And the problem is? Companies pay CBS good money for the licenses to the Star Trek property and it's CBS' job to protect the market. The tech fans are free to continue they just can't sell their work.
As nearly as I can tell, they want to know if it's "really" part of the overall story/universe or if subsequent stories are free to ignore it. If the latter, why waste time reading it, no matter how enjoyable and/or entertaining it might be on its own terms? I don't quite get it, but that seems to be the attitude.
I think you took the long way 'round to just saying, you take everything at face value whether it fits or contradicts. I don't happen to agree with that POV, but it is no more or less valid than my opinion. I am old-school on "canon" - pretty much the TV and films. As for novels, only the adaptions of those TV and film offerings. Too much goofiness in too many of the non-adaption books with too little oversight in "canonical" details. I mean there is nothing in "Black Fire" I would want to embrace as "canon."
I read the books and I watch the TV series/movies. All I want to be is entertained. If they don't agree with each other, no big deal. If Joe Fan wants to hock his fanzine at a con, I don't care, I wouldn't buy it anyway. The "official" stuff makes for good reference and usually avoids editorializing.
Yup, this. I just want a good story. If it meshes, great, if not, no big deal - I can take it as a stand-alone.
I suspect that the Star Wars vs. Star Trek rivalry is largely a myth. Most science fiction fans have probably enjoyed a fair amount of both, as well as ample amounts of Planet of the Apes, Terminator, Aliens, The Matrix, and probably Harry Potter as well. They're not sports teams. You don't have to root for one against the other.
Yeah, back in the 70s my friends and I were devouring any information about Star Wars and every other SF film or series being made at the time. We never thought of them as rivals for Star Trek. It was more SF!!!!! Yay!!!! When TMP came out we didn't suddenly stop going to Star Wars films. I think the generation that came of age between ROTJ and TPM went through the same experience as those from the era between TOS and TMP, where books ( and games) were the only source of content for their franchises. So its hard to let go of the stuff you grew up on.
Exactly. I saw the original SW trilogy with the same college friends I saw TMP and WRATH OF KHAN with, along with EXCALIBUR, CONAN THE BARBARIAN, and CAT PEOPLE! Heck, as I recall, I saw THE PHANTOM MENACE on opening night with a whole gang of STAR TREK authors. None of us thought we were crossing enemy lines or anything.
I, for one, can respect that. Another aspect to the whole "canon" debate (and forgive me if it has already been said) is to what degree folks are willing to go on the subject. I mean some violations maybe pretty obvious, some just below the surface, but others can be pretty obscure or more minutiae than anything. Not to mention the self-appointed "canon-hawks" who enjoy making like J. Edgar Hoover in uncovering and debating ad nauseum alleged violations. My biggest problems with the some of the books lay in stories that are just too absurd in content and scope to allow for a rationale hook by which to hang one's "willful suspension of disbelief." Some are just crammed with wild shenanigans into them only to have things reset in one or two paragraphs near the end. More then a few of the novels were shameful (eg "Black Fire"), in my opinion. I should note, I have only read one Trek novel since the mid-80s and there maybe greater efforts made to ground the more fantastical elements into somewhat believable frameworks.
The thing is, as I've said before, the Star WARS universe is more flexible and George Lucas lets fans be fans... Paramount, on the other hand, acts like a big dick to fans because they expect a cut of everything, no matter how small and petty...
The one fan feud which always made me chuckle: "Star Trek" versus "Space:1999" back in the 70s. For those who can, check out the early Starlogs or fanzines where some went at it. I never understood it as, back then, decent science-fiction series' were few and far between (here in the United States). I mean Space:1999 looked good, had a fine cast and somewhat enteraining stories (though I haven't seen an episode since it went out of production).
And "Black Fire" at least had some original elements in it... If I remember correctly, it was also the first novel to depict the end of the 5-year mission by introducing the ST-TMP uniforms and some tech... One thing I'll say about the old novels is that they didn't have to rely on cheap gimmicks like continuity porn... They generally tried to just tell a story... By the 90s' things started to really get out out of hand, and I for one though those multi-author "crossover" novels were abysmal, often bringing the story together cockeyed and just plain contradictory because each author was writing independently of one another... After a while some of the plots--the excuses For plots--became ridiculous... I think the "Day of Honor" ones were the best example of useless tie-ins to one another...
I loved Space: 1999, at least the first season... But I Can see where a certain rivalry could spring up... A fan named James Dixon invented what he called COST (Copy Old Star Trek) Syndrome to explain these early SF shows failings... Rather than being unique SF series, conquering the genre in their own styles, they caved-in to Trek's mold in an attempt to sucker-in Trek fans... COST works like this: 1. Owing to the popularity of the Spock character, add a token alien to the show. A regular which would hopefully be a new hearthrob to the new SF generation. This is usually accomplished with simple facial makeup. Space: 1999 gave us Maya, complete with upturned eyebrows and a computer-like mind. Buck Rogers gave us Hawk, a chicken man with a feathered headdress! TNG's token "alien" was Data and, if you prefer, Worf. 2. Emphasis more on Action, as in fist-fights. 3. More "message" episodes, even if the morality theme is cardboard-thin and so obvious that a 5-year old could get it. 4. Have Costuming change or implement snazzier uniforms. Perhaps more nautical in tone or emphasizing a chain-of-command. The new uniforms on Space: 1999 appeared out of nowhere at the start of the second season. Trek did this to itself, too, with ST II's maroon uniforms, implying a more militaristic background. I personally blame this on Fred Freiberger taking the helm with the 2nd season...
Disney is gonna go Tiberian Batshit Crazy... I heard they want to pump out a new Star Wars movie Every Year, whether it is a mainstream "Episode" or some wacko Star Wars spinoff... As if I hadn't recovered from those made-for-TV "Ewok" movies!! After what they paid Lucas for it, they're gonna milk it Dry! And I pity the fan who enjoyed the "Expanded Universe" of Star Wars in the books and RPG... Abrams is gonna step in there and most likely screw the crap out of continuity in much the same way he wiped Trek continuity out of existence in '09! The big difference though is: Abrams is gonna do is Slowly rather than with one big temporal BS jump... He's gonna tear a little off here, a little off there, and more there, and over there, and back there... <<<RRRRR! ARRRRRR!>> In the end it'll look like a bald Wookie that stumbled out of Mr. Mott's shop on a bad day... Like setting Episode VII 40+ years after Episode IV... No problem except you won't see or hear of a Jacen or Jayna but maybe a Bill and Ted... And Chewie'll still be alive and howling... And the Empire will still be hounding down Rebels, maybe with a Death Star III... Oh yeah, the Pain...the Pain! Know why? Just as Abrams isn't a Trek fan, he's really Not a Star Wars fan either--that is, he'll watch the movies but won't touch the books... And all the Fans will Suffer For It! And there's nothing in the universe that any fan can do to stop it from happening either! I have foreseen it!