Sci-Fi Shenanigans

Mirror, Mirror on the wall

We'll get to all the cancellation news later. Right now, I'm more interested in throwing out an idea for the next Star Trek movie. One thing I've noticed in the fandom is that some people like to write about the rebooted characters in the "Mirror, Mirror" universe. As seen in TOS, the Terran Empire is a whole different way of life. With all that in mind, it's almost expected that some would ponder how that empire would temper the new renditions that while sometimes are close to the original characters have their own distinctions. My question is this. What would happen if one of the next movies involved the Terran Empire? For the sake of simplicity, I'll break it down into pros and cons.

PROS

One of the most interesting aspects of contemporary fiction is the prominence of a blurred line between good and evil. While "Mirror, Mirror" did not explore this concept, this could be visited in a movie quite easily, and the general public is a lot more open to it than even twenty years ago. Likewise, if one blends the racial allegory that was set up in TOS with a 21st century rendition of the Mirrorverse, the murkiness of good vs. evil would be especially striking.

It's a great opportunity for character development. I see this being particular beneficial for Uhura, who some viewers complain was weak in the reboot. I admit I thought she was unusually wibbly, but I was more willing to chalk it up to innocence more than anything. I think something such as trying to manuever her way through the Terran Empire society would toughen her up. In "Mirror, Mirror", Uhura was particularly sly and quick on her feet. Perhaps including this universe in a movie would allow skeptics of the new Uhura to witness her transformation into a smarter, bolder character. I would also like to see the new Bones in this situation, and not just because the films need more Karl (although they do, and that's one of the few things most viewers could agree on). We didn't really see Bones' Mirrorverse personality, and I'd like to see how he'd hold up under such circumstances. It would be especially interesting since revealing emotion can backfire, and we all know Bones is an emotionally charged character.

Though not likely to happen, I'd love to see what would happen if some race from the future stumbled upon the Terran Empire. For example, what would Nero think of this turn of events? Aside from spaz attacks galore, it has the potential for some insane fight scenes. Granted, shenanigans aboard the Enterprise itself would lead to some awesome fights, but still. (And yes, I'd pay big money to watch Sulu beat the snot out of Chekov. Why do you ask?)

I'd love to see what the costume department comes up with for the Terran Empire outfits. Same with makeup. Would Zach don the Fu Manchu look like Leonard did? If so, I'd probably piss myself laughing. Yes, I know it's shallow, but I would like to see how a rebooted Terran Empire would look. And I wonder if they'd make any changes to the empire's symbol.


CONS

I don't know how well it would work with this cast. In particular, Simon Pegg's Scotty would be a real stretch in the Mirrorverse. And I just don't see Chris Pine being all that convincing as a manipulative, violent bastard. Yeah, he gets into fights and has his share of troubles, but I think all of that has lead to him being less inclined toward the "dog eat dog" tactics of the Terran Empire. Then again, it could be another case of the whole innocence thing that I mentioned with Uhura earlier. Things could dramatically change in an encounter with the Empire.

The murky good vs. evil thing might be getting tiring for the audience. Since there's a greater awareness of it in the 21st century, there's been a lot more of it, especially in 2008. The biggest movies from that year all played around with this theme, some more obviously than other. Going for a more obvious stance might be considered a breath of fresh air. However, going gungho heartless by including the Terran Empire could backfire.

{e;star} From a plot development standpoint, I don't trust the writers or J.J. to be convincing with the Mirrorverse. It received very little overt development in TOS and got a little more backstory in the Enterprise series. Even so, it's a fairly rich universe that might be fully captured in a feature film. Yeah, films have more time than TV episodes, but in developing the new 'verse, there's a real danger of over/underdevelopment. I have not seen any evidence that the writing team could strike this balance.

Going this route may not allow for other alien races to even make an appearance in the new movies. While many viewers might not care, those who have been following Star Trek for any decent length of time will wonder what's going on with the Cardassians, Betazeds, Klingons and others. Oh, and there is the question of what's going on with the Vulcans now that the planet is gone. The Terran Empire could show what life is like for Vulcans, but it would be a real continuity challenge between the movies. Aside from the crew of the Enterprise, the alien races have always been a major part of the greater universe (first as racial allegory and later as their own sorts of players in the cosmic game). To not at least acknowledge them is to turn one's back on what people remember from the show.



So, what do you think? Mirror, mirror on the wall, will we see you after all?