By Chris Snellgrove
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Star Trek followers today usually complain in regards to the continuity issues attributable to reveals like Discovery and Unusual New Worlds, however such complaints aren’t actually new. Actually, varied plot factors about Enterprise kicked off a wave of fan anger about continuity adjustments, and people complaints continued with the discharge of the Kelvinverse movies. Traditionally, followers have blamed the writers for these points, nevertheless it seems that each one of Star Trek’s largest continuity issues might have been attributable to Captain Picard throughout the occasions of First Contact.
Star Trek: First Contact Did It
As you’ll recall, Star Trek: First Contact had continuity issues constructed instantly into its narrative due to a plot in regards to the Borg touring again to Twenty first-century Earth and ruining the timeline as we all know it. Captain Picard adopted the Borg into the previous and defeated them whereas others in his crew helped Zefram Cochrane full humanity’s historic first warp-speed flight. This flight caught the eye of close by Vulcans and introduced Earth into the broader galaxy, however whereas the film implies that Picard fully fastened historical past, later continuity issues show that he may need made issues worse.
Earlier than we go any additional, it’s necessary to give attention to among the Star Trek continuity issues that followers have centered on since Enterprise started airing in 2001. That present retconned the Vulcan thoughts meld into being one thing solely sure Vulcans can do and that their society frowned on, which clashed with the whole lot we knew about this from The Unique Collection. Different continuity issues come from the present’s awkward insistence on having episodes with the Ferengi and the Borg, two races that seemingly no person in Starfleet had ever heard of earlier than Picard’s misadventures in The Subsequent Era.
It’s Not Nero’s Fault
The later Star Trek reboot movies tried to sidestep continuity points by explaining that this was a special universe by which the Romulan Nero traveled to the previous, altering historical past perpetually. However that also doesn’t clarify why Chekhov’s age is totally different, why Khan has a special ethnicity and therapeutic blood, and even why Sulu is now brazenly homosexual. Whereas it’s potential to clarify different adjustments like Starfleet’s elevated ship measurement on account of Nero’s timey-wimey assault on the Federation, none of those specific adjustments can actually be attributed to that, however one idea holds that each one of this would possibly inadvertently have been attributable to Picard.
Not the entire timeline adjustments to the Star Trek continuity within the Kelvinverse movies make sense on account of Nero’s assault, and none of Enterprise’s continuity issues make a lot sense in any respect. Nonetheless, some followers have famous that, whereas rescuing humanity from the Borg, Picard made main timeline adjustments within the yr 2063. It’s completely potential that this is able to clarify the seeming continuity adjustments in Enterprise (which begins within the yr 2151) and Star Trek (2009), which takes place within the yr 2255.
Picard And The Butterfly Impact
Clearly, this Star Trek idea isn’t good, nevertheless it would possibly clarify most of the continuity adjustments that audiences gripe about. Consider it just like the butterfly impact: even small adjustments Picard made prior to now may have main impacts on the longer term. First Contact got here out 5 years earlier than Enterprise and 13 years earlier than the primary Kelvinverse film, so it could make a sort of meta sense that we at the moment are seeing a timeline that has been completely altered by Picard’s shenanigans, with each new onscreen journey affected by Picard’s earlier actions.
This idea would clarify the later points with the Star Trek: Discovery continuity that ranged from adjustments to the Klingons’ look to Spock all of a sudden having an excellent Mary Sue sister we’ve by no means heard of. Apparently, Unusual New Worlds implicitly helps this idea due to an episode that confirmed that main particulars like Khan’s date of delivery have been modified because of the fixed interference of time vacationers.
Now, it’s one factor to have a enjoyable Star Trek idea, nevertheless it’s one other factor for followers to just accept this as the explanation behind all these main continuity adjustments. For higher or for worse, although, followers have to brace for much more change. On condition that the subsequent Trek movie might be an origin film seemingly rehashing first contact with aliens and humanity becoming a member of the United Federation of Planets–occasions we’ve got actually already seen onscreen–it seems like Trek’s continuity gained’t ever be absolutely in step with its many years of established lore.
Oh, effectively. Perhaps subsequent time Captain Picard travels to the previous, he can give attention to making his franchise make sense. Or simply making it attention-grabbing once more. Actually, we’d accept that!
