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BUGSTERS audio book WINS GOLD National Parenting Publication (NAPPA) Award

We're proud to say that "Bugsters" was reviewed by parents and their kids in households nationwide for 30-60 days and came out on top.  This means that you will be seeing publicity for this great audio book in parenting publications nationwide until the end of the year. CONGRATS TIM! WE NEED YOUR HELP to collect all of the magazines that Bugsters appears in.  Anyone who sends us a copy with Bugsters' publicity from the actual publication within the next 4 months, will receive an autographed color character photo of Tuvok.  Below are the publications that Bugsters will appear in between November 1, 2003 and February 1, 2003.

NAPPA 2003: Spoken Word and Storytelling for ages 4 and up

By Marilyn McPhie

"Whether you're going over the river and through the woods to Grandma's house or just coming home from preschool and soccer practice, if the "Are-we-there-yet?" chorus is hitting new highs, then the CD player beckons.

Feel the day's cares drain away as you share the age-old, tried-and-true art of the spoken word. You'll laugh, you'll sigh; you may even start telling stories of your own. But how do you choose from the waterfall of spoken-word recordings clamoring or a spin in your CD player? Here are this year's winners.

 Gold Award Winner:  Bugsters!
If the children in your life like the recent bug movies or have ever owned an ant farm, they may be ready for Bugsters. An assortment of buggy friends, each with a distinctive voice and personality, deliver two stories: one about cooperation, another about fear and rumors. The messages are unmistakable, but not overbearing. The theme music is catchy. Top-notch."

Where does NAPPA coverage appear?
Here, on Parenthood.com and in all 24 United Parenting Publications magazines covering 13 states and in National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Editorial Partners covering an additional 14 states.  

• Ann Arbor Parent (MI)
• Arizona Parenting (AZ)
• Atlanta Our Kids (GA)
• Austin Our Kids (TX)
• Bay Area Parent - San Francisco and the Peninsula (CA)
• Bay Area Parent - East Bay (CA)
• Bay Area Parent - Silicon Valley
• Birmingham Family Times (AL)
• The Boston Parents’ Paper (MA)
• Colorado Parent (CO)
• Connecticut Family (CT)
• Carolina Parent (NC)
• Central Penn Parent (PA)
• Central California Parent (CA)
• Charlotte Parent (NC)
• Cleveland/Akron Family (OH)
• Columbus Parent
• Country Kids (NJ)
• Dallas Family (TX)
• Florida Family (FL)
• Genesee Valley Parent (NY)
• Houston Family (TX)
• Kansas City Parent (KS)
• L.A. Parent (CA)
• Long Island Parenting (NY)
• Lowcountry Parent – Charleston (NC)
• Metroparent – Milwaukee (WI)
• Metro Parent – Detroit (MI)
• Minnesota Parent (MN)
• New York Family (NY)
• North Florida Families (FL)
• Orange County Parenting (CA)
• The Parent Paper – N. New Jersey
• Parenting New Hampshire (NH)
• Piedemont Parent (NC)
• Portland Parent (OR)
• Puget Sound Parent (WA)
• The Rhode Island Parents’ Paper (RI)
• San Antonio Our Kids (TX)
• Sacramento Parents’ Monthly (CA)
• Savvyfamily (Saint Louis, MO)
• Seattles’ Child (WA)
• South Florida Parenting (FL)
• Space Coast Parent (FL)
• Tidewater Parent – Norfolk (VA)
• Washington Families (WA)
• Westchester Family (NY)
   

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BUGSTERS! Audio Book
By Tim Russ & Jedda Roskilly
Music composed by: Bill Burchell
Reviewed by Maria Nausch

       When Tim came to the “Voyager – The Return”-convention in Blackpool, he also brought the first few copies of the demo version of “Bugsters!”. This is an audio book for young children, which was written and produced by Tim and his girlfriend Jedda. It is read by Tim, Jedda, Ethan Phillips and Chase Masterson and it also contains a few songs by Bill Burchell, performed by Tim and Jedda.
     The booklet is still sketchy at best: one brightly colored cover sheet showing the main characters, with a label attached to the back, which gives the main credits in a computer printout. No back cover. The CD itself also has a printed label attached. So from the looks alone you can tell this is only a first draft of the finished product. But hey, that way I got a sneak preview at Tim’s latest project!
       The heroes of the story are mostly insects (plus the occasional spider or worm), hence the title “Bugsters!” Although this demo CD features only two adventures and runs for slightly over 21 minutes only, most characters are already remarkably well rounded. We meet the “very well dressed water bug” Sterling (Tim), his not too courageous friend, the mosquito Harry (Ethan), the friendly spider Millie, who runs the local diner (Jedda), her waitress Flo, the Fly (Chase), the bumble-bee Pie (Chase again) and her friend, the grasshopper Stix (Ethan again), and the “cool” earthworm Stretch, who always speaks very slowly (Tim again). Since Jedda also doubles as the narrator, each and everyone of them does two roles. This might present a small problem: While it is fun for an adult to study the slight differences each of them uses to set their two characters apart, this may be a bit disconcerting for kids, especially if an actor’s two characters are talking with each other, since then it is not always easy to follow who says what to whom. I personally had the least trouble with Tim’s two characters, but then, I know his voice best and therefore notice even the slightest differences in his performance and at a second hearing I managed with the others as well. I am just not sure how a child would react and since the kids in my family don’t speak English well enough to enjoy the CD I can’t test it on them.
       The two stories are simple. “Work it out” describes a natural catastrophe happening in Mudville: a big branch has fallen on the top of Millie’s diner and her friends have to remove it. They try several different approaches, until they realize that they have to combine forces and work together. The second one, “The Mothmen”, is about prejudice. Nobody in Mudville has ever seen a moth and parents tell their kids horror stories about the monsters that are around at night and steal children. Pie, Stix and Harry camp out in the fields one night to check if there is any truth to these stories. They meet a lunar moth, who turns out to be a charming, pretty and friendly being, who takes them home on his wings.
      There is obviously a reason why the title song contains the line “we live and learn under the sun”. The stories want to be educational. I really like it that both adventures have such clear-cut messages for the young audience. They are not just fun entertainment, they hopefully will make the kids thinks and give them some valuable advice.
       The writing is well-paced, there is some character development, a few funny comments (usually by Harry, the mosquito) and two short stories that do not ask for too long an attention span but are still exciting and dramatic. “Work it out” is 9:38 minutes long, “The Mothmen” 11:50.
       To keep the young audience’s interest, the actors’ reading is backed up by sound effects and songs. There is a catchy title song which is at least partially performed at the beginning and end of each adventure, and there is one more song in each story. In the first one it presents the message of “Work it out”, namely that problems can be solved better together, in the second story the song portrays the fear of the mothmen. This second song (performed by Tim and Jedda) is particularly dramatic and provides that “scary” feeling which serves as perfect contrast to the peaceful solution. Very effective! It is also very different in style from what Tim normally sings, so he managed to surprise me – again! Sounds like he could (and should!) do things like “Phantom of the Opera” or similar stuff.
       I noticed a slight “continuity problem” in “The Mothmen”, though. At first we hear that everybody except Stix is at Millie’s diner. In fact everybody other than Stix speaks. Stretch makes a comment about Sterling’s nightmare about having a smudge on his face and Sterling retorts that Stretch can’t understand the problem since he’s always covered in dirt. Then Pie tells her dream about the mothmen and then, about one minute after he talked last, the narrator informs us that Stretch pops through the floor of the diner! Had he left in the meantime??
       I really enjoyed the two stories, the alternation of reading and music plus a few sound effects made them very lively, the characters are likeable. The only minor criticism is the lack of diversity in the voices. Everybody does a great job with the two roles, but I feel that for a kid it might be a bit difficult to follow at times. If I were Tim I would either consider hiring a few more actors or paying a lot of attention to the dialogue to keep scenes where one actor is doing both his characters talking to each other at an absolute minimum.

