YEAR EIGHT
THE LAST LAUGH
All good things must come to an end...and so must the flight of the USS Explorer. But before that happens, Captain Andy Baxter and crew have some unfinished business. Thirty stories worth, as a matter of fact. So join us for two 15-story runs as the Explorer wraps up its eight years of...exploring. Be there for the ups, the downs, and the sideways stuff. Be there for a biggie-sized chase to the ends of the galaxy as Baxter and company try to track down Alvin Ficker, try to regain their footing and salvage their dignity, and find out that in the end, maybe the dignity thing is a long shot after all...
1. "Learning Curve, Part One" YEAR EIGHT PREMIERE!
Stardate 58011
Lots of questions abound as the Explorer crew gets back to business. How will Captain Baxter handle his first day of classes at Starfleet Academy? Moreover, how will Dr. Browning, way over in the Gamma Quadrant, handle Plato's relatives? And what is Richards doing in his spare time that seems to have him so worn out? Find out as The Vexed Generation kicks off its eighth and final year with "Learning Curve, Part One!"
2. "Learning Curve, Part Two"
Stardate 58016
Ouch. Just when things were going well...well, except for the part about being stuck back in school, Captain Baxter stumbles smack dab into...well, what happened in Part One. And what of Browning, Chaka and Plato? Will Richards get to them in time? And what are Dominion insurgents planning to do with them? And why is Richards looking even more worn out now than he did before?
3. "It's Not Easy Being Green"
Stardate 58027
Being an Orion with a score to settle isn't exactly good times. But being on the Explorer with a couple Orions with scores to settle is even worse. Luckily for the Explorer crew, these Orions aren't exactly the sharpest tools in the shed.
4. "Love, Honor & Evade"
Stardate 58029
Why is Captain Conway visiting the Explorer? Could he actually be homesick? Chances are, he's not, but perhaps it has something to do with his recent divorce. Whatever the case, it's up to Captain Baxter to figure out why he's moping around his former ship, and, on his wife's orders, fix whatever's wrong with him. Unfortunately, there's someone else wandering the ship even more messed up than Conway.
5. "Clash of the Titan"
Stardate 58059
Once upon a time, Kelly Peterman and Deanna Troi hated each other. Thankfully, though, that's all in the past. Or is it? When a confrontation at yet another auspicious book signing rubs Peterman the wrong way, she sets out to show Troi that she doesn't hold grudges. No matter what the cost.
6. "Objects in the Mirror..."
Stardate UNKNOWN
A simple away mission becomes anything but when Commander Richards and Dr. Browning are transported to a horrifying alternate universe. Even more horrifying, this universe isn't the happy universe. But it's an even more disturbing... ALTERNATE-ive.
7. "Happy Trails"
Stardate 58114
Not to be outdone in the disturbing department, the Happys show up to rain terror once more on the Explorer crew. Stuck between a rock and a happy place, what's Baxter to do but gut it out and try to get these two universes to just make up and get along? One thing's for sure, nobody's going to be happy with the way this thing turns out.
8. "The Ballistic Substitute"
Stardate 58171
When an engineering accident accidentally...incapacitates...the third grade teacher, Lt. Commander Hartley is forced to temporarily take over. Will guilt over the accident force Hartley permanently into a life of teaching, or will the students prove so annoying that she's forced to give them an accident of their own? With Lt. Commander Hartley, one can never be certain.
9. "Conway and the Coffee Beanery" Guest-written by Brendan Shust!
Stardate 58210
An epic quest brings together the greatest races in the quadrant for a contest of wit and skill. So why on earth are the Explorer and the Aerostar involved? C'mon, with the word 'coffee' in the title you knew Conway wouldn't miss this story. Or maybe that's because his name is in it. But if Conway's getting a chance for fame and glory, you can bet Baxter won't be far behind...
10. "Follow Your Bliss"
Stardate 58245
Romance is in the air as the Explorer discovers an ancient space object and the Explorer crew discovers that some secrets are best kept, well, secret. How will Lt. Commander Tilleran cope with the news that J'hana may no longer be single? Will Plato win Cadet Sparks away from Lt. Sefelt? Time will tell. Then again, so will the story!
11. "Where, Why & Howie"
Stardate 58270
Counselor Peterman convinces Lt. Sefelt to volunteer to lead the Escort on a supply run, hoping to improve his self confidence and dispel some of his fears. Baxter agrees, grudgingly, to let him go. There's just one catch: Peterman has to go with him.
12. "My Blue Heathen"
Stardate 58299
A trip to Andor to receive an award for Meritorius Killing provides a chance for J'hana and Richards to spend some time away from the Explorer getting to know each other. Unfortunately, J'hana knows next to nothing about dating human males, and must resort to asking Counselor Peterman for assistance. Her answer? Extreme makeover!
13. "For the Rock is Hollow and I Have Touched This Guy" Guest-written by Alan Decker!
Stardate 58320
Baxter and Peterman get an unexpected surprise when their runabout detours into an asteroid belt. What they find there will put Counselor Peterman's training...and Captain Baxter's patience...to the test.
14. "Gorn, But Not Forgotten"
Stardate 58373
Since they handled the recent Andorian situation so well, the Explorer is invited to a summit on Gorn. It goes exceedingly well, until the reprehensible Sirron, the deceased Captain Harth's former love interest and diplomatic attache for the Gorn, realizes the Explorer crew is there.
15. "Wildcards, Part One"
Final story before mid-year break!
Stardate 58375
A revelation about Cadet Ethan Piper leads Captain Baxter to renew his determination to capture the USS Idlewild and bring Alvin Ficker to justice. But as an away team struggles to get aboard the rogue ship and rescue a collection of wayward Starfleet officers and cadets, it becomes increasingly clear that Ficker has no intention of giving up so easily.
STAR TRAKS: THE VEXED GENERATION CHRISTMAS SPECIAL - "Past and Presents"
Stardate 51436
As the holidays come round once again and we all think back to times long past, gather round the hearth and hear a story of the Aerostar crew, shortly after they were thrown into the Delta Quadrant, seven years ago. At the time, it seemed there wasn't much to celebrate. But Counselor Peterman was determined to show that a litlte thing like getting stuck 70,000 light years from home was no reason to feel down in the dumps! Will she succeed in bringing the crew together? Will Captain Baxter succeed in asking Peterman out to the holiday dance? And will everyone have a happy holiday, after all? Find out in Past and Presents, jingling all the, um, way.
16. "Wildcards, Part Two"
Stardate 58376
When last we left the USS Explorer crew, the situation was dire indeed. Baxter, Richards and J'hana attempted to infiltrate the Idlewild, only to discover that Dr. Maura Drake was now working with Alvin Ficker, and if that wasn't bad enough, Richards was Shot and J'hana was immobilized by a nasty Vulcan. On the Explorer, matters weren't much better. Counselor Peterman had just discovered that Ariel Tilleran had been controlling the crew's minds for months, and has now been thrust into command of the Explorer at an extremely inopportune moment.
17. "Conversation Starters"
Stardate 58381
When the Explorer comes calling on an incommunicado communications station, will they find there's more there than meets the eye? Or would it be ear? And speaking of communication, will Tilleran be able to wake J'hana from her catatonic state? Will Peterman figure out what to do with Tilleran? Will Baxter figure out what to do with his crew? Find out as the crew searches for "Conversation Starters."
