Ubiquitous
2025-01-09 17:36:22 UTC
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PermalinkNemesis, put a nail in the coffin of what wasat the timea dying Star Trek
franchise. Star Trek: Nemesis saw Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart)
confront a younger clone of himself, Shinzon (Tom Hardy), who had been
created by Romulans to secretly replace Picard. Shinzon had been discarded to
the mines of Remus before becoming the new Romulan Praetor to exact his
revenge. Star Trek: Nemesis' subplot featured the discovery of B-4 (Brent
Spiner), an inferior Soong-type android built before Lt. Commander Data
(Brent Spiner).
In theory, Star Trek: Nemesis' high-stakes cinematic action, with a
screenplay and story by Academy Award-nominated John Logan with Brent Spiner,
was designed to draw casual moviegoers. Further, Star Trek: Nemesis' themes
of identity and duality in its Picard and Data storylines were supposed to
create that cerebral Star Trek touch. In practice, Star Trek: Nemesis fell
apart by packing its 1 hour and 57 minute runtime with more style than
substance. Star Trek: Insurrection's lukewarm reception soured suits on
Jonathan Frakes taking the helm again, but franchise newcomer Stuart Baird
directed Nemesis like a Star Trek movie that was afraid to be Star Trek,
leaving Star Trek: The Next Generation's beloved ensemble rudderless and
inconsistent.
Star Trek: Nemesis Ending Explained
Captain Picard And Lt. Commander Data Team Up To Destroy Shinzon
Star Trek: Nemesis ends with a face-off between the USS Enterprise-E and
Shinzon's massive starship, the Scimitar. Shinzon vowed to take revenge by
using deadly thalaron radiation to wipe out all life on Earth, which the
Enterprise must prevent at all costs. Romulan Commander Donatra (Dina Meyer)
arrives to help the Enterprise, not Shinzon, citing "internal security".
While the Scimitar is distracted by Donatra's Warbirds, Counselor Deanna Troi
(Marina Sirtis) empathically locates Shinzon's cloaked ship, and opens fire.
The Enterprise is outgunned, however, and Remans board the ship to seize what
Shinzon truly wants: Captain Picard.
There have been thirteen Star Trek movies over the last 40 years, but which
is the boldest big-screen adventure to go where no man has gone before?
Rather than suffer more casualties, Picard yields to Reman capture, while
Data crosses the space between the Enterprise and Scimitar's open hulls. As
the thalaron emitter charges, Shinzon and Jean-Luc meet in single combat,
with Picard victoriously spearing Shinzon, who's consumed by his own hubris.
Data places an emergency transport key on his captain and beams Picard back
to the Enterprise, before Data destroys the thalaraon emitter, sacrificing
himself in the process. Data's memory is celebrated on the Enterprise-E, and
Donatra promises Picard a friend in the Romulan Empire.
Shinzon's determination to find and unleash the darkness in Picard's heart is
his own downfall,
At the end of Star Trek: Nemesis, Shinzon's determination to find and unleash
the darkness in Picard's heart is his own downfall. Shinzon and Picard share
DNA and a sense of justice for the downtrodden, but Shinzon insists that
Jean-Luc would be as megalomaniacal as Shinzon is had Picard also been raised
in the darkness of the Reman mines. Picard's equally steadfast insistence
that Shinzon is capable of doing good only proves how alike they are, instead
of supporting the movie's stated point that their backgrounds make them
different.
At the end of Star Trek: Nemesis, Lieutenant Commander Data heroically
sacrifices himself to destroy Shinzon's thalaron emitter and save all life on
Earth. Data's act of bravery ensures the Federation's survival, but
ultimately contributes to Star Trek: Nemesis' reputation as a franchise-
killer. Compared to Spock's (Leonard Nimoy) death in Star Trek II: The Wrath
of Khan, Data's death rings hollow. Unlike The Wrath of Khan building to
Spock's sacrifice, Nemesis doesn't have a narrative throughline that supports
Data's decision, and his replacement is already lined up in B-4.
