Reboot?

Okay, so I just realized something.

I have obsessions. Damnit.

Well... Maybe I've had them all along. We're all Trek fans here, so I guess most people would say we all have at least ONE obsession, but lately I've been getting into some other things on a level only Trek has touched before - and of course my future Super Bowl champion, Carolina Panthers. Well... There was the wrestling thing way back when, but that's ancient history since Vince McMahon seems hell-bent on running his company into the ground with crappy storylines, and a wattered-down in-ring style.

But, that's another issue.

As I said in my last entry, I've come to the conclusion that the 4400 is the best show on television. Now, I have dozens of shows programmed into my DVR, but there are a few that I actually have to BE there to see as they air. I just can't wait to watch the recording, and at times I actually change other plans to ensure that I'm there to see it "live".

Does that make me weird?

Now, to me, that's when something goes from being a "favorite TV show" to an obsession. It's not the only one either - The Dead Zone, Smallville, Psych, and Doctor Who all fit into that same category. The obsession continues...

Okay... So I figured I had enough of these damn things - then I clicked that link. Yes... That link. The link on Wikipedia that introduced me to Ultimate Spider-Man. Now, I've never been a comic book fan... I always thought of them as being for children - guess what? Turns out I was wrong all along. This may sound strange once you understand the concept of Ultimate Spider-Man - which reboots the Marvel universe, and starts the Spider-Man story over again, with a new, more modern take on the characters.

That means that in USM, Peter Parker is a high school sophomore when he gets bitten by the spider. Going back to my former opinion that comics are for children - this seems to support that. Surely nobody outside of the 12th grade could get into a comic book about a high school Spider-Man. Well... No more than they can get into watching a show about a teenage Clark Kent developing his powers in Smallville.

So, after reading up on the concept on Wikipedia, I did what anyone with an interest in something that costs money, but who has very little, would do:

I did a Google search: "Ultimate Spider-Man Torrents"...

Guess what? Within the next few hours I had the first 90 issues downloaded to my trusty laptop. Over the next few days, I quickly read through them... And then headed straight for the local comic shop and picked up issues 91-97, and purchased a 12-issue subscription.



I'm hooked. Addicted. Another obsession.

*SIGH*

Also, it turns out Marvel also has Ultimate X-Men, Fantastic Four, Avengers (now called the Ultimates) and various other reboots of classic titles. For now though, I'll stick with Spidey... Wait - screw Spidey, the truth is the Peter Parker character is much more interesting.

On a semi-related note: why is it these teen super hero types all have all uber-hot girl friends - not girlfriends - girl friends? On Smallville, Clark's best friends are Chloe, Lana, and Lois. In USM, Peter's best friends are Mary Jane (also his girlfriend) and Gwen Stacy (well, until... nevermind).

Guess it pays to have super powers.

All this talk of rebooting Spider-Man has me thinking: would Star Trek benefit from the same type of reboot? I'm sure we've all seen the JMS pitch - I for one liked it. I can however, see both sides of the debate here. Trek has such a long history within the franchise - a huge continuity to follow - that maybe it would benefit from just starting over, from taking the basics of what made it such a success and re-tooling those basics into something new and different.

On the other hand, Trek fans are notorious for how much importance they place on continuity. Would a rebooted Star Trek be accepted? Would you watch it? Personally, I would. Take a cue from USM, and call it an alternate universe, or another timeline, or whatever works. The classic continuity doesn't have to be done away with completely - just placed aside, and used in future movies, or maybe even another series. Would it really be THAT crazy to have a rebooted Trek series, and a series set in the classic universe on the air at the same time?

Wow. This has to be my most off-topic entry yet. I've gone this far without a single VST-related sentence.

*takes a bow*

On an actual Frontiers-related note: the movie script has hit a crucial point in its story. One I've been waiting for for some time. Actually... This may be one of the biggest scenes we've ever done. The trailer is coming along slower, but it'll be well worth the wait - trust me.

