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Star Trek Continues, Episode 4...

They move things right along. I like that.

There's not a lot I don't like about STC. Casting, story, pacing, effects, it all seems to be well organized and executed.

If I were to pick nits, there wouldn't be many.
 
The link to the Kirkstarter is:

[Kickstarter link removed. GLS]

From the FAQ:

"Soliciting

"Do not attempt to solicit other BBS members: posting to sell or endorse a product or web site will not be permitted."

By convention, that is interpreted to mean (among other solicitations) "don't hype crowdfunding campaigns."
 
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I don't think we're allowed to post fundraising links. :)

Also, Phase II/NV and Continues are completely different beasts. I don't think there's much to be gained in trying to make either fit the mold of the other. Just appreciate them (or not)m for what they are.
 
STC has certainly suceeded in capturing the TOS feel from the beginning, which is most likely because they are all professionals doing their jobs and are likely getting paid for it (I wouldn´t know where else they spent that KS money for) - that allows them to work on this not only on weekends and vacations. NV/P2 didn´t have that start, I think it started out mostly with amateur, but it slowly gets more and more professional - and it shows.

STC so far has only done "bottle" shows, which are rather easy to do in all resorts. It will interesting to see when they are doing their first "off the ship" show, which according to them should be in the fifth episode.

In regards to actors - Mignona to me is not really convincing - he is trying too hard to mimic Shatner, he does not bring a lot of his own to the role. But I guess that is his choice, and that´s fine. He might to be a bit old to play that part, although he stayed in shape very well :devil:. ST/P2s new actor for the captain tries a different approach, and I like that better. Both actors have the problem that their voice is slightly too high pitched, but there´s nothing that can be done about that.

Both Haberkorn as well as Stacy delivered a great performance in their last episodes, so to me it is a tie on the Spock part.

STCs McCoy is not my cup of tea (both of them) - I liked P2/NVs old doc a lot - I thought he was pretty much perfect. Im not quite sure their new McCoy can hold up, although he did a good job in Mindsifter.

Doohan does a tremendous job, I enjoy watching him in his fathers role. Almost as good is NV/P2s Charles Root, so a tie again.

The rest of the cast is pretty much ok in both shows, but they, like the original, have the problem of not getting a lot of screen time.

Certain aspects they included, like the Holodeck or the Counselor feel somewhat misplaced. I assume the counselor role was created to have Mignonas girlfriend on the show in a more meaningful way. Other than that, I see no reason why it has to be there - it takes away a lot from the McCoy role.

Effects-wise I like the steps NV/P2 does with the new design, which is a completely different approach as STC. They try to do it retro, which does not really work. It does not really look like effects done in the 60s, although it is close. Neither did the retro effects in NVs Mindsifter work for me.

I think there is enough room for both shows, STC being more retro and NV/P2 hopefully exploring new worlds and trying out new ideas, exciting stories.
 
My understanding is that nobody working on STC gets paid for labor. The money goes to fund show expenses. Here are the things they've listed:


  • Set construction and materials
  • Building rental and maintenance
  • Monthly utilities costs
  • Equipment rental
  • Prop production and replication
  • Costume rental and production
  • Make-up equipment and supplies
  • Cast and crew travel, lodging, and food during the shoots
  • Post production costs, hard drives, online data storage, etc.
 
The "retro" effects in "Mind Sifter" are a soft of half-effort to my eye. They kinda evoke the old look, but only kinda.
 
I don't think we're allowed to post fundraising links. :)

Also, Phase II/NV and Continues are completely different beasts. I don't think there's much to be gained in trying to make either fit the mold of the other. Just appreciate them (or not)m for what they are.

That's my take, too. I enjoy both series.
 
Enforcement of the "no crowd-funding links" rule is all over the place on here. That's my only complaint about a wonderful and well-moderated board.
 
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STC and Phase II feel like wildly different shows (in a good way).

STC very effectively replicates the look and feel of the original show. And while it can be argued that they've done things the original series would have avoided (such as revisiting the mirror universe), their execution of the ideas is very much in the spirit of the original show.

Conversely, Phase II hasn't as closely mimicked the look and feel (with respect to things like cinematography) of the original series. There have also been never-ending references to things from other Trek series. Now, is that wrong? No. I actually find it kind of interesting, and it gives them a niche. STC and Phase II aren't covering the same ground.

With respect to acting, STC blows Phase II out of the water for me. I always felt like Cawley's only two acting choices, no matter the scene context, were: smirk slightly; or narrow my eyes with a glower. I'm holding out hope for Brian Gross. He seems like a solid actor, and I'll be interested to see how he portrays the "real" Kirk, as opposed to a broken-down mental patient. But I've been incredibly impressed with Vic Mignona so far. From the first time I saw him on screen, I accepted him as Kirk. He has the spirit of the role down.

Both shows' original McCoys (pun not intended, but I'll leave it) were really bad. I thought John Kelly was incredibly unconvincing, and like JC, he basically had two acting choices: yell; or look down and purse my lips seriously. Larry Nemecek was also extremely rough around the edges. I do, however, have hope for Jeffrey Bond -- and I quite like Chuck Huber in the role.

Charles Root has never done anything for me as Scotty. I do give him credit for being reasonably convincing when he has to deliver techno-bubble, but in general, I find nothing engaging about his performance. Chris Doohan is magnificent; it's like watching the real thing.

