It isn’t canon (because of First Contact), but damn, that is a fine book. It’s the only Trek novel (though I have enjoyed a few) that transcends the genre.

Spock’s World was pretty good too.

I agree. Good post.

I’ll have to think about the “cool”. That’s a very interesting thought that intrigues my advertising brain. I think it worthy of it’s own article here as we get closer to premiere.

No. It’s not wrong.
And it’s not for me to decide when they release anything. My point is that the “begging and demanding” and (some posters) calling TPTB “stupid” for not having a trailer out there is old, makes fans look bad and is somewhat pointless.

I agree with you that Trek XI is far more likely to appeal to the mainstream audience than any other Trek film. To your comments that this film has, by far, the largest budget, and promises plenty of action and great special effects, I would add a few comments of my own. First, the TOS characters (especially Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty) are iconic. Many, many people have heard of them, as they are part of popular culture. A mainstream audience is, therefore, more likely to care about these characters than any of the subsequent characters, who are far less well-known. I think that there is a genuine interest in these characters; and a story of their origins would appeal to a lot of people. And this is the perfect story to introduce Star Trek, for, quite literally, that is what this film is about. A viewer doesn’t need to know the entire Trek back-story to enjoy this film; and this back-story and Trek chronology probably disinclined casual viewers from watching the later films. I agree that Abrams’s name (along with those in his great team, who don’t get mentioned enough) will be a bonus. I also think that the cast is strong and will draw in causal viewers willing to give Trek a try. In particular, Eric Bana, Nimoy, Winona Ryder, Ben Cross, Pine, Quinto, Urban, and Pegg are well-known. This will all help to dispel the preconceived notions of Trek that the ‘unenlightened’ may have. I’m really interested in what the marketing campaign may involve. How does one make Trek cool? Perhaps through association with celebrities who like Star Trek; e.g., Ben Stiller, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Eddie Murphy, etc. If the causal fan sees these guys at the premiere, they may themselves decide to give it a try. Just a thought: marketing isn’t my area.

Yeah, I suppose I *was* jumping the phaser thinking such a momentous/historic occasion of agreement with Xai might have actually occurred.

Silly me.

You are in fine form tonight.

Based upon what?

“You’re not going to sustain the required level of expectation in the general public for a film basically anticipated within a specific niche within a niche genre for that period. Period.”

Again, based upon what?

Star Trek hasn’t gotten the blockbuster treatment since 1979, and then it was with a director (albeit a good one) that was well beyond his prime. Even then, the movie made money. STXI approaches with an up and coming A-list Hollywood name in the director’s chair that has proven enormous mainstream success with the one of the highest rated television shows of all time (and in a flooded market of hundreds of cable and satellite channels), along with a massive budget and the promise of special effects–the likes of which have never been seen–and action sequences that Star Trek has never brought to the table. This movie has more potential for mainstream appeal than anything ever branded with the Star Trek name on it.

You have no frame of reference from which to draw that conclusion, since there has been nothing similar to compare it to. Bad Robot has never before produced a Star Trek movie. Whether you like Abrams or not, denying his mainstream appeal is not an option…

The low-budget ‘Cloverfield’ made money. ‘Transformers’ made alot of money, and has prompted the studio to invest in a film series. MI3 made money as well. ‘Alias’ was successful. ‘Lost’ has seen record breaking ratings. ‘Fringe’ is currently the Tuesday night champ in its timeslot.

“…an epic story arc I would’ve told in a trilogy which would’ve detailed Kirk’s formative years aboard the Farragut and the first Klingon War ending with his promotion to captain of the Enterprise.”

That’s fine for a straight-to-dvd fanboy film series or a set of novels, but as a massive budget feature film trilogy—right off the bat, that suggestion suffers from the same ills as Lucas’ Star Wars prequel trilogy (not to mention, it’s basically a ripoff of the same). Where’s the jeopardy? The audience would already know for certain that Kirk, Spock, and McCoy end up okay and aboard the Enterprise for its famous five-year mission. Where’s the beef?

At least in Orci and Kurtzman’s story, you have the potential for alternate timelines which might (according to Abrams) place even the leading characters in jeopardy. The outcomes of events we know are no longer certain, and solely dependent upon Nimoy’s Spock success in defeating the villainous plots of Nero and his cohorts to disrupt the past.

You get the “jeopardy”, as well as the vehicle to tell the origin story in epic scale.

A “non-starter”, you say? What’s the problem? I don’t see it.

How can the anticipation for this movie “run out”, if it has yet to begin?

The only people talking about this movie are established Trek fans. No one else cares. Mainstream audiences could not care less what’s coming out in May of 2009 when it is still September of 2008.

Don’t expect an aggressive marketing campaign until the Holiday season…That’s about 5 mos. prior to the film’s release, and that’s about all the all-out hype this film will sustain. The trick is to peak the average moviegoer’s interest around opening weekend, thus ensuring that the largest number of them give it a chance and spend the money. Even if they were out there actively marketing the movie now, the mainstream moviegoing public would get bored with it by May. There are too many preconceived notions about Trek out there, and the only way to combat that is to strike while the iron is hot…It’s still ice cold.

Expect a trailer in the December movie season, and an aggressive campaign to escalate from there. It should peak around the first week of May…and that’s the whole point.

Don’t confuse “good marketing strategy” with the satisfaction of fanboy angst…That’s two very different things.