Trekkies Blog

My favorite Star Trek episode!

2010-07-07T05:33:00.000-07:00

What is your favorite Star Trek episode? :)
Everyone has their own, I am sure! Well, I have my own too!
Now, I know that not many people liked the Star Trek: Enterprise TV-series, but that is where my favorite episode comes from. As for the series itself, it is not my favorite part of the Star Trek saga, but i watched it a couple of times anyway. It is currently running on the national TV in my country. Still, despite all the reservations many people have, I believe that it could have been one of the best ST series, but we'll talk about that some other time. Now, lets focus on my favorite episode.
It was episode 2 of season 2: Carbon Creek! It all starts with T'Pol having dinner with Archer and Tucker. She soon starts explaining how Vulcans actually met humans much earlier than the books say. It was in 1957 during the Sputnik launch. The Vulcan research ship crashed near a small town of Carbon Creek and three Vulcans, one of them being T'Pol's grandmother, had to live among humans for a couple of months... Isn't that great!? I hope some of you watched this episode too! Serious and logical Vulcans living in the paranoid Cold War era. They had to find regular jobs like plumbing, or working in the mines, but they also discovered a talent for playing a game of pool every now and then. This is all fun and games, but what imprinted this episode in my mind was the ending. Did you know that Vulcans invented the Velcro? Yes, Velcro is an alien gift to humans! :D Well, Archer and Tucker couldn't believe what they heard and they were reluctant to accept the story. T'Pol, like only she can do, left them in doubt by telling that it was only a "story" like they wanted in the first place. Still, later in her quarters, she takes out an old, vintage purse from 20th century Earth.
Why do I like this episode that much? Come on! The Vulcans invented the Velcro! Can it get better than that!

Why do I like the Founders?

2009-10-20T01:41:00.000-07:00

Founders, changelings, shapeshifters, metamorphs... It doesn't really matter how you call them, but for me they are the absolute top of the food chain when it comes to Star Trek universe. Why? Well, they created an aura of secrecy around them which makes them so damn attractive for a good story. Hell, the whole Deep Space 9 series was centered around the Founders and the Dominion War. I even think that it would go down as the first miss in Star Trek history if they hadn't come up with them and started the Dominion War storyline. What makes them so appealing to me, except the obvious ability to change shape, is their orientation towards unification of different worlds through methods of intimidation, political intrigue, espionage, and different treaties. It is not peaceful like the Federation does it, but it is not actually even so violent, unless it is necessary. The race of Founders is simply something new in the Star Trek universe. We are all used to seeing different explorations, anomalies and all kinds of species while watching Voyager, Next Generation or the Original series, but now we were introduced to something completely new - a race of paranoid shapeshifters with an organized strategy to conquer an entire quadrant. Sure, the Borg is/are always trying to assimilate the entire galaxy, but they are machines with no personality who just come and go straight forward, they go "All in" to speak in poker terms. What the Dominion did was full of different bluffs, carefully devised plots, alliances, promises and lies, intrigues, and all of that with a single goal of taking control over an entire galaxy! What makes it even more fun for me is the fact that the Dominion was not defeated in the end. The best that the Federation, Romulans and Klingons could do is to make them go away and return back to the Gamma quadrant. And what will the Founders do after they return? They will breed more Jem'Hadar and continue with their old ways of dominating over hundreds of different worlds of Gamma quadrant. There was none of that moral code Federation so highly values implemented here. Federation Alliance was more than happy just to get rid of these bastards, they did not even think about setting some conditions of freedom for the Gamma species or something like that. What this means for me is that there is a chance they will someday return!

GeekBlips code: 4736195847
TVBlips code: 5483746259

Why have they done it?