Brandon Stacy and Todd Haberkorn are solid in their respective portrayals. However, they could both stand to add to their takes some of the "nuanced amusement" of Leonard Nimoy.

STC's writing has been consistently higher quality (in my personal opinion). "Lolani" is the best piece of fan Trek I've seen to date, with excellent dialogue and pacing and something meaningful to say. Phase II's "World Enough and Time" is a close second. But I'm not sure I've ever seen a Phase II episode that I thought was well-written besides WEAT and "To Serve All My Days." I think the team there focuses too much on bringing in established Trek veterans (for instance, David Gerrold). It's not a sure-fire plan for success; Gerrold's "Blood and Fire" is the worst-written episode in Phase II's canon.

All of that said, I'm very grateful that both productions are thriving. While I've been disappointed with many Phase II episodes, I'm always excited to see them. And I'm even more excited for STC's next offering. I love Star Trek, and it's clear everyone involved in these two productions do too.
 
My understanding is that nobody working on STC gets paid for labor. The money goes to fund show expenses. Here are the things they've listed:


  • Set construction and materials
  • Building rental and maintenance
  • Monthly utilities costs
  • Equipment rental
  • Prop production and replication
  • Costume rental and production
  • Make-up equipment and supplies
  • Cast and crew travel, lodging, and food during the shoots
  • Post production costs, hard drives, online data storage, etc.

Yes, right, that´s the official version.... :rommie:
I wonder why Farragut, who uses the same sets and infrastructure, and produces not only bottle shows, can manage to do an 2 hour episode for 15K (see their last KS).
 
My understanding is that nobody working on STC gets paid for labor. The money goes to fund show expenses. Here are the things they've listed:


  • Set construction and materials
  • Building rental and maintenance
  • Monthly utilities costs
  • Equipment rental
  • Prop production and replication
  • Costume rental and production
  • Make-up equipment and supplies
  • Cast and crew travel, lodging, and food during the shoots
  • Post production costs, hard drives, online data storage, etc.

Yes, right, that´s the official version.... :rommie:
I wonder why Farragut, who uses the same sets and infrastructure, and produces not only bottle shows, can manage to do an 2 hour episode for 15K (see their last KS).

It looks like much of the (undoubtedly) shared costs between the two productions are being bourn more significantly by STC's Kickstarter. So rather than do a Kickstarter for Farragut and a Kickstarter for STC with each contributing one half of, say, the building rental and maintenance costs, it looks like the STC Kickstarter picks up all the studio rental and maintenance costs so that Farragut's own fundraising efforts don't have to.

In short, I think Farragut can do a two-hour episode for $15K because many of the Farragut costs are being shifted over to STC's budget; Farragut is paying for their own variable, direct costs, and STC is paying for their own variable, direct costs *and* the fixed, indirect costs for both productions.
 
Anyone who thinks that travel from L.A. (and other points across both the U.S. and Canada), lodging, food, day-to-day transportation and transportation to and from the airport for over 40 people and a thousand other logistics is not expensive; just plain does not know what they are talking about. STC does not make any money: period!

Farragut does not have near the expenses that STC has so obviously their budget is smaller.
 
Anyone who thinks that travel from L.A. (and other points across both the U.S. and Canada), lodging, food, day-to-day transportation and transportation to and from the airport for over 40 people and a thousand other logistics is not expensive; just plain does not know what they are talking about. STC does not make any money: period!

Farragut does not have near the expenses that STC has so obviously their budget is smaller.

@Feek61: I think the question others were raising was why doesn't Farragut have the expenses that STC has? What tricks has Farragut learned about keeping their costs down that STC could also do to keep their costs down?
 
Anyone who thinks that travel from L.A. (and other points across both the U.S. and Canada), lodging, food, day-to-day transportation and transportation to and from the airport for over 40 people and a thousand other logistics is not expensive; just plain does not know what they are talking about. STC does not make any money: period!

Farragut does not have near the expenses that STC has so obviously their budget is smaller.

@Feek61: I think the question others were raising was why doesn't Farragut have the expenses that STC has? What tricks has Farragut learned about keeping their costs down that STC could also do to keep their costs down?

I know I wasn't thinking STC was making any money out of their productions, however the cost disparity between STC and Farragut is significant enough that it's reasonable for someone on the outside to wonder if there are any cost-efficiencies in Farragut's productions that STC could also take advantage of. After all, the more efficient the production, the better use it can make of its budget and the better the finished product will be.
 
Just had a look at STC's Kickstarter page and its videos. I wish them good luck and seems like they'll meet their goals pretty easily enough.

Just one thing really bothered me about it: I don't know what bug is up Doug Drexler's butt, but as one unfamiliar with him or his accomplishments before joining this site some months ago, I was really turned off by his completely unprofessional comments towards ''other fan films'', and I don't know whose idea it was to spread those trophies in front of him but that made him look even more douchey.
 
Like I said upthread, before Doug "swore off Star Trek fan films some time ago," we at Star Trek New Voyages/Phase II were fortunate to have Doug do our VFX on our three earliest episodes.

Folks who want to see Doug's earlier Star Trek fan films efforts are encouraged to check out our episodes "Come What May," "In Harm's Way," and "To Serve All My Days."

We welcome people's feedback on his VFX efforts for us.
 
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