Antimatter Pod

a Star Trek podcast hosted by Anika and Liz

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Anika does 133 jumps while Liz infiltrates a Klingon ship. What could go wrong? Well, this episode is late, so…

Yes, we are discussing season 1, episode 9 of Star Trek: Discovery, “Into the Forest I Go”. A nice walk in the woods! Everyone comes home! 

Do all Starfleet captains disobey orders? Actually yes! Despite the stereotypes, the biggest exception is Kirk in TOS … and Liz has a theory about why that changed 

“This conversation reminds me of a Tumblr post that mildly irritated me two weeks ago…”

“You can’t say anything against my baby Ash, okay? He’s my baby girl.” 

We have some digressions and thoughts on the state of fandom and franchise media in the year 2026

Anika’s Wonderland Corner: Cornwell, Ash and L’Rell as Knight, Death and the Devil

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Anika and Liz go for a nice walk in the forest and discuss Star Trek: Discovery‘s “Si Vic Pacem, Para Bellum”, and ask ourselves: which Discovery characters are most likely to massacre a bunch of Tusken Raiders?

You may have noticed some audio issues lately, and this recording was particularly challenging, so Liz resorted to Descript’s “studio sound” filter. This made everything more or less audible, but also weirdly muffled, like we were recording from inside a pillowfort. Alas! 

Is it possible to tell a new Star Trek story? 

If Dave Filoni wrote a Star Trek, it would be this episode

Did Admiral Cornwell hold Starfleet Command’s only brain cell? 

We are going to say something nice about the pacing on Star Trek: Discovery

Liz knows very little about chess and it shows

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Anika and Liz don their finest 2017/2257 outfits and go to a party. 

Then they do it all over again.

Then they do it all over again. 

Yes, we are caught a time loop and discussing Star Trek: Discovery‘s “Magic To Make The Sanest Man Go Mad”! 

“This, to me, is like if Strange New Worlds was good.”

Is this Anika’s least favourite episode of Discovery?

Ash is happier and more successful as a human being than he was as a Klingon

Making Harry Mudd spend time with his wife is not a good or suitable punishment for his crimes? It is highkey misogynistic? Do better, show! 

Liz is here to pitch Star Trek: Stella, where Meg Stalter plays Stella Mudd as she roams the galaxy being a sociopathic nepo baby with an amazing wardrobe, who disintegrates people

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Anika and Liz take off for a cheeky little diplomatic meeting with some Klingons. What could go wrong? 

We are discussing Star Trek: Discovery‘s “Lethe”, an episode which inspired our friendship, a whole lot of fic and a conversation about whether it is a flawless piece of Star Trek, or if it has merely a single flaw. 

We are not here to be cool or reasonable about Admiral Kat

Normal Human Guy Ash Tyler and Normal Federation Captain Lorca

At any time, it is reasonable to assume that Sarek is disappointed in at least one of his children

Ash Tyler could never appear in SNW because his whole existence is a rebuke to that series’ biological determinism

Anika’s Wonderland Corner: the Vulcans at Michael’s graduation are dressed as chess pieces (Michael, like L’Rell, is a white pawn)

We have. A lot. Of feelings. About Katrina Cornwell

[pixiedane]

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We've caught up to this episode in the retrospective so here's my receipts from eight years back.

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Anika and Liz are thrown into a Klingon prison, where they are absolutely choosing Lorca’s pain. But no one is having a worse day than that poor innocent tardigrade! 

We’re discussing episode five of Star Trek: Discovery‘s first season, including: 

This is the worst Saru episode of the entire series. It’s rough, man

Overthinking the “five best captains” list

For an awful moment, we start to ask dangerous questions like “how many starships does Starfleet have?”

