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Berman Confirms Star Trek Prequel Film Project
Steve Krutzler writes "TrekWeb can break the news STAR TREK producer Rick Berman has confirmed that work on a new STAR TREK feature film project has begun. Speaking in the new Dreamwatch magazine, Berman describes it cryptically as a "prequel" and says he's working with two other producers on the project."
I'd be very interested to know if this is going to be a prequel to The Next Generation or to the original Star Trek series. Considering the last number of films were based on TNG, I would personally find it odd to go back to the original series at this point.
Still, the article only refers to STAR TREK, which would indicate that perhaps Kirk and not Picard might be our captain in this one. At least it would be a welcome change from Priceline.com adverts and Miss Congeniality 2 for William Shatner.
Potential to suck: 75%
Potential to be Great: 25%
Why, oh why, do they continue to insist on beating this dead horse into the dust? I'm as big a Star Trek fan as anybody, but it's gone way too far away from its roots, and quite frankly the last couple of movies have sucked so hard that I can't stand thinking about what they're going to bring out next.
Long live TNG on DVD.
But that'w what I said when "DS9" started...
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
I for one want a DS9 movie. I am currently watching the entire series via Netflix, but I am down to the last two seasons.
If they start working on a DS9 movie right now, I will forgive them for that lame ST: Enterprise episode last night. I can only take so much of the same plot. Which is one reason I don't watch 24.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Lois, this isn't my Batman glass. - Peter
I wish they'd eventually do a Babylon 5 job on this, i.e. plan a series with a big story that develops over five seasons. When watching the likes of TNG and Voyager I got the impression that they were making this stuff up as they went along. Like adding a character called 'Kes' to Voyager and just seeing where it went. It went nowhere and they had to ditch her in favour of a Borg with a fit body and big tits. (I'm not complaining about that BTW!)
Sure DS9 and Voyager had _some_ continuity, but nothing profound. The only shocking thing that ever happened in Voyager was the Seska character who was on the ship for the longest time but turned out to be a Cardassian agent in disguise.
Oh well.
Drill baby drill - on Mars
While I do read /. everyday, and I am very aware that the general relevant population doesn't think much of Enterprise, I have to respectfully disagree. Take last night's new episode as an example: Archer attacked and stormed a totally innocent ship because he needed their warp coil; T-Pol turns out to be a drug addict! These are things that NEVER would have happend on the original Trek or on TNG. The writers are finally writing morally fallible characters, and I for one am thrilled.
That said, a prequel has MUCH more potential to be good than another sequel. They can have the Klingons be evil again (who wouldn't want that?). Technology wouldn't be as advanced, which makes easy-outs of plot points harder to resolve, and hence more interesting. The federation isn't as strong, which also opens up more complex plot possibilities.
I think this is the best announcement for Trek fans in years. Nemesis was simply awful, and I'd hate to see the Data v2 re-learning how to paint, play violin, or some such garbage. Old can sometimes be new again!
Prequel, huh?
There are only two words that spring to mind when I hear that word:
EPISODE.ONE
The horror, the horror ...
I hear there's rumors on the Slashdots
It's sad, because I've always loved Star Trek. But I realized the truth when I saw the latest installment in the theater, which in my opinion was nothing but a bad rehash of The Wrath of Khan.
But then, I guess this is a sign of the times. Lately it's seemed to me that we as a culture are running low on creativity. I don't ever remember a time when so many sequels and so few original films were released. And of course, people flock like lemmings to see the latest rehash of whatever. I haven't heard an original musical group in what seems like years. I'm sure there are indie groups that I've never heard of that are doing great stuff, but the mainstream... I guess the latest thing is for bands like The Darkness to resurrect the same lame ass hair metal that Nirvana wiped off the face of the earth. And most of the the rock music that I've heard in the last couple of years has been variations on the Korn theme... detuned guitars and shameless lyrics about childhood trauma. Hey asshole, you're rich -- go get some therapy and get the hell over it!
Anyway, I know I've drifted a bit off topic, but I see this as another attempt to squeeze the every last penny out of what used to be a great franchise by driving it even deeper into the ground. All to avoid, *gasp*, coming up with something ORIGINAL! But no, that would be too risky. Let's just serve up another plate of leftovers.
