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1st spinoff about Spock, circa 1975

V

voggmo

Commodore
For kicks let's say TPTB decide to bring back Trek with Spock as lead having it revolve storywise about mostly science themes, theoretical science, Alien science etc. Scotty 2nd most prominent character.

Would it succeed? Would the lack of Kirk be too big a turnoff for most fans? or would they welcome a return regardless. Would the lack of tribbles & short skirts be missed? Kinda hinges on the writing. Less people oriented, ( alien & human ), & more SCI fi.
 
No, definitely would not have succeeded in 1975 (maybe not now). In those days, we would have needed Shatner back with a Shatmandu/Paul Michael Glaser hairpiece, bell-bottom hip-hugger muted tan or brown Star Fleet uniforms, etc., the Big E would have need racing stripes, and the action quota may have been upped.

All my flippancy aside, it boils down to the fact that Nimoy is not a leading man. He is a fine fine supporting actor. And the writing could have been great (doubt that it would have been), but in the end, I go with "It woulda failed." Hypothetically, had it ever made it on the air.

Sir Rhosis
 
I agree that it would not work. The premise would not appeal to enough people, and Kirk would be expected to be in it.
 
voggmo said:
Would the lack of Kirk be too big a turnoff for most fans? or would they welcome a return regardless. Would the lack of tribbles & short skirts be missed? Kinda hinges on the writing. Less people oriented, ( alien & human ), & more SCI fi.
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Wasn't Spock as popular as Kirk towards the end? You could still have tribbles and short skirts, and replace Kirk with one or two hot guys in supporting roles.

But I don't know what you mean by "less people oriented, and more sci fi." Isn't all sci fi television pretty drama and people oriented?
 
I don't know. Spock could move to Seattle and host a science program on the airwaves. Sarek could move in with him due to illness, and they would be frequently visited by Spock's emotional neurotic brother Sybok who has a crush on nurse Chapel who happens to be Sarek's live in physical therapist.
 
Kio said:
Wasn't Spock as popular as Kirk towards the end? You could still have tribbles and short skirts, and replace Kirk with one or two hot guys in supporting roles.
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Actually Spock was more popular than Kirk from early on in the first season of the series - this was reflected backstage in ego and money struggles between the two actors that continuted for years. Justman and Solow's "Inside Star Trek" probably gives the best overview of this whole situation.

Given that, it's kind of silly to say that Nimoy couldn't carry a series as the lead - for many viewers he effectively was the lead in "Star Trek."

It's really impossible to say for sure, but this probably would not have pulled the ratings necessary in those pre-cable days - after all, "Star Trek" itself didn't. OTOH, depending on the setting this might have been a less expensive series than "Star Trek" so who knows. One would have to know a lot more about the premise and setting - it could have been very much like "Questor."
 
shatastrophic said:
I don't know. Spock could move to Seattle and host a science program on the airwaves. Sarek could move in with him due to illness, and they would be frequently visited by Spock's emotional neurotic brother Sybok who has a crush on nurse Chapel who happens to be Sarek's live in physical therapist.
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Naw, that would never work. Too cerebral.

I think voggmo's idea could have flown if Spock's #2 was on hormone overload. Make him/her young, a rookie always diving into problems head first, leading with their heart and not their head. Then Spock could have played off of this character, establishing a dynamic.

Others are right. In many people's eyes, Spock was the lead in Star Trek, not Kirk. He was the most popular character.
 
I think you need the others to balance Spock.

Rewatch "The One With the Killer Lady Who Disappears Like An Old TV Shuts Off" as an example.

Joe, forgetful
 
Your standards are too high. The Andy Griffith Show spun off Gomer Pyle. Never was there less of a traditional lead character than Gomer Pyle, and that show was a huge hit. Goooll - leee!

Agreed - 50 minutes of "logical" and "fascinating" would have been too much. How about a half hour series, more of an anthology? Focus on adventures of the crew, relying on Captain Spock's wisdom...and the fact the producers would find a way to put Captain Spock in mortal danger every other episode.
 
Have to agree with the others who say this wouldn't work. The "less people oriented" bit would not have enough mass appeal to make it worth the effort. Sorry.

Starship Polaris mentioned the Questor Tapes and that got me thinking that maybe doing Assignment Earth with Spock instead of Garry Seven might have more chance?
 
TigerOfDarkness said:
Have to agree with the others who say this wouldn't work. The "less people oriented" bit would not have enough mass appeal to make it worth the effort. Sorry.

Starship Polaris mentioned the Questor Tapes and that got me thinking that maybe doing Assignment Earth with Spock instead of Garry Seven might have more chance?
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I think an entire series devoted to Spock nailing Mariette Hartley in that cave would have worked.

Joe, one-tracked
 
voggmo said:
For kicks let's say TPTB decide to bring back Trek with Spock as lead having it revolve storywise about mostly science themes, theoretical science, Alien science etc. Scotty 2nd most prominent character.

Would it succeed? Would the lack of Kirk be too big a turnoff for most fans? or would they welcome a return regardless. Would the lack of tribbles & short skirts be missed? Kinda hinges on the writing. Less people oriented, ( alien & human ), & more SCI fi.
Click to expand...

I don't know that the mostly science themes would have gone over well. Star Trek has never really been about science - to turn it into that would kill a lot of the point of the whole series. In short, we'd end up with a bunch of episodes like that one when B'Elanna tries to repair the damaged robot.
 
shatastrophic said:
I don't know. Spock could move to Seattle and host a science program on the airwaves. Sarek could move in with him due to illness, and they would be frequently visited by Spock's emotional neurotic brother Sybok who has a crush on nurse Chapel who happens to be Sarek's live in physical therapist.
Click to expand...

And don't forget Sarek's miniature selat "Edik". :p
 
Wasn't something like this one of the first revival proposals NBC approached GR with in the early '70's?
 
Overall, they probably could not have pulled this off. They would have had to change Spock so that he was not just playing off of Kirk and more of a stand-alone character, would have had to create a scenario where his talents and strengths would have been centrao to the show, and done this in a way that the viewer was not constantly wondering where Kirk was. All of these are huge challenges.

It would have run for 13 episodes, the final 2 of which would never have aired due to cancellation and would only be available on the DVD box set.
 
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