Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Multimedia, Software, Odds and ends, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch
Star Trek prequel coming to the iPhone
Ok then. Apparently J.J. Abrams, who's directing the new Star Trek movie, has worked with some comic book creators to (get this) bring a prequel of the prequel to the small screen before it appears on the big one. Whew. They're releasing a series of iPhone apps, which are actually "mini-comics" telling the pre-story of the movie. And here's where it gets really confusing (and spoilerific): apparently, while the movie is a prequel featuring a young Kirk and Spock, the story's villian is actually a time-traveler from Star Trek: TNG times. Which means the iPhone comics actually star Picard and his TNG crew, and tell the story of the movie's villian, a Romulan named Nero. I originally though the film was a non-canon reboot of the series, but no -- apparently even though we've never seen this era on film before, it is still mean to fit right in the Federation's universe.
Still with us and interested? You actually are a Star Trek fan! (I prefer Star Wars myself.) The comics are going for 99 cents each (you can apparently pick up the same comic in print for $3.99), and are available in the App Store right now.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
sawatzky said 10:20PM on 3-25-2009
ST and SW are not polar opposites. There is room for BOTH in a sci-fi fans heart!
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Eddy120876 said 10:05AM on 3-26-2009
@sawatzky
Well said. Both Universe are what sci fi fans love. I for one love both so much i can say one is above or bellow the other. Go Star Trek and Star Wars :-D
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spiceweasel said 4:28AM on 3-26-2009
Greedy greedy Paramount, not they let us pay their commercials
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chefgon_ign said 7:51AM on 3-26-2009
I downloaded the first three issues on Android a few weeks ago (apparently the exact same app as this) and it's actually pretty good. It takes place quite a while after the last TNG movie, so you get to see where everybody ended up after they all retired from the Enterprise.
I also never understood why somebody would feel the need to identify themselves as a Star Wars fan to justify their disinterest with Star Trek. Sure they are different styles of Science Fiction, but they're both nerdy adventure stories with lots of fake science and crazy space ships. I honestly don't see why you would love one but hate the other, they're both pretty well built universes.
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Alexandre Strube said 9:34AM on 3-26-2009
I need the 4th one!
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jim2011 said 9:58AM on 3-26-2009
Are they animated like the watchmen motion comic?
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Shunnabunich said 10:34AM on 3-26-2009
Yes, Nero is originally from the post-Nemesis Star Trek universe, but travels back in time to the pre-Original Series period and starts blowing crap up or what-have-you, essentially creating an alternate Trek timeline as (what thus far appears to be) a grandiose justification for J.J. Abrams & Co. to do exactly what you said — flip the bird at existing canon.
I can see, though, why trying to stay true to 40 years' worth of the stuff, even retroactively for a reboot movie, might make a filmmaker want to throw up his hands in despair and say "screw it, we're doing time travel AGAIN!" :) Sometimes you just have to start fresh to make it interesting enough for a new audience.
That said, I look forward to reading these comics to see how they lead up to the movie, which I'm sure I'll still enjoy as well.
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