It has been a blessed week in the Star Trek fandom! We’ve got news for Strange New Worlds, Picard, a new release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, AND it’s First Contact Day. Paramount+ really opened the floodgates. Let’s celebrate with a news roundup!
First Contact Day
April 5, 2063 marks First Contact Day–the day Earth and Vulcan make first contact as plays out in Star Trek: First Contact. To celebrate, Star Trek United Gives is donating $1 per handle for everyone that tweets #StarTrekUnitedGives to charities that support LBGTQ+ equality, veterans, and other humanitarian aid. They will be donating via this tag through 11:59 PM PT on April 10, 2022. Find out more information about this giving campaign here.
New Strange New Worlds Trailer
We got a brand new trailer for Strange New Worlds this past Sunday. There were TONS of unexpected things in this trailer. In case you missed it, give it a watch, and let’s freak out together!
Who is this sexy Spock that we see?! Let’s be clear; Spock has ALWAYS been sexy. Google the “We grok Spock” campaign that played a huge part in Star Trek: The Original Series getting a third season. But goodness, we’ve never seen Spock like this before. We’ve got a mix of legacy characters–Uhura, Nurse Chapel, Dr. M’Benga, and of course, Spock, Una, and Captain Pike. We’ve also got some new characters–La’an Noonien-Singh, Hemmer, and a character I’m particularly interested in, Lt. Commander Erica Ortegas. I mean, she’s a lady with short hair AND she can swordfight. Considering Brienne of Tarth is my favorite character in all of fiction, this is very on-brand for me.
There are TONS of other things that have captured my interest in this trailer. I mean, I’m always excited about new Trek and we are currently living in a golden renaissance of Trek content, but after this trailer, I’m counting down the days until May 5. Which, by the way, is a month from today. Stay tuned to Paramount+ for more Strange New Worlds updates.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 4K!
Today, Paramount+ released the 4K remaster of Robert Wise’s director’s cut of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. The good folks at Paramount+ were kind enough to provide me with a screener of this film and goodness, is it beautiful. With effects by visual effects pioneer Douglas Trumbull (2001: A Space Odyssey, Tree of Life), the film is already a gorgeous masterwork of the craft. Enhanced in 4K, this is the only way to watch this film. You can learn a little more about the film and the sheer miracle of its existence by listening to this episode of Sci-Fi 5 written by yours truly.
The 4K remaster of Star Trek: The Motion Picture – The Director’s Edition is streaming exclusively on Paramount+.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 News
Finally, we got some serious Picard news across our desks this afternoon. Season 3 of Star Trek: Picard will feature many Star Trek: The Next Generation cast members! We’ve already had Riker, Troi, and Data, but now we get Geordi, Worf, and Dr. Crusher! I cannot tell you how happy this makes me! Take a look at this trailer and squee along with me!
I’ve got a few questions about this–will we see Wesley (Wil Wheaton), Dr. Pulaski (Diana Muldaur), and Miles O’Brien (Colm Meaney) again? I hope so. If we’re going to get the band back together, let’s get the WHOLE band back together.
Star Trek: Picard season 3 will be released in 2023 on Paramount+.
Final Thoughts
There’s never been a better time to be a Star Trek fan. What are you looking forward to the most? Right now, I’m very eager to get to Strange New Worlds, but I’m going to enjoy Picard while I wait. In the meantime, let’s chat! Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
All iterations of Star Trek are streaming now on Paramount+.
