Like many I grew up with this show and it will come as no surprise that I have been a fan since... well let's just say that the show and I share something in common, though inside I'm still pretty much the geeky 8 year old I have always been which was about the age I started watching Star Trek. The Original series of course since the others were still a decade or so away from even been thought of let alone made.
This was a show that caught my imagination right from the beginning with its aliens and spaceships and a universe of possibilities. I loved it for everything it showed me and everything it didn't, and it helped fuel a sci-fi television addiction that is still with me today and though it has had its ups and downs (Star Trek the Animated Series, anyone) it has managed to continue and expand with each decade that passes.
So Star Trek Happy Birthday to you. Live long and prosper.
Star Trek the Original Series
Yes the special effects might seem pretty lame now days but this isn't what the show was about. Instead it was about the friendship and adventures of the crew and in particular the three main characters of Kirk, McCoy and Spock.
Little did the actors know that they would be eternally identified with the characters they played, so much so they have become pop culture icons.
Star Trek The Next Generation
Everyone has a particular Star Trek that is theirs and for me it would be this one. It was sleeker, badder and not afraid to touch on a variety of issues.
Picard was the perfect captain and his leadership style was even reference in some management books as was his catch phrase "Make it so".
Data though was my favourite.
An android who wanted to be human and who couldn't see that in his own way he was already more human than those he aspired to be and of course the show introduced one the best baddies ever with the Borg.
Star Trek Deep Space Nine
Deep Space Nine was a little different to the previous incarnations in that it was set on a space station rather the space ship. It had though all the familiar icons with aliens and baddies and friendships.
My particular favourite was Odo, an alien shape shifter torn between his own people and those that had raised him.
Star Trek Voyager
I have to admit it took a couple of seasons for me to really get into this show. The writing was a little uneven and the characters weren't quite as rich but half way through the second season it began to find its feet and improve. The introduction of Seven of Nine helped and certainly boosted its ratings. As did the love affair between B'Elanna, a Klingon and Tom Paris, a human.
Me?
I was a fan of the Doctor. Wonderfully played by Robert Picardo. As a Hologram he grew as a character and gave a richness and depth to the show that had been missing.
Star Trek Enterprise
Sadly Enterprise gets something of a bad rap amongst both Sci-fi fans and non fans alike which is a pity really as it isn't nearly as bad as people think.
Yes it had it flaws, there were some great ideas that were never really pulled off as well as they could have been but in essence it still had much of what made the other shows so good, at least for me.
Characters, characters, characters, all the way baby.
My favorite's were Trip and T'pol and the beautiful way the show played out their relationship and of course one can't leave out Porthos, the beagle who was the Captains faithful companion.
Star Trek the Movie
J.J. Abrams of Lost and Fringe fame put his own twist on this re-imagined version of the original series showing us a younger Kirk, Spock and McCoy.
Many of the actors involved were huge fans of the show and strived to live up to the legacy that their predecessor's had set by meeting with the original cast and watching many of the episodes.
The movie was so successful that a sequel is due for release next year.
Now sing after me, Star Trekking across the the universe...
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