Trek Series #6

[spoonunseptium]

This might have been a thread before, but I'm curious anyway..


If Paramount came out with another Trek series, complete with seven seasons and a movie or two, what are some things you'd like to see in it?

Like, what are some absolute requirements?


I'd say:

-It must be in the future, set sometime after Nemesis. (no more Enterprise/STXI-esque backtracking!)
-crossover characters/ cameos of characters from previous series; A few I'd like to see are Admiral Janeway, Wesley Crusher, Jake Sisko, Chakotay & Seven(together), Tom & B'elanna's daughter...basically I'd like to see spotlights of what has happened in the intervening 15 yrs or so
-the writers oughtta get some ideas from the books. I hear there are some pretty decent stories out there.
-less Technobabble, and no deux ex machina computer fixes. Maybe once, but only if they can make it so unbelievably suspenseful that people have ceizures of anticipation.
-a decent handful of mind-trippy episodes that completely freak you out and leave you mentally disabled until next week's episode.
-more internal strife within the crew. That's the fun kind of drama; the kind where you want to slap people.
-there must be atleast one lesbian/homosexual character. Trek is all about a reflection of the times, you know. Maybe revisit the alien civilization that has 3 genders(featured in Enterprise)...
-if there's going to be the eye candy for men, there has to be some eye candy for the ladies, too. Not like Chakotay or Riker- they're old fogies :P
-some exploration not only of space but also of 24th century EARTH...give the writers a mega-challenge and get them to explain what the heck is up with the Federation economy.
-for civilian costumes, there oughtta be an actual FASHION designer- taking inspiration from real runway crazy high-fashion.
-The galaxy can only have so many M-class planets with good & bad civilizations...while discovering new stuff, they oughtta revisit some old aliens, too- but only if it's interesting!
-Time travel, ofcourse.
-comic relief. While we're wondering if our new crew will escape the event horizon or Ominous Bad Guy, we need to laugh...
-maybe(just maybe) the final defeat.. of the borg.. >.>


The biggest challenge, I think, for a new Trek series would be coming up with completely new ideas and completely new characters.

and, the foremost goal is to expand and explore, not just reflect- to not only explain the internal operations of the fictional Trekiverse, but to ask hard questions(like always) about "real life." Hard, ethical questions that make you wonder about the nature of everything.


so, your thoughts, oh mighty Trekbbs...

 

[Michael]

This might have been a thread before

Actually there's a whole forum devoted to that very topic.

 

[Sector 7]

It will never happen. Paramount does NOT own the television rights to Star Trek.
Paramount owns the MOVIE rights.
CBS owns the TELEVISION rights.

 

[BillJ]

This might have been a thread before, but I'm curious anyway..


If Paramount came out with another Trek series, complete with seven seasons and a movie or two, what are some things you'd like to see in it?

Like, what are some absolute requirements?


I'd say:

-It must be in the future, set sometime after Nemesis. (no more Enterprise/STXI-esque backtracking!)
-crossover characters/ cameos of characters from previous series; A few I'd like to see are Admiral Janeway, Wesley Crusher, Jake Sisko, Chakotay & Seven(together), Tom & B'elanna's daughter...basically I'd like to see spotlights of what has happened in the intervening 15 yrs or so
-the writers oughtta get some ideas from the books. I hear there are some pretty decent stories out there.
-less Technobabble, and no deux ex machina computer fixes. Maybe once, but only if they can make it so unbelievably suspenseful that people have ceizures of anticipation.
-a decent handful of mind-trippy episodes that completely freak you out and leave you mentally disabled until next week's episode.
-more internal strife within the crew. That's the fun kind of drama; the kind where you want to slap people.
-there must be atleast one lesbian/homosexual character. Trek is all about a reflection of the times, you know. Maybe revisit the alien civilization that has 3 genders(featured in Enterprise)...
-if there's going to be the eye candy for men, there has to be some eye candy for the ladies, too. Not like Chakotay or Riker- they're old fogies :P
-some exploration not only of space but also of 24th century EARTH...give the writers a mega-challenge and get them to explain what the heck is up with the Federation economy.
-for civilian costumes, there oughtta be an actual FASHION designer- taking inspiration from real runway crazy high-fashion.
-The galaxy can only have so many M-class planets with good & bad civilizations...while discovering new stuff, they oughtta revisit some old aliens, too- but only if it's interesting!
-Time travel, ofcourse.
-comic relief. While we're wondering if our new crew will escape the event horizon or Ominous Bad Guy, we need to laugh...
-maybe(just maybe) the final defeat.. of the borg.. >.>


