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Star Trek originated as a television series in 1966, although according to The Making of Star Trek by Stephen E. Whitfield and Gene Roddenberry, it had been in the planning stages for at least six years prior to this. There have been five live-action Star Trek series and an animated series, altogether comprising (as of May 2005) a total of 726 individual aired episodes (not including the original unaired pilot) and thirty seasons’ worth of television.
Star Trek (1966–1969)
Star Trek debuted on NBC on September 8, 1966, having aired in Canada some days earlier. Created by Gene Roddenberry, starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley, and co-starring James Doohan, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Majel Barrett, and (later) Walter Koenig, it told the tale of the crew of the starship Enterprise of the United Federation of Planets and Starfleet and their adventures "to boldly go where no man has gone before."
The first episode aired, "The Man Trap," was actually the fifth produced. Originally, Roddenberry had created a pilot entitled "The Cage," with a very different cast, led by veteran actor Jeffrey Hunter, which was rejected by NBC, the network that ordered the pilot through Desilu. However, an unprecedented second pilot was commissioned, "Where No Man Has Gone Before," which featured an almost entirely new cast led by Shatner. Only the character of Spock remained, at Roddenberry's insistence. "Where No Man Has Gone Before" was the third episode aired, while "The Cage" was reworked into a two-part episode, "The Menagerie."
The last original episode, "The Turnabout Intruder," aired on June 3, 1969. The series subsequently became phenomenally popular in syndication, ultimately spawning the film and television sequels that followed. It has in recent years become known as Star Trek: The Original Series, abbreviated as ST:TOS or TOS, or as "Classic Trek," retronyms to distinguish it from its sequels and the franchise. All subsequent films and television series, except the animated series of the 1970s, have secondary titles included as part of their official names.
Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973–1974)
The series was aired under the name Star Trek, but it has become widely known as Star Trek: The Animated Series (or abbreviated as ST:TAS or TAS). It was produced by Filmation and ran for two seasons, with a total of 22 half-hour episodes. It featured most of the original cast performing the voices for their characters with the exception of Walter Koenig, who was not asked to return due to budgetary limitations. While the freedom of animation afforded large alien landscapes and exotic life forms, budget constraints were a major concern and animation quality was poor.
A few episodes are especially notable due to contributions from well known science-fiction authors. However, the series is not considered to be canon, which has caused controversy among some fans. The episode "Yesteryear" is considered by some sources such as the Star Trek Encyclopedia to be a partial exception concerning the events depicted in Spock’s youth (although it still officially remains non-canon along with the rest of TAS). Even so, elements of the animated series have worked their way into official canon, such as Kirk’s middle name, Tiberius, first revealed in TAS and made official in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Star Trek: Enterprise also incorporated several TAS concepts into canon. So, while the series itself is not strictly canon, it has been used as "canon fodder." TAS also came back to television in the mid 1980s on the children's cable network Nickelodeon.
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994)
Star Trek: The Next Generation (also known, colloquially, as The Next Generation, NextGen, ST:TNG, or TNG) is set nearly a century later and features a new starship (also named Enterprise) and a new crew, venturing where "no one has gone before."
It premiered on September 28, 1987, with the two-hour pilot episode, "Encounter at Farpoint," and ran for seven seasons, ending with the final two-part episode, "All Good Things..." on May 29, 1994. The show gained a considerable following during its initial run. Even during that time, the show was produced solely for syndication.
Star Trek: The Next Generation had the highest ratings of all the Star Trek series and was the #1 syndicated show during the last few years of its original run. Many fans, both casual and "hard-core," often treat The Next Generation as a kind of 'golden age' of Star Trek, primarily because of its broad acceptance, its viewer base, and the active influence of Roddenberry (who was alive during the first part of its run).
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (ST:DS9 or DS9) ran for seven seasons and was the first Star Trek series to be established without any direct input from Gene Roddenberry. It introduced Avery Brooks as Commander (and, later in the series, Captain) Benjamin Sisko, the first African-American in the commanding role of a Star Trek series. It chronicles the events surrounding the space station Deep Space Nine.
In the first episode, the crew discovers the presence of a nearby, uniquely stable wormhole, which provides nearly immediate travel to and from the distant Gamma Quadrant. This immediately makes the station an important strategic asset, as well as a vital center of commerce with the largely unexplored area of space. Deep Space Nine sheds some of the utopian themes that embodied the previous versions of Star Trek, and focuses more on war, religion and political compromise.
Star Trek: Voyager (1995–2001)
Star Trek: Voyager (also known as ST:VOY, ST:VGR, VOY or Voyager) was produced for seven seasons, and is the only Star Trek series to have had a female, Captain Kathryn Janeway, as the commanding officer. Essentially, the USS Voyager and crew were "lost in space": the series follows the adventures of the starship Voyager and her crew, joined by Maquis resistance fighters, who have all become stranded in the Delta Quadrant, seventy thousand light years from Earth by an entity known as the "Caretaker." Unless they can find a shortcut, it will take them seventy-five years to return to Federation space.
Although Voyager's ratings were initially solid, they fell dramatically as the show progressed. It was during this show's run that criticism of producer Rick Berman began to mount, coinciding with the growth in popularity of online discussion forums that amplified the message of a vocal group of fans who felt Berman was no longer welcome as the franchise leader.
Star Trek: Enterprise (2001–2005)
Star Trek: Enterprise (named simply Enterprise during its first two seasons and the first few episodes of its third, and abbreviated as ST:ENT or ENT) is a prequel to the other Star Trek series. The pilot episode, "Broken Bow," takes place ten years before the founding of the Federation, about halfway between the "historic" events shown in the movie Star Trek: First Contact and the original Star Trek series. This series depicts the exploration of space by the crew of the Earthship Enterprise, a new, NX-class starship, which is able to go farther and faster than any humans had previously gone.
Star Trek: Enterprise was promoted as being more accessible for newcomers to the Star Trek franchise, as well as for taking place during the formative years of the Federation. Ratings for Enterprise were never particularly strong; and, as it had done during the initial airing of The Original Series, fan support during Enterprise's second and third seasons helped keep the series on the air. During the third season Berman and Braga turned much of their leadership role to writer Manny Coto, but retained final control for themselves. Although the show gained a much more positive reaction from fans during the fourth season and had become popular, Paramount cancelled the show, much to the dismay of fans, in early 2005.
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