Commentary: Trek Stars: The Work of Star Trek Creators Outside of Star Trek (general)
Commentary: Trek Stars 149: Johnny's Quest

Piller, Part 3: The Dead Zone.

 

In 2002, Michael Piller created his fourth television series, The Dead Zone. The show, which starred Anthony Michael Hall and Nicole de Boer, was adapted from Stephen King's novel about a man who develops the ability to see events in the future.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, John and Mike are joined by The Dead Zone associate producer and Star Trek writer Eric A. Stillwell to look at Piller's work on the series. We discuss other projects that he was developing, his writing process, and the impact the he had on other writers.

 

Running Time:  1 hour 7 minutes 57 seconds

 

Hosts

John Mills and Mike Schindler

 

Guests

Eric A. Stillwell

 

Editor and Producer

Mike Schindler

 

Executive Producers

Norman C. Lao, Matthew Rushing, and C Bryan Jones

 

Associate Producer

Become one! Support Trek.fm and Commentary: Trek Stars at the $25/month level or plus! Visit http://patreon.com/trekfm http://patreon.com/trekfm

 

Production Manager

Richard Marquez

 

Content Manager

Will Nguyen

 

Chapters

Other Projects (00:03:00)

The Dead Zone (00:10:20)

Promoting the Show (00:28:25)

Final Thoughts (00:43:43)

Wrap-up (00:48:22)

 

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Direct download: ctrek-149.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:11am MDT

Commentary: Trek Stars 128: In Search of Max

Nimoy, Part 3: In Search of....

 

In addition to his work as an actor, Leonard Nimoy has also hosted two television shows. The first of which was In Search of…. The pseudo-documentary series looked at unexplained phenomena throughout history, touching on everything from UFO cover-ups and the Loch Ness Monster to Marilyn Monroe and Lee Harvey Oswald.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, John and Mike take a look Nimoy's fourth television series. We discuss our nostalgic fondness for the show, the influence that it had on the television of the 80s and 90s, and speculate on why Nimoy chose to work on it. We also look at the recent additions to the crew of STAR TR3K.

 

Running Time: 45 minutes 28 seconds

 

Hosts

John Mills and Mike Schindler

 

Editor and Producer

Mike Schindler

 

Production Manager

Richard Marquez

 

Content Coordinator

Will Nguyen

 

Associate Producer

Become one! Support Trek.fm and Commentary: Trek Stars at the $25/month level or plus! Visit http://patreon.com/trekfm http://patreon.com/trekfm

 

Chapters

In Search of... (00:01:17)

Nimoy's Involvement (00:17:35)

STAR TR3K News (00:28:07)

Wrap-up (00:38:29)

 

Send us your feedback!

Twitter: @trekfm 

Facebook: http://facebook.com/trekfm 

Voicemail: http://www.speakpipe.com/trekfm 

Contact Form: http://www.trek.fm/contact 

Subscribe in iTunes: http://itunes.com/trekfm

 

Support the Network!

Become a Trek.fm Patron on Patreon and help us keep Star Trek talk coming every week. We have great perks for you at http://patreon.com/trekfm

Direct download: ctrek-128.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:53pm MDT

Wolfe, Part 5: Riverworld.

In 2010, Syfy took their second shot at adapting Philip Jose Farmer's Riverworld novels for the small screen. This time around, Robert Hewitt Wolfe was brought in to write multiple drafts of the troubled miniseries.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, Max and Mike examine the miniseries on the whole. We discuss the challenges of building an expansive mythology, the use of historical figures in a fantasy setting, and the unusual path the project took from script to screen.

Direct download: ctrek-068.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm MDT

Wolfe, Part 4: The Dresden Files.

In 2007, after a rather long road from page to screen, Robert Hewitt Wolfe's second series, The Dresden Files, debuted on Syfy. The show, which Wolfe developed with his Star Trek: Deep Space Nine collaborator Hans Beimler, tells the story of a wizard detective named Harry Dresden, who specializes in investigations of a supernatural nature.

This week, Mike and Max are joined by their Commentary Track Stars: Off Topic co-host Branden Myers to look at The Dresden Files. We discuss the magical noir sub genre, the curious case of the show's pilot, and the many Trek alumni who worked on the series. We also ponder the existence of Chicago accents.

Direct download: ctrek-067.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm MDT

Wolfe, Part 3: Andromeda.

