After sucessfully strip-mining every unknown piece of information about the original Start Trek series, our friends at G4 have decided to do the same thing with The Next Generation.Earlier this week, TrekToday.com reported that the network will show all seven seasons of ST:TNG in their patented "2.0" format, with the episode sharing the screen with trivia, behind-the-scenes information, a live chat, and a stock ticker (I can't explain that one; you'll have to see it). They'll also be keeping track of the "Picard Maneuver" -- how many times a crew member tugs down on his or her uniform when he or she stands up -- among other statistics. G4 will start airing ST:TNG 2.0 on January 15 at 9 PM.
I'm sure the folks at G4 will do a fine job with this. But they don't have Wil Wheaton working for them. I mean, as far as behind-the-scenes info and wise-ass reviews are concerned, how much better can you do than using someone who was actually on the show? Wil's been doing a helluva job with his Next Generation reviews, so I'd say check with us first before watching a 2.0 episode. You'll have double the fun.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-08-2006 @ 2:00PM
Scott H said...
This was a bad idea when they did it to the original series. I'm surprised and appalled that they haven't learned their lesson. It squeezes the show itself down to a tiny window surrounded by all their "special" crap, most of which is uninteresting. The crawl along the top sometimes has useful "DVD extra"-type information. My TV is not a computer screen. If I want to watch a TNG episode, I want it to fill the screen. I hope they aren't discontinuing the full-screen showings in favor of this. Bad, bad, idea.
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12-08-2006 @ 2:19PM
Jason Beamaroonitooni said...
I am looking forward to it. I've seen every STTNG episode at least 100 times each, so watching the show with factoids really won't bother me.
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12-08-2006 @ 2:44PM
Wil said...
I absolutely hate that they're doing this. Star Trek 2.0 on G4 takes the content of the show -- presumably the reason people tune in to watch in the first place, and the reason the show is so popular to begin with -- and reduces it to a tiny afterthought on the screen, while a whole bunch of mindless crap scrolls by all around it.
Star Trek 2.0 is he visual equivalent of sitting next to someone who just won't shut up when you want to enjoy a program, and Star Trek:TNG 2.0 will be more of the same. Oh, G4, is there anything cool you can't completely screw up?
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12-08-2006 @ 3:49PM
TomB said...
Lighten up, Wil.
I know from your blog that you hate G4; but I'm really interested in seeing all the trivia and behind-the-scenes stuff scrolling across the top.
I'm sure G4 will show regular eps of STTNG along with the 2.0 shows - just like they do with the original series.
As mentioned before, a lot of us have seen these eps a million times already anyway; and if you don't like 2.0 then there's always SPIKE.
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12-08-2006 @ 3:53PM
Michelle said...
Maybe when Wil walks into a scene there could be a little blurb at the top of the screen "Wil Wheaton hates us for doing this!"
heeheeheehee
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12-08-2006 @ 3:58PM
TomB said...
ST 2.0 reminds me of VH1's pop-up video.
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12-08-2006 @ 6:06PM
Chris said...
I agree with Wil and others, it is annoying to watch with the original series. Its Star Trek for people with really bad case of ADHD.
And as far as the facts along the top go, most people who care already know 90% of them.
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12-08-2006 @ 8:25PM
Keith McDuffee said...
Maybe one of the things that scrolls by on the early episodes will be "Oh btw, Wil Wheaton hates that we're doing this."
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12-09-2006 @ 6:50AM
MaW said...
I was momentarily surprised that Paramount let them do this, but then I remembered that Paramount also let Enterprise onto the air, and my surprise evaporated.
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12-09-2006 @ 12:04PM
wednesday said...
"Its Star Trek for people with really bad case of ADHD."
Gnrf.
I have moderately bad ADHD. Watching Star Trek 2.0 is really, really hard for me to do. I would like to watch the *show*, dammit, but there's all this *stuff* I have to *read* and agh NUMBERS and look INFORMATION and GOD this is insipid but it's MOVING and um what just happened to Edith Keeler there?
Yeah, screw it. I get Spike, TNG is still there, I'll watch that.
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12-09-2006 @ 10:42PM
Matt said...
"Its Star Trek for people with [a] really bad case of ADHD." -chris
"I have moderately bad ADHD. Watching Star Trek 2.0 is really, really hard for me to do." -wednesday
Maybe it should be Star Trek *by* people with really bad ADHD, then?
I kid, I kid. But seriously, it was bad enough when TNN (back when Spike was TNN) put squished TNG and put "You're watching Star Trek: The Next Generation" across the bottom of the screen? Why the hell would G4 do this? I don't want to feel like I'm watching CNN Headline News when I watch Star Trek! Screw off!
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12-10-2006 @ 12:57AM
ManekiNeko said...
No, I think Wil's right! G4 was actually able to find a replacement host for Arena that was ten times more annoying than he was... and that guy's still on the network!
JR
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12-16-2006 @ 4:53PM
Jean said...
Jesus, has society as a whole gotten so ADHD-insane that sitting down to watch a show without a dozen other diversions is unthinkable?
Yeah, I've seen all the shows. And I'll see them again...but not like this. I'll watch them the way the directors and writers intended.
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12-18-2006 @ 4:58PM
Machine said...
G4's programming strategy appears to be to drive people away from G4.In this respect they are wildly succcessful since, apart from TNG reruns, the only thing worth watching on G4 is X-Play... and they had nothing to do with developingth tha.
I'm sure they'll find a way to screw it up at some point.
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2-12-2007 @ 2:03PM
Ayala said...
You are right, Machine - they are screwing it up. They are moving it around and messing with the 2.0 game, just like they did to kill TOS 2.0.
I used to play 2.0 all the time and I was on G4's chat room all the time, but they seem to want to sabotage everything they are successful with.
And, Wil, I still love ya! ;)
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