These are a bit of an acquired taste, but if you’re huge fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation, collect action figures, or grew up with those classic Mego figures from the 70s, you’re in luck. Next year marks the 25th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation! To celebrate, Diamond Toys will be releasing a special line of Mego-inspired figures from the series. They won’t hit the market until winter 2012, but Trek.com has given us our first look. So far, all they’ve shown off Captain Picard and what looks like a random Borg drone, but I imagine there will be plenty more down the line. Each of these 8″ figures will come with real cloth costumes and should retail for $20 a piece. I don’t believe they’ll be a limited run, so you should be able to come across them at your local comic shops or through online retailers after they launch next year.
It’s a good question, and years ago, I might not have bothered asking, but would Roddenberry really have approved of the direction producers decided to take with Star Trek over the years? Obviously the franchise has been wildly successful, garnering itself a loyal fan-base, while its producers seemed keen on keeping his vision alive in some manner. Unfortunately, whether or not that vision has remained intact still remains in question. I’ve learned a great deal about him through numerous interviews, the second-hand stories from cast and crew, and including writers and directors who worked on the various films and television series over the years, and while I feel that we may owe him a great debt of gratitude for having created a series we love, I’ve come to the conclusion he wouldn’t have approved of much of it.
As many of you are already aware, Netflix recently secured the license to stream every Star Trek television series ever created via their online service. With the exception of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, every episode ofthe original Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise have been added to its online library, so I’ve spent the last few months slowly feeding my craving for classic Trek. While Netflix subscribers may have to wait until October for Deep Space Nine, Amazon.com announced that every series, including Deep Space Nine, is now available to stream via their Amazon Prime service.
Posted by Michael Pinto on Aug 22, 2011 in Star Trek
This brilliant footage of Brent Spiner doing his killer Picard impression is from Emerald City Comicon 2011. And for good measure here’s Sir Patrick Stewart heckling Brent Spiner: Read more…
Reports from several sites are indicating that we be seeing Star Trek: The Next Generation in full HD by the end of the year. Not the full series mind you, but a special remastered “Best of” Blu-ray with only four episodes. The report also suggests that the set, serving as a test of sorts, could be followed by the entire series as early as next year. Early speculation led many to believe that remastering the series would be infeasible due to the number of special effects shots necessary to complete the project and attempting to do so would be costly. Also, if any of you remember how terrible the first two seasons were, then you’ll know they have their work cut out for them. Still, if there’s a clear demand, and I’m sure there is, CBS could easily fund it. No word yet on how they plan on distributing the “Best of” set, but we’ll keep you posted on any new developments regarding the project.
It still seems like half a year away, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a jump start on your Christmas gifts. Like most of you, I usually don’t bother buying calendars until the holidays, and even then, I’m usually not the one I’m buying it for. This year will be different, however. Pocket Books just released their 2012 Star Trek Ships of the Line calendar. For just $15, the calendar comes packed numerous pieces of art depicting various starships against the lush backdrops of space, nebulae and even in the midst of battle. Each piece is displayed horizontally, and in a panoramic format allowing you to truly appreciate the art for what it is. The only drawback, at least from what I can tell, is that you might have some issues writing down your appointments on there. Then again, isn’t that what your Google Calendar or precious smart phone’s for? If you can’t wait, head over to the official Star Trek online store and pick yours up today.
