Beyond the Final Frontier - A Star Trek Podcast

Rich Matthews, Ian Spelling, Toby Weidmann

'Beyond the Final Frontier' brings together three storied Star Trek veterans for an ongoing mission to celebrate the vast Trek universe. Host Rich Matthews, former senior editor and 20+year contributor to the official Star Trek Magazine and current Trekademic, is joined by his bridge crew: the renowned Ian Spelling, entertainment journalist who has covered Star Trek extensively since the late 1980s for the New York Times, Starlog Magazine, and the official Star Trek Communicator, before editing StarTrek.com for a decade, and Toby Weidmann, former editor of the official Star Trek Magazine, BAFTA comms wizard and launch editor of the official Walking Dead Magazine. Each episode, our trio shocase and discuss favorite episodes, themes, characters – everything Trek! – in depth, sharing insights from their decades of experience covering the franchise. From beloved moments to Trek history and developments in the modern era, plus occasional special guests joining the voyage... Grab your tricorder and prepare to beam aboard as we boldly go Beyond the Final Frontier!

  1. 4 days ago

    BFF#40: Top 7 Star Trek TV Directors Ranked!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: Rich, Ian and Toby step behind the camera to rank their Top 7 directors of Star Trek TV episodes – and one of them spends the entire episode racked with guilt over the stone-cold legend he left off his list (only for another host to crown that very man his number one)! Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect animated series to be ruled out on a technicality, a suspicious surplus of white men (it was the 80s), trailblazer Gabrielle Beaumont, the myth of "two takes Frakes", a director so mysterious the internet has little record of him, and a spooky three-way tie at number three. Plus: Ian's mortifying tape-recorder disaster on the set of The Masterpiece Society, why Aaron Spelling is (probably) no relation, and the director who married his third wife at 90. Let us know what we got right, what we got wrong, and who we criminally left out! Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF#40: Top 7 Star Trek TV Directors Ranked!

  2. 10 Aug

    BFF#39 - Top 7 Dreams & Nightmares on Star Trek!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: Rich, Ian and Toby head into the Trek subconscious to rank their Top 7 dreams, nightmares and fantasies – and immediately start arguing about what actually qualifies as one, disqualifying several stone-cold classics before a single pick has been made! Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect "rules quibbling" on an industrial scale (Ian's list of seven somehow reaches 13), hard numbers on which series dreams the most and which one doesn't dream at all, false awakenings, an evil clown, Cirque du Soleil, holodeck Freud and more. Rigoletto, Fellini and Polanski all get name-checked, so consider this your culture for the week! Let us know what we got right, what we got wrong, and what you'd like us to cover next. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF#39 - Top 7 Dreams & Nightmares on Star Trek!

  3. 2 Aug

    BFF#38: VEGAS BABY – DR TREK IS BACK! Top 5 Canon Retrofits with Larry Nemecek

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: On the eve of Star Trek's biggest 60th birthday party at the Rio in Las Vegas, Rich and Ian pack their tricorders for Sin City and our trio mark the occasion by welcoming back fellow Khaaaan-goer, the one and only Larry "Dr. Trek" Nemecek, for a countdown of the Top 5 canon retrofits, those moments when Star Trek (sometimes...) quietly reached back into its own past and rewrote it. Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect a proper deep dive with the author of the Next Generation Companion into the fine art of the fudge: the in-universe repair jobs, the rules quietly redrawn behind the audience's back, and the contradiction the franchise has pointedly decided it will never, ever explain. Plus a number one that reframes rather more than a single episode. Let us know what we got right, what we got wrong, and what you'd like us to cover next. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! Get more from Dr Trek at: https://larrynemecek.com/ https://www.youtube.com/@LarryNemecekTrekland  BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF#38: VEGAS BABY – DR TREK IS BACK! Top 5 Canon Retrofits with Larry Nemecek

  4. 13 Jul

    BFF#37: We review the JJ Abrams' Kelvin Star Trek movies!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: Rich, Ian and Toby beam into the Kelvin Universe to tackle J.J. Abrams' big-screen reboot trilogy – Star Trek (2009), Into Darkness and Beyond – debating the good, the bad and the Khan of it all. Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect lens flares, red matter, and a black hole's worth of timeline debate — from a recast crew that shouldn't have worked (but did) to a villain reveal that definitely didn't fool anyone. The trio go deep into the weeds on what the reboot got gloriously right, where it stumbled into the warp core, and whether Beyond was the course correction the franchise deserved. Plus: strong opinions on Karl Urban's McCoy, and at least one hill somebody is prepared to die on. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF#37: We review the JJ Abrams' Kelvin Star Trek movies!

  5. 6 Jul

    BFF#36 - Top 7 Double Episodes of Star Trek!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: Rich, Ian and Toby rank their favourite two-part Star Trek episodes — no season premieres, no finales, and a "part one and two" rule that gets stretched, bent, and openly mutinied against within minutes. Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect Nazi holodecks, moral event horizons, a pirate ship, a legendary interrogation scene, and a genuinely heated three-way stand-off for the number one spot that ends with accusations of hindsight, nostalgia bias, and someone being politely called wrong on air. Plus: unexpected Hugo Award trivia and a fan-mail story that actually paid off. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF#36 - Top 7 Double Episodes of Star Trek!

