Commentary: Trek Stars: The Work of Star Trek Creators Outside of Star Trek

Lin, Part 3: The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

Running Time: 1 hour 24 seconds

Less than five months after the release of Annapolis, Justin Lin was handed the keys to the Fast and the Furious franchise. His first of four consecutive sequels was The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. The film offers and interesting take on the franchise, expanding the mythology by focusing on entirely new characters instead of continuing the story established in the first two. Written by Chris Morgan, the movie features Lucas Black, Nathalie Kelley, Bow Wow, and Sung Kang.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, John and Mike are joined by Brandon of Melodic Treks to discuss Lin's third movie. We look at how it differs from the other films in the franchise thus far, the members of the crew who are joining Lin for Star Trek Beyond, and the return of Han from Better Luck Tomorrow. We also discuss news, including the release of J.J. Abrams' latest production, 10 Cloverfield Lane, and the casting of Shohreh Aghdashloo in Star Trek Beyond.

Chapters

Tokyo Drift (00:02:54)

Its Place in the Franchise (00:22:01)

News (00:41:41)

Wrap-up (00:52:14)

Hosts

John Mills and Mike Schindler

Guest

Brandon-Shea Mutala

Production

Mike Schindler (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager)

Lin, Part 2: Annapolis.

Running Time: 1 hour 27 seconds

After the success of Better Luck Tomorrow, Justin Lin was given the opportunity to work on big studio productions with substantially larger budgets. The first of these was Annapolis in 2006. The film, starring James Franco, Tyrese Gibson and Jordan Brewster, looks at a cadet's first year at the U.S. Naval Academy.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, Mike and John take a look at Lin's second film. We discuss how it effectively uses cliches, the similarities to J.J. Abrams' Star Trek, and how accurately it portrays the Academy. In news, we remember TNG and DS9 visual effects supervisor Gary Hutzel, discuss the hiring of Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth as executive producers on the new Star Trek series, and touch on the order of Doug Jung's new pilot, Scalped.

Chapters

Annapolis (00:00:44)

Accuracy (00:20:05)

News (00:50:26)

Hosts

Mike Schindler and John Mills

Production

Mike Schindler (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager)

Lin, Part 1: Better Luck Tomorrow.

Running Time: 1 hour 29 minutes 57 seconds

Over the course of its history, many artists have left their mark on the Star Trek franchise. Back in 1966, Gene Roddenberry was the first. 50 years later, Star Trek is in the hands of The Fast and the Furious director, Justin Lin.

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, John and Mike begin their final series, looking at Justin Lin’s career as a feature film director. In Part 1, we are joined by Dennis Castello of Continuing Mission to examine Lin’s first film, Better Luck Tomorrow. We discuss the themes of the film, Lin’s distinctive style, and how the film is similar to George Lucas’ American Graffiti. Then, in a special news segment, we are joined by John Tenuto to discuss addition of Nicholas Meyer to the writing staff of Star Trek 2017.

Chapters

Better Luck Tomorrow (00:06:00)

John Cho (00:25:34)

Final Thoughts (00:35:17)

Nicholas Meyer (00:38:25)

Star Trek VI (00:55:47)

Wrap-up (01:16:10)

Hosts

Mike Schindler and John Mills

Guests

Dennis Castello and John Tenuto

Production

Mike Schindler (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager)

Abrams II, Part 7: Recap.

Running Time: 51 minutes 50 seconds

J.J. Abrams may not be returning as the director of Star Trek Beyond, but that should not suggest that his presence will not be felt as a producer. What do his past producing efforts suggest about his contribution to the upcoming movie?

In this episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, Mike and John recap their series looking at all of the films which Abrams has produced for other filmmakers. We discuss his work on The Pallbearer, The Suburbans, Joy Ride, Morning Glory, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation. We also hold a tournament to determine which picture in his impressive filmography is the crappiest.

Chapters

The Early Years (00:02:08)

Bad Robot (00:10:02)

The Bracket (00:26:42)

Wrap-up (00:36:40)

Hosts

Mike Schindler and John Mills

Production

Mike Schindler (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager)

Series Finale. Running Time: 1 hours 32 minutes 33 seconds For the past three and a half years, Mike, John and Max have examined the work of Star Trek creators outside of Star Trek. From the series creator Gene Roddenberry to the director of Star Trek Beyond, Justin Lin, we have covered television shows, films, novels, and more from writers, directors and actors who have worked throughout the franchise. But all good things... In the final episode of Commentary: Trek Stars, Mike and John reflect on 182 episodes of podcasting. We discuss how the show came about, what our favorite works by Trek creators are, and what we regret not covering. We also reveal our plans for the future. Chapters Secret Origins (00:01:45) Favorite Works (00:29:48) Favorite Creators (00:50:42) What We Missed (01:01:26) Final Thoughts (01:10:13) Stage Nine (01:14:27) Thanks (01:25:58) Hosts Mike Schindler and John Mills ProductionMike Schindler (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager)