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1. Choose an official extension of a media franchise that you’re familiar with, such as a film, TV season, comic,
or novel and analyze its paratexts using concepts discussed throughout the class. Your analysis should focus on
EITHER a) official marketing/promotional paratexts (trailers, posters, web marketing, publicity, packaging and
bonus features, etc.) OR b) official merchandising paratexts (clothing, toys, product tie-ins, etc.).
For example, you could analyze the promotional campaign for the upcoming James Bond film, or the toys and
clothing released to promote the latest season of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
2. Consider these kinds of questions as you develop your thesis: What narrative, economic, and cultural
functions do these paratextual materials serve? How do they frame the primary text they are attached to, and
shape audience expectations or interpretations? What aspects of the main text do they highlight, and what do
they leave out? How are they situated in relation to the wider media franchise, and how do they negotiate
“difference and deference” (Johnson)? What connections do they establish between different parts of the
franchise?
3. Your analysis should be grounded in concepts we’ve discussed in class, in particular weeks 8-9, and should
directly reference the course readings to demonstrate your understanding. Additional sources outside of the
course readings are not required, but may be helpful as you develop your ideas.
4. This should be structured as an academic essay with a thesis related to the role of paratexts in media
franchises. Make sure to pay attention to the specific properties of your chosen paratexts, and analyze a few
specific examples to illustrate your observations. (You may want to focus on a recent case study so that you can
access the relevant paratexts easily.)
Cite your sources properly and include a Works Cited page. Submit as a word (double-spaced, 12pt Times New
Roman, 2.54cm margins).
Week 8 Readings
•
•
•
Jonathan Gray, “Introduction: Film, Television, and Off-Screen Studies” 1-22 in Show Sold Separately:
Promos, Spoilers, and other Media Paratexts (2010)
Jonathan Gray, “In the World, Just Off-Screen: Toys and Games” [excerpt] 175-187 in Show Sold
Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and other Media Paratexts (2010)
Matt Donnely, “How COVID-19 Rocked Hollywood’s $125 Billion Licensing and Consumer Product
Cash Cow” Variety (2020) https://variety.com/2020/biz/features/covid-19-wonder-woman-1984-minions1234823228/
Week 9 Readings
•
Derek Johnson, “Sharing Worlds: Difference, Deference, and the Creative Context of Franchising” 107152 in Media Franchising: Creative Licensing and Collaboration in the Creative Industries (2013)
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
Gray, Jonathan. Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts.
E-book, New York: New York University Press, 2010, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/heb.31973.
Downloaded on behalf of University of Toronto
This copy was made in accordance with the University of Toronto’s Fair Dealing Policy, and the exceptions granted under Section 29 of the Copyright Act. In keeping with the Fair Dealing guidelines, you are allowed to make one copy for the sole purpose of research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, education, parody or satire. If the copy is used for the purpose of review, criticism or news reporting, the source and the name of the author must be noted. Use of this copy for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner.
Media Franchising
Creative License and Collaboration in the
Culture Industries
Derek Johnson
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
This copy was made in accordance with the University of Toronto’s Fair Dealing Policy, and the exceptions granted under Section 29 of the Copyright Act. In keeping with the Fair Dealing guidelines, you are allowed to make one copy for the sole purpose of research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, education, parody or satire. If the copy is used for the purpose of review, criticism or news reporting, the source and the name of the author must be noted. Use of this copy for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner.
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
www.nyupress.org
© 2013 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet Websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing.
Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs
that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Johnson, Derek, 1979Media franchising : creative license and collaboration in the culture
industries / Derek Johnson.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8147-4347-8 (hbk. : alk. paper) – ISBN 978-0-8147-4348-5
(pbk: alk. paper) – ISBN 978-0-8147-4349-2 (ebk.) ISBN 978-0-8147-4389-8 (ebk.)
1. Cultural industries. 2. Franchises (Retail trade)
I. Title.
HD9999.C9472J64 2013
658.8’708-dc23
2012040758
New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper,
and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability.
We strive to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials
to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
C
10987654321
p 10987654321
This copy was made in accordance with the University of Toronto’s Fair Dealing Policy, and the exceptions granted under Section 29 of the Copyright Act. In keeping with the Fair Dealing guidelines, you are allowed to make one copy for the sole purpose of research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, education, parody or satire. If the copy is used for the purpose of review, criticism or news reporting, the source and the name of the author must be noted. Use of this copy for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner.
