So I finally finished watching Star Trek: Prodigy last weekend. Don’t worry I binged it on Netflix the day it dropped (I just didn’t watch it as it streamed). I wanted to savour it because it might be all we get and that is damn sad.

Anyway! As good as Star Trek: Prodigy was (seriously watch it, you won’t regret it) this ramble is only tangentially related to it.

Right or wrong nostalgia is riding high in media right now. Some hits, some awful misses. We also need new stuff and shouldn’t just recycle existing IPs but that’s a whole other post. To keep it zoomed out, I think there is an element of human nature that likes more stories in worlds we already love. I’ve seen posts explaining why people love fanfic vs. reading new original novels for this reason. They already love the characters, they are invested. There is a warmth and certainty to it. When this is done in media it can go horribly wrong. If something is revisited and done badly there is like a taint… I’m getting off topic.

TLDR – we like more stories set in worlds we already love.

BUT (and it’s a big but) live action has a lot of constraints.

• People get older when their characters shouldn’t e.g. Data is an android and doesn’t age but of course Brent Spiner does and no amount of make-up can disguise it.
• Hard to portray alien proportions. Like the Grand Inquisitor on Star Wars looked awful on the Obi-Wan show and I don’t know how much this was Disney being cheap, but I don’t like actors to suffer either. I mean just look at this here. To me there is no contest.

• There are limits for safety/physics/reality reasons as to sets or action sequences. Animation obviously has it’s own limitations like characters have default ‘outfits’ quite often, as rigging new clothing takes a long time (also budget plays a factor just as it does for live action). But still I would argue imagination is the primary limit of animation in terms of what can be done. Art is wonderful that way.

I’m sure there are many other points to but this post is long enough as it is.

Anyway it just struck me watching Star Trek: Prodigy that we had Janeway, and Chakotay, and the Doctor and there was zero issue with when in the timeline this was set post-Voyager because actor aging didn’t matter. They could record their lines in a soundbooth wearing their comfiest clothes if they wanted. There’s a longevity to that which live action can’t realistically offer.

I don’t know I just think there’s a reason that looking at more recent franchise entries for both Star Wars and Trek, the best shows have both been animation (Prodigy and Rebels).

So yeah I would love to see more animation if we’re riding the nostalgia train, and having more adventures with long-time faves.