Lost oppertunities...

in Star Trek. Stay with me.

Star Trek is awesome. I am a Trekkie though and though and have been as long into my childhood as I can remember. That said, no one can deny there are some shitty shitty episodes out there.

And this brings me to today's topic. I was thinking about all the cool future story lines alluded to in many episodes that were never picked up on. But I though far enough, the shows can't go on forever... but wait! What about all the shit episodes! What if instead of making them, they had picked up on some of their own previous cool ideas! This list/discussion is by no means definitive, but just some of the loose ends/cool opportunities I would love to have seen explored, which will likely never now be, as Star Trek has essentially started again under JJ Abrams (not something I'm against mind).

Star Trek: The Original Series

TOS will largely not feature in this blog, as I really can't think of any great missed story opportunities suggested by other episodes. That's not to say there were not shit episodes, but off the top of my head I can't remember any examples like the ones to follow from other shows.

Star Trek: The Next Generation (and TNG era movies)

TNG did a good job at times with reliving interesting or unresolved ideas, Data's relationships with his brother, father and mother (and B4) were well explored, and generally well written. Even the Crystalline Entity made a repeat occurrence, rapping up it's story.The consequences of events in I, Borg are explored well in what was also the final Lore episode, Descent. The relationship between Troi and Riker, also well explored, and nice and gradually throughout the TV show and the movies, culminating in their marriage.

Some ideas however were never concluded or fully explored. Wesley Crusher for example. Specifically, what happened with him and the Traveler. When Wesley left the show as a regular, I am glad that he occasionally turned up, this made TNG feel much more like real life, and like a real universe, where people part ways, come together again etc. After all, his mother was still on the Enterprise so it only made sense that he would visit. But as for his fate? After the first occurrence of the Traveller we wanted to know when Wesley would start to become whatever it was he was to become, and we did see him begin his journey, in the ironically named "Journey's End." But what next? He pops up in a Star Fleet uniform at Troi and Riker's wedding in Nemesis. Don't get me wrong, great Easter egg to have him in there, but is he back in Star Fleet? (why would someone with his abilities bother) What's going on? Where is the Traveler?

This next one spills over into DS0 too. That is Kahless the (perhaps not so) Unforgettable. So he's a clone. So he's a figurehead emperor. He or at least his name pops up from time to time in DS9, clearly had no real power, but what happened? Did he attempt to rise up and get killed? Did he die of old age a Shadow of what his original was? Did Worf kill him? Cus he killed just about every other important Klingon.

Lets talk Spock. He magnificently poped up in "Unification" working on Romulus to unite the Romulans with with their ancient cousins the Vulcans. What happened next? We ran into the Romulans a fair few times, was Spock in jail? Were the Romulans and the Vulcans talking? Then we get to Nemisis. Something should have been explained here. Spock need not had been in the movie, but some mention of what what happening with the apparently growing reunification movement? Hopefully JJ will throw some light in this. If not, I believe the (arguably first canon) comic - Countdown does. Will purchase it if the movie is any good.

They did come back to Sarek in "Unification" and bring his story to an end, so that was cool. Always good to see Sarek, hopefully Ben Cross will do Mark Lenard justice

Last TNG example, Q! Picard will chart and explore the human mind or whatever he said to him at the end of "All Good Things..."! What happened to Picard in the future! Does he go Sisko style? What happens? Final TNG movie? I doubt it. Straight to DVD? Something!

Star Trek: Deep Space 9

I'm sure there are a great many more examples that this, but it's the one that annoys me the most. Props to DS9 for returning to Tom Riker, one of TNG's loose ends, and also for revisiting the Mirror Universe.

Section 31. Well explored actually, but I would have loved some closure. Possible with the closure of the section. I don't know.

Star Trek: Voyager

I'm sure there are examples, but it just wasn't that great a show. Which is a shame, cus I really like the characters in it. Just the stories were never that great, so there is nothing that really leaving me wishing I know more.

Star Trek: Enterprise

Similar to Voyager really, loved the characters, loved mush of the production design and that it was in wide screen, but not that great stories. Got much better in the fourth season though. Props for revisiting/showing origins of Section 31, and for showing the birth of the Federation in the last 2 parter (and I suppose the shitty shitty final episode - what a crap ending). The biggest loose end with Enterprise is the show itself, what happened to everyone?

Enterprise was just a problem, a prequel where many things just didn't tie in with the other shows, the like Borg episode. Why bother? I mean I can put up with canon violations to a point, the better the story, the larger the violation I can live with, but this episode really wasn't worth it. Also, why call the ship the fucking Enterprise? I mean i kind of get why, but it fucks with every observation room/recreation deck wall display from every other series. Call it something else. Also, they dropped "Star Trek" from the titles for the first couple of seasons to make it "cool," well everyone knows what the Enterprise is just as much! Call the show "Crazy Horse" and no one would have a fucking clue. Also would have been a cool Easter egg for TNGers.

Props though for revisiting the Eugenics wars, and the Klingons without bumpy heads in TOS issue (Worf's "we don't talk about it" explanation in DS9 really didn't cut it). Also props for Data's criminal ancestor, Mirror universe/Tholian Web tie in, and explaining why their Vulcans were so damn grumpy and scheming.

Speaking of Vulcans, why is it that Leonard Nimoy and Mark Lenard are really the only two people who can convincingly play Vulcans? Tim Russ and Ambassador from Enterprise weren't bad.

My 2 cents and most boring Blog yet.