Starship miniatures, concept art costumes and props from TOS, The Motion Picture and more, all up for auction

In the coming hours and days two different auctioneers are offering up quite a variety of interesting props, costumes, starship miniatures, artwork and more from across numerous Star Trek TV and film productions, including a lot of items from TOS and The Motion Picture, and more spanning right up to Into Darkness. Continue below to check out some of the highlights.

The most notable item is probably the iconic TOS phaser rifle from Where No Man Has Gone Before, which is coming up for sale later today from Hertitage Auctions in their Hollywood and Entertainment Signature Auction. This large one-of-a-kind prop remains in remarkable condition 55 years on from its creation.

Star Trek Magazine is reborn, as Star Trek Explorer

Titan Magazine's long-running Star Trek Magazine is getting a relaunch, with this October bringing us issue #1 of the new Star Trek Explorer. Check out the details of that first issue, and other Titan Publishing Star Trek releases, below:

Star Trek Explorer: The Official Magazine(ad)  is set to feature interviews, behind the scenes coverage, and new fiction content. Here's the blurb for the first issue:

STAR TREK EXPLORER THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE LAUNCHES A NEW ERA OF BELOVED SHOW! Featuring exclusive interviews with the cast and crew of Star Trek series as well as behind-the-scenes content you won't find anywhere else! This new magazine will also feature Star Trek exclusive fiction! Plus much more!

The covers for the first issue suggest an emphasis on interviews with the Discovery cast and crew for this issue, alongside a Kirk-focused "mini-magazine", a "Star Trek 101" explainer feature, and the promised "exclusive fiction". The previous Star Trek Magazine has before featured Star Trek Online based short stories, and excerpts form Star Trek novels; will this new format continue those sort of things, or maybe offer so some completely new short stories from different corners of the Trekverse? The only clue is that Disco-era Captain Pike is used to illustrate the new fiction tag on the cover (alongside "all-new magazine" and "new features" mind you).

The book will be offered in two covers, either the regular edition(ad) featuring Burnham in an EV suit, of the Previews exclusive edition(ad) using Tim Anderson's TOS art from the 50 Artists 50 Years collection(ad).

Original TOS phaser and other Trek treasures up for auction

This week Heritage Auctions are running their Entertainment & Music Memorabilia Signature Auction, which includes a number of original production props and artwork from various Star Trek sources. I've previously reported on the huge selection of beautiful Star Trek matte paintings in the auction, so today will have a look at some of the other items, which include some interesting bits from TOS and TNG.

Perhaps the highlight of the entire auction is an extremely rare TOS phaser hero prop. Heritage Auctions have provided a great set of photos of what will surely be of great interest to prop enthusiasts - You'll need deep pockets if you fancy getting it yourself, as this single phaser starts bidding at an astonishing $100,000!

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: 

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 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:

Book bits: New novels for 2021, To Lose the Earth excerpts, and more

Lots of Star Trek novels news today, including the first details of many new books coming next year, previews of the newly released Voyager novel, To Lose the Earth, and other covers and previews from the written world of Trek. Continue below for all the latest.

First up, as I reported earlier in the year, two new authors are joining the Star Trek fold, and now the first details of their books have been revealed, via an announcement on SyFy Wire. Both authors represent an effort to diversify the writing pool for Star Trek novels, and both happen to be to be set in the TV eras of their respective shows, which we've not seen for quite some time.

Specifically the TNG novel Shadows Have Offended, by Cassandra Rose Clark, is to be set in the seventh season. The book will focus on Deanna Troi, Beverly Crusher, and Worf.

A DS9 novel Revenant, by Alex R. White, doesn't have the timeline pinned down in the announcement, but set to feature Jadzia Dax and Kira Nerys, which would seem to limit it to the first six seasons.

They didn't formally announce publication dates for these yet, although Simon and Schuster have recently listed several forthcoming books, and the acronyms probably give us a clue. They are:

• Untitled TDV(ad), a Picard novel (in hardcover), due January 2021.
• Untitled SHO(ad), a TNG novel, due in April 2021 - Presumably this is Shadows Have Offended.
• Untitled DTP(ad), a Discovery novel, due in May 2021.
• Untitled OATW(ad), a TOS novel, due in June 2021.
• Untitled STR(ad), a DS9 novel, due in July 2021 - Presumably this is Revenant.

