Star Trek: The Motion Picture

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" The Human adventure is just beginning… "

" Ten years ago, a television phenomenon became a part of life, shared in 47 different languages, read in 469 publications, and seen by 1.2 billion people. A common experience remembered around the world. Now Paramount Pictures brings the memory to life. "

After an eighteen-month refit process, the USS Enterprise is ready to explore the galaxy once again. But when a huge, invincible cloud approaches Earth , Admiral James T. Kirk must assume command of his old ship in order to stop it. Crew members old and new face new challenges, and must work together to triumph over the unknown.

  • 1.1 Act One
  • 1.2 Act Two
  • 1.3 Act Three
  • 2 Log entries
  • 3 Memorable quotes
  • 4.2 Costs and revenues
  • 4.3.1 Robert Abel & Associates
  • 4.3.2 Future General Corporation and Apogee
  • 4.4.1 Alien languages
  • 4.4.3 Make-up
  • 4.4.4 Voyager aka V'ger
  • 4.4.5 Saucer separation
  • 4.4.6 The walk to V'ger
  • 4.5.1 Late 1967 – June 1976: Early revitalization attempts
  • 4.5.2 July 1976 – May 1977: Star Trek: Planet of the Titans
  • 4.5.3 May 1977 – November 1977: Star Trek: Phase II
  • 4.5.4 December 1977 – December 1979: Star Trek: The Motion Picture
  • 4.5.5 1980s releases and merchandising
  • 4.5.6 1990s merchandising
  • 4.5.7 2000s and beyond merchandising
  • 4.6.1 Awards and honors
  • 4.7 Apocrypha
  • 5.1.1 Opening credits
  • 5.1.2.1.1 All Rights Reserved.
  • 5.1.3 Star Trek: The Motion Picture (The Director's Edition)
  • 5.1.4 Uncredited co-stars
  • 5.1.5 Uncredited stunt performers
  • 5.1.6 Uncredited production staff
  • 5.1.7 Uncredited production companies
  • 5.2.1 Spacecraft references
  • 5.3 Script references
  • 5.4 Other references
  • 5.5 Further reading
  • 5.6 External links

Summary [ ]

Act one [ ].

Klingon battle cruiser attacks V'ger

Amar firing a photon torpedo at an unknown cloud

In Klingon space, three Klingon K't'inga -class battle cruisers approach a massive cloud-like annomaly. As they approach it, the captain of one of the ships, the IKS Amar , orders photon torpedoes . They're armed and targeted on the center of the cloud, and the captain orders them to fire. The torpedoes are launched, and streak toward the annomaly. However, they abruply dissapear on sensors , and the captain orders evasive maneuvers, and the vessels pull back. Meanwhile, in Federation space, a listening post, Epsilon IX , picks up a distress signal from one of the Klingon ships. Commander Branch asks what they're fighting, and a liutenant responds that she doesn't know. Another officer reports he has a visual, and the ships continue away from the cloud. A plasma-energy weapon streaks from the cloud hits one of the ships, engulfing it in plasma bolts before seemingly fading out of existence. On a tactical display on the Amar, the captain sees they're the only ship in that area. Another plasma weapon is launched, and the captain orders aft torpedoes fired. As the plasma weapon approaches, a torpedo is fired from the rear launcher, but dissapears on contact with the plasma weapon. With nothing they can do, the weapon hits the Amar, engulfing it in plasma bolts, before it, too, dissapears. On Epsilon IX, the liutenant reports the cloud will pass by them, and it's on a direct course for Earth.

Vulcan Kolinahr Master (Female)

" You have not achieved kolinahr . "

On the planet Vulcan , Spock has been undergoing the kolinahr ritual, in which he has been learning how to purge all of his remaining emotions, and is nearly finished with his training. The lead elder tells Spock of how their ancestors had long ago cast out all animal passions on those sands, and says that their race was saved by attaining kolinahr , which another elder describes as the final purging of all emotion. The lead elder tells Spock he has labored long and she prepares to give him a symbol of total logic . She is about to give him a necklace , when Spock reaches out and stops her, clearly disturbed by something out in space. She asks for a mind meld to read his thoughts, to which Spock complies. She discovers that the alien intelligence which has called to him from deep space has stirred his Human half. She drops the necklace and states, " You have not yet achieved kohlinahr . " She then tells the other elders, " His answer lies elsewhere. He will not achieve his goal with us. " Then she bids him farewell, telling him to " live long and prosper ." Spock picks up the necklace from the ground and holds it in his hand.

Meanwhile, at the Presidio campus of Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco , Admiral James T. Kirk arrives in air tram 3 . As he steps out, he sees Commander Sonak , a Vulcan science officer who is joining the Enterprise crew and was recommended for the position by Kirk himself. Kirk is bothered as to why Sonak is not on board yet. Sonak explains that Captain Decker , the new captain of the USS Enterprise , wanted him to complete his science briefing at Starfleet Headquarters before departing. The Enterprise has been undergoing a complete refitting for the past eighteen months and is now under final preparations to leave drydock , which will take at least twenty hours, but Kirk informs him that they only have twelve. He tells Sonak to report to him on the Enterprise in one hour – he has a short meeting with Admiral Nogura and is intent on being on the Enterprise at that time.

Following the meeting, Kirk transports to an orbital office complex of the San Francisco Fleet Yards and meets Montgomery Scott , chief engineer of the Enterprise . Scott expresses his concern about the tight departure time. After the two men enter a travel pod and the doors seal shut, Kirk explains that an alien object is less than three days away from Earth, and the Enterprise has been ordered to intercept it because they are the only ship in range. Scott says that the refit, a process that took eighteen months, can't be finished in twelve hours and tries to convince him that the ship needs more work done as well as a proper shakedown . Kirk firmly insists that they are leaving, ready or not, in twelve hours. Scott activates the travel pod's thrusters and they begin the journey over to the drydock in orbit that houses the Enterprise .

Kirk & Scott

" They gave her back to me, Scotty. "

Scott tells Kirk that the crew hasn't had near enough transition time with all the new equipment and that the engines haven't even been tested at warp power, not to mention that they have an untried captain in command. Kirk tells Scott that two and a half years as the Chief of Starfleet Operations may have made him a little stale, but that he wouldn't exactly consider himself untried. Kirk then tells a surprised Scott that Starfleet has given him back his command of the Enterprise . Scott comments that he doubts it was so easy with Admiral Nogura, and Kirk tells him he's right. While sharing a laugh with Kirk, Scott remarks, " Any man who can manage such a feat I wouldna dare disappoint. She'll launch on time, sir… and she'll be ready, " and gently puts his hand on the admiral's arm. They arrive at the Enterprise held in drydock , and Scott gives Kirk a brief tour of the new exterior of the ship.

Sonak dead

A transport goes bad

Upon docking with the ship and entering the Enterprise 's cargo bay , Scott is immediately called to engineering. Kirk takes a turbolift up to the bridge, and upon arrival, is informed by Lieutenant Commander Uhura that Starfleet has just transferred command from Captain Decker over to him, and she, along with several other crewmembers including Sulu and Chekov , step forward excitedly to greet Kirk, who appreciates the welcome but wishes it were under more pleasant circumstances. Kirk asks the crew where Decker is. " He's in, uh, engineering, sir. He, uh… he doesn't know, " Sulu says. Kirk makes his way to the new engine room and pauses to look at Enterprise 's warp core before taking the lift down to where Captain Decker is busy assisting Scott with launch preparations. After Kirk takes him aside to talk, he becomes visibly upset when the admiral tells him that he is assuming command. Decker will remain on the ship as executive officer and will receive a temporary demotion to commander. As Decker storms off, an alarm sounds. Someone is trying to beam over to the ship, but the transporter is malfunctioning. Cleary informs Scott that there is a red line on the transporter. Kirk and Scott promptly race over to the transporter room . Transporter chief Janice Rand is frantically trying to tell Starfleet to abort the transport, but it is too late. Commander Sonak and a female officer are beaming in, but their bodies aren't re-forming properly in the transporter beam . The female officer screams horrifically, and then their bodies disappear. Starfleet tells them that they have died. With tears beginning to form in his eyes , Kirk tells Starfleet to express his sympathies to their families. He mentions that Sonak's can be reached through the Vulcan embassy . " There was nothing you could have done, Rand, " Kirk tells the upset transporter operator, " it wasn't your fault. "

In the corridor outside the transporter room, Kirk sees Decker and tells him they will have to replace Commander Sonak. Kirk wants another Vulcan if possible. Decker tells him that no one is available that is familiar with the ship's new design. Kirk tells Decker he will have to double his duties as science officer as well.

Enterprise crew on recreation deck

Kirk addresses the Enterprise crew

In the Enterprise 's recreation room , as Kirk briefs the assembled crew on the mission, they receive a transmission from Epsilon IX. Commander Branch tells them they have analyzed the mysterious cloud. It generates an immense amount of energy and measures 82 au ( only 2 au in the director's edition ) in diameter. Branch also reports that there is a vessel of some kind in the center. They've tried to communicate with it, but there has been no response. The lieutenant reports that further scans indicate something inside the cloud, but all scans get reflected back. Suddenly, an alarm goes off on the station, and Branch reports they're under attack. Kirk orders an external view of the station, and plasma bolts start engulfing it. The crew is watching this happen, and Epsilon IX dissapears. Ordering Uhura to deactivate the viewer, Kirk informs the crew that the pre-launch countdown will begin in forty minutes and the assembled crew leaves to attend to their duties.

Thruster suit miniature about to be digitized by V'ger

Epsilon IX destroyed

Act Two [ ]

Ilia

Lieutenant Ilia steps on the bridge

Later on the bridge, Uhura informs Kirk that the transporter has been fully repaired and is functioning properly now. Lieutenant Ilia , the Enterprise 's Deltan navigator , arrives. Decker is happy to see her, as they developed a romantic relationship when he was assigned to her home planet several years earlier. Ilia is curious about Decker's reduction in rank and Kirk interrupts and tells her about Decker being the executive and science officer. Decker tells her, with slight sarcasm, that Captain Kirk has the utmost confidence in him. Ilia tells Kirk that her oath of celibacy is on record and asks permission to assume her duties. Uhura tells Kirk that one of the last six crew members to arrive is refusing to beam up. Kirk goes to the transporter room to ensure that the person is beamed up.

McCoy beard

Dr. McCoy beams aboard

When told by a yeoman that the crew member insisted on them beaming up first, " said something about first "seeing how it scrambled our molecules ," " Kirk tells Starfleet to beam the officer aboard. Dr. McCoy , dressed in civilian attire and wearing a thick beard , materializes on the transporter platform. McCoy is angry that his Starfleet commission was reactivated . He realizes that Kirk is responsible for the draft. His attitude changes, however, when Kirk says he desperately needs him. McCoy leaves to check out the new sickbay , grumbling about all the new changes to the Enterprise .

The crew finishes its repairs and the Enterprise leaves drydock and heads into the solar system at impulse .

USS Enterprise caught in artificial wormhole

The Enterprise in a wormhole.

A clean-shaven Dr. McCoy arrives on the bridge and complains that the new sickbay is now nothing but a " damned computer center. " Kirk is anxious to intercept the cloud intruder at the earliest possible opportunity, and despite protests from Scott and Decker, he orders warp drive engaged. The Enterprise goes to warp 1 sucesfully, and Kirk turns to speak with Decker, but an alarm draws his attention to the viewscreen. The Enterprise has entered a wormhole , and Kirk orders full reverse. Uhura reports all communications are jammed, and Ilia reports an asteroid has been pulled into the wormhole and is on a collision course. Kirk orders phasers , but Decker countermands his order, goes over to the tactical station, and tells Chekov to arm photon torpedoes . Chekov is able to lock on to the asteroid, and Decker gives the order to fire. With four seconds left before impact, the torpedo leaves the launcher and collides with the asteroid, causing a massive explosion that rocks the Enterprise and causes the wormhole to dissapate. Sulu reports that helm control is restored, and Kirk, annoyed, wants Decker in his quarters. McCoy decides to come along, as well.

Once in Kirk's quarters, Kirk demands an explanation from Decker on why his phaser order was countermanded. Decker points out that the redesigned Enterprise now channels the phasers through the main engines and because they were imbalanced, the phasers were automatically cut off. Kirk acknowledges that he has saved the ship – however, he accuses Decker of competing with him. Decker, in his opinion, tells Kirk that, because of his unfamiliarity with the ship's new design, the mission is in serious jeopardy. Kirk sarcastically trusts that Decker will " nursemaid me through these difficulties, " and Decker tells the captain that he will gladly help him understand the new design. Kirk then dismisses him from the room. In the corridor, Decker runs into Ilia. Ilia asks if the confrontation was difficult, and he tells her that it was about as difficult as seeing her again, and apologizes. She asks if he is sorry for leaving Delta IV , or for not saying goodbye. He asks if, had he seen her again, would she have been able to say goodbye? She quietly says " no ," and goes to her quarters nearby.

Back in Kirk's quarters, McCoy accuses Kirk of being the one who is competing, and the fact that it was Kirk who used the emergency to pressure Starfleet into letting him regain command of the Enterprise . McCoy thinks that Kirk is obsessed with keeping his command. On Kirk's console viewscreen , Uhura informs Kirk that a Starfleet registered shuttlecraft is approaching and that the occupant wishes to dock. Chekov also pipes in and replies that it appears to be a courier vessel, non-belligerency confirmed. Kirk tells Chekov to handle the situation. Turning the viewer off, Kirk asks McCoy is he has anything more to add, to which McCoy quietly states " that depends on you, " and leaves Kirk to ponder this, while he stands silently.

Spock arriving aboard the Enterprise

Spock arrives aboard the Enterprise

The shuttle approaches the Enterprise from behind, and the top portion of it detaches and docks at an airlock just behind the bridge. Chekov is waiting by the airlock doors with a security officer and is surprised to see Spock come aboard. Moments later, Spock arrives on the bridge, and everyone is shocked and pleased to see him, yet Spock ignores them. He moves over to the science station and tells Kirk that he is aware of the crisis and knows about the ship's engine design difficulties.

Kirk, McCoy, Chapel and Spock, 2270s

" Well, so help me, I'm actually pleased to see you! "

He offers his services as the science officer. McCoy and Dr. Christine Chapel come to the bridge to greet Spock, but he only looks at them coldly and does not reply to them. Uhura tries to speak to Spock, but he ignores her as well and tells Kirk that with his permission, he will go to engineering and discuss his fuel equations with Scott. As Spock walks into the turbolift , Kirk stops him and welcomes him aboard. But Spock makes no reply and continues into the turbolift. Kirk and McCoy both share a look after Spock leaves the bridge.

With Spock's assistance, the engines are now rebalanced for full warp capacity. The ship successfully goes to warp to intercept the cloud. In the officers lounge, Spock meets with Kirk and McCoy. They discuss Spock's kolinahr training on Vulcan, and how Spock broke off from his training to join them. Spock describes how he sensed the consciousness of the intruder, from a source more powerful that he has ever encountered, with perfect, logical thought patterns. He believes that it holds the answers he seeks. Uhura tells Kirk over the intercom that they have made visual contact with the intruder.

With the entire ship on red alert, Kirk orders full mag on the viewer, and the massive cloud is revealed. The cloud scans the ship, but Kirk orders Spock not to return scans as they could be considered hostile. Spock determines that the scans are coming from the exact center of the cloud. Uhura reports that she's transmitting full friendship messages on all frequencies, but there is no response. Decker suggests raising the shields for protection, but Kirk determines that that might be considered hostile to the cloud. Spock analyzes the clouds composition and discovers it has a 12-power energy field, the equivalent of power generated by thousands of starships .

V'ger fires upon the USS Enterprise

The Enterprise attacked

Sitting at the science station, Spock awakens from a brief trance. Kirk asks him what's happening, and Spock says the alien is puzzled. The Enterprise was contacted, so why is it not replying? Kirk asks Spock how they've been contacted, but an alarm coaxes him to his chair. A plasma-energy weapon has been launched toward the Enterprise, and Kirk orders full shields. The weapon hits, overloading multiple systems and sending bolts of plasma energy throughout the ship. Bolts of lightning surround the warp core and nearly injure several engineering officers. Chekov is injured – his hand badly burned from a plasma bolt emanating from the weapons station on the bridge. The bolt then finally disappears, and Scott reports deflector power is down seventy percent. A medical team is called to the bridge, and Ilia is able to use her telepathic powers to soothe Chekov's pain.

Spock confirms to Kirk that the alien has been attempting to communicate. It transmits at a frequency of more than one million megahertz, and at such a high rate of speed, the message only lasts a millisecond. Spock programs to computer to send linguacode messages at that frequency and rate of speed. Another plasma-energy weapon is launched, and Spock is still working as it approaches. With ten seconds left, Spock transmits the message. The weapon continues moving toward the Enterprise, but abruptly dissapears right before it can collide. Kirk asks for recommendations, and Spock recommends proceeding inside the cloud to investigate, while Decker advises against it, calling the move an "unwarranted gamble." Kirk asks Decker what constitutes "unwarranted" to him, while Decker retorts that Kirk asked his opinion.

V'ger ship

Enterprise encounters V'ger 's ship

Kirk orders that the ship continue on course through the cloud. They pass through many expansive and colorful cloud layers and upon clearing these, a giant vessel is revealed. Kirk asks for an evaluation and Spock reports that the vessel is generating a force field greater than the radiation of Earth's sun . Kirk tells Uhura to transmit an image of the alien to Starfleet, but she explains that any transmission sent out of the cloud is being reflected back to them. Kirk orders Sulu to fly above and along the top of the vessel at a distance of only five hundred meters.

As Enterprise moves in front of the alien vessel, Kirk orders to hold position. Suddenly, an alarm sounds, and another plasma weapon approaches the Enterprise. However, it slows down, stopping in front of the ship, and starts zapping the bridge. It forms a column in the bridge and the crew struggles to shield their eyes from its brilliant glow and their ears from the high-pitched shrieking buzz it lets out. Chekov asks Spock if it is one of the alien's crew, and Spock replies that it is a probe sent from the vessel. The probe slowly moves around the room and stops in front of the science station. Bolts of lightning shoot out from it and surround the console – it is trying to access the ship's computer. Kirk orders the computer turned off, which Decker tries to do, but it has taken control of it. Spock pulls Decker away and smashes the controls, which works. As he starts stepping away, he's suddenly given an electric shock by the probe and falls to the floor. The probe starts moving again, and approaches the navigation console. As Ilia is watching, it starts scanning her, much to Decker's horror. Spock tries to pull her away, but he's knocked back by an electric shock. Decker is similarily shocked to keep him away, and Ilia, horrified, stands there as she's scanned. As Decker's watching this, Ilia abruptly vanishes, and the tricorder she was holding falls to the floor. Kirk, shaken, picks up the tricorder. Decker angrily exclaims, "This is how I define unwarranted! "

Constitution II class, aft

Enterprise inside the ship

Another alert goes off, reporting helm control has been lost. Spock reports they've been caught by a tractor beam and Kirk orders someone up to take the navigator's station. Decker calls for Chief DiFalco to come up to the bridge as Ilia's replacement. Decker suggests that the ship fire phasers, but Spock, evocatively, asserts that " Any show of resistance would be futile, Captain. " The ship travels deep into the next chamber. Decker wonders why they were brought inside – they could have been easily destroyed outside. Spock deduces that the alien is curious about them. Uhura's monitor shows that the aperture is closing – they are now trapped inside. The ship is released from the tractor beam and suddenly, an intruder alert goes off. Someone has come aboard the ship and is in the crew quarters section.

Act Three [ ]

Ilia in sonic shower

Ilia returns as V'ger 's probe

Kirk and Spock arrive inside a crewman's quarters to discover that the intruder is inside the sonic shower . It is revealed to be Ilia, although it isn't really her – there is a small red device attached to her neck . In a mechanized voice, she replies, " You are the Kirk unit, you will assist me. " She explains that she has been programmed by an entity called " V'ger " to observe and record the normal functions of the carbon-based units "infesting" the Enterprise . Kirk opens the shower door and " Ilia " steps out, wearing a small white garment that just materialized around her. Dr. McCoy and security officer Ensign Perez enter the room, and Kirk tells McCoy to scan her with a tricorder.

Kirk asks her who V'ger is. She replies, " V'ger is that which programmed me . " McCoy tells Kirk that Ilia is a mechanism and Spock confirms she is a probe that assumed Ilia's physical form. Kirk asks where the real Ilia is, and the probe states that "that unit" no longer functions. Kirk also asks why V'ger is traveling to Earth, and the probe answers that it wishes to find the Creator, join with him, and become one with it. Spock suggests that McCoy perform a complete examination of the probe.

Osmotic micro-pump

"Ilia" being examined

Spock and Kirk, 2270s

" I am concerned with that being our only source of information, captain. "

In sickbay, the Ilia probe lays on a diagnostic table, its sensors slowly taking readings. All normal body functions, down to the microscopic level, are exactly duplicated by the probe, even eye moisture. Decker arrives and is stunned to see her there. She looks up at him and addresses him as " Decker ," rather than " Decker unit ," which intrigues Spock. Spock talks with Kirk and Decker in an adjoining room and Spock locks the door. Spock theorizes that the real Ilia's memories and feelings have been duplicated by the probe as well as her body. Decker is angry that the probe killed Ilia, but Kirk convinces him that their only contact with the vessel is through the probe, and they need to use that advantage to find out more about the alien. Suddenly, the probe bursts through the door, and demands that Kirk assist her with her observations. He tells her that Decker will do it with more efficiency. After Decker and the probe leave, Spock expresses concern to Kirk of that being their only source of information.

Decker and Ilia are seen walking around in the recreation room. He shows her pictures of previous ships that were named Enterprise . Decker is trying to see if Ilia's memories or emotions can resurface, but to no avail. Kirk and McCoy observe them covertly on a monitor from his quarters. Decker shows her a game that the crew enjoys playing. She is not interested and states that recreation and enjoyment have no meaning to her programming. At another game, which Ilia enjoyed and nearly always won, they both press one of their hands down onto a table to play it. The table lights up, indicating she won the game, and she gazes into Decker's eyes. This moment of emotion ends suddenly, and she returns to normal. " This device serves no purpose. "

" Why does the Enterprise require the presence of carbon units? ", she asks. Decker tells her the ship couldn't function without them. She tells him that more information is needed before the crew can be patterned for data storage. Horrified, he asks her what this means. " When my examination is complete, all carbon units will be reduced to data patterns. " He tells her that within her are the memory patterns of a certain carbon unit. He convinces her to let him help her revive those patterns so that she can understand their functions better. She allows him to proceed.

Meanwhile, in one of the ship's airlocks , Spock slips up behind the airlock technician and nerve pinches him into unconsciousness.

Decker, the probe, Dr. McCoy, and Dr. Chapel are in Ilia's quarters. Dr. Chapel gives the probe a decorative headband that Ilia used to wear. Chapel puts it over "Ilia's" head and turns her toward a mirror. Decker asks her if she remembers wearing it on Delta IV. The probe shows another moment of emotion, saying Dr. Chapel's name, and putting her hand on Decker's face, calling him Will. Behind them, McCoy reminds Decker that she is a mechanism. Decker asks "Ilia" to help them make contact with V'ger . She says that she can't, and Decker asks her who the Creator is. She says V'ger does not know. The probe becomes emotionless again and removes the headband.

Spock is now outside the ship in a space suit with an emergency evacuation thruster pack . He begins recording a log entry for Kirk detailing his attempt to contact the alien. He activates a panel on the suit and calculates thruster ignition and acceleration to coincide with the opening of an aperture ahead of him. He hopes to get a better view of the spacecraft interior.

Hikaru Sulu and James T

" A thruster suit is reported missing. " " A thruster suit… that's Spock. Damn him! "

Kirk comes up to the bridge and Uhura tells him that Starfleet signals are growing stronger, indicating they are very close to Earth. Starfleet is monitoring the intruder and notifies Uhura that it is slowing down in its approach. Sulu confirms this and says that lunar beacons show the intruder is entering into Earth orbit . Chekov tells Kirk that airlock 4 has been opened and a thruster suit has been reported missing. Kirk figures out that Spock has done it, and orders Chekov to get Spock back on the ship. He changes his mind, and instead tells Chekov to determine his position.

Spock touches a button on his thruster panel and his thruster engine ignites. He is propelled forward rapidly, and enters the next chamber of the vessel just before the aperture closes behind him. The thruster engine shuts down, and the momentum carries Spock ahead further. He disconnects the thruster pack from his suit and it falls away from him.

Continuing his log entry, Spock sees an image of what he believes to be V'ger 's homeworld . He passes through a tunnel filled with crackling plasma energy, possibly a power source intended for a gigantic imaging system. Next, he sees several more images of planets , moons , stars , and galaxies all stored and recorded. Spock theorizes that this may be a visual representation of V'ger 's entire journey. " But who or what are we dealing with? ", he ponders.

Spock attempts mind-meld with V'ger

Spock attempts mind meld with V'ger

He sees the Epsilon IX station, stored in every detail, and notes to Kirk that he is convinced that all of what he is seeing is V'ger , and that they are inside a living machine. Then he sees a giant image of Lt. Ilia with the sensor on her neck. Spock decides it must have some special meaning, so he attempts to mind meld with it. He is quickly overwhelmed by the multitude of images flooding his mind and falls back unconscious.

