First post!! Never thought I'd get to claim that :)

Wil, there was such a big stink over you being cut from Nemesis, so I was a bit shocked to see you in the reception scene? I'm guessing there was a bigger scene that got cut, perhaps with a speaking role?

The first time I came to your site was the weekend that they ran the Wesley Crusher marathon on TNN. You rock :-)

I liked ST:Nemesis. I think its the best one they've done in a long time.

Merrry Holidays n'at

Seeing how RB screwed you over put a bad taste in my mouth about seeing the movie so I'm not going to.

Good luck with all your holiday chores and I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas.

Wil,

Why havent you seen Trek X yet? Its not too bad. Once you get over the lack of dialoge and over use of action.

I'm waiting til Saturday to see TTT. And then Sunday I get on a plane bound for my family in Minnesota. I get to find time to pack stuff for the flight AND see a 3 hour movie! It's going to be soo much fun!

Hee Hee I've been done shopping for 3 weeks now!!! hee hee!

6 more sleeps.....

Merry Christmas Wil! And save some of that Egg Nog for me. ;)

I haven't seen Trek X yet, and don't plan to. No one I know actually liked the movie. Considering how bad Enterprise is, I'm not surprised.

You really thought TTT was darker than Fellowship? I thought the tone was setup to be that way, but the dialogue ended up making it very light. A lot of one-lines from Gimli, 2 or three two many with Legolas and Aragorn, and I felt the pacing was a bit rushed. I have seen Fellowship almost 10 times now, and each time I watch it I find something else to love about it. I hope repeated viewings of TTT endears me to it in the same way. Have a happy Christmas and a great new year, I will be spending the majority of mine in Vegas. Wil, or anyone else, is the Star Trek experience worth visiting?

I asked my wife when she wanted to see TTT, and while she was totally hooked on LOTR 1 (she even considered going to a Renaissance Festival this summer), she's bing smart about our budget and we will probably see it in the discount theatres.

In April.

And I still say F Berman and the ship he rode in on.

Trek's not dead, just in disguise. Like Final Frontier.

I'm going to bake apple pies again this Christmas. mmmmmmm, cinnamon.

Later.

I agree with you on Two Towers, but must every movie these days be over 2 hour if not 3? Argh...quite the butt burner.

I wish I could get more into the Christmas spirit...maybe it'll hit me on Christmas Eve.

Glad you had a good time in SF.

Wil, you're not missing much by waiting to see Trek X. It had its moments. Although it certainly wasn't the best TNG movie, Nemesis wasn't the worst, either. The special effects were terrific, but some of the subplots were, well, unnecessary. You know they're unnecessary when you find yourself not caring if the good guy makes it through the fight in one piece. Of the actors, Patrick Stewart (duh) and Tom Hardy were especially good. Everyone in your posse cheered during your scenes in the beginning of the movie. :)

Wil! Have you seen Soapbox?

Your TTT review is going to be a 30 Megaton nuclear blog in the current war of words that has erupted.

I wait with great anticipation.

Ittttttssssssssssssssss Chriiiiiiiisssstttttmmmmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Woo!

Hope you finish your christmas (not x-mas, oh no) shopping.

I and the entire of the midlands, judging by the size of the crowds, have done ours today.

Glad the show went well, by the way.

Anyway, to the wrapping-mobile! Away!

Is it safe to say that First Duty is your fav? Happy Holidays, and a quick note: you were great in Star Trek X.

I also like TTT. You should check out the movies Soap on it. Some die-hard Tolkeiners hated it b/c it stayed from the book too much.

You were also on an episode last night on TNN. The one where the couple is living on a planet and its all a big farse and Troi is hearing music.

Use a life preserver if you need to! Don't drown the river of holiday maddness!!!

No kidding, the feet-up, log-on-the-fire part can't get here fast enough. I have been working 7 days a week for a couple of months now on a single project, and my first day off since farking September will be Christmas day. Oddly, though, after christmas it's going to be so slow I fear for my job. Oh, well. So I will try to enjoy the oasis of the holidays for what it is - a day that, when its over, I don't have to put onto one side or the other of the "I'm saved/I'm fucked" balance scale.

Took a few hours away from work to see Nemesis - it's not bad. It's not going to bring anyone new into the Trek fold, though, so I think your call is right on about the future of the TNG movies. It will take a new franchise, a new re-imagining on the TNG scale to get a new demographic interested. I know that I thought the original Trek was kind of dated and campy when TNG came along and made me a fan.

Anyway, thanks for the entertaining site. Good luck.

Hey Wil
Is there an online stream of Screen Savers, or something? I don't get techtv... :-(
I was glad to see you at all in Nemesis... i was afraid you were cut out ENTIRELY. I agree with you on TTT, too, but it's true... there's been quite the hub-bub in the soapbox going on.
I'm totally missing the xmas spirit this year, and think it probably isn't going to hit me, well, ever. Sigh. I just can't seem to care about the holidays, except as a big calorie fest that i'm trying to avoid.