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L.A. TIMES ARTICLE
Monday, May 21, 2001,   'Voyager' Hurtles Toward Endgame 

Television * 'Star Trek' series concludes its seven-year mission to further explore a cultural institution. 
By DAN CRAY, Special to The Times

Actor Tim Russ is immersed in a familiar "Star Trek" scene: an interstellar emergency with the fate of his star ship hanging in the balance. Wearing the typically stoic facial expression of his Vulcan character, Tuvok, Russ delivers his lines, then turns to exit . . . only to smack into the ship's supposedly automated doors, which stagehands mistakenly slide open a split-second too late. 
    Filming halts and the "Star Trek: Voyager" production crew erupts with laughter, with Russ feigning serious injury as fellow actors Robert Beltran and Robert Duncan McNeill call for a Starfleet medic. 
    The lighthearted ambience epitomizes what Beltran calls "seven years of good laughs," and seems to ease the prevailing, bittersweet mood regarding "Voyager's" finale, which closes out its run in Los Angeles on UPN Wednesday night at 8. 
    The two-hour episode, "Endgame," answers the question everyone wants to know--whether the star ship Voyager makes it home to Earth--but in so doing fuels the irony that "Voyager" may be the only "Trek" series remembered for its premiere and its finale, with little attention in between. 
     "We've always battled nostalgia, and selective memories," says co-executive producer Ken Biller. "People tell you about the five episodes of '[Star Trek:] Next Generation' that were great and forget that some of the others were really goofy. The same is true with 'Voyager.' I'd be the first to tell you that there were some real stinkers along the way, but a few of our 172 hours have been as good as anything else on television." 
     Judging by the ratings, viewers rarely agreed, and even the show's anticipated core audience of "Star Trek" fans seemed oddly blase' about "Voyager." The show defied the odds by taking the venerable "Trek" legacy into its 35th year but consistently languished in the bottom third of the Nielsen ratings. 
     Some television analysts suggest "Voyager" only survived because of "Star Trek's" enduring appeal with young audiences, and the fact that UPN couldn't afford the negative publicity of losing the flagship series on its fledgling network. Even "Voyager's" actors marvel at the dichotomy of starring on such an intensely hyped production while retaining relative anonymity. 
     "We're in this niche of having a vast, stable fan base, and yet because the show is on a smaller network, I've had this great job while never losing my privacy," says McNeill, who plays Tom Paris. "This show has been a luxury that not many actors have." 
     The word "luxury" didn't often come up seven years ago, with the "Star Trek" franchise approaching 30 and Paramount executives determined to mine an indifferent fan base by rolling the dice on a fourth "Star Trek" series. When "Voyager" premiered in January 1995, it competed with another lukewarm "Trek" series (the syndicated "Deep Space Nine") and a feature film ("Star Trek: Generations") that killed celluloid icon Capt. James T. Kirk. 
     To help "Voyager" stand apart from its forebears, series creators devised the innovative if not stifling premise of a star ship catapulted to the far side of the galaxy by an alien force, giving the characters the underlying goal of trying to find a way home. 
     That left the series in a situation not unlike the plot of the show: wandering on its own, searching for a way to reconnect with the original "Star Trek" universe. 
     "We struggled a lot with the premise on this show," says Biller. "We were in a situation that drew the characters closer together but precluded serialization and recurring guest characters. The biggest challenge was coming up with fresh stories." 
     Further threatening "Trek's" house of cards, producers decided to cast a woman as captain of the star ship Voyager--seemingly no big deal, until you consider "Star Trek's" traditionally male audience. 
     "It was very controversial, and I was sympathetic to it," says Kate Mulgrew, who stars as Capt. Kathryn Janeway. "When I first took this job, I was 39 years old. The largest demographic of the show is 14- to 24-year-old men--do they really want to look at their mother?"