Spock in sickbay, 2270s

Spock in sickbay

Kirk is now in a space suit and has exited the ship. The aperture in front of the Enterprise opens, and Spock's unconscious body floats toward him. Later, Dr. Chapel and Dr. McCoy are examining Spock in sickbay. Dr. McCoy performs scans and determines that Spock endured massive neurological trauma from the mind meld. While he is telling Kirk this, they are interrupted by an incredible sound: Spock, regaining consciousness, is laughing softly, saying he should have known.

Spock describes V'ger as a sentient being, from a planet populated by living machines with unbelievable technology, allowing it access to a truly galactic store of knowledge. Yet for all of that, V'ger is barren, with no sense of mystery and no emotions to give meaning to its actions. Spock, seeing the irony when comparing V'Ger to himself, can not help but laugh: V'Ger has, for all intents and purposes, achieved Kolinahr – flawless logic and limitless knowledge – yet doing so has only made it see the gaps in its own understanding. Spock grasps Kirk's hand and tells him, "This simple feeling is beyond V'ger 's comprehension. No meaning, no hope. And Jim, no answers. It's asking questions. 'Is this all that I am? Is there nothing more?'"

Uhura chimes in and tells Kirk that they are getting a faint signal from Starfleet. The intruder has been on their monitors for a while and the cloud is rapidly dissipating as it approaches. Sulu also comments that the intruder has slowed to sub-warp speed and is only three minutes from Earth orbit. Kirk acknowledges and he, McCoy, and Spock go up to the bridge.

V'ger's ship enters low Earth orbit, and the cloud entirely dissapears. Starfleet sends the Enterprise a tactical report on the intruder's position. Uhura tells Kirk that V'ger is transmitting a signal. Decker and "Ilia" come up to the bridge, and she says that V'ger is signaling the Creator. Spock determines that the transmission is a radio signal. Decker tells Kirk that V'ger expects an answer, but Kirk doesn't know the question. Then "Ilia" says that the Creator has not responded. Suddenly, a plasma weapon is launched and starts orbiting Earth. Chekov reports all planetary defense systems have gone offline. Several more plasma weapons are launched and all orbit Earth in unison.

McCoy notices that the bolts are the same ones that hit the ship earlier, and Spock says that these are hundreds of times more powerful, and from those positions, they can destroy all life on Earth. " Why? ", Kirk asks "Ilia." She says that the carbon unit infestation will be removed from the Creator's planet as they are interfering with the Creator's ability to respond and accuses the crew of infesting the Enterprise and interfering in the same manner. Kirk tells "Ilia" that carbon units are a natural function of the Creator's planet and they are living things, not infestations. However "Ilia" says they are not true lifeforms like the Creator. McCoy realizes V'ger must think its creator is a machine. Decker concurs, comparing it to "We all create God in our own image."

Spock compares V'ger to a child and suggests they treat it like one. McCoy retorts that this child is about to wipe out every living thing on Earth. To get "Ilia's" attention, Kirk says that the carbon units know why the Creator hasn't responded. The Ilia probe demands that Kirk " disclose the information ." Kirk won't do so until V'ger withdraws all the orbiting devices. In response to this, V'ger cuts off the ship's communications with Starfleet. She tells him again to disclose the information. He refuses, and a plasma energy attack shakes the ship. McCoy tells Spock that the child is having a " tantrum ."

Kirk tells the probe that if V'ger destroys the Enterprise , then the information it needs will also be destroyed with it. Ilia says that it is illogical to withhold the required information, and asks him why he won't disclose it. Kirk explains it is because V'ger is going to destroy all life on Earth. "Ilia" says that they have oppressed the Creator, and Kirk makes it clear he will not disclose anything. V'ger needs the information, says "Ilia." Kirk says that V'ger will have to withdraw all the orbiting devices. "Ilia" says that V'ger will comply, if the carbon units give the information.

Spock tells Kirk that V'ger must have a central brain complex. Kirk theorizes that the orbiting devices are controlled from there. Kirk tells "Ilia" that the information can't be disclosed to V'ger 's probe, but only to V'ger itself. "Ilia" stares at the viewscreen, and, in response, the aperture opens and drags the ship forward with a tractor beam into a massive tunnel. Chekov tells Kirk that the energy bolts will reach their final positions and activate in 27 minutes. Kirk calls to Scott on the intercom and tells him to stand by to execute Starfleet Order 2005 – the self-destruct command. A female crewmember, Ross , asks Scott why Kirk ordered self-destruct, and Scott tells her that Kirk hopes that when they explode, so will the intruder.

The countdown is now down to 18 minutes. DiFalco reports that they have traveled 17 kilometers inside the vessel. Kirk goes over to Spock's station and sees that Spock has been crying. " Not for us, " Kirk realizes. Spock tells him he is crying for V'ger , and that he weeps for V'ger as he would for a brother. As he was when he came aboard the Enterprise , so is V'ger now – empty, incomplete, and searching. Logic and knowledge are not enough. McCoy realizes Spock has found what he needed, but that V'ger hasn't. Decker wonders what V'ger would need to fulfill itself.

Spock comments that each one of us, at some point in our lives asks, " Why am I here?" "What was I meant to be? " V'ger hopes to touch its Creator and find those answers. DiFalco directs Kirk's attention to the viewscreen. They're approaching the next chamber, and see a light up ahead. Sulu reports that forward motion has stopped. Chekov replies that an oxygen / gravity envelope has formed outside of the ship. "Ilia" points to the structure on the screen and identifies it as V'ger . Uhura has located the source of the radio signal and it is straight ahead. "Ilia" says the carbon units will now provide the information, and a passageway slowly materalizes from the light toward the Enterprise. Kirk chooses Spock and Bones to come, but Decker volunteers to go as well. They enter a turbolift as Uhura looks at the viewscreen.

Walk to V'ger

The passageway

The passageway is reaching the Enterprise as they come up an airlock onto the hull. They start walking up the passageway, and at the end of the path is a concave structure, and in the center of it is an old NASA probe from three centuries earlier. Kirk rubs away the soot on the nameplate and makes out the letters "V G E R". He continues to rub and discovers that the craft is actually Voyager 6 . Kirk recalls the history of the Voyager program – it was designed to collect data and transmit it back to Earth. Decker tells Kirk that Voyager 6 disappeared through what was then called a black hole .

Voyager 6

The heart of V'ger is revealed

Kirk says that it must have emerged on the far side of the galaxy and got caught in the machine planet's gravity. Spock theorizes that the planet's inhabitants found the probe to be one of their own kind – primitive, yet kindred. They discovered the probe's 20th century programming to collect data and return that information to its creator. The machines interpreted that instruction literally and constructed the entire vessel so that Voyager could fulfill its programming. Kirk continues by saying that on its journey back, it amassed so much knowledge that it gained its own consciousness .

"Ilia" tells Kirk that V'ger awaits the information. Kirk calls Uhura on his communicator and tells her to find information on the probe in the ship's computer , specifically the NASA code signal, which will allow the probe to transmit its data. Decker realizes that that is what the probe was signaling – it's ready to transmit everything. Kirk then says that there is no one on Earth who recognizes the old-style signal – so the Creator does not answer.

Kirk calls out to V'ger and says that they are the Creator. "Ilia" says that is not logical – carbon units are not true lifeforms. Kirk says they will prove it by allowing V'ger to complete its programming. Uhura calls Kirk on his communicator and tells him she has retrieved the code. Kirk tells her to set the Enterprise transmitter to the appropriate code frequency and to transmit the signal. Decker reads the numerical code on his tricorder and is about to read the final sequence, but V'ger burns out its own antenna leads to prevent reception.

"Ilia" says that the Creator must join with V'ger , and turns toward Decker. McCoy warns Kirk that they only have ten minutes left. Decker figures out that V'ger wanted to bring the Creator here and transmit the code in person. Spock tells Kirk that V'ger 's knowledge has reached the limits of the universe and it must evolve. Kirk says that V'ger needs a Human quality in order to evolve. Decker thinks that V'ger joining with the Creator will accomplish that. He then goes over to the damaged circuitry and fixes the wires so he can manually enter the rest of the code through the ground test computer. Kirk tries to stop him, but "Ilia" tosses him aside. Decker tells Kirk that he wants this as much as Kirk wanted the Enterprise .

V'ger evolving

V'ger evolves into a higher form of existence after merging with Decker

Suddenly, a bright light forms around Decker's body. "Ilia" moves over to him, and the light encompasses them both as they merge together. Their bodies disappear, and the light expands and begins to consume the area. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy retreat back to the Enterprise . The light starts engulfing V'ger's ship, and an enormous explosion of light forms in orbit. As the light clears, the Enterprise moves forward, unharmed. On the bridge, Kirk wonders if they have just seen the beginning of a new lifeform , and Spock says yes and that it is possibly the next step in their evolution. McCoy says that it's been a while since he's "delivered" a baby and hopes that they got this one off to a good start.

Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, 2270s

" Spock… did we just see the beginning of a new lifeform? " " Yes, captain. We witnessed a birth. "

Uhura tells Kirk that Starfleet is requesting the ship's damage and injury reports and vessel status. Kirk reports that there were only two casualties: Lieutenant Ilia and Captain Decker. He quickly corrects his statement and changes their status to "missing." Vessel status is fully operational. Scott comes on the bridge and agrees with Kirk that it's time to give the Enterprise a proper shakedown. When Scott offers to have Spock back on Vulcan in four days, Spock says that's unnecessary, as his task on Vulcan is completed.

Kirk in command, 2270s

Kirk orders the Enterprise out for more adventures

Kirk tells Sulu to proceed ahead at warp factor one. When DiFalco asks for a heading, Kirk simply says " Out there, that-away. "

With that, the Enterprise flies overhead and engages warp drive on its way to another mission of exploration and discovery.

Log entries [ ]

  • Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), mid-2270s

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Heading? " " Sir, it's on a precise heading for Earth. "

" The Enterprise is in final preparation to leave dock. " " Which will require another twenty more hours at minimum, Admiral - " "Twelve."

" I'm on my way to a meeting with Admiral Nogura which will last no more than three minutes. Report to me on the Enterprise in one hour. " " Report to you , sir? " " It is my intention to be on that ship following that meeting. Report to me in one hour. "

" Admiral, we have just spent eighteen months redesigning and refitting the Enterprise . How in the name of hell do they expect me to have her ready in twelve hours?! "

" Mr. Scott, an alien object of unbelievable destructive power is less than three days away from this planet. The only starship in interception range is the Enterprise . Ready or not, she launches in twelve hours. "

" He wanted her back, he got her. " " And Captain Decker? He's been with the ship every minute of her refitting. " " Ensign, the possibilities of our returning from this mission in one piece may have just doubled."

" I'm replacing you as captain of the Enterprise . You'll stay on as executive officer, temporary grade reduction to commander. " " You personally are assuming command? " " Yeah. " " May I ask why? " " My experience. Five years out there, dealing with unknowns like this. My familiarity with the Enterprise , this crew. "

" Admiral, this is an almost totally new Enterprise . You don't know her a tenth as well as I do. " " That's why you're staying aboard. I'm sorry, Will. " " No, sir. I don't think you're sorry. Not one damn bit. I remember when you recommended me for this command. You told me how envious you were, and how you hoped you'd be given a starship command again. Well, sir, it looks like you found a way. " " Report to the bridge, commander. Immediately. " " Aye, sir. "

"Enterprise, what we got back didn't live long. Fortunately. "

" Just a moment, captain, sir. I'll explain what happened. Your revered Admiral Nogura invoked a little known, seldom used reserve activation clause! In simpler language, captain, they drafted me! "

" Why is any object we don't understand always called a thing? "

" Well, Jim, I hear Chapel's an MD now. Well, I'm gonna need a top nurse, not a doctor who'll argue every little diagnosis with me! And they've probably redesigned the whole sickbay, too! I know engineers. They love to change things! "

" Thrusters ahead, Mr. Sulu. Take us out! "

" Well, Bones, do the new medical facilities meet with your approval? " " They do not. It's like working in a damn computer center! "

" No casualties reported, doctor. " " Wrong, Mr. Chekov, there are casualties. My wits! As in, frightened out of, captain, sir! "

" Mister Spock! " " Well, so help me, I'm actually pleased to see you! "

" Spock, you haven't changed a bit. You're just as warm and sociable as ever. " " Nor have you, doctor, as your continued predilection for irrelevancy demonstrates. "

" Will you please sit down ! "

" Mr. Decker, I will not provoke an attack. If that order isn't clear enough for you - " " Captain, as your exec, it's my duty to point out alternatives. " " Yes it is. I stand corrected. "

" I sense... puzzlement. We have been contacted. Why have we not replied? " " Contacted? How? "

" Moving into that cloud, at this time, is an unwarranted gamble. " " How do you define unwarranted? " " You asked my opinion, sir. "

" Don't interfere with it! " " Absolutely I will not interfere! " " No one interfere! It doesn't seem interested in us. Only the ship. "

" It's taking control of the computer! " " It's running our records! Earth's defenses! Starfleet's strength! "

"This is how I define unwarranted! "

" I don't want him stopped! I want him to lead me to whatever is out there. " " And if that whatever has taken over his mind…?! " " Then, he'll still have led me to it, won't he? "

" Spock, this child is about to wipe out every living thing on Earth. Now what do you suggest we do? Spank it? "

" Your child is having a tantrum, Mr. Spock! "

" I weep for V'ger as I would for a brother. As I was when I came aboard, so is V'ger now. Empty. Incomplete. Searching. Logic and knowledge are not enough. "

" Each of us, at some time in our life, turns to someone – a father, a brother, a god – and asks: Why am I here? What was I meant to be? V'ger hopes to touch its creator to find its answers. " " "Is this all that I am? Is there nothing more? "

" Capture God…? V'ger 's liable to be in for one hell of a disappointment. "

" Jim, I want this! As much as you wanted the Enterprise , I want this! "

" We witnessed a birth. Possibly a next step in our evolution. " " Well, it's been a long time since I delivered a baby and I hope we got this one off to a good start. "

" List them as missing. "

" Heading, sir? " " Out there. Thataway! "

Background information [ ]

Star Trek I

The theatrical poster for Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Wise, Shatner, Roddenberry, Kelly, Nimoy

From left to right: Robert Wise, William Shatner, Gene Roddenberry, DeForest Kelley, and Leonard Nimoy

  • This film was the last Star Trek release to occur in the 1970s, and the only live-action one to take place in that decade.
  • Grace Lee Whitney ( Janice Rand ) and Mark Lenard (Klingon captain) are the only actors, besides the original cast, to appear in both this film and the final Star Trek: The Original Series film, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . Lenard plays the Klingon captain in The Motion Picture and Ambassador Sarek in The Undiscovered Country , while Whitney plays Janice Rand in both films.
  • Likewise, Majel Barrett and Leonard Nimoy are the only original series actors to participate in both this film and the first Star Trek film set in the rebooted timeline , Star Trek . In The Motion Picture , Barrett played Dr. Chapel and in Star Trek she voiced the computer for the alternate reality USS Enterprise , while in both films Nimoy portrayed Spock (in the 2009 film he played the Spock of the original "Prime" timeline). However, James Doohan 's son Chris also appeared in both this film and the 2009 film. In The Motion Picture he is in the recreation deck scene (with his twin brother Montgomery) when Kirk addresses the entire crew; and in Star Trek he is in the transporter room scenes as an engineering lieutenant commander. Concurrently, Barrett and Nimoy are the only two cast members from the original pilot " The Cage " to appear in this first Star Trek film. Nevertheless, Nimoy is the only actor to portray the same character in both productions, having played Spock in both, whereas Barrett played Number One in the pilot and Dr. Chapel in the film.
  • Also, Nimoy is the only actor to participate in both this film and Star Trek Into Darkness . In both films, Nimoy portrayed Spock.
  • Bruce Logan was the director of photography for the Klingon scenes. He was scheduled to be the Director of Photography (DP) on "In Thy Image", the un-produced pilot for Star Trek: Phase II , the immediate predecessor television project of the film. Both the plot and script emerged from the un-produced pilot.
  • One of the most persistent myths in Star Trek -lore, erroneously propagated in numerous reference works such as Star Trek Movie Memories , Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , to name but a few, is that the 1977 science fiction film Close Encounters of the Third Kind played a decisive key role (besides Star Wars ) in the decision to upgrade Phase II to The Motion Picture . Actually, the upgrade decision was already firmly in place for nearly a month before Close Encounters even premiered. It was Star Wars , and Star Wars alone, that had been the prime motivator for the upgrade decision. The reference book Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , which contains a contemporary account of the production history but was only released in 2014, confirmed this to be the case (p. 48) Still, in the mind of the studio executives, the phenomenal success of Close Encounters served as the validation of their decision. ( see Production history below )
  • Fred Phillips saved Leonard Nimoy's ear molds from the Original Series. They were put back into use when the molds being made for the film were damaged.
  • Principal photography, the filming of scenes which required the principal cast, began on 7 August 1978 and was finished on 26 January 1979 .
  • The theme from the TV series is heard three times in the film. Each time it is used, it is for a "captain's log" dictation. The first one is heard just before Kirk engages the Enterprise 's first warp test. The second time is when Spock is making his repairs to the warp drive, and the third time is when Kirk and McCoy are watching Decker and the Ilia-probe from Kirk's quarters.
  • This film, and the last TOS cast film ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ), are the only two that do not use the original series fanfare in the opening credits of the film. That fanfare was not heard at all in the score to this film, and did not make an appearance until Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . Jerry Goldsmith did, however, bring the fanfare back for the subsequent Star Trek films he scored.
  • According to David Gerrold 's The World of Star Trek , a blooper occurred in the scene where Kirk and Spock leave to investigate the intruder alert, William Shatner , as Kirk, tells Stephen Collins as Decker, that he has the bridge and Collins jumped down to the floor, grabbed the command chair and yelled like Daffy Duck, " It's mine! It's mine! At last it's mine! All mine! " which led Shatner to turn around and yell " I take it back! "
  • The five previous ships named Enterprise , which Decker shows the Ilia probe in the rec room are, according to Mike Okuda's DVD text commentary , an 18th century frigate, the much decorated World War II carrier , the space shuttle orbiter prototype, an unseen ship which was actually an early Matt Jefferies design for the TV Enterprise and of course, the original configuration of the Enterprise from the original series. Internet rumors from 2001 speculated that the unseen ship might be replaced by the NX-01 Enterprise ; however, this did not happen. Christopher L. Bennett 's novel Ex Machina establishes (albeit non-canonically) that the image of the NX-01 Enterprise was added after the events of this film. Incidentally, it was Jefferies, who had provided both the historical lineage concept and the artwork upon which the backlit transparencies of the vessels were based, for the Motion Picture 's immediate predecessor, Phase II . It has set a tradition that was adhered to in the Star Trek: The Next Generation series and films, as well as in Star Trek: Enterprise . ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 94)
  • According to an article written by Harlan Ellison (writer of the acclaimed Original Series episode " The City on the Edge of Forever ") and published in Starlog in 1980, Gene Roddenberry took Harold Livingston to arbitration with the Writer's Guild of America five times, seeking a screen credit for the film's screenplay. The Writer's Guild apparently sided with Livingston, as Roddenberry never received any credit for the script. However Alan Dean Foster did successfully arbitrate with the Writer's Guild as he had initially received no story credit at all, even though he had written an early draft of the " In Thy Image " script which was rewritten into the TMP script.
  • The film was one of only a few Hollywood productions, and also one of the last along with Disney's The Black Hole , that introduces the film with an overture – a practice commonly used for "epic" films. For that purpose, Jerry Goldsmith chose to present the auditory "Ilia's Theme", which he also referred to as a "love theme". The overture runs for approximately three minutes, and is then taken over by the film's concise main theme (which later became famous as TNG's main title) ( 20th Anniversary Special Edition soundtrack booklet).
  • This film marks the first depiction of Earth in the 23rd century. Although a parkland near Christopher Pike 's native Mojave was seen in TOS : " The Cage ", this was merely an illusion created by the Talosians . Every subsequent film except for Star Trek: Insurrection and Star Trek Beyond has included a scene set on Earth in the future.
  • Academy Award-winning film legend Orson Welles provided the narration for many of the film's trailers. Director Robert Wise worked as film editor on Welles' first two films, Citizen Kane and The Magnificent Ambersons .
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture was one of the last heavily-marketed, non-animated big studio films with just a G rating, and the only Star Trek film to receive this rating (although in 2001, the director's cut got a PG for sci-fi action and mild language). Ever since, such productions were released with at least a PG rating. ( citation needed • edit )
  • The Star Trek newspaper comic strip was launched in coordination with this film, four days prior to its premiere. The character of Ilia is inexplicably featured in the first two story arcs, even though they take place after the events of the film.
  • The world premiere of the film took place at the K-B MacArthur Theater in Washington, DC on 6 December 1979 as a fund-raising event for the National Space Club . With thousands of Trekkies expected to attend, the event fell somewhat flat as only about three hundred showed up due to bad weather. A black tie affair, it was followed by a reception with all the film's stars and Gene Roddenberry at the Smithsonian Institute's National Air and Space Museum , complete with an orchestra playing the Jerry Goldsmith theme (some internet sites incorrectly state it was at the Kennedy Center ). The admission price to the reception for non-affiliated guests was a, for the time, hefty US$100. ( The Washington Post , 6 December 1979, p. C12; 7 December 1979, pp. C1, C3)
  • In the United Kingdom, the film had a gala premiere at the Empire Leicester Square Cinema in London on 15 December 1979 . All of the principal cast attended. The Motion Picture was released theatrically on 21 December. At the time, to generate interest in the film, the BBC was re-running the series on television. The Motion Picture enjoyed a three week stint at the top of the UK box office and grossed £4,774,456 overall. [1]
  • Paramount sought and obtained a variety of design patents on some costumes, ships, and props from this film, which directly resulted from Dawn Steel 's merchandising fund drive. ( see below ) They would continue to do so for the next two films, as well as for the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation .
  • The film was adapted as a novel and as a three-part comic , as well as becoming the third of five official Star Trek productions to be adapted into View-Master reels.
  • Several props and costumes from this film were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including Walter Koenig 's uniform, [2] William Shatner's uniform, [3] a bio-monitor , [4] a beige class-B Starfleet uniform, [5] a brown class-A uniform belt, [6] several uniform patches, [7] [8] [9] a schematic lot of Enterprise deck one's exterior, [10] and many background uniforms and civilian costumes. [11] [12] [13]
  • In his commentary on the Star Trek DVD, J.J. Abrams (who can be seen in the DVD's gag reel wearing a TMP production jacket) stated that the reveal of the new Enterprise in that film was, as much as possible, intended as an homage to the "amazing" shuttle sequence where Kirk sees the refit Enterprise for the first time.

It is somewhat unclear as to what exact year the first Star Trek film took place. Star Trek: Star Charts (p. 39) and the Star Trek Encyclopedia  (3rd ed., p. 691) place The Motion Picture in 2271 , stating that it took place 2.5 years after the end of the last five-year mission that, according to the Encyclopedia , took place from 2264 to 2269 . This was based on Decker's line to Kirk, that the latter had " not logged a single star hour in the last two-and-a-half years, " and Kirk's line to Scott, " Well, two and a half years as Chief of Starfleet Operations may have made me a bit stale, but I certainly wouldn't exactly consider myself untried. " This indicates a minimum of two-and-a-half years between the time the Enterprise returned to dry dock and the beginning of the first film.

In 2019, StarTrek.com released a timeline video of events in the Star Trek universe, placing The Motion Picture in 2273. [14] On screen, in VOY : " Q2 ", it is stated that Kirk's five-year mission ended in 2270 . This would establish the earliest point at which The Motion Picture could possibly have taken place some time in either 2272 or 2273 (depending on at what point in 2270 the ship ended the five-year mission). On the other end of the spectrum, the latest this film could have taken place is in 2278 , since the red The Wrath of Khan -style uniforms were in use by some time that year based on TNG : " Cause And Effect ". The stardates mentioned in the film cannot be used to accurately date the events, since the four-digit stardates beginning with the digit "7" were used for fifteen years between 2270 and 2284 , based on " Bem ", " The Ensigns of Command ", and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . The final TAS episode, TAS : " The Counter-Clock Incident ", takes place in 2270 , as does the entire second season of the series.

Toward the end of the film, Commander Decker tells Captain Kirk, " NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Jim, this vessel was launched over three hundred years ago ", and given that the Voyager 6 probe would presumably have been launched some time after Voyager 1 and 2 , which were launched in 1977, then this would put a lower limit of 2278 on the year of the film's events.

Apocryphally, the dating of the film has been set by Pocket Books to be 2273 in their 2006 chronology Voyages of Imagination . The novel Triangle supports this dating, as it is set after The Motion Picture, and takes place seven years after " Amok Time ", in 2274 . Also, the novelization of the film written by Gene Roddenberry states that it has been 2.8 years (nine Vulcan seasons) since Spock left the crew. Due to all this obscurity, however, Memory Alpha leaves the exact canonical dating open, and simply dates the film in the 2270s .

