How internationally appealing is/was star trek ?

[Trek Survivor]

In the UK TNG was very successful for BBC2 once it started showing after the effort to overcome Jonathan Powell's hatred of science fiction. And I think most of us there at the time can recall the added excitment thrown into the Best of Both Worlds when the rights for season 4 went to Sky and it turned out the Beeb couldn't show it on terrestrial unil after they'd screened not only the fourth year but repeats of the first three years first, it probably wouldn't have been that long in reality but as an 11ish year old it looked like an eternity, and absolutely much, much longer than America had to wait between the two parts.

Yep, TNG was a HUGE success for BBC2. It was regularly getting circa 5m viewers, which doesn't sound a lot - but for the broadcast time and being on the 'minority' channel it was regularly in the top 3 BBC2 programmes of the

I was NOT excited when Sky got the rights... because I didn't have Sky! I did have some friends who would kindly tape whatever episodes they could for me, so I got to see some 'new' episodes as and when...

 

[MacLeod]

In the UK TNG was very successful for BBC2 once it started showing after the effort to overcome Jonathan Powell's hatred of science fiction. And I think most of us there at the time can recall the added excitment thrown into the Best of Both Worlds when the rights for season 4 went to Sky and it turned out the Beeb couldn't show it on terrestrial unil after they'd screened not only the fourth year but repeats of the first three years first, it probably wouldn't have been that long in reality but as an 11ish year old it looked like an eternity, and absolutely much, much longer than America had to wait between the two parts.

Yep, TNG was a HUGE success for BBC2. It was regularly getting circa 5m viewers, which doesn't sound a lot - but for the broadcast time and being on the 'minority' channel it was regularly in the top 3 BBC2 programmes of the

I was NOT excited when Sky got the rights... because I didn't have Sky! I did have some friends who would kindly tape whatever episodes they could for me, so I got to see some 'new' episodes as and when...

And of course the US population is 4-5 times that of the UK.

 

[IrishNero]

A cable show can be kept afloat by 5m viewers here in the states so that sounds like an enormous response.

 

[danielcw]

As can be sen by all the responses about Germany in this thread, Star Trek was very popular over here.
The high point was probably around the 30th anniversary.
The most successful Star Trek movie in German cinemas was Insurrection.

because they thought, TOS was for children.

Child-friendly, but not for children.
TOS was primarely aimed at the youth.
and the care that went into creating the German version shows that as well.

If you want to see Star Trek for children, look at the first German version of TAS, which also had every episode cut down to 15 min.

The German TV broadcaster repeat TNG and Voyager endlessly, but TOS is underrepresented.

For the last 4 years, TOS-remastered has run almost endlessly on ZDFneo, even in prime-time for a while. Most of the time they have shown one or two episodes every word-day-evening.
Right now, it is airing around midnight, though.

A cable show can be kept afloat by 5m viewers here in the states so that sounds like an enormous response.

If the right demographic watches a show, 1.5 million people can keep a show afloat on cable networks.
Ultimately it depends on the average of the network.

 

[Kilana2]

As can be sen by all the responses about Germany in this thread, Star Trek was very popular over here.
The high point was probably around the 30th anniversary.
The most successful Star Trek movie in German cinemas was Insurrection.

The German TV broadcaster repeat TNG and Voyager endlessly, but TOS is underrepresented.

For the last 4 years, TOS-remastered has run almost endlessly on ZDFneo, even in prime-time for a while. Most of the time they have shown one or two episodes every word-day-evening.
Right now, it is airing around midnight, though.

ZDFneo is a program I cannot receive with my old tube TV. I desperately need a new flatscreen TV with more channels.

I have bad experience with Star Trek DVDs and their bad quality, so I don´t want to buy DVSs anytime soon again.

Good thing is, that Greg Cox made me rewatch TOS "The Conscience of the King" as background for his novel "Foul deeds will rise". I resorted to the original, which I found online. The first TOS episode to watch in English for me (I watched DS9 episodes in English before).
I really have to listen to more English spoken shows/series. And it´s easier when you are familiar with a topic.

I like the international atmosphere here in this forum.

 

[IrishNero]

If the right demographic watches a show, 1.5 million people can keep a show afloat on cable networks.
Ultimately it depends on the average of the network.

And sometimes, a show can be cancelled even if there are plenty of viewers but not enough in the right demographic.

