The Book Lightwalker Files

With a February topic like “Opportunity,” it was hard to zero in on one particular race. There are lots of wars—the Borg, the Romulans, the Klingons, among others—where one side takes the opportunity to prevail against Starfleet, but this is not so much an opportunity as much as a power play. Ultimately, the prize went to the always enterprising Ferengi.

Their heads appear misshapen, their ears are oversized and connected by a brow ridge that suggest...

Today is my entry in the September blog chain. With a topic like “Change,” there are a number of directions I could go, because science fiction is full of different changes. The most obvious one is the belief in evolution, a religion of theories about gradual alterations from one creature to another. Never mind that no fossil has ever been found, showing progressive stages of development. We cannot confuse the “truth” with evidence, after all.

Honorable mention: “Turnabout Intruder.”

In orbit around Camus II, where a science colony has all but died out, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are called down to treat an ailing Dr. Janice Lester. She is apparently dying from the same radiation poisoning which had killed the others—though her attending physician Dr. Coleman refuses to identify the radiation as celebium.

Actually, this is a ruse Lester and Coleman had cooked up to trap Captain K...

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Interesting how this year has panned out. I was able to blog on my younger sister’s birthday (February 9), my own birthday (April 27), and now my mom’s birthday. It’s also the 20th anniversary of Mom’s second wedding. Anyway, here is today’s blog entry.

This is my contribution to our blog-chain theme for August, which is a pun: “August/Majestic.” When it comes to space stories...

Part 4 of 4 on Sisko and the Prophets

Over the past three weeks, I’ve been tracing the thread of Sisko’s role in Bajoran religion. In Part 1 I gave my initial impressions, then I followed Ed “E.G.” Lewis’ lead to complete the picture, which culminates today.

Now that he is possessed with a pah-wraith, the Cardassian leader Gul Dukat disguises himself as a Bajoran. This is more than simply changing one’s appearance and ...

Part 3 of 4 on Sisko and the Prophets

Continuing the mythology: In the episode “Tears of the Prophets,” six years of never-ending Cardassian conflicts cause Starfleet to command a preemptive strike against their homeworld. Starfleet wants Sisko to lead the assault, along with their Klingon and Romulan allies, and exploit a weak point in Cardassian defenses. However, the Bajoran Prophets have other ideas.

“The Sisko is of Bajor. It is wh...

Part 2 of 4 on Sisko and the Prophets

Last week, I reported my first impressions about the ethereal Bajoran Prophets’ choice of Ben Sisko, an alien commander from Earth, to be their Emissary. In my early drafts, I had said, “It doesn’t matter what subsequent episodes show,” but I was wrong. One of my friends at Christian Writers, Edward “E.G.” Lewis, sees a fairly accurate Christological message in Sisko’s experience, drawn from abo...

Part 1 of 4 on Sisko and the Prophets

Planet Bajor has just been through a massive war against the Cardassians, and now Starfleet has been called in to help. Between them and the provisional Bajoran government, they must restore the planet and protect it from further hostilities.

Deep Space Nine, like Bajor itself, lies in sad disarray. Most of the denizens are packing up to move away, believing their life here is over. Enter Commander Benjamin Sisko, w...

Unlike the warlike Klingons and Romulans, there’s another major recurring race in the Trek universe which did not start with the classic series—the first of several. Early in the first season of The Next Generation, in an episode titled “The Last Outpost,” we were introduced to the Ferengi, leering little aliens with a general gargoylish appearance. They hail from planet Ferenginar, which is ruled by the Grand Nagus.

Their heads appear ...

Four weeks ago, I covered “Errand of Mercy,” perhaps the most definitive Star Trek episode regarding creatures made of light. It was also the first Klingon story in Roddenberry’s universe, followed by a handful of others, and many more in The Next Generation and subsequent shows. Not to mention the Trek movies.

According to various references, both in books from my library and on-line, the Klingons are natives to a planet called Qo...