Star Trekkin', Across the Universe

[the_gneech]

If you have not seen today's Google Doodle, check it out immediately. Click on everything you can find to click on. Make sure you find the tribbles.

(Also, if you're looking at this post in the future, try here.)

46th Anniversary of Star Trek. Whoa.

As many of you know, I have a deep and abiding love for the original series (and the spinoff animated series). Later incarnations had their moments too, but starting with Star Trek III, the whole franchise just sorta fell into decline, until it reached its lowest point with that awful, awful, not-at-all-good Abrams film.

In honor of my beloved show's anniversary, please enjoy some clips of the remastered FX release. Back in the '70s, this is what Star Trek looked like in my head, even if that's not quite what it looked like on the screen. ;)

-The Gneech

PS: Did I mention the Abrams one was no good?

Comments

[melchar.livejournal.com]

The 'clickies' were great! And that was a pile of tribbles, all right. It was amusing that the redshirt survived tho.

[pengolodh-sc.livejournal.com]

One supposes even redshirts are covered by Google's "Don't be evil" policy?

[bookofj.livejournal.com]

I think the things that made Original Trek so good were to some degree rooted in the era that created it. Roddenberry was making a very deliberately optimistic, simple statement with the future he created, a statement that I think was in some ways about the present he saw around him (e.g. the Red Scare, the civil rights movement, the Space Race, etc). Trek's longevity may be working against it -- the world's changed, which itself wouldn't necessarily be a problem, but not all the folks to whom the reins have been passed know how to steer that beast. Anyway, that's my two cents.

Me, I'm just sticking to Doctor Who these days. X)

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Certainly, there's be no Trek w/out the '60s and all the changes going on. But the original Trek was also rooted in the reality of naval procedure and technology of the time, something which it lost more and more as time went on. But it was those procedures and technology turned to idealistic ends. The last really good Star Trek movie, IMO, was The Hunt For Red October.

-The Gneech

[keross.livejournal.com]

ST had one other thing going for it that later incarnations lack in varying degrees: actual science fiction writers. Several of the scripts were written by or based on stories by known sf authors. In my very biased opinion, that helped make the show.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Well, it's weird-- that period was a sort of high mark for intelligence on TV. Twilight Zone, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible et. al were all very, very smart shows by any standard before or since.

-TG

[kelloggs2066.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought of Huht For Red October as Star Trek, but it makes sense!

[wbwolf.livejournal.com]

What are your feelings about Star Trek Continues (http://www.startrekcontinues.com/wordpress/), which finishes the original 5 year mission (starring Vic Mignogna and Grant Imahara)?

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

I haven't watched it, but I'm positively predisposed towards it. :)

-TG

[c-eagle.livejournal.com]

hyahahah! That was hilarious!

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

It was pretty dang awesome. ;)

-TG

[kamau-d-lyon.livejournal.com]

Both of those were enjoyable to see and recall the effects that were used in the original. In one of your comments you mention "Trek was also rooted in the reality of naval procedure and technology of the time" I would have to say it was loosely rooted in the procedure aspect but was really, and this was something Roddenberry himself said, more rooted in the 18th century navy where ship commanders had far more leeway to make decisions due to lack of timely communications. No matter for it was the beginning of a great series of shows and movies or at least until the last few that seem to have lost contact with its roots.

BTW there's been something bothering me about your ST icon for some time and I finally figured out what it is. You're missing a key character in it. Where is Bones? The good doctor should have a showing in there someplace.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

The icon originally had Bones plus some shots from the animated series as well, but I couldn't get it all to fit in the 40k limit so some frames ended up edited out. Alas, Bones was among them.

Anyway, yes, you have a point about procedure, but technology-wise, my point is still true, thanks to Matt Jeffries.

-TG

[kamau-d-lyon.livejournal.com]

You'd think in this day and age of drives measured in TB they could up the size of icon files. I fully agree that Jeffries was a key factor in projecting the tech available to them.