 |
 |
 |
04-29-2007, 08:18 AM
|
#1 |
|
|
IDWEEK: TISCHMAN & TAYLOR TALKING TREK
 by Kevin HuxfordIt’s IDW Week here at the USS Newsarama. We’re taking a tour of all that IDW has to offer to interested readers and our guides for their Star Trek offerings are none other than David Tischman (writer, ST: TNG – The Space Between) & Dan Taylor (editor, : TNG – The Space Between). As you’ll see below, they love what they’re working on and can’t wait to show you. Newsarama: I'd like to kick off our chat by familiarizing the readers with just how enthusiastic you are about franchise you're working on. We had a chance to interview IDW's EiC, Chris Ryall, regarding the Star Trek plans way back in October and he had this to say about your passion for Star Trek: "Just in case there is a vocal contingent, both Tischman and editor Dan Taylor are huge, huge Trek guys. You should hear the conversations coming from Dan's office-it's the kind of talk that, if it happened on a date, the girl end up joining the convent." Now that's pretty strong...ummmm...praise, I guess. Could you maybe enlighten us on some of stuff you both geek out discussing?  David Tischman: The "geek out" is (mostly) practical. For instance, I'll call Dan and ask him about the physical uses of the Transporter -- and that'll lead into a longer conversation about specific episodes, on all the series, that feature the Transporter. Or -- because when push comes to shove, Dan knows more about Star Trek than I do -- I'll be writing, and the scene calls for Dr. Crusher to use "the lipstick-looking" medical sensor, and I don't know what that's called. And he does. I'm going to get it from the fans for not knowing that, aren't I? Or I'll ask if we can use a specific alien race in an issue. In #4, I thought it might be fun to have the alien dictator be a Tiburon. The race really hasn't been used in the other series, and the planet's history fit the character -- and you have to love those ears -- but at the end of the day, we decided it was cleaner to go the way we did. Dan Taylor: And, that praise is coming from the man that knows individual issue numbers and their corresponding story-lines from two and three plus decade old Marvel comics. The man who is a connoisseur of Stan "The Man" himself. So I do find it flattering in a way that my girlfriend will never understand. I grew up on Star Trek the same way long-time sports fans grew up with a favorite team. When David and I are discussing upcoming issues it's not hard to slip into talking about our favorite "players, all-star plays, and pennant winning seasons." Newsarama: Maybe the two of you could also share with us something that you feel defines just how deep your love for the franchise goes  Tischman: My first Internet password was "Tranya" -- also spelled "ia."Taylor: I guess I just sort of did. But I guess I can admit this... Up until about two years ago I owned a lot of Star Trek action figure that the company Playmates produced--we're talking something close to 250. They were "Mint on Card" and displayed on the walls of my home office wallpaper-like. I didn't want to part with them--it just happened. NRAMA: So then – goes without saying that working on Star Trek comics...dream come true? Tischman: Most of my work's been on creator-owned books, or on existing comic book characters. This is the first time I've written a licensed book. The parameters make nailing the story more satisfying. Short answer -- yes. Taylor: As cliché as it sounds, that's the exact term that I've used in describing how I feel. To go back to the sports analogy (see, I'm not just a sci-fi geek)--it's like getting to hangout in the clubhouse or locker room with the team. For it to be more dreamy... Hey, Abrams, you got a role or position for me on XI?  NRAMA: Now that we have your geek cred out of the way, Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Space Between is written as a collection of self-contained stories that are meant to capture the feel of a series episode. David, how difficult of a challenge has it been to sculpt the stories in such a way to fit into a single issue while feeling like a full ST:TNG episode?Tischman: Getting a whole story -- beginning, middle and end -- into 22 pages isn't easy. It's been one of the biggest challenges on the book. And you do lose some depth -- it would be great for even two more pages to flesh out the story more -- but when I make it work, it just feels great, and then I don't feel like I really needed those pages, anyway. But Dan was right in saying that we need the balance between the main story and what's happening on the Enterprise -- that it felt more like a real episode, that way. And he was right. The Beverly sub-plot was just for fun, and I think it came out great -- and it gave the "A" story a chance to breathe. Taylor: I think David's done a great job telling a substantial story within the confines of 22 pages in an era when story arcs are stretched out over six issues--whether it's good for the story or not--in order for the eventual trade. NRAMA: So far, which character has been the most challenging to shape a single issue story around? Tischman: Without hesitation -- Wesley Crusher. The character's taken such a beating from the fans over the years, and he never really bothered me. Maybe I'm just an X-Men freak, too, and Wesley always came across like a mutant, even before we found out he was "special." Anyway, I wanted to do a story where Wesley didn't mope, or save the day, but just acted like a normal teen-ager. And when Beverly Crusher spent that season at Starfleet Medical, I never thought the series dealt with that separation -- and here was our chance. The action Wesley takes is that of a smart, fairly self-aware young man who's dealing with some painful stuff. If we succeed, maybe some of those "haters" will look at Wes in a little better light.  