By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 11 seconds ago

For better or for worse, the DCU has been taking the time to give secondary characters their own projects. That’s how Supergirl and Clayface got their own films, and James Gunn recently greenlit a TV show featuring Jimmy Olsen and Gorilla Grodd. That’s a very different approach from the MCU, whose success has historically been built on primary characters like Iron Man and Captain America. However, to combat superhero fatigue, Marvel has been trying new things lately, including giving a movie to The Thunderbolts, a kind of in-universe B-team. Now, it seems, they are going a step further and giving a very obscure character his own feature film. 

That character is Nova; he’s part of the Nova Corps, which first appeared onscreen in Guardians of the Galaxy in 2014. Many Marvel fans thought we’d get a solo Nova movie soon afterward, but over a decade later, there has been no film. That’s all about to change, however: Deadline reports that Marvel Studios is working on a solo Nova movie. Even more exciting, the film will be written and possibly directed by Michael Waldrop, who is arguably best known for creating the fan-favorite Loki series.

A Secret Comic Icon

This news comes to us courtesy of Deadline, whose insiders claim that Michael Waldron is currently working on a Nova feature film for Marvel Studios. The insiders claim that this project is in its very earliest stages and has not yet gotten an official green light from the studio. However, should the project get the go-ahead, Waldron will write the script and preferably direct the film. Interestingly, this is a shift in direction for Marvel, which had originally intended to turn Nova into a television show on Disney+.

Originally, Marvel wanted to have Sabir Pirzada write a Nova TV series, but they quietly canceled those plans back in 2025. It’s possible that they canceled this project to avoid any comparisons to the upcoming DCU show Lanterns. The Nova Corps are basically Marvel’s version of the Green Lanterns; thanks to powers from the Nova Force, these space cops can fly, absorb energy, and move fast, and they are more durable than most. The Nova movie will presumably focus on Richard Rider, the warrior who, in the comics, has had many solo adventures and team-ups with the Guardians of the Galaxy.

No Evil Shall Escape His Sight

Michael Waldron is a great choice to write and direct the Nova movie. He has major Marvel experience, including writing Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and serving as showrunner for Loki. Outside the world of tights-and-flights, he is best known as the creator of Chad Powers, a popular Hulu TV show featuring Glen Powell. Done well, Nova could be the next Guardians of the Galaxy: a movie that embraces the cosmic weirdness of this cinematic universe with both humor and style. Speaking of Gunn’s beloved movie, there’s a significant chance that the Nova character will play a major part in future GOTG films. 

While all of this is exciting, it’s worth stressing once again that Nova hasn’t had an official greenlight, much less a release date. Should this movie get the go-ahead from Kevin Feige, it will likely be after Avengers: Secret Wars reboots the MCU at the end of 2027. That reboot is meant to give new life to Marvel, making way for new characters and new adventures. Considering what a major role the Nova Corps played in Guardians of the Galaxy and how important these characters have been in the comics for over half a century, here’s hoping we get to see a big-screen outing that does this underappreciated character justice!

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 22 seconds ago

Lately, I’ve been obsessed with the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise.” This is something of a miracle episode, one which smashed together two very different ideas and had to be assembled by four different writers over Thanksgiving. Understandably, they thought it would be a disaster, but it wasn’t. In fact, “Yesterday’s Enterprise” went on to be one of the best (if not the best) episodes of the entire series. It never seemed like a story that needed any improvement. Nonetheless, the original script reveals a huge missing opportunity at the heart of this episode.

“Yesterday’s Enterprise” is about how a change to reality put Starfleet into a brutal war against the Klingon Empire. In the changed reality, Worf is nowhere to be seen because his people are bitter enemies of the Federation. Interestingly, the original script called for Worf to provide the voice of a Klingon commander attacking the Enterprise-D. That didn’t happen in this Next Generation episode, but Deep Space Nine capitalized on this missing opportunity in a big way. In the wildly sexy DS9 episode “Shattered Mirror,” we see Worf as the galaxy’s absolute kinkiest Klingon commander!

Today Is A Good Day To Dom

The plot of the TNG episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise” is that the Enterprise-C accidentally travels to the present day. Originally, it was destroyed defending a Klingon outpost, which helped the Federation broker peace with these warlike aliens. The ship traveling to the future changed reality, plunging the Federation into a bitter, losing war with the Klingons. Interestingly, the Klingons are mostly a faceless menace in “Yesterday’s Enterprise:” we see the brutal attacks of their ships, but we never see any of their commanders. We simply hear an anonymous Klingon towards the end of the episode, demanding that Captain Picard surrender his ship.

