# Star Wars Versus Star Trek! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 4, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066 "2006-03-04T20:34:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/21 "2006-03-05T18:14:55Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > So, not redirected here from [Stardestroyer.net](http://Stardestroyer.net), I take it? > Or IOW, shinier =/= better, especially in tech. SW runs rings around ST tech. Oh, bullshit. 1 photon torpedo from warp, 1 simple bomb transported into a Star Destroyer’s engines and anything the Empire has is toast. Why is it that simply recognizing that Trek is set in a more technilogicaly advanced universe always makes Star Wars fans squeel like little girls? What’s the big deal, anyway? It’s not a commentary on the quality of Star Wars, it’s just a fact. I personally have a great deal of admiration for the U.S.S. Yorktown (CV-5), but I fully recognize that a modern gunboat could sink her without even going to battle stations. That doen’t detract from what she acomplished in WWII. Are Star Wars fans really that insecure about their franchise? ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/22 "2006-03-05T19:36:58Z")
Errr… we’ve seen that dense metals and shields easily stop transporters, both of which are rather prevelant in Star Wars vessels. Star Wars has ships which are faster, do more damage, mount bigger guns, and can take more punishment. Sure, federation has Warp, but who cares? The Empire isn’t going to sit there and take it for the several hours or so it takes to get blown up. They’ll simply zoom off to another planet and fight there. It’ll take Trek ships days or weeks to follow, by which time the war will be over and done with. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/23 "2006-03-05T21:11:02Z")
> [@Weirddave](#): > > Oh, bullshit. 1 photon torpedo from warp, 1 simple bomb transported into a Star Destroyer’s engines and anything the Empire has is toast. Why is it that simply recognizing that Trek is set in a more technilogicaly advanced universe always makes Star Wars fans squeel like little girls? What’s the big deal, anyway? It’s not a commentary on the quality of Star Wars, it’s just a fact. I personally have a great deal of admiration for the U.S.S. Yorktown (CV-5), but I fully recognize that a modern gunboat could sink her without even going to battle stations. That doen’t detract from what she acomplished in WWII. Are Star Wars fans really that insecure about their franchise? Warp is slower than hyperdrive - how’s that torpedo going to cath the SD? Bomb transported past the SD shields? This is not the ST transporter I know and loathe! Even the presence of the reletively common mineral magnesite throws transporters out, what makes yoy think they’ll transport a bomb through the considerable shields of an SD? Trek fanboys refuse to see the visual evidence in the visuals themselves, and are completely enamoured of the shininess of the tech, not what it’s seen to do. What is your **evidence** that ST tech is superior to SW tech? The existence of the transporter, which can’t transport through shields, isn’t it, I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/24 "2006-03-05T21:14:59Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Warp is slower than hyperdrive - how’s that torpedo going to cath the SD? Not so - the Millenium Falcon, as Han says, can go point (something) above “lightspeed”; so the hyperdrive of normal ships goes at lightspeed. Warp factor 1 is the speed of light, and even the smallest ST ships can go above that. SW fanboy, btw. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/25 "2006-03-05T21:37:33Z")
> [@Revenant Threshold](#): > > Not so - the Millenium Falcon, as Han says, can go point (something) above “lightspeed”; so the hyperdrive of normal ships goes at lightspeed. Warp factor 1 is the speed of light, and even the smallest ST ships can go above that. > > SW fanboy, btw. How do you get from “point 5 past lightspeed” to “hyperdrive … goes at lightspeed”? You have no idea what “point 5” means. But you do know that an ordinary ship can jump from one side of the SW galaxy to the core (e.g. Naboo to Couscant, or Tatooine to Alderaan) in a matter of days, whereas it would take the USS Voyager decades to go from one quadrant of the Milky way to another, travelling at a lot more than Warp 1. Look at the evidence from canon sources, and tell me with a straight face that Warp is faster than Hyperdrive. You can’t. Or read [here](http://www.stardestroyer.net/Empire/Tech/Propulsion/Propulsion2.html) and [here](http://www.stardestroyer.net/Empire/Tech/Propulsion/Propulsion1.html) and get some schooling. ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/26 "2006-03-05T22:31:03Z")
