#this is my favourite thing in tng

[hadeswearsprada]

STAR TREK | TNG S1E11 Haven 1987 | Nemesis 2002

And it only took them 15 years

[yourdailyjormy]

I have been Sick today so i honestly thought I wouldn't do anything, but then I got back to watching Deep Space Nine and a stupid fic idea that has been growing for a while finally got too insistent.

[greencheekconure27]

1)4:15 a.m. seems like a good time to post this 😂

2) also, just a random thought:

If Masaka is the sun and Korgano is the moon, is Ehat a morning star?

* is from Masaka's city

* comes before Masaka; tries to escape her

* Masaka eventually overtakes and *kills* him- i.e. he *disappears* once it gets bright enough= Masaka is awake, the sun has risen

* symbol on his forehead resembles a star

* meta but has some rather trickster-ish/ rebellious characteristics, arrogant, irreverent towards the (other) Gods => "Lucifer" -inspired?

*

FYI...

MASAKA IS WAKING

[stra-tek]

This is one of the greatest things ever. Walk around every single version of the U.S.S. Enterprise in photorealistic 3D in your browser, from the Roddenberry Archive. On a phone you just see wraparound 3D pics. On a PC or laptop you get the full 3D interactive experience. They NEED to make this VR compatible, it'll be beyond words.

There are more Enterprises here than Tumblr will allow me photos of, and more will likely be added.

Here's the TOS Enterprise, which appears in several incarnations ("The Cage", "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and TOS proper as well as TAS with the second turbolift!), has the correct original graphics and is perfect.

This is the bridge from the unmade Star Trek: Phase II series (whose pilot episode "In Thy Image" was rewritten to become Star Trek: The Motion Picture), with it's legendary big comfy command sofa seat and tactical display bubble!

The Motion Picture, such an accurate recreation that there's even a very faint flicker on the rear-projection animated screens as seen in the movie.

Enterprise NX-01, looking exactly as it did in "Broken Bow"

Recognise this? It's the briefing room of Discovery season 2's version of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701. Although at the front of the saucer on the "real" ship, here it's off the second bridge door which may well be where the set was IRL.

I wasn't expecting modern Trek to be represented equally as the originals in this project, but it is. This is the Enterprise from Strange New Worlds, with Pike's Ready Room located just off the bridge.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. My favourite version of the classic bridge, as a kid I drew all these control panels and stuck them on my bedroom walls. And now I can look around and look at them all close-up! They've even replicated the noticable TVs stuffed into the panels for the more complex animated screens.

The Enterprise-C bridge from "Yesterday's Enterprise". This one has always fascinated me, being a low-budget TV set (formerly the Enterprise-D battle bridge, originally built from the rain-damaged TMP set's back wall and redressed endlessly though TNG) representing TNG's immediate predecessor. In the episode they mostly shoot the back wall and imply the consoles make a huge circle, but here you can see the set's real dimensions and the weirdness of the classic movie helm/nav console in front of the TNG con/ops panels. I love it.

You know how much I love the Kelvin movies, so seeing this was amazing. For some reason the consoles don't have their screens lit (hopefully this'll be fixed soon), but you can see the saucer under the window and it's shiny and amazing.

The last thing I expected was the U.S.S. Titan-A/Enterprise-G bridge, but it's here. And the lights are on.

Other bridges available to explore which I'm out of pictures to show: The Enterprise-D (of course), Enterprise XCV-330 (the ringship, based on concept art for the unmade non-Trek series "Starship"), the Planet of the Titans U.S.S. Enterprise (again, based on concept art for a cool multi-levelled set) and the "launch" U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 (based on the very first piece of TOS bridge set concept art), the Enterprise-E, the Enterprise-F (seen on viewscreen for all of 2 minutes in Picard) and the U.S.S. Voyager NCC-74656!

Take a bow lads, you've done good. Now just add VR support!

That link again.

[celestialvoyeur]

💛💙SPIRK FIC REC - MY FAVOURITES💙💛

As a follow up to my recent post about how few fics make it to my favourites list, and how special they are to achieve that distinction, I decided to share my current list.

I’ve shared some of these individually in the past but here you’ll have them all together. 

If you've read any of these already then I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether you loved them as much as I did! 🥰

(NB: these are not listed in any order of preference. Mostly it’s the reverse order in which I read them)

Leave No Soul Behind by whochick Words: 258,951

AOS, AU Canon-Divergence. Spock, Kirk and the other valiant members of the Emergency Personnel Ambulance Service fight to save lives and turn the tide of the ongoing war against Nero and his fleet before it’s too late. Such a beautiful slow burn for Spock and Kirk.

Atlas by distractedKat Words: 135,529

AOS. Follow on from 2009, Kirk, Spock and the rest deal with the aftermath of Nero’s attack and rebuilding after the decimation of the ‘Fleet and Academy. An exciting tale with twists and turns involving black ops, bad-mirals, action, love and fierce loyalty.

The Lotus Eaters by aldora89 Words: 93,594

AOS. Stranded on a planet together, with multiple dangers and very little hope of rescue, Jim and Spock have no choice but to rely on each other to survive. Spectacular plot, amazing world building, fabulous original character and an epic slow burn Spirk love story!

With Your Feet on the Air and Your Head on the Ground by flippyspoon Words: 39,188 @flippyspoon

SNW. A phenomenal Spirk fic in which Kirk is stuck in Spock's mind while the crew work to find a way to retrieve his body. A wonderful getting to know you/falling for you hard tale. Wonderfully written and highly entertaining.

Evolution by Rhaegal (RhaegalKS) Words: 149,293

AOS. Covering the first year of their 5 year mission, this is totally flawless. The character voices are perfection, the prose spectacular. The whole thing plays like an AOS movie. It’s phenomenal.

