View Full Version : Off Topic--Star Trek Just got the axe
It wasn't the greatest version, but I'm going to miss it. The last episode will be in May.
Snarler
02-03-05, 09:31 AM
This was pretty much expected when the owners lowered the price per episode charge to 100K just to keep it on the air one more season so they would have enough episodes to syndicate. Kinda sad really.
--
Daniel
Darn, the last episode was REALLY GOOD - on par with Star Trek TNG I thought. Figures it would get the axe just when I was really starting to like it.
plyons10
02-03-05, 09:44 AM
I don't think this is news.
My wife told me last week she read about it in an interview with Jolene Blaylock in this month's Playboy. (Seriously... and I've been wondering since then how I could possibly work this into a conversation!).
bcochell
02-03-05, 10:58 AM
Originally posted by plyons10
I don't think this is news.
My wife told me last week she read about it in an interview with Jolene Blaylock in this month's Playboy. (Seriously... and I've been wondering since then how I could possibly work this into a conversation!).
Did she, Jolene, not your wife, pose for Playboy, or was it just an interview?
Just an interview. I'm sure if she posed, there would probably be a fifth season :D
I have to wonder if the show would have done better without the season long Xindi story arc last year.
diverjones
02-03-05, 11:34 AM
Well, I wonder what is in the works for later. I heard it said once many years ago, that Paramount would not let a year go by without a ST series, but honestly, I wonder ....was the series so bad, or has the audience become desensitized to the franchise now? I mean, we went 14 years between the classic Trek until the movies and around 20 years until there was a new TV series. For the last 20 years, we have not gone without a TV series on the air.
I liked Enterprise. Was it the greatest? Probably not, but then again, I watched it (just as any other show). Certainly it was better than ANY reality show on the tube, and well, personally a TV show does NOT HAVE TO RISE TO GREATNESS for me to watch it. It was entertainment, pure and simple, and for me it did what it was designed to do. Heck, I even watch Charmed for the same reason. Would it have killed me to miss an episode of either? No, but both were fun to watch as escapist entertainment.
Dennis
blacknoi
02-03-05, 11:54 AM
Damn it, I was looking forward to seeing how all the new alien species would be first met, as well as when they'd first reach warp 9!!
psblake
02-03-05, 11:59 AM
was showing the meeting of the aliens that occored in the later star treks. They did that a bit but the whole temporal war thing was always messing life up.
Snarler
02-03-05, 12:24 PM
Originally posted by bcochell
Did she, Jolene, not your wife, pose for Playboy, or was it just an interview?
A little less fleshy, but she was in a recent issue of one of those "other" men's magazines like Stuff, FHM, or Maxim...
--
Daniel
Grubgoat
02-03-05, 02:52 PM
I *loved* the idea of that show, but I certainly lost interest quick, once the "9/11" space-time terror theme started a year or so ago. Seemed *really* forced and pandering...
Xindi thing last year sucked the life outta it. A story arc that lasted the whole season? It got way to old way to quickly. And to have such a catastrophic event happen to earth that was NEVER referenced on future star treks?
The whole mutant thing earlier this year (whatever they were called) could have been better if that group had been banished to seti-alpha-seven and one of them named Kahn.
The whole Vulcan thing could have been done better and they could have taken the Romulean thing further and developed a cool twist/plot out of that. All in all, these people have been ACTING like they are in a dying show for way too long.
I've always felt the cast really didn't meld that well. Just OK but never clicked like SNG or Voyager.
Yet, I still watched it.
WannabeSQ
02-03-05, 03:38 PM
I am disappointed, The show is finally starting to take off. I think season 4 for the last few star treks is when everything gets better. It's a shame that this will be the first Trek in a while not to make it to all 7 seasons. Maybe this means that they will push for earlier release of the next Trek movie, hopefully with either Riker commanding the Prometheus, or a DS9 movie, or even a Voyager movie. (I'd also like to see a lot of crossover, like perhaps the Prometheus can have crew from both voyager and DS9) While i'm dreaming, maybe they can find a way for T'Pol to be on the next movie, Vulcans are long lived, maybe in the last episode of ENG she will go back to vulcan for a looooong time. Oh well.
BaysideBas
02-03-05, 03:50 PM
Or she could get the lead in Desperate Vulcan Housewives in Outer Space. Ah well, one can only dream...
Originally posted by l8er
I have to wonder if the show would have done better without the season long Xindi story arc last year.
That whole arc was horribly written, contrived, and stupid.
Where Enterprise went wrong was trying to make cohesive story arcs. The ST:TNG formula of completely self-contained episodes was the way it should have gone.
Sadly, no amount of whoring out T'pol for the guys and Trip for the gals and gays could save that show.
-Allen
egcarter
02-03-05, 05:29 PM
Interesting to note that the final episode airs on Friday, May 13th...
They are still developing that Starfleet Academy scenario at Paramount for a new feature film. They have yet to hire a screenwriter, though.
Eric
sixt7gt350
02-03-05, 06:49 PM
OFF TOPIC?!??!!
We wouldn't even have ReplayTV without Star Trek!!
Now that that's off my chest. 'Tis a shame they blew the opportunity.
Yet another Replay channel bites the dust.
Oh well. I guess I'll just read more books or finally get around to Japanese fluency.
I kinda like the idea of a story arc. Hell, the best sci-fi show out there was one long 5 year arc.
Anyhow, I did think the whole Xindi arc dragged out a little too long. Too little meat for the entire season. However, those mini-arcs (2 or 3 shows) they're doing this season seem to be much better.
Of course, a good story has absolutely nothing to do with whether a show gets the axe or not. Since they aren't winning any awards, the amount of viewers they get each week is horrible and the channel they are on is definitely going for a completely different demographic, the show was bound to fail.
I think one of the biggest mistakes they made was moving it to Friday nights into the same timeslot as Stargate on SciFi. Bad move.
gweempose
02-03-05, 07:26 PM
And yet Andromeda keeps plugging along. :confused:
Seriously, how is Andromeda still on the air while shows such as Farscape, Firefly and Enterprise get the axe?
sixt7gt350
02-03-05, 07:34 PM
Originally posted by gweempose
And yet Andromeda keeps plugging along. :confused:
Seriously, how is Andromeda still on the air while shows such as Farscape, Firefly and Enterprise get the axe?
I have to imagine that they score some beefcake audience with Hercules as the main character. Other than that, I just don't see it.
johnmagee4
02-03-05, 08:31 PM
Story arcs are good. They do make it hard to jump into a show if you havn't been paying attention. In any case, Babylon 5 was my favorite show, and the only show that I own the entire thing on DVD.
I think the timeslot sucks. Thank god I have my ReplayTV because Friday nights are not for sitting around watching tv. This show butts up with the Stargates (and maybe JAG? I don't remember...). At least SciFi reruns the shows the same night. Why the heck would you put one sci-fi show against another. You have a pretty small but possibly loyal and captive audience. I think people would be happier with it on maybe Monday (a pretty weak night except for CSI: Miami).
egcarter
02-03-05, 09:04 PM
Andromeda is a lot cheaper to make than ENTERPRISE.
Eric
Grubgoat
02-04-05, 05:26 AM
And Firefly the Movie will come out in November, and maybe after that it will end up on TV again...
Bigjohns
02-04-05, 07:02 AM
ARRRGH. I too thought that the show was getting it's legs.
Heck, the first 2 seasons of TNG were pretty sucky too...
*sigh*
They should take the Star Trek franchise off of UPN and move it back to syndication. All UPN has ever done is kill good shows before they had a chance to get an audience.
Bigjohns
02-04-05, 09:49 AM
Originally posted by Jamy
They should take the Star Trek franchise off of UPN and move it back to syndication. All UPN has ever done is kill good shows before they had a chance to get an audience.
a good idea, but UPN is paramount's own network!
JenEric
02-04-05, 11:26 AM
Originally posted by nded
I think one of the biggest mistakes they made was moving it to Friday nights into the same timeslot as Stargate on SciFi. Bad move. Isn't it repeated another night of the week in most places? I don't think that's the problem. Seems like I just read in TV Guide that Friday's been though of as the place for Sci-Fi ever since X-Files first took off there.
egcarter
02-04-05, 01:15 PM
Grubgoat,
The film version of FIREFLY is called SERENITY...current release date for the Universal picture is September 30th.
Eric
gweempose
02-04-05, 01:34 PM
Originally posted by Grubgoat
And Firefly the Movie will come out in November, and maybe after that it will end up on TV again... I hate to be a pessimist, particularly when it comes to Firefly which happens to be my favorite TV show of all time, but I don't see how Serenity can possibly make a profit. It's a big budget sci-fi movie with no big stars that's based on a short-lived TV show that nobody saw. This seems like a recipe for disaster to me, but hopefully I'm wrong.
egcarter
02-04-05, 01:40 PM
gweempose,
The power of DVD...