The shooting script for “Yesterday’s Enterprise” suggested that we have a very familiar Klingon voice demanding surrender. This section of the script has a note that reads “Possibly Worf?” Obviously, the writers thought it would be a fun revelation that the Worf of this alternate universe had become a very successful Klingon warrior. Sadly, the episode opted against doing so; years later, though, Deep Space Nine picked up the slack. The DS9 episode “Shattered Mirror” revealed that Worf was a bloodthirsty regent in the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance of the Mirror Universe. He is frightening and effective, but in one way, he is very unconventional.

I’m Sensing Great Freakiness, Captain

You see, Deep Space Nine chose to portray most of the Mirror Universe as outlandishly horny. This is most notable with Kira Nerys, whose alternate reality counterpart is a sexually voracious domme who prances around in a catsuit. Just when we got used to her walking bisexual disaster, “Shattered Mirror” introduced a version of Worf who keeps Garak chained down on the bridge. Like, the Cardassian has an actual collar, complete with a short leash that Worf frequently tugs on! It’s the weirdest petplay this side of Euphoria, and it pops up like a jump scare in the middle of an otherwise family-friendly sci-fi show.

Some Star Trek fans find the Mirror Universe episodes of Deep Space Nine a little too silly. If you don’t mind over-the-top goofiness, though, these stories are a little slice of sci-fi shlock perfection. Plus, one episode, “Shattered Mirror,” deserves extra props for finally showing us Worf as a brutal Klingon commander. His voice was written into the “Yesterday’s Enterprise” script, but Michael Dorn never got to speak the lines. Years later, Deep Space Nine showed us what a human-hating Worf would look like, all while making him the kinkiest Klingon this side of Risa.

Picard’s old buddy collaring a submissive Garak in front of the entire crew? That’s what I call 50 Shades of Earl Grey! 

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 24 seconds ago

Over the years, Star Trek has boldly gone where no franchise has gone before by exploring different ways of telling killer sci-fi stories. We’ve had movies, live-action TV shows, 3D cartoons, 2D cartoons, all of which have been supplemented by entire libraries of books, magazines, and comics. The latter includes some surprisingly good Star Trek manga. Despite that quality, however, we’ve never gotten an official anime. But that didn’t keep the writers and producers of various shows from sneaking in countless references to their favorite shows!

Most of those references are hidden where fans can’t easily see them. For instance, references to shows like Dirty Pair were often written in Okudagrams or on computer monitors in Star Trek: The Next Generation. In one grisly instance, however, an homage to an anime classic was hidden in plain sight. In the episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” Enterprise-C Captain Rachel Garrett is killed, leaving shrapnel sticking out of her body. Look very closely, and you’ll notice something wild about the most prominent piece of shrapnel: it’s the wing from a Super Dimension Fortress Macross model kit.

Death By Anime

In “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” the Enterprise-C accidentally travels forward in time to the present day instead of getting destroyed. This changes reality, making it so that Starfleet is in the midst of losing a war with the Klingons. Picard convinces Enterprise-C captain Rachel Garrett to return to the past, sacrificing herself in the hopes of saving the future. However, Tasha Yar has to take command of the older ship after a Klingon attacks the Enterprise-C. This kills Rachel Garett, and in a notably gruesome scene, we can see her lifeless body pierced by shrapnel.

Believe it or not, that shrapnel has its own bizarre story. According to Star Trek: The Next Generation art department illustrator Rick Sternbach, the shrapnel in Garrett’s head was the wing of a VF-1 Valkyrie model kit from the popular anime series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross. Interestingly, this wasn’t even the first time this model secretly appeared in the show. It was also used (albeit in multiple scales) to create both the desktop version and studio film model of the Constellation-class ship. That’s the same type of ship as the Stargazer, the vessel Picard commanded before becoming captain of the Enterprise-D.

The Most Requested Anime In The Holodeck

While this trivia might seem a little strange, it’s not really that surprising that an anime model kit made multiple prominent Star Trek appearances. The Next Generation writers were big fans of Japanese animation and often hid references to their favorite shows within random episodes. For example, both “A Matter of Perspective” and “Peak Performance” had references to Dirty Pair, a popular anime about a pair of plucky female consultants with a reputation for causing Demolition Man levels of destruction wherever they go. Such Easter eggs reveal how the Trek writers loved anime about a decade before its popularity exploded in the West.

“Yesterday’s Enterprise” may be the best episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. It’s an episode that pulls no punches, killing popular characters like Riker in ways that seem downright shocking. Nobody got a more brutal death than Rachel Garrett, whose body was destroyed by shrapnel. It can be hard to watch, but maybe knowing that she’s got an anime model kit sticking out of her face will make things better. It’s a surreal detail that calls to mind Trek icon William Shatner’s famous episode of The Twilight Zone. “There’s someone on the wing,” he cried. “Something on the wing!”

Yeah, there’s something on the wing, alright: Rachel Garrett’s face!