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Updates Video Reviews Book Reviews The Future of Cable-TV? Star Trek Novels by Nick Zentor About the Author Dead Ends Ntzeon Science Fiction and Fantasy Digest Sci-Fi Links |
Science Fiction's
Most Popular Theme
As a big science fiction fan of 40+ years, the very worst theme trend in the sci-fi realm, as far as I'm concerned, has been the popularity of war. In my opinion, the idea that war could become such a dominant theme in post modern sci-fi is extremely disappointing and depressing. War is one of the oldest and worst occupations of humans; it sickens my heart to think that the future will continue to be dominated by it, even after humanity ventures into the deep spaces of the galaxy. Sure, alright, okay, I'm not trying to suggest that humanity may avoid such conflicts as war completely, that would be unrealistic. What bothers me about the sci-fi realm's directions is the simple fact that war is such a popular theme that it has become a dominant one, and as such, it is intentionally engineered by the producers because it is a theme that sells so well. War? A theme that sells well? In other words, in science fiction we are faced with the same problem as in reality. War-profiteeering dominates the control interest. Producers of war in science fiction are just like those who engineer it in reality; they are in it for the profits and profits are placed above all other interests. This fact is extremely distressing and does not bode well for humanity's future. I cannot help but recall the words of Gene Roddenberry in his early conception of Star Trek, when he said, "Star Trek is an optimistic vision that gives humanity hope for a better future." Hmm... that may have been true with the original series, but somehow, war-profiteering has just about killed that idea, after war became one of the most popular sensations and themes in the science fiction video realm. I mean, what the hell is so much "better" about a future vision that is just as preoccupied and dominated by war as the past and present? To be fair, Star Trek: The Next Generation wasn't all that obssessed with war, at least not in the beginning. But it was an inevitable theme, and after the "Borg" became the ultimate sci-fi enemy of the series, it was so popular that they revisited it in one of the first big-screen productions, "First Contact". Whose decision was it that they should take such a violent direction on the big screen, rather than any number of less violent themes? Simple. It was based upon popular vote. The Next Generation series held a vote on its most popular episodes, and lo and behold, the vast majority of moronic Americans voted for the two-part "Borg War" episode (Season 3, "Best of Both Worlds") as their favorite. Other sci-fi series that followed were also dominated by war and violence. Deep-Space 9 and Voyager, the two other spin-offs of Star Trek, were about 50 percent (Voyager) to 70 percent war and violence (DS9). Babylon 5 took it to new heights, despite some of its main writers distaste for such violent themes, and was about 80 percent war and violence. Farscape, as fascinating as it was, was about 60 to 80 percent war and violence, depending upon the season. Like so many others, the grand finale was the great violent showdown between major super-powers and endless death and destruction. Stargate SG-1, while following the right formula, gave us a fair amount of nonviolent episodes but still was at least 60 percent war and violence. About the only series that I know of that didn't overdo the violence and war was Lexx, because it balanced it rather nicely with other themes and an excellent flare for satire. Finally, of course, the sell-out popularity of Star Wars at the box offices is the epitome of it all. Star Wars was such a popular idea in Hollywood that it pushed Star Trek out of Paramount, all in the search for profits, of course. It's no wonder the world is in such a mess. The vast majority of Americans appear to actually like war and violence. That isn't hopeful and it doesn't make the future look brighter, it's simply disgusting. It wasn't always like that, of course. I mean, the producers of the Next Generation series were actually very good at diversification of themes and war was not a domineering theme in the beginning. The NG series, in following some of the smart guidelines of Gene Roddenberry and others that worked with him, sci-fi experts, did an excellent job of covering a wide range of less-violent, non-violent, and pacific themes, all throughout the seven seasons of the series. I'm quite sure that, despite the over-whelming popularity of war and violence, there are a large amount of Americans who enjoyed the less violent and nonviolent episodes. If this were not true, the series would not have been as popular as it was. But the most telling aspect of popularity is not so much television as the movie theater. Box office sales are not simply more profitable, they are more obvious. Every ticket that sells in a movie theater is a vote, not just for a movie, but for a theme. Here's the kicker. Box office statistics on science fiction movies has revealed a dominant factor, if not an alarming trend in the 80s and 90s. War, in science fiction movies, is the most popular theme. It sells and it sells big. As such, it is the most profitable theme for science fiction movie producers. I'm sorry, but in my honest opinion, such a trend is sickening and it doesn't give the world hope for a better future at all. What it does do, on the contrary, is make the vultures, the war-profiteers, drool with anticipation in the planning of their next bloody conflict. Does the future of humanity hold just more of the same violent war? If the vultures have their way, it does. If the popular statistics about war themes in science fiction can be trusted as a close reflection on reality, it may be inevitable. Here's a thought humanity might take into account, especially all the idiots who voted for the Borg episodes as their favorite in the ST:NG series. What if a higher power has deemed humanity unworthy of exploration of outer space for as long as it wages violent wars with careless war-profiteering glee? For those of you who have not yet seen the sci-fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still", it's time you did. There just might be something to it. Better still, the producers who like to remake the old classic sci-fi movies would do us all a favor to remake that one and let some of the younger people in on it. For all we know, war-like races may have been quarantined and restricted from venturing into outer space. Think about it, the next time you enjoy a science fiction dominated by violent war. Nick Zentor, 10/1/06 |
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