# De-cannonize a plot point **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 24, 2002, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320 "2002-04-24T10:52:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/1 "2002-04-24T10:52:18Z")
Reach deep into your fanboy/fangirl soul and find the one plot point you most want to change. From Star Trek to the Brady Bunch, from midichlorines to Andrew Keaton. For me I would erase the death of David Marcus in **Star Trek III** I liked him. I connected him. And before **Enterprise** , before **Voyager** , even before **Deep Space 9** I had envisioned a series around a young James T. Kirk struggling to deal with the fact that he’s named after one of the Federations most famous captains. Struggling with all the expectations that would come with carrying that name. Which is an idea that would work best if said James T. Kirk was the grandson of the original, perhaps named so after the Enterprise-B incident? Surnames being a little more freely used in the future. Poor David. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/2 "2002-04-24T12:15:41Z")
I actually don’t mind the _idea_ of midichlorians; after however many thousands of years it makes sense that the Jedi’s had managed to quantify force power. I’d imagine that we’d have figured out how to do the same if priests and the like had the powers of biblical figures :). I wish he’s done it as some sort of energy field measurement rather than a cell count though. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/3 "2002-04-24T12:18:50Z")
As for bits of canon I’d like to change – I’d erase the rape scene from the Thomas Covenant chronicals. My mum bought the book for me when I was younger, and many people have told me how good it is, but I can’t stomach reading a book where the hero is a rapist. I never read past that scene. I can understand the logic behind it, but if I was somehow whisked off to a magic fairy land I’d find some other way of proving to myself it wasn’t real. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/4 "2002-04-24T12:43:53Z")
Only one? Hmm…that’s gonna be tough. It’s either going to be Darth Vader being Luke’s father or the midichloriens. Maybe I’ll just zag instead of zig and prevent that whole Hal Jordan Zero Hour debacle. Hal didn’t deserve that. ---
**Author:** ![Why\_A\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/13edae/32.png) [@Why\_A\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Why_A_Duck)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/5 "2002-04-24T12:56:08Z")
Marcus shouldn’t have died. It would’ve been nice for Ivanova to finally get some (what with Talia being dissected and all that). ---
**Author:** ![Trion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Trion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trion)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/6 "2002-04-24T13:01:09Z")
Jean Grey stays dead. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/7 "2002-04-24T13:40:00Z")
Beverly Chrusher practiced Safe Sex. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/8 "2002-04-24T13:56:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Trion \* > \*\*Jean Grey stays dead. \*\* Oooh…good one. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/9 "2002-04-24T13:57:32Z")
“Luke, I am your father” wasn’t half as bad at “Leia is your sister.” That’s the exact point Star Wars jumped the shark, big time. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/10 "2002-04-24T14:00:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*\* “Leia is your sister.” . \*\* That’s a pretty standard plot device in the swashbuckling genre SW springs from. ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/11 "2002-04-24T14:23:16Z")
Perhaps more a change in narrative style than plot, but I would take out the last 2 minutes in the Usual Suspects-- after the cop looks around and realized that he thinks he’s been had, and before Spacy does the zippo thing and gets in the car with Kobayashi. I liked it better when we were wondering. I like my endings ambiguous. And there’s so much to change about the last Twin Peaks episode I don’t know where to start. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/12 "2002-04-24T14:51:30Z")
There’s always the Prime Directive. Eliminating the Prime Directive from Star Trek would have also eliminated a lot of dialog like “Captain, this will violate the Prime Directive.” “Yes, but we must do it to save this society.” The Prime Directive would have been a lot more interesting if even one of the Captains had simply said “Sorry, Prime Directive says we can’t help you.” and spent the next 54 minutes going off to another story. ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/13 "2002-04-24T15:11:37Z")
Leia has Luke’s sister-- it makes little sense and screw’s up many earlier plot points to boot. Back-up, Spock getting reborn in ST3. Or maybe all of ST5 (sudder). -me ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/14 "2002-04-24T15:15:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kunilou \* > \*\*There’s always the Prime Directive. > > Eliminating the Prime Directive from Star Trek would have also eliminated a lot of dialog like > > “Captain, this will violate the Prime Directive.” > “Yes, but we must do it to save this society.” > > The Prime Directive would have been a lot more interesting if even one of the Captains had simply said “Sorry, Prime Directive says we can’t help you.” and spent the next 54 minutes going off to another story. \*\* And of course, the real bummer is that the one captain that _wasn’t_ bound by the PD, didn’t act when he had the chance. When the main species (Velokians?) of a planet were dying and the Doctor could have cured them, Archer chose to stand by and let them die (and so that another species could develop and become the dominant species on the planet.) Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/15 "2002-04-24T15:15:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by elf6c \* > \*\*Leia has Luke’s sister-- it makes little sense and screw’s up many earlier plot points to boot. > > Back-up, Spock getting reborn in ST3. Or maybe all of ST5 (sudder). > > -me \*\* Argh! preview man preview! :rolleyes: has = as sudder = shudder Obviously time for a caffeine run-- sorry all! ---
**Author:** ![Kirkland1244](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dc4da7/32.png) [@Kirkland1244](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kirkland1244)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/16 "2002-04-24T15:18:05Z")
I would de-canonized every last frame of Voyager. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/17 "2002-04-24T15:22:56Z")
Leia would become Luke’s sister’s lesbian lover. _Bown-chikka-chikka-bown_ ---
**Author:** ![Dante](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dante/32/9673_2.png) [@Dante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dante)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/18 "2002-04-24T15:27:04Z")
I’m _reeeeeeeeeeeeally_ with **Legomancer** on the Zero Hour storyline. Myself, I could have done without the last 15 seconds of _Unbreakable_. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Maximino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e95f7d/32.png) [@Mighty\_Maximino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Maximino)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/19 "2002-04-24T15:49:23Z")
John Sheridan’s first wife is Anna Sheridan. Actually, I’d like to eliminate large swaths of B5’s fifth season. I know why it was that way, but craptacular is craptacular, no matter the reason. ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2002, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320/20 "2002-04-24T16:04:19Z")
Ditto **Mighty Maximino** ditto! And most of the B5 movies and the two abortive attempts at post-B5 series as well. End it at Season 4. Oh well. The first season of ST:TNG and ST-DS9 I could do without was well. . . . _-me_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/de-cannonize-a-plot-point/105320.md?page=2)