If Star Trek could only be one, movie franchise or series franchise, which would you prefer?

[fireproof78]

Stupid humans and their stupid stupidness.

 

[Qonundrum]

Vice Admiral Q, I am genuinely impressed with your statistical references for films and series. It would have taken me a week's worth of research to compile such comprehensive comparisons. Bravo!

Thanks! I only recall vaguely as I was also scrambling this morning. Season 3 had the bulk of them, with "Turnabout Intruder", and possibly "The Tholian Web" and "The Empath" ringing a bell and I don't know why. But the bells go off for "Is There in Truth No Beauty", as it cashes in on footage reuse of the galactic barrier - seen originally in the original pilot "Where No Man Has Gone Before", as well as "By Any Other Name" - which, if I recall, had Kirk referencing Spock having done a mindmeld once before as a possible method to figure out the Kelvins... and I'm impressed in how those three galactic barrier stories all felt authentic and fresh in how they get the ship back to the galactic edge, even if "Beauty" has a teensy problem in that they should still be able to find the edge of their galaxy to get back again, but it's easy to roll along with as its themes and acting are rather well-told. (Or they're past the galactic barrier so far that they somehow can't find it as long-range sensors don't extend that far out and looking outside a window yields no great big chewing gum-pink thing glowing... so I'd argue it's a minor nitpick at worst...)

But these as were rare for the time as they were also more plot points than mere "memberberries" (e.g. TNG's "Legacy" that references Camus II as homage to TOS's unintended series finale). Trek was arguably trendsetting in putting in even references to past adventures, especially as running the risk of discontinuity by showing episodes in the wrong order becomes greater and even for decades after, networks would often switch airdates of produced episodes around for various reasons. 1995's "Sliders" instantly comes to mind as the network changed the broadcast order to hopefully get more viewers hooked, whereas the writing staff had a different and deliberate order. Even 1967's "The Prisoner" has, while vague, a preferred order other than broadcast, given how Number Six reacts to certain situations... Space 1999's second season must have done it often, given how many times the numeric count said at the start is somehow far lower than the preceding episode...

One of the reasons I gravitate toward television series, especially when compared to big-screen films, is the unique demands placed on the writing. Film narratives must be incredibly tight, necessitating precise and impactful dialogue. As a writer, I strive to guide my characters through their journeys, but in film, this luxury is often sacrificed in favor of visual storytelling. Writers contend with numerous constraints: sets, effects, time, place, and setting. This can reduce a 90-minute film to just 40 or 50 pages of dialogue. Despite these challenges, I admire film productions for their ability to craft cohesive plots with a clear beginning, middle, and end. In contrast, writing for a television series allows for extended character and plot development, as long as studios continue to fund additional seasons. This generally results in more intricate plotlines, multiple story arcs, and richer, more fully developed characters, making series television a uniquely compelling medium for storytelling.

Nice & well said!

 

[FredH]

Series — though ironically, my favorite single piece of Trek is The Motion Picture.

 

[Trek Writers Room]

Thanks!

I believe I have found a sentient version of Memory Alpha! If you are pulling all of this from your mind rather than using Mr. Google, I am thoroughly impressed. I would be grateful if I could reach out to you in the future for possible clarifications in my fan fiction work. Hopeful?

 

[Lord Garth]

But TOS's movies are the odd ones out, only because they had the established TV show characters to play with. (The TNG movies definitely didn't do the same continuing saga, which some fans were probably expecting at the time... oh, one flick has "The Dominion" mentioned, but they could have said "The Dustbunny" and it'd be just as pointless.)

TV from the 90s onward did introduce the type of character development that couldn't be done in movies*. Having 26 episodes to play with per season helps a lot, though PIC season 3 is a great example of having ten and still hitting it out of the park (IMHO).

Another reason why I like Picard so much. I thought it made up for the TNG Movies in a large way. IMHO too.

 

[Sim]

TV. Not that there can't be good or even great Star Trek movies. But the drives of a movie often work against Star Trek. (Especially when The Wrath of Khan is the White Whale that everyone chases.)

SNW has almost hit the sweet spot (for me) in being episodic but with some serialized character stuff. I think they need longer seasons to really pull it off, but I realize the monetary realities that they are up against.

Very much this.

The great thing about the tv shows is that with another episode every week, they have time to bring in more character and niche interest stuff. The movies always pander to the lowest common denominator of a mass audience.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

As mentioned in the title, there's a fun debate going on in another thread and it got me wondering, if you were in charge and had to make the decision but could ONLY move forward in ONE way, would Star Trek be solely be a movie franchise or would it be a series franchise?

TV movie anthologies. No attempt to hitch its characters and situations to earlier series, nor would it attempt to re-imagine older series in any way.

Kelvin.

No and no.

 

[fireproof78]

No and no.

It will always be my preference.

 

[xenotaris]

TV series, definitely.

 

[Ray Hardgrit]

One thing I've noticed about fans is that they can never agree on anything... except for maybe this. 91.8% have voted 'Series Only' so far and I wouldn't be surprised to see it go higher.

 

[kkt]

Anything watered down whether it be story line or characters, is always the fault of the writers, producers, or show runner. This can be done in either film or series television. The medium is not at fault, the humans are.

"The fault, dear Brutus, lies not in our medium but in our selves."
- with apologies to Will S.

 

[DragonGnomes]

either.... just not a damn 10 episode season EVER..... thats become a joke!

 

[Trek Writers Room]

"The fault, dear Brutus, lies not in our medium but in our selves."
- with apologies to Will S.

Hear, hear! Even the Final Frontier can't mask a weak narrative. Boldly going requires bold writing. Engage!

 

[Richard S. Ta]

We get more interesting and diverse stories on TV.

Franchised sci-fi movies inevitably lean towards set pieces, set pieces and big stars. That’s what brings a wider audience into a cinema and that’s what they expect from Trek at the cinema.

The more contemplative, character driven, philosophical stuff we like about Star Trek tends to get lost somewhere onto the big screen.

 

[Commander Troi]

The more contemplative, character driven, philosophical stuff we like about Star Trek tends to get lost somewhere onto the big screen.

Except for TMP.

 

[Tallguy]

Except for TMP.

Which people spend 45 years (wrongly) complaining about.

 

[fireproof78]

Except for TMP.

Hey, even Star Trek has its off days.

And with the variety of films out there by Star Trek I still stand by my (apparently minority) opinion that films are my preference.

 

[Richard S. Ta]

Except for TMP.

That’s funny because there was a whole bit of the post you quoted about TMP which I deleted for brevity.

Yes, when we get something that more resembles a ‘pure’ distillation of Star Trek on the big screen, that’s what it is. A movie which sends the general audience to sleep and is widely derided by even Star Trek fans.

I do want to add… I love TMP. I really do.

 

[Lord Garth]

My mind wandered while at work today, and then somehow thoughts I have about the two upcoming Star Trek movies crossed my mind, when I saw an update about them.

Here are my joke titles for them...

STAR TREK 4-Ever to Come Out!
STAR TREK: Even the Prequels Have a Prequel Now!

But seriously, though, the Prequel Trek Movie has piqued my interest more than it did before, since it seems like it's mostly taking place on Earth. It sounds like what the original plan for Enterprise Season 1 was going to be, before UPN vetoed it. It sounds like something genuinely different. I have no idea how the execution will pan out, but I can get behind the concept. Especially for a Non-Trek audience.