Before the Future Came

Before the Future Came

By Melissa Avery-Weir, Gregory Avery-Weir, and Dr. Lucy ArnoldTV & FilmSociety & CulturePhilosophy
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Before the Future Came episodes

  • S01E05. Sarek

    Bedlam! Melissa brings "Sarek," the 23rd episode of season three of Star Trek: The Next Generation, written by Peter S. Beagle and directed by Les Landau. Like "The Sword of Kahless," this episode features a recurring character coming to terms with the end of his career. We talk about illness, aging, dignity, honesty, gender, and violence. We also discuss everyday life in space, Mark Lenard, and retro style.

    (The transcript for this episode is in progress and will be added to this post when it’s ready.)

    For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

    Please let us know what you think about the show! Hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

    Connections:

    • Sarek first appears in The Original Series S02E15, "Journey to Babel," and Mark Leonard reprises this role in The Animated Series S01E02, "Yesteryear," and several films.
    • Sarek's other son Sybok dies in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
    • Spock finally dies of old age after travelling to the past, as revealed in Star Trek Beyond.
    • Michael Burnham travels to the future at the beginning of season three of Star Trek: Discovery; she has not died as of this episode airing.
    • The Original Series S02E15, "Journey to Babel," and S01E25, "This Side of Paradise," establish that Sarek and Spock's family name is unpronounceable by humans.
    • The novel Ishmael gives Sarek and Spock's family name as S'chn T'gai, but non-screen works are generally not considered canon, despite this name appearing on some promotional ephemera for Strange New Worlds.
    • Spock's mother Amanda Grayson first appears in The Original Series S02E15, "Journey to Babel." She makes many appearances in Star Trek: Discovery, often in flashback.
    • The Vulcan mating phase, pon farr, is first depicted in The Original Series S02E05, "Amok Time."
    • Enterprise S02E25, "Bounty," involves T'Pol entering pon farr out-of-cycle, retconning earlier information to establish that pon farr occurs for Vulcans of any sex/gender.
    • Data's cat Spot will first appear in The Next Generation S04E11, "Data's Day."
    • We weren't able to find another scene that duplicates Sarek's hood-removal reveal.
    • The Qowat Milat, Romulan "honesty nuns," are introduced in Star Trek: Picard S01E04, "Absolute Candor."

      • Works cited:

      • Glassner, J., Wright, B., Cooper, R., Mallozzi, J., Mullie, P., Anderson, R. D., & Greenburg, M. (Executive producers). (1997-2007). Stargate SG-1 [TV Series]. MGM Television, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Film Corp., Sony Pictures Television, Showtime Networks, & Sci-Fi Originals.
      • Saitō, K. (Director). (2023-2024). Frieren: Beyond Journey's End [TV series]. Madhouse.
      • Straczynski, J. M. (Creator). (1993-1998). Babylon 5 [TV series]. Babylonian Productions, Inc. [Vir is a Centauri.]

        • Our next episode will cover Strange New Worlds S02E09: "Subspace Rhapsody," written by Dana Horgan and Bill Wolkoff and directed by Dermott Downs.

        Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

        Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

        1 hr 26 min
      • S01E04. The Sword of Kahless

        Let this moment be remembered! Gregory brings "The Sword of Kahless," the ninth episode of the fourth season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, written by Hans Beimler and Richard Danus and directed by LeVar Burton. Like the Discovery premiere, this episode is concerned with the legacy of the Klingon cultural figure Kahless. We discuss ancient fallen societies, philosophical skepticism, and the fantasy genre. We also chat about naivete, destiny, honor, Commander Sisko, cave sets, and runabouts.

        (The transcript for this episode is in progress and will be added to this post when it's ready.)

