Topic: Berman going? Let it be true

[IKV Nemesis D7L]

Quote:
  A fresh start in the same era could work, with a whole new ship name, and a new attitude, like giving us hope for the future, like Kirk and company did.  

I think that you are only going half way.  I think that they need to discard Trek altogether and begin a whole new series.   Say a series based on a SciFi novel or series with a relatively rich backgroung.  I would suggest a novel such as Space Viking by H. Beam Piper but make the starship technology more (early) Traveller (the RPG) with smaller ships than Piper's universe had.  Since all the worlds are colonized by humans and only a few had sapient aliens (all stone age when humans encountered them first) there is less trouble with all the people looking human (and the animals being from Earth) and speaking a known language (Lingua Terra is what Piper called it).  

Since it is far enough in the future they could ignore the 21st century and not worry to much about history catching up to them.  The tech is limited because of the fall of the Federation.  All people are human or (rarely) humanoid.  All planets are Earthlike in air and gravity.  All in all much simplified (for filming and special effects) and if they used Trader/Explorers in a small ship most of the action can be on the ground with little special effects (like many Stargate episodes for example).  

For those who don't recognize Space Viking and H. Beam Piper.

The novel uses large starships (spherical minimum of 1000' diameter and 1500' - 2000' being fairly typical).  While in hyperspace there is no contact with anything outside the ship.  All battles are at sublight speeds.  No FTL communications other than messages carried by the ships themselves.  In the background Earth colonized hundreds of planets which they ruled with a Federation.  Ultimately there was a civil war, the rebel losing fleet fled and colonized far outside the Federation.  After 350 years a ship went back to the Federation and found it had fallen.  Several planets still had starships, more had interplanetary but most had become preindustrial.  The Space Vikings raided the Federation planets and began to colonize them and in the novel were slowly bringing back civilization and technology.  

IKV Nemesis resident heretic.      

[EmeraldEdge]

In otherwords, something like Firefly?  

[Mog]

I thought Firefly was great. I'd be happy with more of that. I'm also hoping for good things from Galactica.

[IKV Nemesis D7L]

Quote:
In otherwords, something like Firefly?  

Heard of it, never seen it or information on its setting.  So perhaps.    

[FFZ]

 No need to completely discard what we all know, there are enough 'blank' spots to fill pllenty of series. The main trouble I think is that the modern writers fall to easily into 'plot device' story lines, like holodecks or visitors from the future, for conflict starting and resolution.

'Enterprise' for example, could do whole episodes based around setting up a colonoy, and never have to bother with 'aleins' of any kind, a good writer could create conflict among the colonists themselves, and maybe the fleet command, they don't need it to always be some alien or 'futurboy' who drives the story.

Another factor with B&B is they always miss a trick, when they can do cool stuff. When the ship left earth to begin this stupid Xindi story line for example, she was a year old. They could have repainted her white and given her an NCC-01 on her hull, as a tip of the hat to the old timers and a link to the future. No, not B&B, they want to jump to the 24th century and that stupid time cop idea they had.

They disgust me.    

[IKV Nemesis D7L]

Quote:
 No need to completely discard what we all know, there are enough 'blank' spots to fill pllenty of series. The main trouble I think is that the modern writers fall to easily into 'plot device' story lines, like holodecks or visitors from the future, for conflict starting and resolution.    

I agree that there are many areas that could be filled in.  However the "series" has been going on a very long time and continuity has become successively flawed.  First Contact for example conflicts with TOS in that in TOS Cochrane was "of Alpha Centauri" and only in his 30's when he invented warp drive.  Also Riker described the moon in a way that indicated clearly that it was terraformed, in DS9 a cadet from the moon mentions having to go outside in a space suit.  Which is it?  Not to mention the Eugenics wars in the 1990s.   Then there are the racial changes, Bonehead vs TOS Klingons, totally changed in appearance AND culture.  If the culture were not changed the appearance change would have been more accepted.  The Enterprise rewritten Vulcans are another example.  

At this point I think it would be very difficult to do a series that would not alienate a significant portion of the audience(s).   The old TOS Guard vs TNG fans vs DS9 vs Voyager.  Each group has its own expectations of how the Trek Universe should be portrayed and though there is overlap they are different.

Going back to a new beginning avoids all that  and allows a clean start.  It also could be done by someone other than Paramount.   Many here have given Babylon 5 the credit for rejuvenating DS9.  A "Space Viking" series could do the same for Trek as a whole.  With the added advantage of gaining another series with many of the desired qualities of Trek and a 2nd chance to see it "done right".

Fire Fly movie in the works  perhaps this could lead to a new series and be the cause of a rejuvenated B&B free Trek.  Must consider getting the DVDs (I did give a copy to a friend as a Christmas present though).  

[wilfbrim]

If you are looking for a good story (although battles do occur at "hyperspeed", check out the series called "The Helmsman", found at Timberwolf books. The author is rewriting the first ones, and  adding to the series. There is much character room, and it brings the "old" Star Trek flavor to the fore. The lead character is somewhat a Kirk type (Wilf Brim), but there would a lot of room to make a good story, better, I believe than Glactica and other old retreads. Time for a little freshness and creativity??? Wait a minute, Berman, creativity, Star Trek..... Nah, let's wipe the slate clean and start up again!


   

[Primus2003]

I In response to some previous posts:
#1 I have watched Enterprise, and looked at it objecttively.  I have to admit it seems like they are disregarding the Trek future we know for something new.  Watching it if I had not watched the other treks then perhaps.  Prequels are very tricky and complex creatures.  They must be handled very delicately.  There is still time for Enterprise to set things right though.  I myself had also hoped for an Excelsior type series based on the exploits of Captain Sulu and the Excelsior.
#2 If not that here's a different concept. what about the Enterprise 1701-B, with instead of that Harriman, give command to someone who deserves it, like Chekhov.   It would have been a very fitting tribute to have the ensign of the original series as captain of his new generation or namesake of ship.  It would be good to have both Shatner and Nimoy there, whose abilities would compliment each other in making a trek series.  Though in all fairness Shatner did get a bit of a raw deal for Star Trek V, there were a number of production problems. There is still time to make things right, or perhaps they will evolve that way.  I have enjoyed Star trek for a long time and want it to continue to live long and prosper.  

[FFZ]

 As much as I loved ol Kirk, Shatner is gotten extremly long in the tooth (he's past 70 now, he will be 73 next month in fact), so his day is done as far as TV goes I think.  

Enterprise can work with a new story editor, and some uplifting stories, and some recurring villians, like the Andorian guy.

They just have to give it a chance, NOT keep rehashing Voyager.  

[Lieutenant_Q]

The NCC-01 wont be painted on the hull until the Federation is formed, and they are right to wait to do that.  After all the NCC and the USS are Federation designations, not Earth designations.  

[FFZ]

  I suppose I should point out the flaw in that, namely that NX is also    

[Lieutenant_Q]

very true...