Star Trek

Is #scifi enjoying a new New New Wave? It seems every generation wants a wave to call its own. http://t.co/TDNQ85Emi9 Related posts: Nice list of #scifi #movies to look out for in 2012. Can’t wait for John Carter. Too bad they didn’t call it Barsoom. http://t.co/Cqp9gJEy Stand on Zanzibar may date back to 1969, but the New Wave #scifi classic was prescient, as this essay explains. http://t.co/VkhsiUmOyo I enjoyed this conversation about what is the best generation ship #scifi #book, always a favourite sub-genre of mine. http://t.co/wsFJXJiq

I was in Squamish, B.C. the other day and word on the street is the new Planet of the Apes flick is filming there next month. #POTA Related posts: Don’t expect any time travel in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. http://t.co/HYCgrBvX I enjoyed this first Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes trailer. I am really looking forward to that movie. http://ow.ly/4AnVe An interesting look at how Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes mirrors the black experience in America. http://ow.ly/6t5FJ

I’m looking forward to the #scifi movie Europa Report. Here’s a new trailer. http://t.co/7u6slW37vd Related posts: The Europa Report movie trailer teases us about a failed mission to Jupiter’s moon. Kind of reminds me of Apollo 18. http://t.co/h0hoR8Ks I enjoyed this first Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes trailer. I am really looking forward to that movie. http://ow.ly/4AnVe I’m looking forward to Duncan Jones’ #scifi movie Source Code. It premiered at #SXSW and early reviews are positive. http://ow.ly/4etuE

How *does* copyright work in space? The Economist explains. http://t.co/YU165sjaZy Related posts: Remember those 1970s visions of human space colonies? Obviously, they never happened. This article explains why. http://t.co/LrwhdUht Who wouldn’t want to work in an office that looks like a cross between 2001 A Space Odyssey and Star Trek? http://ow.ly/6vVH5 24 hours of Star Trek TNG ambient engine noise? Play it while you work to pretend you are in space. http://t.co/WSL3foo4

Star Trek Into Darkness is headed into its second weekend and our own polling shows that many fans plan to see the movie a second (third, fourth, etc.) time. And with repeat viewings there are opportunities for you to spot some little fun ‘easter egg’ tidbits put into the movie. See below for our selection of Into Darkness easter eggs, but beware of spoilers. STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS EASTER EGGS Of course Star Trek Into Darkness includes some big homages and reverences to Star Trek history including Khan, Section 31 and beyond which are key parts of the film. But there are also some more subtle ‘easter egg’ references to Star Trek history and beyond included in the film. Some of which you may have already sported and maybe some you didn’t. McCoy’s Tribble Doctor McCoy has a Tribble in sickbay, used for testing in the movie. McCoy already has this Tribble when the movie opens thanks to the adventures of the ongoing comic book series where they faced the Tribbles in “The Truth About Tribbles”. McCoy saved Kirk’s life after resurrecting tribble he got in the comic books Praxis As the team approaches Qo’noS, there is a hulk of a dead moon, implying that the Klingon moon of Praxis was already over-mined in this timeline (Star Trek VI). As usual the writers are being coy and won’t say for sure that it’s Praxis. The Klingon moon Praxis in Star Trek VI gets blown up earlier in new timeline This seeming early destruction of Praxis may be related to a Section 31 operation that John Harrison carried out before the events of the movie. There is a reference to a “Praxxis Project” barely visible in the redacted text of the “leaked” Starfleet Memorandum document about Harrison found on AreYouThe1701.com [they appear to have misspelled the name, if it is indeed supposed to be in reference to the Klingon moon]. To see the memo for yourself read our article. Bay Stadium We can see the floating/hovering Bay Stadium that was seen in the Star Trek Enterprise episode “Home” is still there. It is located off of (roughly) where the ferry buildings are in present day San Francisco. The Bay Stadium from Enterprise’s 22nd Century still there in the 23rd Spacefight future history In Admiral Markus’ office among other historical space flight vehicles, such as a Saturn V rocket and a Space Shuttle, there are also models from Star Trek’s future history, including the U.S.S Kelvin (from Star Trek 2009)  NX-01 (Star Trek: Enterprise), the NX-Alpha (warp 2 test ship from the Star Trek: Enterprise episode “First Flight”), Cochrane’s Warp ship (Star Trek: First Contact), and the Enterprise XCV 330 “ring ship” (as seen on the wall of the rec deck in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , in a painting on the wall of the 602 Club in Star Trek: Enterprise, and rendered in the 2011 “Ships of the Line” calendar). The models were made by Quantum Mechanix for the movie, see our article for more. The "Ring Ship" seen as one of Adm. Marcus’ history of spaceflight collection of models Dr. Boyce The attending physician’s name on the biobed monitor by Kirk when he wakes up in the hospital in San Francisco is Dr. Boyce, a reference to the ship’s doctor in the first Star Trek TV pilot ”The Cage”, which is also where we first met the Prime timeline version of Pike. Dr. Boyce counsels Pike in "The Cage" – and attends Kirk in "Into Darkness" The Gorn Babies McCoy mentions that he had given a cesarean section to a pregnant Gorn and that the live-birth babies bite (Star Trek The Video Game). Gorn from Star Trek video game get a shout out from McCoy Daystrom Pike is called to the meeting with admiralty in the Daystrom Conference Room at Starfleet HQ. A reference to Dr. Richard Daystrom the inventor of the duotronic computers used in TOS (TOS: “The Ultimate Computer”)

