How would you retcon Strange New Worlds?

[Voodoowoman2]

If you had the power? Some don't want that, they want an exact replica of TOS and I kinda understand that. Here is what I would do, partially with Spock and Christine.

Jess Bush tells us season two that Chapel and Spock develop a very close bond. Let's go with that. Let's say that that bond is very strong. Spock is visiting T'Pring on shore leave and Chapel is away perhaps with Korby and his team. There is an accident of some kind and she is severely injured. Spock is overwhelmed by how he senses her trauma through the bond. Even T"Pring feels it through Spock. She realizes what is going on and insists that Spock break this bond for good. Spock complies, and there is some kind of ritual somewhere but the effects on Christine are profound. Spock doesn't tell her. Chapel suffers a nervous breakdown over it and never truly recovers. This explains the wounded woman we see in TOS. It explains Spock's odd sense of shame whenever he's around her. It explains why he avoids her. She may never have any idea why this happened to her.
Which characters would you retcon and how would you do it?

 

[Jayson1]

I wouldn't retcon any of the characters but I would have had Dr Boyce at least make a cameo.

 

[fireproof78]

Pike doesn't get in the accident due to another time crystal shenanigans.

The Gorn are shown to have multiple subspecies. See something like the Scarrans in Farscape.

Kirk remains on the Republic.

 

[Jayson1]

I would fix the Gorn as well or at least show those Gorn we saw to be what the Gorn are like as babies or kids before changing into what we saw on TOS.

 

[Tuskin38]

I wouldn't, the show is fine the way it is.

 

[fireproof78]

So is TOS but I would retcon it too.

As far as dumb thought exercises go this one is probably the lesser of the offensive ones in this board.

 

[Tuskin38]

There's just nothing (so far) that I would change.

 

[fireproof78]

Fair enough.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I wouldn't retcon any of the characters but I would have had Dr Boyce at least make a cameo.

Played by Len Cariou, of course

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

 

[Dukhat]

I would like for SNW to go in a different direction rather than be slavishly beholden to a '60's TV show that it barely tries to emulate anyway (and for good reason.)

Why do we still need Pike to get into that accident? DSC and SNW shows that Pike knows what's going to happen to him, and there are a ton of ways he can get out of his fate and still not have the scenario shown in "A Quality of Mercy" happen. He can still give the ship to Kirk and have Kirk deal with the Romulans. He can still make sure that the accident on the training ship doesn't happen, and save his life and the lives of the cadets. So what if it 'changes history?' Who cares?

 

[fireproof78]

Pike cares, apparently. He's true to his word or some other cliche.

 

[Dukhat]

Pike cares, apparently. He's true to his word or some other cliche.

Well, yes, that's my point. Pike is just a character that someone is writing. And that someone could very easily decide that Pike doesn't need to sacrifice himself for the sake of being in continuity with a '60's TV show. But unfortunately I don't see that happening.

 

[fireproof78]

Well, yes, that's my point. Pike is just a character that someone is writing. And that someone could very easily decide that Pike doesn't need to sacrifice himself for the sake of being in continuity with a '60's TV show. But unfortunately I don't see that happening.

Of course it won't happen. Trek is sacred, donchaknow? We can't change Pike now! That would be heretical!

 

[TerryTrek]

I would just have SNW, Discovery and Lower Decks be their own separate timeline. Perhaps that will happen someday officially.

It would allow SNW to not be beholden to TOS, and give the writers and actors a lot more freedom.

The Kelvinverse is dead, so there's room for SNW to tell the alt. universe stories that we could have gotten with the reboot films.

 

[Paul755]

Keep the actors but I would have not cast them as Uhura, M’Benga and Chapel. Create original characters like you did with Ortegas, Noonian Singh and Hemmer. You already had legacy characters with Pike, Number One and Spock.

 

[Jayson1]

I would like for SNW to go in a different direction rather than be slavishly beholden to a '60's TV show that it barely tries to emulate anyway (and for good reason.)

Why do we still need Pike to get into that accident? DSC and SNW shows that Pike knows what's going to happen to him, and there are a ton of ways he can get out of his fate and still not have the scenario shown in "A Quality of Mercy" happen. He can still give the ship to Kirk and have Kirk deal with the Romulans. He can still make sure that the accident on the training ship doesn't happen, and save his life and the lives of the cadets. So what if it 'changes history?' Who cares?

I wouldn't mind that but then you got to go with the idea of the show being set in a alternate universe and since some of the characters were on Discovery it means your dragging that show to this altternate universe. Which does solve lots of issues in terms of the ships not looking like they would on 60's Trek. Which all works IMO as a fan.

 

[Dukhat]

I wouldn't mind that but then you got to go with the idea of the show being set in a alternate universe and since some of the characters were on Discovery it means your dragging that show to this altternate universe. Which does solve lots of issues in terms of the ships not looking like they would on 60's Trek. Which all works IMO as a fan.

Whether DSC/SNW takes place in an alternate universe from TOS/TNG is the least of my concerns. For me, that ship already sailed in 2017.

 

[fireproof78]

I wouldn't mind that but then you got to go with the idea of the show being set in a alternate universe and since some of the characters were on Discovery it means your dragging that show to this altternate universe. Which does solve lots of issues in terms of the ships not looking like they would on 60's Trek. Which all works IMO as a fan.

I see no reason to make this specific. Some people have made up their minds on how it lands, so calling it out specifically just makes it worse, like the Augment virus arc.

Just let people make up their own mind on these things.

 

[Jayson1]

I don't know. I think people would think that the people in charge are about to erase TOS and TNG etc from the timeline. That was a concern with the Abramsverse movies. Best to just get out their. Plus I think it is a plus because once you know your not in the Prime universe anymore it starts to spark the imagination on the possibilities of what you can do in a future that is a blank slate but also filled with things you can alter. Maybe Kirk dies and Pike remands in command and who also never ends up going into the chair.

 

[Dukhat]

I don't know. I think people would think that the people in charge are about to erase TOS and TNG etc from the timeline. That was a concern with the Abramsverse movies.

But in the latter case, that didn't happen. In-universe, because it was specifically stated in the film that their reality was a parallel universe that branched off of the prime one. And in real life, the prime universe productions still continued (if one views DSC, PIC, LDS, PRO, and SNW as the 'prime' universe.)

TOS and TNG aren't going to be 'erased' just because someone makes a Star Trek show that isn't in continuity with them.