By and copy right of Owen Quinn 2024 Shadow Queen concept art Stephen Mooney Book cover by Conaire McMullan
Tyran is thrown into another dimension when one of her experiments goes wrong. Her presences begins to destabilise the region. her only hope is a talking rabbit and fairy. The race is on to retrieve her equipment but The Shadow Queen has taken it and from all accounts has no intention of handing it back. This story is part of the Time Warriors anthology The Wolves of Chernobyl and Other Stories
“Once, we spoke to humans all the time before the wall came down. Now they look at those left behind like we are mere animals. I was firm friends with Farmer Langdon, Lanky Langdon to his friends. We used to discuss everything from philosophy to the best way to grow crops.”
“Used to?” Tyran prompted.
“He died; his lungs went black from the smoke. The animals went to his funeral with the humans. Little did we know, the tears shed that day from the beasts and the humans would mark the very last time we would speak.”
“I’ve heard of that from the First Nation people; that humans and animals once lived in harmony until man forgot how to talk to the animals.”
The rabbit nodded sadly.
“True. I miss Farmer Langdon so I am so glad of this chance to speak with you,” the rabbit said brightly smiling, its whiskers curling up like a thumbs up.
“Can you tell me where I am? I have lost some things of mine. My name is Tyran. Perhaps you have seen them mister…?” she prompted.
“Shandy Badandy at your service Miss Tyran!”
Tyran stood letting the reality, the mind-blowing reality of what was happening right now.
“A bunny rabbit is talking to me like I had just met an old friend in the street,” she muttered to herself slightly stunned.
“I’ll try not to take that personally,” the rabbit riled with mild insult. “It’s not every day we get to hear a human voice in this land.” He shook his little pointed head slowly. “The first wails of the Fair Child are not even a memory any more since tones like yours vibrated the air. I can hear the music of this world shake as it reacts in real shocked surprise to the addition of your voice.” Shandy shivered despite the warm day as cold icy fingers slithered down his spine. “It grates our senses so we need to get you out of here and back to your human realm as soon as possible.”
“I’m all for that Thumper,” Tyran agreed eagerly. “I had some equipment with me. I need to find it so I can get out of here.”
“Your box made from a strange metal with three legs like the Tyrenian stork?”
Tyran’s head snapped back at the rabbit.
“You know where my machine is?”
Shandy recoiled, shrivelling under the question.
“It was stolen by the Shadow Queen. Oh my, she left you there like a fallen leaf in autumn while she took your machine,” Shandy said. “What is a machine?”
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photo copyright New Line Cinema
I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.
There is no doubt that Blade 2 is one of the best movies ever made. Indeed Marvel’s upcoming (or not) new Blade movie has a long way to go to match or even exceed the original Wesley Snipes versions, bar the third of course.
In Blade 2 Blade must work with his enemies to destroy a lethal new plague of vampires called the Reapers. Neither human nor vampire is safe as the Reapers seem intent in wiping out everyone. One bite and you become one. Traditional staking through the heart did not work as their hearts were protected by bone. Only by going in at a certain angle with a sharp blade or object could you achieve that making them harder to kill. Only ultraviolet light can kill them and Blade has his work cut out to stop the threat while not being murdered by his unholy alliance.
Now Bros were a group when I was growing up and their music was great. Indeed one memory I have is travelling on a coach to a Michael Jackson concert in Cork and someone played Bros all the way down and it was great. Who would have thought that years later that one of the Bros brothers would go up against Blade as his most lethal enemy to date. Their ‘When Will I Be Famous’ song took on a whole new meaning once Nomak hit the screens. Luke Goss has made a very successful movie career for himself and he certainly stunned audiences with his portrayal of Nomak.
At first Nomak seems to have come out of nowhere, a new breed of vampire ready to consume everything. However in a huge sewer battle Nomak comes to Whistler (Kris Kristofferson) and reveals the truth.
The Reaper virus is not spawned from evolution but was in fact created by the vampire king, Damaskinos. He has been trying to iron out the vampire weaknesses so they can rule the world. He wants the same abilities Blade has and humanity will be split into cattle and pets. He tested the new serum on his son, Nomak, the Prince of the vampire race. Nomak is out for revenge because the serum has turned him into a monster. As Reaper patient zero, Damaskinos wanted Blade to kill him and the truth never to be told. But Nomak despite his tragic origins still has to be killed and the Reaper wave stopped before it’s too late.
As a Reaper Nomak is able to open his jaws like flaps and inject his victims with a stinger in his mouth to pass the Reaper gene to make more Reapers. It is all about vengeance and Nomak kills his terrified father so he dies slowly then his sister Nyssa who has been helping Blade but was oblivious to what was done to Nomak. Anyone involved in the creation of the Reaper gene is murdered by Nomak. Damaskinos has continued to refine his serum to create weakness free vampires.
