With Star Trek: Enterprise leaving broadcast television in a matter of weeks, fan-produced original web series like Star Trek: Hidden Frontier and Star Trek: New Voyages have stepped up production, with increased promotion and greatly improved production values.

Episode 602 of Hidden Frontier, entitled "Dancing in the Dark", is available for download now. The web site also includes production stills, bloopers and episode previews.

Hidden Frontier takes place during the 24th Century, the same period as TNG, DS9 and Voyager, and is set in the Briar Patch region of space, first seen in Star Trek: Insurrection. In this new episode, the crew of the starship Excelsior and its home base Deep Space 12 are faced with "the mystery of the ancient and powerful tetrahedrons takes an unexpected and dangerous turn, while Counselor Elbrey faces mortal danger from her past."

Meanwhile, New Voyages, which recently announced an upcoming episode to be written by D.C. Fontana with a guest appearance by Walter Koenig (Chekov), has announced on its message board that composer Patrick Phillips will create original music for the next two episodes. Samples of the score are available on Phillips' web page.

The executive producer of New Voyages, James Cawley, announced as well in a different message board thread that new sets were being built for the upcoming episodes, including a Briefing Room, Crew Quarters, Sickbay and Engineering, as well as enhancements to the Bridge.

Cawley, a former Star Trek: The Next Generation production crew member who plays Captain Kirk in the New Voyages episodes, will also appear in an upcoming episode of Hidden Frontier. The latter is set in Next Gen's 24th century rather than in the original series' era and a press release revealed enthusiasm for a crossover of the two amateur ventures.

"This opportunity allows us to unite two of Star Trek's leading fan efforts," said Hidden Frontier executive producer Rob Caves. "James brings a wealth of experience to our show that we're excited about showcasing."

Hidden Frontier's "Dancing in the Dark" may be downloaded here. For more information about New Voyages plans, see their news page.

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