Has it been a week already? Believe it or not, it’s already time for another Great Links. This week in Trek on the Web: Armin Shimerman Kickstarts the Apocalypse; Sir Patrick Stewart in his most challenging role yet: a lobster; play Star Trek with the Official Spock Space Fun Helmet; and MORE!
The great thing about the internet is that there’s always more new stuff to see, laugh at, or be disgusted by. This week’s Great Links brings you some of the best Trek stuff floating around the interwebs this week. Read Robert Picardo’s tweets (with pics of his Trek co-stars), a comic that redefines the meaning of NSFW, see Victoria’s Secret’s new line of Trek-inspired tops, and buy your very own sleeveless Trekkie innuendo tee shirt.
Trekland’s Larry Nemecek (aka Dr. Star Trek) has just released his second CD in the On Speaker series in which Nemecek has digitally preserved hours and hours of anecdotes and stories from Trek legends such as Michael Piller, Mark “Sarek” Lenard, Bob Justman, and more. All of the content is never-before-released material that has been sitting on cassette tapes in a box in some forgotten corner for decades. In the newly released VOL. 2: “ ‘All Good Things…’: Words and Deeds”, you’ll hear stories from Ron D. Moore, Brannon Braga, and others in their own voices in Spring 1994. Hit the jump for more and info on how to snag yourself this little piece of Star Trek history.
Michael Dorn called in to chat with the guys over at the Transporter Room 3 podcast to talk Trek and the possibilities for Trek on TV. He even mentioned a script that he himself wrote for a possible Worf TV show, where the Klingon we know and love is fighting for the Empire (and even has some humans on board for the ride). Is that still a possibility? It’s “never dead” says the man himself. Hit the jump to hear the podcast.
See Chase Masterson (Leeta of Deep Space Nine) like you’ve never seen her before: in a sexy, retro-futuristic science fiction thriller, R.U.R.: GENESIS. The short film, now available online, combines past, present, and future in the style of an alt-history 1969. Masterson stars along other Trek vets in a cast with a surprising number of Trek connections. Hit the jump to watch R.U.R.: GENESIS for yourself.
In a very special Mission Log Podcast supplemental, Star Trek writer Bob Orci sat down to talk about what it was like coming into Trek for him, how he listens to fans’ feedback on his work, Trek’s place on TV, what’s next for Trek, and he even responds to recent events getting heated right here on the Trek Movie message boards. We get almost two full hours of Bob Orci talking about Star Trek, what he loves about it, and why he and co-workers wrote the last two movies the way they did. Read some of the highlights and listen for yourself after the jump.
Trek celebs are lining up to support a Kickstarter-funded project called ARKYD, a space telescope designed to be funded and used by the public, whose fully funded campaign ends in less than 60 hours. The first ever publicly available space telescope is luring donations with the enticing reward of a “space selfie”. That’s right, if you send them a picture of yourself (or your boyfriend, or your dog, or your favorite breakfast cereal…) they will display it on an onboard LED screen and snap a pic of your photo floating above the glorious blue orb we call Earth. What’s more, you can donate more and use the space ‘scope to point in any direction of your choosing or donate your observation time to science and follow along with the scientists’ findings. Brent Spiner, Robert Picardo, and Rod Roddenberry are among the many, many backers of the project, which at the time of writing has already raised over $1.2 Million. Check out the videos of Trek celebs supporting ARKYD after the jump.
As per usual Star Trek Into Darkness has sparked much fan discussion and even disagreement, but but if there’s one thing we can all agree on: we love seeing Alice Eve in her undies! True, of course, until anyone bothered to ask a woman. There has always been scantily clad females throughout Trek history – it’s a part of what makes Kirk so Kirk – so, why should this one scene be causing such a stir? Why have female fans responded so strongly in this case? Read my analysis below, but beware of SPOILERS.
So, by now, we’ve all seen Star Trek Into Darkness. Some of us loved it, some of us hated it, some of us said, “meh.” But, forget about what you thought of the movie for a second. What did you think of the science? Let’s take a more in depth look at some of the most sciencey moments from STID. It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyways, that this review contains SPOILERS!!!
