Who wasn’t intrigued by the legendary debates, pitting diehard Trekkies against steadfast Star Warriors, or even within the Star Trek community itself as they deliberated over the merits of old versus new?
Such intense conversations often revolved around J.J. Abrams, whose 2009 cinematic reboot of Star Trek boldly attempted to bridge the nostalgia of Star Trek: The Original Series with a fresh narrative trajectory. With the finesse of a skilled Starfleet commander, the director, 58, maneuvered the complex universe with a 2009 flick, starring Chris Pine as James T. Kirk.
And yet, the film took an audacious leap, rewriting much of the lore that longtime fans held dear. To hear the director of the Star Trek movie confess that he does not comprehend Star Trek: The Original Series but that the movie still needs to be made is blatant heresy.
Unpacking J.J. Abrams’ Comments on Star Trek: The Original Series
In the world of hardcore Star Trek fans, allegiance to Star Trek: The Original Series is as sacred as a Vulcan oath. So when J. J. Abrams, the man behind the lens of the 2009 Star Trek reboot, made comments dismissing the original show as “silly” and “camp”, he might have declared war on the Klingon Empire. The director shared in a chat with The Guardian:
Star Trek always felt like a silly, campy thing. I remember appreciating it, but feeling like I didn’t get it. I felt it didn’t give me a way in.
For fans who have devoted their lives to the exploration of strange new worlds, seeking out new life and new civilizations, Abrams’ words were a betrayal of epic proportions. It was as if he had beamed up the very essence of what made Star Trek so special and tossed it into a black hole.
The Forever Young director, 58, further added:
There was a captain, there was this first officer, they were talking a lot about adventures and not having them as much as I would’ve liked. Maybe I wasn’t smart enough, maybe I wasn’t old enough. But The Twilight Zone I was obsessed with. Loved it.
Abrams may have brought the Enterprise back to warp speed on the big screen, but for many diehard Trekkies, his reboot was like a redshirt meeting a tragic end on an away mission. The erasure of decades of continuity and history was a slap in the face to those who had spent countless hours analyzing every stardate and studying every Vulcan nerve pinch.
To say that hardcore Star Trek fans will never forgive Abrams for his comments about Star Trek: The Original Series is an understatement. The wounds run deep, and the scars are as visible as a Romulan cloaking device malfunctioning.
J. J. Abrams’ Film Disappointed a Star Trek: The Next Generation Actor
The question of whether the newer branches of the Star Trek franchise can pay respect to the mighty tree from which they descended rages as old as the rivalry between Kirk and Picard. Fans and actors alike have navigated this tug-of-war, with opinions as varied as the stars in the sky.
Yet, amidst the views, one voice resonated with the force of a phaser set to stun: LeVar Burton, our cherished Star Trek: The Next Generation star, has boldly voiced his concerns. He told Toronto Sun:
(Abrams’ Star Trek) was a great movie, and he brought a whole new generation to Trek. But I’m a little disquieted by things I hear coming out of his camp, things like he would like to be remembered as the only Trek—which would discount everything before he got there.
When J. J. Abrams took the helm with Star Wars directorial panache and charted a course for a re-imagined narrative, did we gain a new frontier, or did we leave behind the soul of our beloved series?
Well, as the battle rages on in the final frontier of fandom, we must admit that Abrams may have boldly gone where no director has gone before, but for some fans, he will always be the red giant in a galaxy of stars. And as the Klingons say, revenge is a dish best-served cold. Live long and prosper, but don’t expect forgiveness from the hard-core Trekkies.
Star Trek is available on Paramount+.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire