Section 31 is bad, but Star Trek has to keep trying new things to survive.
This article contains spoilers for Star Trek: Section 31.
It even ranks at the very bottom of our updatedStar Trekmovie rankingand its deserved.
Its easy to see why Trekkies would long for the past.
ButStar Trekis about going forward, even if it stumbles sometimes along the way.
However, the franchise has shown remarkable willingness to change over the years.
Just look at how the franchise evolved while making theTOSmovies.
What started as the sequel seriesStar Trek Phase IIbecameStar Trek: The Motion Picture.
As this short survey of favorites shows,Star Trekworks best when it evolves.
Of course, evolving is only part of the equation.
It also has to be good and compelling, which is the real problem withSection 31and other recent misfires.
Learning From Failure
Section 31introduces a new alien race toStar Trekcanon.
ButSection 31has no interest in any of those questions.
Worse, Fuzz is by far the most irritating character inTrekhistory.
Fuzz might be an extreme example, but he captures the problems withSection 31and modernTrek.
New approaches and new aliens keep the franchise alive.
But they should be thoughtful additions.
A more interesting example may be the flagship series of modernTrek,Star Trek: Discovery.
The series had compelling ideas that arent inherently bad.
Sometimes,Discoverymet those expectations.
But these were the rare exceptions to stories that usually suggested a good cry cured the deepest trauma.
The problem here isnt the form, the theme, or even necessarily the characters.
Its all about the execution, an execution that failed.
But neither do failed changes mean that all change is bad.
But (give or take aGary Seven) the series never suggests that humans become perfect.
They make mistakes, get things wrong, need to change direction.
But that doesnt mean all of its ideas are bad.
It has to keep trying new things, even if we all complain about it online for a while.
Star Trek: Section 31 is now streaming on Paramount+.
