Executive Producer Rob Caves is keeping busy working on the new Star Trek: Odyssey: Vile Gods episode as well as the forthcoming Hidden Frontier/Intrepid fan movie Operation Beta Shield.

As reported by Trekweb, in Vile Gods, Lieutenant Commander Ro Nevin will face some of his personal demons. "'Vile Gods' will push the crews resolve and patience with each other to the breaking point," said Caves. "New problems are introduced, and the crew will have to find a way to work together in ways they are not used to working. And the Odyssey's fragile peace with the Kelvans will also be strained in the episode. Ro will confront some of his demons in the episode that will culminate in a surprise guest appearance from Ro's past."

Actor Brandon McConnell has taken over playing the role of Ro. Cave is enthusiastic, and feels that the fans will be won over by his portrayal of the gay character. "Brandon has done a fantastic job, especially shining in this episode," said Cave. "If he hasn't become Ro yet for viewers, I think he will by the end of this episode. We had fun filming a few sequences from past 'Hidden Frontier' episodes to show as brief flashbacks and Brandon looked right at home as if he had always played Ro."

Ro is the first gay character in a Star Trek series. Caves was surprised at that, feeling that it was long overdue. "There had been talk about a gay character in Trek for a number of years, and even though some of the writers wanted to do it, the studio would not," explained Cave. "So it was rather surprising to be doing one of the first Star Trek fan films in 2000 and also being unique in being the first to include a gay character. But it stuck out like a sore thumb to me as something that hadn't been done, was long overdo, and should be done in a way that didn't yell and scream, 'Hey, here's a gay character! Look at this!'"

Cave did not give details on future upcoming Odyssey episodes, saying merely, "As always, more plot twists than you can shake a warp core at".

To read more, head to the article located here.

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