^I thought Janeway's appearance in TBA was a good way to explain that familiarity with Picard as seen in Nemesis. I also enjoyed the bit where Picard was disappointed that Janeway wasn't available to be his first officer.
The Buried Age (Spoilers!)
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^^Yeah, that would've been an interesting mix, wouldn't it? Janeway as Picard's XO? (She and Riker were in the same Academy class, after all.) It would've made "Hide and Q" a somewhat different episode, I bet (and anything would be an improvement there). Not to mention "Angel One"...
Hey Marco, got any openings left in Myriad Universes...?
Hey Marco, got any openings left in Myriad Universes...?
^I had that same thought when I read that bit. How different TNG would've been.
Also, I liked how you got Kate Mulgrew's mannerisims (one hand on the hip and the other to punctuate her point) right during the scene where she comes up with options to the status bubble.
Also, I liked how you got Kate Mulgrew's mannerisims (one hand on the hip and the other to punctuate her point) right during the scene where she comes up with options to the status bubble.
^^Yep -- I reviewed the Janeway scenes on the tapes I had before I wrote her material.
I just finished TBA last night and I really enjoyed it. I think it's something of a definitive Picard novel, in that it shows us how and why he became the man he is in TNG. I liked how it put reason behind a lot of the ways that early-TNG Picard was different than how he was in the later seasons.
I found the story to be quite interesting. It's amazing to think about the amount of time that was involved, what with the Manraloth being from over 250 million years ago. It's kind of staggering to think about.
I enjoyed the material with Data and how it helped explain why Data had been in Starfleet for so long but still seemed to not quite grasp human relationships, mannerisms, and communication throughout TNG. I also liked how Christopher came up with an explanation with how phasers can function at warp.
At one point I was kind of lost...where Picard mentions in one chapter how he can't imagine life without Ariel, and then a few chapters later doesn't seem affected at all by their 'break up'. My thinking followed Data's though so I was glad to see an explanation.
Great work, Christopher. I look forward to your next.
I found the story to be quite interesting. It's amazing to think about the amount of time that was involved, what with the Manraloth being from over 250 million years ago. It's kind of staggering to think about.
I enjoyed the material with Data and how it helped explain why Data had been in Starfleet for so long but still seemed to not quite grasp human relationships, mannerisms, and communication throughout TNG. I also liked how Christopher came up with an explanation with how phasers can function at warp.
At one point I was kind of lost...where Picard mentions in one chapter how he can't imagine life without Ariel, and then a few chapters later doesn't seem affected at all by their 'break up'. My thinking followed Data's though so I was glad to see an explanation.
Great work, Christopher. I look forward to your next.
I'm glad to hear it. That's just what I was aiming for. Well, I wasn't ambitious enough to be aiming for "definitive," but explaining "how and why he became the man he is in TNG" -- early TNG in particular -- was exactly my goal.
Glad to hear that too. I see all these episodes about "ancient" civilizations that are only a few thousand years old, maybe a few hundred thousand, but the galaxy is so immensely older than that -- I wanted to get into something genuinely ancient.
That one's been bugging me for many years. Heck, the whole reason I included Data in the book was so that I could address that.
I also liked how Christopher came up with an explanation with how phasers can function at warp.
Did I do that? Oh yeah, on p. 368: "...he came in close enough to synchronize warp fields and engage with phasers."
I really wasn't sure that part of the book worked at all, because everyone was suddenly acting so unnaturally and it felt awkward. But you're the first person to comment on having any difficulty with it, and it worked out okay for you, it seems, so I'm reassured.
Thanks! My next is a story in the TNG anthology due in October, and then my Spider-Man novel in January.
Finally bought my own copy of your book, Christopher. Shame they didn't have it at Shore Leave!
Fresh from Comic-Con San Diego - courtesy of Comic Book Resources:
this is Daren Dochterman a VFX Producer from the TMP DE DVD speaking at a Trek panel.
this is Daren Dochterman a VFX Producer from the TMP DE DVD speaking at a Trek panel.
Wow, I appreciate the publicity! Daren Dochterman wrote me a nice letter complimenting me on my website once, which was really cool since I was a fan of his work on the TMP DE. But it's great that he's spreading the word (not just about me but about the Pocket line in general) at such a well-attended event.
I can't find that item at the CBR site. Can you provide a link?
it probably fell off the bottom of the page with all the CCSD news.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11325
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11325
Thanks. Actually, Daren Dochterman tells me via e-mail that it was Robert Meyer Burnett who specifically mentioned my books, but he agreed with the sentiment.
Is it safe to assume that while the events of Buried Age are taking place, the events from the other LE books are happening as well or is their a gap ?
TBA takes place over the span of 2355-2364. However, it doesn't cover every moment of those years, and there are gaps between parts of the book. Part One of Deny Thy Father overlaps with TBA Part I (DTF begins in June 2355, which is about midway through TBA Part I). The rest of DTF takes place between TBA Parts I and II. And Catalyst of Sorrows takes place a few months after TBA Part III.
Naturally, the other four Lost Era books all end many years before the start of TBA.
(my apologies for writing far more than I set out to)
I finished the book last night and am still digesting it, but wow. What a BIG story. I loved the whole idea of showing how old the universe is, with the whole "this could have all happened before" thing - not literally, just as it was in the book. And how it happened a few times...a single civilization could have grown to span the galaxy (reminded me of Asimov's Foundation trilogy) or one made up of countless others (Star Wars) and still have time for our own and the Proto-humanoids'.
I loved the somewhat episodic nature of the novel...Christopher, was that to mimic the series or real life - that is, if you see real life as a collection of related yet different "episodes"? I thought it was great in that it didn't suggest...well, entirely anyway, that Picard's life between the Stargazer and the E-D was a single decade-long mission just so that it would fit into one book. It may be more realistic that way, but not like the rest of these characters' very unrealistic lives.
And, yeah, I'm amazed at how brilliantly researched and inclusive the novel is. Even with bits from somewhat older novels like Mosaic - a personal favorite. That was, literally, a [day]dream come true.
I loved how you made the Carnelains some of the races from the background on DS9. I'm still giddy over it. And your star map from the annotations page, and the annotations themselves. For Ex Machina and Orion's Hounds as well. I saved the maps and the sketches of the non-humanoids.
All the transhumanist ideas were great; I loved the Manraloth living ship and easy interface; the Mabrae were fantastic; loved the Centauri system and university; I thought you used the Shakespeare very well throughout; the immortals' ability to manipulate by words alone given their experience and wisdom really brought their age and the idea of immortal beings to life; loved Karapleedeez; loved Troi's psychoanalysis; loved the descriptions and tactics of the space-battles, esp. later in the book; loved the legal system's "dark ages" - ha!; and I loved, Loved, LOVED how you made up so many new alien species and historical events and characters and everything else to go along with the canon ones we're familiar with. That single thing made the novel feel so much more realistic and satisfying, and will stick it out in my mind to compare any future Trek novels I read to.
As for what I didn't like, meh...I thought the technobabble was a tad tiresome at times, but maybe it was just having to read it instead of hear it and have it acted out in front of me; I thought the sexuality fell flat – this was a complex let-down; I thought the Guinan/"Time's Arrow" bit was overdone, the Janeway/"Caretaker" bit too one the nose...and other times as well I felt the fourth wall breaking; I felt I could do with more showing than telling in the overall writing style; the dazzling stellar phenomena were a real treat, but I wonder if there were too many of them "per capita" for realism's sake vs. your average star system...aren't most just ho-hum binary systems?; Guinan not needing an access code to replicate a mind-altering cocktail I thought was a bit much...I gather the precedent used was from "The Neutral Zone" but that was over using the comm system, and being such a gifted "listener", I could have imagined she just picked up an access-code or two for a rainy day... Yadda, yadda, yadda, what Trekkie here can't knit-pick something to death?
