Book It With Dayton Ward

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Tonight, Star Trek Prodigy adds another Voidur alum, Star Wars Book News, and Five Questions with author Dayton Ward. All that more on the sci-fi edition of Multiverse Tonight. Comic books, sci-fi, fantasy, and more. If you're looking for a roundup of geeky news, you're in the right place. This is Multiverse Tonight! And here's our host, Thomas Townley. Hello everyone, and welcome to episode 145 of Multiverse Tonight. I'm of course your host, Thomas Townley. And uh I don't really have a lot to start the show with today. Um if uh you notice I s if if if I sound different today, it's because I uh actually upgraded uh my uh focusrite uh in in interface with my microphone, so uh yeah, there's that. That's a nice it's a it's a nicer unit. Um I got from sweetwater.com. Uh I recommend ordering from them. They have the best frickin' customer service. They'll call you before they send it, they'll call you after you s after they send it. They will, you know, they are the nicest people out there, so I do recommend sweetwire.com for your microphone needs. They're mainly uh a music supply store, but they do have a lot of good microphones and you know stuff that that's useful for podcasting as well. Um other than that, not really a lot to talk about at the top of the show here. So let's go on to the Star Trek News. And we begin Star Trek News today with William Shatner, who will meet space as part of Blue Origin's new Shepherd NS-18 crew on October 13th. Now he'll be joined by Chris Boshian, uh Blue Origin's VP of Mission and Fly Operations, Audrey Powers and Glenn DeVri DeVries. The nine-year-old actor said in the press release, quote, I've heard about space for a long time. I'm taking the opportunity, I see it for myself. What a miracle. Now Shatner will be the oldest man to ever go into space, and the date for the launch was originally the twelfth, but was delayed a day due to weather. So you know, let's let's just hope hope that makes it back to Earth. I don't I don't think Jeff Bezos and and Amazon would uh love it if they they were responsible for killing William Shatner. So you know cross your fingers. Now uh this of course did not go without parody, as uh on the Saturday on the season premiere of Saturday Night Live, Owen and Luke Wilson teamed up to uh spoof Jeff Bezos with a Star Trek spin-off. The brothers played Jeff and his brother Mark in Star Trek Ego Quest, a Star Trek series about the Bezos' brothers wasting time in space while piloting a penis-shaped vessel. Now uh on to news about uh shows. Star Trek Prodigy was featured at the New York Comic-Con this past weekend, and it was announced that David Diggs, Jamil Jamila Jamil, Jason Alexander, and Robert Beltran have joined the season one voice cast of the show with recurring roles. Now Diggs will play Commander Tysis, Jamil will voice Ensign Asencia, Alexander will voice Dr. Noom, and Beltran will reprise his Star Trek Voyager role, albeit with a new rank, Captain Shikote. Prodigy will be premiering on October 28th with a one-hour premiere episode titled Lost and Found. Also, at New York Comic Con was a panel for Star Trek Discovery. Season four sees Burnham and crew face a gravitational anomaly that threatens the whole galaxy. I'm gonna just bet right here that's only Michael Burnham who knows how to stop it despite the handicap of being several centuries behind in scientific knowledge. Of course, uh season four starts on November eighteenth. Yeah, let's see how many episodes I get through before I'm disgusted and just walk off again. Hey, at least I give it a shot. Anyway, uh let's go to that interview with uh Dayton Ward. Alright, here back at Plant Comic Con 2021 with Dayton Ward. Everybody? Writer super extraordinary.

SPEAKER_03 5:14

Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:15

Well I got buttery up, you know.

SPEAKER_01 5:18

So uh what have you been doing in the intervening century since we've last been here? Oh, the the the century that was 2020? Yeah. Uh well, I mean, thankfully I was able to keep working throughout the whole mess last year. So I continue to write, continue to publish. Uh I'm still doing some consulting work for CBS, so I I stay busy. Oh, excellent.

SPEAKER_02 5:42

Well, since we've since we've interviewed several times, you know, we've covered questions, you know, it's no use, you know, going over the same road again and again and again.

SPEAKER_01 5:52

Yeah, we've been here a few times.

SPEAKER_02 5:53

Um I have my decks of questions from Pod Dex. Okay. So we're gonna play a little game. All right. Five questions. Five questions. Uh first off, pick number between one and four. Three. Three. Alright. Oddly enough, Dayton picked uh Kevin picked the same one.

SPEAKER_01 6:12

I'm just trying to figure out how the numbers wait, unless you're going left to right or right to left. Okay. Yeah, this is one this is one, two, three, three. Oh, I gotcha. All right.

SPEAKER_02 6:21

So we'll shuffle the deck. Poorly I might add. All right.

SPEAKER_01 6:40

Truly randomized.

