Star Trek vs. Star Wars

Upon hearing the news that Star Trek II will begin pre-production soon, I read about five blog entries to get myself up to date on the progress.  I had to make sure the original cast was returning-- I had to find out who the possibilities were for the villain.  I just had to...

In the last few weeks, I've also been reading about the Star Wars series blu-ray release (with the ridiculous dialog additions...).  Since we don't have a blu-ray (yet!), we'll have to wait for the DVD release of the set.  Oh well, I'm a fairly patient person.  Sigh...

So, these co-ordinated releases of information (because one series cannot be out-done by the other) begs the ancient question:  Which is better?  Star Trek or Star Wars?

Hello, my name is Diana, and I am a sci-fi junkie.  Hello, Diana!

If you want to answer an important question, look to your past.  I have two specific memories that are very clear from my childhood about watching the original Star Trek series & watching Star Wars IV, V & VI...specifically Return of the Jedi.

I would visit with my Dad on weekends & we would do all sorts of things together-- fishing, playing catch.  I even made my very own chair out of the wood scraps from a beautiful Adirondack chair that he constructed.  My chair barely held my body weight...and I think I was about 8 or 9 at the time! 

But when all of that stuff was done, and we just wanted to hang out in the front room & watch T.V., we had our favorites.  Dukes of Hazard, a couple of cool cartoons on Saturday mornings (Scooby Doo & Captain Caveman), and...wait for it...Star Trek!  Dad always said he thought the way that William Shatner played Captain Kirk was hilarious-- and he loved Spock, of course!  But I think he really loved the way Dr. McCoy (Bones to the rest of us) busted Spock's balls all the time.  He was so curmudgeon-y...always in a bad mood.  I'm pretty sure that's when my love of Star Trek started.

My love of Star Trek was reignited when Next Generation began.  I literally fell in love with that show...just ask my husband!  We had a framed poster of all the characters from the show hanging in our first apartment!  There was something about the chemistry of the cast-- Captain Picard, Riker, Data <3.  Out of all the Star Trek series that followed, Next Generation is still my favorite & holds a special place in my heart.  Love it!

As for Star Wars, well... I don't know or remember if we ever went to see Star Wars or Empire Strikes Back at the theaters.  But I remember vividly going with my family to see Return of the Jedi.  It's probably why it's my favorite episode (well... it might be a very close second to Revenge of the Sith). 

Star Wars has the classic Good vs. Evil scenario.  Jedi are good, Sith are evil.  Everyone has their favorite characters, right?  Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Yoda...the list goes on and on.  My personal favorite is Darth Vader (and for fellow sci-fi nerds, that may explain why my favorite episodes are III & VI). 

Episode III (Revenge of the Sith) shows how/why Anakin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader-- and being the mushy slub of a romantic that I am, I can see why.  He was willing to do anything to save his wife & child(ren).  Unfortunately, he had too much anger inside his soul...and he let his anger consume everything...including his identity.

But, as we all know (I hope), Anakin Skywalker was "the chosen one".  He was predicted to be the one to bring peace & alliance.  While he did take a huge u-turn in Revenge of the Sith, he was ultimately the one to destroy the Emperor & bring peace to the galaxy.  And so, he fulfilled his destiny.  Good stuff...

So, what's the answer?  Who will prevail in the age-old battle between the two most beloved & character-driven sci-fi stories in history?

Here's my answer...

They both kick ass!! ;)