This episode is a card trick: your attention is on Harry Mudd, but really it’s introducing Ash Tyler

Liz has normal and rational feelings about the historical Buran

We play a fun game called “which other captains would leave Mudd in the Klingon prison” (Archer)

Introducing Ash means we have to talk about Ash, L’Rell and the misguided sexual assault subplot

Antimatter Pod: We aren’t really into m/m ships Also Antimatter Pod: We will die for Lorca/Tyler

Our hot take: Saru did NOT deserve that telescope, this is NOT a sweet scene to be immortalised as a Hallmark ornament, this is REWARDING his BAD BEHAVIOUR

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Anika and Liz are petsitting a tardigrade while we discuss the fourth episode of Star Trek: Discovery‘s first season, “The Butcher’s Knife Care’s Not For The Lamb’s Cry”. This episode introduces Admiral Cornwell, and we are gonna be so cool about that. You wouldn’t believe how cool and chill we are. 

This is decidedly not one of Discovery‘s stronger scripts

“Lorca is so clearly flagged as evil,” we said back in 2017, “that there absolutely has to be more to it than that.” Anyway…

Michael’s skills and flaws are all on full display here

“I also do not respect Saru.” 

Okay, but why is Saru the first officer? He frankly does not seem up to the job. Is Lorca keeping him around as a snack? 

“Let’s talk about Elon Musk.”

Michael and L’Rell: parallels (parall’rells)

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Anika and Liz continue their tour of Discovery‘s first season with “Context Is For Kings”, an episode which introduces a whole lot of new regulars and dares to ask: is it possible to like Saru less? It’s time to go down the rabbit hole as we discuss:  

You are not gonna believe this, but Michael Burnham is the protagonist of Star Trek: Discovery. I know. Huge if true. 

But Gabriel Lorca thinks he’s the main character of multiple universes.

Ellen Landry: one of the all-time worst people to wear a Starfleet uniform, and we are fascinated by her.

Lorca absolutely practised his introduction to Michael in the mirror, possibly while flexing, because he’s a monster, but he’s also a giant dork

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Remember 2017? Taylor Swift released Reputation. Kendall Jenner fixed racism with a Pepsi ad. And Star Trek returned to the small screen with the launch of Discovery. 

Anika and Liz go back in time to revisit the series which led us to become friends and launch a podcast … and we are excited! We’re starting with “The Vulcan Hello” and “The Battle at the Binary Stars”, in which Michael Burnham has a very bad day. 

“I am one of the first 500 people to sign up for CBS All Access. Which is a dubious claim.”

These episodes are not bad, but they are a terrible introduction to the series, both in terms of its ongoing tone and themes, and in terms of making people want to see more

“Can I just say? T’Kuvma could get it.”

We are not opposed to subtitles, but the specific “Klingon” font used by CBS All Access was straight up hard to read

Does the premiere ask too much of the audience? Both in terms of asking them to empathise with complex characters they’ve just met, and also in having basic media literacy?

(Michael Burnham Did Not Start The War.)

Saru’s relentless negativity makes him a difficult character to like

Returning to our roots as The Sarek Podcast

The Klingons are MAGA, but they’re also very Brexit-era Britain

We are once again criticising the Federation’s carceral state

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Anika and Liz, two people with experience getting too attached to fictional characters and then mourning their deaths for 900 years, convene on the holodeck to discuss Star Trek: Voyager‘s “Real Life” … and the cancellation of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. 

We are sad and angry! 

What does Paramount even want from Star Trek?

“This episode is two B plots in search of an A plot.” 

“Conceptually, it’s great. In execution, it’s very Jeri Taylor (derogatory).”

B’Elanna adds “chaos” to the Doctor’s program, but it sure is a coincidence that the algorithm “randomly” selects for scary Klingons infiltrating the Doctor’s white suburban sanctum!

“Everyone has a go at reprogramming the Doctor’s family” – mourning the arc we never got

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Computer, play "Beautiful Child" by Rufus Wainwright.

Covering season 1 of Starfleet Academy was an absolute joy, in no small part to the new listeners who found us via Tumblr. Here's to more!

(Thank you to @nonelvis for the graphics! They're so good!)