The final battle between Blade and Nomak is much more brutal than the first movie. Nomak is stronger than Blade and much more agile. They smash each other to bits and Blade has to rely on his cunning to stop Nomak. He is able to pierce Nomak’s heart with a sword but even then it is a struggle. In a final surprise twist Nomak could pull it out but realises he is an abomination. He has taken his revenge and pushes the sword into his heart.
As the most powerful enemy Blade has faced, Nomak is truly a victim of his father’s misguided ambition. He lost his family once he was given the Reaper serum and hunted and alone, he did exactly what he had to do. In the end, he did the only thing he could do for the world and took his own life. As a one off character, Nomak was a fully rounded three dimensional person, a victim of his father’s ambition that he never shared. And in that there is something biblical that elevates the movie and its characters to another level.
Today sees the release of the latest book in the Time Warriors series, Wolves of Chernobyl & Other Stories. It features seven brand new stories and it also marks the 40th Time Warriors story to be published.
Ever since book one, The Time Warriors First Footsteps, Varran, Jacke, Michael and Tyran have faced many dangers across time and space. They have made good friends and many enemies and after the climax of the last book, The Time Warriors: Only The Dead Get Off At Kymlinge, they now face new and terrifying dangers.
In Eyes Behind the Trees, an experiment throws Tyran into another dimension where she must face her childhood fears and the frightening Shadow Queen.
Concept art Stephen Mooney All rights reserved.
In The Last Tiger, we return to the days of Varran’s first decades walking the Earth. He finds himself in a dying zoo, housing the last surviving Tasmanian Tiger, Ben. Determined to save the last of the species, Varran and the zookeepers face a creature from the Dreamtime that feeds on the life force of everything in its path.
In Dracula Drive, Jacke and Varran are confronted by redneck racists and Varran has a little fun, running rings around them to teach them a lesson.
The Honoured Souls sees The Time Warriors investigate a UFO sighting in the eighties but what they find is unlike anything they have seen before. And who is the mystery man working for the secret American agency, trying to persuade the citizens that what they see are flares and illusions?
Nowhere Special delves into the themes of loss and rejection as a German scientist encounters a mysterious phenomenon in a forest on a winter night. But what is Varran doing there and is their meeting really a coincidence?
The Wolves of Chernobyl marks the 40th Time Warriors story in which Michael, Varran and Jacke encounter something they thought impossible and a dark secret is revealed in the irradiated city. What is stalking the deserted streets that the authorities desperately want? Who is the old woman? Why does Varran not want to visit Chernobyl even if it means saving millions? And when Jacke is shot, will she join the shadow creatures of the city where time stands still?
In the Lighthouse At The End Of The World, Varran is asked by a friend to help in his death and we explore the themes of assisted suicide and the implications in this situation. Why is there a lizard man hiding in an abandoned lighthouse off the coast of France? Varran finds himself in a dilemma; he doesn’t know if he can die so how can he take part in the killing of a friend? Varran is torn as he struggles to find a way to get himself out of the difficult decision. What defines suffering? Will Varran do as he is asked? Friendship must dare to risk or it is not friendship.
Concept art Stephen Mooney All rights reserved.
Get your copy today of The Time Warriors most exciting tales yet on Amazon.co.uk and join them on their adventures.
The below extract is from The Time Warriors: The Wolves Of Chernobyl & Other Stories anthology. This story is the last one in the book and the 41st Time Warriors story. Entitled Lighthouse At The End Of The World. We learn about a previously unexplored part of The Time Warriors history. involving a lizard man alone in a lighthouse abandoned by man in 1991. What is the connection to the Louisiana swamp monster, a Russian black site for aliens and Varran?
The red rock strewn Martian landscape stretched before Varran. He was dressed in a red suit with a white shirt and matching tie. His suede shoes were also red. He was calm as he stared at the large body sized log structure before him. It stood chest high and the size of a coffin. In its centre was a a body sized wound of white sheets. Whatever was inside was bound almost like a mummy.
A three foot wooden unlit torch was fitted into a small wrought iron stand on Varran’s left.
He lit the logs in three separate places, ensuring the flame caught. It spat jerkily and seized upon the wood, spreading to consume the pyre in roaring bright fire.
“I’m sorry my friend,” he said quietly almost afraid that if the universe heard him, the unforgiving gods of judgement and retribution would descend and flay him instantly for his cowardice. Varran’s mask fell as the others disappeared. He stood sadly staring at the ashes. “I hope you understand. You won’t realise a thing. Cowardice finds empty solace in that.”
