(Also available from Starland mirror site)
First, some comments from previous columns . . .
Scott Vogt, Cedar Rapids, IA: Yes, there are many methods of time travel. SF is aware of some, but not others. It is SF that would keep any method it knows about secret. I, on the other hand, know it does not matter who can time travel because it is irrelevant. According to "Parallels", EVERY decision made causes a separate quantum reality to come into existence. From the kind of cake to serve, to where we hang a picture. So imagine all the realities that, from our point of view, would be virtually identicle to our own because of decisions made billions of light years away in distant galaxies. So, obviously, any "past" we visit is not our own but the past of the new reality that began when we arrived there. So OUR past cannot be changed, no matter who goes back. So, if the past you travel to is not your own, you can't return to your future either. You travel to the future of the new reality you're in. Which, in Star Trek's case, they view as a timeline they "fixed". But they did not fix it, they just merely allowed it to unfold almost the same as their original. Sisko is now "Gabriel Bell", he now has met Kirk in the past, etc.. Now in the last movie the Enterprise-E was caught in the Borg's wake and pulled "sideways" to the future where the Borg have assimilated the Earth. They went back and then created a 3rd timeline in which the Borg were defeated. The timeline where they assimilate Earth still exists out there somewhere. So all time travel stories are irrelevant!! Time is not irrational Phil. I just figure no one at SF is buying Worf's story. "First, the Klingon says he's responsible for saving all of these realities from converging together. Then it's Picard saying he saved all of humanity from some anomaly with Q's help. And no one else remembers! Are you sure that's synthehol in 10-Forward?"
Phil: Well . . . there ya go!
JC Fernandez: The back of the laser-disc jacket for Star Trek 6 refers to Kirk as an admiral (when, in fact, he's only a captain). Always thought it was a fun mistake.
Brian Lombard: In regards to Cory Hines question about the Changelings on Voyager, I don't think it'll ever happen. The reason I say this is because as an aspiring writer, I wrote a script for Voyager in which a Changeling had infiltrated the crew. I spent the better part of six months writing it, had some professionals read it over and over, and even sent it through a friend of mine who works at Paramount. And they still didn't buy it. That's not to say they won't ever do a Changeling story, just not mine!
Murray Leeder: The wormhole in "The Eye of the Needle" only went 20 years back. (AND THERE'S ANOTHER METHOD OF TIME TRAVEL!!!!)
Phil: Oops. Sorry I should have looked it up but I ran out of time.
Scott Vogt: I saw a question regarding whether or not a message was sent by Voyager after becoming stranded. Of course they would. The question is how long would that take. I don't know how fast subspace communications travel, but I believe it's many times faster than warp 9.999, right? So how about it Phil, when should SF hear Janeway's initial report?
Also, on this same subject, it's too bad no one knew or remembered Data's head was in San Francisco when Voyager went back to 1996. They could have programmed him to tell SF that they were still alive AFTER they got lost so at least their relatives would know they were out there. A parting thought: If Braxton had to take them back to the DQ because of a temporal Prime Directive, did he have the right to even return them to the 24th Century?
Phil: Great idea with Data's head! As to the length of time for the subspace message to get to the Alpha Quadrant, the Tech Manual says that subspace messages propagate under ideal situations at Warp 9.9997. (Page 99) However, this is an addition problem. The Tech Manual also states that the signal dies at about twenty light years. Accordingly, Starfleet has littered relay beacons throughout the Federation. Since Voyager is 70,000 light years from the Alpha Quadrant it seems unlikely that anyone will receive the message. (Of course, this doesn't explain why Data would think that--after the first test in "Where No One Has Gone Before"--he thought their subspace message would take fifty some odd years to reach Starfleet. Sounds like the Enterprise was farther than twenty light-years from the nearest beacon!)
Eddie Marshall of Hampshire, UK: According to a "collectable" weekly magazine series in the UK called the "Star Trek: Fact Files" which is officially endorsed by Paramount, the united federation of planets and starfleet are indeed established on Earth in 2161.
