This is a very sleep deprived HNG coming to you from New York City. I’m here visiting my nieces and having a great time with them. Unfortunately for me, I usually go to bed around midnight-2:00am California time. Combine my sleeping habits with the time zone change and my body wants to go to sleep between 3:00am-5:00am New York time. Since I’m typically waking up around 8:00am that’s not working out too well for me. 5-hour Energy has become my new best friend.
It’s time for another podcast with the awesome guys over at World’s Best Podcast and their section dedicated to all things Star Trek – “Ten Forward.” This time around we discussed the Captains from Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. It made for a very entertaining discussion, let me tell you!
Oh, and we recorded this a while ago when I was very sick so my voice is all scratchy and Janeway-sounding. I was also suffering a bit from sick brain so it was difficult for me to put my thoughts together at times. But considering how awful I felt, I thought I did pretty good.
Thanks to Mark and Isaac! It’s always fun to talk Trek with you! Listen to the podcast here:
Or if, as per usual, if the above player takes too long to buffer, just click here to listen: http://tinmanfrisbie.podbean.com/2012/06/04/ten-forward-season-1-episode-2/
I’m sick for the second time in a week and I have a gopher that is destroying my yard and my life. So lame. Just before I got sick the first time I participated in a Star Trek discussion with Isaac and Mark over at World’s Best Podcast for a new section of the podcast they are calling “Ten Forward.”
If this all rings a bell it’s because I participated in a Daredevil discussion with them about a month ago.
For the first episode of Ten Forward we discussed our favorite episodes from Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. I LOVE talking about Star Trek so this was a really fun one for me. Hope you like it!
Just like before, WordPress has issues with the above audio player and it can take a while to buffer. If you’re having problems just click here to listen to the podcast. Sorry about that, I’m trying to figure out how to fix it.
Look for more stimulating Star Trek conversations in the future!
The first time I went to WonderCon was way back in 2002 while I was in college in San Francisco. I was the only girl in the group and was rocking my Batman Underoos and a very ill-fitting SFSU sweatshirt.
A Spider-Man sticker on top of a Batman logo…I’m trying to remember if we had some sort of Marvel vs. DC thing going on that day….
Since moving to Southern California I wasn’t sure I’d ever go to a WonderCon again but fate had other plans (namely construction) and planted WonderCon in Anaheim this year. I had to go. Now, normally I like to spend at least two days at a comic book convention; however, WonderCon inconveniently fell on St. Patrick’s Day weekend and the Irish blood in me refused to give up the St. Patty’s Day festivities. Therefore, I settled for going to WonderCon on Friday only.
This was the first Comic Book Convention for my Mom, my sister-in-law Troi and my friend Hayden (aka Geek Outlaw). We’re all going to San Diego Comic Con this Summer so it was good practice for them. My Mom wore the HNG t-shirt I had made for Long Beach Comic Con and guys were flirting with her all day. What can I say? I have a hot mama. Hayden wore his Geek Outlaw outfit which was so weighed down by his geeky accoutrements that he literally had to mosey.
First things first. Star Trek. Star Trek actors are the only celebrities I get star struck by. I’m not sure why that is other than the fact that I heart Star Trek sosososososososo much. Seriously, Harrison Ford could walk up to me and I’d be like “yo, what’s up dude?” but if Patrick Stewart did that I would freak the fuck out. So it should come as no surprise that when I saw Anthony Montgomery (aka Ensign Travis Mayweather) I freaked the fuck out.
See that look on my face? That’s pure joy right there.
I was in the process of purchasing a comic book and getting my face sketched on the back of it (more on that later) when Hayden and I realized that Anthony was in the booth right next door. I couldn’t move yet because of the sketching so Hayden went over and warned Anthony that a Super Trekkie was in his midst. I tend to be a very shy person but as soon as I got the go ahead from the sketch artist that I could move I practically mauled the poor man.
I swear I don’t normally do this type of thing!
He now holds the distinction of being the only Star Trek actor that I’ve hugged. Twice. Seriously though, super super super nice guy. I even told him my Connor Trinneer story and he got a laugh out of that (short version: I had just arrived at Whole Foods in Hollywood and saw a guy holding a baby and trying to get a grocery cart. I got the grocery cart for him and when he turned around and thanked me I realized it was Connor Trinneer and I almost had a heart attack right on the spot).
Anthony was there promoting his new graphic novel Miles Away. Y’all should check it out because it looks really good and because I heart him. A lot.
Back to the comic book I was purchasing before I saw Anthony….
Artist: J caught my eye because she’s a fellow HNG who wrote a comic book. Seriously, she’s badass. She combines the comic with music to create a whole experience for the reader. I love and support my fellow HNG’s and you should too. So check her out.
And she makes a darn sexy Wonder Woman too
One of her artists, Will Olmo, did a quick sketch of me on the back of the book.
