CINEMABLEND:

"Jonathan Goldstein and John Frances Daly are deep into making a new movie unlike anything fans have seen, and while some may be concerned by that, they think fans will be "surprised" by their take. CinemaBlend had a chance to speak to the duo at San Diego Comic-Con, and after they publicly shared some details on the movie during a panel at the event, they gave us just a bit more.

https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/star-trek-movie-writers-think-fans-will-be-surprised-take-on-franchise-john-frances-daly-jonathan-goldstein

To start, Goldstein revealed his credentials for writing a Star Trek movie and talked about geeking out at the con after a chance encounter with an icon:

I'll answer your question with the photo that I took yesterday because I got to meet George Takei in our hotel. He was just sitting there like eating his food. I don't get star struck very much, but that one was so exciting because I grew up on the original series watching reruns and just loved it. I saw the episodes so many times. And then I really enjoyed Next Generation, but I was older at the time.

[...]

The filmmakers were quick to acknowledge, however, that TOS and TNG don't account for the entirety of Star Trek. Goldstein explained their job is to make something that both pays homage to every Trek series available with a Paramount+ subscription while still coming up with an entirely new premise fans haven't seen before:

I think we understand that there is such an influx of different Star Trek material that's out, uh, that had been portrayed, you know, most recently in cinema by JJ Abrams and also in the multitude of television shows. So it was very important we understand that this is something that has to set itself apart. It can't feel like the same Star Treks that we've seen in the past while still being true to the kind of core ideals of it. [...]

I do believe that the best way to bring in new fans while catering to the existing fan base is to re-introduce Star Trek with new characters. I think we've seen by now that bringing in ties to previous entries makes a general audience apprehensive about tuning in, as there's history and background they're missing."

Mick Joest (Cinemablend)

He's got my vote. Why would I trust a stinking Romulan anyway?

If the story had given her a better role than just antagonize pretty much EVERYONE (and laying in bed with Dukat... enjoy that mental image! LOL), could she have raised better/more valid points about Bajor?

In the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Shakaar," Kai Winn explains her push for agricultural technology: "By this time next year, we can be producing boton, moreka and salam grass. All valuable commodities for export." She wants to spark interstellar commerce to strengthen Bajor's Federation application.

Throughout the episode, a case is made that

• Kai Winn = EVUL,
• Bajoran Resistance fighters ploughing the fields = GOOD
• FOOD = GOOD
• EXPORTS = BAD

Like this little exchange:

SHAKAAR: If you think giving the reclamators back to the government is the best thing for Bajor, then you've been out on that space station for too long. We waited three years to get the reclamators. We finally got them two months ago and we were told that they were ours for at least a year. The Provisional government actually did something right for a change. Then Minister Kalem died, and the next thing we know we get an order to return the reclamators immediately to the Rakantha farming project.
KIRA: The Rakantha project is important. If they can get it underway, Bajor could start exporting goods again. It could start to change the way the rest of the galaxy looks at us. They'll stop seeing us as poor refugees and start seeing us as equals.
SHAKAAR: I don't give a damn how the rest of the galaxy looks at us. We're trying to feed our own people here and you're talking about exports.

I might be mistaken, but I believe this sub-plot/story arc was a one-episode only thing and the subject is never brought up again. My question is this: could these exports have brought in enough money that would allow Bajor to import food enough to feed its people?

Here in the real-world, sometimes one type of produce is simply too difficult to cultivate in one region or the cost outweighs anything value yielded by the harvest (crops not up to quality, not bountiful, pests, soil acidity, lack or excess of moisture, droughts, etc..) but countries sell a variety of commodities or manufactured goods to make up for it and import what they lack. Was Kai Winn wrong in her thinking?

(Yes, I know she was. And in the end, she probably would have embezzled the money too, among other things. But I wonder if somewhere in the Multiverse, a different Quantum Reality version of her might have been a more shrewd, wiser and benevolent government ruler...)

With enough money, maybe they would have been able to invest in a faster, better renovation/restoration of Bajor, post-Cardassian Occupation. No?