IBM has been busy exploring a new kind of final frontier. A very, very tiny one. In the pursuit of using atoms to miniaturize data storage, researchers at IBM use a machine that can move single atoms on a surface. Now, they’ve shared this amazing technique with the world through atom art, and they’ve got a handful of Star Trek atom images to show off. Hit the jump for more.
On December 14th a 9-minute preview of Star Trek Into Darkness premiered with IMAX 3D screenings of The Hobbit. TrekMovie was quick to publish early impressions along with a later (more spoilery) detailed review on release day. But, was any of it scientifically realistic? Today Science Saturday is dedicated to an in-depth look beyond what we saw on the screen. Get your tricorder ready, and reverse the polarity of the warp nacelles; it’s time for a science diagnostic of the Into Darkness IMAX preview.
Neil deGrasse Tyson has taken his hit podcast show, Star Talk Live, on the road. His first stop was at the Neptune Theater in Seattle where Tyson had special guest Wil Wheaton on to talk the science in Star Trek, plus comedic commentary from Kristen Schaal, Paul F. Tompkins, and co-host Eugene Mirman. The crew talked a gambit of subjects from self-opening doors to alien sexual relations. Hit the jump for the video.
Welcome back to Science Saturday! This week: a new medical tricorder hits the market, and is going for a mere $150! Witness a new form of weapons technology that can power-down a city block, but leave humans and buildings undamaged. Read about the latest discoveries in planetary science — water ice on Mercury and complex organic compounds on Mars! Plus, see how scientists can ‘print’ new drugs, molecule by molecule. All this and more, plus our gadget of the week: The CommBadge bluetooth communicator.
Following the success of their 2012 Hollywood to Vegas tour, Geek Nation Tours has announced the August 2013 edition of their Trekkie tour that follows Trek sites around Hollywood and LA area and beyond into Nevada — with some special guests along the way – and ending at the annual Creation Star Trek convention in Las Vegas. Geek Nation has once again teamed up with Larry “Dr. Star Trek” Nemecek, who will be leading the tour group. Get more details below and an exclusive photo from the 2012 tour.
Mimoco, creator of the MIMOBOT line of designer USB flash drives, is adding Star Trek to their repertoire with the release of the Star Trek X MIMOBOT Series. The first collection features a prime universe styled Kirk and Spock plus TNG’s Picard and Data, available with up to 64GB of data storage. The line comes preloaded with exclusive Star Trek content including never-before-seen material from the TNG Blu-ray release, vintage toy commercials, and comics. Plus, the drives are pre-loaded with Trek-themed wallpapers, icons, sounds, and avatars for your desktop, laptop, smartphone, and tablet.
Welcome back to Science Saturday! This week, get a good look at some very promising real Trek tech including a language translator that translates your own voice into Mandarin and a cloaking device that works perfectly in the microwave. Also peer into the universe’s past by viewing the farthest ever discovered object — a galaxy 13.3 billion light years away. And learn how fast we’re learning about life in earth’s oceans. All this and more, plus our gadget of the week: The Decelerator Helmet.
CBS and QMx have teamed up with artist Juan Ortiz to make groovy retro prints for each episode of The Original Series, and now all of those designs are being printed onto even groovier retro tees. So far, we’ve seen up through Charlie X, but with the new November releases comes The Alternative Factor, Catspaw, Let That Be Your Last Battlefield, and fan favorite The Trouble With Tribbles. Check out the new designs after the jump.
The Next Generation is currently being digitally remastered for release on Blu-Ray, and it’s a huge job to say the least. Our friends over at TrekCore recently sat down with the CBS Digital remastering team and talked with them about the process. The extensive 5-part interview is a very in-depth and technical look at the project, and it reveals some interesting tid bits like how the team is digging up 25-year old bloopers and outtakes thought to be lost. More after the jump.
