The scifi blog io9 has an interesting idea: the next Trek series should focus on a grown-up Wesley Crusher who captains a starship that goes around the Alpha Quadrant solving mysteries (like how Janeway got a command, or why Worf always pops up anywhere in the galaxy he’s needed).
I actually think this isn’t a bad idea. Wesley was irritating, but he was written and directed that way. Wil is actually a fine actor and it would be cool to see him doing this. I suspect he wouldn’t be interested, to be honest, but since he does sometimes pop up in the comments here, we’ll see. Keep your eyes on his blog to see if he has anything to say.
And hmmm. He’d need a science/astronomy advisor…
P.S. Coincidentally, Gina Trapani at Lifehacker just wrote up a short piece about Wil.
Tip o’ the VISOR to Dave Hall for pointing this out… before I actually got to io9 in my feed reader today. 
May 5th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I might have been one of 3 people that actually liked Wesley Crusher. There. I admitted it. I adore Wil as an actor and a writer. He’s a much better actor than the writers at ST:TNG gave him credit for. I think they just didn’t remember what it was like to be a teenager and always feel a bit out of place.
A whole series about an all grown up Wesley — not a bad idea at all. I kinda like it!
May 5th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
I always thought the next series would be “Starfleet Academy”, since that’s where Chief O’Brien went after leaving DS9. I also thought it would be cool to have Mr. Crusher involved somehow, but isn’t Wesley out there exploring “other planes of existence” with The Traveler?
May 5th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
He came back for Troi and Riker’s wedding (although I think that footage was cut…) so maybe, after doing his walkabout he went back to Starfleet. Sure.
May 5th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
PerryG:
“ST:OPE”, anyone?
May 5th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Well I was a kid when Next Gen was airing, so I enjoyed seeing a young character messing around on the Enterprise. There was some definite vicarious envy goin’ down there. I’ve heard some absolutely horrendous ideas for new Star Trek shows (sorry Mom, I don’t think anyone would like a show only about Starfleet Academy), and this isn’t one of them!
Wil, if you’re reading this, please say you’re onboard for some project some guy just made up!
May 5th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
I’d totally watch that. As long as the writers that wrote him before are kept away with an anti-matter force field.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
There should be no more Trek series. There shouldn’t have been any Trek series after the first/only one…
May 5th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
what’s the problem with Captain Janeway? I’ve never seen anything bad in any of main commanders of the series. Some of the secondary characters are annoying or pointless to have, but none of the commanders seemed bad. I’m a casual watcher of the Trek series, so I don’t know everything about it nor have I seen every show made. The least appealing show seemed to be Enterprise… I only managed to watch 3 full episodes of that before deciding to never waste my time on it. Too bad because I like Scott Bacula.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Star Fleet Acadamy would be awesome, but that shouldn’t be the ENTIRE series. The way I see it, it should be serialized, like the later seasons of DS9, only that’s the WHOLE series. I love continuing sagas instead of one-off adventures.
It would take a bunch of new trainees and the first few seasons involve growing up in the academy while outside relations with some new empire are increasing. Just as they are about to graduate, all hell breaks loose and they end up forced to crew a ship together temporarilly just to survive the part of an invading fleet that attacks their academy. They end up doing just well enough that, in the wake of the sheer need for new crews after the disasterous first assault, they are commissioned all too young and sent out to end the war.
Yeah, I’ve thought about this, because I’m a nerd.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
Mister Wheaton! I think this would be a fine idea. I’d be more than willing to devote a half hour a day to watch a series like this.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Greg E: “what’s the problem with Captain Janeway? I’ve never seen anything bad in any of main commanders of the series. Some of the secondary characters are annoying or pointless to have, but none of the commanders seemed bad.”
I subscribe, Captain Janeway was an interesting commander, in certain ways tougher than her male predecessors as she had no Starfleet to backup her out there; alone and isolate, Janeway and the Voyager where a Starfleet of their own and yet they prevailed.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
Let me know if he needs a writer. I’d make him dark… Very dark. In fact, if I got my hands on that character, he’d make Kirk look like Mr. Rogers.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
I have to admit he was on one my favorite shows: NUMB3RS! As a comic book collector/artist (the latter was never really made clear). I also grew up reading many of the ‘juveniles’ (e.g. Robert Heinlein), so the ‘Wesley saves the ship’ episodes were just toooo much. (along with the ‘Troi falls in love’, etc.)
