The Quarantine Stream: Over 50 Years After It Aired, ‘Star Trek’ Remains One Of The Greatest TV Shows Of All Time
By Jacob Hall/Nov. 13, 2020 7:00 am EST
Look, a small ongoing column about what we’re watching during quarantine is not the place to dissect the legacy of the greatest science fiction franchise of all time. It speaks for itself, with eight-plus spin-offs, 13 movies, and countless comics and novels. However, I do think the original series often gets overlooked, even by fans, who often prefer the later iterations like The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine (and that’s okay, because they are great shows). I sometimes see the original three seasons dismissed as quaint, the necessary building blocks to get the foundation started. And that’s fair. At first glance, Star Trek does look dated. And in terms of gender and racial politics…it famously meant well, but it was still a show produced by white men in the ’60s.
But then you actually watch Star Trek and realize that this shit is wild. Like really wild.
You never know what you’re going to get with an episode of Star Trek. Is it going to be a thoughtful, emotional chronicle of tough moral choices like “The City on the Edge of Forever?” Is it going to be a wild, fantastical slice of horny pulp adventure like “Amok Time”? Is it going to be an edge-of-your-seat Cold War thriller like “Balance of Terror”? Is it going to be a B-movie action romp that is also a scathing condemnation of war like “Arena”? Or hell, how about “The Changeling,” which is just a pulse-poundng and smart tale of A.I. gone mad, predating 2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL 9000? Star Trek is never content to be one thing – it wants to be all things and it manages to pull that off with aplomb.
There are also crap episodes. Stuff that stinks to high heavens. I wouldn’t wish “The Alternative Factor” or “And the Children Shall Lead” on just about anyone. But the highs cancel out the lows and then some. And honestly, having bad Trek to complain about is often as much fun as praising the good stuff.
But perhaps the most satisfying thing about the original Star Trek is that the characters, who might as well be carved out of marble for how singularly iconic they have become in the pop culture pantheon, hold up to scrutiny. Captain James T. Kirk is passionate, righteous, and proud, a two-fisted leader who is never afraid to ask for help when the going gets tough. Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy is a southern curmudgeon, always ready with an injection of sass but also ready to stand up for all living beings. And Spock, the greatest science fiction creation of the 20th century, looms over them all. Played with grace and astonishing commitment by the late, great Leonard Nimoy, the Vulcan science officer is hilarious and tragic, a terrific action hero and a man who values thought before violence, a character who works because his creators invested in him a total sincerity. Spock doesn’t wink. The show doesn’t wink at him. We take him seriously and love him for it.
So understand that Star Trek wasn’t made for modern sensibilities. Understand that you will occasionally cringe. Understand that yes, season 3 is largely bad thanks to behind-the-scenes struggles. But also understand that this show shattered the mold for a reason. And those reasons remain as clear as the stars in the sky.
