Thursday, May 26, 2005
Star Wars vs Star Trek
First off for those of you who remember seeing Star Wars in the theatre let me remind you of something. You're old. :) For those who remember watching the original Star Trek series, you should probably start taking a calcium suppliment if you haven't already.
The original Star Wars just didn't make a huge impression on me. I do remember even then though the beginning of the which one is better hype. There really is no comparison. One is just a series of entertaining movies with a few books added in. The other is already a part of our history with the win in the push to change the name of our first space shuttle from Constitution to Enterprise. There is no doubt that if we make it that far, our first starship will be named Enterprise. The totality of Star Trek dwarfs Star Wars. The vast amount of historical and technical detail about every aspect of Star Trek is astounding.
Of course there is the which is the best series debate about all of the Star Trek series we've had. My vote would have to go with The Next Generation. It has really stood up to the test of time. Consider this - the difference in time between the original series and The Next Generation is equivalent to the difference in time between The Next Generation and now. Roughly 19 years between each. In 1986 the original series really really looked dated. Yet today, The Next Generation still does not look dated. That's a noteworthy accomplishment.
I know part of the problem with the original series was the very tight budget for what they were trying to do, but a lot of it is also the storylines and actors. I'm sorry, Kirk sucked as an actor, and is nothing compared to Picard. And for the most part, even if a storyline was good, the dialogue sucked because you can tell it's acting when they perform it. They also just weren't consistent in the original series. I think everyone knows about Spock's seven year mating cycle. He was too ashamed to admit what it was to the captain and doctor. T'pau is making threats to the pale skins before they leave Vulcan about speaking of what they saw to any other outsiders. Yet a season later Spock is blabbering on about it to some blonde in a floating cloud city he met 5 minutes ago. Oh, and that dialogue....
Blonde: Oooo, what sexy pointed ears you have Spock!
Spock: And what extreme beauty you have Blondie.
Blonde: Want to have a quick roll in the clouds?
Spock: My mating cycle is only once every 7 years.
Blonde: And is there nothing that can disturb that cycle?
Spock: Extreme beauty is always disturbing.
That's just so sad.
The original Star Wars just didn't make a huge impression on me. I do remember even then though the beginning of the which one is better hype. There really is no comparison. One is just a series of entertaining movies with a few books added in. The other is already a part of our history with the win in the push to change the name of our first space shuttle from Constitution to Enterprise. There is no doubt that if we make it that far, our first starship will be named Enterprise. The totality of Star Trek dwarfs Star Wars. The vast amount of historical and technical detail about every aspect of Star Trek is astounding.
Of course there is the which is the best series debate about all of the Star Trek series we've had. My vote would have to go with The Next Generation. It has really stood up to the test of time. Consider this - the difference in time between the original series and The Next Generation is equivalent to the difference in time between The Next Generation and now. Roughly 19 years between each. In 1986 the original series really really looked dated. Yet today, The Next Generation still does not look dated. That's a noteworthy accomplishment.
I know part of the problem with the original series was the very tight budget for what they were trying to do, but a lot of it is also the storylines and actors. I'm sorry, Kirk sucked as an actor, and is nothing compared to Picard. And for the most part, even if a storyline was good, the dialogue sucked because you can tell it's acting when they perform it. They also just weren't consistent in the original series. I think everyone knows about Spock's seven year mating cycle. He was too ashamed to admit what it was to the captain and doctor. T'pau is making threats to the pale skins before they leave Vulcan about speaking of what they saw to any other outsiders. Yet a season later Spock is blabbering on about it to some blonde in a floating cloud city he met 5 minutes ago. Oh, and that dialogue....
Blonde: Oooo, what sexy pointed ears you have Spock!
Spock: And what extreme beauty you have Blondie.
Blonde: Want to have a quick roll in the clouds?
Spock: My mating cycle is only once every 7 years.
Blonde: And is there nothing that can disturb that cycle?
Spock: Extreme beauty is always disturbing.
That's just so sad.