Datas death in Star Trek: Nemesis was supposed to provide the film with an
emotional climax, but it was an unworthy end to a much beloved character.
Brent Spiner co-wrote Star Trek: Nemesis' story with John Logan, creating his
own graceful exit from Star Trek by killing off Data. As an android, Data
wasn't supposed to age, and Spiner's advancing years were becoming more
difficult to mask with Data's makeup. Star Trek: Nemesis ended with B-4 in
possession of Data's memories on the USS Enterprise-E, however, leaving the
door open for Spiner's return in a future Star Trek: The Next Generation
movie.
Star Trek: Nemesis set up a potential fifth Star Trek: The Next Generation
movie that never happened. Conceptualized by Nemesis screenwriter John Logan
and Brent Spiner, the final TNG movie would have been a crossover between
Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek:
Voyager. Characters from all three TNG-era Star Trek series were slated to
join forces against a massive threat that only a team-up between Star Trek's
finest could thwart. Just as Star Trek Generations passed the franchise to
the TNG cast, the Nemesis follow-up would have led to DS9 or Voyager movies.
Waning interest in Star Trek as a franchise, low box-office returns, and poor
fan reception led to Star Trek: Nemesis ultimately killing future Star Trek:
The Next Generation movies. As Star Trek: Enterprise's pivot to earlier in
the Star Trek timeline suggested Star Trek might be done with the 24th
century, Star Trek: Nemesis opened to a disappointing US$18.5 million box
office. Ticket sales dropped 76% for Nemesis' second weekend, indicating fans
were dissatisfied with the latest TNG movie. Star Trek: Nemesis closed three
months later, after grossing a woeful $43.25 million domestically.
*********************************************************************
Film Title US & Canada Worldwide Budget
---------- ----------- --------- ------
Star Trek Generations $75,671,125 $118,071,125 $38 million
Star Trek: First Contact $92,027,888 $146,027,888 $46 million
Star Trek: Insurrection $70,187,658 $112,587,658 $70 million
Star Trek: Nemesis $43,254,409 $67,336,470 $60 million
*********************************************************************
Seven years passed before Star Trek returned to cinemas with J.J. Abrams'
2009 reboot. The Kelvin Timeline Star Trek movies were a change of pace that
combined Abrams' fresh take with nostalgia for Star Trek: The Original
Series. Although Star Trek Into Darkness received mixed reviews, and Star
Trek Beyond was an underrated gem, Abrams' Star Trek movies renewed interest
in the franchise. The Kelvin Timeline paved the way for Star Trek's return to
televisionand a chance to fix the mistakes made by Star Trek: Nemesis.
Star Trek: Picard fixed Star Trek: Nemesis' mistakes by returning to themes
that Nemesis botched in its delivery. Backed up as a positronic ghost,
Lieutenant Commander Data asked Admiral Picard to grant Data's ultimate wish:
the universal human experience of death. By reframing death as the final step
in becoming human, Star Trek: Picard gave Data's death the meaning it lacked
in Star Trek: Nemesis. Data's legacy lived on in the highly advanced synth,
Soji Asha (Isa Briones), instead of B-4, while Picard's new mirror was Jean-
Luc and Beverly Crusher's son, Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers), instead of
Shinzon.
Star Trek: Picard followed through with Commander Donatra's promise that
Jean-Luc Picard had a friend in the Romulan Empire. Admiral Picard had a
personal investment in evacuating Romulus before the Romulan supernova
destroyed the planet in 2387; this promise ultimately cost Picard his career
when Starfleet called his resignation bluff.
Star Trek: Picard season 3 reunited the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast
for the proper send-off that Star Trek: Nemesis failed to give them. Picard
gave each member of the former USS Enterprise-E crew a spotlight, especially
the characters that Nemesis sidelined, like Captain Worf and Beverly Crusher.
Deanna Troi had more agency in her few Star Trek: Picard appearances than
ever before. Even Data's return was an evolution of his quest for humanity.
Star Trek: Picard allowed Star Trek: The Next Generation to end with the
dignity it deserved instead of being killed by Star Trek: Nemesis.
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Let's go Brandon!