In an Op-Ed piece in the LA Times, Orson Scott Card rips a new a-hole for Star Trek and gloats over the demise of the franchise. Basically he characterizes the series, including the sequels and prequels, as being poorly acted science fiction devoid of any deep thought or emotion. I couldnt disagree more.
Card is correct in some of his criticisms of the first series, its episodic nature and limited growth in the characters. The lack of a major thread throughout the show was always a weak point. It wasnt until the third season of The Next Generation that the franchise really overcame this. The same could be said for most television, though, from the 1950s up through at least the late 1970s. In the days before VCRs and any ability to time shift writers could not necessarily assume a great degree of familiarity on the part of the viewer to follow a story arch. So, lets not blame Star Trek for that, shall we?
Granted nothing Trek is near the top of what the science fiction genre is able to do. I wouldnt compare most of the material to that of Dick, Asimov or Bradbury. Asking Trek to achieve that level of greatness is asking a lot of it, though. Does anything on television really match the literary heights of its genre on a consistent basis? I dont think so.
A few months back I Tivoed episodes of the old Battlestar Gallactica and Buck Rogers. I remember loving those shows as a real little kid. Looking back, I guess I was impressed by all the space ships, explosions and Cylons, because these shows really dont have a whole lot to redeem themselves in terms of science fiction. After watching a few episodes of each I actually came to be impressed with Rodenberrys ability to present some limited back story in the original Star Trek. The acting on Star Trek was actually much better, too.
The franchise itself had its ups and downs, but overall had some really great material. Lets face it, when TNG was good, it was really flipping good. Think of episodes like Inner Light or The Chase. For my own part Deep Space Nine was actually my favorite series because of the Dominion story arch and all of the elements that story brought into play. Overall I think Cards criticisms are misplaced, though they do reflect some of the lowest of the low points in the franchises long history.
It will be a shame when Enterprise goes off the air later this month. I hope that after a (much needed) hiatus that the Star Trek franchise will come back either in the theaters or on TV. Until then I will have to console myself with doses of the new Battlestar Gallactica which kicks some serious, serious ass.
Mmm, Babylon 5.