2009-06-19T08:16:00.000-07:00

I watched the new Star Trek movie a couple of weeks ago and I was going to write my thoughts sooner, but I just could not get myself to start writing, probably because I disliked the movie so much.
First of all, in my opinion there is only one thing good with this movie and it is the actors, all but Chris Pine, who is simply not cut out to be Captain Kirk. Eric Bana, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg and, of course, the legendary Leonard Nimoy, did a phenomenal job.
Now let's get to the tough part of analyzing what was wrong with the movie. Well, as the title says, I have to ask myself: "Why have they done it?" I always thought of Star Trek as a never ending story, but now I don't know anymore. That is what frustrates me the most. There was absolutely no need to end one timeline and start another, especially with the focus being on destroying Vulcan. They could have done anything with the story they had to continue it. They could have invented another ship with new younger characters, they could have invented another race, they could have created an entire another interesting storyline centered around some new ship... But no, they decided to turn this great adventure into a video game. Enough from me, you all probably understand by now that I didn't like the movie. However, I did watch it and I will watch the next one too, I am just a too big fan not to. Who knows, maybe it turns out good in the end.
Just to end this I would like to say that I am not a professional movie critic, but an ordinary Star Trek fan who loves the story and is a bit dissapointed with what they done with it. I hope the rest of you had a more positive experience.

Son'a battleship

2009-06-05T15:54:00.000-07:00

Length: 835 meters
Width: 1,075 meters
Height: 150 meters
I don't know about the rest of you, but I think that the Son'a battleship is one of the best designs of Star Trek universe. Couple of these ships were used in the fight against USS Enterprise in the Briar patch where they proved to be more than a match, but they were eventually defeated. It is known that the Son'a were cooperating with the Dominion during the war, but it is not clear whether they ever faced off any other Federation or Alliance ship in combat. One thing is for sure, Son'a are almost equally technologically developed as the Federation, which means these ships are formidable opponents in combat against any vessel of other major powers. It is also important to point out that Son'a battleships are equipped with sophisticated isolytic subspace weapons, which were outlawed by all major races in the Second Khitomer Accords. Son'a battleships are also sometimes refered to as destroyers or battlecruisers.

Economy of the Federation

2009-05-12T15:34:00.001-07:00

Federation economy was built around the large scale production of consumer goods. Replicators fill the need for all material goods and philosophy of self-improvement and helping others provides most labor. The driving force of the Federation was the ensuring of a comfortable standard of living for all it's citizens, rather than the acquisition of personal wealth. Money was very seldom used and not really needed for an average life of a Federation citizen. However, there is still a basic unit of exchange called the Federation credit, which is used in transactions with other governments, allotting government budgets, and access to limited resources. Federation member worlds who posses resources unavailable elsewhere are obligated to provide them in times of emergency.

The Federation itself is often considered a utopia, a condition which is enabled by a state of abundance and absence of war and poverty. While Earth seems like a paradise, other parts of the Federation often use latinum as currency despite the use of credit. The Bank of Bolias for example is a major financial institution, and Bolarus IX, which is a Federation member planet, apparently has a market economy.
Still, it seems that money as we know it began to fade from everyday use in the 22nd century.

On the other hand, while the resources required for basic existence are abundant in the Federation, many other resources are not. These include real estate, services which take up a person's time, starships, transportation between worlds and energy. Sometimes there is also rationing of transporters, replicators and holodecks. Mining and other forms of resource harvesting are also common in the Federation.
It seems that the Federation allocates those resources which do happen to be scarce through some sort of command economy or central system of rationing, or even through the use of previously mentioned credits.

