Star Trek Continues… on the Web

Star Trek Continues is an ambitious, Web-based effort by fans, to painstakingly recreate the original Star Trek series which ran on NBC for three seasons, between 1966 to 1969. The ultimate goal is to create two seasons-worth of episodes to complete the original “five year mission.” Everything’s being done with the full approval of CBS, the current copyright holders. One full episode has been completed, called Pilgrim of Eternity.

I enjoyed the first episode, but found it a bit jarring to begin with. The Star Trek Continues team is attempting to minutely recreate the production values, and design sensibilities of a famous 1960s TV series. The trick being to make things look only as good as they could be done in the 1960s. The results are mostly convincing. The Enterprise model is so faithful, yet still betrays it’s CGI nature somehow. The jarring part is when everything behind the actors looks exactly like the original series, it draws attention to the fact that the actors definitely aren’t the originals. That took some getting used to.

Left to right: Vic Mignogna as Kirk, Chris Doohan as Scotty, and Todd Haberkorn as Spock.

It’s clear a lot of care went into casting. Each actor has tried, to varying degrees, to measure up to the original actor who defined the part they’re playing.

Vic Mignogna, as Captain James T. Kirk, has too high-pitched a voice, but employs several Shatner vocalisms. Straight on, facially, Mignogna resembles no actor more than a young Jack Lord, of Hawaii Five-O fame — it’s a bit disconcerting. but his stature, and build is perfect, and from the side, and back, he really evokes a young Shatner. Todd Haberkorn as Spock, has no characteristics of voice or stature that resembles Leonard Nimoy, but he does his best to get the spirit right, and his best is quite good. Larry Nemeck plays Doctor McCoy. Nemeck is apparently a well-respected Star Trek fan/historian. Wisely, he doesn’t bother trying to mimic DeForest Kelley, as he risks not only being measured against Kelley, but also Karl Urban’s ability to channel Kelley in the Star Trek reboot films. Chris Doohan plays Montgomery Scott, and yes, he’s the son of James Doohan, who originated the role. Vocally, Chris is Scotty. It was a pleasure to watch him carry on his father’s legacy. Chris has, in fact, appeared in several Star Trek films, beginning with the first in 1979, as well as both of J. J. Abrams “reboot” films.

Grant Imahara as Sulu, has no real physical resemblance to George Takei, but he did a good job of recapturing the enthusiam Takei brought to his portrayal of Sulu. Kim Stinger, can clearly act, and sing, but her Lt. Uhura didn’t have a bit of the poise that Nichelle Nichols brought to the original role. And Wyall Lenhart sounded great as Ensign Chekov, but he had exactly two lines.

Michele Specht plays Dr. Elise McKennah, the ship’s counselor, the role Marina Sirtis played on Star Trek: The Next Generation — Sirtis appears in Star Trek Continues as the voice of the Enterprise computer. Specht was apparently just guesting for the first episode.

The first episode: Pilgrim of Eternity

Michelle Specht as Dr. Elise McKennah, with Michael Forest reprising his original role as Apollo

Star Trek Continues‘ goal is to complete the original series’ five year mission, which was “interrupted” when the series was cancelled after three seasons. Thus the first episode, “Pilgrim,” takes place two years after the original series, second season episode “Who Mourns for Adonais.” In that episode, Kirk, and the crew of the Enterprise were nearly enslaved by the Greek god Apollo.

Two years ago, Apollo looked like that. Now he looks like an old geezer. What’s up with that?

Two years later, while looking for what could have completely drained a number of Federation power stations, the Enterprise barely escapes having it’s ow energy siphoned off by an object which turns out to have been the intended final home for the “gods” of ancient Greece. The “Realm,” meant to provide life energy for the gods forever, instead malfunctioned, draining the life-energy of the gods. When the Realm is disabled by a photon torpedo, the last two surviving gods escape to the Enterprise: Athena (Diana Hale) and Apollo (Michael Forest), Athena dies in Apollos arms, and Apollo himself appears to be an old, dying, man.

Apollo assures Kirk he is no longer a god, no longer craves the worship of humans, and only wishes to live out his final days peacefully on a human-inhabited planet. Scotty, for one, doesn’t buy it for a second, and after Apollo regales some crew members with stories from the age of Greek heroes, he is visibly rejuvenated by their attention, and adoration. After a one-sided confrontation between Kirk, and the awakening God, Kirk declares in exasperation that you can’t teach an old god new tricks. The story resolves on a wonderfully uplifting note.

Put an old Greek god in front of an audience, and it goes right to his head!

Michael Forest, who reprises his role of Apollo from the original episode, really impresses. At age 84, he is still a commanding physical presence. At 6′ 3″ (1.91 m), he looms over Vic Mignogna’s Kirk, just as he did with Shatner. Forest is frankly better here, than in the original episode.

“Pilgrims of Eternity” succeeded for me because it not only looked right, but felt right — like an authentic original episode — and big props to everyone for pulling that off! The story was interesting and enjoyable. It reminded me how the original series couldn’t rest on flashy special effects, and had to tell a good story, with interesting characters. I think it’s worth a look, even if you aren’t a big Star Trek fan. Trekkers, of course, will want to beam right over to the first episode on YouTube.

The producers, Far From Home LLC, are running a Kickstarter campaign to raise $100,000 USD so they can make more episodes. As of this writing they’ve actually raised $105,000, with eight days to go. This link to the Star Trek Continues Kickstarter campaign, also links to the first episode.