        For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

        Please let us know what you think about the show! Hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

        Connections:

        • Kor previously appears in The Original Series S01E27, "Errand of Mercy"; The Animated Series S01E12, "The Time Trap"; and Deep Space Nine S02E19, "Blood Oath." He makes his final appearance in Deep Space Nine S07E07, "Once More Unto the Breach."
        • Toral, son of Duras, previously appears in the two-part episode of The Next Generation S04E26-7, "Redemption."
        • The "ancient humanoids" are explored in The Next Generation S06E20, "The Chase."
        • Iconian gateways appear in The Next Generation S02E11, "Contagion," and Deep Space Nine S04E23, "To the Death."
        • The Guardian of Forever appears in The Original Series S01E28, "The City on the Edge of Forever," and the two-part episode of Discovery S03E09-10, "Terra Firma."
        • The Tkon Empire is introduced in The Next Generation S01E05, "The Last Outpost."
        • An ancient Dyson sphere appears in The Next Generation S06E04, "Relics."
        • The Hur'q are mentioned again in Enterprise S04E15, "Affliction" and are featured in the video games Star Trek: Invasion and Star Trek Online.
        • The USS Discovery travels forward in time 930 years between seasons two and three of Star Trek: Discovery.
        • The future history of the Vulcan and Romulan cultures and the christening of Ni'Var are revealed in Discovery S03E07, "Unification III."
        • The story "Those Who Walk Away from Omelas" is heavily alluded to in Strange New Worlds S01E06, "Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach."
        • B'Etor and Lursa, the Duras sisters, first appear in the two-part episode of The Next Generation S04E26-7, "Redemption."
        • The cloned Kahless II first appears in The Next Generation S06E23, "Rightful Heir."
        • We learn that the Klingons killed their gods because they "brought more trouble than it was worth" in Deep Space Nine S04E11, "Homefront."
        • Worf's vision during the Rite of MajQa is also discussed in The Next Generation S06E16, "Birthright, Part I" and S06E23, "Rightful Heir."
        • The Timekeepers, Klingon monks who secretly guard time crystals, are featured in Discovery S02E12, "Through the Valley of Shadows."

          • Works cited:

          • David, P. (1993). Worf's First Adventure. Pocket Books.
          • Glassner, J., Wright, B., Cooper, R., Mallozzi, J., Mullie, P., Anderson, R. D., & Greenburg, M. (Executive producers). (1997-2007). Stargate SG-1 [TV Series]. MGM Television, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Film Corp., Sony Pictures Television, Showtime Networks, & Sci-Fi Originals.
          • Kunzelman, C. & Lutz, M. (Hosts). (2021-2023). Homestuck made this world [Audio podcast]. Ranged Touch. https://rangedtouch.com/homestuck-made-this-world/ [For discussion of "deflationary moves."]
          • Le Guin, U. K. (1973). The ones who walk away from Omelas. In Silverberg, R. (Ed.), New dimensions 3. Nelson Doubleday/SFBC.
          • Lucas, G. (1977). Star wars [Film]. Lucasfilm Ltd.
          • McCourt, D., Liggett, T., Burton, L., & Buttino, T. (Executive producers). (1983-2006). Reading rainbow [TV series]. Lancit Media Productions, RCN Entertainment, On Screen Entertainment, WNED-TV.
          • Reeves-Stevens, J. & Reeves-Stevens, G. (1995). Federation. Pocket Books.
          • Shakespeare, W. (c. 1597). Henry IV, part 1. [First appearance of Sir John Falstaff.]

            • Our next episode will cover The Next Generation S03E23: "Sarek," written by Peter S. Beagle, Marc Cushman, & Jake Jacobs and directed by Les Landau.

            Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

            Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

            1 hr 13 min
          • S01E03. The Vulcan Hello and Battle at the Binary Stars

            Content Warnings: discussion of war and war crimes, cannibalism, traumatic brain injury resulting in disorientation, untreated PTSD, desecration of corpses

            Spoiler Warning: From 1:18:30 to 1:23:34, we discuss a plot point that is revealed in Discovery S01E11, "The Wolf Inside."