I know Josh has already done so, and myself as well in the private forums, but I'd like to welcome Adam, and re-welcome Randi to the Frontiers family. We've been understaffed for a good while now... It's nice to actually get some new staff coming in. That's three new writers we've added when you include Henrik - in the last few months. Hopefully, it'll help us keep a decent schedule in S3 and beyond...

Well... That ends my (mostly off-topic) rant for today. Have a nice day...

Read Ultimate Spider-Man, and have a better day.

Cheers...

New Staff and More...

I've recently had the distinct pleasure of announcing the arrival of two new staff members for Frontiers' third season. I thought maybe I'd chat a bit about them here as well.

RANDI ANDERSON: The Frontiers Hot Chick Returns!

I've known Randi since Frontiers launched. She was one of our first readers, Sito's first real fan, and much to surprise after talking to her for awhile... she was a chick! After reading our first few episodes, she decided to join the staff. She wound up jumping in with both feet, writing 1.07: Hidden Souls and 1.12: Thyself Thy Foe. Her playful banter and lovely visage (and status as "the only female staff member) earned her the title of "Frontiers Hot Chick"... a title that in retrospect, I think she coined for herself. In Season 2, she collaborated with me on 2.09: Onyx, which also featured material by Craig McCue. She brought a unique and fun perspective to Frontiers, and I was sorely disappointed when she decided to leave the staff as a writer mid-S2, and leave altogether shortly after. (Though I completely understood why and supported her decision!)

Randi recently came back to VST under the guise of "Maybe". After awhile she let us in on her secret and has since become an active member of the VST community once again. She's tested a number of ideas for us for Frontiers, including the S3 trailer (to which she also provided the voice of Marissa Lighthart). She recently opted to return as a staff writer. She'll be doing one episode for S3, and while I don't want to spoil anything, it's about her favorite character.

ADAM MURRAY BRIGGS: Taking Over VST, One Show at a Time!

When VirtualStarTrek.com first launched, no one had ever heard of Adam Murray Briggs. One fateful day in the early days of Virtual Enterprise's nascence, Adam made his first appearance. In the days since, he's joined the staff of Knight's Haven as a Producer and Star's End as a staff writer, remained on-staff as a consultant for V-ENT with their movie to our friends at TrekOnline, created his own Doctor Who series, and is now onboard Frontiers as a staff writer as well.

Adam is quite fond of TOS, and telling stories of adventure and exploration, which makes him a perfect fit for Frontiers' more TOS/TNG style. Last October/November, he gave the Frontiers pilot a read, and apparently liked it enough to read the rest. Then in March, I got a PM from Adam with his first pitch as a contributing writer. We gave it the greenlight, and he followed it up with probably more pitches in a shorter amount of time than I've ever received from anyone. But I noticed something about the pitches - they were all quite good. I approved several more and I started thinking how I'd love to just bring him on staff.

Now, Adam's a full-fledged staff writer and I'm excited to see how things unfold from here. With the addition of Adam and Randi to the staff, I can officially state our staff writer drought is now over and we're back up to where we should be.


The Movie has a Name

Our Frontiers movie now has a title: ASCENT. Now whether it's ultimately going to be "Star Trek: Frontiers - ASCENT" or "Star Trek: Ascent" or "Frontiers: Ascent" I don't know. But the yarn we're spinning is ASCENT. What is ascending, you ask? Well if I told you it would spoil the movie. But I'll say that the title works on multiple levels (including one that's quite subtle) and it's very appropriate. It's a working title only, and it might change, but it's something at least.


Season 3

Obviously, Season 3 isn't launching in July. In fact I'm working out a release schedule as we speak now that we have a somewhat larger staff and are moving along. It will be similar to our current plan, just modified for later dates.


Other Rumblings from Geekdom

Aside from Trek, there's a lot to be excited about in Geekdom. The Spider-man 3 trailer is making the rounds and now there are images of Venom coming out. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back in a new film, set after "The Secret of the Ooze". (Sadly, the actor slated to play Splinter, Mako, recently passed away.) The teaser is out and looks great.

