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Elf's Random Musings

I Have a Bad Feeling About This . . .

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Elf
, January 27th, 2013 at 03:06 PM (5445 Views)
For all of you who aren't giant nerds of Western stuff, J.J. Abrams has been officially named the director of the new Star Wars movies. He's also the guy who (mostly) successfully rebooted the Star Trek franchise and brought us Lost, Alias, and Cloverfield. And I don't know how I feel about this, or rather I'm doubtful about this.

I have come to terms, due to his deal with Disney/Marvel, that Joss Whedon cannot write and direct the new Star Wars movie. I have grudgingly come to accept this. It makes me a little sad, considering that Serenity and Firefly are leaps and bounds better than the Star Wars prequels, but I can console myself with Avengers 2 and him dabbling with the rest of the Marvel Movie verse that isn't in control of 21st Century Fox or Sony. (And I found out that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver can be part of an Avengers movie as long as they're not called "mutants", which also makes me happy because I love me some Scarlet Witch as an Avenger.) Not to mention there's the S.H.E.I.L.D TV show in the works too, which could be really cool (bonus points if Dum Dum Doogan makes regular appearances).

Anyway, enough fanwanking of Joss Whedon, because I could do that for hours on end.

Let's get back to J.J. Abrams, Star Trek, and Star Wars.

Back in the day, and still somewhat, "Trekkies" and Star Wars fans were at odds about who's beloved franchise is better. The rivalry is epic in the nerd community, and while its calming down, it's still pretty heavy. I like both franchises, I grew up with both of them. My parents met because of Star Wars and I grew up watching "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and nursed a huge crush on Riker (and him voicing Xanatos on Gargoyles really didn't help that either because mrrow). And comparing Star Trek and Star Wars is like comparing apples and oranges. Sure they both take place in space, but that's sort of where the similarities end.

Star Trek is more grounded in reality. It's more cerebral. There's real science behind how things work. Plus the common theme of Star Trek is Exploring Strange New Worlds Without Fucking With Them aka The Prime Directive. Star Trek is all about discovery, exploration, and science. There's no magical forces out there; anything that could be considered "supernatural" like Odo the Shape Shifter, Kingon Strength and the Betazeds' mental abilities can be rationally explained.

Star Wars on the other hand is more epic fantasy. There's a magic like entity out there called the Force that gives people amazing powers. There are Jedi Knights that use light sabers to protect the innocent. There's a giant evil in the Empire and the Emperor that needs to be defeated and by damn it we're redeeming Darth Vader as well. Star Wars is all about Good Vs Evil and the Journey of the Hero be it Luke or Anakin, even though I don't consider the prequels canon, but that's not the point right now.

J.J. Abrams is good at "cerebral". Look at the first few seasons of Lost and the new Star Trek with its time travel and the like. He can handle that very well. However Star Wars is something else all together. Star Wars is an adventure. It's about heroes and heart while Star Trek is about the mind. Abrams proves he has the mind, but does he have heart?

Not to mention the hard core nerd in me thinks that directing both Star Trek and Star Wars is blaspheme. It's okay to be a fan of both, I am. However one should only be allowed to work in one universe and not both.

Now he could prove me wrong and blow us out of the water, but right now I'm skeptical and hope that Abrams follows Whedon's advice about "Han-ing" up the new movies. Because every good hero needs a rogue to balance him/her out and keep him/her on the straight and narrow.
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  1. I3uster's Avatar
    Betazeds' mental abilities can be rationally explained.
    IT'S BETAZOID, YOU'RE NOT A TRUE FAN RARGHHH

    ...enough with the silliness. Honestly, I think JJ can't even pull off "cerebral". Lost left tons of mysteries unanswered because the writers (not necessarily him though) wrote themselves in so many corners that they were looking at a perfect decahedron in the end. The Star Trek remake movie steered away from the more or less intellectual course the series' (even ENT, which I liked, fuq da polis) for EXPLOSIONS AND LENS FLARE.

