Memory Alpha:AOL chats/Ronald D. Moore/ron050.txt

Subj: Answers Date: 8/20/97 7:02:16 PM From:  RonDMoore

<< Several people seem to think Damar could have been attracted to Ziyal in "Return to Grace." This stems from his eagerness to help her in engineering and how he was the one who taught her the knife trick. Any chance of anything like that occuring? Do you think Dukat is grooming Damar to be a choice for Ziyal, or am I way ahead of myself?>>

Without confirming any of the specifics you've mentioned, I can tell you that we have some very definite plans for the future of Damar and Ziyal.

<>

My only real gripe was the music -- I had hoped it would be more like the orginal score and I thought it hurt the show particularly during the barroom brawl by changing the tone of the scene. Rene and I also had this idea to redo the entire end title sequence as an homage to the original series, with freeze frame shots from various DS9 episodes in the background, the TOS end credit music and changing the font of our credits to match theirs. That idea never got very far chiefly because we were the only proponents of it and also because the show was so far over budget that we couldn't afford to spend any more money anyway.

<>

That's kind of an unfair question. I don't know what I would've (or could've) done differently if I was on Voyager, and to make that kind of critique now seems like monday morning quarterbacking to me.

<>

I've always felt that Starfleet is the military/exploratory/scientific arm of the UFP, and that its charter incorporates all three missions.

<>

The fave of the moment is, "Lions and Giegers and Bears" "Oh, my."

<>

The revelation that Bashir had been a changeling for a few episodes was something that came up during the story break of "Purgatory's Shadow." We thought it would be a really cool surprise and a quick check of the preceeding episodes showed that it wouldn't damage anything in those shows (although Rene did have reservations about the Changeling-Bashir delivering Kira's baby). As for the genetic alterations in Bashirs background, I felt that it was explaining Julian's character rather than changing him. It also filled in a lot of blanks that were present in the character's backstory.

Subj: Answers Date: 8/20/97 7:03:12 PM From:  RonDMoore

<

Now, this brought up my question: It is my belief that a writer is not an artist, especially a screenwriter. I believe a writer is a craftsman. Was the use of "artist" a reflection of your opinion on this matter, or not?>>

Personally, I think of myself and other writers as artists. I believe in a fairly loose definition of "art" as almost any creative form of expression and that writing (and screenwriting) certainly falls within that category.

<>

As far as I know, we're still using a mix of models and CGI on the show and will continue to do so in the future. All the elements you've mentioned are still filmed using models on occasion.

<<when Gene created TNG and the Enterprise-D, his ideal was to make Starfleet "family friendly," so servicemen and women wouldn't have to leave their families behind, and that all could be truly comfortable on a starship and call it a home. In recent years, though, TPTB have done away with the "luxury liner" version of starships.... My question: was the concept and intent of the Galaxy-class ship flawed? Should all Starfleet ships be lean-and-mean military vessels? Or is it still possible for a Starfleeter to have a family life and a shipboard career at the same time?>>

I think that the "family friendly" starship notion was an interesting idea, but one that didn't pan out. There was always something awkward about Picard ordering the ship into battle situations with kiddies running through the corridors. And no matter how much lip service we paid to the "our families are part of our strength" concept, it never seemed very smart or very logical to bring the spouse and kids along when you're facing down the Borg, or guarding the Neutral Zone, or plunging the ship into uncharted spatial anomalies.

<<Ron, I was wondering what your thoughts were on the relationship between Picard and Nella Darin (the pianist from "Lessons" for those of you who don't remember.) Do you see this as one of the more promising relationships for Picard, and possible one that could be explored on film? What about the rest of the staff, and for that matter, Patrick Stewart? Do you think this relationship could have had potential should it not have been filmed in the "lets give the captain a love of the week" episode format?>>

I liked the relationship with Nella and wanted it to continue aboard the Enterprise, but that view was in the minority. I thought that she matched up well with Picard and that we should've just played it out over several episodes. I doubt they'll bring her into the movies.

<< Do you know the history behind the name of the character Dr. Noonien Soong? I heard that Gene was friends with a Noonien Soong in the army when he was younger, and he lost contact whit him. I also heard that Gene names Data's creator Noonien Soong in hopes that the real Soong would see the show and contact Gene. Is this true?>>

I've heard both these rumors, but to my knowledge they're just rumors. I don't know the real story behind the name.

<>

I didn't know there was going to be a quiz.

Subj: Answers Date: 8/20/97 7:03:59 PM From:  RonDMoore

<>

Not at the present time.

<>

On one level, Worf was speaking of the fact that he cut his ties to the family of Mogh when he let Kurn go. On another level, I think that it was a Freudian slip, and that Worf has psychologically distanced himself from Alexander (something that we'll be following up on this season).

<>

I think this group was made irrelevant when the Cardassians joined the Dominion, so there aren't any plans to revisit this plot thread.

<??

We hadn't mapped out the future of the True Way before we started thinking seriously about Cardassia joining the Dominion. I think our initial concepts were that they were a sort of fundamentalist group dedicated to the return of the old Cardassian government.

<<I have pitched a few times to Voyager. And though I know that you don't work that side of the building, you still might have some insight. Each time I've pitched, I pitched to a different producer. I usually wait about six months to set up a new pitch date. I prepare the type of material I was told they were looking for (at the last pitch) and they are looking for something different or more frequently they just shot one very similar. Do you think the six months between pitches makes the advise given at the previous pitch less reliable for my situation? Do you think each producer's style is different enough that Jeri may like something that Brannon doesn't and so on and so on.>>

Your experience sounds pretty typical. Each producer is different and responds to different material and it's really just the luck of the draw to determine who you're going to see.

<>

The plaque on my wall says she was commissioned on Stardate 49827.5 and was built in the San Franciso Yards.

<< Any chance of seeing another Temporal Causuality Loop like in the TNG episode Cause and Effect?>>

I don't think so.

<>

Wish I could take credit for this one, but the name Terok Nor was selected while I was still on TNG.

<>

All the names you've mentioned are taken from the Trek novels and are not considered part of the "canon."