Genkos Adea

Written by Christopher Caldwell (although I take full responsibility for the awful title) Since Star Trek: The Next Generation aired over 37 years ago, the show’s characters have achieved a level of cultural recognition that transcends the realm of science fiction fandom. The show's ensemble cast expanded on the progressive vision of the original series and in doing so helped to pave the way for greater diversity and inclusivity in entertainment and beyond, inspiring not just the next generation, but all those that would follow. As Star Trek fans we’ve witnessed the crew of the Enterprise D (and later E) utilising diplomacy, science, technology and guile in order to complete a multitude of missions; they’ve boldly gone where no one has gone before, expanding our understanding of the universe, defending us from great evil and even saving the galaxy itself. But their next mission will be something that we’ve never seen before, festive gift-giving. Our question this month, asks you to answer the question of which main character from The Next Generation would be the best give-giver and why do you think so? Time to make it snow!

written by Christopher Caldwell The Star Trek universe has unlimited potential for storytelling. Even with The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager all taking place within the same time period each show had its own unique premise but thanks to shows like Enterprise (later Star Trek: Enterprise) and Star Trek: Discovery, the Star Trek timeline has expanded beyond the 23rd and 24th centuries explored in the TOS and TNG eras, now featuring the 22nd century and, if including the ‘Short Trek’ episode ‘Calypso’, the 43rd century respectively. We know that the Section 31 TV movie is set during ‘The Lost Era’ (the time between the original Star Trek movies and The Next Generation), there’s been a lot of talk of the next Star Trek cinematic release being a prequel and there are multiple shows in the works including Starfleet Academy which takes place in the 32nd century as well as the Tawny Newsome penned live action comedy, potentially in the vein of Parks & Recreation, that is believed to take place on the planet Risa in the 25th century. With the Star Trek canon increasing to expand with new shows and movies, we’d love to ask you what era you would want the next Star Trek show or movie to take place and why? Do you want to stick with something familiar or go where no one has boldly gone before?

Now we’re on the other side of the Frontier Day blockbuster (well done to everyone who participated, it was a nail-biter!) we thought we’d throw up an interesting query to all of you… Who do you think is the biggest threat to peace in the galaxy? We’ll start off with the two most obvious answers - the Borg and the Changelings. As the architects of the Frontier Day disaster, they were responsible for the huge loss of life experienced across Starfleet on that day, as well as the sudden assimilation of every officer under the age of 30. But apart from that, both have been huge threats even before they joined forces. The Borg have posed a legitimate existential threat to life in the Alpha Quadrant ever since Q zapped Picard halfway across the galaxy to meet them, and they only became more credible as a danger at the Battle of Wolf 359 and in their encounters with Janeway. Ruthless and without feeling, the Borg are legitimately terrifying. The Changelings were responsible for the Dominion War, the largest and most bloody conflict in recent memory, scars of which still crisscross the galaxy. Whether you lived on occupied Betazed or fought them at Deep Space Nine, nobody can forget the threat of not truly knowing who your friends were coupled with the relentless march of the Jem’hadar. The Lattice Alliance, a xenophobic alliance of Tholians and Sheliak have pooled their technology to use weapons based on sencha radiation, using crystalline technology. This has allowed them to focus and amplify the effects of the radiation, creating cannons and blast weapons of a destructive power seldom seen before. The USS Ronin first encountered sencha radiation in 2400 and barely escaped the conflict in one piece, and the Alliance continues to menace the quadrant to this day. Also, we have the Orion Syndicate - possibly more insidious than the others in that they’re not actively engaged in battle with the Federation, but their methods can be brutal and barbaric. Skin colour to dye for, though! Or do you have another suggestion? Let us know in the comments!

Welcome!

I did email you, maybe it went to spam! Are you both on Discord? I'll invite you to the channel

Well hello there! It’s been a while since we’ve run a Poll of the Month, and we thought our 30th Anniversary month would be a fantastic time to come back from the dead (a Star Trek speciality). A huge thank you to @Gogigobo Fairhug for giving me the nudge needed to get this ship back online. Soooooo, with it being our thirtieth anniversary (!) and also the month of our beloved awards ceremony, we thought we’d ask you an interesting question about our avatars. Obviously at this time of year, we get our characters all dressed up in their finest black tie/prom dress/weird outfit that the actor wore to the Met Gala in 2017… you know who you are. And this raised an interesting little question for me this month. How did you select your avatar for Starbase118? I myself started off using my own image for Genkos (hugely embarrassing I know, but I was young…ish) and then moved to the beautifully angular Ben Whishaw when I got more of a handle both on simming and on the character of Genkos. I’ve also made more of an effort to try and include POC in my PNPC characters list (okay, I have three, but it’s a start!). So that brings me to the question of the week - how do you select the actors/models/random strangers that you’ve picked for your avatars? Do you develop the character and then think “who do I know who plays characters like that?” or do you think of an actor that exists and think “wow, they would be fun to play as - they normally play ineffable grumps”? It’s a bit of a chicken and an egg question, but we are interested to know! Or do you do something completely different - let us know what you do in the comments below!

I don't remember saying this, but it does sound like something I'd say. As I often say, the day I taught you in the Academy was the greatest day of your life, for me - it was a Tuesday.

Excuse me? ::blinks::

I wanted to showcase this fantastic sim from @Jovenan. She played Tevet Elain as a childhood friend of Genkos in the last leave, then we encountered a youthful version of the character thanks to time-hopping shenanigans. And now we're back in the present, having changed the past - and Jovenan came right out the gate with this compelling antagonist. Five stars.

@Doz Finch Hysterical response

I feel awful about this @Nolen Hobart - but I will point out that your cadet cruise might well have been the most important day of your life. For me, it was a Tuesday.

@Jovenan deserves all the points for this excellent callback.

Genkos Adea checking in! "Prepare for trouble! And make it double!"

@Yalu You are a monster.

@Yalu - I had to pause my reading because of you