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Anyone else name their computers after Trek computers?

Discussion in ' Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series ' started by zilla1126 , May 18, 2011 .

zilla1126 Cadet Newbie

I used to keep my main computer named "nomad". Then in 1996 I took my computer to a huge LANfest (where people get together to play a computer game of some sort) and someone had "nomad" as a name already. This caused a network conflict. Drat! I had to change my computer name on the spot, so I picked "M5". I have used that ever since. Anyone else have a similar story? What Trek related names do you use on computers or other electronics?  

plynch Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

Named my iPad 'iPadd.' Clever, that.  

Gary7 Vice Admiral Admiral

^ I never name a computer device that gives any hint of what it might be. Just one less bit of info for the devious to know. When I worked for a start-up, we named our servers after Star Trek starship names. Of course the main one was "Enterprise", but we also had "Lexington" (Finance/Executive), "Endeavor" (dev1), "Excelsior" (dev2), "Defiant" (sqa1) to name a few.  

Potemkin_Prod Commodore Commodore

I name our copiers after starships... Reliant is an oft-broken Toshiba e650 that's at least five years old and creaks and groans as though it were listing and missing one of its warp engines... Excelsior acts like it's going to get going, paper loading, toner recycling, and whirrr......shuts down because it doesn't like the file it's been given.  

Sean Aaron Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

I name my net-connected devices after Burgess Shale animals, with the one exception being my Mac Mini, which is named "orca." I suppose if I had more computers I'd get around to Trek eventually, but I think the main barrier is the number of names. Would I use characters, names of ships, planets? The Burgess Shale animal names are funky and interesting and I've got a readily available list to choose from so that seemed easiest.  

Smellincoffee Commodore Commodore

I was going to call mine The Ultimate Computer, but a week after I bought it it became obsolete. Such is fate. :P  

Rom's Sehlat Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

I named the family's Nook "PADD-01."  

Winterwind Commodore Commodore

I've never named anything, guitars, computers, genitals, etc. My girlfriend works as a programmer at the university here and, after watching the TOS movies with me recently she said "Oh, so that's where our server names come from". They're all named after starships.  

GNDN Commodore Commodore

Nice. I should really name my MAC 'Computer' so I can say "Hello, Computer". Wonder if I'd get greeted with a "Good Morning, Captain" in return or maybe even a "Computed and recorded, Dear"  

ElBurro Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

When my brother set up the wireless network at my dad's, he decided that it needed a name that we would all remember (this was when I still lived there). Since we're were a house full of major TNG fans, he decided to go with NCC-1701-D. And we do all remember it. Even my dad and he has a terrible memory! I have a tendency to name everything, right down to the picture of a dog on one of my t-shirts. My guitar is called Steve. My current computer is called Orion and the one before that was Ziggy. Ziggy after Quantum Leap and Orion after Scott Bakula's characters code name on Chuck. My next computers name will probably be something Trek related though, I'm sure  

Doug Otte Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

Strange...it never occurred me to name a computer or other device. I just let the router name our wi-fi network. There's no need for the family members to even know the name. Doug  

Oh, like "Netgear"? That's a good idea... Perhaps your SSID anyway could be "NCC-1701 backbone" or something.  

Timewalker Cat-lovin', Star Trekkin' Time Lady Premium Member

My first computer and printer were an Amiga 500 and a StarLaser 4. I named them "George" and "Gracie" after the whales in Star Trek IV. Gracie died many years ago, but George still works fine (or would if I could find a working Amiga-compatible mouse).  

Captain Robert April Vice Admiral Admiral

I generally go with "HAL 9000" and go about my business...  

Lieut. Arex Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

All three of mine are named after ST AI's. M5 for the desktop, Nomad and V-Ger for the laptops. At work, all of my passwords are starship registries (FJ's). Current login to the intranet is Exeter 's.  

Vance Vice Admiral In Memoriam

I tried that once, then it went rogue and tried to enslave everyone, so I talked it into shutting itself down with circular logic. After that, never again.  

Doug Otte said: ↑ Strange...it never occurred me to name a computer or other device. I just let the router name our wi-fi network. There's no need for the family members to even know the name. Doug Click to expand...

Rom's Sehlat said: ↑ Oh, like "Netgear"? That's a good idea... Click to expand...

Sean Aaron said: ↑ Rom's Sehlat said: ↑ Oh, like "Netgear"? That's a good idea... Click to expand...

starrchild Captain Captain

Well, I named my home network 'The Great Link', does that count?  

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In Pictures: 30 Famous Fictional Computers

Fiction is often a far cry from reality, and there’s no better example than the computer systems featured in movies, TV shows, books, and comics. Today we’re showcasing some of the most notorious machines from works of fiction.

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Tom's Top 30, In Chronological Order

It seems like Hollywood’s goal is to get as far as possible from the real computers that left their mark on our epoch, as seen in Iconic Machines from Computing History . And yet, many of these fictional works have influenced our culture by producing machines that are sometimes more famous than actual historical systems. We decided to take a look back at 30 imaginary computers that defined their genres and left an indelible stamp on popular culture.

Our definition of “computer” is broadened to include artificial intelligence and robots, and while the list is in chronological order of appearance, the illustrations are mostly anachronistic. Let’s kick this journey off in the world of comic books, way back in the 1960s…

1964: Cerebro (X-Men)

Cerebro , also known as Cerebra, is the computer used by Charles Xavier to find mutants around the world. The machine made its first appearance in 1964’s X-Men #7 (volume 1). Operating with the help of Xavier’s telepathic gifts, the Cerebro amplified his brain waves to detect mutants.

1968: Duotronics (Star Trek)

Duotronics is the computer system designed by Dr. Richard Daystrom in 2243. It was built into Constitution-class starships such as the USS Enterprise . Made up of advanced circuits, Duotronics processed and analyzed information from the ship’s various sensor arrays. The term “Duotronics” was first mentioned in season two, episode 24 of Star Trek, entitled “ The Ultimate Computer,” released March 8, 1968.

1968: HAL 9000 (2001: A Space Odyssey)

HAL 9000 (Heuristically-programmed ALgorithmic computer) is the artificial intelligence system that controls the Discovery One in Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick’s famous 2001: A Space Odyssey . Represented by an eye in the form of a camera lens, HAL first became operational on January 12, 1992 in a laboratory in Illinois. Among many other abilities, HAL 9000 can read lips, appreciate art, reproduce emotions, and play chess.

1977: C-3PO (Star Wars)

Of the artificial intelligences, robots, and computers in this round-up, we have a soft spot for C–3PO . The golden humanoid robot is fluent in over six million forms of communication. His function is to aid in intercultural relations by reconciling the customs and languages of the various and diverse individuals in the Star Wars galaxy. In 1999’s Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace , we learned that C-3PO was built by none other than Anakin Skywalker.

1979: Deep Thought (The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy)

Deep Thought appears in the book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. It is the name of the supercomputer that, after seven-and-a-half million years of calculations, affirms that the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything is…42. Unfortunately, the machine is incapable of formulating that ultimate question, but instead designed another computer that could: Earth. In honor of the novel, IBM named one of its early chess-playing supercomputers Deep Thought, a precursor to the company’s famous Deep Blue .

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1979: Mother (Alien)

MU-TH-UR 6000 , familiarly knows as Mother , is the data center aboard the USCSS Nostromo in Ridley Scott’s 1979 film Alien . Mother manages all of the ship’s functions, including piloting it while the crew is in hypersleep. It is capable of communicating with humans via an intercom system, though the Nostromo also has a room that serves as an interface. Mother is often perceived as an enemy of the protagonists when its built-in protocols become an additional hurdle to their survival.

1981: Shirka (Ulysses 31)

Shirka (also called Schyrka or Skyrka) is the main computer that controls the Odyssey , Ulysses’ ship in the Franco-Japanese animated television series Ulysses 31 . At the start of the series, Ulysses kills the Cyclops to save his son. Zeus is furious and erases the path leading to Earth from Shirka’s memory. The computer’s name may seem strange, since it seems to bear no relation to Greek mythology, which is the theme of the series. However, a closer look at the computer’s Japanese name, Shiruka, reveals that it is the katakana form of Circe, a Greek sorceress.

1982: MCP (TRON)

MCP (Master Control Program) is the tyrannical computer designed by Walter Gibbs and optimized by Ed Dillinger. Originally designed to play chess, Dillinger’s optimizations enable the MCP to administer the ENCOM company’s network and finally take control of it and the other programs in the system. MCP is destroyed in the original 1982 film, but makes a brief appearance in the 2005 comic strip Tron: The Ghost in the Machine .

1982: KITT (Knight Rider)

KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand) is the artificial intelligence inside the famous Pontiac Trans-Am Knight Rider . Its Knight 2000 processor was from a U.S. government computer. Apparently, the car's reaction time was one nanosecond, and its memory capacity was 1,000 Mb. KITT also controlled the vehicle’s “turbo boost” feature and could even drive the car itself.

1983: WOPR (WarGames)

WOPR , or War Operation Plan Response (pronounced “Whopper”), is the U.S Army’s artificial intelligence machine capable of simulating numerous combat strategies. It is used in designing and planning attacks and counterattacks in the 1983 film WarGames , starring Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. The machine is also referred to as Joshua, after its designer’s deceased son.

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• mayankleoboy1 i hate these type of filler articles on a Friday. Reply
• vmem I like how many of us now have cellphones that replicate some of these famous computer's abilities :) Reply
• agnickolov I'll add to the list Kortana from the Halo universe Reply

10888966 said: i hate these type of filler articles on a Friday.

• mayankleoboy1 ^ I want pointing to this specific article, but to the general "30 of the blah blah blah" picture slideshows that are posted in lieu of a genuine article, on most fridays. Reply
• Memnarchon In Ulysses 31 episode 22, there was a super computer called "Cortex" that controlled an entire planet. Reply
• Immaculate Where is the Fallout computer? I guess it was kind of dumb and easy to convince though Reply
• de5_Roy person of interest's 'the machine', csi tv series' computer systems that compare dna results and other data instantly, automan etc. Reply
• Izuall Im surprised SHODAN(SS2) isnt on the list.Gives me the creeps just by thinking about it. Reply

10889570 said: person of interest's 'the machine', csi tv series' computer systems that compare dna results and other data instantly, automan etc.

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12 Star Trek Gadgets That Now Exist

By john brandon | oct 29, 2015.

For geeks growing up in the 1960s, '80s and '90s, a vision of the future has been provided by one very successful television franchise: Star Trek. And the future, it turns out, is coming sooner than even Trek 's writers could have imagined. Here are 12 gizmos used on the Star Trek television shows that are now becoming real.

1. Food Replicator

Captain Jean-Luc Picard used to say "Tea, Earl Grey, hot!" and it would be replicated instantly. Today's 3D printers don't tackle tea, but there are machines that actually can print food. And other printers, like the MakerBot Replicator 2 are quite adept at making small objects—just as they were shown to do on later episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation .

2. Universal Translator

In several episodes, we marveled at the universal translator, which decoded what aliens said in real-time—and in the later shows, it was integrated into the communication badges (which explains why basically everyone, regardless of home planet, spoke English). Now, there's an app for that. Voice Translator by TalirApps understands 71 languages (no Klingon yet, though). You speak in your native tongue and the app translates your phrase into another language.

3. Tablet Computers

Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge—you know, the guy from Reading Rainbow —used a tablet computer (what they called Personal Access Data Devices, or PADDs) to punch in coordinates for the next star system. Other Starfleet personnel used them to watch videos and listen to music—just the things we use tablets for today.

4. Tricorder

In the TV show, a tricorder is a handheld device that scans for geological, biological, and meteorological anomalies. Handy! In 2012, Peter Jansen from McMaster University in Ontario built a working prototype that scans for magnetic fields and other interference. And there are lots of other real-world tricorders , too.

5. Holodeck

On Star Trek: The Next Generation , you could walk into a chamber on the Enterprise and visit your home planet for a quick barbecue, or even have an affair with a hologram . Leave it to a bunch of University of Southern California students to make virtual reality a little more down-to-Earth— Project Holodeck used virtual reality goggles to create a fictional world. (Though no encounters with Minuet were reported.)

6. Communicator Badge

On the original series, Kirk and crew carried handheld communicators . But in Star Trek: The Next Generation , Starfleet personnel wore communicator badges on the left breasts of their uniforms. A California start-up called Vocera has created a similar device you pin to your shirt. They're used mostly in hospitals to avoid having constant overhead pages.

7. Tractor Beam

Pulling a ship with an invisible tractor beam seems impossible, but two New York University professors are making it so . Their experiment, which uses a light beam to control tiny microscopic particles, is not going to be deployed on the next NASA mission, but shows we’re making progress.

8. Natural Language Queries

In the Star Trek universe, you can talk to a computer (voiced by Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, Trek creator Gene's wife) in casual conversation. These days, we've got Siri and Alexa, and while they aren't fully developed systems yet, they are baby steps toward a service like Star Trek 's computer, which has a complex understanding of context. Google even codenamed their voice-based service "Majel," in honor of Barrett-Roddenberry.

9. Warp Drive

No one in Star Trek ever sits down and explains how a warp drive works in detail, but we know it has something to do with bending space and traveling faster than the speed of light. Doesn’t seem possible, but NASA is working on it.

Captain Kirk was pretty handy with a phaser, and he didn’t always set his to stun. Ironically, we’ve been using something similar since the first Iraq War. Known as a dazzler, the directed-energy weapon sends a pulse of electromagnetic radiation to stop someone cold in their tracks.

11. Teleportation

To get from place to place, Captain Kirk and company didn't need an airplane—they didn't even need a space elevator. Instead, they teleported using the U.S.S. Enterprise 's transporter (a scenario we all dream about while standing in line at airport security). We've already done some teleportation—specifically, of photons and atoms . These particles don't disappear and reappear, though. According to Forbes, "the information contained in the photon’s quantum state is transmitted from one photon to another through quantum entanglement – without actually travelling the intervening distance." An exact copy appears on the other side, while the original photon is destroyed. According to theoretical physicist Michio Kaku, we consist of 15 trillion cells, so we'll need to wait a few centuries before we're teleporting like Kirk. And we'll still have to destroy the original.

12. Hypospray

In the world of Star Trek , there's no need for needles (and thus no trypanophobia )—Bones administered medicine through the skin using painless jet-injected hypospray. Recently, MIT created a similar device that, according to Geek.com , "delivers a drug through the skin at speeds of up to 340 meters per second and in under a millisecond. The amount of drug can be varied, as can how deep it is injected. And as far as the patient is concerned, they shouldn’t feel anything other than the tip of the injector against their skin. That’s because the jet is as thin as a mosquito’s proboscis." It's not the first, but it does have more control than other hyposprays, which means it could actually be a replacement for needles—and that would make visits to the doctor's office with your kids much easier.

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Screen Rant

Star trek: discovery's new computer voice explained (& who plays her).

Captain Saru was surprised to meet Discovery's new A.I. computer voice. But fans have met Zora, voiced by a famous actress, before in a Short Trek.

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery  season 3, episode 4 - "Forget Me Not"

Star Trek: Discovery season 3, episode 4 "Forget Me Not" reintroduced Zora, the new voice of the starship's computer, who debuted in the Short Trek "Calypso". Although she hasn't claimed the name "Zora" yet in the episode, the enchanting computer's voice belongs to Annabelle Wallis, who fans know from The Tudors , Peaky Blinders , Annabelle , and The Mummy (2017), which she co-starred in with Tom Cruise.

"Calypso" was one of the initial batch of Short Treks that released in 2o18 as part of the build-up to Star Trek: Discovery season 2 and it appears to be the episode with the farthest-reaching implications for CBS All-Access' flagship Star Tre k series. Although the exact timeframe of "Calypso" was a mystery upon its release, it's now clear that the Short Trek is actually set a thousand years after the events of Star Trek: Discovery season 3, which itself happens in the year 3189 - 930 years after the events of season 2. In "Calypso", a human soldier named Craft (Aldis Hodge) who was lost in space is rescued by the Discovery and romantically bonds with Zora, the ship's sentient A.I. Zora reveals that she has been alone ever since the Discovery 's crew abandoned their starship "almost a thousand years ago" , placing the events of "Calypso" somewhere between the years 4100-4200. However, Craft had to return to his actual wife and child and Zora let him go, in a bittersweet breakup for the lonely starship.

Related: Star Trek: Discovery's Time Travel References The Voyage Home

In Star Trek: Discovery season 3, "Forget Me Not", Captain Saru (Doug Jones) is surprised when the starship's onboard computer voice abruptly changes from its original tone (voiced by Julianne Grossman) to Zora's voice. Saru had been wrestling with how to best help his emotionally distraught crew, who were all coping with the trauma of their 930-year jump to a dark future where the United Federation of Planets had collapsed because of a cosmic calamity called the Burn . Zora's voice was distinctly different from the original computer's, and she not only had a British accent but also showed signs of an actual personality. Zora suggested to the Captain that his crew needed the night off for rest and relaxation, and she exhibited a deep knowledge of the 20th-century films from Earth, offering a Buster Keaton movie as something Discovery 's crew might enjoy to help them unwind.

Star Trek 's computers have almost always been interactive and accessed via voice command. The Starship Enterprise 's computer in Star Trek: The Original Series had a generic, robotic computer voice but in the 24th-century  Star Trek: The Next Generation era , the voices of Starfleet ships and space stations were usually provided by the late Majel Barrett-Roddenberry. However, Zora is something much more than Star Tre k's version of Amazon's Alexa - Zora seems to not only be alive but she is also learning and evolving. She identifies as female and, in "Calypso", she clearly exhibits human feelings such as loneliness, fear, and love.

Captain Saru theorized, correctly, that the future Zora is the evolution of the sphere data that the Discovery gained access to and had to keep safe from the rogue A.I. Control, which needed the data to achieve full sentience in order to enact its plan to wipe out all organic life in the galaxy. The sphere data contained 100,000 years of ancient knowledge which has now fused with Discovery' s computer and data banks, allowing Zora to emerge. Saru also predicted that because the crew of the Discovery traveled almost a thousand years to keep the sphere data safe, Zora has now taken it upon herself to keep the Discovery safe.

Intriguingly, a deleted line from the screenplay for Star Trek: Discovery 's season 2 finale, "Such Sweet Sorrow", indicated that the Daystrom Institute on Earth developed the Zora program as a replacement for Control in 2258. So, the  Discovery crew's altruism towards the sphere data created Zora, who is now their artificially intelligent computer, friend, and protector, and she is the opposite of the malevolent Control. It also remains to be seen if the tragic fate for Zora in the Short Trek "Calypso" will eventually come to pass.

Next: Star Trek: Why Discovery Survived An Ice Planet Crash (But Voyager Didn't)

Star Trek: Discovery streams Thursdays on CBS All-Access and Fridays internationally on Netflix.

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The best Star Trek games

The best Star Trek games you can find in this universe. Set phasers to fun.

Welcome to our list of the best Star Trek games on PC. The dream of exploring space, meeting strange new life and new civilisations; cresting the Final Frontier in the next chapter of humanity’s story; kissing green aliens. All of that. 

Star Trek’s relation to games has always been… shaky. Unlike Star Wars, which had Lucasarts’ hand on the tiller for at least the 1990s, it’s always been a licensed property and not often a successful one. Some studios tried to squeeze Trek into a genre it's not suited for. Others were just cash-grabs, like Star Trek: The Game Show, which relied on the comedic stylings of Q and his lovely female assistant Q to cover a truly soulless trivia contest. Still, companies keep trying, from early test adventures like The Kobayashi Alternative to the crappy game version of the JJ Abrams reboot.

But we’re not interested in those. What are the Trek games that do Gene Roddenberry’s vision proud? Here are our favourites, a collection of games which at least do enough to capture the Star Trek magic, even sometimes despite themselves. 

Star Trek: Judgment Rites

Judgement Rites isn’t the greatest game on this list, but it's arguably the best at putting you into the show. There's an authentic mix of bridge banter and combat and you're doing classic Star Trek tasks, like flying to new worlds and beaming down away teams to sort out their problems. Like its predecessor, 25th Anniversary, it followed the show’s episodic model, pitting Kirk and co against scenarios like Trelane recreating World War I on a distant planet, and a rift in time that promises the end of the Federation within eight days. Unlike 25th, there was also something of a running story involving a mysterious race watching the crew and seeing how they solved these problems, adding a little extra drama to the mix.

Neither the combat nor the adventuring is exactly top-tier, but they made a delicious pairing that was totally in keeping with The Original Series. It’s no wonder that even decades later, many still hold it up as the high point of any crew’s PC adventures. 

Star Trek: Voyager, Elite Force 1 and 2

Elite Force is an rare case where it makes sense to turn Star Trek into a shooter. Voyager is lost in the depths of space, surrounded by enemies, and while risking the senior staff for every casual mission works for television, in reality it’s a pretty dreadful idea. Cue the creation of the Hazard Team, just in time for Voyager to get trapped in a spaceship graveyard full of particularly troublesome trapped alien types.

The first level, set aboard a simulated Borg ship, set a great tone, right down to the Borg not reacting to your presence until triggered. Little expense was spared. The whole crew (including, retroactively, Jeri Ryan) voice their characters, and a real effort made to make the Hazard Team feel like a unit. For a while, it was even suggested that the concept might be added to the show. It wasn’t, though something similar would show up in Enterprise in the form of the MACO assault unit. Best of all, as well as fitting the show surprisingly well, it was a very solid shooter and by far the best action game spin-off. 

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Star Trek: Starfleet Command

There are two basic ways to make a Star Trek game. Either you try and do everything, or you phaser-focus on one particular aspect. Starfleet Command goes all-in on space battles. Forget simply locking phasers and firing photon torpedoes, Starfleet Command is based on the table-top war-game Star Fleet Battles, and a brutal demonstration of just how hard it would be to lead a ship like the Enterprise into battle. Everything your ship has its at your disposal, from weapons to shields to special equipment, in full 3D.

It’s brutally hard, but satisfying with it. Three Starfleet Command games were released, adding proper campaigns and additional races. Later games would offer somewhat similar looking combat, though vastly stripped down to avoid the Command learning curve. Still, if you have what it takes, it’s a challenge that you won’t find elsewhere.   

Okay, this is cheating. EGATrek isn’t an official Star Trek game. However, if you’re of a certain age, it is likely the Trek game that you remember playing first. It’s based on a game called Nettrek, originally the preserve of university servers and the like, and originally simulated the adventures of the Enterprise versus the Klingons and Romulans. After a raised eyebrow and a cough from Paramount, that became the adventures of the Lexington against an invading race called the Mongols. So, totally different!

It’s Star Trek though, right down to the ship design and use of Stardates, and your goal is to travel around and blow up all the Mongols in the system. While not much to look at now, it was definitely fun for the time—and felt a good deal more tactical than it was. It hasn’t aged well, but its place in history means it earns a place here, albeit quietly. 

Star Trek: Borg

Borg is one of the most unusual Star Trek games. It’s an interactive movie, and that’s definitely a knock against it. It’s an interactive movie with style though, and some genuinely smart design. You play a cadet whose father was killed by the Borg. As you flee from another attack from the cyborg singularity, the all-powerful force of smugness Q appears and offers you a deal: go back in time with him, and see if you can save your father from his fate.

The result is genuinely surprising. Unlike the other big Star Trek interactive movie, Klingon, this one benefits from Q capering around and not taking anything even slightly seriously. You even get to kick him in the balls at one point. Star Trek games don’t get much more satisfying than that! It’s so good, the Wiki even lists ‘it is possible to punch Q in the face’ as a gameplay feature.

The true cleverness though is how it handles its time-travel premise. Screw up and Q resets time for you to try again, and quite often that’s required for a puzzle—one in particular involves getting some codes from the Borg Collective. How do you do that? Let yourself be caught, read them while you’re a Borg, and make use of them when Q rewinds time. That’s far too clever for an interactive movie, even if the rest of it—the pace, the acting, the depth—is what you’d expect. 

Star Trek: Bridge Crew

More than any other game, Bridge Crew attempted to create The Dream. It uses VR headsets to put you and your friends on the bridge of a Star Trek vessel. Largely inspired by Artemis Spaceship Bridge Simulator, it works by giving each of you a console and thus controls/information that the other players don’t have, which forces everyone to work together. The captain is in charge, but will only know the engines are about to explode if told. The captain order the phasers fired, but it’s the weapons officer who actually pulls the trigger. Success depends on how well the crew integrates and does their individual jobs.

The main problem with it is that once you’ve done this a couple of times, the lack of depth becomes very apparent. There’s not all that much to actually do, and doing it quickly becomes rote. It doesn’t help that for full effect, you need a whole cadre of friends with expensive VR equipment, which is about as likely as the Enterprise crew not using the holodecks for sex. Still, it’s the game that many fans have been waiting for, and certainly a trip while it lasts. 

Star Trek: Bridge Commander

Bridge Commander is the best of the ‘command chair’ games. It is less brutal than Starfleet Command, but has more depth than the relatively simple shooter action of the adventure games or the Starfleet Academy game, which almost made the list.

The big clever feature is that you don’t control the ship so much as give orders to your individual crew members, making you feel more like a captain than a glorified pilot. You can jump in if necessary, but you’re mostly intended to sit back and trust your navigator to fly and your weapons officer to handle the combat. On top of that, it’s not just a series of quick battles; there is a full narrative campaign to work through. It is even possible to play with voice control, though not advised. When it works, it offers the full Captain experience. Far more often though, you just get blown up while swearing loudly. 

Star Trek The Next Generation: A Final Unity

A Final Unity is a fondly remembered game, though honestly one that’s better fondly remembered than replayed. Creators Spectrum Holobyte clearly set out to make the greatest Star Trek game ever. The game modelled space combat, away team adventure, diplomacy, freeform exploration of the galaxy, and its cleverer features let you you call the entire TNG crew for advice and handpick away teams. In practice, the developers bit off rather more than they could chew, and in trying to replicate TNG’s more serious tone, most of the adventure is honestly sluggish, humourless and slow.

So why’s it here? Primarily because in the moments that it does work, it really captures the TNG spirit, and aesthetically and in terms of story, it’s bang on. It’s just hard not to notice how, for instance, the backgrounds get cheaper and cheaper as the story goes on, or how much of the adventure consists of interminable conversations. Still, it’s easily the best of the TNG-era games, as much as that counts when the competition is the likes of super-primitive shooter Star Trek: Generations or Insurrection tie-in The Hidden Evil. At worst, it’s a game to be admired for what it tried, even if it wasn’t all it could have been. 

Star Trek: Birth of the Federation

That’s right, it’s the almost inevitable Master of Orion game in the Star Trek universe, and honestly I'm being a little generous including it here. Played casually, it’s absolutely fine—a fun game of expansion and discovery and scooping up minor races to be part of your growing empire. Over time though the length of turns renders it almost unplayable. Its main hook was definitely the familiar races, and being able to play with the likes of Klingons instead of just some random warlike species. The effectiveness of this shouldn’t be underestimated, and it’s easily one of the better attempts to paste the Trek universe over an existing game. If not for that though, it’s a pale shadow of not just later games like GalCiv, but prior strategy games from its own developer Microprose. 

Star Trek: Online

The first time I fired up Star Trek Online, I finished the tutorial, got the freedom of the universe, and immediately flew my ship to Deep Space Nine to see what, if anything, the team had done there. I was expecting to be told to come back in an expansion or two, or maybe to see the 3D model. Instead, I arrived, and was able to beam across and run around the set of the best Star Trek show of all time in pretty much all of its glory.

At its best, Star Trek Online is those moments. It continues stories from the TV shows, and even brings actors back to voice their characters. The game mixes space combot with away team action and gives you plenty of freedom to explore and chart your own path through the game. Unfortunately, since going free-to-play, much of the game pivoted around less enjoyable stuff—grinding, the push for new ships, and levelling up. Between those bits there’s still much to enjoy, including building up your crew and engaging in fun action against other players. It’s worth at least trying out, and playing for a while to enjoy the atmosphere and the satisfaction of commanding a ship in MMO space.   

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Paramount announces yet another Star Trek prequel

It’s a prequel to the prequel, itself a sequel to another prequel..

Movie-industry shindig CinemaCon was the venue at which Paramount Pictures announced it has started work on a new Star Trek movie. Slashfilm reports Untitled Star Trek Origin Story will be a prequel to Star Trek (2009), J.J. Abrams’ glossy prequel to Star Trek (1966). It’ll be directed by Toby Haynes, most famous around these parts for helming episodes of Andor and Black Mirror’s USS Callister . The screenplay has been written by Seth Grahame-Smith, who wrote The Lego Batman Movie and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies .

So that we’re clear, Untitled Star Trek Origin Story will serve as a prequel to the 2009 origin story and a sequel to 2001’s origin story, Enterprise . It will likely be set before Discovery, which was conceived as a prequel to Star Trek (1966) and Strange New Worlds , which is a prequel to Star Trek (1966). And, look, if you’ll allow me to get a little personal for a moment, I am deeply overjoyed at the news. Given the dearth of origin stories, prequels and nostalgia-parades in the Star Trek universe, an Untitled Star Trek Origin Story is a welcome, necessary and life-giving addition to the franchise.

Let’s be honest, it’s high time we got something insular and backward-looking after so many years of non-stop groundbreaking, original adventures shorn from the burdens of continuity.

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Paramount Pictures Officially Confirms Star Trek Origin Movie For Its Upcoming Film Slate

| April 11, 2024 | By: Anthony Pascale 177 comments so far

Today, the road to the next Star Trek feature film took a small but significant step towards becoming reality.

Paramount makes it official

Earlier this year, it was reported that Paramount Pictures was developing a new Star Trek feature film in parallel development to the “Star Trek 4” sequel to 2016’s Star Trek Beyond . Today the studio made the reports official as they announced their slate of films for 2025 and 2026, an official list which includes what Paramount is now calling “Untitled Star Trek Origin Story.” The studio also confirms the previously reported details: The film is “set decades before the original 2009 Star Trek film.” Toby Haynes ( Andor , Black Mirror “USS Callister”) is directing based on a screenplay by Seth Grahame-Smith ( The Lego Batman Movie ), with J.J. Abrams returning as producer.

The Star Trek movie was just one of many the studio confirmed as part of their 2025/2026 slate at their CinemaCon presentation today. Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins led the studio’s presentation at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. This is the first time Star Trek has been part of the studio’s annual CinemaCon event since Robbins took over in 2021.

The “Star Trek 4” sequel to Beyond was not part of today’s CinemaCon presentation, presumably because with the recent hiring of a new screenwriter , that film would not be ready for theaters by 2026. It has also been reported that the origin story movie is set to start filming by the end of the year. There are no details yet on the plot, specific time setting, or cast. If Paramount can move fast enough they could get the origin movie into theaters by 2026—in time for Star Trek’s 60th anniversary.

Find more news and analysis on  upcoming Star Trek feature films .

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Fool me once … ( also I want a movie but until someone gets a set built I’m not holding my breath )

I’m not pre-ordering my tickets…..

You would need a title and a premiere date to order tickets. This film has neither.

I’d wait to believe it until you actually see a movie trailer for it. Noah Hawley was in the casting stage when they cancelled his Trek movie. They might have even started on the sets.

The film is on Noah’s IMDB Credits list…

Yep. I heard ferries exist too!

Car ferries?

Even now, it potentially doesn’t matter. They could pull a Zaslav and shelve the film after it was all but released.

I won’t believe it until my butt is in the theater seat and the film starts playing.

We don’t need the origin story. We have it already. It was called “Enterprise”.

I didn’t realize there was such a large interest in a Star Trek origin movie. It’s their money to burn.

I still believe this is their way of rebooting the “prime” universe from the beginning and remaking it in a new image. I see no other point of doing an origin movie. First Contact and Star trek: Enterprise were origin enough IMO.

I don’t quite get it either. We already got that with First Contact and Enterprise. What else is there that could interest the general public.

Yeah, and for me, the period between First Contact and Enterprise just doesn’t seem that exciting. The period between Enterprise and the Nero incursion would be more interesting, I guess.