Costs and revenues [ ]

According to the Guinness Book of Records , when the film was produced, it was the most expensive theatrical feature ever made with a total production cost of US$46 million (or $44 million, according to the reference book Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , p. 75). This proved incorrect however, as Superman: The Movie had an even higher budget at US$54 million, though the producers didn't give the exact figure for some years afterward. This doesn't take inflation into account, however; taking it into account, Cleopatra was, at the time, the most expensive film ever made. And even Cleopatra was arguably surpassed by far by the Soviet-made version of Tolstoy's War and Peace , the 1966 (four-part) film Voyna i mir , reported to have been produced at a for the time staggering US$100 million budget. [15]

The original production budget for Star Trek: The Motion Picture , set at US$15 million, included the costs made for the aborted Star Trek: Phase II series, as well as the earlier false starts in getting a Star Trek film off the ground. ( Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , pp. 34, 69) The inclusion of these costs is debatable from a business economics point of view, since anywhere else in the corporate world research and development costs of projects that do not come to fruition are usually written off and are commonly charged against the balance sheets of corporations. This is a sound business generally accepted accounting principle (as stated in any business economics text book and where the principles are known under their acronym GAAP's) since it prevents cost price inflation with undue elements, therefore avoiding pollution of their viability assessment, of products that do come to fruition. Still, in the particular case of Phase II , an argument could be made for carrying over production costs already incurred to the Motion Picture , since some of those costs were applicable to the Motion Picture as well, such as those of the sets that were already constructed and the fees for production staff and cast already paid, who continued to work on the film.

This film was pre-sold in the autumn of 1978, while it was still in production, to the ABC TV network for US$15 million – or $10 million, according to performer Walter Koenig. ( Starlog , issue 32, p. 58) That fee allowed two airings of the film, the first to run no earlier than December 1982 . Its ABC premiere was on 20 February 1983 , and its second run was in March 1987 (ABC ran the film a third and final time in the summer of 1989). The television run of the film marks one of the first times that scenes not incorporated into a theatrical cut were reintegrated for the television airing, making the television cut longer than the theatrical cut.

Another revenue guarantee the studio secured was the amount of US$35 million that theater owners committed to, provided the film was released on 7 December 1979 as announced, allowing them to plan for the Christmas season. It was exactly for this reason that the studio could not deviate from the release date, even if they had wanted to, when the visual effects debacle occurred in February 1979, which left the production in dire straits ( see below ). Barry Diller , then studio head and chief financial overseer of the production, recalled, " Once the theater owners realized that we pulled this scam off on them, none of them liked it. They were all trying to get out of it and we wouldn't let them out of it and we knew, of course, that if we didn't open this picture on December 7, the guarantees would evaporate… " ( The Keys to the Kingdom , 2000, Chapter 6) The actual potential financial damage was reportedly even far greater than Diller led to believe, as the studio, in case of non-timely release, not only forfeited the guarantees, but had also to pay out the same amount to the distributors as damages (a not uncommon reciprocal feature for this kind of arrangements), meaning the total financial damage would amount to US$70 million according to Animation and Graphics Artist Leslie Ekker . ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 351) It was more than enough reason to have the release date set in stone.

In the spring of 1979, a second revenue source was additionally tapped long before the film premiered, necessitated by the February visual effects debacle, which had left the studio without cash to finish the film. Charged with creating that stream was recently appointed vice-president of Marketing and Licensing , studio executive Dawn Steel. Then novice studio producer Jerry Bruckheimer recalled, " I was here doing American Gigolo when they were doing Star Trek . The budget was going up, up, up. They needed money to cover the negative. Eisner went to Dawn and said, "I want X amount of guarantees for this merchandising." She went to conventions and got every toy-maker, anyone who made T-shirts and key chains and raised every nickel she could. She shook the trees. There hasn't been that energy vortex in merchandise since she left. " Steel however, had a problem since the production was running over schedule by that time, as she clarified, " I was a desperate person. There was no product, because there was no movie to show anyone. So I had to this razzmatazz bit onstage, so I could convince the people making pajamas and toys and Coca-Cola and McDonald's to do the tie-ins. I figured out this laser thing. I beamed myself onto the stage. " Held in the largest theater on the Paramount lot, and joined in a similar fashion by the principal cast, the imaginative presentation was met with rambunctious enthusiasm. " It was the most unbelievable party Paramount ever had. ", another attending studio producer, Brian Grazer, remembered. As already indicated by Steel, the, at the time, most unlikely corporations to sign up were Coca-Cola and fast-food company McDonald's, " Coca-Cola bought all this network time to advertise our movie. It had never been done before. ", Steel enthused. Crudely drawn comic strips (as no other imagery was available) were subsequently featured on the containers of both companies, a legendary one featured on those of McDonald's, featuring Klingons eating hamburgers and drinking Coca-Cola. Often incorrectly credited as McDonalds's very first outing in their "Happy Meal" concept, The Motion Picture was nevertheless their first themed one, coming from December 1979 onward in five boxes with items included such as bracelets, puzzles and the like. McDonald's ran several thirty second television commercials, promoting the Motion Picture Happy Meals, one of them featuring a Klingon, endorsing them in, what was supposed to be, Klingonese. Impressed with her performance, studio COO Michael Eisner promoted Steel the following day to vice-president of productions in features, having been less than six months in the employment of Paramount, and she went on to become one of the first female "Hollywood Moguls" by holding a position as studio head in the then predominantly male-dominated industry. ( New York magazine, 29 May 1989, p. 45; Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History , pp. 108-109) The amount thus generated for the studio has never been disclosed, though Steel herself has given a conservative low estimate of at least $250 million dollar in total sales of licensed Star Trek -related merchandise, of which, "depending on the product", 1 to 11 percent were fees for the studio. ( Playboy magazine, January 1980, p. 310)

Arguably, Steel not only saved the film, but the entire studio as well with her fund drive. Not only were the US$35 million dollar payable as damages to distributors avoided, but also the loss of the approximately same amount, already sunk in the production. That money had not been Paramount's own, but had been a loan from the obscure investment company Century Associates . When Gulf+Western 's Charles Bluhdorn bought Paramount Pictures in 1966, the studio was in dire straits, rapidly descending towards bankruptcy. It took nearly seven years to painfully restructure the company and reverse its fortunes, and it was only by the mid-1970s that the studio became profitable again, albeit still somewhat tentatively. It was therefore that the studio still did not yet possess a war-chest large enough, to fully fund their own productions on their own, when The Motion Picture came along. It would not have been the first time that a studio was killed off by an overly ambitious film project, nor would it be the last time; Previously, in 1957, RKO Pictures was terminated as an independent film production company by its owners (some of its remnants absorbed by Paramount and Desilu , as the former RKO property was adjacent to those of both), due to the fact that John Wayne's 1956 epic, The Conquerers , failed to earn back its production budget. And only one year later, the 1980 western, Heaven's Gate , the US$44 million budget box-office disaster, ended United Artists , its remnants absorbed by MGM , though keeping the name as a separate dependent division.

Having avoided the fate of Heaven's Gate , the Motion Picture earned US$11,926,421 in its opening weekend at the US box office, a record at the time, and its total domestic gross theatrical revenue was US$82,258,456 .

The total gross was, considering the estimated US$10-$20 million marketing expenditures incurred, reported to be a disappointment for the studio. At first glance, this came as no surprise as Gerrold had noted, when he estimated shortly before its release that the film had to gross two to three times its budget to cover the indirect overhead costs to be profitable for Paramount, meaning it ultimately barely broke even in the home market if at all. ( Starlog , issue 30, pp. 37, 63) Yet, a somewhat different spin on the studio's position – already contradicted by their decision to do the Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan follow-up film shortly after the premiere – is put, when the additional foreign gross of $57 million , the gross world wide rentals of $79 million , the ABC pre-sale of $10 – $15 million, the above-mentioned undisclosed licensing fees for associated merchandise and the equally undisclosed home media format sales are taken into account (but discounting revenue streams from home media format re-releases, merchandise and television rights, spawned in later decades, still trickling in to date). These figures were commonly not disclosed to the home public by the Hollywood Studio System , as it was until the mid-1990s customary in the American motion picture industry, to publicly judge the performance of a film solely on how well it did in its home market, discounting other revenue streams which traditionally remained undisclosed. This used to be a conscious strategy policy as it afforded Hollywood studios certain decision-making advantages. If a film did not do well in the home market, it allowed them to curtail future legal, artistic and financial requirements of hitherto successful producers and/or directors for subsequent productions – essentially preventing them becoming too expensive or too difficult to work with – using bad home market performances as negotiation arguments. A particularly notorious, even infamous example of this was the 1995 science fiction film Waterworld of Director/Producer Kevin Costner (and served by Star Trek alumnus Steve Burg as assistant art director), then famed and lauded for his exceptionally successful western Dances with Wolves (produced for US$18 million, it grossed US$424 million in world-wide ticket sales alone). At US$176 million, the most expensive film ever made at the time, Waterworld failed at the home box office and, like Heaven's Gate , it went on to become considered to this date as one of the biggest recorded disasters in motion picture history, severely damaging Costner and thereby diminishing his market value for the time being. What Universal Studios purposely did not disclose at the time however, was that the film did well abroad, particularly in France and Japan, and that the additional revenue streams made the film ultimately break even. But, for Costner and his film, the damage was already done. From the mid-1990's onward, the traditional stance of Hollywood studios has since then become untenable due to the ballooning production costs of major motion picture productions.

Likewise, Paramount Pictures now saw an opportunity to distance themselves from Gene Roddenberry. Ever since the inception the Original Series , Roddenberry was perceived by the studio as a thorn in their side, due to his unbudging character when it came to his Star Trek creation, of which he was over-zealously protective, as well as being stung by his surreptitiously orchestrating the letter writing campaign that for saved the Original Series for a season. At the time, no longer shielded by Herb Solow (who ran interference for Roddenberry and the studio during the first two seasons), it had forced him to remove himself from control of that series' third season . But once the former was gone, so was Roddenberry, and during the production of the Motion Picture Roddenberry again had his share of run-ins with the studio. ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , pp. 371-375) It had been exactly for this reason why the studio had brought in their own producers, Robert Goodwin and Harold Livingston , during the early stages of the production of Phase II in June 1977, with the express intent to keep Roddenberry's perceived eccentricities in check. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, pp. 59-60) The studio now made Roddenberry the sole scapegoat for the (in their eyes) disappointing performance of the film, faulting him for the high production costs due to the visual effect debacle, the incessant script rewrites and creative direction for the "plodding pace". ( From Sawdust to Stardust , pp. 240-241) Bumped "upstairs" in a ceremonial figure head function as "Executive Consultant" to the studio's equivalent of the "Bermuda Triangle", Roddenberry was forced out of creative control of the Star Trek franchise. Under the stipulations of his new contract, directors and creative staff could ask for his opinion on the project, but his advice – which he, unsolicited, provided nevertheless for years in the form of a fruitless avalanche of story outlines, script drafts, annotations, memos and the like, particularly for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , none of them really read – was not needed to be taken. As subsequent film production histories showed, none of the subsequent film directors and producers ever bothered to consult with Roddenberry in person or in writing again, his formal "Created by" and "Executive Consultant" credits for them notwithstanding. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , pp. 99, et al. ) This fate already befell Roddenberry while The Motion Picture was still in production, and the film turned out to be his second and last major theatrical motion picture production.

Implicating Roddenberry in the high production costs, which was only partly justified ( see below ), was, in hindsight, indeed studio politics by COO Michael Eisner and his studio executive colleagues, adeptly turning a disadvantage into a publicity advantage by carefully managing cost information dissemination. Usually, corporations, regardless in what industry they are operating, are loathe to divulge costs, especially if a product is not doing well, but in this case aggregates were made public around the time the film premiered, already allowing reporter Peter H. Brown to divulge a US$45 million price tag as early as November 1979, even before the film premiered. ( Reader magazine, 23 November 1979, p. 7). Roddenberry was indeed largely responsible for the script problems, which did cause production delays and thus over-budget expenditures, but the visual effects debacle situation ( see below ) was somewhat more nuanced. It was Post-production Supervisor Paul Rabwin who selected Robert Abel & Associates (RA&A), the unfortunate visual effects company. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 202-203) Still, being the primary managerial operations overseer as executive producer, Roddenberry formally did bear final responsibility for Rabwin's actions, which was skillfully exploited by the studio, made easier as Roddenberry lacked the political skills to maintain himself due to his character. During the production of The Motion Picture , it was Director Wise, who had grown weary of the constant script delays, who skillfully maneuvered Roddenberry out of creative control in October 1978. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, pp. 107-110) Only once afterwards, in 1987, was Roddenberry ever allowed back in the driver's seat for the development for a new Star Trek production, Star Trek: The Next Generation , only to have it yanked out from under him again upon the conclusion of its second season , when the series turned out to be viable and was turned over to the studio's watchdog, Rick Berman . David Gerrold, reaffirming that the studio still blamed Roddenberry for the perceived The Motion Picture failure, stated when he was pulled from the series, " Gene didn't like Rick, at all. But Rick was installed on the show by the studio as a way to keep a control on the show… to keep the budgets in line, make sure that the scripts were done. Ultimately, Berman ended up in control rather than Maizlish [note: Roddenberry's lawyer, who tried to establish creative control of the new show for his client] because Berman played the politics of the studio more effectively. ", indicating that the studio was grooming Berman and had never considered Roddenberry to continue in the first place. [16] The studio politics, effectively deflecting any costs responsibility from themselves and Director Wise, worked like a charm; for the remainder of his life, the US$45 million Motion Picture price tag stuck to Roddenberry's name like glue.

Yet, not everyone bought into the studio line, as Roddenberry had never been without staunch supporters of his own, like the author couple Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens , who have bluntly stated in their reference book The Art of Star Trek (p. 156) that, " (T)o be fair, the movie itself cost only $25 million to make. The extra $20 million or so represented all the cost Paramount had occurred over the years on all the other STAR TREK projects that were not made. " Considering that their "$25 million" – having taken Rodenberry's 1979 interview statement to that effect at face value ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 653) – were already taken up by the visual effects production and set construction alone ( see below ), meant that the Reeves-Stevens/Rodenberry assertions should therefore be considered as equally manipulative as those of the studio, albeit at the opposite end of the spectrum.

Concurrently, Director Robert Wise too, bore some of the responsibilities of the high production costs, after he was brought aboard in March 1978 and was given near- carte blanche latitude by the studio. As was his habit for all the films he worked on, Wise stipulated on that occasion that he was to have executive producer rights as well, which the studio granted, in the process curtailing those of Roddenberry. ( Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , p. 76) Nearly all non-script related production decisions made after March were Wise's and not Roddenberry's, which included, among others, his decision to completely revamp at great cost ( see below ) the vast majority of the Phase II sets, which he "didn't like very much". Wise's management style as producer did also backfire in regard to the visual effects, and it was Roddenberry, of all people, who sounded the alarm when the situation started to spin out of control ( see below ). But Wise was never associated by the studio with the high production costs, as he was, consciously or not, and unlike every other of his films, never officially credited as producer and therefore shielded from criticism. It should likewise be noted that Wise in his role as director also should have shared to some extent in the "plodding pace" criticism but, in his defense, in this regard he had by then little choice due to the February visual effects debacle, as he was forced to " start putting our effects into the body of film, one at a time, as they came in from the effects houses ". ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, pp. 101-102, 122-124)

While the studio has successfully deflected any performance responsibility for the film from itself, there actually was enough blame to go around for them as well, already starting with the upgrade decision proper of 11 November 1977. Business economics generally states that a radical mid-stream course change for any product or project development, especially for one as advanced in development as Phase II was, is bad management decision making. If overriding reasons does make it imperative, huge transition costs, even if carefully managed, are by definition unavoidable. When Robert Wise was approached for the director's position, he recalled, " And when I first came into the film, I was told by Michael and Jeffrey [Katzenberg] that they were out to make a "top-notch picture", and that our budget stood at somewhere between fifteen and eighteen million dollars. They didn't exactly expect we'd be able to actually spend that much(…) " ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, p. 87) Essentially speaking for all production staffers, when he was informed of the upgrade decision on 21 November 1977, Phase II Art Director Joe Jennings recalled in 2009, somewhat mellowed, but still aghast, " We were within two weeks of starting the new series, and somebody said, "Wheeew, let's make a motion picture!" Just like it was a whole different thing, you know. They've always thought that about the TV people. We did something, sort of down here and they did things that were sort of up there, that we could not do up here, what they did down there, whatever! " ( Star Trek: 45 Years of Designing the Future ) Both remarks implied that the upgrade was a "spur-of-the-moment" decision, whereas the somewhat flippant "top-notch picture" annotation by Eisner, additionally indicated that the consequences of their upgrade decision was neither thought through, nor fully understood by the studio.

In the case of RA&A, though Roddenberry was formally responsible for its selection, contract negotiations and the actual contracting are traditionally the purview of the studio, as producers usually have no authority to do so. While studio executives are dependent on their producers for providing accurate production information – studio executives are generally business people, not film or television makers, and they usually have more than one production under their auspices at any given time – this does not discharge them from the responsibility of performing their own due diligence assessments, especially on financial matters, which are their primary responsibility in the first place. With RA&A, as related below, it was abundantly clear that the executives dropped the ball in this regard. On this, RA&A's Visual Effects Designer, Richard Taylor , has later dryly commented, " Well, what I found was fascinating was, that why Robert Abel Studios, which was really doing graphics and television advertising and so forth, was asked to do the effects for this film, because there was no track record there. (…) So, to this day I'd love to know who has made the decision at Paramount to come to us, and say, "We want you to do the effects on this film. " (2013 interview for Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 2nd ed.) Then RA&A Executive Producer Sherry McKenna, has put it even more succinctly, having bluntly stated, " Paramount didn't check us out… " ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 59)

As an industry professional, Michael Eisner was aware of what the production budgets had been for the two most visually influential science fiction films in the previous ten years, he had in mind for his "top-notch picture", 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, and as indicated at the time by Production Illustrator Andrew Probert , who had stated, " Originally, when Bob Abel was on the project, everybody was extremely hopeful that this would surpass the classic 2001 . ") and Star Wars (1977), which was approximately $10 million each ( Close Encounters of the Third Kind had not yet premiered by the time of the upgrade decision). And when he set the initial film budget at $15 million, he could at first glance have been excused for thinking that this was ample. However, his budget included the costs already incurred for all previous revitalization attempts of the Star Trek live-action franchise, which included, among others, $500,000 for script development and $1 million for the Phase II bridge set alone. ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 156; Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , pp. 34, 69; Starlog , issue 27, p. 26) Adding to this other incurred, otherwise undisclosed costs, such as for the other Phase II sets, the studio models (all of which later discarded) and other production staff fees already paid, meant that the amount made available for the actual upgrade was less than the publicized figure of $15 million originally suggested. According to Unit Production Manager Phil Rawlins it was even substantially less, " When Bob Wise took the show over, there were, I believe, close to $5,000,000 worth of false starts. That includes all the versions they didn't do, the small feature, the TV series, the TV movie and all of that. " ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 112) Furthermore, when inflation adjusted, the production costs of 2001 came to US$18 million in 1977 prices (incidentally, conforming to Eisner's adjusted remark when he approached Wise), all of which pointing at Eisner's original budget being on the meager side to begin with. Eventually, it became known that the total production budget for Close Encounters came to approximately US$19 million, but that film required far fewer visual effects than The Motion Picture ultimately did.

Even with the in hindsight unrealistic original budget of US$15 million, The Motion Picture was still the most complex, ambitious and expensive film project the studio had ever embarked upon in its history, Cecil B. DeMille's (inflation adjusted) 1956 remake of his own 1923 silent film classic The Ten Commandments , being the sole exception. In comparison, all the studio's biggest box-office successes of the mid-1970s, John Travolta's Saturday Night Fever and Grease , as well as Mario Puzo's The Godfather , were "low-budget" productions, none of them exceeding a production budget of US$6 million. Only in the mid-to-late 1980s did production budgets start habitually to balloon exponentially, first in double digits, and subsequently into the triple digits.

In the case of Star Wars , Eisner and company, formed in the "Hollywood Studio System" tradition, failed to grasp that that film was produced under unique and radically different circumstances. Firstly, George Lucas employed an, at the time, virtually unknown and therefore inexpensive, cast (the only two established names, Peter Cushing and Alec Guinness, agreed to perform in the film for token fees); Secondly, Lucas combined within himself the roles of director, producer, as well as story and script development, affording him to maintain production integrity, and ensuring that the production stayed strictly on course creatively. In the case of the Motion Picture these roles were divided over a half dozen people, each of which with his own agenda, resulting in the somewhat unstructured and drifting production history and constituting a classic case of having too many helmsmen at the wheel; thirdly, and most importantly, cost-wise speaking, all effects were produced in-house. Lucas employed in his new Industrial Light & Magic company (then merely a subsidiary department of Lucasfilm, and later to play a significant part in the Star Trek film franchise) a team of young, highly motivated and enthusiastic effects staffers, all sharing Lucas' visionary approach, and each of them willing to work for low wages and putting in huge amounts of unpaid overtime. Thus organized, Lucas was ensured of minimal meddling by the powerful Hollywood Unions. ( Industrial Light & Magic: The Art of Special Effects , Chapter 1) This circumstance was certainly not lost on Phase II / The Motion Picture Production Illustrator Michael Minor , when he already in 1979 emphatically commented, " I love science fiction, but it's proved itself to be costly, damaging in human terms, costly in terms of money and time, and it is just much of a bankroll to bet too often. And the only person who seems to know how to do it right now, forgive me, is George Lucas, because I firmly believe Steven Spielberg hasn't the slightest idea what storytelling is all about. He's proved that rather conclusively. " ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 165)

Paramount Pictures could never enjoy these advantages, if only for the fact that they, as a venerable and well-established motion picture industry corporation, were subjected to more stifling Hollywood Union regulation. The circumstance that two Paramount subsidiary companies, the visual effects companies Magicam, Inc. and Future General Corporation (FGC), provided a huge and substantial amount of The Motion Picture work for their mother company did not help at all either. Corporate laws in those territories employing the free market economy system, universally have it that the subsidiary structure of a corporation, if utilized, may not lead to unfair competition advantages in regard to companies not encompassed within a group. This translates in practice that these subsidiaries can not give parent or sister companies undue advantages by offering them services or products at (below-)cost, and are to be treated as independent, outside companies with their own profitability responsibilities. Considered paramount, it is one of the most strictly enforced corporate laws in the Western world, the US, EU, and Australia in particular, where authorities are singularly keen on meeting any perceived transgression with traditionally hefty fines. It was exactly this circumstance Magicam's Vice-President Carey Melcher referred to, when he made the statement on the occasion of his company being reinstated as the primary studio model vendor for the Motion Picture in January 1978, " Even though we were a Paramount company, we had to submit bids just like any outsiders. We were expensive, because we're a union shop, but they knew we could do the work. " ( Starlog , issue 27, p. 26) For a group as a whole (in this case, Gulf+Western), this has no consequences, as inter-company costs and profits within a group, cancel each other out in the aggregated, or consolidated, profit-and-loss statements, submitted to tax authorities. However, for Paramount Pictures proper, the profits made by Magicam and FGC did turn up on their individual profit-and-loss statement as production costs. While Paramount had done nothing untoward legally, it would have in hindsight behooved them, if they had taken these inter-company profits into account when acquiescing the publication of the aggregate production costs, allowing for a more honest assessment of the performance of The Motion Picture .

As it turned out, the "inter-company" situation only played a part of any substance in the case of the Motion Picture , as it was not applicable in any of the later Star Trek film productions. Until 2005 that was though, when the issue re-emerged in a slightly different format when Gulf+Western's successor Viacom (old) was split into two separate entities – CBS Corporation and (new) Viacom . For Paramount proper it again resulted in very similar adverse circumstances for the profitability performances of their three, 2009-2016, alternate reality films.

The cost-inefficient situation of having "too many helmsmen at the wheel" was not restricted to the highest management echelons alone. When hired, a second, equivalent Art Department, Astra Image Corporation (ASTRA), was allowed to be established by RA&A to operate on par alongside Paramount's own Art Department, resulting in confusing situations with hugely overlapping responsibilities, as Jennings attested to, " We made a camel. It started out to be a horse, but a committee got hold of it. Everyone got into the act on that movie. There was creative pulling back and forth, fumbling around, coming and going of people ad infinitum and ad nauseam . Everyone who worked on the art direction provided too much input to be ignored, so we all got credit, and Hal Michelson , brought in as art director, ended up getting credit as production designer. " Jenning's co-worker Mike Minor, was even more vehement in his appraisal, " It was one of the most soiled and shabby chapters of Hollywood history, in terms of how people were treated. The trouble, as always, was that the wrong people were in charge. We're in a business in which the people at the top, who make the decisions, really don't know a damn thing about making pictures. I think we all knew then that we were associated with a bomb. It's too bad the movie happened at all. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol 12 #5/6, p. 58) The comments of Minor and Jennings notwithstanding, this situation was partly due to the contractual obligations the studio had committed to for the Phase II production. Yet, if anything, studio executives exhibited the ability to learn, and this particular situation was avoided for later film productions where either a single art department was employed, or when multiple ones were, responsibility boundaries were strictly defined with all of them answering to a single studio appointed production designer.

