What if the Soviets *Did* Make a "Star Trek"
- Thread starter Emperor Norton
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As others have noted, I think that the Star Trek setting - as it developed - would have been pretty ported to the Soviets.
- While TOS wasn't as explicitly anti-money/post capitalist as later Trek, Starfleet was basically depicted as being a quasi-military organization which was unconcerned with the accumulation of wealth. While the Soviets would make things a bit more explicit (that the future was the post-socialist, true communist utopia predicted by Marx) most of the existing stories could still stand on their own.
- Trek was always - due to Roddenbery's atheism - light on religion as well. Just make the future Federation a bit more explicitly atheistic and you're good to go.
- I actually don't think that there would be anything like a future KGB or the like depicted in the show. Similar to how "real Trek" depicted things, the writers would imply that people in the future just did the right thing because they were motivated to do so, and all coercion had vanished, leading to a quasi-anarchist "non-state." This would also help them to not run afoul with the censors, because they wouldn't have to remark on anything involving contemporary Soviet culture (for much the same reason, China produces a lot of historic epics today).
- Antagonists would absolutely be slightly different - probably with an earlier and more menacing Ferengi analogue. Though it should be noted that the idea of an advanced non-communist race could be seen as being anti-dialectic, and thus subject to censorship.
- I think the show would probably de-emphasize the captain as a heroic figure and be a bit more of an ensemble show, where the entire main cast was shown as contributing to solutions, as this would fit in better with collectivist versus individualist values.
- As others have noted, nothing like the Prime Directive would exist. Indeed, one of the most popular written SF series in the Soviet Union - the Noon Universe series by the Strugatsky Brothers (a series of 10 books) - focused on agents called "progressors" whose job it was to interfere in the cultural evolution of less developed planets to guide them towards communism. I think Soviet Trek would take a similar bent, as it would be seen as a moral imperative to "uplift" as many alien races as possible.
There would be only one food cube dispenser with a long line, and the food cubes would all be black.
Everyone on the bridge would smoke Belomorkanals. Correction, everyone on the ship would smoke Belomorkanals.
The ship's nacelles would be Belomorkanals and the ship would smoke them, also.
Addition of Political Officer to the bridge crew.
At least one Cuban and Angolan crew member, and possibly one from China depending on "matters" that year.
Enterprise would tug a copy of itself behind it for spares.
All decisions would be made by a committee rather than Captain Iakov Gyogirovitch Kirk. But the committee would somehow never disagree and decisions would be nearly instantaneous.
Landing party clothes would be warm and practical.
All transporter use would involve sending a puppy down first, to make sure everything was salubrious.
Everyone on the bridge would smoke Belomorkanals. Correction, everyone on the ship would smoke Belomorkanals.
The ship's nacelles would be Belomorkanals and the ship would smoke them, also.
Addition of Political Officer to the bridge crew.
At least one Cuban and Angolan crew member, and possibly one from China depending on "matters" that year.
Enterprise would tug a copy of itself behind it for spares.
All decisions would be made by a committee rather than Captain Iakov Gyogirovitch Kirk. But the committee would somehow never disagree and decisions would be nearly instantaneous.
Landing party clothes would be warm and practical.
All transporter use would involve sending a puppy down first, to make sure everything was salubrious.
Sure there would. They'd wear black leather with an ends justifies the means mentality and their ruling authority would be an AI.
Oh, hey...
A
A better version of Star Trek, don't @ me
I recently watched AELITA, an old Russian SF movie from the 1920s. There's a scene where the Earth astronauts start a worker's revolution on Mars by preaching about the Glorious Soviet Revolution that is pretty much the Bolshevik version of Kirk reading the Preamble to the Constitution in "The Omega Glory."
In Soviet Russia, 18 month dead thread revivifies you.
We need more silly Cold War Era jokes.
On Soviet Trek BBS, Cold War make joke about YOU!
Also would have a undercover GRU agent disguised as a cook.
And would frequently be seen sitting at a starbase for months or years waiting for repairs
In the pilot of Voyager, instead of Tom Paris being in a penal colony in New Zealand, he could be in a Siberian gulag work camp, along with most of his extended family.
Roddenberry's atheism came late in his life, except for a couple of examples the show itself was never light on religion.