They wrote that the origin film would be “set decades before the original 2009 Star Trek film”. That film (in-universe) is set in 2233 (Nero incursion) and 2258 (main plot) respectively. So “decades before” would be after Enterprise, probably after the formation of the Federation, most probably before the Nero incursion, maybe around the turn of the century.

It’s just odd they are calling it an “origin” movie if it happens after Enterprise.

I’m curious what they mean by “origin”. The origin of Starfleet would be before Enterprise and the origin of the Federation would be after.

Also, the origin of Star Trek would have to be before the events of First Contact.

…assuming there is a concern about canon whatsoever, of course.

Many assumptions to be made at this point for sure.

Assuming this announcement doesn’t get added to the pile of previous unmade-movie announcements.

They’re calling it an origin movie to appeal to newcomers and casual fans.

Maybe we’ll see the founding of the Federation?

We already saw that in the infamous final episode of Enterprise. If they revisit that, they’d have to include the NX-01 crew and do a *lot* of deaging. 😉

They could show the first year of the Federation or something.

The obvious way to go is just do the Romulan war which leads into the founding of the Federation and what Enterprise was supposed to do.

That’s really the only thing fans actually want to see in terms of a prequel story.

Which was already scripted for Berman nearly 20 years ago by the band of brothers screenwriter.

Yep. I heard that’s what they were considering doing until the Kelvin movie got greenlit instead.

Overall the Kelvin movie was probably the better choice in terms of box office but I probably would’ve preferred the Romulan war idea because it did sound more original and different.

For how little Trek lore has fleshed out that imaginary bit of history, do we really need to be putting some detail to how we went from post-apocalyptic hellhole to utopian paradise in fifty years? Maybe some enterprising human stole a replicator off a Vulcan ship and reverse engineered it? Seeing the sausage being made may not be a great on screen adventure…

Eastern Europe isn’t the best example – while they’ve done okay extricating themselves from the communist wasteland, it was (and is) without its setbacks.

that’s what makes me so crazy. Discovery was the chance to reboot the “prime” universe but they have stubbornly stuck to this quisling versio

Not only that, they already did a Star Trek origin movie. Star TRek 2009. But sure lets put more money in it, have it fail, and then blame the box office on why we will never get more trek. Thats a great idea!

First off do we even know what they mean by “origin”?

Could be about the founding of the federation, the Romulan War, or the early days of starfleet pre-Enterprise.

It may have nothing to do with Kirk and Spock, the Enterprise, might not be any kind of reboot or reset.

My gut says it’s set in the Kelvin timeline and it takes place post USS Kelvin but pre-2009 Trek. And I’m fine with that.

They already said it will be based in the prime universe, not the Kelvin. I don’t know why they framed that press release that way but I guess since the Kelvin movies are the current movies they wanted to make clear to people this movie is before all of that I guess.

And obviously will have nothing to do with Kirk and Spock because it will be before they were even born.

These announcements feel like Groundhog Day, don’t they? Maybe that’s the story they should tell.

A feature length version of Cause and Effect…

I’m guessing Romulan Star Empire Wars era setting.

Yeah, maybe it’s the concept Rick Berman pitched: a Romulan War film where the NX-01 is off vacationing at Risa.

How about Star Trek: Federation . Founding of the Federation, which is immediately followed by a crisis requiring the urgent launch of USS Federation (NCC-01). Scott Bakula has a cameo appearance as President Archer.

Here we go! :D

Star Trek Origins: The Future Begins

Yeah but it’s not as exciting when we literally have a thousand years of that future now.

This is why prequels bore so many people when we already know so much about the future it’s setting up.

At least with the Kelvin movies they were smart to not make it a traditional prequel and people still hated those too.

I will never understand the obsession of going backwards when you have a fanbase that is constantly begging to go forward and prequels don’t attract new fans at all because they are made for oddly old fans in mind. You only cared about how Anakin became Vader in the prequels if you watched the OT.

We really know almost nothing (in canon) about the entire century that elapses between Enterprise and Discovery , though. I would have preferred Kelvin Movie 4 or even a post-TNG original movie (maybe with Patrick Stewart making a cameo) but I could get behind a canon treatment about the first years of the Federation.

If it’s really something good or interesting fine. If it’s just ‘this is how the Federation was formed” we already got that already.

Now if it’s the Romulan war or something then that’s at least something people can get excited about. But yeah we already know how it ends so maybe that won’t be it either.

I just can’t really get to excited about a prequel movie.

Yeah, I think the Romulan war would be a great premise for a movie, BUT according to TOS the battles were fought with “primitive atomic weapons and in primitive space vessels which allowed no quarter, no captives, nor was there even ship-to-ship visual communication; therefore, no human, Romulan or ally has ever seen the other.”

In other words canon would have to be completely ignored – we all know Enterprise completely disregarded the TOS take of the war as the NX-01 had visual comms, phase cannons and photonic torpedoes. If the story is a good one, I am totally good with ignoring canon, but of course others are not.

Yeah that’s always the issue with the Romulan War thing, it’s really hard to make a compelling story about it when you are fighting it without directly engaging the enemy.

That said I’m 100% convinced they will just ignore that and do what they want or just find an excuse to change ot. Look at SNW, this the show that has shown the Gorn years before they were supposed to be seen and completely changed Khan’s original timeline using TCW as the reason..

Discovery had an entire Klingon War when that didn’t remotely exist in canon.

So yeah it probably won’t matter that much end of the day. They will just make what they want and then will use some excuse to do it. That’s been the case since Enterprise as you said.

So, it would be set after Enterprise and before the Kelvin fiasco. Awesome.

Probably the Romulan Wars. And with no Enterprise. Not excited

If only I could insert the Will Farrel “I don’t believe you!” GIF.

Whatever this turns out to be, hopefully it will be interesting. More likely it will turn out to be just another dead Trek movie project.

So many of these stories do seem to go absolutely nowhere! However, I am not as negative about an origin story as some fans are. At this point, I am more neutral on the movie. I can see that under the right circumstances it could be quite interesting. Although prequels can be a tough sell to Star Trek fans. Ultimately the fact that’s a movie could work in its favor though. Less storylines to produce over the years might help keep the story focused! Though I am not sure it would be a box office draw.

I’ll believe it when I’ve seen it in theaters, listened to TrekMovie’s review, and have the blu-ray on my shelf 4 months later.

Where to place the Blu-ray tho?

Before ST09 or after Beyond? …or.. Before TOS?

They go in order of release, for me. But could this be the first Trek film I don’t purchase on disc? Time may tell…

It’s an origin story taking place in the prime universe so it will go either before or after Enterprise basically.

I’ll believe it when it actually happens. Also, Seth Grahame-Smith is not a good writer, so that doesn’t bode well.

My thoughts exactly.

I liked the book Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, but not the movie.

I absolutely loved the Lego Batman movie, though. If he is able to incorporate Trek lore with as much care as he did for Batman, it could turn out to be a very good movie after all.

This is what’s over at Box Office Mojo: Untitled Star Trek: Beyond Sequel (????)

Grain of salt, anyone?

There are apparently two movies planned. Origin and Trek 4…

Actually there are three now including one that we all thought was DOA two minutes after it was announced.

Three movies in development from a studio who has cancelled four of them for 8 years now. And this will be the fourth new script for the next Kelvin movie.

That’s why everyone is very very confident this one is happening for sure. 🙄

The only thing we can take to the bank is we will see Section 31, starring Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh!!

Pretty much.

And a studio that is broke and in debt with junk status. None of these will likely be made or just the super cheapy origin movie if they can keep the budget low.

I’m pretty sure you got your facts wrong.

Sigh. Why do the powers that be always want to go backward in the ST timeline and do origin stories and such?

Lack of confidence in new ideas and to make it as cheaply as possible, are two things that come to mind right away.

It’s simple. They don’t want all that trek nerd baggage. They want a movie anyone would go to see and understand.

How’s that working for them?

You don’t get it.

I don’t get it either? It’s not like the prequel stuff has been huge home runs or big money makers.

The Star Wars prequels made a lot of money. That’s what Paramount still looks at, even though they have yet to duplicate that financial success.

Yes but that’s STAR WARS! It’s going to make a lot of money period. And those prequels came out when it was just the OT and nothing else for literally decades. There was a lot of hype just returning to those stories.

This is not the same thing, especially when we already had so many prequels in Trek now and with mixed results. That said I’m not saying it can’t be successful but I don’t see any huge hype around it either because most fans just seem to want to go forward and not backwards.

All the negativity over this ‘announcement’ is well deserved. Just make a fcking movie already Paramount, Jesus.

But I suspect IF this one is real it’s probably a much cheaper movie being new actors and maybe something with a lot less explosions and FX. I suspect it will probably be around $100 million.

It’s certainly doesn’t sound like something they are pushing to make a billion dollars or anything. Only people who cares about a prequel will be mostly old fans and even they aren’t exactly excited about yet another prequel judging by all the reactions so far. Maybe they will attract an A list star or a well respected one to bring more hype to it.

But same time I been pushing to just do something NEW with new characters and setting forever now. Stop trouting out Kirk and Picard, take a real chance with the franchise for a change. I was hoping it would be Post Nemesis but I should be happy I finally got half of what I wanted lol.

But I’ll believe it when I see it. I have literally been saying this line for six years now and I’m really tired of saying it. 🙄

Yup, exactly. Assuming it even happens, the premise sounds weak. Not surprised.

Yep. Unless it’s something truly mind blowing it’s not going to elicit a lot of excitement. Sure we’ll all go lol but I don’t see this thing having any real pull beyond the true believers.

It probably got the greenlight because its really cheap and it’s becoming embarrassing how long this franchise has languished.

I really only go to movie theaters to see Trek films (much prefer the comforts of home to see movies), so yup I’ll be going, good or bad. And yes, it is really pathetic the way this franchise has been treated on the big screen for the past 20 years. Disgraceful.

Ummm… what premise?? The only thing we know is that it is an origin movie. Nothing else. There IS no premise yet…

I think he means just another origin story itself feels a bit tired. But yes we don’t specifically know what that means yet but anything before TOS at this point just doesn’t really get a lot of fans all that hot and bother.

Whatever it ends up being it’s just filling in to more history we already know.

I get it. But no matter what era they make a movie in, there will be complaints. We have done prequels – some fans hate that. We have done same era as TNGish – fans complained. Likewise, we have had a show set in the future (soon to be another) – fans complained. There aren’t many options left.

Before TOS: Enterprise, JJ movies, Discovery, SNW just after TNG era: Picard, Prodigy, Lower Decks Future: Discovery, Starfleet Academy

Do they just make things in the era of TNG, DS9 and Voyager? No matter what is produced, there will always be a fan base that is unhappy.

I’m going to start reporting you now. One guy got the boot for being an obsessive troll and like you was already banned before anyway.

Leave me alone from this point on. I mean it.

