Could a Trek series from a non-Federation perspective work?

Every Star Trek series so far has at its core the Federation and Starfleet as defining the values the characters are defending, in search of, or working towards. The closest any of them get to coming at things from an alien perspective is Prodigy, and even that is based on a Federation starship with the crew assimilating to Federation ways and in search of it.

I guess this gets into what defines a Star Trek series, but could a series NOT centered around Starfleet and the Federation work and still be accepted by fans as Trek?

Could a series work if it were centered from an alien perspective (maybe in either a different galaxy or another unexplored part of the Milky Way) or a Firefly-esque series (either a group of Tom Paris-like criminals or Seven of Nine's Fenris Rangers) from a non-Starfleet perspective?

 

I expect someone is going to try it at some point.

"In a Mirror Darkly" certainly has its fans.

 

DS9 had its moments where it would focus more on other cultures and would at times prioritise them - we learnt so much about Bajor, Carsassians, the Dominion (compared to races in other series) and the was a very Bajoran perspective due to Siskonheing the Emissary.

I could see it working with them intersecting with the Fed from time to time just to centre the story as being Trek

 

Wasn't Picard season 1 pretty much this? A bunch of rogue Starfleet outcasts?

 

I considered saying that myself but you would argue that they have all been heavily influenced by Starfleet and Federation values, having all served in some manner and so it isn't truly separate to the Federation as I believe was the OPs intent

 

I've often wondered how a Star Trek would look that had been produced by, say, Klingons, Cardassians, or Ferengi. Which of course can't really happen, but a series purportedly from their perspective would be the next best thing.

 

Why not try it? Whether such a production ends up working or failing, I believe the franchise's producers should give it a try. Be original.

 

It's still very much rooted in the Federation and Starfleet though. It's connected to everything from TNG through Picard and Data, and a core element is questioning the Federation's values through the refusal to help the Romulans and the synthetic ban.

 

A series set in the Klingon Empire would be fun, but would break the bank financially because of make-up (unless they used principally "augment" Klingons).

 

"Klingon Academy" was an engaging video game from the Klingon perspective during a time of war against the Federation. If nothing else, you could go all free-world free-universe and destroy Federation ships all over the place. Having David Warner and Christopher Plummer reprise their roles didn't hurt in the slightest, either... on top of a robust storyline...

So if an interactive video game can do it, how can't a TV show?

 

TNG had latex masks and gallons of paint all over the place. 21st century shows even more so. If replacing those with TOS-equivalents were used and the stories strong enough, would 26-episode seasons make a comeback?

 

You mean like, I dunno......STAR TREK ENTERPRISE?

 

You mean the series set around a Starfleet crew and generally about the events leading up to the formation of the Federation? The perspective is still rooted in Starfleet and the Federation as defining what the characters are pursuing, defending, and working towards.

 

And it would have been a better series without the Federation being constantly referenced, due to that infernal temporal cold war.

 

In general I'd be up for a series taking place outside the Federation.
However, I would not want a Klingon Empire focused one, by now I've come to really dislike the Klingons.
Though I'd be up for a Romulan one.

 

TrekLit already has one, thanks to Keith R. A. ("KRAD") DeCandido and his IKS Gorkon series.

And of course, if you follow TrekLit, then you're undoubtedly already well aware of an in-universe example, may'Duj BortaS ("Battlecruiser Vengeance").

 

PIC S1, ENT, the Lower Decks episode “wej Duj” and even the mirror universe episodes of DS9 show that it can be done. And at least on these board, such an approach does not have widespread support, although the word ‘no’ does come up a lot on these boards regardless of the Trek idea proposed.

This is where animation comes into play. And even without animation, it would work as a limited series, tv movie or feature film.

 

Isn’t Prodigy already that?

And yes, it would work. It’s a huge universe with lots of interesting places very underdeveloped.