Antimatter Pod

Put a feather in your hat and put on the silliest French accent you can manage, we're talking about "Stardust City Rag"! 

And maybe it's time to admit that Star Trek: Picard is not a good show ... and that's okay? 

Also discussed: 

• That shocking death in the teaser

Episode 4 of Star Trek: Picard raised a lot of questions! Like, does the show want us to dislike Picard? And, when will Elnor get his cat? 

Discussed this week: 

• a Twitter troll accused Liz of having a "heavily misandrist" Star Trek podcast, and yes, we are very proud, thank you 

And more!

The End! Is the Beginning! 

It's season 1, episode 3 of Star Trek: Picard, and we're discussing: 

• Romulannisters! Uh, are we meant to see this much chemistry between the Romulan siblings? [If this subject matter squicks you, skip ahead to about the 03:50 mark.]

We discuss episode 2 of Star Trek: Picard, "Maps and Legends" -- an episode which contains very few legends and no maps at all. We're talking: 

• Romulans! (And Vulcans)

We're back! And we're talking about the first episode of Star Trek: Picard, "Remembrance". 

It's difficult to get into a full list of topics covered without spoiling the episode's twists, but here's the short, vague version -- we talk about...

• exposition

TL;DR we liked it but...

In our last episode before the launch of Star Trek: Picard, we talk about the character of Jean-Luc Picard himself: an aristocrat who aspires to be a street hero, a man who seems to embody the Federation establishment, yet surrounds himself with outsiders.

We also consider: 

• hobbies and ongoing education in the world of Star Trek

And, just in case it sounded like we were very focused and on-topic, Liz also pitches the next Charlie's Angels movie.

For more links, check out antimatterpod.tumblr.com.

"This isn't a romance. It's a horror story." 

Anika and Liz take a look at TNG's "Sub Rosa". And, you know, we try really hard to be positive about matters Trekkish, even in the face of (say) a favourite character taking a photon torpedo in the face. 

But there's no getting around it: "Sub Rosa" is terrible. 

We talk about consent, depictions of sexuality in Star Trek, and the ... interesting takes on this episode from the people who made it. 

We also discuss...

• Star Trek and gothic fiction: a combination doomed to failure?

And we wonder, does Ronin help out around the house? Do the dishes? Probably not!

Note: Given the nature of "Sub Rosa", we're discussing sex and rape far more than in the average episode. 

You can find links and credits for our theme music at antimatterpod.tumblr.com.

We're considering the notorious Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, wildly reviled as the worst Trek movie ever. And, well, we kind of like it! Why?

• Spock turns out to have yet another sibling he forgot to tell anyone about!

We also wonder: 

• Is it possible Shatner is a better director than he's given credit for?

Content note: because this is a deeply flawed movie, we also have to talk about the murder of the exotic dancer -- if you would prefer to skip that content, the discussion runs from approximately 49:20 to 51:52. Or, for a more detailed conversation about sex work in Trek in general, and this scene in particular, we recommend episode 80 of Women at Warp.

Slightly belated discussion of New York Comic Con and the new trailers for Discovery and Picard, and also the two new Short Treks: "Q&A" and "The Trouble With Edward". (Well. They were new when we scheduled this episode.)

Also covered: 

• Liz met Jason Isaacs

Link: Women at Warp talk to Hanelle M. Culpepper about directing Star Trek.

To celebrate getting to thirty episodes, we invited listeners to submit questions! And went from worrying we wouldn't get any (so embarrassing) to putting out an 80 minute episode...

We get to talk about the evolution of Star Trek's storytelling after the introduction of the VCR; assembling an all-female-character heist team; Klingon clickbait; genderswaps; our hopes for season 3 of Discovery; and, most importantly, which characters -- if any -- could defeat a goose in single combat, armed with a bat'leth? 

Honk!