Emotions by LadyRa Words: 35,569

TOS. Spock gets drugged on a shore leave and is overwhelmed with its effects. Kirk tries to pick up the pieces. A beautiful, and wonderfully grounded, story of realising how much they mean to each other.

And When the Bond Breaks by LadyRa Words: 24,631

TOS. Spock takes out a shuttle to investigate an anomaly and returns to an Enterprise that’s not his own. Time travel shenanigans with such emotional depth that it will traumatise you in the best way. Stunningly good!

All Our Tomorrows Come Today by flippyspoon Words: 18,156 @flippyspoon

SNW. A newly introduced Jim and Spock accidentally get a glimpse into the future and see what they’re going to be to each other (a.k.a. Spirk’s Greatest Hits). A stunningly told story about finding the great love of your life. 

I Won't Make That Mistake Again by Moreta1848 Words: 69,402 @jennelikejennay

SNW/TOS. An epic story detailing Spock and Kirk’s love throughout their lives, beginning from their meeting on Pike’s Enterprise (SNW) and continuing on to an eventual  Generations fix-it happy ending. Wonderful!

No Going Back, No Before by spirkme Words: 78,486 @spirkme915

SNW/TOS. Timeline shenanigans, spies, twists & turns, pining, angst, sacrifice and so so much love!

The 1,000 Hour Sleep by spqr Words: 27,227

SNW. Jim’s been infected with a pathogen that means he can’t sleep, but it he doesn’t he’ll die. Cue Spock and his Vulcan telepathy helping Jim to achieve the sleep he needs, while they get to know each other within their shared mindscapes. A sweet and exciting story about falling in love and overcoming your own inner demons.

First Best Destiny by Ophelia_j Words: 387,733

TOS/TNG. Such a very special fic. Epic in its scope, it covers the entire timeline of Spirk from their very first meeting through to a  clever and satisfying Generations fix-it ending. It provides extra scenes, additional dialogue and internal monologues to expand on existing canon in a really compelling and effective way. Truly this is my new TOS canon.

The Steadfastness of Stars by itsnatalie Words: 61,566

AOS. After Beyond, The crew investigate sudden climate change on a frozen planet and find more than they bargained for. The perfect mix of great plot, fun original characters, action, mystery, world building and deep deep love.

Let Forever Be by gunstreet Words: 43,446 @gunstreet

TOS. A really compelling character study of James T. Kirk. An excellent companion piece to City on the Edge of Forever. Exploring what Jim and Spock got up to, and all they had to overcome, while trying to find Bones and their way back home.

Time After Time by spaceisgay (ChancellorGriffin) Words: 138,921

SNW. Kirk spends a 6 month rotation on the Enterprise as part of his command training. OK, if there’s a favourite of my favourites then this may be it. It’s such a stunning version of their love story, with a beautifully constructed plot. It runs the emotional gamut from moments that will have you laughing out loud to moments that will have you in floods of tears. 

milk and honey by spaceisgay (ChancellorGriffin) Words: 28,651

SNW. Kirk and Spock meet for the first time when they wake up in a prison cell together. A really fun, and extremely clever, version of the ‘aliens made them do it’ trope. It’s intriguing and funny with a real depth of feeling throughout.

The Promised Land by gunstreet Words: 58,260 @gunstreet

TOS. A story that explores the time Jim and Spock spent apart between the end of the 5 year mission and TMP. It’s a beautiful story of reunion and renewal of love. Sometimes achingly sad, but it’s worth it for the happy ending.

Again, if you've read any of these already then I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether you loved them as much as I did! 🥰

[holodecks-and-hennins]

TNG Original Costume Tests: Deanna Troi

I don’t have the actual documentary, just the Trekcore caps, so forgive me if I miss anything, and feel free to add on if you have more info!

Deanna had some great cut hairstyles, as well as some different contacts! Let’s dive in!

I really like this style! I love the little curls around the face. Also, I’m fascinated by that hair clip thing— it’s kinda unclear what it’s made of. If anyone has any info, pipe up! Her lipstick seems to get progressively darker over the first two seasons; it’s pretty close to this in Farpoint, but by Naked Now it’s already darker to go with her blue jumpsuit, and it changes again to even darker when the burgundy jumpsuit arrives in the second season. Contrariwise, her blue eyeshadow is a lot more prominent here than even in Farpoint. Channeling Spock and matching her department colour, I suppose.

I think I like the side view a lot more than the front view— that sparkly accent kind of gets lost in the hair in this view. The curls are still cute though! It’s also clearer in this picture the options for the Betazoid eyes. I didn’t notice it until someone pointed it out on Lon Suder, and now I can’t unsee it: Betazoids tend to have very large, very dark irises. Marina Sirtis’s actual eyes are a lot lighter than either option here.

The next hair option is this sleek bun. I think the decorations here are really pretty from the side, and again, less so from the front. I love the naturalistic design of those gold leafy patterns!

It looks a bit awkward from the front because of where the ends of the hair ornament fall. I think it might be nice if the top ones came over the front a bit more; I think the design would be clearer from all angles that way.

It looks like there’s a cool twisted or braided aspect to the bun, which I wish was easier to see! The side view also shows how far back the eyeshadow goes on this style. I think it looks pretty nice! It's a little closer to the style she gets later in the season, though more pulled back.

And this test is basically what made it on screen at Farpoint. This isn’t my favourite Troi hairstyle; the sparkly braided headband is cute, but maybe a little chunky and I think it has too many colours. I prefer the more defined loose curls she gets later to the loose frizz here. 

Including this last picture mainly for the smile! Though you can also see how the eyeshadow was toned down from the other tests.