June 29th 1988 Scape Ore Swamp
The wounded creature flopped about unsteadily in the foul smelling water. Its confused mind had never smelt anything like this. It rolled in the slime, body aching all over. It recalled the creatures that had captured it had torn its flesh apart and brought great pain to tis head. Confused, it stumbled to its feet, colliding with trees as it tried to get away from the smell. It ripped the rotten bandages from its head and cried out seeking another of its kind.
Suddenly a creature with scaled skin and ridged back with a long tail snapped its elongated jaws round its leg. Roaring in pain it grabbed at the strange beast. There was pain and he had enough of pain to last a lifetime. He grabbed the jaws and forced them apart until he heard a satisfying snap.
Flinging the limp carcass a side, he lurched on coming to a clearing where the trees thinned. He blinked rapidly, blood seeping into his eyes. He saw a creature with no scales beside some sort of carriage. It looked similar to his captors. Fearing they had found him already he roared and advanced in order to prevent him calling out for the others.
But in its weakened condition, the lizard man could not move fast enough to prevent the being fleeing in its chariot. He watched red lights fade into the distance as he fell to one knee.
Suddenly he was somewhere else. It was soft and warm. Exhausted, Barick fell on to his side. A figure appeared from his peripheral vision and knelt beside him.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Copyright paramount pictures
I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.
Commander Kruge arrived like a silent serpent slithering from under the heavy black shadows of the Enterprise crew’s grief over the loss of Spock at the end of Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan. The spectre of Genesis has already drawn Khan and now such a weapon with the power to bring life from lifelessness has caught the attention of the Klingons. To be precise, one Klingon in particular, one Commander Kruge. Played by Back to the Future’s Doc Brown himself, Christopher Lloyd, you get a master class in how to be a calculating villain equally only by Christopher Plummer’s General Chang. However Kruge will leave Kirk with scars that will never heal in the fallout from Genesis.
Word of the top secret Genesis device created by Carol Marcus has somehow leaked and the ambitious Kruge wants it for himself. He has engaged fellow Klingon and lover Valkris to deliver information on Genesis to him. However she has opened the file and seen its contents which earn a regretful response from Kruge. She knows without him saying that her knowing about Genesis is a death sentence; so determined is he that only he knows about it that he sacrifices his lover. Such is her loyalty to Kruge she stands tall as his ship destroys the freighter she is on. Kruge knows the Klingon thirst for any advantage over the Federation only too well to trust anyone. In her final moments he vows she will be remembered with honour.
I would have to assume his crew are all aware of Genesis as one of his officers, Torg, sees what is coming through from Valkris yet is allowed to live. it may well be the crew have all been promised a share in the power once it is on Kruge’s hands so killing his lover never made sense to me.
He is the first Klingon we have met to have a pet Targ which stays by his side on the bridge. It is a reptilian dog like animal that he loves dearly. Maybe it is the animal’s unconditional loyalty to him that makes this pet so special.
Arriving at the Genesis planet, Kruge finds the science ship Grissom in orbit. Spock’s protégé Saavik and Kirk’s son, David are on the surface and discovered Spock alive again and aging along with the planet. He is but a child recently emerged from his coffin last seen being fired from the Enterprise at his funeral. Kruge wants prisoners but his gunner accidentally blows the Grissom up which earns him an execution from Kruge and being branded an animal. It is clear Kruge will swiftly take any advantage he can get especially a ship of Starfleet prisoners. But when he discovers that Saavik, David and the changing Spock are on the surface, he takes the upper hand again.
He beams down to find them and is ready to torture them in order to get the secrets of the Genesis torpedo. But when Kirk arrives in the stolen Enterprise, so begins a game of chess that will end in tragedy.
Kirk knows there is a cloaked Klingon ship thanks to Chekov and Kruge thinks he has the advantage. But Kruge is genuinely shocked when he decloaks and Scotty fires point blank damaging the Klingon ship and killing Kruge’s pet Targ in the process. He cradles the animal as he stares around him in disbelief which quickly turns to fury. Kruge roars at his crew to find on the Enterprise. Realising that Kirk is here and part of the Genesis programme, he trusts his instincts and knows Kirk threats are empty.
You can see from Kruge’s body language he is analysing the situation as he goes. With just the tilt of his head and slight lick of his lips, he calls Kirk’s bluff and uses the prisoners on the planet below. If Kirk doesn’t give him the Genesis secrets he will kill them one at a time. Kirk is at a complete disadvantage as he learns that not only is his son and Saavik there but that Spock is also back from the dead.
Before Kirk can do anything Kruge orders his men to execute one of them despite Kirk’s protests. Sadly it is David that is killed saving Saavik. it is only then a broken Kirk says “You Klingon bastard, you killed my son!”
Kruge couldn’t care less and orders him to surrender the Enterprise. Lloyd’s delivery here is so calm and emotionless it is perfectly alien. Any man that can sacrifice his lover will not care about another’s loss.
