All Things Star Trek

[EgonSpengler]

Reminds me of the Hirogen... Why do this? Just "cause we can?"

I'm not particularly upset by that picture, even if really does show us what the Klingons will look like in the show (as CivCube said, there are any number of reasons this photo could be misleading). But I have a similar "Why?" reaction to the decision to set this show prior to so much existing material. If the creators of this show want to make their own way, put their own stamp on Star Trek, I say great, that's what I want to see. Making changes, even if it's just cosmetic, to what has already been done is just asking for trouble, with no 'upside' that I can see.

I've heard that in improv, the actors' rule of thumb is "Yes, and..." This means that anything one actor does or says cannot be contradicted or rewritten by another. They have to constantly build on what's been done, without undermining or reversing it. I feel like a franchise like Star Trek is an ongoing, evolving, collaborative effort, and the writers shouldn't step on each other's work. That's where determining what is "canon" actually becomes useful.

Because I can see no upside to a prequel series (was Enterprise better for being set before TOS? I really doubt it), I have to question the wisdom of the decision. Sometimes there's a 'rewrite' that works, that corrects previous errors (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles leaps to mind as a good example), but I'm skeptical that Star Trek: Discovery couldn't be set 15-20 years after Deep Space 9 and Voyager ended, and the above-pictured aliens couldn't be something other than Klingons. I'm open-minded, but the "hit ratio" on this kind of thing isn't very high.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

was Enterprise better for being set before TOS?

I've concluded that Enterprise was really a prequel to TNG, not TOS. There's so much they said and did that were TNG references (Borg, Augments), and T'Pol and the other Vulcans had the same stupid bowl haircut as the TNG Vulcans and Romulans.

Any TOS prequel needs to happen with either Christopher Pike or Robert April in command of the Enterprise, and not contradict any elements of TOS. Otherwise, its not a TOS prequel.

 

[CivCube]

I've heard that in improv, the actors' rule of thumb is "Yes, and..." This means that anything one actor does or says cannot be contradicted or rewritten by another. They have to constantly build on what's been done, without undermining or reversing it. I feel like a franchise like Star Trek is an ongoing, evolving, collaborative effort, and the writers shouldn't step on each other's work. That's where determining what is "canon" actually becomes useful.

An interesting thought. The franchise kind of is the 1960s show constantly renewed against unlikely odds, so it makes sense to say it's all the same writer's room. Nicholas Meyer's approach kind of rubs me the wrong way for that reason--his attitude of selling fans to what he wants works well from an auteur perspective but not as part of a team of collaborators. That's why I hope he doesn't run off with Star Trek as another overly plotty military exercise like "Undiscovered Country", high on set dressing and setting material, not so much on Roddenberry's optimism of the future, which was the whole point to begin with. (Is it too late to hire D.C. Fontana again?) We live in the age of the executive producer, though, not the writer's room, so "Undiscovered Country: The Thirteen Hour Prequel" might be what we're getting.

All speculation at this point. I'm perfectly happy to see if they take their interpretation toward an interesting direction that isn't bogged down by Netflix storytelling logic.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Is it too late to hire D.C. Fontana again?

She's nearly 78 years old at this point, so who knows? Robert Silverberg is still publishing a few things and posts in his Yahoo! group, and he's over 80.

D.C. Fontana has had quite a career.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I've concluded that Enterprise was really a prequel to TNG, not TOS. There's so much they said and did that were TNG references (Borg, Augments), and T'Pol and the other Vulcans had the same stupid bowl haircut as the TNG Vulcans and Romulans.

I don't disagree, and those tenuous connections to the later shows kind of suggest to me that the writers weren't interested in writing a prequel, they just wanted to tell their own Trek story. It's hard to know sometimes how many hands are on the steering wheel. The decision to set the show before TOS might have been made by someone other than the writers.

That's why I hope he doesn't run off with Star Trek as another overly plotty military exercise like "Undiscovered Country", high on set dressing and setting material, not so much on Roddenberry's optimism of the future, which was the whole point to begin with.

I agree, in part because we've seen the Star Trek war stories so much already. I enjoyed those stories, with DS9's "Federation-run-amok" as the bad guys and the episode of TNG about the renegade ship captain who still thinks he's at war with the Cardassians, but I don't want another dark n' gritty vision of the future from Star Trek (for that, I recommend The Expanse, and Battlestar Galactica is available for streaming again).

 

[CivCube]

This tidbit in the Phase II bible amuses me:

STARFLEET AND STARFLEET COMMAND
Naturally, there is a headquarters somewhere, general order and a whole command hierarchy. Again, we try to stay away from it as much as possible. The galaxy is incredibly vast, the problems out there are complex, and a Starship must necessarily operate as a semi-autonomous unit. Most of our best drama comes out of Kirk's lonely decisions. Stay away from petty military politics...it usually comes off as unbelievable in our advanced century. Also, keep clear of "space fleet maneuvers," "private space yachts," and similar Buck Rogers concepts.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Phase II has had quite a history. Part of it was incorporated into TMP, part was incorporated into TNG, and the character of Xon was a character in the Phase II/New Voyages series of fan films.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Hello to Jason Isaacs!

I had a moment of panic when I read that Isaacs will be playing the captain of the Discovery, as I'd thought that was Michelle Yeoh's role. With all the tumult around this show, it seemed plausible that she could have bailed out and been replaced. But no, there are going to be two starships featured in the show, and Yeoh will be commanding the Shenzhou.

 

[CivCube]

I will never say no to Isaacs, even when he's on dreadful things like The OA.

 

[Synobun]

I will never say no to Isaacs, even when he's on dreadful things like The OA.

You take that back.

 

[CivCube]

If I would, I'd still have to perform the Movements in a story climax filled with bad taste. But that's another thread.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I couldn't get into The OA. I watched the first 2-3 episodes and got distracted and never went back. I didn't think it was bad, but it didn't grab me.

 

[EgonSpengler]

According to the Deadline Hollywood, Rainn Wilson has been cast as Harry Mudd.

 

[Sommerswerd]

Ha! You guys and your wacky Avatar switching game... I was just all like "Lohren's a Moderator now??? Boy am I in trouble!"

 

[Synobun]

Ha! You guys and your wacky Avatar switching game... I was just all like "Lohren's a Moderator now??? Boy am I in trouble!"

You should have gotten involved!

So, Dwight Schrute as a Star Trek villain, eh? Well... alright, I guess.

 

[CivCube]

This show is either going to have a really unique vibe or it's going to be tonally all over the place. Mudd in Nicholas Meyer's version of Star Trek doesn't strike me as much fun, and I thought the original version was misguided.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Star Trek Continues has a new episode up.

Hopefully the CBS' new restrictive guidelines regarding fan films will still allow the remainder of the Star Trek Continues series to be finished and posted.

For now, enjoy. It's not bad, in my opinion.

 

[Colon]

Just (re)watched TNG's Matter of Time. Is Moseley the most irritating character this series has ever produced? He's even worse than Wesley.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

It's been so long since I watched any TNG that I don't even remember this episode or the character. Mind you I recognize so few of them by their episode titles... they're not like TOS, which had memorable episode titles.

 

[Colon]

Yeah, I didn't remember having seen the episode either. It's about the historian from the future, who has come to study the Enterprise. He subsequently spends all of his time being obnoxiously intrusive. It's not a good episode.