The Looking Glass: A Star Trek Fan Film

[Philip Guyott]

“There are risks and costs to action, but they are far less than the long-range risks of comfortable inaction...” - John F Kennedy

What does one do when their conscience is in conflict with the prime directive?
Find out in THE LOOKING GLASS, the first episode in the Tales from The Neutral Zone series.

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“A starship captain’s most solemn oath is that he will give his life, even his entire crew, rather than violate the Prime Directive...” - Captain James T. Kirk

In THE LOOKING GLASS, the first episode of Tales from The Neutral Zone, Captain Jane Tobin (Lezlie Sawyer) is faced with a dilemma every Starfleet captain must face: violate General Order One, the Prime Directive, or maintain non-interference? See what she will do when in Part 2 of The Looking Glass!

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[Reanok]

I really liked The looking glass 2 part fanfilm. The Prime directive is a really complicated thing to deal with and the Captain's and the crews choice about actions that they took and the unexpected results were a powerful story plot.Of actions having consequenes you don't expect and can be tragic.

 

[Maurice]

I just watched Part 1, and I appreciate that it's not just another Captain proving herself story like so many first fanfilms do. I like the idea that they're setting up potential consequences of even well-intentioned bending of the Prime Directive.

I don't much like the execution. It's got no pace, no snap, and that big briefing scene just draaaaaaags. Also, I laughed that the ship's doctor would know a "Class E M probe" would be. And I get that this is yet another

Spoiler: incidental plot point

parallel Earth, but right down to the cars having Toyota logos on them? And one of the powers being named "Acimera" is "Omega Glory" scale ham-fisted.

...but really.

 

[Maurice]

Okay, I watched part 2 and while I like that the Captain took responsibility for her actions I'm still unclear on what happened. The implication is

Spoiler: about what happens

that her decision caused the war, but either I missed something or they didn't make clear the chain of events that makes clear her actions resulted in this holocaust.
Also, try to imagine a male officer portrayed crying because his captain is stepping down.
As ever, the script is at root of what failings this has. It's all talk talk talk, with literally no action. And the parallels are so on the nose they shouldn't even have bothered making up thinly disguised synonyms for things like "fake news".

 

[Bixby]

I`d like to be positive, but here goes...Really none of the characters have any personality of their own apart from bits cribbed here and there from previous Trek shows, and the amount of exposition and pseudo-science is painfully overwhelming.
Why is there a doctor on the bridge? Because OG Trek and Deforest Kelly did it first so this ship also must follow that pattern? At least Exeter broke that pattern with the security chief as the Captain`s confidante.
None of the characters drive the story, they are all just witnesses to whatever drama there is. I can understand the filmmakers wanting to do a message show with something particularly relevant currently, but perhaps something with a much more limited scope to begin with as they learn would have been better for a first outing.
The special FX were actually quite solid, not as outstanding as those from Starship Valiant but definitely better than those for Dreadnaught Dominion.
I know beginning Trek fanfilmakers are chomping at the bit to all sit on the bridge chairs and to call out the usual clichés, but I wish some of them would try to tackle more personal stories that take them away from a bridge set and try to establish their characters as some we`d like to see, like the short vignettes that Starship Farragut did many years ago...

 

[Maurice]

Why is there a doctor on the bridge? Because OG Trek and Deforest Kelly did it first so this ship also must follow that pattern? At least Exeter broke that pattern with the security chief as the Captain`s confidante.

I was specifically told "Doc Azato doesn't like to be on the bridge." And if you watch TTI he comes into the bridge with B'fuselek, says basically "here he is" and tries to exit immediately.