But as always Kirk gains the upper hand but having lost his son now must lose his ship. No Klingon has ever put him in the position where Kirk has been so helpless and lost so much. They manage to set the self destruct and beam to Genesis while the Enterpise blows up with Kruge’s crew aboard. Taunting Kruge to come down and face him in order to get aboard the Klingon ship, Kruge complies, getting his last remaining man to beam the humans and Saavik abroad but leaving Spock. Kruge has picked up on how insistent Kirk is about getting this boy aboard and reason she must be valuable. As they fight, Genesis begins to tear itself apart. The project is a failure so all of this that both Kruge and Kirk have each sacrificed intentionally and unintentionally has been for nothing.
Despite of the evidence around him, Kruge is happy to die in combat here as the planet disintegrates. Grabbing Kirk by the throat he stills demands Genesis. His dreams of the ultimate power are burning all around him but it doesn’t matter.
Hanging from a cliff above a fiery molten lake, Kruge clings to Kirk’s leg until he kicks him repeatedly in the face until he falls into the lava below allowing Kirk and Spock to escape. “I have had enough of you!” has gone down in Trek catchphrases, said to Kirk kicking Kruger in the face three times.
Kruge dies in the very place he once thought would be the throne room of his new kingdom. Lloyd brought something new to the Klingons in this movie combining his delivery and body movements to reflect his inner thoughts. You can hear mind working overtime to figure things out and his ability at reading people and seeing through their lies in situations gives him an advantage we have not really seen before in the Klingons. His only failing was he did not have all the information he needed. if he had known the Enterprise was knackered, if he had known who Spock was and if he had not rushed in then maybe he would have lived to return again.
In the end Kruge ripped Kirk’s soul out by killing David. Then the Enterprise was lost. He hurt him like no one ever has and although Kirk got Spock back, I am sure that everytime he looks at him, he realises, even if he doesn’t admit it, that the price was far too high because of one Klingon, Commander Kruge.
Are you afraid of spiders? Big, webby, alien spiders? Good, Stephen and I take on a giant one in this episode. Tune in, hit like and leave a comment if you want.
So you have a story in mind and have begun writing it. But lo and behold you are struggling with the characters; you thought you knew them. But suddenly you find you don’t know them at all.
You thought you knew how a Londoner would speak and act but all you can hear in your head is Dick Van Dyke. Surely all cowboys say “Howdy.” All people from Ireland say “Top of the morning’ t’ya”. Some Scottish and Irish accents are so thick you have go dilute them down just as Walt Disney with Darby O’Gill And The Little People. We have watched so many stereotypes over our lives that we have a set image in our head of how they would be in real life. Gay men were portrayed camp and completely effeminate especially during the eighties and nineties but the vast majority are not like that. Television bosses exaggerated these to keep viewers happy and coming back for more but doing damage to what it means to be gay; and it isn’t mincing.
But how do you translate that into a character? How do they become more than a one dimensional caricature of what society thinks a certain type behaves. For me, look around you at all the people in your life. Who makes you laugh? Why do they make you laugh? Who has a habit that turns you but if used cleverly would stick in the reader’s mind to bring life to that person. If you can embed the character in the reader’s head then use it; embellish it to the advantage of your story.
I use everyone on my circle of family and friends to draw believable and three dimensional characters in my stories. I name characters after them because sometimes it is hard to decide on a name. Anyone that has a new baby knows that struggle. It is not as easy as you think. No one is one dimensional; everyone has multiple aspects to their character but utilise one in your company. How often have you come across a person you didn’t like but over time discovered something about them that changed your perspective? It could be their anger issues come from an unstable home background or have suffered a recent loss. Sometimes people are angry because they are just that; angry. Some people change when drinking vodka from your best buddy to a demon.
But when you present characters to an audience, you must give them distinctive
Characteristics to make them alive in the mind. of the reader You could have them dress in a certain way or have some sort of skill you wouldn’t think they would have. A circus strongman may be a brilliant painter. A serial killer could easily write poetry.
When I decided on the four main leads for The Time Warriors, I had a really rough time figuring them out. In one version, each had a super power of sorts including animal transformation but I abandoned all that into a simpler formula. Heroes are made through what life throws at them and the situations they find themselves in. The most docile of humanity can become the greatest example of them all. Again, look at the world around you and you will see thousands of ordinary citizens become heroes in situations where people comment “You couldn’t write that.”
I always think of that scene in the final Buffy The Vampire Slayer episode where her slayer powers are amplified and fed to every would be slayer out there. One overweight girl stands up to her bully while another stands up to whoever is hitting her. Buffy is slim and beautiful but that does not define a hero. Indeed there is a tendency to label people in movies and television shows.
