You may not know, you may not care, but ever since 1977, there’s been an ongoing war between Trekkies and Star Warriors. I can’t claim to have ever understood it.
In May of 1977, a film named Star Wars opened. My friend and I had seen the ads on TV and were dying to see it opening night (not sure the exact date it opened at the Centre Mall in Hamilton, Canada). Unfortunately, it was “Adult Accompaniment” so we needed an adult to go with us. We finally bribed his older sister to take us, but she took her time getting ready (out of spite as I remember it) and we missed the early show.
We were waiting outside in an ever growing line when the early show let out. We asked people how it was, but their answers were cryptic (“You’ll love the wookie!” “What’s a wookie?” “You’ll see!” “You’ll love the trench!” “What’s a trench?” “You’ll see!”).
From the opening music and the star destroyer looming over our heads in the opening scene, I was hooked. I’ve seen that movie (Star Wars, please, none of this “A New Hope” crap) more than any other film. In some ways it really did change everything for me.
For many years, I held on dearly to a first edition Star Wars paperback, that has for its cover a pre-production painting by Ralph MacQuarrie and has “Soon to be a Major Motion Picture!” on the back. I can still whistle a lot of the music from that first film (and the imperial march introduced in The Empire Strikes Back.).
However, from long before, I’ve been a Star Trek fan also. I’ll never wear pointy ears or speak Klingon, but I know people who do. I’ve been to Star Trek Conventions, and met (the late) James “Scotty” Doohan. I’ve watched almost all of the shows, including a lot of the almost forgotten animated series (but not all of Voyager. A guy has to have standards!). At one point, I had a box of letterhead from the original production studio.
When I was younger, the local radio station, CHML, always had movie ticket giveaways for the premiers of the Star Trek movies. I usually won tickets. But once I couldn’t no matter how hard I tried. So, knowing when and where the film was premiering, I went down and asked every odd-numbered group if they had an extra seat (each pass was for two people). About five minutes before the movie was to start, a man who identified himself as a manager for the radio station came out and offered me a seat with his family. I can still picture his face (I think).
So I’ve walked both of these paths. And yet, many of the fans of these two icons of science fiction simply can’t get along. Maybe they (the fans) are too similar. Some of the most interesting work in both of these camps is the fan films. Troops, a Cops meets Star Wars mash-up, is hilarious. George Lucas in Love is brilliant, simultaneously spoof Shakespeare in Love and Star Wars. Oddly, the best Trek humour has come from Saturday Night Live (both John Belushi’s first season sketch of Kirk reacting to NBC canceling the show and a decades later appearance by Shatner himself telling fans to get a life). Trek fan films tend to be more reverential and larger scale projects, where Star Wars fan films tend to be short episodes.
While I’ve generally enjoyed the visual representations of the two universes, I haven’t liked the books set in them. Timothy Zahn is an icon in Star Wars circles, but I’ll never understand why. Ditto Kevin Anderson. If anything, only Allen Dean Foster’s Splinter of the Mind’s Eye (originally planned as the filmed sequel to Star Wars) has really enthralled me.
On the Trek side of the bookshelf, the writers haven’t fared much better. James Blish’s adaptations from script of the original series were a good read because he added detail into the scenes. The two book Phoenix cycle was an interesting re-imagining of the Kirk Spock friendship, if it short changed McCoy. I know that I’ve read some others that were enjoyable, but I’ve read a lot of dribble too.
Rather than a war between Trekkies and Star Warriors, I’d prefer to see a war between those who like the visual representations (TV shows and movies) against those who like the books! Let the battle lines be drawn, and may you live long and prosper with the force as your ally!
postscript
I often hear the Star Warrior crowd claiming the
big difference is that blasters don’t do stun. Wrong. Check out the
first ten minutes of Star Wars. Oh, and Han shot first, George, get over
it and leave us our memories (just think of Pink Floyd – “hey,
director, leave those flicks alone!”).
