Paramount+ continues to evolve its catalog and add new projects or bring back fan favorites, and its latest addition is great news for Star Trek fans. At the moment, Star Trek fans could use some positive news, as the franchise is in a development limbo thanks to the lengthy Paramount and Skydance merger as well as the ending of several previous projects. While fans wait to see what the future holds, at least you can pass the time with a Sci-Fi gem.
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That Sci-Fi gem is none other than the beloved Galaxy Quest, which charmed viewers when it hit theaters in 1999. The film walked the line between parody and loving homage to Star Trek as well as the science fiction genre as a whole, and fans have been calling for a sequel for years. Now you can watch it on Paramount+, and it should help pass the time until Paramount starts revealing some concrete plans for Star Trek.
Why People Love Galaxy Quest
Galaxy Quest was in many ways a love letter to the science fiction genre, especially regarding Star Trek, and there was a bevy of fandom references and easter eggs throughout the film. One of the most popular running gags throughout the movie was how it referenced the red shirts of Star Trek. They were represented in the form of Guy (played by Sam Rockwell), and in keeping with the theme, he was constantly worried about dying and not making it to the end of the adventure. Ironically, he did survive, and he was at the center of some of the film’s best moments.
Being that this was a group of actors and not an actual crew, there were lots of meta jokes regarding the process of creating a show. References to the script being badly written or to not keeping up with the show are woven in throughout, and there’s even comedy in some of the names, like Tim Allen’s character being named Peter Quincy Taggart, which is based on Peter Quince, who led an incompetent acting troupe in Midsummer Night’s Dream. Even the ship’s name is an ode to Star Trek. The name of the ship is NTE-3120, and NTE actually stands for Not The Enterprise.
Commentary on Geek Culture
Galaxy Quest was actually a bit ahead of its time in regard to how it portrayed and talked about geek culture and the prevalence of conventions. There are some hilarious moments based around the actors appearing at conventions and advertising around nostalgic properties, which gave us the now infamous “By Grabthar’s Hammer…what a savings” line from Alan Rickman.
Since the film’s release, comic conventions have become far more prevalent and important in the grand scheme of geek culture and marketing to fans. That’s why a sequel would have plenty to explore if it were to make it off the ground, and while there was some movement on a follow-up TV series earlier this year, nothing has been confirmed about the project in a few months.
Galaxy Quest can now be streamed on Paramount+.
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Image courtesy of Virgin Films -
Image Courtesy of Netflix -
Image courtesy of Netflix.
