Spoilers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 3x04 - "A Space Adventure Hour"

[Greg Cox]

Some online criticisms of SNW seem to start from the premise that the writers are actively out to take the piss out of Star Trek and dump on its legacy, which is clearly not the case - I fully believe the team behind the show are actively trying to appeal to fans (and clearly succeeding in many cases), to make a product that they wish for people to enjoy, and that they truly conceptualise their work as a "love letter to Star Trek" or w/e.

Nicely put. Fandom too often seems to assume malignant intent when it comes to artistic choices they don't approve of.

See also assuming ignorance whenever some new installment deviates from "canon." "These idiots have obviously never watched STAR TREK before!"

As opposed to them deliberately taking liberties for what they thought were good reasons at the time.

Now one can certainly question those artistic choices, and debate whether they were good ideas after all, but maybe give the creators the benefit of the doubt and not automatically assume that (a) they're trashing the previous stuff on purpose because they "hate" classic Trek, or that (b) they "obviously" have never watched the earlier shows and movies.

 

[cooleddie74]

"But ENT has a pop song lifted from a Robin Williams movie as its theme! It defames and dishonors the Star Trek we've known until now! This isn't Gene's Star Trek anymore!"

It hasn't been Gene's Star Trek since the first two years of TNG. Hate to break it to you, but "your" Star Trek may well have died before you were even born.

 

[Campe]

None of the new Trek shows have been perfect. But then again, none of the Roddenberry or Berman era shows were as perfect as the rose colored glasses wearing fans seem to think.

 

[Starflight]

It hasn't been Gene's Star Trek since the first two years of TNG. Hate to break it to you, but "your" Star Trek may well have died before you were even born.

One thing I think it is entirely fair to point out is that fans who want a straightforward TOS/TNG/Voyager style show have been left out in the cold in recent years. SNW is meant to be the peace offering to those people but I think it's fair to suggest the show is, at this point, very deliberately not trying to be a typical Star Trek series (whether that's for better or worse).

Regardless of whether people like Kurtzman-era Trek or not (or, like me, enjoy some parts of it here and there), it surely is an odd choice to revive a franchise and try every possible style and formula with it except the one it's used for decades. Disco/Picard/SNW would probably have gone down a lot easier with the fandom if there was a "regular" Star Trek show running alongside them.

 

[cooleddie74]

Although fans are so picky and fastidious in the extreme that even when we get a basic starship-exploring-unknown space show like Enterprise many of them spend four years decrying it as "not real Trek" and saying it violated continuity every week because, well, we never knew there was an Enterprise between the ringship and Kirk's ship until 2001. When we got a big budget series set on a starship of exploration and mapping the galaxy they still weren't happy.

Even if another TNG-style episodic show were produced it'd be lambasted before it even premiered. That's the Internet Age and the self-perpetuating Nerd Anger Machine.

 

[Greg Cox]

None of the new Trek shows have been perfect. But then again, none of the Roddenberry or Berman era shows were as perfect as the rose colored glasses wearing fans seem to think.

Indeed. It sometimes seems as though each new Trek is compared not to Trek as it actually existed before but to some pure, idealized version of Trek viewed through rose-colored visors from an ivory tower.

I swear, when the 2009 reboot movie came out, the way some people talked, you'd think that TOS was a weekly symposium on the issues of the day that never, ever stooped to cheap thrills, fist fights, and excitement.

 

[Starflight]

Even if another TNG-style episodic show were produced it'd be lambasted before it even premiered. That's the Internet Age and the self-perpetuating Nerd Anger Machine.

You're not wrong, but given that this is going to be the case with any show produced, I'm still not sure why Kurtzman et al's logic is to bounce from idea to idea - "Star Trek young adult drama set in SFA! Star Trek prestige fiction about a war! Star Trek TOS tribute act with lots of self-references! Star Trek Rick and Morty style animation! Star Trek but... whatever Picard is!" - and yet never attempt a straightforward adventure-of-the-week show, the type that many viewers would expect from the brand name.

I would point out that the first season of SNW - which seemed to be going in that sort of "TOS/TNG with a few modern updates" direction - got a fairly warm response. There was the usual wave of whining that you'd expect and the Gorn were a big sticking point, but by the mid-season, reaction online and among people I know felt largely positive.

 

[Tuskin38]

and yet never attempt a straightforward adventure-of-the-week show,

That’s what SNW still is.

So was Lower Decks, and Prodigy most of season 1. Season 2 was a bit more story line focused.

I'm still not sure why Kurtzman et al's logic is to bounce from idea to idea

So people don’t get bored.

If I want 90s trek I’ll rewatch 90s trek.

 

[Starflight]

That’s what SNW still is.

If I want 90s trek I’ll rewatch 90s trek.

So are you sticking with "SNW is already the show you're asking for", or committing to "I'm glad they no longer make the show you're asking for"?

We can have the lengthy discussion where I end up adding whatever qualifiers you want to "straightforward adventure-of-the-week show", but your closing comment suggests you already know what I mean, as does everyone else reading this.