Tuesday 31 July 2007
This Side of Paradise remastered
Monday 30 July 2007
Resistance blurb and excerpt
The U.S.S. Enterprise is ready to rejoin the fleet. The body of the great starship — which managed to survive the deadly Romulan-Reman attack only with Data's ultimate sacrifice — has been restored.
With the departure of first officer William Riker and ship's counselor Deanna Troi, Picard has to replace two of his most trusted advisors. A Vulcan is granted the commission of ship's counselor. Logical and pragmatic, T'Lana is a highly decorated member of Starfleet who served with distinction during the Dominion War. For his Number One, Captain Picard has only one candidate: Worf.
The captain is looking forward to putting the shadows of war behind him, shaping his new crew, and returning at last to being an explorer. However, the Klingon refuses the promotion. And Picard senses that his new counselor does not approve of Worf.
Starfleet hands the Enterprise a simple assignment perfect for a shakedown cruise. Picard is confident that this is all he needs to bring his crew together. Before the mission commences, the captain once again hears the song of the Borg Collective. Admiral Janeway is convinced that the Borg have been crushed and are no longer a threat. Picard knows that she is wrong, and if he doesn't act immediately, the entire Federation will be under the domination of its most oppressive enemy.
Find the exceprt here.Sunday 29 July 2007
More new IDW covers than you could stick a shake at!
Comic Book Resources have posted their report of what IDW had to announce at the San Diego Comic Con., pretty much all previously announced information, but their report came with a generous smattering of new covers:
Artists covers for Alien Spotlight issues, David Messina's Gorn, John Byrne's Romulans, and the so far unannounced artist cover for Orion Slave Women:
The article also has some concept sort of art for the Orion Alien Spotlight issue, scroll down to the Star Trek section of the report (here) to check it out.
Friday 27 July 2007
Maybe TNG remastered
TrekMovie.com are reporting something exciting, CBS have been working on tests for a HD remastered version of TNG. This has been a subject of much speculation since the TOS remastered project began and would present a lot of very different problems to those faced in doing the TOS episodes. The guys doing the work have hinted they'd like to expand the project to TNG before and it looks like it's under real consideration.
I suppose this confirms all the speculation over if it's even possible, TNG was edited in ye olde low definition video which, as I understand it, means you would have to reedit every remastered episode from the original film from scratch. The TrekMovie article says CBS are looking at both using tricks to make the low res effects footage high res or doing the whole lot from scratch like the TOS project.
Tiptons TNG comics news
A couple of little bits of new information were revealed; the series will take place towards the end of TNG's fifth season, and will feature new bad guys and established threats.
The article also included some preview art by David Messina, and Mr Messina has posted some more art from the series on his blog. It all looks a bit like the real world sections of The Matrix to me.
See the original interview here.
Official announcements and new poster for new Star Trek movie
A shiny new poster was also revealed which if you click the image on the right you can see in bigness. And a horizontal wallpaper version is up on StarTrek.com
I've so far not been reporting much (anything) on the new movie because it's all rumour and will continue in that stance as TrekMovie.com already do a far better job on news of the new movie than I ever could. I shall report official announcements like this one though, along side the usual assortment of every scrap of information I find out about every other facet of Star Trek.
Heroes only just started in the
Thursday 26 July 2007
More Wrath of Kahn figures revealed
TNI's coverage includes photos of a few of the previously announced figures (out about now) and three new ones; Spock, Uhura and Savik.
See TNI's gallery for more images.
DST reported a while back the WoK line would have fifteen figures, these three confirmations bring the total up to twelve. I'm thinking the final three will be a radiation damaged Spock and Carol and David Marcus.
