From Newsgroup: alt.tv.star-trek.tos
From Address: epwise{at}yahoo.com
Subject: Re: These Are the Continuing Voyages: 5 Reasons Why Star Trek: The Animated

"Gryphon"  wrote in
news:528D414E.14505.startrek{at}capcity2.synchro.net: 

>    These Are the Continuing Voyages: 5 Reasons Why Star Trek: The
>    Animated Series Was Awesome
>    David Moran
>    November 20, 2013 10:00AM
> 
>    Star Trek: The Animated Series
> 
>    It weighed on my heart to hear that Lou Scheimer, founder of
>    Filmation Studios, had died this past October. Like a lot of Gen
>    Xers I grew up part of the Filmation Generation, in thrall to a
>    studio whose output (along with that of Hanna-Barbera) shaped the
>    landscape of my every Saturday morning: Fat Albert, The Adventures
>    of Batman, The New Adventures of Flash Gordon, and yeah, even
>    He-Man, were all required viewing for me.
> 
>    But as a dyed in the wool Star Trek fan from almost the moment of
>    conception onwards, number one among these was Star Trek: The
>    Animated Series (or TAS), which ran for 22 episodes from 1973 to
>    1974, after the cancellation of the live-action television show in
>    1969. It was critically well received (being the first Star Trek
>    show to win an Emmy), but has faded a bit from the popular
>    consciousness of the Star Trek franchise (mine included), maybe
>    owing to a perception that a cartoon adaptation must of course be
>    for children. 
> 
>    I recently revisited the series (all 22 episodes are free and legal
>    to watch at startrek.com), and Im happy to report that not only
>    does it hold up, but its actually good. Really good. In a lot of
>    ways its the same show as the original seriesits saying something
>    when the only thing that really seems off is the different theme
>    music. As I watched I made a little list of things that surprised
>    me about the series and made it an awesome revisit, and I share
>    that list here. 
> 

Try telling that to Graeme, a fanatic who complains when anything upsets 
his perception of TOS. Some people just don't understand that Star Trek 
is fiction (aka "not real") and there are always discrepancies is ANY 
movie or TV series.  Non-fanatics deal with it.
  
> 
>    1. Its definitely not just for kids.
> 
>    The very first episode features an energy being thats been living
>    in a derelict alien vessel for 300 million years. When it possesses
>    the Enterprise and all seems lost, Kirkwho is not having any of
>    this nonsense on his shipmomentarily wrestles control from the
>    creature and starts piloting the Enterprise right into the systems
>    sun. No ones taking the Enterprise away from James T. Kirk. To save
>    itself, the creature flees back to its derelict prison and the
>    Enterprise warps to a safe distance. Over the com, it quietly and
>    piteously begs the Enterprise not to leave it, as its been alone,
>    so alone, for an eternity. Kirk ignores itdoesnt even respondand
>    coolly starts plotting the ships next destination. THE END. This
>    show doesnt play. 
> 
>    This is not to say its all gritty and Frank Miller, just that its
>    written as smartly as the original series, and has the same
>    confidence in the intelligence of its audience, whatever their age.
> 
> 
>    Star Trek: The Animated Series
> 
>    2. It has the same cast as Star Trek: The Original Series. (Well,
>    almost.)
> 
>    William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols,
>    George Takei, James Doohan, and Majel Barrett all reprise their
>    characters here. Even when minor original-series characters like
>    Sarek, Cyrano Jones, and Harry Mudd show up, theyre all voiced by
>    the original series actors. The presence of the actors who defined
>    the roles gives the hand-drawn characters a fleshly continuity with
>    the live-action series, and its easy to think of the TAS as Star
>    Trek season 4.
> 
>    The only one whos left out in the cold is Walter Koenigpoor Pavel
>    Chekhov. Apparently when producers tried to omit Uhura and Sulu
>    from the series, Leonard Nimoy threatened to walk out, insisting
>    that they were critical to the diversity of the show. Chekhov got
>    no such reprieve, however, although Koenig did get to write the
>    seventh episode of the series, The Infinite Vulcan.
> 
> 
>    Star Trek: The Animated Series
> 
>    3. Its mostly written by the same writers.
> 
>    The animated series features some heavyweight writing talent. David
>    Gerrold, Samuel Peeples, D.C. Fontana, and Paul Schneider all wrote
>    for the original series (and the non-original writers were pretty
>    substantial: Larry Niven even wrote one episode). The series bible
>    is basically the same as that of the original series (and is
>    apparently still in existence, at the Paskow Science Fiction
>    Collection at Samuel Paley Library, Temple University.) The
>    episodes are only 24 minutes long, so the pacing can be a bit
>    hurried, with fewer of the lovely character digressions of the
>    original series, but that also means the scripts are ruthlessly
>    lean and really know how to keep it moving. 
> 
>    And some episodes stand up to anything else in the franchise.
>    Yesteryear, where Spock time-travels to the Vulcan of his youth,
>    and meets his mother, father, and younger self, is deeply moving. I
>    dare you to keep a dry eye as Spock returns just in time to watch
>    his beloved childhood pet die. J.J. Abrams paid homage to this
>    episode in his 2009 Star Trek reboot: the scene where young Spock
>    is bullied and belittled by his peers for being bi-racial comes
>    straight out of Yesteryear. If you take a chance on only one
>    episode of the animated series, make it this one.
> 
>    Theres even a tribbles episode! Written by the guy who wrote the
>    original tribbles episode. Even better, the episode is titled Mo
>    Tribbles, Mo Troubles (well, almost), probably the most apt
>    descriptor ever for the tribble lifecycle.
> 
> 
>    Star Trek: The Animated Series
> 
>    4. It does things the original series could never afford.
> 
>    In an animated series, the special effects budget is effectively
>    limitless, and TAS totally takes advantage of not being restricted
>    by cheap skin-paint and rubber suit effects to bring you aliens,
>    aliens, aliens. Seriously, not even kidding, there are a lot of
>    weird-looking aliens and creatures in this show, and many of the
>    backgrounds are far beyond anything that could have been built on
>    the original series Culver City soundstages.
> 
>    Like a lot of Filmation series, the animation can look a little
>    low-rent to a modern viewer, but Filmations avoidance of the cost
>    of making things move is smartly offset by their solid use of
>    voice-overs and sound to camouflage the fact that often nothings
>    really happening on screen. The long, slow tracking shot of the
>    Enterprise orbiting a red planet while an impaired, lovesick Scotty
>    croons Welsh ballads (The Lorelai Signal) is one of the most
>    sublime moments in the franchise.
> 
>    Another neat fact about TAS is that its the first Trek show to
>    feature the holodeck (here called, in adorable 1970s fashion, the
>    rec room). The wondrous room where characters could participate in
>    virtual reality shenanigans was first conceived for the original
>    series, but was deemed unfeasible and far too expensive.
> 
> 
>    Star Trek: The Animated Series
> 
>    5. It gave secondary characters big moments.
> 
>    In the original series, most of the episodes revolved entirely
>    around the holy trinity of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, and while
>    supporting roles like Scotty, Sulu, and Uhura did get some
>    character moments, they were comparatively pretty small. Not so the
>    animated series, which gives the supporting cast more moments to
>    shine. 
> 
>    In The Lorelai Signalthe best Uhura story there isa female medical
>    officer confides in Uhura that the bridge crew have been acting
>    strangely because theyve been compromised by a mind control signal
>    that only affects the male of the species. Uhuras response?
>    Assemble every female security officer on board. Why? Because Im
>    taking command of this ship. And Uhura grabs some phasers and
>    seizes command of the Enterprise, and she takes care of business,
>    and its awesome. I mean, right? How could it not be. Hashtag eff
>    yeah Lieutenant Uhura. 
> 
> 
>    Live long and you know what. And if youre a fan of the original
>    series, maybe give this one a shot.
>      _________________________________________________________________
_
> 
>    David Moran would pay cash money to watch a show or movie about
>    Uhura or Sulu as starship captains, because those short bits in
>    Star Trek VI werent enough. Check him out on Twitter or Tumblr.
> 
> 
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