X-Men Planet X by Michael Jan Friedman

 

X-Men Planet X by Michael Jan Friedman


First off I have never been a great fan of the TNG novels and certainly never read any X-Men comics so this novel is not an obvious choice for me but I am a fan of Michael and truth be told the ebook was on offer so why the hell not. From what I gathered this is the second novel that features this crossover and events from that are referred to here but I don't believe that caused any issues as the events are just as much of a mystery to Picard and crew as they are to Storm and her comrades. What we have is a group of the X-Men appearing on a starbase, causing some havoc and finally being reunited with the crew of the Enterprise. On the planet Xhaldia a number of young people are undergoing some traumatic transformations and obtaining physical and/or mental powers and surprisingly their government does not handle the situation well. Events begin to spiral out of control as the "transformed" break out of detention and then are targeted by an invading alien military force. Thankfully Xhaldia had called for help before losing communications and the Enterprise is on its way along with some very powerful and motivated mutants.
The story was paced well and I had no trouble letting myself be immersed into the narratives (which merge later) but I think I would have gotten a lot more out of the novel if I was a fan of the original X-Men rather than what FOX offered via the movies. Give it a go though, it was certainly interesting as Worf and Wolverine become buds.

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Best Destiny by Diane Carey

 

Best Destiny by Diane Carey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Best Destiny turns back the clock and sheds some non-canon light on the teenage years of one James Kirk, the story covers two separate time frames with the first showing James as a rebellious teenager and the other as a Captain looking at the end of his career. The focal point is the planet Faramond and the events that surrounded the discovery of a race vastly more technically advanced that the Federation and who seem to have as a species packed their bags and vanished into history.

Commander George Kirk with help from Captain Robert April arrange to take Jim on a cruise to Faramond for a ribbon cutting event in the hopes he can reach his wayward son before anything too serious happens. Jim is playing fast and loose with rules and regulations and roping other people into his games, it's only a matter of time before events spiral out of control and something happens that can not be fixed. The kicker is that Captain April is taking out the Enterprise and even the already jaded Jim Kirk is in awe of her beauty and power, of course he tries not to show it. April, George, Jim and some crew take one of the shuttles as Enterprise makes a call on another world but the shuttle is ambushed by pirates, badly damaged and with casualties Jim has to learn some very painful lessons in what it means to really lead people and be prepared to sacrifice all for the benefit of those who may never even know what you did.
Decades later the constitution class USS Enterprise is coming to the ends of its life and on its final voyage its sensors pickup an energy surge which is only associated with the explosion of warp engines. The source is a starship in the Faramond system, records indicate it's likely to be the Excelsior Class USS Bill of Rights under the command of Captain Alma Roth (former officer under Kirk). Captain Kirk does not believe in coincidences and provides records to both Spock and McCoy on events so long ago and orders his ship towards Faramond. James Kirk is again looking at life that may not hold many more wonders and has to face his mirror image yet learns that the journey is never going to be complete, there will always be one more world, one more civilisation and that will be enough to spur on this Captain, this ship and this crew.

Best Destiny by Diane Carey is one of the novels that played a part in my own personal Star Trek canon, I like this Jim Kirk (similar it has to be said to the Kelvin Universe) and no question that drawing upon her own novel Final Frontier helped greatly in continuity. The novels asks many questions of its core characters and the two timelines with varying technologies and challenges work well for the narrative and while the experienced Captain Kirk and Enterprise are pure Trek it's perhaps the young Jim with his father and April that hold the limelight. This era of Star Trek and Diane's own take on a young Kirk may not be for everyone but it works for me.

