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Olympic Fan
05-27-2017, 06:20 PM
To avoid hijacking the Summer Movies thread (more than we have), I thought I'd start this thread for all things Star Trek.

To big news is that after 12 years with nothing but the three re-booted Star Trek movies, we have a new TV Trek series coming this fall.

It's called Star Trek Discovery -- and it is set 10 years before TOS (the original Shatner TV series). I'm pretty sure it's part of the traditional TOS, TNG, DS9, VOY, ENT universe and not part of the JJ Abrams alternate Trek universe.

It's going to star Sonequa Martin Green (from the Walking Dead and before that Once Upon a Time and before that The Good Wife). It will debut with a two-part episode on CBS this fall and then move to the new CBS All-Access channel.

Not much is known about the series beyond this trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dxe_ugmIVM

Not a lot is known about the series ... except one factoid -- and that fact has the Star Trek fandom in an uproar. Martin-Green's character name is Michael Burnham.

The name Michael has stirred up a right-wing backlash from Trek "fans" who assume that with that name for an apparent female character, that Burnham must be transgendered. Apparently evey member of the North Carolina legislature is blowing up Trek fan sites with their disgust. Of course, they ignore the fact that Michael is often a female name (Michael Learned of The Waltons is one example -- Michael Micelle of ER is another). Never the less, many have assumed that this character is transgendered and that Trek is trying to jam political correctness down our neck.

We'll see.

There is also a series on Fox this fall called The Orville .... its a Seth MacFarlane spoof of Star Trek). Here's the trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8aUuFsXRjU

CameronBornAndBred
05-27-2017, 08:57 PM
Never the less, many have assumed that this character is transgendered and that Trek is trying to jam political correctness down our neck.



Raising social awareness and promoting acceptance...it's about time Star Trek got bold! :rolleyes:

OZZIE4DUKE
05-28-2017, 06:52 AM
Raising social awareness and promoting acceptance...it's about time Star Trek got bold! :rolleyes:
O'Hura and Kirk kissing in 1968. Pretty bold I'd say!

YmoBeThere
05-28-2017, 07:04 AM
O'Hura and Kirk kissing in 1968. Pretty bold I'd say!

Apparently, it didn't stick.

CameronBornAndBred
05-28-2017, 08:47 AM
Raising social awareness and promoting acceptance...it's about time Star Trek got bold! :rolleyes:


O'Hura and Kirk kissing in 1968. Pretty bold I'd say!
And addressing race relations in "Let That be Your Last Battleground" guest starring the late Frank Gorshin. Those are just two of many moments in ST history. Gene Rodenberry enjoyed pushing the social envelope; I would think he'd be proud if they played around with the sexual identity of a cast member.

Olympic Fan
05-28-2017, 01:59 PM
Interesting that in the five previous Trek TV series, three lead actors have been white males (Shatner, Stewart and Bakula), one has been a black male (Brooks) and one has been a white female (Mulgrew). Now we've go a black woman (Martin- Green).

Well, those are just the captains (actually Martin-Green is the first officer, but her captain, Michelle Yeoh, is Malaysian) -- all five series have featured multi-cultural crews.

Agreed that a key point of Roddenberry's vision was inclusion ... which is why the outrage over Martin-Green's possible role as a transgender character has provoked such outrange in response from the majority of Trek fanatics.

I found this article discussing some of the issues addressed by Star Trek:

http://www.davidabanks.org/current_projects/social-themes-in-star-trek/

Yes, Star Trek has had some landmark social breakthroughs, but if it does turn out that Martin-Green's character is transgender that wouldn't be a first for mainstream TV -- Jamie Farr on MASH played a crossdressing soldier for several seasons in Korea.

(Okay, I know there is a difference between a true transgender and the character of Corporal Klinger ...)

jimsumner
05-28-2017, 02:13 PM
I thought CameronBornandBred was being facetious.

BD80
05-30-2017, 09:04 PM
Interesting that in the five previous Trek TV series, three lead actors have been white males (Shatner, Stewart and Bakula), one has been a black male (Brooks) and one has been a white female (Mulgrew). Now we've go a black woman (Martin- Green).

...

As long as they're not Dutch ...

Olympic Fan
06-20-2017, 12:59 PM
More news (and rumor) about Discovery:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3I3y3_QmBsQ

It's looking more and more like this is going to be a short-lived disaster

BD80
06-20-2017, 01:58 PM
More news (and rumor) about Discovery:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3I3y3_QmBsQ

It's looking more and more like this is going to be a short-lived disaster

But we may have The Orville for a while.

weezie
06-20-2017, 08:38 PM
This must be why I keep finding my husband watching Star Trek reruns. Some kind of wacky excitement build up campaign?