Galaxy class starship

2009-04-20T14:39:00.000-07:00

Length: 642.51 meters
Width: 463.73 meters
Height: 195.26 meters
Crew: 1014 officers and enlisted
The Galaxy class was introduced in the late 2350s. It was the largest and one of the most powerful Federation starship classes of its time.
The Galaxy was designed to be a multi-purpose mission platform. It possesses the most advance scientific equipment, laboratories and exploration resources of any Federation starship class, which makes the class ideal for long term exploration missions.
The Galaxy class was also equipped with state of the art weapon and defensive systems when it was launched, along with saucer separation capability. It is equipped with ten phaser banks, located at various points along both hulls. There are also fore and aft torpedo launchers on the engineering section. Every tube is capable of firing at least five photon torpedoes simultaneously, each torpedo capable of being independently targeted.
Before the advent of Federation battleships due to the Borg and Dominion threats, the Galaxy class was the first choice for defending the borders. The class was also designed for diplomatic, evacuation, and first contact missions.
The Galaxy class is also suitable to carry civilians, mostly members of crew families and different civilian science teams. That is why Galaxy vessels were equipped with recreational facilities, holodeck, theater and concert hall, salon, replimat, educational facilities, gymnasium and the Ten Forward, which was sort of a club designed to serve as the social center of the ship. Due to all of these characteristics, one might even conclude that Galaxy class starships were sort of miniature societies made up of many different species and social classes.

Cardassian Keldon class

2009-04-06T13:17:00.001-07:00

Length: 371 meters
Width: 192 meters
Height: 70 meters
Crew: 500 officers and troops
The Cardassian Keldon class is roughly based on the Galor class spaceframe. Weapon systems, shield, engines and troop capacity have all been upgraded from the standard Galor class, but the Keldon class still remains outclassed by more technologically advanced Alpha Quadrant power's starships. Upgraded versions of the Keldon class were built by the Obsidian Order in the late 24th century, but they were subsequently destroyed by the Dominion. They are armed with eight or more spiral-wave disruptors and one large aft disruptor wave cannon. These ships were also sometimes referred to as Cardassian battle cruisers or Cardassian destroyers.

Romulan Star Empire

2009-03-20T16:45:00.000-07:00

The Romulan Star Empire is a major galactic power. It is known for its xenophobic character and policies of extreme secrecy and territorial protectionism.
The Romulan heritage hails from Vulcan ancestry and rebel fractions that refused the Vulcan dogma of logic brought by Surak almost two thousand years ago. It was S'Task, Surak's student, who led the group to colonize other worlds far from the Vulcan homeworld. They settled on a twin planet, and called themselves the Rihannsu, the Declared. The Federation called the two Romulan planets Romulus and Remus, after the story of the brothers who founded the ancient Roman Empire on Earth. The planet Remus is settled by Remans, the second major species of the Empire. The Romulan Star Empire expanded through military conquest of nearby worlds and spread across large expanses of Beta Quadrant encompassing a highly functional and technically advanced military machine.
The central political body over the Empire is the Senate, the controller of which is the Praetor, and the various Proconsuls. Intelligence services are administrated by the Tal Shiar and the military of the Empire is called the Romulan Guard.
The most noted technology in the Romulan military is the cloaking device. The system involves an energy envelope which surrounds a vessel or object rendering it undetectable, both invisible to the eye and camouflaged to scanning devices and EM sweeps. The power generators of Romulan ships are forced quantum singularities, artificially created gravity wells or micro black holes. These are known to give off abnormal amounts of tetryon radiation, so certain vessels in reasonable proximity can sometimes detect them, even through the cloak. Romulan beam weapons are known as disruptors and they have certain advantages over Federation phasers, mostly due to their destructive power.

Jem'Hadar attack ship

2009-03-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

Length: 68.3 meters
Width: 70.02 meters
Height: 18.3 meters
Crew: 1 Vorta and 12 Jem'Hadar
The Jem'Hadar attack ship, also referred to as Jem'Hadar fighter, is a small agile fighter that makes up most of the Dominion's fleet. They normally operate in small hunter packs made up of two or three ships and in bigger groups when engaged in large battles. The main weapons of the ship are phased polaron beams which were able to penetrate the shields of Starfleet ships when they first encountered them (the loss of the USS Odyssey, a Galaxy class starship). Dominion attack ships never withdraw from combat and the Jem'Hadar are so loyal to the Founders that they often use their ship as a weapon by ramming larger enemy ships. Besides the polaron beams and other energy weapons, this class is also equipped with torpedoes, transporters capable of beaming through Federation shields, deflector technology that is impervious to tractor beam locks and sensors that are able to detect cloaked ships. These fighters are commanded by a Vorta and a Jem'Hadar First. The bridge has no chairs and only two virtual display devices instead of a classic viewscreen.