[demitheweirdo]

been watching tng and my absolute favourite thing is when the rest of the crew are doing normal bridge things, and data is just:

what is it to be human? to laugh? to err? to feel? can an android achieve full consciousness, or know what it is to have a soul? are memories as significant when not imbued with feeling? does life have meaning without a defined end? what is the purpose—

[ceasarslegion]

Why do you like Data's emotion chip?

So i grew up with star trek. I've always loved scifi and trek was my first and continuing love. My favourite series is TNG by a wide margin, and data was my favourite character as a kid (now it's Riker for reasons I'll outline if someone asks)

Little egg me interpreted data as a transmasc experience. He wants to be human so bad, he sorta socially transitions in a way by experimenting with various human experiences. His friends are supportive of him and offer him advice and resources to make it easier. It's not that he DOESNT experience emotions, its that he experiences emotions the way an android, something he's dysphoric about being and doesnt want to be because thats not who he IS, does. I interpreted data as someone who is a human, but like, born in an androids body, for lack of a better term. The same thing i was experiencing when I was younger.

And then the emotion chip was like HRT. It's the physical transition that he so longs for: to experience emotions the way the human he is was meant to experience them. It's not without the rough patches and struggles that come with getting used to actual HRT, when data doesn't know how to regulate or control them yet, but he's so much happier with it overall, and that's what matters. Eventually, he experiments with it and decides for himself that he wants to turn it off and on at his own will, and that personalization often comes irl too when you've gotten past the beginnings of physical transition, and you experiment with what kind is right for you. Some people want lower, more gradual doses, but that doesn't mean HRT wasn't right for them. I kinda see data that way: a trans man on a low dose of T.

I know a lot of people interpret data as autistic, and that's fine! I'm not here to yuck their yum, but I do wish I could voice my own interpretation of him without being told I'm ableist against something I literally also am. Also, data was not originally meant to be an allegory for either a trans or an autistic man, that's something you absolutely have the right and validity to interpret him as, but that doesn't make it canon. And it doesn't mean the emotion chip is somehow like, anti-autistic like I've seen so many other autistic trekkies call it.

[worldcatlas]

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (part 2)

We’re back to the big screen to finish up Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and discover even more exciting shades of beige.

In part one, I skipped over a brief appearance by the Klingons because you can barely see them, but with a bit of photo editing, we can take a closer look.

Why are their bridges so dark? Do targs have sensitive eyes?

Interestingly, they wear a style of uniform we would later see in TNG and beyond – all grey leather and metal studs – rather than the “sparkly sweater vest” uniforms Klingons usually wore in the original series. Although it’s a significant and unexplained departure from their small-screen appearance, I have to say, it’s a lot easier to take these Klingons seriously.

Remember these guys? Star Trek wants you to forget.

I also skipped over a brief appearance by a lil’ guy in a space suit, but we’ll get back to this costume later.

You just float there for now.

Picking up where we left off, Kirk steps off a shuttle sporting a handsome new uniform in slimming charcoal grey and white. It maintains the gold rank braids on the cuffs from the original series uniforms, but adds a futuristic belt, military-style shoulder marks, and a solid metal Starfleet badge. A stiff, quilted collar adds a touch of “space suit,” as well. All in all, a very sleek space-age outfit that feels like a solid upgrade to the brightly-coloured sweaters of TOS.

I can’t wait to see how everyone else looks in this cool new uniform! 

We also get a momentary, blurry glimpse of some excellent-looking Vulcan robes in black and gold, but once again, this beautiful costume barely gets a moment of screentime before being whisked away.

He had to hurry off to fix his eyebrows, I get it.

So… as it turns out, only admirals get the cool new penguin uniform, and everyone else is stuck with space scrubs. They don’t even get a metal badge (not even hard-working Scotty!), just an embroidered patch with a silver Starfleet delta against a coloured circle indicating the wearer’s department.

At least he gets the cool belt.

Up on the bridge of the Enterprise, It’s a full-on Situation Beige. Crewmen buzz around the bridge in every imaginable shade of white, off-white, tan, taupe, and ecru, blending in nicely with the bulkheads.

Fashion crimes notwithstanding, I think there’s also an OSHA violation or two going on here…

Not even Uhura is immune to unflattering shades of khaki, although she does give us a quick glimpse at the Apple Watch-like wrist communicator worn throughout the film. It’s a great accessory that would unfortunately be rendered obsolete by the comm badge as the franchise moved on.

This woman deserves fashion, dammit!

Chekov, Sulu, and other crewmen model a few interesting variations on the theme, including a tight-fitting polo, a standard crew neck, and an awkwardly-tailored sport coat that can’t possibly be regulation.

You know, for uniforms, they’re not very… uniform.

While others, like Commander Decker, enjoy tight-fitting jumpsuits in the beige-est possible shade of blue. Somehow, I just don’t get a sense of authority from a man who looks like he’s been vacuum-sealed inside his footie pajamas.

Oh boy, you can see Commander Decker’s whole entire Commander Decker.

Next, we are treated to a great crowd shot that really shows off the scope of the costume department’s efforts, with dozens of varied uniforms packed into the scene. It makes me feel a little bad for going after the colour palette so hard, considering the difficulty of coordinating so many pieces.

Then again, it really is giving “thermal underwear in space.”

There are a few noteworthy variations in the crowd, including the guy with an uncovered electrical socket in the front row, but my favourite is probably this Native American officer with cool beaded accessories.

Chakotay could learn a thing or two.

The next character to make their big screen debut is the ship’s doctor, Leisure Suit Larry Dr. McCoy, in a fly as hell, disco-ready outfit, complete with gold chain, oversized belt buckle, and a frankly criminal amount of chest hair. And let’s not even talk about the beard. Thankfully, the good doctor soon cleans up and changes into uniform.

Still too much chest hair.