It’s not really a battle if one person runs away, is it? I’m more interested in who would win if both sides decided to stick around. Unfortunately, since one takes place “long ago in a galaxy far away” and the other four centuries in the future, it’s unlikely we’ll ever know. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/27 "2006-03-05T22:38:12Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > How do you get from “point 5 past lightspeed” to “hyperdrive … goes at lightspeed”? You have no idea what “point 5” means. But you do know that an ordinary ship can jump from one side of the SW galaxy to the core (e.g. Naboo to Couscant, or Tatooine to Alderaan) in a matter of days, whereas it would take the USS Voyager decades to go from one quadrant of the Milky way to another, travelling at a lot more than Warp 1. > > Look at the evidence from canon sources, and tell me with a straight face that Warp is faster than Hyperdrive. You can’t. Or read [here](http://www.stardestroyer.net/Empire/Tech/Propulsion/Propulsion2.html) and [here](http://www.stardestroyer.net/Empire/Tech/Propulsion/Propulsion1.html) > and get some schooling. That’s true. I’d say it was a contradiction, though - they must be using different ideas of “lightspeed” if an average SW ship can cross the galaxy so considerably faster than an average ST ship (well, unless the galaxies are different sizes). I didn’t really appreciate the snark on the end, though. I’m sorry I drove you to that. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/28 "2006-03-05T23:19:47Z")
> [@Revenant Threshold](#): > > Not so - the Millenium Falcon, as Han says, can go point (something) above “lightspeed”; so the hyperdrive of normal ships goes at lightspeed. Warp factor 1 is the speed of light, and even the smallest ST ships can go above that. > > SW fanboy, btw. “Lightspeed” in the GFFA is simply slang for hyperdrive capabilities, IIRC. Also, remember, Han frequently pulls stuff out of his ass to make it sound like he knows what he’s talking about. Remember “she made the Kessel Run in less than 6 parsecs?” ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/29 "2006-03-05T23:25:04Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > “Lightspeed” in the GFFA is simply slang for hyperdrive capabilities, IIRC. Also, remember, Han frequently pulls stuff out of his ass to make it sound like he knows what he’s talking about. Remember “she made the Kessel Run in less than 6 parsecs?” There is a fan explanation of that - Kessel is right next to (well, relatively) the Maw, a large group of black holes. To escape the gravity shadow of Kessel, you need to go past the Maw. Han’s saying his skill as a pilot is so great, and that his ship is so good, that he is able to fly closer to the Maw (avoiding the pull of the black holes) and so get free of their gravity shadow sooner. All horribly contrived, though. Just a mistake on Lucas’ part. ---
**Author:** ![Tyrrell\_McAllister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tyrrell_mcallister/32/16772_2.png) [@Tyrrell\_McAllister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tyrrell_McAllister)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/30 "2006-03-05T23:34:08Z")
The Star Trek vs. Star Wars question was debated at length in the thread [Enterprise vs. Star Destroyer](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=23098). ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/31 "2006-03-05T23:39:02Z")
> [@Revenant Threshold](#): > > There is a fan explanation of that - Kessel is right next to (well, relatively) the Maw, a large group of black holes. To escape the gravity shadow of Kessel, you need to go past the Maw. Han’s saying his skill as a pilot is so great, and that his ship is so good, that he is able to fly closer to the Maw (avoiding the pull of the black holes) and so get free of their gravity shadow sooner. > > All horribly contrived, though. Just a mistake on Lucas’ part. Oh, I’m well aware of that-I’m a complete SW nerd, I have almost all of the books, read and WRITE fan fic, etc. I debated puting that in too, but I figured it would be shot down as more of the “Comic Book Guy!” taunts. And even without that explanation, you can’t deny that Han DOESN’T occassionally make shit up to look good. D’uh, it’s Han Solo! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/32 "2006-03-06T01:38:06Z")
