Star Trek’s greatest attraction is seeing brave heroes in action in the name of discovery, exploration and diplomacy. But if you talk to Star Trek fans, they’ll be talking about the franchise’s second appeal: workplace drama. Sci-fi movies can attract fans, but it’s the relationships between the characters that continue to fascinate them.
this friendship is the focus Star Trek Friendship Book, from the Smart Pop print by BenBella Books. Kirk and Spock, Bashir and Garak, Janeway and Seven of Nine: They all get their value. The official tribute to the greatest friendship in Star Trek history is aptly presented in the form of a dialogue between two friends. Author Robb Pearlman and Jordan Hoffman [Ed. note: Jordan Hoffman has written for Polygon.]
Perlman and Hoffman were kind enough to introduce a proprietary extract of polygons. Star Trek Friendship Book, also in the form of a conversation between two friends. Read more below the horizon from a book chapter about Jean-Luc Picard and Will Riker.
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Image: JK Woodward/BenBella Books
Rob Perlman: It vibrates with the excitement of the overheated warp core! I’ve loved Polygon since my parents first hooked up the Pong to the black and white Magnavox.
Jordan Hoffman: How could this be possible before the website even existed?!
RRP: Space and time don’t matter anymore, Jordan. So don’t ask.
JH: because of me. Star Trek is full of such wacky premises, but do you know what the basis of this show is for me?
RRP: Why not start the story that the USS Reliant is actually upside down?
JH: No, I want to come back later. For me, it’s about the characters and how they relate through unique friendships.
RRP: agreement! And there seems to be an infinite combination of friendships. As Kirk and Spock are the gold standard, there is Picard and Riker’s friendship, the spoken and unspoken loyalty that makes up a fun pair of enemies like Quark and Odo, and many others. It was also very satisfying to know that friendship exists within the Star Trek fandom, whether online or at convention. In fact, that’s what motivated me to create. Star Trek Friendship Book!
JH: If you remember, we met at the scammers. There they promoted their first Trek book. Fun with Kirk and Spock And Star Trek’s Wisdom and Wisdom, and I hosted the panel and hosted the previous Star Trek podcast. And one night we stayed up until dawn and joked with Armus.
RRP: Oh yes I remember! Perhaps salsa and chips were also involved. We started talking about Star Trek and we started from there. That’s it. Whether you’ve just met someone or someone you’ve known for years, Star Trek provides instant, undeniable shortcuts to connecting people. What serves as a springboard for deeper, more meaningful friendships is a sense of connection, a sense of enjoying the same shared experiences.
JH: Talking about Star Trek was a great way to stay sane while working on a book during the pandemic. And having Star Trek friend JK Woodward do the illustration is to decorate the cake. His drawings are by Dr. This is Garak. Bashir must be in the Louvre.
RRP: There is a parallel universe out there! Also in this book is a friend, Dr. It should also be mentioned that a special appearance by Dr. is included. Foreword by Erin Macdonald and our other friends, along with Star Trek icons Robert Picardo and Ethan Phillips.
JH: right! In fact, some of the book’s proceeds are donated to the Planetary Society, so this book provides a way to help your Star Trek friends reach the stars!
RP: We are all in the same boat. Excuse me, but I want to be alone.
JH: In order. But keep the call frequency open. I have more thoughts on Reliant.
R: Picard and Riker are friends who will do anything for each other. Their first meeting was a bit strange, but their friendship soon blossomed when the unusually stern Captain Picard put Riker to the test by putting a plate docking maneuver under a microscope.
Jay: How many times have you faced the threat of “Oh no, will a Riker get promoted?” I feel it a lot! Some would describe their bond as a Riker’s career killer. Of course you would be wrong. But Picard needed it because he rejected and removed Captain DeSoto from the USS hood of Altair III, which is why he chose Riker in the first place. And he knew he could give Riker the worst job ever, and could force him to prove to the fullest extent of his lack of competence in the data by appointing him as prosecutor for the Measure of the Man. that’s pretty
Ask! But they knew that the only way to save a friend was to come, not come forward. It’s no different than Kirk’s strangely fighting Spock in “Amok Time”.
