Do you have a Trek nerd in your life and you don’t know what to get them? Or maybe you are sick of buying your own Trekkie Christmas presents and want something to direct loved ones to for all your present-receiving needs!
Well, check out our ideas for Christmas! I have counted them down to my favourite! Let us know in the comments what should be on the list!
Note: this is a totally independent review.
In at 19 is a TOS Spatula! Every good galley should have one. This one is particularly good for stopping your Ktarian eggs from sticking. It can also do something that the Enterprise can’t – it can be extended for those tricky maneuvers while at warp. You can pick one up in the Forbidden Planet on Crampton Quay in Dublin for €28.99. They are $29.99 from Amazon.com and £21.14 from Amazon.co.uk .
I’m sure you have seen some of Funko’s popular Pop! Toy line. In at 18 is their nice selection of officially licensed Star Trek vinyl figures from The Original Series and The Next Generation. Standing about 3 3/4-inches tall they are a nice gift that won’t take up too much space. They are priced at £10 on Amazon.co.uk, $8 on amazon.com. The Star Trek dolls are on discount in Forbidden Planet at €8.99 each and Eason on O’Connell Street have them priced at €14.99 or 3 for 2.
Everyone should make sure they have access to some sort of a self defense device. A Type 2 phaser with a removable Type 1 hand phaser fits the bill and comes in at 17! €39.99 from Forbidden Planet in Dublin. $24.32 from Amazon.com £31.54 from Amazon.co.uk .
Metal Earth do a nice range of model kits. They come on thin sheets of metal that can be put together by hand with no glue or solder. The Star Trek models available are Klingon-heavy with both the Bird of Prey and the Battlecruiser available, along with the Enterprise D. I’ve seen some in the Art & Hobby store in Dundrum but there are three available in Easons on O’Connell Street for €14.99 each. £13.97 from Amazon.co.uk and $11.83 from Amazon.com.
Anovos have a fantastic line of replica Star Trek accessories and uniforms. This is the place to go if you have money to spend and you take your cosplay seriously! They do have some items that won’t break the bank, like this replica comm badge from Star Trek TNG at $19.95, which is our number 15! If you are going for the assimilated Starfleet officer look then this is not the badge for you as it has a nice magnetic back (rather than metal pins found on other replicas) so you don’t have to worry about putting holes in your uniform or yourself. Shipping to Ireland is $29.90 which is a bit pricey so you may want to throw some more items in your cart to make it worthwhile!
They took our tradition, our hero, our rites, our bright decorations, our Khristmas tree lights. They’ve changed up our story – they’ve got it all mangled, in much the same way that our lights become tangled! Available from Amazon.co.uk for £9.99, Amazon.com for $25 and Kennys Bookshop for €13.28.
From my birth on the U.S.S. Kelvin, to my time in Starfleet Academy, to my meteoric rise through the ranks of Starfleet, this is where you will find the untold story about me. You may know me as Starfleet’s greatest captain but now I will tell you why. I also include a full colour insert of pictures from throughout my life, including my Academy graduation photo. You can get my autobiography from Easons on O’Connell Street for €28.45 / £13.49 Amazon.co.uk / $14.02 Amazon.com.
There are three rules: 1. No bright light. 2. Don’t get them wet. 3. Never feed them after midnight, no matter how much they beg. Eh…oh sorry, that’s the rules for keeping Gremlins. The only rule for tribbles is don’t bring them onboard! Their daily output would match the Rotunda’s yearly production targets. They are cute though, damn cute. Pop one in your bag, or give one a cuddle at night – no one will ever find out. £11.99 from Amazon.co.uk and $9.99 from Amazon.com.
Who doesn’t love pop-ups? Perhaps many of you! I think this would make a great present though. It is so beautifully put together and captures some great Star Trek moments in 3D. While I browsed through this large book in Easons on O’Connell Street (priced at €31.55) I purposely didn’t look at every page so I wouldn’t ruin the surprise in case someone gets it for me! Also at Amazon.co.uk for £15.56 and Amazon.com for $20.23.
The last time I collected a regular magazine two big fat folders of Quest were my pride and joy. It wasn’t until Eaglemoss started their Official Starships Collection that I was willing to part with my cash again on a regular basis! It wasn’t hard as the quality of these models is excellent. Just squeezing into the top 10 and one of my favourites is Deep Space Nine, which is slightly larger than their regular models. Eaglemoss have worked with some of the original ship designers to bring as much love as possible to these models. There is a nice weight to them and they are easily superior to the old Micro Machines models in both size and attention to detail. They are die-cast and made from ABS metal. You can pick up the most current model in newsagents across Ireland for €15 but if you want a specific model (like DS9!) you can get them directly from Eaglemoss UK. They are priced at £18.99 for DS9 while the standard ship models are £9.99. Prices start at $15 from Eaglemoss in the US.
Star Trek Enterprise was greeted with mixed opinions from fans when it appeared on our screens. Arguably a lot more fans were won over by the 4th season but unfortunately it was cancelled. This is under the tree waiting for me J I’m really looking forward to watching the series in binge mode with some new appreciation for how good this series is. The extras are meant to be gold dust too where Brannon Braga drops the shields to give a real insight on what went on behind the camera. I will also appreciate watching the Enterprise NX-01 in all its Blu-ray quality now that I know our new best friend Doug Drexler was the man that designed it!