Why bother? Berman and Braga already neutered the Borg anyway. If the last half of Voyager is any indication, all they need to do is bring Admiral (*gag*) Janeway out to modulate the field density and penetrate the shields, or something.
No, the Borg are just as ruined as most of the rest of the franchise at this point, and cramming all the casts into one movie screams of a pitiful attempt at fan service: "We can't deliver a decent movie, so we're just gonna throw characters at you; one of these must be your favorite!"
As many others have said, Trek needs a long break. With any luck, it'll be able to lie dormant until Rick Berman dies a horrible death.
The wonderful thing about science fiction is that, imho, it isn't really about science at all. Instead, it gives writers an opportunity to change small (or large) details about the world around humans, and see how they react. So, SF is all about humans at the end of the day. For a while, Star Trek understood that. Almost all of the first series understood that, with wise old Gene at the helm. TNG understood that as well, which is why "The Inner Light" is one. of. the. best. damn. episodes. of. any. series. ever.
Berman and his band of merry idiots don't understand this simple fact. I remember reading an article in which he said something like: "Star Trek fans loves aliens and time travel."
Star Trek 2, 4 and 6 understood that it's all about the people. First Contact was good because it was so damn cool, and nobody can dislike anything with the Borg in it.
So yeah, if I have simply lost interest in Star Trek because Berman wants to fill every movie with "aliens" and "time travel" then troll me.
I'm with you on that one. My favourite, possibly apocryphal, quote on the subject is from Majel (Barrett) Roddenberry. When asked what she thought the next Star Trek project (or series?) should be, she replied "Hiatus".
When there are other, non-Star Trek series out there that are at least as good (probably way better), like "Firefly", "Farscape" etc., getting cancelled, it makes me want to petition Majel to allow them to put Gene's name on them, just to keep them on the air. Seriously, I swear that turds like "Andromeda" and "Earth: Final Conflict" only stayed on the air as long as they did because of his name.
Complexity is Easy. Simplicity is Hard.
For the LOVE OF GOD would somebody fire Berman already?!?
The Romulan war would be in the time Enterprise would have covered, if not for the fact that it sucks so badly there's no way it'll go enough seasons to make it there.
Sadly, though, this is the kind of thing they'd think of doing; an Enterprise movie could technically be called a prequel, and could cover the Romulan war.
What this franchise really needs, however, is three things:
1) About five years off with no movies.
2) About five years off with no series.
3) About forever off with no stories written by anybody who has ever written for Voyager or Enterprise. Ever. Even the good ones.
[puts on the Star Trek hat]....
People were afraid that once the Federation had figured out a way to combat/make peace with the Klingons (ST:VI), the Borg (ST:VOY), and then finally the Romulans (ST:X) the story would start to run out of steam.
I believe there is still much life in the Star Trek universe. Unfortunately, the young-ones of today's modern shows do not see the qualities of the episodes the older generations remember. Star Fleet is about exploration (to avoid using the show's cliche) and meeting new races. The UFP does not encompass every civilization from the Alpha to Delta quadrants. I can remember being mesmerized by the countless ST:TOS episodes of meeting new aliens and the numerous occasions where the Enterprise was about to be blown to smithereens.
There was an episode of ST:TNG (the Traveller) where Commander Data said that Star Fleet had only explored a little more than 11% of _our galaxy_ in the three hundred years of space development and exploration. Even with ST:DS9 and ST:VOY timelines, that leaves over 85% of the galaxy as uncharted. There are tons of lifeforms and battles to be generated with 85% of the galaxy remaining. ST:VOY revealed the transwarp system developed by the Borg for fast movements throughout the quadrants. And Starfleet captains still do not always agree with the Federation Council.
The problem with modern Star Trek is the incorporation of Soap Opera-like drama into the storyline. The audience is now addicted to this notion that an episode must be directed as if it were a feature film. Many episodes of the TOS did not focus on character development directly. Instead, we learned about these characters by their everyday performance of their duties. ST:ENT is currently battling this very issue.
I have thoroughly enjoyed the ten films produced under the Star Trek banner. When it comes down to it, I would prefer an episode over a film anyday. Look at how much stuff can occur to capture an audience's interest in a season. ST:ENT reveals a modern take as to the lessons that had to be learned before the great Jim Kirk could take the center stage out into the Alpha quadrant. Think about all the historical development of the Federation we've heard about (especially in ST:TNG) that have yet to be shown on TV or in a film...
