Roddenberry Podcasts

How much screen time does it take to leave a lasting impression? For Brian Volk-Weiss, two of Star Trek's most memorable captains made their mark in just a handful of scenes. The Nacelle Company founder joins Larry Nemecek to revisit the script introductions of Rachel Garrett in "Yesterday's Enterprise" and Edward Jellico in "Chain of Command, Part I." Their conversation explores Garrett's sacrifi...

Can Holly Amos make it through an entire podcast without mentioning Star Trek? We're about to find out! In part two of our listener Q&A, we're getting to know Mission Log's new co-host beyond the final frontier. From baseball and boy bands to favorite books, travel adventures, and the unlikely combination of brie cheese and Nerds candy, no topic is off limits. Well, except one. And Holly  almost m...

The Trek Files welcomes back Dan Madsen to revisit a revealing 1968 exchange between seventeen-year-old MaryLou "Mandi" Tamborello of the Nimoyan Fellowship and Gene Roddenberry's attorney, Leonard Maizlish. After offering photographic prints reproduced from Star Trek film clips, Mandi found herself explaining her intentions to a lawyer and promising to stop selling the pictures. Maizlish's reply...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season finale "Tomorrow's Enterprise" with Jessica and John, and then John and Holly return with Mission Log Live to hear what listeners thought of this season's time-bending wrap-up. If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Tomorrow's Enterprise," be sure to check it out on YouTube for our full recap and review. Sign...

As Star Trek celebrates its 60th anniversary, The Trek Files welcomes a performer who was there before the beginning and then came back for the episode that introduced the series to television audiences. Stunt performer  Sandy Gimpel first entered the Star Trek universe as one of the Talosians in "The Cage." When the series went into production, she returned to inhabit one of its most memorable cr...

You asked, Holly answers! Before Mission Log sets a course for Star Trek: Enterprise , we put our new co-host through a listener-supplied Trek interrogation. Holly talks about growing up with Star Trek, the characters and episodes closest to her heart, her work as an archivist, and even makes a case for some of Trek's less-loved corners. Plus, we look ahead to what Holly and John are most excited...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Once La'an a Time" with Jessica and John, and then John and Holly return with Mission Log Live to hear what listeners thought of what was a decidedly more surreal episode than usual! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Once La'an a Time," be sure to check it out on YouTube for our full recap and review. S...

Not everyone who appeared on Star Trek got a line, a screen credit, or even their name on the call sheet. Nearly sixty years later, that can turn a face clearly visible on screen into a genuine archival mystery. This week, The Trek Files welcomes veteran Deep Space Nine assistant director B.C. Cameron for a look at the working life of Hollywood's background performers. The starting point is a myst...

Last week, The Trek Files followed Gene Roddenberry to the 1966 World Science Fiction Convention in Cleveland, where he hoped to convince a skeptical audience of serious science-fiction fans that his new television series was worthy of their attention. This week, Glen E. Swanson , author of Inspired Enterprise , returns to examine what happened next. Our document is a December 1966 letter from sci...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Orders Of Magnitude" with Jessica and John, and then John and Holly return with Mission Log Live to take listeners' calls about the ethics and the potential plot impacts of the episode! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Orders Of Magnitude," be sure to check it out on YouTube for our full recap and revi...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the saucy, soapy plot developments of the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Like Chronitons Through The Hourglass" with Jessica and John, and then John and Holly return with Mission Log Live for insightful discussions, meaningful pauses, totally expected plot twists, surprisingly persistent soft focus, and listener calls! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor epi...

On September 8, 1966, Star Trek made its American television debut. But just days earlier, Gene Roddenberry was in Cleveland trying to convince some science fictionfans that his new television series deserved to be taken seriously. On this special 60th anniversary edition of The Trek Files , Glen E. Swanson , author of Inspired Enterprise , returns to examine Roddenberry's appearance at Tricon, th...

