New Star Trek Premise: Borg Hunters

[Michael Two Wolves]

So, I've noticed that despite the breadth of the Star Trek universe, the writers seem to be losing steam (likely because the strike is finally kicking in...?) and the ideas are all reboots or rehashes of what has been previously done.

Not sure if this has been discussed before, but how about a new series based solely around the break-away Borg members who split with the collective and gave the queen the middle finger on their way out? Why not have them form their own cyst and begin attempting to infiltrate the Collective while simultaneously anonymously sending intelligence reports to Star Fleet and possibly other empires (to ensure it's disseminated without bias) with action and casualty reports? I mean, they'd figure out what was going on soon enough anyway, but the cyst's location would remain secret.

Plus, there would be a huge amount of room for cross-over potential and be a vehicle to showcase lots of cool gadgets and greebles, and if done in a serialized format (rather than episodic), you could deepen the show further and explore more of the nitty-gritty of non-federation societies. Probably earn an R rating from the MPAA, but that's what HBO is for. lmao

Would definitely bring a more Cyberpunk vibe to Star Trek as the Borg rebels reverse-engineer everything. Could even give them an interesting flair by giving them a quasi-religious obsession with machine perfection and efficiency so that everything they reverse-engineer winds up outperforming the original by magnitudes as they'd have access to technology that the Federation does not since the Borg are always assimilating worlds and acquiring new tech, even if it's relatively minor in terms of strategic value. The Borg do not discriminate, and everyone loves seeing Borg on-screen (yeah, I know, the make-up is like eight hours to apply).

Additionally, this new technology could get passed along to the Federation, and thus, appear in contemporaneous shows being produced. This further serves to deepen the lore of the Star Trek universe and reinforce the shows. I mean, who doesn't love a good bit of technobabble or new deus ex machina device that gets incorporated into the show (pretty much every episode of Voyager)?

Am I wrong for thinking this would be a great theme? Or am I out in left field?

 

[Dukhat]

That would be interesting for one episode, not for an entire series.

 

[1001001]

Moving to Future of Trek

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

Moving to Future of Trek

Thank you, sir! I apologize for being the Star Wars storm trooper here (because my post shot high and wide...? lmao)

That would be interesting for one episode, not for an entire series.

I'm not convinced. Give it a bit more serious treatment, and every episode could revolve around finding new technology, exploiting new technology, avoiding the Borg collective, keeping the location secret, etc. I could generate ideas endlessly around such a premise.

Wait, get the writers in here--yet another fan has yet another "brilliant" idea. lmao I'm sure that's how they think of it, but it would be fresh in that it's not being told from the Federation's point of view, and the Federation would play a very tiny role compared to being Federation-focused.

At the risk of being tarred and feathered and ejected out of an airlock, it could be a sort of match between Stargate and Star Trek.

 

[fireproof78]

but it would be fresh in that it's not being told from the Federation's point of view, and the Federation would play a very tiny role compared to being Federation-focused.

Which would cut against the grain of most Star Trek, so it would have to be sold very well in terms of not having the Federation as not the primary protagonist or viewpoint characters. Not saying that it isn't an interesting idea but the push back against a non-Federation/Starfleet viewpoint is one that has had limited success in shows.

I'm not convinced. Give it a bit more serious treatment, and every episode could revolve around finding new technology, exploiting new technology, avoiding the Borg collective, keeping the location secret, etc. I could generate ideas endlessly around such a premise.

But that idea revolves around technology not people, which is were it can land very flatly. While many Trek fans love the tech side, they are not the only ones who will be viewing this show. So, you're starting with a very alien point of view character (ex-Brog), with a very alien motivation (acquisition and perfection of technology) and then use of very alien technology.

Now, this is not insurmountable (so put away the tar and feathers) but it does take a deft hand to explore this new tech from a character point of view.

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

Which would cut against the grain of most Star Trek, so it would have to be sold very well in terms of not having the Federation as not the primary protagonist or viewpoint characters. Not saying that it isn't an interesting idea but the push back against a non-Federation/Starfleet viewpoint is one that has had limited success in shows.


But that idea revolves around technology not people, which is were it can land very flatly. While many Trek fans love the tech side, they are not the only ones who will be viewing this show. So, you're starting with a very alien point of view character (ex-Brog), with a very alien motivation (acquisition and perfection of technology) and then use of very alien technology.

Now, this is not insurmountable (so put away the tar and feathers) but it does take a deft hand to explore this new tech from a character point of view.

True. I think it could work if the focus was on infiltration of the Borg Collective and either freeing more Borg or using various gimmicks to destroy them. Your point is well-taken, though. It would have to be character-driven. The use of non-Federation technology and their obsession with the perfection of efficiency in machines they use is secondary and should only be window dressing to the idea that there's a group of rebels who aren't Federation that are handing the Borg their backsides through guerrilla tactics.