Overweight people are written as comedy foils and slightly dim. The soap opera Eastenders is guilty of this as seen in their portrayals of Nigel and Heather. Shaun Williams’ character of Barry entered the soap as a ladies man and very successful business man. When Nigel left the show, Barry found himself promoted to fat guy status. His intelligence suddenly dwindled and he became a buffoon who ended up as a groom too blind to see his new wife was going to shove him off a cliff. That was a far cry from how he first was presented to the audience. On the flipside of all that you wouldn’t dare to mess with the overweight Tony Soprano.
When creating characters try not to fall into these stereotype traps. If you have to model them on every member of your family then do so. You can even put your own personality and life experiences. You are literally seeing your characters live and breathe already before you. All you have to do is translate that into your book so they have that same spark of life you experience every day.
Paul O’Grady, aka Lily Savage, based her on the string women that raised him. They smoked, they drank, they swore and ran the place when the husbands were working or off to sea. He could get away with anything as Lily but he worked so well because it was based in reality. The character and the comedy translated so well to the audience because they understood what he was talking about. Men issues, dirty habits, borrowing off Provident cheque, being skint, poverty, sitting round in the dark telling ghost stories but having enough for cigarettes and riots in Liverpool. Like Billy Connolly, Lily’s experiences resonate with the people watching because at least some of her experiences they have lived too. They dream of a better life while draped in the cloak of poverty; the only coat they will wear forever. That hopeful tragedy resonates with us because that is our lives. Lily’s jokes and stories are her ay of telling her story. Follow that example and you can’t really go wrong.
They say write what you know but I have never met an alien or travelled in time. But I imbue my characters with ordinary lives and habits and see how they react to this new crazy life. Show their fears, their joys and let the audience see them cry and falter. Every hero has a redemption arc but equally vey few are truly evil so how do we make a villain interesting and new?
Clive Barker said it best that villains should speak eloquent evil. Villains are motivated by a thirst for power and control. But it is not all they are. Do they like music? Is there something that brings a tear to their eye? What motivates them to do the things they do? Yes you have monsters like Jason and Freddy and in Michael Meyer’s case we have no idea what motivates him.
My arachnoid Mentara are tarantula based in appearance because people have a natural fear of spiders. And while they feed on human flesh, there is a very good and disturbing reason for that. But you will have to read the books to find out what that is.
A trick I use is (thanks to Doctor Who writer, Malcolm Hulke) to give every character no matter how small, has a background. In his novelisations he gave even the smallest character a full background and this stuck with me all these years. This idea was furthered in the Austin Powers movies when a faceless security guard is killed and we see his friends and family mourn his loss. The best example of this is in The Time Warriors story Experiment 4.
A minor character, an islander called Ernie, is killed by something in the dark but you get Ernie’s full life story before he dies and I am happy to announce I made people cry with that one.
But that is what I mean about using your character to connect with the audience so they root for the heroes or weep when a one off character dies. There has to be a human heart within the sci fi and the horror to make it work.
Star Trek The Next Generation did it in the season three episode The Offspring. Data creates a daughter who then dies in his arms later on. Her deaths scene is one of the most emotional and powerful things I have ever seen and is has reduced grown men to tears. It is that connection of loss, especially the loss of a child, that triggers us here.
There are plenty of examples out there; indeed what was the last thing that made you cry and why? What was it that connected with you as the audience?
You figure that out then just translate that to your story. You won’t go wrong.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photo copyright Owen Quinn and Paramount Pictures
In Picard season three we saw the restored Enterprise D charge to the rescue against the Borg, just as it did back in the Best of Both Worlds, Descent, I, Borg and Q Who, Geordi La Forge discovered that the shell of the saucer section had been retrieved from Veridian 3 as seen in the Generations movie.
He had restored her by cannibalizing parts of other ships as a secret project which he had to reveal when the Borg assimilated almost all of the Starfleet. In flashback we get to see the saucer being taken from the surface of Veridian 3 to avoid contamination of any pre-warp species. It would make sense so enemies like the Romulans or Breen did not pick Starfleet tech clean. But that got me thinking.
Did they bother to move Kirk’s body which still has his badge set upon the grave? The alloy and his clothing would be potential contaminants to a primitive culture also but there is no mention of it. Add to that it isn’t the first time Starfleet has been lacking in cleaning up after themselves. Strangely enough both instances I am going to point out are by the crew of the D.
How to handle cultural contamination well is seen in the third season story Who Watches The Watchers when a group pf proto Vulcans think a Starfleet observation team are powerful beings from above under the rule of the god Picard. It’s a great episode. Similarly in the Star Trek Enterprise episode The Communicator, Malcolm Reed loses his communicator on a pre-warp world. He and Archer must go back to retrieve it but end up in even bigger trouble.