I guess if I comment now, it will more likely be read cause it's further up the comment log. Some of these entry's get 200+ comments.
Happy Holidays to Wil and all the WWDN fans!
I thought Trek X was pretty good and would see again.
Just saw the DVD version of Stand by me last night. Viewed the Directors Commentary version. Interesting facts w/ the movie. Worth checking out!

I hate this time of year,worrying about people you have bought for or haven't bought for, getting in touch with people, lack of money... to much stress.

This time of year should be spent with families and enjoying yourself just like in the chesey family xmas films, it shouldn't be this stressful. But hey that's life.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, and have a good new year.

Spike
8.30 GMT

"The First Duty" Is the episode where Wesley says that he went on ski trip to Calgary. I was so thrilled when I heard that(being that I live in Calgary). I can't even describe how thrilled I was... I was in grade 6, and I NEVER heard of Calgary being mentioned in TV shows or movies, and to have the name mentioned on my favorite show AND THEN listed in the Star Trek Encyclopedia....

This year we've had no snow to speak of at all(usually the kids are tromping through half a foot of it on Halloween). No skiing. Not that I mind. I hate the cold.

I'm going to see Two Towers tomorrow. Yay! (Mad dance of joy: only 1.5 hours until my vacation officially starts!)

I like The First Duty, but I think I like Final Mission more. Most definitely not because it was Wil's last regular episode, but because it showed how far Wes and Picard's relationship had developed. Very cool. =)

Nemesis was pretty good. I got a shock when I realized it's been 15 years since TNG started, though. Sheesh...has it been that long since high school?

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays all!

Em

Wil, about your book - when it is completely finished, where will one be able to purchase a copy? Will it be published through a publisher and sold in stores and through amazon or is it just something for this site, like the T-shirts?

Wil,
I have always been a big fan of yours up until last night. I was in a pub in philly called the Worster and this fellow I met had pictures of you with several known al-queda operatives. He also had a pic of you sometime ago in full military get up he says it wasn't for the big screen either. I hope there is a logical explanation for this perfidy. I do like screensavers and have always loved the role you played in Trek, but I think our relationship is over.

I don't understand why people don't like Nemesis. I have seen it twice already and, with the exception of the Annoyance of Troi, I loved every second of it. But I guess with the announcement from Stewart that he's done with Star Trek movies, they'll either stop or have to switch casts.

I work retail so it's about time for me to have the "I can't get all of the shoppers out of my store" dream.
I have this only at christmas time...

So sad I'll only get 4 Star Trek Action figures for Christmas this year.. Where's the rest of the crew? Where's my Wes in his dress uniform!!

Hm...does this mean someone would want the
Wesley action figures in my basement??

Lots of people are NOT going to see "that movie"
cause of what they did to you Wil.

You should NOT be suprised at that....

I've got mixed feelings about the Nog-n-Relatives days ahead...

On one hand, my semester is over, (along with its 20-page papers, 30-minute research presentations, and mock-qualifying examinations), so there is nothing that I HAVE to do until mid-January. I'm enjoying my empty flat, in this soon-to-be-empty college town.

On the other hand, Christmas means a huge Production with my family, complete with petty bickering and people literally turning their backs on me to talk to someone else at family functions...

Either way, I suppose it's all a Learning Experience, and exercises in patience... (;

WWHAT?? No more TNG movie... what has the world come too?!?!? Well... I really do want to see The LOTR's soon. I am almost done the first book :) And Me and my best friend will be watch Star Trek tonight. I love that episode. Just because it is all about Wesley. Mmm.. can't wait for egg nog SO good! Well Have a good Christmas!
Liki

Number 2 rules. Let's just hope TNN doesn't decide to pull the ol' switcheroo as they have in the past.
I think you need an assistant, Wil. *hint hint*
;o)

Great job on TSS! I think it was their best show in months. They're always good, but you somehow kicked it up a notch. Thanks for doing the show.

With respect to Nemesis--definitely worth the price of admission. Some small gripes: some of the filters on the cameras, going for a dark look, or going for a "hey, it's bright out here, where's my sunscreen?" look. Also, I didn't FEEL the peril. In ST4, when that big probe was looking for whales and boiling the oceans, I knew there was peril. Somehow, saying "Esophageal radiation could destroy the whole planet" just doesn't scare me. And I was expecting Data to say "I have been, and always will be your friend," just before the end. But these are really just minor things. All in all it was a fun movie experience.

Say, couldn't Wesley Crusher, a.k.a. the uber space/time traveller, be involved in the temporal cold war of Enterprise? Maybe he's evil in the future. Don't actors like to stretch a little? Just wondering.

I absolutely loved Nemesis! For me, it was very much like a bigger, better version of ST:TNG with all the pizzazz and delightful special effects of the "big screen". I felt like I was greeting well-loved old friends when I saw the cast - including Wesley, who has always been part of the Star Trek family to me. The characters were everything I expected and wanted them to be.

I didn't realize until afterwards that a larger Wesley scene had been cut. I did, however, specifically notice him missing in the movie after the opening scene. I did miss him, and am curious as to what the cut scene was about.

Problems with X:

[quote, Roger Ebert review]
I've also had it with the force shield that protects the Enterprise. The power on this thing is always going down. In movie after movie after movie I have to sit through sequences during which the captain is tersely informed that the front shield is down to 60 percent, or the back shield is down to 10 percent, or the side shield is leaking energy, and the captain tersely orders that power be shifted from the back to the sides or all put in the front, or whatever, and I'm thinking, life is too short to sit through 10 movies in which the power is shifted around on these shields. The shields have been losing power for decades now, and here it is the Second Generation of Star Trek, and they still haven't fixed them. Maybe they should get new batteries.[/quote]

Here's a bit of crap. Instead of taking the sum total of Voyager and reducing it to a beheaded expository mockery, an opportunity was available to take the 'ablative armor' techinology that Janeway brought back from the future. They could have slapped it into the Enterprise E, and instead of the tireless back-and-forth dog-and-pony show that Ebert describes above, a much more interesting space battle could have been produced.

The failure to incorporate this plot thread from Voyager - hell, any, really - is inexcusable. Of course, other offenses abound.

Decent enough movie. Could have been so much more.

Argh, Christmas shopping.. just got mine done today. We didn't think there'd be many people there on a Thursday afternoon, alas we were wrong. Strung out folks all looking for the perfect present... phew.. least I can relax now. Good luck with the rest of your shopping ;)

The "sitting around the fire with friends and family while drinking egg nog" part of Christmas officially begins for the lucky ones tomorrow afternoon at 5PM (all time zones) and for the semi-lucky ones: 5PM Monday the 23rd.

Wil with the al-queda? ha! i knew that you were evil! hahaha

I loved Nemesis too! Maybe it helps that I'm not a "die-hard" ST fan, but only a casual fan, because I don't feel the need to nitpick or analyze every detail that supposedly wasn't right... I mean c'mon, this is Star Trek, a lot of things haven't made sense from the beginning, so why start now?

ST X is a great piece of entertainment. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would see it again.

BTW, I was also expecting Wesley not to be in the movie at all. I was pleasantly surprised to see him there. :)

Hey, Wil, can you pull a few strings and get some excerpts of your latest TV success put up on the TechTV website?

Otherwise they will face the wrath of 50,000 monkeys who want to see why everyone enjoyed it so much.

:)

i think they should release Star Trek X on DVD with your parts INCLUDED...

at least then the DVD will get a cult following of your v. loyal fan base.

:)

Ummmm...now that the movie is playing...can you tell us what your cut scene was....what lines you had and such. Tell us Pluhease!

Trek X? Something new would have been nice as this film had everything the second film had . . . and it showed.
Someone should tell the producers that they need to let the public go hungry much longer before feeding them the crap Trek X became in the can...uh...IMHO. Yes, I am the most humble person I know...even if I say so myself!

Wil,

Before we get too enmeshed in the holiday craze, just want to stop in here and thank YOU for enabling this great community through your blog. It's been a delight to read each day, not the least of which because of your generosity in sharing your thoughts, your life, and your experiences. It just makes a lot of other people want to share, too -- and that's pretty good.

Good holidays to you and Anne and Nolan and Ryan and Ferris the wondrous dog. I look forward to reading your words -- and everyone else's -- in the new year!

"Trek's not dead, just in disguise. Like Final Frontier."

Posted by Drakensykh

Hey, can I use that quote? That would look excellent on a t-shirt!

I'm taking my husband to see TT tomorrow and Trek X on Christmas day as part of his Christmas this year. After Saturday, I'll be able to sit around the fire and drink eggnog-tommorrow is wrapping day! I pity you having to shop this weekend. I recommend you pack some Valium darts to use on bloodthirsty shoppers!
Have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year.

I recommend egg nog mixed with sprite. It doesn't sound it, but its bloody good.

Wil,
It is strange that the money that the latest star trek movie made is considered not enough for these studios. To them, if it does not make over 200 million bucks, it sucks. I guess thats show business. Have a great holiday.

FG

"The First Duty" is THE Wesley ep. One of my favorite TNG's - and yeah, so it's fan-girlish of me to say that. You can take it. ;)

Wil said: "Based on the box office, I think it's a safe call to assume that the TNG movies really are finished."

I liked Nemesis, but I have to say that this may be no bad thing. The franchise is getting *really* tired. Paramount could do worse than let it lie a few years.

the end of next generation trek movies does not mean the end of the venerable movie franchise...there are many directions they could go which would liberate them creatively...while familiarity is fun...seeing the next generation cast all together for the first time in the wedding scene is a good example...sooner or later all good things must end...and we can't claim we've been shortchanged on next generation material...there's a whole bunch of tv episodes out there...as well as four movies...but this can also be a bad thing...the sheer volume of next generation makes it hard for the writers to come up with original material...trek will survive in films...it's much too lucrative for paramount to let it go...and if a new crew or situation is featured in the the trek movie...i'll be there...as i have been since i discovered gene roddenberry's wonderful star trek universe...it was a better world he was dreaming of...and millions of us are still dreaming his dream

Hey Wil,

Been reading your blog for many years, yet this is my first post.