As the previous points already implied, none of the studio executives, Michael Eisner especially, seemed to have a firm grasp of the products of the industry they were actually working for at the time, at least where visual effects heavy projects, which The Motion Picture (as the very first one for Paramount) actually was, were concerned. In the visual effects case, this was exemplified by Eisner's treatment of FGC and his later reaction to the visual effects situation in July 1978. ( see below ), further indicated by his upping the initial budget to US$18 million within a month. Only in 2000 did Diller concede this to have actually been the case, " We didn't know what these things were, Bob Wise was a lovely man, but he didn't know, either. " ( The Keys to the Kingdom , 2000, Chapter 6) It was again Mike Minor who had made a scathing observation in this regard at the time, " Why do I think the filming took so long and cost so much? Poor planning. From the beginning, we all said there was never any one in control. The people running all the studios in Hollywood are cost accountants, bankers and idiot sons of advertising executives from New York. They have no idea whatsoever – underline that in italics [sic.] – what moviemaking is about. Since it sold to Gulf&Western, Paramount is no exception. To make room for parking on the Paramount lot, one of these executives had the western lot torn up – the last surving western lot in town. My question, and the question of most art department directors, to these individuals would be, "OK, what happens when Star Trek , Star Wars and the other pictures have had their run and you're back to making westerns? Where are you going to do them? You're going to have to build it again." And westerns will come back. They always come back. " Motion picture history has proved Minor right. ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 165)

Three years later, the studio made a big deal out of the fact that The Wrath of Khan , still produced under the auspices of Michael Eisner, was realized under its tight budget of approximately US$11.5 million, which officially (considering the worldwide box-office gross of US$97 million) makes this film the most profitable outing in the entire film franchise, putting Roddenberry in an even worse light. ( Cinefantastique , Vol 12 #5/6, p. 52; et al. ) This too has to be taken with a grain of salt, as that film made use of many visual, and special effects elements – both commonly responsible for the largest part of a science fiction production budget, as it already had been for the Original Series – previously produced for the Motion Picture , the studio models, props and sets in particular and even including the reuse of entire visual effects sequences, thereby realizing huge savings in effects costs not incurred, known in business economics as "opportunity costs". Common GAAP's have it elsewhere in the corporate world, that these costs should have been charged in proportion against this film and in the same proportion deducted after-the-fact from the Motion Picture – or put more simply, amortized over both productions. As stated above, the studio actually did charge in full all costs made for every single prior revitalization attempt to the Motion Picture , further hinting at information manipulation, an industry phenomenon known as " Hollywood accounting ". While Roddenberry was effectively put out to pasture, Eisner went on to become the, up to that point in time, highest paid media executive in history, when he switched over to The Walt Disney Company in 1984, receiving over $40 million in 1988 alone. [17] (X)

The fact that The Motion Picture had been delivered just in time to the theaters, resulted in that both the US$35 million dollar theater guarantees as well as the ABC pre-sale of US$10-$15 million dollar were secured. Add to this that the studio has been able to raise the US$10 million dollar shortfall due to the February visual effects crisis, on its own, meant that the film had already earned back its direct production budget, before even a single second of footage was seen by the public.

Another spin on the studio's position is put when one considered that despite its mixed reception, The Motion Picture was for three decades the best world-wide performing Star Trek film adjusted for inflation , US$422 million in 2014 prices, even outperforming the highly successful films Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek: First Contact (US$284 and $222 million in 2014 prices respectively) when inflation adjusted, and was only to be surpassed in 2009 with the advent of the film set in the alternate reality. And even in absolute dollars, the film still ranked fourth as of 2014.

The most remarkable coda to the whole Motion Picture cost-price "controversy" was provided by the aforementioned obscure production, or investment company Century Associates (who actually fronted Paramount Pictures the funding for The Motion Picture ), when their official figures were submitted to the film website IMDb decades later. A substantially lower production budget of US$35 million (indicating that at least some of the above-mentioned avant-premiere revenue streams were now accounted for) was allowed for in these figures, making the Motion Picture the fourth most profitable outing in the entire Star Trek film franchise as of 2022, incidentally outperforming the three alternate reality ones by far. For a more detailed breakdown of the individual performances in the film franchise, please see Star Trek films .

Visual effects [ ]

Though Roddenberry was later implicated in the high visual effects over-budget expenditures, Michael Eisner and his studio CEO colleagues could actually be as equally faulted as well, as they, prior to the Phase II project, seriously mishandled the relationship with Paramount's subsidiary effects house, FGC led by Douglas Trumbull , as Trumbull years later bitterly recalled (the studio of course, did not share that information with the public at the time), " Paramount had no vision at all and [was] going through a big management change. The guy [remark: Frank Yablans] that I did the deal with was ousted, and Michael Eisner and Barry Diller came in and they couldn't see what I was trying to do and wanted to get rid of it. I don't know, there's just a whole train of disillusionment that accompanies my history in movies. " [18] (X) . Trumbull, one of the effects supervisors for 2001: A Space Odyssey , whose grandeur the studio wanted to emulate for the upgraded film, was actually the first party approached for the film's visual effects, but he had to decline as he and his company were knee-deep involved in the post-production of the science fiction classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind at the time. ( Cinefex , issue 1, pp. 4, 6) How bad the relationship between the two parties already was by that time was exemplified by the fact that Trumbull failed to communicate that the work was close to completion, since Close Encounters already premiered on 16 November 1977, and that the studio immediately went in search for another company, making it debatable how sincere their inquiry was.

As it turned out, both parties were to pay the price for their failure to communicate and Paramount was forced to come yet knocking on Trumbull's door later on during the production, hat in hand. One can only wonder if a little more diplomacy on part of both sides could have prevented the ensuing visual effects debacle. At the time, the studio falsely spun Trumbull's refusal in contemporary press releases as being, "regrettably", unable to meet Trumbull's demand of serving on the film as its director (though having dangled, insincerely however, as they never had for a second considered doing so, the position as a carrot in front of him – like Roddenberry, Trumbull had a "solid" reputation of being too difficult to work with), instead of Wise. ( Return to Tomorrow , pp. 42, 46-47, 353)

Robert Abel & Associates [ ]

After Douglas Trumbull had turned it down, it was visual effects company Robert Abel & Associates (RA&A), ironically already suggested by Trumbull to Paul Rabwin in late October 1977, that was given the assignment to produce the film's visual effects, having tendered an initial bid of US$1.6 million for a television production, upped to US$4 million, once it became clear that the visuals were intended for a full-fledged theatrical motion picture production, for the commission, accounting for approximately 140-185 effects shots, slated to start in January 1978. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 60) The company was selected by Rabwin, taking along Mike Minor on the second meeting, on the strength of their groundbreaking contemporary commercials, unaware that the company was at the time not ready to handle a project of this magnitude, while correctly assessing that Paramount's other subsidiary effects house, Magicam, who were to do the effects for the television predecessor, was not either. In Rabwin's defense, many studios were at the time interested in doing science fiction, and he had a hard time finding an available effects studio at all. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 202-203; Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 1st ed, p. 46; Return to Tomorrow , p. 42) In the end, they indeed proved unable to provide visual effects that met the producers' requirements.

Before Rabwin was tasked with selecting an effects house, Roddenberry and Phase II director Robert Collins had already made a quick precursory round of the established visual effects houses in mid-October 1977, but found out that visual effects production had been tremendously revolutionized since The Original Series (not in the least due to Trumbull and his colleagues when working on 2001: A Space Odyssey , and not even mentioning what ILM had done on Star Wars ) and were unanimously informed that the visual effects they had in mind could not be produced for less than US$9-$10 million. It was mainly for this reason that the studio executives increased the budget from US$8 to $15 million for the upgrade. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , p. 83) That the relatively unknown RA&A, which had no track record whatsoever in the motion picture industry for major features, was willing to do the effects for US$4 million, should have raised at least some executive eyebrows. The cat came out of the bag in February 1979 when it became known that Robert Abel was actually aware that he could not do the effects for his initial bid. In December 1977 his company was in financial troubles due to the fact that his acclaimed Levi's commercial had run hugely over-cost (tendered at US$190,000, the commercial ended up costing US$330,000, and measured in thousands instead of millions was proof how small Abel's company actually was in fact) and he needed the Paramount commission for his company's survival. His then Executive Producer Sherry McKenna, who had flat-out stated, " Paramount didn't check us out… ", revealed that, presented with an early script draft, an internal analysis for the effects production already revealed that the production of these could not be accomplished for less than US$5.5-$6 million, but Abel, fearing that this amount was too high for Paramount (indicating his lack of experience with major feature productions), decided to take a gamble with his bid as not to lose the account. The shortfall was almost exactly the amount he requested as the first two budget upgrades in the early stages of his company's involvement. McKenna incidentally, left RA&A in late December 1977, when negotiations entered into their final stages, as she did not want to be party to the deception. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, pp. 59-60)

While pulled from the visual effects production proper, Magicam was retained by RA&A for the construction of the studio models for the film. However, this entailed discarding all the ones made for Phase II , deemed unsuitable to meet big-screen requirements, and starting all over again. ( Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 1st ed, p. 46)

Inexplicably, both the studio and director Wise failed to register that the departure of Post-production Supervisor Rabwin, who was not succeeded once RA&A was in place, had left a dangerous void in the production, as there was now no dedicated studio liaison and/or specialized supervisor, leaving an unsupervised RA&A pretty much to their own devices for nearly seven months. Apparently, Wise saw no need for one at the time, as he had none on the two science fiction films he worked on before, The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) and The Andromeda Strain (1971, and on whose strengths he was hired in the first place), instead dealing directly with the effects staffers in his role as producer. On both films he was well served by conscientious effects staffers, especially on the latter one where it was Douglas Trumbull himself who directed the effects and with whom Wise formed a close relationship on that occasion. However, the effects requirements for these two films were in no comparison to the ones needed for the project Wise was now working on, as was indicated by Diller's above quoted "he didn't know, either" statement, and he was forced to rely solely on the, by Roddenberry below quoted, "it sounds reasonable" word of RA&A's namesake. Abel, as it turned out, was concurrently looking out after the interests of his own company, having produced several commercials in Paramount's time and at their expense, as was conceded by RA&A's own Executive Producer for Commercials Jeffry Altshuler. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, pp. 60, 62)

This situation translated itself in a continuous stream of budget increase requests from RA&A, something that, while no longer his purview, came to the attention of an alarmed Gene Roddenberry and it was he who alerted Michael Eisner to the fact that the visual effects situation was rapidly spinning out of control in a memo dated 24 July 1978, informing him that the visual effects budget had already hit the $5 million dollar mark. Roddenberry, drawing upon the very good experience he had on the Original Series with Edward K. Milkis , advised the studio to appoint liaisons between RA&A and the studio. Eisner immediately responded by appointing Richard Yuricich to the production and concurrently instructing studio executives Jeffrey Katzenberg and Lindsley Parsons, Jr. to spend more of their time on the project, which for both men meant a raise from 20 to 50 percent of their available time. However, in doing so, Eisner exhibited his lack of understanding and empathy as both Katzenberg and Parsons were at the time business managers (not yet a film maker in the former case), and neither had any experience with visual effects whatsoever, whereas, intentionally or not, forcing Yuricich to serve as an unpaid liaison due to contractual obligations, was a particularly uncouth act on the part of Eisner, as an unmotivated Yuricich was co-founder and co-CEO of the by Eisner maligned FGC. Roddenberry, who suggested him, was not aware of the problems between FGC and the studio, and unsurprisingly, Eisner's actions did not do much to remedy the situation. In his memo, Roddenberry predicted, " Indeed, we may not have heard the last of optical expediting expenditures. It is possible we could also have other expenditures in dollars and delays on optical techniques, systems and equipment which do not work out as planned. Major optical effects of this type carry many hazards under the best of circumstances, and the director and myself have an urgent need to make decisions on them from something more than "it sounds reasonable" basis. " Roddenberry's prediction was in hindsight painfully accurate. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 203-204; Return to Tomorrow , pp. 25-26, 390)

Regardless of what the shortcomings of RA&A proper were, in one respect Gene Roddenberry did cause the effects budgets to balloon. A still exasperated Richard Taylor later clarified, " They just kept changing the playing field. Then they would get upset when the budget would go up. We'd say, "You just added a whole sequence that wasn't there." The original budget, I believe, was – they came to our studio with was 12 million for the effects, something like that. Initially, what the script was, we probably could have fit it into that, but they kept changing stuff and the budget kept going up and we finally were up to 16 million or 17 and they're going, "Well you guys are out of control!" – and we're going: "Well you're the one who's changing the script. You can't shoot these shots without people, without models. " [19] Roddenberry's incessant rewrites were mainly responsible for the amount of required effects shots to rise from the initially planned and budgeted 140 to over 350, resulting in that RA&A had to ultimately hire over a hundred staffers. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 60)

The first serious clash between the studio and RA&A occurred around Christmas 1978, when producers and executives, rather belatedly, came by Abel's company for the first time to ascertain the state of affairs regarding the studio model photography. Much to their horror, they found what little model photography was produced was both incomplete and entirely unacceptable. To aggravate matters even further, it was discovered on that occasion that RA&A had, in the studio's time (and at their expense, by using both the studio's equipment and money), continued to produce commercials, as mentioned above. Irate, the studio demanded that the company cease any and all side projects and be given a final budget figure for the effects, which at that point in time stood at US$14 million. Abel brazenly retorted that he needed US$16 million, and a desperate studio did reset the budget at that amount. In order for them to concentrate on the other visuals, RA&A was however entirely pulled from the studio model photography, from here on end completely denied access to them, which for the time being was reverted to FGC cinematographer Bill Millar while Douglas Trumbull was, ironically, concurrently appointed as an unpaid technical consultant in a last ditch effort to regain control over the situation. Trumbull only agreed to do so as a courtesy to his old friend Robert Wise. As it so happened, both Trumbull and Abel were headstrong characters and for the next two months they were locked in vicious combat with each other. Trumbull was ultimately not able to get Abel back on track and the situation proved to be unsalvageable. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, pp. 60; The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 203; Enterprise Incidents; special edition on the technical side , pp. 38, 42;)

The situation truly came to a head on 20 February 1979, when studio executives and producers came again sizing up the visual effects status at RA&A. Reportedly, the company had only a single completed effects shot to show for all the time and money spent. For decades the exact extent of the damage was mired in lore as sources were not quite in concordance with each other regarding costs incurred, mentioning figures such as US$5 million (by Wise, though he had the July Roddenberry memo in mind, being sent a copy at the time, when recalling the figure decades later), and a budget standing by then at US$16 million as above indicated by RA&A's own Richard Taylor, the latter amount the most mentioned but both already indicating millions of dollars over-budget expenditures by December 1978. Yet in 2000, by then former Paramount CEO Barry Diller, who had been the chief financial overseer on the film, revealed, " The studio poured $11 million into effects, and none of it worked. " Feeling thoroughly dismayed at "being lied to", Wise pushed for the removal of Abel and, in an acrimonious atmosphere, the latter was fired and his company released two days later, effective immediately. In a state of near panic, a frantic search for a replacement was started, as the studio now unexpectedly found itself extremely pressured for time since the December premiere date for the film was a given. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , 2000, Chapter 6; Star Trek Movie Memories , 1994, pp. 119-120; The Special Effects of Trek , pp. 29, 31; Enterprise Incidents , issue 13, pp. 25-26; Starlog , issue 27, p. 26) As to more detailed specifics in regard to Abel's over-budget expenditures, please refer to the individual entries for:

  • Robert Abel
  • Robert Abel & Associates

Wise's "being lied to" feeling was reported to be an understatement as the otherwise levelheaded Wise apparently lost it on that fateful day and erupted in a full-blown rage. As a consequence, Abel threatened to sue the studio over perceived injuries sustained by Robert Wise. Jeffrey Katzenberg, confirming the incident, was hardly perturbed, " That much is true, Abel has said he's going to sue us because of [Wise's] statements. And I say, let him. Problems with special effects have caused various scenes to be reshot, driving up the cost considerably higher. " ( Reader magazine, 23 November 1979, p. 7) In turn, informed that Abel had sold off some by Paramount paid equipment, studio auditors started a criminal investigation, whether or not this was the case. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 63) Without much further ado however, both litigations were settled out of court a few months later, amicably according to Katzenberg. ( Return to Tomorrow , pp. 348-350).

One RA&A visual effects sequence made it into the film though, that of the wormhole (an early and primitive CGI effect), whereas the V'ger probe on the bridge sequence was very much executed as designed and pre-produced by RA&A. [20] It earned the company a slightly diminutive "Certain Special Visual Effects Conceived and Designed by" credit, albeit near the bottom of the end credits roll.

Future General Corporation and Apogee [ ]

The state of near-panic was exemplified by studio executive Don Simpson , who, realizing that virtually all visual effects footage had to be reproduced from scratch, now wanted to pull the plug entirely. Dawn Steel recalled, " The story goes that Simpson tried to talk Jeffrey out of it, that he said to him, " Star Trek is a nighttime freight train. It's bearing down on you at 200 miles per hour. Get off the f---g track!" He didn't. It wasn't in Jeffrey's nature to get off the track. " Steel was subsequently charged by Eisner to find additional cash by organizing the earlier mentioned merchandise and license fund drive, " My job was to merchandise this runaway freight train. ", she has added. ( New York magazine, 6 September 1993, p. 40)

Trumbull was ultimately given primary responsibility for the film's visual effects in March 1979 through his own visual effects company, FGC. Ironically, RA&A's Con Pederson, who was the second of four visual effects supervisors for 2001 (the others were Tom Howard and Wally Veevers) was one of Robert Abel's lead men. Paramount, stung by Trumbull's initial rejection and already at loggerheads with its headstrong manager as previously touched upon, withholding funding for a new project he had lined up and already in the process of shutting down FGC, now had to headlong reverse their policy, as Trumbull clarified, " I was under contract at Paramount, who began closing down Future General in order to provide my cameras to Bob Abel's company. At the same time, Bob was already a year into the production, trying to implement a radically new computerized and computer graphics driven process. " [21] Getting back the equipment he initially was forced to surrender to RA&A, Trumbull used the problems the studio were in as leverage to secure a proviso that he would be released from his contractual studio obligations if he accepted, as did Yuricich. For the work, Trumbull was able to partly reassemble his team he had on Close Encounters , but was forced to let go by the studio over a year earlier. Both Trumbull and Yuricich left FGC upon completion of the project.

For the reproduction of the visual effects, a new budget of US$10 million was approved. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 204) Coincidentally, this amount corresponded with the amount the cost-price was adjusted downwards as mentioned previously, suggesting that this was the amount Steel had netted the studio with her fund drive as well as corresponding with the minimum cost estimates Roddenberry and Collins were given fourteen months earlier by effects companies in the first place.

The problems with RA&A resulted in that virtually no visual effects were produced by the time Trumbull was brought in definitively, and he found himself particularly pressed for time, as the studio would not delay the planned December release. Trumbull, in turn, was thus forced to sub-contract Apogee, Inc. in order to divide the workload. Apogee was operated by famed cinematographer John Dykstra , a former protégé of Trumbull, who had coached him on the 1972 science fiction cult film Silent Running . Actually, Dykstra had already been approached by Paul Rabwin as one of the VFX companies sought out for the upgrade in October 1977. However, he was at that time still working on his classic Battlestar Galactica commission (during which he had formed his company), and had already committed his company to a follow-up project, the 1980 film Altered States , so he had to decline on that occasion. ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 46-47) Faced with the gargantuan task of recreating all the VFX from scratch for the film at the eleventh hour, Trumbull suggested his former protegé again so as to get a headstart on VFX production, as he scrambled to reassemble his own near-dismantled FGC. At that time, however, Dykstra's Apogee was still working on Altered States and had to again decline – until Altered States fell through only a month later. With no work in the pipeline, Dykstra was able to take on the Star Trek emergency after all, to Trumbull's relief. ( Cinefex , issue 2, p. 51; Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 372-374)

Apogee was entrusted with the opening Klingon scene, the digitizing of Epsilon IX station scene, the wormhole mishap sequence, the V'ger approach scenes and the V'ger -probe on the bridge scene. Part of their responsibility was, under the supervision of Grant McCune , having their model shop build a number of studio models for the film, including a two-foot articulated thruster suit puppet , three models of the Epsilon IX station (an entirely original Apogee design), and exterior sections of V'ger , as well as extensively modifying Magicam's D7-class model for it to become the K't'inga -class model . ( Cinefex , issue 2, pp. 50-72)

All other effects visuals were the purview of FGC, including those of the interior scenes of V'ger , which required the build of several interior section models. While FGC operated an, at the time, small subsidiary model shop, Entertainment Effects Group (EEG), the sheer amount of models required, necessitated the subcontracting of additional model makers, which came in the form of Gregory Jein and his team. ( Cinefex , issue 2, pp. 42-45)

Despite the fact that two effects companies were working full-time on the visuals, Trumbull was still working 24×7 on the visuals one week before the film was about to premiere, the final cut of the film only completed by Wise one day before. ( Cinefex , issue 1, p. 4). Not having been able to take a single day off for four months, Trumbull suffered from nervous exhaustion upon the completion of the work and had to be hospitalized for ten days afterwards, his personal price he had to pay for his part in the failure to communicate with the studio two years earlier. [22]

Nearly missing the premiere date due to the visual effects debacle still had consequences, as Wise elaborated upon in the Director's Edition DVD audio commentary track, where he stated that out of the forty films he directed, Star Trek was the only one that never got a sneak preview. According to Wise, the visual effects came in so late, they didn't have time to preview the film to an audience and get some feedback and so they were stuck with just dropping the expensive effects into the film and basically having to rely on them. Wise also mentioned that he literally carried the first print of the film to the premiere and it was loaded into the projectors as they waited in the theater. Then, after the world premiere, he and Gene Roddenberry considered doing some more work on the film, but Paramount overruled them, saying it might show a lack of confidence in the film if they did that. Wise also said that the Director's Edition is a tighter cut and more focused on the characters, within the restrictions of the film's story.

Magicam's refit- Enterprise studio model took over fourteen months, aggravated by mishap delays, to complete from start to finish and came in at a for the time staggering amount of US$150,000. Even more staggering was the cost of the drydock model whose final tally totaled up to US$200,000. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 207, 210) Yet, to put some perspective on the issue, the reference book Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series (p. 75), strongly indicated that the costs already incurred with the construction of their immediate Phase II predecessors, and which were simply discarded after the upgrade from a television production to a motion picture, had to be included.

With nearly five hundred visual effects cuts, it was reportedly the most effects laden motion picture to date. ( Cinefex , issue 1, p. 4)

Production design [ ]

Alien languages [ ].

The film marked the first time that Klingonese was heard spoken. The spoken Klingon language was developed by James Doohan, who had expertise with various dialects, after he had a discussion with Gene Roddenberry over lunch. Roddenberry had very recently hired a dialectician from the University of California, Los Angeles to devise some words for the Klingons. Decades later, Doohan remembered, " [Roddenberry] didn't like what [the dialectician] created. I said, 'Well, I'll do it for you after lunch.' I was doing something close to Mongolian. " At the time, Doohan told his co-workers, " We have to cut out vowels as much as possible. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 80 , p. 16) At that time the language as featured, only consisted of a few exclamations, and it took until Star Trek III: The Search for Spock before the language was somewhat beefed out by linguist Marc Okrand .

