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{{quote|''[[Opening Narration|Space -- the final frontier...]]''}}
An iconic, [[Long Runners|long-running]] science-fiction franchise with [[Star Trek: The Original Series|five]] [[Star Trek: The Next Generation|live]] [[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine|action]] [[Star Trek: Voyager|television]] [[Star Trek: Enterprise|series]], [[Star Trek: The Animated Series|one]] [[Animated Adaptation]], and
The setting in every series is about [[Earth Is the Center of the Universe|an Earth-based interstellar government]] called [[The Federation|the United Federation of Planets]] and their fleet of starships, which form [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|Starfleet]]. Every series dealt with a particular crew, mostly of various ships named ''[[Legacy Character|Enterprise]].'' As originally envisioned by its creator, [[Gene Roddenberry]], the science fiction nature of the series was just a method to address many social issues of the time that could not have been done in a normal drama. As such, it was not above being [[Anvilicious]] or engaging in thinly-veiled social satire, but considering its origin during the
It was, for the most part, ''way'' on the happy end of the [[Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism]], at least partially because of its solid allegiance to the Enlightened side of [[Romanticism Versus Enlightenment]]. But it still found some sort of balance between a Dystopia and a [[Crystal Spires and Togas]] future. In general, it is a future you hope will come true, albeit after Humanity endured terrible troubles like a third world war and the Eugenics Wars led by the genetically enhanced conqueror, Khan Noonien Singh, and rose above them. All series have sought to show that while you may think the world is falling apart and there is no chance of global unity, all this crap will eventually work itself out.
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* ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' ("TOS", 1966-1969) Set from 2265-2269 -- The one everyone has heard of (at the time, of course, it was just called ''[[Star Trek]]''). It suffered in the [[Ratings]], but gained a devoted fanbase. [[Uncanceled]] after the second season, and then [[Cancellation|Cancelled]] again at the end of the third. It ''really'' picked up steam in syndication, which was about the time demographics came into play - and the [[Real Life]] moon landing happened a week after its last episode aired. Nowadays, it looks incredibly cheesy and dated, but the show's writing was good, the cast had great chemistry and the characters themselves were very memorable, to the point of creating three new archetypes: [[The Kirk]], [[The Spock]], and [[The McCoy]]. In fact, this series created [[Trope Maker|so many new tropes]] that it has left an unmistakable mark on both television and pop culture ever since. Not to mention inspired a ''lot'' of mostly [[Affectionate Parody|affectionate parodies]].
* ''[[Star Trek: The Animated Series]]'' ("TAS", 1973-1974) Set from 2269-2270 -- Used most of the original cast (and a few additions) to provide voices for the animated versions of their characters. The quality of the show was hit and miss, with some being mediocre cartoon fare while others were excellent, and the series got the franchise's first Emmy award. 22 episodes were produced. The official canonicity of this series has gone back and forth, but at least some elements have bled over into the rest of the franchise (most notably, identifying the "T" in [[The Kirk|James T. Kirk]] to stand for [[Embarrassing Middle Name|"Tiberius"]]) and the addition of the cat-like Caitians to the mythos
* ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' ("TNG", 1987-1994) Set from 2364-2370 -- The ''other'' one everyone has heard of. Takes place in the 24th century on the ''[[Cool Starship|Enterprise]]''-[[Cool Starship|D]], with the same mission of exploration as the original. Introduced the holodeck (although a version of it appeared first in the [[Canon]]/noncanon "TAS"), defined the Klingons as being a [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|society of honor and war]], and really hit it home with creating the cybernetic alien race, the Borg. Also, there was [[The Trickster|Q]].
* ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' ("DS9", 1993-1999) Set from 2369-2375 -- Takes place concurrently with the end of ''Next Generation'' and the lion's share of ''Voyager'', and conceived as a [[Spin-Off]] of TNG. Set on a former Cardassian space station (formerly Terok Nor, renamed Deep Space Nine) in a politically unstable part of space near the planet Bajor, with exclusive access to a rare stable wormhole that leads from the Alpha to the Gamma Quadrant. From the fourth season onwards, former TNG character Worf joined the cast and the whole series got much darker with a massive interstellar war between the Federation, Cardassians, Klingons, Romulans and the Dominion. Was also the first ''Trek'' series to use [[Story Arc|Story Arcs]] extensively, rather than persisting with a strictly episodic format. Generally considered the [[Oddball in the Series]] as far as the television shows go.
* ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'' ("VOY", 1995-2001) Set from 2371-2378 -- Another [[Spin-Off]] of ''Next Generation'', conceived as its successor. While searching for a group of rogue Starfleet people called the Maquis, both the title ship and a Maquis ship are flung across the galaxy and stranded in the Delta Quadrant, 70,000 light years and seventy-five years' travel from home (''[[Lost in Space]]'' a la ''Star Trek''). Had the first main character female captain in the franchise. In the mainstream, this show is best -- perhaps only -- known for its [[Ms. Fanservice]] character, [[The Spock|Seven of Nine]]. Among fans, it's infamous for the [[Villain Decay]] of the Borg, the obscene levels of [[Techno Babble]], and mashing the [[Reset Button]] after roughly every other episode, but it is also notable for tackling controversial topics even other ''Trek'' series wouldn't touch.
* ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'' ("ENT", 2001-2005) Set from 2151-2155 -- Prequel to the original series. Set a hundred years or so before Kirk and the Federation, when humans are just getting their space legs (and the [[Applied Phlebotinum]] is not nearly as reliable), aboard Earth's first, experimental Warp 5-capable starship, the Enterprise NX-01. It began with a [[Myth Arc]] involving the Enterprise crew getting caught up in a "Temporal Cold War" being fought by several rival [[Time Travel]] factions, though it gradually fell victim to the [[The Chris Carter Effect]]. The series was then [[Retool|Retooled]] twice: first with the third season introducing an ambitious season-spanning [[Story Arc]] centering around the sudden appearance of [[Scary Dogmatic Aliens|a mysterious new aggressor]] called the Xindi, and then with the fourth and final season consisting of several two-to-three-episode-long "mini-arcs" that [[Call Forward|laid the groundwork for the Federation]] in earnest
* ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'' ("DIS" or "STD", 2017-present) -- Originally set ten years before the original series, and intended to depict the outbreak of the Klingon-Federation war, Discovery's premise has changed quite a bit over the years and it is now set 200 years after an apocalyptic, galaxy-wide event called "The Burn"
* ''[[Star Trek: Short Treks]]'' (2018-present) -- An anthology series including both animated and live-action episodes.
* ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]'' ("PIC", 2020-present) -- Set 20 years after the end of The Next Generation, and depicts the adventures of Jean-Luc Picard after his retirement from Starfleet.
* ''[[Star Trek: Lower Decks]]'' ("LDS", 2020-present) -- An animated comedy series aimed squarely at adults, in the style of (and created by one of the writers for) [[Rick and Morty]]. Of all the Star Trek shows to come out during Kurtzman's reign, this one was the most well-received by fans.
* ''[[Star Trek: Prodigy]]'' (2021-present) -- A CGI show aimed squarely at kids, with Kate Mulgrew providing the voice of a holographic Janeway
* ''[[Star Trek: Strange New Worlds]]'' -- Set to debut in 2022, and is intended to return the franchise to its optimistic roots after the negative fan response to the pessimism and violence in Discovery and Picard.
In addition to these, ''Star Trek: Phase II'' was a series concept designed as the cornerstone of a [[Paramount Pictures]]-based network in 1976. A continuation of the original series and featuring a second five-year mission, it would have introduced a number of new characters in conjunction with the original crew. When the network project died and the insane success of ''[[Star Wars]]'' made sci-fi films profitable again, Paramount elaborated the series pilot into [[The Movie]], which ultimately led to a whole new line of movies:
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In total, to watch every minute of
=== [[Star Trek Expanded Universe]] ===
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* [[Arson, Murder, and Lifesaving]]
* [[Artificial Gravity]]: Rarely mentioned, but always present whenever the action takes place aboard a starship or space station.
* [[The Assimilator]]: The Borg are the trope namer and codifier.
* [[Author Appeal]]: Rick Berman has admitted that he is the one mostly responsible for so much [[Time Travel]] in the various shows. He just loves the time paradox of "this is the reason this happened but that is the origin of that event and here is where we have to make a choice as to whether this or that occurs..."
* [[Badass Army]]: The Klingons wish they were these but they are more of a subversion. Starfleet qualifies, at least in space--they tend to be somewhat underprepared for extended ground combat.
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* [[Cool but Inefficient]]
* [[Cool Starship]]: Every series has one.
* [[Collectible Card Game]]: there was one in the mid-'90s that tried to cash in on the popularity of [[Magic: The Gathering]]
* [[Command Roster]]: [[Star Trek]] is likely the [[Trope Maker]] or at least set the standard of how this trope is used.