Cardassian Galor class

2009-03-11T16:33:00.000-07:00

Length: 371 meters
Width: 192 meters
Height: 59 meters
Crew: 300 officers and troops
Galor class composes the majority of the Cardassian fleet. The Galor class is easily outclassed by most other starships as the other Alpha Quadrant powers have since its release advanced beyond the current level Cardassian technology. To compensate for this short coming ships are often deployed in tactical groups composed of three or more vessels. They are armed with one main forward disrupter array, eight spiral-wave disruptors and one aft disruptor wave cannon. After the Cardassian Union joined the Dominion the class was refitted with more advance weapons including plasma torpedoes, but it was still considered sort of a cannon fodder in the Dominion fleet.

The Jem'Hadar

2009-03-03T16:02:00.000-08:00

The Jem'Hadar are a genetically engineered race from the Gamma Quadrant, the military arm of the Dominion and one of the most powerful military forces in the galaxy.
The Jem'Hadar are bred in hatcheries and it is likely that they are hatched from eggs. There are only males in the Jem'Hadar species. Adult Jem'Hadar do not require sleep or nourishment and any form of relaxation is shunned. Like the Vorta, they are genetically engineered to be loyal to the founders and see them as gods. The only form of sustenance required by Jem'Hadar is the drug ketracel-white, which ensures their continued loyalty to the Founders. As a result of genetic engineering and combat breeding, the Jem'Hadar have excellent vision, are several times stronger than Humans, and have an ability to "shroud" themselves, a form of cloak which hides them from sensors and the naked eye vision. Most Jem'Hadar die young in battle, so it is rare for them to live past 15 years of age. Those who live to the age of 20 are awarded the title "Honored Elders." No Jem'Hadar has ever lived to the age of 30.
Jem'Hadar combat units follow a specific hierarchy. A Vorta commands one or several units and every unit has a First in command. Each Jem'Hadar after the First is given a number rank (Second, Third, Fourth...). In the event the First is killed, the Second shall take over.
Before each battle, the First states a speech to his unit:
"I am [Rank] [Name], and I am dead. As of this moment, we are all dead. We go into battle to reclaim our lives. This, we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar. Remember - victory is life."
The rest of the unit then responds:
"Victory is life."
A similar exchange states: "Obedience brings victory, and victory is life."
The dispensing of Ketracel-white has a ritual statement. The Vorta presents the vials of white and asks:
"[Rank] [Name], can you vouch for the loyalty of your men?"
The First responds:
"We pledge our loyalty to the Founders from now until death."
The Vorta then replies:
"Then receive this reward from the Founders. May it keep you strong."

Tha Cardassian Union

2009-02-26T08:01:00.000-08:00

The Cardassian Union is the official governing body of the Cardassian people. The capital world of the Cardassian Union is their homeworld Cardassia Prime, situated west of the Federation. The Cardassians were once peaceful and spiritual people, but things were forced in another direction when much of the planet was plunged into poverty and disease. Radical action was then required for survival. Cardassians were united under a fascist government and started conquering many worlds to become a powerful empire in the Alpha Quadrant.
The Cardassian Union was formed under a treaty between the Cardassian Central Command and the Obsidian Order. The civilian Detapa Council was established to serve as the chief governing body between the two branches, but in practice it is virtually powerless. The relentless expansion began.Soon, what was once a lone planet became an empire of immense proportions. However, the Cardassians met their match in the Federation, whose fleets were more powerful than anything they had ever met in battle before. The expansion stopped and a Demilitarized Zone was set up after an uneasy truce.
Cardassian starship technology is less advanced than Federation and Romulan. Their heavy cruisers are the Galor Class, highly maneuverable, but slower, and with less effective shielding and less efficient sensors. They possess disruptor beam and plasma weaponry, but it is slightly less powerful than Federation equivalents.