J/P=?
May 5th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
What’s wrong with Janeway?
How about being an incompetent and getting her crew marooned on the other side of the galaxy because she’s too stupid to understand the concept of either:
1. Sacrificing the few for the many (i.e. getting the bulk of her crew back home and staying behind to destroy the array)
2. Better yet: A bomb with a timer.
Had I been part of her crew, I would have mutinied and had her hung for idiocy.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
I think Trek should be left now. No more Trek series, please.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
I disliked ST:Voyager. Some of the characters and episodes weren’t that bad but overall it felt like ST:lite!
I liked Enterprise. Especially some of the final season like the Forge of Vulcan and Defiant epsiodes. Most of the ST franchise had weak 1st seasons, so I stuck it out a bit. DS9 may have been an exception to that.
Pitty, Bakula keeps getting torpedoed after about 3 or so seasons. Loved Quantum Leap too!
Mind you there was a neat fan episode crossover between QL and TNG. Leap Trek if I recall.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
If someone’s going to write a series with Wil in mind, I’d actually prefer something styled along the lines of Doctor Who or Torchwood, with the geek and snark dials cranked up to 11. The CSI In Space format could still be used, but build the character around Wil, not around Wesley.
The difference is that you can have all the Wesley/Trek *references* you want, but you don’t have to have any Wesley/Trek continuity, licensing, or baggage.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
I never had a problem with Capt. Janeway, I just could never stomach Kate Mulgrew’s voice. It is just beyond annoying, especially when she’s playing “whimsical”. Her acting is fine though, so it kind of worked otherwise. I did think that in that series there should have been more than one nekkid Chakotay scene, done without a body double. Oh well…
Kate Mulgrew’s acting was also good in Gargoyles, although again her voice spoiled the Tatiana surprise. Hmmm, a lot of TNG people went on to Gargoyles, how about Wil doing something in a live action movie based on the series?
May 5th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
I thought of this idea years ago; in fact right after seeing the episode where he meets the Traveler (that doesn’t look right to me, but it’s the U.S. spelling of course) for the final time. I thought it would be interesting to catch up with him a few years later, bringing a fresh perspective on the universe with his new “powers” and attempting to reintegrate into Starfleet. I must admit I didn’t much care for Wes (the character) at first, but he did develop some interesting qualities later on. Could he be the star of his own series? I think so, providing the story writers give him plenty of room to develop a well-rounded adult character from the pretty solid foundations we have already seen.
Also, something could be made of the ambiguity concerning Riker’s “Q” powers. The end of episode “Hide and Q” leaves it open as to whether he still has his powers. It is only assumed that he hasn’t – well that’s my opinion anyway.
I must be a rare Trekkie/Trekker (whatever) in that I enjoy ALL series, but only after a very sceptical start – seems the older I get the more I’ve come to appreciate all things Trekkian! (I’m currently reading Yvonne Fern’s book “Inside the Mind of Gene Roddenberry” – which I highly recommend to fans and non-fans alike. It could almost be decribed as an atheist’s “bible”. Very philosophical.)
Okay, I’ll take my pointy ears off now…
May 5th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
What about all the ST:* folk on Boston Legal! How’d that happen?
May 5th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
No, no live action gargoyles. If they make a movie, it should stay animated. I’m sick of that “make those cartoons live action” trend.
They SHOULD put the gargoyles in the next Kingdom Hearts game though.
May 5th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
“Whats wrong with Janeway? Bluntly, Janeway had no command presence. When either Kirk or Picard walked on to the bridge even my spine became a bit straighter.
May 5th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
Dark Jaguar wrote:
No, no live action gargoyles. If they make a movie, it should stay animated. I’m sick of that “make those cartoons live action” trend.
Is that because it’s getting to be a cliche or because the trend is also that 99% of it is “look what we can do with CGI and special effects. We even impress ourselves. Who needs a plot or dialogue? We make it go boom. You like boom, don’t you?”
May 5th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
fedaykin is correct. If Janeway had thought of a time delay bomb, her crew would have returned home. Then again, the series might have been over. In general her weakness as a commander was a result of poor story writers. I had the same opinion of Picard at first but the writing improved greatly and so did the character.
May 5th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
I’ll never understand what some smart people see in Star Trek.
And I also fail to understand how come every single Star Trek fan I happen to know personally is a moron. Not a single smart one in the bunch. I guess the smart ones are vastly outnumbered, but still…
May 5th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Any excuse at all to bring Ashley Judd back is OK with me.
