Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion
The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion (ISBN 978-0-671-50106-8) is a trade paperback released by Pocket Books in 2000. Written by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block, it takes a detailed look at Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and features interviews with actors, writers, directors, producers, makeup artists, and other members of the production staff.
Author | Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block |
---|---|
Illustrator | Richard Oriolo |
Language | English |
Published | 2000 (Pocket Books) |
Media type | Paperback |
Pages | 725 |
ISBN | 0-671-50106-2 |
791.45/72 | |
LC Class | PN1992.77.S7315 E73 2000 |
The project had its genesis in late 1993, when Pocket Books editor Kevin Ryan approached Erdmann and asked him if he would be interested in writing the Companion. Erdmann agreed, and, over the next six years, conducted interviews with a wide range of people involved in the series.
The Companion takes a look at the creative processes behind each season and then has a detailed episode guide. Following each episode entry is the behind the scenes information. The book is 736 pages long, and features numerous black and white pictures.
An unrelated CD-ROM also called the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion (ISBN 978-0-671-31785-0) was released in 1999, and features the scripts for the entire series and the trailers for each episode featuring Don LaFontaine as the announcer, among others.
Reception
Starlog magazine described the book as being a "must for any DS9 fan" and called it "one of the most authoritative companions to any TV program".[1] It highly recommended the book.[1] The review by Stephen Cole in Dreamwatch criticised the book in that the reviewer was of the opinion that Erdmann didn't present it in a balanced manner, saying that he wrote it through "rose-tinted lenses" and that because of this the book became difficult to read.[2] He gave it a score of three out of five.[2] The Log Book.com wrote: "Criticism has been aired condemning the book as being overly pro-DS9. Well, to that I say, 'Duh'. It’s not very often that a book is going to bash with impunity the series it’s covering, or in the case of DS9, compare itself to the other Treks. To be honest, I disagree with this ascertainment of overt bias. In many of the behind-the-scenes sections, the producers openly admit that certain episodes were of less than stellar quality, without offering up pathetic excuses or 'could’ve beens' (at least very often). Naturally, there are certain episodes that the producers defend ('His Way' being a good example) that fans decried. But by and large Ron Moore and Ira Behr know what worked and what didn't and are candid about the whole affair". "Logbook.com". Logbook.com. 2008. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
References
- "Deep Explorations". Starlog. 1 (278): 8. September 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2015.
- Cole, Stephen (October 2000). "TV Spin-Offs". Dreamwatch (73): 87.
External links
- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion at Memory Beta