TF01 3,Q and A 4,Edited by Simon Plumbe Q & A ------- What's happening in this issue? First we get a good selection of readers letters and now we have plenty of questions submitted as well! Well, here goes... Q. Are there any plans for an AGA version of TFF? A. In a word, no. It takes us long enough to produce a standard version of TFF for all Amigas and the extra time taken to produce an AGA specific version would only make things more difficult for us here at Infinite Frontiers. As you will see from most issues of TFF now, our disks are pretty much full to capacity so we also simply don't have enough disk space to create AGA versions of all the images. To do an AGA version of this particular issue would need 5 or 6 disks and I'm sure most people wouldn't be too pleased about having to pay anything up to £8 or £9 for a copy, no matter how good it is! It would also cause an administrative nightmare for us. If someone ordered a copy of TFF, how would we know which version to send and how would we deal with our existing subscribers, some of whom are AGA owners? Another problem for us would be financial. At the moment, every dealer receives their master copies of TFF free of charge. Now if we were to produce an AGA version as well as a version that will run on ALL Amigas, then our production costs for each issue would more than double and we're on a low budget as it is! However, saying all of the above, we WILL be including some AGA artwork/animations in future issues of TFF and we may released the odd AGA slideshow so keep your eyes open... Q. When did Voyager start shooting, and when are we likely to see it? A. Filming on Voyager started back in September and, as with Deep Space Nine, the show premiered back in January with a full length 26 episode season. See the Voyager section in this issue for a full review of the pilot and the first few episodes. It won't be released on video until June '95 and it will broadcast on satellite in the autumn. There is no news as to a date for the BBC as yet. Q. How many seasons of Deep Space Nine are there likely to be? A. At the moment the cast are contracted for 7 seasons, although if the shows ratings fall it could be cancelled at any time. If Voyager is really successful and DS9 starts to falter, then we could realistically see DS9 end within a year or two. However, going by the quality of the third season so far, it looks as if DS9 will last until the end of its natural TV life. Q. Are we likely to see a DS9 movie? A. Again, it's unknown at the moment, but if DS9 does run for a full 7 seasons then I see no reason why Paramount won't turn the show into a series of movies as it is bound to make them money and, at the end of the day, that's all they're really interested in. Q. It has been said that Babylon 5 was rejected by Paramount, who then proceeded to make Deep Space Nine and that DS9 is a copy of Babylon 5, and not the other way around as we would like to believe. Is this true? A. From what I have heard, Babylon 5 WAS pitched to Paramount, but don't forget that Rick Berman and Michael Piller (who created DS9) don't have any involvement in the buying of new shows for the studio, so they would not have been in the position of knowing about Babylon 5 to allow them to steal ideas. In reality I think that both shows were probably conceived at around the same time, but the creators of both of them don't want to admit to it!! I would say that it was pure coincidence. Q. Who are the "Dominion" that the Infinite Frontiers convention are named after? A. The Dominion is a race that lives in the Gamma Quadrant who make their first appearance at the end of Season 2 of Deep Space Nine in the episode "The Jem Ha'Dar". The race can be best described as territorial, brutal, and deadly. Over the coming months, the Dominion are quite likely to become DS9's equivalent to the Borg, only MORE powerful!!! Q. Is it possible for you to put in your magazine a list of the names of the remaining episodes in the seventh season? A. For a complete list of all the Trek episodes to date, just look at the CIC Video guide in this issue which has every episode from Classic Trek, the Animated Series, TNG and DS9 right up to the very last TNG episode and to the end of DS9's second season. Q. Is it true that the last episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation is going to be double length? If so, does this mean that it will be a two parter, or will it just go against the vein of all other Trek episodes? A. The episode in question, "All Good Things" which aired in the States back in May '94 and released on video in October, was produced as a single, 90 minute story, rather like a TV Movie in the same was as "Encounter At Farpoint". However, it has since been edited into two 45 minute episodes to be shown when repeated. For the video release here in the UK, the two-parter was released first, later followed by the 90 minute version as part of a TNG Collectors Edition cassette released back in December. Q. Can you tell me what has happened to Ensign Ro and Alexander in recent TNG episodes? They seem to have disappeared! A. Have no fear! If you see the latter episodes from Season 7 they both appear although Ro only turns up in one story ("Preemptive Strike") as she left the series some time ago. Q. What does NCC stand for? A. Well, we've covered this one before, but if memory serves correctly, it stands for Naval Construction Class. Q. What are the relations between the Cardassians and other races like e.g. with the Federation, Romulans, Ferengi and Klingons? A. From what we've seen, the position with the Federation is one of a forced peace. They are no longer at war with each other, but they certainly don't trust one another. With the Romulans, it's never really been covered. In fact, I don't remember seeing any instance where an episode has touched upon the Cardassian/Romulan relationship. I'd say that the Ferengi are tolerated by them. No one really trusts a Ferengi, although the Cardassians are likely to deal with them if they have no other choice. Finally, the Klingons. I would say that the Kilngons generally wouldn't deal with the Cardassians as they wouldn't feel that they act in an honourable way, although I wouldn't be surprised to find Klingons like Lursa and B'Etor who would deal with anyone to suit their own needs. Any more questions? Send them in to the usual address!