Two intergalactic peacekeeper groups that taste great together! IDW Comics announced at San Diego Comic-Con that they’ll be producing a six-issue limited comic book series in which the crew of the USS Enterprise and the Legion of Superheroes work together to battle a common threat. Honestly, I don’t know that much about the Legion, but it’s no small wonder that this has never happened before. Of all of the planets the Enterprise crew has beamed aboard, you’d think one of them would have been the home base of a bunch of dudes and ladies wearing capes and firing energy blasts, or eating matter, or something. Those eager to see which superhero Kirk seduces (my money’s on the Charlie’s Angels-lookin’ gal) can buy the first issue of the series in November. Read more…
Feast your eyes on the coolest cookie jar since the talking TARDIS. He might not transfer your cookies through time and space, but why would you ever need to when it’s perfectly logical to keep them in one place. ThinkGeek knows this, and that’s why they’ve given us this officially licensed Star Trek Mr.Spock cookie jar. Bearing the likeness of everyone’s favorite Vulcan — a tad more Nimoy than Quinto — this nifty ceramic bust is perfect for stashing your baked goods. Personally, I love it but I think I’d rather have one that looks like the late Jimmy Doohan — now, that man sure looked like he enjoyed a good cookie or two. Nevertheless, it’s a pretty sweet collectible to have laying around your office or kitchen. If you’re curious, the jar retails for only $49.99. Order yours today.
The other year we wrote about the LCARS Reader app for Apple’s iOS. I absolutely loved the concept, but it wasn’t long before the novelty wore off and I found myself deleting the app altogether. I’m not sure if it was just that I found the interface to be slightly buggy and difficult to navigate, or that it seemed to lack the polish I’ve become accustomed to with properly licensed products — maybe a bit of both. It’s been over a year, and CBS has finally got around to creating their own LCARS interface with their official Star Trek PADD app. Took them long enough, am I right?
Chupa Chups is a Spanish brand of lollypops and in 1995 their Japanese agency this very odd advert featuring a Mr. Spock styled alien in a silver spacesuit which seems a bit, well you be the judge: Read more…
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 6, 2011 in Star Trek
There’s a cool series of viral videos on YouTube for Social Security that start none other than George Takei playing Sulu! In the below spot he gets in a nice dig at William Shatner, although he also has a Spock and a Chekov mention as well: Read more…
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 5, 2011 in Star Trek
ThinkGeek is carry this sharp looking Star Trek Metal Plated Stunt Phaser Replica — which to me of course is a bittersweet reminder that our somewhat distracted friend J.J. Abrams owes us fanboys another Star Trek film (which I bet we won’t see until 2012 at this rate). In the meantime goodies like replica will have to keep us fanboys happy! Read more…
If you’re a Star Trek fan, then chances are good that you’ve been waiting for this day for what seems like an eternity. But the moment is here: just in time for the long holiday weekend, you can catch the entire original Trek series on Netflix Instant, along with the entirety of Next Generation and Voyager. Start and stop as you please! Marathon it! Iron-man it! It’s a matter of honor now. But Trek isn’t the only nerdy thing to watch this weekend — Netflix has also added the entire X-Men animated series for your viewing pleasure. For viewers new to the series, you’ll probably want to stop watching riiiight around when Cable shows up. Hey! Just like the comics! Read more…
For Chris Pine, taking up the role of Captain Kirk for the Star Trek film reboot was tough — not only because of the decades of fan love that William Shatner’s Kirk had amassed, but also because Shatner is a wily old coot who’s rumored to kill and eat any challengers for his Kirk throne. Thankfully, Pine survived the filming process without becoming Shatner food, and even got some critical acclaim to go along with his Captain title. Shatner had one final plan to defeat Pine, though — stage a fake documentary titled “The Captains,” wherein he’d pretend to interview all of the other Trek captains (like Patrick Stewart and Kate Mulgrew), then surprise him with an arm-wrestling contest … to the death. Okay, that’s actually not the circumstance for the above photo at all, but the documentary part is real, at least. Read about it on /Film. Read more…
Who knew Commander Data had so much swagger? He might be the whitest rapper ever, but that’s no reason to hate. The video above was thrown together by musician & fanboy Dan Bull. Aside from his goofier exploits, like singing his open letters and posting them on youtube, Dan’s a pretty talented guy. Head over to his website to check out some of his original work and maybe even consider purchasing some of it. By the way, little known fact — Brent Spiner hated that cat. Read more…
For the last few weeks there has been a bit of buzz surrounding the proposed 2012 sequel to J.J. Abram’s Star Trek. According to a recent interview with writer/producer Robert Orci, the film is currently being prepped using a 70-page outline. The script hasn’t been finished, and Abrams is busy wrapping up work on Super 8, and with the film currently set for a June release, things have been looking rather bleak. Now, we’re hearing a rumor that the film’s release has been pushed to the holiday season. A December release date would give them the time they need to throw the film together, but I have to admit I’m disappointed. Still, I wonder if anyone didn’t see this coming a mile away.