May 5th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
I never really know what to say or do when a science fiction site/magazine/talkshow/whatever actually says nice things about me, but having years of “OMG I HATE YOU SO MUCH!” screamed in my face (literally and online) I’m at a total loss at the moment.
Assuming it was serious, and CBS asked me to play Wesley again, I’d almost certainly say “thank you, but I think I’ll pass.” I’m 35 now; stepping back into a character that I haven’t really played (Nemesis doesn’t count) in 20 years doesn’t really appeal to me, especially since I’m more interested in writing than I am in on-camera acting.
Interestingly (to me, at least) I was recently offered a chance to write a TNG story, with the caveat that it had to be a Wesley story. I thought about it a for a few days, but decided that I couldn’t do it. I mean, how was that going to be good for me? Either way, I’d be accused of pulling a Mary Sue or an anti-Mary Sue, and when I thought about it — I mean, *really* thought about it — I realized that there isn’t anything that interests me about playing that character again.
Sorry, Phil. If this did happen, I’d totally push for you to be the guy who services the turbines on the ship.
May 5th, 2008 at 9:05 pm
Speaking of all of this – Phil, weren’t you going to blog about your dinner with Wesley?
J. D.
May 5th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
The main problem I found with Voyager is that they tried to cram so many different feel-good politically correct characters in. A female captain who was tough but tender. A Native-American first officer in touch with his spiritual side and the old ways. A bad guy turned good guy pilot, learning to work on a team. A half-Klingon engineer always doubting herself and trying to prove she has what it takes. The list goes on. There was too much pandering to PCness and not enough kicking tail. Good theme song though.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
In fact, Wil, the reason I was reticent to post this was that I didn’t want you to feel pressured to paint yourself into a corner either way.
And J.D.: the dinner with Wil was personal. I mentioned that it happened, but the contents thereof were not for public consumption. Some things in Pasadena stay in Pasadena.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:54 pm
Well Wil, if you Really Want them to Stop Asking you …
You could Offer to Write a Canon Story where you Kill off Wesley, Then if they Take you up on it you’d NEVER hafta Play him Again!
Unless it’s in a Flashback, or a Dream Sequence, or Even in a Crazy Alternate Future where he Survives with Massive Injuries a la Commodore Pike; Eh, Looks Like you Made The Right Call After All …
Besides, they’d Probably just Make you Set it in that Parallel Universe where Everybody Dies, Anyway!
May 5th, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Didn’t Wesley like, go off with some superbeing to learn how to become a superbeing? Correct me if I’m wrong, I’m not up on my TNG.
If they come out with another Trek series after Enterprise, I will be disappointed, even if they go with a cool idea like this one. It would really just be milking the cow at this point. At least give it a few years, y’know?
May 5th, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Also, Phil had dinner with me, not Wesley, who is pretend.
/pedantry
May 6th, 2008 at 1:20 am
Oh, let’s not bicker and argue about who’s fictional and who isn’t. But, for reference, I am.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:26 am
Wil, you mean Wesley isn’t real? Then that means… Picard, Riker, Data, Worf? Not real either? Well, thank God Capt. Kirk is real.
BTW io9 has an interesting post about there being no Star Trek movies or series being included in the library on the ISS.
May 6th, 2008 at 5:01 am
Hey, what’s wrong with fictional characters? Is that why nobody will have dinner with me?
Okay, I probably never qualified to be called a trekkie. I was more into science fandom than science fiction fandom, and never followed the actors or trivia or went to conventions or collected paraphenalia or dressed with pointy ears. But I was in the silent majority of ST viewers that regularly tuned in and always enjoyed the episodes I saw of TNG, and Voyager, and later I made it a point to watch the original Kirk series in all of their cheesy-1960s glory.
DS9 by-and-large did not capture my fancy, with the exception of the moving theme music, and I never watched the latest Enterprise series as I was in a TV drought while my children were young.
But Phil’s idea has merit! The idea of a Federation starship warping between astronomical phenomena solving mysteries (I’d like to see more emphasis on exploring scientific mysteries vs. addressing ethical humanoid civilization dilemmas), would really fit in well with the Trek series and create a new angle that would not be a simple rehash of the previous series.