Women Become the Driving Force ----
     Over time, however, the effort to distinguish "Voyager" from its predecessors began to pay off, at least creatively. With Janeway, the Borg character Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Klingon-human engineer B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson), "Voyager" became the first "Star Trek" series with female characters driving the show. 
     "It was a situation where Seven and Janeway kind of consumed the show in the latter seasons, and that's not something you see every day on a male-skewed action show," says veteran "Star Trek" writer Brannon Braga, who helped write "Voyager's" finale. "The women were very secondary on 'Next Generation,' and in Kirk's series, the females were basically relegated to babes in miniskirts." 
     Mulgrew feels her role as Janeway offered an unusual opportunity "to lend a sense of humanity in its smallness--what would one female captain do if she were to find herself in the throes of this terribly difficult dilemma? The loneliness of her command has always intrigued me, and I've tried to really plumb that." 
     Ryan, meanwhile, joined the cast after Season 3 amid concerns that her form-fitted Borg character would be treated purely as a sex object. "Given Seven's physical appearance, it would have been very easy to have her in bed with every male member of the crew and every alien we encountered," Ryan says. "Instead, the writers showed restraint and kept her an outsider." 
     Ryan's character helped producers break through what actor Robert Picardo, who became a fan favorite playing the ship's witty holographic doctor, jokingly refers to as "the straitjacket of Starfleet protocol." In essence, that straitjacket boils down to the philosophy of original "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry, whose vision of a better future precluded any conflict between Starfleet characters. 
     Since assuming Roddenberry's role as overseer of the "Trek" franchise, "Voyager" co-creator and executive producer Rick Berman has attempted to sidestep those limitations, in this case stranding the ship with a group of rebels (the Maquis) to generate friction as the two parties worked to get home. 
     "That certainly didn't fail, but it didn't turn out the way we planned it," says Berman. "It just seemed easier to have the Maquis become faithful members of Starfleet." Dropping that tension proved difficult for many of the actors, however, especially given the restrictions on how "Trek" officers are supposed to speak and react. 
     "For the most part, the structure's very rigid," says Garrett Wang, who plays Ensign Harry Kim. "I can't tell you how many times I'd try to add a little cadence or color to a line, then hear 'no-no-no, let's re-shoot that.' " 
     Mulgrew initially ran into similar obstacles. "I thought it would be easier to fashion [Janeway] according to my own instinctive and creative personal wishes, but there is a very strong-slash-powerful hierarchy here," says Mulgrew. "Probably the franchise can attribute its success to that, but I found it a bit difficult initially. . . . They were not as concerned as I was in developing her humanity, her levity, her passion, her flaws." 

     A Frustrating Situation 
     The situation was particularly frustrating for Beltran (Cmdr. Chakotay), who felt his character was stagnating and openly questioned the show's three-decade-old formula. "The problem's mostly what's the damn show about and who is this character that I'm playing?" Beltran says, adding that his concerns were never fully resolved. "There's nothing substantial about any of our characters. I mean, if you consider the Doc being able to leave sick bay and travel around the ship a substantial change, then that's one." 
     "Voyager" executives acknowledge the character limitations inherent to "Star Trek," but suggest all television shows have similar issues. "The audience doesn't tune in to see Capt. Janeway act like ['NYPD Blue's'] Sipowicz," says Biller. "For the most part, television characters stay the same way, and with 'Star Trek' characters it's a little more constraining because we have to follow the Roddenberry vision. Sometimes that doesn't make for good drama." 
     Perhaps as a result, most of the actors agree that while they've enjoyed the steady work and good pay, they have few regrets about the show's demise. As an exhausted Mulgrew says when asked if she will miss the opportunity to further explore her character, "Oh, hell no." 
     "All of us basically want to get on to something else," says Russ. "Not having a chance to perform creatively is stifling." 
     Despite the character limitations, "Voyager" still managed to take the "Star Trek" franchise in new directions--particularly by redefining its image for what has evolved into a mainstream, family audience. 
     " 'Star Trek' was originally about warp drives and exploration and the larger-than-life Capt. Kirk," says George Slusser, curator of UC Riverside's J. Lloyd Eaton Collection, one of the world's largest science fiction libraries. "With 'Voyager,' 'Star Trek' now meditates on social problems. . . . It's become a cultural epic, like the 'Odyssey,' where it belongs to a whole culture and the attitudes toward the myth change over time." 
     The final legend in "Voyager's" saga will likely determine whether fans regard the show with any sense of nostalgia in the years ahead. "It's the biggest episode of the series," Biller says. "We had this fundamental paradox of how to both satisfy the audience expectations and still surprise them, and I hope we succeeded." 
     Does the ship make it back to Earth? The solution wasn't as clear-cut as "Trek" fans might imagine. "Three weeks prior to going into production, the answer [to whether Voyager gets home] was different than it is now," Berman says. "It's going to be a very provocative end." 
     * The series finale of "Star Trek: Voyager" airs Wednesday at 8 p.m. on UPN. The network has rated it TV-PG (may be unsuitable for young children). 
Copyright 2001 Los Angeles Times 

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AUDIO BOOK REVIEW: “THE GENESIS WAVE: Book One”
Written by John Vornholt, audio book read by Tim Russ
 - Review by Maria Nausch

