When I first got the idea for Trekabout, I was at a bit of a crossroads with podcasting. After three years of podcasting and three shows, I was left doing just one show, that I no longer was all that into, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep podcasting or not. But I liked the production and editing side, and wanted to figure out a way to keep doing that.

At the same time, my cohost Richard Goodness, after being my roommate for two years, was moving out, and we wanted to figure out a way to make sure we saw each regularly (one thing you may like to know about Richard and I—neither of us like to work very much, but when we work, we COMMIT.) I don’t really remember where the idea for Trekabout came from…but one day, I mentioned to Richard: “Hey… I have an idea for a new podcast we would do together. It’s kind of crazy. Don’t immediately shoot it down. Let’s watch Star Trek.”

And, as you can imagine, Richard, all atwitter and jiggly with excitement, said: “I don’t know.”

So it took a few weeks to convince him. I think I made promises that all the work he would ever have to do would be to watch at most, two hours of Star Trek a week, and show up at my apartment once a week to record it. And that’s mostly stayed true, although we have some tricks up our sleeves that Richard is working on (now you have to finish, Richard!)

But that’s not to say Richard hasn’t been integral to Trekabout from day one. I knew, both from working with him on previous creative projects and from being his best friend, that Richard has a powerful analytical mind. We’re the type of friends where our preferred activity is to sit around philosophizing and arguing about the world. I knew that if Richard gave Star Trek a chance, we would create a singular and, frankly, weird Star Trek podcast.

And I think that’s been true, to an extent that even I sometimes can’t believe. As a completely fresh set of eyes and ears on Star Trek, Richard doesn’t carry years and decades of fandom baggage, and so he looks at each episode, each season, each show from a perspective that is both askew and unique. While we didn’t always agree (and still don’t!) I know that once a week, I’m going to be challenged, entertained, and annoyed.

I could talk a lot about how each episode is put together, and maybe I will in the future, but, with the release of our “All Good Things…” podcast, it feels like the end of an era, and the beginning of another. When we started Trekabout, we were going from friends that saw each other every day, to friends that saw each other once a week. With the recording of this week’s podcast, we were going from friends that saw each other once a week, to friends that see each other… once a year? You’ll know why if you’ve listened to the new podcast. It’s bittersweet, and while this week’s podcast was recorded back in March, it’s made me realize that two of the most important things in my life: Star Trek, and my best friend Richard Goodness, have now been mashed together in my brain. I can’t really watch Star Trek anymore without thinking about Richard, and you know what? That’s just fine with me.