Overall, I really enjoyed your work with time here, cosmozoans in Orion's Hounds, and aliens and stellar phenomena in both – and in Ex Machina. Along with the "mechas" in Jeffrey Lang's Immortal Coil, I think these works really do a great job fleshing out aspects of the Star Trek Universe that aren't touched on often enough.
I finished the book last night and am still digesting it, but wow. What a BIG story. I loved the whole idea of showing how old the universe is, with the whole "this could have all happened before" thing - not literally, just as it was in the book. And how it happened a few times...a single civilization could have grown to span the galaxy (reminded me of Asimov's Foundation trilogy) or one made up of countless others (Star Wars) and still have time for our own and the Proto-humanoids'.
I loved the somewhat episodic nature of the novel...Christopher, was that to mimic the series or real life - that is, if you see real life as a collection of related yet different "episodes"? I thought it was great in that it didn't suggest...well, entirely anyway, that Picard's life between the Stargazer and the E-D was a single decade-long mission just so that it would fit into one book. It may be more realistic that way, but not like the rest of these characters' very unrealistic lives.
And, yeah, I'm amazed at how brilliantly researched and inclusive the novel is. Even with bits from somewhat older novels like Mosaic - a personal favorite. That was, literally, a [day]dream come true.
I loved how you made the Carnelains some of the races from the background on DS9. I'm still giddy over it. And your star map from the annotations page, and the annotations themselves. For Ex Machina and Orion's Hounds as well. I saved the maps and the sketches of the non-humanoids.
All the transhumanist ideas were great; I loved the Manraloth living ship and easy interface; the Mabrae were fantastic; loved the Centauri system and university; I thought you used the Shakespeare very well throughout; the immortals' ability to manipulate by words alone given their experience and wisdom really brought their age and the idea of immortal beings to life; loved Karapleedeez; loved Troi's psychoanalysis; loved the descriptions and tactics of the space-battles, esp. later in the book; loved the legal system's "dark ages" - ha!; and I loved, Loved, LOVED how you made up so many new alien species and historical events and characters and everything else to go along with the canon ones we're familiar with. That single thing made the novel feel so much more realistic and satisfying, and will stick it out in my mind to compare any future Trek novels I read to.
As for what I didn't like, meh...I thought the technobabble was a tad tiresome at times, but maybe it was just having to read it instead of hear it and have it acted out in front of me; I thought the sexuality fell flat – this was a complex let-down; I thought the Guinan/"Time's Arrow" bit was overdone, the Janeway/"Caretaker" bit too one the nose...and other times as well I felt the fourth wall breaking; I felt I could do with more showing than telling in the overall writing style; the dazzling stellar phenomena were a real treat, but I wonder if there were too many of them "per capita" for realism's sake vs. your average star system...aren't most just ho-hum binary systems?; Guinan not needing an access code to replicate a mind-altering cocktail I thought was a bit much...I gather the precedent used was from "The Neutral Zone" but that was over using the comm system, and being such a gifted "listener", I could have imagined she just picked up an access-code or two for a rainy day... Yadda, yadda, yadda, what Trekkie here can't knit-pick something to death?
Overall, I really enjoyed your work with time here, cosmozoans in Orion's Hounds, and aliens and stellar phenomena in both – and in Ex Machina. Along with the "mechas" in Jeffrey Lang's Immortal Coil, I think these works really do a great job fleshing out aspects of the Star Trek Universe that aren't touched on often enough.
I did it partly because I originally had the idea of doing a trilogy on this subject, and partly because it just made sense to me that a person wouldn't spend nine years doing only one thing. My original thought was just to have his situation progressing and evolving from one thing to another, but as I plotted it, I decided the four-part structure worked best.
Thank you. It took a bit of thought to make sure Part II was consistent with the Mosaic backstory's chronology.
I appreciate it!
Yeah, that seems to be a perennial complaint (especially on Amazon.com, where the reviews are tending toward the lukewarm). But I went where the science led me rather than just making up something random, and the science got kind of complicated.
