Star Trek Continues: Episode 2 "Lolani"...

Discussion in 'Fan Productions' started by Warped9, Feb 8, 2014.

  1. Mr_Homn

    Mr_Homn Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Lou Ferrigno was really really great as Zaminhon. Lou and his character was worthy of being in the real show. It was a shame that he died at the end because I'd love to see the character return.

    This is the first fan production I've ever been able to sit through, and it was really quite good. Big improvement over the first episode and I'm really excited to see what they have in store for us in the future.
     
  2. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    I have to say this up front. One thing I didn't care for in TNG was returning characters particularly in the form of Llwaxana Troi. That coupled with characters going back to Earth or Risa whenever they felt like it. It made the galaxy seem small and the ship didn't feel like it was on the frontier.

    TOS only did it once with Harry Mudd and it looked like a total coincidence. And I wasn't crazy about the episode he returned either. Having fresh characters helped lend the feeling they weren't hanging around the neighbourhood. And characters weren't going off to Starbase or Earth for leave whenever they felt like it. It's those little things that added to that sense of being "out there."

    To that end I hope STC sticks with that sensibility.

    Sadly TAS did revisit a number of previous characters and I wish they hadn't. In quite a few cases they were the weaker episodes.
     
  3. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    On the FB page I get the sense critiquing the character of McKennah can make some (posters and not STC folks) a bit prickly. It's almost as if they're equating critique and observation as comdemnation. Definitely not the same thing. I like the McKennah character, but it's valid to critique how she's utilized as well as speculating what plans they might have for the character. And if those plans could be at the expense of the other familiar characters and thus changing the character dynamic too much.
     
  4. Noname Given

    Noname Given Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Well, to be fair:

    The return of Harry Mudd was intentional. In fact:

    Source: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/I,_Mudd_(episode)

    In "Day of the Dove" they did want to bring back John Colicos as 'Kor' but both times scheduling couldn't be reconciled:

    Source: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Kor

    But that said, to this day, I really enjoy Michael Ansara's portrayal of the Klingon captain, "Kang".

    So, yeah, I don't think Harry Mudd's return was sheer coincidence, and I think had TOS lasted a few more seasons, we might have seen more returning/recurring characters. Honestly, I don't mind it as long as the script/story is good, and with regard t "I Mudd" , IMO - the whole exchange between Kirk/Mudd/Spock about how Mudd ended up on the Android planet is one of the funniest 'played straight' scenes in TOS:

    Mudd: "Do you know what the penalty is for fraud on Deneb V?"

    Spock: "The convicted party has his choice: death by hanging, death by electrocution, death by phaser..."

    ...

    Mudd: "I borrowed transportation."

    Kirk:" He stole a spacecraft..."

    Mudd: "The patrol acted in a hostile manner..."

    Kirk: "They fired on him..."

    Mudd: "They have no respect for private property! They damaged the bloody spacecraft!..."

    ^^^
    Something we wouldn't have gotten if we'd not seen the return of Roger C. Carmel as 'harry Mudd'; so gain, not at all dissappointed they decided to bring him back in Season 2 of TOS myself.
     
  5. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    ^^ What I meant was the Enterprise crew were indeed surprised to encounter Mudd again in "I, Mudd."

    I know they had thought of trying to bring certain characters back, but I'm rather glad it didn't pan out that way because the series was better for it. I agree and I'm so glad we got Michael Ansara as Kang. The only character I could have done without was Koloth. I think Kor would have rocked in "The Trouble With Tribbles" and we wouldn't have had a soft Klingon.
     
  6. Maurice

    Maurice Snagglepussed Admiral

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    I'm skeptical that NBC ever assigned Roddenberry to develop a Mudd show. I suspect that's more Roddenberry-generated myth making. If anything, I bet he pitched the idea but they didn't bite.
     
  7. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah. The idea that Roddenberry was too busy to develop a television show under assignment, and so just let it drop, doesn't pass the sniff test.
     
  8. Bixby

    Bixby Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I just can't picture Kor in the Trouble with Tribbles....:vulcan:
     
  9. Maurice

    Maurice Snagglepussed Admiral

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    That NBC would even ASK doesn't pass the sniff test to me.
     
  10. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Did NBC ask for any spin-off to Star Trek, or was Assignment: Earth and spinning-off a show all Roddenberry's idea? The usual sources don't say.
     
  11. JJohnson

    JJohnson Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I watched it and enjoyed most of the episode, though I was still waiting for Kirk to pull something off, like 'allowing' Lolani to steal a shuttle or something, so she didn't have to die, which I thought was a bit of a downer for an ending.

    I would like to see one or more Orion females on the ship as regular, accepted, Starfleet officers, perhaps as a helm/nav officer, science officer, or engineer, just to show that they are more than just 'slave girls.' The new Star Trek (09, and Into Darkness), as much as I dislike them, do at least show a more diverse crew with aliens who are just as much part of the crew as the humans. Perhaps Kirk can rescue an Orion in a flashback, and flash-forward to present day, and that Orion is now an ensign or lieutenant on the Enterprise?
     
  12. JJohnson

    JJohnson Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    As an aside, in Star Trek Continues, it would be incredibly awesome to see Captain Robert April and/or Captain Christopher Pike in a flashback or even just visiting the Enterprise 'today.' Maybe even a flashback to Kirk taking command of the Enterprise, with Spock and Gary Mitchell at his side, while "Admiral" Robert April and Captain Pike shake his hand, if it could be tied into the episode somehow.
     
  13. Bixby

    Bixby Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    ONLY if his appearance is needed because of the story, not just as fan wank...You`re in trouble when you write something and you`re adding things because you said to yourself : `wouldn`t it be cool if...?`
     
  14. JJohnson

    JJohnson Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I personally prefer Nichelle Nichols as an actress to the current Uhura actress. The current one doesn't have the grace, charm, or character that Nichelle put into her Uhura. I would have loved to see the original Uhura get more screen time, and what she did get in the movies I enjoyed. I do hope that STC can continue using the character in new ways that are in tune with the original series' version of her, as well as Chekov and Sulu and Scotty, and McCoy. Maybe the unproduced 'Johanna' featuring McCoy's daughter could be a future episode?
     
  15. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    Given Kor's obvious intelligence and sense of humour seen in "Errand Of Mercy" I can easily see easily see Kor in "The Trouble With Tribbles" and John Colicos easily pulling it off.

    Indeed they wanted Kor to return for "The Trouble With Tribbles," but Colicos was unavailable. Pity. I liked William Campbell as Trelane, but I just rolled my eyes seeing him as Koloth.
     
  16. JJohnson

    JJohnson Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Two things:

    1. I would love to see several minutes of sustained Vulcan or Klingon dialog in your show. That would be utterly amazing, especially if the actors pulled off convincing pronunciation of the two languages (Klingon has q, Q, and H to contend with, along with D and S, which are pronounced in the back of the mouth, unlike English).

    2. If you need a volunteer for background actor, or behind the scenes whatever, I'd be happy to volunteer.
     
  17. JJohnson

    JJohnson Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Absolutely. If it's in the context of the story, yes, not just as a random scene for no reason.
     
  18. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    We'll Robert April appeared in TAS' "The Counter-Clock Incident," but I don't know if STC acknowledges TAS. Phase II apparently does given the appearance of Arex. STC might be acknowledging TAS by its inclusion of the prototype holodeck.

    Since Robert April could be an Ambassador-at-large then a diplomatic type story could support his appearance. I think that would be better than a flashback, particularly if it involved scenes aboard the Enterprise. A flashback aboard ship could involve redressing the set(s) to look Pike era. That could be problematic.

    But as has been mentioned you really need the right story or it does come off as fanwank.
     
  19. Ryan Thomas Riddle

    Ryan Thomas Riddle Vice Admiral Admiral

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    This would be more of the connect-the-dots that fan films are already riff with, and I would rather they spend more time telling original stories and exploring strange new worlds.
     
  20. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    A lot of fans like the idea of revisiting things or characters they found particularly exciting. They can have this notion that if we revisit those things it will be exciting again. But context is everything. Part or the original excitement was the novelty which you no longer have in a revisit. So revisiting a favoured character will only be interesting if there is something genuinely fresh to bring to the game and it's justified by the larger story. Otherwise it's just meaningless pandering.

    TNG began the era of connect-the-dots that continued through the following series. And connect-the-dots is something that's been going on in Trek lit since the beginning. But candidly it's rare that this practice really works and it's usually just more pandering. It also makes the fictional universe seem that much smaller every time it's done. It isn't necessary for everyone to know everyone else and for everyone to be privy to everyone else's experiences.

    Please, let's keep it to a minmum.

    Truthfully as much as I like Star Trek Continues and the character Elise McKennah I am somewhat disappointed seeing the idea of her character in the TOS era. It's so obviously a connect-the-dots to the TNG era in the face of no evidence that ships' counselors existed in the TOS-TMP-TWOK era. We also don't see evidence of it in the Enterprise C era (although they could have been there). There's supposed to be about a century between the TOS and TNG eras so why the insistence to introduce a Counselor now? It's simply a connect-the-dots move.

    The idea of the proto-holodeck is more iffy because GR did have the idea back in the day and it did appear in TAS. But for a lot of folks not knowing those things it is a connect-the-dots move. I don't really mind it, but they could have done without it.

    What's being done in Phase II is also a connect-the-dots move and one (in my opinion) which doesn't make sense in the "real" world of TOS. Why would Starfleet drastically refit a ship only three years into its five-year voyage and then refit it again (even more drastically) a few years later just prior to TMP? That strikes me as a lot of unnecessary effort and downtime. But the Phase II folks feel compelled to cement this connection between TOS and TMP to rationalize the visual differences between TOS and TMP. It's an indulgence that in the larger scheme of things---telling compelling stories---doesn't accomplish anything. It's just "because."

    TAS did it with Robert April. In a more real world perspective it isn't necessary for Kirk and crew to have ever even met Robert April. Certainly the story he appeared in could have easily been told without him. But the writers wanted to indulge in connect-the-dots. It didn't add anything to the story even as it didn't really take away anything from it either. It's a touch of fanwank and in that instance it did no harm. But I certainly wouldn't want to see this all the time.

    Of course, that's just my opinion.