Prop Store's latest auction offers Star Trek production pieces from across the universe

Prop Store are today auction of lots of movie and TV stuff in their Entertainment Memorabilia auction, and that includes a huge range of production pieces from all corners of the Star Trek universe. They have some great pieces on offer, including miniatures, matte paintings, concept art, props, and alien prosthetics. I've picked out a few favourites below, although if you want to get any yourself, you'll need to be quick, the auction is in progress today!

My personal favourite is this beautiful study model from the design of Earth Spacedock, from the production of The Search For Spock:

Star Trek novel news: A Contest of Principles cover, and More Beautiful Than Death and Die Standing exceprts

Star Trek novel news aplenty in this update, including new covers and new excerpts from TOS, Kelvin, and Discovery books. Continue below for all the latest.

First up a brand new cover, for the next TOS novel, Greg Cox's A Contest of Principles. This new design has just popped up recently on the Simon and Schuster Digital Catalog, and is a strikingly new take on Star Trek cover design. I like it!

Paramount considering where to go next with Star Trek movies

It seems Paramount are taking a fresh look at their Star Trek movie options. According to Deadline, the new President of Motion Picture Group At Paramount, Emma Watts is apparently considering what path is best to take, in a hope of revitalising the movie wing of the franchise. Deadline's reporting of reveals new details of previously announced projects in development, and where they currently stand as prospects.

What Deadline have a feel of, is that while Paramount see some of the scripts they have in the works as good potential spin-offs - Working as stand-alones akin to Logan next to the wider X-Men franchise - They feel a need to first revitalise a core movie franchise, and to build on that.

Fleet Command introduces Harry Mudd to the Kelvin timeline

The Kelvin timeline video game Fleet Command has revealed the latest story arc in the game; Outlaws, which will introduce Harry Mudd to the Kelvin timeline, and curiously seems to team him up with Khan! - Who was himself liberated from his freezer when the Augments became a faction in the game last year. Continue below to find out more.

Book bits: Agents of Influence excerpts, and new audiobook covers

Out this week is the newest TOS novel, Dayton Ward's Agents of Influence. Set in the five year mission era, this is a a Klingon focused espionage tale; the book features undercover Starfleet spies working in Klingon space. Continue below to check excerpts from the print and audio edition, plus some other book updates.

First, a reminder of the blurb:

An epic new Star Trek saga by New York Times bestselling author Dayton Ward set during the original Five-Year Mission!

For years, Starfleet Intelligence agents have carried out undercover assignments deep within the Klingon Empire. Surgically altered and rigorously trained in Klingon culture, they operate in plain sight and without any direct support, while collecting information and infiltrating the highest levels of imperial power. Their actions have given Starfleet valuable insight into the inner workings of Klingon government and its relentless military apparatus.

After three of Starfleet’s longest serving agents fear exposure, they initiate emergency extraction procedures. Their planned rendezvous with the USS Endeavour goes awry, threatening to reveal their activities and the damaging intelligence they’ve collected during their mission. Tasked by Starfleet to salvage the botched rescue attempt, Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise must discover the truth behind a secret weapons experiment while avoiding an interstellar incident with the potential to ignite a new war between the Federation and one of its oldest adversaries.

Star Trek (2009) storyboards reveal unseen and alternate creature designs

Storyboard artist Richard Bennett has been sharing some of his work from the first Kelvin timeline movie, Star Trek, revealing some really cool creature designs, and a cut scene. Continue below to check them out.

This first sequence, which Bennett shared in two posts on his Instagram account, reveals a cut scene where Spock travels through a series of conduits, and encounters a huge snake-like creature, with lots of teeth and tendrils!

More Beautiful Than Death cover, and other Star Trek book updates

Lots of Star Trek novel updates today, including excerpts and author comments, and new audiobook and back covers for TOS, Kelvin, Voyager, and Discovery books. But first, a brand new cover reveal.

Coming in  August is the second in the new Kelvin timeline novels, David Mack's More Beautiful Than Death. The Simon and Schuster online catalogue has revealed the new cover, which follows a similar style to the previous Kelvin novel, The Unsettling Stars, but this time in a more colourful red/orange monotone:

Star Trek comics updates: IDW releases resume from June

IDW have released their latest solicitations, for August release, with just one new Star Trek title on the cards. Meanwhile regular releases are set to resume from June (following the recent Covid induced pause), with rescheduling of already announced titles filling up the schedules towards the end of the year already. Continue below for an update on all IDW's Star Trek series.

