Welcome back to the Great Derelict and yes, this one's a little self-indulgent. But it's my podcast, so I'm allowed.

Andy is joined by longtime collaborator and friend John Concagh to mark five years of Edge of Midnight, the sprawling, in-universe history of the Federation–Klingon Cold War that began life as a lockdown experiment and quietly grew into something much bigger.

The conversation looks back on how Edge of Midnight evolved from a small writing project into a landmark work of fictional non-fiction: part Star Trek history, part political analysis, part character study. They dig into why the project leans so heavily into the aesthetics and anxieties of the 1960s, how Discovery reshaped the work (sometimes awkwardly), and why treating Star Trek as a changing historical world—rather than a fixed setting—matters.

Along the way they discuss:

• Why Edge of Midnight starts with Discovery but speaks in the language of TOS

• Writing Star Trek as history, not lore

• Klingons as an evolving political system, not a static warrior stereotype

• The importance of characters, bias, and unreliable narrators

• Trusting the audience to join the dots

• And what it means to write Star Trek that embraces risk, ambiguity, and change

It's a candid, funny, and deeply thoughtful conversation about worldbuilding, historiography, fandom, and why freedom is always in peril.

You can find more from John on Bsky: https://bsky.app/profile/badsocialism.bsky.social

and Edge of Midnight here: https://edgeofmidnight.weebly.com/

And you can find more of Andy here:

https://linktr.ee/andy3e

The Great Derelict – 35 Years of The Best of Both Worlds

Thirty-five years ago, Star Trek: The Next Generation changed television forever with The Best of Both Worlds. The Borg returned, Captain Picard was taken, and viewers were left with one of the greatest cliffhangers in TV history: "Mr. Worf… fire."

To mark the anniversary, Andy is joined by Seán Ferrick to look back at the two-parter that cemented TNG as a cultural powerhouse. Together they explore the shock of that first airing, the summer-long speculation, and the way the cliffhanger rippled through television beyond Star Trek. They discuss the lasting trauma of Wolf 359, Riker's long-delayed moment in command, Picard's quiet recovery in Family, and how the episode cast a shadow over every Borg story that followed.

From VHS memories to nostalgia bait, from Gene Roddenberry's waning influence to the enduring power of leaving some horrors unseen, this conversation dives deep into why The Best of Both Worlds still resonates three and a half decades on.

Resistance, as it turns out, was never futile.

FInd Trekculture Retro Ups and Downs for BOBW here: https://youtu.be/K4Z1K8LYnGw

You can find JTVFX's work here: https://www.youtube.com/@JTVFX1

And read 'We Have Engaged the Borg' here: https://wolf359project.com/

And you can find more of Andy here:

https://linktr.ee/andy3e

This week Andy is joined once again by naval historian, author, and long-time friend of the show Claude Berube. With a new Star Trek: Starfleet Academy series on the horizon, they dive into what such an institution might really look like—drawing on Claude's two decades of experience teaching at the U.S. Naval Academy.

They explore questions like:

• How do you balance training officers with providing a wider education?

• Would Starfleet need multiple campuses, or does one Academy in San Francisco make sense?

• What role would enlisted personnel play in a fleet where we mostly see officers on screen?

• And is it finally time to retire the Kobayashi Maru?

The conversation then shifts to NavyCon 2025, the upcoming conference where naval professionals and sci-fi fans come together to explore the ties between fleets on the sea and fleets among the stars. Claude shares the history of NavyCon, what to expect from the next event, and how you can get involved.

Along the way, expect discussions of cadet love chits, training ships that aren't the Constitution, and the lessons Starfleet could learn from history.

Claude's essay appears in Second Star to the Right: Essays on Leadership in Star Trek

Learn more and submit for NavyCon 2025 via CIMSEC

And you can find more of Andy here:

https://linktr.ee/andy3e