The Star Trek Encyclopedia, Revised and Expanded Edition: A Reference Guide to the Future

I received my copy of the latest (2016) edition of The Star Trek Encyclopedia today. I own the previous three editions and, after looking over this revised and expanded version, I can make a few observations about how it compares to its predecessors. First of all, you are getting a huge amount of additional material as this edition covers the rest of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager as well as the entirety of Star Trek: Enterprise and the three movies since the prior edition (Nemesis, Star Trek (2009), and Star Trek Into Darkness). There are no articles concerning material from Star Trek Beyond (2016), though, which sort of makes the book already out of date. But I don't mind, both because I'm not crazy about the Kelvin Timeline movies and because a book about an ongoing franchise is bound to have trouble keeping up. As to the material about the Kelvin Timeline, I was surprised to find it integrated into the body of the encyclopedia. The early press release about this edition seemed to suggest that the "Abrams Trek" material would be contained in an Appendix section, separate from the other entries. Instead, Kelvin material is found alongside Prime Timeline stuff, but with separate, parallel articles differentiated by a dot after the entry name. For instance, there are separate entries for "Spock" (prime timeline) and "Spock*" (Kelvin Timeline). The encyclopedia is beautifully laid out inside, although the text is smaller than the prior edition. Illustrations are more numerous and sometimes new. For example, every one of the entries about episodes is accompanied by a picture from the episode. Many of the diagrams of starships have been updated to a CGI-looking image which better captures subtle textures and lighting effects than the older illustrations. The "Remastered" version of The Original Series makes its presence felt as images of ships we never saw in the original version of the show (like Harry Mudd's ship) are illustrated with the remastered series' designs. As to the level of detail in the articles, I noticed that articles about more recent Trek productions (such as Enterprise and the reboot movies) were longer and more in-depth (perhaps irritatingly so) than entries about earlier productions, which are mainly holdovers from the earlier editions. Like the previous editions, you will find appendices (at the end of Volume Two) for Federation/Earth Ships, Ships of the Galaxy, timelines of historical events in the Trek universe and of Star Trek production, Writer and Director Credits for all Trek TV episodes and movies except Beyond and The Animated Series (there are also no encyclopedia entries about TAS, which is not considered canon), and a Cast Appendix. Absent from this edition, however, is the appendix of production personnel, which the previous two editions included. This was slightly disappointing. Also, the appendices showing the different Federation/Earth ships and ships of the galaxy no longer show the illustrations at approximate scale. This is a plus or a minus depending on how you look at it. In sum, this is a great reference for fans of Star Trek. It doesn't have entries for *everything* in Trek (I couldn't find the alien race called the "Harada" mentioned in TNG or "Admiral Fitzpatrick" from "The Trouble with Tribbles."), but it has enough!

Describing the book using the selection choices for fiction is difficult to use when it's a fictional reference book. None the less with the existence of the internet and the online "Star Trek Encyclopedia" wiki/a known as "Memory Alpha" which has incredible sources of information, recaps of episodes, and BTS info a book-set like this seems quaint. But it works very, very nicely. To begin with the thing is massive, weighing a combined 13 lbs the two books are 1.125 inches thick a piece inside a box that itself is an eighth of an inch thick all around. The book has that "reference book smell" common to the type of high-quality, treated, paper used in them. Nice, glossy, pages with easily readable text and high-quality images comprised of both screen caps from the episodes/movies, illustrations of the ships, aliens, clothing, technology and such and large reference tables for the planets, species and numerous other things that make up all of the Star Trek universe. An utter trove of information that's just neat to have in a hard, physical, form. The set encompasses all of Star Trek's 50 years of canonical film and television productions through the 2013's Star Trek: Into Darkness. though the book does make some tangential references to 2016's Star Trek: Beyond and the planned series set to be released in the next couple years. The information referencing events in the movies since 2009's "Star Trek" is called out as being part of "The Kelvin Timeline" to distinguish its events and information from the "Prime Timeline" that makes up the bulk of the Star Trek universe for the last 50 years. Massive book, and lots of information. Needed in a world with Wikis and such? Probably not, but there's something about having a physical copy of something that was created by two heroes in the Star Trek fandom, being a huge part of Star Trek since The Next Generation, in Michael and Denise Okuda. In the reviews/ratings on this page mostly mention older versions of the Star Trek Encyclopedia books that came out years ago; hard to relate them at all to this release.