But in the Next Generation first season story Lore, we meet Data’s android brother, his evil counterpart, Lore. After his unsuccessful attempt to sacrifice the Enterprise and her crew to the crystalline entity, Lore and Data fight. It’s an exciting sequence which ends with Data tossing his brother into a cargo bay transporter and Wesley Crusher beams him into space. Now here’s the problem. Instead of a twee ending with Picard telling Data to get rid of his tick, we should have gotten we need to retrieve the body ending and imprison it.
So not one person, not even Data, raises a concern that there is a fully functional psychotic android afloat in space and intact for anyone to come across? They know Data can live in the vacuum of space and function normally. Not only that, Lore is a sophisticated piece of technology the likes of which scientists are drooling to get hold of. As we saw in Measure of a Man, Data almost ended up a lab rat for Bruce Maddox who wanted to recreate Doctor Soong’s work.
We learn that Lore floated in space until he was picked up by a Pakled ship. If Picard and crew had any sense about them the events of Brothers and Descent would never have happened. It’s a plot hole that really cannot be explained given Picard season 3 how what was left of Data was used as a security system. Given the transporter is limited in distance, it isn’t hard to imagine Lore spitting venom as he watches the Enterprise fly off. The Romulans are far from sloppy like this as in the Defector, Admiral Jarok destroys his scout ship rather than let the Enterprise get their hands on it. As he says humans are a short sighted people and when you see androids and Borg floating free you can understand the Romulan viewpoint.
Now look at the chaos one badly behaved android caused so can you imagine what would happen if it were a Borg? Well, you don’t have to as we saw in First Contact, Picard and some of his crew went out on to the deflector dish to stop the Borg sending a signal to the Delta Quadrant. Their efforts cause several Borg to float off into space allowing Worf to destroy the transmitter yet he doesn’t destroy the Borg bodies. Isn’t that a risky thing to do given where they are in time and the threat the Borg pose?
Now as Voyager discovered, Borg can survive in the vacuum of space especially their mechanical parts. Now Chakotay blew several Borg off Voyager in Scorpion part two. The difference is that they were already in Borg space so there was no need to do anything with the bodies.
But First Contact is the prime example of sloppy work from a Federation that heralds the Prime Directive as the first rule. As we see several Borg are floating into space but when the Borg sphere is destroyed we discover that Picard and co were so enamoured by witnessing First Contact that they forget to clean up their mess. It is in Star Trek Enterprise that we see the repercussions of not clearing up especially with an enemy as lethal as the Borg. They don’t just die; as they told Picard, death is irrelevant. The only good Borg is a vaporised Borg, Seven of Nine and Hugh excluding of course.
In the second season episode Regeneration, the remnants of the Borg sphere are discovered in the snows of the Arctic Circle along with a couple of bodies. They have been there for over a century since the events of First Contact. The human scientists inadvertently reactivate the Borg and they are assimilated. Stealing and upgrading the shuttle they attack a Tarkalean ship partially assimilating the crew. They are taken to sick bay where they infect Phlox and complete their transformation. To stop them sabotaging the Enterprise Archer has to blow them into space.
Again there is no mention of retrieving or destroying the bodies which we can only assume are still out there. This time the Borg are totally destroyed but manage to send a signal to the Delta Qyadrant. They will arrive sometime in the 24th century contradicting the events of Q Who. See what happens when you don’t get rid of the evidence? History itself changes. Still by the time Picard has that fateful encounter there is no mention of Archer’s battle or the remnants in the Arctic Circle. Indeed the good doctor’s cure has been buried.
If the Borg had gotten to Earth earlier then all of history would be changed. That opens the question as to where the Temporal Agency that we saw in Trials and Tribbleations and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow were in all this? But given they missed the reintroduction of the Tribble species to the galaxy decades after they were hunted to extinction, I can only guess they are as much to blame as the Enterprise crew. And when you think of it, the wreckage of the Borg ship is still there for study by Starfleet.
Add to this that in the interests of establishing new allies, Starfleet would have to share with the Tarkaleans and Vulcans what they have fought. So aside from them Phlox’s research into killing the nanites would also be shared with his people. So that’s four species at least that know of the Borg incident yet Picard is ignorant of them. Could it be that this fell under the same law as the disappearance of the Discovery? That to speak of it would be to be charged with treason? It could be and at the same time explain how Shelby suddenly became the Federation’s top expert on the Borg.
Yet Voyager is marked for death because of an insane Braxton when future Starfleet made the wrong conclusions.
In Distant Origin in Voyager, a Starfleet uniform and badge are discovered but in this instance there was no way for Janeway to retrieve it given poor crewman Hogan was dragged into the cave network by the lizard monster. It allowed the Voth scientist to prove his species were descendants from Earth dinosaurs.