Next, we pay a visit to engineering to see Scotty, who has gotten a significant costume upgrade. Along with his fellow warp core enthusiasts, Mr. Scott sports a heavy-duty, protective-looking white suit with a strange socket (or antennae?) on the chest, surrounded by concentric circles of padded fabric that really make you wanna plug something in there. Oddly, the costumes also feature black rubber collars that presumably attach to their matching helmets, but do not appear at all sealed to the body of the suit.

They’re air-tight…ish.

Fortunately, the suits also include a handy, built-in to-do list.

Memory aids can be helpful for a… mature crew.

Last but not least, the old gang is finally back together as Spock joins the crew, feeling absolutely no emotion about how slick he looks in these long-sleeved Vulcan robes. I love the matching grey tones between the high-collared shirt underneath and the embroidered Vulcan script on the outer garment (though I’m sure this was a purely logical choice).

It says “zip up here.”

Sadly, Spock is quick to follow protocol and changes into a Starfleet uniform as well. However, he does keep the collared undershirt, creating an ensemble that – in a nice nod to TOS – closely resembles his old uniform.

Spock appreciates consistency.

Uhura has also gotten a costume change, and although they still won’t let her out of Beige Hell, she has at least gotten a smart two-piece pant suit that looks a little more comfortable. In addition to being more flattering, this uniform also includes the gold rank braids at the wrists.

Maybe the replicators in the 2270s only have one colour of ink.

Some plot happens, and the ship’s navigator, Ilia, gets hijacked by an alien entity. After briefly experimenting with no costume, she manifests this wild sci-fi bath robe with a huge Dracula collar. The asymmetrical hemline is super cute, but the belt at the waist could be a bit higher and more fitted. I do like how the pink lining inside the collar complements the robo-transmitter implanted in her collarbone.

The bad news: an alien has taken over your body. The good news: they put on a cute fit~

The back of the collar is a nice touch as well, tapering into a heart shape that flatters the actress’ perfectly-shaped head.

So smooth.

On the other hand, I cannot agree with V’ger’s choice of psychically-manifested footwear for this outfit. Clear plastic high heels might look futuristic, but they’re completely impractical for walking through a ship with perforated deck plating, running through sandy-floored caves, or standing near a warp core without melting.

At the other end of practicality, we are introduced to some members of the ship’s security team, who are inexplicably dressed like old-timey football players. They sport shiny helmets, phaser holsters, and crotch-protecting armour in a lovely chocolate brown. While it does break up the beige, it feels a bit silly to see combat guys ready to rumble on a Starfleet vessel.

I think they saw what the Klingons were wearing and got jealous.

Deciding to accessorize, V’ger tries on a headband belonging to her host. It’s a lovely beaded and sequined piece, with a gold charm dangling at one side, and very nearly reminds the navigator who she used to be.

Does this accessory clash with my parasitic control of another sentient being?

Things are getting intense story-wise, and Spock suits up in a shiny red “thruster suit” to take care of business – that is, an EV suit painted safety orange and strapped onto a rocket that looks like it was built with spare kitchen utensils. The whole ensemble is incredibly bulky, but believably looks like a rocket-belt-type contraption that might’ve existed in the 1970s.

Do what you have to do, Spock, but I’ll need my colander back before dinner.

We’re treated to a close-up on the suit’s gloves as Spock pilots the contraption, revealing plenty of details, including more structural quilting. I like the raised details along each finger on the gloves, implying some kind of built-in system, perhaps heating or robotic assistance. The frame of the thruster suit (painted beige) contains a control panel, with buttons on every surface. This segment detaches from the suit itself, so there are also buttons built into the left sleeve.

One for lemonade, one for ice, and one for diet Romulan ale.

We also get a good look at the back of the suit without the rocket attachment when Spock mind melds with V’ger, revealing more quilted details, including some hilarious concentric squares on the butt. From this angle, the suit is mostly the work of the prop department, who have done an excellent job making the hardware look both hi-tech and capable of playing Betamax tapes.

I think my Grandma had one of those on top the TV.

Kirk comes thrusting to the rescue in his own suit, and soon Spock is whisked away to Sick Bay for another costume change. I think this is meant to be a futuristic hospital gown, but it really looks like they’ve just wrapped the sheets around his legs and pinned them in place with binder clips.

In case the doctors need quick access to his thighs.

On the other hand, the sleeveless top is a whole look, and I love the hood with contrasting orange lining.

Not gonna lie, I’d wear it.

As a bonus, Doctors McCoy and Chapel have evolved into their final form: an all-white medical uniform with an oddly rounded collar, shoulder marks, and – notably – a rod of Asclepius embroidered on the left breast, in lieu of a Starfleet delta.

Missing a couple buttons there, Doc?

In the climactic finale, our brave crew suits up for one last away mission in suede jackets, taking advantage of the material’s natural beige hue. Unusual for Trek, they appear to have several large, prominent pockets – but any unease is quickly dispelled by the reassuring presence of decorative quilting along the arms. Speaking of which, the left arm of each jacket bears a reflective stripe that, curiously, does not seem to indicate rank or department, as Spock alone has a red armband.

Fascinating.

With little to differentiate their outfits, Decker decides to accessorize with dramatic lighting and sparkles. Lots of sparkles. Met-Gala-rolled-in-a-Michaels level of sparkles, a.k.a. the correct amount for any outfit. And with that, the Earth is saved.

What was the point of the film again?

[holofizz]

When did your Comba begin? And what movie/show caused said Comba?

Do you like wall of texts? because that I can provide with this question, and I will. From what I know, there seems to be two gateway drugs that lead to Jeffrey Combs. One Is horror movies, the other is star trek. I grew up with trek (reruns, alas the newest trek at the time would have been enterprise which I have little to no memories of) specifically it was tng and a little bit of ds9. While I've watched all of tng multiple times I'd never finished Ds9, so I finally sat down early last year to watch it, and as someone who already had like a bit of a crush on fuckin quark of all people I was fully prepared to be smitten with the considerably worse capitalist space goblin BRUNT. There is a sort of jena se qua to Brunt… Is this what you expected? BRUNT. IT WAS BRUNT. help.

