Don’t miss out on new Star Trek just because it’s new

Why do Trekkies try so hard to resist accepting new content?

So it’s no secret, we as Trekkies (or Trekkers as some prefer to be called) hold Star Trek canon in high regards. So much so, that when new content is released, often we’re hesitant to fully accept it. This was the case back in the day with series we now hold sacred like Voyager, Enterprise, and even The Next Generation! For those who were fans of The Original Series, the mere thought of another crew onboard a NEW Enterprise, exploring the cosmos was unfathomable!

Where’s Kirk? Where’s Spock? Where’s Bones? This is the NEXT Generation, but it’s being led by some old bald British dude? And yet, he we are…and even a new series starring the same (now, even older) bald, British dude took a couple of years to be fully accepted by the Trek faithful — if it truly even has, yet. It only took bringing back almost every other cast member from TNG for us to accept it.

I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t like the first two seasons of Picard either, and even while watching the first episode of Season 3, immediately, I’m yelling at my television, “No! No! You can’t receive subspace communications on a personal communicator! That’s not how this stuff works!” It took a conversation with a close friend for me to realize that I was taking things way too seriously and needed to look past that storytelling flaw. However, once I did get past it, I REALLY enjoyed Season 3 of Picard!

Just like Mikey and his box of Life cereal, if you don’t try something, you might never know that you actually like it

And that’s what I’m here to talk about today and urge long-time Trekkies/Trekkers (let’s just call ourselves Trekfolk, shall we?) to loosen up a bit and give the new content some space to breathe and try to accept it for what it really is, and that’s really good storytelling of new content centered around a theme and an intellectual property that we all love and hold sacred.

Specifically, Strange New Worlds & the Lower Decks are two series that I’ve really found to be quite entertaining. Is Ethan Peck’s Spock the same as Leonard Nimoy’s Spock? Maybe not exactly, but I do like how Ethan plays the character and the stories being told about him. Celia Rose Gooding is doing a fantastic job of exploring the early years of Nyota Uhura, a character made famous by Nichelle Nichols. And who could possibly argue that Anson Mount’s version of Captain Christopher Pike isn’t the BEST version of the character we’ve EVER seen — including Bruce Greenwood from Star Trek 2009. Even Paul Wesley’s portrayal of James T. Kirk is growing on me!

Also, while the Lower Decks is an animated series that is intended to be a comedy, the stories being told are fun and the series is quite easily bingeable! The countless easter eggs in each episode which harken back to over 50 years of Star Trek lore really keeps you on your toes to not miss any details or dialogue that could be an inside joke to long-term Trekfolk. I mean where else are you going to see it declared that Chief O’Brien is the most important person in Starfleet history, with a giant golden statue erected in his honor? Also, not to spoil anything, but the recent release of SNW’s newest episode “Those Old Scientists” expertly meshes the two shows together in a way that I never thought possible.

My point is…there’s a lot of great Star Trek content being released on a weekly basis right now. Don’t let your preconceptions of whether it is or isn’t “Trek” force you to miss out!