It seems like alternate timelines and parallel universes are the “in thing” in all manner of science fiction entertainment lately. From the multiple timelines in the comic book world, to television programs like Fringe, and even the latest Star Trek film, these “what if” universes are seemingly everywhere. While they can certainly provide all manner of compelling stories (the Mirror Universe episodes of Star Trek alone are proof of this), I’ve been having reservations lately. The increasing use of these alternates is making writers lazy, and ultimately prove to be nothing more than excuses for bad writing.

For example, I loved this year’s Star Trek film, but I did have a few problems with it. I’ve heard some Trek zealots wave away any and all criticism of the new film, even the constructive kind, with a blanket statement of “it’s an alternate timeline.” Aside from the fact that this statement is complete and utter nonsense, it’s a crappy way to explain inconsistencies. Does the alternate timeline defense work for some of the plot problems? Absolutely, as that’s what the premise of the entire film is based on. But for the rest, you can’t just wash them away like that.

I have the same concerns about Fringe. The first season established that there’s parallel universes out there, some with minor differences (like the World Trade Center surviving 9/11), others with major ones (cities in flaming ruins). It’s been part of the series’ underlying mythos, but it’s starting to get out of hand. It’s not clear which of the alternate universes is the most “important” one (read: where the bad guys come from), and this is critically important, since it’s been made clear that a war between the primary universe and the alternate is coming. But which one?! Do the writers even know? This could very easily lead to plot holes, about which the writers could easily say, “oh, that was a different timeline/universe.” That’s not an explanation; that’s a shitty excuse!

When it comes to comic books, it’s far, far worse. Gaping plot holes and continuity problems have been written off with alternate timelines, retcons, and other nonsense for decades. It’s just been getting a lot more prevalent in the past few years, especially since DC Comics brought back the Multiverse, and Marvel Comics has been making excessive use of its own parallel universes (e.g., Marvel Zombies). It’s bad enough that anyone can guess the outcome of a large-scale story or crossover (hint: the good guys win, even when they don’t), but when major revelations are ditched later on because “Superhero A actually came from Universe B, so his actions don’t count,” that’s just poor writing.

The easy solution to these nagging problems is this: ditch the alternate nonsense, and just write a good story that’s self-contained. It’s not difficult.