Having Wil represent a now-fully-mature Wesley would be fantastic icing on the cake, although I certainly understand and respect Wil’s reluctance to do so. Undeniably, though, Wil’s presence would add substantially to the long-running multi-generational connected nature of the Trekkie mystique in a way not achievable by any other person on this planet.
I don’t see any reason not to bring a new generation of fans into the ST fold. I still remember all of the complaints from the original fans about dissing the original series when TNG came out, yet it simply made the ST franchise stronger and more popular then ever. A well-done show has the potential to do that again.
May 6th, 2008 at 5:37 am
My daughters always thought Wesley was hot!
May 6th, 2008 at 6:34 am
It would never work. Wesley as captain? Who would he look up to, to give that goofy “Did I do good, Captain?” grin at the end of every episode?
And Janeway was fine, I think she is the only Trek character to hook up with Sam Malone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ5IYH9-L8Q
On second thought, I really think I have to agree with Peter F.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:40 am
I tried watching Enterprise once. I switched channels halfway through the theme song. Is there something wrong with me?
May 6th, 2008 at 6:45 am
(wil) – “I never really know what to say or do when a science fiction site/magazine/talkshow/whatever actually says nice things about me, but having years of “OMG I HATE YOU SO MUCH!” screamed in my face (literally and online) I’m at a total loss at the moment.”
They didn’t scream at you, they screamed at Wesley, who is pretend.
/pedantry
May 6th, 2008 at 8:04 am
The only new Star Trek series that would interest me is one that involves a time period beyond any of the previous series.
In both Voyager and TNG there were several episodes hinting at the potential of humans to evolve beyond their current state. So perhaps something that involves humanity during this transition. I guess that was done somewhat in the Babylon 5 series with the telepath/mundane conflict.
The other option (that would interest me) is a post war scenario. The Federation has been broken by Borg or another race and the Federation races are left as a ragged band of refugees, traveling space to survive and find a new home. Can anyone say Battle Star Galactica?
Sigh. I guess it’s all been done. Then again, what SciFi idea hasn’t been done before?
PS: I liked the Wesley character.
Still have any of your books for sale, Wil?
-OEJ
May 6th, 2008 at 8:11 am
Agreeing with most everyone here.
I hope Wil was able to set Phil straight on the quality of The Outer Limits remake: Wil Wheaton guest stars in the Outer Limits: The Light Brigade.
OT, but did anyone else enjoy seeing Scott Bacula’s character go flying out the 99th floor window of the “Golden Stacks” building last week on Tracy Ulmann’s new show? She’s a genius!
May 6th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Jorge: If Star Trek was good enough for the likes of Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke, it’s good enough for me.
Try reading Yvonne Fern’s books, they might help you “get” ST.
Wil, you did a fantastic job with relatively poor material – I’m currently converting my 76 year old mother into a Trekkie, and she’s already a Wesley fan (though she still calls Worf “Wart”!)
Oh – and I’m 100% fictional too…
May 6th, 2008 at 9:09 am
Will:
I tried watching Enterprise once. I switched channels halfway through the theme song. Is there something wrong with me?
Not with that song. If Elvis had still been alive and he had tuned it in he would have shot the tv again I’m sure. Trek got lazy with that one. A crap song from a movie (Patch Adams). At least Rod Stewart wasn’t singing it, they splurged on someone else. The idea behind the opening credits was good, the execution stunk. The song was probably one of the reasons that I couldn’t stand to watch it. That and the remakes of episodes from other Treks. With Voyager you get to the point of wondering if it will be a time travel bringing everyone back to life episode, the holodoc getting kidnapped, a holodeck malfunction, the “is the main character going mad” plot line, or the Bore-g showing up in every other season finale (TNG was guilty of that too). Enterprise just redid all the bad episodes, nothing new. Not even the theme song. Sad.
May 6th, 2008 at 9:37 am
I would be interested in a sci-fi investigation show. Some of my favorite BSG episodes are the ones that involve investigating some mystery.
I also agree though that ST needs a complete overhaul. To quote Roger Ebert, from his review of Nemesis:
“I think it is time for “Star Trek” to make a mighty leap forward another 1,000 years into the future, to a time when starships do not look like rides in a 1970s amusement arcade, when aliens do not look like humans with funny foreheads, and when wonder, astonishment and literacy are permitted back into the series. Star Trek was kind of terrific once, but now it is a copy of a copy of a copy.”
