I’ve seen TOS, TOS Animated Series, the TOS movies, and TNG. I’ve also watched the 2009 movie and the first episode of Discovery (lol). Star Trek was my first fandom.
I’d like to, one day, watch DS9 and Voyager. The newer series don’t interest me much, from what I’ve seen in photos (although, the only reason I stopped watching Discovery at its debut is because they aired that episode on TV and decided to put the rest on streaming. I didn’t want to watch it that way, so I moved on.)
The first time that I came across Star Trek was in comic-strip form - a colourful back-up strip in a new comic called Joe 90: Top Secret, that I bought in January, 1969. I was six years old and Star Trek had yet to appear on the BBC, which might explain how I failed to grasp that the comic-strip was based on a television series. In fact, I was flabbergasted when a trailer appeared for Star Trek, right after episode 10 of The War Games. I was amazed that not only had someone made a television series based on that comic-strip, but they had found actors who looked just like the drawings. Well, I was very young, but I eventually figured it out.
I think the thing that might most surprise a modern viewer, time travelling back to watch Star Trek with younger me, would be the way the BBC moved the opening titles to the start of the episode. There was no ‘teaser’ to draw you into the story. Instead, here in the UK, we began with Captain Kirk’s “Space, the final frontier” monologue and the larrr-larrr-lah-lah-lal-a-larrr theme tune, and only then did the action begin. That suited me fine because…and I almost hate to admit this, but… I don’t actually like the theme to the Star Trek TV series. Never have. Sacrilege you say, but personally I always thought Alexander Courage’s theme sounded more like something that belonged to a romantic comedy rather than a space-age adventure, so I was glad to get it out of the way. Anyway, I got a shock, many years later in the 1980s, when video-tapes of Star Trek appeared in the shops to buy, and I found that the opening credits didn’t belong at the very start of the episode. I had to get used to the proper placement, and for a very long time it was actually quite jarring for me to watch episodes with the teaser before the opening credits.
It’s funny to think that as we Brits were getting our first taste of Star Trek, the series had recently come to an end in the U.S. However, it was perfect timing as far as I was concerned because, between the broadcasts of 'Where No Man Has Gone Before’ and the following episode, ‘The Naked Time’ (yes, that’s right – the BBC didn’t bother about production order, they pretty much pulled any old episode off the shelf to show at random), Apollo 11 lifted off for the Moon on Wednesday 16th July. As a boy I was crazy for space travel, both real and imaginary, and I’m glad to say that still hasn’t worn off.
As with Doctor Who, I used to watch Star Trek with my Grandpa. Before he passed away, I remember watching an episode of the old Buster Crabbe Flash Gordon serial with him. This must have been the very early 1970s and, even then, the episode looked to me like something from the dawn of time. Don’t get me wrong, I thought Flash Gordon was great fun, but very, very old fashioned. Anyway, when the episode we’d been watching finished, my Grandpa turned to me and said: “Flash Gordon was MY Star Trek, you know.” I always think of that when I hear younger fans talking about how dated and old fashioned TOS looks to them now.
When I got older and became a wage slave, I also started going to conventions. Unfortunately, Doctor Who and Star Trek conventions tended to fall on the same weekends, so I had a decision to make. Don’t hate me, but I chose the Star Trek conventions. Why? Well, because it seemed to me that Doctor Who fandom at that time was predominantly populated by male fans. On the other hand, there were girls at the Star Trek cons. I know, I know… but, hey, I was barely out of my teens! Plus, it must be said that ‘Whovians’ were a rather priggish bunch back then, and I found that I preferred the company of Trekkies, who were generally much more fun (sorry, but it’s true). I do regret that I missed out on meeting a lot of Doctor Who actors who are no longer with us, but I did meet my wife at a Star Trek convention. So when I tell my son that he owes his life to Captain Kirk and Mr Spock, I really do mean it (and, yes, he is sick of hearing me say that, btw).
I have enjoyed all of the spin-off shows and movies to varying degrees. However, in much the way that my Doctor Who heart belongs to the classic era, my Star Trek heart will always belong to Those Old Scientists.
WTF did I just watch? 
Oof, that bad?
I’m not expecting it to be any good
Wait, it’s already out? I am not joking if I say, I didn’t know it’s out that early on already, seen almost no Promotion for it whatsoever.
…is it worse than Into the Darkness? Please don’t tell me it’s worse… 
Its worse.
Post must be at least 12 characters.
Oh my… I am so sorry that you had to sit through it.
Wasn’t Section 31 in development hell forever? I think I remember them announcing it as a show early on in Discovery’s lifetime, and then it eventually turned into a movie. I’m not surprised that’s it’s horrible with how long it took to release.
Edit: It started production in 2019 and then something big happened in 2020 that caused them to stop for a while. It was re-announced as a film in 2023.
That, and Michelle Yeoh got real big after the Oscar and all. I guess the whole deal went downhill and it was ‘movie or nothing’.
Maybe nothing and use the money to keep Lower Decks going would have been better.
You said it. Section 31 movie lead by a Mirror Universe character… Truly the worst of both worlds.
RIP Lower Decks 
Or Prodigy. We really needed more Prodigy, too.
As good as Prodigy is, if I had to pick it or Lower Decks to save and can’t have both, it’s Lower Decks.
I just want a release date for Strange New Worlds season 3
Honestly, which is better has flipped repeatedly for me, and depends somewhat on my mood. Prodigy got less seasons, so I’d argue it’s more in need of another season.
But, of course, I’d prefer we keep Prodigy, Lower Decks, and Strange New Worlds going. I don’t see any reason Paramount+ should only have one good show on their network…
They’re also working on a star fleet academy show, which I do not have high hopes for!
I’d have done keep those three going until a natural end. A 25th century show to replace Picard. Give Discovery a 6th season to actually wrap up the Calypso story better. Then maybe a lost era show (between VI and TNG) after the 6 season Discovery ended.
At least it will have Robert Picardo