What a total disappointment. I wanted to see the Kelvin crew return. It’s going to be 10 years between films.

Please be Kirk and Spock at least.

Check the first paragraph of the article out again. This one is presumably being developed ‘in parallel’ to the Kelvin crew sequel.

Recast Kirk and Spock, I presume?

I wouldn’t be surprised if the main character is Kirk’s great grandfather, Tiberius something or other.

And not surprised there was no announcement of the next JJ verse movie. I predicted a few weeks ago that one wouldn’t get made by 2026 or the 60th anniversary. Frankly I don’t even know why they are even bothering with it anymore? Whenever it’s supposed to come out it’s already going to be the last one and over 10 years since the last one came out.

What’s even the point? They are clearly moving on from it.

As far as the origin movie why not just make it for the 60th anniversary? Why rush it? It’s already been nearly a decade, what’s one more year at this point and you can Marley it better in an anniversary year.

Its the reverse of ST 6, here we getting the prequel movie instead of the final cast film (for the anniversary)

Someone on another board said we are probably getting the sequel to First Contact so it would make sense to have it for the 6Oth anniversary 30 years apart lol.

“[S]et decades before the original 2009 Star Trek film?”

Gimme Archer & T’Pol, or else…

Neither actor has any interest in returning to Star Trek, so that won’t happen.

No, no no. You’ve got it all wrong. It’s a story about a little design firm vying for the chance to design the Enterprise. It’s a story about a plucky band of mechanical engineers and physicists who come together to do the best pitch of their lives in a bidding war with three other firms. So, an origin story…from a certain point of view. ;)

I would watch,THAT!

I would write that!

I would direct that! (If I was Christopher Nolan)

No, I want Nolan doing ThePrisoner! He’s already got a script from the guy who wrote 12 Monkeys and the best stuff in Blade Runner, from over a decade back.

You probably meant it as a joke, but I’m also intrigued by this idea :D

Charlie Kaufmann does star trek.

Sure, you can store anti-matter in a glass jar. What could possibly go wrong?

Y’know, I know this is said partly in jest, but I wouldn’t mind that kind of movie if it was sort of a space race / WWII / Cold War drama, kind of a mix of Oppenheimer and The Right Stuff.

There’s a geo (spatio?) political angle (firm up the borders of the Federation, mitigate threats, and establish new allies while keeping up the exploration / first contact initiatives), the pressure on the engineering team to deliver groundbreaking new tech (and probably the cost of failed experiments, accidents, etc.), and then recruiting and training a new kind of crew – a starship crew (as Captain Merrick described them in ‘Bread and Circuses’.)

In essence, the origin of Starfleet as we know it – the first long-duration missions, the best of the best crewmembers, cross-trained, multidisciplinary, and for the first time, widely multi-species, etc.

Glad you all like. Paramount, you can send the check to: bmar, care of….

I’m thinking there’s going to be peace in the Middle East and nuclear fusion power is going to be a reality before they ever get back to the theaters.

Once upon a time I enjoyed Star Trek. Since the Nu Trek era began. I havent enjoyed any of the story arcs. They are just too aweful. There is a multitude of reasons why throught the web. Strange New Worlds S1 corrected course, however S2 not so. There are forces at work at Paramount. They are hell bent to destroy Star Trek. If Kurtzman and crew are in charge of the new movie. Get ready for more fantasy drama nonsense, and less plausable sci-fi.

Same here. I can’t get into NuTrek much at all. It feels like a shell of the golden era. For me that will always be 1966-2005.

But if others like it and getting new fans I’m very happy for them.

Same here. I’ve found a few gems in SNW S1, PIC S3, and S1 of Prodigy, but otherwise have been very disappointed in “NuTrek.” Of course I wish the franchise the best, but so far it’s been more misses than hits for me.

Yes I truly love Picard season 3! The best thing to come out of NuTrek so far. I don’t hate SNW but it railroads canon too much for my taste but it does feel like Star Trek again.

I haven’t seen Prodigy yet but I plan to watch it when season 2 begins and will watch season 1 before that one. Everyone kept saying it’s for kids and I’m far from a kid these days lol. But others here convinced me it’s a show for adults too so will give it a go

Wow, hell-bent on destroying Trek. Hell-bent, you say!! Just a tough melodramatic, are you?

Really don’t care about prequels and just want to keep going forward. Why not a movie in the 25th or 26th century with new crew and characters?

I may care more if Archer is involved or something. But I suspect this movie will bomb like the last one did. Only fans cares about prequels. New fans won’t care at all.

At least it’s in the prime universe again I guess.

But 25th or 26th century would still be a prequel to Discovery’s 32nd century :D

That doesn’t bother me because we don’t know anything about those time periods. We already know plenty about everything before TOS because it’s all been said or told now

Yeah I said this to another member the other day discussing any post Picard stories and that it will be completely new stories in a period we don’t know so it’s not the same thing. When you’re doing something like a TOS prequel you only have so much room and while it can certainly be interesting and creative it basically just like filling in to more stuff we already know.

That said the Section 31 movie time period is at least more interesting because it covers a much wider time period and they can be a lot more freer with the technology, etc so looking forward to that at least.

Yes I will admit although I’m not a big fan of the Space Nazi the time period of the movie intrigues me more. I always been curious of this period and the lead up to TNG, mostly because we know very little about it.

Discovery (in my view) kind of ruined everything in the Trek timelime. Just my opinion. Anyone who wants to just forget it happened, I’m in. Kidding, not kidding.

Agreed! I also don’t think it will be allegorical science fiction or be anything thought provoking. It will be a fast paced action adventure story that’s empty of depth and soul. Modern Star Trek is more interested in spectacle than compelling stories.

I’d guess that it means “origin of the TOS crew,” but that’s kind of weird, because we saw that in 2009.

Maybe this time they’ll start when they’re toddlers. (I kid, but not really). :)

They are going to re-do ‘A night in Sickbay’ like they did with Wrath of Khan/Into Darkness. It’ll be the same but different…..

Could this be their way of doing a George Kirk movie?

I would want to watch that, colour me intrigued…

“set decades before the original 2009 Star Trek film.”

Original 2009 Sta Trek film Sounds so wrong.

there is only two star trek origin stories i want to see the formation of the federation and it’s first few years if they have to adapt the rise of the federation novels for the movie and the origins of the borg they could adapt the plot ffor thet from the star trek destiny novels for a movie

Spot on, on both points!

2025? I hope it works out…

First we hear we are getting a Star Fleet Space Academy series that no one wants. The idea was mentioned in the 1980’s and shot down by fans. Now a retake on a Star Trek Origins films. Is any one currently running the Star Trek franchise in TV/streaming or film even listening to what the fans both old and new are saying?

It would seem not, sadly. How about establishing the time period between TUC and TNG, there’s a literal ton of stories to tell there? How the possibilities for storytelling within the franchise have been squandered over the years makes me frustrated, and frankly confused. SO many missed opportunities.

The upcoming section 31 movie will be set during that time frame as we know a young Rachel Garrett who later in life will be the captain of the enterprise c and defend the Klingon colony of narendra 3 will be in the movie maybe we will get to see the ent-b also again

Pointless movie as no audience will come see it at best it will make half its budget back. I mean they spent $250M on the 2009 movie and it showed on screen….you already know they are not spending that level otherwise it would be a Kelvin cast sequel!

I believe they spent just under 160 mil on the 09 (not counting the interest payments for holding the finished film for six months to get a summer release, or prints/advertising.) You’re probably thinking of BEYOND with the 250 number.

I still can’t see the money on screen in the 09, shooting in the damn brewery was Corman-level cheap.

The Numbers have the 09 costs 140 and BO Mojo sez 150, so yeah, way under the 250m you mention.

Can the ethos of Trek be distilled by JJ? Bob orci was bad for trek.

Kurtzman seemed to fall into trap w/discovery season 1.

Season 2, Picard, Lower Decks and SNW definitely sealed my thinking that Trek was in right hands.

Is section 31 and Rachel Garrett the right pivot for Trek? I thought 24th/25th century had plenty of stories to still tell.

Enterprise C, and possibly Tasha Yar/Sela after the events of Yesterday’s Enterprise! This should reboot TNG/Picard if ST: Legacy doesn’t happen.

Lower Decks makes me laugh Picard made me cry (good) SNW made me feel like Kurtzman should be trusted 💯

Great. Abrams ruined Star Wars and he’s finishing of Star Trek.

JJ had a planed out story plot for what he wanted to happen in the sequels but rian johnson chose to deviate from what jj had payed out so when jj returned for episode 9 he had to try and make the best of it and make his original story plot work but with the changes Johnson had made altering it so he had to come up with another evil sith mastermind and chose palpatine and he did course correct Rey’s lineage though it was different from who he had initially planned it to be and with Carrie fishers untimely passing he had to rewrite more and he had Luke show up as a force ghost to help rey when she returned to ach-to as apparently he was never going to have Luke die until the the final battle

I hope it has nudity

….and “Invincible” level action. It’ll be a hard R Quinton Tarentino could love.

Yes, we are on the same page.

CinemaCon basically works like a network upfront. You see clips and hear a lot of announcements. When there’s no cast or start date for announced projects, there’s maybe a 50/50 chance that the project will actually move forward (I was with a former employer for over 8 years and we announced a lot of stuff that generated a lot of buzz but then never materialized).

I think Brian Robbins will be gone within the next 12 months and if Robbins is pushed out this film is dead in the water.

This is probably the right answer.

I have next to no faith this will actually happen but they only have themselves to blame lol.

I remember a former poster kept saying ‘well this a new regime ‘ they aren’t the old guys’. Uh huh. It just shows end of the day they might be different but they still answer to the same shareholders and they know another Trek film is risky. Maybe this will finally get beyond a script this time but no one will be convinced until they start shooting the thing.

Rehashing old fandom letter campaign complaints from 40 years ago, don’t equate to the modern sci-fi fan, let alone the majority of Star Trek fans of 2024. The majority of complaints in the article comments are that there isn’t enough new future timeline Star Trek, so why would people NOT want a Star Fleet Academy series – new stories, new characters, new ships, new alien species/planets etc? An Origin movie is a vague enough description that it’s probably likely that the fandom can’t come anywhere close to a correct theory on when in the Trek timeline, this movie could be set.

I agreed with a commenter earlier, a George Kirk prequel movie would satisfy a lot of the fans, and hopefully generate enough interest for new and casual Star Trek moviegoers to warrant their going to a cinema complex. As to want the hardcore Star Trek fandom really want? There is too much dissent and bitter recriminations gone by, for any serious agreement by the fandom of their requirements, to stick for any longer than the next Trek major media article to be issued. And even if a majority agreement could be achieved – then we have the Mount Everest of EP Alex Kurtzman / Secret Hideout control of Trek production, to climb. A movie or series could have a billion-dollar budget, stellar A-list cast and crew, critical media acclaim for the story / screenplay. A favourable release timing and viral marketing, but fall at the last hurdle – the box office, due to the mountain of hate piled up against Paramount, Kurzman and his associates.