Starfleet was the Federation's military, nothing "quasi" about it.
Except when it blatantly showed buying, selling, ownership of property, ownership of planets, corporations owning planets, and basically ... the accumulation of wealth.
The Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians would be capitalistic, free and open societies, and therefor the sworn enemies of the soviet Federation.
Hrm.... a socialist version of DS9, let's try....
FROM: Political Commisar Sisko
TO: Admiral Nechayev
Dear Admiral, Dear Comrade,
As the time is coming upon us for the inception of a new five-year plan, you asked for my input on the Dominion situation. So here it is.
In a nutshell : The Dominion is a deeply class-consious society with aggressive tendencies.
It basically is made up of three social classes. First, there's the proletariat, or Jem' Hadar as they are called, secondly there's the bourgeoisie, or as they call themselves, Vorta, and finally, there is reported to be a crypto-plutocratic group that are referred to as the Founders.While they profess to be free, their concept of freedom is really only the "freedom" to do what you were bred and predestined to do. For example, to an impartial observer, it is crystal clear that the chances of lower-class Jem' Hadar to climb up to become one of the upper-class Founder or even join the ranks of the middle-class Vorta are extremely slim.
The Jem' Hadar are slaves and the worst part is- they don't even realise it. Or rather, some do realise it, but consider it a good thing, apparently. "It is the order of things" I heard some of them say- just as many said in our own country in the pre-revolutionary days. Comrade, you know the saying: Religion is the opium of the people. Well, theirs is not about just any god- it's even worse, they actually believe upper-class members are gods. Oh, and on top of that, they are also administered an actual drug- it's called Ketracel White, which keeps them bound in slavery and suppresses any awareness of class struggle. If we are to break the hold of the Dominion over them, we'll have to find a way to wean them off it.
The Vorta are little better off. Though their material circumstances are significantly better, they are also just slaves in a gilded cage. In order to keep and perhaps improve their position they have to be harsh to their underlings -sending them into battle without any regard for their life-, and lick the boots of their masters. At first we thought they were running the show, but it turns out they only act as proxies for their masters, who prefer to keep hidden in the shadows.
These masters really are a nasty bunch. Like other plutocrats, they don't act openly, but further their hidden agenda using insidious means. They can appear however they like, don any cloak. They may even have infiltrated our society already, corrupting political entities. Trust no one, not even the most loyal Party man!
So you see that their capitalist system not only suppresses the lower classes; it also corrupts and the higher classes. All members of that society suffer under its capitalism, whether they realise it or not.
Fortunately, for now, we are separated by a vast ocean (of space), with the wormhole strait being our only means of direct contact. However, in recent weeks, the Dominion has started a passive-aggressive infringement in the Alpha Quadrant, and they seem to woo some states that rightfully fall under our sphere of influence. For example, they are purportedly giving "developmental and humanitarian aid" to the Cardassians, while also dropping military personnel and bases there "for their defense". Others, like the Breen, are offered attractive "alliances", while it remains to be seen what the Dominion will do with them once their use wears out. With their superior production capacity, they are able to enchant weaker powers, who will find out only too late that strings were attached to the gifts and military convoys so liberally deposited in their realm.
Comrade, all this seems part of a systematic plan to enlarge their buffer zone and compromise ours. They may even try to construct a net of alliances to surround us. They may try to lure us into an arms race, which would wreck us economically, given their ridiculous production capacity. If they succeed, and we fail, it may be another thousand years before the glorious light of Socialism rises again in our quadrant. Loyalty to their State is bred into these poor creatures, therefore agitprop will be useless. It may come to war.
The situation is very dark indeed. I may have to ask the advice of our more evolved brethren-- the Communist Wormhole Aliens may have wisdom that we, as mere Socialists still striving to become Communists, lack.
FROM: Political Commisar Sisko
TO: Admiral Nechayev
Dear Admiral, Dear Comrade,
As the time is coming upon us for the inception of a new five-year plan, you asked for my input on the Dominion situation. So here it is.
In a nutshell : The Dominion is a deeply class-consious society with aggressive tendencies.
