The Nexus Ribbon Sighted in the Alpha Quadrant by Scott R Heath

A twisting ribbon of glowing gas marks the point where the expanding blast wave
from a stellar explosion known as SN 1006 is sweeping through.
When I spotted this supernova remnant the Trekker within me cried out KIRK. It looks like the Nexus energy ribbon that had trapped a couple of ships around the turn of the 24th Century. The Enterprise-B arrived and managed to rescue some of the ship’s crew members when the ribbon struck out and blasted a hole in the hull of the Enterprise-B, pulling Captain Kirk into the Nexus. 78 years later Kirk left the Nexus to help Picard stop a madman from destroying a world. Or did he? Maybe it was an incarnation of Kirk that helped Picard. Maybe the part of him that is real is still there, possibly chopping wood for another 78 years. Picard owes it to him to find Spock and try to recover Kirk from the Nexus. In a novel by William Shatner Kirk was resurrected by Borg nanoprobes to turn Kirk into a weapon but that ended with Kirk dying. Again. Something that Shatner never should have allowed TPTB to do with the character. Seeing that Ribbon on the MSNBC website made me think of Kirk and how important he is to the Star Trek franchise and I really hope Kirk is restored in a future project. We’ve killed him off enough – We owe it to him to bring him back while Shatner’s alive.

Star Trek Of Gods And Men Part 3 Released!

FINALLY now I can put all three parts of Star Trek Of Gods And Men on a DVD and watch it all the way thru, which I have done today. It was the ideal tribute to 40 years of Star Trek and it was entertaining. The effects were great and the story threw in all kinds of nods to different original series episodes such as Charlie X, Where No Man Has Gone Before, City On The Edge Of Forever, even the Way To Eden! Sure, the plot is one used in Star Trek before, notably Yesterday’s Enterprise, a Next Generation episode, one of the best time travel stories in all of Trek. This story was a What If Kirk’s Mother was killed before he was born story, and rumor is this plot is similar to next year’s Star Trek XI Movie plot. Sometimes I wonder what they’re smoking at Paramount that they wouldn’t want to back this project. The DVD sales would go through the roof! Oh, yeah, I can’t forget the sets of OGAM! Fortunately the film was shot on the sets of Star Trek Phase II, formerly New Voyages, and the bridge set was fantastic, and so was the rest of the ship, from the bridge to the transporter room, to auxiliary control. It felt like a Constitution Class Starship through every part of the film, even though some of the effects were less than impressive, it did not detract from the good time I had watching it all the way through for the first time. If Paramount were wise they’d also back the Star Trek Phase II Episodes. With content like that Paramount could really be a force on the internet, as well as television and cinema. Anyway, on to the space battle – It was glorious! Klingon, Romulan and Galactic Order battleships blew each other up all over the sector! If you’re a Trek fan you owe it to yourself to spend a little time in the 23rd Century and see all 3 parts of this series.

Does the United States Need A Prime Directive?

With all the chaos and disorder in the world, I believe the US should adopt a Non-Interference Directive. That’s one of the reasons the Federation prospers in the 22-24th Centuries. Now some of you probably think that adopting a philosophy from a 60s TV Series maybe a little crazy, but I don’t. Then again, I’ve been a Trekker since my childhood in the 1960s. Having such a directive would still allow us to bring humanitarian help to the world, and sure, there are times when we need to hunt down our enemies, such as our forgotten enemies in Afganistan. You can say whatever you want about Saddam Hussain – he was evil, and he was a tyrant. But Iraq was stable and quiet before we went in and destroyed the entire region. The Federation doesn’t interfere with cultures that could be harmed by our advanced technology, and neither should we, unless we’re providing aid, and even then the technology should be concealed.

On Boston Legal this week a city in Massachusetts hired Alan to file papers in court that would allow them to leave the USA and become their own separate country. They cited the terrible acts that the US has committed, such as torture, denying prisoners due process and holding them for years without a hearing. They made a good case, then our favorite starship commander Denny Crane brought up the confinement of innocent Japanese-Americans after World War 2 started. His point was that our country has always been as corrupt as it is now. Now I don’t believe that this would be a good idea. What we should do is what Thomas Jefferson said, when Governments become corrupt, they should be overthrown, and there is a clause in the US Constitution that allows for that very act! Just saying this makes me a target of the US Government and a possible enemy, which is ridiculous. It is not unpatriotic to question our countries actions. I love this country and I have an obligation to speak out against our actions – some say we should just trust the government – but I say – not when it is corrupt. That’s all I have to say about that.

2009: The Year of the Trekker, The Year of the Geek

Right after I wrote the post: 2008: The Year Of The Trekker, Paramount announced that the new Star Trek XI Film would be opening in the summer of 2009, rather than the original Christmas 2008 release date. Paramount is hoping the film will be a Summer Blockbuster. There’s the pressure again. Hopefully the entire geek population will go see it. We have to make sure this movie is successful, otherwise there may be no more for a long time to come! As for the Bring Back Kirk movement, as I’ve stated before, there’s no way to put Shatner in the film since he was killed in Star Trek: Generations. When Spock died in The Wrath of Kahn, the next movie was devoted to restoring Spock to life, and that’s the type of event that would be necessary to bring back Kirk. Great plot for Star Trek XII. Kirk’s still in the Nexus – it was a manifestation of Kirk in Generations that was killed by first Soran’s weapon, then they changed the death to the fall of the bridge with Kirk on it. There’s always a way to bring someone back from the dead in the movies.

