Star Trek: Renegades

So a crowd funded project has created a possible new Star Trek series called Star Trek Renegades. I'm a big fan of star trek so naturally wish them the best.

The quality of acting varied significantly. The use of close ups to hide what i'm sure were barren sets became quite apparent after a while. However their flaws and limitations to their production quality is something i'm sure they were all well aware of and therefore don't need every little detail to be pointed out. However considering that the web series pilot for Battlestar Galactica Blood and Chrome cost 2 million, what these folks accomplished with just $375k is an accomplishment unto itself and they should be congratulated for that.

But the show's inexcusable problems all begin and end with the script. The show lacks any meaningful character development. Am I supposed to be heart broken when an irrelevant character with two lines has died? I'm not sure and the story hasn't given me many clues. The show lacks all humour whatsoever. Light humour, camaraderie and banter is as essential an ingredient to star trek as phasers and vulcan neck pinches. Everyone needs to lighten up.

And finally, each star trek series has to inevitably focus on the elements that will separate them from the others then demonstrate those differences, and I don't think this quite did that, though they seemed to be trying. The differences should be made apparent enough that I don't have to go looking for them. What makes this space craft different and unique from the others? Is it faster? Does have some intrinsic value?

Prove to me in every way possible that this captain isn't going to be anything like anything we haven't already seen. So far she appears to have a chip on her shoulder and can fight an alien twice her size with ease, though I found that difficult to accept. However I was never sold on her ability to captain a vessel or to lead a team. Is she clever? Is she good at her job? I can't tell. I can't imagine why this crew is devoted to her. They don't appear to care about anything. Frankly I'd rather follow the borg into battle than to follow her.

The only character I had any sympathy for was icheb and even there they did the tragic amateur mistake of "telling" not "showing". At least he had a story to tell which was more than anyone else did.

But I shouldn't be too hard on them. They did an impressive job with such little resources. The core idea gave us a rag tag intimate crew like Firefly in the Star Trek universe, and has some strong potential. I hope this is a proof of concept for what could be a decent program if given a proper budget and a better script.

TBH, I wouldn't give this a lower score because I really want someone to pick up the ST thread and go with it. This seems as likely a place as any, and was better than I had expected of fan fiction.

So I loved seeing all the familiar faces (I probably need to watch it again just because I was distracted by trying to figure out which ST series each person came from), and I thought sfx were not bad for a low-budget attempt. Even the acting was decent on the part of the veterans.

Really, what's wrong is just in the early and mid-levels of production. Costumes looked like everyone had to make their own to be in the show, with varying degrees of success. Same with make-up and hair -- are split ends a problem in the future? Camera work was also inconsistent, again like everyone took turns.

Post production, tighter editing could have saved some performances and wordy scenes. What it couldn't save was the inconsistent writing, which needed tweaking by someone more experienced in transitions.

So the story line is interesting, and the casting is decent. I did not care for Wilkinson, who seemed more pouty than defiant and not capable of the respect / fear she apparently engendered. But then I remembered her last name and that she's probably an augment and I gave her the benefit of the doubt. I was irritated by Sean Young's performance as seeming out of place, but the scene with Robert Picardo was believable and endearing. I wish there'd been more of him.

Not something I'd pay to go the movies for, but this is a great pitch / pilot, people. Somebody needs to pick it up.

This a non-profit movie made through Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns, including several actors from the commercial Star Trek movies and series.

I'm not sure what to make of it. It's obviously much too good to be a "fan movie" but not good enough to be a Box Office Hit. Maybe it fits as a "Pilot" or "Pitch" for a TV-Series? The movie is very uneven. I would say ratings for different scenes range all they way from 3 to 9 out of 10. The transition between scenes could sometimes be smoother and some scenes also seem a bit "out of place".

The acting of the Star Trek alumni in the movie is generally good and I must say that the acting skills of Adrienne Wilkinson has improved from the clips seen in the supporter forums "exclusive clips area". It's actually quite good in the final movie. The casting of other characters is uneven with several persons fitting their roles and others obviously not.

I give Special FX 7/10. Most of the to times they are on par with commercial productions but the movie would for example have been better of without "the fire" in a few scenes in the beginning of the movie.

Background music is fitting most of the time, I would say 7/10. Sound FX are also good, as long as you can stand the sound of spaceships in outer space where there's no sound.

The concept behind the the movie is quite interesting and might, if pitched in the right way, be turned into a TV-series.

From an objective standpoint my overall rating ought to be a notch lower, but because I like the concept I give it 7/10 :-)

Where to start on this? Given its shortcomings, one wonders why it is getting attention. That is easy to explain. There are several generations of people who have been brought up on one version of Star Trek or another. There is definite interest in another TV series based on it. This is exacerbated by the huge shortcomings of the recent Star Trek movies which tore the established time line, characters and precepts apart and have lowered, yes lowered, the franchise to the level of the usual overwrought, adrenalin rush, commercially obsessed material that has pushed plot and idea oriented movies far to the periphery. As a result, there are a lot of people who want Star trek: Renegades to work.

