Star Trek Vanguard- to read or not to read?
- Thread starter Killandra
- Start date
It looks like I'm late to the party, but, YES, by all means, read the series! It's the best series out there. I hate to see it ending (but I understand and can appreciate why it is.)
Vanguard is definitely on my "to read" list. I'm planning a big read-through of the "main continuity" Trek lit this year, and since I intend to read them in chronological order (I know they don't have to be read that way, it's just how I want to do it), I'll be getting to Vanguard sooner rather than later.
Yeah, it's hard to imagine that anyone genuinely has a negative reaction to Vanguard of that nature. As Jim Morrison said however, people are strange...
Meh, I prefer the TOS era federation which was more like a real government at times to the TNG (which I do still like but) who at times were naive idiot group who thinks everyone is a pacifist who would just love to co-exist with a group that likes to lord over them at times with their holier than thou attitude and I'm one of the people who grew up during the TNG-Ent run.
Doesn't the TNG era federation leave entire planets worth of people to die if they aren't warp capable, screw over their own colonists and then when the compromise they work out to at least let them keep their homes goes how you expect considering it left them as living in a fascist dictatorship who like to do very horrible things to the citizens of it and anyone they conquer get pissed about it, and don't get me started on Insurrection. not to mention how Starfleet has become a little more dogmatic about some federation policies
Not to mention that DS9 deconstructed a lot of TNG stuff.
How is this nobler than the TOS era?
Personally I wish the TOS federation would only change in being way less corrupt and were more responsible towards colonies they are suppost to protect like letting them know they live on a planet where space monsters might kill them.
Last edited:
To the OP: Vanguard is my second-favorite Trek series behind the DS9-R (Relaunch), even though I've only read up through Book 5 at this juncture because I have a hard time finding Trek books, especially the Vanguard ones (the Hastings that is close to where I live has a rather paltry selection of Trek Lit, and, last time I checked, didn't have Declassified or its follow-up), so I definitely think you ought to read it.
BTW, I personally think Vanguard is much more 'TOS meets Babylon 5' than it is 'TOS meets DS9', since it has a broadness of scope that is more akin to what JMS and Co. did with B5 than what was done on DS9 (and I LOVE DS9).
BTW, I personally think Vanguard is much more 'TOS meets Babylon 5' than it is 'TOS meets DS9', since it has a broadness of scope that is more akin to what JMS and Co. did with B5 than what was done on DS9 (and I LOVE DS9).
^ Not really, no. There's a Barnes and Noble in Layton, UT (I live in Ogden, which is about 20 minutes' drive away from the B&N store), but because I don't drive, it's hard to get out there. I've seen Declassified at the Hastings in the past, but the last time I was in there (which was in late November/early December), they didn't have it, nor did they have very many of the Trek lit books that came out in November and December of last year.
Anyawy, back to the topic at hand.
One of the things that I love most about Vanguard is that it combines all the best elements from the post-finale Trek Lit - as well as Titan, New Frontier, and some of the other 'novel-only' stories/series we've gotten over the last decade or so - and distills them into something that, as I mentioned, feels very B5-esque while still being completely grounded in the universe and tonal style that Gene Roddenberry originally created back in the 60s. Having appearances from familiar TOS-era characters in the early novels is actually a big help in this regard, because it kept things familiar enough while still allowing the series to tread new ground and expand the Trek universe in new ways.
Anyawy, back to the topic at hand.
One of the things that I love most about Vanguard is that it combines all the best elements from the post-finale Trek Lit - as well as Titan, New Frontier, and some of the other 'novel-only' stories/series we've gotten over the last decade or so - and distills them into something that, as I mentioned, feels very B5-esque while still being completely grounded in the universe and tonal style that Gene Roddenberry originally created back in the 60s. Having appearances from familiar TOS-era characters in the early novels is actually a big help in this regard, because it kept things familiar enough while still allowing the series to tread new ground and expand the Trek universe in new ways.
Awesome. You will NOT regret it.Thanks for all the advice guys. I'll definitely give it a shot.
FYI to the OP Book 3 may be hard to get, since for some strange reason its out of print except for an over priced trade paperback.
I read the first & didn't read any of the others for a while. Finally got back into them & love the series now. Doesn't remind me of Star Wars at all.
Order now and you can grab the last discounted copy for just $11.20 — and have it in a larger size, which makes the cover art even more awesome.
BTW Killandra, I don't recall if it was mentioned yet, but the SCE novella Distant Early Warning ties into the greater Vanguard story as well, while not requiring much knowledge of the SCE backstory. So that should be on your reading list, too
The Typhon Pact/TNG novel Paths of Disharmony also ties in with Vanguard as well, and, as I already noted, one of the main chatacters, T'pryn, is mentioned in The DS9 Relaunch novel Mission Gamma: Lesser Evil. She is also featured in the Lost Era novel The Art of the Impossible.
Not in this thread I think
.Good recap though. Typhoon Pact, one day I'll catch up to you ...
Not in this thread I think
Good recap though. Typhoon Pact, one day I'll catch up to you ...
You're right. I hadn't noted that T'prynn is mentioned in the DS9-R in this thread. I just thought that I had. Oops.
I agree with Technobuilder. I never really cared much for TOS novels, and haven't seen all TOS episodes. But Vangaurd finally made the 23rd century bigger then just the Enterprise, and showed that it was a huge galaxy where so much more was going on. Looking back at TOS now, I appreciate it so much more as a whole, not just the episodes that had a social message and a great story.
As for Vangaurd itself, it's just to damn well written, with characters that go somewhere, evolve and change. Yes, there is a darkness, there is struggle. But it works. In essence, it's exactly what Trek is; the struggle of individuals trying to create a better, safer universe. For some characters, their actions are dubious at best, but they are ok with that. They are willing to be less then they could be, to achive a greater goal for others. T'Prynn being a great example, with some of her actions being quite dubious, but always to ensure the safety and wellbeing of others, by choosing the lesser of two evils. Same can be said for Reyes.
BTW Killandra, I don't recall if it was mentioned yet, but the SCE novella Distant Early Warning ties into the greater Vanguard story as well, while not requiring much knowledge of the SCE backstory. So that should be on your reading list, too
Thanks! My bday is coming up so I know what to ask for.
Similar threads