The biggest challenge, I think, for a new Trek series would be coming up with completely new ideas and completely new characters.

and, the foremost goal is to expand and explore, not just reflect- to not only explain the internal operations of the fictional Trekiverse, but to ask hard questions(like always) about "real life." Hard, ethical questions that make you wonder about the nature of everything.


so, your thoughts, oh mighty Trekbbs...

Never... going... happen...

Not enough people watched Voyager or Nemesis to care what has gone on since. Best thing at this point is to re-boot the whole shebang and start over.

 

[Misfit Toy]

This might have been a thread before

Actually there's a whole forum devoted to that very topic.

Agreed - Moving thread to Future of Trek...

 

[spoonunseptium]

This might have been a thread before

Actually there's a whole forum devoted to that very topic.

Agreed - Moving thread to Future of Trek...

oops! :-O

 

[Temis the Vorta]

It will never happen. Paramount does NOT own the television rights to Star Trek.
Paramount owns the MOVIE rights.
CBS owns the TELEVISION rights.

Here's an article on the subject.

CBS Corp. holds the "Trek" TV rights.

CBS also co-owns twentysomethings-in-unhealthy-relationships network the CW, whose forebear UPN aired the last two "Trek" series (“Enterprise” and “Voyager”).

...

Paramount and CBS get along like the Hatfields and McCoys (or Spock and McCoy, if you prefer). Though CBS owns the TV rights, Paramount is presumably involved in any Trek-related movement while their movie is at bat.

Also there’s Abrams. The CW attempted a similar fanboy-movie-capitalization path last year, trying to make a Batman-verse project called "The Graysons." But “Dark Knight” director Christopher Nolan reportedly frowned and made it vanish. When asked if he has veto power over any “Trek” TV project as part of his theatrical deal, Abrams emailed: “I have no veto power, nor the power of invisibility, nor the power to compel my children to eat their breakfast without asking them 50 times." Show of hands -- who's unexpectedly feeling charmed by J.J. Abrams today? Of course, the director's modesty aside, the powers-that-be would presumably be reluctant to launch anything "Trek" anytime soon without the blessing of Abrams, who along with his cast has agreed to be involved with up to two sequels.

...

The CW is not UPN. Despite sniffing at the Batman project last year, the network is laser-focused on young women and “Trek” has always skewed hopelessly male. Of course, one could also simply remove CBS' sister network from this discussion altogether since "Trek" would easily have other suitors. Sci Fi Channel executives (who are currently fighting a nagging case of SyFy) would kill their mothers to get an Abrams-produced, newly hip “Trek.”

...

So what have we learned today?

We learned that asking speculative questions about a “Trek” TV show before the movie comes out tends to annoy PR people. We learned new weekly voyages of the Starship Enterprise are a long shot involving a lot of lawyers. And we learned there’s a general sense is that, inevitably, "Trek" will return to TV, but not likely without several strong-minded ducks getting into a row.

Trek will be back on TV. Corporate egos will fall in line if there are large amounts of money at stake. Abrams could screw the whole deal, if he were a total dick, which apparently he is not.

I've been saying for a while that Trek will be back on TV, most likely new characters in the Trek XI milieu with guest shots by the movie actors. I'm sticking with that.

But it won't be on (yikes) the CW, and most likely not on CBS either, unless CBS wakes up and realizes that their policy of chasing crime-show-watching grannies isn't a very smart long-term strategy and they better start chasing the young male audience at least somewhat - and what franchise is good for that, hmm?

If not CW or CBS, Trek can appear elsewhere. It's just a matter of negotiation and getting the lawyers to draw up the paperwork. That's what businesspeople do. It's not some kind of insuperable obstacle.