The production obviously suffers from a low budget especially in comparison to the fully funded large studio Star Trek productions. The sound, in particular, is really quite bad. But it is not just a lack of budget. The production crew seems to be learning on the job with camera, costumes, lighting, CG, writing, the whole thing. There is a brew of clichés and lack of skill/time going on. That could improve with further efforts but there is a long way to go.

In terms of basic themes and ideas, again, there is potential but problems as well. We have a diverse crew of misfits being used as a covert operations force. Furthermore, there are people who are out to get them. This provides a huge stream future story ideas. It is a unfortunate that the pilot used an specific idea that is very tired and old in the nature of the threat, the inability of the establishment to deal with it and the techno-babble/quasi-magic solution. Nonetheless, it used that idea to effectively introduce a large number of characters which is a prime purpose of a pilot.

That brings us to the acting and the characters. This is very uneven. One hopes it could be sorted out. There is room for both hope and pessimism.

Here is a rundown of some of them.

Chekov - a useful link to the past.

Chekov's great grand-daughter - a weak character that could evolve into an interesting sub-plot but needs to be handled extremely carefully. A wimpy cadet who has a foot in the door to the highest levels of Star Fleet Intelligence could be a disaster. This could be another Wesley Crusher but worse. When in doubt, leave her out.

Tuvok - another useful link. He didn't have much material but he did fine with it.

Lexxa Singh - This is a major character and as things stand now, a train wreck and thus a serious liability for the whole concept. There was not a single thing about this character that was believably delivered. I don't want to dwell on it too much or blame the actress as the concept is flawed from the start. She came across as a semi-emaciated addict who somehow is supposed to be a fierce renegade with strength, leadership, etc, etc. Not buying it for a second. I'd start with changing the costume and make-up and seriously reworking her lines and delivery. Perhaps it can be salvaged but it is not just a matter of minor changes.

Alvarez - This character is very useful as a good guy who is not in the loop and can both bump heads with the main bunch and alternatively work with them. Furthermore, Corin Nemec did well with the material he had. Why they gave him a name like Alvarez is beyond me as he doesn't look like an Alvarez at all.

Lucien - Sean Young looked very uncertain of herself in this role. I am not sure why she wanted to do it. Over time and with better material, she should grow into it. The character is potentially fine. They just need to keep her technical stuff more realistic.

Zimmerman - Robert Picardo can effectively deliver this character in his sleep but there is not much for him to do and I am not sure why he is there.

Ragnar - Not great material to work with but Gary Graham had good presence and one can have confidence in him.

Icheb - another return from a previous series. This is an interesting character although with too many Borg related abilities. Acted well enough given the material.

Ronara - this one needs development but by no means a lost cause. The head shaking with the mental abilities could be portrayed better. Otherwise, she seemed to be the eye candy (no problems there!) and a few fill-in lines.

Fixer - another one that needs development but could work out fine.

The Breen - Interesting but did not do much. There is a LOT of potential there but they have to stay out of the trap of making him a continuous running joke.

The rest of the potentially returning cast had not much to do, were not paid much if at all and it seemed to show.

Because of some of the people involved, the way it is being funded and the effort made on a low budget, the next "episode" of ST:Renegades will be viewed with a good bit of sympathy and again be given the benefit of the doubt by a lot of people. On the other hand, the chances of a major studio picking this up are slight. If one did, the egos involved would rework it and replace many of the people involved and the result would be hardly recognizable. In many ways that would be good but I am sure the studios already have their own ST ideas and if they were thinking of going with a new series, they would follow up on those.

To start with the negative, yes it is a low budget made movie, the acting could have been better, the characters should have been more developed (as it stands they are a bit 2 dimensional portrayed), no actor really stands out, the effects.. well the effects are like the old Galactica style TV series, funny but a bit distracting at times and to top it all of, the camera and editing were below par for serious work.

However:

If you are star trek fan, i would definitely recommend it to you. the style is more raw, the atmosphere is less politically correct and has more place for real human emotions instead of that "we have evolved" BS. I love G.R's vision, but I must admit, I think his vision is a bit outdated, maybe even a bit boring anyone at times anyone ?. For real, we have moved away from Kirk and Picard by now.

I see it as a low budget example of how star trek should be continued. The elements for success are there, I hope these guys can get there act together, improve on all the basic fields, camera, acting editing etc..

I will definitely watch the next version if\when it comes. In the mean time i kind of hope that the "big" guys take notice what a small little gem this crew has set. well done guys, well done.

I think that if you are a Star Trek fan, you owe it to yourself to watch it.

enjoy.