Archer reveals Cochrane told the story of cybernetic creatures trying to stop First Contact then recanted it because no one believed him. So was Archer’s encounter wiped or simply lost? We will never know but one thing is for sure, when it comes to robotic and cybernetic foes, Starfleet just falls to pieces.
By Owen Quinn author Photos copyright BBC and Owen Quinn
When a celebrity passes away, you usually remember their movies or television appearances or whatever skill they were famous for. But sometimes, you do have a personal connection which all comes flooding back when your hear the bad news.
For me and many others, Simon Fisher-Becker came to my attention when he appeared in Matt Smith’s Doctor Who era as the blue skinned, crafty, business man, Dorium Maldovar.
He frst appeared in A Good Man Goes To War when the Doctor gathers people that owe him a favour in order to rescue Amy and Melody Pond from captivity. Afraid of the Doctor calling in his favour, Dorium travels with him to save the pair nonetheless.
Dorium made an instant impact on viewers and he would return despite being beheaded by the Headless Monks. His still living head was placed in a box, wi fi included of course, in a crypt with many others and demands to know the answer to the age old question, which must never be answered, Doctor Who?
With his large frame, blue skin and Mandarin like attire, Dorium became an instant favourite but little did I know, Simon would become more than just another Doctor Who celebrity to me.
I found him on Facebook and messaged him, asking would he possibly do an interview which, to my astonishment, he said yes to. We chatted about his life, career and the impact of Doctor Who on his life. For us, he had become the Boba Fett of Doctor Who; a mysterious alien with previous dealings with the Time Lord to the point he owed the Doctor. He must be important for the Doctor to bring him to attack Demon’s Run to save the Ponds. Dorium deals in information and knowing what is going on at all times so he can wheel and deal. So what happened for the Doctor to have a hold of him so?
By chance, there was a Matt Smith look a like named Matt who you would have seen in Graham Norton’s red chair when Matt Smith was on promoting the Day of the Doctor. I persuaded him to let me take a photo with Simon so we had a kind of eleventh Doctor and Dorium reunion which was lovely.
Simon with Farscape actress Virginia Hey in Dublin
Simon was a pure delight to chat with and it was so easy as he loved speaking to people as well. He was a great ambassador to the show. Following our interview, I got the chance to meet him in person in Dublin at a convention. He recognised me and before I knew it, I was sitting behind the table with him just chatting. No interviews, no looking for something; just two people chatting about life. I won’t reveal all of our conversation as some of it was personal. He talked about his husband Tony and told me how he had a connection with Dublin when he played the Fat Controller in Thomas the Tank Engine for Day Out with Thomas events for ten years. I was easily there for another hour and felt so welcomed by him. I even got him a couple of sales from prospective fans who approached him. It was so nice to hear his stories about his career, Harry Potter and more. You at most, get a couple of minutes with celebrities but this remains to this day my favourite interview and one of the nicest people I have ever met. You rarely get to see the person behind the character but I was lucky enough to get that chance.
We became Facebook friends and messaged each other. He always wished me a happy birthday when it came round and vice versa. I happily shared any posts he wanted for his book or events. I would meet him one last time, again in Dublin at another convention, where he allowed me to bring a friend to meet him who is also a fan. I sent her the news of his death tonight and while I mourn the loss, I am comforted by the memories I have and my unique experience.
Rest in peace sir. It was a genuine pleasure to have known you and tonight, I can hear your stories in my head. You will never be forgotten.
So from the outset, let me make it clear that I was never a fan of the original Daredevil series. I know, I know, I’m in the minority but it just didn’t appeal to me. Even Punisher bored the tits off me which causes my buddy quite a bit of consternation, by the way.
Don’t get me wrong. I read the comics as a kid and knew all about his background and nemesis Kingpin. I remember him teaming up with Spider-Man and when Matt Murdock ended up as Peter’s lawyer, it was a thrilling moment from me. However, the series as a whole left me very, well….take it or leave it.
I liked the characters and Vincent D’Onofrio is the definitive Kingpin. He’ll be in Dublin this year for their summer 2025 show so get your tickets. So, when I heard it was coming back as Daredevil Reborn, I was excited. I just thought they were just churning out yet another bore fest Marvel series. Yes, I’m looking at you Hawkeye, The Marvels, She-Hulk, The Acolyte and Secret Invasion.
Oh wait, The Acolyte belongs to the other House of Mouse franchise that it is slowly destroying. Sorry, wrong universe but it seems the multiverse is being eroded with half assed productions that they think fans will love. Sadly, this is failing faster than Martin Fowler in the rubble of the Queen Vic.