    So I hope I will be proven wrong with the new Star Trek and Star Wars movies and see him tapping into some previously hidden potential.
  2. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by I3uster
    IT'S BETAZOID, YOU'RE NOT A TRUE FAN RARGHHH
    I can't spell!

    Also, I will admit I'm more partial to Star Wars in some aspects.

    Quote Originally Posted by I3uster
    ...enough with the silliness. Honestly, I think JJ can't even pull off "cerebral". Lost left tons of mysteries unanswered because the writers (not necessarily him though) wrote themselves in so many corners that they were looking at a perfect decahedron in the end. The Star Trek remake movie steered away from the more or less intellectual course the series' (even ENT, which I liked, fuq da polis) for EXPLOSIONS AND LENS FLARE.
    What worked best about the reboot was Karl Urban's Bones. He was absolutely perfect. Rest of the cast was good too, except I'm not fond of the guy playing Scotty (don't get me wrong, I loved "Shawn of the Dead" but Scotty is suppose to be a Scottish Drunken Scientist Badass who promotes barfights with Klingons and wins) and Sulu is suppose to be JAPANESE and not Harold and Korean!

    Quote Originally Posted by I3uster
    ISo I hope I will be proven wrong with the new Star Trek and Star Wars movies and see him tapping into some previously hidden potential.
    I hope so, but at least if I know if it was Whedon doing it, I have at least Serenity and Firefly as proof showing he can do a good Star Wars movie.
  3. ZidanReign's Avatar
    What's next, rebooting the Terminator and Evil Dead franchises...

    OH WAIT.

  4. Elf's Avatar
    Hey, at least the Evil Dead one has promise and both Sam Rami and Bruce Campbell are on board as well. (Jesus, that RE trailer is promising.)
  5. Arashi_Leonhart's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Elf
    Sulu is suppose to be JAPANESE and not Harold and Korean!
    George Takei recalled Gene Roddenberry wanted the character to represent all of Asia, which symbolized the peace of the Trek universe in spite of the numerous wars in the continent. Roddenberry did not want a nationally specific surname, so he looked at a map and saw the Sulu Sea. "He thought, 'Ah, the waters of that sea touch all shores'," the actor recalled, "and that's how my character came to have the name Sulu."
    They got the go-ahead from Takei in that, though, as Takei pointed out that Sulu was meant to represent East Asia in general, not any one specific nationality. If you're going to really get critical, Sulu ought to be part Filipino with a name like that. Other races are kinda generalized too, like how Russians don't actually speak English like they're kicking v's with w's.

    I'm okay with Abrams doing Star Wars. If you watch the extras and commentary from the Star Trek movie, they point out that they actually structured it more like a Star Wars film anyway, down to Kirk looking at the Enterprise being constructed as the Luke staring at the twin suns moment. If he feels that's an important part to a fantastical journey film, then I'm cool.
  6. ZidanReign's Avatar
    Took the words straight out of my mouth with an added extra helping of bullshit, Arashi.
  7. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Arashi_Leonhart
    They got the go-ahead from Takei in that, though, as Takei pointed out that Sulu was meant to represent East Asia in general, not any one specific nationality. If you're going to really get critical, Sulu ought to be part Filipino with a name like that. Other races are kinda generalized too, like how Russians don't actually speak English like they're kicking v's with w's.
    I can see that, but Harold was not a good choice for Sulu though. I mean, I don't look at him and see fencing bad ass. I see the stoner from "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castles". However he's become the go to guy for a tolken Asian in Hollywood.

    Eh, I got my perfect Bones and a really good Spock, I should be happy with that.

