The Bicks Pod

After a brief 5 year hiatus, we're returning to our roots with a weekly, episodic podcast devoted to covering a media in media res - in this case, Star Trek: Picard, Season 3. Join us for a look at this early hint of the storytelling to come, as well as our takes on the characters displayed so far, the numerous easter eggs, and which of our gripes about Seasons 1 and 2 of Picard are still ringing in our ears early in Season 3.

Notes:

• Couldn't find any reference to Q turning Picard human again at the end of Season 2, just for clarity's sake.

Episode Sponsor:

• Today's episode is brought to you by the near-mythical Portal 3! Now you're thinking with portals!

Bicks Log:

• We dig into the question: "Do you think this season is going to live up to the hype, or will it be another disappointment?"

Credits:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

Modern fanfiction may very well have had its start with the original trio of Kirk, McCoy, and Spock. So today we're joining the numerous fans before us who decided to tell stories about the crew of the USS Enterprise (no bloody B, C, or D). Join us as we talk about our process for writing these stories, the issues we ran into along the way, and even have a bit of a mini writing workshop right on the podcast. After years of hearing us call ourselves writers, now you can judge for yourselves!

Notes:

• Aidan's story is called "Middle Decks" and is all about the four secondary characters of the series who never got quite the love of the main trio.

Credits:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

The final farewell of The Original Series crew is a great summation of all the threads that we've touched on in our previous episodes and which have constituted some of the best parts of the series. The conclusion of the Klingon/Soviet cold war, the gathering of the film series' creative dream team, and the three main characters being front and centre - with Kirk being most central of all - provides a fitting end to the characters and setting that had been running for over 20 years.

Join us for a chat about this classic (possibly science fiction) film, as we bid farewell to these characters (at least in their first iteration).

Notes:

• Nancy Meyers is indeed a romantic-comedy legend. No relation to Nicholas Meyer beyond the last names.

• Though Aidan may regret his stance on the Doctor Who franchise, he otherwise stands by his belief that Science Fiction can be pretty much anything.

Today's Sponsor:

• So happy to be partnered with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, located in Bar' Dak, Qo'nos. Make sure to visit today, and tell them the Bicks sent ya!

Bicks Log:

• Does Star Trek VI (and similarly themed Star Trek films/episodes) count as Science Fiction, or not?

Credits:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is widely derided as the worst (or one of the worst) films in the Star Trek canon. Despite this, Lindsay still has fond memories of watching this film as a child and she'll be damned if she lets Aidan bring her down to reality! Join us for a discussion of God, starships, and campfire singalongs in this week's episode

Episode Sponsor: Prophetic Titles. Totally not a scam. We promise. One low price gets you the right to title yourself Kai. Own your plot of space in the Celestial Temple today!

Bicks Log: 

Notes and Recognitions:

• iMDB trivia page, where we got some of our background details

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, collectively known in The Bicks home as "The One with the Whales." A classic 80s film, a classic Trek film, and a unique entry in the series all at once. We loved chatting about this one and hope you'll enjoy our wandering discussion of the most populist of Star Trek movies!

Notes:

• It was Alan Silvestri who did the music for Back to the Future.

Episode Sponsor: Today's episode is brought to you by Whales Alive, the very real album that really featured Leonard Nimoy really doing spoken word poetry over top of very real whale song. Please go listen right now.

Bicks Log: Was the success of The Voyage Home a template that could have saved the second fourth movie of Star Trek - 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis? Would a funnier, less dramatic and serious Next Generation movie have changed the trajectory of the Star Trek franchise?

By the time The Search for Spock was announced, it was fairly clear that the Star Trek brand was more than strong enough to justify its continued return to box offices; within a few years, it would return to TV screens, as well. But not before Kirk & Co. return to the Genesis planet from The Wrath of Khan to rescue Spock. Which is what we're going to be talking about today. 

Episode Sponsor: I Can't Believe It's Not Gagh!

Bicks Log: Was David's death an earned emotional moment, or mere manipulation?

Notes and Recognitions:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

The second film entry for our original cast -- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan -- reinvigorated the franchise after The Motion Picture drew big bucks but tepid critical reviews. A lesser version of Khan might have put the nail in Star Trek's coffin.

Thankfully, it didn't, and forty years later we're still chugging away through the Alpha Quadrant. Let's explore why, with Kirk & Khaaaaaaan!, Kirk & Spock, Kirk & Carol & David, Chekov and the ear bug (*shudder*), the Enterprise & the Reliant, and the birth of a new 

Episode Sponsor: Genesis To-Go!

Bicks Log: Is The Wrath of Khan a perfect/the best encapsulation of what makes Star Trek what it is?

Notes:

Monster Maroon

Trek Culture

Aidan here: Lindsay...Bruce McLean??? If you're going to reference Die Hard in my presence, you'd best get the name of the main character right...

Lindsay here: And yet you sat across from me and listened with your own two ears and didn't correct me, so...check and mate.

Star Trek's first foray onto the big screen has experienced a recent reevaluation by fans, but what we wanted to know is how was it seen by original fans at the time of its release? Lucky for us we have a pair of OG fans in the family -- so today we're welcoming Aidan's parents to the podcast to talk all about that original experience in all its glory!

Episode Sponsor: Kivas Fajo's Toy Emporium

Bicks Log: We bypassed today's debate in the interest of sparing our guests!

Notes:

• After looking through the depths of the internet, we couldn't find any specific release history for The Animated Series in Canada, which may explain why today's special guests never heard of it until recently.

After one of the most competitive polls in our short lived Twitter campaign (which, if you don't follow us there, we're likely abandoning soon), this watchalong came down to a coin toss, followed by a unilateral decision to negate the coin toss entirely. The result is our watchalong with The Lorelei Signal, one of the better Animated Series episodes, and the only one to feature (acting) Captain Uhura!

It's a short episode this week, so hope you all enjoy!

Notes and Recognitions:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

This episode is about one of the least known shows in Star Trek, but one we thoroughly enjoyed. The Animated Series holds a special place in Star Trek history, as a bridge between TOS and the films, and also as the first series to truly be freed from the constraints of what was possible to film in a live action series. The result is a strange, sometimes silly/sometimes serious batch of episodes that feel truly unique. Join us for a talk about what brought the series to fruition, what makes it so unique, and our talk about whether it's worth your time as a Trekkie (spoiler alert: we think so!).

Episode Sponsor: The Vulcan Science Institutes Atomic Alarm Clock for Children (or VSIAACC for short). Help keep your youthful, impetuous and overly-emotional Vulcan child in check with this chronologically indestructible clock! Get one today!

Bicks Log: Does The Animated Series stand on its own as a distinct product, or is it merely the much-vaunted fourth season of The Original Series?

Notes:

• Be sure to check out the amazing Next Generation and Voyager reimaginings of famous scenes, in the original art and animation style of TAS. They're simply stellar.

• Also check out the mini behind-the-scenes featurette about how the team that created the series built them.