At Ease, Mr. Chekhov

Fundy has a post about the possibility of Walter Koenig returning to the role of Pavel Chekhov, albeit in a fan-produced piece for the "New Voyages" series.

I tried watching one of the episodes from this fan series a while back, but I couldn't stomach more than about two minutes of it. Their biggest mistake was in trying to re-cast new actors into the original roles; it's downright blasphemous to an old '60's trekkie. They'd have been much better served by creating new characters set in the original universe.

Something which I find much more enticing--and that may actually be in the works at Paramount, if some of the wisps of rumors I've been picking up on are correct--is the possibility of using virtual actors to recreate the original roles for a new prime-time series. I know that DeForrest Kelly's estate has already agreed in principle to lease his likeness and voice pattern to the studio, and Bill Shatner was apparently approached about it as well.

With the advances in computer animation over the last few years, a completely realistic animation--one indistinguishable from reality--is not at all out of the question. Just look at what was accomplished five years ago, with much more primitive computer hardware, in the Final Fantasy movie. For the record, the movie was horrible, but the technical achievement it represented was absolutely astounding. It's actaully easy to forget that you're not watching real people. If you haven't seen it, just go rent it and watch with the sound off, completely ignoring the so-called plotline; you'll thank me.

In any event, I believe that's where movies and television are inevitably heading. The advantages and opportunities offered by virtual actors far outweigh any benefits of dealing with the prima donnas who comprise most of Hollywood. I think it would be highly apropos for Paramount, in the clothing of Star Trek, to be the first to embrace it.