Then I saw the episode 'To the death' whomst is this lovely, manipulative creature with the purple eyes? I luv him. Ok it wasn't actually Brunt that did it, it was Weyoun. To be clear these two had become my favourite recurring characters and I didn't even realize they were played by the same fucking guy! Not until ferengi love songs? Something broke in me the day I noticed the name 'Jeffrey Combs as weyoun' in opening title when it had previously said Brunt. …oh? wait he's also played by Jeffrey combs? tell me more. I then proceeded to rummage through this mans imdb to see what else he'd been in, saw Enterprise, watched that, recognized the frighteners which I'd already seen years ago and wondered who the fuck it was that he played, saw Reanimator- OH NO NEW OBSESSION ACTIVATED. Reanimator cured my artblock. I went from watching all his star trek roles to all his horror roles and it all just sort of spiraled. It definitely helps that every role is distinct, and he always gives it his all even if a movie's terrible (which it is more often than not) This man managed orbit around two things that I love but somehow stayed underneath my radar until now. Star trek, and weird horror movies. I was watching through a bunch of body horror movies in 2023 and had that continued I would have watched Reanimator and From Beyond. I had planned to at the time when i first heard of them, not sure why I didn't. If I had it would have kicked things off in reverse order tbh. All roads lead to Combs.

This is also the reason I even have a tumblr now

[gay-disabled-characters-showdown]

LGBTQ+ Disabled Characters Showdown Round 3, Wave 2, Poll 5

A character being totally canon LGBTQ+ and disabled was not required to be in this competition. Please check qualifications and propaganda before asking why a character is included. 

Check out the other polls in this wave and prior here.

Kim Kitsuragi-Disco Elysium

Qualifications:

Visually impaired

Propaganda:

I dunno man. He's Kim Kitsuragi. There's nothing I can say about him that hasn't already been said. He's quiet and reserved and uncomfortable with emotions. He's a self-proclaimed Torque Dork who loves his car like a child. He listens to heavy metal music. He's a centrist. He's a homosexual. He's consistently given shit by everyone around him for his race, his sexuality, and his disability, and he's taught himself to respond to it with cold professionalism. He dresses in historical communist pilot cosplay. I love him with my entire heart.

Geordi La Forge-Star Trek: The Next Generation

Qualifications:

He is blind, canonically, and also [has] chronic headaches as a result of the visor he wears. He was actually originally conceptualized as gay, but never written as such because every Trekkie's nemesis, Rick Berman, took over the production of TNG after Roddenbury left. Every single heterosexual romance written for him is atrocious, and his closest non-familial relationship is with a man, Data. Said relationship is often interpreted as romantic or queerplatonic in nature by fans.

He is blind (uses a VISOR that lets him see the electromagnetic spectrum) and was intended to be gay before one of the producers decided not to let him be (thousand curses on Rick Berman)

Propaganda:

He is so wonderful and I love him so so so much. OK. Okay. So Geordi's main traits are that he is an incredibly dedicated and talented engineer, a ridiculously friendly and charismatic person, and very loyal & stubborn when it comes to the people he loves. He has, on two separate occasions, successfully made friends with a member of a hostile alien faction just by spending a few days with them (Hugh, Bochra). When his mother goes missing and he starts getting communications from an entity claiming to be her, he disobeys orders and puts himself in danger in an attempt to save her. Similarly, in The Most Toys, when Data is kidnapped by Kivas Fajo, he refuses to believe that Data made an error in piloting a shuttlecraft that resulted in his death, and through rigorous investigation, finds out what really happened and is able to get the Enterprise to rescue him. (This episode bears incredible similarity to an episode in Star Trek Deep Space Nine, wherein Keiko does the exact same thing when her husband Miles is falsely reported as dead, so in that parallel, Geordi and Data are directly analagous to a married couple). Geordi's disability is presented in one of the best ways I have seen in media from the 80s-90s. His disability is a part of his character, but never his defining trait, and in several episodes he stresses that he doesn't resent being blind, as it is part of who he is. In fact, there's even an episode where he is placed in direct thematic opposition to a eugenicist society that terminates all disabled zygotes. He was originally conceptualized as gay by Roddenbury, but was never written as such (partially due to Rick Berman's influence). However, all of his canon heterosexual romances are unspeakably terrible, and his closest onscreen relationship is with Data. This relationship is interpreted by many to be romantic or queerplatonic in nature.

He's so cooool!! He's the chief engineer on the enterprise, he's so kind, and his relationship with the android Data is one of the best on the show and is my favourite in all of Star Trek

Anything Else?:

The actor who played him, LeVar Burton, is a vocal ally and has expressed support for his gay daughter in interviews :).

Geordi is awesome

The qualifications and propaganda paragraphs correspond, @convenient-plot-device is the first submitter, @autisticiantojvnes is the second.

[curator-on-ao3]

Again, cool response to the last question, so I'll let you pick from these options:

And there are things I have fan-fixed in my head to the point that I have to remind myself that the fix-it isn’t part of the actual canon: favourite one of these?

Or

Your/a favourite part of actual canon. Like, maybe something little but it's just so lovely and fitting to you and you're just happy that it exists?

I’ve been a little down on Trek lately, so I’m going to type as fast as I can to brain-dump, in show order, the first things that pop into my mind that I absolutely love in Trek canon:

Kirk calling Nomad his son, the doctor

Christine Chapel’s snark to Roger Korby about schtupping the androids

Mark Leonard’s performance in Balance of Terror

the Horta (a great mama)

“Edith Keeler must die.”

