Fan-Based STAR TREK Series

That was great, but kind of strange too. In some scenes, it's hard to tell if it's the original actor or the reboot actor, and the voices don't always match the faces.

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I kinda hate to do this to you Captain, but I could not stand Michele Specht as Counsellor McKennah. I thought I might get use to her, but nope even up until the very last episode she drove me crazy with her over done scenes. I swear she ended each interchange of dialogue with a little smirky smile and a vacant look. She would've been cast perfectly as one of Henry Mudd's androids from I, Mudd.

I knew nothing about Michele Specht while watching STC but I had a strong hunch she must be a girlfriend or wife of producer/writer/director and star Vic Mignogna...I finally looked it up and she was indeed married to Vic during filming of the show. I also read she worked mainly as a comedian which explains her overly colorful performance. She'd be perfect in a reboot of Married With Children as Peg Bundy, but on the starship Enterprise she never felt Trek like. She's no Kelly sorry Cap!

From her IMDB biography:
She lives in Los Angeles, and spends most of her time on set and in life being told: "GREAT - now take it down a notch." Indeed, at least two notches!

For some reason I had a feeling that was coming!

I'm not going to disagree with that. Maybe I'm just a sucker for a pretty face and a well-filled-out-mini-skirt-Starfleet uniform (or maybe I like imagining the idea of "shark jumping" - before Happy Days made this a term... adding a new regular character to a series was usually a form of that, or at least a sometimes last ditch attempt to help diminishing ratings).

As said, I think I just liked the fact that she was a continuity concept link between TOS & TNG.

Did the concept of a ship's counselor on the original Enterprise bother you, or was it just the actress herself?

Just the actress.

BUT I liked Michele and thought she had lots of personality and comic ability but she was just wrongly cast, IMO. I wasn't surprised to learn she has mainly worked as a comedian, I could see her being good at comedy. If you rewatch STC look at her mouth when she finishes a block of dialogue....she almost always does a small, half smile. It's weird. As an aside there were three guest star actresses that caught my attention. All seemed to have that special something.

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Your description of Michele sounds right, but it's probably because it's been a while since I watched the series that it's not something that stood out to me - at this time anyway. (I'm currently re-viewing White Iris - not a lot of McKennah so far.)

Specking of females, I know Chapel was mentioned, but if I recall Yoeman Rand was completely absent, is that correct? (But they added a semi-regular navigator at the helm who was blond.)

Was one of the three that caught your attention the Romulan?
I don't remember if her acting was any good, but I do remember when I first saw her I was knocked for a loop because she looked so much like the original. (When seeing side by sides, you can see they're very different ladies... but at first glance - wow!)

We didn't see either Chapel or Rand......But I kept thinking, where are they? But then it dawned on me that Grace Lee Whitney had left the show early so it wouldn't have made sense continuity wise to have her back again. Though I think I would've still cast Michelle Specht as Janice Rand anyway, as we all know the Yeoman had the hots for Kirk. I don't know who the blonde at helm was or suppose to be? I know Lt Palmer was on the bridge in many scenes.

You were right about the actress who played the Romulan commander looking just like the original, damn! She even got the head tilt and attitude right. The actor who played the Romulan sub commander was also much like the original actor.

White Iris, very cool idea for a story.! I liked how they touched on the original show where Spock used a Vulcan mind technique to make Kirk forget the android Rayna from Requiem for Methuselah... Kirk was deeply troubled by her death.

In White Iris the tie in with the accident that causes Kirk to remember Rayna, and thus triggering his feelings of regret over the women he had loved and had died due to his involvement with them made for a somber show.

If you're watching all of STC again I'll tell you which guest actress caught my attention.

I'm going to try to watch them all again. I had a weird idea to revisit the ones I didn't care for first - to see if I can gain more from them. Enough time has gone by (about 2 years) so that watching them again will be... kind of like when I watch TOS reruns on Saturday night!

One thing - we obviously like how STC references TOS (it's a huge part of the web series' appeal), and at times has some running subplots.
Yet, that is something TOS itself rarely did. I can't remember them referring to a previous episode (unless there was a recurring guest star like Harry Mudd). I can't even think of any other recurring guest characters.
Almost every episode was stand alone with no references to past episodes or running subplots.

That's so true and I wish TOS had more continuity and self awareness of past episodes. But back in those days tv shows where done episodic, so that each episode could stand alone when shown in reruns.

Next Gen introduced more running themes and back references to past episodes. But it was DSN that really made an effort to create an interlinked world where past episodes effected the choices of future episodes and characters.