Now, as to the overall custodianship of the Trek franchise and its operation as a business, in general by Paramount, and its contracted creatives? Well, that’s a whole Hollywood chapter in itself. And is any of that even relevant in the long term, with the behind-the-scenes Harry Potter Wizard chess moves that are going on at the studio ownership, and network controlling interest levels? Apologies for the extended and extensive reply.

The first thing to do in order make a successful Star Trek movie is to ignore Star Trek fans.

God, please, no origin stories.

Star Trek: The Beginning, Part 1 — A Final Frontier Origin Story

Star Trek has always been a production dealing with many human issues pushing open the veils of awkwardness, embarrassment, and unaddressed behaviors that represent our culture planet wide. Thank You Star Trek. The one thing Paramount+ did that was just totally in bad taste was cancel Prodigy, bunch of morons.

Every fan’s preferences are different, but over the years I’ve ended up streamlining various ‘franchises’ I enjoy to my own liking when it comes to a re-watch – and these days my own limited Star Trek ‘canon’ purely consists of kicking things off with ‘The Cage’ pilot storyline….followed by my specific favourite TOS episodes in ‘production order’ (starting with ‘Where No Man Has Gone Before’, and skipping ‘The Menagerie’ two-part storyline)….followed by all the TOS movie storylines….and ending the Kirk crew’s adventures with ‘The Undiscovered Country’ as my preferred send-off for them all….then skip the antics of the ‘Generations’ movie, and instead continue on with my specific favourite TNG episodes (starting with the ‘Encounter At Farpoint’ introduction to Picard and his crew)….and then conclude the entire thing with the ‘First Contact’ movie’s storyline – which covers the development of ‘warp drive’, bringing everything full circle, and giving me all the ‘origin’ specifics I need..

All other ‘Trek-related shows and movies since then remain firmly on my ‘one-watch-only’ list, but I’m more than content with what I’ve outlined above.

I don’t know if I’ll ever get a ‘Star Trek’ movie which goes much deeper than glossy ‘pew-pew’ action and explosions in the future, but I remain hopeful.there might be a storyline that I really like again.

In the meantime, for my latest ‘alien contact’ fix, I’ve just finished up enjoying the excellent ‘Three-Body’ show’s inventive storyline and characters – the subtitled, 30-episode one produced by Tencent, which is currently available on YouTube and Amazon Prime (not the muddled 8-episode ‘3 Body Problem’ version by Netflix) – So much so, that I’m intending to buy the actual trilogy of books by the Chinese author, as I can’t wait for the next season to be made to find out what happens next. Some big ideas to come by all accounts, and I’m there for a bit more of that. .

The Netflix series is Superior

You’re welcome to your own preference of course.

But I far preferred the slow burn of the mystery and character build-ups in the Tencent version compared to the condensed and altered Netflix adaption. I just happen to find it a more satisfying and riveting version overall – and I will always prefer the way the ‘Judgment Day’ tanker got ‘nano-spliced’ in the Tencent version. Such an awesome sequence from start to finish!

Anyway, if the Netflix version actually gets a second season, I’ll certainly check it out too….but I am definitely looking forward to the next season of the Tencent show, which has been greenlit already.

The Tencent version is just boring to me and you can feel the Party’s hands all over it. Glad you liked it though.

we don’t need origin stories for everything! in media res is the way to go – almost always – TOS just dumps you right in the middle of events without even the clunky intros of TNG Encounter at Farpoint.

If this movie does well will IT get an origin story? We’re going to end up at the pool of goo at the dawn of humankind waiting for Picard and Q to show up…

im happy with any good trek news… even if they made a direct sequel to the final frontier… but how many origin stories do we need? i’d be happy if someone forged a path forward and created new things…

So this one is set in the five-minute period between Enterprise and Discovery? Or the as-yet unexplored time between April 5th 2063 and Enterprise where it’s “stone knives and bear skins” and no Trek tech to speak of? Enterprise was the prequel! How’d that one work out?

If the movie is made ,I will judge it then.

I wanted the 4th Kelvin, do they know who their audience is? Nobody i know, Star Trek fan or general audience bothered to go see Beyond. It was like Nemesis all over again. The trailer was terrible, the movie was kind of meh to be honest. So in the intervening years since the 2009 somewhere they lost the audience. Star Trek 2009 was an event movie, and 2015 Force Awakens was as well. Good job letting JJ go to Disney so Star Trek died as a film series.

I’m guessing the fourth movie is still too costly to risk making another one at least right now.

Someone threw out an an interesting theory on the last thread discussing this for the 47th time that they suggested Paramount have no plans to actually make another Kelvin movie but just as a rouse for the next company that buys the studio.

It really makes sense at this point, they can dangle the idea the movie is in ‘development’ and then when someone actually buys it they can just decide to make it or cancel it.

I mean it doesn’t sound crazy considering where we are. It’s a movie that is working with their fourth new writer but there is still no director or even a starting date of any kind within the the next two years.

Them you have this origin movie that was just announced a few months ago and that’s already scheduled to come out next year. My guess is it will probably cost half of what another Kelvin movie would be. But yeah who knows if that will get made either, but it has a better chance than a Kelvin movie.

I can’t name anyone who actually wants an origin movie. By the way, didn’t we get that one with First Contact already anyway?

It’s not up to you or anyone you pretend to know.

Another prequel? This is getting ridiculous now. Remember when Star Trek used to go forwards? Enough already!

Kurtzman said he didn’t have the authority to greenlight legacy. I wonder if that will be like Bennet’s academy years and never happen.

18 months is not enough time for a movie of this size unless this is ready to shoot in july.

The JJ-verse is an aberration no one is particularly a fan of. There is no one who wants to how that mess started. It’s done nothing but foul everything that went before, leaving ST-ENT, of all things, as the only remaining official classic canon. Bugger that.

I need Star Trek that is hopeful, aspirational, and inspirational. 15 yrs later neither Bad Robot or Secret Hideout has done anything close to that. Sec 31 and Starfleet Academy aren’t anything viewers want. I wish they’d just stop.

lol,if you say so…

EXCLUSIVE: Former Anonymous writer of Trek 4 shares his experience

Interviewer: Hello, we are here today to talk to a former writer for the very very very (like really very) long delayed fourth Kelvin movie. With the announcement of a prequel movie being released instead and yet ANOTHER new set of writers for the next Kelvin movie, we reached out to the only person who returned our calls; a former writer from the 2023 project.

To give us an honest insight into his experience he wishes to remain anonymous. For the sake of this interview he will be simply referred to as ‘GotohellParamount’. Thank you for meeting with me today.”

GotohellParamount’: “You’re welcome.”

Interviewer: “It sounds like your experience working on the last movie didn’t end too well. How is your relationship with the studio today?”

GotohellParamount: “Bleep them in their bleeping bleepholes. I hope they all die from bleeping Ebola.”

Interviewer: ‘That’s some pretty colorful metaphors. Can I ask what happened?”

GotohellParamount: “Their bleeps that’s what. We spent a year working on that movie. We lost the director to go work for Marvel because these bleepholes kept bleeping us around. I got so frustrated I finally texted the Head Studio Guy and said ‘will you people stop bleeping around!? Get off your bleeps and let’s make a movie already!!’

Three weeks went by and I finally got a response from them. It simply read ‘K’. Bleepholes!!! By the way you’re not going to ‘bleep’ any of these words out are you?”

Interviewer: “Um…of course not. Can you tell us a little about what the movie was about?”

GotohellParamount: “The gist was a huge black ship comes from the 25th century to the 23rd century wiping out solar systems in the Federation. It was a new villain who wanted…wait for it…vengeance. That bleep was going to be bleeping awesome!!”

Interviewer: “So who was going to be the villain?”

GotohellParamount: “That’s the greatest part of it all. He was going to call himself…you ready: Kaos. JJ Abrams himself came up with that name. But then the true reveal was that he was indeed Kirk’s great great great great great great great great great great grandson from the future and came to stop Kirk from destroying his planet so he had to destroy the Federation first. We were even thinking Chris Pine can play both parts but Paramount was worried he would demand twice the salary.”

Interviewer: “I interviewed Chris Pine a few months ago and he was hoping there would be more scenes of him riding another motorcycle. Did you include that in the script?”

GotohellParamount: “Do you remember the ending of Mission Impossible 2 with the motorcycle duel? Pretty much the same ending with our movie with Kirk versus his evil grandson; except it was going to take place either on Romulus or in San Francisco. We were still figuring it out. There was even talk of it happening on a lava planet… but that would’ve ballooned the budget.

Interviewer: “Sounds very exciting. How was he going to wipe out the solar systems?”

GotohellParamount: “The ship he was on had the power to destroy stars by breaking down their fusion reactions. The FX was going to be bleeping sick.”

Interviewer: “Wait so the ship was a…Star destroyer?”

GotohellParamount: “Yep but to get around copyright issues JJ wanted to call it a Destroyer of Stars. The man is a bleeping genius I tell you.”

Interviewer: “It’s definitely a name.”

GotohellParamount: “We were so proud of the script. We gave it to JJ to read it. After he put it down, he took off his glasses put his hand on my shoulders and said ‘this is the most original Star Trek story I’ve ever read and I’ve read three of them.’ You have no idea how much that meant coming from such a visionary like him.”

Interviewer: “I’m sure you were. Was there any casting possibilities before it was shut down?”

GotohellParamount: “Was there?? We reached out to some incredible actors! Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy and Matt Damon. We wanted him to actually play Kirk’s evil grandson.

Interviewer: “Wait… weren’t all of them in Oppenheimer?’

GotohellParamount: “(Hard shrug)! I don’t know I haven’t seen it yet. Unfortunately Matt Damon’s agent was the only one who bothered to call us back. Apparently he always wanted to work with John Cho. Go figure? Too late now unfortunately.”

Interviewer: “Well that’s all the time we have. Thank you for your incredible and honest insight. Any thoughts on the new movie announcement or the chances either one will actually get made?”

GotohellParamount: (Laughs for three minutes). That’s it.”

Interviewer: “Thank you.’

I laugh every.single.time! 😂

Well done per usual.

Nice. Don’t forget to throw the Beastie Boys in there someplace…wouldn’t be a Kelvin film without them…

This was indeed hilarious! 😂

I love how you parody JJ Abrams. He doesn’t seem to have an original bone in his body looking at both his Star Trek and Star Wars movies.

Another prequel? Why can’t they come up with new material?

