Will Trek XI repel old fans?

[blockaderunner]

And if so, would it be a bad thing?

Let's face it, Abrahms, Kurtzman, and Orci know what to say in the press, but at the end of the day, they are doing a long overdue wholesale makeover of Star Trek for the next 40 years of fans.

We, of the last generation, dispite our preaching of the 23rd/24th century philosophy of IDIC, are 21st century old. And with age comes inflexibilitiy. As evidenced by...well...these boards. In order for Trek to survive, it has to be made for that generation of people who only see Shatner as that crazy fat guy on the Priceline commercials. I believe that Trek's core ideals will remain intact. It's the superfluous details that we squabble over (oversized nacelles, wether or not the E was built on Area 51, space, or Arlington Heights, Illinois, etc.) that will take a back seat. And it's that that will piss off that obsessive crowd. But you know what? That's fine. They have hundreds of hours of their brand of Trek. Let them argue about what could have been and for the love of all things sensible, do not listen to them once they walk out of the theatre next summer.

Abrams and co. are making a new Star Trek for a potential new Star Trek fanbase. Let it happen and let the naysayers fade into pop culture oblivion along with old Star Trek.

 

[Captain X]

Yeah, fuck those old fans, they've only kept the franchise alive for 40 years... Fuck 'em for not wanting someone else to fuck up their favorite franchise even further than it has been in the lsat couple of series...

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

I'm all for welcoming even the hardest hard-core fans into the theater alongside me to see this film -- even the ones who have been very vocal on this and other forums in their concern for this film.

However, if this film turns out to be a concencus "good Star Trek Film" (well, as close as we can get to a concensus), and those people bitch about how awful it was and how they are THROUGH with Star Trek because Kirk's eyes were the wrong color, or because the ship didn't look enough like the TOS version, or even how Pike and Kirk have a scene together besides the time Pike handed over the command to Kirk...then I say good riddance to them.

I'm sure there will be fans who will force themselves not to like it (and use every excuse they can find to belittle the film) just because they want to be contrary....somone like MattJc -- even if he actually subconsciously enjoys it, I bet he would still force himself to hate it, as a defense mechanism.

If the film is good, yet some fans can't see how good it is through their "hardcore glasses" -- or refuse to let themselves enjoy it just to continue being an "AbramsTrek Contrarian" -- then I won't lose sleep. It's their loss.

 

[Lt_Wandrey]

If it's an all around good Trek movie that sticks to Trek I don't see it repelling very many fans.

If it goes off and takes a whole other turn that's not really Trek I can see it repelling the older fans.

The real hard core purist fans that complain about so and so's eye color not being right are going to be ticked off no matter what they do or don't do. As for them, forget 'em.

 

[Zachary Smith]

If it is good, it'll be good and I will enjoy it. I very much believe there are more stories to be told of the adventures of Kirk, Spock and the rest of the gang. Facts are facts though. Deforest Kelly and James Doohan are gone. Shatner and Nimoy are nearly 80 years old. Yes, absolutely, I believe Shatner could still play Kirk--but an OLD Kirk. And, yes, once more, I believe there could be tales of an Older Kirk and crew to be told. I would LOVE to see the travesty of "Generations" rectified.

That said, though. If you are going to tell stories fof a young Kirk and crew, you MUST have new people. What I hope to get from this new version of Trek is the sense of ADVENTURE that has been missing since TOS. The sense of wonder and the thrill of exploring the Unknown. The uiverse of "The Next Generation" had glimpses here and there, but for the most part the lives of those characters was not of exploration but routine. "Voyager" set on the other side of the freaking galaxy brought nothing new except for cyphers filling in for familiar roles (Kazons instead of Klingons--how clever). Even "Enterprise" had an enduring familiarity to it--we'd been there and seen it all before.

I'm a long time fan--going back to TOS, and I, for one, am looking FORWARD to the new film. Looking forward, but hoping it also takes us BACK to when the universe was new for these characters and the Unknown was TRUELY UNKNOWN.

 

[gastrof]

And if so, would it be a bad thing?

Let's face it, Abrahms, Kurtzman, and Orci know what to say in the press, but at the end of the day, they are doing a long overdue wholesale makeover of Star Trek for the next 40 years of fans...

I find this a FASCINATING opening post.

Tell me, when did you see the movie?

I mean, to know what the movie does regarding the Trek universe, continuity, etc., would mean you've seen it.

When and where did this happen, and how long was the run time? Any breaks? (I sometimes like to get a second box of popcorn or maybe even a HOT DOT!!! Mmmm.....YUMMY!)

 

[gastrof]

...The real hard core purist fans that complain about so and so's eye color not being right are going to be ticked off no matter what they do or don't do. As for them, forget 'em.

I count myself as being of the rabid "CHANGE NOTHING!" group.

If someone had a different eye color, I wouldn't care.

 

[Sector 7]

^^^
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^^^^^^^ I agree wholeheartedly. I've been a fan since the early 1970s, yet I welcome the new blood and am also hoping for that sense of wonder and adventure that was lacking in latter series.
I am far from being in the "rabid 'CHANGE NOTHING!' group". If anything I'd like to forget some of the dull, boring and preachy Trek in favor of some honest-to-goodness excitement!
Let us truly go back to the future of Trek...

 

[Nardpuncher]

I'm a fan because of the original Trek (became a fan in 1986) but have no problem with starting all over or whatever you want to call it.
But there's no need to be so hard on Shatner!

 

[Therin of Andor]

I became a Star Trek fan due to TAS and then ST:TMP. What shocked me when joining a large, local fan club in 1980 was that so many "old" fans hated anything that dared to "destroy" their memories of TOS. I saw similar reactions with ST IV, and then TNG.