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Heaven's River by Dennis E. Taylor

 

Heaven's River by Dennis E. Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The fourth novel in the series focuses on the perhaps inevitable fracture of the Bobiverse as the replicants drift ever so slightly apart as the generations multiply, it seems there is no such thing as a perfect copy or perhaps events do indeed shape the mind in small almost immeasurable ways even for what amounts to software. As factions form within the community Bob himself attempts to track down the long lost Bender and he is successful but in that success the battle lines are drawn and even the organics associated with the Bobs suffer and/or exploit the chaos.
Heaven's River is my favourite of the four novels, I liked the evolution of the Bobs and humanity as well as the complications of the non-human elements of the galaxy. The Quinlan culture and the technology behind it was fascinating and shows wonderful creativity coupled with insights into individuals and society as events impact upon them.


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The Wounded Sky by Diane Duane

 

The Wounded Sky by Diane Duane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Wounded Sky is one of those Star Trek novels that is so high on my scale of all things good and proper in Star Trek it's ridiculous but this story is that good. It kicks off with a description of the ship in warp and that's like nothing you've ever read, it gives the novel such heart and soul you wouldn't believe and then we get to the actual story.
The Enterprise is chosen to test a new drive system designed by K't'ik a member of an arachnid race famed for their design and technology, the "inversion drive" manipulates areas of subspace and twists natural laws and is able to fling a vessel to wherever it needs to be in zero time and the testing has gone well. The drive is installed despite Scotty having said nothing would be fitted to the ship without his full understanding but it works flawlessly, or does it? A mind bogglingly distance away from the Enterprise the strain of breaking "natural" laws has consequences and slowly but surely the very fabric of the universe is being torn apart. During the "inversion" which was supposed to occur in zero time hence no actual frame of reference for the individual the crew start to experience events and other minds, their collective souls are mingling and realization emerges that they have to journey to the focus of the tear and attempt to fix the problem or life will cease to exist.
The Wounded Sky gets the regular characters of Star Trek spot on and Diane as with all her work effortlessly weaves in new characters who can easily take center stage when required. K't'lk is glorious a true alien being who is accepted by all and yet her story has a solid foundation, same for the minor characters we meet who are on the crew but never appeared on screen. The story has scope that defies belief especially compared to contemporary Star Trek novels of the time and I'll admit the concepts and ideas presented were discussed into the wee hours with friends many times. This novel really has to be read to do it justice and while Diane presented some of basic plot ideas in her screenplay for the TNG episode "Where No One Has Gone Before" that was a pale imitation of this piece of science fiction.

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Funko Pops

I swore I had done with Funko Pops after buying the Jaws set a couple of years ago but well what are you gonna do when they release Mirror TOS 😊

Recent 4K Purchases

Slowly but surely building up my collection of 4K Blu-rays, some are spectacular, some are better than their 1080p Blu-ray cousins and others you may wonder why you bothered. Just as with Blu-ray the format doesn't automatically means superior quality unless some work on the masters has been done.

Cast Adrift by Christopher G. Nuttall

 

Cast Adrift by Christopher G. Nuttall
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Earth was alone until the ships came, they surrounded the planet and took out some significant assets before demanding the surrender of humanity, would no way to fight back humanity came under the control of an alien race known as the Alphans and for 500 years served them. As you would expect things change over the centuries and humans became useful across the Alphan territories and especially in the military theatre when without human soldiers the Alphans may have lost a war. As humanity flexes its muscles the calls for more autonomy and even independence rise up and unexpectedly the humans get what they asked for, freedom to make their own decisions and mistakes ​
Cast Adrift by Christopher G. Nuttall is the first novel in a new series which deals with Earth finding its place in a populated galaxy after achieving its independence however without the protection of the Alphan military and political will from its former masters they are very much alone surrounded by predatory races more than happy to conquer humanity once again. This was an interesting start to the new series from Christopher whose previous work I've enjoyed. The scenario created is compelling and relevant to a lot that is going on in our world today and offers good characters who have to deal with the ramifications of events that spiralled out of control. I will be purchasing the second novel as and when available.


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Polar Lights Star Trek Shuttle

Every now and again I get the urge to build a model and this time I chose the TOS Shuttle kit from Polar Lights, it looks quite good from a distance 😃

Stargate Archives - Stargate Theatre - Metal Hurlant Chronicles - Master of Destiny

New from the Stargate Archives and under the Stargate Theatre banner I've produced a commentary for Métal Hurlant Chronicles S1E5 "Master of Destiny" which starred Joe Flanigan & Kelly Brook.