Year Four, Issue 1 review
The story is delightful TOS, lone scientist, pretty girl, up to no good to help the one he loves, tragic end. I really could imagine this as an episode of the series
Steve Conley's art isn't as strong a the rest of IDWs comic so far but it's not bad. It reminds me a lot of the art in the original gold key comics and I suspect that was the intent. Which works sometimes and not other, the character likenesses are a bit funny at times, you can tell who they are but they don't look quite right. The whole work is quite flat often using a nothing but a bold colour as a background and not being to generous with details. Compared to the short comic in the preceding in the Focus on... Star Trek book I think I prefer the more detailed look in that short story, but this issue is still pretty good looking. There were two pages I didn't really enjoy art wise which consisted of eight near identical panels of Dr McCoy and guest star chatting, the text was interesting but it was quite boring to look at the same thing again and again for two whole pages.
So all in all a good effort, nice story if a little fast to conclude, and nice art if lacking in a bit of detail. I look forward to the next issue and my faith in David Tischman is growing at last.
And nice to see Arex and M'Ress in a comic, they should totally do Caitain and Triexian Alien Spotlight comics.
TOS-R HD-DVD details
The ten disc set will be double sided with HD-DVD on one side and normal DVD on the other and will include the following extras:
-Starfleet Access – On-screen graphical interface allows viewers to access Picture in Picture video commentaries, comparisons of re-mastered vs. original effects, encyclopedic information (science, life forms, technology), episode trivia and more on the following episodes:
--Where No Man Has Gone Before
--The Menagerie, Part 1 & 2
--Balance of Terror
--The Galileo Seven
--Space Seed
--Errand of Mercy
-Spacelift: Transporting Trek into the 21st Century – From new visual effects to sound, this documentary provides an in-depth exploration of the remastering of classic Star Trek episodes.
-Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories – Join crew member and "extra-extraordinaire” Billy Blackburn as he shares his own behind-the-scenes home movie footage of life on the set of Star Trek.
-Interactive Enterprise Tour – Viewers will explore the Enterprise interior and exterior in detail as they pilot their own shuttlecraft in this spectacular 3D simulated feature.
-Perpetual Entertainment's "Star Trek Online” MMO Game Preview
- Spacelift: Transporting Trek into the 21st Century
- The Birth of a Timeless Legacy
- Reflections on Spock
- Life Beyond Trek: William Shatner
- To Boldly Go…Season One
- Sci-Fi Visionaries
- Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories
- Kiss & Tell: Romance in the 24th Century
- Trek Connections
- Star Trek: Beyond the Final Frontier
- Episode Preview Trailers
- Perpetual Entertainment's "Star Trek Online” MMO Game Preview
The press release can be found here, also in Klingon! The RRP for this set is just a little over $200 and the set is out in region 1 in November.
Personally I'm hoping Bluray wins this ridiculous battle of the formats and I've no intention of getting either until one is declared winner. I also think the double sided disc format is a bit bonkers, just get on a choose a format please!
Wednesday 25 July 2007
Wii Star Trek game
Thanks to TrekMovie.com for spotting this one.
Monday 23 July 2007
Building worlds in Star Trek Online
Friday 20 July 2007
Janeway bust
A Diamond Select Release! An Art Asylum Design! The fourth piece in the Star Trek: Icons, Captain Katherine Janeway is always on the top of her command — whether investigating the Delta Quadrant or chatting with Leonardo da Vinci on the Holodeck. This limited-edition bust…
- was sculpted by Bill Mancuso
- comes painted and ready for display
- is limited to 1,701 pieces
- includes a hand-numbered base with matching window box and Certificate of Authenticity
I think this one will be out in December or early 2008.
Thursday 19 July 2007
IDW Focus on Star Trek announcements.
In this week’s behind the scenes previews book "Focus on... Star Trek" IDW have announced their next two miniseries.
First a second TNG series "House Call" will focus on exploring the TNG characters from points of view not often seen in the series and will be written by Scott and David Tipton with art by David Messina, the team behind the wonderful Klingons: Blood Will Tell miniseries.