Just wanted to voice some opinions: I liked TTT but compared to the first one it lacked a certain something. I realize being the middle movie makes for an awkward segway but still. They seamed to hop from scene to scene randomly. However Golum (sp?) and the Ent's ROCKED!

Regarding Trek X: Take this with a grain of salt (I'm a huge TNG fan so..) I loved being able to watch my favorite characters in a new adventure, however I must confess... I did not enjoy it all too much. It seemed as "fake" as Insurrection. TNG is merely a franchise now, nothing more. As soon as I can afford the DVD's I'll at least be able to relive those wonderfull memories.

Ciao!

- Eddy

A feature film with the Voyager crew. Sweet as! I would LOVE a movie with the Voyager crew. No matter if it was 3 hours long.

xx

I'm waiting for the sit back with egg nog bit myself. ***GET TO THE PEACE 'N QUIET BIT OF THE HOLIDAYS MOJO***

A movie with the Voyager crew? Hmm....I don't know how that could work. I mean they made it back to the Alpha quandrant...

Oh, who cares! As long as Jeri Ryan is in it I don't care *what* crew they use! ;)

*ala Homer Simpson* Mmmmmmm...Seven of Nine!

Gotta love those ST outfits ;)

http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Screen/4353/7of9.htm

(Page loads kinda slow on my DSL)

I loved Nemesis. It was wonderful. Yum. I was especially pleased to see that you weren't entirely cut. I saw you at the wedding and I was like "There's Wesley!" 0o

Ah, last minute Christmas shopping. The stress, the aggravation, the weeding your way thru shop-lifters taking advantage of the extra distractions so the clerks can't see whats going on. These are just a few reasons why I try to get all my shopping done as early as possible. This year I finished in record time -two weeks before Halloween! I decided everyone is getting a book this year. So, I went online, did a little searching then a lot of purchasing.
Regarding Nemesis, it was enjoyable yet I did want more 'something'. There is so much talent in the TNG cast -and not all of it or even most of it is from Patrick Stewart, as wonderful as he can be. I hope there is another TNG movie, I think if Berman were not involved, it could finally reach the potential that TNG is capable of.
As for TTT, oh my god! I loved it. I loved the conversations between Gollum and Smeagol. I loved the little scenes that drew parallels between Gollum/Smeagol & Frodo. I loved the Ents. I loved the costumes. I loved the arrangement of the scenes. I can't wait to see it again!
[And I'll probably see Nemesis again while my friends START their Christmas shopping this weekend.]

damn. 830. should've paid more attention when I scanned the star trek section of the tv guide. oh well, theres always next week (on a homework free night, too)
=( Mel

Well Wil I just wanted to let you know that even though I didn't get to see you on that techtv show I am glad you had fun.
I use to have satillite,but I love Roadrunner too much to give it up.
LOL
Anyway I'm hoping you will just relax and enjoy time with the wife and kids.
Cheers!
Nanny

Next Gen movies over? NAAAH we are talking about paramount here...they may wait 4 years..but star trek is their baby...all the licensing funds they get from trek...no way its over...just wait for the DVD to come out with extra extra footage..then you will see some changes.

Wil is it true you play the Dark Lord Sauron in "The Return of the King"? You may want to get some visine for that eye... Did somebody say there's a new Star Trek movie out? I hadn't noticed...

:o( ST X doesnt come out here in Britain til Jan 3rd. But still, ITS CHRISTMAS!!!

I love this time of year soooo much. In fact I always get depressed after watching the Queens Speech on TV cos its over for another year! But not this year cos I'm off to Spain for New Year! WOO HOO.

Hope you all have the bestest christmas ever. I raise a glass in your honour and salute you.

ps. Joke read earlier from a christmas cracker at my office party:- (Stop me if you've heard it)

Q: How many ears did Cartain Kirk have? A: 3. A left ear, a right ear and a FINAL FRONTIER!!!

Go see "Nemesis", Wil.
A lot of us want to know what you think, after the ride you've taken us on over the last few months with all of the Star Trek ups and downs.
Think of it as closure.

Wil

I hope you have finished all your shopping. Star Trek X was good, but nothing compares to ST II. I don't think any of the other star trek shows could support a movie, so I beleive we have seen the last trek movie.

Have a great Holiday.

hey, i live in the UK so didn't get to see you on Screen Savers, however, on the same day, you were on The Weakest Link over here!! very cool dude!

don't we all love sitting around the fire at this time of year! I know i do!!!

anyway, I hope you have a great Christmas and New Year...

love
Rach
xxx

oh yeah, forgot to mention...i think that 'The Game' is undoubtedly the best episode! My sister and I have it on video, and whenever we are stuck for things to do, we put it on and cheer ourselves up!! I LOVE THAT EPISODE!!!

