The Ready Room: A Star Trek Podcast

Crossover. Sometimes actions can have unexpected consequences. Such was the case in The Original Series when Kirk convinced Mirror Spock to turn the Terran Empire from evil to good. Only he didn’t know it. Kirk had the best intentions, but maybe there was a reason the Terrans were the way they were. We learned the result of Kirk’s speech in the Deep Space Nine episode “Crossover,” the first of man...

Justice. The first rule of Rubicun III is don’t play in the flowerbeds. No wait … that would be “run everywhere.” But staying away from the flowers is definitely rule number two. And if don’t obey the rules, there’s only one punishment: death. The boy, Wesley Crusher, learned this the hard way when Picard allowed his crew to go on shore leave on a pre-warp world. In this episode of The Ready Room,...

Breaking Down the Latest Details. Bit by bit we’ve been learning what Bryan Fuller and CBS have in store for us when the seventh Star Trek series launches in January 2017. The initial reveal of the name and hints about the time period got fans talking, and then the reveal of the ship and a teaser turned up the heat. Now a batch of details, revealed by Fuller at CBS’s All Access panel for the Telev...

Star Trek Beyond. After Star Trek Into Darkness, many questioned whether there would be a third film set in the Kelvin Timeline. The road to Beyond was a rocky one that included a complete reset of script, writer, and director. But in the end, Simon Pegg, Justin Lin, and the cast and crew of this rebooted Star Trek delivered a film that celebrates the 50th anniversary of the franchise, and that ha...

Plato’s Stepchildren. Uncontrolled power will turn even saints into savages. This is what Captain Kirk explains to Parmen, the sadistic leader of the Platonians in “Plato’s Stepchildren.” Despite saving the man’s life, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are held hostage and tortured—along with Uhura and Nurse Chapel—when they refuse to leave the doctor behind and accept some random gifts. In this episode of T...

Impulse. Some things never go out of style. Take zombies, for instance. They’re wildly popular on 21st-century Earth, and they can be found in the 22nd-century Expanse as well. But what happens when you mix the living dead with logic? That’s what Archer and the crew of the Enterprise had to find out when they stumbled upon a zombified Vulcan crew in “Impulse.” In this episode of The Ready Room, we...

Distant Origin. Dinosaurs may have been smarter than we think. Some of them may still be. That’s because they live in space and fly around in ships based on technology 65 million years more advanced than that of Starfleet. When that asteroid headed for Earth all those years ago, these hadrosaurs said sayonara to the planet’s mammals. In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined by Zachary Fruhl...

Things Past. We know that Odo has a colored past. He held the post of security chief under the regime of Gul Dukat during the occupation of Bajor. As an outsider, he would seem to be the ideal candidate to protect the Bajorans from unchecked Cardassian brutality. But while he sees himself as the voice of justice, a strict adherence to policy can lead to wrong decisions. That’s what happened when h...

Suspicions. When you have a story that features both Ferengi and Klingon scientists, you know you're in for something unusual. Throw in a Takaran, and you may start to feel blue—especially if you've lost your job after causing an intergalactic incident. This is what happens to Dr. Crusher in “Suspicions.” In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined Larry Nemecek, Sue Kisenwether, and Mike Morr...

Return to Tomorrow. Having your body taken over by an alien is a risk every Starfleet officer takes. And, as Kirk has said, risk is our business. Being possessed of your own free will, however, isn’t usually how it works. But when the disembodied voice of Jimmy Doohan asks a favor, it’s hard to resist. That’s what happens to Captain Kirk when the crew of the USS Enterprise visit a long-dead planet...

Reflecting on The Ready Room and Star Trek. It’s hard to believe that it’s been five years since the first episode of The Ready Room. Born of disaster, this show has evolved into a gathering place for the hosts of the network that grew up around it. The Trek.fm network has become an important part of the daily routine for many Star Trek fans, but there was a time when there was no network. There w...

Silent Enemy. Most aliens in Star Trek are presented in terms that the human mind can understand. The Klingons, the Romulans, even the Borg. We can make sense of their actions and motives. But in reality, new life that we meet out in space will have a lot less in common with us. Enterprise attempted to address this truth midway through its first season in “Silent Enemy,” which pitted our crew agai...

