This week on Episode 524 of Priority One: New York Comic Con is ready to Trek Out; the community rallies behind Wilson Cruz; Star Trek Online updates its minimum system requirements; mobile games cross to desktop; and we review Lower Decks’ “Where Pleasant Fountains Lie”–but not before we chat with Cryptic Studios’s Content Creator Ryon and Environment Artist Gianna!

TREK IT OUT

Edited by Thomas Reynolds

Trekking Out the Big Apple

By Elio Lleo

Convention season is in full swing and New York Comic Con is next. Starting October 7th and ending October 10th, this four day event usually has stuff for everyone! Unique to this year’s presentation is hybrid participation: not only are organizers reducing the total number of attendees, you can also purchase a virtual ticket that will give you access to some of the panels right from the comfort of your own home.

But what’s so special about NYCC? As of right now, Paramount+ is slated to present at least two panels: on Saturday, October 9th at 12:45 pm the cast and producers of Star Trek: Discovery take the Empire Stage. Then on Sunday, October 10, Star Trek: Prodigy will premiere its first episode along with a panel.

But that’s not all–join the Roddenberry Podcast Network as we present a panel titled “Star Trek’s Guide to Community.” I’ll be there along with Kennedy and Sue from Women at Warp! That’s happening Saturday, Oct 9th at 2:15 pm.

There’s also a Hallmark presentation with new Trek ornaments, a virtual only panel with the folks behind the new Star Trek Magazine, and even Bill Shatner will be there on Thurs, October 7th. 

Wilson Cruz Harassed During Star Trek Day

By Elio Lleo

When it comes to communities, even Star Trek’s can be incredibly divisive. The majority of the time, it’s about NuTrek vs older Trek, who the better first officer is, or which ship is cooler. However, there are times when things can get dark and people start to show their true colors–like one fan who was offered the privilege of attending the Star Trek Day celebrations in person. Long story short, at one point during the event, while Wilson Cruz was on stage, someone in the audience yield out a homophobic slur. According to reports, no one did anything about it. The guest was not removed nor have they been identified (yet). With incredible grace and patience, Wilson continued on and later took to Twitter to address the matter.

Although he may not have wanted to draw so much attention to the matter, we want to take a moment to remind you–our listeners–that tolerance for the bigoted has its limits. When you see something, say something. Learn ways on how to be the best ally you can be for people who are marginalized on a daily basis. If you’re on social media and someone goes on a hate-filled rant, step up. It’s the inaction of those with the means to stand up to injustices that empower those who want to watch the world burn.

[If you don't think this belongs in Trek, then there's the airlock. Help yourself.–Ed.] Image: ViacomCBS, via StarTrek.com

IP Theft, the Sincerest Form of Flattery

By Cat Hough

On Monday, we were treated to the big uniform reveal by General Jay Raymond, Chief of Space Operations for Space Force who tweeted, "Every winning team needs a uniform!.I’m excited to share the new look with you today." And to no one’s surprise, the Twitterverse immediately noticed some striking similarities to some other uniforms that we are quite familiar with. They were described by one person as "a blend of the Star Trek Enterprise dress uniform, but with the Mirror Universe diagonal." 

[I am voluntarily putting this into my own shownotes for your edification, dear listener. You owe me.–Ed.]

Josh Weinstein, a veteran writer for The Simpsons and Futurama, said the uniform reminded him of the ridiculously tight outfits worn by Zapp Brannigan; Movies in Focus hopped on the satirical bandwagon with the image of an Imperial Star Destroyer officer from the original Star Wars trilogy. "These new Space Force uniforms are looking great," jokes the caption.

Quick News Roundup

Here are a few headlines that we didn’t discuss but might interest you.

• Reuben Klamer, the designer of the original Starfleet phaser rifle for the original series of Star Trek, passed away at the age of 99, according to the Toy Association. Klamer also designed props for other shows, including a gun for the hit 1960s series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. 

STAR TREK GAMING NEWS

Edited by Thomas Reynolds

PSA: She Canna Take Any More, Cap’ns!

By Thomas Reynolds

To every thing there is a season–and in Cryptic’s opinion, the season for Windows 7 is long past. Starting February 15, 2022, anyone still using the 10-year-old OS (seriously, not even Microsoft supports it anymore) won’t be able to patch or log into STO and Neverwinter. Only Windows 8 and 10 (with the superior 64-bit intellect) will have a home on the final frontier. DirectX 10 support is also getting ejected like a spent warp core on February 15th, with both games requiring Feature Level 11 or higher. That means your computer needs to have one of the following video card chipsets to play:

• NVidia GeForce GTX 400 or better
• ATI/AMD Radeon HD 5000 or better
• Intel HD Graphics 4000 or better

Given all the fun and excitement of buying graphics cards these days, if your current card isn’t up to the task...well, godspeed.