Wednesday 26 May 2021

Star Trek Online ends Year of the Klingon with House United, and adds loads of 32nd century Discovery stuff to the game

Star Trek Online have revealed their latest major update, the conclusion to their long running Year of the Klingon series of content releases. They've also introduced lots of new 32nd century content from Discovery, and other new ships. Continue below to check out the latest from the video game.

Year of the Klingon is coming to a conclusion in House United, which brings back Mary Chieffo (L'Rell), J.G. Hertzler (Martok), Robert O'Reilly (Gowron/Aakar), and Rekha Sharma (Adet'pa, but better known on-screen as Landry). Here's how STO describe the new content:

L'Rell, as played by Mary Chieffo, is back from the dead, and leading an army to retake the Empire from the Mad Emperor, J'mpok. Whether you are a loyal Klingon Warrior, or one of the other factions taking part in the world of 2411, you've been along for the ride, experiencing the destruction of New Khitomer, clearing your name, and the shattering of the Klingon Empire. Now, you, Martok (J.G. Hertzler from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and J'ula must stand against J'mpok to reunite and restore honor to the Klingon people.

This battle will take you around the empire, in the mission "Leap of Faith," and to Qo'nos itself in the mission "Warriors of the Empire," and the Task Force Operation, "Remain Klingon." For the first time in a long time, the story of the final battle will be told in both the mission and the TFO, giving you a chance to experience both the ground and space battles for the Klingon homeworld. Participating in these, and new patrols based off of "Leap of Faith," will progress you in the "Only Qo'nos Endures" special event. Completing that event grants you the powerful Imperial Assault ground set. And finally, the Discovery: Far from Home Lock Box lets you obtain the technology of the 32nd Century, as seen in Star Trek: Discovery Season 3. 

STO have released a trailer and some key images showing off the major characters:


Tuesday 25 May 2021

Eaglemoss reveal more Kelvin timeline ships, and the Son'a battleship

Following the recent reveal that the USS Armstrong(ad), from the Kelvin timeline background Starfleet fleet, will finally be joining Eaglemoss' Starships Collection, it has now been confirmed more minor Kelvin ships are on the way. Eaglemoss have also released new images of their latest Son'a ship. Continue below to check them all out.

TrekCore have released the first images and details of the further Kelvin releases. For now at least the collection will comprise the three most prominent ships from the Vulcan rescue fleet in The Future Begins (see my previous report for a look at the other Kelvin ships still in waiting). 

My favourite of the bunch is the very uniquely shaped USS Newton, with a half saucer and two engineering sections. This will be the 28th bonus issue in the collection, coming in August: 

Sunday 23 May 2021

Latest Star Trek Shipyards book previews gives us new views of new Discovery and Picard ships, plus other reference book previews

Eaglemoss' publishers Penguin Random House have released another set of previews for forthcoming Star Trek reference books, including the latest from the Designing Starships and Celebration series. Continue below to check out those, but first enjoy some really cool preview pages from the forthcoming "updated and expanded" edition of the Star Trek Shipyards: Starfleet Ships 2294 - the Future(ad) book, from the series of starship guides.

An update to this book has been prompted thanks to the numerous new ships introduced in Discovery, Picard, and Lower Decks, almost all of which are now included here. The new preview pages give us some of the first really good looks at these new designs, including the 32nd century Constitution class USS Armstrong, and the Wallenberg class below:

FanSets emoji characters and other new Star Trek pins

The ever productive FanSets have been busy with Star Trek pins, with new character, ship, and episode based designs spanning the franchise, and in several different styles. Continue below to check out their latest releases.

Recently completed is a series of emoji pins, with one character based on each of the TV series to date, and getting ahead of themselves Strange New Worlds too. You can get the whole collection as a set of nine pins:


Or you can now pick up each character individually. Spock for TOS, La Forge for TNG, Sisko for DS9, Janeway for Voyager, Archer for Enterprise, Burnham for Discovery, Picard for Picard, Mariner for Lower Decks, and Pike for SNW - They're a nice style, would be cool to see more characters like this I think.

Saturday 22 May 2021

Non-Fiction previews: TOS: A Celebration, latest Designing Starships and Shipyards book, and The Star Trek Book

A gaggle of new preview for forthcoming Star Trek non-fiction books have recently been released, including pages from Eaglemoss' latest volumes in the A Celebration, Designing Starships, and Shipyards series, a DK's revised edition of The Star Trek Book. Continue below to check them all out.