             It might be a stupid idea to review only half a story – Book Two will supposedly be out in April. But so far Book One is all we’ve got.
           It is mostly a TNG - novel, obviously post Star Trek Insurrection (since Riker and Troi are an item again), but there are some clever references to the movies “The Wrath of Khan” and “The Search for Spock” as well. Actually the basic premise of the novel stems from these movies: the Genesis Wave, as developed by Doctor Carol Marcus, her son David and their co-workers.
           After the events of the movies that caused the deaths of David Marcus and the other scientists at Space Lab Regula One, Carol Marcus is the only person alive who knows how to produce the Genesis “Effect”. The Federation though, is not interested in developing this project any further now that its fatal flows and deadly nature have been revealed. High ranking officials are more intent on preventing elements of this aborted research to fall into the wrong hands, which is why every record of it has been deleted from official logs and why Carol Marcus, now an elderly lady, is more or less being held captive on a backwater planet: She has a job there, but is under constant protective custody to prevent sinister forces with an interest in using her knowledge as a weapon to get to her and find a way to extract the necessary information from her.
          Of course that’s exactly what happens: Carol gets abducted – apparently by her long-dead son David (how this was achieved is never revealed in Book One – though obviously a certain plant plays a role in it as it does in certain other mysterious events later on. Mind control may also play into it. I am really curious about the solution here! Good cliffhanger!). Six months later, havoc breaks lose in Federation space. Planet after planet gets hit by a mysterious force, and is transformed immediately. Fortunately though, the Federation gets a warning and is able to figure out what that deadly force is thanks to a few lucky coincidences: The first planet hit is the base of a research team developing a new protective suit that also incorporates phase-shifting technology. The leader of the research team, Dr. Leah Brahms, an old acquaintance of Geordi’s, is testing this suit the moment the wave hits. Thanks to that suit she survives and there is now an eyewitness to the destruction on that planet. The fact that Geordi loses subspace contact with her is also a first indication that something is wrong in that particular sector, thus Starfleet starts investigating a bit earlier than it might have done otherwise. The third coincidence is the presence of Maltz, the surviving Klingon from Kruge’s ship, in the sector. When he hears Leah’s description of what has happened he remembers the planet in the Mutara nebula and knows what they are dealing with.
           Once Starfleet has realized the danger, measures are taken to keep the damage down: evacuations of endangered planets, investigations in the point of origin of the wave, that – unlike the first one in “The Wrath of Khan” - doesn’t stop once a planet has been transformed but continues its trajectory on to the next world, negotiations with the Romulans to share their phase-shifting technology since that seems to be the only protection against the wave etc. Picard and his crew are extremely busy.
          There are also some personal stories woven into this: Maltz’s fall from grace following the events of “The Search for Spock” and his attempt to redeem himself and make his way to Sto-Vo-Kor, Geordi’s feelings for Leah, who is suddenly widowed, thus available, but obviously too much in shock for a new relationship, the renewed relationship between Troi and Riker, but also Picard’s somewhat uneasy relationship with Admiral Nechayev all found their way into this book. Even Dr. Crusher’s problems in dealing with the fate of her son Wesley play a major role.
          All in all the story is cleverly set up and makes one curious enough about part II to buy that book once it will be available, even though some solutions won’t be a surprise. We know that the Genesis Wave won’t destroy earth, or the Romulan home world, or the Federation as a whole. And we are pretty certain that Geordi and Leah Brahms will get together, since their relationship was hinted at in “All Good Things”, even though only in the alternate future timeline. But still, how these things will come about is what makes us look forward to Book Two.
          Now, on to the audio book. Although it is heavily abridged, it still has a running time of approximately 3 hours and just like in last year’s “Vulcan’s Heart”, Tim once again does a great job. He turns the narrator part of it into a very dramatic reading and finds subtly different ways of portraying the various characters when they speak. He uses softer tones for the ladies, a crunchy tone for Maltz, an authoritative one for Picard, and so on. They all come to life through his reading and they are all noticeably different.
          Background sounds to establish the mood of certain situations and the occasional distortion of the voice (e.g. when somebody is supposedly sending a message over static) are of course a great help as well. They make it easier to completely submerge yourself into the story and give you the impression of directly experiencing the events.
          Of course the book had to be drastically cut or the audio book would have been 5-6 hours long instead of 3. I noticed though that most of what was cut is character stuff: a description of how Maltz used to spend his days before the Genesis Wave reappeared, some exposition on the love triangle between Geordi, Leah and geologist Dolores Linton, some more romance between Troi and Riker, plus a nice family reunion between barber Mot and his parents are among the more prominent victims on the cutting room floor. Obviously Pocket Books think that action is of greater interest to the audience than character interaction.
          I still enjoyed the audio book very much, though. I hope that there will be one for Book Two as well – and that Tim will be reading it.