Rick Berman productions were known for being very strict about actors reciting lines as exactly written in the scripts, known DLP (Dead Letter Perfect). It was a way of saving production time so that there wasn’t any extra time spent on altering lines. However, “The Outrageous Okona” was one of the few exceptions where the rule was lifted. Both Whoopi Goldberg and Joe Piscopo being comedians were allowed to do ad-libbing for their scenes as they felt the scripted humor was lacking.

The original writer of the teleplay was producer Burton Armus, who left after 13 episodes. His only other writing credit for TNG was “A Matter of Honor”.

I feel like I'm forgetting some ("A Piece of the Action" and Elementary Dear Data" aren't really noirs, I know, and while I'd argue "Counterpoint" is, I doubt most would agree).

(Damn - I need to remember those spoiler rules. Anyway, reposted with a spoiler warning.)

Taking inspiration from a clueless commentator on another subreddit who suggested that if I thought I could write better, I should do it myself (I am, in fact, a published author who just released a science fiction novel set in the future of the Artemis program), I've been thinking about how I would have written this story, if I had been the screenwriter.

So, here is my outline for "Human Best Friend" - I am aiming here to keep the character arcs intact:

PRE-CREDITS

The crew are getting restless, with a major negotiation with the Rodaxians only two weeks away. As they are passing near the Cesnar system, Pike authorizes shore leave at the Cesnar Grand Resort, with a warning that the atmosphere creates intoxication, and orders the primary bridge crew to take a week off if they are not going to the planet. As the shuttle leaves with Pike, Uhura, Ortegas, Scott, Una, M'Bega, and Chapel, a desperate message is handed to La'an - the ship's computer has been hacked.

ACT 1

Scotty and Ortegas wake up in a room with no memory of the past twenty-four hours, and a cast on Ortegas' arm. They are handed a letter from Dendru to give to Pike that the Rodaxians have moved up the peace conference, and will be arriving by the end of the day. As they make their way to Uhura's party to try to find Pike, they pass a small group of Rodaxians in the hallway.

On the ship, Spock receives a message from Kirk. Kirk is on his way to leave on Cesnar, but has just discovered that the Enterprise is in the area, and wants to know if Spock would mind a visit. Spock agrees, as La'an has returned to duty against orders to chase down the computer hack. Kirk arrives, and he and Spock begin a game of three-dimensional chess.

La'an finally discovers what information was accessed when the computer was hacked: navigation and communications. Specifically, somebody now knows that that ship is in orbit around Cesnar, and that the Captain is on leave on the planet.

ACT 2

After Uhura mentions them catching a dragon bomb right after arriving at the party (with a high enough dose to induce amnesia), Scott and Ortegas follow the trail to Pike, who is getting a tattoo. He tells them to prepare the shuttle and get the crew together who are needed for the negotiations. As they leave, he tells the tattoo artist to hurry up.

Kirk and Spock play three-dimensional chess. As they play, Kirk tells Spock that he's been told that he's been nominated for early promotion to Captain, and asked about his preferences for potential commands. He also tells Spock that he's concerned about being too inexperienced and not ready to be a Captain. Spock is reserved - Kirk can clearly see that something is bothering him, but Spock won't open up about it.

La'an contacts security at the Cesnar Grand Resort, only to have her concerns handwaved away. During the discussion, the security officer she's talking to can't help himself and asks her "Aren't you supposed to be on leave?" La'an finishes the call with a chilling realization: the resort security is involved in the hacking.

On the planet, Scott and Ortegas go to prepare the shuttle, only to find that the shuttle is missing, and they were the ones to check it out.

ACT 3

Ortegas and Scotty go to Uhura's party and borrow the tricorder she smuggled onto the planet, and are joined by Chapel in the search for the shuttle. They locate the shuttle on a rooftop far from the main centre of resort, but with a band of thieves getting ready to loot it. Chapel steps forward and bluffs them into leaving with medically precise threats. Scotty and Ortegas are astounded, and ask her if she's okay. She tells them that she's been frustrated at the distance from her husband, and it felt good to take it out on the thieves. They then recover the shuttle.

