22 September 2018

Star Trek: The Companion Series

After watching TOS for the first time several years ago, I was left with the desire to create my own non-Kelvin Timeline reboot for the Star Trek Universe. It wasn’t because I thought the show was bad – far from it – but because I felt the series, in spite of its strong characters and stories, never really realized its full potential, hampered as it was by storytelling conventions and SFX limitations of 1960s television.

In 2015-2016, I wrote the pilot episode for a hard reboot of TOS which was to consist of five seasons with 22 episodes each. It didn't take long for me to realize writing 110 episodes would be too daunting a task for me to tackle alone, and so abandoned the idea after completing that one pilot script.

I've since returned to the pilot and revised it to bring it more in-line with established Trek lore, though still kept it distinct from the Prime Universe. I then began thinking about the ideas I'd conceived for my abandoned hard reboot, wondering how they might work incorporated into a soft reboot/interquel/sidequel series instead.

Though I'll never say never, it's unlikely I'll ever get back aboard the Enterprise. In lieu of a series proper, here's Star Trek: The Companion Series (The Treatment):

NATURE OF THE REBOOT

This'd be a companion to TOS, and as such I'd try telling my stories without overturning too much established continuity. That said, elements perceived as outdated/silly/bad would be jettisoned/altered as the need arose. Also, my faithfulness to canon would end at TOS itself; aside from TWOK, I'd ignore all the movies/spinoffs.

Unlike TOS, The Companion Series would be more serialized in nature, an ensemble series chronicling the first five-year mission from beginning to end, with ongoing story/character arcs, with 16 episodes per season (8-10 for ongoing storylines, 6-8 for multi-part/standalone stories). There'd also be a stable of recurring characters.

IN THE 23RD 28TH CENTURY

The Federation feels to me too young/too close in time to our own era for its level of technological development to be plausible. Add to that the 1990s date for the Eugenics Wars, and I feel an older Federation/Federation set further into the future would be preferable. I'd shift the TOS era as far into the future as I could without straining continuity to the breaking point — the 28th century. Likewise, the Eugenics Wars would be shifted to the 26th century.

HUMANS, NEAR-HUMANS, TRANS-ANIMALS, & ALIENS

I'm not fond of the TNG episode "The Chase" or its silly "directed panspermia" explanation for why most Trek aliens are rubber forehead aliens. I much prefer the theory expounded in "The Paradise Syndrome", that these human/rubber forehead aliens are the descendants of people (most likely Terrans) seeded across the galaxy by an advanced alien race. For this series, I'd return to that older idea. Vulcans, Klingons, Orions, etc. would be retconned as genetically modified near-human offshoots.

Species such as the Saurians, Caitians, Kzinti, etc. would be retconned as terrestrial animals uplifted to sapience through genetic engineering, creations of the same aliens who seeded humanity across the stars.

Actual aliens — non-humanoid entities like the Horta, Excalbians, Kelvans, etc. — would make appearances in this series, but their appearances would be rare. The third season would be the only season to make regular use of them.

VULCANS & ROMULANS

The Vulcans and Romulans would receive a shared redesign:


As a half-human, Spock would remain untouched, but all full-blooded Vulcans/Romulans would receive forehead ridges, green skin, "green-in-green" eyes, and even greenish bones and teeth.

Because Vulcans/Romulans would be retconned as human offshoots, their biochemistry/anatomy would be changed to reflect this. No longer would they have copper-based blood or hearts where their livers should be. Their blood would remain green, but as with green-blooded skinks, this colouration would be the result of high biliverdin levels in their bodies. They'd be essentially human otherwise, making their capability to produce viable offspring with Homo sapiens plausible.

New aspects of Vulcan culture would be explored. It'd be revealed there're Vulcan colonies/individuals who're more liberal in their expression of Surakean philosophy than mainstream Vulcans or don't follow Surakean philosophy at all.

It'd be established that the Romulan Star Empire is multicultural, with non-Romulans serving in the military, mirroring the Federation/Starfleet.

KLINGONS

The Klingons would be established as eugenicists who maintain a strict caste system. It'd be revealed that there're multiple Klingon subspecies, each with their own distinctive mental/physical traits.


(Klingons of the royal/noble castes)


(Klingons of the soldier caste)


(Klingon of the science caste)


(Klingon of the warrior caste)

And many, many more....

WEAPONS & TECHNOLOGY

The transporter became too much of a crutch and deus ex machina, especially once TNG rolled around. To place limitations on what transporters can do, I'd portray them operating only in tandem with other transporters and only as transporters.

The communicator and tricorder would be combined into a single device, the "comcorder".

The disintegration setting would be removed from phasers. Only disruptors would have that power.

UNIFORMS

STARFLEET UNIFORMS (SEASON 1)


(commissioned officers)


(enlisted personnel)

STARFLEET UNIFORMS (SEASONS 2-5)


(commissioned officers)


(enlisted personnel)

STARFLEET UNIFORMS (MIRROR UNIVERSE)


(commissioned officers)


(enlisted personnel)

Only commanding/first officers would wear command gold.

SEASON 1


(This'd be Janice Rand's hairdo for the season.)

Season 1 would have no central arc. This season would be about introducing the universe and getting to know the characters.

The pilot, "To Boldy Go", is a partial adaptation of both Enterprise: The First Adventure and "All Those Years Ago".

From this point forward, I'm going to assume you've read "To Boldy Go". If you haven't, I suggest you do so before continuing.

The second episode would be an adaptation of "Uhura's Story".

One episode would be "Sister in Space".

One episode would be a remake of "The Alternative Factor". This episode would set up a mini-arc for Season 2.

One episode would be a flashback episode exploring Rand's childhood as a Klingon slave.

It'd be revealed Kirk's an Ahmadi Muslim.

It'd be revealed Uhura's Ethiopian Orthodox.

Lt. Kyle and Spock would be brief love interests of Uhura's.

It'd be revealed Piper's a homosexual who'd been married to a Vulcan man.

Rand's insomnia would persist through the season. For reasons unknown, she wouldn't visit Piper to determine the cause of her sleeplessness. Instead, with fellow crewman Lt. LeBeque as go-between, she'd meet Beckwith, another crewman who'd supply her with illegal sleep-substitute drugs.

The "handsome female lieutenant with short blond hair" mentioned in "To Boldy Go" would be revealed as Elizabeth Dehner. She'd be a recurring character and Mitchell's love interest throughout the season.

The penultimate episode would be a remake of "The City on the Edge of Forever". It'd stick closer to Harlan Ellison's original draft. In this episode, it'd be established the Trek Universe adheres completely to a "growing block universe" concept of time.

The season finale would be a remake of "Where No Man Has Gone Before". Piper would die in this episode.

SEASON 2


(Rand would switch to her (in)famous "wicker basket" hairdo.)

This season would feature the series' first seasonal arc: the re-emergence of the Romulans and the creation of their alliance with the Klingons.

The season premiere would be a semi-adaptation of Enterprise: The First Adventure. McCoy would join the crew as of this episode. This'd be the first episode to feature genuine aliens.

Christine Chapel would join the crew.

Kirk and Rand would become lovers.

Halfway through the season, Rand would develop a split personality. Rand would be revealed as a spy for the Klingons, brainwashed while in captivity then set free to infiltrate Starfleet, with her insomnia a symptom of her true personality re-emerging. "True" Rand would reassert command of her body and "false" Rand — the Rand who'd fallen in love with Kirk — would cease to exist. Under order of Starfleet Command, she'd depart the Enterprise to undergo a thorough psychological evaluation, leaving the series.

Chekov would join the crew as one of the Enterprise's security officers.

Chekov's illusory brother, Piotr, would be retconned as a real flesh-&-blood sibling who was killed by Klingons prior to his joining the Enterprise. Chekov's bitter hatred towards Klingons would figure heavily into his character arc.

Chekov and Ruan would become friends.

One episode would be a retelling of "Space Seed" told from Chekov's POV.

"The Naked Time" and "Tomorrow is Yesterday" would be remade as the first two parts of a three-episode mini-arc. The third part, "A Reflection Refracted", would be an original story of the Enterprise stranded in the Mirror Universe.

SEASON 3

This season's arc: the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans cooperating to stop a forthcoming Kelvan invasion of the Milky Way.

The season premiere would be a remake of "Amok Time". The opening would recap the events of "Operation: Annihilate!", retconning the ending so Spock would still be blind from the events of that episode, necessitating the temporary use of a VISOR. The Enterprise would be too far out of range to make the trip to Vulcan; Spock would use "astral projection" technology to visit his homeworld instead.

One episode would be "Deep Mudd".

One episode would be an adaptation of "Cloak & Dagger".

A new recurring character would be introduced: a "liberal" Vulcan female crewman of the Enterprise. This character would become a love interest for Spock. She may or may not be eventually revealed as a Romulan double agent.

The Kelvans and the enigmatic "Old Ones" mentioned in "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" and "Catspaw" would be established as one and the same.

Chekov would join the bridge crew.

Chekov and Sulu would start off as rivals but evolve into friends.

Chekov and Ruan would become lovers.

Spock's natural eyesight would be be restored near season's end.

SEASON 4

This season's arc: McCoy makes peace with the universe as he slowly succumbs to xenopolycythemia.

The season premiere would be a remake of "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" (minus the deus ex machina ending).

One episode would be an adaptation of "The Real McCoy".

One episode would be an adaptation of "Past Imperfect".

It'd be revealed McCoy's a lapsed Christian whose father was a minister.

Halfway through the season, it'd be revealed Ruan's a surgically altered Klingon spy, much to Chekov's shock and dismay. She'd leave the Enterprise and return to the Klingons thereafter.

The season finale would have McCoy finding a cure for his xenopolycythemia.

SEASON 5

Like Season 1, this season would have no central arc. This season would be all about tying up loose ends.

Mira Romaine would be a recurring character.

The season premiere would be a remake of the TAS episode "Yesteryear".

One episode would be an adaptation of "Strange New Worlds".

One episode would be an adaptation of "The Planet of No Return", reimagined as a Mirror Universe tale. Mirror Rand would make her first and only appearance here.

The third-&-second-to-last episodes would be a two-part remake of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Sha Ka Ree would be reimagined as a pocket universe accessible only through "Heaven's Gate". This two-parter would conclude with Spock making a solemn pledge to undergo the Kolinahr ritual and finally shed himself of his humanity.

The series finale would be a remake of Star Trek: The Motion Picture and "The Changeling". Chekov and Ruan would replace Decker and Ilia. The series would conclude with Spock and Chapel becoming lovers.