This is probably the most frustrating episode of Voyager ever. It could have been a real standout, but a rushed ending and a few unanswered questions too many bring it down a bit. This really looks like an episode where they were running out of time and couldn’t fit all the story into the 40+ minutes. I suspect that some important scenes ended up on the cutting room floor due to time restraints.
      Some have suggested this should have been a two-parter and I agree. After all, when I read the first synopsis (before I downloaded the episode and watched it myself) I had the distinct impression that it was incomplete that the reviewer must have forgotten some vital details. Alas, he hadn’t.
      The most important question probably is: What did Teero think he was achieving by “activating” Tuvok right now? Did he really think Chakotay and his Maquis could somehow influence the situation in the Alpha Quadrant? Or was it more like a scientific experiment – a chance to test if what he had done to Tuvok seven years ago actually works, thus a proof for his theories and/or methods of mind control? Or was he just mad, a fanatic, as has been suggested, with no rational motives?
      There are other questions, like: How could he access the letter from Tuvok’s son and tamper with it? When exactly did Tuvok shake off Teero’s influence? Tuvok seemed back to normal the moment Chakotay put Janeway into the brig, when he asked: “Your orders, Captain?” He could have pretended to be with the Maquis to try and regain control of the ship that way. If so – was Janeway aware of his recovery and what exactly had prompted it? Or did the fact that he had come close to killing his Captain and friend bring him out of it later? But if he was still under Teero’s control then – how come he appeared to be so much in control?
      The whole mutiny also seemed very rushed. It was over before it really began (after all, 23 Maquis members had not been won over yet and Chakotay ordered Tuvok to mind meld with those). Four to five minutes before the end of the episode it was still pretty unclear how all this could be resolved within that short time. So it is no surprise that not everything was tied up neatly.
      Except for these frustrating open questions and plot holes I really enjoyed the episode. It was clear from the beginning that Tuvok was not his usual self. After all, the first attack had happened before Tuvok even showed up. He was under Teero’s influence from the first scene we saw him in – and there were subtle hints of it: a slight difficulty of controlling his emotions, frustration with the investigation showing much more than we normally expect from our Vulcan, his relying on “hunches”, a troubled look on his face, the way how he kept gazing at things as if he were trying to remember something, the rather illogical, irrational suspicion of Crewman Jor – because she is one of Tabor’s closest friends and has access to his quarters. This first part was very well done: writing, acting and directing complemented each other and gave us a clear picture of our Vulcan’s distress.
      This, combined with some spooky scenes like the attack on Yosa in the Jeffries tube, the interesting interrogation scene between Tuvok and Harry, which showed clearly how distraught the Vulcan was and how Harry, who knows him well, picked up on all those little signs (thus providing a little continuity for the friendship between these two that we don’t see very often), the way how Janeway told Tuvok to get some rest (since he had not slept in three days – how long has it been that she noticed things like that about her Security Officer?) were highly enjoyable.
      I also like the scene in Tuvok’s quarters – the meditation lamp is back, providing some continuity, the flashbacks confirm our suspicions that maybe our Vulcan has something to do with the mysterious attacks. And when he rushes out to join Janeway and Harry in the holodeck and get confirmation for his own suspicion – that he is responsible for things he cannot remember - the episode really reached a high. Tuvok suddenly can “see” Teero and points a phaser at him – thus showing to Janeway and Harry how delirious and out of control their friend is.
     My absolute favorite part of the episode follows now: Janeway’s attempts at helping Tuvok, at finding out what causes him such distress and maybe finding a way to get him out of this. The friendship between these two has always been one of the highlights of the show, but it had been thoroughly missing for far too long – and now it’s back in full swing! I was touched with her efforts. She went as far as ordering the Doctor to stay with Tuvok while she was checking the letter from Tuvok’s son, thus leaving the comatose Maquis, among them Chakotay and B’Elanna, in the care of Tom! Now who would you think would need a Doctor more, the comatose patients or the guy who is having some emotional distress?
       Her knowledge of meditation techniques which enabled her to make Tuvok remember some crucial bits of information was also very plausible and helped reminding us of the sort of relationship we used to see regularly between these two in the early seasons. He obviously had taught her how to meditate and they used to do it together.
      Some have said that it was a bit of a stretch that she could actually help him snap out of it, but I don’t think so. After all, they shared a very intimate mind meld in “Flashback” – if anybody aboard other than Tuvok knows this Vulcan’s mind it’s her. These scenes in the brig between the Captain and her old friend are probably my favorite ones of the entire episode. And of course I adored the final scene with her waving to him and telling him she has saved him a seat in the cinema!
      Some other things I liked: The Maquis costumes were back – everybody looked the way they had in “Caretaker”, thus bringing back some fond memories of Voyager’s beginnings. My favorite Maquis from “Learning Curve”, namely the Bolian Chell, was back! (Though I think they changed his forehead bumps a bit – I really must dig up my tape and compare his two appearances). We finally saw Tuvok’s son! He is credited as “Sek”, which – according to “Hunters” – is the oldest son and father of Tuvok’s granddaughter. He was talking about a recent career change, but that doesn’t need to surprise us, after all, his father Tuvok has changed careers several times in his life: Starfleet, Kolinahr, teaching archery, Starfleet again. Sek is now into musical composition – seems he has inherited his father’s interest in music. After all, we know that Tuvok plays the Vulcan lute. Tabor, too, was a recurring character, reprising his role from “Nothing Human”, thus providing even more welcome continuity.
       Major gripe (other than the afore-mentioned plot holes): Where was Neelix? His best buddy Tuvok is in trouble and the Talaxian is nowhere to be seen? Did they not let him see Tuvok while the latter was in the brig, or what? Selling popcorn in the holodeck in the very last scene of the episode is all our little morale officer gets to do this week? This should have been a two-parter: then there would have been room for a nice little bonding scene between the morale officer and “Mr. Vulcan”.
       Final verdict: The plot holes were annoying, but there was a lot to like about the episode. The performances were great, especially from Tim and Kate, as was the directing, and I particularly enjoyed seeing that the friendship between Tuvok and Janeway is back. And what’s even better: it seems that this friendship is really back, not just for this one episode. They had a great scene together in “Critical Care” as well! 