Captain John Christopher, United States Air Force. Serial number 4857932.

Tribbles

the lesson of The Cloud Minders that we must have empathy and listen to others when they tell us about their lived experience in an environment unlike our own

the cheap-ass animation of TAS

Q

Bynars and Minuet

Beverly Crusher’s frustration in Arsenal of Freedom (and the episode’s Good Ship Lollipop joke)

Picard shooting the other version of himself in Time Squared (to clarify: out of respect for those times when we have to stop ourselves from getting caught in loops/doing stupid stuff and we summon up the courage to break a bad cycle and move forward)

K'Ehleyr

Picard out-lawyering the Sheliak

Rachel Garrett; Yar and Castillo

Lal (but I can’t watch the end anymore, it hurts too much)

the Shakespeare and “Set a course for Betazed. Warp 9.” comedy in Ménage a Troi

Best of Both Worlds, I and II (Shelby inclusive)

every conference table discussion in all of TNG

Beverly’s jump in Remember Me (such a damn good episode)

the reveal in Future Imperfect (which one? all of them)

The Dancing Doctor tap dancing with Data

Darmok. And Jalad. At Tenagra.

Ro Laren

Troi saying, “You could have easily been right” to Ro in Disaster

Hugh, Third of Five

the fact that The Next Phase has so many plotholes and they’re forgivable because the episode is so fun and great

Scotty on the holodeck version of the TOS bridge and Picard joining him

Rascals!

Deanna’s “Ancient West” outfit

the Jefferies tube music and make out session in Lessons

Attached. Oh, my heart.

the Enterprise with three nacelles … and that absolutely perfect last shot of the series

“You exist here.”

Sisko’s casual, everyday affection for Jake

“Old Man”

Rejoined. Lenara Khan. The love. That kiss. The emotional stakes. All of it.

the three Ferengi hitting their own heads to try to fix their universal translators so the 20th century Earth military people mimic the movement to try to communicate

every second of Trials and Tribble-ations including Sisko working overtime to stop fuckmaster Dax, tossing the tribbles, Sisko meeting Kirk, “We do not discuss it with outsiders,” and so much more

Kira blaming Bashir for putting the baby inside her when … you know … behind the scenes

The Sons of Mogh helping with the harvest in Children of Time

Far Beyond the Stars — some of the best if not the best science fiction I have ever seen

the monster fakeout (and kindness) in The Sound of Her Voice, even though the end makes me cry

“Computer, erase that entire personal log.”

Solok

Sisko and Kassidy discussing their comfort levels about a simulation in which the reality was segregation

Janeway waterfalling off the sofa to be closer to Mark on the screen

“Warp particles!”

the lizard babies

the two Janeways in Deadlock

Remember (a painfully good Holocaust episode that doesn’t get enough credit and, yes, I know the path the script took and I’m glad it ended up as a B’Elanna episode)

“I don't know what I'm seeking.” “Then I believe you are ready to begin.”

“The child you spoke of, the girl. Her favorite color was red.” Also, Tuvok’s meditation lamp in the window for Kes.

hot damn, Counterpoint, yaaas

everything in Relativity

“The Yankees, in six games.”

Janeway going after Seven in The Voyager Conspiracy

“This is Lieutenant Reginald Barclay at Starfleet Command.” “It's good to hear your voice, Lieutenant. We've been waiting a long time for this moment.” “The feeling is mutual. Unfortunately, the micro-wormhole is collapsing. We have only a few moments.” “Understood. We are transmitting our ship's logs, crew reports, and navigational records to you now.” “Acknowledged. And we're sending you data on some new hyper-subspace technology. We're hoping eventually to use it to keep in regular contact, and we're including some recommended modifications for your comm system.” “We'll implement them as soon as possible.” “There's someone else here who would also like to say something.” “This is Admiral Paris.” “Hello, sir.” “How are your people holding up?” “Very well. They're an exemplary crew, your son included.” “Tell him, tell him I miss him. And I'm proud of him.” “He heard you, Admiral.” “The wormhole is collapsing.” “I want you all to know we're doing everything we can to bring you home.” “We appreciate it, sir. Keep a docking bay open for us.”

“Nice hair.” (Live Fast and Prosper)

Janeway and Jaffen in Workforce

the spot-on legal concerns of Author, Author

“Set a course. For home.”

(Nothing from Enterprise or Prodigy only because I haven’t watched enough of Enterprise or any of Prodigy)

Burnham and Georgiou forming the delta with their footsteps

the CGI on only the shields protecting Burnham from space

“Are we in session? Because I didn't know you were practicing again. Because if I have your undivided attention for fifty minutes, I can think of a whole bunch of other things we could be doing.”

“That's as depressing a trait as I've ever heard.” “I don't give a damn … I still don't give a damn.”

Cornwell beaming in, phaser aimed, taking command of Discovery

Cornwell phasering the fortune cookies

Cornwell’s voice breaking: “So my Gabriel is dead.”

Detmer’s little bounce when Emperor-as-Captain Georgiou takes command

Pike beaming aboard and instantly being all like MOJAVE to prove to the audience he’s the guy from The Cage

New Eden. Everything. Oh my God (pun intended). The visuals. Owo’s backstory. Pollard patching Pike up after he’s shot. The light at the end. Oh my God, yes. That episode. Yes.

Number freaking One beaming aboard and having her lunch briefing with Pike (Chris and Una’s decades-long friendship wasn’t canon yet, but it shows here so beautifully)

Gabrielle Burnham

“In case the shit hit the fan.”

Michael Burnham on truth serum

Book

Laira Rillak, everyone!

Q&A

season 1 Raffi Musiker

Fleet Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Kirsten Clancy

“You owe me a ship, Picard.”