> [@Weirddave](#): > > I personally have a great deal of admiration for the U.S.S. Yorktown (CV-5), but I fully recognize that a modern gunboat could sink her without even going to battle stations. That doen’t detract from what she acomplished in WWII. Are Star Wars fans really that insecure about their franchise? OK, I’ll bite, Dave. Let’s take the _Yorktown_ CV-5 with its fighter wing for the Battle of Midway, and put it up against the _Roosevelt_ DDG-80. Stats on the _Arleigh Burke_ DDG-51 Flight IIA class of ships are taken from [http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/ddg-51.htm:](http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/ddg-51.htm:) The _Roosevelt_ sports two Mk 41 Vertical Launching Systems with 96 cells, capable of holding SM-2 Standard or BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles. With proper guidance, a salvo of Tomahawks will shred just about anything that floats. Meanwhile, the _Yorktown_ had, according to [http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/midway/mid-6y.htm](http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/midway/mid-6y.htm), a minimum strike force of 17 SBD-3 scout bombers, 12 TBD-1 torpedo bombers, and several F4F fighters for strike escort and combat air patrol. Add in several scout planes for recon. That many anti-ship bombing planes fatally damaged _Soryu_, and with proper recon would be lethal to a small destroyer. So this hypothetical naval battle comes down to who spots who first and more precisely. Still, I’d probably put money on the smaller (and therefore harder to spot) destroyer, finessing its way around and through the scout planes – and, when necessary, shooting down the scout planes. Once again, the battle comes down to who has better intelligence. Returning now to the OP… Star Wars vs. Star Trek? I say _Star Blazers_! ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/33 "2006-03-06T01:46:18Z")
Trek rules. So there. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/34 "2006-03-06T02:41:52Z")
I just have to say… That film was _awesome_. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/35 "2006-03-06T02:48:25Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Oh, I’m well aware of that-I’m a complete SW nerd, I have almost all of the books, read and WRITE fan fic, etc. I debated puting that in too, but I figured it would be shot down as more of the “Comic Book Guy!” taunts. Ah, every geek has to have a Comic Book Guy moment now and again - where else would we get our reputations for huge pedantry? 😛 > [@](#): > > And even without that explanation, you can’t deny that Han DOESN’T occassionally make shit up to look good. D’uh, it’s Han Solo! 😃 Most definetly. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/36 "2006-03-06T03:46:57Z")
(fangirl mode on) But I bet neither universes could handle a contingent of Saiyajins working for Freeza. 😃 (/fangirl mode off) ---
**Author:** ![mrrealtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@mrrealtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrrealtime)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/37 "2006-03-06T03:55:11Z")
Isnt this argument more like Science vs Religion, that is, in Star Trek everything has a logical scientific explanation, and Star Wars is all about faith and emotion, the technology being unimportant, and largely rubber in science terms? Now that said…God vs. Q. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/38 "2006-03-06T04:06:41Z")
> [@mrrealtime](#): > > Isnt this argument more like Science vs Religion, that is, in Star Trek everything has a logical scientific explanation, and Star Wars is all about faith and emotion, the technology being unimportant, and largely rubber in science terms? Ah, so true. Let me remind everyone: **Star Wars is _not_ Science Fiction!** ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/39 "2006-03-06T04:14:23Z")
Geordi: “Captain! The metachlorins are emitting a tachyon burst with each phase transformation.” Data: “At this rate, they will be able to do the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs.” Picard: :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2006, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066/40 "2006-03-06T04:17:27Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > Ah, so true. > Let me remind everyone: **Star Wars is _not_ Science Fiction!** Neither is Star Trek. Star Wars is Fantasy that looks like Sci-Fi. Star Trek is Trek-Fi, not Sci-fi. So it is, so it shall be. Worlds without end. Amen. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-versus-star-trek/347066.md?page=3)