Captain Kirk), Brandon Stacy (Mr. Spock), John Kelley (Dr. McCoy), Barbara Luna (Alersa), Paul R. Sieber (Kyril), Charles Root (Scott), J.T. Tepnapa (Sulu), Jonathan Zungre (Chekov), Kim Stinger (Uhura), Bobby Quinn Rice (Peter), Jay Storey (Kyle), Ron Boyd (DeSalle), Meghan King Johnson (Rand), Patrick Bell (Xon), Jeff Mailhotte (Sentell), Charles Miller II (Dickerson), Ron M. Gates (Ross), Deniz Cordell (Bernstein), Vic Mignogna (Thuran), Cynthia Lin (Communications Officer), James Avalos (Science Officer), Ronn Smith (Andock), Brian Holloway (Conoris), Tal Baron (Voral), Matt Bucy (Meskan Security Guard), Howard Miller (Meskan Security Guard), Michael Stern (Peshan #1), John Olsen (Peshan #2)

Notes: Ben Tolpin, who portrayed Spock in Blood & Fire, gave up the science station chair for the director’s chair at short notice when Kevin Rubio, director of the fan-favorite Star Wars spoof Troops, dropped out as this episode’s director. Vic Mignogna, director of the upcoming episode Kitumba, directed some pickup shots made necessary by James Cawley’s ill health at the time of the original shoot.

Review: This might just be the best Phase II episode to date. The “classic cast members play aged versions of their characters” gags long behind them, Phase II has been cranking out some classic Star Trek. The two-part Blood & Fire was overtly topical, but Enemy: Starfleet! is simply a rollicking good action-adventure.

The Immunity Syndrome

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Space: 1999An expedition to a promisingly Earthlike planet goes awry when Verdeschi hears a member of his team screaming in agony on the surface. After wrestling the man to the ground, Verdeschi himself is overpowered by a pulsing light and goes missing himself – demonstrating a sudden burst of strength powerful enough to crush his comlock with his bare hands. Koenig and his team subdue Tony and retrieve him a few hours later and lift off to rush him back to the moon via Eagle, but a team left behind on the planet falls victim to a mysterious and sudden failure of equipment. And so does Koenig’s Eagle, which is forced to violently crash-land after its electronics fail and its outer skin and components turn brittle – and as the Eagle plunges to the ground, sensors on Moonbase Alpha register an increase in advanced technology on the surface. Koenig calls Alpha, unsure if he’s being heard, and tells his crew to stay put – there seems to be no way to land on this planet without giving up all chances of leaving. Naturally, Dr. Russell and Maya – despite hearing the warning – begin making plans to go there immediately.

Order the DVDswritten by Johnny Byrne
directed by Bob Brooks
music by Derek Wadsworth

Guest Cast: Tony Anholt (Tony Verdeschi), Nick Tate (Alan Carter), Nadim Sawalha (Zoran), Karl Held (Travis), Sam Dastor (Dr. Ed Spencer), John Hug (Fraser), Hal Galili (Voice), Alibe Parsons (Alibe), Walter Space: 1999McMonagle (Les Johnson), Roy Boyd (Joe Lustig)

Notes: As seen on a computer screen, Verdeschi’s vital information is as follows: full name – Anthony Dean Verdeschi; graduated B.A. Honors, University of Rome, 1990; Ph.D, Cambridge, England, 1993; birthplace, Rome, Italy. According to Dr. Russell’s log entry, this episode takes places over 2300 days after the events of Breakaway – meaning that by this point, the series has chronicled over six years of the moon’s misadventures.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Sanctuary

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Star Trek: Deep Space NineStardate 47391.2: A damaged ship emerges from the wormhole carrying four members of an unknown race from the Gamma Quadrant. The station’s universal translator takes a good deal of time to decipher the aliens’ language, but when it does decode their incomprehensible speech, they are able to tell Sisko and Kira that there are three million others on the other side of the wormhole, referrred to in their native Skrreean mythology as the eye of the universe, looking for Kentaana, their destiny according to legend. As it turns out, Kentaana is known in the Alpha Quadrant as Bajor, and the Skrreeans intend to emigrate there.

Order the DVDsDownload this episode via Amazonteleplay by Frederick Rappaport
story by Gabe Essoe and Kelley Miles
directed by Les Landau
music by Dennis McCarthy

Cast: Avery Brooks (Commander Benjamin Sisko), Rene Auberjonois (Odo), Siddig El Fadil (Dr. Julian Bashir), Terry Farrell (Lt. Jadzia Dax), Cirroc Lofton (Jake Sisko), Colm Meaney (Chief O’Brien), Armin Shimerman (Quark), Nana Visitor (Major Kira Nerys), William Schallert (Varani), Andrew Koenig (Tumak), Aron Eisenberg (Nog), Michael Durrell (General Hazar), Betty McGuire (Vayna), Robert Curtis Brown (Vedek Sorad), Kitty Swink (Rozahn), Deborah May (Haneek), Leland Orser (Gai), Nicholas Shaffer (Cowl)

Notes: William Schallert also guest starred in the classic Trek episode The Trouble With Tribbles, and Andrew Koenig is the son of original series star Walter “Chekov” Koenig. This episode was the second mention of the Dominion in the series.

LogBook entry by Earl Green