The Unauthorized Trekker's Guide to the Next Generation and Deep Space Nine

by James Van Hise

Featuring two complete guidebooks in one volume, a reference to the TV series includes details of episodes, biographies of major characters, profiles of actors and actresses, Trek-by-Trek series comparisons, and special effects and make-up geniuses. Original.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Reference

366 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1995

About the author

James Van Hise is an American popular culture historian and comic book author. He had a long connection with the popular fanzine Rocket's Blast Comicollector (RBCC), and was its editor/publisher from 1974 to 1983. He also had a lengthy association with Hal Schuster, owner of New Media Publishing and Pioneer Books. Van Hise is the author of more than ten books, many of them published by Pioneer Books.

Reviews

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

When it was written (pre-internet, era of the almanac) this was probably useful for general information on lead characters and episode synopses. The biggest draw backs are that it doesn’t say anything new if you’ve seen any of the ‘behind the scenes’ or ‘making of’ retrospectives on the DVD sets or Netflix, and it is written as a set of disconnect paragraphs under random headers, so it’s not something that has a lot of coherence about what is or is not included. There also are many quotes that are unattributed and show dynamics that would only make sense (since there is limited context or explanation) if you’re already a fan of the show. Generally speaking, then, hardcore fans and casual fans trying to learn more are both likely to be disappointed with this book. Spend a little time on IMDB or Wikipedia instead and you will find far better context and detail for whatever you are looking to find out.