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Dateline: Starfleet
9301.15 DATELINE: STARFLEET #31
Originating from the America Online "Star Trek: The Club" forum
Also distributed to: FredMail BBS (Wyandotte, Michigan)
(Any SysOps who would be interested in joining the distribution
and that have Internet access, write to Bill Mason at Internet
address '[email protected]'.)
From the Big Chair
------------------
I don't know what happened last month -- must have been a
special alignment of the planets or something -- but quite a few
people dropped me a note over the Internet asking to be put on the
"Dateline" distribution list.
Unfortunately, with the demands of time in writing this thing,
hosting the America Online ST forum, and conducting the rest of my
life, I cannot possibly accommodate these requests. My apologies to
all involved. I certainly hope you keep finding "Dateline" wherever
you keep finding it so far!
The only distribution I have been doing -- and will keep doing
-- is to interested SysOps. Those wishing to join can leave me a
note at the Internet address above.
Live long and prosper, and keep reading!
--Bill Mason
News from Over the Hailing Frequencies....
------------------------------------------
ANOTHER MONTH, ANOTHER CORRECTION
On last month's TNG schedule, I noted that "The Quality of Life"
would be rerun the week of 2/29. Of course, there is no 29th day in
February of 93. (Oops.) It should have read the week of 3/1.
DS9 AN OVERNIGHT SUCCESS
The overnight Nielsen ratings for "Emissary," the premiere
episode of Deep Space Nine, were outstanding. The show was number
one in the ratings in eight out of twelve overnight-rated markets.
Selected markets showed an increase of 122 to 460 percent over the
same time slot last year. Average increase in the overnight markets
was 127 percent. (From "The Hollywood Reporter" of January 6th)
TNG AND DS9 SCHEDULES (from the Mark Holtz List of Lists)
Next Generation (dates are week of dates):
12/28: "Relics" (rerun) (the Scotty episode)
01/04: "Schisms" (rerun) (aliens from subspace experiment on
crew)
01/11: "True Q" (rerun) (Q and Amanda)
01/18: "Rascals" (rerun) (Picard et al turned into kids)
01/25: "Ship in a Bottle" (Barclay and Professor Moriarty both
return)
02/01: "Aquiel" (Geordi falls in love)
02/08: "Face of the Enemy" (Troi negotiates a hostage release in
Romulan space)
02/15: "Tapestry" (Q takes Picard on a tour of the good
captain's life, including Picard's days at the Academy)
02/22: "A Fistful of Datas" (rerun) (Western holodeck story)
03/01: "The Quality of Life" (rerun) (intelligent exocomps)
03/08: "Birthright, Part I" (While visiting Deep Space Nine,
Worf learns that his natural father may still be alive.)
03/15: "Birthright, Part II"
Deep Space Nine (again, week of dates):
01/04: "Emissary" (the two-hour premiere)
01/11: "Past Prologue" (Major Kira and a Bajoran terrorist)
01/18: "A Man Alone" (Odo is blamed for a murder)
01/25: "Babel"
02/01: "Captive Pursuit"
02/08: "Q Less" (features Q and Vash)
02/15: "Dax" (presumably about the Trill science officer Jadzia
Dax)
02/22: "The Passenger"
03/01: "Emissary, part I" (rerun)
03/08: "Emissary, part II" (rerun)
03/15: "Sore Losers"
(the following is unconfirmed)
03/22: "Friends and Foes"
03/29: "Past Prologue" (rerun)
04/05: "A Man Alone" (rerun)
04/12: "Babel" (rerun)
04/19: "Captive Pursuit" (rerun)
STAR TREK VI: THE RECORD STILL STANDS
Despite a strong push from the film "A Few Good Men," which
grossed $16.1 million its first weekend, Star Trek VI continues to
own the record for best opening gross for a December film. ("The
Undiscovered Country" grossed $18.1 million its first weekend.)
(From UPI)
STAR TREK SOFTWARE
On the Software Etc. sales charts for the week ending 12/12, the
"Star Trek Screen Saver" was the Productivity chart's number four
seller. On the 12/19 and 12/26 charts, it had dropped to number
five.
Meanwhile, Spectrum Holobyte has a tentative release date of
October 93 for their Super Nintendo TNG video game.
