Re-booting TNG For TV?

Discussion in 'Future of Trek' started by Jetfire, Aug 18, 2011.

  1. xortex

    xortex Commodore Commodore

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    If Trek was ailing, it wasn't TOS that was killing it, but was rather the only thing that was keeping it alive. Failing that, now it's got to worry about keeping itself alive. It was the failure to live up to the ratings TNG recieved as inspired by TOS that was killing it. Seeing the forest through the trees takes vision.
     
  2. The Castellan

    The Castellan Commodore Commodore

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    Pity I am not mainstream person.
     
  3. Captaindemotion

    Captaindemotion Admiral Admiral

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    I have no idea what this means.

    Well, if you'd gone to see INS and NEM a million times, then maybe they'd have made enough money to warrant more 24th century Trek.

    But you didn't and neither did the mainstream cinema-goer (what precisely is a mainstream person?) and thus they didn't get sequels.
     
  4. xortex

    xortex Commodore Commodore

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    TOS was an impossibly high standard to live up to let alone do better than which is what they all thought they were doing with TNG. The fact that nobody wanted to see that century in the films proves that they weren't successful but rather delusional.
     
  5. Captaindemotion

    Captaindemotion Admiral Admiral

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    They weren't the only ones by the looks of it...
     
  6. thumbtack

    thumbtack Commodore Commodore

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    True, if Rick Berman can be believed.
     
  7. BrownShatner

    BrownShatner Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    An old post, and perhaps others have made this point better...

    TNG was really a product of it's time. USA and the USSR were making peace, the economy was strong, oil was cheap, and one could envision a future where the "Space UN" flys around in a hotel filled with children, and the captain was an distinguished older diplomat that could wait 30 seconds to say "shields up" when Romulans appeared.

    Would this type of show resonate with the modern audience at all? Efforts to overlay terrorism and war themes onto TNG-era Trek were hamhanded, the antiseptic and verbose nature of the show never quite meshed with the chaos and grit going on around it. (Abrams made it work, but that was a pure action movie with shakycam, miniskirts, and combat boots.)

    If they were to attempt such a thing, Riker would become a much larger character, as would Worf; while Crusher, Wesley, and Jordi would be much lesser roles. Also the aesthetics and dialog would be complete different. Now ask yourself if that's what you really want.
     
  8. Dr. Crusher

    Dr. Crusher Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    I agree that it was a product of its time--absolutely. That may be another reason why the movies, with their increasingly darker themes, were not as well received as the series. In addition, the novels post-Nemesis have also been "darker," which has led to a varied response. I think a TNG relaunch would inevitably have to reflect its time, and there are many elements that may not resonate as well with today's audience.
     
  9. The Castellan

    The Castellan Commodore Commodore

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    Nothing that I want, that's for sure.
     
  10. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

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    30 years old? Sorry. Hardy is too old for today's audience.
     
  11. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    There was a regime change at Paramount in 2006, and Berman was considered part of the old regime.
     
  12. EmperorTiberius

    EmperorTiberius Captain Captain

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    Why can't he just be original and do something on his own instead of stealing Gene's ideas?
     
  13. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I don't think a new Star Trek series needs to worry about being a product of our times or make reference to current events, which can be too limiting and run the risk of being obvious and clumsy.

    There are timeless aspects to storytelling that always work. The idealistic hero, the implacable foe, the forbidden love, the character with divided loyalties, the anti-hero, the fish out of water...not that I'm advocating any or all of those, just pointing out that elements like that can always be assembled into a good story regardless of what's going on in the world.

    The bigger issue for Star Trek is not what's going on in the world but what's going on in the TV business. There's no really good place for any sort of space opera now. SyFy is doing well with ghost-hunting reality shows, wrestling and cop shows that pay lip service to sf/f. A space opera would be more expensive to produce, and wouldn't necessarily get better ratings.

    Broadcast is pretty hopeless now but there's reason to believe that ABC and NBC at least might be taking interesting risks next season. Cable seems friendly to sf/f, with some of the biggest hits (The Walking Dead, American Horror Story, Game of Thrones) in that genre. There's a massive number of sf/f shows on broadcast and cable in development for next season but only one is a space opera by any definition. A few others include some alien angle, but are Earth-based.
     
  14. CaptainMatt

    CaptainMatt Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I do not believe a TNG reboot would work. It could never be as it was, no matter who is at the proverbial helm. They should not try torecapture past glries quite so much, I mean, we already have TOS back from the dead as far as the films go, so why not stop there for the forseeable future. I also do not see any more original ideas out there working for another series. It's too soon at any rate, in my view, to do another series so close to when the last originally aired, and with the movies now basically the onscreen experience for fans to enjoy if they want to.
     
  15. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Are you kidding, all sorts of ideas could work. And how is it "too soon" to air another series? Show people something kick-ass and engaging, and you'll suddenly have a market for it. Since when do people not want to be entertained?

    The real problem is that space opera in general is dead on TV, so that would be a huge disincentive to CBS taking a risk on Star Trek on TV. The entertainment business works on herd mentality, which is why we get more cop shows and remakes than there could possibly be demand for.
     
  16. CaptainMatt

    CaptainMatt Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I take it you do not believe in franchise fatigue. We are therefore never going to agree on this matter, so I choose here and now to end my part in this conversation.
     
  17. Sindatur

    Sindatur The Gray Owl Wizard Admiral

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    Oh definitely, Manny Coto got screwed on Enterprise, he hit it out of the park most of his season, IMHO, but, the audience had already given up.

    I think enough time has passed for people to sample a new version, but, if it doesn't deliver quickly, it'll likely be doomed. It's not likely it'll ever get 2 full seasons to meander and be mediocre again.
     
  18. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Oh no! I'm crushed. :(

    That's true of every TV show today. Either deliver fast, or get your ass cancelled. Yet plenty of shows manage to survive and even thrive.

    This conversation is basically going around in circles. :D If Star Trek were the sort of thing to get good ratings, then it would succeed.
     
  19. xortex

    xortex Commodore Commodore

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    Well the Star Gate void is being filled by the great 'Untitled' thing of RH Wolfe. That should keep people in psyche wards and prisons calm for a good long time. er, and the people on these boards.
     
  20. Sindatur

    Sindatur The Gray Owl Wizard Admiral

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    Oh, no doubt, I was merely pointing out, they luxury Trek had in the past of 2 full Seasons to grow an audience is no longer an option, so, a new one would need to come out of the Gate with a different approach.