My Trek Through Trek — The Original Series, Season 1

I've finally finished watching the complete first season of the original Star Trek series.

About 2 months ago, I decided to set out on an "epic rewatch" of every single iteration of the franchise that is currently available. This year, the huge sci-fi franchise is celebrating its 60th anniversary, so it seemed kinda timely. I announced it on my Bluesky account and for the first handful of episodes or so, I also treated (mostly annoyed) my followers to live posts. You know, like live tweeting, which people used to do on Twitter when they would post their every thought about something they were experiencing as it was happening. I didn't really consider the fact that people don't really do that anymore and also my followers in the Atmosphere likely didn't want my opinions on William Shatner's Morticia Addams lighting or why he's holding...whatever that is clogging up their feeds. (I do not apologize for calamari fingers, though. Sorry not sorry!) Eventually, I stopped live-posting my way through first season episodes, and decided to simply do a wrap-up review of complete seasons or films here in my blog. I imagine they'll ping people and clog feeds much less.

It's important to add that I thought my reactions might be of interest because it's my first time watching the original series! I know, I know... How on Earth could I call myself a Trekkie without having seen the show that started it all?! But listen: I care very little for William Shatner and his acting chops. I'm sure he may be a lovely man in person, and I realize that the '60s were a much different time, but the way he enunciates more complicated vocabulary words and his entire cadence just absolutely kills me in ways that I feel were entirely unintended by production or Shatner himself. It kinda takes me "out of it," if that makes sense. Also, the technology of the time is so dated, that it just adds to the sheer ridiculousness of it all.

That being said, I do have tremendous respect for the original series for blazing that trail into the stars for everything that came after it. The show's legacy continues to this day. I do also have an affinity for the people that round out the cast of the original series, as well. Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, and George Takei? Even Grace Lee Whitney and Majel Barrett, when they appear in recurring roles, makes my heart happy. I can't wait for Walter Koenig's introduction in the second season. So without further ado, my thoughts on Star Trek, season one:

First of all, I completely understand why NBC made the decision to scrap the original pilot episode. While I was delighted not to have Shatner in the captain's chair in "The Cage," the episode is otherwise far different from what the series eventually becomes. Spock is the only main character who was carried over from this episode, and even his character and demeanor are dramatically different in subsequent outings. I will say, however, that I wouldn't have been upset had Jeffrey Hunter remained on board to lead the series instead. Christopher Pike does seem like a far more compelling main character, in my personal opinion. Even Dad agreed!

Disregarding Shatner for a moment, the show still presented unintentionally hilarious moments, generally in regards to continuity issues or the use of terrible practical effects. There's several moments where you can see set pieces or props dressed to look like giant, impossibly heavy boulders or alien ruins that are mistakenly moved with ease by a character simply passing by them, for example. I'm also preeeeetty certain that, at one point during the episode "Arena," when Kirk is going up against the Gorn on the surface of a planet, you can literally hear the rubber suit squeak as the Gorn moves. It is also, at times, painfully obvious that Gene Roddenberry hadn't yet established a show bible by the time it went to air. There are many inconsistencies written into the show very early on that are blatantly contradicted later on. Such errors include referring to the Enterprise as a ship from "United Earth" rather than the United Federation of Planets, or "Space Fleet" instead of the later established Starfleet. The color of Uhura's uniform, which is typically used to denote which division of Starfleet she's in, also inconspicuously changes from red to gold for a couple of episodes before going back to being its normal red. Sulu is also initally introduced as a physicist before eventually moving into his most famous role as the ship's helmsman. What???

There's also always been a great deal of controversy surrounding the appearance of the Klingons. One of Star Trek's most well-known adversarial species, the Klingons are known for their very pronounced cranial ridges and long hair. Their first introduction, however, in the episode "Errand of Mercy," provides them with a much more human look. No cranial ridges or long hair to be seen. The only real defining characteristics that all of the Klingons seem to share in this episode is that they have very "swarthy" facial hair and look to have received really bad spray tans before beaming down to the planet of Organia, where Kirk and Spock are already present and trying to do a diplomacy. It is my understanding that later entries of the franchise explain and effectively retcon the physical appearance of the Klingons into their more familiar look, but it was still pretty jarring to see Kor (a Klingon leader portrayed by John Colicos who, himself, even makes future appearances decades later in Deep Space Nine with the ridged forehead and long hair) looking almost human.

Now that I've made my grievances known, and possibly angered or alienated Trekkies much more hardcore than myself, I need to let y'all know something surprising: I actually kinda love watching this. It's true that everything above makes me unintentionally bust out laughing, and I truly believe that maybe Shatner had some wild stuff written into his contract, I have definitely underestimated the sheer entertainment value of the OG Star Trek. First of all, the original rendition of the theme song is a bop. I went from thinking it sounded "so dated" to low-key turning into my jam. I loved getting to witness Uhura's moment in "The Naked Time," where Sulu (who is infected by an illness that decimated an entire planet) grabs onto her and proclaims, "I'll protect you, fair maiden!" She shoves him away in protest and states, "Sorry, neither!" With a show jam-packed with moments like this, it's easy to see why Star Trek was so groundbreaking culturally back in the 1960s, even transcending the usual sci-fi nerds that were likely eating it up every single week. You can also see that the writers and the actors eventually started finding their footing, becoming more comfortable with their roles and the kinds of stories this show was going to tell. Which were often simply touching on real-world social issues under the guise of "science fiction." Star Trek was progressive and "woke" for far longer than many viewers, especially the ones put off by a gay Klingon or female Jem'Hadar in Starfleet Academy, really want to come to terms with.

Some other touches that I really liked include finally getting to see "Space Seed," in which the crew of the Enterprise comes into conflict with Khan Noonien-Singh, the human augment portrayed by Ricardo Montalban, who returns later as the antagonist of the film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Spock describes him as "the most dangerous adversary the Enterprise ever faced" even later in 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness. I was fascinated to learn more about his backstory since there's a lot of juicy plots that prominently feature him in later productions. The first appearances of the Romulans in "Balance of Terror" and the Klingons, as I mentioned earlier, in "Errand of Mercy," held similar value to me. Getting to see where these very classic alien species originated and making the connections in my brain as to how they were later adapted in modern Star Trek is really exciting for me. "Mudd's Women" was also a hoot for the introduction of Roger C. Carmel's Harry Mudd, who I recognized from later episodes of Discovery and Short Treks, then played by Rainn Wilson. I can't wait to be similarly enchanted by the Tribbles. More Tribbles, I say!

Anyhoo, if you've made it this far, thanks for reading! I'm sure that I'll have more things to say both here and on Bluesky (just not in a way that's all at once), and we still 60 whole years of Star Trek to cover, so if you're a fellow Trekkie yet and I haven't chased you away yet, feel free to give me a follow! We'd love to have you!

Have a lovely timezone, folks, and live long and prosper. 🖖