Literary Treks: A Star Trek Books and Comics Podcast

Orion's Hounds. The Starship Titan under the command of William Riker begins its mission of exploration far beyond the boundaries of Federation space! In the largely-uncharted Gum Nebula, Riker and the crew of Titan encounter giant, space-dwelling lifeforms that have been seen only once before: during the mission to Farpoint Station that began the voyages of the Enterprise-D. But these majestic lifeforms are being hunted, and Riker feels the need to intervene. However, all may not be as it seems.

In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson discuss the Orion's Hounds. We talk about the beginning of Titan's true mission, the mysterious "star-jellies," Riker's decision to get involved, the other cozmozoans that make up the Gum Nebula ecosystem, the difficulty in changing one's way of life and adapting to new circumstances, some stand-out characters in the novel, and wrap up with our final thoughts and ratings.

In the news segment, we talk about the recently-announced reprinting of the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture in honor of the film's 40th anniversary. We also review the fifth issue in IDW's Star Trek: The Q Conflict miniseries and respond to Babel Conference feedback for Literary Treks 271: To Thine Own Self Be True.

News ST:TMP Novelization Re-release (00:03:13) Q-Conflict #5 Comic Review (00:07:55) Listener Feedback (00:17:56)

Feature: Orion's Hounds Titan's Mission of Exploration (00:22:53) The "Star-Jellies" (00:29:41) Making Snap Judgments (00:34:16) The Pa'haquel (00:45:24) A Matter of Perspective (00:50:23) Adapting to Change (01:03:04) Character Relationships (01:11:32) Orilly Malar (01:22:37) Ratings (01:27:03) Final Thoughts (01:30:12)

Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson

Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)

The Gold Key Archives, Vol. 5: Part 2. Weird volcano-dwelling shapeshifters! Sentient stars! The return of Lt. Uhuru! A room that makes you crazy! And Starfleet Admiral... Kahn?!? All this and more in the latest installment of our look at the wackiest corner of the Star Trek universe!

In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson finish their look back at Star Trek: The Gold Key Archives, Volume 5 with the final three stories in the collection: issue 28, "The Mimicking Menace"; issue 30, "Death of a Star"; and issue 31, "The Final Truth."

At the top of the show, we review issue #4 of The Q Conflict from IDW, and respond to listener feedback from the Babel Conference for Literary Treks 268: Andy Does the Consonants, I Do the Vowels.

News The Q Conflict #4 Comic Review (00:03:19) Listener Feedback (00:11:01)

Feature: Gold Key Archives, Vol. 5, Part 2 The Mimicking Menace (00:15:13) Death of a Star (00:34:08) The Final Truth (00:57:49) Ratings (01:14:02) Final Thoughts (01:21:32)

Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson

Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)

Michael A. Martin: The Red King. Searching for a lost Romulan fleet, Captain Riker and the Titan are swept out of the galaxy along with Commander Donatra and the Valdore. They find themselves in the Small Magellanic Cloud, an area of space visited nearly a century earlier by another Federation starship. An long-sundered offshoot of humanity has claimed this area of space, and when reality itself is threatened by an encroaching anomaly, Riker and his crew must save these lost children of Earth before the entire region is consigned to non-existence.

In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson welcome author Michael A. Martin to the show to discuss Titan: The Red King, which he co-wrote with Andy Mangels. We talk about their experience in launching the Titan series, the origin of the Neyel, Tuvok and Akaar's troubled past, Donatra and the Romulans, religious belief vs. scientific fact, where Titan goes from here, and wrap up with what Michael is working on now and where you can find him online.

At the top of the show, we review the latest Star Trek: Waypoint special issue and respond to listener feedback from the Babel Conference for Literary Treks 266: Bringing the Truth Out of the Shadows

News Star Trek Waypoint 2019 Comic Review (00:03:46) Listener Feedback (00:26:19)

Feature: Michael A. Martin Launching Titan (00:31:32) The Neyel (00:42:49) Tuvok and Akaar (00:53:15) Klingons and Romulans (00:58:42) Religion is Reality (01:05:15) The Sleeper Consequences (01:11:50) Frane Talks to Akaar (01:16:51) Author Collaboration (01:17:51) A New Project and Being a Fan (01:20:48) Final Thoughts (01:24:04)

Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson

Guest Michael A. Martin

Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)

Vulcan's Glory. With the exception of the glimpses we see in "The Cage" and "The Menagerie," not much is known about Spock's early days aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise, or the crew that he served: Captain Christopher Pike and his stalwart first officer Number One. Now that Star Trek: Discovery is exploring this time period and these characters, we feel the time has come to look at some of the books that chronicled Pike's captaincy, starting with one authored by a true veteran of Star Trek writing.

In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Bruce Gibson and Dan Gunther talk about Vulcan's Glory, written by Original Series writer Dorothy "D.C." Fontana. We discuss the references to past Star Trek such as The Animated Series, the crew of the Enterprise under Pike's command, how well we feel this connects to Star Trek: Discovery, the historical artifact known as "Vulcan's Glory," Pike's mission to the devastated planet Areta, a mysterious murder plot aboard the Enterprise, Scotty and his engine room hooch, and wrap up with our final thoughts and ratings.

At the top of the show, Bruce and Dan review the final issue of IDW's Star Trek vs. Transformers and respond to feedback from The Babel Conference about Literary Treks 259: He's Gotta Grow Some and Just Do It.

News Star Trek vs. Transformers #5 review (00:03:39) Listener Feedback (00:16:09)

Feature: Vulcan's Glory 30th Anniversary (00:22:37) Yesteryear (00:28:02) First Pike Novel (00:33:15) Number One of Illyria (00:36:16) Picturing TOS and DSC (00:43:22) Historical Artifact (00:49:01) Family Squabbles on Areta (00:53:35) The Hunt for Glory (01:01:59) Spock's Love Interest (01:09:44) Engine Room Hooch (01:14:04) Ratings (01:18:33) Final Thoughts (01:23:24)

Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson

Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)

Dayton Ward: Agents of Influence.

When the extraction of undercover agents from the Klingon Empire goes disastrously wrong, it’s up to Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise to come to the rescue. The U.S.S. Endeavour, crashed on the surface of an asteroid, must hold out against Klingon reprisal and Orion attacks long enough to ensure they deliver their valuable passengers safely back to Federation space.

In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Bruce Gibson and Dan Gunther are joined once again by author Dayton Ward to discuss his newest Original Series novel, Agents of Influence. We talk about the undercover agents at the center of this story, the U.S.S. Endeavour and her crew, the Klingon/Orion alliance, an unorthodox “ground assault” on a starship, Klingons and Humans coming to an understanding, a spy among Starfleet’s ranks, and wrap up with what Dayton is working on now and where he can be found online.

At the top of the show, Bruce and Dan talk about their decision to move on from Literary Treks and where they will be continuing the Star Trek book and comics discussion in the future. We also respond to listener feedback from The Babel Conference for the previous episode, Literary Treks 305: The Nacene Scenes.

News Changes to Literary Treks (00:03:12) Listener Feedback (00:08:55)

Feature: Dayton Ward The Premise (00:13:17) Secret Agents (00:16:53) U.S.S. Endeavour (00:23:01) The Lirin (00:31:00) Orions and the Klingons (00:33:32) Bridging the Gap (00:35:57) Ground Assault (00:43:13) Dampening Field (00:46:35) The Dreamline (00:47:59) Who Done It (00:50:16) The Original Crew (00:54:59) More From Dayton (01:01:24) Final Thoughts (01:03:39)

Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson

Guest Dayton Ward

Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer) Casey Pettitt (Associate Producer)