Exploring a darker theme in a future star trek series

Discussion in 'Future of Trek' started by EmoBorg, Apr 16, 2012.

  1. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    I don't disagree with you. I just miss new TNG. For many years after 1994 I was getting that with the novels, but now, they focus exclusively on the post-Nemesis period where Data is dead, and the crew is split up. I don't want to badmouth the work those writers are doing because alot of that really IS good, but the TOS novels still do stories within the series timeframe. I wonder why TNG DS9, and VOYAGER don't?

    But, to adress your belief that any new Star Trek would have to be on a cable network, why is that? In fact, why not just do direct to DVD? That's how I watch everything anymore anyway. I don't remember the last time I turned the cable box on other than to look at the news, and I use the internet for THAT too.

    Plus, any new Star Trek production would, within a year of it's release, be put on DVD anyway, so why not eliminate the middleman?

    And yeah, I understand the cost of advertising and all that as an argument against it, but it's not like DVD's don't come with ads, promos and whatnot.
     
  2. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    How does dark equate to grownup?

    Funny thing I've noticed in all these "grownup" shows. The characters all invariably act like children. I'm forty years old, I just don't see how some nudity, violence, four-letter words and characters acting like spoiled children equates to being grownup?
     
  3. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    This is without question the smartest comment I've seen in this thread so far, and that includes my own past arguments.
     
  4. Green Lantern

    Green Lantern Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2012
    Location:
    The bed of whoever pays for the night.
    1) A nice idea that'll make fans choose sides.
    2) A nice and realistic idea, alien racsism. The networks will proberbly like that because it'll show little kids and such that racsism is wrong.
    3) Neat, I love a bit of blood and gore.
    4) YES!!! It'll show the geeks like us that the continuity still matters to the network!
    5) My response is simular to 1&2.
    6) Interesting, It'll be like that episode of the next Generation when Riker falls in love with a member of a genderless species and heshewhatever falls in love with him and reveals she prefers gender, but the native species remove the "error" and "cure" heshewhatever from prefering gender. You know what episode I'm on about right?
    7) Or maybe they are about as tolerant as a load of catholic extremests from the 13th century, that's the theory I'm going with, the klingons seem to be a people with pride and conservative values. Maybe the klingon can be in denial.
    8) Oh yeah baby! I was thinking, maybe we can just have the borg become more zombie like.
     
  5. Herkimer Jitty

    Herkimer Jitty Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 4, 2008
    Location:
    Dayglow, New California Republic
    Of course. Characters act like idiots because there's mature content in a show.

    It's a stretch to predicate that since there is nudity, cursing, and violence, that the quality will automatically suffer. There is no direct relationship between the two.
     
    Last edited: Jul 17, 2012
  6. Lynx

    Lynx Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2001
    Location:
    Lynx Empire
    Agree!

    But in that case, we don't have to worry about watching any Star Trek at all, if it turns out to something like NuBSG or Stargate Universe. Better to stick to the old DVD.s.
     
  7. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2010
    But there is a compromise between creating a clone of TNG or creating a clone of NuBSG.

    You can meld some darker themes into a show and still have an an optimistic view point win out in the end. Its always darkest before the dawn.

    The fact is TV has changed since the 80s, so a new show would have be different from TNG. A new Star Trek show would need an ongoing story and stronger continuity to make it in today's TV landscape.
     
  8. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    Yet CBS, the number 1 network, has very few of these types of shows. Leaning more on episodic offerings.
     
  9. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2010
    And most of those shows are considered to be inferior in quality compared to the stuff on cable, which does have ongoing stories.

    Besides I think its likely a new star Trek show will end up on cable rather then network TV and shouldn't Star Trek try to be the same league as the good TV shows on cable rather then the mediocre stuff on network TV?
     
  10. FreddyE

    FreddyE Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Oct 15, 2009
    How about a Star Trek thats Buffy-style in terms of "darkness"? It would be lighter in the beginning, get darker as the series progresses, but always have commedy to relax the mood, and have a hopefull ending to most seasons.
     
  11. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    I don't think anyone will disagree that Star Trek will be insanely expensive to produce weekly.

    In order for a show that is expensive to survive, it has to be put out in a manner the maximum number of people can see it. To drive revenue. Plus, cable TV providers continue to bleed subscribers here in the U.S.

    Now are you going to take and put your (depending on number of episodes) $60-110 million dollar investment on a business model that looks to be slowly dying or are you going to place it where the most people possible can see it, driving advertising revenue?

    The problem, as I see it on the outside, is live-action Star Trek 'done right' is too expensive for Netflix or Showtime to turn a profit off of (I don't believe it would drive subscriptions as those who really want to see it will either download it or wait for home video) and wouldn't draw enough viewers to justify a spot on a network line-up, especially at CBS.

    I really don't see live-action Star Trek coming back anytime soon, especially with CBS making a rather large profit off their back catalog and and taking no risks with Paramount footing the bill for the motion picture franchise.
     
  12. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    They did THAT long before TNG existed.

    It was called "Old BSG".
     
  13. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2010
    Cable channels like HBO are still doing well.

    Look at the production values on Game of Thrones, those are amazing production values and that show is on cable.

    The fact is I don't think a Star Trek show would be able to bring in enough viewers stay on the air on a network channel. It would have a better of surviving on cable.

    I do think you are right about it being unlikely we see a new live action Star Trek show anytime soon.


    Except you would have handle that differently now, TV has changed a lot since the late 70s.

    Also I like nuBGS better then the old one.
     
  14. Hartzilla2007

    Hartzilla2007 Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 15, 2006
    Location:
    Star Trekkin Across the universe.
    There fixed it for you :techman:
     
  15. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 1999
    Location:
    Tatoinne
    The next series won't be a clone of TNG or even recognizably close, especially in two fundamental ways: episodic format and sanitized approach. But a clone of nuBSG would be tone deaf to what makes Star Trek unique. If the next series ends up on premium cable, it will be more nuBSGy than if it were on TNT or SyFy. But there is simply no place on TV now for the TNG approach. Do people think CBS is going to invent a new network just for Star Trek?
     
  16. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 1999
    Location:
    Tatoinne
    Sure, cop shows. CBS doesn't do sci if. Sci if and the episodic approach have parted ways because episodic shows are for broadcast and the more broadcasty cable networks like USA, no sci if there either, while sci if is for cable networks like AMC and TNT which veer towards serialization. There's still some episodicish sci fi on SyFy but God help us if Star Trek falls into their clutches. And would CBS really make a series for an NBC property anyway?
     
  17. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    Indeed it has. Only not for the better.

    That's been the real problem all along.
     
  18. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2010
    What are you talking about? many of people are saying this is the best era of television ever, at least in terms cable content.

    The late 70s didn't quality programing like the Wire, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Mad Men and many other shows found on cable. Television is vastly superior now to what it was in the late 70s.
     
  19. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    I disagree. Everything is Daddy issues, and angst, angst, angst.

    I'm sick of it.
     
  20. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2010
    I think most viewers and TV critics disagree with your assessment. I would say, the Wire is better then TV shows in the 70s.