It basically is made up of three social classes. First, there's the proletariat, or Jem' Hadar as they are called, secondly there's the bourgeoisie, or as they call themselves, Vorta, and finally, there is reported to be a crypto-plutocratic group that are referred to as the Founders.While they profess to be free, their concept of freedom is really only the "freedom" to do what you were bred and predestined to do. For example, to an impartial observer, it is crystal clear that the chances of lower-class Jem' Hadar to climb up to become one of the upper-class Founder or even join the ranks of the middle-class Vorta are extremely slim.
The Jem' Hadar are slaves and the worst part is- they don't even realise it. Or rather, some do realise it, but consider it a good thing, apparently. "It is the order of things" I heard some of them say- just as many said in our own country in the pre-revolutionary days. Comrade, you know the saying: Religion is the opium of the people. Well, theirs is not about just any god- it's even worse, they actually believe upper-class members are gods. Oh, and on top of that, they are also administered an actual drug- it's called Ketracel White, which keeps them bound in slavery and suppresses any awareness of class struggle. If we are to break the hold of the Dominion over them, we'll have to find a way to wean them off it.
The Vorta are little better off. Though their material circumstances are significantly better, they are also just slaves in a gilded cage. In order to keep and perhaps improve their position they have to be harsh to their underlings -sending them into battle without any regard for their life-, and lick the boots of their masters. At first we thought they were running the show, but it turns out they only act as proxies for their masters, who prefer to keep hidden in the shadows.
These masters really are a nasty bunch. Like other plutocrats, they don't act openly, but further their hidden agenda using insidious means. They can appear however they like, don any cloak. They may even have infiltrated our society already, corrupting political entities. Trust no one, not even the most loyal Party man!
So you see that their capitalist system not only suppresses the lower classes; it also corrupts and the higher classes. All members of that society suffer under its capitalism, whether they realise it or not.
Fortunately, for now, we are separated by a vast ocean (of space), with the wormhole strait being our only means of direct contact. However, in recent weeks, the Dominion has started a passive-aggressive infringement in the Alpha Quadrant, and they seem to woo some states that rightfully fall under our sphere of influence. For example, they are purportedly giving "developmental and humanitarian aid" to the Cardassians, while also dropping military personnel and bases there "for their defense". Others, like the Breen, are offered attractive "alliances", while it remains to be seen what the Dominion will do with them once their use wears out. With their superior production capacity, they are able to enchant weaker powers, who will find out only too late that strings were attached to the gifts and military convoys so liberally deposited in their realm.
Comrade, all this seems part of a systematic plan to enlarge their buffer zone and compromise ours. They may even try to construct a net of alliances to surround us. They may try to lure us into an arms race, which would wreck us economically, given their ridiculous production capacity. If they succeed, and we fail, it may be another thousand years before the glorious light of Socialism rises again in our quadrant. Loyalty to their State is bred into these poor creatures, therefore agitprop will be useless. It may come to war.
The situation is very dark indeed. I may have to ask the advice of our more evolved brethren-- the Communist Wormhole Aliens may have wisdom that we, as mere Socialists still striving to become Communists, lack.
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This was basically the plot of Solaris, if I remember right.
Yeah, albeit Tarkovsky wasn't much interested in the sci-fi aspects, so the film skims over them.
There was a 2-part TV adaptation on Soviet Channel 1 in 1968 that I recall hewed closer to the source novel but was not in the same league as Tarkovsky's film. Used to be on YouTube not no longer.
Oh here you go. Well there's a Russian ship so it's partly that. Enjoy
Oh and linky with lovely pictures
https://www.pierre-drolet-sci-fi-museum.com/uss-jefferies-project
Oh and linky with lovely pictures
https://www.pierre-drolet-sci-fi-museum.com/uss-jefferies-project
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Which makes sense, they always were corny jokes...
Capitalist Klingons — arch nemeses of the Soviet Federation, they’re a cutthroat insidious economic-warrior race of profiteers, classists, and carpetbaggers.
Free Romulans — unlike reformed Comrade Commander Spock, these are an epicurean and hedonistic race of elitists and decadents.
Open Tholians — a race without central organization or national identity. A people who come and go and permit others to as they please. There’s doubt whether they’re even truly conscious or alive given how comfortable they are with anyone or anything.
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