Now I already know quite a bit about the movie, and I’m at the point where I will no longer read spoilers. I want to be somewhat surprised when I see it and I’m glad JJ Abrams has tightened security on the sets. I’m glad that Paramount didn’t go with the last idea for a movie, about the Romulan War. That’s a subject would have been a great idea for Enterprise had it lasted for 7 years. I’m not ashamed to say I loved Enterprise – the first two years were kind of shaky but they got their footing by Season 3, and in the last part of the fourth season had my favorite Enterprise episodes, In a Mirror Darkly, Parts 1 & 2.

So, c’mon Nerds, Geeks, all lovers of Sci-Fi, lets make Star Trek XI a Box Office Success! Show you’re a Trekker by making the image above your Desktop Background (right-click on image)! Live Long and Prosper (at the Box Office, too)!

2008: The Year of the Trekker

This is the year of vindication for the trekker. As a first generation Trekker myself, I can honestly say that Star Trek has seen dark days in the past few years. Things were looking up in the 80s when the Star Trek films were being done, and then came Star Trek: The Next Generation. Finally it was back, but 78 years into the future and a new Federation. I was surprised to find that I liked it! Then Deep Space Nine arrived, which I consider the best of all spin-offs of Trek. It was almost Anti-Trek but it was great! I even liked Voyager, and when it was the only Trek series on the air for a while I felt like I was stranded in the Delta Quadrant because there were no new adventures in Federation space. The Next Generation crew were doing films by then but some were not as successful as others. Rumors started flying about a series that would take place during the birth of the Federation, which ended up being Enterprise. I actually enjoyed Enterprise, especially the 3rd & 4th Seasons. If it were not canceled after 4 seasons it would have matured like the others did.

Now there’s New Voyages, and Of Gods And Men, and a new Star Trek film that’s in the making about Kirk & Crew on their first mission. There will be a reboot to the franchise which is welcome by this fan. Star Trek Lives! I hope this educated readers who were curious about Star Trek, and I promise my next post will not be Trek related.

Star Trek XI with Leonard Nimoy but without William Shatner

The powers that be at Paramount want William Shatner in the film but don’t want to ignore Star Trek VII where Kirk was killed. Some say look at Spock, killed in Trek II and resurrected in Trek III. It took an entire film to resurrect Spock, and we’d need another entire film to bring Kirk back. Otherwise, when Star Trek XI begins you’d get something like this: The aging Spock strolls through the corridor toward his transport vessel to be greeted by an old friend.

SPOCK: Captain! Jim – Is that you?

KIRK: Yes, Spock. I’m alive! I’ve been in some Temporal Nexus.

SPOCK: What about Viridian 3 where you were killed?

KIRK: I remember it – but when I woke up after, I was back in the Nexus. Guinan tells me I sprang back into the Nexus because I never completely left it. It doesn’t make much since – but here I am.

SPOCK:It is agreeable to see you again. Welcome to the 24th Century.

KIRK: This Guinan told me I had to completely desire to leave or I would keep springing back to the Nexus. So here I am. You’re looking well for a Vulcan your age.

SPOCK: There is a group of Romulans here that have the ability to interfere with history. If they succeed, everything we know may change dramatically.

KIRK: Then I’m just in time!

That is exactly the kind of thing they would have to do to get Shatner in this movie. If you’re gonna bring Kirk back, you need an entire movie, not a half page of dialog. Better yet, make Star Trek XII about resurrecting James T Kirk. Shatner could get a new Kirk hairpiece and Spock could accompany a Starfleet Science Team into the Nexus for research purposes and stumble onto the Captain. Oops, that Starfleet Science Team are really Shapeshifters from the Gamma Quadrant who want to use the Nexus for some evil plan. Sit this one out Bill. We love ya but do the next one! Peace & Long Life!

STAR TREK OF GODS AND MEN: A REVIEW (SPOILER ALERT)