         On March 25/26th 2000, I attended the Creation Entertainment Star Trek Convention at Hofstra University, in Long Island, NY. I live near Philadelphia, and made this Trek to see Patrick Stewart, my long time favorite Star Trek everything, as well as favorite actor. I paid $200.00 for a ticket, and bought two tickets. The 25th, a Saturday, was just a bonus. I got to meet Tim Russ and Garrett Wang, and as much as I love Voyager, and the actors from it, I wouldn't have gone all this way just to see them. Stewart was my main concern
       I have to tell this story backwards so it makes sense, so on the 26th, when I got to meet Patrick Stewart, my heart soared. I cheered, screamed, smiled, and clapped as Patrick Stewart, AKA Captain Jean-Luc Picard came on stage to a standing ovation, the TNG theme booming, lights dimmed. It was perfect. Stewart then informed us in a raspy voice he shouldn't be here, because he'd been performing all week and his voice was strained, but he promised to stay as long as possible. This was a noble gesture, and we applauded his efforts. His voice strained, he trudged on. We watched the X-men trailer again, as he hadn't seen it, and then the lights came on. We began to ask questions about Star Trek. His reply was that of disdain. He didn't want to be involved in a franchise, he told us. "That BORES me,"  he responded to another question about Star Trek. I was confused, and angered. Where was the man from the interviews? The man who had played the rigid, but human Jean- Luc Picard? The final straw was when asked about his plays and other works, his horse, sickly voice completely disappeared. So, not only was he refusing to answer the questions we'd all paid money to ask, not only was he mocking Star Trek fans in uniform, in costume, or otherwise, not only was he telling us he wanted nothing to do with us anymore, but he was lying to us! Can you believe it? I couldn't! When he left stage, no one stood. Everyone clapped mildly. The upper levels where almost empty. It was the most disappointing event of my short life, so far. The only thing that saved me, and the weekend, was Tim Russ and Garret Wang (But mainly Tim).
       Tim was terrific! He sang, made us laugh, and chose me to be part of his skit, which he does at every convention. I have the script, but will never let a soul read it out of a request from Tim and his sister, Angela. Tim also spoiled (provided a synopsis for) some up and coming episodes for us. I can't tell you how nice of a guy Tim is. He is spectacular. When I was getting my autographs, he not only signed an extra cast photo for me, but got Garrett to also. He thanked me, and joked around with us. He was awesome. I would love to meet him again, and have since made a painting of Tuvok, which is actually good despite the fact I could never do it again and have never painted before in my life. Tim was my inspiration for the painting, and is part of my inspiration for becoming an actor. He salvaged a weekend of horrors, and became a hero in my eyes. I can't thank him enough. These words are nothing in comparison for what he has done for me by simply being such a terrific person, being so kind, nice, and loving to his fans. As James T. Kirk said, 'Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most.....human", and that's the truth. He is the most human person. In the dictionary, his picture should be there for he is such a terrific person. I know it sounds like I'm saying the same things again and again, but, this is the truth. 

Howard and Robin  pose with Tim and Neil Norman's Cosmic Orchestra.
Tim poses with Howard Stern after the battle is won.
 Photos courtesy of Ray Costa.

The Big Battle     -   Introduction

The morning started with Howard and his band making excuses at 6:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time for a possible loss.  Howard's engineer, Scott,  had previously warned The Losers to mark the sound levels on their equipment because Neil's band was going to be sharing the amplifiers and other equipment, but using a different mixing board.  Apparently, Howard's organized team failed to do so and claimed that Tim's people were sabotaging The Loser's equipment.  Scott reminded The Losers that there wasn't enough room in the studio for 2 full bands to set up, and that he'd warned them a week ago.  Howard was upset at his crew for not doing as they were told, which seems to be a consistent problem.  Here they had practiced until their music was tight, and now their equipment was all screwed up.  Howard's crew felt as though Star Trek had invaded and wouldn't let go of their ship. The last comment before the true competition began was, " They're taking this seriously.  They have suits and everything."

THE SYNOPSIS 
(In case you missed  the battle)

Tim Russ vs. Howard Stern

Below is a synopsis of "The Battle of The Bands"  by Brian Lombard on Friday, August 18, 2000 - 11:10 am: 
(This article was posted on a Howard Stern site)

       The battle is over! Tim and his band lost miserably to Howard's band "The Losers." Here's a write-up on the event from a Stern web site.
       Battle Of The Bands: The Losers vs Tuvok (Tim Russ). 8/18/00. 8:20am Howard brought in three judges for today's Battle of the Bands. He also brought in Tim Russ, who plays Mr. Tuvok on ''Star Trek Voyager''. Howard spent a few minutes introducing each of the judges including Steve Stauff who is the Executive Vice President of Interscope records, Tom Calderon who is the Senior Vice President of talent and music at MTV, and Jason Flom who is the President of the Lava label under Atlantic Records. Howard spent a couple of minutes giving out everyone's credentials before moving on to Tim Russ. Tim says that he's confident his band would beat The Losers in this battle. He said that The Losers are going to sink like a Russian sub. The deal was that if Tim loses the competition he has to wear his Vulcan ears from ''Star Trek Voyager''. He had the ears with him just in case. Howard was ready to begin right after interviewing everyone so he got started. He introduced The Losers and started to play. They immediately ran in to trouble. There was a nasty buzz coming from somewhere so they had to start over. They started over and they had the same problem so Howard had to take a commercial break. Howard said that Tim's band must have come in and sabotaged the equipment or something. 
      After the break Howard came back and said that Steve told him that they shouldn't have gone first. They should have let the other band go first so they'd experience the technical difficulties. The Losers performed their unusual version of Donovan's ''Hurdy Gurdy Man''. They sounded about as good as they could possibly sound. Fred's guitar playing was better than you'd think and they didn't seem to have any problems. Howard was happy with the way it went off also. He took another break so that Tim's band could set up their equipment.
       When they came back Howard took a couple of phone calls who said that Howard sounded surprisingly good. Howard then let Tim Russ and his supporting band, Neil Norman & His Cosmic Orchestra, perform ''Money Talks''.
       It didn't sound too bad but Howard let the judges be the judge of that. Howard told them to judge this like they had to sign one of these two bands to their label (or play a video on MTV). Jason was the first one to tell Tim and the Cosmic Orchestra that he had to pick The Losers. He said that the Cosmic Orchestra made The Losers look young. He said that the Cosmic Orchestra looks like they could have been a ''..wedding band in the Truman era.'' Howard said that they should change their name to ''The Viagras''. Steve was up next. He complimented The Losers choice of outfits. He said that the Cosmic Orchestra had ''crazy outfits'' and said that they had a Liberace feel. He also picked The Losers as the winners. Finally, Tom Calderon from MTV went. He said that Tim's band sounded ''tight'' (great) but the outfits were tough. He said that he had to go with The Losers mainly because of Fred's guitar playing. He said that it was amazing and it fits in with "today's sound''. Tim thought that this was all rigged but Howard swears that it's not. He told Tim that Tina Yothers just called and wants to join him on the ledge. Tim wasn't affected by this judging though. He told Howard that he wants to have a rematch on the west coast with his own judges. Howard told him ''any time!''
       Howard told Tim that he's spare him the embarrassment of wearing his Vulcan ears. Gary came in and told Howard that The Losers may be battling Doug Flutie's band in the near future so they have no time to rest. Howard says he's going to remake ''Jeepster'' for his next battle.
       Howard spent a couple more minutes talking to Tim about Star Trek conventions and groupies before he ended the segment. You can find out more about Tim at TimRussWebPage.com  or .net"