Eddie Marshall of Hampshire, UK: Star Trek : TOS Stardates (this will soon be available from my website soon - www.trekman.demon.co.uk - but you can have this just in case you want to print it)
"The Cage" Stardate * UNKNOWN *
"Where No Man Has Gone Before" Stardate 1312.4
"The Corbormite Maneuver" Stardate 1512.2
"Mudds Women" Stardate 1329.1
"The Enemy Within" Stardate 1672.1
"The Man Trap" Stardate 1513.1
"The Naked Time" Stardate 1704.2
"Balance Of Terror" Stardate 1709.1
"Charlie X" Stardate 1533.6
"What Are Little Girls Made Of ?" Stardate 2712.4
"Dagger Of The Mind" Stardate 2715.1
"Miri" Stardate 2713.5
"The Conscience Of The King" Stardate 2817.6
"The Galileo Seven" Stardate 2821.5
"Court-Martial" Stardate 2947.3
"The Menagerie, Part 1 " Stardate 3012.4
"The Menagerie, Part 2" Stardate 3012.4
"Shore Leave" Stardate 3025.3
"The Squire Of Gothos" Stardate 2124.5
"Arena" Stardate 3045.6
"The Alternative Factor" Stardate 3087.6
"Tommorow Is Yesterday" Stardate 3113.2
"The Return Of The Archons" Stardate 3156.2
"A Taste Of Armageddon" Stardate 3192.1
"Space Seed" Stardate 3141.9
"This Side Of Paradise" Stardate 3417.3
"The Devil In The Dark" Stardate 3196.1
"Errand Of Mercy" Stardate 3198.4
"The City On The Edge Of Forever" Stardate 3134.0
"Operation: Annihalate!" Stardate 3287.2
"Catspaw" Stardate 3018.2
"Metamorphosis" Stardate 3219.4
"Fridays Child" Stardate 3497.2
"Who Mourns For Adonais ?" Stardate 3468.1
"Amok Time" Stardate 3372.7
"The Doomsday Machine" Stardate 4202.9
"Wolf In The Fold" Stardate 3614.9
"The Changeling" Stardate 3541.9
"The Apple" Stardate 3715.0
"Mirror,mirror" Stardate * UNKNOWN *
"The Deadly Years" Stardate 3478.2
"I,Mudd" Stardate 4513.3
"The Trouble With Tribbles" Stardate 4523.3
"Bread & Circuses" Stardate 4040.7
"Journey To Babel" Stardate 3842.3
"A Private Little War" Stardate 4211.4
"The Gamesters Of Triskelion" Stardate 3211.7
"Obsession" Stardate 3619.2
"The Immunity Syndrome" Stardate 4307.1
"A Piece Of The Action" Stardate 4598.0
"By Any Other Name" Stardate 4657.5
"Return To Tommorow" Stardate 4768.3
"Patterns Of Force" Stardate 2534.0
"The Ultimate Computer" Stardate 4729.4
"The Omega Glory" Stardate * UNKNOWN *
"Assignment:Earth" Stardate * UNKNOWN / 1968 *
"Spectre Of The Gun" Stardate 4385.3
"Elaan Of Troyus" Stardate 4372.5
"The Paradise Syndrome" Stardate 4842.6
"The Enterprise Incident" Stardate 5027.3
"And The Children Shall Lead" Stardate 5029.5
"Spock's Brain" Stardate 5431.4
"Is There In Truth No Beauty?" Stardate 5630.7
"The Empath" Stardate 5121.5
"The Tholian Web" Stardate 5693.2
"For The World Is Hollow And I Have Touched The Sky" Stardate 5476.3
"Day Of The Dove" Stardate * UNKNOWN *
"Plato's Stepchildren" Stardate 5784.2
"Wink Of An Eye" Stardate 5710.5
"That Which Survives" Stardate * UNKNOWN *
"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" Stardate 5730.2
"Whom Gods Destroy" Stardate 5718.3
"The Mark Of Gideon" Stardate 5423.4
"The Lights Of Zetar" Stardate 5725.3
"The Cloud Minders" Stardate 5818.4
"The Way To Eden" Stardate 5832.3
"Requiem For Methuselah" Stardate 5843.7
"The Savage Curtain" Stardate 5906.4
"All Our Yesterdays" Stardate 5943.7
"Turnabout Intruder" Stardate 5928.5
Phil: I was going to double-check this list but I'm short on time and it's not in airdate order but star date order so . . . there it is!