            We come in peace! Lucy brings "The Vulcan Hello" and "Battle at the Binary Stars," the two-part premiere of Star Trek: Discovery, written by Bryan Fuller, Gretchen J. Berg, and Aaron Harberts and directed by Adam Kane. Like "Relativity," these episodes feature a mentor relationship between two women. We discuss the framing of Burnham as a protagonist, the ambiguous morality of her actions, and the Federation as a colonialist threat. We also talk about war and honor, whether Sarek is a good dad, the show's difficulty with morality, Klingons, space battles, and Javid Iqbal.

            (The transcript for this episode is in progress and will be added to this post when it's ready.)

            For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

            Please let us know what you think about the show! Hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

            Connections:

            • Discovery premiered in 2015, making it the first Star Trek series since Enterprise ended in 2005: over ten years.
            • Lorca gives a sinister speech in Discovery S01E03, "Context Is for Kings."
            • Sarek's fraught relationship with his son Spock is first portrayed in The Original Series S02E15, "Journey to Babel."
            • It's revealed that Sarek gave Burnham's opportunity with the Vulcan Expeditionary Group to Spock in Discovery S01E06, "Lethe."
            • It's not Jadzia who tells Worf that Klingons laugh, but Guinan, in The Next Generation S04E26, "Redemption."
            • Tuvix appears in Voyager S02E24, "Tuvix."

              • Works cited:

              • Benedict, R. (1946). The Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patterns of Japanese Culture. Houghton Mifflin.
              • Iino, S. & Matsushita, S. (Directors). (2019-present). Dr. Stone [TV series]. TMS Entertainment.
              • Kōjina, H. (Director). (2011-2014). Hunter x Hunter [TV series]. Nippon TV, VAP, Shueisha, & Madhouse.

                • Our next episode will cover Deep Space Nine S04E09: "The Sword of Kahless," written by Hans Beimler and Richard Danus and directed by LeVar Burton.

                Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                1 hr 27 min
              • S01E02. Relativity

                Content Warnings: discussion of mental health, incarceration, and sexual harassment; excessive use of mild profanity

                It's time! Melissa brings "Relativity," the 24th episode of the fifth season of Star Trek: Voyager, written by Bryan Fuller, Nick Sagan, and Michael Taylor and directed by Allen Eastman. Like First Contact, this episode features time travel and the Pogo Paradox. We talk about how Star Trek explores trust, curiosity, and power. We also chat about temporal mechanics, nascent continuity, Seven of Nine's character, space sickness, Janeway's first day, and how Star Trek technology always seems to lag behind the real world.

                For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

                We'd love some feedback on how we're captaining this vessel. You can hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

                Connections:

                • Seven of Nine debuts in Star Trek: Voyager S04E01, "Scorpion, Part II."
                • The Temporal Prime Directive is first mentioned by name in Star Trek: Voyager S03E09, "Future's End, Part II." It is confirmed to be Starfleet policy prior to Voyager's departure from the Alpha Quadrant in the series finale, "Endgame."
                • Captain Braxton previously appeared in Star Trek: Voyager S03E08-09, "Future's End."
                • Out of phase:
                  • Crusher is trapped in a warp bubble that is "phasing" into a parallel universe in Star Trek: The Next Generation S04E05, "Remember Me."
                  • La Forge and Ro find themselves out of temporal phase in Star Trek: The Next Generation S05E24, "The Next Phase."
                  • The Devidians conceal themselves by being out of temporal phase in Star Trek: The Next Generation S05E26, "Time's Arrow."
                  • Captains' First Days:
                    • Kirk's first day as captain of the Enterprise (in an alternate universe) is portrayed in the 2011 film Star Trek.
                    • Picard's first day as captain of the Enterprise D (but not his first day as a captain) is depicted in Star Trek: The Next Generation's premiere, "Encounter at Farpoint," and finale, "All Good Things."
                    • Sisko's first day as commander of Deep Space Nine is depicted in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's premiere, "Emissary."
                    • Archer's first day as captain of the Enterprise NX-01 is depicted in Star Trek: Enterprise's premiere, "Broken Bow."
                    • Pike's first day as captain of the Enterprise (but not his first day as a captain) is depicted in Star Trek: Discovery S02E01, "Brother."
                    • Burnham's first day as captain of the Discovery is depicted in Star Trek: Discovery S03E13, "That Hope Is You, Part 2."
                    • Dal's first day as self-appointed captain of the Protostar is depicted in Star Trek: Prodigy S01E03, "Starstruck."
                    • An alternate future version of Janeway appears in the Voyager series finale, "Endgame."
                    • Seven of Nine and Raffi Musiker have a heated argument in Star Trek: Picard S02E08, "Mercy."
                    • The crew of the Discovery receive new multipurpose combadges in Star Trek: Discovery S03E06, "Scavengers."

