Reset Button at the end of Star Trek? *Potentially Major Spoilers*

[Inquisitive]

I was browsing the NeoGAF thread on the new Star Trek trailer when someone posted a link to the CHUD forums, in which one of their posters claimed to be prevy to information regarding the movies plot.

Here is what he had to say:

Spoiler: Spoiler

From what the people I know who worked on it told me, it does. Paramount and Roddenberry's estate would never approve of all these changes for an actual reboot; they're too radical.

Please forgive the upcoming rant, Chewers. Like Devin, I'm privy to info you aren't.

I can't believe all the people in this thread jerking themselves off into a frenzy over the trailer. Some of you are the same people who were complaining about how bad ENTERPRISE, VOYAGER, and other Rick Berman/Brannon Braga episodes were, due to over reliance on time travel.

Abrams, Orci, and Kurtzman are doing the same thing B&B did: they're essentially pushing the Reset Button at the end of the movie. The difference is that B&B never charged us $10 to sit through it.

Kurtzman and Orci think they're being clever by essentially changing history as Trekkers know it and then saying, "But that didn't really happen."

This isn't a prequel, it's a sidequel. In other words (SPOILERS)

• Kirk's parents get killed/tortured - but it didn't really happen.
• Vulcan gets invaded/destroyed -- but it didn't really happen.
• Pike mentors Kirk, shows him his "destiny" -- but it didn't really happen.
• Chekov gets killed - but it didn't really happen.

How is that exciting? If it was lazy writing on ENTERPRISE and VOYAGER, then it's lazy writing here.

You guys ever see any of those fan fiction-based ST Webisodes that are all over the Internet? Well, based on what I know and have seen, this film looks like a $150 million dollar fan fic film (albeit with better acting).

My prediction is that this'll be ST:TMP all over again: it'll make money because everyone will go see it; it'll get good reviews, but looking back everyone will finally admit that, while they enjoyed it, it wasn't really good STAR TREK. Except instead of 2001, they'll be comparing this to DAWSON'S CREEK and (bad) STAR WARS.

The good news is that, like ST:TMP, if it's successful, Paramount will then finally hire someone to give us a real ST movie. It probably won't be Abrams and company. They had the opportunity to do any ST story they wanted and they ended up going into the past rather than dealing with the future.

So kudos to you guys who are looking forward to this. It's just hard for me to get excited about this, from what I've been told/shown. To me it looks like lazy storytelling/filmmaking. I feel that ST deserves better.

I really hope the movie does not turn out to be like what his guy describes, as that would be an absolute disaster in terms of plot. I really cannot think of much to say other than the fact that I would be pretty angry if thats how it all goes down.

 

[Darth_Pinche]

Isn't the title of this thread a major spoiler?

 

[Plecostomus]

The studio will do whatever it thinks will bring money in and I'm not sure if Gene's estate actually has any say in the matter at all.

I call bullshit.

 

[Michael]

There is a German saying, which I think might apply here: Der Weg ist das Ziel. There's the English equivalent The journey is the reward, but I don't think that it really comprises quite the same message.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

This guy knows nothing.

Neither does Devin, really. I can't believe that he tried to tell the "Apple store" joke as late as last Friday, apparently thinking that he was being clever by repeating it.

 

[ancient]

I really doubt they're going to reset the movie at the end.

 

[Devon]

Apparently there is no reset.

 

[EJD1984]

Maybe not a Reset at the end of the movie, but at the very least a Redesign of the ship.

 

[Dr_Daystrom]

I've been thinking that this would be the case. Nero screws things up. Events change. Spock unscrews things up. Events return to normal. The look of this film is way too different from TOS. Something has to give, like a reset. Or, maybe not. Only time will tell.

 

[Kpnuts]

They're talking about sequels and about resigning the whole cast for a minimum of 2 further films...

It'd be tough to do that if the whole thing is reset. Abrams isn't that stupid surely.

Also, why would Orci talk about alternate realities etc when this new reality just ends up getting wiped out anyway.

Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised if some things reverted back to how they were, ie. Vulcan not really getting destroyed.

Will it be a timeship ramming the Narada = Voyager ramming the Krenim time ship type moment? Hopefully not as widespread as that.

 

[Dr_Daystrom]

...Or, maybe not. Only time will tell.

^ Tongue placed firmly in cheek.

 

[Franklin]

It's a rant worthy of this board. It'd be nice if an "insider" could truly give inside information instead of basically sharing what's already known or accepted as having a chance of happening, including

Spoiler: possible spoiler

Chekov dying. Months ago, Abrams alluded to the possibility that one of the major characters does not make it to the end of the movie. If I remember correctly, most of the guesses on this board were it would be Chekov or Pike.

The only "insider" part of this is the contention that the reset button is hit. Even if that's so, does that in itself ruin the movie or mean the story is bad or lazily put together? Does that remove any of the suspense of whether or not they'll be able to make things correct? (Whatever "correct" turns out to be.) Did a reset make "City on the Edge of Forever" a bad story? Did it ruin "Yesterday's Enterprise"? Did it stink up "All Good Things"?

 

[Michael]

Did a reset make "City on the Edge of Forever" a bad story? Did it ruin "Yesterday's Enterprise"? Did it stink up "All Good Things"?

No, no and no. And that's why I think it might work in this movie, too.

 

[Rii]

I wish Abrams and co. had taken the opportunity to make larger changes than they apparently have. Sex changes for certain characters, for example.

They're talking about sequels and about resigning the whole cast for a minimum of 2 further films...
It'd be tough to do that if the whole thing is reset. Abrams isn't that stupid surely.

Forget about sequels, hitting the reset button would be a horrible decision within the context of Trek XI alone. Guts the film.

 

[Kpnuts]

Even Year of Hell didn't suffer too much because of the end.

Reset buttons can work, but it has to be handled very well.

I still don't think there'll be one though. Has there been any preview screenings to get select audience feedback yet?

Why bother going to all the trouble of setting up an alternate timeline (and explaining it to us) that gives them free reign to do whatever they want... then destroy it all. Doesn't make any sense.

 

[Dr_Daystrom]

Did a reset make "City on the Edge of Forever" a bad story? Did it ruin "Yesterday's Enterprise"? Did it stink up "All Good Things"?

Although my tongue is in cheek, I bite it in that no one should be surprised if a reset button is pushed in this film. It's a well worn plot device (as is time travel, which is a big part of this movie) in Star Trek.

 

[ancient]

At the end Kirk is reset to SHAT Kirk. Whew!

 

[JoeZhang]

It's not going to happen - this is suppose to relaunch the franchise - the cast are all tied up for at least two sequels. They are not going to let the air out of the balloon at the end of the film by saying "all you've just seen, never happened!"

How would that even work for a sequel ? It would carry on with the original history and the 16 year old who paid to see the first film and has no idea about some dinosaur TV series watched by his granddad is suppose to just roll with this?

No chance. If the film doesn't end with "the future is unknown and fresh and new!" I'll eat my hat.

 

[JoeZhang]

Did a reset make "City on the Edge of Forever" a bad story? Did it ruin "Yesterday's Enterprise"? Did it stink up "All Good Things"?

No, no and no. And that's why I think it might work in this movie, too.

But those were resets to a history that the viewer was aware of - for the target audience, the original history doesn't exist.

 

[Green Shirt]

I thought this movie was supposed to show how the crew got together. So after we wait years and spend tens of dollars to see it - Paramount and Abrams send us this huge "Frak You" Valentine saying "This is one possible way this could have gone, come back in three years and we'll tell this story all over again. The right way this time (fingers crossed)".