Customer Reviews

The Completely Useless Star Trek Encyclopedia (Virgin)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

If you are a Star Trek fan, you will either love this book, or hate it. This should be obvious from the reviews already posted, which seem to almost invariably give the book either 1 or 5 stars. The reason for this is that the book is hilariously funny, but has a wickedly mean sense of humor. Therefor, if you take your fandom very seriously, DO NOT READ THIS, as it will cause irreparable psychological dammage! If, on the other hand, you are able to laugh at Trek as well as your own geekdom, then by all means DO READ IT! But procede with caution, as you may find yourself incapacitated with laughter.

I'll start this review by saying up front that I'm a big fan of the TV show "Mystery Science Theater 3000" so I was bound to at least look favorably on any sort of parody of Americana such as this one. Which is odd, because the two authors are English and writing for audiences in England (thus the references to such things as TV 21, Doctor Who, personalities of whom us Yankees have never heard, etc.) Even so, I found this to be a notably enjoyable book; a good stocking-stuffer for the sci-fi fan in your life (as long as he's not the sort who thinks all things Roddenbury are holy.) It takes the form of the ubiquitous "Guide to Star Trek" books available today, which are generally little more than glorified episode guides with some fandom tidbits thrown in and still shots from the movie or TV show in question. However, this book is meant to parody of these sorts of publications, and does so with admirable skill (you can tell that the writers did their homework.) Topics covered range from 'Auto-Destruct' (what if someone sneezes while giving the cancel command four seconds before the ship explodes?), through 'The Love Boat' (certain early scenes with overblown romantic tension made some fans complain that 'TNG' was starting to resemble this show. See also 'GET A LIFE'), up to 'Yangs' (enemies of the 'Kohms' in the less-than-subtle allegory that was 'The Omega Glory'). Numerous Star Trek "tales" are brought up, and many are given an entirely new spin (i.e. "beam me up Scotty" as a fanboy creation, so they could have something to be smug at non-fans for attributing to the series.) You will find yourself laughing out loud at many points, or at least snickering. Of course, it's not a perfect book. Many of the parodies are simply the standard "cheap shots" we've all come to know and...recognize (not exactly _love_.) And the humor _does_ wear thin after a while...reading the whole book in one or two sittings is a no-no. In fact, this might make a good "bathroom book"--go in, sit down, pick it up, read a few entries, and leave in a cheerier mood than you entered. All in all, though, a good pick for a Trekkie near you.

I read this "encyclopedia" in one rush. Roaring with laughter every now and then. The more episodes and films you have seen, the more you can appreciate the somewhat wicked sense of understated humor in this book. And yes, they have opinions on Trekkies too, buy hey, who could write an "encyclopida" without mentioning Trekkies? Go read this. It's fun.

When I first saw this book I thought; 'Oh, no, another boring Star Trek encyclopedia full of uninteresting 'facts'; I'm not giving good money for this useless...' And that's when the title hit me. The book has the format of your average boring Trek trivia compilation, but the entries are treated with well-aimed humor and sometimes biting sarcasm, which makes for a frank laugh if you enjoy good-natured parody. Personally, I almost strangled myself trying to keep from laughing out loud in the aisle of the respectable bookshop I was in; eventually I failed in my attempt to maintain any shred of dignity and collapsed in a fit of mad laughter. But then I'm a shameless Trekkie. You can feel the authors are british, as is their sense of humor (with a Monty Python touch to it); but I don't see that as a problem, being Belgian myself. All in all, resistance (against hilarious parodies) is futile.

You need to know the series fairly well to get some of the jokes, and the humor and many references are decidedly British, but I had a lot of fun with this book.

Some folk who take Star Trek a mite too seriously take offense to this book, so if you have no stomach for a) irreverence and b) the Brits, you might not enjoy this.

Otherwise, I found it a gentle jab at the "revered science fiction cash cow" we've come to love (until Voyager).

I am a trekkie/er in my own right, and I seriously disagree with anything bad that has been said about this book. This is a fantastic romp through the trek universe with a whole bunch of brits willing to make fun of themselves and others for something they like a whole hell of a lot. The stories of how things were cancelled and naysayed and how people act about star trek in general are spoofed wonderfully here. All of you who didn't find it funny, surely don't have a sense of humor about yourselves and the show and should lighten up. But if you like to laugh, or get a good chuckle from turning a phrase, this is a fun book. enjoy it!

This is the best Star Trek book ever. Do not buy if you are a sad person with no sense of humor.

The authors of this book should be commended for there excellent reference book, The Competely Useless Unauthorised Star Trek Encyclopedia. These men are the Fans! I commend you, Chris Howarth and Steve Lyons!

Useless is right! This book is by far the lamest Trek-related book ever to hit the shelves. Lots of Voyager-bashing, lame jokes, swearing. British black humor at its worst. Not worth the paper it's printed on, I didn't even finish this book, just read the first chapter and returned it to the store! Save your money, and buy a GOOD Trek book. I would have rated it zero stars if possible.

The authors of this book seem to hate Star Trek (don't ask me why they know so much about it) and think its fans are idiots. They say it doesn't matter if fans dislike them for that because fans are so stupid they'll buy anything related to Star Trek. Don't prove them right.