 

[eyeresist]

Related to the thread topic, we were discussing the controversial theme tune of Enterprise in the ENT forum recently, and I said I thought it seemed too "American". A couple of people agreed with me. But Star Trek is an American show, of course! It's not that we're "anti-American", but there is a bombastic, self-regarding quality to the song which perhaps reflects the worst aspects of America's international image. Compared to this, the orchestral themes of earlier shows were more accessible to we foreigners.

 

[Orphalesion]

^ You have a point, though I think the more obvious problem was that it somewhat fall into the trap humans=American (which I would also say TOS fell sometimes, despeite their lipservice to an international crew) and way overshot the mark with Archer and Tripp. Even as a kid it felt to me like while the other Trek shows tried to show what they believed humanity could become Enterprise had a rather self-patronizing and self-degrading view of humans/Americans as rude, self-important blunderers.
It took the idea "Roddenberry's perfect people are too boring" and went WAY overboard.
The themesong doesn't sound too self-regarding, and I personally quite like my spectacle, but it's somewhat late 90s soft-rock drivel...

 

[eyeresist]

Although Archer and Trip are American (and I think Trip is the first major Star Trek character to have a Deep South accent), I don't think they are especially American types of people. Archer actually reminds me a bit of my father. Just try imagining these characters with Australian accents.

 

[USS Pertinax]

I hope he never had fight anyone.

 

[IrishNero]

Related to the thread topic, we were discussing the controversial theme tune of Enterprise in the ENT forum recently, and I said I thought it seemed too "American". A couple of people agreed with me. But Star Trek is an American show, of course! It's not that we're "anti-American", but there is a bombastic, self-regarding quality to the song which perhaps reflects the worst aspects of America's international image. Compared to this, the orchestral themes of earlier shows were more accessible to we foreigners.

I was one of those who agreed with you. I am American, but as I have lived half of my life outside the U.S.(including Australia, the UK, Russia, Germany, Korea, Italy and Japan) while performing embassy duty. I also speak 3 languages to near-fluency other than English. -Not to 'toot my own horn.' I believe my background provides to me a unique perspective regarding cultural sensitivity and bias that one may not get if they live their lives in one location.

I don't know that the song is necessarily bombastic, but I have not reviewed the lyrics. However, I believe the images displayed on-screen while the song plays do portray an American slant and would like to have seen a few more non-American space achievements represented in that sequence. And although there is a non-American within the crew, I think there should have been more international representation within the crew that would reflect the coming together of all nations that we (hope) we will see in the future.

One thing I have noticed in my travels is that Americans are much less aware of cultures outside their own in comparison to other developed countries. For example, I often see American movies and songs topping the charts in other countries, but rarely so is the reverse in the U.S. Perhaps it is because of this that the producers of American shows are not inclined to think in terms of representation of other cultures. In other words, they may not inclined to introduce such characters in a series because they are not often exposed to them. Or perhaps they are afraid to introduce non-American characters because they don't want to deal with cultural issues that may come with the character.

Either way, shows often lose some credibility with foreign fans.

 

[Kilana2]

I was one of those who agreed with you. I am American, but as I have lived half of my life outside the U.S.(including Australia, the UK, Russia, Germany, Korea, Italy and Japan) while performing embassy duty. I also speak 3 languages to near-fluency other than English. -Not to 'toot my own horn.' I believe my background provides to me a unique perspective regarding cultural sensitivity and bias that one may not get if they live their lives in one location.


One thing I have noticed in my travels is that Americans are much less aware of cultures outside their own in comparison to other developed countries. For example, I often see American movies and songs topping the charts in other countries, but rarely so is the reverse in the U.S. Perhaps it is because of this that the producers of American shows are not inclined to think in terms of representation of other cultures. In other words, they may not inclined to introduce such characters in a series because they are not often exposed to them. Or perhaps they are afraid to introduce non-American characters because they don't want to deal with cultural issues that may come with the character.

Either way, shows often lose some credibility with foreign fans.

But it´s also the other way round. In my advanced English class US history was almost non-existent. Main topics were Shakespeare (my regards to Greg Cox ), conflicts between catholics and protestants in Northern Ireland, or generally a focus on English speaking countries in Europe. Reading, understanding and analizing texts and so on.
Australia-related themes were also non-existent.