It took some "old fans" a long time to accept newbies, and new ST. But who cares, there was plenty of ST for everyone!

 

[Saxman1]

I've been with Trek since its premiere in 1966 and have no problem with the new film. I don't see how it can be worse than VOY/ENT with Seven Of Boobs and Seven Of Vulcan. Nemesis wasn't the greatest send-off possible for TNG ("All Good Things" was, but that's another discussion....), so the recent track record isn't so good. I am anxious to see what a fresh creative team can bring to Star Trek.

At this point in his career, I can't see Leonard Nimoy signing on to a piece of junk.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Who are "old fans"? People who have hung on through thick and thin and Space Nazis?

There aren't enough of them left for it to matter if some are repelled. Star Trek means nothing to most people - maybe "Kirk, Spock, Enterprise" if anything - it's a blank slate and therefore an opportunity to build a fanbase up from almost-scratch.

 

[God Magnus]

I'm not sure what qualifies as an "old fan"? I was born in 75, too late for Trek's original run but since I was a youngin' I was watching TOS with mom and I saw all the flicks from TWOK-Nemesis in the theaters. I was also once an avid Creation convention goer and lived and breathed Trek for a good portion of the 90's.

All that said, I think being an "old" or "new" fan isn't the issue, it's more of whether you're a close minded fan or an open minded one. I've always been open minded and gave each incarnation of Trek a chance before deciding whether or not I liked it. Heck, I gave Voyager three seasons before I threw my hands up and walked away. It will be the same with this film. I'll watch it with the hope of enjoying it, and if it doesn't deliver, well, it will be on its own merits, not on speculation before I even see it.

 

[Patrickivan]

I'm not sure what qualifies as an "old fan"? I was born in 75, too late for Trek's original run but since I was a youngin' I was watching TOS with mom and I saw all the flicks from TWOK-Nemesis in the theaters. I was also once an avid Creation convention goer and lived and breathed Trek for a good portion of the 90's.

All that said, I think being an "old" or "new" fan isn't the issue, it's more of whether you're a close minded fan or an open minded one. I've always been open minded and gave each incarnation of Trek a chance before deciding whether or not I liked it. Heck, I gave Voyager three seasons before I threw my hands up and walked away. It will be the same with this film. I'll watch it with the hope of enjoying it, and if it doesn't deliver, well, it will be on its own merits, not on speculation before I even see it.

And that's the kind of open mindedness that is needed for everything in life. Wait for it, watch it, and like it or not... Pretty simple. For whatever reasons you like or dislike it are irrelevant.

That being said, there is no point in telling new stories using the same characters if their characteristics, mannerisms, and universe that they came from, are completely white-washed. The universe and characters can survive well enough as long as the situations that they are placed in are compelling and relevant to the contemporary viewer.

Obviously some of the hokeyness (spell check) of the 60's characters have to go- and they did well enough without that hokeyness in the 80's movies. The stories were more dramatic, but the characters still SEEMED the same.

And there's nothing wrong with hard core trekkies disliking it because of potential ship changes, or characters that are too dissimilar from the originals. Just like there's nothing wrong with the casual fan who just likes Trek because it's fun, and they don't care about rigid canon.

If everyone agreed on everything, then we'd never rag on Cary, or ignore me, or praise Timo... We'd just be a bunch of nerdy borg drones.

Should it repel old fans, the movie after that may get them back. But I for one- a rigid fan who is open to modernization of very specific parts of trek, and open to interpretation, can't wait for the movie!

Then I'll judge the fuck out of it- for good, bad, or indifferent.

 

[Orac Zen]

Going by some of the remarks around here it's already repelled some people, for no other reason than because it exists. Deciding something is crap before seeing it will probably end up being a self-fulfilling prophecy, whether it's this movie or anything else. If you don't want to like it, you won't like it.

I don't know much about the movie and I don't give a damn about technical trivia. I know very well I'm going to see the movie at some stage and until then I'll keep an open mind about it. I hope I'll be entertained. That's all I want from any movie (TV show, book, whatever). Anything more than that is a bonus.

 

[Balthier the Great]

I'm not sure you can get new fans without pissing off the old fans. So I say oiss 'em off and save the franchise.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

I think it will piss off a few old fans who are so hard-core they cannot imagine anything being Star Trek except for TOS.

But hopefully there will be enough NEW fans to more than make up for that.

 

[Lord Garth]

And if so, would it be a bad thing?
We, of the last generation, dispite our preaching of the 23rd/24th century philosophy of IDIC, are 21st century old.

Speak for yourself. I'm 29. And aren't you younger?

Let it happen and let the naysayers fade into pop culture oblivion along with old Star Trek.

So, basically, it's impossible to be a fan of old Star Trek and also like this movie. I understand.

Will it repel some old fans? Sure. Will it repel old fans in general? No.

EDIT: I would be interested in seeing who the people who ultimately end up not liking the movie after it's been released will actually be. I guarantee they'll be different types. You'll have TOS-onlies, you'll have those who wanted another TNG movie, and you'll have some fans of the franchise in general who didn't want to go back to Kirk and Spock. The first two groups, you might be able to pin down an age range but the third group could be any age. They could've discovered Star Trek anywhere from five years ago to 40.

The days when you could easily divide Star Trek fans into groups of two ended as soon as DS9 was released. The problem with dividing Star Trek fans now into pre-2009 and 2009-post is that you'll have a hard time lumping everyone in pre-2009 together. It's too varied and you'll have too much crossover.

 

[MattJC]

Not the ones up Abrams' ass.

 

[Lord Garth]

I don't mind Mission: Impossible III, I'm not into Lost, not interested in that other new show of his that just premiered, and I kind of like Cloverfield.

That's not up Abrams' ass.