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| Star Trek v Star Wars: fans weigh in on the timeless debate | Star Trek v Star Wars: fans weigh in on the timeless debate |
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| Adaobi Ifeachor: 'Star Trek lets you release your inner nerd' | Adaobi Ifeachor: 'Star Trek lets you release your inner nerd' |
| I have tried with Star Wars. After all, there are some enjoyable moments in the franchise: when the identity of Luke's father is revealed and finally seeing Yoda kick arse. But, for the most part, all I felt was an overwhelming sense of boredom. I rented the original trilogy as an adult. I sat through the prequels at the cinema. But, maybe you can never really connect with Star Wars unless you first watch the films as a wide-eyed child? | I have tried with Star Wars. After all, there are some enjoyable moments in the franchise: when the identity of Luke's father is revealed and finally seeing Yoda kick arse. But, for the most part, all I felt was an overwhelming sense of boredom. I rented the original trilogy as an adult. I sat through the prequels at the cinema. But, maybe you can never really connect with Star Wars unless you first watch the films as a wide-eyed child? |
| For me, it's the old science fiction versus science fantasy debate. Star Trek shows you how things work. It takes some pains to create believable rules around its technology and the universe the characters inhabit. Star Wars doesn't seem to bother. At all. It's fantasy adventure. In Star Trek, whole storylines have been created around engineering puzzles, and there is still a sense of genuine tension. | For me, it's the old science fiction versus science fantasy debate. Star Trek shows you how things work. It takes some pains to create believable rules around its technology and the universe the characters inhabit. Star Wars doesn't seem to bother. At all. It's fantasy adventure. In Star Trek, whole storylines have been created around engineering puzzles, and there is still a sense of genuine tension. |
| But in Star Wars, it's just not important how a spacecraft gets to its destination, as long as it arrives. It's like throwing glitter into the air. It's dazzling at first. Then you realise there's just no substance. Now, there's nothing wrong with a rollicking adventure. I've long been a fan of the Fast and Furious franchise. So, I know the value of being able to switch off your brain, suspend your disbelief and just go with it. But, true SF just has to have a bit more heft and gravitas to it. | But in Star Wars, it's just not important how a spacecraft gets to its destination, as long as it arrives. It's like throwing glitter into the air. It's dazzling at first. Then you realise there's just no substance. Now, there's nothing wrong with a rollicking adventure. I've long been a fan of the Fast and Furious franchise. So, I know the value of being able to switch off your brain, suspend your disbelief and just go with it. But, true SF just has to have a bit more heft and gravitas to it. |
| As a child, I was a geek. I wanted adventure and great characters. But, I also wanted to know how things worked. I wanted a glimpse at a possible future where humanity finally gets it right, where we don't destroy ourselves. Instead, we prosper and create innovations. Star Trek fed my geeky imagination: warp drive, subspace communication, Genesis matrices, bio-neural gel packs, hyposprays, tricorders, cybernetic life forms. Where exactly did the Borg come from? Even now, that's a question I still wonder about. | As a child, I was a geek. I wanted adventure and great characters. But, I also wanted to know how things worked. I wanted a glimpse at a possible future where humanity finally gets it right, where we don't destroy ourselves. Instead, we prosper and create innovations. Star Trek fed my geeky imagination: warp drive, subspace communication, Genesis matrices, bio-neural gel packs, hyposprays, tricorders, cybernetic life forms. Where exactly did the Borg come from? Even now, that's a question I still wonder about. |
| Star Trek taught me the value of taking a logical, objective approach to problems. It sparked a life-long interest in science and technology and it's been a gateway to exploring other SF fiction and writers. | Star Trek taught me the value of taking a logical, objective approach to problems. It sparked a life-long interest in science and technology and it's been a gateway to exploring other SF fiction and writers. |
| JJ Abrams' reboot breathed new life into a franchise that had become too complex and esoteric. It's exciting and crammed full of action. But, it still maintains the geeky spirit of Star Trek and it promotes the idea that you don't have to be special. No one cares what your midichlorian count is. You can just be a nerd. Star Trek embraces your difference. | JJ Abrams' reboot breathed new life into a franchise that had become too complex and esoteric. It's exciting and crammed full of action. But, it still maintains the geeky spirit of Star Trek and it promotes the idea that you don't have to be special. No one cares what your midichlorian count is. You can just be a nerd. Star Trek embraces your difference. |
| Adaobi Ifeachor is a journalist for the Guardian | Adaobi Ifeachor is a journalist for the Guardian |
| Adam Bertocci: Star Wars 'continues to stir the human heart' | Adam Bertocci: Star Wars 'continues to stir the human heart' |
| Star Wars caught on in a way Star Trek didn't because it taps into something more universal, more felt than thought, grounded in some of our deepest, most instinctual dreams. | Star Wars caught on in a way Star Trek didn't because it taps into something more universal, more felt than thought, grounded in some of our deepest, most instinctual dreams. |
