WARNING: This blog post contains spoilers.
It will come as no surprise to most of you that I am a huge Star Trek fan. The original Star Trek series which aired in 1966 is one of the first TV shows I remember watching as a kid (reruns, people… I’m not quite THAT old) and I have rewatched the entire series many, many times since. I was in the front row for the opening Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979 and, while it was not a great movie, it did launch a hugely successful movie franchise, most of which I adore (except for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, of course, which I have seen once and will never see again!)
When Star Trek: The Next Generation aired in 1987, I went out and bought the biggest TV I could, a 32-inch monstrosity that weighed in excess of 200 pounds, so I could watch the new adventures of the starship Enterprise in all its glory. In the 90s I attended numerous Star Trek conventions, paying homage to celebrity guests like Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner. I even managed to corner late Nichelle Nichols at a cast party one evening and spent a glorious half-hour talking about her experiences in theater and television. She was a truly remarkable woman and very gracious.
Throughout the 90s and 00s I watched the various incarnations of Star Trek with varying degrees of amusement and horror. Some of it was very good; some of it was not. Like many movie and TV series franchises, Star Trek has suffered under the weight of its own success. I like to think the people behind these endeavors had the best of intentions, but unfortunately they don’t always succeed.
This year I treated myself to a one-year subscription to Paramount Plus. I was aware that Paramount launched their new streaming service using Star Trek as a launching pad, but I decided to wait until they had enough content built up to keep me entertained for a while.
I started my viewing adventure with Star Trek: Discovery and, while I really enjoy the show, it doesn’t quite have the same flavor as the original, but then, I don’t think it’s supposed to. It’s its own thing, its own unique milieu. It’s more interested in exploring themes of friendship and family, dealing with issues of loss and sacrifice, and exploring the future of the United Federation of Planets well beyond the 23rd and 24th centuries. That said, I was hugely excited when, in the final episode of the first season the original starship Enterprise appears on screen.
For those who may not know, the first Star Trek pilot episode Gene Roddenberry wrote for NBC back in 1965, entitled The Cage, featured a much different Enterprise crew. Most notably, the captain was not James T. Kirk, but Christopher Pike, played by the handsome, startlingly blue-eyed Jeffrey Hunter. Spock was still there, although with a much different haircut and a bit more emotion, and Majel Barrett, who would go on to play Nurse Chapel in the original series, as well as other roles, was there as Captain Pike’s Number One. Otherwise, it was a completely different crew.
In season 2 of Star Trek: Discovery we are once more introduced to Captain Christopher Pike, played this time by the enigmatic Anson Mount, Mr. Spock, played by Ethan Peck, and Number One—she actually has a name now—played smartly by Rebecca Romijn, along with a diverse crew of intriguing and likeable characters that includes a blind chief engineer with a sour disposition, played by Bruce Horak, and an eager young Cadet Uhura, played by Celia Rose Gooding. After season 2 of Star Trek: Discovery, Captain Pike and crew wander off to begin their own bold new adventures on the series, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Season 1 wrapped in 2022 and Season 2 is due out sometime in 2023.
I love this show, and I can’t say enough good things about it. While not exactly the original—fortunately for us, times have changed—the series does an excellent job of capturing the essence of the original series and portraying some of the same kinds of sensibilities and moral dilemmas. Captain Pike is a kinder, gentler ship’s captain, less likely to throw a punch or fire a photon torpedo than Captain Kirk, but just as quick to sidestep the Prime Directive if he thinks it’s for the greater good. Ethan Peck does a remarkable job of portraying Mr. Spock, and even manages to make him a bit more likeable and relatable. Although, I must say, I prefer my Spocks beardless. Rebecca Romijn’s Una Chin-Riley (see, real name, sort of) is a creature of depth and mystery, and she’s the one who usually throw the first punch. Every captain needs a first officer who can hold their own in a bar fight.
I feel like I’ve been waiting for this series for 50 years and I’m giddy that it is finally here. Hats off to CBS Studios and Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as all the other producers, writers, and talent who make this show possible. If you enjoy Star Trek, this one is definitely worth watching. In the immortal words of Captain Christopher Pike… hit it.