  6. 29 Jun

    BFF35: Top 7 Trek TV Villains!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier: Rich, Ian and Toby turn to the dark side and count down their favourite villains from across the Star Trek TV-verse – small-screen baddies only, so the film-only foes (no Kruge, sorry) are sitting this one out. Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com | Instagram – @beyondffpod | Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier Expect Jeffrey Combs' gloriously unctuous Weyoun, Voyager's Seska, a serial-killing TOS femme fatale with serious daddy issues, the baddest of all the "badmirals", Brad Dourif's chilling Lon Suder, the Borg Queen, Peter Weller going full xenophobe in Enterprise, and Brent Spiner's evil twin Lore – before the inevitable happens and Deep Space Nine swallows the top of the list whole (but with who?!). Toby imposes a brave one-villain-per-series rule (which still can't stop DS9 winning), and a certain infamous augment lands lower than you'd expect... Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek-universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    BFF35: Top 7 Trek TV Villains!

  7. 23 Jun

    Ep34: Top 5 Opening Titles & Theme Tunes with Kate O'Shaughnessy!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier podcast: Rich, Ian and Toby get tuneful – and call in some actual musical backup – as they count down the greatest main title themes in all of Star Trek, the fanfares, marches and one deeply controversial power ballad that have been getting under our skin for sixty years. They're joined by Irish drummer and content creator Katie O'Shaughnessy of Lyterian, who brings a real musician's ear to a ranking the boys are otherwise prepared to conduct entirely by humming. Expect a healthy debate about whether a vocal theme even counts as a theme (the jury says no, sorry Enterprise), the dawning realisation that the beloved Next Gen music is secretly Jerry Goldsmith's Motion Picture march wearing a trenchcoat – and that fans once accused him of stealing his own tune – plus Alexander Courage's eight little notes turning up in literally everything, the First Contact theme reborn in Picard Season 3, Cliff Eidelman going full Stravinsky, Nami Melumad making history, and Russell Watson, Rod Stewart and Patch Adams all somehow entering a Star Trek conversation. Plus a number one that everyone seems to agree is really two themes in one. Let us know your thoughts on our rankings, what you think we got right, or wrong, and what you'd like to see us cover next. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! Engage(!) with us: Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com Instagram – @beyondffpod Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    Ep34: Top 5 Opening Titles & Theme Tunes with Kate O'Shaughnessy!

  8. 15 Jun

    Ep33: Top 7 Shocks & Twists in Star Trek!

    This week on Beyond the Final Frontier podcast: Rich, Ian and Toby brace for impact as they count down their Top 7 Shocks and Twists in all of Star Trek – the heel-turns, gut-punches and out-of-nowhere deaths and surprises that left them reeling. Expect a debate over whether the films even count (Toby's only counting the series), a suspicious amount of overlap that suggests the boys share the same three traumas, and a parade of picks: Lorca's Mirror Universe reveal, Sisko deciding he can live with it, the slow violation of Picard into Locutus, the casual murder of Tuvix, a holodeck nightmare, Bashir unmasked as a changeling, and a beloved starship blown to bits. Plus the death of Spock, three different number ones nobody can agree on, a single Picard tear that Ian still refuses to buy (so he polls an AI to settle it mid-recording), and a lengthy detour through choir school, dropped testicles and the Enterprise theme – which Toby maintains is the biggest shock of all. Let us know your thoughts on our rankings, what you think we got right, or wrong, and what you'd like to see us cover next. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe! Engage(!) with us:  Email – beyondffpod@gmail.com Instagram – @beyondffpod Facebook – /BFF: Beyond The Final Frontier BEYOND THE FINAL FRONTIER sees three entertainment journalists, who have written about Star Trek for decades, bringing their extensive geek universe knowledge and longtime camaraderie to the podcast world. Each episode, Rich, Ian and Toby explore a unique topic from across the Trek-verse, discussing everything from their personal Trek favourites to the ongoing cultural impact of the science fiction phenom.

    Ep33: Top 7 Shocks & Twists in Star Trek!
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5
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

'Beyond the Final Frontier' brings together three storied Star Trek veterans for an ongoing mission to celebrate the vast Trek universe. Host Rich Matthews, former senior editor and 20+year contributor to the official Star Trek Magazine and current Trekademic, is joined by his bridge crew: the renowned Ian Spelling, entertainment journalist who has covered Star Trek extensively since the late 1980s for the New York Times, Starlog Magazine, and the official Star Trek Communicator, before editing StarTrek.com for a decade, and Toby Weidmann, former editor of the official Star Trek Magazine, BAFTA comms wizard and launch editor of the official Walking Dead Magazine. Each episode, our trio shocase and discuss favorite episodes, themes, characters – everything Trek! – in depth, sharing insights from their decades of experience covering the franchise. From beloved moments to Trek history and developments in the modern era, plus occasional special guests joining the voyage... Grab your tricorder and prepare to beam aboard as we boldly go Beyond the Final Frontier!

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