May 6th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Maybe I’m just an old guy
Having seen all of the originals when they were first aired
I liked all of the STs and realize my expectaions were a little less w/ each series after TNG
I am OK w/ something new but, equaly OK w/ the end of a franchise
I liked some Wesley stuff too
but mostly he was short changed
May 6th, 2008 at 10:11 am
In case it escaped your attention, Phil, Wesley nearly got kicked out of the Academy because of participating in a forbidden daredevil stunt that killed another cadet, and then later he became a Starfleet Academy dropout and went hitchhiking around the galaxy with The Traveler. This is hardly the sort of stable, mature, dependable person whom Starfleet would ever give command of a ship. He was brilliant scientifically, and that plus his jaunts with The Traveler just might make him a decent candidate for being a consultant on a ship’s missions — but that’s about it.
Mind you, I agree that everything wrong about Wesley Crusher was the fault of the writers (and perhaps, to a lesser extent, the directors); Wil Wheaton’s acting was everything one could ask for, and then some. It’s a darned shame that his character’s great potential was so badly mishandled in ways he could not control or prevent.
~David D.G.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am
Wait. The music from Enterprise wasn’t original? I didn’t know that. I didn’t mind it before — though I didn’t love it either — but now I just think it’s lame.
I do think think the series got better toward the end. Of course.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:40 am
No, no, it should be Star Trek: Other, New Exciting Directions
The Enterprise introduction was excellent. Everyone was turned off by the fact that there were vocals in a Trek intro, but the song fits perfectly into the montage, which really explored
what Trek should be about.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
@Bobcloclimar: I didn’t object to the fact that there were lyrics in the Enterprise opening. While I wasn’t particularly enamored of them, I didn’t object to them. And I liked the imagry of the opening a lot.
But I just assumed that it was an original song created for the opening credits. Finding out that it wasn’t bugs me a lot.
Just like it really bugs me that BSG used “All Along the Watchtower” in last season’s finale. Harumpf.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Bobcloclimar
PerryG:
“ST:OPE”, anyone?
No, no, it should be Star Trek: Other, New Exciting Directions
Star Trek: Other Wild New Exciting Directions?
J/P=?
May 6th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
Ok OtherRob, I looked for it and even (shudder) listened to it a bit. I have no idea what the video is for, it looks like something done at a high school for some reason, but here goes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG3SZQ-ZTlY
May 6th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I’m not sure if “thanks” is the right word or not, Mena.
I got about 20 seconds in and bailed….
May 6th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
On the subject of Wesley, I think that the details of the character were handled very poorly, especially in the early seasons.
However, I think it is notable that Wesley Crusher is one of the only regular or semi-regular character in TNG that experienced significant character development over the course of the series (the other being Ro). If you watch the first and last episodes (barring the future versions who technically aren’t “real”) of the series, it is nearly impossible to distinguish the characterization of the principals.
It is that character development that redeems Wesley as an interesting character, and makes future stories about him worthwhile. Don’t get me wrong, I love many of the other characters, but they have no real promise for future stories because they are static and can only really serve well in the context they were developed for (i.e. the Greek play type format of TNG) which has been covered pretty much to its furthest extent, hence the repetitious episodes of the later series.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:04 am
Star Trek: Probing Wild, New, Exciting Directions?
May 7th, 2008 at 6:47 am
After his mystical trek around the universe, Wes came back to be….. THE TACTICAL OFFICER ON THE HOOD! How crap is that? And as far as people not wanting more trek, how about they make it anyway, and you just dont watch it. Then we will all be happy. A new series should be set on Earth, 200 years on, with no starfleet left and a big messy civil war – a real departure from the norm. Going to the academy would be the obvious thing left to do, and it will end up like Smallville or some rubbish, with loads of teen problems for the new target audience to chew on, with weekly top bands guest starring in the student lounge, augmented with copious lashings of Americana. Probably why it ENT didnt work so well. No more to say…
May 7th, 2008 at 7:00 am
Also, some Trek Rules:
1) In the event of an emergency, the holodeck SHUTS DOWN. Priority.
Crew members should inform the computer exactly when an intership communication has been terminated, as they never seem to do this and just keep on talking. How does the computer know what to transmit and what not to?