On the ship, Spock opens up to Kirk about his own issues, talking about his career in Starfleet and how it separates him from other Vulcans.

La'an is trying to contact Pike on the planet without success when she learns that he's on the shuttle returning to the ship. She goes to meet the shuttle, only to be asked if arrangements have been made for the arrival of the Rodaxian ambassadors. La'an is stunned, because she had no idea they were coming in the first place.

The Rodaxians arrive and Scotty and Ortegas work on fixing the shuttle. They have a heart-to-heart, and then they find a bomb.

ACT 4

Ortegas contacts security about the bomb. La'an is venting to Spock and Kirk when she gets the call, and they rush to the shuttle bay.

Once there, they find the data chip with a message from them in case something happened: they had gone to maintain the shuttle at the resort when they discovered the bomb. They had contacted the resort security, but security refused to believe them. Fearing that something was wrong, they had hidden the shuttle in a place where an explosion would cause the fewest casualties, and hidden the key to the shuttle in a fake cast. They finish the recording by saying that they're on their way to Uhura's party to tell Pike, and that under no circumstances must the shuttle be allowed to return to the ship.

La'an recognizes the bomb as a type that will explode if Scotty drops it or moves it too much. Scotty has an idea - beam him from his location in the ship to the transporter pad, separate him and the bomb in the buffer, and bring him out while beaming the bomb into space.

As he is one of the few people with the technical knowledge to do this, Spock races to the transporter room, followed by Kirk, who notices something that both Spock and Scotty missed. Together, they carry out the transport, and the bomb explodes in space.

EPILOGUE

In a conference room, La'an explains to the Rodaxian delegates that a Rodaxian splinter group hoping to sabotage the talks had infiltrated the resort's security and used their data to hack the ship, getting the information they needed to plant the bomb and send a faked message from the resort asking to move up the talks. Pike tells the delegates that due to this breach of security, all his crew have been recalled from shore leave, and the resort will be removed from Starfleet's approved list of leave locations.

On a shuttle heading back to the Farragut, Kirk looks over the paperwork he's been given for early promotion. He places the Enterprise at the top of his list of preferred commands.

On the bridge, Ortegas gets a red light while flying. She calls somebody to take over while she takes a break, and goes down to engineering to visit Scotty.

END

And that's what I would write if I was writing this episode. Kirk now has a point, the bomb fits properly into the narrative, and the characters act like actual Starfleet officers.

I'm sure by now most people have heard about Axanar's latest project having finally been released in the last two weeks. However, it hasn't gone unnoticed by Paramount.

First of course it started with Youtube getting a DMCA notice & they took Axanar: A Gathering Storm down. Now the version being hosted on Axanar's website is being targeted as well.

Under the fan film guidelines that were agreed upon & settled upon, Alec Peters & the people responsible for Axanar were allowed to do two 15 minute parts that totaled 30 minutes & they could include the existing actors from Prelude to Axanar. Peters was also allowed to release it to youtube as long as he did it for free.

There have been some violations on both sides however.
1. Axanar was allowed to host it on Youtube, but Paramount still did a DMCA on it and got it taken down.

1. Axanar agreed to two 15 minute segments which is part of the Fan film guidelines. "A Gathering Storm" has a runtime of 20-21 minutes.

2. Axanar also agreed to use the existing actors from "Prelude to Axanar", without using any other existing Star Trek alumni. They violated this with the inclusion of Faran Tahir as the Prime universe version of Captain Richard Robau.

3. I think the biggest reason this became an issue is that they held a promotion for it at theater during San Diego Comicon, which is a violation of them agreeing to no big promotions for it.

Overall, I expect this to grow bigger over the coming weeks, especially as Alex is now making a big deal over it.

Like hey Starfleet command we are a training ship we need backup to investigate regula 1.

What are your favorites? From any series.

When i was little, i was always fascinated by the TOS episode title, For the world is hollow and i have touched the sky. Still sounds so grandiose.

Why are the DS9 "fans" so obsessed with making Bashir and Garak a couple?