Sometimes non-American characters (not only in Star Trek) are portrayed stereotypically and you think that the creators know nothing about the culture their character originates.

I wish Starfleet officers with German ancestry weren´t portrayed as tall, blonde with blue eyes. Most Germans don´t look like that.

 

[IrishNero]

I agree. Some of the stereotypical characters are actually more caricatures. The example you used is excellent. I was amazed at how few Germans actually had blonde hair and blue eyes when I lived there. I'm speculating of course, but I think the casting people want to follow the concepts most people have because they want the people to readily identify the characters with little effort, but it does perpetuate stereotypes when they do this.

 

[Kilana2]

I agree. Some of the stereotypical characters are actually more caracatures. The example you used is excellent. I was amazed at how few Germans actually had blonde hair and blue eyes when I lived there. I'm speculating of course, but I think the casting people want to follow the concepts most people have because they want the people to readily identify the characters with little effort, but it does perpetuate stereotypes when they do this.

Peter David´s Kat Mueller/Müller, New Frontier, for instance. But clichés aside, his characters are still interesting and you want to know more about them. (Kat as brunette could also be German ).

The fact is, Germany is multiculti, as is the US. Christopher is one of the authors who promotes the diversity approach in his novels. And he is able to think outside the box. Reflected in characters like T´Ryssa Chen, much discussed in another thread. While not being a Chen fan I appreciate less stereotyped characters.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

I've read that Star Trek isn't popular in South Korea, and there's a explanation for that from an American who's living there now:

Star Trek in South Korea

 

[MacLeod]

Related to the thread topic, we were discussing the controversial theme tune of Enterprise in the ENT forum recently, and I said I thought it seemed too "American". A couple of people agreed with me. But Star Trek is an American show, of course! It's not that we're "anti-American", but there is a bombastic, self-regarding quality to the song which perhaps reflects the worst aspects of America's international image. Compared to this, the orchestral themes of earlier shows were more accessible to we foreigners.

I was one of those who agreed with you. I am American, but as I have lived half of my life outside the U.S.(including Australia, the UK, Russia, Germany, Korea, Italy and Japan) while performing embassy duty. I also speak 3 languages to near-fluency other than English. -Not to 'toot my own horn.' I believe my background provides to me a unique perspective regarding cultural sensitivity and bias that one may not get if they live their lives in one location.

I don't know that the song is necessarily bombastic, but I have not reviewed the lyrics. However, I believe the images displayed on-screen while the song plays do portray an American slant and would like to have seen a few more non-American space achievements represented in that sequence. And although there is a non-American within the crew, I think there should have been more international representation within the crew that would reflect the coming together of all nations that we (hope) we will see in the future.

One thing I have noticed in my travels is that Americans are much less aware of cultures outside their own in comparison to other developed countries. For example, I often see American movies and songs topping the charts in other countries, but rarely so is the reverse in the U.S. Perhaps it is because of this that the producers of American shows are not inclined to think in terms of representation of other cultures. In other words, they may not inclined to introduce such characters in a series because they are not often exposed to them. Or perhaps they are afraid to introduce non-American characters because they don't want to deal with cultural issues that may come with the character.

Either way, shows often lose some credibility with foreign fans.

But does that hold true for other countries? Do they tend not to use non-native characters? Does a show produced in France for example use non-French characters?

 

[Smellmet]

In the UK TNG was very successful for BBC2 once it started showing after the effort to overcome Jonathan Powell's hatred of science fiction. And I think most of us there at the time can recall the added excitment thrown into the Best of Both Worlds when the rights for season 4 went to Sky and it turned out the Beeb couldn't show it on terrestrial unil after they'd screened not only the fourth year but repeats of the first three years first, it probably wouldn't have been that long in reality but as an 11ish year old it looked like an eternity, and absolutely much, much longer than America had to wait between the two parts.

Yep, TNG was a HUGE success for BBC2. It was regularly getting circa 5m viewers, which doesn't sound a lot - but for the broadcast time and being on the 'minority' channel it was regularly in the top 3 BBC2 programmes of the

I was NOT excited when Sky got the rights... because I didn't have Sky! I did have some friends who would kindly tape whatever episodes they could for me, so I got to see some 'new' episodes as and when...

Five million for BBC2 is a massive audience figure for that channel, no matter what time of day. The recently cancelled Top Gear only pulled the same numbers, and that's the BBC's most lucrative programme.