Recorded live at STLV, filmmaker and author Jeffrey Morris returns to The Trek Files with a 1989 research report on the landmark Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Who Watches the Watchers." The production notes scrutinize everything from radiation exposure and memory modification to the logic of sending Riker and Troi undercover, and even question whether Picard telling a Mintakan to "shoot...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Off-Hour" with Jessica and Mike Richards, while Holly and Heather Rae count down with Mission Log Live 's callers weighing in on the latest episode. If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Off-Hour," be sure to check it out on YouTube for our full recap and review. Sign up at: https://www.patreon.com/MissionL...

Mission Log: Reactor recaps the  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Level-Five Transporter Accident" with John and Jessica, while Holly and Ashley see if Mission Log Live 's listeners felt the puppet love, or if they felt the episode had too many strings attached. If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Level-Five Transporter Accident," be sure to check it out on YouTube for...

Norman Spinrad's original March 1967 story outline for "The Planet Eater" introduced Star Trek to an unstoppable machine roaming the galaxy, consuming planets for fuel and leaving destruction in its wake. By the time it reached television, the story had a new title, "The Doomsday Machine," and became one of the most celebrated episodes of the original series. Author and filmmaker Jeffrey Morris jo...

Mission Log: Reactor gives John and Jessica the chance to recap the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "A Case Of Chiaroscuro" , followed by Mission Log Live , where not all of our callers saw it as an issue painted in stark black & white.  Ashley and Heather hear a fascinating range of opinions on this moody episode in nearly every shade of grey. If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode...

Who am I, where am I, and why did I wake up with two podcasts, one them dressed as a Mugato?  Mission Log: Reactor gets the party started as John and Jessica recap Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' "Human Best Friend" , followed by Mission Log Live , where John and Holly hear our callers' opinions (but no karaoke open mic night)! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Human Best Fr...

What did Star Trek fans have to say in 1976? John Champion returns to The Trek Files for a look through Gene Roddenberry's fan correspondence. This season's selection captures a moment in Star Trek history, ten years after the original series debuted, but before the arrival of  Star Trek: The Motion Picture . A Cincinnati attorney credits Spock's logic for helping persuade a jury. An artist shares...

It's two podcasts for the price of one! Mission Log: Reactor gets creeped out as John and Jessica recap Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' house of space horrors, "The Griffin Incident" , followed by Mission Log Live , where John and Holly scare up a number of reactions from our callers! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "The Griffin Incident," be sure to check it out on YouTube...

Authors John and Maria Jose Tenuto return to  The Trek Files to share a seemingly ordinary filming notice distributed to guests at the Monterey Bay Aquarium during production of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home . But for John, it's much more than a production handout, it's a family keepsake. In April 1986, John's parents unknowingly visited the aquarium on a day when Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner, a...

After our Mission Log: Reactor review of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' season four premiere,  " Valles Marineris ," it's time to open the hailing frequencies. On this week's Mission Log Live , John and Holly say "hey" not to dinosaurs, but to our callers, sharing their reactions to the season premiere! If you missed our  Mission Log: Reactor episode covering "Valles Marineris," be sure to check i...

Following last week's look at the earliest concepts for  Star Trek: The Next Generation , Larry Nemecek welcomes back author and historian Ben Robinson to examine Gene Roddenberry's handwritten response and the surprising conversation it sparked. Revisiting documents first explored in earlier seasons of The Trek Files , Larry and Ben trace the pivotal weeks of September 1986, when Gene challenged...

We're back! And it's time to go BACK in time with Strange New Worlds! Join us Mondays at 7PM PT/10PM ET for our live talkback for each episode, FREE on Patreon. We'll hear your thoughts and questions as we embark on this journey together! Sign up at https://www.patreon.com/MissionLog  Jessica Lynn Verdi and John Champion return to Mission Log Reactor to chat about the Strange New Worlds Season 4 p...

It's been a long road… and Mission Log is finally back with a long-overdue check-in. John, Norman, and Rod talk about where the show has been, what's ahead, and how the journey continues as we set a course for Star Trek: Enterprise . Along the way, they reflect on the evolution of the show, the state of Roddenberry Entertainment, and what it takes to keep a 2,000+ episode legacy going strong. Oh,...