R: Wait, does that make Bruce Maddox a T’Pau or a Stonn?
Jay: Sorry. To continue, we need a Tri-Ox composite shot because of the thinner atmosphere surrounding this analogy. But the writers knew there was something good about it. There are several episodes in which Riker has to face Picard. The best known of course is the end of the third TNG season “Best of Both Worlds”.
R: I still saw the message on the screen saying that the trumpet “keep it up…” And then I watched TV and read in the air-conditioned comforts of the summer days, rather than going out and exercising (still a buzzword) and waiting. As someone who chooses to do it, the summer of 1990 is approaching. The finale of the next episode has been a particularly tough season, and don’t forget “The Pegasus” of TNG season 7. Riker tells Picard to keep a prototype cloak device secret. You can see him destroy it when given orders, which also didn’t do much for my anxiety.
Jay: This whole episode stresses me out. I can see everything but I can’t stand Riker lying to our beloved Captain. But it wasn’t his fault! I really like the end of TNG season 2 “A Matter of Honor” and the way the two regularly know what each other thinks, like the Rikers on the Klingon ship. Neither of them know exactly how this confrontation will work, but they trust each other enough.
R: Best of all, TNG Season 6’s “Rascals” forces the oppressed Picard or anyone I’d like to call him “Lil’ JL” pretend to be Riker’s son. Both know exactly what to do and how to play, but Riker loves every moment. He knows he’ll be telling this story for years to come. Because “Oh, this is going to be a fun story.” Because Riker is one of the few people who can joke with Picard. And like any other good friend, he knows exactly when to do it.
R: Meet Raffi, wait, does she have to be Riker 2.0? Of course she is not. She is her own person. Then Riker appears later in the series and cooks the pizza.
Jay: Robb, we need to bring some tissues while we talk about group hugs.
R: we are. This is a sensational part of Picard’s sensational first season. It must be great fan service in part, but the friendships with these wonderful characters are supported by a deep and unbreakable narrative. Picard, Riker and Troi are family, not friends. They are our friends and family.
The Star Trek Friendship Book releases on May 10th.
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The Star Trek Book of Friendship dives deep into Picard and Riker’s eternal bro-bond
The primary appeal of Star Trek is watching brave heroes boldly go in the name of discovery, exploration, and diplomacy. But talk to any Star Trek fan and they’ll tell you about the franchise’s secondary appeal: workplace drama. The scifi spectacle might draw fans in, but it’s the relationships between characters that keeps them hooked.
Those friendships are the focus of The Star Trek Book of Friendship, from BenBella Books’ Smart Pop imprint. Kirk and Spock, Bashir and Garak, Janeway and Seven of Nine: They all get their due. The official tribute to the greatest friendships in Star Trek history comes, fittingly, in the form of conversations between two friends. Authors Robb Pearlman and Jordan Hoffman [Ed. note: Jordan Hoffman has written for Polygon.]
Pearlman and Hoffman were gracious enough to provide an introduction to Polygon’s exclusive excerpt to The Star Trek Book of Friendship, also in the form of a conversation between two friends. Read on for that and, below the horizontal line, an excerpt from the book’s chapter on Jean-Luc Picard and Will Riker.
Image: J.K. Woodward/BenBella Books
Robb Pearlman: I’m vibrating with the excitement of an overheating warp core! I’ve loved Polygon since my parents first hooked Pong up to our black & white Magnavox.
Jordan Hoffman: How is that possible, that’s from before websites even existed?!
RP: Space and time have no meaning anymore, Jordan, so don’t question it.
JH: Fair enough. Star Trek is loaded with such whacked-out premises, but you know what is the foundation of that show for me?
RP: You aren’t going to start talking about how the USS Reliant is actually upside-down again, are you?
JH: No, but I do want to revisit that at a later point. For me, it’s about the characters, and how they relate to one another through unique friendships.
