DS9: The "Tito Jackson" of Star Trek

So there are five original Star Trek TV series. There's the original, The Next Generation, Voyager, Deep Space Nine and Enterprise. 

Each series addresses a specific element of creator Gene Roddenberry's vision. One deals solely with social issues, another is about calculating risks. But they all have an important part to play in the world of Trek.

Well, most of them. 

The Next Generation and Voyager are obviously the "Michael" and "Jermaine" of the series respectively. TNG shines much brighter than the other with a captain who is the epitome of a great leader and a strong subset of important characters. Voyager's sparkle is a bit less bright, but is still a great second because of the story's innovative fiasco resolutions. Plus, the late addition of the Seven of Nine character gave the series a much-needed reboot that sparked a whole new generation of fandom.

Enterprise is the "Marlon". You kinda remember it. Nothing interesting. Pretty to look at. But it just kind of fades into the background to hold up the stage props. Coulda stayed home.

And then there's Deep Space Nine. Crappy, nonsensical Deep Space Nine. The "Tito" of the group. For lots of reasons.

A. The series' tone is completely off-key. It's the written version of that one guy at the karaoke bar who thinks he's amazing but actually sounds like a werewolf on crack. 

B. It's cast of characters are boring. I don't even remember what they look like, really.

C. Captain Sisko confuses violence with relevance.

D. They don't even leave the damn space station! 

It's like someone said "we need a new Star Trek series, but we have no budget, no creativity and no message...hey, lets call this crap 'Deep Space Nine'.  

Sigh. I can't even.



Recent Post: Respect the Trek

Glad I'm Not the Only One

Respect The Trek.

It is only logical that I begin this blog with a discussion about the splendor of Star Trek.

Gene Roddenberry, Awesome Genius, created the Star Trek vision in the 1960s both in hopes of inspiring humanity and offering a possible technological evolution.

Without Roddenberry, without Star Trek, you and I wouldn't be "here" right now.

Why, you ask?  Well, you poor, sheltered soul, because almost every convenience you use (although I wonder if you live in a cave...?) owes its creation to Star Trek.

Even blogging. That's right.

Blogging 

Began life as daily audio logs (i.e., "captain's logs").

Cell Phones

See "subspace communicators", circa 1966.

PDAs

This one's a no-brainer. Clearly.

Sliding Doors

The Trek made us lazy and snobby with the sliding door concept.  Until then, grocery stores, office buildings, hospitals...they used handled doors.

Robots? 

Lieutenant Commander Data. Duh.

Leadership

There's no greater example of true leadership than demonstrated by the captains of the Enterprise and Voyager. (This excludes Captain Sisko, since I refuse to acknowledge DS9 as a Star Trek series.)

Captain Jean Luc Picard (TNG) inspires confidence, equality, unity, vision and integrity.  Every TNG episode is a lesson in leading a unit, even under stressful circumstances.

Social Consciousness

It's no secret. The resolution to every ST plot is to acknowledge and better appreciate the other guy's culture.  Even episodes with heavy emphasis on the half computer drone Borg are resolved with ways to better understand (and/or stay the eff away from ) them.

Our desire to help one another is one of our basest instincts. Roddenberry injected this idea into every plot. Romulans trying to kill us? Let's find out what they want and help them get it.  Species 8472 (fluidic space creatures) tearing my ship apart?  Let's try to understand why, even if it means killing us.

Roddenberry patterned the original characters in the 1960s, just as race relations, feminism and nationalism where under a magnifying glass.  It's said that he created the various "races" in close alignment with social stereotypes of that time. (He never confirmed this.)

That two seemingly-opposite species could learn each other's languages, visit the other's planets, participate in their traditions and shake hands at the end of each episode meant that perhaps we could, too.

So show a little respect for Star Trek. Without it, you probably wouldn't have that computer on your desk, with the monitor you're looking at, reading my words and snickering.  You wouldn't be sitting right there today.

That's right. I said it.