What's new

B5 creator writes new Trek treatment.... (1 Viewer)

TheLongshot

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 12, 2000
Messages
4,118
Real Name
Jason


Well, it is still about the case, tho the personalities of the people involve sometimes have a thing to do with how they treat the case.

Jason
 

Jack Briggs

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 3, 1999
Messages
16,805
That speculation is even taking place about rumors circulating to the effect that there is a sixth series being considered is dismaying. Really, how can Paramount after four successive disasters -- Voy, Ent, Insurrection, and Nemesis -- even be considering another series? Jason S. disagrees, but I tell you that even with "good writing" coming back into play it will mean nothing: People are tired of the franchise.
 

Lew Crippen

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 19, 2002
Messages
12,060

I’ve stayed out of this, as it might seem a bit negative, but I definitely agree Jack.

As much as I liked the original (with its myriad faults), and as much as I loved TNG and DS9 (both my wife and I liked this one the best), after Voyager (even with a female lead, my wife gave up on this before I) I said ‘no more’.

The concept of Enterpirse brought us both back into the fold, but even as much as we desperately wished that it would succeed, we cashed in our chips early.

I’d have to read some rave reviews from guys like you before I’ll spend any more time with anything connected to the name.
 

Jason Seaver

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Messages
9,303
Why do you think that? I could see reaching that conclusion if the franchise was cranking out consistently good television on a regular basis and people were still ignoring it, but saying people are tired of Star Trek good or bad based on their reaction to Voyager and Enterprise is the very definition of extrapolating from incomplete information.
 

TheLongshot

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 12, 2000
Messages
4,118
Real Name
Jason


Speak for yourself. Production values are cool, but it is characters and how they interact with each other that sold me on Farscape. Without them, you get..uh...Enterprise. All sound and fury that signifies nothing.

Jason
 

JonZ

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 28, 1998
Messages
7,799
"That speculation is even taking place about rumors circulating to the effect that there is a sixth series being considered is dismaying."

I watched the first episode of Enterprise and havent seen another episode since. I dont follow the show so I dont know, but isnt this show in danger of being cancelled?

If true, as u said, how can they considering another?

(I LOVED DS9, even if I found some of the second 1/2 of S6 along with S7 to be disappointing.I gave up on Voyager during S2)
 

Jason Seaver

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Messages
9,303
Enterprise is in far less "danger" than most shows with its ratings. It's got a 22-episode order and a good shot to air them all (and even if the Friday slot isn't great, it's on UPN - something else will get cancelled, opening up a slot). As to beyond that - well, few shows that aren't Law & Order know beyond next May. That's just television.

As to why they're considering another - Trek makes Viacom somewhere on the order of $200M/year. Their home video department sells DVDs, their cable stations sell ads during reruns, Pocket books publishes tie-in novels, the licensing division collects money from TokyoPop, Art Asylum, and others. That money drops an order of magnitude, though, if Star Trek is not perceived as being "current". However, it could also jump an order of magnitude if the "current" Trek being produced gets back into mainstream culture the way that TOS and TNG were.

Enterprise hasn't done that. So, rather than continue to spend $50M/year on it, why not invest that $50M/year (which is, remember, netting a big return) on another iteration? Then, four years from now, when you've got another salable third-run package, re-evaluate. It's a gamble, but a worthwhile one from a business perspective.

The good news is that if Paramount really is taking pitches/treatments from around Hollywood (allegedly, Straczynski and Zabel aren't the only people they've talked to), they seem to understand that Berman & Braga aren't going to be the ones that bring the franchise's popularity back to its TNG-era heights, and may just get that it's low quality that's been driving people away.
 

Dan Rudolph

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2002
Messages
4,042
They're considering another precisely because Enterprise isnt doing well. Star Trek brings in too much money to give up on and if Enterprise isn't going to work, they need a back-up.
 

Mikel_Cooperman

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jan 16, 2001
Messages
4,183
Real Name
Mikey

Isnt this the whole reason most people have stopped watching Enterprise is due to weak characterizations? Isn't this the reason why most Sci Fi fans dont like the last two Star Wars movies?
Characterizations are very important to any genre. Anyone can make special effects these days but I for one dont want to see a movie thats all show and no meat.
 

Rob Gardiner

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2002
Messages
2,950
2001, for example, is a magnificent piece of science fiction with flat characters. But Star Trek has never been hard science fiction. I would characterize it as "action-drama in a sci-fi setting". Roddenberry didn't create Star Trek out of a desire to explore futurism. He wanted to discuss late 20th century problems in a format that would deflect scrutiny from the censors. Most of the science in Star Trek is really fantasy anyway. (Humanoid aliens, warp drive, transporter, etc.) But we've already gone through this subject in other threads.

In any case, TNG had a few interesting "spatial anomaly" stories, but given the choice between DS9's character drama and Voyager's technobabble, I'll take the character drama.
 

Jason Seaver

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Messages
9,303
Same to you, re the repeated "let it rest" idea. Except for the part about following your reasoning, of course.
 

Jason Seaver

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Messages
9,303
Don't you think that's kind of limiting? Sure, those movies would be better if the characterization was a little stronger, but I think they were well-plotted, and you have to give them credit for looking amazing. Sure, "anyone" can do special effects, but what other movies have created worlds as stunning as Lucas's? It is a visual medium as well as a storytelling one, after all.
 

David Forbes

Supporting Actor
Joined
Mar 22, 1999
Messages
621


The Fifth Element
Blade Runner
Alien
2001
Dune
Metropolis
The Shape of Things to Come
Forbidden Planet

And Lucas stole/borrowed/was inspired by imagary/ideas from practically all of these movies for the prequels. While the visuals were well done, they were hardly groundbreaking (with some exceptions) as far as conceptualizations and designs.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Latest Articles

Forum statistics

Threads
356,814
Messages
5,123,732
Members
144,184
Latest member
H-508
Recent bookmarks
0
Top