    Quote Originally Posted by Arashi_Leonhart
    I'm okay with Abrams doing Star Wars. If you watch the extras and commentary from the Star Trek movie, they point out that they actually structured it more like a Star Wars film anyway, down to Kirk looking at the Enterprise being constructed as the Luke staring at the twin suns moment. If he feels that's an important part to a fantastical journey film, then I'm cool.
    That makes me feel a little bit better, but he's got a lot of work to prove himself for Star Wars.
  8. Kieran's Avatar
    I've been surprised (both ways) by any number of people in film, over the last couple of years - so I'll give him his shot before I pass judgment.
  9. Seika's Avatar
    There's real science behind how things work.
    Once in every thousand or so tries, perhaps.
  10. I3uster's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Seika
    Once in every thousand or so tries, perhaps.


    Your limited perception just holds you back.
  11. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Seika
    Once in every thousand or so tries, perhaps.
    But more so than Star Wars. Plus Star Trek is more philosophical; Star Wars is about the story and journey.
  12. Raven2785's Avatar
    I am honestly looking forward to see what's done with the franchise, I think whatever Abrams can come up with will be ok simply due to the prequels being the pinnacle of shit, he literally cannot do worse.

    The only thing that worries me is that they're gonna try and copy/paste the "journey of the hero" simply because Lucas relied on The Hero Of A Thousand Faces to create the original trilogy, so many movies, books and games of today try to use that theory to craft their stories and fail because they just use that concept as a formula instead of what it truly is, a lens.
  13. SeiKeo's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Raven2785
    I am honestly looking forward to see what's done with the franchise, I think whatever Abrams can come up with will be ok simply due to the prequels being the pinnacle of shit, he literally cannot do worse.
    Yes he can.
  14. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by LeopardBear
    Yes he can.
    It can always be worse. Then again at least its not Micheal Bay or Paul W. Anderson directing it. Or even worse: Uwe Boll.
  15. Mcjon01's Avatar
    I thought Star Wars was about senatorial politics and using racist caricatures as aliens.
    And J.J. Abrams was really only involved in creating the pilot of Lost (and also the season 3 premiere). He was busy with other projects for most of the show's run. Didn't even know what direction they were taking it in, it was pretty much Lindelof's baby not his.
  16. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Mcjon01
    I thought Star Wars was about senatorial politics and using racist caricatures as aliens.
    Prequels are not canon, damn it! (Well they are, but they make me so angry I just consider the original three canon.)
  17. Kieran's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Elf
    Prequels are not canon, damn it! (Well they are,
    Not when they directly contradict the original three, they're not. *grumbles* Dying of a broken heart, my ass . . .
  18. Seika's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Elf
    Prequels are not canon, damn it! (Well they are, but they make me so angry I just consider the original three canon.)
    Quote Originally Posted by Kieran
    Not when they directly contradict the original three, they're not. *grumbles* Dying of a broken heart, my ass ...
    Heheheh. (I really take unwarranted pleasure in Star Wars fans grumbling about this - or any other - topic, and I'm not sure why. But I do. Cry for me, cry more!)
  19. Arashi_Leonhart's Avatar
    Not crying, dunno why that's a direct contradiction (Also she died of strangulation, Polis Massa droids had no experience with human physiology).
  20. Elf's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Seika
    Heheheh. (I really take unwarranted pleasure in Star Wars fans grumbling about this - or any other - topic, and I'm not sure why. But I do. Cry for me, cry more!)
    It's not crying, just sheer Nerd Rage.

    Like Kirean said, the stuff in the prequels contradicts the stuff from the original Trilogy.

    In the Original Trilogy, it is said that Darth Vader single handedly went out and hunted down and killed all the Jedi. As in he hunted down Jedi and bested them in One on One combat. In the prequels he kills a room full of fucking toddlers. No bad ass duels or anything, just mother fucking baby killer.

    In the Original Trilogy Leia tells Luke she remembers her mother and that she was very sad and beautiful. If Pademe died right after giving birth, how the fuck would Leia remember her?

    And the list goes on and on.

    Fuck you Lucas.
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