Replica maker Quantum Mechanix has announced that they had a role to play in Star Trek Into Darkness, actually making some of the props used in the film. And they are making some of these available to purchase including Starfleet rings, vehicle model replicas, phasers and more. Get all the details below. QMx Creates “Screen-Authentic” Props for  Star Trek Into Darkness Quantum Mechanix, the creative studio and developer of screen-accurate replicas and collectibles revealed this week that they were responsible with making many of the actual props used in Star Trek Into Darkness. QMx began making Star Trek replicas after the release of the 2009 Star Trek film and Bad Robot was so impressed with their work, that they brought them in to do the real thing for the sequel. Probably the most prominent set of props they made was  the “history of starflight” series of models seen on Admiral Marcus’ desk. QMx made all fourteen of the filming miniatures at their FX Cinema Arts premier model-making center (where all of their Artisan ship models are constructed). The line-up included both models of historical craft as well as some pieces from Trek’s future history including the NX-01, the U.S.S. Kelvin and the Ring Ship. History of Spaceflight models shown on QMx site “It was an honor in every possible measure,” said QMx CEO Andy Gore speaking to TrekMovie about working on Into Darkness. “We had a small contribution to the film but we were happy to help. Everyone here takes the responsibility of Star Trek very seriously. We are fans too and just humbled by the experience.” According to gore it took a team of six model makers about two months to create the history of spaceflight miniatures. Each one required a different approach. Some (such as the ring ship or the Kelvin) which were modified and could have the basis made in a 3D printers, others (such as the Vostok) required more time an research as there was little source material available and were built from scratch. And being that QMx are in the business of selling replicas, they are already putting plans in motion to make some of the history of spaceflight miniatures available for purchase. The first one to be made available will be a limited run of 25 ring ship miniatures made to the same size as the one used in the movie and by the same Artisan shop. Those will be a San Diego Comic Con exclusive (no pricing yet). Collector’s Scale USS Vengeance Following the ring ship, QMx will make a ‘prop scale’ version of the USS Vengeance (again made by the same QMx Artisan shop the produced the props for the movie) along with a smaller (and more affordable) ‘collector scale’ version of the model. They are also planning on selling a collector scale version of the USS Kelvin. These should all be available later in 2013, with pricing and more details decided by Comic Con. The company also plans to release a prop-scale version of the NX-01 but that might not be until 2014. Collector’s Scale USS Kelvin The history of Spaceflight wasn’t the only QMx contribution to Into Darkness. The company also forged Starfleet Academy rings for the cast, in both sterling silver (for the main cast) and aluminum for background actors. Of course one of these rings featured prominently in a scene in the film with Thomas Harewood (Noel Clarke) but you can see other members of the cast wearing them as well. Starfleet Academy Rings from “Into Darkness” made by QMx And again they are also making a version of this ring available for purchase, in this case a value-priced version made out of zinc-alloy produced from the same molds used for the sterling silver ‘hero’ props. The rings come in a nice leatherette  collectible box that actually lights up and retails for on $29.99. They will be available this summer at retailers that carry QMx items, including Entertainment Earth (click here to pre-order). QM

Leonard Nimoy will be narrating the second part of a three part Microwarriors series. The series focuses on the health benefits of probiotics. Microwarriors: The Origin and the Destiny, narrated by Nimoy, will “present probiotics in an entertaining and interesting light, featuring front-line medical information, the latest scientific research, and commentary from leading experts in the field, including Dr. Gregor Reid, Professor of Microbiology and Surgery at the University of Western Ontario and Chair of Human Microbiology and Probiotics at the Lawson Health Research Institute.” “As a pioneer in the industry, we are both honored and thrilled to show our support for this educational film featuring cutting-edge, expert information on probiotics,” said Alan Murray, CEO of GoodBelly, a probiotic juice drink manufacturer. “We feel it’s crucial to help advance public knowledge about probiotics so consumers can make responsible and informed decisions, which is why we’re proud to play a part in growing awareness through Microwarriors on the workings of probiotics.” Microwarriors: The Origin and the Destiny will debut on DVD in December.

Later this summer, the second season of Star Trek: Enterprise will be released on Blu-ray. The second season will include six discs with all twenty-six episodes, and deleted scenes, outtakes and other newly-produced features. Some of the new features include: In Conversation: The First Crew (a reunion with the main cast and some guest stars), Destination Unknown: Uncharted Territory, and commentaries from Rick Berman, Brannon Braga, James Conway and Connor Trinneer. Star Trek: Enterprise Season Two will be released on Blu-ray on August 20. UK fans can pre-order the set now on Amazon UK, and fans in other countries will be able to pre-order their sets soon. The trailer below is courtesy of TrekCore.com. StarTrek.com

A new limited-edition MIMOBOT flash drive features Star Trek‘s Mr. Sulu. The Mr. Sulu MIMOBOT is available in up to 128GB and USB 3.0 capabilities. The Mr. Sulu MIMOBOT is the fifth in the Star Trek series, following Spock, Kirk, Picard and Data, and the flash drive comes preloaded with “with bonus Mimory and the MimoDesk personalization suite of wallpapers, icons and avatars. It also comes equipped with MimoByte sound software powered with an offering of iconic Star Trek sounds and Sulu character dialogue that plays each time Sulu MIMOBOT is inserted or ejected from one’s computer.” Pricing ranges from $24.95 for an 8GB capacity, to $129.99 for a 128GB capacity. The Mr. Sulu MIMOBOT can be ordered here.

While filming a scene for Star Trek into Darkness, actor Zachary Quinto sustained a burn. The scene in question was the one in which Spock was trying to stop a volcano from erupting and wiping out a civilization. Part of Quinto’s skin was exposed in spite of wearing a protective heat shoot for the scene. “My neck skin got caught in between the helmet (and my shoulder),” he said. “I didn’t know how serious [the burn] was. I didn’t know what was happening.” J.J. Abrams told Quinto that “It looked like there was a caterpillar on your neck!”