So first up, let's check out the newly announced book. The final issue in the latest DS9 miniseries, Too Long a Sacrifice has officially been announced. Issue four continues with the same creative team of writers Scott and David Tipton, and artist Greg Scott. Here's the blurb:

Everyone is a suspect on a space station one murder away from plunging into total chaos. Constable Odo has a suspect in his sights, but there's one final piece to this dark puzzle that will change everything he thought he knew-not to mention life on Deep Space Nine-forever. Don't miss the shocking conclusion to this space noir from David & Scott Tipton (Star Trek: Mirror Broken, Star Trek: The Q Conflict) and Greg Scott (Gotham Central, The X-Files)!

The book will be available in three covers, either the A cover by Ricardo Drumond, a B photo cover, or a retail incentive by J.K Woodward. So far only the photo cover has been released.

The amazing aliens of Star Trek Beyond

Star Trek Beyond featured more than fifty different alien species, with multiple unique beings for each race seen among the citizens of Starbase Yorktown, the corridors of the USS Enterprise, and on Altamid. The make-up department lead by Joel Harlow created such an incredible menagerie, that there's an entire book dedicated to their efforts in the production! Harlow and his team have also shared much of their work online, giving us a better chance to get to know many of the only briefly glimpsed species of Beyond. Continue below to check them out:

One of the most exotic designs was known as Shlerm, photos here from Joel Harlow's website show off both the impressive character design and their grand costumes:

Fleet Command's Borg event comes to a close with Mega Borg Cube, and Jaylah's assimilation!

Scopely have announced the finale of their months long Borg event, in the Kelvin timeline video game Fleet Command.

The final run of missions will set up an all out Borg invasion, culminating in the arrival of a "Mega Borg Cube", which obviously must be defeated!

Continue below to meet assimilated Jaylah, Borg tribbles, and check out the latest ships from the game. First though, here's come Borgy art they've been releasing to promote this:

Alternate worlds of Star Trek Beyond concept art: Altamid, Starbase Yorktown, swarm mechas, unseen ships, and more

Star Trek Beyond took us to several exotic strange new worlds, and every one of them was conjured from the minds of concept artists, who also thought up plenty of other ideas that never got picked to go to screen. Continue below to check out Altamid as we never saw it, Starbase Yorktown when it wasn't an orb and was full of Galaxy class ships, swarm drone mechas, and unseen starships.

Let's start with a visit to Starbase Yorktown, not quite as we know it. Concept artist Milena Zdravkovic has shared a large selection of her work from Beyond on her ArtStation profile, including this radically different take on Yorktown, as a long ribbon structure, with Galaxy class ships visiting (don't panic timeline fiends, just standing in for designs to come later I'm sure):

Another really striking image shows us a Galaxy-esque ship under construction:

Book bits: New Picard novel, The Unsettling Stars excerpts, and other updates

A few Star Trek book updates today, including previews of the latest release, a new audiobook cover, and story-time with Spock! Continue below for all that, but first, new book news!

Simon and Schuster have added new listings for "Untitled STP", a new Picard novel due out in December. Like the first Picard novel, The Last Best Hope (see review), this will initially be a hardcover release, of course also available as an ebook, and audiobook (The Last Best Hope is getting a paperback release later this year too, so presumably that will come along later for this new book as well). There are no details on authorship or what the book will be about just yet (I'm crossing my fingers for a Seven/Hugh XB/Fenris Rangers backstory book).

Coming back to the present, the latest Star Trek novel just released is the first adult Kelvin timeline book (following the young adult series of some years ago), Alan Dean Foster's The Unsettling Stars. Set shortly after the first Kelvin timeline movie, this book was originally due out before Into Darkness was released, but was put on hold for years, until now! Along with David Mack's More Beautiful Than Death, due later in the year, this book has been rescued from limbo. Here's a reminder of the blurb:

Big Star Trek starships in real life

After more than half a century of inspiring trekkies world-wide, Star Trek has left a mark on the world. Sometimes more literally than you might imagine; all over the world you can find Star Trek starships, on displays, in parades, as corporate headquarters, and even in dentist offices. I thought it would be fun to try and track down the big Star Trek starships there are out there; I was surprised how many I came up with! Continue below to check them out.

The REALLY big ones

First I thought we should look at the seriously huge ones; I'm talking several times the size of human, or even full-sized recreations. These are rare, and their fidelity to the original designs vary, but some are very impressive.

Perhaps the most screen accurate of the big Star Trek ships in real life was the Borg Sphere that formed the thematic heart of the old Borg Assimilator roller coaster at the Carowinds Amusement Park in North Carolina. Alas Paramount sold the park in 2006, and soon after the Star Trek theming for the ride was striped off. And so, as seemed to be the habit of Borg Spheres crashed on Earth, this ship is lost to time.