First up from Eaglemoss: Hero Collector and their published Penguin Random House, we have Star Trek: A Celebration(ad), a retrospective look behind the scenes on The Original Series in the same format as last year's Voyager: A Celebration(ad). Put together by Ben Robinson and Ian Spelling, and due out in September. Here's how they're pitching it:
Celebrate the 55th anniversary of Star Trek: The Original Series with this epic coffee-table book! New interviews, archival conversations, never-before-seen art and sketches, and more!
 

Gene Roddenberry’s “Wagon Train to the Stars” continues to live long and prosper, with Discovery, Lower Decks, and Picard currently on the air, and Strange New Worlds on the way. But it all began 55 years ago with Star Trek: The Original Series. The second installment in Hero Collector’s Celebration line (following Star Trek: Voyager – A Celebration), Star Trek: The Original Series – A Celebration includes more than a dozen new interviews with cast and creatives, scores of never-before-seen photographs and sketches, as well as chapters taking fresh looks at the show’s creation, directing, visual effects, props, and most-pivotal episodes.
And here's a nice assortment of preview pages showing a good range of the content covered:

Eaglemoss August releases include Son'a battleship, XL USS Equinox, and latest Picard and STO ships

Eaglemoss have announced their starship model releases for August, which include four newly revealed models from their specials, XL, Universe, and Online ranges. Continue below to check them out.


The twenty-seventh of the large special issues will be the Son'a Battleship(ad), the third Son'a ship Eaglemoss have so far released, following the flagship(ad) and collector(ad) (leaving just the smaller fighter/shuttle to complete the fleet). 

This is my personal favourite Son'a design, so a model I've been waiting for, but alas so far Eaglemoss are only previewing the cover the magazine not yet the model itself:


Wednesday 19 May 2021

IDW return to TNG's mirror universe in The Mirror War

IDW have announced a big new comics project set to start later this year. After a little while away from the mirror universe they are returning in 13-issue year-long event, Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Mirror War.

Following up on the previous three TNG mirror miniseries Mirror Broken(ad), Through the Mirror(ad), and Terra Incognita(ad), the series will begin with an issue zero one-shot in September, with an eight-issue miniseries to follow. That will be interspersed with tie-in character-focused specials, the first of which will focus on Data and release in December. IDW promise that:

the 13-part saga will chart Mirror Picard’s path of conquest across all of the Mirror Universe, stoking the wrath of the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance along the way.

The series will be written by Scott and David Tipton, who previously wrote all the preceding TNG mirror comics (and many other IDW Trek titles). The #0 issue will be illustrated by Carlos Neto, who also worked on several of the previous TNG mirror books. Here's how IDW describe that issue:

...a new story of “Mirror Picard” as he’s summoned to Earth to face the wrath of his emperor, deftly weaving threads from past Mirror Universe tales in a way entertaining to newcomers and the initiated alike.

UPDATE: IDW's August solicitations, in which The Mirror War #0 is the only Star Trek release (rather than September?), include this blurb as well:

Get caught up with the Mirror Enterprise-D before its crew—helmed by Jean-Luc Picard—faces new threats and challenges in the upcoming Mirror War event!

Following the failure of the attempt to steal ships from the Prime Universe, Picard and the Mirror Crew are called back to Earth to report to the Emperor personally… so long as they can survive the trip!   

This issue will be offered in three different covers; either cover A by Carlos Nieto, Cover B by Ejiwa “Edge” Ebenebe, or a retail incentive cover by Bex Glendining. IDW have released the A cover so far:


Discovery season three home video extra feature details, plus behind the scenes round-up

Season three of Discovery(ad) is set for home video release in July, and CBS Home Entertainment have now revealed the full line-up of extra features. Continue below to check out the details of those, plus a round-up of the latest behind the scenes goodies shared by the series' crew and cast.


The home video release incudes a number of documentary featurettes, a gag reel, and deleted scenes, but alas no audio commentaries this time around. 

Among the behind the scenes content, the ones that jump out to me are The Voyage of Season 3, looking at how every element of the production adapted to the new future setting, and Kenneth Mitchell: To Boldly Go, dedicated to the actor now living with ALS and how the series built a new character around his wheelchair use.