“You need a feather in your hat.”

Riker greeting Picard

Hugh greeting Picard

the separate trio of Raffi, Clancy, and Deanna all telling Picard he’s shit

Rios singing in Spanish

President Annika Hansen

everybody finding each other in the Confederation Universe

Liam Shaw — a character with incredible highs and lows

Majel Barrett as the computer voice when the crew gets to the Enterprise D

“Somehow I figured you might.”

everything in Ghosts of Illyria

Spock and La’an’s mind meld

Spock and T’Pring in Spock Amok

“You cannot resign. The loss to Enterprise would be unimaginable. To me.”

“If you’re going to steal a starship, do it correctly.”

Neera Ketoul

La’an normalizing needing to eat all the time as a teenager (especially important for girls to hear)

Pike and Una visually checking in with each other so often that it’s in their cartoon versions (that whole episode, actually, including, “Riker!”)

That’s scrolling through episode titles and jotting down stuff I love off the top of my head, fam.✨

Thank you so much for this ask, anon! ❤️ I needed this positive energy in my life.

[danikatze]

Thank you @sparkchemy for tagging me 😊

Last song: a music box playing We Wish You a Merry Christmas lol

Favourite color: green 💚

Last book: I'm re-reading Natsume Yuujinchou vol. 19. NatsuYuu is one of three manga series I've slowly been trying to collect over the last four or five years. Recently I found out they stopped producing and selling most of it, so I quickly bought the five that were still available and I didn't have yet. One of them was vol. 19

Last movie: the Muppet Christmas Carol. We watch it every year before Christmas (it feels wrong to watch it after lol)

Last tv show: re-watching Star Trek Deep Space Nine! It's the only ST series I'd seen before, so last summer I decided to (attempt to) watch everything from TOS to Voyager. I binged TOS and TNG pretty quickly, but took a break halfway DS9. I'm back on track now, though :)

Last game played: probably Baldur's Gate 3. I opened the game recently after not playing for a good while and closed it again pretty quickly lol. I'm not in a video game mood atm.

Sweet/spicy/savoury: yes.

Last thing I googled: "Lebanese movie 2018" I saw Capernaum at the film festival in Ghent when I worked there in 2018 (cleaning toilets, but it paid well and I was allowed to see all the movies for free. I ended up watching like 20 in 10 days lmao) I wanted to recommend it to someone, but I keep forgetting the title. It's one of the most beautiful and memorable movies I saw that year.

Current obsession: I have a couple micro obsessions atm. One of them is Mushishi and redrawing the comic I made. Another is my Natsume Yuujinchou collection. Like I said, most of them aren't for sale anymore, so I'm kinda obsessed with finding them second hand within the EU. No luck so far :(

Looking forward to: Friday. I'm going on vacation with my mum for a week (just a one and a half hour drive away from home, but still) and hopefully I can finally relax a little?

I'm tagging @tj-dragonblade and anyone who wants to answer these question: consider yourself tagged!

[aromantictendi]

Star Trek TOS Rewatch: Journey to Babel

I think this episode is the first that gives us a real glimpse into the inner workings of the Federation and how it's governed. It's interesting that Sarek's reasoning on why Coridan should be admitted into the Federation is based mostly on pragmatic concerns like mining regulations and how it might benefit the Federation itself. Very different than the criteria we see in later TNG episodes.

I really liked the dynamic between Spock and his parents, it's a great introduction for them. I hadn't noticed this before, but Sarek and Amanda end up acting like personifications of Spock's own inner struggles. Sarek is disappointed Spock isn't more Vulcan, that he chose the more human Star Fleet over the Vulcan Science Academy, and Amanda is disappointed in him for following Vulcan philosophy/logic instead of making the more human choice to prioritize Sarek. Spock remains too human for Vulcans and too Vulcan for humans.

There are a few things I could have nitpicked about this episode, for example the spy story could be a bit better developed. But overall a solid episode, probably my favourite so far this season.

[quasi-normalcy]

So the thing about Star Trek: Picard is...

Say what you will about the first season, but it’s meaningful. In fact, Rios says explicitly what it’s about in the fourth episode: “the existential pain of living with the consciousness of death and how it defines us as human beings.” Pretty much all of the character arcs are about different reactions to this, and the supposed “grimdarkness” of the setting reinforces this point; the Federation has become reactionary and xenophobic because it was a utopia that experienced mass death right on its doorstep for the first time in living memory. The conflict with the Synths is ultimately rooted in the fact that we die; they don’t. The fact that the finale was called “Et in Arcadia ego” really just telegraphs this; “Even in Arcadia [utopia], I [Death] am.”

And the second season, for all its many flaws, carries this theme forward, proposing that love, togetherness, and companionship are the only meaningful candles in the dark. Q is dying; he awaits meaning, and he doesn’t find it. And so he opts instead to do one last favour for Jean-Luc so at least he can spare his favourite mortal from his own fate of dying alone. Jurati is able to connect with the Borg Queen because she recognises that her own motivation is something similar: the Queen can feel herself dying across infinite realities and she doesn’t want to be alone. Seven and Raffi find each other; Rios gives up his entire life for a shot at love. It’s an infernal mess, a budget-saving exercise in want of a plot, but I’m going to be honest: I kind of adore it. I think it’s beautiful for all its flaws.

Throughout the first two seasons, we have serious contemplations of transhumanism and identity in the face of death. Picard escapes death using technology, even as his friend, a living machine, embraces his end as a necessary part of being human. Soji loses her identity even as she gains knowledge of herself as an immortal android. Jurati too embraces transhumanism and, to some extent, loses her identity by so doing, but–in an interesting twist for Star Trek–this is not stigmatized; this is framed as what’s best for her. All of this is philosophically rich, high-octane fuel for thought, as speculative fiction should be.