Taylor: When David suggested doing a Wesley story I mulled it over for about five seconds before telling him, "Why not. Let's give the kid a break." Though I'll admit--half the reason was to watch David wrestle with the character. How's that for a visual?NRAMA: Not good. Which character been the most satisfying? Tischman: I've had the most fun writing Worf. Which was a surprise, actually, because going into the book he wasn't my favorite character. There's a tragic nobility in Worf I really admire, and the constant discourse on honor is pretty thought-provoking, especially when viewed against the moral ambiguity we face each day in our real lives. There's a lot going on behind those forehead ridges. Taylor: And when David says that Worf wasn't his favorite character, what he is really saying is that "Worf is Dan's favorite character and he made me do it." I'll admit that I dig Klingons. Whenever David and I did "butt heads" over a story he would usually bring in Worf to make me happy. NRAMA: Did any character wind up surprising you in either the ease or difficulty you had writing them? Tischman: Riker's been the hardest to write, I think. And maybe Data. I love Data, but the show and the movies have explored so many facets of his existence, it's hard to do anything new. I think we use him to great advantage in Issue #1 and in Issue #4, but it's been challenging. Issue #1 was easier, because the story took place during Season #1.  Taylor: Riker and Data are two very different characters and I think David did a great job finding the accurate "voice" for both.NRAMA: Though each issue tells a self-contained story, you've said previously that each issue drops little clues and bits that will tie them each together for a larger story. What was the thought process behind this decision? An attempt to give the readers the "best of both worlds"? Tischman: That's more of a Dan question. When I first met with Dan and Chris Ryall, they already wanted to do the single-issue stories, and have it all tie together in Issue #6. It's one of the ideas that most excited me about writing Star Trek, the issue-as-episode style. And I think it's worked out great. It was also good in that IDW had a real plan for these books -- there are specific things they want to accomplish with each mini-series. Some of the previous publishers have just thrown the stuff out there, and waited to see what sticks. Taylor: Going into publishing a new Star Trek: The Next Generation comic book I knew we would be going before a very passionate and critical fan base--which was fine because I'm in that fan base as well. Our thinking was that one-shots were the way to in order to appease those "die-hard" fans that might be skeptical as well as giving comic book readers yet to be converted into Star Trek fans an opportunity to find out what the new Star Trek comics were like without having to over commit. The Next Generation television series had plenty of individual issues that would later come into play with later episodes. It just felt appropriate to try it here. NRAMA: Did this present any particular challenges? I'd imagine there might occasionally be some difficulty trying to find the most natural places to place these clues. Tischman: I knew what I wanted to do -- what the mystery was -- and I knew what stories I wanted to tell, but I also wanted to take a more "episodic" approach to unpeeling the onion. The clues are there, in each story in each issue, and Picard is able to put the disparate pieces together, because it's a real subtle reveal, over the seven year mission. I think people are going to like it.  NRAMA: In preparation for issue #4 this hit this past week, could you possibly give our readers a little hint as to where they should be looking for some of these clues, in case they missed them? Tischman: If you haven't read Previews yet, just look at the technology and the science fiction elements of each story, and think about them in a real-world context. Enough said, right, Dan? Taylor: Pretty much. That sounds cryptic enough for me. NRAMA: So finally – sell it. What do people have to look forward to I issue #4? Tischman: After the all-out action and personal drama of Issue #3, we settle into a good old fashioned adventure in Issue #4 -- which is, without a doubt, the closest you'll ever get to "Star Trek" meets "Zombies." You can say the Borg are like Zombies, but the Borg speak, which the characters DON'T do in Issue #4, and the Borg don't eat flesh, which the characters in Issue #4 DO. They're NOT Zombies, but it's a big fun story, and I got to use Ensign Ro, who I've always liked. It's been great fun writing this series. I finished the script for Issue #6 last week, and I'm a little sad "The Space Between" is over. Lucky for me, I'm in the middle of script #2 for the Star Trek: ToS “Season Four" mini-series. So my adventure continues. Taylor: The fourth issue was probably the issue that I had the most input for other than "they call that this, David," or "Worf would be more like this, David." We really threw the idea around a lot in our meetings and phone calls. I think this one issue would've made a hell of an episode. Not that the others wouldn't--it's just one I would love to have seen how they would've pulled it off with the television medium. |
|
04-29-2007, 08:50 AM
|
#2 |
|
|
The Space Between?
