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Worf to Deep Space Nine? Sometimes fans really DO know best.
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00:00We're living in a beautiful age where we're kind of spoiled for choice really when it comes to Star
00:04Trek. Fan outcry basically convinced CBS to give Star Trek Strange New Worlds the green light.
00:10So what are other times when this happened? I'm Sean Ferrick for Trek Culture and here are 10
00:16times Star Trek gave fans exactly what they wanted. Number 10. Spock in the Kelvin universe twice.
00:23When news broke that Star Trek was finally coming back to theaters in 2009 fans rejoiced. Star Trek
00:28Nemesis had left a somewhat sour taste in the mouths of fandom and Enterprise had failed to win
00:32over the audiences to keep it from cancellation. However there was a sexy new vision of Roddenberry's
00:37future. First of all how does it tie in with the old one? So when Leonard Nimoy was confirmed to be
00:41appearing in the film the collective fan base was delighted. There is something in the gravitas
00:45that Nimoy delivered every one of his lines with that lent legitimacy to the film. Added to that
00:50the film was a success. JJ Abrams, while certainly bringing his own vision of the future to bear,
00:54managed to do so in a way that was both respectful and inclusive of the past.
00:58And then Into Darkness came along. While it's not a bad film, there are many fine examples of acting
01:03all around, much like the very ham-fisted Nimoy cameo. It just felt unnecessary. Rather than driving
01:10the franchise off into new directions it fell back and became a soft remake of The Wrath of Khan.
01:14While Benedict Cumberbatch chews all of the scenery that isn't nailed down, he has a far cry from
01:19Ricardo Montalban's definitive Superman. The fans may have asked for Khan and they may have asked
01:24for more from the past to be brought back but Into Darkness serves as a cautionary tale of be careful
01:29what you wish for. Number 9, Discovery jets into the future. Starter Discovery was beset with issues
01:34from the beginning. The purpose behind the show was to breathe new life into the franchise, capitalising
01:38on the highly popular Kelvin Universe films while still existing within the Prime Universe. The first
01:43season, while getting a bit of a reappraisal, solid fine. Fans started to complain before it even hit the
01:49air. First there was the aesthetic. This was a show that was set 10 years before Kirk takes command
01:54of the Enterprise and while it would be foolish to attempt to style the sets in pre-60s state,
01:59fans of Canon cried foul. Added to that the interesting redesign of the Klingons and the
02:03continued infighting among the crews. This was not your pair in Star Trek. However many of these concerns
02:09were heard. The show's second season was a far superior effort from all concerned. The introduction
02:14of Captain Pike brought a sense of exploration back to the show that the franchise had been missing.
02:18There was a positivity in the air again, done without sacrificing the breakneck pace that
02:22Discovery enjoyed. The final and largest concern was the show's supposed flouting of established
02:27canon. So, wiping the slate clean altogether, the show's second season finishes with the ship and crew
02:32being sent 930 years into the future, placing it far beyond anything seen before, farther even than
02:38Captain Braxton and the mobile emitter. Number 8, 7 of 9, Picard. Jerry Ryan was and remains one of the best
02:45additions to Star Trek Voyager as she brings a wonderful sense of humanity to Seven's journey.
02:49Though given a huge presence in the promotional material, it was initially unclear just how large
02:53of a role she would play. Her first appearance at the end of the fourth season was a great cliffhanger
02:57and her subsequent revelations in Stardust City Rag were polarizing. Much like Picard himself,
03:02this may have been Seven of 9, but she was no longer the Borg that fans remembered. The fans needed more.
03:07The first season's conclusion sees her murder the woman who took her child from her before blasting her way out of a
03:12sticky situation, sees her join the crew of La Sirena and sees her at least tease the relationship with
03:19Raffi. The second season however shows Seven in a much larger capacity. When the crew travels back in
03:25time to the 21st century she and Raffi become something of a double act. Now while some of the
03:31screen time has been a little bit squandered it is very fair to say that Jerry Ryan has been having a
03:38ball on screen and fans are absolutely living for it. Number seven, sweet sweet merchandise. As early
03:45as 1967 fans wanted to hold the Enterprise in their own hands. There were already some items of
03:49merchandising available such as comic books and a board game but up until then the idea that fans
03:54would want to pay more was ludicrous. The Trimbles soon helped to change this. Together with Roddenberry,
03:59Bjo and John Trimble helped in the creation of a mail order company called Lincoln Enterprises.