Now, this isn't to say the Federation couldn't have a major hand in the show--imagine what happens when Starfleet gets an anonymous courier drone containing detailed casualty reports in a location of the galaxy they have never heard of, complete with samples of new technology along with plans for how to build it? Suddenly, they realize there's a wildcard in their fight against the Borg that they have no control over, but who is obviously not an enemy. A back and forth could be established where you see the effects that such contact has throughout Federation space. The Federation could be shown attempting to track down and contact this cyst of Borg rebels, while the cyst itself is shown engaging Borg and establishing networks between non-Federation worlds (who likely haven't even heard of the Federation before if they're somewhere like the Beta Quadrant).

I could see it become a Star Trek version of the Gap Series by Stephen Donaldson where you see more of the politics of the Federation like you do in movies like The Hunt For Red October.

Best of all, it can be left on its own so it doesn't interfere with other plot plans the show creators may have, but serves as something they can refer to if they need a deus ex machina or a plot hook.

 

[Weyoun 251]

When I saw the thread title I thought this would be a completely different idea to what it was - which is not meant as a slight btw.

What I thought by Borg Hunters was something built around people like the Hansen's who were literally hunting them out and trying to gather data on them and so on - maybe a 6 episode miniseries about them and their story from initiating the search (and therefore finding out how much the Fed knew about the Borg in order for these people to be looking for them - tie to Guinan's story of how the El Aurian home world was destroyed by the Borg? Maybe the Federation knew since they saved the people from the Nexus about this all powerful race?) through to Raven getting detected and the family's capture?

It'd possibly be a bit on the dark side but it would have a connection to Seven and her story that we learn about in Voyager and would be Starfleet adjacent.

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

When I saw the thread title I thought this would be a completely different idea to what it was - which is not meant as a slight btw.

What I thought by Borg Hunters was something built around people like the Hansen's who were literally hunting them out and trying to gather data on them and so on - maybe a 6 episode miniseries about them and their story from initiating the search (and therefore finding out how much the Fed knew about the Borg in order for these people to be looking for them - tie to Guinan's story of how the El Aurian home world was destroyed by the Borg? Maybe the Federation knew since they saved the people from the Nexus about this all powerful race?) through to Raven getting detected and the family's capture?

It'd possibly be a bit on the dark side but it would have a connection to Seven and her story that we learn about in Voyager and would be Starfleet adjacent.

No, no--that's a great idea! I wonder if it could be spun up into something more, though? Like use the Hansens to introduce this other breakaway Borg collective via Seven's connection. She was pivotal in that episode, but I can't recall the details, when they discovered the "inner space" in the Borg collective where the rebels were meeting up.

I think that could be Starfleet's "in," too, to get them more involved, if for nothing else than curiosity since the Beta Quadrant is quite a few miles distant.

 

[Weyoun 251]

No, no--that's a great idea! I wonder if it could be spun up into something more, though? Like use the Hansens to introduce this other breakaway Borg collective via Seven's connection. She was pivotal in that episode, but I can't recall the details, when they discovered the "inner space" in the Borg collective where the rebels were meeting up.

I think that could be Starfleet's "in," too, to get them more involved, if for nothing else than curiosity since the Beta Quadrant is quite a few miles distant.

Cheers mate - I liked your initial pitch too.

Could we anthology this up then?

Season 1 is Raven Chronicles

Season 2 is Love and Death in Unimatrix 0

Season 3 is The Redemption of the Borg Cooperative

Might have to use some de-aging on Jeri Ryan for S2 which hasn't been Trek's strength but could be a bit of fun filling in her life a bit.

Season 2 could also explain/give insight into why the Queen had such an affinity for Seven

Now we do have the issue that many of the characters would need recasting but I'm sure Brian Brophy will come out of retirement to play all of them like Fred Savage in Family Guy

(879) fred savage family guy - YouTube

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

Exactly! We get the old team from TNG together to track down the source of where the information-rich communiques are coming from, and then they discover these other Borg and it becomes a Run Lola Run-type of cat and mouse with this rebel collective, who are cagey and paranoid for obvious reasons.

 

[Weyoun 251]

I'd steer clear of making it TNG centric personally - enjoyed what they did with Pic 3 but for me it worked as a fun romp with the old gang more than anything.

If we are looking at a Borg Co-operative storyline the issue we have is that to our knowledge they were unknown until coming to the rescue in S2 of Pic so it may have to be a S31 focus due to it being secretive.

I'm not familiar with Run Lola Run (although I now know what my next Wikipedia rabbit hole will be) so can't comment.