I'm sorry to hear that. What didn't work for you (and how was it complex)?
Maybe the Tanebor system was a bit too perfect in its array of hot Jovian types, but we're discovering that Jovians close to their stars are a lot more common than we'd ever imagined. And it wasn't an average system; presumably its Manraloth-era inhabitants, like the Mabrae, settled there precisely because of its unusual beauty. As for Proserpina, it's just a larger version of Europa and Enceladus in our own system, a kind of planetary body that should be extremely common based on our current understandings. And Adonis was a brown dwarf system, and brown dwarfs are probably far more abundant than main-sequence stars. Arguably it was more "average" than our kind of star system.
No, I just figured that since Starfleet crewmembers are highly trained and well-adjusted officers rather than criminals or junkies, there wouldn't be a need for tight security on a basically benign medication like this. (Heck, even civilians don't need an access code to buy aspirin.)
Thank you again.
I'm going to have to weigh in here in brief... just to provide a bit of a contrary voice...
TBA did not do much for me. The quality of the writing was top notch - I'd expect nothing less from Christopher Bennett - but unlike many here, I did feel it to be a bit too fanboyish.
When Lieutenant Janeway showed up, I about threw the book on the floor. While a few cameos and fill-outs from the series would have been fine, it seems to me that every page was filled with more and more of the other TNG crew. Aside from Tasha, the rest of the TNG crew appearances were, IMO, useless. To paraphrase a recent Leonard Nimoy interview, "they were lines, not roles"
Picard seemed out of sorts...
Deanna was far more annoying than usual (though I'll attribute that to her age)...
The 'origin of non-corporeal life on higher planes of existence' storyline was good, but then Q had to get thrown in, and that killed it for me.
TBA tried to do too much, and -unfortunately- it didn't succeed for this reader.
Just for the record:
1) I am sick to death of all this cross-generational stuff. The Federation is really, really big.
2) Please, find other -less obvious names- for crew fillers. I am tired of production crew names that are painfully obvious being used for background extras. I understand wanting to honor them, but can we limit it to once or twice a book?
3) I suppose I am just really missing the Good Ole Days of Trek novels. Everything tying into everything else is starting to get a bit tiresome.
Rob+
TBA did not do much for me. The quality of the writing was top notch - I'd expect nothing less from Christopher Bennett - but unlike many here, I did feel it to be a bit too fanboyish.
When Lieutenant Janeway showed up, I about threw the book on the floor. While a few cameos and fill-outs from the series would have been fine, it seems to me that every page was filled with more and more of the other TNG crew. Aside from Tasha, the rest of the TNG crew appearances were, IMO, useless. To paraphrase a recent Leonard Nimoy interview, "they were lines, not roles"
Picard seemed out of sorts...
Deanna was far more annoying than usual (though I'll attribute that to her age)...
The 'origin of non-corporeal life on higher planes of existence' storyline was good, but then Q had to get thrown in, and that killed it for me.
TBA tried to do too much, and -unfortunately- it didn't succeed for this reader.
Just for the record:
1) I am sick to death of all this cross-generational stuff. The Federation is really, really big.
2) Please, find other -less obvious names- for crew fillers. I am tired of production crew names that are painfully obvious being used for background extras. I understand wanting to honor them, but can we limit it to once or twice a book?
3) I suppose I am just really missing the Good Ole Days of Trek novels. Everything tying into everything else is starting to get a bit tiresome.
Rob+
^^Sorry the book didn't work for you, but I'm a bit confused. Janeway was the first (and pretty much only) significant non-TNG TV character to appear in the novel, so how could you already have been frustrated at the time she appeared? Okay, there was T'Lara, a bit player from a single DS9 episode, but you'd have to be a Trek trivia expert even to notice that she was a TV character. Other than that, there's a passing allusion to Captain Sanders from "For the Uniform," and that's it.
