When Gene Roddenberry wrote the basic idea behind Star Trek, he envisioned a show that was 'Wagon Train to the stars...' Little did he know, that 46 years after the very first pilot called The Cage, starring Jeffery Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike, that Star Trek would still be a phenomenon which would continue in 5 series, 11 movies, countless games, comic books, too many novels to mention and many, many fan shows (like Star Trek: New Voyages which was renamed Phase II....or was it the other way around???) that carry on the voyages of the Starship Enterprise and even have some of the original cast in episodes.
Starring William 'KHAAAAAAAAAN' Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Deforest Kelley and many other stars, Star Trek was the first multi-national tv show (with Russians, Africans, e.t.c), and placed the crew of the Enterprise in a differing situation every week for 47 minutes. Be it Kirk fighting for his life minus his shirt, Spock doing his Vulcan neck pinch to subdue someone (which nearly everyone has tried at some point!!), the Enterprise encountering Klingons and even going after Spock's brain after it gets pinched, some of the storylines were so absurd, they still made for compulsive viewing. Yes, the special effects might not be up to much now, but they still give Star Trek a certain charm.....along with Shatner's overacting (which I wait for every episode!) And, even though only 3 series were made before it got cancelled, spanning some 74-76 episodes, with some gems like The Trouble with Tribbles (a light hearted episode indeed), Spectre of the Gun, Guardian of the City of Forever and Arena, Star TRek TOS is THE defining Star Trek series, as it set most of the rules for the whole franchise.
Some may scoff, but let them. Just sit back, and enjoy some great stories, some cool action and even a few laughs along the way, on this rather excellent 5 year mission.
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