Does Dave Matthews make a cameo?
Yuk yuk yuk. |
|
04-29-2007, 08:50 AM
|
#3 | |
|
|
Quote:
WOW, I really hope they know that the TNG television series has been off the air since 1995 and the TNG movies are dead with the release of Nemesis. So what was the point of saying “It just felt appropriate to try it here.” Are both Tishman and Taylor thinks that TNG will come back on tv with new episodes or some new trek series will lift story ideas from their books? That is some very closed mind and self absorb talk level there. After I’ve “read” (notice the quotation “read”) a few TNG: The Space Between issues. I am thanking that JJ Abram is the man that is in control of the trek franchise with his writing and directing of the next movie. Too bad he has no control over the comics. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 10:54 AM
|
#4 | |
|
|
Quote:
Um, what in the world are you talking about? He said he wanted to try some one-offs the way TNG did it. That's IT. It sounds like you simply hate TNG, which is YOUR problem. It's one of the two most popular incarnations of Trek and its legacy has been cemented. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 10:56 AM
|
#5 | |
|
|
Quote:
What the hell are you going on about? They said they wanted to try something which felt like the TV series. And they've done a really good job as well - Space Between has been fantastic so far. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 10:58 AM
|
#6 | |
|
|
...Ok, time for a quick contest: Fill in that unintended thought balloon with the most apropos Worfism you can - no pun intended - think of!  Quote:
 Last edited by OM : 04-29-2007 at 11:01 AM. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 01:23 PM
|
#7 | |
|
|
Quote:
I'll play: Oy! Get your grubby hands off my Kreplach! (for those who don't know, kreplach is a Jewish 'wanton' that just sounds very Klingon. lol) |
|
|
04-29-2007, 01:29 PM
|
#8 |
|
|
I have sort of a geek question...
If Ryker was replicated by the transporter, why havent they simply re-created the events and replicated Data, so that there could be a Data on every ship in the fleet? I know they said on one episode that they couldn't duplicate the positronic brain with a replicator, but the human brain has to be more complex than anything a human could develop... So if they could do it with Ryker, they would be able to do it with Data. Just a thought. I also don't see why Captain America's sheild hurts when he hits people with it, or why Wolverine's claws can slice through steel like butter, yet he can still climb up walls with them. But I digress... |
|
04-29-2007, 04:14 PM
|
#9 | |
|
|
Quote:
If I had to give a theory, I'd say it's because what happened with Riker was an accident and probably couldn't be replicated. And why wouldn't Captain America's shield hurt when he hits people? |
|
|
04-29-2007, 05:00 PM
|
#10 | |
|
|
Quote:
I think it is so wonderful of you that you're enjoying this new slew of crappy trek comics. I feel very sorry for your soul. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 05:11 PM
|
#11 | ||
|
|
Quote:
Quote:
* PAD is a tough act to follow. With few exceptions, nobody managed to capture the feel of Star Trek in a comic book like Peter Allen David. Some have come close, but none more than PAD. As I've said before, even at his worst he spoiled us, especially with his classic runs on the TOS comic for DC. He set a standard that's hard to beat, much less match - especially if you're a relatively low-experienced writer. * A LOT of the previous non-DC Trek comics have essentially sucked. Let's face it, kids. Until Marvel got the license after the first film, Gold Key was the only one producing Trek comics, and they were more miss than hit, and with the exception of two issues illustrated by the late, great Dave Cockrum, most of the Marvel run was nearly forgettable. Much of that was due to some dips'hit at Marvel legal misreading the contract and informing the editorial staff that their post-movie comics could not reference the TV series - which reportedly killed a really good Harry Mudd meets Cyrano Jones story, IIRC - but even then the stories crafted under such restraints still seriously lacked in quality. A good writer can work around this, especially if he's got an editor who's got a clue as to what Star Trek is all about. ...Of course, after DC had the license stripped from them so Paranoidmount could go into partnership with Malibu/Marvel with their Paramount Comics line, with the sole exception of the Early Voyages series - Abnett & Lanning need to be allowed to finish that last arc, dammit! - and this one Deep Space Nine issue where the the various theories regarding the Klingons' head ridges - the entire PC era couldn't hold a candle to the DC run. When PC folded due to the Paranoidmount's refocusing the Trek line towards banality, WildStorm got the license for a brief, sporadic run. The only bright note there was a truly classic GN by Igor Kordey that spotlighted the Gorns *and* proved to the Kordey-haters that, when allowed