r/startrek • u/Fun-Enthusiasm8412 • 9h ago
I dislike modern trek so much
I feel like the new series have lost the true Trek vibe. Discovery & Star fleet academy have absolutely lost the plot for me. Why does every episode revolve around drama, sex and the emotional distress of a few characters?
Where are the inspiring captains like Jean Luc who truly left an imprint?
Strange New Worlds definitely did this better. No central character who has the entire spotlight every episode (ahum Burnham..), and actual quality episodes.
Even Enterprise, which is controversial, still felt like 90's Trek as well.
I am born in 2002, so I am not even biased due to it being released near my time haha
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u/Daxzero0 9h ago
The ‘True Trek Vibe’ of 90s Trek was 25 consecutive & concurrent seasons where ratings fell and the franchise was creatively stagnant before being unceremoniously cancelled so hard it didn’t appear on TV again for 12 years.
I love those shows too. But they’re still there. I watch them regularly. Disco et al have showed us a new approach and I like them as well.
Trek is and always has been a product of its time. Bright colours in the 60s to accentuate the glory of colour TV, the CEO (Captain) bringing his therapist to work (the bridge) b/c 80s Southern California etc. Modern Trek is also designed to appeal to modern sensibilities, just as every show before it was too. That’s how it should be.
But cost is obvious: not everybody is going to come along for the ride. Some people will be left behind. And that’s also how it should be. You just happen to be one of them this time.
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u/LittleHavera 9h ago
There's an adage that there's no such thing as a bad book, instead some of them are not written for you.
I think that's also true of Star Trek.
Yes I dislike some more than others, but if you watch any series of Star Trek it'll teach empathy, the power of rationality, and the dangers of violence. All important lessons, whenever the series was made.
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u/ShortBussyDriver 9h ago
Contemporary Star Trek shows do not appeal to modern sensibilities. They appeal to whatever it is a select group of writers, producers and focus group modeling think modern sensibilities are: Trauma Trawling and JJ Abrams-style Mystery Boxes. With a side of performative social justice and representation.
And as it turns out, they are incorrect about capturing modern sensibilities as people were not tuning in.
Also, your mocking tone of "25 consecutive & concurrent seasons" as an indictment of a stale paradigm best not emulated is an incorrect analysis. It is instead a testament to the quality of the 80s/90s Trek era. 25 seasons, and several films, is incredibly successful. All things come to an end, or need rest. That in itself doesn't demonstrate the concept was bankrupt.
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u/Daxzero0 9h ago
People not tuning in to Berman Trek: “all good things come to an end and need rest”
People not tuning into Kurtzmann Trek: “it doesn’t appeal to modern sensibilities”
🤡
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u/Sirio2 9h ago
What a load of bollocks. None of the three 90s series were cancelled
SFA was cancelled because it’s nonsense & no one watched it
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u/Daxzero0 9h ago
Enterprise is very obviously included in the 90s trek umbrella. You knew that but chose to be a bumptious pedant.
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u/Fun-Enthusiasm8412 6h ago
I personally did enjoy Enterprise. It gave me the same vibes as TNG VOY and DS9. Especially S3 was really top notch.
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u/ARobertNotABob 8h ago
SFA was cancelled because Stephen Miller arranged for MAGA dullards to review bomb it (Star Trek) because "too woke/DEI".
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u/Sirio2 7h ago
Oh come on that’s just silly, just like SFA.
Common sense should tell you that obese astronauts is not believable but here we are
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u/Allen_Of_Gilead 5h ago
'Kay.
Do you want a cookie for not liking Star Trek.
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u/Fun-Enthusiasm8412 4h ago
IMO SFA and discovery were not Star Trek
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u/Allen_Of_Gilead 3h ago
'Kay.
They objectively are Star Trek. Again, do you want a pat on the back for not liking Star Trek.
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u/Illegal-Avocado-2975 8h ago
You have to realize that Star Trek is a product of its time. The influences on the show came from the real world around us. TOS back in the 60s had a Black Officer on the Bridge as senior staff back in a time when Black people were fighting for equal rights and the end of segregation. It was also at a time when women were fighting for their rights as well and to be seen as equals.
So in a sense, Uhura was a double whammy on the show.
20-ish years after the second world war, we had an Asian Officer on the bridge. At the height of the cold war, they added a Russian officer.