Ayup
I'm sick of the people that will Star Trek to die. If you don't like Star Trek nowadays, quit trying to ruin it for me. Why badmouth it if you're not going to watch it?
Some of you people have seen maybe three episodes of Enterprise and declared it horrible. The same goes for Deep Space Nine or Voyager. However, we find Star Trek fans whos' favorite series are any of the series made so far. Ya, TNG is the amazing god of Star Trek - but some of us find Enterprise, DS9, or Voyager to be a hundred times more interesting than a new sci-fi show on a choked budget.
My friends and I have been watching Enterprise religiously. It is an amazing show. Every week they put out a movie-quality episode. Ya, there are some corny parts. But, the all-amazing TNG had corny parts too. And don't forget how corny the original series was - all computers are a grid of colorful blinking lights.
However, willing the Star Trek universe to simply die is such a waste. Star Trek fans know the aliens, we know the different politics for different alliances, we know the history... starting a whole new universe with a new show makes that all wasted.
Also, what is the deal with hating Rick Berman? He worked on part of TNG, DS9, Voyager, and now Enterprise. He's contributed as much to the Star Trek universe as Gene Roddenberry.
I hope they make another series after Enterprise.. and I hope Enterprise goes for at least 5 years. It's simply an entire wealth of creativity larger than Lord of the Rings and Star Wars combined.
--- We need more Ron Paul!
Sure, there's no sound in space, but there is EM noise, shrapnel banging against your hull, subspace warp fields collapsing, and who knows what else. Sounds are just Hollywood's way of presenting these phenomena in a way we can interpret.
I like the way they did it in Space 1999. When the crew was watching a space battle on the viewscreen there was silence. When you were really there, then there was sound.
"I'm not impatient. I just hate waiting." - My Dad
Speaking in issue #117, Berman confirms for the first time that he is now developing a STAR TREK feature film project: "I am involved in the very early stages of what could be the next STAR TRKE movie," reveals Berman, in an excerpt provided by Dreamwatch. "It's something I will be producing with two other producers."
Unwilling to offer many details he cryptically describes it as "a prequel" without any further elaboration. The names of his producing cohorts will have to remain unknown for now, as well.
We allready know the names of his accomplices: Bragga and the Devil.
Rick Berman has been turning Star Trek into a distilled form of crap ever since Gene Rodenberry passed away.
First he took out the technological eutopia element, because, who wants to watch a show abuot a future where humanity has learned to live in harmony with itself. Then he added religion, turned StarFleet from a para-military space exploration outfit into a facist military government, turned a formally edgy show (first interracial kiss on america TV, a russian and chineese working with a U.S. born captain, etc) into a steaming pile of politically correct drivel, etc.
I used to be a trekkie, but the things that are called Star Trek nowadays aren't Star Trek anymore. He took the brand name and threw away the substance.
That movie won't be Star Trek, it will be the Rick Berman Time-Travel-Reset-Button Hot Alien Chick Spectacular. He should call it that.
You can't take the sky from me...
Nemesis broke that law finally, we are no longer bound by its chains or uplifted by its promises.
In the law there is no overlap between theft and copyright infringement whatsoever.
I watched all of DS9 and loved it. I can't remember there being a bad episode, although it sort of twiddled its thumbs for the first two seasons. I watched all but the last season of Voyager. While there were few really bad episodes, the show was hampered with throwaway cast members and a lack of really good episodes: most were "below average".
Enterprise? At least the premise is good (Voyager was a botched effort that should have not made it out of the starting gate), but somewhere between TNG and Enterprise, they have forgotten how to film. Everthing is all dark and grainy, and might as well be on a black and white TV set.
Compare this to the average bridge scene on those "Spike" ST:TNG reruns: they knew how to actually light a set. Only DS9 had any reason to look this way, being a grungy Cardassian station. The strength of "Trip" Tucker (one of the best actors/characters in Trek, I think) shows how the rest of the cast really comes up short.
"Star Trek fans know the aliens, we know the different politics for different alliances, we know the history."
Uh... not really. The Klingon/etc stuff has been shelved. All you have now are Xindi which are totally new, and races like Andorians and Vulcans who were around before but now are having the history created or re-written.
