I've always wondered-why do people love Star Trek so much.  I
enjoy watching the show (all of them, except for the original),
but I've always wondered why it's so popular.

Bryan

28 responses total.

I haven't.  I'm not overjoyed with the show myself, but I'd say the reason the
show's so popular isthat it was the first SF show on television with serious
money sunk into it, plus the fact that it faces issues, ohwever obliquely.

I also think some of the shows showed real thinking problems and had great
special effect...too bad the monsters and kirk had to be so hokey!

I think it's popular because of all the issues in it.They've had epoisodes
dealing with racism,womwens rights,and homosexuality. Also I think people like
the idea of a society like the kind you see in ST

Personally, I don't like Star Trek that much.  I'm as puzzled as you as to why
people like it.  The prime directive crap seems so ...morally confining.  I
like Star Wars much better...I like the idea of and complexity of the force

        A lot of us grew up when the only science fiction available was "Lost
in Space" and monster movies made in Japan.  Star Trek came along, gave us
real stories, with real characters, and plots which, while often
ridiculous or naive about science, were at least *stories*.  Some of them
were very good stories.
        We empathized with Spock, we wished we could be Kirk, we thought we
were Scotty.  And we watched for 20 years; the same 73 shows; because
there was nothing else for us on TV or even at the movies.  Now it's like
a narcotic; we're all hooked, and there are no treatment centers.

The prime directive! ... seek out new worlds and new Civilizations, and 
watch as they die!  yep.  Can't interfere!  

Silly, isn't it.  

Babylon 5 is much better, much more realistic, or at least better at
suspending my disbelief.  

Star trek was good for a begining, and the problem is that so many of the 
executives in the movie business think that ST is the only thing the 
SF public wants or understands.  They also grew up in that era of Star Trek
success.

JMS reported about an example of the limited knowledge of the television
executives when he showed an example of Babylon 5 to a group of executives.
He was watching from behind the projection booth glass, which probably saved
two peoples lives and the show when an executive said, ...this isn't Science
Fiction.  He was asked what he thought was science fiction, to which he
replied,  "Power Rangers."

JMS wanted to go thru the glass partition to get to his throat.

        Star Trek is the only thing the public will understand?  I remember
watching Dune and the Star Wars movies as well, although my first exposure
to SF was Star Trek: the Motion Picture and Batle Star Galactica.
        Star Trek is the melange of our society, it's a drug, but a helpful
        one.

If you want new & unusual SF, check out the following Japanese titlea
<All animated>
Bubblegum Crisis
Bubblegum Crash
Legend of the Galactic Heroes
Outlanders
Sol Bianca
Wings of Omeamisu (If you liked "The Right Stuff")
Macross II
Macross Plus
any Gundam
Venus Wars
Armitage
Detonator Orgunn
And the list goes on....

I have like what i have seen of Japenese animation.
Does anyone remember those attempts at sci-fi series like Man and Machine?
They took the only scifi show that i really liked off the air, 
Alien Nation.

Val!!!!!!!! YOU"RE BACK! <G>
 :) :) :) :) :) 

Yes it seems that i am  :)  <My ego is swelling from this attention>

,

OK, here's a TV guide question:

Is Star Trek, the original show, being broadcast in the Ann Arbor/Detroit
area?  I haven't been able to find it, and some recent Anamaniacs spoof of
it actually has me wanting to watch it again!

I haven't seen it in quite a while, since channel 50 was showing at midnight
a while back.

Well, TNG has been on 50 recently, but I want "He's dead, Jim".

Me too.

         A good "He's Dad JHim" beats a "Make it so" every time.

Well, "He's Dad" would be different, and possibly more disturbing...

        Prblems with the editor... make that "He's Dead Jim."

Sounds like a good name for a rock band.  ;)

(or has that already been done?)

The only Star Trek rock band I know of is T'pau.

        No that where trekkers go to work out:  The He's Dead Gym.
Ideal spokesman for a product not done:  Picard for Singer:
"Make it sew".

        Now my brother-in-law explained why he like watching the 
origianl series.  He like seeing Kirk get the Snot beat out of 
him.  Yeah, we all know Kirk prevailes in the end; but allong the 
way, he gets beaten on by psuedo-gods, Spock, a competetive classmate,
demonic brain scramblers, etc.

        Actually, I wanted to be Spock...for the way he struggled to
control his emotions...the way he turned empathy for a situation 
(or person) into action.  Well for this .cf you pronounce my 
login by it's Vulcan sounding:  T'pryan.

There was only one episode in which Kirk was beaten in a fair fight.
(And he won the fight with his classmate, even though it wasn't fair - the
classmate was actually a simulcrum generated by the planet in "Shore Leave".)

        He got beaten up real bad in round 1 with that classmate.
Spock whalled on him, brought on by Kirk in the "Happy Pollen"
episode.  Kirk got "The Chair" at least twice.  Got dragged
around by aliens that kinda resembled light-bulbs, strung up 
by what's her witch and that warlock; didn't ~Apollo~ throw
some T-bolts his way?

If he's fighting an alien, it's not a fair fight.

Of course it's not a fair fight.  It's TV!  :)

Kirk is the greatest. EOD.

Kirk would have been nothing w/out Spock (worse, dead).

True. But Kirk is greater compared to Picard.

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