Eric
Grubgoat
02-04-05, 03:41 PM
Originally posted by gweempose
I hate to be a pessimist, particularly when it comes to Firefly which happens to be my favorite TV show of all time, but I don't see how Serenity can possibly make a profit. It's a big budget sci-fi movie with no big stars that's based on a short-lived TV show that nobody saw. This seems like a recipe for disaster to me, but hopefully I'm wrong.
You could be right. But I was thinking that the budget was only like 12 million, and that Universal is so excited over what they've seen so far, that they've almost promised that the other two movies of this contract will get made.
BUT, test screenings have been mixed, so who can say?
Huh? Test screenings are already going for a movie that isn't coming out till November?
sixt7gt350
02-04-05, 06:28 PM
Originally posted by gweempose
I hate to be a pessimist, particularly when it comes to Firefly which happens to be my favorite TV show of all time, but I don't see how Serenity can possibly make a profit. It's a big budget sci-fi movie with no big stars that's based on a short-lived TV show that nobody saw. This seems like a recipe for disaster to me, but hopefully I'm wrong.
Count my 8 bucks in the take.
(oh, and my wife's, too)
I think the perfect ending scene would be Worf getting stabbed in the back with an axe followed by rolling credits.
egcarter
02-04-05, 09:44 PM
icecow,
Wrong show.
Eric
It would have to be Worf's great-great-great-grandfather. :)
gweempose
02-04-05, 11:24 PM
Originally posted by Grubgoat
You could be right. But I was thinking that the budget was only like 12 million, and that Universal is so excited over what they've seen so far, that they've almost promised that the other two movies of this contract will get made.IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/business) has the budget pegged at 40 million.
WannabeSQ
02-05-05, 03:31 AM
What is this, an off topic thread getting off topic with itself? I thought it was an Enterprise thread, not a Firefly thread. It is related tho.
As I grow older, I am realizing that it's not necesarily, good shows that make money, it's shows that have a lot of viewers. And all the executives care about is making money. It's sad, but true. The only thing we can do is buy every piece of merchandise Enterprise has, and maybe they will come back with something, perhaps another feature film, about the dawn of the federation, and ending with a cameo of Kirk.
Grubgoat
02-05-05, 04:42 AM
Originally posted by Ace987
Huh? Test screenings are already going for a movie that isn't coming out till November?
Ha! It was supposed to come out last year, or maybe this summer...? Anyway, aparently the studio wants it to do well, so they moved it to a release slot where it would get more attention, before the big Christmas season, though. They wrapped on it some time ago. But from what I've read, the test screenings haven't got the FX added yet. And some like it, some don't... pretty much like the show itself...
And yeah, sorry about the OT...
lizard_boy
02-05-05, 05:06 AM
Originally posted by Grubgoat
Ha! It was supposed to come out last year, or maybe this summer...? Anyway, aparently the studio wants it to do well, so they moved it to a release slot where it would get more attention, before the big Christmas season, though. They wrapped on it some time ago. But from what I've read, the test screenings haven't got the FX added yet. And some like it, some don't... pretty much like the show itself...
And yeah, sorry about the OT...
Sh**, the 13 episodes of Firefly are better than anything produced by Trek since DS9 went off the air. Here's the word on the delay, straight from Mr. Whedon:
Are you guys starting to hear that fanfare? Those distant drums? Are you slapping on your side-arms, pulling on your long brownish-colored coats and thumbing your crisp new bills in anticipation of the cinematic event of the year? Well, it's official: on April 22nd you, the true the blue the loyal, can step right up with the rest of America and WAIT FIVE MORE MONTHS.
Heh. See, sometimes studios shuffle around release dates...
Okay. Don't panic. right now you're panicking. you're thinking, "how could they do this to me?" But what you SHOULD be thinking is: "How could they do this to JOSS?". Seriously. That pity is mine and I want it back.
So what happened? Well, nothing terribly original. April got crowded with a lot of titles aimed at a similar demographic, and the studio decided September was a clearer corridor for the film to make the kind of impact it should. This isn't about a lack of confidence in the film -- in fact, they told me this before they even saw it. And now they have seen it, and unless they're way better liars than I'm used to, they dug it. Actually, they dug it pretty large, which is a good sign since there's not a single finished effect in the film. There's no reworking the end, no reshoots, no "does it have to be in space?". It's just a marketing issue. Now you'll get to watch lots of trailers in the summer. And hopefully, by the time it comes out, other people, people who ain't us, will get a whiff of what we're up to, and come along too.
I love this movie. I HATE waiting to show it too you. I felt pretty much the way I imagine you're feeling right now when they told me. But these guys know what they're doing, and they're trying to protect their investment, not bury it. So I gotta be a grown-up. The release date is September 30th. Hopefully it won't change again.
Spread the word. Keep the faith. And gleam the damn cube already.
sixt7gt350
02-05-05, 10:03 AM
Originally posted by WannabeSQ
<SNIP>......and ending with a cameo of Kirk.
That's not Kirk, that's [SIZE=10]DENNY CRANE![/SIZE]
Originally posted by dyker
The whole mutant thing earlier this year (whatever they were called) could have been better if that group had been banished to seti-alpha-seven and one of them named Kahn. Huh??? The Botony Bay was found drifting in space and Khan was banished to seti-alpha by Kirk.
I thought that episode worked pretty hard to keep the Space Seed timeline.
Robert
jarod3371
02-05-05, 11:15 PM
watch battlestar galactica, best sci fi show in a long time. i like it alot., i thought firefly got canned after 2 episodes, never new there was 13 shows... I didn't watch it cuz they canned dark angel for it. I loved dark angel's first season but the second season got too convoluted and was all bad scifi plots (xmen, island of dr. moreau) that sucked...
While there were 13 episodes of Firefly, Fox only aired 10. Not sure if anyone else is showing it, but the other 3 episodes are on the DVD set.
BoulderGeek
02-06-05, 03:54 PM
Jewel Staite gives me eternal wood.
I have the 2nd and 3rd Firefly DVDs coming next week from my Blockbuster account, BTW. I rip them into the Replay then shuttle over to the DVA linux box.
Firefly was so good. I never got into Buffy or Dark Angel. I like how Mal had some of that Jack "Gimme a hacksaw" Bauer methodology. No hesitation, BAM, your corpse is going out the airlock. And did I mention Kaylee?
Hmmmmm, that reminds me. I never bothered getting the DVDs and therefore never watched the other 3 episodes. Anyone know the episode names so I can request them off Poopli or at least try to find them on the database.
lizard_boy
02-06-05, 04:28 PM
Originally posted by Ace987
Hmmmmm, that reminds me. I never bothered getting the DVDs and therefore never watched the other 3 episodes. Anyone know the episode names so I can request them off Poopli or at least try to find them on the database.
Great idea - how about I just rip all my CD's for you and send you those as well?
Why are people too stupid/lazy to use Google, it's really not that difficult?
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=firefly+episode+guide&btnG=Google+Search
Originally posted by lizard_boy
Great idea - how about I just rip all my CD's for you and send you those as well?
Why are people too stupid/lazy to use Google, it's really not that difficult?
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=firefly+episode+guide&btnG=Google+Search Stupid....perhaps, Lazy..... maybe, not thinking about looking up original air dates or the lack of..... definitely.
I also never asked anyone to rip their DVDs. I figured by now, some cable broadcaster would of shown those episodes by now. Even if they didn't, there are people on Poopli who put shows from DVD and share them. There isn't a way to distiguish whether a person took the show off a DVD, some premium channel, PPV channel or a regular broadcast network.
By now, I've pretty much written off Firefly. The shows we're OK when it originally aired. I watched each week, however, I didn't feel like spending $40 to watch 3 episodes of the show.
gweempose
02-06-05, 11:02 PM
The unaired episodes are definitely worth seeing. Of the three, I liked "Trash" the most. IMHO, it was one of the stronger episodes of the series.
plyons10
02-07-05, 06:17 AM
Originally posted by lizard_boy
Great idea - how about I just rip all my CD's for you and send you those as well?
Why are people too stupid/lazy to use Google, it's really not that difficult?
LB.... I belive this is what you were looking for:
http://tinyurl.com/22c6t
BaysideBas
02-07-05, 10:04 AM
Why bother with Google and its googleplex of hits:
http://www.epguides.com/Firefly/
blabber
02-15-05, 09:08 PM
Feb 15, 9:55 PM EST
Trekkies Fight End of 'Enterprise' Series
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Trekkies are uniting to win a reprieve for "Star Trek: Enterprise," slated to end its mission on UPN in May.
"Save Star Trek" was the headline of a full-page ad in Tuesday's Los Angeles Times that called on fans to get the show a new TV home through a petition campaign and rally.
"Captain Archer and the crew of the NX-01 need your help to continue their journeys!" the ad read, calling the "Star Trek" franchise a "cultural icon."
The ad asked viewers to commit to watching the show, now in its fourth season, if the Sci Fi Channel - "its logical home," according to the ad - agrees to pick it up.
A call requesting comment from the New York-based channel Tuesday evening was not immediately returned.
The ad contained clip-and-mail pledges addressed to the channel; Paramount Network Television, which produces the series; and to parent company Viacom Inc.
A rally is planned for Feb. 25 outside the Paramount lot in Los Angeles, according to the ad, which says it was paid for by worldwide fan donations.
"Star Trek: Enterprise," which debuted in 2001 as a prequel to the original 1960s "Star Trek" series, stars Scott Bakula as Capt. Jonathan Archer. It begins reruns in syndication this fall.
For the first time in 18 years, however, no first-run "Star Trek" series will be airing.
The franchise included "Star Trek" (1966-69, NBC); "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987-94, syndicated); "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" (1992-99, syndicated); "Star Trek: Voyager" (1995-2001, UPN) and "Star Trek: Enterprise."
The current series averaged about 2.9 million weekly viewers for the season, half the audience it drew in its first year. But the ad cites "a highly praised peak in creative vigor and audience enthusiasm."
---
On the Net:
http://www.saveenterprise.com
I don't see it happening.
I don't know of any recent joint ventures between NBC/Universal and Paramount. That doesn't mean that it's impossible, but I can see some scrappy fights over who has the ulimate say-so upon a conflict.
In addition, Sci Fi has a LOT of projects on it's plate now. It would be difficult for them to finance Enterprise to the levels it would deserve to make a decent go of it.
But if they do, bully for them. I'd like to see the Trek franchise continue if possible.
Straczynski Offers To Re-Boot Star Trek
J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5 and Jeremiah, talks about the cancellation of Enterprise. It seems he and a collaborator have already written a series bible and treatment for a new version of Star Trek - but it's not been pitched to Paramount out of 'political considerations' (Berman refusing to give up his dead horse?). JMS calls for everyone who thinks a JMS-run Star Trek series would be a good idea to write Paramount and let them know." Along similar lines, yonnage writes "Last week there was an article posted here about Enterprise fans atempting to pay for the next season of Enterprise. It seems that all the efforts have been pulled together and a new website has been created and has started collecting contributions for Enterprise's next season."
bruce24
02-16-05, 11:13 AM
Originally posted by Wrecks
.
In addition, Sci Fi has a LOT of projects on it's plate now. It would be difficult for them to finance Enterprise to the levels it would deserve to make a decent go of it.
The Sci-Fi channel has one night of new programming- Friday -and I think they have a good following. If they wanted to try for a second night, they could takeover Enterprise run it at 8:00 and then follow it at 9 and 10 with episodes from some of the other ST series and see how many people stay around for the night.
Just a thought.
-Bruce
I just checked the NBC/Universal Media Members website and looked in the Sci Fi Channel section. I found at least 15 projects currently in production. They include:
Stargate SG1
Stargate Atlantis
Andromeda
Painkiller Jane
Galactica
Anonymous Rex
Ghost Hunters
Scare Tactics
Master Blasters
Gordian
Mind Game
The Gauntlet
Dallas in Wonderland
Still In Search Of (working title)
and Monster Smash
bruce24
02-20-05, 08:24 AM
Originally posted by Wrecks
I just checked the NBC/Universal Media Members website and looked in the Sci Fi Channel section. I found at least 15 projects currently in production.
Very disappointing; I wonder if they should change the name of the channel to "The some SciFi and a lot of cheesy reality channel".
SCI FI Channel's new development projects (http://www.thefutoncritic.com/cgi/gofuton.cgi?action=pr&id=20050113scifi01)
gweempose
02-20-05, 09:35 PM
After reading the descriptions of some of the new shows, several of them actually sound pretty cool. I particularly liked the one about the people navigating the futuristic maze. :)
Originally posted by Reden
Huh??? The Botony Bay was found drifting in space and Khan was banished to seti-alpha by Kirk.
I thought that episode worked pretty hard to keep the Space Seed timeline.
Robert
Oh yeah... u r right :D And here I have a Commander Picard action figure still in the mint packaging right next to my computer and I forget such a thing :D Well, maybe one should have been named Kahn and set adrift in space then :D Probably some timeline problem with that tho too.
My wife gave up the series last year after she missed the first 2 Xindi eps and didn't have time to catch up. Give the SciFi channel a shot.
I didn't include "Amazing Screw On Head" because I couldn't find any information about it being in production.
Originally posted by nded
I think one of the biggest mistakes they made was moving it to Friday nights into the same timeslot as Stargate on SciFi. Bad move.
I'll never understand why networks try to compete for viewers like that. Just put it on a different night and then we can watch both, everyone wins.
Put something on Friday that appeals to a different audience, then you get more viewers overall.
Stupid.
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