Love Rach
xxx

I liked? Nemesis. Okay maybe liked is too strong a word given that you can't really get the tonal inflection of my mind's voice thinking it. Was I biased because Wil's scenes were cut? Yeh, it didn't seem right to just have him sit there at the wedding reception and that be it.

I had read in TV Guide that Michael Dorn was not into doing this movie and they had to literally beg him. I can see why. There was nothing much there for Worf but some one-liners and grunts really.

For all the hype that TV Guide gave to Nemesis being helmed by a die-hard Trek fan in John Logan (director\screenplay) the story really didn't go as high or as far as I expected. Then again Logan's treatment got re-worked by Berman and Brent Spiner, so it may have been more kickass originally.

I agree with Wil that this movie looks like a probable end of the TNG film run. Anyone want to take bets against Nemesis not making it back to, its respectable, #2 box office spot a second weekend straight? No disrespect intended but a few of TNG's luminaries are looking more weathered in age than I'd have thought... has it been that long?

The Nemesis plot to me came off as a bit threadbare. I liked the action but I sure would've liked a more engaging well rounded out story. TNG the series had quite a few well rounded out stories and stories in stories that were exceptional. The TNG movies haven't managed to pull it off. It may now be too late.

I recall something that Patrick Stewart said in the TV Guide piece about his feeling that this wasn't the end of TNG @ the movies. He based it on the box office more than anything else. Trek is a strong franchise but I feel it's been hampered by too much Berman vision. The series 'Enterprise' is evident of this as it sags in the ratings Berman has promised to juice up the action and sex appeal of the show. Hmmm like the 7 of 9 add-in to help Voyager pull itself from a similar slump?

The best that Trek has to offer may have already passed with TNG and DS9. All that has followed has been more or less retread Treks. Yeh there's some good in it, the actors are some of the best and undeniably most loved in Trek lore. As fans we adore them and their efforts to breathe life into Star Trek but actors can only do so much with what they are given.

Data dies and we get Picard chatting it up with B4 (an heir apparent Data in the making)? Can we say hokey? Yes I think we can. I'd have much rather seen Lore in the film. Surprisingly, the Enterprise survives being destroyed just as I was contemplating an Enterprise-F, go figure.

Want another hokey point? Scimitar's grand weapon of mass destruction was just a bigger version of the weapon at the start of the movie just with a ship attached to it. Don't want to hear anyone saying that was one of those full circle thingies either... NO it was just hokey.

Nice to see the old TNG gang it was. Nicer it would have been if they had a better story to engage one and all.

Yay... Term's over, my chapter's in, I'm at home for nearly a month, and I just finished the paper I'm presenting over New Year's (OK, it doesn't have an opening. So shoot me.) But *now* I get to shop, and I have to find my nearly-sister-in-law a present too, and I don't have much money. That sucks.

And figured I'd share this thought from a very wise green frog:

"I don’t know if you believe in Christmas/ or if you have presents underneath the Christmas tree. But if you believe in love/ that will be more than enough/ for you to come and/ celebrate with me."

Happy Holidays to all, and thanks, Wil, for giving us all a place to hang out. You rule.

Is there really an unwritten rule in Hollywood that the last sequel is always the one to lose money?

mmm, nog...sounds good right about now.

I just turned on TNG, I forgot which one "First Duty" was, so I *had* to see. WW and RDM look so hot! (I know, I'm supposed to be commenting on WW acting ability, but I can't help it, "Wesley" was one of my teenage crushes, ah, the days of my innocence...) ;-)
The whole time I'm watching the eppie, I keep thinking why haven't I checked out "Starfleet Academy" (aka The Japanese Gardens). I've lived in SoCal all my life and live less than 10 minutes away from it and I've never been there. I even pass by the street it's on, on my way to work...maybe it's my aversion to being near sewage, the Gardens are a part of a water reclamation plant...it can smell pretty nasty, even when you're just passing by...

You saw The Two Towers before Star Trek? I think that says it all.

I saw them both openning night, and I have to agree that TNG is dead. Of course, comparing those two movies is like comparing little league to the majors - one just ends up looking silly for making the comparison. I love Star Trek precisely because it isn't just another sci-fi action series. Hopefully someone will come along who can put the soul back in the series sometime soon. And that person isn't Rick Berman.

Perhaps the true fans, like us, should all get together via the net and devise a Trek movie...bringing Wesley back...and have
non-demeaning roles for all of the cast members. Heh! Wouldn't that be grand! :}

I dunno. I just don't think Data should have went out like that. I think it should have been Worf. Since Dorn supposedly hated having to do all that makup so much, and from what I understand, was never happy about being on the series anyway...

Oh but then there is that "Only Klingon in Starfleet" thing...

Data was the only Android in Starfleet. Why should that have been any different? Besides, I'm tired of the Klingons! I'd like to see a Romulan on board a Fed ship. Yes, a Romulan in a Starfleet uniform! Now wouldn't that just put a thorn in the Vulcans' sides?

