The Imgurians among you will have received an alert about the
50th anniversary of Star Trek the original series last Thursday on 8 September.
Following the alert linked to a million-and-one Star Trek images, gifs,
and posts from every series to the movies. Fans recalled their
favourite moments in the iconic show's history from the Picard and
Riker's double facepalm to the racy first-ever televised interracial
kiss.
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| digitaltrends.com |
Imgur wasn't the only one to pay homage, the United States Postal
Service (USPS) released a special quartet of stamps showcasing memorable
silhouettes from the original series including a silhouette of someone
getting beamed aboard, the Starfleet insignia, the Vulcan greeting, and
the USS Enterprise otherwise known as the Starship Enterprise. Star Trek
themed stamps have been made only once before in 1999 as a part of
their "
Celebrate the Century" stamp release. This speaks to
how influential and monumental the TV show was in the 20th century.
A Defiant Strain
In its 3 year occupation of America's television sets, Star Trek
challenged norms by targeting sexism/feminism, racism, and
militarism/peace. Watching the show today will shed some light on 1960's
America and its many faults. It addressed key societal issues in a way
that nothing at the time would.
In answer to sexism, Number One, a nameless female lead in the pilot
script, had knowledge that surpassed the captain. She was so valuable
that she had to be left aboard the ship while the team went on risky
away missions. Unfortunately, she was cut from the script on the request
of NBC executives because "a woman in such a powerful authority
position on board a starship" was not identifiable, according to Leonard
Nimoy in behind-the-scenes footage. Lt. Uhura takes the next best
option as fourth in command aboard the ship. Not only is she given power
and depended on for knowledge, Uhura is a strong character who can ably
take care of herself.
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| memory-alpha.wikia.com |
Speaking of Uhura takes us to our second point: Star Trek's answer to racism. The Enterprise crew
in each series
has been a delightful mix of races and species. Placing minority races
in key crew positions demonstrated a conscious step towards improved
racial relations. A Japanese-American, Lt. Sulu played by George Takei,
was an irreplaceable helmsman, and an East-African princess, Lt. Uhura
played by Nichelle Nichols, was a vital communications officer. While
neither character consistently shocked with unexpected lines, actions,
or scenes, their inclusion served as an example and reminder of
equality. One episode in particular, "
Let That Be Your Last Battlefield,"
takes a pointed stance against racism. In the episode, a race of people
are literally divided in halves, black and white. From the planet
Cheron, Bele (left) and Lokai (right), though they look remarkably
similar, are struggling with racial bias. If you examine the picture
closely, you'll see that Bele is white on the left side of his face and
black on the right. Lokai's colouring is the opposite and for this he is
considered inferior to Bele. Aside from lecturing on racial differences
and equal but separate treatment, the underlying theme is hatred. In
the end, the entire race residing on Cheron is dead from a race war.
When Bele and Lokai see the desolation they follow in the footsteps of
their brethren, beaming down to the blood-soaked planet to continue
their feud.
In answer to topics of war and peace, Star Trek has not been quiet in
its criticism of violence, war, and threats. The original series was
running during the Vietnam war and so took opportunities to mirror major
issues, as in the episode "
A Private Little War."
Many of the episodes, especially those with warring powers, show
peaceful negotiations and non-violent ways to solve controversies. The
Klingons and Romulans offered a great opportunity for writers to play
out different scenarios.
These points are expanded upon in J. William Snyder Jr.'s
Star Trek: A Phenomenon and Social Statement on the 1960's.
Celebrate History
How special is it to witness defiance and historical relevance in a TV show, one that represents the quintessential nerd?
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| treknews.net |
With 7 television shows (
Discovery is
set to release 2017), 13 movies, books, comics, games, and tons of
merchandise, Star Trek's 50 year anniversary is a happy day for us all.
For me, Star Trek has a permanent place in my heart ...
The Next Generation, anyway. If I'm being honest, not just
TNG, but
Deep Space Nine and the movie reboots aren't bad. There's so much to love!
Happy times like these are when you wish that Facebook would
just give the world what it wants. In this scenario, what would that look like? I'm glad you asked! Below you'll see
Facebook's tribute to the entirety of Star Trek. For the anniversary, they've
replaced standard reaction buttons with Star Trek themed variants.
For a limited time, some Facebook users in the U.S. and Canada were
able to take advantage of these classic images. Added to reactions are
the
Vulcan salute (Live long and prosper), a jovial Captain Kirk, an awed Spock, a sad Geordi La Forge, and an angry Klingon.
Facebook Celebrates Star Trek's 50th from
Facebook on
Vimeo.
Not everyone has done enough to commemorate the glorious anniversary,
including the television network that hosted the original series. To
some,
CBS has royally screwed up the anniversary.
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| pinterest.com |
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