* [[Communications Officer]]: Every series has one except ''DS9'' (though in ''TNG'', Worf gets shuffled out of the position pretty quickly and nobody really replaces him).
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* [[Emotion Suppression]]: The Vulcan culture has [[Emotion Suppression]] at its core.
* [[Emotions vs. Stoicism]]: Romulans vs. Vulcans.
* [[The Empire]]: The Klingon Empire, Romulan Star Empire
* [[Epic Tracking Shot]]: It's an interesting thing to note as the next generation of shows progressed in special effects.
* [[Everything Sensor]]: EVERY scanner is like this.
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* [[Exposition Beam]]: Vulcan Mind Melds are essentially this, along with a host of other [[Applied Phlebotinum]] uses.
* [[Expositron 9000]]: The ship/station computers.
* [[Fan of the Past]]: Too many to name, including Ben Sisko's love of the extinct sport of Baseball and the soft spot that Tom Paris has for classic cars and black-and-white sci-fi serials. Also, aliens love dressing up in Nazi uniforms and re-enacting WW2 (seriously, it happened AT LEAST three times!).
* [[Fantastic Racism]]: There will always be at least a few members of each species that has issues with humans, other species, or vice versa.
* [[Fantastic Nuke]]: Bio-memetic gel, a key component of biogenic weapons. The actual ''effects'' of this gel are left up to the imagination; the Federation bans any and all weapons applications, so it must be pretty hairy.
** Some [[Expanded Universe]] sources imply that ''biogenic'' is the equivalent of ''weapon of mass destruction'' in current parlance. That is, this is a weapon you had DAMN well better not get caught actually using.
** The Vulcans use "Red Matter" to create pocket [[Our Wormholes Are Different|black holes]]. Nero got the bright idea of using it to ''eat a planet'' (specifically [[Death by Irony|Vulcan]]).
** The Cardassians have Dreadnought missiles.
* [[Fantastic Rank System]]: Everyone except the Federation has a different one. See the trope page for more details.
* [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture]]: While not fantasy, most of the major alien species have some connection to Real World counterparts.
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*** Starfleet - The United States Navy (Both the Earth & Federation versions of Starfleet have individual ranks & systems of hierarchy that correspond with the USN's. The color of Starfleet personnel's uniforms are based on the specifics of their job, just as its done with the flight crews aboard USN aircraft carriers. Also, during the Dominion War, "Deep Space Nine" has Starfleet deployed in the numbered fleet configurations used by the USN, with the 3rd Fleet referenced as protecting Earth & the 7th Fleet all but destroyed in a failed offensive.)
** Vulcans- Great Britain (Not a perfect match-up, but ''[[Enterprise]]'' depicted them as a regional superpower who eventually lose much of their realm of control as Earth increases theirs.)
** Klingons - Soviet Russia
*** Klingons also had some similarity to post-Soviet Russia in ''The Next Generation'' in terms of politics. But as part of [[Gene Roddenberry]]'s plan to not make them evil and a race of "black hats", they turned into... vikings. They also had no
** Romulans - Communist China (Secretive government who you aren't quite sure what they're up to.) The Romulans also have some allusions to the Roman Empire: Their two main planets are Romulus and Remus, they are called an Empire, their ruling body is the Senate which is headed by a Praetor, and low-ranking officers are called "Centurions".
** Bajorans - Could be perceived as Jews or Palestinians, depending on the time period and one's opinion of that conflict.
** Ferengi - Explicitly compared to "Yankee traders" in their debut episode. They've also been accused of being Jewish stereotypes, due in no small part to the fact that most of the actors who play regular named Ferengi characters are Jewish.
* [[Faster-Than-Light Travel]]: Rather hard to imagine the series without it.
* [[Fiction Science]]: The series have produced a large number of [[wikipedia:List of Star Trek technical manuals|Technical Manuals]], many of them official. These fill in many details of life in the Trekkian future, especially the inner workings of the Enterprises and other starships.
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* [[Sighted Guns Are Low Tech]]
* [[Signature Device]]: The transporter.
* [[Single-Purpose Planet]]: Several worlds identified as "pleasure planets" have appeared across multiple incarnations of franchise -- these appear to be worlds that specialize in being tourist destinations, providing all manner of entertainment and pleasure to visitors.
* [[Slow Electricity]]: The console displays always go on/off in sequence around the bridge. If there's a ship-wide outage, expect an outside shot of windows lighting up/going out one at a time.