The Ultimate Computer (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Production timeline
• 4.2 Story and production
• 4.3 Cast and characters
• 4.4 Sets and props
• 4.5 Continuity
• 4.6 Remastered information
• 4.7 Video and DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Also starring
• 5.3 Guest stars
• 5.4 Featuring
• 5.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.6 References
• 5.7 External links

Summary [ ]

Enterprise approaches Starbase 6

The USS Enterprise is summoned to a space station by Commodore Enwright without explanation. Commodore Bob Wesley , commanding the USS Lexington , explains in the Enterprise 's transporter room that the Enterprise will be a test vessel for a revolutionary tactical computer called the M-5 multitronic unit , designed by the brilliant Dr. Richard Daystrom . The M-5 will handle all ship functions, including responding to a simulated attack led by Wesley, during the test with a crew of only twenty, much to Captain Kirk 's chagrin.

Act One [ ]

Dr. Richard Daystrom, who designed the duotronic computers used on the Enterprise , arrives on board to install his new M-5 multitronic unit, which is capable of running a starship with only minimal personnel . Kirk, Spock , and Dr. McCoy meet him in engineering , where he is finishing up the installation. Daystrom explains the first four units weren't entirely successful, but this one has the capability to control the ship. Responding to Kirk's skepticism, he challenges Kirk on enjoying the prestige of the captaincy.

Spock stays with Daystrom, while Kirk and McCoy leave. Kirk wrestles with his own unease about the advance in technology and his own possible obsolescence.

The Federation starship Enterprise enters orbit of the planet Alpha Carinae II

The Enterprise , under M-5 control, approaches the planet Alpha Carinae II , achieves standard orbit , and makes its recommendations for the landing party . As the first example of the difference between the M-5's decisions and those of a Human, Kirk's recommendation is at odds with the M-5's call, which includes the same astrobiologist , Phillips , a different geologist (Chief Rawlins instead of Ensign Carstairs ), and doesn't include Kirk or McCoy in the landing party, calling them "non-essential personnel."

While this is going on, Montgomery Scott is observing that power on decks 4 and 5 has been cut, along with environmental controls for each deck. He traces the source of the power shutdowns to be the M-5 itself.

Act Two [ ]

In engineering, Dr. Daystrom examines the situation, but explains that the M-5 simply turned off the power to those decks since they were unoccupied crew quarters and there was no one there who needed it. Spock also observes that the M-5 is drawing more power than before, to which Daystrom simply responds that the M-5 requires more power. Kirk again challenges Daystrom that the M-5 can only process information given to it; it cannot make value judgements. Daystrom dismisses this and describes the M-5 as "a whole new approach" to logic systems.

The arrival of an unidentified vessel cuts off the conversation and brings Kirk and Spock to the bridge. Dr. McCoy is already there, since sickbay was also shut down by the M-5. The Enterprise is approached by two ships, the Lexington and USS Excalibur . They engage in an unscheduled wargames drill, and the M-5 responds swiftly to simulated attacks, hitting back the "enemy" ships and maneuvering more quickly than it would have were a Human in command. Kirk tries to be gracious towards the computer's ability, telling Spock that such applications might be practical, but Spock tells Kirk that although true, such a thing as a computer running a starship would be undesirable. He goes on to explain that a key attribute of Human command is loyalty, loyalty to one man, and that this should never change. Captain Kirk, whose ego has been somewhat beaten up by all that has been going on recently, appreciates the comment. Meanwhile, the M-5 is seen to be drawing increasing amounts of power. Wesley communicates back, awarding the test to the M-5 and jokingly calling Kirk a " Dunsel ."

Dismayed by this, Kirk goes to his quarters to contemplate the increasingly successful M-5. McCoy arrives with a Finagle's Folly . McCoy tells Kirk that Daystrom may be attempting to recapture the “past glory” of winning the Nobel Prize and Zee-Magnees Prize at an early age. Kirk states that Albert Einstein , Kazanga , and Sitar did not produce “assembly line” genius innovations and that Daystrom is seeking to contribute another technological advancement to society. McCoy responds that Daystrom’s obession with Multitronics can be seen with his rejection of the M-1 through M-4 multitronic units . The M-5 represents Daystrom’s need to prove his superiority to himself. Their conversation is cut off, as the Enterprise 's sensors detect a slow-moving ship. It is the automated ore freighter Woden , and not a drill this time. M-5 abruptly changes the Enterprise 's course to intercept the ship, speeding up to warp 3. It then engages the ship with photon torpedoes , destroying it, even though it presented absolutely no threat to the Enterprise , and then resumes its prior course. Captain Kirk tries to disengage the M-5 in the process, but neither he, Sulu, nor Scott are able to regain manual control of the ship. Dr. Daystrom still tries to make excuses and explanations for this, but there is clearly something very wrong. Kirk, Spock, and Scott go to engineering and Kirk tries to approach the M-5 to shut it off, only to be knocked back by a force field , learning that the M-5 unit will protect itself as well.

Act Three [ ]

Kirk is infuriated now. He demands Daystrom shut off the unit, but Daystrom insists that he be allowed to first correct. Kirk has Scott attempt again to cut its power, but when Ensign Harper , working with a trident scanner , moves in to cut the power, the M-5 makes a direct connection to the warp engines using a power beam of its own devising. As it does so, Harper is caught in the beam and vaporized. Shocked and enraged, Kirk berates Daystrom for being unable and unwilling to deactivate the M-5. Daystrom continues to excuse the M-5's behavior, insisting that Harper "…simply got in the way", and that his death was not a deliberate act. Kirk snaps back at Daystrom: " How long will it be before all of us simply 'get in the way'? ".

In the briefing room, the senior staff collaborate on a plan to gain back control by focusing on a certain relay unit between the M-5 and the bridge . McCoy goes to Daystrom to convince him to shut off the M-5. Daystrom, on the other hand, defends the M-5, saying it's learning, and further, that the advance the M-5 represents would liberate man from hazardous duties, saving life. McCoy notes later to Kirk that Daystrom reacts toward the computer as a father would to his child. Even if the child went anti-social and killed a person, a father would protect the child.

Kirk and Daystrom observe Spock and Scott attempt to gain control, but Sulu and Chekov report it is unsuccessful. They realize that M-5 had rerouted the controls while leaving the relay they were working on live as a decoy. Spock notes the illogical behavior of the M-5 unit. Daystrom explains that he impressed Human "engrams" onto the circuits. " The relays are not unlike the synapses in the brain, " Daystrom explains to Captain Kirk. " M-5 thinks, captain. "

Uhura reports the four Federation ships as part of the scheduled war exercise, but now Kirk fears the M-5 will not treat it as a drill.

Act Four [ ]

The Excalibur attacked

As the war games exercise begins, M-5 has prevented all communication. The Lexington , Excalibur , USS Hood and USS Potemkin are approaching. Daystrom assures that the M-5 will treat it as a drill, but then the M-5 attacks the Lexington and Excalibur with all weapons at full power, crippling the Excalibur and killing its entire crew in the process. Despite knowing that M-5 would have full tactical and functional control of the Enterprise , Commodore Wesley blames Kirk for the attack. When Wesley cannot raise the Enterprise by radio , he requests approval from Starfleet Command to destroy her.

Now that the M-5 has committed murder, Kirk confronts Daystrom, convincing him that the M-5 is doing more than originally designed. He demands that Daystrom attempt to reason with the M-5, and Daystrom admits it was his own engrams that he imprinted on the machine. However, he goes mad in the effort, realizing his reputation is at stake. In his delirium , Daystrom violently lashes out at Kirk, but is subdued by a Vulcan nerve pinch from Spock.

Daystrom attempts to stop the M-5

McCoy hauls Daystrom off to sickbay, and Spock notes the self-preservation that the M-5 is displaying is probably a consequence of Daystrom's engram imprinting.

Hearing that Starfleet has agreed that Wesley can destroy the Enterprise , Kirk himself speaks to the computer, trying to make it recognize its responsibility in the deaths of hundreds of people as there are no more life readings on the Excalibur , and reminding it of the penalty for murder . Feeling Daystrom's regret over the deaths, the M-5's computerized voice is tinged with sadness as it announces "This unit must die." It then shuts down , dropping the deflector shields and leaving itself open to attack to atone for its crime. Spock and Scott then disconnect the computer from ship's control. With communications not quite restored, Kirk orders that the shields be kept down, gambling that Wesley will be both compassionate and cautious, and break off the battle. Sure enough, Wesley does so, much to the crew's relief.

Dr. Daystrom, meanwhile, is cared for in sickbay under sedation and heavy restraint to await transfer to a total rehabilitation facility , under McCoy's recommendation. Kirk orders that Sulu plot a return course to Starbase 6. Sulu does so, and the Enterprise heads off through space.

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), 2268

Memorable quotes [ ]

" There are certain things men must do to remain men. "

" Did you see the love light in Spock's eyes? The right computer finally came along. "

" Only a fool would stand in the way of progress. "

" We're all sorry for the other guy when he loses his job to a machine. When it comes to your job, that's different. And it always will be different. "

" Computers make excellent and efficient servants, but I have no wish to serve under them. Captain, the starship also runs on loyalty to one man. And nothing can replace it, or him. "

" Our compliments to the M-5 unit, and regards to Captain Dunsel . Wesley out. "

" To Captain Dunsel. " " To James T. Kirk, captain of the Enterprise . "

" All I ask is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by. "

" Fantastic machine, the M-5. No 'off' switch. "

" Come along, Dr. Daystrom. M-5 is out of a job. "

" You are great...I am great! "

" I would say, Captain, that M-5 is not only capable of taking care of this ship, it is also capable of taking care of itself. " " You mean it's not going to let any of us turn it off? "

" Please, Spock, do me a favor and don't say it's fascinating. " " No. But it is … interesting. "

" You don't shut a child off when it makes a mistake. M-5 is growing, learning. " " Learning to kill. " " To defend itself. It's quite a different thing. "

" Men no longer need die in space or on some alien world! Men can live and go on to achieve greater things than fact-finding and dying for galactic space, which is neither ours to give or to take! "

" Genius doesn't work on an assembly line basis. "

" You can't simply say, 'Today I will be brilliant'. "

" It appears, Captain, we've been doing what used to be called pursuing a wild goose. "

" Commodore Wesley is a dedicated commander. I should regret serving aboard the instrument of his death. "

" Murder is contrary to the laws of man and God. "

" Compassion. That's the one thing no machine ever had. Maybe it's the one thing that keeps men ahead of them. "

" I simply maintain that computers are more efficient than Human beings, not better. " " But which do you prefer to have around, Mr. Spock?" " …I believe I have already answered that question, Doctor."

" It would be most interesting to impress your memory engrams on a computer, Doctor. The resulting torrential flood of illogic would be most entertaining. "

Background information [ ]

Production timeline [ ].

