Can you imagine a series of Star Wars movies without the names Darth Vader or Anakin or Luke Skywalker?

The same rule should apply for Star Trek. When you say the words, you think Captain James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock.

Still, a franchise that's over 40 years old has seen its share of reboots since William Shatner and Co. made their final voyage on the USS Enterprise after a successful TV show run in the 1960s, then a series of equally successful movies well into the 80s.

Since then, the names Kirk and Spock have been pretty much just that, names from the past, and dormant for a while. That is until now.

The 11th Star Trek movie, simply named "Star Trek" opens in two weeks with a relaunch that brings back the original crew of Kirk, Spock, Sulu, Chekov, Bones, Uhura and Scotty and chronicles how the crew was formed and their early adventures on the USS Enterprise.

Director J.J. Abrams of "Alias" and "Lost," hopes to bring back the charm of those familiar characters, which cannot be an easy task. Apparently, he's well on his way. If trailers and early reviews are any indications, Abrams has a blockbuster waiting to explode onto the screen.

Abrams is no dummy. Bringing back the characters of Kirk and Spock, played by Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto of "Heroes" had to be a must in his mind before even approaching the project. For any Star Trek fan, Kirk and Spock's back story is well overdue.

You can bet we the fans won't be the only ones watching. William Shatner, who played the original Kirk, and Leonard Nimoy, who played the original Spock and plays an older version of the character in the new film, will be watching just like everyone else.

- Mark Podolski