My Train of Thought

PAYING TRIBUTE TO....

Going back in the space/time continuum, we find ourselves at September 8, 1966.  On this star date, we were introduced to a brand new kind of sci-fi adventure – the manifestation of the imagination of Gene Roddenberry.  The familiar theme music starts up after we hear the signature words from William Shatner “to boldly go where no man has gone before”.   The TV series dealt with issues that we still have today, including how we interact with people of different races and cultures.

Each one of the spinoffs had memorable characters, and I do have my favorites as well.  As I watch all of the versions on the Heroes & Icons network, I find myself still drawn to the original series.  Why, you may ask?  It’s really simple – it’s the interaction between the crew and captain.  It’s the rivalry between the logical Spock and the very human, emotional Bones.  It is the way Kirk makes those tongue-in-cheek comments to both of them.  There was a bit of humor intertwined with very serious plots.  Roddenberry also broke down some barriers of our own era – from Nichelle Nichols as Lt. Uhura to George Takei as Sulu, to Walter Koenig as the Russian Pavel Chekov.  William Shatner’s portrayal of James Tiberius Kirk reminds me ofa great adventurer, or perhaps an explorer like Marco Polo.

Star Trek: The Next Generation had a majestic theme, which would later be used in the movie versions for the original cast and crew.  TNG, in my opinion, was more cerebral.  Rather than have a captain similar to Kirk, Jean Luc Picard was more analytical sitting in the captain’s chair.  Once again, there were memorable crew members introduced to the viewing audience.  A Klingon was now on the bridge.  While there was no Vulcan, the logic was handled by an android named Data.  We were introduced to a new threat – the Borg – and even Captain Picard was not immune to its influence as he was transformed into Lucutus.  Picard’s signature line came right after the course for their next adventure was laid in – when he would raise his hand, point ahead and say “Engage!”

The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine series was dissimilar to previous and future versions of Star Trek because it revolved around a stationary structure – the space station.  It was ahead of its time as DS9 premiered in 1993, while the International Space Station (ISS) was launched six years later.  I have to admit though that the theme song for this installment is just about my favorite of all of them.  This series bridged the gap between TNG and itself, for Enterprise did dock here in a couple of episodes.  Once again, various cultures inhabited the station – from the Ferengi Quark, to the trill Jadzia Dax, to the Cardassian Gul Dukat, to the Bajoran first officer Kira Nerys.  They definitely kept Commander Sisko on his toes!

Perhaps it was long overdue, but in 1995, viewing audiences finally got to see a woman in the captain’s chair.  This was one of the most significant details for Star Trek: Voyager with Katherine Janeway in command.  As with its antecedents, Voyager introduced us to new characters and species.  The Maquis had appeared in TNG and DS9, but Voyager brought one to the bridge in Chakotay as Janeway’s first officer.  A Maquis sympathizer was also among the crew with B’Elanna Torres, the chief engineer, and  like Spock, she was the product of an inter-species marriage.  Hers was of the human and Klingon variety.  One of the other memorable characters from this series brought back one of the adversaries from the TNG days.  She was Seven of Nine, a human who had been assimilated by the Borg.  She would have most of her Borg implants removed to give her a more human appearance.  Assisting with this was the holographic doctor, who was activated on demand.  Unlike the very human Dr. “Bones” McCoy in the original series, the hologram was likened to a medical version of the android Data.

On this 50^th anniversary of the birth of an iconic series, we salute the incredible talents of Gene Roddenberry.  His legacy will certainly live on as more generations of “trekkies” keep the franchise alive.  So, in the words of Spock, “LIVE LONG AND PROSPER”.