Chapter 11 Star Trek and the Reboot
“Nobody could have imagined the phenomenon that ‘Star Trek’ became. It’s still almost impossible to imagine.” William Shatner
I am a lifelong fan of Star Trek. I was delighted with JJ Abrams recent reboot of the franchise. There is a whole new landscape to portray Star Trek on. The acting was dead on, and it was almost as if the replacement actors were channeling the originals.
The question is what’s the next best move? As of the time of this writing (Dec 19th, 2010), there has only been one movie and there’s a chance to set a new, more textured, sophisticated direction for the franchise. Most of the movies have been good guy vs. bad guy, even the nearly universally admired Wrath of Khan. Is there some scope for achieving a higher plane, as in Star Trek IV, “The Voyage Home” (yes, the one with the whales)?
I think so. Star Trek is best when tacking contemporary issues. So the best bet here I believe is to does an allegory of the BP oil disaster? Have the Federation be responsible for a fairly major disaster in space that affects a cluster of alien species. The alien species react differently- some develop long term anti-Federation sentiments, other work with the Federation. This would be an excellent explanation for the shape of the new galaxy and the formation of alliances and power centers. It would be a logical flow, instead of just irrational bad folks who hate the Federation for no reason.
This allows the opportunity to show our heroes in the role of peaceful diplomats as well as combat soldiers. Most of the movies have not demonstrated this flexibility. For the most part, the movies consist of good guys versus bad guys with the good guys prevailing. It’s time for something new.
Just to spice up the story a little, there could be a self-absorbed idiot in charge of the Federation Company that caused the disaster – I’m sure you get the reference here. Plus you could add in a nitwit Federation President who is politically motivated and not living up to the best ideals of the Federation.
All this being said, I don’t think you can have a major sci-fi picture without a tantalizing baddie villain. I suggest the devious and brutal Cardassians shape up to be the primary villains in the alternate timeline. They made excellent villains in the series Deep Space 9. Only hard core Star Trek fans are aware of that reference, so for new audiences it would be just like the introduction of a fresh villain. The old timers would get a nod in the process.
This would elevate the franchise to a loftier level in terms of philosophy. Audiences around the world are ready for this level of nuance. Witness the remake of “Battlestar Galactica”, which was just superb and had so many levels of entertainment in it.
Vulcans would be excellent delegates to the affected alien races in the disaster, in view of how their history is shaping up in the new universe. There could easily be some moving personal stories inserted along the way in the story.
The best part of this type of story is that you can satisfy the action thrill junkies and also the people looking for a deeper story and moral. Star Trek is best when it manages to do both these things at once. Maybe this type of story would not fly well for a movie, but it would make a great background story for a new TV series. Setting this as the background could lead to a lot of stories with themes with contemporary resonance. That’s the way the original series presented stories.
Another idea I have is to do a remake of the TOS episode “Whom Gods Destroy”. This episode featured a starship Captain gone mad. While the theme is repeated quite a few times in Star Trek, the unique feature here is that he is insane and also curable. That I think would make a great story on a number of fronts, because it would elevate the movie above the standard shoot-the-bad-guy theme. The final resolution could be in fact a subdued Garth (the demented Captain) being administered a cure. This is a departure from standard action flicks where the bad guy just gets blown away at the end. It might be refreshingly original.
Also, the fact that Garth is one of the Federations own would make it much more debatable about how to cope with him. Our heroic crew would be taken into new territory. There could even be a lot of debate aboard the Enterprise about how to cope with this unique renegade.
Lots of action will be there of course as the demented Garth strikes out with a ragtag group of aliens he picks up to support him. His knowledge of Federation battle tactics plus his dementia would make him a most formidable opponent. New alien races that are supporting him could be introduced without the cheesy makeup in the old series. I also like the fact that Dr. McCoy would have a more pivotal role, one of the few weaknesses of the new movie.
Discuss and enjoy!
Notes to the 3rd edition for Chapter 11
As of April 20, 2012 , the rumor is that the villain will be a Klingon. There is very little likelihood the crew of our favorite startship will cure any Klingons medically. Alas, I think we are due for yet another irredeemably evil villain who will be killed off in the end.
I still believe my “Captain Garth like” villain would represent an evolution of the Star Trek villain and may pave the way for other big blockbusters that follow.