New Starship Farrgut Video

[evil_genius_180]

Has anybody else seen the new Starship Farragut vignette that's out? It's their second "Crew Log" episode, released a few days ago. Even though it's the second "Crew Log," they decided to release it before the first one on the web. If you liked the previous two Farragut episodes, you'll probably like this one as well. It has the same mix of humor and action as the first two episodes and that "We made this in our back yard" feel of the others as well, with the usual really nice CGI and special effects. Plus, it has plenty of that nice Trek cheesiness that I feel they capture quite nicely on that series. Anywho, I downloaded and watched it. It took forever on my internet connection but it was worth it.

Link: Starship Farragut: Crew Log 2: A Rock and a Hard Place

On the other hand, if you aren't a fan of Farragut, you probably won't like this any better than the previous two episodes. And if you haven't seen Farragut, don't jump into the series here, go watch the others first.

BTW, they don't say on the page but the length of the video is 17:30 and the .wmv version (only one I downloaded, for obvious reasons) is 168MB.

[gmd3d]

I like it .. it was a light show and easy to watch .. the effects where good and the models look great

[evil_genius_180]

Yeah, it's a good show. I think those guys and gals really do Trek justice with their films. Plus, I really love fan films. A lot of times, I feel they do a better job than the people who make the "official" Trek movies and shows for Paramount. They at least stay true to Roddenberry's vision of Trek.

On a somewhat related note, the next New Voyages (and the first one officially called Phase II) is due out tomorrow. It's the first part of a two-parter, with the second due out early next year, I think: Star Trek: Phase II: Blood and Fire release info

Originally Posted by evil_genius_180

Yeah, it's a good show. I think those guys and gals really do Trek justice with their films. Plus, I really love fan films. A lot of times, I feel they do a better job than the people who make the "official" Trek movies and shows for Paramount. They at least stay true to Roddenberry's vision of Trek.

I think this is because when somebody 'official' does a Trek thing it's about '...How much advertising money will this show make us?'

Where as when fans do Trek things it's an act of pure love and appreciation.


Just my .2 cents.

[evil_genius_180]

Yeah, you hit the nail on the head there. Right now we have a guy making a Trek movie who "never really watched Star Trek." Why? You need a true fan to make a real Trek movie. Paramount just sees another Trek movie as another cash cow. They had Indiana Jones to rake in the profits this year (but at least we had the original trio of Lucas, Spielberg and Ford working on that) and they're probably hoping Star Trek will be their big money maker next year.

However, the people who make the fan films are people just like us who grew up watching and loving Star Trek and just want to make Trek videos because it's what they love and they're obviously not out for money 'cause the videos are free downloads.

You know, it's never a good idea when you put somebody in charge of a remake project and they were not a fan of the original version. I just don't see how they can bring the passion that is needed when working on a film where the fans are so passionate that to this day, decades after the show's original run they still celebrate it.

I guess the studios have learned nothing from the lessons of 'Dungeons & Dragons' and 'Dungeon Siege: In the name of the King' -- People who are not a fan of the product have no bloody right putting their mits on the project.

My thought is that Paramount figures that the Trek fans are sheep and will see anything with the logo printed on it. It's a bad mistake to underestimate the scifi community just as it is with the comic book community.

I hope the film is going to be great and blow me away but I am not expecting that.
My expectations of the film are a pretty low set bar but my critical analysis of it will be anything but.

[evil_genius_180]

You just described my exact feelings on remakes in general and the new ST movie.

Hell, I get more excited about these fan films than I am the movie. I spent around 9 hours total downloading this Farragut video and I'm looking at an at least 3x longer download for the new Phase II episode that's out. I certainly wouldn't spend that kind of time on that new feature film (I'll get it from Netflix when it's released on DVD.)

Some remakes are good though - The Fly comes to mind for me - but that is the excception rather than the rule.

9 hours downloading? Geeze. I could download them for you, burn 'em to DVD and snail mail them your way if you'd like.

But back to the subject at hand - Yeah, I have a bad feeling about this film. I'm trying to keep a positive mindset about it though. I think the casting was pretty solid so at least there's that. But when I see things like the Enterprise being built on the ground I go 'huh?'.

The other thing that has me a bit converned is that JJ Abrams is a flavor of the week character. I watched Alias and Lost and I can tell you this much about the guy's writing... He poses questions and instead of providing answers he brings in new characters and tells different stories with new questions. Story wise, it's like he can't close the deal. Cloverfield was IMO pretty cool and a good movie but that was because it had an interesting gimic and massive backstory (i.e. slusho and the monster is actually a lost baby calling out for it's mama!).

Again, this is nothing more than my opinion but I think that Abrams and Paramount are dancin' on glass with this thing. They're not going to pull 'new' people into the theatre that are fans of Abrams due to his TV shows - Trek is a very touchy thing and it's still alive due to old Trek fans bringing their children into the cult...er...fan base. LOL!

Upset that core and they'll make a mighty roar.

Clearly I love Trek (why else would I spend weeks of my life animating a little film?) but that doesn't mean that I do not have a hard opinion and critical eye.

I'm sure you know that exact feeling.

...It better be a d@mn good movie or there will be a massive fan-based backlash against Paramount and Abrams future projects.

[evil_genius_180]

By the time you download it and send it to me, I could probably have the thing downloaded. I really don't mind. You've gotta remember, I've downloaded tS 7.6 and a lot of Vista updates that are all larger than that movie file. I mostly just played Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords on my PC or did other things while the Farragut film was downloading anyway. The most annoying thing was having to exit my game and log back on to the internet every once in a while but I'm used to that.

And, as far as remakes go, I like some. I thought Peter Jackson did a great job on King Kong and I also like Spielberg's War of the Worlds remake.

Ok, well if you need something like the video in the future feel free to mention it to me. If it's a matter of address - I'll provide you with mine if that makes you more comfortable.

Peter Jackson's Kong I thought was pretty good. The only thing for me was that it got a bit long winded during the dino-stampede and the 'bug cave' but I understand why he did the 'bug cave' scene. Odds are you already know why as well. I have always been a fan of the original Kong film (well, acts 1 and 2 - act 3 always makes me sad) and Jackson's version had the same effect on me in that regard. I thought the skating rink scene was really effective because it was a slow burn into the inevitable darkness that we all knew was on it's way. It's hard to watch somebody having the time of their life when we as the viewer know it's the last good time they're going to have in a very short and tragic life.

As for Spielberg's 'War of the World' I have moments of it that I like and moments that make me want to slap the hat right off of his head. Something I thought was great was the scene in the diner. It was an understated and very important human moment and one where you could see that despite being a nut-job, Tom Cruise can act. The thing that got me in the scene was the scared family... The son and daughter were clinging onto one another for strenght and support...across the table sat their father...who only had his hands to cling onto - that scene is a fantastic metaphor. 'he held himself together because it was the only thing he had to hold onto and the only thing to hold him, was himself.' - BRILLIANT!

The part that I think should have hit the editing room floor... When Jr was fine and dandy. Bollocks! That kid got smoked the moment he ran over that hill. They should have had him die there. That was IMO the proper way to deal with the character and the scene. Plus it makes the story that much more important in that, in a time of tragedy we all lose somebody we love - not one of us gets away unharmed.

I also loved the 'whaaaaa hoooooorrrrrrrrrrrr' sound of the Tripods.
Very nice touch.

War of the Worlds was the first book I picked up on my own and read on my own.
I was something like 5 at the time and the book left a major impact on me.