Sci-Fi Author Andy Weir Has The Perfect Answer To The Star Trek Vs Star Wars Debate

More power to those who like to rigorously but, naturally, courteously and politely debate which is the superior landmark sci-fi franchise: "Star Trek" or "Star Wars." Personally? I don't feel the need. They've each had high highs and low lows over the decades, and it's a little absurd to pretend that they haven't both been shaped by commercial concerns. I'm also not against "Star Trek" projects going heavy on the action, although it's always worth remembering that "Star Trek" isn't really an action franchise at its core. Likewise, as much as it's associated with morally simplistic, pulpy cosmic adventures, the "Star Wars" galaxy thrives as a mirror for the real world.

Enter Andy Weir. The author of the smash-hit sci-fi novels "Project Hail Mary" and "The Martian" is a noted Trekkie, as evident by the sheer tonal and thematic overlap between his writing and the "Star Trek" property's progressive, optimistic vision of the future. At the same time, Weir has taken issue with the franchise for its social commentary (a view I do not agree with), and you kinda get the feeling he might be equally critical of any "Star Wars" projects that wear their politics on their sleeve. (Again, that's a hard disagree from me.) So, does he prefer one property over the other?

Yes ... and by that I mean that when BookBrowse asked Weir, "'Star Wars' or "Star Trek'?," he replied, "Doctor Who." It's a cheeky but not altogether surprising answer, given that the man has admitted to writing "Doctor Who" fan-fiction in lieu of him getting to work on the British sci-fi institution in a formal capacity. What's interesting, though, is that the "Doctor Who" property arguably does represent a comfy nexus point between the "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" franchises in a creative sense.

What do the "Star Trek," "Star Wars," and "Doctor Who" franchises have in common? They're all fairy tales by way of science fiction. Of the three, the "Star Trek" property is certainly the closest to being hard sci-fi. But when you think of the many, many times a "Star Trek" story has employed charmingly nonsensical sci-fi jargon to hand-wave an otherwise fantastical concept, you come to realize that the "Star Trek" universe and the grounded setting of a sci-fi work like "The Martian" are apples and oranges.

Meanwhile, the "Star Wars" saga literally takes place "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away," a sentence that evokes visions of daring heroes battling vile evil-doers in medieval fantasy epics. Yet, as the "Star Wars" universe has grown, it's incorporated more explicitly sci-fi concepts, even as it remains primarily informed by philosophical and spiritual ideas. In this sense, the "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" franchises are complementary: The former leans on science to imagine who we may become as it keeps one foot planted in fantasy, whereas the latter is a fantastical allegory about who we are now that's become more and more science-y.

"Doctor Who" bridges the gap between the pair. Like "Star Trek," the property tosses all manner of sci-fi babble about to make sense of its namesake — an immortal-ish being who travels across time and space trying to do good — and their existence. And like "Star Wars," it's a fable-style morality tale where the line between right and wrong is constantly scrutinized. "Doctor Who" is also quite political in the way it critically re-evaluates human history and talks about our present-day problems ... but maybe don't tell Andy Weir that.