During dinner with friends, something came up that reminded me of an episode of the original Star Trek series. I started to explain the connection, but 30 seconds later asked the crescent of annoyed faces, “Wait, you guys don’t know Star Trek?”
Of course they didn’t. Hardly anyone our age does, and if they do it’s a more recent spin-off. This is a shame.
I think what turns people off about Star Trek is its campiness.True, the original series is pretty cheesy. Chekov, Captain Kirk’s navigator, has a Beatle haircut and pronounces “vessels” like “wessels.” Villains are often stern voices coming from orbs of fog and twinkling lights and William Shatner’s exaggerated delivery is perhaps more familiar to our generation than anything else about the show.
There’s some truth to this reputation. In the first episode I saw, the enemy ship was a plastic cube with colored lights inside, and at the end the villain turned out to be a baby. But if you take the time to appreciate the show, its low production value becomes more endearing than appalling.
Equality is an important theme in Star Trek. Despite female crewmembers’ short-skirted uniforms, the show’s portrayal of women was ahead of its time. The presence of a female officer, Lt. Uhura, on the Enterprise’s bridge contrasted with the role women played in other popular TV series. Uhura was also black, another milestone for network television at the time. In an era with few roles for black actors, some were even cast as Captain Kirk’s superiors.
The series’ writers were making a bold statement by showing humanity’s future as one of racial and gender equality at a time when many were still struggling for basic civil rights in the United States. The show should be respected for this message.
Star Trek also advocated tolerance of other cultures. The Enterprise’s crew had to learn to get along with the aloof Romulans, belligerent Klingons and stoic Vulcans. According to , they represented the Cold War-era Chinese, Russians and Japanese, respectively.
Star Trek’s essential theme is space exploration. The Enterprise’s voyages in “the final frontier” reflected the excitement the American public felt about their future in space at the time. Unfortunately, we’ve since lost this excitement. In the early ’60s Kennedy committed the country to the goal of reaching the moon by the end of the decade, and we reached that goal. Now, instead of thinking of space as a place of boundless possibilities, we think of it as a place of endless emptiness and barriers.
Some people will think I’m a geek for writing this column. Meh. Star Trek shouldn’t be seen as a refuge for nerds. Despite its flaws, it was a thoughtful show with an important place in American history and with messages that are still worthwhile today. And, of course, it’s entertaining. It’s available for rent at the library. Watch an episode and see what you think. It may not be as slick as the new movie, but it’s worth checking out.
Weinberg senior Richard Webner can be reached at [email protected].
