tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467690322986108296.post5995430613445749367..comments2023-10-23T15:27:26.222+01:00Comments on A Sceptical I: Fictional Sceptics #6: Star Trek (part 1)Darkwinterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02204745027944941560noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467690322986108296.post-90330797468352687532009-01-09T18:27:00.000+00:002009-01-09T18:27:00.000+00:00Holy Grail seemed a plausible explanation for the ...Holy Grail seemed a plausible explanation for the origins of a religion? Are you sure?<BR/><BR/><BR/>Your comments on the increasing mysticism in DS9 intrigue me - it's been a long time since I watched any Star Trek at all, but the more I think about the first series of DS9 the more sense it makes.<BR/><BR/>The curious thing is that I've always felt DS9 was improved by the differences from Roddenberry's original setting (it always feels like there are more moral ambiguities, more consequences to actions and more character developments that arise from a static setting, and a society with enough tensions to feel realistically cosmopolitan) - perhaps the occasional bout of borderline-loopy mysticism contributed to that?<BR/><BR/>Maybe it's me, but I prefer tension between ideas to secular utopianism. TNG had its occasional tours of the Prime Directive and similar moral dilemmas but I don't remember any low-key ongoing Issues.<BR/><BR/>That said, it's been a while.<BR/><BR/>Looking forward to part the two.Vonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04567409488489870622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467690322986108296.post-38138724164898019402009-01-08T10:39:00.000+00:002009-01-08T10:39:00.000+00:00And a happy new year to you, good Sir Kent. It's ...And a happy new year to you, good Sir Kent. It's good to hear from you again.<BR/><BR/>I grew up with The Next Generation, so the preachy and smug aspects were less pronounced to my young mind - having, as I did, nothing with which to compare it. But looking back now, the Federation's do-gooder attitude does grate on me somewhat.<BR/><BR/>I've only watched the pilot episode of the X-Files, but I did mention it in <A HREF="http://sceptical-i.blogspot.com/2008/05/fictional-sceptics-in-pop-culture.html" REL="nofollow">my initial post</A> inaugurating this series back in May. I did concentrate on the characters there, in that Mulder is the believer and Scully the sceptic - it's interesting to see how each react to the situations.<BR/><BR/>I don't think one thing booted me into the secular camp, as I was more or less raised secular; my parents were careful not to feed me any dogma and let me make up my own mind about these things.<BR/><BR/>That said, and to answer your question, I think growing up watching Star Trek (TNG) would have had quite an impact on my general outlook, most likely formative rather than <I>in</I>formative.Darkwinterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02204745027944941560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467690322986108296.post-70381523250284896492009-01-07T20:41:00.000+00:002009-01-07T20:41:00.000+00:00Happy new year Darkwinter!Great and thought-provok...Happy new year Darkwinter!<BR/><BR/>Great and thought-provoking post, as always.<BR/><BR/>I am afraid that I always found Star Trek too preachy and smug. <BR/><BR/>The TV programme which most interested me from a skeptical point of view was the X-Files. Not so much the main characters and mythology, but the attempt to depict how the government WOULD actually act if they believed there was something in Woo-dom.<BR/><BR/>Long before that, though, what really booted me into the secular camp was Monty Python's Holy Grail, which seemed to me then (as a 10 year old) and does now as a incredibly plausible explanation of the origins of a religion.<BR/><BR/>I am looking forward to the next part of your analysis of Star Trek. Did it influence your outlook, or is was it that it resonated with an outlook you had already formed? Or a mix?<BR/><BR/>Best wishes, JackJack of Kenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00519002603649560097noreply@blogger.com