04:04Paramount Studios hadn't shown much interest in sending any Trek merchandise out into the world
04:08to the point where they created items that were simply other toys with Star Trek slapped on the
04:12box and Lincoln took over. Lincoln offered fans the chance to own shirt insignia, scripts and bits
04:17of discarded film from the show. Roddenberry had the sense once he saw fan demand was high for this sort
04:22of thing to write teasers into scripts for items to later be turned into collectibles. This cycle of
04:26interaction with the fans helped to keep the show alive as time went on. While the Trimbles were also
04:31responsible for the letter writing campaign to save Trek, more on that later, they along with Roddenberry
04:36kept the merchandising so prevalent that the show enjoyed an unprecedented second life in reruns.
04:41Urban legend says that the show has never stopped airing from one station to another since the initial
04:45run and be that truth or fiction it is clear that fan interaction with the filmmakers and merchandisers have
04:51kept interest alive for over half a century. Number six, Riker and Troy in Picard. The moment that Star
04:57Picard was announced the question of whether or not the original cast would feature was raised. While
05:01everyone wanted to see Jean-Luc again they also badly wanted a sequel to the next generation. For
05:06most of the season they were left wanting and then along came Nepenthe. The seventh episode of Picard's
05:11first season sees the captain find his way back to the people who were with him throughout his time on
05:15the Enterprise. This is exactly what fans have been clamouring for since the pilot episode teased along
05:20the way by name dropping and suggestions. In what is potentially the strongest episode of the season the action
05:24slows to a halt and we get to spend time watching these old friends reunite. A valid criticism of
05:29this episode would be the placement within the season as it comes on the heel of a daring escape
05:33from the Borg artifact but that is a small price to pay to watch Picard, Riker and Troy get back
05:39together again. There are moments of sheer beauty, Troy's dressing down of our old captain, Riker sparring
05:43with Jean-Luc over a glass of wine and their conversation on the jetty by the lake. The episode was
05:47the closest in tone to the next generation that Picard's season one offered. Now with the announcement of the
05:52return of the entire main cast of the next generation for the show's third season we're all a little bit
05:57excited now. Number five, Riker to the rescue. An entry that deserves its own spot as this was something
06:02that the fans had badly wanted to see. Starfleet ships, the old crew back and the Federation doing
06:07what it was supposed to do. What could go wrong then? The first season's final episode was a mixed affair.
06:11A massive positive to the episode is the handling of Data's fate. This aspect of the story was handled
06:16with grace and care. The lush tones of Issa Brianna's singing of blue skies as Data fades away while
06:21holding Picard's hand have to stand up with some of the most affecting scenes that the characters have
06:25ever been involved in. The same cannot be said for the second return of Riker. Picard flies up to face
06:32off against a fleet of Romulan warbirds and there is a moment of sacrifice about the entire scene.
06:36Then out of nowhere a newly designed Federation ship warps into view and then again, and the same ship,
06:41again. After copying and pasting 200 times or so, yes I know there's some variations, Riker comes on the screen
06:48spouting some of the most poorly written dialogue that has ever come out of his mouth. The scene
06:53seems like it was made for people to punch the air and go, COOL! However, due not just to the bland
06:58Federation fleet and some bad writing, the scene ends in about a minute. The Romulans are sent packing
07:03and Riker leaves. Hardly inspiring. Now, season two of Picard opened with a much stronger depiction
07:09of Starfleet and, now while it was Rios as captain in this case, a better use of the Starfleet officers
07:16on screen. So that is in fairness a good example of Star Trek learning from some of its past mistakes.
07:24Number four, Worf on Deep Space Nine. Bringing Michael Dorn over to Deep Space Nine marked the
07:29beginning of that show's best years. The Klingon War, while coming seemingly out of nowhere, ended up
07:33becoming one of the best additions to the series. Thankfully it came at a time when the ratings were
07:38getting lower and lower but also came about after a series of conversations that have been mandated
07:42by the producers. The original plan had been to close the show's third season with the revelation
07:47that the changelings had reached Earth and then to have the opening of season four deal with this.
07:51This was quashed when the producers demanded there be no cliffhanger ending to the third season.
07:55Faced with this the writers pitched the idea to have the Klingons break off diplomatic relations
07:59with the Federation. Added to that they could bring Worf over to help Sisko deal with this change.