There's no clear good home for Trek. CW = too female; CBS = too old; NBC = in dire straits (which might be an inducement); Skiffy = too piddly to deserve Trek and they seem to be ashamed of sci fi now ; ABC = skews somewhat female and doesn't seem to need Trek; basic cable = too piddly; premium cable = doesn't do PG-13.

So I'd say that Fox or NBC are the natural candidates. An outside contender might be AMC. I would think Trek belongs on a mainstream network, but AMC is positioning itself as a "more accessible" version of premium cable, with PG-13 shows and some sf/f in development (The Prisoner, Red Mars).

 

[BF.NXD.38.Guy]

I would like to see a new series on Sci Fi. I think I once read that Johnathon Franks would be willing to do a series again. Not sure how you all feel about the USS Titan but the books are pretty good. I have the entire collection.

I also agree that cameo appearances would be key. Lets move forward not backwards even though the new movie is out and it may spark some interest I think the fans now days want another TNG/DS9/VOY type of series.

 

[miraclefan]

I want to see, ENTERPRISE The J.J.Version

 

[Australis]

Sorry, all, but these ideas have been discussed here ad infinitum for the last, oohh, five years, and the stuff here c(bar the CBS/Paramount wrangle) has all been here before, and usually argued quite vehemently. I've thought about it backwards and forwards, and I honestly can't think of a good TV series idea that would 100% work, either in ideas I've had, or from others. I'm hoping that the movie will give some kind of direction that can point what to do with a TV series, but it won't be Kirk & Co, they'll be tied up by the movie deal. A reboot TNG? DS9? VOY? I love VOY (yes, it isn't perfect, I KNOW), but while I'd like to see it rebooted and done better, I can't see it happening. new ship and crew? Why? What's the justification? Mind you, if a new series does come along, I'll be there on the edge of my seat praying for it to be good.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

new ship and crew? Why? What's the justification?

Because of the need to capitalize on the 23rd C which will suddenly be hot after Trek XI is a international success. But the existing TOS actors will not agree to a TV series - the next best thing is to invent a new crew.

But I just noticed John Cho has a new fall pilot. Perhaps I was too hasty thinking the movie actors wouldn't "stoop" to TV. Attitudes are changing - the wide gulf in prestige between TV and movies seems to be much narrower now, as so much interesting stuff is happening on TV (particularly cable) while movies are degenerating into blow-em-ups for adolescent boys. Actors ping-pong between movies and TV more than they have in the past. Maybe we'll see TOS back on TV after all.

I do know one thing for sure: when Trek XI becomes a big hit, we'll be seeing far more news stories about the likelihood of a new TV series in the trades.

 

[hellsgate]

Spoonunseptium: I like all your ideas & I'd love to see you tackle the idea in ".html" format on your own homepage. I'd like to see a few chapters devoted to several new characters' home-lives leading up to their decision to enroll at Starfleet Academy, circa 2378/2379. But, I'd like to see little-seen designs of civilian freighters, strictly-residential orbital habitats, TMP-era ships refurbished slightly, re-commissioned and relaunched for various missions. Maybe some little-seen original Federation-charter colonies/homeworlds such as Ceti Alpha, Tellar, Andor, Belle Terre, et al.

 

[Australis]

new ship and crew? Why? What's the justification?

Because of the need to capitalize on the 23rd C which will suddenly be hot after Trek XI is a international success. But the existing TOS actors will not agree to a TV series - the next best thing is to invent a new crew.

But with the TV and movie arms going in separate direction with different agendas, the actors might not be available for a series. I gather the split wasn't all that neat.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

In fact, CBS has announced a new Trek series as a mid-season replacement for 2010.

Early promotional trailer here.

 

[crohnie]

In fact, CBS has announced a new Trek series as a mid-season replacement for 2010.

Early promotional trailer here.

Hmm Star Trek's version of a Rick Roll perhaps?

Anyway you got me to click!
I loved that movie.

 

[Anthony Sabre]

My guess is that we'll have to wait until closer to the second sequel before we hear anything real about a new series.