Man did that Trek X sucked galactic ass. I mean, all the next Gen Treks pretty much sucked.. but this almost topped that horrid last one in suckiness. I snuck into it after seeing LOTR2. I'm glad I saw it though just because it gave me and my nerdy friends hours of entertainment making fun of how bad it was. We never said one thing to each other abour Rings. The flaws are far too numerous to mention here, so I won't get into it. I think Brent Spiner and his Shatner-sized ego can be to blame for a good chunk of them. I wish Wil would explain what exactly the scene was that got cut. Did it explain why he gave up exploring the glorious wonders of the universe with the Traveler and returned to the exciting life of a StarFleet officer? I'm sure it didn't, just like they never even bothered to mention data's other brother Lore. Maybe the TNG films exist in another universe from the TV show.. kind of like Power Rangers the show and Power Rangers the movie. The TV shows certainly are written a hell of a lot better. I doubt (unfortunately) that this will be the last Trek. There are enough nerds out there to always make Treks profitable (asuming Paramount continues its tradition of spending next-to-nothing on their movie production). Even if they made the next movie about the exciting adventures of Troy, Nog and Chakotay it would still probably gross at least 50 million. I hope Wil reviews it and rips it to shreds. I doubt he will 'cause he won't want to bite the hand that feeds him.. even if that hand just keeps skrewing him over and over again. If Wil was smart, he'd write a tell-all biography like George Takai and go on all the talk shows bashing the Trek's producers and fellow actors. He'd make a mint!

"The First Duty" is the 1st STTNG my mom, sis and I have sat thru together-they both agree it is some of your best work! Boothby (Ray Walston) is so good-I wish we could have found out more what Picard did to need his help!

After reading a couple of books about ST by both
production people (Justman/Solow) and original actors (Nichelle Nichols/Captain Ego), I realize
R Berman is just a continuation of the morons/a**holes of Paramount/Desilu/NBC of the 1960's-only he's worse than greedy, he's power hungry!

Don't worry Wil-his karma is so screwed-he'll be lucky to come back as a cockroach!
A Merry Christmas to you and your family-you have earned it!

I give Trek X 2 out of 4 stars. I was... sadly disappointed. I loved all of the actors, as usual. I adore them all, some more than others (like Patrick, Jon, Marina, and Gates) and it was nice to see my favorite characters again. But... really. Stuart Baird should stick to shallow Tomb Raider films (I loved Tomb Raider, but it wasn't meant to be deep.. it was an action move and that's what he's good at, I think).

Trek X didn't really draw me in. I didn't feel emotional at all during the entire film, except during scenes in which Will and Deanna were involved, because of that whole romance backdrop. The so-called villain didn't seem threatening, really. And Jean-Luc had a decent monologue in there, but mostly, I think the actors were wasted. TNG's final voyage? Please say it's not so. They went out with a whimper instead of a bang.

**** SPOILER BREAK ***

Below are some questions I have about the film. Do not read if you have not seen it yet and do not wish spoilers. Though I think the film is already pretty spoiled as is.

*** LAST SPOILER BREAK WARNING ***

Why the hell was Wes there? I mean, last we heard he went off with the Traveller. Don't get me wrong... it was nice to see him. But that article Wil linked to was so on the money. NO explanation as to why he's there or how he got there. Where did they get Picard's DNA? Where did B4 come from and if he really was created by Shinzon and his cronies, where the hell did they get the blueprints? Why did the arch-enemy Romulans suddenly become friendly? I mean, any enemy of my enemy is my 'friend', but only until the shitstorm is cleared and then it's back to the same old, same old.

Too many questions... unanswered.

I'm very sad.

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this article yet: "Trekies Confused about Wheaton's Cameo in Nemesis"

http://www.thedailybull.ca/article.php?id=139

Since you sort of touched on the Christmas subject I would like to say this. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday filled with love and happiness. I am sending in a little poem that says how I feel about this holiday, really just how I feel towards my own family's views but since I will not have the proverbial man parts to actually give it to em I thought the people here might enjoy...so here goes...(cheeks getting hot, palms getting sweaty) ahem;

Christmas Time Again

It is that time of year
To spread our holiday cheer
With up our chin
Our wallet gets spread too thin.

I cannot afford to buy you the expensive sweater
But what I can afford is ten times better
I love you unconditionally from the bottom of my heart
And a love like that knows no end as it knows no start.

It is our nature to judge by the gifts we give to our family and friends
Who receives the most Christmas cards and equally the most who sends?
It seems this holiday has become a contest
Who has unsurpassed taste, who we like and who likes us best?

Please do not get me wrong I am not like the Grinch
However, on my pocketbook I feel the pinch.
With a child to raise and student loans to pay
Just a warm smile and a hug from you would make my holiday.

With that being said I do not think the same will do for you
So I will try with all my might to find a gift I can afford too.
It will not be anything you like; it will never be good enough
You will open it and say “great more worthless stuff!”

If I worked a forty hour week and got paid
Instead of being a 24-7 mother and maid,
That might make you all so much happier
Cause the stuff I would buy compared to the year before would not be crappier.