This is, by a country mile, the most incredible licensed work in the Star Trek franchise, and the most incredible piece of merchandise related to ANY television or film franchise I've ever seen. It is a comprehensive A-Z encyclopedia of almost every person, place, or thing mentioned on screen in all of Star Trek lore, from the Original Series to Star Trek Into Darkness. Thus, it covers all of DS9, Voyager, Enterprise and the first two reboot films. It is the first update to the Star Trek Encyclopedia since the late 1990s. Even then it was an incredible piece of work, but this one puts it to shame. I admire the amount of work and dedication that the Okudas obviously put into this. It had to be a monumental task, but they certainly came through. Physically, it's a beautiful work. There is rather ornate, sophisticated design on the two books that make up the encyclopedia, with beautiful photos of both the original Enterprise and Enterprise-D on the front covers. The pages are of excellent quality, with clear text and beautiful photos throughout. It's hefty, too- it's practically a cinder block! I was surprised by its weight. For Trekkies, or sci-fi fans of any kind, do yourself a favor and get a copy of this. You will not regret it.

“Ever since 1999, one of the questions we've heard most from fans has been, “When will there be a new edition of the Star Trek Encyclopedia?”” - Authors introduction. I have been a huge fan of the Star Trek universe for almost three decades now. Fortunately for me, the formative years of my love affair with the franchise coincided with both The Next Generation's popularity making a beeline for the stratosphere as well as the flashpoint for the release of dozens of coffee table and reference guidebooks; and I was hot on the tail of every single release. Arguably the most significant publication for me was that of the original Star Trek Encyclopedia authored by the Okudas and Debbie Mirek in 1994. I was instantly taken by how well the authors had presented the many facets of the Star Trek universe in that volume and I studied the many illustrations contained within (rendered in greyscale or black and white!) to death, reproducing them over and over again, be it by pencil or paint program on my Atari ST! Ah, simpler times (haha!!). Also, this volume was so much more than a simple A to Z guidebook; most of the entries in the Encyclopedia were fully cross-referenced: For example, reading an entry about the Enterprise-D would no doubt inform you that Dr Leah Brahms had a hand in designing its warp engines; the text for Leah Brahms would be emboldened to indicate to the reader that there was more to learn about that character in her own entry elsewhere in the book. - Not unlike how you'd use Wikipedia, but remember this was 1994. That 1994 edition only offered us entries that were relevant from the pilot episodes of the classic series, through the first six feature films and through to the end of season 6 of Next Gen. and if I recall correctly there was a sniff of Deep Space Nine's first season. So yes, the book was immediately out of date, but ultimately that didn't matter; history records that we were to be gifted with the opportunity of purchasing a full colour, freshly illustrated expanded masterpiece in 1997 and then a slightly topped up edition of that in 1999. Turn the page to 2016; it's been what, 17 years since that last release. There has been so much more Trek history televised beyond that which had been catalogued in that '99 edition of the Encyclopedia and like many fans, I too was begging for an updated release. Then mere weeks into 2016, both startrek.com and trekcore.com confirmed that the Okudas had indeed been working on a new edition and that it was available for pre-order. This was finally happening, so at the first available opportunity I submitted my pre-order to Amazon for what promised to be the most comprehensive showcase of the Star Trek universe ever published; rest assured, it delivers. This book consists of two hard back volumes with the number of pages totalling upwards of a thousand, all housed within a substantial cardboard sleeve; what will surprise you when you first get your hands on it is the