3
Sharing Worlds
D({ference, Deference, and the Creative Context ofFranchising
In the 2009 made-for-TV animated movie Turtles Forever, the villainous
Shredder offers a surprisingly cogent theoretical model for understanding the
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. To celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the franchise, the film shows viewers what would happen if the
more serious and edgier turtles from the 2003-2009 animated series crossed
paths with the cuter and goofier turtles from the 1987-1996 series. Having
encountered these turtles from different moments of production, the 20032009 Shredder muses that “ours is but a single dimension in a multiverse
of dimensions:’ Seeing this structure as a way to defeat his enemies across
multiple universes, he reveals a sinister plot: “Like branches hanging off a
single tree, each of these dimensions sprang from a common source. Destroy
the source, and you would set off a chain reaction that would destroy Ninja
Turtles everywhere … forever more!” By scanning the “source DNA” shared
by both groups of turtles, Shredder believes he can locate “Turtle Prime”
(the world of the original comic, of course), destroy it, and thereby bring
an end to the Ninja Turtles-and as implied by the meta-discourse of the
telefilm, the Ninja Turtles franchise. Despite his cartoonish plot, Shredder
theorizes the franchise as a set of common elements shared across multiple,
iterative interpretations of the same world. Shredder understands franchising as a balance between sameness and difference, between source DNA and
potential elaborations of it. Those potential differences are then emphasized
throughout the film, as the two (and eventually three) groups of turtles point
out the pleasures and identifications to be taken in divergence. “Check out
the initialized belt buckles on these yahoos;’ one of the 2003 turtles remarks
of his 1987 counterparts, thereby calling attention to his own supposedly
more refined visual design. “How lame can you get?”
For creative laborers working with franchise properties, too, this potential
for difference and variation proves quite important as a means of distinguishing creative interest and negotiating meaningful production identities in the
use of intellectual property resources shared across industrial networks.
Despite having created the comics that inspired the blockbuster films Hellboy
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This copy was made in accordance with the University of Toronto’s Fair Dealing Policy, and the exceptions granted under Section 29 of the Copyright Act. In keeping with the Fair Dealing guidelines, you are allowed to make one copy for the sole purpose of research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, education, parody or satire. If the copy is used for the purpose of review, criticism or news reporting, the source and the name of the author must be noted. Use of this copy for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner.
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laborers use these resources and construct meaningful discourses and identities in recognition of their use in other industrial contexts. How do “peer”
laborers in similar positions of institutional power (working on parallel television spin-offs, for example) share franchise resources in such a way as to
embrace that shared use while also making creative claims to unique professional identities? Producers and production communities in these franchises
have developed specific formal and discursive strategies to take pleasure in
world-sharing while also claiming territory within them and distinguishing
themselves as creatively identified agents. Yet while “peer” communities may
work to emphasize difference between uses of worlds extending from similar institutional positions, how do networked media laborers also position
themselves as meaningful creative subjects when sharing worlds from positions of institutional inequality? For licensees and others working in less valued, prestigious, or powerful institutional contexts, the use of shared worlds
has often required a deferential identification with more privileged sites of
production in cultural and industrial hierarchies. This tension between difference and deference in world-sharing demonstrates that franchised production has been neither homogeneous, nor devoid of creativity, nor a site of
authorial unity. Instead, media franchising has served as a site of negotiated
identification for unequal creative stakeholders that variously navigate distinction, power, and fealty via their interests in shared cultural resources.
Old Media World, New Media Design
Given that franchising works through an intensified episodicity similar to
that of television production, television studies offers a productive starting
point from which to consider the creative construction of worlds. In his study
of fan cultures, Matt Hills situates cult television formations in the coherence
and continuity of what he calls “hyperdiegesis”: vast, detailed narrative space
only partially seen on screen but operating according to an internal logic and
ontology. 13 Similarly, Kurt Lancaster examines immersion and performance
within the television world of Babylon 5 across an “imaginary entertainment environment” in which the fantasy world becomes tangible through
the systemic interface of card games, CD-ROMs, and other ancillary texts. 14
Janet Murray too argues that the marriage of television and the computer
will result in “hyperserial” formats in which artifacts from fictional television
worlds migrate to online spaces where audiences can virtually interact with
them. 15 Aptly, that hyperseriality makes the hyperdiegetic spaces of television
navigable. Yet while these scholars trace the complex relationship between
television textuality and interactive reception, Jeffrey Sconce notes the utility
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my starting point. … In the beginning it was a very subtle idea that was basically in my head, but as the series went on, there became places where I could
actually implement this:’ 49 One such opportunity came in the third season
finale, “Crossroads;’ wherein Moore requested a cover version of Bob Dylan’s
“All Along the Watchtower” as it would be performed in the Battlestar world.
Although the Sci-Fi network offered to pay the license fee for the recognizable Jimi Hendrix version, Moore refused, explaining that “the idea was that
the lyrics of a song, and the song itself … could be passed from culture to
culture, or have found its way through the mists of time from one place to
another:’ Battlestar’s interpretation of the song needed to sound unique and
appropriate to the still unheard but already overdesigned popular music of
that world. To create this diegetic music, McCreary asked himself: “What
does their rock and roll sound like? And I knew exactly what it sounded
like. It sounded like my score, because my score was supposedly drawn from
their popular music:’ 50 Thus, the aural design of the diegetic music cue was
elaborated from the non-diegetic score which was itself elaborated from an
overdesigned conception of music in the diegetic world. While McCreary
essentially drew from his own creative practice here, rather than sharing in
an existing cultural tradition (except of course that shared with Bob Dylan,
Jimi Hendrix, and all those who have produced the song anew), his elaboration on the popular music of the Battlestar world became a collaborative
resource for the writers to later expound upon themselves. Twelve key notes
from McCreary’s “All Along the Watchtower” became a story device, corresponding to the spatial coordinates of the planet where the Colonial Fleet
settles in the series finale.
