Star Trek is back to episodic television but Looper believes fans are most excited for two-parters.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has rejuvenated Star Trek, getting most fans, old and new alike, to agree that this show is good. To unify two groups of fans, who have been so at odds over the direction of the franchise over the last six years, is impressive. Turns out Strange New Worlds is that good. Sure, it’s not perfect but it’s a series with strong legs and that means it can make its mark.
It’s got so much hype and excitement around it over what the show can be, and what we’ll see, including the debut of James T. Kirk not too far down the line.
Of all the things to be excited for, however, Looper believes Star Trek fans are going to go bananas for two-part episodes once again, and I’m not sure why that’s the case.
Star Trek two-part episodes are a weird thing to get hyped for
Across the history of Star Trek, two-parters have been among the best episodes in franchise history. The Menagerie, Scorpion, Year of Hell, and Past Tense, some of the better episodes in franchise history were two-parters. That is true.
They’re not the only episodes that were beloved, however. Many episodes in Trek’s catalog that rank near the top of the list are single, contained episodes. Yet, Looper found a discussion on Reddit about the topic, and many boiled down to the fact that the two-parters felt like TV movies and that’s why the possible return of two-part episodes is such a big deal.
That said, in today’s changing entertainment climate, most people don’t have time to watch 90-minute mini-movies anymore in one sitting. With YouTube and TickTock offering entertainment in bite-size pieces, it’s not conducive to continue to make longer and longer programming at this point in time.
Sure, things will return to center eventually, and then you can do more two-parters, but for the most part, Trek has to avoid extending their episodes too long. It’s not the 90s anymore and with the quantity of new Trek programming, there isn’t the same demand for longer content.
When it was harder to watch Star Trek, sure, it made sense to wheel out longer episodes split into two parts, but you can now just turn on Pluto TV at any time you want for a free Star Trek fix. So times have changed, and hopefully, Star Trek changes with it.
Do you want to see Star Trek return to occasional two-parters?