I have been a Star Trek fan all of my life. I wish I 
could recall when I watched the show for the first time but I don’t. My father says (though I really don’t believe it) that by the age of 5 I was able to recite the opening monologue from the original series word for word. Seriously though, “Space, the final frontier…” were the words that sparked the fire in my imagination. So in these few sentences you can come to the conclusion that I love the show.
When it was announced that Star Trek would be revived on the big screen I was appalled. I believed that no one could replace William Shatner as Kirk and long before the movie’s debut I predicted it would be flop. I mentioned it in articles, I talked about it ad nauseam on podcasts and when the movie came out I discovered that I was wrong. So I went back and admitted to my listeners, to my readers and to my friends (what few I had left because I wouldn’t shut up about the new Trek) I had been wrong.
If you are a Star Trek fan you know the premise of the reboot was a divergent timeline which was created when a Romulan traveled back in time to save his home world. The timeline change was due to the fact the ship from the future destroyed the U.S.S. Kelvin and in doing so killed Captain Kirk’s father. The new timeline has come to be known as “The Kelvin Timeline.”
The Kelvin Timeline universe is bit more futuristic looking than the Star Trek from the 1960’s, a time when you had to take things with a grain of salt and a healthy suspension of disbelief. The entire look of the new film series is breathtaking. No more cardboard sets or foam rocks, Star Trek was getting a boost. Now, from Titan Books comes a chance to get a closer look at the design of the Kelvin Timeline with The Art of Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline.
The Art of Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline covers the first 3 movies in the series (wishful thinking that we will get more). The book is broken down into 3 large sections, one for each of the films. The art in this book covers ships, equipment, costumes and characters. I did like seeing the other concepts for the phaser rifle. I have had a soft spot for phaser rifles ever since Where No Man Has Gone Before. It was truly an underutilized piece of equipment on the Original Series.
I was happy to see the concept art for Rura Penthe. Many of you may know that scenes were shot on the Klingon prison planet for Star Trek (2009) but never shown. These scenes were cut for runtime purposes. With this book we get a chance to see what landed on the cutting room floor.
I did enjoy this book and I think my biggest complaint is that I wanted more. I am sure they could have just produced a single book for each movie instead of trying to cram it all into one, but I am grateful for the one produced.
The Art of Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline was written by Jeff Bond who also wrote The World of the Orville which is a Star Trek-esque show by Seth McFarlane. The forward to the book was written by Justin Lin who directed Star Trek: Beyond. Published by Titan Books this 192 page art book is a great glimpse behind the curtain to see how the magic is made.
The Art of Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline is available wherever books are sold and retails for $39.95. Also check out the Titan Books website to see what other great titles they have to offer.