| Star Wars isn't really even science fiction, except in the sense that it contains robots and spaceships as window dressing. It's simply a grand fantasy playing on all the old archetypes, wrapped up in a package that appeals to today's filmgoer. The original film is about an eager but untested young man, who is approached by wizard for an adventure to save a princess and become a knight. This sort of thing appealed to people hundreds of years before motion pictures; it will continue to stir the human heart long after. | Star Wars isn't really even science fiction, except in the sense that it contains robots and spaceships as window dressing. It's simply a grand fantasy playing on all the old archetypes, wrapped up in a package that appeals to today's filmgoer. The original film is about an eager but untested young man, who is approached by wizard for an adventure to save a princess and become a knight. This sort of thing appealed to people hundreds of years before motion pictures; it will continue to stir the human heart long after. |
| In Star Trek, the ideal being held up for us is a future hundreds of years away – we can admire it, but we can't create it for ourselves because it's such a long way off. Star Wars happened a long time ago, and the same stories of good, evil and the hero's journey have already been told and retold ad infinitum, down through the centuries. | In Star Trek, the ideal being held up for us is a future hundreds of years away – we can admire it, but we can't create it for ourselves because it's such a long way off. Star Wars happened a long time ago, and the same stories of good, evil and the hero's journey have already been told and retold ad infinitum, down through the centuries. |
| Star Wars takes the ancient things we love best in storytelling and reinvents them as a fun, freewheeling homage to the still-young craft of cinema, hitting Flash Gordon, westerns, Kurosawa and everything in between. Everything old becomes new again: a lonely hero, a villain in black, first love, magic, triumph and some nifty explosions, too. | Star Wars takes the ancient things we love best in storytelling and reinvents them as a fun, freewheeling homage to the still-young craft of cinema, hitting Flash Gordon, westerns, Kurosawa and everything in between. Everything old becomes new again: a lonely hero, a villain in black, first love, magic, triumph and some nifty explosions, too. |
| Every so often Star Trek characters try to explain to Data or some alien what makes us human. Maybe they should start by showing 'em Star Wars. | Every so often Star Trek characters try to explain to Data or some alien what makes us human. Maybe they should start by showing 'em Star Wars. |
| Adam Bertocci works at TheForce.net | Adam Bertocci works at TheForce.net |
| Becca Day-Preston: Star Trek makes Star Wars 'look almost laughably retrograde' | Becca Day-Preston: Star Trek makes Star Wars 'look almost laughably retrograde' |
| The original Star Trek series is often derided for its 1960s campy silliness and for effects that barely held up to scrutiny even then, but it was incredibly progressive in matters of race and gender. It makes Star Wars, released a full decade later, look almost laughably retrograde. | The original Star Trek series is often derided for its 1960s campy silliness and for effects that barely held up to scrutiny even then, but it was incredibly progressive in matters of race and gender. It makes Star Wars, released a full decade later, look almost laughably retrograde. |
| The original Star Wars films feature just one main female character – a princess, no less – who, for all her gun-toting credentials, seems to need a hell of a lot of rescuing. The original Star Trek series had a woman fourth in command of the Enterprise, Lieutenant Uhura. Further, the pilot episode of Star Trek featured a woman, named Number One, as the first officer. Even in modern sci-fi, a female starship deputy would be a big deal; back then, it was seized upon by the network, which demanded Number One be cut. Apparently, it was more palatable to a 1960s audience that an alien, Spock, played deputy. | The original Star Wars films feature just one main female character – a princess, no less – who, for all her gun-toting credentials, seems to need a hell of a lot of rescuing. The original Star Trek series had a woman fourth in command of the Enterprise, Lieutenant Uhura. Further, the pilot episode of Star Trek featured a woman, named Number One, as the first officer. Even in modern sci-fi, a female starship deputy would be a big deal; back then, it was seized upon by the network, which demanded Number One be cut. Apparently, it was more palatable to a 1960s audience that an alien, Spock, played deputy. |
| Women continued to play a big role in the Star Trek universe, and throughout the franchise's evolution, and though they didn't have as many as men, women took roles of responsibility and power, culminating in the captaincy of Kathryn Janeway at the centre of the Voyager series. | Women continued to play a big role in the Star Trek universe, and throughout the franchise's evolution, and though they didn't have as many as men, women took roles of responsibility and power, culminating in the captaincy of Kathryn Janeway at the centre of the Voyager series. |
| Star Trek's progressive themes are often discussed in conjunction with the mistaken belief that the original series featured television's first interracial kiss, between Captain Kirk and Lt Uhura in 1968. Though this wasn't the very first, it was one of the first, and given that interracial marriage was only fully legalised in the US in 1967, it was certainly a very progressive move to make. | Star Trek's progressive themes are often discussed in conjunction with the mistaken belief that the original series featured television's first interracial kiss, between Captain Kirk and Lt Uhura in 1968. Though this wasn't the very first, it was one of the first, and given that interracial marriage was only fully legalised in the US in 1967, it was certainly a very progressive move to make. |
| John Cho, who plays Hikaru Sulu in the rebooted films, has said that when he was growing up in America in the 70s, he was "so excited" to see George Takei, the original Sulu, piloting a starship. Takei's portrayal of Sulu was one of the first portrayals of an Asian man that didn't cleave to a lazy stereotype. Many other actors of colour were featured in later series, including Geordi LaForge, played by LeVar Burton. | John Cho, who plays Hikaru Sulu in the rebooted films, has said that when he was growing up in America in the 70s, he was "so excited" to see George Takei, the original Sulu, piloting a starship. Takei's portrayal of Sulu was one of the first portrayals of an Asian man that didn't cleave to a lazy stereotype. Many other actors of colour were featured in later series, including Geordi LaForge, played by LeVar Burton. |
| Admittedly, Star Trek's progressiveness hasn't, well, progressed since the early days: Star Trek Into Darkness has rightly been accused of whitewashing and sexist overtones. But one thing's for sure, the Star Trek universe still shows up Star Wars' representation issues. | Admittedly, Star Trek's progressiveness hasn't, well, progressed since the early days: Star Trek Into Darkness has rightly been accused of whitewashing and sexist overtones. But one thing's for sure, the Star Trek universe still shows up Star Wars' representation issues. |
| Becca Day-Preston is a freelance journalist | Becca Day-Preston is a freelance journalist |
| Brian Troyan: 'Star Wars is just more fun' | |
| I could end this debate with one word: lightsabers. But I'll humor our esteemed Trekker colleagues. | I could end this debate with one word: lightsabers. But I'll humor our esteemed Trekker colleagues. |
| For generations, Star Wars has captured the imagination of people young and old, all around the world. It taps into archetypes of the collective unconscious – the wise old wizard, the dashing scoundrel, the warrior princess and the son of destiny. Luke's story is the hero's journey, transforming him from a lowly farmer to the master of his own fate. He teaches us that if we have faith and trust in ourselves, that good can triumph over evil, even against overwhelming odds. | For generations, Star Wars has captured the imagination of people young and old, all around the world. It taps into archetypes of the collective unconscious – the wise old wizard, the dashing scoundrel, the warrior princess and the son of destiny. Luke's story is the hero's journey, transforming him from a lowly farmer to the master of his own fate. He teaches us that if we have faith and trust in ourselves, that good can triumph over evil, even against overwhelming odds. |
| But heroes are only as good as their villain, and Darth Vader is the most iconic villain of all time. With his ebony mask, the flowing black cape, and that ominous breathing, this fallen knight is the embodiment of evil and corruption. Khan might be a worthy opponent to Kirk, but against the Dark Lord of the Sith, there's no contest. | But heroes are only as good as their villain, and Darth Vader is the most iconic villain of all time. With his ebony mask, the flowing black cape, and that ominous breathing, this fallen knight is the embodiment of evil and corruption. Khan might be a worthy opponent to Kirk, but against the Dark Lord of the Sith, there's no contest. |
| The power of Data's positronic brain is insignificant next to the power of the Force. That mystical energy field brings magic and wonder even to the denizens of the galaxy far, far away with Jedi mind tricks, precognition, and Force-choking your enemies. I'd take shooting blue lightning from my hands over a transporter beam any day. | The power of Data's positronic brain is insignificant next to the power of the Force. That mystical energy field brings magic and wonder even to the denizens of the galaxy far, far away with Jedi mind tricks, precognition, and Force-choking your enemies. I'd take shooting blue lightning from my hands over a transporter beam any day. |
| Trek is a voyage exploring the unknown, but Star Wars is fast-paced swashbuckling high adventure, with excitement at every turn – disguises and daring escapes, romance, betrayal, and redemption, gun fights, sword fights and dogfights. Deadly situations aren't handled from the comfort of a captain's chair; they're dealt with by confronting them face-to-face. | Trek is a voyage exploring the unknown, but Star Wars is fast-paced swashbuckling high adventure, with excitement at every turn – disguises and daring escapes, romance, betrayal, and redemption, gun fights, sword fights and dogfights. Deadly situations aren't handled from the comfort of a captain's chair; they're dealt with by confronting them face-to-face. |
| Add speeder bikes, podracers, X-Wings, Imperial walkers, bounty hunters, giant monsters, not one but two Death Stars, and the Millennium Falcon – the answer's clear: Star Wars is just more fun! | Add speeder bikes, podracers, X-Wings, Imperial walkers, bounty hunters, giant monsters, not one but two Death Stars, and the Millennium Falcon – the answer's clear: Star Wars is just more fun! |
| That, and, of course, lightsabers. | That, and, of course, lightsabers. |
| Brian Troyan is public relations officer of the 501st Legion |