                      • Works cited:

                      • Frakes, J. (Director). (1996). Star Trek: First Contact [Film]. Paramount Pictures.
                      • Holland, T. (Writer & Director). (1995). The Langoliers [TV miniseries]. Laurel Entertainment.
                      • Kōjina, H. (Director). (2011-2014). Hunter x Hunter [TV series]. Nippon TV, VAP, Shueisha, & Madhouse.

                        • Our next episode will cover the two-part premiere of Star Trek: Discovery, "The Vulcan Hello" (written by Bryan Fuller, Alex Kurtzmann, and Akiva Goldsman and directed by David Semel) and "Battle at the Binary Stars" (written by Bryan Fuller, Gretchen J. Berg, and Aaron Harberts and directed by Adam Kane).

                        Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                        Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                        1 hr 30 min
                      • S01E01. First Contact

                        Content Warnings: body horror and self-injury; alcohol; frank discussions of sex, caste oppression, misogyny, and misogynoir.

                        In honor of our first episode, Gregory brings Star Trek: First Contact, written by Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore and directed by Jonathan Frakes. We discuss Star Trek's views on exceptionalism vs. collectivism, the idea of destiny and the "right timeline," and the film's theme of fantasy and visions as figured worlds.

                        For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

                        We'd love to hear what you think! You can hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

                        Connections:

                        • Picard is assimilated into Locutus in the two-part episode "The Best of Both Worlds," the season 3 finale and season 4 opener for Star Trek: The Next Generation, which also depicts the Battle of Wolf 359.
                        • Lore takes control of a group of Borg in the two-part episode "Descent," the season 6 finale and season 7 opener for Star Trek: The Next Generation.
                        • Lore announces his perfection in Star Trek: The Next Generation S01E13, "Datalore."
                        • The Temporal Prime Directive is speculated to exist in the future of Star Trek: The Next Generation S05E09, "A Matter of Time," and is apparently official Starfleet policy as of Star Trek: Voyager S07E11, "Shattered."
                        • The Guardian of Forever first appears in Star Trek: The Original Series S01E28, "The City on the Edge of Forever," and appears in hiding in Star Trek: Discovery S03E09-10, "Terra Firma."
                        • The Borg Queen's transtemporal awareness is revealed in Star Trek: Picard S02E02, "Penance."

                          • Works cited:

                          • Holland, D., Skinner, D., Lachicotte Jr., W., & Cain, C. (1998). Identity and agency in cultural worlds.  Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
                          • Kubrick, S. (Director). (1968). 2001: A space odyssey [Film]. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
                          • Scott, R. (Director). (1979). Alien [Film]. 20th Century Fox.
                          • Shakespeare, W. (1623). The tragedie of Macbeth. Edward Blount, William Jaggard.
                          • Spiegel, A. & Miller, L. (Hosts). (2015, Jan. 23). How to become Batman. [Audio podcast episode]. In Invisibilia. NPR News. https://www.npr.org/programs/invisibilia/378577902/how-to-become-batman
                          • Steppenwolf. (1968). Magic carpet ride [Song]. On The second. ABC Dunhill.

                            • Our next episode will cover "Relativity," the 24th episode of the 5th season of Star Trek: Voyager. It was written by Nick Sagan, Brian Fuller, & Michael Taylor, and directed by Allan Eastman.