RP: Agreed! And it does seem like there’s an infinite variety to the infinite combinations of friendships. With a gold standard being Kirk and Spock, there are the spoken and unspoken loyalties that make up Picard and Riker’s friendship, the fun frenemy pairings like Quark and Odo, and so many others. It’s also been incredibly gratifying to me to see friendships exist in the Star Trek fandom, whether that’s online or at conventions. In fact, that’s what inspired me to create The Star Trek Book of Friendship!
JH: We met at a con if you recall. You were there promoting your first few Trek books like Fun with Kirk and Spock and The Wit and Wisdom of Star Trek, and I was there moderating panels and hosting the previous Star Trek podcast. And then, one night we stayed up until dawn making Armus jokes.
RP: Ah yes, I remember it well! There may have been salsa and chips involved, too. We started talking about Star Trek and went from there. I mean that’s the thing. Whether you’re just meeting someone or have known each other for years, Star Trek gives people an instant and undeniable shorthand that bonds people to each other. It’s that sense of connection, that sense of enjoying the same shared experience, that serves as a launchpad for deeper and more meaningful friendships.
JH: Talking through Star Trek was a great way to stay sane as we worked on the book throughout the pandemic. And getting our Star Trek friend J.K. Woodward to do the illustrations is a cherry on top. His painting of Garak dressing Dr. Bashir should be in the Louvre.
RP: There’s a parallel universe in which it is! We should also say that the book has a special appearance by our friend, Dr. Erin Macdonald, and a foreword written by our other friends and Star Trek icons Robert Picardo and Ethan Phillips, too.
JH: That’s right! In fact, a portion of the proceeds for the book go to The Planetary Society, so the book offers a way for Star Trek friends to help friends reach the stars!
RP: We’re all in this together. Now if you’ll excuse me, I want to be alone.
JH: Ok. But keep your hailing frequencies open. I have more thoughts on The Reliant.
R: Picard and Riker are friends who will do anything for each other. Even if their first meeting was a little weird, with an unusually stern Captain Picard testing Riker out by making him do a saucer docking maneuver under a microscope, their friendship soon flourished.
J: How many times did they face the threat of, “Oh, no, Will Riker is going to get promoted?” Feels like a lot! Some would call their bond a career-killer for Riker. They’d be wrong, of course. But Picard needed that. That’s why he chose Riker in the first place, because he stood up to Captain DeSoto on the USS Hood at Altair III and kept him out of harm’s way. And he knew he could give Riker the absolute worst jobs ever and trust him to do them, like making him be the prosecutor in “The Measure of a Man” to force him to prove to the best of his ability that Data lacked sentience. That’s quite an
ask! But they both knew the only way to save their friend was to not communicator-it-in, they had to come correct. Not unlike Kirk fighting Spock in “Amok Time,” in a weird way.
R: Wait, does this make Bruce Maddox the T’Pau or Stonn?
J: I’m sorry, the thinner atmosphere surrounding that analogy requires a tri-ox compound shot if we’re to continue. But the writers knew they had something good there. There are a few episodes where Riker must go up against Picard. Most famously, of course, the end of TNG season three’s “The Best of Both Worlds.”
R: I can still hear those trumpets blaring as the “To Be Continued . . .” came on the screen. And as someone who chose to spend their summers sitting in air-cooled comfort watching television and reading rather than having to go outside to play sports (the word still gets stuck in my throat), waiting for the summer of 1990 to end for the next episode to air was a particularly difficult season to get through. And don’t forget about TNG season seven’s “The Pegasus,” when Riker is ordered to keep the prototype cloaking device a secret from Picard—you can see it destroying him. It didn’t do much for my anxiety levels, either.
J: That whole episode stresses me out. I can watch anything, but I can’t bear to see Riker lie to our beloved captain. It wasn’t his fault, though! I really do love the way the two of them regularly know what the other is thinking, though, like the ending of TNG season two’s “A Matter of Honor,” and Riker’s on the Klingon ship. Neither of them quite knows how that standoff will work itself out, but they trust each other enough to let it happen.