2) In the event of an anomalous object being discovered in the middle of nowhere for no apparent reason that looks completely normal, engage warp 9
3)DATA’s off switch is not to be used for recreational purposes
4)All single female guests are to be given a full security escort in the event that Commander Riker shows up
5)Picard should just make friends with Q, and let him help next time the galaxy is under threat one of the many powerless and non-omnipitent life forms which inhabit it
6)Whorf should not be allowed to carry an entire armoury in his quarters, in case he decides to a)kill other kilingons for revenge or honour b) kill himself for revenge or honour C) kill one of his family members for revenge or honour
7)Deanna should stop pretending she has psychic powers just because she senses that the Klingon is angry! Why else would he be shouting!
9)ad inf
May 7th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Captain a ship?? Not with his powers. Actually I thought he should get together again with the changeling girl (The Dauphin)- maybe after breaking up with the Judd girl. Or perhaps have a tryst with the young Q character. Aw heck, we’re all adults here- have a go with all three (and make even the folks at Torchwood blush).
Wesley needs to interact, as a sort of human ambassador, with higher beings- there were all sorts in the Trek universe- to take care of larger issues way beyond mortal men.
Trek didn’t really deal with interactions between higher species, just one on one with us. But the Q, the various evolved-into-energy types, that one guy who wiped out an entire alien civilization with a single thought. Trek brought together normal aliens into a common cause, the Federation. Don’t the folks on the next plane need human intervention too to achieve a greater unity?
Jess Tauber
May 7th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
My take on the whole Star Trek phenonema is that certain assumptions which were built into the original series in the 1960′s due to budget constraints essentially became locked in and couldn’t be changed in the 1980′s when TNG came around even though there was now a special effects budget that could support lots and lots of new ideas.
So such assumptions as
1.) There are an enormous number of planets that humans can beam down to and have no problem breathing the atmosphere (20% oxygen, 80% nitrogen, 101,300 pascals, ~288 deg Kelvin, etc.)
2.) There are an enormous number of planets in the galaxy containing humanoid life forms (two arms, two legs, one head with a mouth, a nose, two eyes, and two ears) who either speak English as a second language or can be understood via a universal translator
etc., etc.
There were small differences in these assumptions between TOS and TNG such as Warf getting a skull crest instead of the cheaper makeup that Klingons had in TOS, but for the most part the assumptions were pretty much the same – transporter, warp drive, subspace communication, etc., etc.
I think the TNG series would have been much better if they had started with a blank slate in terms of these assumptions. No more beaming down to planets with an earth-like atmosphere. Now, the crew must wear spacesuits and land via shuttlecraft. You can have several scenes where crew members die when their spacesuits fail or get punctured by hostile action. No more human-like aliens. Instead, six-legged creatures with exoskeletons that use bioluminescence for communication and not sound waves. Etc. Etc.
They could also have dealt with more real science issues such as what are the properties of a large Jovian-sized planet, planets with rings, planets or moons with frozen water crusts, cratering, stellar flares endangering the landing party, etc., etc. Perhaps a real classification of planets rather than the make-believe Type M, etc. Real spectral classification of stars (O, B, A. F, G, K, M). Detection of biospheres from a long distance via spectroscopy, etc., etc. I think it would have been more interesting as well as more educational. Of course, it would have required a panel of astronomers, NASA people, etc. kept on permanent retainer to keep the scripts honest.
I would have set the stories in the not-too-distant future, let’s say the year 2118 or something like that. Perhaps the aliens have only been contacted via SETI and no face-to-tentacle meeting has yet taken place. So there was a lot of stuff that could have been done if they had ditched the original 1960′s show concept. Of course, that was unlikely to happen while Gene Roddenberry was still alive (he didn’t die until 1991) so I guess I understand why it never happened.
May 8th, 2008 at 1:42 am
Those are good points Tom, but that was just the episodic nature of shows of the time. The idea that a show could continue like Lost or 24 as one story would have been unthinkable by producers at the time. Any new effort should follow this format, and use stand alone episodes less often. They did try to make explanations for some of the cop outs. One TNG episode involved an ancient race of bipeds that seeded the galaxy, explaining the standard shape of all intelligent life.
ST is just there to exite the mind, and for all of its issues it has displayed moments of brilliance. The show you describe could never be Star Trek, although I would very much like to see a realistic interpretation of s space based TV show. In reality:
ACTION + SPACE TRAVEL = DISASTER (not a working equation!)
May 8th, 2008 at 11:22 am
Now if Wes Crusher were to trek around the galaxy with Seven of Nine….now yer talkin’, I’d watch that!
May 14th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
“I might have been one of 3 people that actually liked Wesley Crusher.”
I guess I’m one of the other two