                            Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                            Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                            1 hr 19 min
                          • S01E00. Welcome and Programming Note

                            Welcome to Before the Future Came, a Star Trek podcast! Now that Hollywood producers have come to their senses regarding labor negotiations with writers and actors, we're returning to Star Trek! If you're just joining us, you can start with episode S00E01: "First Contact." If you're interested in hearing us talk about other utopian science fiction, you can go back and listen to the episodes we released during the strike!

                            Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                            Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                            5 min
                          • S00E04. SCP-6001: Avalon

                            Content Warnings: death and grief, horror themes, excessive but mild obscene language.

                            Our last episode of the Strike Era has us reading "SCP-6001: Avalon" by T Rutherford! We talk about queer phenomenology, pacifism, the incarceration mindset, grief, and epistolary works. We also talk about unifying works of fan fiction, the joy of cats, and explicit vision statements.

                            A glossary to the story for those unfamiliar with the SCP Wiki: https://beforethefuture.space/scp-6001-avalon-glossary/

                            For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

                            The SAG-AFTRA strike was a success! With our next episode, we'll be covering the film Star Trek: First Contact, available on Paramount+ or wherever you find films in your future utopia that has eliminated money. That episode was recorded before "Binti."

                            Please give us a five-star review on iTunes! You can send us asks at https://cohost.org/beforethefuturecame or hail us at [email protected]. Let us know what you think of the show!

                            Works Cited:

                            • Ahmed, S. (2020). Queer phenomenology: Orientations, objects, others. Duke University Press.
                            • Asimov, I. (1942, April). Time pussy. Astounding Science Fiction, 29(2), 113.
                            • Brown, P. (2016). The Wild Robot. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
                            • Harman, G. (2018). Object-Oriented Ontology: A new theory of everything. Pelican.
                            • Holmes, R. L. (2016). Pacifism: A philosophy of nonviolence. Bloomsbury Publishing.
                            • Okorafor, N. (2015). Binti. Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
                            • Rosenblatt, L. (1938). Literature as Exploration. D. Appleton-Century.
                            • Straczynski, J.M. (Writer & Producer). (1993-1998). Babylon 5 [TV Series]. Babylonian Productions, Inc., Synthetic Worlds, Ltd., Warner Bros. Television.

                              • Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                              Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                              1 hr 24 min
                            • S00E03. The Collapsium

                              Content Warnings: discussion of sex, torture, self-mutilation, misogyny, body horror, brief mention of suicide.

                              With the AMPTP still refusing to pay actors properly, we discuss The Collapsium by Wil McCarthy! We talk about hard and soft science fiction, wealth and labor, and the book's strange use of appendices. We also touch on wizard battles, robotic freedom, princesses, cloning via teleportation, rivals in genre fiction, and Cherenkov light.

                              For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

                              Our next episode will cover "SCP-6001: Avalon," by T Rutherford. Gregory has prepared a glossary for those unfamiliar with the SCP universe.

                              Please give us a five-star review on iTunes! You can send us asks at https://cohost.org/beforethefuturecame or hail us at [email protected]. Let us know what you think of the show!

                              Works Cited:

                              • Asimov, I. (1951). Foundation. Gnome Press.
                              • Barrie, J. M. (1911). Peter and Wendy. Hodder & Stoughton.
                              • Borges, J. L. (1962). Labyrinths (Irby, J. E., Yates, D. A., Fein, J. M., de Onis, H., Palley, J., Fitts, D., and Murillo, L. A. [Trans.]). New Directions. (Original works published 1931-1960)
                              • Bradbury, R. (1950). The Martian chronicles. Doubleday.
                              • Corey, J. S. A. The expanse [Novel series]. Orbit books.
                              • Elbow, P. (2009). The believing game, or methodological believing. Journal for The Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning, 13.
                              • Frayn, M. (2000). Copenhagen. Anchor.
                              • Heinlein, R. A. (1970). I will fear no evil. G.P. Putnam's Sons.
                              • Le Guin, U. K. (1974). The dispossessed. Harper & Row.
                              • Lee, S. & Ditko, S. (Creators). (1963-present). The amazing Spider-Man. Marvel Comics.
                              • Lucas, G. (Director & Writer). (1977). Star wars [Film]. Lucasfilm Ltd.*
                              • McCarthy, Wil. (2003). Hacking matter: Levitating chairs, quantum mirages, and the infinite weirdness of programmable atoms. Basic Books.
                              • McCarthy, Wil. (2021). Rich man's sky. Simon & Schuster.
                              • Park, N. (Director & Writer) & Rushton, S. (Writer). (1989). A grand day out with Wallace and Gromit [Film]. National Film and Television School, Aardman Animations.
                              • Roddenberry, G. (Creator). (1966-1969). Star trek [TV series]. Desilu Productions, Paramount Television.*
                              • Rowling, J. K. (1997). Harry Potter and the philosopher's stone. Bloomsbury.
                              • Shakespeare, W. (1623). The tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. Edward Blount, William & Isaac Jaggard.

