While fans of Star Trek and Star Wars are not always mutually exclusive groups, there is a certain subset of each that will threaten to fight anyone who declares the other series to be better than the one they hold dear to their hearts. And, if you make the nearly criminal mistake of confusing the two properties, many people on both sides of the divide will get whatever underwear they use twisted into some intricate knots on behalf of their favorite franchise. Well, now it looks like the two properties will finally have something more in common than rabid fans. It looks like CBS' new Star Trek series, Star Trek: Discovery, will be using a ship that takes its design from legendary Star Wars conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie.
So, was this an accident? Apparently not. According to i09, After finally showing the world a glimpse of the new ship in a video that debuted at San Diego Comic Con on Saturday, Star Trek: Discovery executive producer Bryan Fuller was asked about the design of the ship, and its resemblance to the design Ralph McQuarrie had for the un-produced film Star Trek: Planet of the Titans. Here's what he had to say about how much this new ship was influenced by that old design:
[It is] to a point that we can't legally comment on it until we figure out some things.
Well, that sounds an awful lot like the production of Star Trek: Discovery knew exactly what they were doing when they developed the new starship for the show. Unfortunately, it also sounds like they decided to use the Ralph McQuarrie ship before they ironed out all the legal details for getting that design up and running for the new show. I can see why they would take a chance on the design, though. Star Trek: Planet of the Titans was in development from 1976 through 1977, and would have been the first Star Trek film based on the original series. McQuarrie came up with the idea for the design during that time, and because of his work on Star Wars, and the fact that the Star Trek film was never made, his idea for the ship has become a classic. Small models that were made during the development process of the film have actually shown up twice on screen; one was shown docked near the Enterprise in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, while the other is seen in the starship graveyard scene in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II." Take a look at the ship for yourself:
Assuming that the show can secure all the legalities necessary to keep this starship design, I think it'll be nice that Star Trek and Star Wars finally have something obvious in common to bridge the gaps between the two fandoms. We'll get to feast our eyes on Star Trek: Discovery when the show debuts next year.