If you ever want to spend $8.99 per month, Netflix has the Star Trek series and all the episodes can be streamed. I know they have: TOS, Next Gen, DSN, Voyager & Enterprise.

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Ooh! More to comment on!

Lolani was probably one of the best episodes writing-wise and dilemma-wise (despite it having the first STC McCoy).
It really presented ethical questions & challenges (something ST was famous for).

I was surprised to see Lou Ferrigno show up in this (in green skin-paint once again, no less). That was a kick.

I remember Anne Lockhart from the original Battlestar Galactica (played "Sheba") - she looked just like her mom - upturned nose and everything!

I have more comments on your comments. But for now, I'll just say I felt the same way about Come Not Between the Dragons.
One reason was the creature looked to me like it was directly inspired by Japanese Manga / Anime. It looked like something out of the Power Rangers TV series. The look of it just didn't seem to fit in the ST (or STC) universe. (They should have brought the Horta back!)

Good call,the creature did look like Anime and not ST. I was actually surprised by it's odd look.

So what were you're stand out episodes and bombs?

I got the impression that the creature's design was probably a favor to one of the people working on the show (or who was a follower submitting suggestions) that was a Manga / Anime or Power Rangers fan!

The little girl in The White Iris was adorable!
That's just my segue to mention how it's weird to think, if she were canon (and had been born), she would be Dr. David Marcus's half sister! (And they, of course, would both be half siblings to however many other children Kirk fathered throughout the galaxy.)

I was surprised by some of the guest stars - I've mentioned some already from TOS & TNG, but there was also Erin Gray from Buck Rogers and Marina Sirtis as the computer voice.

I liked "Admiral Nogura" showing up in the last episode - he was only mentioned once in ST-TMP, but the funny thing is I remember reading the novel version after the movie came out which I believe outlined Kirk's pitch to Nogura to have him take back command of the Enterprise. So it was nice that they remembered the character and worked him into the story that precedes TMP.

Captain, are you still re-watching Star Trek Continues? I just got through watching another fan made Star Trek series on YouTube, Starship Farragut. Have you seen that?

Hi Rules,
No, haven't checked that one out yet, but I have heard of it, (Is it a prequel? Wasn't Farragut the name of Kirk's former ship?)

The weirdest thing - was just now thinking about this thread. I was about to turn computer off to go for walk and decided to check MoFo quickly before shutting down and saw this thread bumped under new posts! That was just weird!

In the mirror universe you did just go for a walk

Segue to Starship Farragut! We learn how the empire in the mirror universe was created. Hint, it has to do with time travel to an alternative reality, George Washington and...you'll like this, 'the Jersey Devil'. It was an interesting idea but image if you, me and say gbgoodies put on Star Trek uniforms and made a show, it's about that good The bridge looks decent, but the video quality and the acting has a lot to be desired.

It's not a prequel. The Farragut under Captain Jack exist in the same time frame as the original series did (our close to it) In fact we see a cameo by Captain Kirk who's played by Vic Mignogna. Vic directed an episode too.

Ooh! I gotta see that, especially if it has a crossover (kinda) with STC's "Kirk."

I always had a theory that the mirror universe was the result of a reality where Kirk saved Edith Keeler from being hit by a truck. In the episode City on the Edge of Forever, Spock shows that if she didn't die, the Nazis would win WWII. The "Terran Empire" just seemed to be a natural evolution of if the Nazis had control over the Earth.

I watched a bit of the first episode and you weren't kidding about the acting!
A bit cringe-worthy. (I like how you put it - if we & gbg made a show!)

The acting level in STC is to Farragut what the acting level in TOS is to STC!

(Makes me realize that, although no one would say TOS was ever the pinnacle of dramatic acting, how much better professionals are at it than amateurs.)

Can you tell me (or give a link) to the episode of Farragut that Vic M. appears in?

Sure, give me a minute...Also I've been meaning to answer your last post as there's something interesting.

The one where Vic Mignogna appears as Captain Kirk is called "The Price of Anything".

There's only eight episodes of Starship Farragut. I believe three of them are under 19 minutes, and two episodes are under 40 minutes. The remaining three, were over an hour. All are on Youtube, but the last one is on Vimeo as a director's cut. It has by far the best video and production quality as they must have used more professional equipment.

The episodes do get better, well sort of. They were made over a number of years and it's rather shocking how some of the cast age in like only 5 years. Actually kind of depressing.