                                • * We believe this may be struck work under the current SAG-AFTRA strike guidelines. Our discussion of these works should not be considered promotion. Please do not view these titles on streaming services because of our citation.

                                Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                                Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                                2 hr
                              • S00E02. The Wild Robot

                                Content Warnings: discussion of defecation, animal injury and death, misogyny, enslavement.

                                With Hollywood strikes ongoing, we discuss The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. We talk about community and ownership, philosophical wildness, and Object-Oriented Ontology. We also dip into practice, found families, refrain, robots in science fiction, individuality, and cheerful pooping.

                                For images discussed in this episode, visit the episode page on our website.

                                Please share your thoughts! You can hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space. We'd also love a five-star review on your favorite podcast platform.

                                Works cited:

                                • Akao, D. (Writer) & Suzuki, K. (Director). (2019). My roommate is a cat [TV series]. Zero-G.
                                • Asimov, I. (1950). Runaround. In I, Robot. Gnome Press.
                                • Asimov, I. (1957). The naked sun. Doubleday.
                                • Auel, J. M. (1980). The clan of the cave bear. Crown.
                                • Bogost, I. (2012). Alien phenomenology, or what it’s like to be a thing. University of Minnesota Press.
                                • Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In Richardson, J.G. (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education (pp. 241-58). Greenwood Press.
                                • Čapek, K. (2014). R.U.R. (D. Wyllie, Trans.). The University of Adelaide. (Original work published 1920).
                                • DiMartino, M. D. & Konietzko, B. (Creators). (2005-2008). Avatar: The last airbender [TV series]. Nickelodeon Animation Studio.*
                                • Eastman, P. D. (1960). Are you my mother? Random House.
                                • Favreau, J. (Creator). (2019-present). The Mandalorian [TV series]. Lucasfilm, Fairview Entertainment, Golem Productions.*
                                • The forest [Video game]. (2018). Endnight Games.
                                • Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison (A. Sheridan, Trans.). Pantheon Books. (Original work published 1975).
                                • Gunn, J. (Writer & Director) & Perlman, N. (Writer). (2014). Guardians of the galaxy [Film]. Marvel Studios.*
                                • Halberstam, J. (2020). Wild things: The disorder of desire. Duke University Press.
                                • Harman, G. (2018). Object-Oriented Ontology: A new theory of everything. Pelican.
                                • J.Deku [@TheJadedGuy]. (2017, March 21). David Cage: Can a robot learn to be human? Yoko Taro: Can a human? Cage: what Yoko Taro: Can a [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/TheJadedGuy/status/844352570470645760
                                • Kaba, M. (2021). We do this 'til we free us: Abolitionist organizing and transforming justice. Haymarket Books.
                                • Kreider, T. (2013, June 15). I know what you think of me. The New York Times. https://archive.nytimes.com/opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/15/i-know-what-you-think-of-me/
                                • Lewis, C. S. (1966). On three ways of writing for children. In Hooper, W. (Ed.), Of Other Worlds: Essays and Stories. Geoffrey Bles.
                                • Shelter 2 [Video game]. (2015). Might and Delight.
                                • Moffat, S. (Writer) & Hawes, J. (Director). (2005, May 21). The empty child (Series 1, Episode 9) [TV series episode]. In Davies, R. T., Gardner, J., & Young, M. (Executive Producers), Doctor Who. BBC Wales.
                                • Morrison, Toni. (1987). Beloved. Alfred A. Knopf.
                                • Nietzche, F. (1968). The will to power (Kaufmann, W., Ed. & Trans. and Hollingdale, R.J., Trans.). Random House. (selected notes from 1883–88)
                                • O'Dell, S. (1960). Island of the blue dolphins. Houghton Mifflin.
                                • Paulsen, G. (1986). Hatchet. MacMillan.
                                • Sendak, M. (1963). Where the Wild Things Are. Harper & Row.
                                • Quinn, D. (1992). Ishmael. Bantam/Turner Books.
                                • Wordsworth, W. (1807) I wandered lonely as a cloud. In Poems, in Two Volumes. Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orms.**