The third season, meanwhile–for all that I have loved (some of) the nostalgia hits injected directly into my veins–bugs me because of how absolutely lightweight it feels. Death is gone. Not just as a theme, but gone from the narrative. Sure we kill off Ro, and T’Veen, and Vadic, and Shelby, and Shaw, but it feels like nothing. Death holds no dominion; Data is back; so’s the Enterprise-D; so’s Q (or maybe he’s come in from an earlier point in his timeline; it’s not clear). Kirk apparently is alive again, resurrected offscreen sometime after Generations and kept in a covert warehouse awaiting new adventures. Apparently Terry Matalas has already formulated plans for bringing Todd Stashwick back if when he gets his “Legacy” spinoff. I’m half-surprised that they didn’t reveal that Romulus magically popped back into existence in a background Okudagram somewhere. The Federation is as “grimdark” as it has ever been depicted, but unlike the first season (or Deep Space Nine, or even the first season of Discovery), this is never seriously interrogated or problematised. We go through the motions, cargo-cult-like, of moral debate in episode 7, but it’s not connected to anything. We hear that Vadic was the product of Section 31 war crimes; Picard looks shaken up by this, but then he and Beverly immediately decide to commit some war crimes of their own by executing her. This is never mentioned again. The whole exercise feels perfunctory, as I have said above: like ten-year-olds playing with action figures. It doesn’t feel like Picard, and frankly, for all of the surface detail it gets right, it feels even less like TNG.

So no; I’m not pleased that the first two seasons were ignored.

[staringdownabarrel]

One of the biggest frustrations I have with Strange New Worlds lies in what it's done with the Romulans. It's not that they've done anything I've found particularly objectionable or anything; my actual issue is that what they've done so far is stuff I would have loved to have seen in the AOS movies.

Back when the first AOS movie came out in 2009, my biggest hope for the next one was that the next one would be another Romulan movie. The Romulans were, and still are, my favourite race of antagonists in Star Trek.

You know, it would have been cool to see a version of Into Darkness that wasn't a Khan movie but instead was what A Quality of Mercy was: a version of Balance of Terror that basically asked what would have happened if things were different.

I don't think you would have had to change all that much from A Quality of Mercy to make a version of Balance of Terror in that alternate timeline--at least not back then, when AOS Pike was still alive. You could still have hothead Kirk doing hothead things; you could still have Pike as the more levelheaded, more experienced captain.

That would have been the time to do it, too. The thing with Balance of Terror is that this was Prime Kirk at his most levelheaded. Yes, he was breaking the rules by entering the Neutral Zone, but it was in service of the mission. It was the kind of practical, no nonsense decision that TOS-era Kirk was made out of.

AOS Kirk, especially initially, was leaning far more into that fanon version of Kirk where he is the hothead. While in A Quality of Mercy, the setup of Kirk being a hothead felt a little bit forced because that's not really what Kirk's like in the prime timeline and it's implied he never was so the assumption that he would be if he were the captain of the Farragut instead of the Enterprise felt forced, they could do it without too many issues in AOS because that's just the character in that timeline.

The other thing is that Balance of Terror was one of the most overt Cold War allegories of the entire original series. The episode leaned in heavily to the perceptions the average person in the West had about China and the Soviet Union. While it is sometimes contentious to say so today, we sort of are in a new period of cold war with Russia and China today and it was already in full swing by the time A Quality of Mercy came out, so a lot of the fundamental, real world assumptions are the same.

That wasn't as much the case around the time the first couple of AOS movies came out. The underlying assumption among most people in the mainstream in the West back then was that while we might not ever be best mates with Russia and China, we could have a level of peaceful coexistence with them.

It would have been interesting to see this assumption reflected in an AOS Balance of Terror. You know, this is a show of strength today, but both sides understand it really is just for show, and once this is wrapped up they could start to slowly warm their relations to the extent it was possible.

I think there'd also be different motivations on the Romulan side for sending that lone bird-of-prey. While in Balance of Terror, the reason was to test Federation defenses and Starfleet's resolve and potentially as the first move in a new war, the concerns in the AOS version could be that the Romulans could be in a losing position due to the new technologies Starfleet acquired due to the Narada appearing.

This wouldn't be completely out of character for the Romulans. They were actively trying to disrupt the Federation-Klingon alliance during TNG because of how they'd be in a more powerful position if they were no longer allied. It'd follow that they'd be willing to do that if a neighbour now had recently acquired certain technologies that they just didn't have.

It would have been simple to follow this AOS production of Balance of Terror up with an AOS version of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. While in AOS!Balance of Terror, the Romulans' motivation would be simply to counter the Federation threat while they still could, the motivation in AOS!Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow would be to prevent it before it begins. So basically the same it was in the SNW episode.

The other benefit to this is that I think this would highlight the real potential of the AOS timeline. Initially, the benefit the AOS production team were spouting was that this was a way of doing Star Trek without having to deal with continuity lockout due to new audiences being unfamiliar with the original shows. They then went on to basically do a trilogy of movies that really could have been done in the prime timeline with very few changes.

I sorta feel like the AOS movies, as they exist today, are in some ways the part of the franchise that are the most like the original series. Yes, I will concede they're not as good as the original series and they don't have the same messaging, but there are stylistic similarities. Each of the three movies are very episodic, to the point that what happens in one almost doesn't count towards what happens in the next.

That's basically how the original series was, with only a couple of exceptions. Yeah, a lot of the other shows were like that too, but nowhere near to the same extent; especially not to the extent the AOS movies are.

If they'd done an AOS Romulan trilogy, it would have showcased the benefits of having that timeline a lot more. It would have been the kind of storyline that couldn't have happened in the original series because things were different, and I think it would have given them the opportunity to explore what the differences in the timeline look like in practice.