While looking for an artist I saw at LBCC (alas, I never found him and I can’t remember his name) I ran into two other artists that I will be paying close attention to from now on. The first one is Mike McKone who happens to live just a few miles away from me. I’m going to try and hit him up for an interview. The second is Gerimi Burleigh creator of Eye of the Gods and Morningstar. We first noticed Gerimi because Hayden is a fan of the country western genre and Morningstar has a cowboy twist to it. After talking to him, you can’t help but like him. Super talented and super nice. Plus, he has an awesome name.
Geek Outlaw and Gerimi Burleigh
DC is fighting hunger in Africa with their We Can Be Heroes campaign. To bring attention to the cause they had a photobooth set up wherein you could get your picture taken with shadowy images of the Justice League.
They printed a picture for you (or in Hayden’s case, a crapload of pictures…the printer went nuts over his sexy photo and wouldn’t stop printing them). The photos will be accessible online and on the DC facebook page at some point.
My scanner doesn’t like this picture for some reason so I’ll replace it when they get the digital versions up
We went to an Amazing Spider-Man panel where I saw and got super excited about this:
It’s Punisher! In space!
But the best panel was Nerdist Industries Live! I really hope that no one reading this is too young to remember MTV’s Singled Out. It was back when MTV still played music videos and there were only a handful of reality shows, namely Real World, Singled Out and Love Line (though LL may have come later…I can’t remember, I haven’t watched MTV in years). Anyhooters, people mostly remember Singled Out because it introduced the world to Jenny McCarthy. I remember it because it introduced me to Chris Hardwick. My love for him has only increased over the years what with The Nerdist, Talking Dead, and various hilarious commentaries on E! pop culture shows.
He introduced several people who will be participating in the new Nerdist youtube channel.
Those of us in Ballroom 3 had to pay dearly to see this panel. Warner Brothers decided that right beforehand they would force everyone waiting for The Nerdist to watch an episode of The Secret Circle. It was worse than Chinese water torture. And this is coming from someone who enjoys Twilight (I know, I know). It did give Chris the opportunity to tell jokes about sexy witch scissor sex (that’s how you complete the circle, right?) which almost made it worth it. Almost.
Other Chris Hardwick gems:
Nerds make the shiny things that distract the mouth breathers.
A nerd’s true superpower is to try to understand something and try to live it more than any other living creature.
At the end of the panel Chris had two Angry Bird stuffed animals. The first he threw right to a kid in the front row who made them all feel horribly guilty for cussing. The second he decided to throw as far as he could. The guy next to me was crazy still during the whole panel but he wanted that GD Angry Bird. I’ve never seen a man that size move so fast. It was pretty epic. And the guy was STOKED. Of course I captured it on video.
We got to take pictures in front of an Avengers poster while holding Cap’s shield.
Somehow I ended up being the buttkicker in both photos
And then with Captain America himself.
There was Batman.
And Rogue.
Hulk…at least the top half of him…
And Spidey (who was insanely flexible).
And then there was whatever the frak this guy is.
That’s a nice leg and dangly-thing you got there Mister
To represent the gamers we had some Halo.
And some Halo Barbies.
Scorpion had some crazy white contacts lenses that gave me a really great mental picture of what Roose Bolton’s eyes must look like.
Abraham Lincoln was in attendance just in case any vampires showed up.
Battlestar Galactica was represented.
This is the best Doctor #10 I’ve ever seen at a Con. He was spot on.
These fellow HNG’s made their Tardis dresses themselves. As a very non-domestic lady I was extremely impressed.
It takes this artist 8 hours to put this Firefly display together every time he goes to a convention.
Represent.
My favorite shirt of day.
I heart Transformers. Haha, j/k, it’s a Gundam.
And, of course, there was plenty of the Force.
Last but not least, Hayden’s favorite, the Ghostbusters.
That was a really hard pose to hold.
….and all the times Troi and I decided to photobomb Hayden’s pictures… 🙂
Our souvenirs, including an R2D2 for my nephew.
WonderCon turned out to be a good time had by all. The newbies are sufficiently stoked for SD Comic Con and I got an 8-bit Starfleet communicator. What more could a girl ask for?
I attended a friend’s birthday party over the weekend that had a 1930’s theme. Next thing I know, I’m in a room full of gorgeously dressed gorgeous people in authentic 1930’s formal attire.
Naturally that got me thinking about time travel.
Time travel via giant donut
Because, really, what nerd brain wouldn’t go straight to Captain Kirk in City on the Edge of Forever or Captain Picard on the holodeck in The Big Goodbye or Vic Fontaine crooning to the crew on any given episode of Deep Space Nine? It’s only natural.
Time travel is a common theme in science fiction. It’s a convenient story line that can take up an entire episode or movie and be self-contained or expanded into a multiple episode story arc. The possibilities are endless and the hardest part is making up some kind of space-time fluctuation to get our heroes to the time period needed.