time to do work *his* way, he's one of the best in the business. But one gemstone in a pile of garbage really does not save a zen koan in this case. * In-Between stories tend to stifle character advancement. Now, the Klingon side of the story is an exception to the rule, because we've never seen their side of having Kirk kicking their butts. But as we're seeing so far with The Space Between, all we're getting are stories that are more filler with no real meat to them. The problem there is that you can't tell a story that advances a character beyond what's established by the series in the episodes that chonologically take place "after" the comic in question. Oh sure, you could plot a story where Troi gets a third boob - or a fourth, if you're counting Riker - Wesley gets a sex change, Worf becomes a member of the Q, and Picard gets his hair back, but you'd also have to put all the toys back on the shelf the way you found them once you're done playing with them. ...Now, this is not to say that it can't be done. There was almost a two-year gap between TSFS and TVH. During that time, DC's creative team at the time managed to work in an arc that kept the crew of the Enterprise together - including Spock! -and having adventures saving the Federation until Paramount got TVH ready. Then they managed to undo everything in a relatively convincing way and put the crew back on Vulcan where they needed to be, waiting to get fracked over by the Federation for having saved the universe yet again. It *can* be done, but single-issue stories aren't the way to do it. * TNG comics have a tradition of being rather banal. I blame Michael Jan Friedman for this, and to this day I can't figure out why he keeps getting writing assignments for the novels. No character advancement, boring plots...everything that people complained was "wrong" with TNG, Friedman tended to enhance in his works. As a result, fans have come to expect TNG comics to have about as much action and/or adventure as an episode of Davey and Goliath. Where PAD spoiled us for quality, Friedman kicked our expectations in the balls. ...So that's basically it as to why we're seeing so much negativity towards most of the Trek comics efforts over the years. We not only know it can be better, we've *SEEN* it better. Our expectations are higher, and having seen most of the post-DC attempts fall far short of said, we're naturally sceptical as hell of any non-PAD Trek comic. Last edited by OM : 04-29-2007 at 05:56 PM. |
||
|
04-29-2007, 05:56 PM
|
#12 | |
|
|
Quote:
Kreplach ARE. It's plural. One is a krepl. |
|
|
04-29-2007, 07:18 PM
|
#13 |
|
|
That last picture has an absolutely atrocious depiction of the Enterprise.
|
|
04-29-2007, 07:46 PM
|
#14 |
|
|
I actually hate star trek, but just wanted to say newsarama is doing a nice job the last several months of focusing on non-big two news, the 'net has far surpassed print media imo in terms of comic coverage.
|
|
04-30-2007, 12:54 AM
|
#15 | |||
|
|
Quote:
1) One is a krepl. ...or: 2) There is no such thing as a "krepl". If you serve only one, it's still kreplach. ...And since "kreplach" sounds Klingon anyway, I suspect that this might be a clue that, while Vulcan was seeded by one of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel, one of the other Nine landed on Klinzhai/Qo'noS ...On a side note, I've found that kreplach are better when pan-fried instead of boiled, as in the best way to cook frozen pirogies. I've got a recipie for one of my "Bachelor's Gourmet" dishes that involves kreplach, pirogies, ravioli, and alfredo sauce, all intended to surprise the hell of of the drunk bimbo you just brought home into thinking that you are, in fact, a gourmet chef when in reality all you're doing is frying up frozen leftovers Quote:
Quote:
 Last edited by OM : 04-30-2007 at 01:03 AM. |
|||
|
04-30-2007, 02:54 AM
|
#16 | |
|
|
Quote:
Well, it could make for an interesting storyline. They could TRY to re-create the accident, and maybe it creates like 'evil Data'. lol... Hmmm... That's actually not a bad idea, is it? Anyway, Captain America's shield is made of Vibranium, and absorbs ALL kinetic energy. Which is why it can be struck by Thor's hammer and cap is unmoved. Thus, when he throws it, and it strikes someone, the shield would absorb the energy of the kinetic energy between it and it's intended victim. In 'reality', or actually, according to the physics of the rules set down by the fiction, it would drop to the floor with about as much harm as a styrofoam frisbee hitting a steel girder. |
|
|
04-30-2007, 11:32 AM
|
#17 | |
|
|
Quote:
I am thanking that you would care for such a thing that you WOW! That is some very closed mind and self absorb talk level there. |
|
|
04-30-2007, 03:08 PM
|
#18 | |
|
|
Quote:
Your post doesn't make any sense. What is it that you're upset about? Last edited by skeletorjr : 04-30-2007 at 03:11 PM. |
|
«
Previous Thread
|
Next Thread
»
| Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
| Display Modes | |
Linear Mode
|
|
All times are GMT -4. The time now is 12:01 AM.
