Trek In Time

Three of the first five episodes this season are gimmick episodes, and Matt has had enough. Matt and Sean talk about the puppet hour, and what a 10 episode season can afford, in Star Trek SNW Season 4, Episode 5, "Level Five Transporter Accident." The puppets are beautifully built and the jokes land, but the dream reveal arrives in the final two minutes with no setup. So is this a charming lark? Or is it 45 of the season's 450 minutes spent on a sketch?Order Sean’s next book, “In the Fields We Thirst” here: https://undecided.link/in-the-fields-we-thirstChapters:00:00 - Intro01:36 - Listener Feedback06:14 - This Time in History10:09 - Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tYGkEP0cqYSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on:Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrellBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.socialUndecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean talk about how Strange New Worlds keeps borrowing other genres in Star Trek SNW Season 4, Episode 4, "A Case of Chiaroscuro." A musical, a horror hour, and now film noir shot in black and white. Matt calls it Andor filtered through Doctor Who, and he means that as a compliment and a complaint at once. Sean argues the story earns the style, from Una's con at the end to La'an's quiet unraveling in sickbay. Pike also climbs the captain rankings along the way. So is genre play the smartest tool this show has? Or is the peanut butter getting into the chocolate?Order Sean’s next book, “In the Fields We Thirst” here: https://undecided.link/in-the-fields-we-thirstChapters:00:00: Intro02:32: Today’s Episode & Mailbag08:27: Episode Description08:55: This Time in History11:37: Episode DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTX_qYhEzqMSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean ask whether Star Trek SNW Season 4, Episode 3, "Human Best Friend" works better as a live-action Lower Decks episode. The shore leave setup gives Strange New Worlds room for drunk-planet chaos, La’an taking over a gang, Spock mind-melding with a plant, and Scotty and Ortegas turning into a buddy comedy. But with only 10 episodes in the season, they also question whether this much goofiness helps or hurts the larger story.Order Sean’s next book, “In the Fields We Thirst” here: https://undecided.link/in-the-fields-we-thirstChapters:00:00: Intro02:46: Today’s Episode03:07: Episode Description03:44: This Time in History05:25: Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKiB9YBwACYSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean talk about the best horror Star Trek has ever filmed, in Star Trek SNW Season 4, Episode 2, "The Griffin Incident." A derelict Federation ship, a baby crying down a dark hallway, and a crew that stops trusting its own eyes. Matt reaches for Solaris and The Thing, Sean reaches for Event Horizon, and they agree the landing sticks. Also in the mailbag: the Voth, dinosaurs, and one very wrong answer involving Peter Griffin.Order Sean’s next book, “In the Fields We Thirst” here: https://undecided.link/in-the-fields-we-thirstChapters:00:00: Intro01:42: Mailbag05:31: Episode Description & This Time in History08:57: Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79tAMWAZ_hQSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean talk about a fun dinosaur romp that collapses by the halfway point in Star Trek SNW Season 4, Episode 1, "Valles Marineris." The T. Rex encounter works, Pelia's Doctor Who joke works, and then the plot logic falls apart. Nobody on the best crew in Starfleet asks the obvious question about the mysterious fifth planet. So does the season four premiere earn its time travel setup? Or does it hand wave away the only choice that mattered?Chapters:00:00: Intro02:01: Feedback04:47: Today’s Episode05:17: This Time in History07:30: Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoYlPKc4Pb8Support the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

One five-minute scene made Matt sit up: a man flatly refuses to accept he carries a deadly disease, and it feels ripped from 2026. Matt and Sean talk about the accidental anti-vax parable buried in Star Trek TOS Season 3, Episode 20, "The Way to Eden." Space hippies hijack the Enterprise chasing paradise, and one man's denial of the science reads very differently today. So is this clunker secretly ahead of its time? Or does the DayGlo nonsense smother the one idea worth keeping?Chapters:00:00: Intro02:37: Mailbag04:17: Today’s Episode05:04: This Time in History10:46: Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFpvsIgEOowSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean talk about the rare late-season bright spot in Star Trek TOS Season 3, Episode 21, "The Cloud Minders." After weeks of episodes that dragged, this one finally feels like real Trek again. They pick apart why it works, where it still limps, and what a bigger budget might have done for the back half of a struggling season 3. This episode first aired on February 28, 1969.Chapters:00:00: Intro03:46: Mailbag05:53: Today’s Episode06:24: This Time in History10:48: Today’s DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQctuffaeGMSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology

Matt and Sean talk about the possession horror hiding inside Star Trek TOS Season 3, Episode 18, "The Lights of Zetar." An alien energy takes over Lieutenant Mira Romaine, and the creepy voice, the floating body, and the "you can't have her back, she's ours" menace feel pulled straight from a 1960s Hammer horror film. So is this secretly one of Star Trek's scariest hours? Or does the show waste a great idea by burying the reveal for 40 minutes?Chapters:00:00: Intro02:30: Episode Description02:58: This time in History06:30: Today’s Episode DiscussionWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgsPqnDU9ngSupport the show directly: https://trekintime.show/join/Audio version of the podcast: https://www.trekintime.showYouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrekinTimeGet in touch: https://trekintime.show/contact/Follow us on: Mastodon - https://mastodon.social/@mattferrell Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/mattferrell.bsky.social Undecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/@undecidedtechnology