I agree completely. A collective run by everyone’s brain being cybernetically networked was an interesting, unique idea. A culture run by an amoral dictator is boring and painfully unoriginal.
I think that’s why they got changed though. As cool as they were without a leader, having a major enemy that can’t be negotiated with at all, doesn’t really work for a show where humanity’s diplomacy is supposed to be their most important trait
I don’t think that’s too big of a concern, to be honest. You can’t negotiate with a spacial rift and the show handles that kind of thing fine. I think they were having problems with First Contact’s script and decided to solve it with a named antagonist rather than just hordes of Borg.
Nah, it’s just shit writers who can’t do anything besides low-hanging fruit that has been done before time and again. You could make a very compelling story with the Borg ad a constant threat and they have to convince other factions to help. That’s just one example and Star Trek show writers already did it.
That’s one of the things that made them interesting, though. They were the exception that proved the rule.
They could have told virtually the same story (I’m thinking of First Contact) by having the queen lead a breakaway faction of Borg. She would still have all the memories from The Best Of Both Worlds. In fact, those events could have been what inspired her to lead her own group and pursue Picard.
I agree completely. A collective run by everyone’s brain being cybernetically networked was an interesting, unique idea. A culture run by an amoral dictator is boring and painfully unoriginal.
This is what actually made the Borg terrifying.
There was nobody to talk to or negotiate with. There was no mind to change. There wasn’t even a leader to assassinate in hopes to alter policy.
They were less of an enemy and more of an immutable force, like gravity or magnetism.
YES. They were truly alien, not just another culture with unusual traditions and weird noses. Communication was easy, but simply didn’t matter.
Giving them a leader with understandable emotions and motivations took that away.
They’re as close as Trek ever got to a Grey Goo event.
I think that’s why they got changed though. As cool as they were without a leader, having a major enemy that can’t be negotiated with at all, doesn’t really work for a show where humanity’s diplomacy is supposed to be their most important trait
I don’t think that’s too big of a concern, to be honest. You can’t negotiate with a spacial rift and the show handles that kind of thing fine. I think they were having problems with First Contact’s script and decided to solve it with a named antagonist rather than just hordes of Borg.
Nah, it’s just shit writers who can’t do anything besides low-hanging fruit that has been done before time and again. You could make a very compelling story with the Borg ad a constant threat and they have to convince other factions to help. That’s just one example and Star Trek show writers already did it.
The wolves in the Revelation Space series are a great example of a compelling enemy that can’t be negotiated with.
That’s one of the things that made them interesting, though. They were the exception that proved the rule.
They could have told virtually the same story (I’m thinking of First Contact) by having the queen lead a breakaway faction of Borg. She would still have all the memories from The Best Of Both Worlds. In fact, those events could have been what inspired her to lead her own group and pursue Picard.