What Star Trek and Star Wars Should Learn from Netflix’s Most Popular Shows
By Chris Snellgrove | Published
One of the most underrated aspects of marriage is that it is involved in an ongoing form of cultural negotiation. Throughout your life, both of you will know each other about different interests. This includes favorite songs, food, and books. Of course, if you’re both pop culture fans, that means favorite TV shows, too. Once you’ve binged enough series with your partner, you’ll know a lot about what makes them tick, while watching shows you wouldn’t otherwise check out.
I ended up looking at it that way Bridgertonis the Netflix episode that all ladies love. I was surprised by how much I liked this all-girls-crazy show, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed its up-and-coming cast (#TeamBenedict over here). But as a lifelong sci-fi nerd, I was also impressed by how much Star Trek and Star Wars I could learn from this Netflix show. You see, Bridgerton he’s focused on doing something these popular sci-fi readers have forgotten how to do: simply giving fans more of what they love, year after year.
The Ultimate Ladies’ Show
Bridgerton a show that takes place elsewhere in the 19th century and focuses on a family called the Bridgertons. Each season focuses on the marriage of one of the Bridgerton children, and there are plenty of plays on who they end up with, as well as plenty of intrigue from London’s wealthy Regency-era families. Presiding over all these proceedings are two powerful women: Queen Elizabeth, a monarch who loves nothing more than romantic drama, and Lady Whistledown, an unknown self-published tabloid writer who amuses everyone by gossiping about local residents.
What does a romantic drama aimed specifically at women have to do with Star Trek and Star Wars, two franchises that are usually (though not exclusively) aimed at men? The short answer is that, unlike these sci-fi characters, Bridgerton it never changes its essential formula. Of course, each season focuses on a different main character and different stories among the supporting cast. Well, you can bet your latest copy of Lady Whistledown that each season will feature the following: Bridgerton falling in love with an unexpected partner, drama about how they came from two different countries, a few steamy sex scenes, and a big wedding.
Farce Awakens
Mind you, this is not a criticism: the people who make this show know indeed what their audience wants, and they deliver each season, like clockwork. The show’s first season had over 82 million viewers, making it Netflix’s most-watched series. Now, Netflix is on the way to adapt all eight of Julia Quinn’s bestselling Bridgerton books into their own seasons. While the show has tweaked some storylines, it’s generally stayed close to the vibe of Season 1 because of a simple philosophy: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
The two biggest sci-fi franchises in the world didn’t get that memo. While The Force Awakens was a soft reboot of A New HopeDisney spent the entire Sequel Trilogy trying to do something completely different than the original Star Wars trilogy. The failure of these films was so complete that the House of Mouse turned to the small screen, where major failures (such as The Acolyte again The Book of Boba Fett) are the most deviating from the original formula. Successful shows, on the other hand, are built around existing legends (like Ahsoka again Obi-Wan Kenobi) or at least depending on the spirit of the OT (The Mandalorian again Andor).
Walking Cold
The same thing happened when Star Trek returned to the small screen. The most popular shows have been the ones that recreated the formula of The Original Series (like Strange New Worlds) or serves as a love letter to the Golden Age of ’80s and ’90s Trek (as Lower Decks). Some incomplete shows: Picard it only got better in the final season, when Paramount finally gave us the TNG reunion we wanted from the beginning. Adoptionhowever, it was only canceled when it stopped trying to update the TOS and tried to do something new. Disco explosion Starfleet Academy was the most unusual Trek ever made, and was canceled soon after its first season.
The lesson is so simple that a blind man can see it (sorry, Geordi): the producers of these blockbuster sci-fi franchises need to stick to what works. Star Trek and Star Wars fans aren’t going to suddenly wake up one day and want something completely different than what they fell in love with in the first place. Like Luke Skywalker and his obsession with colorful milk, these fans know what they want. Simply put, they want the same formula with little tweaks and surprises. In other words, what do they want Bridgerton fans get each season!
I’m no Lady Whistledown, but here’s what I hope Disney and Paramount learn from your success Bridgerton: no one wants you to change the formula and create, say, a “New Coke” for Star Wars. They want the stories of tomorrow to focus more on the success stories of the past.
The more producers try to subvert our expectations and completely change what has worked before, the more they ruin what made these franchises successful in the first place. Netflix got it, and it’s time for other broadcasters to internalize a simple message in the galaxy: if you keep giving people what they want, they’ll keep wanting what you have to give!
