"Where Are We Going This Time": The Golden Age of Science Fiction

What should happen with the season summary updates?

  • Continue as is (might delay other updates)

    Votes: 6 75.0%
  • Release them later, as supplementary material

    Votes: 2 25.0%
  • Cut out the OTL bits, only say what you've changed (might only be a temporary solution)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Stop them completely

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    8
  • Poll closed .

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Even better alternate history versions of shows still needs filler episodes from time to time I guess


Oddies? Oddities? STO's?
Little sad that you didn't change Death Wish's name to fall back in line with the theme naming of Q episodes.
Yes and no on the first statement. I will freely admit that this is sort of a "sci-fi"-wank of sorts, but done in a way I think is generally plausible, or at least appears it. That being said, "The Things That Matter" is by no means a filler story. It's not as important to the season arc as many of the others, but I'm generally trying to make everything count. Of course, some filler is needed here and there to break up the larger arcs. Hell, "Take Me Out To the Holosuite" and "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang" are both filler, and I love both of those stories.

I'll keep those names in mind. I like Oddies. It's got that shortness to it like Niners. I was desperately trying to relate the nickname to the Odyssey of classical literature, to no avail.

Death Wish was, I think, a good title for the story, especially as the Q we know well is not the focus of the story, as he could easily be replaced by another Q with relatively little change. This won't be the last we see of Q, but their appearances will be different to Voyager's.
 
Yes and no on the first statement. I will freely admit that this is sort of a "sci-fi"-wank of sorts, but done in a way I think is generally plausible, or at least appears it. That being said, "The Things That Matter" is by no means a filler story. It's not as important to the season arc as many of the others, but I'm generally trying to make everything count. Of course, some filler is needed here and there to break up the larger arcs. Hell, "Take Me Out To the Holosuite" and "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang" are both filler, and I love both of those stories.
Fair enough. I was just going off the brief description which made it sound pretty similar to OTL. And I never said filler was bad, just meant that from time to time, you occasionally need a little padding to meet the episode numbers or a breather between the big stories.

Death Wish was, I think, a good title for the story, especially as the Q we know well is not the focus of the story, as he could easily be replaced by another Q with relatively little change. This won't be the last we see of Q, but their appearances will be different to Voyager's.
I think Death Wish is a good title and would happily see it tied to another story, I just always felt it stuck out a little by not sharing the Q naming scheme (okay, yeah TNG had a few episodes that didn't fill that naming scheme either but still). On the subject of Q, please tell me you're strike the Q Civil War and Q Junior from existence. Those stories were pretty terrible. Maybe in their places, versions of The Q Continuum, Q-Squared, or I,Q get adapted instead. The last one was even based off a pitch by de Lancie himself as an episode idea before being adapted into a book with Peter David
 

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Fair enough. I was just going off the brief description which made it sound pretty similar to OTL. And I never said filler was bad, just meant that from time to time, you occasionally need a little padding to meet the episode numbers or a breather between the big stories.


I think Death Wish is a good title and would happily see it tied to another story, I just always felt it stuck out a little by not sharing the Q naming scheme (okay, yeah TNG had a few episodes that didn't fill that naming scheme either but still). On the subject of Q, please tell me you're strike the Q Civil War and Q Junior from existence. Those stories were pretty terrible. Maybe in their places, versions of The Q Continuum, Q-Squared, or I,Q get adapted instead. The last one was even based off a pitch by de Lancie himself as an episode idea before being adapted into a book with Peter David
I don't plan on doing Q Junior or the Q Civil War, and you may see more stories based on proposals from actors. With Berman gone, the actors have a much larger say over how their characters develop, even more so than OTL. Expect there to be some changes to a few characters based on where their actors wanted to take them.
 
. Maybe in their places, versions of The Q Continuum, Q-Squared, or I,Q get adapted instead.
I really enjoy the Q Continuum books but I don't think that they are filmable. They are large scale books with events over the whole of the Universe.
Q Squared might be but it would have to be a latter series adaption. You need to establish a couple of alternate timelines first.
One could be from "Year in Hell" from season 4 . (If you do Year in Hell, please have the regulars hunted by some memories of the Timeline. I hated that none of then remember any thing)
I know i read IQ but I can't remember what it was about other then Q was in it.