Defiant class starship

2009-02-22T12:36:00.000-08:00

Length: 170.68 meters
Width: 134.11 meters
Height: 30.1 meters
Crew: 50 officers and enlisted
The Defiant class, although officially classified as an escort vessel, is the first true warship produced by the Federation. The project was started after the Borg invasion and was intended to defend the Federation against further threats. It was designed as a maneuverable weapons platform featuring quantum torpedoes and rapid fire pulse phasers. Four phaser cannons are located facing forward, above and below the nacelle root attachments. The standard phaser beam emitters serve as a secondary supplement to the primary phaser cannon array. The Defiant class is equipped with three emitters, one forward and aft and one on the dorsal surface. Vessels of this class also have six torpedo launchers which allow them to fire quantum and photon torpedoes. Defiant class ships are also equipped with deflector shields and ablative armor.

The Dominion

2009-02-16T13:42:00.000-08:00

The Dominion is a major galactic political and military power in the Gamma Quadrant. It was founded somewhere between ten to two thousand years ago by the Changelings, a highly evolved species of shapeshifters.
The Dominion was founded upon xenophobic fear. The Founders once belonged to an ancient race of peaceful explorers who found nothing but fear and hatred in their journeys. Hunted over the galaxy they retreated to a remote planet in the Omarion Nebula. There they formed the Great Link, where they exist in a collective environment, and established the Dominion to exact their own kind of rule and discipline, thus adopting the title of "the Founders". The slaughter of their species convinced them that only through absolute control over every part of the Universe will they live in peace. In time their government's rule and influence extended across the entire Gamma Quadrant.
Through genetically created soldiers called Jem'Hadar, their law and mandates are enforced with extremely efficiency and brutality, while daily duties of administration are relegated to the Vorta, a race genetically altered to serve the needs of the Founders. Their explorer roots did not vanish, so the Changelings sent out hundreds of infants to serve as their eyes and ears. It was expected these Changelings would one day return to the Great Link and input new knowledge into the society. The Dominion also trades with other species through the race of Karemma, who are known as the Dominion's traders. Most member worlds of the Dominion exist with almost full autonomy as long as they bide by the rules set down by the Changelings. The fear of massive Jem'Hadar reprisals is enough to keep most planets in line.
Because of the Dominion's size and influence they are able to obtain many diverse and sophisticated technological systems, like the advanced virtual display interface, sophisticated ion propulsion system, phased polaron beam weapons, shield grids that ensure negative tractor locks, transporters that can beam subjects through shields and across distances of over three light years, anti-proton scans to detect cloaked ships, portable personalised cloaking devices carried by Jem'Hadar troops...

Klingon bird of prey

2009-01-31T15:17:00.000-08:00

The Klingon bird of prey is a type of starship utilized by the Klingon Empire serving the Klingon Defense Forces from the late 23rd century into the late 24th century. It is one of the most versatile ships employed by any of the major forces of the galaxy as it is capable of serving a variety of different roles. There are two basic versions of the bird of prey design, the B'rel class and the K'vort class.
B'rel class
Length: 157.76 meters
Width: 181.54 meters
Height: 98.54 meters
Crew: 12 officers and troops
K'vort class
Length: 678.36 meters
Width: 780.62 meters
Height: 423.72 meters
Crew: 1,500 officers and troops
The B'rel class is a small, but heavily armed, scout ship. It can be manned by a crew of only 12 and it is armed with two disruptor cannons on the wings and a fore torpedo launcher. The defenses include deflector shields and a cloaking device. The K'vort class is designated as a cruiser and it is larger and has more firepower than the B'rel class. It has a cloaking device and is armed with four disruptor cannons on the wings and both fore and aft torpedo launchers, which makes it a more formidable warship than the smaller B'rel.

