A Review of
Star Trek: Aurora
by Fred Dixon

Star Trek: Aurora is an animated movie set just after the original Star Trek series in "a lawless sector of space." The eponymous Aurora itself is a small merchanter cargo ship. The crew consists entirely of two people: her shapely captain, Kara Carpenter, and her taut Vulcan first mate, T'Ling. Tim Vining, the show’s producer/director/writer, was fascinated with the civilians that Captain Kirk and crew came across. He wondered where they came from and how they came to get there. That’s the inspiration for Aurora, and as a result, we have a fresh approach to Star Trek.

I found the animation of Kara Carpenter to be intriguing. It appears most of the work is concentrated on her. Vining has made this character quite physically attractive (like if Russ Meyer or the guys who did Heavy Metal made Star Trek). T’Ling recalls T’Pol from Enterprise complete with a form-fitting cat suit. T'Ling is not quite as successfully realized as Kara, but is well done. The movement of some of the animated figures echoes Jar-Jar Binks; they sort of shuffle along. The design of the Aurora is consistent with standard Federation starships with two warp nacelles, a saucer section and a lower hull. Voiceover work is good, especially Jeannette Vining’s. She does both Kara and T’Ling.

Spoilers Below

So far the first two parts have been exposition. Part I sets up Kara’s origin. Her family was in the merchant marine as she is now. They were killed when she was a child by an attack from a Romulan Bird of Prey. Part II reveals that Kara survived alone on the crippled freighter by cannibalism. If darkness is what you want, then darkness is what you get here. I’m afraid to ask what may have brought T’Ling to the Aurora. We are bound to find out in the later parts.

This project has been underway since 2006 when the first installment was released. The second was released in 2007. The third is promised for the summer of 2008. The fourth installment is slated for Winter 2008. You find it all at www.auroratrek.com. (Tim is also kind enough to include helpful hints on how to do animated work.) I will update this review as the other parts come out.

Again, the efforts of fanfilm producers are appreciated. The hard work and the love of Trek are evident. The different points of view are, well, fascinating…

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