One more for Voyager's 20th birthday: It's a SIGN!

Seen across the street from Paramount on a cloudy January day—exactly 20 years ago this week:

A goofy promo theme, and symptomatic of what would dog the two UPN shows as "marketing" for their entire lives.... as many of you will recall.

Into Darkness: The Story So Far ....

Or, make that: "the reviews so far."

Many of you know that I have commented on STID only once ... a non-spoiler observation on the Uhura/McCoy marketing shift a week ago ... and yet I saw a screening of it waaay last Wednesday at Paramount.

However, as those who are close Tweetsy followers of mine or Facebookers of Trekland know, I have made a few side comments as well.

I'm going to see STID a second time tonight just to keep ruminating on it before I comment ... So I wanted to recap for everyone my thoughts that have slipped out on all fronts, before it gets any later and it's too hard to claim them (again, all non-spoilers):

—This sucker will sell a TON of tickets. More than ST09.

—Maybe even more OVERSEAS than '09 did, hopefully. (Mexico is up 300% over 2009).

—Because—and this is hardly any amazing insight on my part to say so (ie, see Paramount quotees)—the global market is driving a lot of what this film is. As it is with all flicks in the "studio blockbuster" category these days, or even the wanna-be blockbusters.

—Which is why I tweeted: "Even more reason to have a Trek TV series back on again. No foreign masters." As in the kind that drive box-office profits.

—My first sum thoughts after the first screening: "Well, THAT was a really long way to go to keep a franchise viable."

But again—I want to take a second measure before I say any more. Its not like you can't be drowned in STID commentary everywhere already, and it's not all even still spoiler-free (ie, check out any Facebook page now from around the world, even if legit reviewers are still honoring the US debut before dishing in detail.)

A U.S. opening day which, by the way, is now officially THURSDAY—a day earlier than long heralded.

Overall ...With the ALT timeline of the JJverse, I tend to take the big picture and the long view in a lot of my feelings and observations on the new movie series... and its fans, yea and nay.  In fact, I also know that I'm not the target audience here (but I might get sneaked in the back door when no one's looking). After all, what can you say? Short of comment on Mr. and Mrs. Chekov's revised birthing frequency, or wonder why Captain Pike didn't usually have his bridge crew scan in multi-layer smart graphic mode.

So, stay tuned.

And if you want something worthwhile to spend the time in line with Thursday or Friday at your local cinema ... why not get the the single source of all your essential Into Darkness info? Even my regualr column is in there. Choose either the dead-tree version, or download it to your PADD or other interface.

 

That third "Disruptions" teaser for INTO DARKNESS

So, I'm headed to a STID screening tonight ... eight days prior to the formal May 16 opening, with more screening to follow... and with considerably less angst that I did four years ago with ST09.

You TREKLAND readers know I've barely touched on Into Darkness so far—my reason being you can get drowned in that everywhere else and I'll stick to the unique takes on "everything else" I want to bring you instead.

In fact, I'm almost regretting finally seeing the damn thing after all the wait... it's going to cut off my "virgin" perspective on all the passing speculation, and also the untainted questioning of marketing goals and ambitions.

In that vein, then yeah—let's talk about that little trailer, the "Third Disruptions Teaser." (see it below) The one that caused such a brouhahah last week among Klingon fans online for its glimpse of a "non-canon" departure in Klingon look.... Really? You're upset about this? Isn't that just Chang's family? Bear in mind, too, that just as not all surviving Romulans have a tattoo—only Nero's miners-turned-henchmen—not all Klingons look lke this, nor have "glowy eyes." Do we know what they're on? Or what they might be wearing? Well, we'll find out soon enough—and have another 30 years to fix it, if we need to. But I doubt it.

No, what got my attention in that third "Disruptions" teaser was a single word—and I bet it flew right past you, saying a ton without saying it out loud: the re-drawing of Trek's troika. Listen here (below) as Uhura is described as the ship's "soul" —to cap off, on the other two "Disruptions,"  Kirk being the "heart" and Spock being the "mind." Right there, ladies and gentlemen, far more than any Klingon makeup tweaks, you have confirmed the major affect of a 21st century feature producer's take on Gene's classic sandbox: Kirk/Spock/McCoy is now Kirk/Spock/Uhura.

Or... maybe that's just marketing by a bunch of after-market editors with access to Cumberbatch's "promo extras" contract. Maybe it's a bow to perhaps endless focus groups who want a female lead in their flicks in general, and McCoy's place truly is still the third seat in the Trek triumvirate (as some early-bird reviewers have said.) And not to say that Trek shouldn't have strong female leads, obviously;  there was a lot to beef up with Nyota "And how often do I get shore leave?" Uhura that poor Nichelle would have gladly loved to take on in her "sub-second banana" days of pre-ensemble 60s TV formats. The TOS movies made up a little of that ground for her, but not much.

But it sure looks like modern movie format sensibilities have taken over "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." In any case, even for marketing's sake for English-language consumers, it's as interesting a perceived plot for success as that pedal-to-the-metal global hoopla tour to again try to crack open a Trek worldwide audience beyond the known UK, Australian and German outposts.  Karl Urban's McCoy is one of the quiet gems of the JJVerse, and neither one has really gotten much overt love in any of the posters, trailers, and press clambakes so far that I can see.

Then again, that's just about the way it always was with De and his McCoy.

We'll soon see.

So bring on The Darkness... and maybe I'll see you at the Khan.

Finally--BK has a winner... with Trek?

The last few years, Burger King's corporate identity has been a bit murky and fuzzy, with those horribly spooky Burger King plasto-mask characters not offering much. They conjur up the shakes, all right—but not of the dairy variety. And that's apparently what corporate BK wants. (And I say this as a fan of the menu...)

But maybe there's a positive ending here—and on two fronts.

JJ had to delete his Klingon scene—but could the movie's loss be BK's gain? This is a LOT of marketing moxie put out for just a single movie ... and did you catch the KING-ons at the Grauman's Hollywood premiere May 30?

Oh—that redshirt (who survives!) ought to do conventions... if BK hasn't thought of that already...

Drip by drip—NOT

You'd think the single biggest clambake in recent Trekland history would be all over my blog—every single day. Don't worry--it will be here, but ...

As I said when we launched this enterprise, I was not into the "drip-drip-drip" of daily news pings. That's not what TREKLAND and the site are about. For one thing, this is a movie that's been in the works for three years, actually, and the daily (and overlapping) newsblast is all about just the same two hours of film. That worldwide press caravan—designed for each country's consumption and attention—is a damn smart project, stirring up Trek in the public eye nation by nation, especially in low-Trek markets where it's hardly taken for granted.

But there's a zillion sites where you can get all that. Here, it's all in the family—and hopefully either my POV or that of the people who stop by isn't so common, but no less interesting or insightful.

But we're hardly ingoring JJTrek. Nosiree. Stay tuned.

Assured Esurance: Where No Marketing Has Gone Before

Wow.

I just heard the Esurance "Biggest Trekkie" partner promotion advertised on my INTERNET SWING RADIO STATION. Now that's crossing over your demo lines!

Nothing like it since The Motion Picture.

Paramount is promoting the hell out of this sucker. We already know JJ's bunch have delivered a winner, so the biggest jaw-dropper of all may be the marketing penetration and the licensed goodies.

"Erin's Mission to Delta Vega"! Geez. Brilliant joining of the now-mainstream anime aesthetic with Trekland. We'll be waiting ...