Tim's "Battle of the Band" Comments

• Tim's comments:  "Look, except for the fact that I was bone tired, I had a great time, and it was everything I expected it would be.  No one should take any of this too seriously. The show was on quite early, so I appreciate the fans tuning in. I flew to New York knowing that the ball was in Howard's court, and regardless of his band's use of the Led Zeppelin drum track, and the synthesized voice, it was a good old fashioned battle.  The judges were quite comical, also, taking every available opportunity to palm their new artists off on Howard during the breaks. They seemed to have been engaged in a battle of their own.  Howard, at least, had the good graces to ignore them until the judging was over.  For those of you concerned for my honor, Howard conceded "off the air", and was a gracious winner, which is probably why he didn't ask me to actually wear the ears.  There is a good lesson to have learned here:  "Money talks.  When it all comes crashing down, put your feet back on the ground, 'cause money talks."

• Editorial comments:
  
  "For those who are taking this all too seriously, there are some things to consider.  This was a great deal of fun. Howard has a huge audience, was very gracious and welcoming to Tim, has provided Tim's CD with priceless publicity, has a rock band that looks like a rock band, and is on K-ROCK. Did you even know Tim had a CD before now?  I suppose it would have helped if the rules of the competition were clearly defined before Tim got there. But would that have really made a difference, considering they were guests on Howard's show?  The judges were subjective, they were entitled to their opinion, and no matter what Tim's back-up band was wearing, the music spoke for itself. The question is, did you like 'Money Talks' or not? Did you like it better than Howard's song? Would you like to hear more of Tim's CD?  I thought 'Hurdy Gurdy Man' sounded pretty good for a rock song, and if you like rock, you might have voted for him. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and we'd like to hear yours." vinsiders@aol.com

       Quoted from Section31.com:  "The date is now official for the "battle of the bands" contest between Howard Stern's, 'The Losers', and Tim Russ's (Tuvok) band. The contest will take place on Howard's show on August 18th. Tim Russ called in to Howard's show on August 4th to not only confirm the date, but to add a little fuel to the competitive fire. Russ's good sense of humor was very evident during the bit as Stern brought up issues that might offend most people. As I mentioned in the Section 31 BBS a few weeks back, this whole thing started when Stern was looking to take on celebrity bands in a contest. Stern poked fun at Tim's new CD which was recently released, provoking Russ to accept this challenge."
      And quoted from  The Globe: "Yes, it does sound harsh, but somehow I doubt that Stern would bother with a CD he *really* thinks is crap. Most definitely he would not invite a band and/or a singer to his show if he didn't think they would meet a certain standard. And I have been told that Stern can be a lot harsher when reviewing other musicians' works. So I guess that means that he is more impressed than he wants to admit. At the very least it is pretty flattering that he even considers Tim's CD worth mentioning on a program with such a huge audience. This really seems like a great chance to get noticed by an audience not exclusively consisting of Star Trek fans and at the very least it is excellent publicity. I am very happy for Tim, Neil and the rest of the band that they get that kind of attention. And I am very excited about it!"