Eric Brasure: About DS9's ratings being so bad... well, they're not! For the week of May 5-11, DS9 was 9th for syndicated programming (Entertainment Weekly, June 6). That's hardly bad. Of course, to really see how well the show is doing, we'll have to wait for the end-of-year numbers.
Phil: "Bad" is a relative term. You will notice that I didn't use it last week. The problem is that all the bean counters will constantly compare DS9 to NextGen. In its hey-day, NextGen was running head-to-head with prime-time, network shows! That is an incredible statement! Here you had this little syndicated program that was showing at different times all over the country and it was pulling the kind of ratings that the top shows do when they play at virtually the same time! In addition, DS9 is an expensive show to create. You have to have a certain level of ratings to support it. And some of you might remember when DS9 was the top rated syndicated drama in TV land. From what I understand, it now competes with the like of Hercules and Xena: Warrior Princess. (Please understand: I LIKE THE SHOW. I'm for the the show. I would like to see it skyrocket in the rating but the numbers are the numbers . . . unfortunately.)
Joshua Truax: Regarding Kelly's wonderment about DS9's disappointingly low ratings: In your comments on this subject you overlooked probably the single greatest factor holding DS9 (and for that matter, Voyager) ratings down, something TNG never had to contend with - increased competition for sci-fi viewership. To put it succinctly, Star Trek became a victim of its own success.
In its first few seasons, Paramount had a virtual monopoly on the sci-fi TV market with TNG. That, combined with its high quality, made TNG the most successful first-run-syndicated dramatic TV series of all time. By the time DS9 started, however, other studios decided they wanted a piece of the sci-fi pie, and so a host of new sci-fi programs hit the airwaves at about the same time. The X-Files is probably the most successful of these shows, but a better example of what I'm talking about is probably Babylon 5.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but it's my understanding that the B5 series concept was first pitched to - and rejected by - Universal Studios way back in 1989. I don't know what went on in the next three years, but presumably B5's creators kept the concept alive and tweaked it from time to time. Only when DS9's impending launch was announced in 1992 did Universal finally decide to pick up B5, hoping to ride on the coattails of TNG and DS9. (They must have really rushed B5 into production too, because I thought everything I've seen from its first season, including the two-hour premiere, was *really* bad! Therefore I decided to keep myself devoted to Trek only, and never really got into B5; although even I must admit that what I've seen of B5 more recently is *much* better than in its early years.)
B5 and the X-Files are the only non-Trek sci-fi shows I can think of that have stuck around since then, but they and their own rabid followings have taken huge slices out of the sci-fi TV pie that used to be all Star Trek's own, only for the simple reason that there used to be no other challengers. It's a shame, too, because to me DS9 is the best of the four Star Trek series! (TNG's a close second. Voyager's not quite at that level yet, but it's definitely getting there... and, of course, we can't forget about the series that started it all, even though many of us can't identify with it as well as we do the three "modern" series.) I also have a strong opinion about a bold new direction DS9 should take after its TV run is over, as an alternative to movies (can anyone at Viacom Paramount say "miniseries"?), but I'll save that for another day...
Phil: Before I address the "Zero-Sum" theory let me throw out what little I've heard about the beginnings of Babylon 5. I do not know this for certain because I've never talked with J. Michael Strazinski personally but I heard from a friend who I consider fairly accurate that JMS actually pitched B5 to the Trek producers as a spin off series. Supposedly, JMS had an extended meeting with them in which he went through all the particular and answered a slew of creative-specific questions dealing with various difficulties in producing a television series based on a space station. I'm told that the producers at Trek then declined to do B5 and a few months later announced plans for DS9! Now--as always in Hollywood--everyone denies that anyone took anyone else's ideas but . . . who knows!
