Summary
EveryStar Trekshow has a few common threads, and most of them have a ship and a crew that are the focus of the plot. The chemistry between the crew is often part of the story, with drama between characters generating some of the best and most compelling plotlines.
One of the themes of everyStar Trekvideo game, show, or movie is confronting the strange or scary as a unified force. That also means working with enemies,like Klingons or the Borg. In a vast universe consisting of countless planets and races, it’s really about the friends our heroes make along the way.
7The Protostar NX-76884 (Star Trek: Prodigy)
A Motley Crew With A Refitted Ship
The Protostar had a long and interesting history before it was found abandoned near the Tars Lamora prison colony, some of it connected to the crew of the USS Voyager. In theStar Trek: Prodigyepisode “Lost and Found,” Dal R’El and Rok-Tahk find the ship hidden in a crevice, and after recruiting a few friends, they repair the ship and use it to escape the colony.
Like the ship in the show that inspired it, the crew of the Protostar is traveling from the Delta Quadrant to the Alpha Quadrant. If they can work together to rebuild an old starship and escape from a prison planet, they can handle some adventures in space.
6The USS Discovery NCC-1031 (Star Trek: Discovery)
A Clandestine Crew With A Secret Mission
The crew ofStar Trek: Discoveryhas some of the IP’s most iconic figures, with characters like Gabriel Lorca and Sylvia Tilly making as much of an impression as Michael Burnham or Christopher Pike. In contrast to otherStar Trekcrews, this crew wasn’t exactly an assembly of the best and brightest, but instead, many of them had shady pasts or secrets to keep.
The story ofDiscoverywasn’t only about the redemption of Michael Burnam, but also concerned the spore drive, the mirror universe, and the fate of the Klingon Empire. Saru was the first Kelpian to join Starfleet, and thanks to Paul Stamets, now all the kids want to grow up to be astromycologists.
5USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
A Crew Led By One Of The Best In The Universe
Out of all theStar Trekcrews, this might be the Dream Team, assembled when both Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets were at the height of their influence and power. Captain Jean-Luc Picard had already made a name for himself as the commander of the USS Stargazer. His wisdom and diplomacy were more useful in theTNGera than the cowboy swagger of Kirk in earlier years.
The officers includedmore than one alien this time, with Worf appearing as a first officer and eventually being promoted to Acting Chief of Security. Deanna Troi, the ship’s counsellor, was half Betazoid. Data as a character was always an interesting exploration of the relationship between humans and computers, a story that continued inStar Trek: Picard.
4USS Enterprise NCC-1701 (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)
A Weird Mix In Deep Space
The original crew of the Enterprise, including the captain who predated Kirk, used to be no more than obscure trivia about the original pilot episode. Partly inspired by the unaired pilot “The Cage” and also a spin-off fromDiscovery,Star Trek: Strange New Worldsfeatures the crew of the USS Enterprise as they appeared without Kirk or Bones, ten years beforeTOStakes place.
This means that Christopher Pike is the Captain, his Number One is Una Chin-Riley, and Spock is the ship’s science officer. Uhura and Kirk eventually join the crew, and Montgomery Scott’s voice makes a cameo appearance in the first season finale.
3USS Voyager NCC-74656 (Star Trek: Voyager)
Explore, Discover, Survive
The saga ofStar Trek: Voyagerbegins with the coerced merger of two separate crews for survival. Captain Janeway gave the Maquis crew roles as part of her crew to integrate their skills to where they could best be used. Making Chakotay, the former Captain of the rebel ship, her first officer is one example; another would be B’Elanna Torres as the Chief Engineer.
Tuvok put an interesting spin on the usual stoic Vulcan, acting in an officer capacity andcoping with most of the conflictsbetween crewmembers. The holographic doctor was another interesting addition, taking the dilemma of humans and computers and taking it up another notch.
2Enterprise NX-01 (Star Trek: Enterprise)
Navigating The Galaxy Pre-Federation
Even the restored Protostar was once a Federation ship, but this early incarnation of the Enterprise was owned and operated by United Earth Starfleet before the United Federation of Planets existed. Captain Jonathon Archer was the son of Henry Archer, an engineer who, alongside Zephrem Cochrane, built humanity’s first warp-capable ship. He felt that he had something to prove when he took his crew into space.
Archer and his crew had even less to work with than Kirk’s Enterprise, lacking not only the technology but also the larger network of the Federation. The work of linguist and interpreter Hishi Sato was crucial, giving humanity some of the first Klingon language translations. Engineer Tripp Tucker made some interesting contacts aside from improving and maintaining the ship. Finally, Sub-Commander T’Pol ensured thatthe Vulcans would remain close allieswith humans and, eventually, the United Federation of Planets.
1USS Enterprise NCC-1701 (Star Trek: The Original Series)
The Dream Of A United Earth
The original crew was far from perfect, and they didn’t always get along, but that was Gene Roddenberry’s whole point. Humanity had left cultural and racial turmoil behindand united to explorethe vast reaches of space, and the USS Enterprise would serve its best years under the crew of Captain James Kirk.
Most of the crew drama revolved around the triumvirate of Spock, Kirk, and McCoy, who would remain close friends until they retired from active duty. Uhura was another fan favorite, second only to Spock in popularity, and Scotty’s name still lives on in engineering legend throughout the galaxy.