For We Are Many by Dennis E. Taylor

 

For We Are Many by Dennis E. Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The second novel in the Bobiverse series delivers with the Bob's dealing with the events upon Earth and the young colonies as well as the intelligent alien life they have discovered but more importantly the race that are scouring star systems for resources even those with life bearing worlds. Individual Bobs continue to show some minor and sometimes significant variations from Bob 1 aka Bob Johansson but that is good as the tasks of exploring a galaxy and now caring for the last few million humans is one that needs a variety of mindsets. However no venture is progressing without incidents and the Bob's originally meant for exploration have to continue to act as police force and military and even with continued backup of themselves there are losses some very personal to those involved. The Bob's afterall are far more human than their physical selves would lead you to believe.
"For We Are Many" was an excellent second novel expanding upon the galaxy and the world's already being colonised or slowly developed including those with sentient life already existing. There is room for narratives which span the galaxy and for relationships between just two souls as well what drives humanity and finding out that alien life is not all that different.
A highly recommended series with two strong novels and a third to be read.

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Eagle Transporter

Picked this up from Eaglemoss and yes it took quite a few decades to replace my Space 1999 Eagle die-cast toy from my younger days😁

Drake's Drum by Christopher G. Nuttall

 

Drake's Drum by Christopher G. Nuttall
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Drake's Drum is the final novel in this specific trilogy of stories which are part of the Ark Royal series written by Christopher G. Nuttall. This novel continues the story of the very alien virus that has the ability to control its biological hosts to the point of encompassing whole civilisations and now Earth and its colonies are close to the abyss. Fortunately a very industrialised world (Alien Prime) was located which it is believed could be the viruses original homeworld and if not certainly the logistical center for its campaign against humanity. Alas the powers that be are bowing to pressure to keep the navies directly protecting Earth despite knowing a defensive posture will fail given time so the Royal Navy (well individuals within) go it alone and dispatch Captain Hammond (HMS Lion) and Captain Campbell (HMS Unicorn) to once again take the now proven Battlecruiser and Corvette concept to "Alien Prime" and launch and long term and long range operation using mass drivers and rail guns combined with stealth and constant movement to weaken the enemy. There may even be some reinforcements (human and from our alien allies) but that will depend upon the political will of the major powers but for now the virus has to be slowed down.
Drake's Drum was a fine novel to wrap up the story of humanity and its encounter with the alien virus as well the individual characters within this phase of human history. Like many navel heroes of the past Hammond and Campbell both far from perfect individuals will be remembered but many more people played their parts and this trilogy did expand upon those type of characters more so than previous novels for the better in my opinion. Christopher has already announced the idea behind a new batch of novels within the Ark Royal series and if you have read this book then you would have guesses where he was going to take us going forward and I'm looking forward to the journey.

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We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor

 

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bob Johansson is a wealthy man having just sold his company InterGator Software for a rather large amount of money, his closest friends have benefitted from the sale and feeling good about himself Bob signs up to be cryo-frozen upon his death. As luck would have it the money was wisely invested as decades later he awakes to find himself well not human anymore but certainly alive and conscious which is more than can be said for 99.9999% of his compatriots. However the USA and world has changed rather drastically during the intervening years, his personal wealth was taken by the state and his humanity no longer recognised, in other words Bob is now the property of a corporation who have plans for Bob. Now this a review which I could go full spoiler on but I don't want to because I have to seriously recommend this novel, it's not hard scifi but there is plenty to think about in terms of big picture and the future of space exploration. However seeing the future unfold through the eyes of Bob is both fascinating and compelling as all manner of obstacles are encountered as the galaxy is explored and yet Bob is still the 21st century guy he was when he was "alive" so humour we can all recognise is at the heart of the novel. The second novel "For We Are Many" is sitting on my kindle ready to read.