Finally, we have our first look inside Star Trek Into Darkness. JJ came on the Conan O’Brien show yesterday and gave an excited, albeit extremely small, sneak peak at the new movie. It’s only three frames — not three seconds, three frames. Just enough to whet the appetites of us Trekkies chomping at the bit for a little something. [Minor spoiler below]. UPDATE: Check out the new higher resolution still image grabbed from the 1080p video!
Well, that didn’t take long. Yes, we already have a Star Trekified parody of the popular Korean ‘Gangnam Style’ music video — this time, sung almost completely in Klingon. The video is actually of rather impressive quality, with all of the lyrics sung in Klingon, and the dancers in full Trek garb shooting on location. Very nicely done. Hit the jump for the video.
Welcome back to an exciting edition of Science Saturday! This week, measure the radius (and more!) of a supermassive black hole; have wi-fi (or, rather, bi-fi) installed in your body; ready for a dazzling comet show in 2013; and bring rocks back from Mars. All this and more, plus our gadget of the week: Wall-Ye, the French wine robot!
On this day in 1966, Star Trek debuted on television. Google may have celebrated a day early, but today Oreo Cookie celebrates the 46th “Star Trek Day” by tweeting their #dailytwist photo in honor of Trek with the caption, “We are the Captain Kirk to Milk’s Spock.”
46 years ago, Star Trek beamed onto the TV sets of America for the first time. Today, Google celebrates that anniversary with an interactive “Google Doodle”, a game embedded into the search engine’s logo at Google.com. Click on characters and objects on the bridge and watch a famous Trek story unfold. Hit the jump for photos.
As usual, the cast’s lips are sealed when it comes to details about the Star Trek sequel, but Chris Pine took a bit of time to talk about the mood of the new film saying, “we’re not making Batman. That’s not our deal.” Chris is referring of course to The Dark Knight‘s darker take on the Batman franchise and indicated that, although the stakes will be high and the action great in the new Trek, it wasn’t meant to be darker and will still have comedy. More after the jump. Plus check out Chris in the first images of him as Jack Ryan.
Welcome back to a brain-tingling edition of Science Saturday. This week: why sugar in space bodes well for finding ET life, how to grow your own replacement organs, where 4bn tonnes of methane may be hiding underneath ice, and what new tools can combine the art and science of the medical practice. All this and more, plus our gadget of the week — 3D Ms. Pac Man!
Benedict Cumberbatch, the new mystery villain in the upcoming Star Trek film, sat down with Shortlist to talk mostly about his role on Sherlock, but also spoke a bit about what it was like to play a villain in Trek. When asked about who his character is, he said (once again) that he could not talk about it and is “bored of denying it’s Khan now, because people keep saying it”. Hit the jump for more.
In two pieces of animated news, Patrick Stewart will lend his voice to the hit animated series Futurama in an hour long midseason finale episode set to air tonight (Aug 29). Plus, LeVar Burton replies to rumors about Seth MacFarlane bringing Trek back to TV saying at Fan Expo that he would support MacFarlane to do the job right.
It is with a heavy heart that we post here on TrekMovie the passing of a worldwide hero, Neil Armstrong. He passed away after complications from heart surgery, his family told the press. Here’s to Neil Armstrong: first man on the moon, American astronaut, engineer, university professor, US Navy pilot, test pilot, self-proclaimed nerd, inspiration, and symbol of the golden era of space exploration. Rest in Peace and god speed.
Tomorrow, for the first time in history, a song will be broadcast from Mars by none other than will.i.am. The Curiosity rover will be pumping out his new song, “Reach for the Stars,” a new composition about the artist’s passion for science, technology, and space exploration. At the same time will.i.am’s charity, i.am.angel, in partnership with Discovery Education, will announce a new program that brings NASA into K-12 classrooms. [UPDATED with a video from the event]
The post Vegas Con blues had got us down for a while, but now we’re back in action with a brand spanking new edition of Science Saturday! This week: see real live lava flows moving through New York, get the latest updates on our newest Martian friend Curiosity, watch proteins swimming through neurons, hop on the next Dream Chaser flight into orbit, and more! All this, plus our gadget of the week, in which a real hovercraft takes a test-drive!