Ok, I know this may be an old hat form of discussion. I also know this goes in the realm of being a trekkie with way too much time on my mind. However it is something I have been wanting to expound on for a very long time.
Genesis did not fail...not entirely. Star Trek's main failing is that when the writers can't come up with a real reason why something is happening they come up with some quick 1 line reason why. And most of the time we trekkies roll over and go "ok" and go on with our lives. However this time 2 words stuck in my mind that I could not let go of. Those words were "Proto Matter."
To quote David Marcus when Savaak asked him why the Genesis planet was decaying, he said "I used proto matter in the matrix." Like that's supposed to explain it all. I thought about this on and off for about 10 years. Then one day while walking home from the bus it occured to me that while proto matter might have sped up the process there is no way it could have been the main cause of the decomposition of the planet. Had that been true, the Genesis cave would have broken down in a matter of days, maybe weeks at the most. So I got to thinking, what could have caused it.
The answer was quite simple. The program was run incorrectly. Just like on a computer when you don't follow the steps correctly the program can fail. The parameters of Genesis was that the device be implanted into a small moon or other lifeless planet. This was not the case. The Genesis device was detinated in the Reliant's transporter room. Under proper conditions, the Genesis Planet would have survived, because it had a alrerady fixed stable core.
However since the Genesis matrix formed around the remaining hull of the Reliant, and nebula gas. Therefore the planet imploded apon itself. Now while the proto matter, which caused the fast growth reaction of the planet, sped up the process it was not the main factor.
So Genesis was a success....just exicuted wrong. I now feel better having gotten this off my chest. This has been your geek rant for the day.
Hi spiffyotaku. Welcome to Fan Forum and the Star Trek board.