(Both items from the PR Newswire)
GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINATIONS
Among the nominees for the 50th annual Golden Globe awards this
year, as announced on December 29th, were Whoopi Goldberg's "Sister
Act" (Best Musical or Comedy film nominee), Goldberg herself (Best
Actress in a Musical or Comedy film), and Kirstie Alley (Best
Actress, musical or comedy TV series). The awards are January 23rd.
(From the Los Angeles Daily News)
THE REAL ESTATE SECTION
Whoopi Goldberg, after initially asking for $3.25 million, sold
her Malibu beachfront home for a cool $2.2 million. (From the
Philadelphia Inquirer)
LEGAL BRIEFS
Whoopi Goldberg is being sued by a writer named Christopher
Jackson, who claims that her children's book "Alice" is based on a
screenplay he showed her in hopes that Goldberg work agree to work in
the film. Bantam Books (publisher of "Alice") and the Creative
Artists Agency have also been named in the suit. (From Hollywood
Hotline on America Online)
Editorial: But is it Trek?
by Bill Mason
--------------------------
OK, the moment has passed. "Emissary" is now a part of the Star
Trek annals. Where does Deep Space Nine stand?
It stands very well, thank you very much. |)
With the smash success the premiere has been, it's easy to think
how this could all have gone wrong. How some people were skeptical
(or at least worried) about a Trek series without an Enterprise,
locked aboard a space station. About how the casting search went on
so long -- finished only a week before shooting started -- that the
potential of disaster existed. How when we finally did hear the cast
names, the response to most of them was probably, "Who?" And how, of
course, we were going forth without Gene Roddenberry, the heart and
soul of Trek.
Somehow, Rick Berman and Michael Piller have managed to navigate
all those obstacles -- any one of which could have killed, or at
least gravely wounded, the series' chances from the start.
Those two men deserve our applause and our admiration.
Doubtless creating any new television series is a formidable task.
But they went one better. They created a *Star Trek* series.
Emphasis on Star Trek. And not just because we're Trek fans and
we always emphasize Star Trek. ;)
Emphasis on it because Star Trek has, of course, become such a
phenomenon over the decades. It encompasses many things in its basic
themes: interspecies amity and friendship, the "final frontier,"
character drama, high adventure, science-fiction, ensemble cast
interaction and development, mirror on 20th century issues, etc.
It was probably tricky enough for Gene Roddenberry to recapture
all this in The Next Generation, and he was the one who invented Star
Trek in the first place. And even then, the core of the format was
the same -- the voyages of the starship Enterprise.
But to step completely out of that format and into a new one,
and at the same time capture that "essence" of Trek, the one that
makes us nod our heads and say, "yes, this is Star Trek" and not
"Space Rangers" -- that takes nerve. Especially when you think about
that "essence": ask ten people what it is and you'll probably get ten
different answers.
While it's extremely early yet, I think it safe to say that Deep
Space Nine has proven worthy of having those words "Star Trek" in its
logo. The cast appears excellent, the new environment perhaps not as
confining as we thought, and "Emissary" was one of the best mixes of
sf, adventure, and drama produced by Star Trek in some time.
Those gentlemen Berman and Piller have done good.
"Emissary" -- First Impressions
by Bill Mason
-------------------------------
A running train of thought while watching the DS9 premiere....
...lots of frenzied motion and action as the Saratoga comes
apart around us. As a whole, the whole premiere gives us more action
than we usually get from Trek -- perhaps a return to that TOS style
of mixing action-adventure and touches of drama.
...the theme song kicks in. A few people seem to dislike it,
but I went for it. Not too overstated, but catchy in its own way.
Left me with the impression that DS9 is a place where things will be
happening, and heroism will unfold, and other sorts of fun. |)
...Commander Sisko, obviously an authoritative figure, but as
likeable as any of our previous commanding officers. Electrifying
during his confrontation with Picard. A dynamic figure. Small
scenes with Jake are effective.
...Kira's hot-headedness bodes ill at first -- I had visions of
Tasha's tirade at Q in "Farpoint." But Kira retains a sense of
professionalism mixed with the occasional sheer determination to
accomplish something because it *has* to be done. (Who cares if its
impossible?) Kira has an early shot at being one of Trek's best
female characters.
...Odo and Quark are amusing to watch yap at each other, but
both need more air time to develop. Nog pretty much falls by the
wayside as well.
...Dr. Bashir is interesting enough, although a few have pointed
him out as the weakest character of the group. Does he remind anyone
else of a 1st season Geordi LaForge?
...Dax remains enigmatic. I get the impression that a supernova
off the port bow wouldn't faze her much. She carries herself with a
serenity reminiscent of the Bajoran religious figures we meet.
...O'Brien used to good effect as well. I like the idea of a
chief engineer-type who, instead of loving his ship to death, is
constantly threatening it to get things working. ;)
...and it was a fast 2 hours!
Gameboy and the Star Trek 25th Anniversary Game
by Cluless
-----------------------------------------------
I highly suspect that a large percentage of you already own or
have access to a Nintendo GameBoy. Beacuse you already like
computers and neat-o futuristic gadgetry. But for those of you who
don't have one handy: get one. Because if you also get Ultra's Star
Trek 25th Anniversary game (retailing for around $30), it will all be
worth it.
As far as Star Trek computer simulations go, I can hardly make
comparisons; there have been precious few written for the Macintosh,
and I have no way to play the PC attempts. But I DO have a
handy-dandy GameBoy, so....
Let me quote to you from the instruction booklet:
"Having learned of the Doomsday Machine's approach five months
ago, the Federation employed its top engineers to construct the
proto-matter fusion disruptor - a weapon which is believed to have
the strength to stop the Doomsday Machine. Just as the Doomsday
Machine entered Federation space, a fully-functional disruptor was
being installed on the U.S.S. Excalibur. However, the Klingons
learned of the disruptor's existence. Fearing it would be used
against their empire, the Klingons intercepted the Excalibur, and
stole the disruptor. Federation reconnaissance reports have revealed
that the Klingons split the disruptor into twelve pieces, and hid the
pieces on three different planets."
And, of course, in grand 60's t.v. adventure tradition, the
Enterprise is the only ship in range, or with power, or not busy, or
whatever else it takes to pile on the drama. So you, the player,
have to get to each of three planets, and once there, locate and
obtain all twelve hidden pieces, assemble them, and defeat the
Doomsday Machine. And all this with stereo sound, yet!
The first thing you get is the copyright logo, and the entire
opening theme for the t.v. show. You will find yourself listening to
the whole thing, with the earphones that come included with the
GameBoy.
The one thing that kept impressing me as I went further and
further into the game, was the music. There are levels where you
must joystick-navigate the Enterprise through a hostile territory
(asteroids, attacking Klingons, etc.) while controlling engines,
shields, phasers, and photon torpedoes. It takes about 3 or 4
minutes to get through each of these. But the GameBoy plays
computerized music right from the show! There were about 4 or 5
regular suspense themes used in Star Trek, when things got really
tense. These are background to you dodging spinning asteroids from
every direction while compensating for gravitational pulls from the
largest ones, and all the while trying to conserve your paltry supply
of torpedoes and maintain shield strength, for example.
Or you could find yourself trying to fly completely through a
giant space amoeba - a la "The Immunity Syndrome." In fact, the
music used here may be from the scene with Spock in the shuttle,
dodging antibodies, or whatever. However this time it's the whole
Enterprise and the amoeba is MUCH bigger. You will also encounter
Romulans, Klingons and, believe it or not, Tholians. And yes,
Virginia, there is a "Tholian Web." The Tholian cruisers spin webs.
And when they don't they're wickedly fast and hard to dodge. I have
yet to get through the Tholians alive. But, then, I'm less than
half-way through the mission.... While in this mode you call call up
a control panel which lets you allocate your energy however you want
between Shields, Speed, and Phaser.
Once you reach the first planet - after navigating through more
Klingons and amoebas than you're likely to encounter in a whole
season of re-runs - you beam down. Actually Kirk, Spock and McCoy
beam down, and Spock and McCoy trot off leaving "you." Now the music
is gone (except at the beginning - incidental music from "This Side
of Paradise"), but there is still plenty to listen to. You have a
communicator, a phaser with two settings (stun and full), and a
tricorder. Spock and McCoy will occasionally ring you up on your
communicator to report some useful finding. And your tricorder not
only serves as a portable library of information about whatever you
wave it over, but also homes in on the disruptor pieces and points
the direction with an indication of how far. On the first planet, I
encountered several mugatu. The stun setting knocks them out cold.
For a bit. Full disintegrates them. But full uses up power, stun
does not. And you must use full to destroy trees and rocks and such,
inside of which may be hidden a disruptor piece, or which you must
destroy to clear a path. However, don't start banging your fist on
the arm of your chair yet. You can occasionally find fully-charged
Federation-issue type II hand phaser replacement batteries, lying
around among the poisonous thorn bushes, radiation moss, and Klingon
force-fields (for some reason). Oh, yeah. And you can also find
little pieces of "health." As you become injured, your health level
will drop, until you die. But if you pick up one of these little...
oh, I don't know, maybe they're red cross care packages; their symbol
in the game is a little plus - if you pick one up, your health goes
up. (There is also a little energy field or some such which
infrequently appears in the space sequences, which, if you can
capture it, will restore some of your shield. And there is another
one which will cause you to zip ahead a short distance. What is
this, a little chunk of warp?)
In any case, this is a thoroughly enjoyable and challenging
game, with many varying levels. I'm sorry that I can't report on the
end-game, as I have not yet achieved it, but I don't expect to be
disappointed. But watch this space!
Happy Birthday!
---------------
January 20th: DeForest Kelley
February 2nd: Brent Spiner
Trek-related Products/Happenings
--------------------------------
The "Star Trek Compendium" will be having another revision
published soon, in order to incorporate material from Star Trek VI.
Coming soon in the world of comics:
"William Shatner's TekWorld" #7 (Marvel): This issue concludes
the first all-new Tek comic storyline.
"Star Trek" #44 (DC): "Acceptable Risk" by Howard Weinstein --
Kirk and a boyhood friend are trapped on a haunted planet.
"Next Generation" #44 (DC): With the end of the Sztazzan
plotline, the Enterprise puts itself back together and gets back to
normal (or whatever qualifies for normal). Story by Michael Jan
Friedman.
Upcoming magazine releases:
"Comics Interview" #118 interviews Majel Barrett about Deep
Space Nine.
"Starlog" #188 is an all-TV issue, and so includes stories on
all of Trek's TV incarnations.
"Star Trek: The Next Generation" #22 is an all-writer issue,
interviewing both staffers and free-lancers who have written for TNG.
(All of the above in this section is from "The Westfield
Newsletter")
Personal Logs, Stardate Today
-----------------------------
"People can make whatever they want of having a commander for
the first time to be brown, but I happen to think it's a fascinating
idea," he says, carefully weighing his words. "The tenor of our era
suggests that the time is now for some children of color to be able
to project 400 years hence and see themselves. That's a wonderful
thing. And I am in command."
(Avery Brooks -- DS9's Commander Sisko. From "Philadelphia
Inquirer TV Week")
Credits where Credits are Due
-----------------------------
"Dateline: Starfleet" -- edited by Bill Mason. Comments and
submissions are invited via any of these avenues: America Online
(E-Mail to Data1701D), Prodigy (mail to ID# WPHM91A), Internet (send
to '[email protected]'), or the US Postal Service (753 Rively Ave,
Glenolden PA, 19036-1118)
The Away Team of Contributors -- Cluless
Copyright and Trademark Notice: In no case is use of any
copyrighted material and/or trademarks without identifying symbols
intended as a claim of ownership to those copyrights and/or
trademarks. "Dateline: Starfleet" is a non-profit production
reporting and commenting on the universe of Star Trek.
STAR TREK is a Registered Trademark of Paramount Pictures. All
other copyrighted material, trademarks, and/or service marks cited
herein are registered to their respective owners.
Readers are granted permission to reproduce this file wherever
they think there's an interest. I make no copyright claim on this
file and encourage public distribution. Just tell 'em where you got
it from!
If you read all this, thanks for tearing yourself away from Deep
Space Nine to do it. ;)
Dateline #32 will be out February 15th.X-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-X
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