I must now say for my family that is made up of three
It is not about the perfect Christmas tree.
It is about the love and laughter we share with one another
Not about the gifts that lay under your pretty paper cover.

You will never understand this, as it is not materialistic
However, love, now love can just be purely holistic.
So from now on know that just a hug will do for me
I hope the same will be enough for you from us three.

PS- I think I was supposed to be alive in the era when getting a new pair of socks was the best present you could get!
But again Happy Holidays to those who truly make it a happy time!

DAMMIT!
(This is directed at the posters and not Wil) If your going to reveal what happens in Nemesis on a posting board at least have the decency to put *SPOILER* in front on your posting. I had been avoiding any news so that IF I chose to see it I could come at it fresh. Now any surprise is ruined!!!
*Mutter mutter*........

P.s MatrixRaven is exempt from that last rant.
That is all.....

FIVE DAYS TIL CHRISTMAS! HELL YES!

Its too bad...I thought First Contact was the best movie in the franchise(stealing #1 from the "The Motion Picture")Really I love all the TNG movies. Havent seen x but ive heard that the movie goes WAY off cannon(and we know how picky trek fans are,there is a lot that wont even watch the movie if it deviates from cannon) and contradicts established "fact".Also lets face it Patric Stwart(one of my favorite actors) is a man who appears to be in much better shape than most men his age but I just dont buy the "action jackson" motif of this film.Will I see it ABSOLUTELY but most likely in 6 months on dvd.

I liked Star Trek X until I found out that your scenes were cut, that must have hurt. I did notice you in the beginning of the movie though, but I wondered why you didnt have any lines, now I know. But i was wondering. Didnt Wesley leave Starfleet? What was he doing in a Starfleet dress uniform? Just curious.

Remember Wil, although your scenes were cut, you were still in the movie, and still part of Star Trek, thats something that a lot of people dream about.

You did a super job co-hosting "The Screen Savers," Wil! Hope they bring you back soon.

Like you, I've had the fun of building and maintaining my own web site, http://www.tuxjunction.net, devoted to my love of jazz and big band music.

I really like the "Blog" format of your home page, Wil, so if you could pass along a few pointers, I'd appreciate it.

All the best!

George Spink
tuxedo.junction@verizon.net

I've been reading for a while, and I've been a fan forever, but here's my first post. Yay me! But seriously you guys.

I hope you and your family have a lovely holiday season. Xmas shopping may kill me yet, but with the help of the All-Powerful-Egg-Nog, I should survive.

I saw Trek X, and I honestly thought it was a pretty decent movie. I was, however, quite disappointed at the lack of Wesley in the movie. I've been hearing for about a year now that this would be the last TNG movie, so I fully expected to see him do more than sit at a table during the opening scene. Ah well. I liked the action in the movie, and I thought it was a good story idea, but I think a lot of the plot was "rushed" and left way too many things unexplained. I'll still buy it when it becomes available (and hope for the addition of deleted scenes), and I'm still a Trek fan, but I really think this movie could've been done better. *ramble* *ramble*

Bellow is a link to a wonderful review of TTT – one that completely echoes the way I feel about the two LotR movies we got to see so far (and I have no doubt that it will only get better with the last installment). Although TTT is so much darker than the Fellowship, I found myself watching most of it with a gleeful smile on my face that said “I can’t believe I’m part of this enchanting quest.” I could say so much more, but why repeat what this journalist captured so well here: http://linux10985.dn.net/display.cgi?id=14060

re: Romulan in Starfleet Uniform...

We've already seen that (Saavik is half-Romulan).

Wil, I didn't get to see you on The Screen Savers until yesterday (thank God I remembered to record it!). I really enjoyed your interview of Dr. Kaku ("Hyperspace" is one of my favorites as well) and your interaction with the rest of the TSS crew. My wife came in from work half-way through and asked how often you guest-hosted (I watch the show just enough that she can recognize Leo by face, if not by name), because you seemed very relaxed and natural. Congratulations, and I sincerely hope they have you back.

Aside from comments rudely spoiling those who haven't seen it, the comments here about Trek X have got me to thinking. It's one of the things that's always bothered me about The Franchise during the latter years of TNG: an apparent lack of concern for continuity. Surprise! It coincides directly with the death of Gene Roddenberry, the man who birthed this phenomenon and who cared about keeping his universe consistent. Berman only seems to care about keeping Paramount in the black.

Now, with this movie probably being the last, we have no *real* closure. And unless the story, plotting, and writing could be guaranteed *spectacular*, I don't think either DS9 or Voyager crews have what it takes to sustain a big screen movie. Sad to see something I used to love so much milked dry.

That's really funny about "The First Duty", because I was just thinking about that episode the other day. Don't have cable at present, and all my damn tapes have gone AWOL.

they killed data! what the hell where they thinking? what scene did they cut out?