In 2000, Robert Hewitt Wolfe made his debut as a television showrunner with Andromeda. The series, which was based on concepts by Gene Roddenberry, followed the crew of a starship in distant future after the fall of civilization as they try to restore the Commonwealth to its former glory. 

This week, Mike and Max are joined by Colin Higgins of Melodic Treks to look at Wolfe's first full series. We discuss how the project came to be, what caused Wolfe to leave the show, and how one of the best episodes was originally intended for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Direct download: ctrek-066.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm MDT

Moore, Part 5: Caprica.

As the saying goes, "All of this has happened before, and all of it will happen again." While Ronald D. Moore's Battlestar Galactica was coming to a close, his new series, Caprica, was just beginning. 

The prequel takes a look at the world of BSG fifty years prior to its destruction. It focuses on two families, the Graystones and the Adamas, at a critical time in the history of the world, when artificial intelligence is on the brink of sentience. 

This week, Mike and Max are joined by their Commentary Track Stars: Off Topic co-host, Branden Myers, to look at the ill-fated spinoff. We discuss the problems with creating a prequel, how to make something different, and why the decision was made to change showrunners mid-season. We also debate whether or not the series should have been more like Desperate Housewives.

Direct download: ctrek-049.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00pm MDT

Matheson, Part 4: The Shrinking Man.

Richard Matheson’s fourth novel was the first to be adapted for the silver screen. The Shrinking Man tells the story of, well, a man who shrinks. It was made into two feature films. The first, written by Matheson himself, was the cult classic The Incredible Shrinking Man. The second was a more comedic take directed by Joel Schumacher entitled The Incredible Shrinking Woman. 

This week, Max and Mike are joined by their friend Matt Hammer to talk about Matheson’s original novel and the two motion picture interpretations. We discuss the novel’s structure, the first film’s lack of depth, and the second film’s lighthearted tone. We also touch briefly on making it to the final round of the Parsec Awards.

Direct download: ctrek-038.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00pm MDT

Meyer II Part 7: Vendetta.

After an eight-year absence, Nicholas Meyer returned to the helm in 1999 to direct his eighth and most recent picture, Vendetta. The TV movie, starring Andrea Di Stefano, Bruce Davison, and Christopher Walken, tells the story of the largest lynching in American history. 

This week, Mike and Max are joined once again by Marcelo Pico of Framed Panda to look at the movie which Meyer considers to be his best. We discuss the way historic events are portrayed, the quality of the performances, what Meyer was up to between movies, and whether or not Vendetta truly is his best work.

Direct download: ctrek-033.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00pm MDT

Braga Part 2: FlashForward.

Four years after the cancellation of Enterprise, Brannon Braga teamed with David S. Goyer, his producing partner on Threshold (no, not that one), to create a television series based on Robert J. Sawyer's novel, FlashForward. The series begins with a worldwide blackout, in which everyone on Earth sees two minutes of the future. The show was an obvious attempt by ABC to fill the gap created by the end of Lost. But unlike Damon Lindelof's hit, Braga's series lasted only one season.

This week, Mike and Max are joined by Mike's wife, Melissa, to disect Brannon Braga's non-Trek show. We discuss the calculated attempt to make FlashForward the "next big thing," the differences between the series and the book, the cliffhanger ending, Braga's use of time travel, and how easy it would be to determine if what the characters saw was "the" future or "a" future.

Direct download: ctrek-025.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00pm MDT

Lindelof Part 3: Prometheus.

23 years after his groundbreaking film Alien, Ridley Scott returned to the beloved franchise with Prometheus. He hired Damon Lindelof to re-write Jon Spaihts’s original screenplay. With Lindelof, the movie became less of a prequel to Alien, and more of a standalone story inside of that universe.

This week, Max and Mike are joined by Mehul to talk about Lindelof’s second feature film. We discuss whether or not Prometheus lived up to the expectations of Alien fans, its depiction of science, the differences between the Spaihts and Lindelof drafts of the screenplay, Scott’s influence over the writers, the intention behind distancing Prometheus from the rest of the franchise, and the career path that Scott has taken in later years.

Direct download: ctrek-022.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00pm MDT

The World Beyond Star Trek.

Welcome to the very first episode of Commentary: Trek Stars! Join Mike and Max of Commentary Track Stars (get it?) as they take a look at the work of Star Trek creators outside of Trek. In this episode, we tell you who we are and what you can expect from the show. Enjoy!

Direct download: ctrek-001.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm MDT

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