Happy 50th Birthday, Star Trek! (A Favorites List)

Happy 50th birthday to Star Trek!

This is the franchise that taught me to love science fiction before I could read (and, in fact, it greatly inspired my reading), before Star Wars, before school. Its characters, lessons, and fandom have had a major and ongoing impact on my life, my family, and my work.

Today I raise my glass in loving memory of and lasting gratitude to those who made Star Trek and who have walked on to that Undiscovered Country, including (but most certainly not limited to)
Gene Roddenberry and Majel Barrett-Roddenberry,
DeForest Kelley, Leonard Nimoy, and James Doohan,
Grace Lee Whitney, Mark Lenard, Jane Wyatt, Ricardo Montelban, Bibi Besch, Merritt Butrick, Michael Ansara, and Brock Peters,
Gene L. Coon, Alexander Courage, Jerry Goldsmith, Robert Wise, Harve Bennett, Samuel A. Peeples, Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Adrian Spies, S. Bar-David, Jerry Sohl, Paul Schneider, Theodore Sturgeon, Oliver Crawford, Fredric Brown, Don Mankiewicz, Gilbert Ralston, John Meredyth Lucas, Jerome Bixby, Margaret Armen, John M. Ford, James Blish, Jack B. Sowards, and Joan Winston,
and, gone far too soon,
Anton Yelchin.

So... favorites.

My husband and I got to talking about our Trek favorites (several of which we rewatched for our recent Trek-athon), and I thought I'd share. I'm not saying these below are the very best, but they are my very favorites.

(Disclaimer: I left a lot of favorites off this list in the interest of brevity. If you ask me on another day, some of my choices therefore might change.)



Favorite Star Trek Primary Character: Dr. Leonard H. "Bones" McCoy
Dr. McCoy is one of my all-time favorite fictional characters, full stop. He's been a very real inspiration to me throughout my life. I lay much of the credit for my love of this "H.L. Mencken in Space" at the feet of the brilliant DeForest Kelley, whose deeply humane performance gave McCoy great life and great heart. Karl Urban's remarkably gifted (re)interpretation of the good old country doctor remains one of my favorite aspects of the new film series.

Favorite Star Trek Recurring Character: This must be a tie between Deep Space Nine's Elim Garak and Weyoun

Star Trek: The Original Series
Favorite Episode: "The Empath"
Runners Up: "City on the Edge of Forever," "Space Seed," and I'm stopping there because this list could go on and on...

Star Trek: The Animated Series
Favorite Episode: "How Sharper than a Serpent's Tooth"

Star Trek: The Next Generation
Favorite Episode: "The Inner Light"
Runner Up: "Ship in a Bottle"

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Favorite Episode: "Far Beyond the Stars"
Runners Up: Favorite Episode: "Treachery, Faith, and the Great River," "The Wire"

Star Trek: Voyager
Favorite Episode: "The Chute"
Runners Up: "Deadlock," "The Year of Hell," Parts 1 & 2

Star Trek: Enterprise
Favorite Episode: "Twilight"
Runners Up: "In A Mirror, Darkly" Parts 1 & 2, "The Andorian Incident"

Favorite Star Trek Film: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Favorite Star Trek Novel (The Original Series): Ishmael by Barbara Hambly
Runners Up: The Wounded Sky by Diane Duane, Uhura's Song by Janet Kagan, How Much for Just the Planet? by John M. Ford, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (novelization) by Vonda N. McIntyre

So that's me. What are some of your Trek favorites?

My Trek-Related Podcast Segments: Trek and Arthuriana, Native America, and Crossover Genius

Because I'm bursting with Star Trek love today on the franchise's 50th birthday, and just in case you're looking for some free Star Trek discussion, I thought I'd repost these Trek-related "Looking Back in Genre History" StarShipSofa podcast segments of mine. If you listen, I hope you enjoy!

First, my tribute to the weird and wonderful multi-crossover Ishmael by Barbara Hambly, a most unusual Star Trek novel, and one of my very favorite ones: here it is!

Second, inspired by my essay "The Sword in the Starship: Arthuriana in Four Incarnations of Star Trek" (published in Winedark Sea), here is my two-part discussion of Arthuriana and Star Trek.
- Part 1
- Part 2

Third, inspired by my essay "If This Is the (Final) Frontier, Where Are the Natives?" (published in Star Trek and History), here is my three-part discussion of Native America and Star Trek.
- Part 1
- Part 2
- Part 3

Thanks for letting me share these with you.

And last, just for nostalgia and laughs, here is the most fangirlish photo I think I have. This is me with the wonderful Star Trek: Deep Space Nine "baddie" triumvirate of Jeffrey Combs (Weyoun), Casey Biggs (Damar), and Marc Alaimo (Gul Dukat). That was a very fun day!