Angry "Trek" rambles

You know, normally I'd be so excited about the prospect of a new Trek movie being produced that I'd be clenching every spinchter I possess in giddy anticipation, but with the new one? Not so much.

What made the other ten Star Trek movies so successful (and this is success rated by someone who enjoys Star Trek, mind you) is that they were spun out of the television series and used the existing casts. And I'm not just saying that because I think Patrick Stewart is capital A-Awesome. Trek fans were already comfortable with the actors playing their favorite characters. So, for a movie to be produced with NEW actors playing already-established roles is asinine.

I don't care if it's a prequel - William Shatner will always be engrained in my mind as James Kirk, Leonard Nemoy as Spock, and so on. Gary Sinise as McCoy? Matt Damon as Kirk? Adrien Brody as Spock? Frankly, I'm insulted. It's not so much that I don't think these actors don't have a passing resemblance to the actors who originated the roles, but let's be blunt. Star Trek cast members tend to be predominantly stage actors. That's what gives the show it's theatrical flair and corniness that I love so much. What's bringing big budget stars into a Sci-Fi flick going to accomplish other than to have the audience distracted with making cast comparisons? Mark my words - this will be like replacing Darrin on Bewitched or Becky on Roseanne. It'll be unsettling.

What I don't get is why they'd make a fucking prequel instead of trying to pull a movie out of DS9 or Voyager (God, I would love a Voyager movie - I'd even write it myself!). Am I going to boycott this movie? No. But I'm certainly not going to spend [Scott's] hard-earned money to see it in the theater, but when it makes it to DVD in 2009, I'll give it the consideration it deserves (that means I'll watch it as I'm knitting a particuarly complicated sweater).