JMS Pitches Next Star Trek Series

For good or ill, here’s the details from Sci-Fi Wire.

It also mentions that he passed on the job currently held by Manny Coto. I like his comment about “the powers-that-be”

No word on whether Paramount has any interest in his pitch or if he actually pitched anything at all (there’s still that old rumor-/hate-fest about DS9 vs B5).

21 replies on “JMS Pitches Next Star Trek Series”

  1. Fan Driven
    I could see a lot of fans drive this down Paramount’s throat. If “the powers that be” are smart they’ll wait and see how Farscape and Firefly do on their fan driven rebounds. If those two do well, I’ll start makin’ some noise for JMS to take the helm on ST myself.

    • Re: Fan Driven

      I could see a lot of fans drive this down Paramount’s throat. If “the powers that be” are smart they’ll wait and see how Farscape and Firefly do on their fan driven rebounds. If those two do well, I’ll start makin’ some noise for JMS to take the helm on ST myself.

      Darn, I must have been asleep when the memo came, what fan-driven stuff is up with Farscape?

    • Re: Fan Driven

      I could see a lot of fans drive this down Paramount’s throat. If “the powers that be” are smart they’ll wait and see how Farscape and Firefly do on their fan driven rebounds. If those two do well, I’ll start makin’ some noise for JMS to take the helm on ST myself.

      I like the idea of him doing a show, but I think he was right to turn down the EP spot. Now, that being said, I’d much rather have him do an original series. Not star trek, not b5, something else entirely.

    • Re: Fan Driven

      If “the powers that be” are smart they’ll wait and see how Farscape and Firefly do on their fan driven rebounds.

      When will Hollywood learn? Family Guy. Firefly. It’s always been difficult for an original, intellectual show to survive (How many clones of already dim-witted shows do we get each season?), but now there’s PROOF in the DVD sales. Surely, they’ll start to listen to that revenue. (To what else would they listen?)

  2. Oh fantastic
    Now we just need Paramount to accept it. I suppose it’s testimony to the greatness of Babylon 5 that I automatically assume that any proposal by JMS is going to be good – but then, I reckon I could come up with a better series than Enterprise has turned out to be, so maybe it’s not so much faith after all.

    • Re: Oh fantastic

      Now we just need Paramount to accept it. I suppose it’s testimony to the greatness of Babylon 5 that I automatically assume that any proposal by JMS is going to be good – but then, I reckon I could come up with a better series than Enterprise has turned out to be, so maybe it’s not so much faith after all.

      Don’t get your hopes up. JMS wrote bombs like Legend of the Rangers and the first half of season 5 of B5. I’d be interested to see where JMS goes with it. I think it can be good if done right. One of the problems I had with B5 is how it seemed like JMS did too much. That by season 5 he was a bit burned out and was running out of good ideas. But I’m as interested as the next guy.

      • Re: Oh fantastic

        Don’t get your hopes up. JMS wrote bombs like Legend of the Rangers and the first half of season 5 of B5.

        What for it…

        One of the problems I had with B5 is how it seemed like JMS did too much. That by season 5 he was a bit burned out and was running out of good ideas.

        The *reason* B5 was the monumental piece of work that it is is because of JMS. It was his vision and his story. The reason s5 had so many problems was because of the fickle and foolish nature of network television (and an actor or two). He did not, as far as I’ve heard, get “burned out”, but had to more or less scramble to restart a story he had let end. The possibility of not having the final chapter of his novel made meant he tied up some stuff too early.

        That said, I’ll agree that Rangers (and most of the MFTV movies, with the exception of ITB) was a disappointment, as was Crusade. But JMS always resented the thought of a franchise (which makes me wonder why he wants to work on ST).

      • Re: Oh fantastic
        Actually the 5th season of B5 suffered because he was told to wrap up the show in season 4. Thus, the rush with closing off the Shadow War, and the Earth Alliance.

        Then he got told that the show was renewed for the 5th season.

