The Politics of Star Trek

Claremont.org ^ | 08/25/2015 | Timothy Sandefur

[DFG]

Leonard Nimoy’s death in February brought to a close his unusual career continually playing a single role for half a century. Between 1966, when the television show Star Trek premiered, and 2013, when the movie Star Trek Into Darkness hit the screens, Nimoy portrayed the franchise’s beloved first officer, Mr. Spock, in two TV series and eight films.

As he acknowledged, the key to Star Trek’s longevity and cultural penetration was its seriousness of purpose, originally inspired by creator Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction vision. Modeled on Gulliver’s Travels, the series was meant as an opportunity for social commentary, and it succeeded ingeniously, with episodes scripted by some of the era’s finest science fiction writers. Yet the development of Star Trek’s moral and political tone over 50 years also traces the strange decline of American liberalism since the Kennedy era.

[freefdny]

We reach. And you beat me to it. The life lesson learned is never jam with the pretty girl playing the bicycle rim. It’s always a trick.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=q2xyRObL0Xw

[Chgogal]

What about the new Star Trek movies with Chris Pine as Kirk?

[catfish1957]

ST Enterprise (The Prequel) was terribly underrated. The series tilted slightly right post 9-11, and touched on a lot of themes toward fighting terrorism. Bakula was my second favorite captain behind Shatner.

[ETL]

Spock: Jim, it appears to be yet another M3 earth-like planet. Atmosphere and other conditions identical to earth.

Kirk: Of course it’s an M3, you vulcan dope. You know they can’t afford the more elaborate sets and special effects.

[Jonty30]

In my opinion, Enterprise had a lot of potential, until they introduced time travel. That’s when they lost the series.

They could have done a lot, like showing some of the subtleties of Vulcans or Klingons. I think that would have been popular. I give them props for revealing the dirty tricks the Vulcans played on the Andorians.

[GreyFriar]

I too enjoyed ST:Enterprise. It was just getting its feet in its final season. They finally had a good team of writers and had figured out what to do with the series. I hated to see it end.

[catfish1957]

In my opinion, Enterprise had a lot of potential, until they introduced time travel. That’s when they lost the series.

All of the series used the concept of time travel, but you are right, the way they use that aspect fouled the series on that turn.

[ETL]

Re: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=q2xyRObL0Xw

Lol!

[SoCal Pubbie]

Whether it was the writer’s intention it not, that episode was a perfect a analogy to a cold, lifeless Communist dictatorship. Landru was not a god, but a cult of personality, just like fat boy in North Korea.

[Radix]

"That said, at least they didn’t have Janeway—the worst captain in Trek history!"

She is in prison now, wearing the 'new black.'

[massgopguy]

E PLEBNISTA!

[catfish1957]

I hated to see it end.

I agree, I wished the series had focused on tying a loose ends between 2155 - 2245 rather than jacking with space-time continum.

Seeing T'Pol in her cat suit? :)

[freepertoo]

The Landru society, I think was ST’s version of Christianity. “The body” was the clue for me. I love TOS, but I think this one is glaringly obvious. Roddenberry was no Christian.

[TexasFreeper2009]

A very interesting article, especially for Star Trek fans.

[catfish1957]

She is in prison now, wearing the 'new black.'

She's a lot more believable as a Russian prison gangster than a star ship captain..

[TexasFreeper2009]

That depends on how you define liberalism.

To a old liberal (pre-1960) the liberals of today would be considered commie anarchists.

[ETL]

We reach...The life lesson learned is never jam with the pretty girl playing the bicycle rim. It’s always a trick.

[Mad Dawgg]

[TexasFreeper2009]

That depends on how you define liberalism.

To an old liberal (pre-1960) the liberals of today would be considered dangerously naive commie anarchists.

[SoCal Pubbie]

That likely was the intent, but I see Landru more like Mao than Jesus, the hooded minions more like Red Guards that church deacons, and the Body more like The Dictatorship of the Proletariat than a congregation.