Every other familiar character seen in the book is from TNG, and I included them because it appeared that Picard had a prior acquaintance or friendship with them that warranted filling in -- Admiral Quinn, Admiral Hanson, Donald Varley, the Dr. Langford who invited Picard on a dig in "Rascals," the Onna Karapleedeez whose death in "Conspiracy" Picard seemed so shocked by, etc. Since my goal here was to write a book about how Picard became the man we knew in TNG, it seemed reasonable to explain who these people had been to him. Even the Janeway appearance fits that pattern, since she and Picard seemed pretty friendly in Nemesis.
As for the TNG regulars who appeared, it was canonical that Picard met Geordi and Tasha during this time, so I had to include them. As for Data and Deanna, it made sense that Picard would've had prior acquaintanceships with them, for reasons I discuss in my annotations (and maybe earlier in this thread). We know from canon that Picard was able to hand-pick Riker, Tasha, and Geordi for his crew, so it seemed reasonable that he would've chosen the others rather than just having them assigned; so it made sense that a novel about how Picard became captain of the E-D would also address how he picked its command crew.
So I'm puzzled by your perception that the book is full of gratuitous cross-series references. It's not like I had Picard and Janeway teaming up with Sisko, Vaughn, Ambassador Spock, Cadet Kebron, Bart Faulwell, and a frail, 270-year-old T'Pol. This was a TNG novel, a Picard novel, and most of the familiar guest characters were people already established in TNG as playing roles in Picard's past or present life. And given that the book covers over eight and a half years, a good 15 percent of his entire pre-TNG lifespan, is it really that unlikely that his formative experiences with several of those individuals would've occurred during that period?
As for the production-crew name drops, I'm sorry that pulled you from the story, but since this was an anniversary novel, I wanted it to be a tribute to the people who made TNG, as well as a tribute to Patrick Stewart (hence all the allusions to Shakespeare, Scrooge, Ahab, etc.). I just think it's cool that you're familiar enough with the TNG production crew to recognize their names. A lot of people only notice the faces onscreen.
Every other familiar character seen in the book is from TNG, and I included them because it appeared that Picard had a prior acquaintance or friendship with them that warranted filling in -- Admiral Quinn, Admiral Hanson, Donald Varley, the Dr. Langford who invited Picard on a dig in "Rascals," the Onna Karapleedeez whose death in "Conspiracy" Picard seemed so shocked by, etc. Since my goal here was to write a book about how Picard became the man we knew in TNG, it seemed reasonable to explain who these people had been to him. Even the Janeway appearance fits that pattern, since she and Picard seemed pretty friendly in Nemesis.
As for the TNG regulars who appeared, it was canonical that Picard met Geordi and Tasha during this time, so I had to include them. As for Data and Deanna, it made sense that Picard would've had prior acquaintanceships with them, for reasons I discuss in my annotations (and maybe earlier in this thread). We know from canon that Picard was able to hand-pick Riker, Tasha, and Geordi for his crew, so it seemed reasonable that he would've chosen the others rather than just having them assigned; so it made sense that a novel about how Picard became captain of the E-D would also address how he picked its command crew.
So I'm puzzled by your perception that the book is full of gratuitous cross-series references. It's not like I had Picard and Janeway teaming up with Sisko, Vaughn, Ambassador Spock, Cadet Kebron, Bart Faulwell, and a frail, 270-year-old T'Pol. This was a TNG novel, a Picard novel, and most of the familiar guest characters were people already established in TNG as playing roles in Picard's past or present life. And given that the book covers over eight and a half years, a good 15 percent of his entire pre-TNG lifespan, is it really that unlikely that his formative experiences with several of those individuals would've occurred during that period?
As for the production-crew name drops, I'm sorry that pulled you from the story, but since this was an anniversary novel, I wanted it to be a tribute to the people who made TNG, as well as a tribute to Patrick Stewart (hence all the allusions to Shakespeare, Scrooge, Ahab, etc.). I just think it's cool that you're familiar enough with the TNG production crew to recognize their names. A lot of people only notice the faces onscreen.