Part 1 of the Internet Film was just released with actual Star Trek actors playing the characters they played in several Star Trek Series. Uhura, Chekov, Captain John Harriman, and more are aboard a Museum Ship, the USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-M, about a decade after Captain Kirk was presumed killed in an incident aboard the Enterprise-B from Star Trek Generations, the 7th film. After a distress call from the planet of the Guardian of Forever (time portal), the Enterprise Museum ship arrives and Uhura, Chekov and Captain Harriman beam down to find Charlie Evans (from Charlie X) using the Guardian to kill Captain Kirk’s mother while she was pregnant with him. Everything changes and suddenly the Federation is replaced with the Galactic Order, a corrupt empire that somehow formed because of the absence of James T Kirk. Harriman is now the Captain of the Enterprise and is on a mission to kill the renegade Chekov and destroy the planet Vulcan, which chose to not be a part of the Galactic Order. It’s like the Mirror/Alternate Universe episodes, but the storyline is a bit confusing. All of these actors worked for FREE on this movie, since they’re not allowed to make a profit on this film because Paramount Pictures would never allow that. I think Paramount should have gotten behind this movie and released it on DVD, because they would have made a profit. Part 1 was a bit short, but I can’t complain too much because these people put their heart into Star Trek, and all of us (trekkers) appreciate that. The film seems at least as good as any other Star Trek episode or film.  The effects were pretty good, too. Even James Crawley from Star Trek New Voyages was in it as Kirk’s nephew Peter (Crawley plays Captain Kirk in the New Voyages Web Series, which is also EXCELLENT). Star Trek may not be a TV series any more, but it is alive and well online, in novels, and the upcoming Star Trek film due in December 2008. Rumors say the new film has a similar plot, with Leonard Nimoy as the old Spock who goes back in time to warn his younger self that Romulans from the future are trying to kill Kirk when he first started out in Starfleet. They’re calling this film a reboot because history will be affected, which is kind of scary because that means my entire Star Trek DVD Collection will be an alternate timeline. These rumors are RUMORS so it is possibly a trick to keep the real plot secret, but all the facts point to it being true. Just wait and see, I guess. Live Long & Prosper!

Podcast of the Year & Star Trek XI

First of all, congratulations to Leo Laporte of the TWIT podcasts for winning Podcast of the Year! It’s been my favorite podcast for a few years now and no one deserves it more!

The latest rumors of the new Star Trek film suggests that Romulans visit the City on the edge of Forever and use the Guardian portal to go back in time and kill James Kirk to bring down the Federation. This plot has been used in both Star Trek Episodes and in Star Trek: First Contact, and this time uses that plot to bring about changes in the timeline in an attempt to reboot the franchise. Sources say that even the design of the Enterprise is being changed, which worries me. Sure, start with new actors, but change the Enterprise? That means my vast DVD collection of every Trek Episode and Film will be alternate timelines? My models of the Enterprise and other Starships will disappear? Older Spock visits younger Spock to warn him about what is happening, even before he meets Kirk?

Don’t get me wrong, As a serious Trekker, I hope this film does great because the future of the franchise depends on it. If it flops, there will most likely be no more trek projects for years to come, if any. I hope JJ Abrams succeeds in this reboot because I need NEW TREK. Every once in a while, in the middle of the night, I pop in a Trek Episode, sometimes DS9, Voyager, TNG, TOS, even the animated series and Enterprise! I’m at the point where I’ve seen them all too many times. I even have the Star Trek New Voyages DVDs, which are quite entertaining! I’m hoping Of Gods And Men will come out this year. There are just not that many quality SciFi series out there now that Stargate SG1 has ended its 10 year run. I love Galactica, and Stargate Atlantis, but I’ve been a Trekker since the 60s. We owe a lot to Star Trek and many geeks don’t even know it. Spock would grab discs out of the main computer and use them all over the ship on the show, and now we can do the same, thanks to fans who made that happen in developing the modern data processing technology we use today. Every one carries a communicator/cell phone, there’s even a modern tricorder. Spock had a PC in his quarters, and because of that, so do I!

To Boldly Go Again Where No Man Has Gone Before

All the Star Trek sites are buzzing about the 11th Star Trek film coming out next year and how William Shatner is not in it. Leonard Nimoy will be playing older Spock while a new cast of actors are playing young Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew, who are embarking on their first mission together. The problem with having William Shatner in the film is that Captain Kirk was killed in the 8th film, Generations. How can we have an older Kirk in the new film without some explanation as to why he’s not dead? Since the Nexus Energy Ribbon only travels through our part of the galaxy every century or so, why not start out the movie with Spock leading an expedition of scientists into the Nexus? There they discover Captain Kirk alive, although some of the scientists are really there to use the nexus’ time travel power to return to the 23rd Century and kill Kirk in his youth. These so-called scientists are Romulan agents who hope to alter the timeline. Kirk and Spock follow them into the past where they meet up with their younger selves and warn them of the plot, which will reboot the entire Star Trek universe. Now I’m only using this plot because there are already rumors on the net that claim that Spock follows Romulans back in time to kill Kirk and Spock must find his younger self to warn him. Why not use the nexus for this, at the same time allowing The Shat to play older Kirk? Now I’m not happy about my entire Star Trek DVD Collection being reduced to a cancelled timeline, but surely Enterprise happened a significant amount of time before then, and the films as well as The Next Generation, DS9 and Voyager occurring a significant amount of time after this reboot. There may be minor changes but not enough to cancel out Starfleet’s future history.

I have loved Star Trek all of my life, and I’m almost 46 years old. I’m not crazy about new actors in these roles but if Trek is to survive, it has to be done. Trek has been done on TV just about every way feasible. Going back to its roots is a smart idea. There are some rumors suggesting the design of the Enterprise is being changed, but I’m pretty sure the Enterprise is the only aspect of the show that should not be changed, at least not much. How do you feel about it?