        And he had used a fair chunk of what had been slated for season 5 in 4, to wrap up the loose ends.

  3. I wouldn’t get my hopes up…
    JMS probably pitched a very differnt direction for Trek than tends to be “acceptable” to the folks who control things.

    He’s stated before he doesn’t like certain things about Trek (particuarly the “perfect human society”) and would only do something like that if he was left to his own devices, with upper management keeping thier hands off.

    • Re: I wouldn’t get my hopes up…

      JMS probably pitched a very differnt direction for Trek than tends to be “acceptable” to the folks who control things.
      He’s stated before he doesn’t like certain things about Trek

      That’s fine by me. I would love to see new ideas in the now dying Star Trek series.

    • Re: I wouldn’t get my hopes up…

      JMS probably pitched a very differnt direction for Trek than tends to be “acceptable” to the folks who control things.

      He’s stated before he doesn’t like certain things about Trek (particuarly the “perfect human society”) and would only do something like that if he was left to his own devices, with upper management keeping thier hands off.

      Start again at 2151 and ST:E could have been a totally different series and not so perfect pre-Starlfeet world.

      I’d be very excited to see what he could do. That being said I *liked* season 5 of Babylon 5 and the Rangers movie. Crusade was different but suffers what I think all sci-fi shows suffer, the actors getting used to the jargon and their roles. Crusade had such great potential, tis a shame TNT fucked it up.

      • Re: I wouldn’t get my hopes up…

        Start again at 2151 and ST:E could have been a totally different series and not so perfect pre-Starlfeet world.

        I’d be very excited to see what he could do. That being said I *liked* season 5 of Babylon 5 and the Rangers movie. Crusade was different but suffers what I think all sci-fi shows suffer, the actors getting used to the jargon and their roles. Crusade had such great potential, tis a shame TNT fucked it up.

        Crusade had incredible potential. Legend of the Rangers was pretty good, and also had good potential as a series – although only for a couple of seasons at most.

        I think JMS could come up with an excellent Trek. Perhaps he’s thinking of something between Enterprise and TOS, with Earth reeling from the Romulan War and presumably hostilities with the Klingons, and no doubt a few other races along the way.

        Although I suspect it’s more likely he’d pitch a different time frame. Some time post-DS9 I would think it’s quite likely that Federation society suffers a series of catastrophes. The Dominion War didn’t exactly do them any good, Enterprise established the war with the sphere builders which looks like it brings the Federation to its knees, there’s always the Borg out there (if they sent five ships they’d win, but no, they always have to send one… maybe they like their drones with the sweet taste of long-term terror in their flesh?)… in short, lots of ways for the ‘perfect human society’ to get wrecked. And in that gloomy aftermath comes JMS… saviour of Star Trek!

        I think it’s telling that some of the best Trek has been set in the middle of a major war. It’s what saved DS9. Not having it was one of the things that hurt Voyager (another one was how they never seemed to acquire new technology along the way, save a few notable exceptions – I always thought it would have been incredibly cool if they’d kept some of the Borg-installed weapons systems rather than just an alcove for Seven of Nine… surely spending seven years alone in unfamiliar territory would result in all kinds of dirty hacks with alien technology to keep the ship running).

        • Re: I wouldn’t get my hopes up…
          Amusingly enough, DS9 was, in my opinion, very similar to B5.

          Not just the setting, but the whole notion of story arcs that went through the seasons, the growth of the characters.

          I admit to not watching that much Voyager, and extreamly little Enterprise, so I can’t comment on them…

        • Re: I wouldn’t get my hopes up…

          I think it’s telling that some of the best Trek has been set in the middle of a major war. It’s what saved DS9.

          “Saved” might be a bit strong, but, yes, The Dominion War and the story arc around it made DS9, IMO, the best of Star Trek. It was dark and, even if for just fleeting moments, made me think things could go really horribly terribly bad for the Federation. In keeping with the topic, B5 (Garibaldi, to be exact) mentions how humans love to watch the mighty fall. The collapse of the Federation would have been the greatest fall ever, and with any luck, might be what JMS has pitched.

          (another one was how they never seemed to acquire new technology along the way, save a few notable exceptions – I always thought it would have been incredibly cool if they’d kept some of the Borg-installed weapons systems rather than just an alcove for Seven of Nine… surely spending seven years alone in unfamiliar territory would result in all kinds of dirty hacks with alien technology to keep the ship running).

          How dare you suggest that we sully our shiny, silver vessel like pirates! ;)

          How many years did it take to realize the innovations on the Defiant, namely quantum torpedoes and pulse phasers? It took from “Suspicions” to Insurrection to see multiphasic shielding put to use. Why did they abandoned the cloak/phase project (as far as we know) from “The Pegasus”? Where are the Defiant-class fleet and USS Prometheus (shouldn’t that be NX?) seen in “Message In a Bottle”? And what really bugs me, is that Georgi or O’Brien or whoever can manipulate “chronoton” particles to transport through time this week, but not next?

          Does this mean the Federation has an understaffed research department? Keep in mind, there are timeships by the 29th century (“Future’s End”).

          • Treknology…

            (another one was how they never seemed to acquire new technology along the way, save a few notable exceptions – I always thought it would have been incredibly cool if they’d kept some of the Borg-installed weapons systems rather than just an alcove for Seven of Nine… surely spending seven years alone in unfamiliar territory would result in all kinds of dirty hacks with alien technology to keep the ship running).

            How many years did it take to realize the innovations on the Defiant, namely quantum torpedoes and pulse phasers? It took from “Suspicions” to Insurrection to see multiphasic shielding put to use. Why did they abandoned the cloak/phase project (as far as we know) from “The Pegasus”? Where are the Defiant-class fleet and USS Prometheus (shouldn’t that be NX?) seen in “Message In a Bottle”? And what really bugs me, is that Georgi or O’Brien or whoever can manipulate “chronoton” particles to transport through time this week, but not next?

            Does this mean the Federation has an understaffed research department? Keep in mind, there are timeships by the 29th century (“Future’s End”).

            This brings up one of the points that irks me about some trek series as they develop: Technology. With each innovation created in a story a whole wide range of possibilities come to be. So much so that we fans have to pose such questions as “but if the flarberfllooben in episode 369 gave *characters name* invicibility why didn’t they use it in episode 396 to defeat the Gor Armadda?”

            If they have it one episode, then writers should either give an explanation as to why it is gone or consider the ramifications of the improvement.
            Just once I would like to hear an engineer say “It canna be done without a refit of every system inna ship and a huge wad of Cudellian Chew, which we don’t know how to make. Well have to find another option.”

            My point? Divergent alien technologies develop from individual theories, technological developement, and philosophies. Improvements in those technologies also make obsolete their devices. The Trek universe has somehow homoginized technologies and cultures so much so that there is rare distinction we may enjoy. It seems any engineer can master the intricasies of an alien ship in a short amount of time using a tricorder and a spanner.
            Writers may be passing up possible plots by allowing such a homogenous view of the tech. A patch with an alien power source may unintentionally disrupt or jeapardize the ship over time. An upgrade to a sensory device calls for the return of forgotten tech. The ship may come across a field of energy never before categorized that displays perplexing behavior. A stranded vessel discerned as leaking energy may be something more that the crew does not understand.

            These are but simple ideas to be sure but just an example as to what plots we may see without the homogenous technology law that allows an engineer to instantly understand what alien dohicky they come across and devise an answer in the last ten minutes of the show.

            Tech, though it does grow in spurts at times, should develop slowly to give us a better appreciation for the character’s achievment and labor. Tech developed suddenly and rapidly trivializes the heroic trial and error efforts it takes to master.

            If Hoshi has mastered, through the universal translator, various dialects of both an insectoid and aquatic race in addition to the symbology of this recently encountered race then what would our emotional response be to her learning a binary language? Mine would be so what, give her something really tuff!

            JM2C

            • Re: Treknology…

              if the flarberfllooben in episode 369 gave *characters name* invicibility why didn’t they use it in episode 396 to defeat the Gor Armadda?”

              Not the Gor Armadda!

              If they have it one episode, then writers should either give an explanation as to why it is gone or consider the ramifications of the improvement. … It seems any engineer can master the intricasies of an alien ship in a short amount of time using a tricorder and a spanner.

              Remember how quickly O’Brien mastered Tosk’s ship in “Captive Pursuit”, even though he went on and on about the different technology.

              Writers may be passing up possible plots by allowing such a homogenous view of the tech.

              I think the bigger issue is that they’ve become so used to these deus ex machina stories. If they kept their “quick fixes” in the main Federation handbook, there wouldn’t be any difficult situations (a.k.a. “plots”) at all.

          • Treknology…

            (another one was how they never seemed to acquire new technology along the way, save a few notable exceptions – I always thought it would have been incredibly cool if they’d kept some of the Borg-installed weapons systems rather than just an alcove for Seven of Nine… surely spending seven years alone in unfamiliar territory would result in all kinds of dirty hacks with alien technology to keep the ship running).

            How many years did it take to realize the innovations on the Defiant, namely quantum torpedoes and pulse phasers? It took from “Suspicions” to Insurrection to see multiphasic shielding put to use. Why did they abandoned the cloak/phase project (as far as we know) from “The Pegasus”? Where are the Defiant-class fleet and USS Prometheus (shouldn’t that be NX?) seen in “Message In a Bottle”? And what really bugs me, is that Georgi or O’Brien or whoever can manipulate “chronoton” particles to transport through time this week, but not next?

            Does this mean the Federation has an understaffed research department? Keep in mind, there are timeships by the 29th century (“Future’s End”).

            This brings up one of the points that irks me about some trek series as they develop: Technology. With each innovation created in a story a whole wide range of possibilities come to be. So much so that we fans have to pose such questions as “but if the flarberfllooben in episode 369 gave *characters name* invicibility why didn’t they use it in episode 396 to defeat the Gor Armadda?”

            If they have it one episode, then writers should either give an explanation as to why it is gone or consider the ramifications of the improvement.
            Just once I would like to hear an engineer say “It canna be done without a refit of every system inna ship and a huge wad of Cudellian Chew, which we don’t know how to make. Well have to find another option.”

            My point? Divergent alien technologies develop from individual theories, technological developement, and philosophies. Improvements in those technologies also make obsolete their devices. The Trek universe has somehow homoginized technologies and cultures so much so that there is rare distinction we may enjoy. It seems any engineer can master the intricasies of an alien ship in a short amount of time using a tricorder and a spanner.
            Writers may be passing up possible plots by allowing such a homogenous view of the tech. A patch with an alien power source may unintentionally disrupt or jeapardize the ship over time. An upgrade to a sensory device calls for the return of forgotten tech. The ship may come across a field of energy never before categorized that displays perplexing behavior. A stranded vessel discerned as leaking energy may be something more that the crew does not understand.

            These are but simple ideas to be sure but just an example as to what plots we may see without the homogenous technology law that allows an engineer to instantly understand what alien dohicky they come across and devise an answer in the last ten minutes of the show.

            Tech, though it does grow in spurts at times, should develop slowly to give us a better appreciation for the character’s achievment and labor. Tech developed suddenly and rapidly trivializes the heroic trial and error efforts it takes to master.

            If Hoshi has mastered, through the universal translator, various dialects of both an insectoid and aquatic race in addition to the symbology of this recently encountered race then what would our emotional response be to her learning a binary language? Mine would be so what, give her something really tuff!

            JM2C

    • Re: Serenity!!!

      Serenity:
      The Official Movie Website

      is up and online!
      Sorry about being a bit off topic,
      but this is worthy news and deserves to be publisized,
      alot!!!

      That’s the “official fan site.” Are we sure that’s the
      official site from the studio?

Comments are closed.