If you want a less serious Q story , you might consider A Odyssey version of Q in Law. But only if you include the Handball scene.
 
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I really enjoy the Q Continuum books but I don't that they are filmable. They are large scale books with events over the whole of the Universe.
Q Squared might be but it would have to be a latter series adaption. You need to establish a couple of alternate timelines first.
One could be from "Year in Hell" from season 4 . (If you do Year in Hell, please have the regulars hunted by some memories of the Timeline. I hated that none of then remember any thing)
I know i read IQ but I can't remember what it was about other then Q was in it.

If you want a less serious Q story , you might consider A Odyssey version of Q in Law. But only if you include the Handball scene.
I didn't mean a 1-to-1 recreation of the books, more just a general storyline similar to them, like Q dealing with a spectre from his past that also unites many of the weird space gods encountered in the shows and why Q is so focused on humanity into one overarching story. I,Q is a Q dealing with the end of the Universe told from the perspective of Q writing a message in a bottle. An episode from the perspective of Q narriting to the audience how he saved the universe with the shows characters playing secondary roles could work
 
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Season should be interessting to read.

I hope they find a technobable way to keep Tuvix as well as Tuvok and Neelix - does not have to be used that often, but around and mentioned occasionally.

BTW @Timelordtoe do you prefer episode ideas here or in PM?
 
Season should be interessting to read.

I hope they find a technobable way to keep Tuvix as well as Tuvok and Neelix - does not have to be used that often, but around and mentioned occasionally.

BTW @Timelordtoe do you prefer episode ideas here or in PM?
Alternatively, I’ve always thought the “best” way to deal with Tuvix would be for technobabble reasons he’s unstable and dying and makes the choice himself to separate back, sacrificing himself for the sake of the original two. Make it his choice or even make him do it against the wishes of Janeway et al and it’s more meaningful.
 
Oh Lord, don't lead this thread become 3 pages of Tuvix arguments haha

So...Sejal clearly isn't Tuvok/Falox, meaning to other characters get merged. Rejal and...Kes?
 

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Oh Lord, don't lead this thread become 3 pages of Tuvix arguments haha

So...Sejal clearly isn't Tuvok/Falox, meaning to other characters get merged. Rejal and...Kes?
It's Rejal and Seska (who is actually Bajoran ITTL). As said before, this does mean that it plays out differently.

Also, @Ogrebear, story ideas are probably better to do in PMs. Makes it easier for me to find them, and it avoids spoilers for other readers.
If I may also say, I've been loving how many of you have been submitting ideas recently. I can't guarantee I'll use them all, but it does make it that much easier for me to do these updates.
 
(DW) Jennifer Marsh - Profile

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Jennifer Marsh - Profile
jennifer marsh.png

Winona Ryder as Jennifer Marsh, taken from Season 28 story "When You Go"​


Jennifer Marsh, played by American actress Winona Ryder, was a companion of the Ninth Doctor. Ryder was best known for her appearance in the 1988 Tim Burton film Beetlejuice. Since then, she had largely taken smaller roles, though she did audition for some other films (most notably Heathers (1989) and Edward Scissorhands, the latter of which featured Doctor Who alumnus Tom Hanks in the title role).

In contrast to the Ninth Doctor, Jennifer proved to be popular among fans from the beginning, providing a more clear audience surrogate than any of the other revival companions to that point. Her popularity is further compounded by being the first cast member to win a BAFTA from her work on the show, winning in the Best Actress category during the 1995 awards for her work on the twenty-eighth season. That same year, the show won its first Best Drama Series award.

The portrayal of Jennifer as being a female studying for a degree in a traditionally male-dominated discipline was praised by many, especially many institutes of higher education. Her time on the show is associated with a marginal increase in applications to the University of Washington, the institution she attended.


Unlike many previous companions, Jennifer’s time with the Doctor did not see her “moving into” the TARDIS, as she continued her studies alongside her adventures. In addition, her relationship to the Doctor was very different to previous Doctor-companion relationships, as the Ninth Doctor and Jennifer had more of a mentor-mentee dynamic.