08:03Rick Berman loved the idea, not least because he felt that this would bring over a wave of fans
08:07from the next generation who had always loved Worf and the Klingons in particular. It was a gamble
08:12that worked. With his sternness shaking up the crew Worf's arrival spelled a new era of success for Deep
08:17Space Nine. From the fourth season on it rocketed towards triumphant finale bringing in plot threads
08:22from the next generation along the way. Kern and Alexander both returned giving the fans a sense of
08:26closure and adding greater depth to Worf's story. Number three, Kirk meets Picard. Since the very first days of
08:32the next generation the question was posed. Who is the better captain? Kirk or Picard? Star Trek
08:37Generations finally brought these two icons together after seven years of this question up in the air.
08:42The results are quite mixed and there is still no definitive answer. While Picard is the one to
08:46survive the film it is Kirk who saves the day by grabbing the control panel. It's up to the fans still.
08:50The film does feature an excellent scene between the two men highlighting the differences on show.
08:55Their meeting in the Nexus exploring Kirk's cabin and finishing the breakfast for Antonia is pure fan
09:00indulgence and it's brilliant. Picard who has traveled through time and space to meet this man is left
09:05holding a scorching frying pan while Kirk looks for eggs as you do. William Shatner has been candid
09:09about his reasons for appearing in Generations. The original series star's arc was effectively
09:13finished and there was never going to be a large role on offer. Leonard Nimoy turned down an appearance
09:17in the film for that very same reason but the salary on offer was decent so Shatner said yes knowing
09:22that he was signing Kirk's death certificate as he was signing the contract. It's very unlikely that we can
09:26hope for a Nimoy-esque cameo in future series as Shatner has categorically denied his wish to do any.
09:32Well the fans got their two captains together it just cost one of them his life. Number two the
09:36original series season three. After the cancellation of the original series at the end of its second
09:41season the future of Star Trek looked dire. This was a time when there was no movies to fall back on
09:46nor the internet forums to gather the fans together. Betty Joanne Trimble who would come to be known
09:51universally as Bee Jo Trimble together with her husband came up with an idea. They were instrumental in saving
09:56a letter writing campaign that inspired NBC to save Star Trek and thanks for this Bee Jo, John Trimble
10:02and many other fans were featured in the rec room scene in the motion picture cementing their
10:06contribution both on and off the screen. However the saving of Star Trek came at a drastic price.
10:12The budget for each episode was slashed though the star's salaries increased. Time slots became an
10:17issue and Star Trek was given the death slot Fridays at 10 pm. Gene Roddenberry threatened to resign over
10:22this but his threats were ignored and when he followed through and left the studio had to scramble to hire
10:26replacement teams. One script consultant was even quoted as asking what does this transporter thing
10:30do again? While Star Trek may technically have been saved by the network it really was just a drawn
10:35out funeral. The franchise wouldn't truly be safe until the release of The Wrath of Khan capitalizing
10:39on the enormous box office success of the motion picture which occurred over a decade later.
10:44Number one queer representation from Dax to Culber and Stamets. From the outset of the original series Gene
10:50Roddenberry had used Star Trek to represent marginalized groups in human society on the bridge of the
10:54enterprise all the way back to 1966. A black woman along with a Japanese man held pride of place
11:00followed the next year by a Russian ensign while the cold war was still very much a reality. However
11:05one group were very obviously missing for a very long time in Star Trek continuity. The LGBTQIA plus
11:10representation in Star Trek was poor. The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine both attempted in
11:15their own ways to rectify this. A script entitled Blood and Fire was commissioned for the Next Generation
11:19but then was buried. Deep Space Nine was more successful showing the first same-sex kiss in the
11:24history of the franchise but fans quite deservedly wanted more. Star Trek Beyond showed that the
11:28Kelvin Universe Sulu was in a same-sex relationship although this drew criticism from George Takei who
11:33thought this was simply pandering. Brian Fuller an openly LGBTQIA plus personas in the initial showrunner
11:39of Star Trek Discovery was the key to the creation of Dr. Culber and Lieutenant Stamets the first recurring
11:44gay couple in Star Trek. They are displayed as being a loving couple and that's it. There's no overt
11:47messaging going on rather than the simple message on show. They are in love and they are together.
11:53This simple representation unthinkable for so many years in the franchise's history is shown to be as
11:57normal as any other relationship and finally the fans cries for representations were honoured. Thank you
12:02very much for listening. I hope you enjoyed this video. If you did let us know in the comments below.
12:06If you have any suggestions let us know in the comments below. Don't forget you can get in touch with
12:09us over on Twitter at TrekCulture. You can catch myself on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok where I post daily
12:14Star Trek videos at Sean Ferrick. You look after yourself until I'm talking to you again. Make sure
12:18that you live long and prosper. Look after your nearest and dearest. Take it easy. Make it so. Thanks very much.
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