One of the best things about streaming TV is that it’s giving media companies a channel to expand their cinematic universes. For us fans, it means there is no end in sight to the new shows being announced, at least for three of the biggest sci-fi properties around: Star Trek, Star Wars, and Marvel (MCU). Expanding a fictional universe through multiple related TV series is not wholly new to TV. There’s already a semi-connected network of shows on the CW based on characters from the DC Comics universe (nicknamed “Arrowverse” after the first series out the gate: Green Arrow). However, after a number of projects have been percolating and gradually moving into production over the last couple of years, a sudden flood of announcements have come in recent months for new series, expanding and adapting more characters and stories in each of these other three TV/cinematic universes, and I’m excited to take a quick (maybe not-so-quick) look at what we know so far.
Star Trek
Let’s start with my personal favourite. A couple of years ago, Star Trek: Discovery revived the long-dormant franchise and became a pretty big success for CBS. In season 1, Discovery ventured into an alternate/mirror universe where we were introduced to the ruthless Emperor Georgiou, played by Michelle Yeoh, who was forcibly exiled to the main universe and became a prisoner/agent of Starfleet. In season 2, Georgiou and Section 31, the black-ops division of Starfleet, was featured prominently and in response to the positive response to her character, it was announced that she would spin off the show into her own series, focusing on Section 31. That series has been in development for a while, and is expected to debut after Discovery season 3 (i.e. some time next year, we hope).
The other featured players in Discovery season 2, were the original pre-Kirk crew of the USS Enterprise (who spent some time on Discovery): Captain Pike, Number One, and of course, Mr. Spock. They were such a hit, that it was almost not a surprise when they were also announced to be getting a spin off show, named Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Very little has been shared (and possibly decided) about this freshly-announced series, but if the title is any indication, it’s expected to hew more closely to the the traditional Star Trek model of space exploration, and take over Discovery‘s spot as a true prequel series (now that Discovery and its crew have vaulted into the distant future).
Speaking of the future, of course, the second new Star Trek series (not counting the bite-sized Short Treks) set decades after Star Trek: The Next Geeneration, was the highly-anticipated Star Trek: Picard, which already enjoyed an (in my opinion, mixed) first season.
The latest Trek to debut (only last week) is a gorn of a different colour: an animated series — a humourous one. Set in the later, Star Trek: The Next Generation time frame, Star Trek: Lower Decks takes a light-hearted look at the crew of the USS Cerritos, focusing not on the captain and her other command staff, but on a group of low-level ensigns and technicians (much like the similarly named TNG episode that inspired this series). Ensigns Mariner and Boimler get into all kinds of trouble as they fulfill their menial jobs, and cope with the funny, mundane stuff that happens in between the space battles and alien contact missions. Boimler, as the nerdy, straight-laced, rule-follower is already one of my personal favourites, and while the show is not drop-dead funny, or an over-the-top sci-fi mind-trip like Rick and Morty, I think it’s got the potential to be a great addition to the expanding Trek universe.
Finally, the latest series announcement is the naming of another Trek in the works: Star Trek: Prodigy. The show is planned as an animated show for Nickelodeon, the American kids network. The series follows a group of lawless teens who discover an abandoned Starfleet ship (‘cos a lot of those are just lying around in the junkyards, right?) and use it to find adventure. It sounds like a lot of fun as well, and I look forward to seeing it when it comes out (supposedly next year, but we’ll see what COVID-19 — wow, in this context that sounds so much like the name of rogue android or something, eh? — has to say about it).
So after years without a Star Trek show, and only a few oddly-disjointed movies (and there may yet be more movies coming!), it’s great to feel like things are picking up again and soon there will be more concurrent series running than ever. “More is better” has become the new Prime Directive.
Star Wars
Compared to arch-rival Star Trek, the Star Wars universe has a different kind of expansion pattern. Consisting mostly of films, the Star Wars oeuvre was dominated by the recently completed “Skywalker Saga” of nine films. Unfortunately, films take a long time to produce, and only provide a couple hours of world-building entertainment. There have always been other media channels expanding the universe: from cartoons to comic books to video games to novels, but most of those did not seem very canonical or mainstream. Recently, thanks to streaming channel Disney+, we got our first major live-action TV addition to the Star Wars universe in The Mandalorian (and how we ever lived without Baby Yoda in our lives, I do not know). The relatively understated, action-packed show was a big success and made us all wish for more (beyond a season 2 of the series). Thankfully, Disney owners already had other additions to the universe hidden up their beskar-armoured sleeves.
After the success of prequel movie Rogue One, about a team of ill-fated rebel heroes who take on the first Death Star, it was announced that Disney+ would be producing a prequel series about one of Rogue One‘s rogues, Cassian Andor (one of my new favourite Star Wars names), played by Mexican actor Diego Luna. Like the Trek shows, apparently it’s a good idea to produce series that focus on different time frames in the larger universe (probably they’re trying to avoid overlapping with other in-universe projects that might be in the works. I guess universes just aren’t as roomy as they used to be!) Story details are scare, and COVID-19 has done its work delaying production on the series, so it’s not clear when it will make it to digital airways.
In the mean time, another prequel series in the works is one that features Ewan McGregor reprising his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi. Also planned for a Disney+ debut as soon as it’s ready (whenever that may be), I’m not sure I can imagine what this series will be about. Didn’t we last see McGregor’s Kenobi heading into hermitdom on Tatooine? I hope we don’t get a Robinson-Crusoe-style tale of one Jedi’s life among the Sand People!
Finally, producers most recently announced a spin-off from the excellent, animated, Clone Wars series. In its final-final season, we were introduced to a special team of clone troopers nicknamed “The Bad Batch” because where most troopers are physically and genetically identical, this group of “mutants” possess some unique and special abilities, making them a superior team of soldiers. Now that the clone armies have been commandeered by the Sith, I’m excited to see how this team of misfits make their way in the post-Clone Wars storyline. Also, I’m glad that the Clone Wars series gets to live on.
With the Star Wars properties, there are always movies in the works, but the studio has decided to delay new movies for at least a couple more years in order to expand the universe on TV. Also, rumours and talks abound regarding other projects in development, including a prequel series featuring Donald Glover as young Lando Calrissian. Apparently it was leaked on a media podcast, but I’m not sure if this one is really happening, especially given Glover’s other acting and music commitments, but the idea would be pretty cool. Star Wars expansion strategy seems to be about featuring characters with fan appeal, and Lando (not to mention Glover) has got a galaxy’s worth of it.
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