R: For that, the best is TNG season six’s “Rascals,” when the aged-down Picard, or as I like to call him, “‘Lil’ J-L” must pretend to be Riker’s son. They both know exactly what to do and how to play it, but Riker is just loving every moment of it. He knows he’s going to be retelling this for years and years, because “Oh boy, this is going to make for a funny story.” Riker is one of the very few people who can crack a joke at Picard. And like any good friend, he knows exactly when to do it.
R: When you meet Raffi, it’s like, wait, is she supposed to be a Riker 2.0? Which, of course, she’s not. She’s her own person. And then Riker shows up cooking pizza later in the series.
J: Robb, I’m gonna need to grab some tissues if we’re talking about the group hug here.
R: We are. It’s a sensational part of a sensational first season of Picard. Partially great fan service, certainly, but also it narratively shored up that friendships with these wonderful characters were just expanding not breaking apart. Picard, Riker, and Troi are more than friends, they’re family. They’re our friends and family.
The Star Trek Book of Friendship will hit shelves on May 10.
#Star #Trek #Book #Friendship #dives #deep #Picard #Rikers #eternal #brobond
The Star Trek Book of Friendship dives deep into Picard and Riker’s eternal bro-bond
The primary appeal of Star Trek is watching brave heroes boldly go in the name of discovery, exploration, and diplomacy. But talk to any Star Trek fan and they’ll tell you about the franchise’s secondary appeal: workplace drama. The scifi spectacle might draw fans in, but it’s the relationships between characters that keeps them hooked.
Those friendships are the focus of The Star Trek Book of Friendship, from BenBella Books’ Smart Pop imprint. Kirk and Spock, Bashir and Garak, Janeway and Seven of Nine: They all get their due. The official tribute to the greatest friendships in Star Trek history comes, fittingly, in the form of conversations between two friends. Authors Robb Pearlman and Jordan Hoffman [Ed. note: Jordan Hoffman has written for Polygon.]
Pearlman and Hoffman were gracious enough to provide an introduction to Polygon’s exclusive excerpt to The Star Trek Book of Friendship, also in the form of a conversation between two friends. Read on for that and, below the horizontal line, an excerpt from the book’s chapter on Jean-Luc Picard and Will Riker.
Image: J.K. Woodward/BenBella Books
Robb Pearlman: I’m vibrating with the excitement of an overheating warp core! I’ve loved Polygon since my parents first hooked Pong up to our black & white Magnavox.
Jordan Hoffman: How is that possible, that’s from before websites even existed?!
RP: Space and time have no meaning anymore, Jordan, so don’t question it.
JH: Fair enough. Star Trek is loaded with such whacked-out premises, but you know what is the foundation of that show for me?
RP: You aren’t going to start talking about how the USS Reliant is actually upside-down again, are you?
JH: No, but I do want to revisit that at a later point. For me, it’s about the characters, and how they relate to one another through unique friendships.
RP: Agreed! And it does seem like there’s an infinite variety to the infinite combinations of friendships. With a gold standard being Kirk and Spock, there are the spoken and unspoken loyalties that make up Picard and Riker’s friendship, the fun frenemy pairings like Quark and Odo, and so many others. It’s also been incredibly gratifying to me to see friendships exist in the Star Trek fandom, whether that’s online or at conventions. In fact, that’s what inspired me to create The Star Trek Book of Friendship!
JH: We met at a con if you recall. You were there promoting your first few Trek books like Fun with Kirk and Spock and The Wit and Wisdom of Star Trek, and I was there moderating panels and hosting the previous Star Trek podcast. And then, one night we stayed up until dawn making Armus jokes.
RP: Ah yes, I remember it well! There may have been salsa and chips involved, too. We started talking about Star Trek and went from there. I mean that’s the thing. Whether you’re just meeting someone or have known each other for years, Star Trek gives people an instant and undeniable shorthand that bonds people to each other. It’s that sense of connection, that sense of enjoying the same shared experience, that serves as a launchpad for deeper and more meaningful friendships.