I was thinking maybe in the theoretical Legacy era we see the progression of their petition to Picard in Stargazer and the S2 finale and how they maybe try to right some wrongs that the Borg of old committed.

simultaneously anonymously sending intelligence reports to Star Fleet and possibly other empires

Just a thought off this idea of yours - could this somehow be where the Romulan's first hear about the Borg (get the Zhat Vash involved maybe) and tie it into The Neutral Zone from TNG S1?

Stretching things a bit maybe but could work with the write person developing the idea

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

Yeah, I would limit the TNG alumni to an introductory role to a specialized team within Federation created specifically to deal with the threat of the Borg.

The idea of the Run Lola Run premise would be just the action packed cinematography and the camera work where dialogue is used sparingly and there's a lot of visual story telling.

That's where the cyst of Borg rebels could intervene and not just right past wrongs, but prevent future ones. Better living through science! I'm sure there'd likely be some within the cyst who'd be mistrustful of Starfleet and want to keep pursuing the cutting edge of technology regardless of the cost in lives. So there could be plenty of intrigue going on.

If we could work in the Romulans like that, we could probably say it's a two-way street and that's where the Borg who would eventually become the rebels first saw the D'Deridex. Then, later on, when presented with an opportunity to reverse-engineer and improve it, they take it light years beyond the Romulan design and use it as their flagship.

Now, the show could move off-planet and focus more on space. But having a season or two where they're still struggling to get their burgeoning world off the ground, and then introducing the D'Deridex, would be a huge "Wow!" moment for the audience who would have been lead to believe that the show was going to revolve around the planetary exploits of the Borg rebels, and now, they have the ability to leave the Beta Quadrant using a slipstream drive. Ooof.

Starfleet would likely be terrified of the implications of this as their top officers argued over what the intentions of these rebel Borg were. Some would argue for launching an attack and just giving them the ol' Base Delta Zero treatment. Others would argue for a first contact since they're separate from the Borg. Still others might advise a wait and see attitude to the annoyance (and intrigue) of their colleagues.

 

[Mudd]

So, I've noticed that despite the breadth of the Star Trek universe, the writers seem to be losing steam (likely because the strike is finally kicking in...?) and the ideas are all reboots or rehashes of what has been previously done.

Not sure if this has been discussed before, but how about a new series based solely around the break-away Borg members who split with the collective and gave the queen the middle finger on their way out? Why not have them form their own cyst and begin attempting to infiltrate the Collective while simultaneously anonymously sending intelligence reports to Star Fleet and possibly other empires (to ensure it's disseminated without bias) with action and casualty reports? I mean, they'd figure out what was going on soon enough anyway, but the cyst's location would remain secret.

Plus, there would be a huge amount of room for cross-over potential and be a vehicle to showcase lots of cool gadgets and greebles, and if done in a serialized format (rather than episodic), you could deepen the show further and explore more of the nitty-gritty of non-federation societies. Probably earn an R rating from the MPAA, but that's what HBO is for. lmao

Would definitely bring a more Cyberpunk vibe to Star Trek as the Borg rebels reverse-engineer everything. Could even give them an interesting flair by giving them a quasi-religious obsession with machine perfection and efficiency so that everything they reverse-engineer winds up outperforming the original by magnitudes as they'd have access to technology that the Federation does not since the Borg are always assimilating worlds and acquiring new tech, even if it's relatively minor in terms of strategic value. The Borg do not discriminate, and everyone loves seeing Borg on-screen (yeah, I know, the make-up is like eight hours to apply).

Additionally, this new technology could get passed along to the Federation, and thus, appear in contemporaneous shows being produced. This further serves to deepen the lore of the Star Trek universe and reinforce the shows. I mean, who doesn't love a good bit of technobabble or new deus ex machina device that gets incorporated into the show (pretty much every episode of Voyager)?

Am I wrong for thinking this would be a great theme? Or am I out in left field?

I'd rather see another prequel or reboot.

 

[Michael Two Wolves]

I'd rather see another prequel or reboot.

Wouldn't doing a series based in the time of TNG be a prequel to the post-voyager time periods?

 

[ED-209]

It's an interesting idea but has "Fan film" written all over it, far too niche a concept for a main stream TV series IMO.

 

[carcinoGeneticist]

That would be interesting! It would definitely be considered a spinoff rather than a main installment in Trek, and it wouldn't appeal to non-Trek fans, so I'm not sure if realistically anyone would go for it. But it's a great idea! I'd probably watch it.

That would be interesting for one episode, not for an entire series.

Agreed. One episode of a new Trek show, or maybe a spinoff film. As I said, I'd watch it as a series, but I'm well aware I've got some pretty bad takes when it comes to Star Trek as a whole, so I'm trying to think from the perspective of a more critical eye here.

 

[Lord Exor]

So Unimatrix Zero except if they actually followed through on the premise?

 

[Borgminister]

Where does Section 31 fit in?