Star Trek XI might successfully reboot the venerable science fiction franchise for new fans and Trekkies alike because Director J.J. Abrams is learning from its past shortcomings and mistakes.
What made "The Original Series" unappealing to casual observers was the limited, oftentimes ridiculous special effects of the 1960s.
Though William Shatner's Captain James T. Kirk was apt to throw a punch, his intensity was underscored by the obvious stunt man in a rubber lizard suit, mascara-wearing Romulan, or other opponent he combated.
Special effects on TV progressed substantially when "The Next Generation" premiered in the late 1980s, and later its spin-offs, but the socially conservative atmosphere of the time and that the TV series is based in a future in which humanity is more peaceful than in Kirk's days of cowboy diplomacy stifles the pace of the action.
Patrick Stewart's Jean-Luc Picard was the captain of a starship Enterprise with children aboard, more apt to use his mind than his fists to defeat an alien menace.
The later "Enterprise," which Trekkies see as an affront to the unique nature of the five-year mission of Kirk and his crew, meshes both action and special effects well, even dressing its cast in what finally look like practical astronaut apparel.
Lacking from the TV series is an overarching story that is ultimately abandoned in favor of a post-Sept. 11-like deviation focused on revenge after an alien attack on Earth.
Add to the aforementioned problems that young audiences did not grow up with "TOS" to know enough about what is going on in "TNG," its spin-offs, or "Enterprise." No to mention that each series takes place in an ideal future in which humanity lives in peace as a result of having made contact with an intelligent alien species.
If anything, the Star Trek franchise might benefit by a non-Trekkie filmmaker who can objectively mesh together the best elements of its venerable history with a lot of action beats to reintroduce the world to Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future.
Remaining to be seen is whether Star Trek XI will feature a story akin to the moral spirit of its predecessors and if the younger cast has the acting chops to make this more than just a dry, visual extravaganza ala "The Star Wars Prequel Trilogy."
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