Back when Gene Roddenberry first envisioned his “wagon train to the stars,” he got together with some of the greatest scientific minds of the time to hash out all things science-based on his show. He wanted to know exactly what could be done and how it could be done that was accurate and feasible. In other words, he asked these scientists to look into the future and dish the dirt.
The result has been the precursor to the cell phone, the hypospray, the modern computer, and so on and so forth. Their predictions were so accurate that NASA named one of its space shuttles Enterprise to acknowledge the fact that Roddenberry and his cohorts were far ahead of their time and deserved to be recognized for it. Every time I read an interview with an astronaut they claim to have been inspired by Star Trek.
Fake astronaut, meet real astronaut. Real astronaut, meet fake astronaut.
But what about their ideas on time travel? Some of the earliest evidence of exploration on the topic comes from the 700’s BCE with the Sanskrit Epic Mahabharata. In it, King Revaita travels to the heavens, meets God, and returns to discover that many years have gone by on Earth since he left and everyone he knows is long dead. The Japanese tale Urashima Taro and Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle contain the same basic storyline of a lone traveler leaving and returning to find themselves in the future. Even A Christmas Carol is a study of time travel.
Time travel in science fiction is often a paradox, a confusing mess of “what if’s.” If I step on a butterfly in the past, will I alter human life in the future? If I altered human life in the future, how could I have stepped on the butterfly in the past? It’s a classic chaos theory or “butterfly effect.” I’ve seen wormholes, time dilations, subspace temporal distortions, a transwarp corridor and a temporal casualty loop all used in the name of story telling. But is time travel real?
That'll do Scott Bakula, that'll do.
Time travel does exist, just not in a way that is convenient for us to go back and tell our 20-year-old selves not to get drunk and sleep with so-and-so. According to the theory of relativity, if I board a spaceship and start traveling away from Earth at a relativistic speed and then turn around and come back after a few years, more time would have passed on Earth than did for me on the spaceship. Therefore, technically, I would be traveling into the future. Einstein also theorized that it would be possible to travel into the past using specific types of motion in space. Folds in space time are another popular theory. If space folds in on itself, then why can’t we skip from one fold to another? One of my favorite books, The Last Legends of Earth by A.A. Attanasio goes into this in depth. Ancient magic has been the inspiration for many time travel stories as well. From Claire Randall going through ancient Druid standing stones in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander, to Hermione’s Time Turner in Harry Potter, the possibilities are endless.
It's true.
Physicists all tend to have their own theories of what is and isn’t possible. Stephen Hawking has been one of the biggest naysayers of most time travel theories. Ironic, since science fiction writers like to use black holes as a time travel source and Hawking is the world’s leading expert on the phenomenon.
If I could go back in time and attempt to change something, I’m not sure that I would. I would love to have prevented some deaths I feel were unnecessary, but who am I to make that decision and change the course of history ala Quantum Leap? Is it even possible to change it? Maybe it would simply result in fate finding a way like in Final Destination. Given the choice, I would much rather travel to the future. I would love to see what the human race is able to accomplish 100, 200, 300 years from now.
It might shock you to learn this. But I was, at one time, the owner of a complete set of X-Men Series II trading cards.
It’s true.
I also collected baseball cards, because like any self-respecting tomboy I played baseball, not softball. Softball is for chicks.
But Series II was my most favorite set of any kind of cards I ever collected. (I know this sentence isn’t grammatically correct and yet I choose to type it that way anyway. Deal with it). The Fleer Ultra series was OK, but it just didn’t have quite the same magic to it.
The tall, narrow type on top. The dramatic action shot below. The statistical data on the back. They were pure perfection. I even had the cards from the cartoon series with the film strip border. They were great as reference material or for just sitting down and reading.
And then one day my brother stole them.
He also collected baseball and X-Men cards. It was something we did together as loving siblings. We would walk up Country Club Lane to the comic book store and buy them and trade them. We also went through a pog phase but try not to hold that against us. I kept my cards in the same navy blue binder in nice segmented card protector pages on a shelf in my bedroom. They never deviated from that spot and I never took them outside. At some point my brother lost a few. I remember thinking, damn, that sucks for him, at least I still have all of mine.
The next time I pulled my binder out, the ones he happened to be missing were now missing from my binder.
WTF.
I took mine back.
He stole them again.
Little shit.
This went back and forth for years until he finally hid them where I couldn’t find them. My brother, my own flesh and blood, saw fit to steal and hide my own X-Men cards from me and had the gall to claim that I had stolen them from him. As if. This is the kid who opened up his Superman death comic when he was explicitly told not to and the kid next door had a perfectly good opened one he could have read instead. And he accused ME, who won’t even open the Star Trek Christmas ornament box? Psssh.
I never did find my X-Men cards after that.
So I stole his star ships.
Three beautiful Enterprise models, the Enterprise NCC-1701, NC-1701 refit and Enterprise NCC-1701-D. All beautifully hand painted by our Dad.