Concurrently, the film also represented the first time that the Vulcan language was heard spoken out aloud in a coherent matter – a few loose spur-of-the moment incoherently invented exclamations were previously heard in the Original Series episode " Amok Time ". Like the first pass on the Klingon language, it was developed for the film by linguist Hartmut Scharfe , but unlike his original Klingon, the Vulcan language did make it unaltered into the film as Associate Producer Jon Povill recalled,

"The Vulcan masters were actually shot and recorded speaking English. Eventually, we decided we didn't like the way it sounded and we didn't like the way it played in English. It was Gene's idea to try and find other words that would synch up to the English mouthing which would not sound anything at all like English, and that's how the Vulcan Language came about. We got this professor from the linguistics department at UCLA, Hartmut Scharfe, and he constructed a Vulcan language for us very well. In fact, I think Hartmut is, in voiceover, one of the Vulcans. When we switched from TV to motion picture, we had decided to make sure that the Klingons weren't speaking English, so we now asked our language expert, Hartmut, to help us construct a Klingon language. Whereas he had given us just what we needed for the Vulcans, his Klingonese didn't sound alien enough. Hartmut is Indian, and he was using it as a combination of Sanskrit and Germanic, it sounded in some ways recognizable, so we were not completely satisfied. Jimmy Doohan has always been good at just kind of making up dialects and languages, so he volunteered his services to help us. After Hartmut had done his thing and worked it all out logically, Jimmy and I just sat down one day and made up stuff. We created the Klingonese by using some of what Hartmut had done and then combining it with our own: we strung together nonsense syllables, basically, totally made up sounds with clicks, and grunts, and hisses. Jimmy actually taught it to Mark Lenard and the others just prior to the shooting of that scene, which didn't take place until many months later." ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 260-261)

Construction Coordinator Gene Kelley has compiled an overview statement on the costs and use of the Motion Picture sets, which was reproduced in The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (p. 95):

  • ↑ Footage was later discarded
  • ↑ All figures rounded off to the nearest thousand
  • ↑ Figure does not include $85,000 for special lighting
  • ↑ Figure also includes the tram

While it is stated above that the studio included costs already incurred for previous revitalization attempts of the live-action franchise, Kelly stressed that the costs he listed are those that were exclusively made during the production of The Motion Picture proper, meaning from February 1978 onward. Of the bridge set for example, already nearing completion for the Phase II production, is known that it had already incurred over US$1 million in construction costs by the time the production was upgraded to a theatrical feature. ( Starlog , issue 27, p. 26) Kelly's breakdown indicated that eleven of Paramount's thirty-two sound stages were in use for the single Star Trek production during 1978-1979, more than for any other production in Paramount's history up to that point in time. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 94)

Part of the reasons why RA&A's budgets kept rising was that they became involved in set construction as well, which had not been their assignment originally. RA&A's Art Director Richard Taylor, clarifying that this was on the studio's insistence, stated, " There was conflict from the very beginning. And Bob Abel, who was one of the top sales men in the history of film, would go in there, and we'd get involved in more things than we should have ever been. We were initially there to do the models and the model photography, but we got involved with the sets, we got involved with the costumes, and all these other things, we never should have been, and that was a real problem. " (2013 interview for Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 2nd ed.) This however backfired on the company, when the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) became aware that RA&A started to employ non-union set constructors and started procedures against the company, only adding to the growing friction between the studio and RA&A, as Production Illustrator Andrew Probert noticed when he recalled the toll it took on his art director, " I remember how utterly exasperated he was, every time he returned from meetings at Paramount…mostly with the late Hal Michelson (Production Designer), an absolutely brilliant Art Director who was out of his element, on this, his first Science Fiction production. " ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 60; [23] )

Make-up [ ]

This film is the first time that the Klingons were depicted with their cranial ridges, as opposed to the more human-like appearance from The Original Series . However, in this movie, the Klingons all had identical cranial ridge patterns. It would not be until Star Trek III: The Search for Spock that Klingons would have unique cranial ridge patterns. The change in the Klingon's appearance would not be acknowledged in-universe until the Deep Space Nine episode " Trials and Tribble-ations ."

Voyager aka V'ger [ ]

The fictional Voyager 6 probe around which V'ger was built, was actually a full-scale mock-up of the real world Voyager 1 and 2 probes of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratories (JPL). JPL's director John Casani agreed to loan the model to the studio in October 1977, mere months after the actual Voyager probes were launched in August and September that year. Then Phase II Producer Robert Goodwin reported in a progress memo, dated 21 October 1977, " After your conversation with John Casani at Jet Propulsion Laboratories, JPL has agreed to loan us the mock-up of the Voyager, to be used as part of our set as the interior of the Alien Spaceship. Joe Jennings and Matt Jefferies attended a briefing in JPL last night in the Voyager and Joe Jennings will return there next week with Bud Arbuckle to get measurements so that we can incorporate this large full-scale mock-up into our plans for the set." ( Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , p. 52) According to the text commentary on the Director's Edition DVD, JPL was willing to go a step further and loan the production an actual engineering duplicate of the Voyager spacecraft, but the studio declined, saying that the risk of the duplicate being damaged on the set was too high.

The V'ger sound effects were performed on the blaster beam – a musical instrument invented by former Star Trek actor Craig Huxley . The sound was created by several strings attached to an eighteen-foot aluminum body and amplified by motorized guitar pickups. The blaster beam effect was later reused in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (during Kirk's battle with Khan in the Mutara Nebula ) Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (very briefly, during the theft of the Enterprise from Spacedock ) and in Star Trek: First Contact for the spacewalk sequence and Picard 's final encounter with the Borg Queen .

Saucer separation [ ]

Throughout most of the filming of The Motion Picture , a final ending story had yet to be developed. Production Illustrator Andrew Probert provided the producers with his own script suggestions for a visually dramatic conclusion, and storyboarded the key event, and Mego 's licensed toy model of the new ship had instructions for separating its saucer from the secondary hull. For the record, the possibility of the original Enterprise 's undergoing a saucer separation was first mentioned in the original series episode " The Apple ". But it was not until the pilot episode of The Next Generation that the maneuver was finally depicted.

The walk to V'ger [ ]

Twenty-two years after The Motion Picture appeared in theaters, the film was re-released with the intention of depicting an improved version, closer to the director's original vision. The Director's Edition added a new sound mix and new scenes to Robert Wise's film, but one of the most notable changes from the original version was the stunning addition of new visual effects, specifically in how the mysterious craft V'ger was revealed. Since the walk to V'ger scene was the climax of the film, it was important to convey a sense of the extraordinary and fantastic by using the new visual effects to complement the original film rather than overwhelm it. Critical opinion is mixed as to whether or not it succeeded. Some fans remained critical of the film and they continue to refer to as "Star Trek: The Motion Sickness", "Star Trek: The Motionless Picture", or "Star Trek: The Slow-Motion Picture", as given to the original cut. ( The World of Star Trek )

Production history [ ]

While strictly speaking the production of Star Trek: The Motion Picture officially spanned the time period of December 1977 through November 1979, its history, as an attempt to bring back Star Trek as a live-action production, stretched as far back as 1967, and as such these attempts were intertwined, especially if one considered the players involved, with some elements originating from those early attempts, the atheist theme in particular, surviving long enough to turn up in edited form in the final production. This was especially true for the Star Trek: Phase II television movie, né series, -project, which directly preceded The Motion Picture , as much of the groundwork for The Motion Picture was laid during the pre-production of that project. Therefore, in order to fully appreciate the efforts that went into the production of The Motion Picture , a full overview of the live-action revitalization history is warranted.

Late 1967 – June 1976: Early revitalization attempts [ ]

  • Late 1967 : Gene Roddenberry, Associate Producer Gregg Peters and Leonard McCoy Performer DeForest Kelley discuss among themselves in the former RKO commissary, the possibility of doing a Star Trek motion picture on a number of occasions, intended as a filler for the production hiatus between the second and third season of the regular Original Series . Being the earliest recorded notion of a motion picture, the idea is nixed however, or as Kelley has put it, " Who would ever think of making a motion picture out of a television show? " As it turns out, the series proper soon finds itself fighting for survival, threatened by cancellation. ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , pp. 3, 5)
  • 22 June 1972 : D.C. Fontana writes in to the fanzine Star-Borne about the possibility of a theatrical film. In her letter she writes, " Paramount… [is] enormously impressed by the quantity (and quality) of fan mail they continue to receive. The possibility seems to be slowly developing of a Star Trek feature movie for theatrical release, aimed at becoming the new Star Trek television pilot… on the network front, NBC still expresses great interest in doing Star Trek in some form. Both NBC and Paramount continue to receive a great deal of mail and have had to assign secretaries for the sole job of answering it. " [24] While it does not lead to a live-action production at the time, the notion does eventually entice NBC to commission Star Trek: The Animated Series .
  • 1973 : With the help of his former Desilu boss Herbert F. Solow , Gene Roddenberry first approaches Paramount with an idea for a feature film, tentatively called " The Cattlemen ". On this occasion, Solow actually repeats his exact same role when he took Roddenberry to NBC to pitch The Original Series back in 1964. The idea is based on the story outline called " A Question of Cannibalism ", one of the twenty-five earliest Star Trek story outlines developed in 1964 as back-up for the original pilot episode "The Cage". Then Paramount President, Frank Yablans , envisioning a high-tech space film potentially grossing US$30 million years before Star Wars , is interested. However, very much aware of Roddenberry's Original Series reputation and of his utter failure as producer to control the antics of director Roger Vadim for the 1971 film Pretty Maids All in a Row in particular (which caused the movie to run over-time and over-budget), Yablans emphatically refuses to have him serve as producer, only willing to hire him as writer. Through his attorney Leonard Maizlish, Roddenberry counters with demanding a hitherto near-unprecedented US$100,000 writer's fee, which Yablans dismisses as unacceptable and subsequently trashes the entire proposition. Solow is later told by two Paramount attorneys, " He lost the deal arguing over nickels. Nickels! " ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , 2nd ed, pp 420-421) Despite the failure of the negotiations, Yablans' interest in producing high-tech science fiction is piqued nevertheless and to this end he facilitates and provide the funding for the establishment of two Paramount visual effects subsidiaries, Douglas Trumbull's Future General Corporation (FGC) and Carey Melcher's Magicam, Inc, one year later. Unfortunately, his immediate successors, Barry Diller and Michael Eisener, have zero affinity with science fiction and with visual effects in particular, and try to shut down FGC immediately upon their ascent, which will come back to haunt the production.
  • Early Autumn 1974 : Entirely independent from Roddenberry, Arthur Barron, Paramount's then chief financial officer (of all people, considering that it was predominantly financial executives who pushed for the cancellation of the Original Series back in 1967) and bypassing Yablans, approaches the highest top executive, Gulf+Western President Charles Bluhdorn , with the idea of turning Star Trek into a movie. Having completely reversed his stance when he acquired Desilu in 1967, Bluhdorn by now has become enamored with Star Trek due to its huge and unexpected success in syndication and has embraced Star Trek as something of a pet project. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapter 5)
  • October 1974 : Bluhdorn instructs freshly-appointed Paramount President Barry Diller (having just replaced Yablans, who was "invited" to leave after failing to show respect for his boss and who, incidentally, had failed to inform Bluhdorn of Roddenberry's prior overtures) to turn the idea into a project. Not particularly interested in doing Star Trek in any format whatsoever and, by any standard, a formidable executive himself, Diller nevertheless does not want to antagonize his new boss and his new-found infatuation with Star Trek by refusing and approaches Roddenberry for the project. However, still smarting over Yablans' rejection the year previously, Roddenberry has somehow become aware of Bluhdorn's interest and, on instigation of his attorney Maizlish, decides to play studio politics by holding out on Diller for the better part of half a year. Diller plays along – for now. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapters 2, 5; Return to Tomorrow , pp. 9, 48) Much to his detriment, Roddenberry will later find out that Diller has a long memory and is by no means a man with whom to be trifled.
  • 12 March 1975 : Roddenberry signs a contract with Paramount to do a Star Trek movie with a US$3 million budget. ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , p. 62)
  • May 1975 : Roddenberry returns to the office he occupied during the production of the Original Series and writes a script called The God Thing , start of principal photography projected for the fall of 1975. By then the budget is increased to US$5 million. ( Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , p. 16; [25] ) William Shatner, who is purely by coincidence at the studio for unrelated business, chances upon Roddenberry and is on the occasion given a beat-for-beat expose on the story outline of The God Thing , which he will later recall in his memoirs. Shatner's own 1989 film, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , would feature very similar atheistic themes akin to The God Thing , angering Roddenberry, who is convinced that Shatner stole his story, also dutifully recorded by Shatner in his memoirs. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, pp. pp. 46-49, 289-291)
  • 30 June 1975 : First draft of The God Thing script is submitted to the studio by Roddenberry. ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 23)
  • August 1975 : The script for The God Thing is rejected by Diller. ( The Lost Series , p. 16)
  • September 1975 : Roddenberry, now with input from Jon Povill , starts a new story and script outline for a movie, tentatively called " Star Trek II ", with a new production start that is moved up to 15 July 1976, again moved up to January 1977 at a later point. ( The Making of , p. 25)
  • January 1976 : The studio toys with the idea to turn " Star Trek II " into a television series and a relieved Diller dumps the property in the lap of the recently appointed (by him) Michael Eisner. Then-television department head Eisner, misinformed by industry peers, at first does not believe in the viability of a science fiction proposition like Star Trek and now wants to cancel the project altogether, yet his colleague Jeffrey Katzenberg, who, as a former Trekkie , is very much aware of the fan convention phenomenon surrounding the Original Series , believes in the potential, and convinces Eisner to push ahead with the development, also being subtly reminded by Diller of their boss' interest in Star Trek . (Decades later, in 2002, Eisner nearly makes the same error in judgment with Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.) [26] Eisner now commissions new story outlines for which numerous Writers Guild of America authors are approached to turn in story pitches for episodes, including noted science fiction authors like John D.F. Black (producer on the Original Series and writer of its episode " The Naked Time "), Robert Silverberg, the aforementioned Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury , and Theodore Sturgeon . ( The Lost Series , pp. 16-17) Ellison, only involved in the production during this period, later recalls on Tom Snyder's Tomorrow Show how his and Roddenberry's story ideas are met by Eisner. Idea after idea is rejected, including ones about time-travel, Adam and Eve, dinosaurs (a treatment of Bradbury's classic short story "A Sound of Thunder" and met with Eisner's remark " It's gotta be bigger! "), and one in which the Enterprise finds God –the real one – to which Eisner responds after a brief pause, " Not big enough. " ( The Making of , p. 25; Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , pp. 63-64; [27] )
  • April 1976 : All story outlines are rejected and the property, now rapidly becoming something of a hot potato, is bounced back to the motion picture department of the studio, again the responsibility of a slightly dismayed Diller. ( The Making of , p. 25)

July 1976 – May 1977: Star Trek: Planet of the Titans [ ]

  • April 1976 : Gene Roddenberry assumes the producer role for a new Star Trek movie project, Star Trek: Planet of Titans , to be produced in Great Britain. ( The Star Trek Compendium , 4th ed., p. 151)
  • May 1976 : Roddenberry's company Lincoln Enterprises relaunches the first "official" fanzine, Inside Star Trek , now as " Star Trektennial News " and continuing the numbering where the source publication had left off when it ended its first run upon the cancellation of the Original Series . Express intent of the relaunch is to keep fandom abreast of the live-action revitalization attempts, starting with the above mentioned Star Trek II , and engender as much public awareness as possible. This is not entirely a benevolent effort on Roddenberry's part, as the magazine is also as a public platform for self-promotion through numerous interviews, serving as counterbalance to studio policies in regard to his person, and to which end he has assigned his longtime personal assistant, Susan Sackett , to serve as one of the two editors. The publication will run for another thirteen issues over the next three years, regaining its original title along the way and ceasing publication prior to the premiere of The Motion Picture . [28]
  • 22 June 1976 : Jon Povill tenders a proposal list of possible directors. The list includes names of later renowned directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas, who at the time are still at the start of their careers. More established names include William Friedkin, George Roy Hill, and Robert Wise . None of the directors are available, though. ( The Making of , p. 29)
  • 1 July 1976 : Jerry Isenberg is appointed executive producer for the project by the studio for the express purpose to keep Roddenberry's eccentricities in check, and it is he who brings in British writers Chris Bryant and Allan Scott for the script treatment, who will start their work in September. Povill is now appointed assistant producer to Isenberg. Though initially appointed as the film's producer, Roddenberry is after the hiring of Philip Kaufman as director shortly afterwards, effectively sidelined on the insistence of Diller, which marks the first time that the Star Trek creator is purposely left out of a production entirely, though Povill keeps him clandestinely abreast of the production by continuously consulting with him. ( The Lost Series , p. 17; The Making of , p. 27) Diller, who by no means has forgotten his affront two years earlier, is not done with Roddenberry yet, not by a long shot.
  • 6 October 1976 : Paramount accepts the script treatment and gives the green light to write the full script. Concurrently a movie budget is set at US$7.5 million. Illustrators Ken Adam and Ralph McQuarrie are subsequently brought in as concept artists. ( The Lost Series , p. 17)
  • 1 March 1977 : The final Planet of the Titans script is submitted by Bryant and Scott. ( The Lost Series , p. 19)
  • April 1977 : The script is rejected by the studio, and Kaufman, hired previously as director, immediately embarks on a rewrite without any input whatsoever from Roddenberry. ( The Lost Series , p. 19)
  • 8 May 1977 : Kaufman's rewrite too, is rejected by the studio and Planet of Titans , by that time budgeted at US$10 million, is permanently cancelled and the property is once again bounced back to Eisner's television department. ( The Lost Series , p. 19)

May 1977 – November 1977: Star Trek: Phase II [ ]

  • 25 May 1977 : Star Wars premieres. Considered by the studio as a fluke at first, the ultimately resounding success of this movie plays an important role in a series of decisions by studio executives regarding the Star Trek production. ( Star Trek: 45 Years of Designing the Future , et al. )
  • Late May 1977 : Even before the series is announced, Roddenberry, together with Povill, who has rejoined him as story editor, starts writing the Star Trek II Writer's/Director's Guide , otherwise known as the " Writer's Bible ", dubbed after the similar internal document already used for the Original Series . The new guide is actually an updated rewrite of the original. Aside from Roddenberry and Povill, Robert Goodwin and Harold Livingston , upon being hired, make substantial contributions to the guide as well. ( The Lost Series , pp. 83-103)
  • 10 June 1977 : The television series Star Trek: Phase II is officially announced as the flagship for Paramount's newly conceived fourth television network, to be called "Paramount Television Service", by studio President Barry Diller, with a two-hour television movie as the series pilot, reset at a budget of US$3.2 million, and slated for a February 1978 broadcast with principal photography to start on 28 November 1977. Roddenberry is again to serve as the executive producer. Officially, the series was to be called Star Trek II . Eisner continues to be the primary studio overseer of Star Trek , but is reinforced with Jeffrey Katzenberger, who Diller transfers from the marketing department by promoting him to the newly-conceived title for the new web, Head of Programming. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , 2000, Chapter 6; The Lost Series , pp. 21-22, 49; The Making of , p. 34)
  • June 1977 : Robert Goodwin and Harold Livingston are brought in as producers to form the nucleus of the production team, Goodwin as operations manager and Livingston for story and script development. Goodwin fulfills for the production the role Robert H. Justman had on the Original Series . Actually, Justman has been approached for the position by Roddenberry, but overruled by the studio; he subsequently does not return Justman's calls when the latter reports for work. Justman will later claim that if he had been there, some of the mistakes in the making of the film could have been avoided. ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , p. 432) Neither Goodwin or Livingston are either solicited by Roddenberry or even wanted by him, but are brought in by the studio nonetheless, essentially a repetitive move of what Diller had already ordained for Planet of the Titans a year earlier. Diller and Eisner, like their television predecessors, become increasingly alarmed by Roddenberry's reasserting character flaw of stubbornly adhering to storylines he himself (and nobody else) has conceived. Most ironically, Roddenberry is starting to mimic Vadim's behavior, which has caused himself so much trouble six years earlier. Livingston in particular is to serve as a counterbalance to Roddenberry's stubbornness. But while the executives are, for the time being, shielded from his obtuseness, Livingston almost immediately finds himself at loggerheads with Roddenberry, resulting in a continuous series of increasingly vicious battles over story outline and script rewrites and re-rewrites, often performed surreptitiously by Roddenberry. The ongoing creative battle lasts for almost two years and proves to be particularly detrimental to the production, aside from entirely destroying the relationship between the two men. ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, pp. 67, et al. ) Subsequently, the senior staff of the art department, responsible for the visual look of the production, is filled. Initially, Original Series veteran Matt Jefferies is offered the position, but he declines tenure, agreeing only to serve on a temporary basis as a technical consultant. In his stead he recommends another veteran, Joe Jennings, his assistant on the second season of the Original Series , and who is appointed art director. Jefferies immediately starts the redesign work of his Original Series creations, the bridge of the Enterprise and the ship itself, whereas Jennings starts design work on the other sets. ( The Lost Series , pp. 23-26) Concurrently that month, Roddenberry's assistant, Susan Sackett , starts her series of " Star Trek Reports" for Starlog magazine, in which she keeps readership appraised about the progress of the Star Trek live-action production, starting in issue 6. The reports run through issue 29, 1979, and are to be the starting point for her book The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , the writing she embarks upon directly pursuant to her "Reports" and finished a month before The Motion Picture is completed. She eventually appears in the The Motion Picture recreation deck scene as an Enterprise science division crewmember alongside a multitude of other Star Trek fans.
  • July 1977 : Hiring of creative production staff continues unabated, and in this month Jenning's art department is beefed out with Set Designer Lew Splittsberger , Graphic Artist Lee Cole , and Assistant Art Director John Cartwright . A noticeable addition to the production staff is another Original Series veteran, William Ware Theiss , reprising his role as costume designer. ( The Lost Series , pp. 28-29)

USS Enterprise bridge set construction start for Phase II

Early stage of the Enterprise bridge set construction

  • 25 July 1977 : Alan Dean Foster is contracted to write the story for the pilot episode of Phase II , with an option to write the teleplay as well. ( The Lost Series , p. 31) The bridge set construction is started on this day on Paramount Stage 9, for which yet another Original Series veteran was brought aboard on recommendation of Jefferies, Special Effects Artist Jim Rugg . ( The Making of , p. 36)
  • 31 July 1977 : Alan Dean Foster, with input from Goodwin, submits a story treatment for Phase II , entitled "In Thy Image", which was actually in part based on a story called "Robot's Return" written for Roddenberry's television series Genesis II , which had not been picked up after its pilot episode. ( The Lost Series , pp. 31, 33; [29] ) The sentient robot theme does not sit well with some of the highest and more conservative corporate executives for religious as well as scientifically believability reasons, and for over a year they resist the theme. It is for this specific reason that Isaac Asimov is brought in as an additional science consultant later on in the production. Despite his reassurances, and even though that by that time it has been too late to alter the story, their fears are only allayed when Penthouse magazine, of all publications, publishes an interview in their October 1978 issue (incidentally, also featuring a Leonard Nimoy interview) with NASA 's director of their Institute of Space Studies, Robert Jastrow, in which he broaches the subject favorably. ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 193; Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History , p. 101) This will solicit an acerbic response from Asimov himself, after he had spent weeks trying to do the same to no avail, " There it was in Penthouse , in black and white, so the studio figured, "It must be true, OK, go ahead with your ending." ( Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History , p. 101)
  • 3 August 1977 : Other set construction is started as well; Stage 8 is assigned for the planetary sets, Stage 9 for the Enterprise sets, and Stage 10 as a backup set for what Goodwin calls "swing sets". NASA scientist Jesco von Puttkamer is for the first time mentioned in an internal memo from Goodwin as a technical consultant. Von Puttkamer, a Star Trek fan and later to receive an official credit as "Special Science Advisor", will continue to provide his services well into the production of the Motion Picture . Von Puttkamer is for the production what Harvey P. Lynn had been for the Original Series . ( The Making of , pp. 36-37)
  • 9 August 1977 : Another Original Series veteran, Mike Minor, is interviewed for the position of (Production) Illustrator, and subsequently signed on recommendation by Jennings, who had been Minor's mentor at the start of the latter's career. A few days earlier, Robert McCall was interviewed for the position, but was passed over in favor of Minor. McCall is yet to work on the Star Trek production, nearly two years later. ( The Making of , p. 37)
  • August 1977 : Harold Livingston starts work on the adaptation of the "In Thy Image" treatment into a motion picture screenplay.
  • 12 August 1977 : The new Star Trek II Writer's/Director's Guide is completed and distributed. ( The Making of , p. 39)
  • Late August 1977: Robert Collins is hired as director for "In Thy Image". The casting process is started up immediately for which casting directors Pat Harris and Marcia Kleinman , under the auspices of Head of Casting Hoyt Bowers , are the primary responsible staffers. ( The Lost Series , pp. 40, 355)
  • Early September 1977 : Magicam, Inc, a Paramount subsidiary, is contracted for the visual effects of Phase II , including the construction of the studio models . They have outbid Original Series visual effects company Howard Anderson Company , with whom Goodwin was also engaged in detailed negotiations during the previous month. ( The Making of , p. 37) In order to alleviate work pressure on Magicam's model shop, headed by Jim Dow , Brick Price Movie Miniatures is subcontracted for the build of the new Enterprise model , based on the redesign by Jefferies, Jennings, and Minor. Price brought along NASA technician Don Loos as its lead model maker. Price also starts the design and construction of props. ( Starlog , issue 27, p. 26; The Lost Series , p. 27) Additionally, Magicam subcontracts Gregory Jein for the build of the three-foot D7-class studio model , using the actual Original Series model, on loan from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, as a template. The Klingon vessel is at the time endowed with the designation Koro -class heavy cruiser . ( The Lost Series , p. 64) This was Jein's very first official Star Trek assignment, but not his last by a long shot, as, firstly, he was not done with this production yet, and secondly, he was to provide the franchise with a plethora of models for later Star Trek live-action incarnations. [30] (X) To oversee the effects production, relative newcomer in the motion picture industry, having just turned 30, Paul Rabwin is appointed in the vital role of post-production supervisor. As his title already suggests, he will be responsible for all post-production aspects of the production and his role is comparable to the one Bill Heath , and more specifically Edward K. Milkis , had on the Original Series .
  • 12 September 1977 : William Shatner is signed to reprise his role as Captain James T. Kirk, after lengthy negotiations that started in July. ( The Lost Series , p. 43)
  • 26 September 1977 : David Gautreaux is cast in the role of Xon . However, his casting becomes somewhat unhinged for a while as Majel Barrett, recast as Christine Chapel, raises some objections. Barrett, unaware that both the series concept and the character of Spock were already dropped, and fearing that the Original Series "unrequited love of Chapel for Spock" plot line will not play well against an actor as young as Gautreux, requests an older actor against whom to play. A new test screening is called with both Gautreux and an older British actor in mid-October, but the older actor's performance is "absolutely abominable" and Gautreux is definitively reaffirmed by the third week of October. ( The Lost Series , pp. 53-54)
  • 21 October 1977 : Livingston turns in his completed screenplay, seventeen days overdue. ( The Lost Series , p. 50) However, on this day the decision is internally made by the studio to upgrade Phase II from a television movie to a full-blown theatrical motion picture production. The only people who know of this decision at that moment are Bluhdorn – who ordained the upgrade that day from high above, quite literally as lore would have it, since he was reportedly inflight aboard a plane when he made the downstairs call by radio ( The Toys That Made Us ) – , Diller, Eisner, Katzenberg, Roddenberry, Livingston, Collins, Goodwin, von Puttkamer, and David Gautreaux, who happens to come by to sign his contract, becoming the first cast member to be aware of the upgrade decision. Roddenberry and Collins are subsequently sent on a fact-finding mission to the established visual effects houses, but return with the sobering report that the visual effects the studio executives have in mind for the upgrade cannot be produced for less than US$9-$10 million. First contacts laid with visual effects company Robert Abel & Associates (RA&A). ( Movie Memories , pp. 77-78, 83; Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 8 , p. 27; Return to Tomorrow , p. 42)