realisation of just how heavy it is! The main body of the Encyclopedia is everything that the prior editions were only... well, lots more of it... Every 'live-action' episode and the 12 feature films are dissected, referenced and cross-referenced in intricate detail. Prior to receiving it I was especially curious as to how they were going to tie in all the 'alternate timeline' entries from the Abrams-verse; their solution was simple and doesn't actually interfere with the context of all that was established prior to the new films in any way. Any downsides? - Very few but to me they are completely eclipsed by the incredible achievement that this body of work represents and make no mistake, this is an achievement. I've tried my hand at writing one of these for the Babylon 5 universe using the Star Trek Encyclopedia as mentor and guide. To catalogue all the constituent detail in a series (and commit to doing it the best that you can) is not a mission you can undertake lightly; chipping away at it little by little almost every night, mine took me around six years to complete. But I'll offer you the following: As with the prior editions, you will not find the animated series of Star Trek referenced in this latest edition. Having been accustomed to this choice by the authors in the prior editions I was not at all surprised, nor was I all that put out. What did disappoint me a little was that the appendices in this latest edition no longer includes a directory of production personnel, which for what is supposed to be the definitive issue of this encyclopedia should have really been built upon ALL that came before it and yet the authors opted to lift that section. I can only speculate that the Okudas had more than maxed out their allowable page limit during the drafting process and were thus offered a choice: Either edit out the directory of production personnel or compromise on the main body of the work; obviously they chose the former, which is fair enough in my opinion. There was a handful of pages in both volumes that had red ink splatter on the pages as though the volumes were bound before the print had a chance to dry. Let me impress upon you that this is a thousand-plus page book so I can shrug off a few minor artefacts, but the fanboy in me does take a measure of pride in my library of Trek books, some of which are more than 25 years old; most, if not all are in mint or near-mint condition. The cover art on these two volumes is really cool with pictures of what is arguably Star Trek's most recognisable icons fronting backdrops of matt and gloss (subtly embossed), the detailing being somewhat reminiscent of the circuit panels you'd glimpse on the Enterprise-D or Voyager; it's pretty gorgeous. I really do like that the publishers decided to house these two volumes together in a single sleeve, but it does hold them pretty damned secure. I'm wary of repeatedly removing the volumes from the sleeve and putting them back, over and over; i'm suspicious that it could result in scratches and scuffs on the hardbacks over the long term. And this is a cheap shot but... Obviously with the release of the 2016 Star Trek film: “Star Trek Beyond”, the suggestion that a 4th JJ-Trek film is on the cards and of course the arrival of the new television series “Star Trek: Discovery” due for release next year, this definitive edition of the Star Trek Encyclopedia is already out of date... But really, who cares? - I know some do; but they really shouldn't! To the Okudas I say, I fricken love this thing. Well done! Now, hows about an updated edition of the Chronology? ;)

Trekker o Trekkie... Es algo qué hay que tener. Una verdadera belleza de volúmenes. Se nota que están hechos con amor al tema. MUY recomendado.

É un'opera semplicemente magnifica! Un'opera bellissima e completa, ogni voce é dettagliata in ogni minimo particolare, mi aspettavo grandi cose da questi volumi ed hanno superato ogni aspettativa

parfait

『スタートレック』のテレビと映画のシリーズにかんする事項を網羅した「百科事典」。本書は全編カラーで、写真と図版が豊富に盛り込まれている。 内容は詳細を極めているが、シリーズ中で登場した航宙艦や惑星の呼称や種類を掲載しているなど、「百科」の名に恥じない作りとなっている。 巻末には歴代のテレビシリーズ（Star Trek: Voygerの第五部まで）の毎回の題名と映画シリーズのタイトルが掲載され、出演俳優と役名も記載されるなど、鑑賞の際にも実用的に活用できるだろう。 まさに、「人類未踏」のエンサイクロペディアといえるだろう。