#194 - ALIENS OF THE DELTA QUADRANT

Vulcans. Klingons. Romulans. Orions. Since the dawn of Roddenberry's universe the creative minds tasked with populating it have tirelessly sought to fill the Alpha Quadrant with countless fascinating, layered and compelling alien denizens guaranteed to goose dramatic potential. But what about Voyager, the show that dared to begin with a blank page and build its own world? This week hosts Cam Smith and Tyler Orton follow the Caretaker's directions right back to the Delta Quadrant in order to analyze the most memorable species to cross Captain Janeway and crew's path. From early stand-outs the Kazon and the Vidiians, to Trek's first all-CG race Species 8472 and the waste-dumping Malon, the duo debate which of these original creations worked, and whether any of them would ever be worth revisiting in the future. Plus, as an added bonus, the hosts jump over to a galaxy far, far away in order to provide their non-spoilery thoughts on Solo: A Star Wars Story.

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#193 - STAR TREK VOY: YEAR OF HELL

Regardless of overall quality, it's tough to argue against the inherent strength of Voyager's central premise. A crew lost in the wilderness trying to find its way home while overcoming adversity both internal and external? Bursting with dramatic potential! And although most regular episodes fell short of exploiting this concept, the two-parters were another story. This week hosts Cam Smith and Tyler Orton, along with special guest Janine Smith, stare longingly at their antique pocket watches while revisiting the tremendous Year of Hell saga, arguably Captain Janeway's most punishing and traumatic challenge as a leader. In addition to breaking down the well-known story elements of this hard-hitting fourth season highlight, the trio also discuss Annorax's similarities to classic Bond villains, the series' woefully underexplored Tuvok/Seven dynamic and the alleged sexiness of Tom Paris. Enjoy! 

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#192 - DOES STAR TREK HAVE A PREQUEL PROBLEM?

Although there's been plenty of new Trek adventures over the last 15-plus years little attempt has been made to properly develop a future beyond Nemesis, which hit theatres waaaaay back in Winter 2002. Is this a cause for concern? This week hosts Cam Smith and Tyler Orton, along with special guest Taylor Ramone of Vancouver's premiere nerd bar Storm Crow, analyze the franchise's ongoing obsession with prequel storytelling, which began with the (post-Phantom Menace) launch of Enterprise and continues to this very day with Discovery. By continually looking backwards are those overseeing the franchise still able to spin vital and exciting tales befitting the brand? And how successful have the two most recent series, along with J.J. Abrams' Kelvin-verse movies, been at properly leading into or evoking the classic episodes and films set further down the timeline? Plus, the trio offer their hopes for where they'd like to see Star Trek go if it ever manages to journey past the 24th century.

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#191 - WHY TREK NEEDS ACTORS LIKE JEFFREY COMBS

Since the franchise's earliest days there's been a proud tradition of recycling character actors under heavy alien makeup. And while many proud individuals have inhabited multiple personas, nobody's done it better than Mr. Jeffrey Combs. This week hosts Cam Smith and Tyler Orton undergo several costume changes while taking a look at the actor's many unforgettable creations, from modest early beginnings as a pervy creep in the DS9 episode Meridian, to fan-fave icons Weyoun and Shran. In addition, the duo also celebrate the contributions of Combs' fellow 'Men & Women of a thousand Trek faces' including J.G. Hertzler, Vaughn Armstrong, Tony Todd and Susanna Thompson, and determine which species they should portray on Discovery and beyond.

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#190 - THE CURRENT STATE OF TREK 2018

At this time last year fandom was waiting with bated breath to experience its first new season of TV Trek in over a decade. And boy was it exciting! But now that Discovery has finished its inaugural run how are we feeling about the future of Roddenberry's universe? This week hosts Cam Smith and Tyler Orton suit up in vibrant new Constellation-class uniforms in order to hold their annual forum on the state of our beloved franchise. What can we hope to see when DSC returns, and how successful is its recently dropped season 2 teaser at building hype? The duo also check in with the movie-verse, and the two big screen projects currently under development from Quentin Tarantino and S.J. Clarkson, as well as weigh in on potential merch opportunities and more!

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