     I am not sure if it's a problem with www.Galaxyonline.com, or if I need a software update, or should check my configurations - the fact is, unlike other movie-files I have downloaded over the years, everything I tried from the Galaxy page has a tendency to show blurred pictures on occasion, or suddenly increase the jerkiness of frames combined with slight sound problems. Strangely enough these problems do not always occur in the same places (so it's not always the same scene that is blurred or over-jerky), and after having watched the premiere episode several times I think I know what it should look like and how the dialogue should go. The title sequence is obviously a spoof on every single cop show we've seen over the years: the music, the type of scenes shown, the composition: all looks familiar - only, the situations are not quite the same (e.g. the girl running out of the house in shock and jumping up a fence is wearing a dress reminiscent of a Bavarian dirndl). This sequence is already very funny, providing an eerie sense of deja vu, but with a twist. The only drawback is the use of the color red for the credits, which is probably intentional to suggest blood and gore and violence, but in combination with the fonts used makes it hard to read the names - at least in the blurred picture quality I get. I think the episode title is "Space Vixen's Revenge" - but I am not 100% certain.
      The story is simple: it's about a guy (played by Ethan Phillips - who plays Neelix on Voyager) filming an "independent" porn movie in an sci-fi (SF)-setting. His female star (Rebecca Chaney) has absolutely no problems with having sex in front of the camera - but she objects to the silly, "phony" as she calls it, SF-dialogue. This convinces the two guys from the Art Police, Mike (Tim Russ) and Dave (Dan Chace) to put the producer under arrest for crimes against art. The short sketch is full of funny details: the SF-dialogue is hilariously bad to begin with ("Primitive human, I demand your submission." or: "Your nebula is beautiful, let me into your Milky Way!" etc.), the lifeless, bland "performance" of the two "porn stars" emphasizes the atrocity of the writing even more. The contrast between the lithe, busty female star and her fat, stoic partner (supposedly a sexy porn actor!) makes it even funnier. And her red dress, high boots and red wig - obviously a commentary on sixties-SF-costumes - just cracks me up! Ethan's character is apparently getting a major kick out of the erotic games he's trying to film, while the two Art Police Officers break out a major sweat (it's so bad that sweat is dripping down their chins!) and have to excuse themselves one after the other to recover their composure. No actual nudity is shown, but thanks to the clever cutting back and forth between the reactions of the three onlookers (Ethan's leers and the look on Tim's face alone are worth watching the sequence!), some bare legs and feet, and suggestive sounds, the impression is given that something really hot is going on. Very imaginative filming!
      My favorite part comes at the end: The wannabe-porn film producer, Ethan Phillips, is arrested, and Officer Mike (Tim) asks the female porn star to come with them, her testimony would be helpful in similar cases (he's obviously very taken with her - but her male partner's testimony will, of course, not be needed.) and she plays with his long, black tie, agrees to come with him, since he's sort of cute, and leads him out by the tie as if it were a leash. That scene had me in stitches!!! I am not sure if this was actually the first episode filmed, but I think it was a clever move to start with the "porn movie-crisis", since, as Tim and everybody who's been following Voyager over the past few years is aware that, "sex sells". Another reason to start with this particular show might have been the fact that Tim's character was the more prominent one of the two Art Police Officers featured (Bruce A. Young's character, Pete, didn't even show up outside the title sequence). Tim is probably the most recognizable of the three and the whole program is therefore advertised under his name, although all three actors are credited as writers, producers and directors. So using a sequence where he is featured in order to premier the series makes a lot of sense. Maybe the fact that there were a few digs at SF and "stupid dialogue" also played a role in choosing this particular episode to launch the series. (I especially liked the porn movie producer's comment about the fact that the lady's agent had asked if she'd be given lines, and now that she has them, they are so pathetic, she doesn't like them).
     Wrapped up in the funny, spoofy story, there is some commentary on art as well, though. For instance the Dave-character says that "Film is a particularly hazardous art form. Because once a bad film has been released to the general public, thousands of people can be offended on the same day. By then the damage is already done." How true, indeed. After several viewings I was also able to decipher the names in the credits - and was surprised how many familiar names I found. It's not just Dan Chace, who already worked with Tim on "East of Hope Street", and Ethan Phillips. The music, for instance, is being done by Bill Burchell and Neil Norman from the Cosmic Orchestra - the band that accompanied Tim on his latest CD and also does the concerts with him. Tim is obviously very talented in recruiting friends and colleagues from everywhere to help him with his projects!
     All in all I found the little sketch highly entertaining and very well done - sets, costumes, makeup, directing, editing - everything fell into place and contributed to the enjoyable end product. The performances were great - okay, so I like Tim and Ethan as actors and it was nice to see them do something other than Tuvok and Neelix for a change. Both were a lot of fun to watch. So was Rebecca Chaney as the porn actress playing "Starfire". Congrats on a job well done - I can't wait for the next installment!

     The demo version of the game “Elite Force” can now be downloaded from the Internet. Since all the Voyager actors – with the exception of Jeri Ryan – lent their voices to this game I was interested enough to check it out. The 115 MB download itself did not present any problems, but finding a way of freeing up enough memory space to actually play the game was the first challenge. I finally managed with the help of a friend and since I am not familiar with the Quake III system the game is supposedly based upon (if I hadn’t printed out the instructions regarding which key will do what I’d have never managed!), I started it easy enough using the tutorial.

     Guess which character appeared there to give me instructions how to move around, overcome obstacles and use weapons? Right, Tuvok! He is the player’s boss, since the player’s character (ensign Munro, which can be male or female – I played the female version) is a security officer and leader of a special security unit, the Hazard Team. That means, Tuvok is one of the more prominent characters in the game! I think in the demo bit alone he had more dialogue than in most of the season 6 episodes combined! And that is only a tiny fraction of the game!

     Once I started the game, I also got a log entry from Janeway, and later, once I had managed the first part of the game (a holodeck-simulation of a Borg cube interior), I also met most of the other regulars on the bridge. I don’t know if the Doctor and Neelix are in the demo version – they did not show up in the bit I played (I am pretty certain I played the entire story contained in the demo, but there are several alternative choices on occasion, most of which lead into dead ends – I may have missed the one(s) that feature(s) them). They are listed in the personnel section of the main game menu, though, so I am confident that they will be in the final game.

     Back to the game itself: It is sort of a role playing game, where the player has to move his character through dangerous areas and figure out how to solve problems. I like this type of game since it appeals to the player’s imagination and creativity, and one has to think a bit and not just shoot up stuff. Don’t fret. There is the shoot-up element, as well, since whenever you reach a critical area in the Borg cube simulation at least 2 (more often 4) Borg will attack you and you have to kill them all before they drain your life force. Considering that my reaction time with computer games is rather slow and it always takes me a while to aim and shoot with a minimum of accuracy, I am glad I managed to get through the Borg cube without losing too many health points!

     The graphics are really wonderful, very accurate compared to the sets used on the show. That goes for both the ship itself, and the Borg cube. There is also a love for detail, and perspectives, lights, etc. are pretty close to reality. The surfaces are nicely textured and the colors very close to those we see on the show. The characters are also recognizable, though the faces are not quite as well done as the interior sets and the costumes. They are a bit rough and the heads seem a bit out of proportion on occasion, but that does not prevent you from enjoying the game. As I said, all regulars with the exception of Ryan speak their parts themselves, so you really get the impression of being aboard the ship and interacting with the crew. And considering that Ensign Munro’s boss is Tuvok, and that it is therefore Tuvok, who gives Munro her instructions, I don’t know what more I could possibly ask for…

With lot’s of love, Live long and prosper.        Yours,   Catrin