Someone to Watch Over Me. When you live on a starship, you get to know your neighbors. Sometimes you get to know them well. Especially if you’re Seven of Nine and you’re taking an interest in interpersonal relations. Armed with Borg implants and 24th-century Starfleet technology, gathering data is easy. The only problem is that some of your subjects may not want to be part of the study. In this ep...

It’s Only a Paper Moon. Events in Star Trek—even tragic ones—rarely have lasting consequences. Deep Space Nine changed that with arcs that took place during the Dominion War. In particular, in the final season, Nog’s injuries in battle led to a deep exploration of the lasting impact of a single moment in time—and they did it with the usual DS9 mix of serious commentary and humor. In this episode o...

Captain’s Holiday. Everyone gets a bit too stressed sometimes. And when that happens, it can be difficult to enjoy anything—even the negotiation of a successful trade agreement. When this happened to Captain Picard, the crew had to pull together to force him to take a vacation. But of course, a Picard vacation isn't quite like the ones you and I take. In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joine...

The Lights of Zetar. You probably already know that it’s not a good idea to stare into a bright light. When there are many lights—and they’re multi-colored—doing so becomes an even worse idea. You could damage your eyesight, or perhaps have you brainwave replaced by that of a group of alien minds searching for a body to call home. That’s what happened to Lt. Mira Romaine in “The Lights of Zetar,”...

Shuttlepod One. Some of the best episodes of Star Trek are heavy on dialogue and light on action. But taking two characters and shoving them into a tiny space, from which they deliver incessant dialogue for 45 minutes, was a gutsy move for a new show trying to engage skeptical audiences in its first season. Did it pay off? In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined by Matthew Rushing, Daniel...

Deadlock. Voyager is known for telling stories that rely heavily on technobabble. Sometimes it supports the story, sometimes it doesn’t. Season Two’s “Deadlock” is one of those cases in which technobabble was inescapable, but also necessary. How else do you explain two Voyager’s, two disheveled buns of steel, and Harry Kim’s dopplegänger? In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined by Larry Ne...

In the Hands of the Prophets. At the end of its first season, Deep Space Nine really began to take on the form that would define the series. The writers wanted to follow up the powerful “Duet” with something even better, even more layered. To do this, they brought together the Federation’s scientific approach to the world and the Bajorans’ religious one. The clash of philosophies tells us a lot ab...

In Theory. The last person you’d expect to be looking for love on the Enterprise is Data. But that’s just what happens in “In Theory.” Well, Data wasn’t actually looking for love, but once it presented itself the prospect got its own subroutine … and the 1701-D became The Love Boat, filled with advice from corners both expected and not. In this episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined by Charlynn S...

A Closer Look at CBS’s Plans. It’s been more than a decade since Star Trek left the air, and at long last CBS has answered the cries of fans. In January 2017, Star Trek will return to TV with an all-new series. But what form will it take? In this special episode of The Ready Room, we’re joined by Larry Nemecek to take a closer look at the nuts and bolts of the CBS announcement, debate the setting—...

Friday’s Child. When fans think of Klingon episodes on TOS, they think of “Errand of Mercy,” “Day of the Dove,” and “The Trouble with Tribbles.” The second appearance of the classic villains was made in what is really a Bones story—they just happen to be there. “Friday's Child” gets overlooked by fans, yet it builds upon the Organian Peace Treaty and allows Dr. McCoy to step into the spotlight all...

E2. During Enterprise’s third season, the crew’s mission to find the Xindi superweapon took an unexpected turn when they encountered … themselves. Well, not exactly themselves, but their offspring. In a time travel story that had nothing to do with the Temporal Cold War, Archer stumbled upon a helping hand in the form of Trip and T’Pol’s son. And along the way, the crew caught a glimpse of what th...

Mike Sussman talks Voyager Season Seven. As Voyager entered its final season, fans had a lot of questions. Would the crew get home? Would it happen before the finale? Would Neelix and Seven make the trip to Earth? Would Janeway and Chakotay finally hook up? Would Harry die one more time? Lots of questions. We know what we ultimately got on screen, but what went on behind the scenes? In this specia...

The Visitor. One of Deep Space Nine’s most loved episodes is an enigma in and of itself. Focusing on just one main character, played by someone other than the normal actor, “The Visitor” highlights the power of DS9’s concept to tell character-driven stories that transcend the usual Star Trek formula. This tale of Jake Sisko’s life after losing his father in a freak accident tugs at the heartstring...