Often in her travels with the Doctor, she would act as a middle-man between the Doctor and the people they encountered, as he had a tendency to act more impersonal. Though this would sometimes put the two at odds with each other, over time the Ninth Doctor would begin to open up more with her.

Eventually, during the events of “The Other”, the Season 29 finale, Jennifer would decide to leave the Doctor, in order to properly focus on her studies and live “a human life”. Jennifer would not appear in main canon again until 2008, when she reunited with the Doctor, as they land at the University of Washington once more, where she now lectures.

Grey-canon sources after her departure from the show would often feature her teaming up with Dr. Rachel Vance, a companion of the Eighth Doctor, and tended to feature UNIT heavily. Ryder did not make any appearances in the Big Finish audios until relatively recently, making her debut in the Ninth Doctor’s fiftieth anniversary story in 2013.


Doctor Who reinvigorated Ryder’s career in many ways, as she began appearing in more films and television shows, having clearly broken her image of being “the goth girl from Beetlejuice”. In addition, it launched a career in production, as she began working in more behind-the-scenes roles. Most notably, this would include the 1998 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula, directed by Kenneth Branagh, a script she brought to Branagh’s attention in the first of many collaborations.

Ryder has often spoken fondly of her time on the show, though is critical of the circumstances surrounding hers and Brooks’ departures. Jennifer Marsh remains a popular companion to this day, especially given Ryder’s position as one of many people to have received their “big break” from the show.
 
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Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Hey everyone,

So, this update probably isn't what you were expecting. The season summary should be out tomorrow, but I wanted to do something for today regardless. This will be the first of many companion profiles that should be coming soon. I'm going to work my way back with them, all the way to Marty McFly, so the next one will be Dr Rachel Vance. I want to add a little more flavour to the world here, and by fleshing out the companions a little more, I hope to be able to do that. We can see a few changes to popular culture here, some of which may be expanded upon at a later date.
 
Sounds like Ryder has a more successful career here than OTL.

Good that Doctor Who is getting some awards.

Have you though how each of the Doctor's theme tunes might go?
 

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Sounds like Ryder has a more successful career here than OTL.

Good that Doctor Who is getting some awards.

Have you though how each of the Doctor's theme tunes might go?
I have. I actually commissioned a theme for the Sixth Doctor a while back, which I need to check up on. I had a list, but given that my plans for who will be the Doctor have changed a little, I need to go over it again.

Ryder's career is different. She isn't this big star in the early 90s, but she will make more of a name for herself now. A lot of the issues she had around the early 00's will be butterflied, in part because she's not being hounded by the press quite so much (something big about that sort of thing will be happening very soon). A side effect of her not having that big career in the early 90s is that Bram Stoker's Dracula isn't done by Francis Ford Coppola, as it was Ryder who brought the script to his attention, after she dropped out of The Godfather Part III. I've already said that it happens differently in the update, but that's why.

As for the awards, I figured it was about time I mentioned some. I won't do full breakdowns of what wins what award, at least, not yet. Of the two big sci-fi franchises of the time, Who is winning more awards, in part because it's eligible for BAFTAs, becuase it's still technically a BBC show. Doctor Who is marginally more successful, partially because NBC is really having a bit of a golden age right now, especially with its Thurdsday night lineup. Should anything drop out of that, Doctor Who will probably take its place.
 

Timelordtoe

Monthly Donor
Congratulations on winning a Turtledove!
Thank you! I'm sorry that there hasn't been an update for over a week. Something of a creative block was hit, but I'm hoping to get it out soon. I'm really excited for the next seasons of DS9 and Doctor Who, and the rest of what is to come during 1997. Honestly, for me winning a Turtledove was something I didn't expect to happen, and the nominees were all very good this year. I'll probably put out an update akin to the one year anniversary one to celebrate.

Thank you to everyone who voted. We wouldn't be here without you, and you showed me that this is more popular than I thought. I look forward to exploring this timeline with you all more in the future.
 
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