Then I heard they had scrapped what had been filmed and were starting from scratch. This, unfortunately, is all you seem to hear these days with Marvel movies and series; reshoot after reshoot and this never inspires confidence in the most positive of beings. They released photos of the new costume; again, yawn from me.
So, between Reacher Season Three, I sat down to watch the new Daredevil. Now what I did like, as I said, was the trio of characters, Foggy, Matt and Karen. It was nice to see them all together again as if time had not passed.
I was looking forward to going on a new journey with these three but sure, when in life do we ever get what we want? Happiness is fleeting in the world and especially if you’re a superhero. Bullseye attacks a cop bar and guns down Foggy and almost shoots Karen before Matt swoops in and beats the life out of him. Enraged, he tosses him off a building with the intention of killing him.
I have to say that this was an opening and a half and we’re only minutes in. Get the right hook and the audience will stay. You can feel both Karen and Matt’s agony as their friend lies bleeding to death. There is no drama or last word, just the cold stare of a dead man in the same way as Tosh did in Torchwood’s Exit Wounds. They both died looking into the eyes of their friends and it is the last thing they see. This took me by surprise and I have to say, as a non-fan, I was in.
We jump to a year later and Matt has hung up his devil horns and is just now a lawyer working with a new company. Foggy’s death has destroyed his and Karen’s friendship and they too part ways in a taut scene at Bullseye’s sentencing. Matt is devastated to this day and cannot bring himself to be so open as to save his friendship. Karen leaves him one of the horns from his helmet. It is a clear message that the city of New York needs Daredevil and now.
We get to see an even more human side of Murdock in these two episodes as he deals with grief and loss which impacts him. He is desperate for someone to confide in which you can see in his interactions with Karen at the courthouse, but he messes that up totally.
But life has a way of bringing you back to your true path. When a man is lost, life will find a way. He can be dragged to the darkest places by grief and be trapped like tar. But when Matt hears a man being threatened by cops to admit to a crime he never committed, his senses are piqued. The discovery that the man is in fact fellow vigilante White Tiger makes it harder as there is a growing anti-vigilante movement. New York has lost its way without someone to hand out justice and a new hope arrives in the form of Kingpin who run and wins the race to become the new mayor of New York. One of his policies is ‘no more vigilantes’ who, if they step out of line, will face the full force of the law.
Photos copyright Marvel studios
Stripping Matt down and getting rid of all that we are familiar with is actually a smart move. This show has always been about the war between Kingpin and Daredevil. On learning Fisk is back on the scene and a seemingly changed man, they meet face to face.
This scene is the most important of the first two episodes as it perfectly shows the powerful dark dance between these two enemies. Charlie Cox plays the Doubting Thomas brilliantly while making sure Kingpin is fully aware he will be watching and ready to move if he puts a step wrong. Equally, Fisk makes him aware that if he dares make a move as Daredevil, it will not go well for him. You can feel the tension between the two as they face an uncertain path. There are references to Echo which are nice. The former criminal becoming the benevolent king of the city? It’s a hard pill to swallow and as the commissioner finds out, Fisk will do what he has to in order to get what he wants. Even his marriage counselling session with Matt’s new girlfriend makes us stop and wonder if Fisk is actually genuine.
Daredevil Born Again is a poorly disguised commentary on the current Trump situation in America but what makes this stand out for me is the electricity between the foes. Events are forcing Matt to reconsider his position. Kingpin knows full well Matt is a formidable enemy but equally knows full well that after what happened to Foggy, this is a man who will kill now. Fisk portrays himself as enlightened, but Matt is steeped in the darkest of emotions including a deep frustration of how he can deliver justice to a system that is twisted. The tide is turning as Fisk cements himself as the new saviour of New York and the scene of celebration and support from the citizens for their new light in the dark on the streets could have been lifted straight out of any newscast.
So, as a non-fan who was quite meh about this show coming back, will I be back for the rest of the series?
Are you ready for the answer? Are you sure? Maybe some of you reading this should frame it because it is indeed a new day rising.
Daredevil Born Again episodes one and two were an exquisite example of how to bring new life to old characters and make them relevant again to a new audience.
I absolutely was hooked ten minutes into the first shocking episode, and it’s kept me swinging from one side to the other as to how long Kingpin will remain a good guy. This new unpredictable Daredevil is a dangerous one and if unleashed will bring his full wrath down on his enemies without compulsion.
To let the recent garbage Marvel has spewed out put you off this show is doing, and this show, you a disservice.
I’m in wholeheartedly for the full journey. This is unmissable. And if Daredevil does not appear in Secret Wars and Doomsday, Marvel need a kick in the arse.
Daredevil is back and badder than ever and so am I. Now there’s something you don’t see every day.
The Time Warriors and Beyond 