With regards to B5's poor quality in the beginning, I would remind everyone that it was a totally new universe and it did take some time to get rolling. However, with B5, it is apparent from the very start that JMS had done a *TON* of homework. When Jeanne Cavelos was writing her B5 novel I dubbed off some tapes for her and I was *AMAZED* at all the little hints and foreshadowing in those early shows. JMS really did know where the series was going before the first episode was made and I feel that he has accomplished something profoundly new by creating a new story-telling format--that of the extended gonzo-plot-arc television series. My personally belief is that once B5 goes to strip syndication and episodes are airing every day, it's numbers will swell.
Okay, on to the theory that DS9 and Voyager suffer from increase competition in sci-fi viewership. This theory assumes that fans can only be fans of one show at a time. I simply don't think that's true. Just because I watch B5, it doesn't mean I'm not going to watch DS9. If both shows are well-written and engaging and creative, I'll watch both! Since the shows don't play directly against each other (at least in my market), it's not a problem!
To me, saying that DS9 lacks n the ratings because there are so many other shows out there smacks of a convenient excuse to cover what may be the real problem. It's true that a lot of sci-fi shows have come and gone in the past few years and in all that noise it's tough to get viewers on-board with something new (mainly because viewer are constantly comparing the new series to the other series that are out there and assessing it's quality.) However, it *is* possible to go from zero to sixty in an amazingly short amount of time. The X-Files obviously did it! They had no where near the kind of funding that DS9 had. They started up in a difficult genre for television, in a crowded field of contenders and within a very short time, they were climbing in the ratings and haven't stopped! I would like to think it was because of their interesting characterizations, engaging plots and witty dialogue but who really knows for sure!
(Actually, I have a little theory that space shows have become a bit passe with the general populace. I think people are swinging back around and are more interested these days in hearing sci-fi stories that are set on or near Earth. But that's just an opinion!)
Paul Steele of Springfield, VA: I disagree with some of your opinions relating to why DS9 is lower on the ratings than STV.
Let's not forget the major difference between the shows. DS9 is syndicated. STV is a network program. As such, STV appears in the same time slot throughout the country on the UPN network. It also enjoys the luxury of network advertising. Here in the Washington DC area, both DS9 reruns of STNG were shown on the ABC affiliate as well as on what was an independent station but later affiliated with the new UPN network. Once UPN came on board with STV, the other stations affiliated with other networks dropped their syndicated Star Trek shows. I assume it was because they felt that to present the shows would benefit the whole Paramount/UPN/Star Trek franchise.
Therefore, I feel that there may be a statistical error. Neilson families may not all have access to DS9, and/or it conflicts with different shows in different markets. Whereas STV would compete against the same network shows regardless of the market/Neilson family location.
STNG was always complimented on how well it did as a syndicated show. Poor DS9 gets compared to its network sister. No Star Trek fan I know likes STV more than DS9. And if we had to choose, we would rather loose STV than DS9!
Phil: Wait, wait, wait! ;-) I don't think I said that Voyager is doing better in the ratings that DS9. It's ratings are pretty lackluster as well! Now, as far as UPN goes, I personally would have been a lot happier if Voyager had just been syndicate instead of made the flagship for the ill-conceived (in my opinion) United Paramount Network (or as one nitpicker put it UPN: Uninteresting Progams for the Nineties.) It is true that the UPN thing made some station managers mad and they did bad things to DS9 as a result but that's the broadcast business for you.
One final thing, I certainly am not one to champaign for the accuracy of Neilson ratings. I've often scratched my head over what Neilson claims the viewing public wants to see. However, it is my understanding that there are formulas that are used for first-run syndicated programs to account to the unique problems involved. (Has anyone started an Internet-based ratings survey system? Seems like a natural. And . . . you would get the preferences of a somewhat more intelligent level of viewer. After all, you have to have at least a basic level of understanding to use email!)
Murray Leeder: The Klingon flagship is called the Negh'vah, but I don't believe a class name has been given... all though the resin model kit just calls it "Nega'vah Class".
Chris Lund: The Star Trek Customizable Card Game calls the ships Voodeah class. The Ship's name is the I.K.C. Fek'lhr named after the Klingon Devil.
Matthew Chiappardi of Hamilton, NJ: Actually an answer from the anonymous questioneer who asked what was being played in Picard's ready room in "First Contact", I haven't seen this film since its theatrical release, but I remember Picard identifying it as Beriloz. Hope this helps.
Jason Barnes: In regard to Murray Leeder's question of which original Trek episode had Kirk correct himself in giving a stardate, I don't think there is one and I cannot recall him ever doing that. The closest I can think of is ST:TMP where he corrects how he wants Decker and Ilia listed in the logs.
Stephen Mendenhall: Murray Leeder wondered about an episode where Kirk corrects himself in a log. Well, in "Shore-Leave" he's tired and hesitant. He says, "Stardate three oh two five, uh, point three." Maybe that's the one.
Scott Vogt, Cedar Rapids, IA: I think Kirk might've corrected himself in "The Deadly Years". You know, the one where he was getting old and they stripped him of command.
Phil: Sorry, no time to check but "The Deadly Years" sounds like a good candidate!
On to the questions . . . .
Jim Ferris: Did I miss something, or did this season of DS9 end without a big bang/cliff-hanger-season finale? The last new episode (the O'brien one) didn't really have much punch to it...are we left to drift until September?
Phil: "In The Card" aired this week and the season finale for DS9 will air next week and it certainly looks like the season will end with a BANG!
Murray Leeder: In this episode, Kai Winn states that during the occupation she was forbidden from practicing her religion. Is this consistent? I remember that Legate Ghemor was part of an operation in destroying a monestary, a monstary, mind you, that was hiding weapons. Not because they worshipped the profits. Vedek Bariel was spending time at another monestary when the Kendra Massacre happened. Did the Cardassians not know about that one? Or... maybe the Cardies just had a thing against Winn!
Phil: Hmmm. I think you've got a nit there!
Jason Barnes: I was wondering, how do you feel about the same actor having different parts in different episodes. As Nitpickers, this has to be a real treat. For example, Nurse Chapel and Number one from "The Cage" are the same. That's not too bad but there is another bad one. The person who played Admiral Jarok is also the Bajorian doctor who discovered Odo and the older Alexander in another Next Gen episode and it's quite obvious it's the same person (No getting around THAT voice.) Personally, I think it's sad that they aren't giving other actors these parts and just reusing the same one (besides the main ones that is). What's your opinion Chief?
Phil: Well . . . since I have never met two unrelated people in my life who looked identical, I consider it odd! As to why it's done, it does make financial sense. An actor who has worked for Star Trek before is a known quantity. Those guest actors who come in and get the job done with a minimum of attitude obviously are going to be considered for additional role. It's amazing how many actors are reused for The X-Files. In fact, I have a sidebar called Serial Ovotypes in the X-phile Guide where I took all the credits and sorted them to pull every instance of an actor appearing more than once. I was stunned when I saw how large the list was!
Jeff Burns: Do you expect nitpickers to tape the shows they nitpick?
Phil: As far as I'm concerned nitpickers can do their nitpicking in any manner that suits them. If they want to tape episode, that's fine. If they don't or can't, that's fine too! This is supposed to be fun so I don't see that we need a lot of requirements.
Christer Nyberg: Why is the Romulan heaven or Eden called 'Vorta Vor' when the Vulcans call it 'Sha Ka Ree'? Don't they have the same religion? I know it could just be their language, but it should sound somewhat alike I think?
Phil: Perhaps the Romulans had a different religion even while on Vulcan and that was another factor that contributed to them leaving?
Matthias Roth: In STTNG:"Remember Me" Dr. Crusher is accidentially sucked into a warp bubble. When this happens, she IS NOT wearing her blue jacket. But when she jumps back to normality, she IS wearing a jacket. This means, her jacket is from another universe, from a no longer existing universe (a chep buy)! Can somebody here explain the consequences in physical and economical ways? What about creating doppelgaengers this way ;-) ?
Phil: There's whole host of applications! Make a big enough stable threshold and you could create a new Galaxy-Class starship in the blink of an eye!