I'm also looking forward to checking out "A Scanner Darkly", a film based on the novel by Philip K. Dick. Dick is one of my favorite authors. His mind-bending stories about what is real and what isn't are very entertaining and are obviously archetypes for similar stories. If you haven't read his works, I recommend you give them a look. The Man in the High Castle is especially good.

That's it for this round. Until next time, Happy Trekking.

It. Is. Inevitable.

It won't be long now.

The Frontiers movie is coming along nicely. Josh's updates in the dev. forums have me on the edge of my seat, and I know what's going to happen! I hope you guys enjoy the final product as much as I am the in-progress bits.

Speaking of the movie, we're currently deciding on when to release the trailer for it - before the film's release, or after. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue, but this trailer is EXTREMELY heavy on spoilers, and releasing it would drop a massive, and I do mean MASSIVE bombshell as to the movie's plot.

This trailer is also the first one we've done with actual voiceovers - well, aside from the season 3 trailer where Lighthart spoke at the end, but that was just one line. We've got lines from several different characters this time around, including both Sito's, Taija (a previously unseen character), and a few others.

The voices were done by various Frontiers staff members, as well as Cynthia from Star's End. Unfortunately, my "good ole' boy" accent doesn't exactly lend itself to any of our characters... well, unless we suddenly decide to bring in Charles Tucker the 14th...

For my usual off-topic rants, I'll start by saying just one thing:

The 4400 is the best show on television.

I've been a casual viewer of this series from day one, but this season really has me hooked. Each week the show delivers, and in spades. The actors are great - even the young ones, which is rare. Unlike most shows around these days, you never know what to expect from the 4400. The fact that Trek alumni Jeffery Combs has become a pivotal recurring character doesn't hurt, but it's the innovative stories they come up with, and the even more innovative ways to tell them that sets it apart from every other drama (scifi or otherwise) on TV at the moment.

If you haven't watched this show yet, make a point to watch it, or record it, or TiVo it, or download it, or whatever it is you do to watch TV - do it. You won't be disappointed. This show is so good that I'm going to do something I'd never do with any other series - recommend that you go buy the DVD's sight unseen. Hell, if I had the cash, I'd buy them FOR you... for all of you.

Speaking of quality television, I caught the first two episodes of USA's new series "Psych" this week. While it's not in 4400 territory quite yet, this show really impressed me in its first two episodes. The real kicker is that it did it without being scifi, or even fantasy - it's just a detective series - with a twist. The lead character, Shawn Spencer, has this unique ability - not a special power... just a honed skill. He has a photographic memory, and notices even the most minute details around him, on tv, or wherever.

In the pilot episode, Shawn notices something on a tv news report on a theft. He reports it to the police, who attempt to pin the theft on him because of the details he knows. To get out of the situation, he lies and tells them he's a psychic. He's so convincing the police give him a job investigating the kidnapping of a millionaires son. He solves the crime, using some unique and usually funny methods, all the while having fake 'visions' for the police. He recruits his best friend, and starts a private psychic detective agency called "Psych". It's the performance of the lead actors that make the show. It's heavy on humor, but at the same time does it all with serious undertones. The most serious aspect being Shawn's relationship with his father, who he doesn't get along with at all.

Anyway... It's only two episodes into its run, but I also recommend you watch this. It's great TV, and different than anything else I've seen recently... or ever.

Random Product Endorsements:
The Movie: Superman Returns - If you can look past Kevin Spacy's Lex Luthor, a solid film.
The Music: Family Force Five: Business Up Front - Either the worst, or the best thing I've ever heard.
The Virtual Series: A recent discussion on the forums reminded me of the brilliance that is Star Trek: Renaissance. If you haven't started reading this series, you're cheating yourself.

That's about it... Hopefully you'll be getting a look at the film trailer soon, and hopefully the script itself sooner rather than later.