Fascinating.

It's Earth Day tomorrow, a celebration of the environment rooted in the socially-conscious optimism of the '60s and '70s. Therefore, it's only appropriate that we have news of a rebirth for another hallmark of '60s and '70s optimism. Geek impresario J.J. Abrams is headed for the final frontier as writer/director of Star Trek 11.

At least for now.

You may remember from last spring that one Erik Jendresen, a screenwriter on "Band of Brothers," had been tapped to write Trek XI. That film would have been set between the end of "Enterprise" and the birth of James T. Kirk, and would have introduced another new crew (the sixth) boldly going, etc.

However, that all appears to have been shot out the torpedo tube in favor of telling Kirk and Spock's first meeting at Starfleet Academy, and "first outer-space mission." If this actually gets made, Abrams and his crew (including "Lost" producers Damon Lindelof and Bryan Burk, and screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci) will indeed go where none have gone before -- recasting the two cultural icons at the heart of the 40-year-old series. You thought a blond James Bond was asking for trouble? How -- how? -- can one replace ... William Shatner? (My gesticulations are implied.)

You can't, of course. Today even Shatner is literally a parody of his former self. It's hard to connect the Shatner of 2006 with the pretty man of 40 years ago, who sat cockily in that command chair with a gleam in his eye and a sly smile creeping across his face. His James T. Kirk had a tremendous magnetism that reached through the screen and made you believe those 400-odd souls aboard the Enterprise would indeed follow him to Hell and back.

The same goes for Leonard Nimoy, the late DeForest Kelley and James Doohan, and the rest of the original series' cast. They are the Mercury Seven of Star Trek, and to remake their adventures is, for some, tantamount to making Scott Glenn the first American in space, or Ed Harris the first American to orbit the Earth. Whoever follows Shatner and Nimoy may, realistically, be only approximations of Kirk and Spock.

Worse, though, is the implication that by revisiting the origins of old-school Trek, Abrams will, to continue the metaphor, have Ed Harris land on the Moon. After all, Abrams' Superman script apparently centered around a Krypton which never exploded, and descended instead into civil war; and had Lex Luthor revealed as a Kryptonian spy. Once again, Abrams has the opportunity to mess with the very foundations of a pop-culture landmark.

Or maybe not. Abrams is fond of nonlinear storytelling -- not just with "Lost" but in countless episodes of "Alias" which jump "72 hours earlier," and even in the Superman script -- and I wouldn't be surprised if Star Trek 11's Academy storyline is subordinate to the main one, 15-20 years later when Kirk assumes command of the Enterprise. After all, the past informs the future, as "Lost" repeats on a weekly basis. Indeed, while Abrams earned the reproach of Superman fandom for his revisions to that legend, he and/or his associates may have more respect for Star Trek lore.

Honestly, it surprises me that someone with Abrams' relatively high profile would be tapped to relaunch a moribund franchise. It's been less than a year since the end of "Enterprise," but almost a decade since the glory days. In the fall of 1996, Star Trek marked its 30th anniversary with tribute episodes on both current TV series; and the movie First Contact showed how humans and Vulcans met in the late 21st century. (That movie also had elements of all four series, and was the springboard for "Enterprise.") On September 8 of this year, Star Trek turns 40, entering middle age with ... what? More news on the 2008 movie, and discounted DVDs?

Obviously Paramount wants Star Trek to succeed, in the same way it wants everything to succeed: so it can make money. The time may even be right for Trek to return. In 2002, Star Trek: Nemesis was competing in theaters against blockbusters Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Two Towers, and Die Another Day, not to mention Attack of the Clones on DVD. Now Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings have ended and 2008 will be an off year for Bond and Potter. If Mission: Impossible III lives up to expectations, and "Lost" continues to prosper, Paramount's marriage of Abrams and Trek will look even better. (Besides, if MI3 tanks, Paramount can blame Tom Cruise backlash.) This may even turn out to be Paramount's Batman Begins moment, reversing the fortunes of one of its most storied properties by giving it to professional fans who actually respect it.

Or it could be, like his Superman involvement, just another false start. Still, there are always possibilities....

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