And second "Star Trek: Probability Factor", in a similar idea to the recently announced "Star Trek: Myriad Universe" series from Pocket Books this will look at what might have been if some detail about the Trek universe was changed. And here's the really interesting bit the episodes chosen to get the what if treatment will be nominated and voted for by the fans, three for TOS and three for TNG. And it looks like that series will be written by The Space Between and Year Four writer David Tischman.
In his write up on The Space Between Dan Taylor states that the final issue of the series should: "by no means be considered a conclusion - rather, it should be seen as a beginning." However it's unclear whether that's meant to imply the tangle of loose ends the series left will be followed up on or just that there are more TNG comics on the way.
Messina Blood Will Tell previews
Check out these posts, here and here, for more of this stunning artwork.
Wednesday 18 July 2007
Complete TNG DVD set
Monday 16 July 2007
Focus on... Star Trek preview
-"Captain’s Log: Supplemental", a five page comic prelude to the forthcoming Star Trek: Year Four miniseries.
-Interviews with D.C. Fontana (Star Trek writer) and Paula Block (Mistress of Star Trek at CBS consumer products).
-News on what IDW have planned for future TNG comics.
-A feature on Klingons: Blood Will Tell and Aliens Spotlight.
-And a hint of some sort of competition.
Sounds interesting, I especially look forward to seeing if the next TNG project will be picking up the loose ends of The Space Between.
IDW October publications
Alien Spotlight: Vulcans
Written by Rick Remender, art by Josep Maria Beroy, cover bys by Beroy and Zach Howard.
In the vast Star Trek universe, many diverse alien races abound, and now they finally get their due! Presenting a series of one-shots, each by a different creative team and featuring a different Star Trek alien race. In the second issue, the spotlight shines on the Vulcans. A Starfleet starship arrives at a planet on the brink of it's own destruction. A once peaceful society is now savage and warlike "marching beneath the Raptor's wing" -- linking itself to the turmoil past of Vulcans.
Year Four: Issue 4:
Written by David Tischman, art and cover by Steve Conley.
On Viden 9, the U.S.S. Enterprise encounters a planet similar to 21st century Earth, where the population has a never-ending appetite for entertainment, and people will do anything for fame. When Captain Kirk and his crew become media sensations, the competing networks that control Viden's government won't let them leave, unless Kirk agrees to a deadly "finale."
Captain's Log DVD details
TOS:
-City on the Edge of Forever
-The Enterprise Incident
-Balance of Terror
TNG:
-In Theory
-Chain of Command
-Darmok
DS9:
-Far Beyond the Stars
-What You Leave Behind
-In the Pale Moonlight
Voyager:
-Counterpoint
-The Omega Directive
-Flashback
Enterprise:
-Judegment
-These Are the Voyages
-First Flight
The first episode from each series is the favourite of the actors who played the captains and the other two are those voted for on StarTrek.com, introductions by the actors are included for their pick and for many of the fan selected episodes. Each disc also includes a selection of other extra features and the set as a whole is introduced by William Shatner and closed by Scott Bakula.
A pretty good offering I think, I'd appreciate some commentaries as well but this is pretty generous extra features wise for one of these sets. Read the full press release here.
Sunday 15 July 2007
Hallmark Uhura keepsake
Hallmark’s other two models this year are a Wrath of Kahn bridge scene and "All Good Things..." Enterprise-D:
And they should all be in shops in the
Saturday 14 July 2007
2008 books
Jeff Ayers has updated his Voyages of Imagination website with news of next years output from Pocket Books, new information and highlights include:
-Shards and Shadows, an anthology of Mirror Universe short stories.
-Terok Nor, the previously announced DS9 prequel miniseries, now has titles.
-These
-Myriad Universe, six novels in two books telling tales from alternate Trek universes (not the mirror universe).
-Fearful Symmetry, the next DS9 relaunch title, delayed a year and has a new author.
-Greater Then the Sum, the next book in the post-Nemesis TNG series.