Man, I have to tell you a few things. Things you know already, but like a lot of us, don't want to admit. It's not just that TNG is over, movie-wise . . . unless something drastic happens, I see the whole franchise heading for the dumpster. And I really hate to say that. I grew up with the original series, kinda liked the cartoons, loved the new series, yawned at the soap opera on the space station, and plain just wandered away from the extended trek (only 7 of 9 kept bringing me back, but it wasn't for the story line). The new series is, like, "Hunh? That thing's still on? Nevermind, there's a Babylon 5 rerun on channel 6..."

Worse than hating what I said above, I hate the fact that we may have all seen this coming. Harlan Ellison, crazy little f*cker that he is (by which I mean brilliant, and truly batso) sort of predicted this. Now he gets to grin that idiot grin at us, tsk-tsking all the way.

Oh, I think the franchise tried to climb out of the rut. The Borg was such an attempt . . . at LAST there was finally a dark side to the Federation! But, no, it wasn't really dark, just an earth-tone pastel, and a couple of handiwipes and some elbow grease sent it packing. I think we all know what has to happen for the franchise not to go down the dumpster, but we're afraid (or Berman is afraid that all his pandering to the public will go unpaid) to admit: we have to trim the frick out of this franchise, cut all the bad stuff away, and start from scratch with decent stuff. Yeah, it was always about the story in the first series, and very often during TNG, but Wil, the continuity and story lines have more frayed ends than a fiber rug.

Loved seeing you in X. Too bad you were only there a moment or two, and then away. High ho. The rest of the story pretty much sucked. We are so starved for quality stuff that we will swallow any sort of swill, it looks like. And that's too damned bad.

What happened to movie makers that followed their dream, made the films they wanted, and if people liked them, great? Huston, for instance. Instead we get so much preprocessed lite beverage, with lots of audience voting to make sure it turns out exactly like everyone wants it. If you would pardon the metaphor, instead of a hot groin-busting time, we got a quick stiff hand-job from the school librarian.

Ah, nevermind. The Two Towers just thrashed the piss out of X. I agree whole-heartedly with your estimation of the film. Better than the first one. Excellent all the way around.

In Australia we have to wait till boxing day to see TTT - but I already have tickets - I'm so excited about it, almost more than Xmas!

I'm glad people seem to like TTT even though there seems to be heaps of controversy. I guess we couldn't hope for three perfect movies out of three so hopefully the angst over TTT means it's more possible that Return of the King will blow us all away. Especially when you consider how the plot development and action are paced in the second book - amazing they could get a decent movie out of TTT at all. Compared to the first and third parts, TTT the book (or section as it originally was) is not as well paced as the other two; it's definitely the flatter part of the trilogy, despite so many additional characters coming into the story at that point. But it sounds like it's a brilliant action movie which has now been made from it, yay!

Data is dead? That's terrible.

Damnit! I major butt-flubbed my brains not providing proper spoiler space before I posted. So sorry for that, I shall now go and promptly flog myself until Trek comes out with a more respectable TNG film...

Damn this is gonna take a long time isn't it?

Funny everyone's mentioning The Final Frontier. The fact that I actually watched it tonight tells you that cable doesn't necessarily mean there's anything worth watching on! It sucked as bad as it did the only other time I watched it (when I paid $$$).

I'm probably skipping ST:X and LOTR --- I'm holding out for Antwone Fisher (what, no laughter?). I work with adolescent SOs, and it might be a good flick to show them what happens to their victims. After you see the hot flicks, give it a try. Besides, my kid will rent the LOTR DVD when it's out. I slept through the first one when he brought it home.

Umm, I sometimes watch Boston Public just to get a Jeri fix . . . bring on the Voyager flix!

Blushing,
Chuck

I saw Twin Towers opening day Dec 18th at noon. My husband and I took the day off from work to do it. Because it was a work day the theater was practically empty. Very worth it. What a FANTASTIC movie!! I just love these characters and every actor is just perfect for the part. The special effects are amazing, especially Gollum and Treebeard. The story is dark and awesome. Sighhhh...

Hey Wil,
I saw Nemesis twice and just let me say it was a great movie, the best out of all the Star Treks, though I believe the release time was a little too late with Lord Of The Rings coimg out 5 days later. Nemesis should have come out a week or so earlier. I hope this will not be the last TNG movie it's my favorite of all the series and I would like to see what happens to Brents new character B4. Maybe they will come out with a Voyager movie that would be cool. Though it was messed up that you hardly got any movie time! Did they cut your lines? Have a merry X-mas!

If anything, count yourself fortunate from being removed from Nemesis. It seemed to try real hard but ultimately dropped the ball.

And no offense intended, but considering the last time we saw Wesley, he was going to be taught manipulations of Space/Time by The Traveler. And he shows up for the wedding? Eh. Odd.

Anyway, was nice to see you in two crowd shots.

Dear Wil:

Saw Nemesis it was bad saw you for 3 and half seconds that was bad It was like the Mountain Dew commercial the kids fighting over the Dew the father(Berman)taking it away and the comment was heard "We got hosed Tommy (ST fans who wanted to see the Triuphmant return of Wesley Crusher)"

vqcit gnxk.