SPEAKER_02 6:41

Yep. All right. Question one. What is the main thing that influences your decisions?

SPEAKER_01 6:47

The main thing that influences my decisions is it something that will hurt someone if I do something or if I don't do something? The impact to other people is is how I view my decisions. That is a that's a fair, fair uh idea.

SPEAKER_02 7:05

All right, let's go. Question number two. Uh, which magazine would you like to be on the cover of?

SPEAKER_01 7:14

Ah, wow, that's a good one. I never gave it any thought. I'd like to be Times Person of the Year, but we know that's not gonna happen, right? So maybe some science fiction like you know, if Starlog was still around, I'd want to be on the cover of Starlog. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 7:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:29

I mean, I don't see myself on like Playgirl or anything, so we're gonna Or Sports Illustrated for the swimsuit issue. How's that?

SPEAKER_02 7:40

Huh? I just used that one, so let's use that one. If you could bankrupt one person in your company, who would it be?

SPEAKER_01 7:46

Donald Trump. Yes. Times four.

SPEAKER_02 7:52

Or not political here, so not politically speaking.

unknown 7:57

Shh.

SPEAKER_02 7:59

Alright. Let's go down a little bit more here. Like be I'd like to be random. Uh question four. If you were in charge, what three items would you have in the office vending machine?

SPEAKER_01 8:09

Ooh, that's a fantastic answer. Or a fantastic question. Oh, three things in the vending machine. Uh, Mountain Dew for me. Um Twizzlers, and um, I guess we'll try something healthy. Hang on. Uh Apples, green Garani Smith apples.

SPEAKER_02 8:31

Excellent. All right, let's go. Sounds like a good mix. Sounds like a good mix. Alright, question four. What is something in life you really have an appreciation for that most people just don't?

SPEAKER_01 8:52

Wow, that's a really good question. Um I don't know. Uh quiet time at the end of the day. I like sitting outside and and just unwinding at the end of the day, letting the world go on without me for a while. Take down time. So energy or time for that. They seem to be busy doing something, and I'm like, you know what? It's okay to sit and do nothing once in a while.

SPEAKER_02 9:16

That is an excellent answer. Good job. Let's see, that was what for. Alright, let's. Our final question. Draw and roll. Were you ever really passionate about something and then suddenly lost interest? If so, what was it?

SPEAKER_01 9:33

Wow, that's another good one. This is this is hard. Um, you know what? I was a software developer for 25 years. And I thought that was what I was gonna do for my entire working life. Because I loved doing it. And then I eventually just fell out of love with it because I fell in love with writing. So I don't do software development anymore. I gave it up to be a writer.

SPEAKER_03 9:54

All right.

SPEAKER_01 9:55

Well, Dayton, thank you for playing our game. Is there anything you want to promote? Uh go to my website, DaytonWard.com. That way that's the short answer instead of trying to tell you about all the cool books that I write and hopefully sell.

SPEAKER_02 10:08

Alright, Dayton. We will see you around the galaxy hopefully uh in April next year. I will be here.

SPEAKER_03 10:14

Alright, thank you.

SPEAKER_02 10:23

And we're back from that uh Comic-Con Memory. Now, Dayton's new book, Star Trek Coda Book One, Moments Asunder, is out now on uh store shelves, so go over to Amazon or Walmart.com or wherever you buy your books and uh pick up a copy. Now let's go on to the Star Wars news.

SPEAKER_00 10:49

Roger, Roger.