-Destiny, a three part crossover by David Mack, including elements of TNG, Titan, DS9 and the rest of Trek history.
Check out Voyages of Imagination for full details, including a couple of new blurbs and a tentative schedule.
Friday 13 July 2007
New "The Motion Picture" audio commentary
The Space Between review
Issue 1 "History Lesson" – The series kicked off with an interesting season 1 story on the planet Tigan where history gets rewritten. It’s rather familiar to any Stargate fans with the same concept being used in the SG1 episode "Revisions". But this version is a little larger in scope with a whole planet’s history being rewritten and coups happening with no one even knowing. The story was for the most part well written, having a couple of little plot holes that make you join the dots, but mostly enjoyable. And a very attractive start to the series, with lovely colourful bold designs and great use of “sound effects” in a fight scene.
Issue 3 "Strategy" – A mysterious hybrid ship attacks the
Issue 4 "Light of Day" – A shuttle crashes on a planet full of zombie monks. Meanwhile on the
Issue 5 "Space Seeds" – The Wesley story, run for the hills! Or in the case the asteroid belt, this is a nice little agricultural mystery with an interesting conclusion, but yep, you guessed it, that conclusion is reached through another series of jumps in logic. And then it gets really interesting, an epilogue! Jumping six years ahead Picard jumps out of bed having apparently figured out what links the miniseries together in his sleep. He has Data do a little data retrieval and finds some dastardly people have been using the
Issue 6 "Space Seeds"… part 2? – Jumping straight into the action Riker and Worf beam in to stop some probably baddies doing something on what sort of looks like the
The art throughout the series was generally excellent, the main characters are definitely the weak points, and under the most scrutiny, but the scenery is consistently fabulous and more than makes up for that weakness. The writing though is another story, David Tischman writes the characters perfectly, the stories are all quite interesting, with good concepts and interesting twists and turns. But, every issue in the series suffers plots holes and jumps in logic which make it a pain to read and really drag the whole series down. The series also suffers a from little errors in the text, like he above mentioned Ferengi dating mistake.
Still, each issue works as a stand alone story, and where this series really fails is the conclusion, at the end of the third and fifth issues and throughout the sixth Picard is out to stop these mysterious baddies (kind of maybe Section 31?), but he doesn’t get to, the baddies escape, and what’s worse Picard seems entirely content with that! The ending feels so open I feel… I hope… IDW has something else up their sleeves to finish the story properly.Thursday 12 July 2007
Star Trek: The Manga 2 updates
Manga-style art and Star Trek tales collide again in this next volume of TOKYOPOP's voyages of the U.S.S. Enterprise, commanded by Captain James T. Kirk. Once again ten artists and writers from across the artistic spectrum deliver up brand new tales of universal betterment featuring the classic Star Trek line up. In Kakan ni Shinkou, Kirk is put on trial for crimes he has yet to discover... Uhura demonstrates the true power of communication... Bones gets to the core of Vulcan emotion... Scotty has to extract dilithium crystals from a mine in the middle of a war zone... and an alien delegation uses the Enterprise as a vessel of deception!
This new volume of Star Trek: The Manga-- Kakan ni Shinkou features stories by TNG's Wil Wheaton, Diane Duane, Mike Wellman, Paul Benjamin and Christine Boylan as well as art by EJ Su, Don Hudson, Steven Cummings, Bettina Kurkoski and Nam Kim.
The covers note that like the first volume the book will contain a short story from Pocket Books' latest anthology, this time a TNG tale from the anniversary anthology "The Sky's the Limit". This manga book is due in September, and "The Sky's the Limit", which if they follow last years pattern of cross-promotion will include one of the manga stories, is due in October.
Wednesday 11 July 2007
Corroney cover for Blood Will Tell #4
He also showed off a previously released cover for the first issue of the Year Four miniseries, the new version, which you can see on his blog, has a few more light effects and a more varied background than previously released versions.