Persis Khambatta screen tests for her role as Ilia

An unidentified actress (t) and Khambatta's (b) screen test on 27 October

  • 27 October 1977 : Persis Khambatta and an unidentified actress hold their screen tests for the part of Ilia. Neither actress require their heads shaven yet on this occasion; instead they wear bald caps. Khambatta is the one who is signed the following day. ( The Lost Series , p. 54)
  • 7 November 1977 : Gene Roddenberry completes a second draft rewrite of Harold Livingston's original first draft. The script mostly follows Harold Livingston's original draft, although several action scenes were removed and replaced with character moments and scenes of future Earth. This draft also has the first scene of Decker merging with V'Ger, although Ilia survives the adventure. ( Star Trek II: In Thy Image , Second Draft) Michael Eisner reads both drafts and concludes the second draft is a step back. Robert Collins attempts to "blend" the scripts together in December, but also fails to get the script accepted. ( The Lost Series , p. 60)
  • 11 November 1977 : The upgrade decision is made formal for the upper echelons by the studio, and the budget, mainly due to Roddenberry's fact-finding mission, is initially set at US$15 million by studio CEO Michael Eisner, but is by March 1978 already upped to US$18 million. Katzenberg and Parsons are reinforced with colleague Don Simpson. ( The Making of , pp. 47, 85; The Lost Series , pp. 69, 75)
  • 16 November 1977 : Close Encounters of the Third Kind premieres and is attended by several people involved with the Star Trek production. In their minds, the impressive visual effects by FGC strongly reinforces the upgrade decision made by the executives and producers. Michael Eisner, conveniently forgetting that he had wanted to liquidate FGC and withdraw from science fiction entirely less than two years prior, is reported to have shouted, while raising his hands toward the screen, " Jesus Christ, this could have been us!!! " Over the next couple of days, Gene Roddenberry and Robert Collins screen this, as well as the Star Wars movie, several times over to get a feel of what they want their movie to look like. ( Movie Memories , pp. 78, 83) The phenomenal success of Close Encounters , produced at US$19 million and grossing US$303 million worldwide, further reinforces the validity of the upgrade decision in the mind of the studio executives. At the same time however, it will also become one of the sources of their chagrin over the performance of The Motion Picture later on.
  • 21 November 1977 : The executive upgrade decision is disseminated through the lower production echelons, and production on Phase II is suspended in order to ascertain the requirements for a motion picture production, save for the construction of the studio models. The start on the new production is moved up to March or April 1978 in order to make the necessary upgrade changes to scripts, sets, wardrobes, production assets, etc. Production crew such as make-up artists, hair dressers, cameramen, stand-in performers, set dressers, and the like, just hired that week, are immediately fired. Veterans Matt Jefferies and Jim Rugg by that time had already left the production earlier that month, the former to return to his regular job. ( The Making of , p. 47; Return to Tomorrow , p. 46)

December 1977 – December 1979: Star Trek: The Motion Picture [ ]

  • 1 December 1977 : Post-production Supervisor Paul Rabwin, together with Roddenberry and Director Collins, inspect the studio models to see if they hold up in big-screen resolution. With them are Robert Abel and Richard Taylor of RA&A to help them out with the analysis. Both men realize they do not. After Rabwin submits a findings memo five days later, construction on the models is now halted too. ( The Lost Series , pp. 69, 72)
  • December 1977 : Writers are still blissfully unaware of the upgrade and episode scripts keep pouring in right until January. Povill, Livingston, and Roddenberry (who publicly keeps up the ruse in Star Trektennial News magazine, issue 24 of November/December) intentionally keep them in the dark by continuing to annotate their work. However, gossip columnist Rona Barrett does blow the whistle in her Rona Barret's Hollywood December issue tabloid, with her largely correct report that Phase II has been halted and that Roddenberry is offered an opportunity to make a theatrical movie. The studio goes on record vehemently denying the supposition, only willing to concede that the premiere has been postponed from February to Autumn 1978, and that the projected series is expanded from thirteen to between fifteen and twenty-two episodes. ( The Lost Series , p. 67)
  • 12 December 1977 : Rabwin also inspects the sets and deems them salvageable, albeit with additional upgrading and detailing. To this end he has Director Collins and Cameraman Bruce Logan start shooting test footage and lens tests of the sets on this date, (including, among others, the engineering set), but now with anamorphic lenses, required for wide-screen movies, to get a feel of how these sets will translate on theater screens. Shooting of this test footage continues throughout this and the subsequent week. ( The Lost Series , pp. 67, 73, color inset)
  • 30 December 1977 : Due to ever-increasing creative differences with Roddenberry, causing the relationship between the two men to sour considerably, Producer Harold Livingston decides to leave the Star Trek production after turning in his last report, effective immediately. ( The Lost Series , p. 73) With RA&A set for the visual effects, Paul Rabwin too has left the production to pursue other ventures.
  • Early January 1978 : RA&A, who have tendered a bid of US$4 million, is signed for the visual effects for what is now Star Trek: The Motion Picture . Its namesake, Robert Abel, is the main responsible effects producer/director, whereas Taylor will serve as effects designer. [31] Brick Price Movie Miniatures is released from the production (Jein had already left after completion of his one assignment). It is now definitively decided to discard all the, in various states of completion, Phase II models and start all over again, with RA&A being responsible for the necessary redesigns. To this end Robert Abel establishes a subsidiary art department company, ASTRA, responsible for all art work and design. Aside from his visual effects duties, Richard Taylor is to serve as its Art Director, working on par with Paramount's Art Department, headed by Jennings. Magicam, released from the visual effects production, is retained as a studio model shop only, and it is they who are to build the models. From the start, there is strife and conflict between the two art departments as ASTRA is perceived, by Jennings and Minor in particular, as performing a power-grab by aggressively trying to assert total creative control over the entire concept production. ( The Making of , p. 202; Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 1st ed, p. 46; Return to Tomorrow , pp. 71-72)
  • 5 January 1978 : In a budget allocation memo, Goodwin allows for a salary allotment for Leonard Nimoy as Spock, indicating that the production staff at least now considers Spock as instrumental for the new movie. Studio executives though, for reasons mentioned below, still hold out. ( The Lost Series , p. 65)
  • Early February 1978 : While awaiting the redesigns, Magicam, upon receipt of Taylor's blueprints, specifying the new movie dimensions, starts model construction with the build of the new Klingon battle cruiser studio model . The early start is facilitated by the fact that the basic design of the model is to remain unchanged. Magicam's Chris Ross is appointed lead modeler on the construction. ( American Cinematographer , February 1980, p. 153)

Robert Abel directing test footage of the Enterprise bridge

Abel directing the bridge set test footage

USS Enterprise aluminum frame studied by Chris Crump

Crumb supervising the start of the Enterprise model build

  • Early March 1978 : After negotiations that lasted for two months, Robert Wise is signed on as director and producer. He was already suggested by Jon Povill as one of the possible directors to direct Planet of the Titans back in 1976. Wise's unwillingness to share producer credit with "that kid in jeans", causes Robert Goodwin (who was thirty at the time) to leave the production in disgust. Phase II director, Robert Collins, too is released from the production. Povill is officially promoted from story editor to associate producer. As it will turn out, Wise is only to officially receive a director's credit, and not one as producer. That credit is reserved for Roddenberry only, even though his influence is considerably curtailed by the studio, after Wise comes aboard, who essentially takes over as the primary overseer of the production. However, thoroughly fed up with ASTRA and their attempts to grab total power, Art Director Joe Jennings quits the production in disgust, leaving the Paramount art department without a head. ( The Lost Series , p. 76; Return to Tomorrow , pp. 71-72)
  • March 1978: One of the first things Wise does is replace William Theiss, considering his costume designs sub-par, calling them "pajamas". Wise brings Robert Fletcher aboard as the new costume designer. ( Movie Memories , p. 102; The Lost Series , p. 62) Wise also brings along his regular production illustrator of many years, Maurice Zuberano , who is primarily tasked with the re-imagining of what is to become V'ger . ( The Making of , pp. 81-82) Yet, as far as the Star Trek fan base is concerned, Wise's most important contribution this month is to bring back Leonard Nimoy as Spock. Wise, who in turn is enticed by his wife Millicent and her father, ardent Trekkies (which Wise himself is not) to do so, only accepts the assignment on the condition that Spock is brought back. Aside from the officially given reason that Nimoy does not want to commit to the rigors of a weekly show, there is an unofficial reason as well; Nimoy has, since the end of the Original Series , been involved in a conflict with the studio over residual amenities of the use of his likeness on merchandise, for which neither he, nor any of his co-stars, ever received any financial compensation in the form of royalties. Up to that point the studio has steadfastly refused to give in, with Michael Eisner at first still not convinced of the necessity for the Spock character. " Who gives a fuck what this guy with the ears does? Just make the movie! Who could understand why anyone cared about Star Trek ? We would watch the TV episodes – they were the dumbest things you ever saw. ", Eisner exclaims to Wise. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapter 6) But now, on Wise's insistence, the studio caves and the conflict, which had dragged on for a decade, is resolved within a week with a "check for a reportedly substantial figure", and Nimoy is signed on. It is Jeffrey Katzenberg, running interference for the studio and Nimoy, who is instrumental in both convincing Eisner and resolving the conflict. The deal is advantageous for Shatner as well, since he and Nimoy had years earlier, during The Original Series , entered into a mutual "favored-nation clause" covenant, which stipulated that, simply put, what the one got so did the other, and the compensation they receive, charged against the movie, adds yet another undue element to its cost. ( Movie Memories , pp. 86-94, 244) Millicent was rewarded for her input with a cameo as one of the Enterprise crewmembers gathered for the briefing scene on the recreation deck of the refit Enterprise , where she appeared alongside a multitude of other Star Trek fans. Wise's only child, son Rob Wise , will also serve on the movie as assistant cameramen, as is his nephew, Doug Wise , as assistant director. An important change this month is Wise's addition of Richard H. Kline as director of photography, responsible for the principal photography. Kline thereby replaces Bruce Logan as such, who is made the main responsible cinematographer for the second-unit photography. ( The Making of , pp. 79, 186)
  • 25 March 1978 : The royalties conflict now resolved (when Nimoy received the settlement check the previous day), a long, first time meeting is held at his house with Katzenberg, Roddenberry (with whom Nimoy has a by now very strained relationship, due to the fact that Roddenberry had refused to side with Nimoy on the royalties conflict), and Wise to discuss the script. Nimoy expresses trepidations for his character, as the script does not yet allow for the Spock character, and is not reassured with Roddenberry's ideas for the character. Ultimately though, Nimoy decides to put his trust in Wise, not Roddenberry, when he decides over the weekend to commit to the movie, also realizing that if he declined that he has to answer for the rest of his life questions with remarks like " I didn't like the script ", " I hated Gene ", or " I was angry at the studio ". ( Movie Memories , pp. 91-94) His trust in Wise will prove to be justified, as Wise later on in the production, bypassing Roddenberry, arranges to have both him and Shatner be given script input.
  • 27 March 1978 : Leonard Nimoy is finally signed for the movie. ( Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History , p. 101) As soon as he is confirmed, a frantic series of yet another round of rewrites is started to get the Spock character into the movie. This however, has ramifications for the Xon character, as he is now dropped as a principal character, and indeed, even the Decker character, which is not yet cast, is in doubt. Struck definitively during the summer months as a principal character, for which he will receive US$35,000 in September as play-or-pay compensation, Gautreaux is offered the consolation role of Commander Branch . ( The Lost Series , p. 77; Movie Memories , pp. 111-112)
  • 28 March 1978 : Star Trek: The Motion Picture is announced to the public at Paramount Pictures in the largest press conference held since Cecil B. DeMille 's announcement of his 1923 silent movie, The Ten Commandments . ( The Making of , pp. 50-51)
  • Late March 1978 : Harold "Hal" Michelson is brought in by Director Wise as production designer, to fill the place vacated by Joe Jennings as head of the art department. Michelson is responsible to perform redesigns on the Phase II sets in their various states of completion for their motion picture use. Unlike Jennings, most of the art department staff has stayed on, including the equally critical Minor. A new staff member is Production Illustrator Rick Sternbach , a future Star Trek alumnus, while remaining uncredited for The Motion Picture . ( The Making of , pp. 85, 87)
  • 1 April 1978 : A noticeable addition to ASTRA on this date is future Star Trek alumnus, Andrew Probert , who is to assist Taylor with the redesign work as production illustrator, most notably that of the Phase II Enterprise . He is brought in on recommendation of his former mentor Ralph McQuarrie , who was originally approached for the position, but who had to decline due to the fact that he has already committed to the second Star Wars installment. ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 65)
  • April 1978 : Forced by the studio to dine on ashes, Gene Roddenberry begs Livingston to return as script development has hit a brick wall. Livingston only agrees to do so after a meeting with Wise and additionally secured guarantees from studio executives Michael Eisner and Jefferey Katzenberg, specifying his own working conditions and that he is to have as little as possible to do with Roddenberry. ( The Lost Series , p. 76)
  • May 1978 : RA&A, feeling compelled to do so by ever-increasing studio demands, ups their original bid for the visual effects with US$750,000, the first raise of many. ( The Making of , p. 203)
  • 17 May 1978 : Another draft of the script is released, titled Star Trek: The Motion Picture likely written by Dennis Clark. The script comes with a preface (possibly by Harold Livingston) saying that the script will have more extensive rewrites coming, but that the sets and action will mostly stay the same. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Revised Draft)

D7 test shot for Phase II

D7, aka Koro -class, model test footage, Taylor deemed unsuitable for theatrical release

  • 19 July 1978 : Shooting script.
  • 24 July 1978 : In a memo, Roddenberry informs the studio that RA&A has made an additional US$220,700 request for the visual effects. Sensing that problems are brewing, Roddenberry advises the studio to appoint liaisons between RA&A and the studio. Michael Eisner immediately responds by appointing Richard Yuricich (as of yet unpaid) to the production and concurrently instructing studio executives Katzenberg and Lindsey Parsons, Jr. to spend more of their time on the project. On the recommendation of Yuricich, several former Close Encounter visual effects staffers, including effects cameraman Dave Stewart , are brought in to reinforce RA&A's team. ( The Making of , pp. 203-204; Return to Tomorrow , p. 174)
  • 25 July 1978 : After nearly a full year, the role of Captain Decker is still to be filled when a final round of cast interviews is held. The continuous script rewrites, resulting in perpetual changes in the characterization of Decker – even going as far as considering whether or not the character is needed at all for the movie – are in no small measure contributing to the arduous process of filling the role. Nine actors are interviewed this day; aside from Stephen Collins , Andrew Robinson is also interviewed for the role. ( The Making of , p. 104)

Fred Phillips shaving Persis Khambatta

Phillips working on Khambatta

  • 1 August 1978 : Stephen Collins is signed for the role of Decker. Decker is the final primary character to be cast. ( The Making of , p. 6)

Robert Wise directing the actors on the set of the Enterprise bridge

Wise directing his actors on the bridge set

  • 8 August 1978 : The second-unit film crew moves to Yellowstone Park and starts filming the planet Vulcan sequence. Director Wise joins them shortly, and the sequence takes three days to film. RA&A liaison Joe Viskocil is onsite as visual effects coordinator in order to ascertain the nature and extent of the effects RA&A is to add in post-production. Not present is performer Nimoy, who will shoot his Spock sequences in October. ( The Making of , p. 173)
  • Early October 1978 : Production hits another brick wall with Act Three, scene 335-336, in which the crew cajoles the Ilia-probe into letting them meet V'ger in person. An exhausted Roddenberry, who believes himself free from Livingston (as the latter had shortly before resigned for a third time), experiences a severe case of writer's block, as his scene rewrites grow from bad to worse. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy come up with a solution: the "child treatment" of the Ilia-probe, as a way out of the gridlock, and present it to director Wise, who endorses the solution. The three men subsequently present it to Roddenberry, who erupts in a full-blown rage over the perceived infringement on his script rights. However, unbeknownst to Roddenberry, Wise, by now thoroughly fed up with Roddenberry, has solicited the help of Jeffrey Katzenberg. A few days earlier, Katzenberg had rehired Livingston, who on that occasion had demanded and secured a substantial raise, and is awaiting Wise's cue. During the (by now) very charged meeting, Wise arranges to get Katzenberg on the phone and the latter informs Roddenberry that Livingston has now executive creative powers. Roddenberry is essentially released from the production and his presence is from here on end only required for public relations events, and is ordered to begin writing the novelization of the movie, which he is contractually obligated to do. For the latter he is to attend subsequent script meetings until its completion, but now only as an observer, not as a participant. ( Movie Memories , 1995, pp. 105-111)
  • 16 October 1978 : The crew gathering sequence for Kirk's mission briefing on the just completed recreation deck set on Stage 8 is shot. Assembled are three hundred extras of which one hundred males and twenty-five females are notable Star Trek fans, like Bjo Trimble and Denise Tathwell ; the others are Screen Extras Guild performers, with an additional number of production staff affiliates like Susan Sackett and Millicent Wise. The shooting concludes the following day and the extras are released with a few exceptions for an additional shot on the overhead catwalk. ( Starlog , issue 32, pp. 57-58)
  • 24 October 1978 : Second unit filming of still outstanding segments of the wormhole sequence; first unit filming of outstanding Vulcan segments with Nimoy on the Vulcan set in the B Tank . A late afternoon meeting is held between Wise, Livingston, Nimoy, and Shatner in which the latter two formally gain script approval rights. ( Starlog , issue 32, p. 58)
  • 7 November 1978 : Walter Koenig reports that he is informed that the budget is now no longer fixed and that it currently stands at a reportedly US$24 million, but that it is a "departure point, not a final reckoning". ( Starlog , issue 32, p. 58)
  • 8 November 1978 : Yet another script meeting for the still unscripted Act Three ending is held between Livingston, Wise, Nimoy, and Shatner, with Roddenberry attending, and filming is suspended that day. Recently famed by his role on Mork and Mindy , comedian Robin Williams tours the sound stage on his bicycle, explaining to the cast that he is a big fan of the show and is invited in onto the bridge of the Enterprise . According to Walter Koenig, " his wide-eyed admiration not withstanding, his squeaky-voiced reaction to all the buttons and panels is, "Hmmmm, microwave!" " ( Starlog , issue 32, p. 60) The role of Berlinghoff Rasmussen on the Next Generation will later be explicitly written for him, though Williams will be unable to do the part.
  • 24 November 1978 : Walter Koenig finishes his Chekov sequences and is released from the production. His subsequent presence will only be required for promotional and public relations purposes. Koenig has kept a detailed journal during his involvement during the production, and immediately starts transforming it into his book, Chekov's Enterprise , released shortly after the premiere of the movie in February 1980. ( Starlog , issue 32, p. 61)
  • 29 November 1978 : The completed and final script draft is distributed at last, with only a mere two months left on principal photography. ( The Making of , p. 57) This is the version as published  at Star Trek Minutiae , but it, like previous versions, is antedated to 19 July 1978, the date of the first script draft distribution, for copyright legality reasons.
  • Late November 1978 : Magicam delivers the hero " Enterprise " studio model to Astra's Seward St. filming facility. Model painter Olsen followed suit to finish up upon his work. ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 276)
  • Late December 1978 : By Christmas, the situation with RA&A is spiraling out of control and creative and financial conflicts between the company and the studio intensify to the breaking point. Douglas Trumbull, who only one year earlier had turned down the visual effects assignment, is brought in as an unpaid technical consultant. Trumbull, who by then has a very strained relationship with the studio, only agreed to do so as a courtesy to his old friend Bob Wise, who personally requested his input. ( The Making of , p. 203) A particular bone of contention on that specific occasion is the perceived lack of acceptable studio model photography, resulting in RA&A/Astra, completely denied access to them from here on end, being entirely pulled from the studio model photography. The model photography is for the time being reverted to Paramount's own cinematographer Bill Millar , a former Trumbull-associate through FGC, even though he has at that point in time nowhere near the facilities necessary to provide studio model effects photography in any format whatsoever. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 62)
  • 26 January 1979 : Principal photography ends, with scene 391, the " V'ger fusion" scene between Decker and the Ilia-probe, the very last scene shot. Originally scheduled to finish on 31 October 1978 (shortly thereafter revised to 22 December), principal photography as initially budgeted is three months overdue. At US$4,000 a day for stage time, this means an additional over budget cost of roughly US$250,000 for principal photography alone. Three second unit scenes though, for which the principal cast was not needed, the San Fransisco air tram station, the Klingon bridge, and the Epsilon IX bridge sequences still remain outstanding, as are the visual effects sequences. These sequences will be shot throughout the spring and summer, the visual effect ones extending well into the autumn of 1979. ( The Making of , pp. 7, 188, 191-193)
  • 10 February 1979 : The traditional "wrap party" celebrating the end of principal photography is held at Liu's Chinese Restaurant and Chez Moi Disco on 140 South Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, and is open to everyone involved with the Motion Picture and their retinue. ( The Making of , p. 195)
  • Mid- February 1979 : Behind-the-scenes information is leaked. The head of a local fan club alerts the studio that he is offered stolen set construction blueprints and the studio calls in the FBI. The FBI is able to arrest the culprit, who is thereafter convicted on 24 August, given two years' probation, and fined US$750 for selling stolen trade secrets. Studio security is tightened considerably due to the incident. ( New West magazine, 26 March 1979, p. 60; Return to Tomorrow , p. 175)
  • 20 February 1979 : Studio executives and producers come calling to size up the visual effects situation at Robert Abel & Associates. The company reportedly had only a single completed effects shot to show for all the time and money spent, already four million dollars over budget at sixteen million dollars by December 1978, and of which US$11 million was actually already spent. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapter 6; New West magazine, 26 March 1979, pp. 62-63)
  • 22 February 1979 : In an acrimonious atmosphere, Abel is fired and his company released, effective immediately, starting a frantic search for a replacement, as the studio now unexpectedly finds itself extremely pressured for time since the release date for the movie is immutable, due to the fact that the studio is financially committed by having accepted the $35 million payment guarantees from exhibitors planning for the 7 December 1979 release. This becomes critical, as rumors are already spreading that the production is in trouble, and theater owners start to back down on their commitments. ( The Special Effects of Trek , pp. 29, 31; The Making of , pp. 204-205) Realizing that effects production has to virtually start over from scratch, the now-strapped for cash studio initiates Dawn Steel's merchandising fund drive to cover a new visual effects budget set at US$10 million. ( The Making of , p. 204).
  • Early March 1979 : Douglas Trumbull's visual effects company, Future General Corporation (FGC), is signed for the visual effects. Both his and co-founder Richard Yuricich's participation in the production now becomes formal. Having initially been forced to surrender his equipment to RA&A, Trumbull now returns the favor, aside from getting back the equipment, by usurping several of Abel's key staffers, among others Robert Swarthe , Scott Farrar , and Tom Barron , not few of them, ironically, hired by RA&A in the first place when the studio started to close down FGC earlier, but now rejoining the latter. Yuricich, now credited as "Producer of Effects", is tasked with re-initializing FGC by reassembling the team and finding new, suitable filming facilities. Barron acquires on this occasion several pieces of equipment which are not to be used anymore. Acting upon a hunch, he stores them away for a few years, and they will become the foundation of later regular Star Trek motion control photography supplier Image G . ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 374; Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 3, Issue 1 , p. 60) Trumbull also establishes on this occasion a subsidiary company of FGC, the Entertainment Effects Group (EEG) which replaces ASTRA as art department. Andrew Probert is one of the very few ex-ASTRA employees retained by Trumbull, who has him work on the interior re-design of the Klingon battle cruiser bridge, discarding the one previously done by Jennings. Concurrently, EEG will serve as the legal entity, responsible for the handling of the studio models during filming. To this end, several Magicam model makers transfer to the new company to insure the proper handling of the models. Unlike FGC, EEG will survive the production of the Motion Picture to become the renowned 1980s-1990s visual effects company Boss Film Studios . Trumbull also subcontracts John Dykstra's Apogee, Inc. in order to divide the workload. ( see above )
  • March 1979: While devising the visual effects shots, Trumbull brings in Robert McCall, with whom he had already worked before on 2001: A Space Odyssey and where the two men became close friends, as production illustrator in order to help out with visualizing the various V'ger scenes. Much of what McCall, who had been passed over for Mike Minor nearly two years earlier, will conceive is indeed translated onto the screen by Trumbull. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 8 , pp. 70-73) Another noticeable new addition to EEG is artist Matthew Yuricich , brother of Richard and whose work Trumbull is already acquainted with, when both men were working together two years earlier on Close Encounters of the Third Kind . Yuricich will create all the matte paintings for the movie. During this month, the San Fransisco air tram station sequence is filmed on the combined stages 12 and 14. William Shatner has to return for this sequence. Shatner is the only principal cast member who has to return to the production after principal photography had wrapped. ( The Making of , p. 193) The tram station sets are subsequently struck to make room for the other two remaining scenes, yet to be filmed, which however suffer yet another round of delays. This is due to the fact that the Klingon bridge set is still in the process of being redesigned by Trumbull and Probert, and for whose construction Trumbull has brought in Art Director John Vallone . ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 346)
  • 19 March 1979 : Paramount Pictures' design patent application for Andrew Probert's re-design of the Constitution II -class studio model is filed.
  • 26 March 1979 : Due to the information leak the previous month, reporter Jeffrey Kaye is able to publicly divulge the big reveal that V'ger is actually a Voyager probe in the 26 March issue of New West magazine. (p. 60) Not only that, but Kaye's "Abel Neglex Trex Effex" article also provides a detailed, and largely correct, account of the circumstances under which RA&A is released from the production, serving for the next quarter of a century as the only verifiable and available source of said circumstances.