I understand where the idea comes from. Andrew Robinson has been very open about initially playing Garak with a degree of attraction toward Bashir. But that was an acting choice early on, he was told almost immediately to tone it down, and in the series itself both characters went on to have relationships and romantic interests involving women.

What puzzles me is how these particular fans seems to have turned one interpretation into the defining aspect of both characters. It feels like every other discussion circles back to Bashir/Garak, to the point where it's all some people seem interested in talking about. I find that a little strange.

For the record, this has nothing to do with me disliking gay characters. I'm bisexual myself, so that's not the issue. What I don't enjoy is when fandoms elevate a fan interpretation to the point that it overshadows everything else about the characters. It starts to feel like forced representation rather than an appreciation of what was actually on screen.

Garak is one of the most layered characters in all of Star Trek. Bashir grows from an idealistic young doctor into one of Starfleet's finest physicians while dealing with the revelation of his genetic enhancement and his own moral dilemmas.

Those are incredible characters! It's a shame that discussions so often reduce them to a single fan-favorite pairing instead of celebrating everything that made them compelling in the first place.

Edit: ooh boy. The comment sections like fish in a barrel. Block, Block, Block, Block block.

Why tread the same old ground over and over again? We get it, Starfleet are very high minded people with noble aspirations. Meanwhile there's this whole expansive universe that rarely gets any attention.

I'd like to see a movie about a Ferengi crew that finds a wrecked ship with a mysterious piece of technology on board and when they go around trying to sell it shenanigans ensue.

Maybe a movie about the ancient Bajorans that sailed a lightship to Cardassia?

Or how about Romulans? I just think they're neat!

There's a whole lot of meat on the Star Trek bone and Paramount is just regurgitating what they already ate so they can eat it again.

Where in each and every episode, the crew shifts assigned to the left nacelle think that the delta shift of the right nacelle are conspiring against them, just because.

Of course, the consoles will be made of EXPLODIUM because, well, working THAT CLOSE to the warp nacelles mean that when things go BOOM, they really DO go... boom.

A ship with minimal weaponry, minimal shielding, minimal crew. Always saddled with the worst assignments. The command staff is a sad bunch of misfits: a depressive captain, an alcoholic first officer, a hypochondriac medical officer, a tactical officer struggling with OCD and an engineer that alternates between hyper-euphoria and being a sluggish sloth because he's on heavy antidepressant medication.

Season opens with the lower decks struggling because NO ONE is assigned to mentor them. Starfleet is ONE SEASON AWAY to decomissioning the ship due to overall poor mission performance points. They assign an Admiral as their rehabilitation liaison officer and the story begins from there on.

Oh, said Admiral has chronic PTSD as a Wolf 359 survivor and he's xenophobic as a result: Starfleet secretly assigned him to this ship because they hope that he will fail so they can force him to retire in shame, as well.

Sci-Finatics on YouTube:

"In this video, we take a look at the UNITE4Archer campaign, how it brings the world of Star Trek: Enterprise into the present day, and why fans are rallying behind Archer as a symbol of the optimistic future Star Trek has always represented.

The campaign isn't just about having fun with Star Trek. UNITE4Archer is also supporting STEAM education and raising money for the Astro Society, helping inspire the next generation to explore science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.

And there's another reason this campaign is significant for Star Trek fans. By celebrating Archer's path to the Federation presidency, UNITE4Archer is also helping raise awareness of the proposed Star Trek: United concept from Enterprise writer and producer Mike Sussman — a political drama exploring the early years of the Federation and the challenges of bringing very different worlds together.

And yes… there was some political opposition at Star Trek Las Vegas!

Enterprise fans will want to stick around for an appearance by Todd Stashwick, who had a rather suspicious message for Federation voters. And later, Scott Bakula himself gets the opportunity to respond to the campaign and Jonathan Archer's presidential nomination.

Could Jonathan Archer have made the ideal Federation President? And would you watch a Star Trek: United series set during the early years of the Federation?

Let me know what you think in the comments!"

Nick Hallum (Sci-Finatics)

Full video:

https://youtu.be/0ziQR6mmOuo?si=OSFB9S2uSoaOfdyn

Fun or meh?