SPEAKER_02 10:51

And uh Star Wars News will be rather short today. Uh Disney World's Star Wars cosplay hotel, Star Wars Galactic Cruiser, will open on March 1st, 2022, with reservations starring on October 28th. Now, Disney Vacation Club members, uh, Disney pass holders and Disney Visa Card members will be given the first crack at a stay. And uh please go to uh I think it was two episodes ago or an episode ago, uh, where I outlined the uh cost and and everything you get to go in that overpriced Star Cruiser. Yeah. I think William Shatner's Voyage into Space is probably cheaper. George Lucas is getting his own Black Series action figure. The toy entitled George Lucas in Star Stormtrooper disguise will be a six-inch figure with a removable helmet and blaster. The figure will be out next year for the 50th anniversary of Lucas's company, Lucasfilm. Now, in a press statement, Vicky Stratford's senior director of product design at Hasbro said, quote, When the opportunity came to design the George Lucas figure, we were especially excited for this project. This figure is just one of the many ways we can honor his legacy for years to come, and we hope fans cherish it as much as we did. Unquote. Now, of course, this is not the first time George has been immortalized in a stormtrooper outfit. A 3 3 quarter inch one was made way back in 2006. Now we close out the Star Wars news with some book news. First off, there's Star Wars Shadow of the Sith by Adam Christopher, which comes out on June 28th, 2022, which is available for pre-order now. And the log line for this reads The Empire is dead. Nearly two decades on from the Battle of Endor, the tired remains of Palpine's forces have fled to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. But for the heroes of the New Republic, danger and loss are ever present companions. Even in this newly forged era of peace, Jedi Master Luke's Skywalker is haunted by visions of the dark side, foretelling an ominous secret growing somewhere in the depth of this of space on a dead world called Exigol. The disturbance in the force is undeniable, and Luke's worst fears are confirmed when his old friend, Lando Calyzian, comes to him with reports of a new Sith menace. After his daughter was stolen from his arms, Lando searched the stars for any trace of his lost child, but every new rumor only led to dead ends and fading hopes until he crossed paths with Ochi of Bestoon, a Sith assassin tasked with kidnapping a young girl. Ochi's true moes remained shrouded to Luke and Lando, for that on Junkyard Moon, the mysterious envoy of the Sith Eternal has bequeathed a sacred dagger to the assassin, promising that it will give him answers to the questions that have haunted him since the Empire fell. In exchange, he must complete a final mission, return to Exegal with the key to the Sith's glorious rebirth, the granddaughter of Darth Sidious himself, Rey. As Ochi hunts Rey and her parents to the edge of the galaxy, Luke and Landom race into the mystery of the Sith's lingering shadow and aid a young family running for their lives. Next off is Star Wars Brotherhood by Mike Chen. It'll be released on May 10th, 2022, and its log line is The Gal the Clone Wars have begun. Battle lines are being drawn throughout the galaxy. With every world that joins the Separatists, the peace guarded by the Jedi Order is slipping through their fingers. After the explosion devastates Kalu Nimodi, Namudia, the jewel of the Trade Federation, the Republic is blamed and the fragile neutrality of the peace is threatened. The Jedi dispatch Obi Wan Kenobi, who have the order's most gifted diplomatic minds to investigate the crime and maintain the balance that has begun to dangerously shift. As Obi Wan investigates with the help of a historic Nemotean guard, he finds himself working against the separatists, who hope to draw the planet into their conspiracy, and senses the sinister hand of Aj Ventris in the mists that cloaked the planet. Amid the brewing chaos, Anakin Skywalker rises to the rank of Jedi Knight, despite the mandate that Obi Wan travel alone and his former master's insistence that he listen this time. Anakin's headstrong determination means nothing can stop him from crashing the party, and bringing along a promising but conflicted Yunling, once a Padwan to Obiwan. Anakin now finds himself on equal but uncertain footing with the man who raised him. The lingering friction between them increases the danger for everyone around them. The two knights must learn a new way to work together, and they must learn quickly to save Kadonimodia and its people from the fires of war. To overcome the threat they face, they must grow beyond Master and Apprentice. They must stand together as brothers. And finally, Star Wars Stories of Jedi and Sith, edited by Jennifer Hedley, released with the release date of January 7th, 2022. And it's log line reads The Brave Jedi, the devious Sith. These iconic heroes and villains embody the struggle between light and dark that is the very at the very heart of Star Wars. In this exciting middle great middle great anthology, tend to claim authors imagine all new tales for some of the saga's most p popular characters. From Luke Skywalker to Darth Vader, from Obi-Wan to Azventure Obi-Wan Kenobi to Az Venturous, and beyond, complete with beautiful spot illustrations. Epic standoffs, cunning plots, courageous action, and ruthless anger are all here in the showcase of the enduring power of one of the greatest movie sagas of all time. Included stories of the following authors Rosanne Roseanne A. Brown, Sarwat Kachata, Delilah S. Dawson, Tessa Gratin, Michael Cog, Sam Meggs, Michael Mordec Moricai, Alexugara, Vet Vera Strang, Karen Strong with illustrations by Jack Bartok. I guess we have one more here in the listening. A Star Wars Padawan by Kirsten White with the release date of july twenty sixth, twenty twenty two. Its log line reads Obi-Wan Kenobi really wants to be a good Padawan. The best Padawan even, but that's he feeling more and more impossible with this new master, Qui-Gon Jin. All of Obi-Wan's friends are off training to be real Jedi, getting mission