Don Simpson and Michael Eisner in Life magazine, April 1979

Simpson (l) and Eisner making their appearance in Life magazine

  • 10 April 1979 : Paramount Pictures' design patent applications for Robert Fletcher's designs of the Starfleet uniforms , belt buckle, and Starfleet breast-worn insignia, as well as Dick Rubin 's designs for the redesigned phaser , wrist communicator , and tricorder are filed.
  • 13 April 1979 : Paramount Pictures' design patent application for Andrew Probert's designs of the long range shuttle model is filed.
  • May 1979 : The refit- Enterprise model is just about finished and ready for delivery for filming when a studio staffer, wanting to impress his female guest during an illegal visit, turns on the lighting of the model incorrectly and destroys the circuitry in the saucer section. The subsequent repairs by Magicam delays delivery of the model by nearly two months. ( Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 1st ed, p. 55)
  • 7 May 1979 : Paramount Pictures' design patent applications for Andrew Probert's designs of the long range shuttle model, shuttle portion, and the Klingon K't'inga -class are filed.
  • June 1979 : the re-initialization of FGC is completed and effects photography is started by the company with only six months remaining before the premiere. ( Return to Tomorrow , p. 411)
  • 18 June 1979 : With the Klingon bridge set completed, shooting starts this day for the Klingon scenes (Scenes 3-21, 23-25) with Mark Lenard playing the Klingon captain, joined by eight or nine stuntmen playing the other Klingons on the bridge. Robert Wise takes on the directorial chores himself and brings back the former Phase II Director of Photography Bruce Logan, as Richard Kline has already left the production for another project. Filming takes a little over a week, after which the set is immediately struck to make room for the last outstanding live-action scene, the Epsilon IX monitor room scene (Scenes 24-27, 91). Having been around since Phase II , David Gautreaux finally gets to shoot his screen time in his consolation role as Commander Branch. Joining him on the set as an Epsilon IX crew member is Harold Livingston's secretary, Michele Ameen Billy , who has three lines. Filmed back-to-back, this scene, shot in little under a week, finally wraps up live-action shooting. ( Return to Tomorrow , pp. 375-378)
  • Early July 1979 : Greg Jein returns to the Star Trek production when Trumbull, as EEG, tasks him with the construction of several detail miniatures for Spock's spacewalk inside V'ger . ( Cinefex , issue 2, pp. 42-45)
  • 4 July 1979 : Mishap continues to bedevil the Enterprise model. The filming of the model has just started, when during one of the very rare days off during this period, the fourth of July holiday on Wednesday, an air conditioning unit on the set springs a leak, and drips water on the model, severely damaging the bridge module of the model. EEG model makers Mark Stetson , Kris Gregg , and Ron Gress (the former two ex-Magicam employees) have to pull all-nighters for four days to repair the damage, straining the visual effects production schedule even further. ( Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , 1st ed, pp. 55-56)

Lisa Morton working on the V'ger interior section models

Morton working on one of the interior V'ger model sections

  • 31 July 1979 : In order to cover legal liabilities for the staff he brings along, Jein needs to form his own company, Gregory Jein, Inc. [32] The new company is also formally subordinated to EEG.
  • 1 August 1979 : Pocket Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture Stardate Calendar 1980
  • 1 November 1979 : Wanderer Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture The USS Enterprise Bridge Punch-Out Book
  • 29 November 1979 : Last visual effects shot is completed. ( Cinefex , issue 1, p. 4)
  • 30 November 1979 : Wanderer Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture Peel-Off Graphics Book
  • 1 December 1979 : A first completed rough cut is screened at the studio. Present at the screening are Director Wise, producers, studio executives, and several invited Star Trek alumni, old and new, which include Original Series veterans Matt Jefferies and John Dwyer . Gene Roddenberry is not invited. Over the next couple of days, Wise trims a further ten minutes from the cut. ( Movie Memories , p. 123; [33] (X) )
  • Early December 1979 : Douglas Trumbull is hospitalized for ten days due to nervous exhaustion, diagnosed with ulcers and a hiatal hernia. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director's Edition (DVD) ; audio commentary ; [34] )
  • Pocket Books : novelization .
  • The documentary The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , a specialty promotional tool, is shown nationwide at public venues, such as train stations.
  • Marvel Comics Super Special #15 (comic adaptation).
  • Soundtrack LP record release.
  • Pocket Books Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology release.
  • Wallaby Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Official USS Enterprise Officer's Date Book (1980) desk calendar release.
  • View-Master adaptation.
  • Topps : Star Trek: The Motion Picture trading card set .
  • Fast-food corporation McDonald's : start of its The Motion Picture -themed "Happy Meal" campaign.
  • South Bend Electronics : electronic USS Enterprise
  • 5 December 1979 : Post-production work is finally finished and the final master print of the movie is delivered for the reproduction of distribution prints. ( Cinefex , issue 1, p. 4)
  • 6 December 1979 : Washington, DC world premiere. Regretting he has not been able to hold a screening before test audiences, Robert Wise himself rushes the fresh print by plane to the K-B MacArthur Theater for its premiere, where it is loaded into the projector one minute before its announced screening. Guests were, for the occasion, presented with a twenty-page movie program . ( Variety , 24 December 2001, p. 21; The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapter 6)
  • 7 December 1979 : US theatrical premiere. For the timely distribution of the 2,000 prints, the studio has to charter a fleet of private planes. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , Chapter 6; Movie Memories , p. 123)
  • 13 December 1979 : Sydney, Australia, theatrical premiere at the Paramount Theatre.
  • 15 December 1979 : UK theatrical premiere at the Empire Theatre, Leicester Square in London.
  • 21 December 1979 : Melbourne, Australia, and Ireland theatrical premieres. Sydney, Australia, general release.

1980s releases and merchandising [ ]

  • Pocket Books Photostory adaptation .
  • Wallaby Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture Blueprints .
  • The Mind's Eye Press USS Enterprise cutaway poster.
  • Citadel Miniatures gaming figurines.
  • 1 January 1980 : Australia theatrical general release.
  • 17 January 1980 : Argentina (as Viaje a las estrellas: La película ) theatrical premiere.
  • February 1980 : Pocket Books Chekov's Enterprise (book).
  • March 1980 : Wallaby Books The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture . The writing completed before the movie premiered, author Susan Sackett has added a provisionary end credit roll for the movie in her book (pp. 217-221), which differed from that as ultimately featured (See: below ). While cast and primary production staff were featured as projected, there were some noticeable differences; several title descriptions were changed and especially amongst production staffers there were inclusions that were previously not considered whereas others that were initially, were now excluded. A very noticeable example of the latter, was future Star Trek alumnus Rick Sternbach, who now missed out on an official credit for the Motion Picture as a consequence.
  • 3 March 1980 : Paramount Pictures' patent application tender for Richard Foy 's designs of the typeface fonts for the movie are filed.
  • 18 March 1980 : Spain (as Star Trek – La película ) and Brazil (as Jornada nas Estrelas: O Filme ) theatrical premieres.
  • 19 March 1980 : France (as Star Trek, le film ) theatrical premiere.
  • 21 March 1980 : Portugal (as O Caminho das Estrelas ) theatrical premiere.
  • 27 March 1980 : West Germany (as Star Trek: Der Film ) theatrical premiere.
  • 28 March 1980 : Finland (as Star Trek: Avaruusmatka ) theatrical premiere.
  • 2 April 1980 : Sweden theatrical premiere.
  • 7 April 1980 : Norway and Denmark premieres.
  • 17 April 1980 : Brazil (as Jornada nas Estrelas: O Filme ) theatrical premiere.
  • April 1980 : Marvel TOS #1 (comic reprint 1 of 3).
  • May 1980 : Marvel TOS #2 " V'ger " (comic reprint 2 of 3).
  • June 1980 : Marvel TOS #3 " Evolutions " (comic reprint 3 of 3).
  • 19 June 1980 : Netherlands theatrical premiere.
  • Summer 1980: Work is started at the studio to transfer the theatrical master onto masters for commercial home media market releases as well as for television broadcasts. A contemporary studio editor stated in 2016, " I mastered the "director's cut" for Paramount in 1980, and it was never commercially released. Wise cut the film down to 110 minutes, and the assistant editor on the picture told me he was livid when the studio overruled him and cut 12 minutes of the V'Ger VFX sequence back into the film. Wise was smart enough to know it dragged the film down, and he was right. But because the film had gone so grossly over budget, the studio was determined to see "all their money up on the screen," so it went out at 132 minutes. " [35] The 132 minutes version this staffer referred to was the one intended for ABC Television Network. While this staffer has preferred to remain anonymous, he has credited a contemporary studio co-worker for doing the home media format masters of the television version, " 95% of the work was done by my old pal Pat Kennedy (who did the lion's share of that transfer), though I did correct quite a few of the additional bits for the expanded version shown on NBC. At the time (around 1982), I asked the Paramount exec why they wouldn't finish the obviously-incomplete VFX, but he kind of shrugged and said nobody wanted to spend the money. Eventually, they did fix them [for the 2001 Director's Edition ] . " [36]
  • 5 July 1980 : Japan theatrical premiere.
  • October 1980 : US video tape releases ( VHS and Betamax formats), with a Super 8 release following suit.
  • 25 October 1980 : Taiwan theatrical premiere.
  • 25 November 1980 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Robert Fletcher's Starfleet uniforms is confirmed as patent number D257546 .
  • US LaserDisc .
  • UK LaserDisc.
  • 22 March 1981 : Capacitance Electronic Disc ( CED ).
  • 31 March 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Robert Fletcher's belt buckle is confirmed as patent number D258700 .
  • May 1981 : UK video release (VHS and Betamax formats).
  • 2 May 1981 : Pay TV premiere on SelecTV in Marina Del Rey, California, USA.
  • 14 July 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Andrew Probert's designs of the long range shuttle model is confirmed as patent number D259889 .
  • 21 July 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Dick Rubin's redesign of the phaser, called a "toy weapon" on the application, is confirmed as patent number D259939 .
  • 25 August 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Dick Rubin's design of the wrist communicator, called a "toy communicator" on the application, is confirmed as patent number D260411 .
  • 1 September 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Dick Rubin's redesign of the tricorder, called a "toy console" on the application, is confirmed as patent number D260539 .
  • 4 September 1981 : Iceland theatrical premiere.
  • 15 September 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Andrew Probert's redesign of the Constitution II -class, called a "toy spaceship" on the application, is confirmed as patent number D260539 .
  • 26 October 1981 : Turkey (as Uzay Macerasi ) theatrical premiere.
  • 17 November 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Robert Fletcher's breast-worn Starfleet insignia is confirmed as patent number D261872 .
  • 24 November 1981 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Richard Foy's designs of the typeface fonts for the movie is confirmed as patent number D277297 .
  • 6 April 1982 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Andrew Probert's designs of the long range shuttle model, shuttle portion, is confirmed as patent number D263727 .
  • 20 February 1983 : US Network Television Premiere on ABC Television Network as the first public showing of what came to be called the "Special Longer Version". The added footage, running for twelve minutes, was largely unfinished and cobbled together for the network premiere and is met with skepticism by Director Robert Wise, who had never wanted the footage to be included in the final cut of the film in the first place, as already stated by the above-quoted studio editor. (" Trek director Waxes Wise on new DVD", Bruce Kirkland, Toronto Sun , 6 November 2001, p. 46)
  • 13 April 1982 : Paramount Pictures' patent application for Andrew Probert's redesign of the K't'inga -class, called a "toy spaceship" on the application, is confirmed as patent number D263856 .
  • 1983 : US LaserDisc (special longer version).
  • 1983: US Betamax (special longer version).
  • 3 September 1984 : UK television premiere on ITV .
  • 1985 : Japan VHD.
  • 7 July 1985 : Japan LaserDisc.
  • 1986 : Soundtrack CD 1st release.
  • 25 April 1986 : East Germany theatrical premiere.
  • March 1987 : Second airing by ABC of the "Special Longer Version".
  • Summer 1989 : Third and final airing by ABC of the "Special Longer Version".

Teaser poster

1990s merchandising [ ]

  • 25 October 1990 : Soundtrack CD 2nd release.
  • 1991 : France LaserDisc.
  • 1991: Germany LaserDisc.
  • 1991: Netherlands LaserDisc.
  • 7 December 1992 : VHS.
  • 10 March 1994 : Japan LaserDisc.
  • 1994 : US and Europe VideoCD.
  • 1995 : TNT airs the "Special Longer Version" introduced by William Shatner .
  • 2 April 1997 : VHS Widescreen.
  • 26 January 1999 : Soundtrack CD 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition.

1991 10th Anniversary UK VHS re-release

2000s and beyond merchandising [ ]

  • 6 November 2001 : Director's Edition world premiere
  • 9 November 2001 : Director's Edition Region 1 DVD.
  • 13 May 2002 : Director's Edition Region 2 DVD.
  • 12 May 2009 : Original theatrical release Blu-ray.
  • 22 March 2010 : Remastered original theatrical release Region 2 DVD.
  • 5 June 2012 : Expanded soundtrack release , La-La Land Records .
  • December 2012 : Olsenart.com Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise
  • 30 April 2013 : Star Trek I: The Motion Picture Blu-ray Directors Edition release announcement. The announced release date proves to be premature though, as it turns out that Paramount Pictures had failed to maintain ownership over the CGI elements that were added to the Director's Edition. Former employee Adam Lebowitz of Foundation Imaging , the visual effects company responsible for the newly-conceived elements, confirms that all these elements were left on the company servers when they were auctioned off after the company went out of business, which would mean that the studio has to painstakingly recreate all these elements. [37] Still, his former Foundation colleague, Robert Bonchune , strongly indicates that these elements are still in existence, as some ex-employees had made backups, including Bonchune, of all the Star Trek files on their own computers, and they could be made available to the studio if they are so inclined. [38] By 2018, the status of a Blu-ray release remained yet unknown, though one of the co-producers of the Director's Edition , David C. Fein , has confirmed Bonchune's assessment by stating in 2017 that it was he who still had all the original digital effects elements available for remastering to Blu-ray standards. " We have all that we need. Would I like a few more pieces… sure. But we have everything we need, " stated Fein, " All of the shots in the film were created with HD in mind so the quality of the models and elements were much higher than the SD renderings. We have everything, and when the time is right, we'll use them. Again, there is no truth that anything is missing. " Fein also confirmed that a Blu-ray release was put on the backburner as "Paramount has yet to green light the project. We've had some discussions," adding that "it'll happen, the only question is when are we going to go ahead with it". [39] Nonetheless, preliminary talks were reported by both Trekcore and TrekMovie.com to have resumed in July 2019 for a remastered release, albeit for a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray one.
  • 10 September 2013 : Remastered original theatrical release Region 1 DVD.
  • December 2014 : Creature Feature Publishing Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture
  • 15 & 18 September 2019 : For the occasion of the film's 40th anniversary , NCM Fathom Events organizes a to over 500 screens limited theatrical re-release of The Motion Picture . Accompanying the screening is the documentary The Longest Trek: Writing the Motion Picture , originally a special feature produced for, and included on the 2009 Blu-ray disc release and its various reissues. [40] [41] [42] The limited two-day USA only event manages to add an additional US$346,243 gross to the box-office total. [43]
  • 8 October 2019 : McFarland & Company The First Star Trek Movie
  • 1 September 2020 : Titan Books Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Art and Visual Effects
  • 2021 : Print release of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture orchestral score
  • 7 September 2021 : Newly in 4k UHD remastered version of the theatrical cut released in two variants, as part of the 4K Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection box set, and as an improved Blu-ray single disc reissue.
  • 5 April 2022 : 4K version of the "Director's Edition" with new higher resolution visual effects premieres on Paramount+ , accompanied by the (digital) release of the remastered soundtrack by Paramount Music.
  • 22, 23 & 25 May 2022 : Limited special event theatrical release of the remastered "Director's Edition" by Phantom Events. [44]
  • 19 August 2022 : Limited UK theatrical release of the remastered "Director's Edition", [45] adding another US$69,621 gross to the box-office total [46]
  • 6 September 2022 : 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray "Director's Edition" release with exclusive new bonus content in both standard 2-disc Blu-ray/1-disc 4K UHD versions, as well as a limited 3-disc "The Complete Adventure" boxset, containing all three film versions including the "Special Longer Version", now remastered as well. On this occasion the theatrical cut was also issued in the single-disc 4K UHD format.

2001 Original official promo Director's Edition poster art

Reception [ ]

  • The highly anticipated movie received copious contemporary coverage, both prior as well as after its premiere, in period magazines, most notably in movie and genre periodicals, Starlog magazine in particular. Yet, there was one very remarkable exception: the usually very Star Trek -friendly genre magazine Cinefantastique did cover the movie hardly at all, save for a short editorial article in Volume 9 #3/4, 1979 after the movie had premiered. As it turned out however, extensive copy was written by freelance writer Preston Neal Jones for a planned The Motion Picture themed double-issue. Due to editorial problems because of the volume of text, that issue, despite advertisements in the magazine to the contrary, never came to fruition, save for some preliminary excerpts of Jones' work, published in the avant-premiere Vol. 9 #2 issue of the magazine. However, 35 years after the movie's release, the text was announced as voluminous reference book for an October 2014 release as Return to Tomorrow – The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , which was eventually released two months later.
  • How eagerly awaited the movie was before its premiere was witnessed by Decker performer Stephen Collins when he visited a movie theater before its release, " I was in a movie theater when one of the Trek trailers played. It was astounding. Everybody cheered. " ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 502)
  • When Paramount CEO Barry Diller saw a complete first version of the movie for the first time at the studio screening of 1 December 1979, he was horrified. " The movie was horrible and we were scared to death. ", Diller recalled. ( The Keys to the Kingdom , 2000, Chapter 6) Director/Writer Nicholas Meyer , responsible for three subsequent, highly successful Star Trek films, recalled upon being hired by Diller, " Barry Diller said to me that one of his most wrenching moments as head of Paramount, was seeing lines around the block for Star Trek The Motion Picture and knowing that in his opinion the movie didn’t deliver. " [47]
  • William Shatner, who saw the completed movie for the first time on the world premiere, was struck by the overall sluggishness of the movie, and was convinced that the Star Trek franchise died there and then, having reminisced, " Well, that's it. We gave it our best shot, it wasn't good, and it will never happen again. " But having recalled his reaction fifteen years later, he has added, " Shows you what I know. " ( Star Trek Movie Memories , 1995, p. 124)
  • The film review website Rotten Tomatoes calculated a 45% overall approval rate for The Motion Picture , as of 2014 the third lowest of all Star Trek films. [48]
  • In his 1983 special Leonard Nimoy: Star Trek Memories , Leonard Nimoy spoke briefly about the film saying: " It was a very finely crafted film, and it did well. But from the actor's point of view frankly, it was frustrating. We didn't feel that we were getting to play the characters that we enjoyed playing in the way that we knew how to play them. And it was frustrating for Gene Roddenberry too. It wasn't the story or script he had wanted, and the gaps seemed filled with too much emphasis on special effects. " Years later, in a 2012 LA Times video interview, mirroring Shatner's perception, Nimoy has added that he too had felt that the movie had left the franchise stranded like a "beached whale" at the time, clarifying, " I think [Robert Wise] and Gene Roddenberry were looking for a [2001: A] Space Odyssey kind of thing, like [Stanley] Kubrick had done. A cold, cool "we're out here in space and it's kind of quiet and things move very slowly." [laughs] There was a lot of that and a lot of cerebral stuff. There wasn’t enough drama. It just wasn't a Star Trek movie. We had the Star Trek people, but it didn't use us as Star Trek characters very well. " [49]
  • Though eagerly awaited, Star Trek fans were by and large in agreement with Nimoy's assessment at the time, especially where the lumbering pace of the movie was concerned, and endowed the movie with humorous, if unflattering, sobriquets such as "Star Trek: The Motion Sickness", "Star Trek: The Motionless Picture", or "Star Trek: The Slow-Motion Picture". ( The World of Star Trek ) As if to underscore the validity of their denominations, Matt Jefferies, who had done design work for the predecessor Phase II , related when he was invited to the 1 December studio screening, " I went to the first movie. I was invited to the screening. I fell asleep. John Dwyer noticed it from across the screening room and said, " Matt, wake up. " Fortunately nobody else in there knew me. " [50] (X)
  • Another sobriquet given to the movie was "Where Nomad Has Gone Before", which reflected the criticism that the story was too reminiscent of several Original Series episodes, first and foremost the second season episode " The Changeling ", in which the sentient robot Nomad was featured. [51]
  • Of such negative opinions were professional critics at the time, that they started to accuse the studio of purposely withholding the movie for press pre-screening as, according to them, the studio was well aware that the movie was a dud. The withholding itself of course was not the actual case, as the movie was not completed until the very last moment. ( Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 606)
  • As related above and its bad (press) reception notwithstanding, The Motion Picture became one of the most successful outings of the entire film franchise in financial terms. This seemingly contradiction can only be explained by the fact that fans were so desperate to see an on-screen Star Trek live-action return, that they went anyway, often even several times – inconceivable for 21st century cinema goers in the age of digital social media. Michael Matessino for example, has related that he went to see the film twice, even though he had disliked the film the first time around, having stated in a letter he had sent to the genre magazine Starlog that "It stunk!" ( Starlog , issue 33, April 1980, p. 8) Nonetheless, Matessino went on to become instrumental for the production of The Director's Edition .

Awards and honors [ ]

The mixed reactions to the movie notwithstanding, did not prevent Star Trek: The Motion Picture to receive several award nominations, including three Academy Awards . The special and visual effects in particular were in general well received. The movie was nominated for the following awards and honors:

Apocrypha [ ]

  • In Gene Roddenberry's novelization of the film, the female lead Vulcan elder is given the name T'Sai.
  • The novelization of Encounter at Farpoint establishes that Captain Picard first boarded the USS Enterprise -D via shuttlecraft, a process later canonized in TNG : " All Good Things... ". According to the novel, Picard recalled how the then-Admiral Kirk had unwittingly begun a tradition of captains coming to their ship for the first time via shuttle instead of transporting aboard including the irony that no one really thought of the fact that Kirk traveled to Enterprise in a travel pod because of a serious transporter malfunction.
  • The novel The Return , written by William Shatner, states that the "Living Machines" that Voyager 6 encountered on its journey were the Borg .
  • The novel Ex Machina establishes that of all the original crew, only Scott and Uhura were long-term members of then-Captain Decker's crew. Chekov and Sulu had only been assigned back to Enterprise only hours before Kirk transferred aboard, as Admiral Nogura wanted as many of the original command crew back on the ship as was possible for the emergency mission. According to the film, Scott had been working on the refit and according to the novel, Decker had personally recruited the entire crew, making it the most diverse of species ever seen aboard a starship up until that point. Decker had even recruited Uhura to help recruit many of the nonhuman crewmembers. During a conversation between Sulu and Uhura, Sulu mentions that Decker was considering making Uhura his executive officer, thus adding new subtext to her first line spoken while on the bridge during prelaunch: " my people are all tied up here!".

Links and references [ ]

Credits [ ], opening credits [ ].