Here's the full run-down:

Monday 17 May 2021

EXO-6 preview Captain Picard action figure, and promise more First Contact and captains releases

High-end Star Trek action figure makers EXO-6 have opened pre-orders for their second release, the First Contact version of Captain Picard, and also teased several other forthcoming projects, including more from First Contact and an extensive captains series. Continue below for all the latest updates:

So first we have previews and details of the Captain Picard figure. Like their previous Data figure this is a 1:6 scale figure (30cm tall), featuring an unnervingly realistic head sculpt, a highly detailed miniature sewn uniform, and an assortment of accessories. The figure features 30 points of articulation, so can be posed in all sorts of life-like positions.


Thursday 13 May 2021

Eaglemoss returning to the Kelvin timeline for more Starfleet ships

Exciting news starship fans, starship model makers Eaglemoss are at last tapping into one of the few remaining pockets of Starfleet starship designs they've not yet made models of, the Kelvin timeline background fleet! Newly listed on the UK Eaglemoss webshop (currently in waitlist mode ahead of pre-orders going live some time this month) is the USS Armstrong. The design is similar to the Miranda class, with the addition of a secondary hull below the saucer. 


This is being released in the bonus model series - Which Eaglemoss now use to release additional models in the classic Starships Collection run, alongside non-canon and concept art designs that previously filled the bonus line - So is the same size as the original Eaglemoss starships series, rather than the larger specials size that all previous Kelvin ships have been released in (apart from a smaller shuttle set that is). In my view a welcome development, as apart from the Narada and the Enterprise-A, all the remaining Kelvin ships, while certainly desirable, really don't seem significant enough to warrant the larger size. Check out more the Armstrong below:

Saturday 8 May 2021

Borg Cube advent calendar on the way from Eaglemoss

Eaglemoss have revealed they are working on something really original for Christmas this year, a Borg Cube advent calendar! Details are limited at the moment, but the initial report on the product by Toy News states it will be filled with a "host of merchandise and collectables", and that "each calendar can also be used as a storage and display unit with the idea of keeping single-use packaging to a minimum." - Said packaging certainly looks cool:


Monday 3 May 2021

RockLove bring Star Trek character jewellery to life

Star Trek jewellery makers RockLove have launched a new range of costume reproduction jewellery, bringing to life the on-screen jewellery worn by Uhura in TOS, Guinan in TNG, and Kira in DS9. Continue below to check them out.

From TOS, we have these delightful gold spiral earrings worn by Uhura. Here's how RockLove describe them:

Honoring Star Trek’s iconic Communications Officer, Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, these spiral earrings are handcrafted in sterling silver and plated in luminous yellow gold.  In the same technique as the originals, each spiral is wound by hand and will vary slightly.  The coils hang from secure lever-back ear wires, just like those worn on-screen by actress Nichelle Nichols in Star Trek: The Original Series.

Saturday 1 May 2021

Eaglemoss reveals their gold XL TOS USS Enterprise

Eaglemoss have revealed their fourth gold plated starship model. Coming in July is the XL edition of the TOS version of the USS Enterprise, plated in 18 karat gold(ad), and new variant of the existing XL USS Enterprise model(ad). Continue below to check out the model, and for a look at some other gold versions of the ship!

Screen-Trek round-up: Discovery season 3 home video, and latest updates from SNW, Picard, Georgiou, and movies

With multiple Star Trek TV series currently in production, and the promise of a new movie, there's a fairly steady stream of news coming from the on-screen portion of Star Trek lately. Continue below for a round-up of the latest from Discovery, Strange New Worlds, Picard, the Section 31 show, and movies.

First up, CBS Home Entertainment have released cover art for the forthcoming home video release of Discovery season 3(ad). While the season is already available for pre-order, a little oddly it's not yet clear when those orders will be fulfilled, as a release date hasn't yet been revealed - UPDATE: CBS Home Entertainment's Facebook page says 20th of July (thanks Star Trek Pike on Twitter). Nor have details of the extra features. But this is what the case will look like at least, for bluray(ad) or DVD(ad) editions:

Find Star Trek comics, toys, statues, and collectibles at TFAW.com!