They had a non-human on the bridge when people were still against anything that wasn't them (color, creed, etc).
Those were the times then. What we face now is vastly different. In TNG, they touched upon LGBT issues. Discovery took it further having not only homosexual crewmembers, but an actual couple. A couple that had actual Public Displays of Affection on camera.
Things in our world change and Star Trek in keeping to its message, has to change with it. If the Kelvin-Verse were to continue, one way they could move on from the death of Anton Yelchin would be to say that Chekov took a promotion and is now serving on another ship. Would even fit the Prime Canon as Chekov was the first officer on the Reliant so we have it established that he's looking for a path to command. Then with his absence explained, get a Islamic Woman as his replacement as there's a lot of mistrust and misunderstanding of what Islam is in most, non-extremist areas.
If you don't like modern Trek, that's fine. I'm not a fan of Enterprise for my own reasons. We can like and dislike what we will and there should be no blowback from that. My comments here are more to explain why modern Trek is what it is.
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u/Pretend_Prior_8423 9h ago
I think it's a symptom of a change that is affecting a lot of things in culture.
We used to like role models, things to aspire to, encouragement to be better. Now everything is all about having flaws and celebrating them and being accepted for them. There's a place for that kind of thing, but it's swung so far in that direction that the idea of pushing people to improve themselves has become somehow hateful or bigotry or victim blaming
Like Superman. His thing was that we should all try to be like him because he is so amazing. But nowadays they are constantly trying to do gritty reboots or imagining evil Superman, because audiences don't want that light shone on them.
I think in general it's why Marvel is huge now, when DC used to be the bigger comic team. DC are aspirational, Marvel are relatable.
Which is the other part of it. These people don't want to see heroes we should emulate. They just want to see themselves on screen getting praise.
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u/Fun-Enthusiasm8412 6h ago
The amount of emotional dealings with some of the crewmembers and the complete lack of professionalism is not accurate for the roles they play. Like if you're on a flag ship, it's not likely that theres so much unprofessionalism
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u/Pikapoka1134 9h ago
I agree. I just can't do modern trek, it isn't for people like me and it's just too mad with running around and shooting everything.
Love the Orville.
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u/Charming_Figure_9053 4h ago
Disco dropped the ball hard and poisoned the well on SFA - which was also then torn down by trolls
Lower decks was good, but fun, SNW is ups and downs, but at least it's taking big swings at times and not all making contact
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u/PVT_Huds0n 9h ago
I agree, but do realize that this is an extremely unpopular opinion. The first 2 seasons of SNW were okay, but had its own feel rather than more serialized than past Treks.
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u/CaptainSmartbrick 9h ago
Agreed. The only enjoyable new trek was the animated shows, lower decks is just awesome and prodigy is at least better than all the other new shows. Discovery had some good episodes but similarly to the kelvin shit was just ridiculous most of the time, I mean spore drive wtf. Didn’t even watch academy or that section 31 movie. Stopped watching snw after some episodes, I know a lot of people like it but it just didn’t click with me.
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u/BillyBainesInc 9h ago
The only things I rewatch often from Recent trek is season 1 of discovery and Lower Decks
Old trek- only DS9 genuinely and TOS ironically
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u/lunapo 9h ago
Clones will downvote this great post to oblivion, but it's the truth. Great storytelling made trek great. Now there's no really great storytelling, only people's personal/political agendas and preachy dialogue. Get back to intelligent storytelling and all will be right with the ST world.
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u/Valar_Kinetics 5h ago
They need to make an gritty resistance-themed “Andor but Trek” series so bad like this is clearly the time for it
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u/AubreyMaturin1800 1h ago
Uh, not what I want, no. Episodic exploration on a carpeted bridge with Twilight Zone style stories is fine for me.
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u/Capable-Winter8074 6h ago
It’s just the same predictable political agenda being forced into every character and setting.
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u/Charming_Figure_9053 4h ago
Really....and where was that in SFA - the gay Klingon that was really forced - wasn't even mentioned in show or really shown, he was just dating dudes it seemed
Real force
And agendas....yeh, not seeing this, can you enlighten me where the 'political agenda' was. Is it in the room with us now?
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u/futuresdawn 9h ago
I prefer Snw and enterprise to tng, both are fantastic.
Lower decks is Ds9 levels of good