It's a forgone conclusion with rather apparent visual evidence that the reimagining of the U.S.S. Enterprise will depart in more than moderate extent from MJ's cherished design. In my view this is more than ample evidence that Trek XI is a restart or reimagining or whatever you may wish to call it. Simply there is no plausible way to retcon the new design into TOS' "reality."
But thats beside the point and really a whole different discussion.
The issue I raise is: does MJ's original design really need to be reworked to work today?
I would say "yes" if one is overly concerned with contemporary aesthetic trends and feeling the need to emulate most everything in sf hardware in the past twenty plus years.
But...if one believes that the Enterprise should evoke the kind of futuristic technology and society that TOS tried to convey then I would argue "no" and that the ship need not and should not be extensively reworked. In fairness it could require some minor tweaking with the interior sets and costumes in terms of detail to be consistent with current production standards, but the original overall look still works just fine to evoke an advanced and streamlined future.
And this is part of what bothers me with the present Trek XI teaser--it is dark and moody in atmosphere and harkens to the Trek of latter DS9, VOY, ENT and the TNG films rather than the bold adventurism and optimism of TOS. And the redesign (at least what we see of it) emphasizes that feeling.
The Trek XI redesign may be a very intriguing one in its own right, but it is inconsistent with what the original TOS Enterprise embodied.
The Enterprise is so recognizable and emblematic of what Star Trek was that one tampers with it at their own risk.
If they can't get the Enterprise right then I suspect they will overlook many other things that made Star Trek work.
Unless, of course, the whole point is to totally refashion the subject matter while retaining a handful of familiar references and names.
But thats beside the point and really a whole different discussion.
The issue I raise is: does MJ's original design really need to be reworked to work today?
I would say "yes" if one is overly concerned with contemporary aesthetic trends and feeling the need to emulate most everything in sf hardware in the past twenty plus years.
But...if one believes that the Enterprise should evoke the kind of futuristic technology and society that TOS tried to convey then I would argue "no" and that the ship need not and should not be extensively reworked. In fairness it could require some minor tweaking with the interior sets and costumes in terms of detail to be consistent with current production standards, but the original overall look still works just fine to evoke an advanced and streamlined future.
And this is part of what bothers me with the present Trek XI teaser--it is dark and moody in atmosphere and harkens to the Trek of latter DS9, VOY, ENT and the TNG films rather than the bold adventurism and optimism of TOS. And the redesign (at least what we see of it) emphasizes that feeling.
The Trek XI redesign may be a very intriguing one in its own right, but it is inconsistent with what the original TOS Enterprise embodied.
The Enterprise is so recognizable and emblematic of what Star Trek was that one tampers with it at their own risk.
If they can't get the Enterprise right then I suspect they will overlook many other things that made Star Trek work.
Unless, of course, the whole point is to totally refashion the subject matter while retaining a handful of familiar references and names.