Not all world design for television franchises has occurred within the
specific confines of television labor, however. Kevin Grazier, a scientist
at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, moonlighted as a consultant for the
reimagined Battlestar, responsible for vetting scripts for scientific and technical inaccuracies. Immediately upon being hired and reading in the series
bible that the Twelve Colonies from which the Colonial Fleet originated consisted of a dozen habitable planets in the same star system, Grazier claims
to have been “so excited, I went home, … then proceeded to hack out a
document on the astronomy of the Twelve Colonies:’ Grazier suggested several detailed scenarios in which the 12 planets could be distributed across a
multiple star system like the “famous” double-double star Epsilon Lyrae. He
also “made some speculations [about] how the layout of the planets might
influence development on each- how astronomy might influence culture;’
hashing out a social studies of the Colonies as well as an astronomy. Illustrating its status as truly overdesigned, Grazier developed a complex explanation
This copy was made in accordance with the University of Toronto’s Fair Dealing Policy, and the exceptions granted under Section 29 of the Copyright Act. In keeping with the Fair Dealing guidelines, you are allowed to make one copy for the sole purpose of research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, education, parody or satire. If the copy is used for the purpose of review, criticism or news reporting, the source and the name of the author must be noted. Use of this copy for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner.
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similar institutional context (in this case, dramatic studio television production), adjusted for different historical contexts or different configurations
of talent and personnel. These peer relations have shaped the shared use of
franchise worlds within these intra-industrial contexts-chiefly in the desire
of different production communities to both take pleasure in a tradition of
creativity and establish their own unique identities and subjective creative
viewpoints. What has resulted are practices that acknowledge the use of
shared worlds while also pushing for recognition of a difference that allowed
production communities to make meaningful claims to creative and professional distinction.
In “Naturalistic Science Fiction;’ the manifesto written to pitch the reimagined Battlestar, Moore played up the creative potential of his concept
for the series in stark opposition to the limitations of the world he had previously worked with on Star Trek. “Our goal is nothing less than the reinvention of the science fiction television series;’ Moore grandly wrote: “We take
as a given the idea that the traditional space opera, with its stock characters,
techno-double-talk, bumpy-headed aliens, thespian histrionics, and empty
heroics has run its course and a new approach is required. That approach is
to introduce realism into what has heretofore been an aggressively unrealistic genre:’ 53 Though he does not mention it by name, Moore clearly insinuates that the point of creative departure for his series would be Star Trek. Yet
in playing up this difference, and claiming a creative identity based in the
originality of his naturalistic perspective, Moore also obscures his ambivalent creative relationship with Battlestar as a shared, franchised property. He
positions his creative work in relation to another franchise and his own personal history within it, deflecting attention from what he’s borrowing from
Glen A. Larsen and the producers of the original Battlestar series and more
easily underwriting claims of unique authorial voice and vision. Comparatively, when directly invoking the franchise heritage of Battlestar, Moore
has sometimes positioned that pre-existing Battlestar world more as blank
slate or empty brand waiting not for borrowed elaboration but re-genesis.
“Because Battlestar Galactica was an existing ‘name franchise’ that had done
things for the studio in the past;’ Moore describes his attraction to the project, “the studio was likely to be willing to give us some room to take some
risks with the show and really reinvent the genre:’ 54 Similarly, in discussing
their production as a “reimagining;’ Moore and his producers constructed
a meaningful production identity in relation to the original series that
acknowledged world-sharing but reframed that creative use as a complete
reformulation of its parameters. The relationship between the reimagined
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Grazier his original, overdesigned suggestions for the planetary physics of
Battlestar “before they got too deep into writing;’ then asked him to elaborate artd lay those guidelines out more explicitly. 77
Despite these external suggestions for efficient, coordinated use of franchise resources, setting the creative identities of production communities apart in some meaningful way has typically proved more desirable to
creative managers. In spinning off Deep Space Nine, for example, executive
overseer Rick Berman voiced concern “about giving the audience too much
of what we already had been doing for four straight years, as well as giving
ourselves new challenges in terms of creating fresh stories:’ 78 Showrunner
Ira Steven Behr echoed this sentiment, stating his desire to “push the envelope regarding what was accepted practice in the Star Trek universe:’ 79 This
production philosophy continued with the development of Voyager two
years later, with the producers pondering, “How can we create something
that is new and fresh and unique, yet clearly Star Trek?” 80 So at the same
time as the established world offered attractive creative resources, it posed
a challenge to be overcome, an object from which new ideas would have to
be distanced to support claims to creative originality. Thus, while Star Trek
offered a world of possibility to producers, those possibilities were doubleedged swords. Although Deep Space Nine borrowed the Thomas Riker character from The Next Generation for the third season episode “Defiant” -and
precariously left him in an alien prison to be rescued at a future date-the
writers never found a satisfyi
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