£50 at Amazon.co.uk, $129.99 at Amazon.com and €105 at Littlewoods.ie.
I’m still waiting on a cheque from George Lucas as I came up with Star Wars Lego way before you could buy it in shops! 😉 Unfortunately Lego does not have the rights to make Star Trek kits, so Kre-o will have to do. Whatever your opinions on Abrams Trek this is still a great model and uses Kre-o’s LightTech bricks. You could pick it up at a knock down price of €35 earlier this year in Smyths toy stores although I haven’t seen it there recently. $50 from Amazon.com £44.99 from Amazon.co.uk.
This looks like such a cool amt (glue together) model! You can build it as a complete USS Enterprise or as a cut-away showing what’s happening on each deck. It should keep you busy over the Christmas holidays! They have a few in the Forbidden Planet in Dublin for €65.99. $32.99 from Amazon.com and £47.95 from Amazon.co.uk.
A beautiful depiction of the ships we love from the Star Trek Universe in stunning backdrops. The love shown by Doug Drexler and Margaret Clark in the creation of the images, along with Mike Okuda’s descriptions brings these ships alive. As Gene Roddenberry said “The Starship Enterprise is not a collection of motion picture sets or a model used in visual effects. It is a very real vehicle; one designed for storytelling. You, the audience furnish its propulsion. With a wondrous leap of imagination, you make it into a spaceship that can take us into the far reaches of the Galaxy and sometimes even the depths of the human soul…” It would look lovely on the coffee table, although let’s be honest here, this sort of book is in the head of every good starship, and within comfortable reach. Kind of like the way a Bible was the first piece of décor in a Travelodge room, but don’t dare shove this beauty in a bed-side locker! BTW the edition with the red on the cover is the second edition with 75 more images than the blue edition. £18.95 from Amazon.co.uk , $21.66 from Amazon.com. Take her out!
It’s no surprise really that this book is on my Christmas list! It’s a fantastic insight by Paula M. Block and Terry J. Erdmann into the TNG series over 365 pages with some brilliant never-before-seen photographs. There is also a similar 365 book concentrating on the Original Series, I haven’t seen it yet but it’s by the same crew so I’m sure it’s great! $26.55 from Amazon.com / £16.58 from Amazon.co.uk.
I mentioned earlier that Anovos have a fantastic standard of Star Trek uniforms, well here’s a sample! They are not cheap but they are lightyears ahead of the costumes you can pick up in any cheap costume store. Captain Kirk’s command tunic is $150, Picard’s 5th season coat is $200 and Dr. Carol Marcus’s dress is $250. Limited sizes. Available directly from Anovos.
In at number 3 is Star Trek Scene It! I must admit I have never played it, but I’d love to! Most reviews say it’s a lot of fun, the word in Ten Forward is that it can be quite difficult but surely not for us! $20 from Amazon.com. Available from a number of suppliers through amazon.co.uk, with prices starting at £7.99.
Eaglemoss have struck gold again and are in at Number 2 with their replica plaques from the Star Trek universe. I always wanted to have my own Enterprise D plaque, and now I do! 🙂 They are of very high quality. Whether it’s Voyager, the Defiant, or the Enterprise, a bridge plaque will make a fine addition to your Star Trek collection. I was initially disappointed as the plaque is about two thirds the size of the TV original, but I quickly got over this due to the sheer quality of it. The back side of the plaque is totally flat, some sort of catch or screw hole on the back would have been nice! Make it so Eaglemoss! They have told us that orders should be placed before December 14th so deliveries can be beamed to Ireland in time for Christmas. They cost £19.99 from Eaglemoss UK. Unfortunately it won’t ship for the US market until the new year from here at $19.99.
I have to admit I’m just slightly biased here as The Next Generation is my favourite Trek series and favourite programme of all time. I was 10 when the series premiered in the US so it meant a lot to me through my teenage years. (Who remembers the Starbase Ireland fan club? Great memories!) I bought TNG on VHS tapes and then in those lovely TNG style DVD boxes. There were rumours for years about whether the series could be upgraded to hi-def, so I’m sure many of you shared my excitement when it was confirmed that CBS would go back to the original 35mm reels and bring it to Blu-ray. To say my expectations were satisfied is an understatement. Looking back it’s hard to believe a blurry Deanna Troi ‘helped’ me through my teens! The extras are fantastic also. Season 1 includes the main cast all sitting down together discussing the series. Other seasons see those behind the camera look back on their time working on the show. This is a must-buy if you have a large TV and blu-ray player. Prices start at $25 dollars for a season boxset from Amazon.com or $230 for the whole series! From Amazon.co.uk you can get a season from £22 or the whole series boxset for a fantastic £118.90! A lot cheaper than they cost me! 😉
Let us know if there are any items we should have included by commenting here! Due to the fact that my wife does not ‘get’ Star Trek I always end up buying my own nerdy presents! This inspired me to throw this Star Trek Christmas Shopping Guide together! It will all be worth it if one of you receive a Star Trek present from your non-Star Trek loving friend or partner! Oh and thanks to the staff of Easons on O’Connell Street who ignored me while I put this nice collage together of Star Trek merch that they have on sale!
Happy Christmas!
Ronan.
Star Trek Éire 