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Anika and Liz toast some marshmallows in the Atrium’s brand new open fireplace (Nus Braka: Interior Decorator) and discuss the first season finale of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, “Rubincon”. 

A finale where the good guys don’t fire a single shot, and where we apply the lessons learned through the whole season

Stakes? Too high? Just high enough? Is Star Trek actually good at telling small scale stories? 

“What is Starfleet?” Caleb finally gives Anika a satisfying answer. 

A handsome, arrogant guy with neglectful parents and a crush on a Klingon? Darem has been Tom Paris all along! 

Nus is too solipsistic and misogynistic to realise that Anisha isn’t on his side

Anisha was never the villain, but she is an antagonist, and with good reason

Nahla, Anisha and restorative justice

Nahla punching Nus: ma’am, you do not get to have little a police brutality as a treat, that felt ill-considered and out of character

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Anika and Liz don their finest cloaks, hoods and masks and beam down to a planet we’ve seen a few times before to find Anisha Mir and discuss the penultimate episode of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy‘s second season, “300th Night”.

We know the second semester goes by fast, but this is ridiculous!

Caleb Did Nothing Wrong

Genesis is wrong about Caleb, but in an understandable way

Sam 2.0 is a little more complicated, and that’s a good thing! 

The following actors are underrated: Sandro Rosta, Tig Notaro. That is all

Lura hasn’t been around much in the second half of the season, and obviously the role requires heavy make-up and discomfort … so PROPOSAL: Lura Thok Animated Series

The trip to Planet Star Wars hits a lot of racist alien planet tropes AND features lazy costuming (after we recorded, we learned from Avery Plewes’ Insta that her costume plans were impacted by the FedEx strike and she had to improvise, so, um, sorry, Avery!)

Venari Ral Toastmasters

“You’re music.” Caleb can break up with us ANY day

Nahla/Anisha (enemies to lovers, slow burn, co-parenting, hate sex, there was only one Caleb)

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Anika and Liz watch Star Trek: Starfleet Academy‘s “The Life of the Stars” and have a little cry. Featuring a special guest appearance by Bradley Whitford and Liz reads a brief excerpt from Discipline by Randa Abdel-Fattah. 

We got Star Trekked. We got Our Towned. They got us RIGHT in the feels.

The women that time forgot

How much agency has Tarima had in her recovery? It seems like not much!

Did Liz totally misread the Tarima allegory? Banshees and mental illness and maybe you can spend so much time looking for the allegory that you miss the story?

“Stealth trauma counselling” isn’t the MOST unethical use of psychology in Star Trek, but we have raised our eyebrows!

At no point did we think Sam would die, but ALSO we were on the edge of our seats through this entire plotline

“Not holding Sam’s hand felt like a war crime.”

Us a few weeks ago: “Sam’s makers feel like an allegory for helicopter parents.” This week: helicopter parents fail to build resilience in their children

The Tarima-Caleb-Genesis love triangle is handled … really maturely? What if you were attracted to someone and simply chose not to do anything about it? 

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Anika and Liz take a quick trip to the Khionian Realm to attend Darem’s wedding, then follow along as Caleb and Genesis get up to hijinks. We’re watching Star Trek: Starfleet Academy‘s “Ko’Zeine”, and discussing: 

Um. Did we make this episode happen? 

It’s a spring break episode, but no girls are going wild, no one is going to the beach (except Kyle, alone), and none of the usual cliches are deployed

Except the Star Trek Wedding Cliches, which we do love to see subverted, what if this time a man was passively going along with everything? What if there was a little less gender? What if Jay-Den wore a beaded gown? 

Darem and Genesis continue to be mirror images

The Caleb and Genesis show! Are we … meant to be shipping them? Remember when Liz was like, “There’s no way we’re meant to be shipping Spock and La’an, that would be really stupid”? We remember. 

Genesis and toxic perfectionism

Caleb, Genesis and Darrem: all command-coded in different ways, with different problems to overcome