United Federation of Planets

2009-01-14T08:13:00.000-08:00

The United Federation of Planets (UFP), or simply The Federation, is a confederation of planets and colonies that agreed to exist under a single government based on the principles of universal liberty, personal rights, and equality. The Federation was established in San Francisco on Earth in 2161. The treaty was signed by four founding races: Humans, Vulcans, Andorians, and Tellarites. The Federation expanded rapidly, but peacefully, since then and it now includes over 150 worlds that have more than 3000 colonies. The most prominent institution within the UFP is the Starfleet. It is the military and exploration force of The Federation and Starfleet ships are used to explore the galaxy, make first contact with new civilizations and defend the Federation in case of an attack. All the member planets are governed by the Federation Council, which is composed of representatives from each world and based in the city of San Francisco on Earth. It has the legal power to create, amend, and ratify all Federation laws.

Sovereign class starship

2009-01-09T02:39:00.000-08:00

Length: 685 meters
Width: 250 meters
Height: 88 meters
Crew: 855 officers and enlisted
The Sovereign class starship was introduced to the Starfleet in the late 24th century and it was equipped with some of the most recent technological advances. Unlike other explorer ships, due to threats from the Borg and the Dominion, the Sovereign class was updated to incorporate elements of a battleship. Starships of this class are armed with quantum torpedoes and photon torpedoes, as well as numerous type XII phaser banks and arrays.

Romulans

2009-01-07T08:59:00.001-08:00

I have to say I love the Romulans and everything they represent in the Star Trek universe. It is probably a mixture of advanced technology, cunning behavior and mystery surrounding this race that makes them so attractive to me.

The Romulans are a Humanoid race from the planet Romulus. They are biological relatives of Vulcans, as they are descendants from those who rejected Surak's reforms during the Vulcan Time of Awakening. Their state is the Romulan Star Empire and it is one of the most powerful forces in known space.
Like Vulcans, Romulans have pointed ears, eyebrows that are arched and upswept and two ridges above the bridge of their nose which form a shape of the letter V on their forehead. Unlike the Vulcans, they are a passionate people, easily moved to various extreme emotions, which earned them a reputation for being passionate, cunning, and opportunistic.

Romulan warbird Valdore type

2009-01-07T08:43:00.000-08:00

Length: 603 meters
Width: 908 meters
Height: 95 meters
The Romulan Valdore type warbird is the newest starship class of the Romulan fleet. These ships are smaller, and thus more maneuverable and faster then the older and bigger D'deridex class, but they have equally strong fire power and defensive systems. Ships of this type are armed with several disruptor banks the wings and on the forward section of the ship and have at least one forward plasma torpedo launcher. The Valdore type represents the future of the Romulan fleet.

Romulan warbird D'deridex class

2009-01-07T08:05:00.000-08:00

Length: 1,041.65 meters
Width: 772.43 meters
Height: 285.47 meters
Crew: 1500 officers and troops
Now this is one of my favorite Star Trek ship designs! Romulan D'deridex class warbird is both an elegant and powerful starship. It is a heavily armed starship used by the Romulans in the late 24th century and it makes up the bulk of the Romulan fleet. It is a massive ship which it measures almost twice the length of a Galaxy class and has superior firepower. The Warbird incorporates an advanced cloaking device and a new engine design that uses an artificial singularity power source. The ships of this class are armed with disruptor cannons and photon torpedo launchers and are believed to be far more powerful than most Federation designs, although they are less maneuverable and have a lower top speed.

Welcome trekkies!

2008-10-28T07:41:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the "Star Trek Blog", the ultimate trekkies blog on the web. It is my wish that this blog one day becomes the biggest resource of Star Trek information on the internet. This is my first post, so it is obvious that there is a long way in front of me, but I hope success is also. Enjoy!