If you’re a trekkie and you know it clap your hands… I can’t hear you! In cyberspace no one can hear you clap.
If you’re like me, you were tickled pink when Star Trek came warping back onto the big screen in 2009. I thought what JJ Abrams did with the franchise was genius. Now they’re free to create unique stories and aren’t totally beholden to the past Star Trek timeline. This summer we got the second movie in the reboot, Star Trek Into Darkness. Again, I thought this movie was wonderful. I love the tip of the hats to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. However, this movie wasn’t everyones’ cup of tea. At a convention in Las Vegas, the new movie was rated the worst in the franchise. How can we make Star Trek better? Well I have some ideas…
Star Trek 3 (XII): With JJ Abrams no longer set to direct the next film and new director rumored to be Joe Cornish, let’s do as Karl Urban suggested and “strive for originality.” I, personally, would love to see Kirk, Spock, and crew in a completely new story. Let’s explore a species that we haven’t seen much of or that we have an interest in knowing more about. What about the Romulans or the Cardassians? With the destruction of Vulcan in the first movie of the reboot, it would be interesting to explore the relationship between Vulcans and Romulans.
Star Trek on the small screen: It’s been eight and half years since Star Trek: Enterprise was rightfully cancelled. As much of a trekkie as I am, I could not get into that TV show. It was a great idea but it wasn’t executed well. Perhaps with the rising popularity of Star Trek again, maybe it’s time for a new series. Into Darkness writer, Roberto Orci has supposed taken meetings with execs at CBS about the potential of a new series. What should this series be about? Well, you could continue with the time line created in the new films and have the series be about Kirks first five year mission. To me that seems like an easy way out and covering territory that was covered by the original series. I would like to see a series picking up where Voyager left off and opening up the Delta Quadrant to further exploration or a series that takes place in an academy setting with new characters.
Star Trek started by being something new and fresh; doing things that haven’t been done before. I’d love to see the franchise as a culture institution again. Something that makes us all yearn for a better future. Star Trek: The Next Generation did an excellent job at that. The world today, however, is a different place. We’re more cynical and jaded. Maybe we don’t want to see a rosy future because we don’t think it’s possible but isn’t that what Star Trek is about? Yearning for the better in the face of impossible odds.