Tuesday 10 July 2007
Blood Will Tell #3 title
"The Order of Things"
In his post on IDW's message boards Mr. Tipton also confirmed the photomontage cover for this issue features a Mugato rather than the version featuring Krell shown on IDW's website. Finally he stated he would love to do more comics in the same vein of this fantastic miniseries, so keep buying them peoples!
Saturday 7 July 2007
Academy: Collision Course cover
The first hardcover printing of the novel, by William Shatner with Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, will be available in October.
Tuesday 3 July 2007
Charlie X remastered
Monday 2 July 2007
Blood Will Tell part 3 preview
Covers: 1, 2, and 3
Pages: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5
They have also added a page from this comic to their Art du Jour page.
Sunday 1 July 2007
This month
Prose:
This months novel is the Lost Era/TNG prequel story "The Buried Age" by Christopher L. Bennett which tells us what Jena-Luc Picard got up to from the loss of the Stargazer all the way up to taking command of the Enterprise-D. This months eBook is the Corps of Engineers story "Ghost" by Ilsa J. Bick. Additionally this month sees the release of the Corps of Engineers omnibus "Grand Designs" which includes novellas numbers thirty-seven to forty-two of the SCE eBook series.
Comics:
From IDW this month is issue four of Scott and David Tipton's Klingons: Blood Will Tell miniseries, this one retells the episode "Day of the Dove". This month also sees the start of the new TOS miniseries Star Trek: Year Four by David Tischman, which as the name implies, tells us stories from the would be forth season of the original Star Trek TV series. Preceding the first issue of that new series is "IDW Focus on: Star Trek", a behind the scenes look at IDW's Star Trek works including a new short comic story.
It should also be noted last months IDW comics have yet to be released, the third issue of Klingons: Blood Will Tell is just a little late being released this week, whilst the final issue of the TNG miniseries The Space Between is due next week.
Toys:
Lots of action figures from Diamond Select Toys this month; Continuing their TNG releases is the Crusher wave, which consists of Doctor Beverly Crusher and Ensign Wesley Crusher in later TNG uniforms and limited edition "All Good Things..." version of Doctor Crusher and a Q figure in Starfleet Uniform.
DST's Wrath of Kahn figures kick off with the first wave consisting of Admiral Kirk and Khan and the limited Captain Terrell and "Double cross" (aka battle damaged) Kirk. Then a second wave comes as retailer exclusives consisting of Sulu, Chekov, McCoy and Scotty, and if you get all those at the San Diego Comic Convention you can get a free battle damaged "Genesis Kahn".
Movie era TOS not your thing? Well worry not, as well as all that this month sees a double pack of Kirk and Kahn from the episode "Space Seed". This month also sees DST's first wave of TOS Minimates, which consists of three double packs: Kirk and Spock, Pike and Vina, McCoy and Scotty and a limited edition dress uniform version of McCoy. Still not had enough TOS figures? Well in addition to all of that this month also sees the first waves of DST's retro cloth figures, this months figures being Kirk and a Klingon.
Other:
As well as all those figures DST also have a couple of sculptures coming out this month, the McCoy part of the "Landing Party" statue set and the first of their Star Trek: Icons series, James T. Kirk.
In Region 1 a new Fan Collective DVD collection should start showing up. A full episode list has yet to materialise for this set, titled "Captain's Log", but in addition to the fan voted episodes the set will includes the captain's actors favourites, with introductions amongst the extra features.
And in Region 2 from GE Fabbri this month are parts twelve and thirteen of their Magazine and DVD collection Star Trek: The Collector's Edition, which will includes six TOS episodes from "The Apple" to "Journey to
-The Buried Age info
-Tischman on Year Four
-IDW July releases
-IDW July covers
-The Wrath of Kahn figures
-DST exclusives
-DST Mego figure packaging
-Kirk Busted
-New Fan Collective DVD collection