"I hope they make another series after Enterprise.. and I hope Enterprise goes for at least 5 years."
This season is better than the first two, but even then, the Xindi are nothing to write home about (nothing like the Borg, Vulcans, and Klingons that fired fan interest before). Still waiting for the show to "find its groove".
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
That was the idea behind Enterprise, but changing "Phasers" to "Phase Cannons" and "Shields" to "Hull Plating" really doesn't make any difference plotwise. And half the episodes end up being Prime Directive Foreshadowing anyway.
> I would find much more appealing a series or a movie some two-hundred years *after* TNG, instead...
It's the same problem. Oh, they haver "Quantum Sheilds" and can go at "Warp 20". What real difference does it make?
Agreed. It was about the time that Berman left that DS9 actually got good. The best thing that could possibly happen to 'Trek is for Berman and Braga to get axed....literally or figuratively.
To Do: 1. Take over world 2. Pick up Milk and Bread on the way home
If they had any sense, they would eject Berman and let Nick Meyer run the show. So much of the best of Star Trek films was from him.
His directorial debut was... Star Trek II. He wrote all the script for Star Trek IV that took place in the 20th century. He also directed Star Trek IV and did a great deal of the story, based upon an idea by Nimoy.
He has a sense of the show that Berman lacks utterly.
Never confuse feeling with thinking.
Doing a movie focused on Captain Sulu would be an interesting and enjoyable movie and a good idea. Bringing back Shatner, considering that 1/3rd of the Big Three are dead, is a bad one.
However, I agree with everyone who says that Braga and Berman need to be sacked, or at least Braga (who was also responsible for writing M:I2).
Zagreus sits inside your head, Zagreus lives among the dead, Zagreus sees you in your bed and eats you in your sleep.
That's because Picard's Enterprise was more like reform school rather than a proper navy. Remember the episode "Chain of Command" where Captain Edward Jellico temporarily took over? Riker and his cohorts practically stonewalled Jellico from the beginning.
This all stems from Picard's ridiculous assertion that "StarFleet is not a military organization".
My words are backed with NUCLEAR WEAPONS!
From what I remember, Star Trek was a way to see things with clarity without preconceptions, stigmas, conditions and feelings that may be a little biassed in one way or another compared to our neighbours across the street or world.
But, with every new show it, this piece of the puzzle becomes less and less important.
What we need is a trilogy or something (can they make 3.14 movies?) to move the current time to 4 or 5 hundred years after Voyager. (heck, why not just move Archer, the ship, the crew (and the show) there (haha)).
That would give the stories more chance to breathe and maybe give some power to whoevers job it is to shoot down stupid ideas that are there just for ratings and not to make the story better.
That's my rant if you can call it that.
Dan
(also... is it me or are the scenes of the shows getting darker and darker as they come out? kinda sucks)
A major point in "The Menajerie" was that Pike couldn't communicate anything besides "yes" or "no". I always wondered why he couldn't resort to Morse code.
So what? Everyone dies. What makes the Enterprise-C story interesting is that Garrett and her crew knew that an action they were taking would, with complete certainty, result in their deaths and yet they took it anyway.
Good stories are about people. I, for one, would be interested in those kinds of people and why they would make that kind of choice.
In Soviet Russia, sig types you!
J. Michael Straczynski
Joss Whedon
I think it's going to take outside help to bring the ST franchise back from the realm of its current suckage.
"TNG had excellent continuity with storyline...The characters progressed and grew..."
You have got to be kidding. With probably the notable exception of Wesly, Barkley, and maybe a certain holographic doctor, nearly every Trek character has been as static as a maniquin. Their actions from episode to episode did nothing to affect donwline events, nor did these events have any affect on their personalities. Each show was self contianed and the Riker you knew in one episode would be exactly the same in the others. And as much as you malign Voyager (rightfully so n some cases) it probably had the most character development I've ever seen in a Trek series and the most reactive plot to boot. They were normally short range arcs, but at least they stepped out of their own airtight compartment for a change.
Frankly, I'm tired of trek in general. Most of the plot is self contained and most of the characters are static. You can only do it so many times before it gets stale. At least do it right.
Like Firefly.
You need a FREE iPod Nano
Richard.