Back in 1994 Decipher published their first edition of the Star Trek: The Next Generation Customizable Card Game. For the most part, I’ve avoided collectible card games over the years, but I remember having given the game a shot. Unfortunately for a collectible card game, it was incredibly complex with as many as 17 different card types to keep track of. Decipher no longer holds the license for the franchise, and it’s been years since their last set hit the market. Bandai has taken this opportunity to step to the plate with their upcoming Star Trek: The Next Generation Deck Building Game — for all intents and purposes, it’s safe to assume that means it’s just another collectible card game. TrekMovie.com has given us the first look at some of the upcoming cards that will be featured in this summers release.
Not a live-action one, though; don’t get your hopes up for that any time soon. Roberto Orci, half of the Star Trek reboot’s writing team, tweeted last night that he’s been talking with someone about putting together another Star Trek animated series. Details were left out, of course, given the 140-character limit, so we’re not exactly sure who he was talking to about it or whether it was just musing, but you have to admit that with how far TV animation has come, there might be some potential here. Read more…
This wonderful Star Trek fan film was made in 1971 as part of a final exam for a TV production class at Ohio State University by Ray who was a 21 year old fanboy back in the day. The film was first done on a 1″ open-reel videotape and earned an A-.
While there’s plenty of Star Trek-themed paraphernalia to choose from these days, I haven’t found much in the way of clothes — at least, clothes that I’d find fashionable enough to wear out. Sure, I’m not afraid to admit that I own a replica of Kirk’s tunic from the 2010 film, and one of those nifty Original Series-themed bathrobes, but they’re both a tad costumey. However, on occasion, I come across something that catches my eye like this nifty design by TeeFury artist comic_city. It’d simplistic, yet bold and practically guarantees you a grin from any trekker passing by. Like all TeeFury products, the design will only be available for the next 24 hours and will only cost you $10 plus shipping, so pick yours up today.
It’s been nearly two years, but fans of Peter David’s on-going series Star Trek: New Frontier may finally get their hands on his latest novel in the series. The book, entitled Blind Man’s Bluff, had originally been announced back in 2009 and initially scheduled for publication around June of 2010. By January, the book had been removed from the schedule entirely sparking fears that the series may have been cancelled entirely before being rescheduled for January 2011. Delayed yet again, the book is currently scheduled for release at the end of April and this time, it looks like it’s happening.
You’d think with the sudden re-popularity of the Star Trek series that someone would be rushing to put the series back on the airwaves after a six-year absence, but not so, according to Jonathan Frakes, who played Riker on The Next Generation. He said he developed a new Trek series for TV, but the suits at Paramount turned it down, along with previous ideas from William Shatner and Pushing Daisies‘ Bryan Fuller, saying that they didn’t want to oversaturate the media with it like they had in the past. Honestly, it’s probably a good thing that they think that way now, since it’ll let the movies breathe a little and reestablish the fandom. Not that I wouldn’t love a new (and this is important, good) Trek series on the tube, of course.
Cosplay isn’t a new phenomenon — for pretty much as long as there’s been fandom, there’s been cosplay. These retro cosplay photos, posted on 4chan’s cosplay board, prove it! We’ve compiled the best here for your perusal, from events ranging from WonderCon to WorldCon from the 70s to the 80s. You’ll notice some patterns — Red Sonja was a very popular cosplay choice for ladies back then, and Vulcans and Elric of Melnibone were popular for men. You can even see cosplay mainstays like Orion slave girls. It’s almost comforting to know that people have been dressing themselves up like fantasy and scifi characters for this long — it means that there have always been incredibly nerdy people in the world. Read more…
