What do you want to see in Star Trek 4?

We really should drop this snobbery of "sci-fi is superior to fantasy" and I say that as someone who prefers sci-fi over fantasy. The only difference between the two is that sci-fi tries to pretend there's a rational explanation for everything while fantasy is content to leave it at "it's a magic, a wizard did it." Truth is, a lot of the science most sci-fi uses to rationalize its material is often completely bogus it might as well be fantastical.

Truth is, Star Wars is sci-fi, as everything in it has a rational explanation. The only thing close to being fantastical, the Force dose have a scientific explanation, bogus though it may be.

A common mistake people seem to be making about Interstellar and The Martian is that people are drawn to them because they're sci-fi movies. I doubt most of the audiences give a shit about the science in either movies. It is again, the character elements of both movies that draws people in, particularly The Martian since half the movie is just Matt Damon on his own making video journal entries. Interstellar does have some effective emotional moments, which even generate something in my own cold, hard heart.

But, the science fiction elements in those movies definitely aren't their draw. Interstellar's sci-fi elements are second-rate and anyone with any familiarity with the genre would find them actually rather tedious. For example, I went in with no spoilers and had the whole movie predicted within forty minutes. The Martian is hardly sci-fi, just a standard lone castaway trying to survive until rescued story, this time set on another planet. Granted, it is well researched in its depictions of space travel and what living on Mars could be like, but I'm sure that was only a factor for a small minority of the audience, if any in seeing the movie.

 

Snobbery? I even prefer Fantasy over Sci-fi. Speak for yourself!

 

I'd watch another TVH as well. Another TMP, not so much.

Unfortunately (for some,) JJ's first film still sits at the top of the heap. Throw in STID taking in 4th place (under TMP and TVH ), and TPTB are far more likely to just try and convince JJ to come back. Regardless of the general idea that STID was part of the downward slope of diminishing returns, it's not really that simple when STID actually improved on '09's world-wide takings.

Paramount Exec: Boy. Our profit margin took a real hit when we didn't have 'Mr Star Wars's' team taking point, and also decided to creatively make our blockbuster movie more 'for the fans'. Oh, however shall we try to fix this mess?

 

The best thing I liked about Beyond was the fun, the humor.

So if Bad Robot is involved in the next movie (and I believe they are, unless Beyond stops making any money from this point in time immediately), why not go all out on making Star Trek 14 a real comedy like The Voyage Home. I think they would be good at it and the general audience might come back as well...

 

Like I said, I personally have nothing against another comedy.

But there are plenty of people who don't exactly hold TVH up as 'real Trek (TM).' That sort of division is why message boards are a really bad barometer to try and gauge what Paramount 'should do' when trying to make a movie that as many people as possible will enjoy. They follow the money trail for a pretty good reason.

But for all we know, Paramount could end the day content with BEY final takings...or maybe they won't. Not much use worrying about (or predicting) the future just yet.

Oh yeah, my answer to the thread title - 'In Star Trek 4, I want them to establish that Cupcake and GATT survived (or avoided) BEY's wholesale Red Shirt slaughter. Coz I'm ridiculously attached to them.'

 

Could have been an interesting post-credits scene, set at Krall's prison camp.
Cupcake: "You think they're coming back for us?"
GATT: "Insufficient evidence to form a prediction, Lieutenant Hendorf."
Awkward silence.
Cupcake: "So why doesn't anyone give you a proper name, anyway?"
GATT: "Why does everyone call you Cupcake, Lieutenant Hendorf?"
Cupcake: "Sigh, this is not the shore leave I had in mind."

 

Now I want a Force Awakens-style scene where Hendorf names Science Officer 0718, and then they go on to have the greatest bromance in the galaxy.

 

GATT and Cupcake in an escape pod together.
Cupcake: "You know, it's weird, all these years together, I never learned your name."
GATT: "I am Science Officer 0718."
Cupcake: "What? I asked for a name, not rank and serial number."
GATT: "Captain Kirk has given me no other means of identification."
Cupcake: "That figures. Hmm, how about GATT. Yeah, I like GATT, you're now GATT."
GATT: "Does being called 'GATT' entitle me to call you Cupcake, Lieutenant Hendorf?"
Cupcake: "Sigh. Even the cyborg knows."

 

^ I took the liberty of emailing your short story to Bad Robot. Expect a call from JJ within the week.

 

This movie is the SECOND time that Star Trek has taken on the concept of creeping militarism and barbarity in western society, personified it in a villain, and sent Captain Kirk to destroy it. While that concept does indeed remain (depressingly) relevant today, I'm thinking that idea has sort of run its course and the next Star Trek movie could take a slight course correction.

Enterprise becomes aware of some alien megastructure -- say, a ringworld or a dyson sphere or something equally grandiose -- and has to unlock the secrets of its technology. Maybe a source of inexhaustible power, or some kind of superweapon, or some means of traveling thousands of light years instantaneously. A half dozen other races -- Romulans, Klingons, Ferengi, Cardassians, whatever -- also send ships to try and get at the secret technology. But the technology ITSELF turns out to be way too dangerous for anyone to really handle (which is why the original creators are extinct) and Kirk winds up saying "fuck it!" to the whole thing and getting out of dodge just as the winning competitor finally activates the technology and accidentally destroys half a solar system with it.

tl;dr:
Star Trek: Raiders of the Space Ark

 

Abrams has one foot in Star Trek and one foot in Star Wars. Disney is milking Star Wars like there's no tomorrow. The conditions have never been more favorable.

It's time for an official, balls to the wall Star Trek vs Star Wars movie.

 

As much fun as that would be to watch, there's a very real possibility that it would doom the entire franchise to irrelevancy.

 

This isn't integral by any means, but I'd love to see the next movie with more of an emphasis on either TNG or VOY lore in some fashion. Into Darkness used a bit of DS9, and Beyond used Enterprise, both times becoming part of the plot. ST'09 had the TOS crew use a couple TNG terms/concepts, but it was meant to be almost strictly a TOS movie all along.

That's not to say that I want the Kazon to be the next villains (God no) or anything like that, but even just thematically I'd love to see either show touched upon.

 

^ How about Kirk makes first contact with the Cardassians?

 

Science fiction is nothing more than a popular modern subgenre of fantasy. The conventions and tropes of science fiction, generally speaking, rule out a lot of fantasy as being part of it, but the basic definition of fantasy includes science fiction within its set.

In any event, given the relative success of the nuTrek films versus the oldTrek films Paramount won't be looking to the old stuff for inspiration any time soon - they'll mine it for fodder as they did with Khan, but that's it.

 

Should have emailed it to Justin Lin. You know, someone who appreciate good stories.

 

I always wondered how they going to play the awkwardness of Jim and George's relationship.

 

We already know what's going to be in it. More or less..

 

Id love to see more federation starships (not seen before) - more of the fleet, so to speak.

 

Why can't we have a 3 movie arc about a clash of empires.

Many worlds at stake.

Good versus bad.

We have a ready made baddie in the Klingons.

Show them savagely wiping out a Federation colony or base.

Show them hell bent on expanding their empire at all costs with only the Federation standing in their way.

I don't understand how each Star Wars films can show empires at war, massive starship battles and quieter character moments; but for roughly the same budget; nu-Star Trek can only recycle the one ship vs one bad guy story.