                                  • * We believe this may be struck work under the current SAG-AFTRA strike guidelines. Our discussion of these works should not be considered promotion. Please do not view these titles on streaming services because of our citation.

                                  **Lucy incorrectly quoted the poem in the ep. It should be "a thousand saw I at a glance," not a million. That's just how much Lucy likes daffodils.

                                  Our next episode will cover the book The Collapsium by Wil McCarthy.

                                  Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                                  Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                                  1 hr 31 min
                                • S00E01. Binti

                                  Content Warnings: blood and injury; frank discussions of racism and xenophobia.

                                  We're not yet a Star Trek podcast! Instead, we open with Binti, written by Nnedi Okorafor. We discuss the tension between violence and empathy, the nature of magic and mysticism in science fiction, and how it feels to be ostracized by every inch of your skin and finding a path forward anyway.

                                  We'd love to hear what you think! You can hail us at [email protected], contact us on social media, or comment on our website at beforethefuture.space.

                                  Works cited:

                                  • Clarke, A. C. (1968). 2001: A space odyssey. Hutchinson.
                                  • Clarke, A. C. (1973). Rendezvous with Rama. Gollancz.
                                  • Czerneda, J. E. (1997). A thousand words for stranger. DAW.
                                  • Marron, D. (Host). (2023). The redemption of Jar Jar Binks [Audio podcast]. TED. https://www.ted.com/podcasts/the-redemption-of-jar-jar-binks
                                  • Moon, E. (1992). The deed of Paksenarrion (1st omnibus ed.). Baen Books.
                                  • Straczynski, J.M. (Writer & Producer). (1993-1998). Babylon 5 [TV Series]. Babylonian Productions, Inc., Synthetic Worlds, Ltd., Warner Bros. Television.*
                                  • Verne, J. (1871). Twenty thousand leagues under the seas (1st collected ed.). Pierre-Jules Hetzel.
                                  • Villeneuve, D. (Director). (2016). Arrival [Film]. FilmNation Entertainment, Lava Bear Films, 21 Laps Entertainment.*
                                  • Vygotsky, L. (1972). Thought and language (Hanfmann, E. & Vakar, G., Trans.). MIT Press. (Original work published 1934)
                                  • Wells, H. G. (1898). War of the worlds (1st collected ed.). William Heinemann.
                                  • Williams, T. (1996). Otherland. Legend Books.

                                    • * Struck work under the current SAG-AFTRA strike guidelines.

                                    Our next episode will cover the book The Wild Robot by Peter Brown.

                                    Before the Future Came is edited by Lucy Arnold, transcribed by Melissa Avery-Weir, and webmavened by Gregory Avery-Weir.

                                    Our theme is “Let’s Pretend” by Josh Woodward, available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

                                    1 hr 36 min

                                  About Before the Future Came

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                                  Melissa Avery-Weir, Gregory Avery-Weir, and Dr. Lucy Arnold look at the ideologies of Star Trek as we voyage from one episode or film to the next, following a breadcrumb trail of motifs. How is the…