Evan Wilson. Ugh. The very definition of a Mary Sue. This character joins the U.S.S. Enterprise this week as I continue my non-canon adventures with her crew, exploring the Pocket Book universe based on Gene Roddenberry’s beloved creation. A planet inhabited by bipedal felines is suffering from a seemingly unstoppable disease, and one of Uhura’s…
Tag: planet
Star Trek: The Original Series (1968) – Return to Tomorrow and Patterns of Force
Captain’s log: stardate 4768.3 Return to Tomorrow is one of those episodes that never really seem to hold my attention. Written by John T. Dugan, this story first aired on 9 February, 1968. The one thing is does have is Kirk’s (William Shatner) awesome “Risk is our business” speech. It has become iconic and emblematic…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1968) – The Gamesters of Triskelion and A Piece of the Action
Captain’s log: stardate 3211.7 The Gamesters of Triskelion was a bit of a fun episode when I was a kid, Kirk (William Shatner) got to kick lots of butt after he, Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) and Chekov (Walter Koenig) are kidnapped across the lightyears to find themselves fighting in gladiatorial combat on the planet Triskelion. It…
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – The Complete Series
Just over 24 years ago, Paramount expanded the Star Trek universe again, and for the first time ever, as the sixth season of The Next Generation continued, there were two Star Trek series running on television concurrently. And what a different manner of series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was. Instead of exploring the galaxy,…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1967) -The Doomsday Machine and Catspaw
Captain’s log: stardate unknow The Doomsday Machine sent me on many adventures when I was a child. Written by Norman Spinrad, this episode had an original airdate of 20 October, 1967. Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the stalwart crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise encounter terror in space. They arrive in a destroyed planetary system, and discover…
The Twilight Zone (1960) – The Four of Us Are Dying, Third from the Sun, and I Shot an Arrow into the Air
Paramount Pictures continues guiding me through the ins and outs of the dark turns and labyrinths of the Twilight Zone, as I journey through The Complete Series on Blu-Ray. First up this week is The Four of Us Are Dying, Rod Serling penned the episode, based on a short story by George Clayton Johnson. This…
Star Trek: The Vulcan Academy Murders (1984) – Jean Lorrah
It’s been a while since I checked in with the non-canon universe of Star Trek, so I dived into the world of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy in this would-be murder mystery. Spock is preparing for some leave on his home planet of Vulcan. When an attack from a Klingon ship wounds one of the Enterprise’s…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1967) – Operation – Annihilate! and Amok Time
Captain’s log: stardate 3287.2 Operation – Annihilate! closes out the first season of Trek. It was written by Steven W. Carabatsos and aired on 13 April, 1967. Playing as almost straight-up horror, this episode is a lot of fun, and introduces Kirk’s (William Shatner) family, his brother, Sam (also Shatner, with mustache) his wife, Aurelan…
Battlefield Earth (2000) – Roger Christian
Sometimes, bad is bad. And this stop with the Sci-Fi Chronicles Book demonstrates how bad. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about this film, and it’s a wonder that any of those involved walked away with the semblance of a career. Based on L. Ron Hubbard’s titanic novel, the film stars John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, and…
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984) -Hayao Miyazaki
The next stop in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book is a long overdue check-in with Miyazaki, the famed writer/director who has envisioned so many incredible tales. This time around, it’s Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. I didn’t have access to a subtitled version, so I went with the English dubbed (subtitle is ALWAYS the…
The Mind Reels 