Bir'd'in's Star Trek PagePlease observe a moment of silence for the 7 members of the Columbia Crew who died over Texas on the morning of February 1. |
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I first became interested in Star Trek a few years ago. It was during the summer, and all of the UPN stations were showing Voyager 5 nights a week. I got addicted to the show, and Voyager is still my favorite. Anyway, I soon became interested in the whole Star Trek history, and so I started renting the movies from Blockbuster and I paid a little more attention to the original sereis. When TNN began showing The Next Generation, I also began watching that. In all, I am now a pretty big fan. Recently, I decided to create a new Yahoo! Profile: Admiral Bir'd'in.
Star Trek premiered in 1966 on NBC. It covered the basics of how a Starfleet vessel operates in the 23rd Century, a little about Starfleet itself, and various alien species. The show focused on the Constitution-class vessel Enterprise NCC-1701, and its captain James T. Kirk and loyal crew. The Enterprise was on a five-year mission "to explore strange, new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no man has gone before."
While the mission lasted five years, the show only lasted three. It would have only been two without a strong letter campaign from fans. NBC cancelled the show just before ratings became reported based on demographics, which certainly would have saved Star Trek if it came sooner.
Ten years after Star Trek was cancelled on television, Paramount began making Star Trek movies. These movies filled in many fine details about how things work in the late 23rd Century. Star Trek: The Motion Picture depicted now-Admiral Kirk in something of a mid-life crisis, deprived of a starship command. Star Trek III: The Search for Spock saw the death of the Enterprise NCC-1701. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, however, ended with the launch of the Enterprise NCC-1701A, much to the delight of again-Captain Kirk. Apparently, Kirk never again accepted a promotion.
In 1987, Paramount began a new television series in syndication. The Next Generation featured a new ship - the Enterprise NCC-1701D, a Galaxy-class starship - eighty-some years after the time of the Enterprise NCC-1701A. The crew was of course also new, led by a more mature, less emotional Captain Jean-Luc Picard. The mission was the same, except for semantics; the Enterprise-D was on a "continuing mission to explore strange, new worlds; to seek out new lifef and new civilizations; to boldly go where no one has gone before." The Next Generation ran for seven seasons.
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The seventh Star Trek Movie, Star Trek: Generations, was the movie transition between Kirk's and Picard's times. In fact, a strange anomaly brought Kirk and Picard together across time to defeat a common foe. In that incident, Kirk advised Picard never to give up his command. Star Trek: Generations saw the birth of both the Enterprise-B and the Enterprise-D.
Star Trek: First Contact involved the new Sovereign-class Enterprise NCC-1701E in time travel, allowing Picard and crew to witness Huanity's first contact with the Vulcans. The crew met the 21st Century physicist Zeffram Cochrane, the inventor of the time-warp drive used by all starships to travel faster than light. (The Vulcans have a policy of not contacting a primitive species until they have developed Warp flight. Cochrane's invention triggered first contact. )
Voyager began in 1994 on United Paramount Networks - picking up where The Next Generation left off - and featured the Intrepid-class starship Voyager NCC-74656, its Captain Catherine Janeway, and the loyal crew, all displaced to the far side of the galaxy by an alien entity. The trip home, calculated to take 70 years, instead took only 7, with the help of various shortcuts and special help, including that of an Admiral Janeway from the future.
In 2001, just after the finale of Star Trek: Voyager, Enterprise premiered. People in charge decided that since Series V (the name used until they decided on "Enterprise") would be so different from all of the other Star Trek installments, it should not carry the title "Star Trek" directly. But how is Enterprise so different?
The Original series takes place over two centuries in the future. The purpose of Enterprise, set just 150 years in the future, is to bridge the gap between the early 21st century (now) and middle 23rd century (distant future of Star Trek: The Original Series). Various "familiar" Star Trek technologies such as transporters, phasers, and universal translators, are still in development, as is Starfleet policy. After 90 years of being "held back" by the Vulcans, Humanity is finally ready to join the galactic community. Captain Archer of the starship Enterprise NX-01 leads the way.
Star Trek: Nemesis, the tenth big-screen Star Trek installment, is set to premiere December 13, 2002. If you have not done so, please familiarize yourself with all Star Trek movies and landmark TV episodes beforehand. Any additional information about Star Trek may be obtained from the official website listed below.