Janeway's appearance alone was enough.
The lines fell flat, there was no reason that Janeway had to be there. There was nothing distinct (save for the part about Mark) that really struck me as Janeway-esque... and I didn't see a reason for the diversion.I noticed, and that's OK... but the sheer number of people whose names were dropped. I didn't feel like it was a Picard story. I felt it was a "Who's Who Guide to the UFP in 2460".
I could have sworn that Elias Vaughn got mentioned at least once.
Karapleedeez was a very welcome addition, and had a substantially meaningful role... but the sheer number of people... not all of them had to be involved in the aspects of Picard's life discussed in TBA.
I dunno, I didn't really take Janeway being all that friendly... no more so than any other Admiral that called to badger Picard (for example, Admiral Blackwell in "The Pegasus"). If Picard and Janeway had exchanged any dialouge of substance in Nemesis then I could understand it...
I suppose I'll grant you that Geordi's 'cameo' was handled OK. I liked Tasha's.
I don't know... it just felt like too much.
I think that is more a result of the general dislike I have of it... though I still swear I saw Vaughn's name popped in somewhere. The Universe is big. No need to make it artifically small.
I guess my problem is that it seems that it was four or five years of playing Ahab and the Whale, and then getting rewarded for that. I don't work for Starfleet, but I would have had Picard's ass on a spit pretty quickly. He did seem comprimised, first with Quinn, then with Hanson. He wasn't fit for command in his state(s) and should never have been given the Enterprise.
I almost started a tally chart... composers, directors, etc... but that would have been kinda silly... right.
Rob+
I rather enjoyed the book and wasn't put off by the references. Quite frankly, a lot of those one off characters or mentions in the TV shows just go over my head when referenced in the book until I read the cliff notes on Christopher's web site.
I like the story and writing and would give it thumbs up.
So after I read BA I went to my unread ST shelf, kind of well stocked since a couple of used book stores here were going out of business so I bought quite a few of the older books at fire sale prices. I see SHIP OF THE LINE and say to myself "hey, here's another book that fills in a gap after Picard loses a ship until he gets the next one.
On page 20 and getting a naval lesson which reminds me I'm reading a Diane Carey novel. By page 50 Spock shows up for some gratuitous hero worship. Now THAT is some lame tie in stuff, at least Christopher's drop ins had a purpose. At every major plot turn I was saying to myself "wow, that was lame" and I just couldn't believe a word that Riker and some of the other characters were saying was actually being said by the character on the TV show. And it's nice to know that Carey regards Kirk as such a god like character that even a hologram of him can save Picards career. When I was done I felt like I had hit myself in the face with a two by four.
Sorry for the rant and off topic message, needed to get that off my chest.
But yeah, thought BA was good and am looking forward to Christopher's TNG novel which I believe is coming out next year. Starting in on the Genesis Wave series while I wait for Death in Winter to hit the book stores.
I like the story and writing and would give it thumbs up.
So after I read BA I went to my unread ST shelf, kind of well stocked since a couple of used book stores here were going out of business so I bought quite a few of the older books at fire sale prices. I see SHIP OF THE LINE and say to myself "hey, here's another book that fills in a gap after Picard loses a ship until he gets the next one.
On page 20 and getting a naval lesson which reminds me I'm reading a Diane Carey novel. By page 50 Spock shows up for some gratuitous hero worship. Now THAT is some lame tie in stuff, at least Christopher's drop ins had a purpose. At every major plot turn I was saying to myself "wow, that was lame" and I just couldn't believe a word that Riker and some of the other characters were saying was actually being said by the character on the TV show. And it's nice to know that Carey regards Kirk as such a god like character that even a hologram of him can save Picards career. When I was done I felt like I had hit myself in the face with a two by four.
Sorry for the rant and off topic message, needed to get that off my chest.
But yeah, thought BA was good and am looking forward to Christopher's TNG novel which I believe is coming out next year. Starting in on the Genesis Wave series while I wait for Death in Winter to hit the book stores.
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