Prodigy round-up: Terror Firma previews, behind the scenes art, and Dream Catcher extra content

This week has delivered the fifth episode of Prodigy, which will now be taking a break until January, so the last for the time being. Continue below to check out previews for the new episode, some cool behind the scenes art from across the series, and extra content reflecting on last week's episode.

There isn't an episode specific trailer for this week's new episode, but there is a new general trailer. This mostly features familiar shots, but does include one tantalisingly brief new scene on a Galaxy class bridge!

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Prodigy round-up: Second season confirmed, behind the scenes art, Starstruck extra content and more

This week brings us the fourth episode of Prodigy, and will there doesn't seem to be a new episode specific trailer for it, there are plenty of other Prodigy updates to enjoy. Continue below for the latest behind the scenes art, extra content based on last week's episode, and more.

First up this big news is that Prodigy has been officially renewed for a second season. They've also detailed the release plans for the rest of the first season, which are not as straightforward as we might have expected, now split into three blobs of episodes:

• The current run will only be continuing for five episodes, with next week's fifth episode being the the last to release this year. 
• A second block of five episodes will then return from the 6th of January onwards. 
• Another pause will follow, with the end half of the season, a further ten episodes, coming at some point later in 2022!

Which means at twenty-episodes this will be the longest season of any of the new Trek series, and going to take it's time unfolding! There's no info on the number of episodes for season two yet.

This week's new episode is Dream Catcher, and here's the blurb:

The crew has their first away mission on an undiscovered planet that manifests their deepest desires, only to realize the planet has desires of its own.

But with a lack of previews that's all I've got to share about that, so onward to behind the scenes... 

Where thanks once more to director and executive producer Ben Hibon we have a cool bit of behind the scenes imagery of the bridge set. Here's how he describes the design:

We had many ideas when we started designing our USS Protostar bridge, but three factors kept coming up; all stations should be facing forward, internal lighting should always indicate its structure, and most importantly - for our kids - it should feel like an open window into space…

Prodigy round-up: A close look at the USS Protostar, concept art, character images, behind the scenes, trailer, movie-potential, and first episode for free

Prodigy it into it's third episode this week - Though it feels more like the second after the extended two-part start to the series, which you can, for a while, watch for free (more on that below).  Paramount+(ad) have of course been enthusiastically promoting the series, both looking ahead, and reflecting back on the first episodes. Plus several of the production team have shared some really cool behind the scenes artwork. Continue below to check out all the latest from the series.

First up, director and executive producer Ben Hibon shared some great images of the USS Protostar, giving us a chance to really examine the shaping and details of this shiny new starship design. In his tweets he credited designer John Eaves for the "early ideation", the final design to himself and the Nuen Studio team, and the textures to look development designer Nikie Monteleone.

Prodigy launch previews

Star Trek Prodigy, the new animated series aimed at younger viewers, has begun! At least for viewers in the US, Canada, and parts of the world where Paramount+(ad) has so far launched. The series will also air on Nickelodeon at a later date, and hopefully find its way to other parts of the world too. Whether you can watch it yet or not, Paramount+ have released several clips and promos to wet our appetites. So get a taste below:

First up here are the clips from the first episode, Lost and Found. This first one highlights the magic of the universal translator:

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Prodigy Janeway clip, casting, trailers, character promos, and real life bridge!

With the start of Prodigy just weeks away Paramount+ and Nickelodeon have been ramping up their promotional efforts for the series, with new clips, trailers, and artwork revealing new details about the characters, and the latest announcement revealing the existence of more Starfleet characters in the series. Oh and they built a real world version of the USS Protostar bridge! Continue below for a round-up of all the latest.

First up check out this awesome clip of holographic Janeway introducing herself to the young crew of the USS Protostar:

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Star Trek Day brings trailers, release dates, casting updates and more for SNW, Picard, Discovery, Prodigy, and Lower Decks

At today's Star Trek Day event Paramount+ announced lots and lots of new Star Trek TV news (and a little movie update too even), including very exciting casting/character news from Strange New Worlds, an exhilarating new trailer and keyart for Prodigy, plus a new trailers for both Picard and Lower Decks too, a release date for the next season of Discovery, a tease for the Starfleet Academy series, and a little preview from the remastered edition of The Motion Picture: The Director's Edition. Continue below to check out all the news!

First up let's look at Strange New Worlds, with the exciting news of the extended cast beyond Captain Pike, Number One (whose full name we now know is Una Chin-Riley), and Spock. Here's a little casting announcement video:

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Star Trek Prodigy's opening titles give us a great look at the USS Protostar. Plus casting and character updates.

Paramount+ have released the opening title sequence (albeit without any credits at the moment) for Star Trek Prodigy, the new animated series for younger viewers. They have also announced some new casting, and character details. Continue below for all the latest on the series.

The sequence is a beautiful montage of shots of the series ship, the USS Protostar, giving us a great look at the new design and it's interesting engines! Check it out (also up on StarTrek.com, YouTube, or Twitter if you prefer to Instagram embedded below):

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New trailers for Prodigy and Lower Decks, reveal new ship, characters, and more

At the Comic Con @ Home panel today the creators and cast of both Prodigy and Lower Decks shared lots of new details of the forthcoming seasons of both animated Star Trek shows. Continue below for the latest, including the first look at the Prodigy starship, and trailers for both shows. 

So first up, here's the first teaser trailer for Prodigy, which gives us a little set up and a lot of teases for the sexy new ship that will feature in the series (also available geolocked on YouTube if you prefer to the square cropped Instagram below):

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Playmates Toys returns to Star Trek with universe-spanning releases starting in 2022

Playmates Toys are returning to Star Trek! The company that has twice before produced extensive range of Star Trek toys are back on board thanks to to Star Trek Prodigy opening Trek up younger audiences. Playmates will start producing toys for that series alongside Discovery, Picard, Lower Decks, and the rest of Trek TV and movies, from next year. 