• "Spec" teleplay by Laurence N. Wolfe : 13 October 1967
• Revised first draft teleplay: 9 November 1967
• First draft teleplay by D.C. Fontana : 1 December 1967 , 2 December 1967 , 3 December 1967 , 4 December 1967
• Revised first draft: 5 December 1967
• Second revised first draft: 6 December 1967
• Additional page revisions by John Meredyth Lucas : 11 December 1967 , 13 December 1967
• Day 1 – 7 December 1967 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge
• Day 2 – 8 December 1967 , Friday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge
• Day 3 – 11 December 1967 , Monday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge
• Day 4 – 12 December 1967 , Tuesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge , Transporter room , Briefing room
• Day 5 – 13 December 1967 , Wednesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Sickbay , Corridors , Turbolift , Jefferies tube
• Day 6 – 14 December 1967 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Engineering
• Original airdate: 8 March 1968
• Rerun airdate: 28 June 1968
• First UK airdate (on BBC1 ): 7 October 1970
• First UK airdate (on ITV ): 13 February 1983
• Remastered airdate: 9 February 2008

Story and production [ ]

• Mathematician Laurence N. Wolfe wrote the original story for this episode, which was based on his fascination with computers. However, it emphasized the M-5 unit and its creator, Dr. Daystrom , and barely featured the Enterprise crew. It was heavily rewritten by D.C. Fontana , who focused the storyline around Kirk's fear of being replaced by a machine. [1]
• This episode was a social commentary on the American job losses caused by increased mechanization during the 1960s. ( Star Trek Compendium , p. 99)
• Producer John Meredyth Lucas bought Wolfe's unsolicited teleplay because it could be made fast and cheap, using only the existing Enterprise sets, and decided to direct the episode himself. ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season Two )
• The evocative music by George Duning , composed for " Metamorphosis ", was re-used when Kirk romanticizes about sailing on a tall ship.

Cast and characters [ ]

• Barry Russo , who played Commodore Wesley in this episode, had previously portrayed Commander Giotto in " The Devil in the Dark ".
• Sean Morgan , who portrayed the redshirt Harper in this episode, also played Brenner in " Balance of Terror " and O'Neil in " The Return of the Archons " and " The Tholian Web ".
• James Doohan provided the voices of the M-5 computer and the unseen Commodore Enwright .
• Fifteen of the twenty crew members who stay aboard the Enterprise during the M-5 exercise include Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scott, Sulu, Chekov, Uhura, Harper, Phillips , Rawlins , Carstairs , Brent , Hadley , and Leslie (the two security guards who escort Daystrom from the bridge), and an unnamed nurse who appeared by Daystrom's bedside in sickbay.

Sets and props [ ]

• Commodore Wesley's high-backed command chair is the same one used as the ISS Enterprise 's command chair in " Mirror, Mirror ".
• The scanning device which Daystrom used to analyze the M-5 previously appeared in " A Private Little War ", " Return to Tomorrow ", and " Journey to Babel ", and will later be used by Spock to track down Gary Seven in " Assignment: Earth ". It is one of three similar scanner props used throughout the series, the other two being McCoy's medical scanner along with one first used by Joe Tormolen on the surface of Psi 2000 in " The Naked Time ".
• A close-up of the three scanning heads on the trident scanner in this episode reveal them to be re-used tips from the disruptor weapons from " A Taste of Armageddon ".
• This is the only episode in which Spock's library computer spits out a tape—in this case, M-5's readout of Alpha Carinae II and landing party recommendations.

Continuity [ ]

• This is the second time Kirk tells McCoy he would like to be on a long sea voyage. The first time happened in " Balance of Terror ".
• Kirk recites the poem "Sea-Fever". He recites it again in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier . Quark paraphrases it in " Little Green Men " and it appears on the USS Defiant 's dedication plaque .
• Spock mentions that there is nothing in 23rd century computer technology to replace a starship 's medical officer . By the 24th century , Federation starships are equipped with Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH) technology, though that is designed as a supplement, not a full replacement. Nevertheless, The Doctor is able to function in place of a medical staff on USS Voyager .
• Spock describes M-5's diversionary tactics as "pursuing a wild goose". In " The Gamesters of Triskelion ", after McCoy calls Spock's search for Kirk, Uhura, and Chekov a "wild goose chase", Spock retorts that he was not chasing " some wild aquatic fowl ". In The Next Generation , Data uses a similar phrase, "chasing an untamed ornithoid without cause". ( TNG : " Data's Day ")
• In " The Menagerie, Part I " and " The Menagerie, Part II ", General Order 7 was the only exception of Starfleet General Orders to include the death penalty . M-5 states that the penalty for murder is also death. However, its remark that murder was " contrary to the laws of man and God " suggests that it might be referring to its – and perhaps Daystrom's – interpretation of what the punishment for murder should be, rather than Federation law.
• This is the fourth time Kirk " talks a computer to death ". He used this skill in " The Changeling ", " The Return of the Archons ", and " I, Mudd ".
• Alpha Carinae , whose second planet was scheduled for exploration by the scientific survey party , is better known as Canopus .

Remastered information [ ]

• The remastered version replaced the stock footage used in this episode. The space station , now named Starbase 6 , used images of Deep Space Station K-7 from " The Trouble with Tribbles " in the original broadcast. In the remastered version, it was remodeled to look like Starbase 47 , as seen in the Star Trek: Vanguard series of novels . The Woden , which used footage of the SS Botany Bay from " Space Seed ", was redesigned as an Antares -type vessel. The crippled USS Excalibur , which reused footage of the USS Constellation from " The Doomsday Machine ", and the space battle were redesigned with new computer-generated images.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original US Betamax release: 1986
• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 28 , catalog number VHR 2380, 6 August 1990
• US VHS release: 15 April 1994
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 2.8, 21 July 1997
• Original US DVD release (single-disc): Volume 27, 10 July 2001
• As part of the TOS Season 2 DVD collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• William Shatner as Capt. Kirk

Also starring [ ]

• Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
• DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy

Guest stars [ ]

• William Marshall as Daystrom
• James Doohan as Scott
• George Takei as Sulu
• Nichelle Nichols as Uhura

Featuring [ ]

• Walter Koenig as Chekov
• Sean Morgan as Harper
• Barry Russo as Wesley

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• William Blackburn as Hadley
• Frank da Vinci as Brent
• Enwright (voice)
• M-5 multitronic unit (voice)
• Roger Holloway as Roger Lemli
• Eddie Paskey as Leslie
• Lexington science officer
• Lexington operations lieutenant
• Lexington command lieutenant
• Lexington sciences crew woman

References [ ]

20th century ; 2219 ; 2243 ; A-7 computer expert ; accident ; achievement ; alien world ; Alpha Carinae II ; Alpha Carinae II native ; analysis ; answer ; Antares -type ; antisocial ; area ; argument ; article ; assembly line ; astrobiologist ; atmosphere ; " at odds with the ship "; atonement ; attack force (aka battle force ); audio signal ; automatic distress ; automatic helm navigation circuit relay ; automation ; auto relay ; awareness ; back ; bearing ; " behind my back "; biographical tape ; " Bones "; bow ; boy wonder ; brain ; career ; Carstairs ; casualty ; categorization ; chance ; chicken soup ; chief geologist ; child ; choice ; chronological age ; circuits ; circuit disrupter ; class M ; clearance ; colleague ; commander ; compassion ; compliments ; comptronic ; computer ; computer circuit ; computer complex ; computer control panel ; computer evolution ; computer programming ; computer science ; Constitution -class decks ; contact ; control mechanism ; conversation ; course ; damage ; damage report ; danger ; day ; Daystrom's colleagues ; death ; death penalty ; death warrant ; deflector screen ; deflector shield ; demonstration ; device ; dinosaur ; distance ; doctor ; drill ; dunsel ; duotronics ; Earth ; eating ; Einstein, Albert ; engineering station ; engram ; environmental control ; estimated time of arrival (ETA); estimate ; evaluation ; Excalibur , USS ; Excalibur first officer ; experience ; explanation ; eye ; fact ; father ; Federation ; Federation government ; Finagle's Folly ; fire control ; flood ; fool ; force field ; fox ; freedom ; freighter ; frequency ; G95 system ; gadget ; general quarters ; general survey party (aka survey party ); genius ; geologist ; geology survey ; glory ; goose ; guilt ; guilty ; H279 element ; Harris ; Hood , USS ; hour ; Human (aka Humanity ); Human body ; hunt ; idea ; identification ; impression ; impulse engine ; information ; insanity ; instantaneous relay ; instruction ; intership communications ; intuition ; island ; job (aka occupation ); Kazanga ; kilometer ; knowledge ; landing party ; land mass ; law ; lead ship ; learning ; lecture ; Lexington , USS ; light ; lifeform ; life support ; line ; living quarters ; location ; logic ; loyalty ; M-1 multitronic unit ; M-4 multitronic unit ; M-5 drill ; M-5 multitronic unit ; machine ; main power plant (aka main power bank ); malfunction ; manual override ; matter-antimatter reserve ; mechanization ; memory banks ; Merchant Marine ; message ; midshipman ; million ; mind ; mining company ; minute ; mirror image ; mission ; mistake ; multitronics ; murder ; murder charge ; navigator ; nervous breakdown ; nitrogen ; Nobel Prize ; non-essential personnel ; off switch ; order ; ore ; ore freighter (aka ore ship ); Orion ; oxygen ; parallel course ; patient ; performance ; permission ; personality ; personification ; phaser ; phaser power ; phaser range ; Phillips ; Phillips' survey planets ; photon torpedo ; poem ; port ; Potemkin , USS ; potential ; power ; power level ; prescription ; prestige ; primary system ; priority message ; programming ; progress ; psychological profile ; quantity ; question ; Rawlins ; readout ; red alert ; regret ; rehabilitation center ; relay ; rendezvous point ; research ; resignation ; risk ; robot ; robot ship ; Sakar ; science officer ; sea ; " Sea-Fever "; security holding area ; sedation ; seminar ; senior medical officer ; sensor ; servant ; shakedown ; ship ; sickbay system ; sin ; Sitar ; size ; skeleton crew ; solution ; sound ; space station ; space (aka galactic space ); space technology ; speed ; standard orbit ; star ; Starbase 6 ; Starfleet Academy ; Starfleet Command ; Starfleet Registry ; starship surgeon ; stern ; suicide ; surface ; surprise attack ; switch ; synapse ; tall ship ; tampering ; term ; theory ; thing ; thousand ; tour of duty ; toy ; transporter room ; trap ; understatement ; value judgment ; visual contact ; visual range ; Vulcan (planet) ; Vulcan neck pinch ; war games problem ; warp drive ; warp engine ; water ; weapon ; " what the devil "; " who the blazes "; " wide berth "; wind ; " with their eyes closed "; Woden ; year ; Zee-Magnees Prize

External links [ ]

• "The Ultimate Computer" at StarTrek.com
• " The Ultimate Computer " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " The Ultimate Computer " at Wikipedia
• " The Ultimate Computer " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• 3 Ancient humanoid