* [[Smart House]]: The ships behave much like this from TNG onward.
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* [[Space Navy]]: Starfleet
* [[Standard Sci-Fi Army]]: Codified the use Security personnel. Follows the visual media model of focusing mostly on Infantry.
* [[Standard Sci
* [[Standard Sci
* [[Standard Starship Scuffle]]: A likely [[Trope Codifier]].
* [[Standard Time Units]]: Stardates.
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** Janeway is described as casually flaunting the timeline so frequently it actually managed to [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero|drive Captain Braxton 'insane''.]] He comes up with something called "The Janeway Factor," meaning that you can fully expect her to blunder into any time-sensitive activities going on.
** Also, the time police hate Kirk; when Sisko gives his report about "Trials and Tribble-ations," and first mentions Kirk, the two operatives look at each other and say something along the lines of "we all hate the Kirk cases."
* [[Time to Step Up, Commander]]: Multiple occurrences across the franchise, including in the ''TNG'' two-parter "The Best of Both Worlds" where Riker is faced with this from Guinan.
* [[Translator Microbes]]: The Universal Translator.
* [[Values Dissonance]]: There is some of this between the Star Trek shows, spanning decades, and the audiences of various generations, but this trope really comes into its own in universe, with the majority of plots being about or involving inter-species and inter-cultural values dissonance.
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* [[What the Hell, Hero?]]: Every Captain. In every series. And not infrequently either. Either them at the crew for their crap, or the crew to themselves for their own crap.
* [[Will Not Tell a Lie]]: Vulcans, allegedly - something of an [[Informed Attribute]].
* [[Word of God]]: Per Paramount Studios (owners of the franchise) and Gene Roddenberry (creator of the franchise) from the late-'80s/early-'90s, only live-action ''Star Trek'' TV episodes and films are considered canon. This has been hotly debated by fans, and occasionally ignored by scriptwriters. This only applies to ''TAS'', though; ''Lower Decks'' appears to be considered canon.
* [[Worthy Opponent]] : The Romulan captain in ''Balance of Terror'' most notably. Used on other occasions.
* [[X Meets Y]]: [[Seinfeld Is Unfunny|Hidden]] by the influence of Trek on later productions, but the original premise was then novel at least for television, and could easily be described as "[[Horatio Hornblower]] meets [[The Outer Limits]]".
* [[You Look Familiar]]: Numerous times. But in this case [[Rubber Forehead Aliens|putting a different alien makeup]] helps a lot in distinguishing characters played by the same actor.
** Mark Lenard waves "Hello".
** The second Doctor of TNG played a girl du jour in the original series. Twice.
** Armin Shimmerman and Max Grodénchik played seven distinct Ferengi characters between the two of them, in addition to a handful of non-Ferengi roles.
** Jeffery Combs, Vaughn Armstrong and J. G. Hertzler have set records for portraying no less than five alien species over the course of the "next generation" series of shows (including Combs playing two separate characters of different races in
** From ''Voyager'', Tim Russ (Tuvok) and Robert Duncan McNeill (Tom Paris) both played villains in episodes of ''[[The Next Generation]]''. In fact, McNeill was supposed to reprise his role originally, before it was re-written as Tom Paris. Both are notable because there's practically no makeup involved between the two roles (Russ only gained pointy ears).
** This was deliberately and ''brilliantly'' played with in the ''Deep Space Nine'' episode "Far Beyond The Stars"; once Ben Sisko began thinking he was Benny Russell, the people in his life looked like the people Sisko knew - except all human. But then the show would tap the fourth wall by making them appear in makeup for a moment. It's also the only time Marc Alaimo, Jeff Combs, JG Hertzler, Rene Auberjonois, Armin Shimerman and Michael Dorn got to appear on-camera without their makeup in the entire run of the series (for poor Michael Dorn, it was the first time in ''eleven years'' that he was on-camera with no makeup).
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{{reflist}}
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[[Category:Live-Action TV of the 2010s]]
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[[Category:Films of the 1970s]]
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[[Category:Films of the 2000s]]
[[Category:Films of the 2010s]]
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[[Category:American Series]]
[[Category:GURPS Settings]]
[[Category:Hugo Award]]
[[Category:Military Science Fiction]]
[[Category:Notable Quotables]]
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[[Category:Science Fiction Tabletop Games]]
[[Category:Vector Game]]
▲[[Category:TV Series]]
▲[[Category:Western Animation]]
▲[[Category:Film]]
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