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The Cost of Freedom by Daniel Arenson

 

The Cost of Freedom by Daniel Arenson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The battle for humanity continues both on Earth, in close orbit and the far reaches of the Solar System yet the military forces of Earth can not trade hull for hull against the invading Rah an arachnid intelligence which feeds on its conquered enemies and also uses them to host their eggs. As the space battle turns ever more in favour of the Rah the commanders of the Earth factions now united against a common foe decide to break contact and fight a guerilla style campaign but when a Rah Prince kidnaps Commander Kings grand daughter a suicidal mission is undertaken to raid a huge complex on the dark side of the moon. The terrors that await the force led by James King, his son Colonel Bastian and 49 other marines will be with them for the rest of their lives but for the sake of child and the opportunity to capture a Rah Prince for interrogation is too good an opportunity to pass up.
The Cost of Freedom is wonderfully over the top space opera with larger than life characters, action that defies realism (in context) and situations that have you perplexed (imagine Fast & Furious and you know what I am getting at). The overall story however is entertaining, the action never lets up and if you accept that it doesn't make a lot of sense then you will be more than satisfied. The third novel "We Fight For Freedom" is on the way and I'll be buying my copy when it arrives.

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Stargate Theatre - Sea Beast

New on Stargate Theatre part of the Stargate Archives Podcast is my look at "Sea Beast" starring Corin Nemec and Camille Sullivan.

Stargate Archives

Vapor Trails by Joshua Dalzelle

 

Vapor Trails by Joshua Dalzelle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jacob Burke and the remnants of Scout Team Obsidian in their stolen ship along with two synths continue to track down the human terrorists of One World. For various reasons the team are being hunted by One World operatives, their own command and of course Jason Burke who is not pleased the Phoenix is being flown around the galaxy and distracting him from his own search for Lucky. However Obsidian and Omega Force are converging as they both independently gather intel while juggling their relationships with the Navy and Intelligence services both of which it is now clear have been severely compromised. Eventually Omega Force and Obsidian converge on Koliss 2 and well emotions are vented all around but the intel they gather finally opens the door to finding out all of One World's secrets. Vapor Trails fully merges the original characters with those that were introduced in the spin off series of novels in a most satisfying way, both Jacob and Jason have to address some issues as events both old and current have light shone onto them. The novel overall is well paced with the mystery of One World being laid out in a believable fashion as a few threads from Omega Force being dangled with malicious glee.
New novels are due for both series and well I will be pre-ordering as soon as I am able and while I am more committed to Omega Force the adventures of Obsidian in the same sand box has been most gratifying.

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Thrilling Adventure Yarns 202

 

Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2021 by Robert Greenberger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I backed Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2021 via Kickstarter and once again was not disappointed as the anthology offers up a wide variety of styles, concepts and ideas which never failed to entertain. A few highlights were adventures set deep in the South American Jungle, crime with a noir vibe, a Sherlock mystery, romance, scifi stories both traditional 50's style and more of the "out there" approach not to mention some tales which defy categorization. As with all anthologies you can not really do them justice unless you mention each individual story (which I am not going to do) but take it from me, these are highly entertaining tales from authors you know or may be new to you that create drama, suspense, delight and appreciation from the reader.

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Breakaway by Craig Alanson

Breakaway by Craig Alanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The 12th novel in the Expeditionary Force series by Craig Alanson is titled "Breakaway" and humanity despite having galactic scale weapons of mass destruction have been easily maneuvered into a very bad position by the senior species of the galaxy, races that have had millenia to perfect their craft. The Maxolhx having engineered the approaching global ice age that is currently affecting the Earth and by extension vastly increasing the threat of humanity turning on itself are maybe a little too complacent as Joe Bishop, Skippy and the rest of the Pirates do their best work when forced into a corner and once again we see imaginative and intelligent scifi story telling which allows our heroes not to be swept aside. Not only that the Mavericks and Colonel Emily Perkins having been fully absorbed into the main narrative and are working their own military magic to strengthen the position of Earth and weaken the two main coalitions that control the galaxy. This novel really hit the ground running and never let up, good scifi story telling with strong characters both new and old and alien races which have purpose and add greatly the whole. Personally I loved the Jeraptha and their Ethics and Compliance Office but we also get more of the apex species interaction with humanity and other races which was very satisfying. Breakaway was an excellent read, loved it, love the series and well up for the next novel.