As announced on StarTrek.com, their license spans "action figures, vehicles and ships, role play and other toy categories for all Star Trek properties". The announcement also promises "Playmates will bring to the Star Trek Universe are its attention to brand detail, authentic portrait sculpting, and new product innovations it plans to introduce to its forthcoming Star Trek collections."

There's also this teaser images, which with a little enhancement gives us the first glimpse of six action figures on the way. Continue below to have a look!

Beautiful alien worlds of Prodigy revealed

Paramount+ have released some more new images to preview the forthcoming animated Star Trek series Prodigy. This latest set looks at some of the locations of the series, revealing a beautiful and exotic selection of alien worlds and environments. This is going to be a stunning series!

Star Trek Prodigy cast and character names and species revealed

The cast of Star Trek Prodigy, the forthcoming animated series for kids, has been revealed, as have character names and species. The young alien stars of the show include two classic TOS species, and amazingly a species from the Star Trek novels! Continue below for a closer look, including the first still from the series.

Prodigy theory: The series ship will be USS Voyager's missing Aeroshuttle

With the announcement that the new animated children's TV series Star Trek: Prodigy will take place in the Delta Quadrant some years after the USS Voyager visited, and that Captain Janeway's part in the series will be in the form of an emergency training hologram, it starts to get one wondering: What is this Starfleet ships the young alien crew the series is about are going to take command of, and how did a holographic Janeway find herself installed there? Well one idea springs to my mind: The Aeroshuttle!

The what? For those unfamiliar: The Aeroshuttle is one of those almost forgotten ideas you sometimes get in TV production, a concept brewed up early on in development of the series, but never called upon by the needs of the plot. It is a distinctive smallcraft attached to the underside of the USS Voyager's saucer section, in much the same way the captain's yacht is on the USS Enterprise-E. 

New trailers and updates for Picard season 2, Discovery season 4, Lower Decks season 2, and Prodigy!

Big Star Trek TV news day! To mark First Contact Day today StarTrek.com hosted a series of panels, including reflecting on the 25th anniversary of the best TNG movie, behind the scenes and cultural impacts of other Trek, and some major new Trek-TV news for most of the currently in-production series, including lots of new trailers, and release date updates. Continue below for a round-up of the day's news:

The first big announcement of the day is that the original Q, John de Lancie, will be returning for Picard season two, which is set to arrive in 2022. This was revealed in this teaser trailer:

 

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Patrick Stewart and de Lancie, along with host Wil Wheaton discussed this a little in the panel as well, in which Stewart noted Q's reappearance comes at a "shattering moment" of trauma for Picard, which may or may not be directly related to Q's motivation to return.

First look at Prodigy's alien crew, plus other Trek TV updates

ViacomCBS have released the first image from the forthcoming animated Star Trek series aimed at younger viewers, Prodigy, revealing one of the most diverse cast of characters of any Star Trek series, which for the first time will have a main crew that's all aliens! Check them out below, plus some other Trek TV updates.

There are no additional details of these characters yet, but from we we can see, we've got a non-humanoid robot, a shorter humanoid with a cybernetic arm, a tall blue-skinned humanoid, with really interesting metal-work in their costume, a purple skinned humanoid, a blue-blob creature, and an enormous crystalline-skinned being. You can read from their expressions and attire a diverse grouping of attitudes and backgrounds, sure to cause some drama when the series begins later this year.

These are "outcasts", which together form "a group of lawless teens who discover a derelict Starfleet ship and use it to search for adventure, meaning and salvation." Part of that salvation will come via the leadership of Kathryn Janeway who returns in this series - It's not yet known when it is set (in relation to Voyager), or how she interacts with this crew of youngsters.

Janeway to return in Star Trek Prodigy

Very exciting news! Captain Kathryn Janeway will soon be returning to Star Trek. 

As part of New York Comic Con virtual Star Trek panel, executive producer Alex Kurtzman revealed the casting, introducing Kate Mulgrew and the news that she will be reprising the role of the once-captain of the USS Voyager in the new Nickelodeon animated series for kids, Star Trek Prodigy. Check out this joyous moment, and Mulgrew's obvious enthusiasm to bring back one of Trek's greatest captains:

Discovery to introduce Star Trek's first major transgender and non-binary characters. Plus other Trek-TV updates

Discovery, a show that has already pushed Star Trek's representation forward by several lightyears with it's diverse cast of characters, is continuing it's efforts of showing how truly diverse and inclusive Star Trek can be, by introducing the franchise's first regular transgender and non-binary characters.

Continue below for details of these two new characters, plus other updates on the many Star Trek shows currently in production and development.

Ian Alexander, an Asian-American transgender actor know for his role in The OA, will play a Trill character called Gray. Here's how CBS describe him:

Gray is empathetic, warm and eager to fulfill his lifelong dream of being a Trill host, but he will have to adapt when his life takes an unexpected turn.

Blu del Barrio, who seems to be British, is taking on their first major role here, and will play the non-binary character Adira. And here's how CBS describe them:

Adira is highly intelligent with a confidence and self-assurance well beyond their years. They will find a new home on the U.S.S. Discovery and form an unexpected bond with Lt. Commander Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) and Dr. Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz). 

Trek TV news from the Comic Con virtual panel

The Comic Con Star Trek Universe virtual panel today gave us a few nuggets of news. Continue below for a new preview of Lower Decks, and updates on Discovery season three, and Strange New Worlds. But first, a whole new show:

The biggest is the reveal of a brand new series title. The Nickelodeon animated Star Trek series aimed at younger views will be called Star Trek Prodigy, and has this snazzy title logo: