Learning Curve

Prodigy back for season two, Strange New Worlds back in June and renewed and Lower Decks also back soon and renewed - what more could you ask for?

How about that Section 31 series?

Not a chance.

The news out of the Star Trek stable this week has all been positive in regards to existing series but coupled withe the unexpected announcement of a Starfleet Academy series to begin filming in 2024.

Academy? Hang on...

Yes, after decades of ifs, buts and maybes, the long fabled, never seen, often promised show is about to become a reality. Touted as far back as 1991, Starfleet Academy nearly became Star Trek VI before becoming a junior novel series as well as an Interplay PC game, graphic novel and finally, over 30 years later a TV show.

I was always under the firm impression that the next show would be Section 31 related but with Michelle Yeoh's stratospheric rise and recent Oscar win is it possible that she's priced herself out of Kurtzman's market for the foreseeable future? With her exit from Discovery now heading towards two years ago will anyone really be engaged enough to want to see the show?

With Discovery's confirmed closure with season five it does feel that the story is coming to an end as are all related avenues from the series that resurrected the franchise on TV. After all the Sonequa Martin-Green vehicle was supposed to run and run but has now been rather unceremoniously axed.

The series did feature, as part of its fourth season, a group of cadets under the tutelage of Sylvia Tilly so there is the hint that actually it could be a spin-off from Discovery and continue that 32nd Century adventure although whether fans would welcome another foray into that time period is questionable at best.

All that's known is from the announcement that we will get a new cast of characters and it is confirmed. This will mean that Star Trek's existence will be maintained with two live action and two animated series as long as they all remain popular for the next two years.

Am I interested in an Academy series? At this time I'm not sure because Prodigy seems to be filling that gap although it is aimed (honestly!) at a younger market with its cast of adolescent characters. Is the Academy series perhaps intended to fill a gap in the teen market where Prodigy leaves off and thus providing a series for every age? 

It is possible and would make sense to provide blanket generational coverage to bring fans through but then there is a part of me that hopes it would be more akin to Picard and Strange New Worlds in its style with a more adult tone and mission statement.

But it does surprise me that Section 31 (apparently still a possibility) has been sidestepped again. Already it's missed the boat thanks to the popularity of Pike, Spock and Number One in Discovery's second season and it feels like it might not even survive to be a filler show should any of the confirmed projects fall short.

Any new content and continuation of the franchise - this will be its fourth live action series in six years - has to be seen as a good thing and that Star Trek is very much alive and a success. Or is this a final roll of the dice? Has the franchise already run its course in this new age and fatigue/desperation is setting in? Have the powers that be realised that Section 31 has been bounced around so long it is indeed dead in the water with this as a rushed alternative to fill a once plugged scheduling gap?

That's a lot of variables to consider and we have a few months to go to really dig into them before we hear sign up for our first term at the Academy.

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