JH: Talking through Star Trek was a great way to stay sane as we worked on the book throughout the pandemic. And getting our Star Trek friend J.K. Woodward to do the illustrations is a cherry on top. His painting of Garak dressing Dr. Bashir should be in the Louvre.
RP: There’s a parallel universe in which it is! We should also say that the book has a special appearance by our friend, Dr. Erin Macdonald, and a foreword written by our other friends and Star Trek icons Robert Picardo and Ethan Phillips, too.
JH: That’s right! In fact, a portion of the proceeds for the book go to The Planetary Society, so the book offers a way for Star Trek friends to help friends reach the stars!
RP: We’re all in this together. Now if you’ll excuse me, I want to be alone.
JH: Ok. But keep your hailing frequencies open. I have more thoughts on The Reliant.
R: Picard and Riker are friends who will do anything for each other. Even if their first meeting was a little weird, with an unusually stern Captain Picard testing Riker out by making him do a saucer docking maneuver under a microscope, their friendship soon flourished.
J: How many times did they face the threat of, “Oh, no, Will Riker is going to get promoted?” Feels like a lot! Some would call their bond a career-killer for Riker. They’d be wrong, of course. But Picard needed that. That’s why he chose Riker in the first place, because he stood up to Captain DeSoto on the USS Hood at Altair III and kept him out of harm’s way. And he knew he could give Riker the absolute worst jobs ever and trust him to do them, like making him be the prosecutor in “The Measure of a Man” to force him to prove to the best of his ability that Data lacked sentience. That’s quite an
ask! But they both knew the only way to save their friend was to not communicator-it-in, they had to come correct. Not unlike Kirk fighting Spock in “Amok Time,” in a weird way.
R: Wait, does this make Bruce Maddox the T’Pau or Stonn?
J: I’m sorry, the thinner atmosphere surrounding that analogy requires a tri-ox compound shot if we’re to continue. But the writers knew they had something good there. There are a few episodes where Riker must go up against Picard. Most famously, of course, the end of TNG season three’s “The Best of Both Worlds.”
R: I can still hear those trumpets blaring as the “To Be Continued . . .” came on the screen. And as someone who chose to spend their summers sitting in air-cooled comfort watching television and reading rather than having to go outside to play sports (the word still gets stuck in my throat), waiting for the summer of 1990 to end for the next episode to air was a particularly difficult season to get through. And don’t forget about TNG season seven’s “The Pegasus,” when Riker is ordered to keep the prototype cloaking device a secret from Picard—you can see it destroying him. It didn’t do much for my anxiety levels, either.
J: That whole episode stresses me out. I can watch anything, but I can’t bear to see Riker lie to our beloved captain. It wasn’t his fault, though! I really do love the way the two of them regularly know what the other is thinking, though, like the ending of TNG season two’s “A Matter of Honor,” and Riker’s on the Klingon ship. Neither of them quite knows how that standoff will work itself out, but they trust each other enough to let it happen.
R: For that, the best is TNG season six’s “Rascals,” when the aged-down Picard, or as I like to call him, “‘Lil’ J-L” must pretend to be Riker’s son. They both know exactly what to do and how to play it, but Riker is just loving every moment of it. He knows he’s going to be retelling this for years and years, because “Oh boy, this is going to make for a funny story.” Riker is one of the very few people who can crack a joke at Picard. And like any good friend, he knows exactly when to do it.
R: When you meet Raffi, it’s like, wait, is she supposed to be a Riker 2.0? Which, of course, she’s not. She’s her own person. And then Riker shows up cooking pizza later in the series.
J: Robb, I’m gonna need to grab some tissues if we’re talking about the group hug here.
R: We are. It’s a sensational part of a sensational first season of Picard. Partially great fan service, certainly, but also it narratively shored up that friendships with these wonderful characters were just expanding not breaking apart. Picard, Riker, and Troi are more than friends, they’re family. They’re our friends and family.
The Star Trek Book of Friendship will hit shelves on May 10.
#Star #Trek #Book #Friendship #dives #deep #Picard #Rikers #eternal #brobond
Synthetic: Vik News