experience while he's still on Kurosan, practicing his forms and sitting in silent complic compli comp contemplation. Ever since Qui-Gon's former master Doku left the order, it feels like Qui-Gon has been too busy trying to connect with the force and arguing with the Jedi Council to properly train his Padawan. When Obi-Wan finally convinces Qui-Gon to take him on a mission to a remote planet once explored by an ancient Jedi, his master doesn't show up the morning they are to leave, so Obi-Wan impulsively takes it on by himself. Upon arriving on a mysterious lush planet, he encounters a group of teenagers with no adult supervision and who all seem to have some connection to the force. Free from the constraints of the order, Obi-Wan joins them in their daring adventures, but the Padwan side of him keeps questioning the teen's strange relationship to the Force, and to the verdant planet around them, and what all of it me might mean to his future. Obi-Wan will test the limits of his relationship to the Jedi and to the Force with his exciting yet soulful exploration of one of Star Wars most enduring heroes. And uh now let's go on to the geek news. And we begin the geek news today. William Shatner twice in twice in one episode, yeah. William Shatner. Uh his post trek book series, Tech War, will be remade into a mixed reality adult animated series from Pure Imagination Studios. The series will be developed and written by Matt Michnovitz, uh, who did twenty four and Star Wars The Clone Wars. Uh Tech War is based on Shatner's series of best-selling detective novels, first published in 1989. The novels are set in the year 2043 and follow a former detective in futuristic Los Angeles who was framed for the crime of dealing an illegal mind-altering drug in the form of a biodigital microchip. It possesses a great threat to humanity and has the potential to become a virus that will lead to an unrecoverable future. Now Trek War is being conceptualized as a mixed reality animated series where viewers will be able to participate with the show in different forms of technology via mobile tablets or wearable devices. The series can be uh viewed standalone, but the level of immersion into the show, its characters and technology is enhanced by the ability to become part of the narrative. I never got into William Shatner's Tech War series. But uh, good for him. Apple has renewed sci-fi epic foundation for a second season. The drama from showrunner David S. Goyer, based on Isaac Asimov's trilogy of novels, will get that second act. Goyer said in the statement, quote, Since my childhood, I've dreamed of how Hari Selden and Ito Demersel would look and sound, what termness and trantor would feel like. Now with season two, our audience will get to visit more of Asimov's indelible characters and worlds, including Hobar Mallow, General Bel Rizios, and all the other sons. I'm thrilled that a whole new generation of fans are reading Asimov's brilliant masterwork. We're playing with the long game with Foundation, and I'm grateful to my partners at Apple and Skydance for entrusting me with this epic epic Buckle Up. We're about to fold some serious space, unquote. Now Goyer had previously indicated that he would like the show to run for at least eight seasons. Now, according to Madonna, she was offered a role in The Matrix, telling Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show, quote, I regret that I turned down Catwoman. That was pretty fierce. I also turned on the role in The Matrix. Can you believe it? I wanted to kill myself. That will that's like one of the best movies ever made. A teeny tiny part of me regrets that just that moment one moment in my life, unquote. Well, to think, somewhere in the multiverse, there's a universe where Madonna played opposite Will Smith in The Matrix. Now while we're on The Matrix, uh Matrix stars star Keanu Reeves will be honored by Canada's Walk of Fame as part of the Walks class of 2021. They uh tweeted out, quote, congratulations to our 2021 Canada's Walk of Fame inductees and honorees, broadcast to come this December on CTV. Now uh other inductees include singer-songwriter Julie Black, late blues artist Salome Bey, wrestling star Brett the Hitman Heart, and the Catholic Damian Warner. Now the Matrix Resurrections will open in theaters and HBO Max on December 22nd. Doctor Who's 13th season will begin on Halloween this year. The 13th season will be a one of the will be a one-long story arc and will be called Doctor Who Flux and will help put a cap on Jody Whitaker's tenure as the doctor. The actress will take her bow in 2022 with three feature-length specials that will arrive and the first arriving on New Year's Day. And finally tonight, the new Hellraiser Reboot has cast Sense8 and the L word Generation Q actress, Jamie Clayton, as the new pinhead, a role played originally by Doug Bradley. Clive Barker has also joined the production as a producer. Now the movie has already been shot, but the movie but uh is being produced by Spy Glass Media Group and Hulu and will come out on Hulu later next year. And that brings us to the end of the sci-fi news for today. Now please be sure to check us out on social media. We're at Twitter at multiverse tom. We're also on Facebook and Instagram as well. And if you'd like to uh contribute financially, check out the show notes, visit the Tee Public store, and so much more, head on over to multiverse tonight.com. Now, if you're a subscriber, thank you. Be sure to share us with friends, and if you're brand new to the show, please be sure to subscribe or hit that follow button and leave us with and leave some feedback as well and let me know how we're doing. Now special thanks to Shane Ivers for the intro music and Lobo Loco for the outro theme music and Dayton Ward for that interview. Now thanks for watching the sci-fi edition of Multiverse Tonight. We'll be back in two days with a brand new comic book edition and two weeks with a brand new sci-fi edition. Now please exit the universe in an orderly fashion. Good night. Multiverse tonight is a production of Half Big Jonathan Productions Copyright 2021. All rights reserved