Shane Tourtellotte: I recently noticed something interesting. In "The Hunted"(TNG), Roga Danar reached the rank of subahdar in his planet's military. Subahdar is a Hindu word, meaning roughly a captain in the old British colonial army recruited from the native population. Now, guess what I just learned a lieutenant was called in this army. A *Jemadar*. Look familiar? Sound familiar?
This got me wondering: what other names in Trek have been taken from human languages that the average viewer might not recognize? Romulan is easy, from the mythic founder of Rome. Maquis is slightly tougher, from the French Resistance in World War II. Surely there are lots more that I could think of, and plenty I couldn't. What can you, and my fellow nitpickers, suggest?
Phil: I am way out of time this morning but I do know that Edo ("Justice") is the name of a tribe in Africa! (That one might be conincidence, however! ;-)
NOTE: The following isn't a question but I told Richard I'd post it and see if anyone had any suggestions!
Richard N. Herren: I'm decorating my recording studio with a Next Generation Enterprise bridge motif. I have enough displays to make panel space look right, but I'm coming up short on cost-efficient methods of building the walls/storage/etc. Can you put me in contact with someone who either worked on the set design &/or has engaged in a similar project? I have all these cool blinking light contraptions, but nobody "gets it" since the room & walls don't look right.
Brian Lombard: We learned in Next Gen's final season that Dr. Crusher is a line officer, having taken her Commander's test. Since she was always a Commander, this means that she was a line officer for the entire series. My question is, how come Picard didn't assign her to command one of the vessels in the fleet he assembled in "Redemption II"? As Data mentioned, Picard didn't have enough Captains for his fleet. There certainly wasn't any medical reason to keep her aboard. What do you think?
Phil: From the looks of it, Picard doesn't trust her command ability, does he?
Jason Liu: Gotta' question for ya...A friend of mine downloaded a wav file from the net with Picard yelling, "Not good enough, d*** it! NOT GOOD ENOUGH!". Knowing I was a fanatical Trekkie and member of the Guild, he asked me what episode that line is from. Now, I remember that quote, and can even visualize Picard yelling it, but I can't, for the life of me, remember which episode it is from. Any ideas?
Phil: I believe it comes from Picard's conversation with Guinan during "Yesterday's Enterprise" as Picard is attempting to find some greater justification for sending the Enterprise-C and its crew back in time to certain destruction and death. Guinan can only provide a "feeling."
Scott Vogt, Cedar Rapids, IA: Everyone on Voyager is always whining about Neelix's cooking. Couldn't you take a plate of food to the replicator, demateriallize Neelix's stew and ask for the same amount of Spaceburger Helper or whatever you like to eat. In other words, I always thought the replicators could demateriallize things and store that energy for later. I believe I read that even the crew's waste products are converted to pure energy to be used later. So why even look for food? Just gather a bunch of rocks at every planet you visit and toss'em in the replicator. On DS9 they're always griping when someone forgets to put their dirty dishes back in the replicator. So what do you think, Phil?
Phil: I think the problem with the replicators isn't so much the raw materials as the energy required to do the converstion! ;-)
Jason Barnes: I have a quick question about First Contact. At the end, the Borg Queen is destroyed but Picard says he remembers her being on the ship that assimilated him. Does this mean that there is an independent extension of her on ALL borg ships? She tells Picard that he is thinking too three dimensional for thinking she was destroyed. I'm not sure about this but a lot of people think that the entire collective was destroyed in that movie.
Phil: Only the creators know for sure but according to "Scorpion" the Collective is alive and kicking!
Erin Hunt of High Point, NC: I was trying to place the origins of all the main TNG crew members, and it occurred to me: it's not inconceivable that a peron who's parents are Starfleet officers could be born on a ship, then trundled from ship to ship for his entire childhood, never staying on one planet long enough to call it "home". If someone asked them where they were from, what do you think they'd say? "Well, I was born on the Yamato, but when I was one we got transferred to the Nasa and..."
Phil: An interesting thought!
Have a great weekend, everybody!
If you would like to submit a question or comment, send it to: chief@nitcentral.com with "Question" in the Subject line. (Remember the legalese: Everything you submit becomes mine and you grant me the right to use your name in any future publication by me.)
Copyright 1997 by Phil Farrand. All rights reserved.