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Stargate Theatre - Deadly Voltage

One of the many tv movies that feature Stargate actors in both starring and supporting roles. Deadly Voltage isn't the best I've covered in recent months but it does star Mike Dopud and Alaina Huffman so it ain't all bad 😊

Stargate Archives

Flight of the Javelin by Rachel Aukes

Black Sheep by Rachel Aukes
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fifteen years into a twenty year ship the converted cargo ship Gabriela under the command of Captain Reyne transports its precious cargo of cryo frozen colonists to a world they hope will provide the home of a new colony. However the crew have had to deal with some strange glitches and failures throughout the journey and then a crittle system error forces them to abandon the ship (colonists secured with 2 years of life support) and seek help in the uncharted darkness that surrounds them. The crew with only months of life onboard the shuttle experience a miracle when they find a strange looking ship drifting in the void, they board and find a vessel unlike anything they have seen before and with an AI beyond anything they could have imagined. Returning to the Gabriela they find it "salvaged" and soon learn this region of space is far from empty having been colonised by another branch of humanity years before and piracy is far from unknown. Captain Reyne and her crew are far from lilly white themselves and nothing will stop them from rescuing the colonists and taking back the Gabriela.
Black Sheep is the first novel in the Flight of the Javelin series and Rachel sets up the world and the characters fairly well, there is still a lot of information missing which forces the reader to try to put elements together which is not always a bad thing but a primer and better timeframe to how the Earth fits into the overall narrative would have helped. That said an enjoyable read with a lot more to come based on the loose ends left tantalisingly open in this book.

Free Station by Rachel Aukes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The second novel in the Flight of the Javelin series "Free Station" continues the story of former crew and colonists of the Gabriela and as the young colony is growing some will never be happy tied to the ground and thus the Galactic Peacekeepers satisfies their need to always be active but also their moral and ethical drives. However after the events on Jade 8 the now sole owner Anna East has a burning desire for revenge and a plan to secure power and influence, all it will take is to remove the Peacekeepers from this part of the galaxy and well casualties are just the cost of doing business.
Rachel provides the reader with a much more in depth story in this second novel by expanding upon characters from the first novel and introducing the might of the Peacekeepers and the political framework it works within. We also get a few hints of what may be out there beyond explored space all of which provides an excellent read full of action, suspense and mystery. Once again Halit “Throttle” Reyne is the core character but is abled supported by new and old characters each providing their fair share of the narrative and all are well catered for in terms of focus and development. A strong second novel in the series and looking forward to book three.

Rogue Planet by Rachel Aukes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Rogue Planet is the third novel in the Flight Of The Javelin series and we are fully immersed into the worldview of Vantage Core the intelligence that "lost" the first major conflict with humanity but has never really gone away. Thanks to events told in the previous novels and their consequences unfolding in this story Vantage Core is ready to begin an assault on humanity wherever it resides. Fortunately for organic life and it has to be said quite a lot of luck the crew of the Javelin discover the danger and manage to return from the Vantage Core system to warn the Peacekeepers who at least at a local level are prepared to risk everything to defend the colonies closest to what will become the frontlines even if that means offering pirates and prisoners the opportunity to fight and gain their freedom. Vantage Core has had a long time to prepare and has not wasted the years sitting quietly, humanity has not idea the world of hurt is coming their way...
Rogue Planet was entertaining and continued the narrative development seamlessly, we learn more of the nemesis that is facing the human race (fractured that it is) and while there are still some gaps that I would have liked to learn more of the overall story and reading experience was most satisfying.

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