  • William Shatner
  • Leonard Nimoy
  • DeForest Kelley
  • James Doohan
  • George Takei
  • Walter Koenig
  • Nichelle Nichols
  • Majel Barrett
  • Persis Khambatta
  • Stephen Collins as Decker
  • Jerry Goldsmith
  • Todd Ramsay
  • Harold Michelson
  • Richard H. Kline , ASC
  • Gene Roddenberry
  • Harold Livingston
  • Alan Dean Foster
  • Robert Wise

Closing credits [ ]

  • Douglas Trumbull
  • John Dykstra
  • Richard Yuricich
  • Lindsley Parsons, Jr.
  • Robert Swarthe
  • Jesco von Puttkamer
  • the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • Isaac Asimov
  • Bob Fletcher
  • Linda DeScenna
  • Fred Phillips
  • Janna Phillips
  • Barbara Minster
  • Tom Overton
  • Phil Rawlins
  • Danny McCauley
  • Joe Jennings
  • Leon Harris
  • John Vallone
  • Bonnie Prendergast
  • Rick Mitchell
  • Randy D. Thornton
  • Richard L. Anderson
  • Stephen Hunter Flick
  • Cecelia Hall
  • Alan Murray
  • Colin Waddy
  • George Watters II
  • Dirk Dalton
  • Joel Goldsmith
  • Alan S. Howarth
  • Francisco Lupica
  • Frank Serafine
  • Steve Hanley
  • Bill Varney
  • Steve Maslow
  • Gregg Landaker
  • Gene Kelley
  • Alex Weldon
  • Darrell Pritchett
  • Marty Bresin
  • Maurice Zuberano
  • Michael Minor
  • John Rothwell
  • Suzanne Gordon
  • Kevin Cremin
  • Charles A. Ogle
  • Anita Terrian
  • Al Bettcher
  • Michael Genne
  • Larry Howard
  • Agnes Henry
  • Susan Sackett
  • Dave Stewart
  • Matthew Yuricich
  • Rocco Gioffre
  • Russ Simpson
  • Phil Barberio
  • Douglas Eby
  • David Hardberger
  • Alan Harding
  • David McCue
  • Scott Squires
  • Hoyt Yeatman
  • Jim Dickson
  • Bruce Logan
  • Charles F. Wheeler , ASC
  • Jack Hinkle
  • Evans Wetmore
  • Richard Hollander
  • David Negron
  • Andy Probert
  • Tom Cranham
  • Robert McCall
  • George Polkinghorne
  • Virgil Mirano
  • Ernest Garza
  • Guy Marsden
  • Pat Van Auken
  • Larry Albright
  • Bruce Bishop
  • Al Broussard
  • Chris Crump
  • Lee Ettleman
  • Rick Guttierez
  • Mike McMillen
  • Robert Short
  • Robert Spurlock
  • Mark Stetson
  • George Trimmer
  • Rick Thompson
  • Paul Turner
  • Don Wheeler
  • Thane Berti
  • Glenn Campbell
  • Christopher George
  • Scott Farrar
  • Robert Freidstand
  • Robert Hollister
  • Tom Hollister
  • Russ McElhatton
  • Lex Rawlins
  • Jonathan Seay
  • Steve Slocum
  • Deena Burkett
  • Alison Yerxa
  • Lisze Bechtold
  • Merllyn Ching
  • Elrene Cowan
  • Cy Didjurgis
  • Leslie Ekker
  • Linda Harris
  • Nicola Kaftan
  • John Kimball
  • Thomas Koester
  • Deidre Le Blanc
  • Linda Moreau
  • Connie Morgan
  • Greg Pierce
  • Greg Wilzbach
  • Stephen Fog
  • John Gilman
  • Jim Goodnight
  • Fred Iguchi
  • Robin Leyden
  • Greg McMurray
  • Josh Morton
  • Michael Backauskas
  • M. Katheryn Campbell
  • Nora Jeanne Smith
  • Bill Millar
  • Mona Thal Benefiel
  • Joyce Goldberg
  • Leora Glass
  • Brett Webster
  • Alan Gundelfinger
  • Milt Laiken
  • George Randle Co.
  • Precision Machine
  • Dieter Seifert
  • Rourke Engineering
  • Robert Mayne
  • Apogee, Inc.
  • Robert Shepherd
  • Grant McCune
  • Roger Dorney
  • Chuck Barbee
  • Bruno George
  • Michael Lawler
  • Jerry Pooler
  • John Sullivan
  • Harry Moreau
  • Alvah J. Miller
  • Paul Johnson
  • Martin Kline
  • Jack Johnson
  • John Shourt
  • Dick Alexander
  • Bill Shourt
  • Don Trumbull
  • Cosmos Bolger
  • Dennis Dorney
  • Robert Elswitt
  • Phil Gonzales
  • Greg Kimble
  • Michael Sweeney
  • Diane E. Wooten
  • David Beasley
  • John Erland
  • Joe Garlington
  • Pete Gerard
  • Rick Gilligan
  • Richie Helmer
  • Michael Joyce
  • Deborah Kendall
  • Pat McClung
  • Gary Rhodaback
  • John Ramsay
  • Dennis Schultz
  • David Scott
  • Dick Singleton
  • Richard Smiley
  • David Sosalla
  • Susan Turner
  • Chuck Embrey
  • Mary Etta Lang
  • Angela Diamos
  • John Millerburg
  • Denny Kelley
  • David Bartholomew
  • Steve Klein
  • Mike Middleton
  • Phil Joanou
  • Mimi McKinney
  • Ann M. Johnston
  • Deborah Baxter
  • Janet Dykstra
  • Philip Golden
  • Proctor Jones
  • Tut Shurtleff
  • B/G Engineering
  • Abbot Grafton
  • Gerald Nash
  • Ron Resch , Boston University
  • Magicam, Inc.
  • Richard Foy , Communication Arts, Inc.
  • Arthur Morton
  • Captain Kirk – William Shatner
  • Spock – Leonard Nimoy
  • Dr. McCoy – DeForest Kelley
  • Scotty – James Doohan
  • Sulu – George Takei
  • Dr. Chapel – Majel Barrett
  • Chekov – Walter Koenig
  • Uhura – Nichelle Nichols
  • Ilia – Persis Khambatta
  • Decker – Stephen Collins
  • Janice Rand – Grace Lee Whitney
  • Klingon Captain – Mark Lenard
  • Alien Boy – Billy Van Zandt
  • Epsilon Technician – Roger Aaron Brown
  • Airlock Technician – Gary Faga
  • Commander Branch – David Gautreaux
  • Assistant to Rand – John D. Gowans
  • Cargo Deck Ensign – Howard Itzkowitz
  • Lt. Commander Sonak – Jon Rashad Kamal
  • Chief DiFalco – Marcy Lafferty
  • Lieutenant – Michele Ameen Billy
  • Technician – Jeri McBride
  • Chief Ross – Terrence O'Connor
  • Lt. Cleary – Michael Rougas
  • Woman – Susan J. Sullivan
  • Ralph Brannen ( Crew Member 1 )
  • Ralph Byers ( Crew Member 2 )
  • Paula Crist ( Crew Member 3 )
  • Iva Lane ( Crew Member 4 )
  • Franklyn Seales ( Crew Member 5 )
  • Momo Yashima ( Crew Member 6 )
  • Jimmie Booth ( Klingon Crewman 1 )
  • Joel Kramer ( Klingon Crewman 2 )
  • Bill McTosh ( Klingon Crewman 3 )
  • David Moordigian ( Klingon Crewman 4 )
  • Tom Morga ( Klingon Crewman 5 )
  • Tony Rocco ( Klingon Crewman 6 )
  • Joel Schultz ( Klingon Crewman 7 )
  • Craig Thomas ( Klingon Crewman 8 )
  • Edna Glover ( Vulcan Master 1 )
  • Norman Stuart ( Vulcan Master 2 )
  • Paul Weber ( Vulcan Master 3 )
  • Security Officer – Joshua Gallegos
  • Lisa Chess ( Yeoman 1 )
  • Leslie C. Howard ( Yeoman 2 )
  • Sayra Hummel ( Technical Assistant 1 )
  • Junero Jennings ( Technical Assistant 2 )
  • Robert Bralver
  • William Couch ( stunt double for William Shatner )
  • Keith L. Jensen
  • John Hugh McKnight

TM & Copyright © 1979 by Paramount Pictures Film Corporation, Inc. [ ]

All rights reserved. [ ].

  • Alexander Courage
  • Robert Abel & Associates, Inc.
  • Richard Taylor
  • Digital Equipment Corporation
  • Sam Nicholson
  • Brian Longbotham
  • Polaroid Corporation
  • Sutherland Computer Corporation
  • Marvin Paige
  • Pocket Books
  • Panavision ®
  • Metrocolor ®

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (The Director's Edition) [ ]

  • Robert Wise Productions
  • David C. Fein
  • Michael Matessino
  • Daren R. Dochterman
  • Chuck Michael
  • Foundation Imaging
  • Ron Thornton
  • Adam "Mojo" Lebowitz
  • Sherry L. Hitch
  • Stephen Burg
  • Robert Bonchune
  • Doug Drexler
  • Trevor Pierce
  • Lee Stringer
  • David Morton
  • Allen Hastings
  • David Smithson
  • Michael Donahue
  • Brent Burpee
  • Lindsay Adler
  • Benjamin Martin
  • Wilshire Stages
  • Michael McDonald
  • Peter G. Parise
  • Miles O'Fun
  • Apple Computer, Inc.
  • Medéa Corporation

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

  • David Armstrong as Enterprise crewmember
  • Richard Arnold as Enterprise crewmember
  • Rosanna Attias as Enterprise crewmember
  • Jerry Best as Enterprise sciences crewmember
  • Fred Bronson as Enterprise crewmember
  • Bob Bryan as Enterprise crewmember
  • Robert Buckingham as Enterprise crewmember
  • Bobby Butz as Enterprise crewmember
  • Gordon Cardoza as Enterprise crewmember
  • Celeste Cartier as Enterprise crewmember
  • JoAnn Christy as Vulcan sciences crewmember
  • Lisa Christy as Enterprise crewmember
  • Price Coetzee as Enterprise crewmember
  • Armando Diaz as Enterprise crewmember
  • Vern Dietsche as Enterprise crewmember
  • Christopher Doohan as engineering crewmember
  • Montgomery Doohan as science division crewmember
  • Walt Doty as Enterprise crewmember
  • John Dresden as Starfleet security officer (slated for credit as "Security Officer")
  • Scott Dweck as Vulcan medic
  • Don Fanning as Zaranite Enterprise crewmember
  • Dennis Fischer as engineering crewmember
  • Cassandra Foster as Enterprise crewmember
  • Barnetta Fowler as Enterprise crewmember
  • Gayle Frank as sciences crewmember
  • Ryan Frazier as Starfleet command officer
  • David Gerrold as command division crewmember
  • Brenda Gooch as Enterprise crewmember
  • William Guest as Enterprise crewmember
  • Doug Hale as Computer Voice
  • John Hayes as Enterprise crewmember
  • Sharon Hesky as Federation civilian
  • Bill Hickey as science division crewmember
  • Betty Kennedy as Federation civilian
  • James T. Kirk as Enterprise crewmember
  • Victor Koman as Zaranite Enterprise crewmember
  • Katherine Kurtz as Enterprise crewmember
  • Art Lake as Enterprise crewmember
  • Steven Lance as Rhaandarite Enterprise crewmember
  • Randall Larson as Enterprise crewmember
  • Suzanne Lodge as Starfleet officer
  • Don J. Long as Enterprise crew member
  • Leah Livingston as Enterprise crew member ( The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , p. 38)
  • Greg Mace as Enterprise crewmember [52]
  • Enterprise engineering chief
  • Enterprise medical staff member
  • Winnie McCarthy as Epsilon IX technician
  • John Hugh McKnight as medical technician
  • Michelle as Enterprise crewmember
  • Barbara Minster as Enterprise crewmember
  • Beth Moberly as Enterprise crewmember
  • Ve Neill as Enterprise crewmember
  • Air tram Starfleet officer
  • Enterprise crewmember
  • Rod Perry as security guard
  • Gene Poe as Enterprise crewmember
  • Todd Ramsay as Starfleet Transporter Chief (voice; uncredited)
  • Zack Richardson as Enterprise crewmember
  • Linda Robertson as Enterprise crewmember
  • Susan Sackett as science division crewmember
  • Eileen Salamas as Enterprise crewmember
  • Frank Salsedo as Enterprise crewmember
  • Keith Shiozaki as Starfleet Headquarters crewman
  • Kathleen Sky as Enterprise crewmember
  • Jay Smith as Enterprise crewmember
  • Louise Stange-Wahl as science division crewmember
  • Leigh Strother-Vien as Enterprise crewmember
  • Cedric Taporco as Saurian Enterprise crewmember
  • Denise Tathwell as Enterprise Vulcan crewmember
  • H. Teague as Epsilon IX technician [53]
  • Arthur Tovey as Vulcan civilian
  • Roger Trantham as Enterprise crewmember
  • Bjo Trimble as science division crewmember
  • Vincent as Saurian Enterprise crewmember
  • John Watts as Andorian Enterprise crewmember
  • Green Whitaker as Federation civilian
  • Marlene Willauer as civilian crewmember
  • Millicent Wise as engineering crewmember
  • C. Adam Young as USS Enterprise crew member
  • Aaamazzarite visitors
  • Andorian crewmember
  • Betelgeusian assistant ambassador 1
  • Betelgeusian assistant ambassador 2
  • Betelgeusian chief ambassador
  • Betelgeusian Enterprise crewmember
  • Female Native American crewmember
  • Female Natvie American crewmember
  • Female Native American Enterprise officer
  • Orbital office complex crew 1
  • Orbital office complex crew 2
  • Orbital office complex crew 3
  • Orbital office complex crew 4
  • Orbital office complex crew 5
  • Orbital office complex crew 6
  • Orbital office complex technician
  • Sickbay patient
  • Two Rhaandarites
  • Rhaandarite crewmember
  • Rhaandarite orbital office complex officer
  • Enterprise engineer
  • Enterprise assistant engineer
  • Enterprise sciences crewman

Uncredited stunt performers [ ]

  • Lightning Bear
  • Stunt double for Leonard Nimoy
  • Workman in space
  • Kim Washington as stunt double for Nichelle Nichols

Uncredited production staff [ ]

  • Robert Abel – Robert Abel & Associates : Special Effects Director
  • Bernie Abramson – Second Unit Director of Photography
  • Howard A. Anderson, Jr. – Howard Anderson Company : Additional Graphics and Animation
  • Philo Barnhart – Apogee, Inc.: Effects Animation Artist
  • John L. Black – Key Grip
  • Susan Cabral – Makeup Artist: Background performers
  • Michael Chavez – Set Costumer
  • Jim Chirco – Craft Serviceman
  • Leslie Ekker – Animation and Graphics
  • Michael Edward Gentry – Lead Scenic Painter
  • Bill George – Gregory Jein, Inc. : Model Maker
  • Ron Gress – Entertainment Effects Group : Model Painter
  • John Grower – Astra Image Corporation
  • William Guest – Special Effects: Special Props and Miniatures
  • " Hersey " – Production Illustrator ( The Art of Star Trek , pp. 162-163; Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , color inset/otherwise unknown)
  • Pierre Jalbert – Editor/Dialogue Editor
  • Dennis Jones – Sound-Boom Man
  • David A. Kimble – Astra Image Corporation: Production Illustrator
  • Alexander Lepak – Percussionist
  • Michael Lynn – Costumer
  • Dan Maltese – Set Designer (slated for credit as "Set Designer")
  • Bruce MacRae – Brick Price Movie Miniatures : Prop Maker
  • Joel Marston – Dialogue Coach for William Shatner
  • William Mass – Costumer
  • Lisa Morton – Gregory Jein, Inc.: Model Maker
  • Steve Neill – Makeup Artist
  • Debbi Nikkel – Apogee, Inc.: Production Accountant
  • Don Pennington – Gregory Jein, Inc.: Model Maker
  • Kevin Pike – Custom Props Special Effects Artist
  • Brick Price – Brick Price Movie Miniatures: Prop Maker
  • Hartmut Scharfe – Linguist/Vulcan master voice-over
  • Charlie Schram – Makeup Artist
  • Michelle Small – Robert Abel & Associates: Effects Production Coordinator/Entertainment Effects Group: Storyboard Artist
  • Rick Sternbach – Production Illustrator (slated for credit as "Illustrator")
  • Rick Stratton – Lab Technician: Makeup Department
  • William Sully – Illustrator
  • Joe Viskocil – SFX Coordinator: Astra Image Corporation
  • Carlos Yeaggy – Makeup Artist

Uncredited production companies [ ]

  • Astra Image Corporation – Visual Effects company (subsidiary Robert Abel & Associates)
  • Howard Anderson Company – Visual Effects company
  • Brick Price Movie Miniatures – Prop making company, originally subcontracted by Robert Abel & Associates
  • Entertainment Effects Group – Visual Effects company, subsidiary
  • Gregory Jein, Inc. – Model making company, subcontracted by Entertainment Effects Group

References [ ]

20th century ; 2270s ; Aaamazzarite ; ability ; acceleration ; acceleration rate ; aircraft carrier ; airlock four ; air tram station ; alien ; all-decks read-out ; alternative ; analysis ; ancestor ; Andorians ; animal ; antenna lead ; answer ; antimatter ; antimatter imbalance ; aperture ; appointment ; Arcturian ; area ; arrival ; " as soon as possible "; assignment ; assumption ; asteroid ; astronomical unit (au); " at your discretion "; attack ; attention ; audio-video association ; auxiliary computer circuit ; auxiliary power ; auxiliary power test ; baby ; backup sensor ; battle stations ; beauty ; Betelgeusian ; binary code ; biofunction monitor ; birth ; black hole ; blood ; bluff ; body ; body function ; " Bones "; brother ; burn duration ; " burn up "; calculation ; captain ; captor ; carbon-based unit ; carbon unit ; cargo bay ; cargo six ( dock six ); carrier wave ; casualty ; cc ; " center seat "; central brain complex ; chamber ; Chief of Starfleet Operations ; child ; circuit ; cloud ; cloud boundary ; code signal ; comm station ; channel ; commission ; compassion ; composition ; computation ; computer ; computer center ; computer library ; condolence ; confidence ; conic section ; connecting tunnel ; consciousness ; Constitution II -class decks ; contact ; control arm ; countdown ; courier ; course ( heading ); course projection ; Creator ; crew status ; cruiser ; curiosity ; dalaphaline ; damage ; damage report ; data ; data pattern ; data storage ; day ; deck ; deflector ; deflector power ; degree ; Deltans ; Delta IV ; demonstration ; departure order ; design ( redesign ); destination ; device ; diagnosis ; diameter ; dilithium crystal ; dimension ; dimensional image ; directional control ; disappointment ; discipline ; distance ; division ; dock control ; docking port ; doctor ; Doctor of Medicine (MD); drafting ; dreadnought ; drydock ; duty station ; Earth ; Earth Defense Network ; efficiency ; embarrassment ; emergency ; emergency alert ; emergency evacuation thruster pack ; emergency power ; emergency shut-down trip ; emotion ; energy ; engineer ; engine navigation relay ; Enterprise (frigate); Enterprise , USS (CV-6); entity ; Epsilon IX station ; estimate ; evolution ; examination ; executive officer (aka exec ); existence ; exocrine system ; experience ; explanation ; eye ; father ; Federation ; Federation space ; feeling ; field coil ; flight deck ; flight path ; flow sensors ; force field ; force field circuit E10 ; force field circuit E14 ; forebearer ; French language ; friendship ; " frighten out of my wits "; fuel equation ; gain ; galaxy ; goal ; God ; Golden Gate Bridge ; grade 1 priority ; gravitational field ; ground test computer ; guidance system ; heart ; hope ; hostility ; hour ; Human ; Human quality ; idea ; igniter ; impact ; image ; imaging system ; Imperial Klingon Cruiser ; impulse power ; inertial lag ; information ; injury report ; insight ; intention ; interference ; intermix chamber ; interrogative ; intersection course ; intruder ; intruder alert ; IP ; job ; Jupiter ; Kazarite ; key ; kilometer ; Klingon ; Klingon language ; Klingon Fight with V'ger ; K'normian ; knowledge ; kolinahr ; launch crew ; learning ; light cube table ; lifeform ; linguacode friendship message ; living machine ; logic ; loyalty ; lunar beacon ; machine ; machine planet ; magnification (mag); main drive system ; main elevator ; main power system ; Main stage flux chiller ; malfunction ; maneuvering thruster ; manual override ; manual shutoff ; mass ; matter ; meaning ; mechanism ; medic ; medical facility ; meeting ; megabit ; megahertz ; Megarite ; memory ; memory pattern ; message ; meter ; micro-miniature hydraulics ; Milky Way Galaxy ; million ; millisecond ; mind ; minute ; missing in action ; mission ; mistaking ; module ; moisture ; molecule ; momentum ; monitor ; month ; moon ; multi-processor chip ; mutual advantage ; name ; nano synch rate ; National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ); navigator ; navigational deflectors ; neurological trauma ; Nogura ; nurse ; oath of celibacy ; obedience ; object ; objection ; observation ; obsession ; Officer's lounge ; officers' quarters ; " on the double "; opinion ; orbit ; orbiting device ; orbital office complex ; order ; orderliness ; orifice ; osmotic micro-pump ; oxygen gravity envelope ; pain ; orbit ; parallel course ; passion ; pattern ; pattern degradation ; " pep talk "; percent ; permission ; phaser ; phaser power ; photic sonar ; photon torpedo ; photon torpedo load status ; planet ; planetary defense system ; plasma energy ; plasma energy conduit ; plasti-skin ; pneumonic pulse pattern ; pons area ; power field ; power loss ; power surge ; pre-launch countdown ; Pre stage flux chiller ; pressure ; priority signal ; probe ; Probert ; problem ; program ; programming ; progress ; purge ; Quad L-14 ; quarters ; Quasar 7 ; question ; radiation level ; radio ; radio messaging ; radio signal ; rate of speed ; record ; recording ; recreation ; recreation deck ; recreation deck games ; red alert ( status red ); red line ; refit ; relationship ; relative position ; remote communications drone ; rendezvous ; repair time ; report ; reserve activation clause ; Rhaandarite ; Rigellian ; sand ; San Francisco ; San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge ; Saurian ; science briefing ; science officer ; Scots language ; scout ; screens ; search ; season ; second ; security scan ; security team ; self-destruct ; sensor drone ; sensor scan ; sensor-transceiver combination device ; sequence ; shakedown ; Shamin ; sickbay ; signal ; simulation study ; simulator ; Sol ; Sol system ; Sonak's family ; sonic shower ; space ; space matrix restoration coil ; spanking ; spinal nerve ; spray applicator ; standard light ; star ; stardate ; Starfleet ; Starfleet Command ; Starfleet Headquarters ; Starfleet Operations ; Starfleet Order 2005 ; star hour ; station keeping ; status report ; sublight speed ; subspace frequency ; surface ; T'Khut ; T'Khut moon ; tactical plot ; " tag along "; tantrum ; technology ; temperature ; temporary grade reduction ; thing ; thought ; thought pattern ; thousand ; throat ; thruster ignition ; thruster suit ; " top brass "; tractor beam ; Transamerica Pyramid ; transfer-of-command order ; transmission ; transmitter ; transporter ; transporter accident ; transporter accident victim's family ; transporter chamber ; transporter personnel ; transporter platform ; transporter room ; transporter sensor ; transporter system ; tricorder ; turboshaft ; twelfth power ; universe ; velocity ; vessel status ; V'Ger's planet ; viewer ; visual contact ; VS ; Vulcan ; Vulcan ; Vulcan embassy ; Vulcan language ; Vulcan master ; Vulcan salute ; mind meld ; Vulcan nerve pinch ; Vulcan ritual ; Vulcan symbol ; warp capacity ; warp drive ( main engine ); warp power ; warp simulation ; weapon ; " wee "; weep ; " with all due respect "; " with our bare hands "; word ; wormhole ; wormhole distortion ; wormhole effect ; Yard Command ; year ; Yerba Buena Island ; Zaranite

Spacecraft references [ ]

air tram ; Air tram 3 ; Air tram 14 ; Amar , IKS , cargo management unit ( workbees ); Class F shuttlecraft ; Columbia , USS ; Conrad ; Constitution -class ; Constitution II -class ; Entente , USS ; Enterprise ( space shuttle orbiter ); Enterprise , USS (NCC-1701); Enterprise , USS (XCV-330); K't'inga -class ( Amar 's sister ships ); Laika ; life boat ; long range shuttle ; Merrimac , USS ; Revere , USS ; shuttlecraft ; starship ; Surak ; travel pod ( unnamed 1 , 2 ); travel pod 05 ; V'ger ; Voyager 6 ; Voyager series

Script references [ ]

aurora borealis ; command cruiser ; Dante ; engine pylon ; Grayson, Amanda ; heavy cruiser ; hydrogen cloud ; integrator ; lunar monitor relay ; nebula ; Sarek ; Saturn ; scrap metal compactor ; solar system ; Starfleet archives ; supernova ; transceiver ; United States Subdivision ; yellow alert

Other references [ ]

Rhaandarite

Further reading [ ]

  • " Abel Neglex Trex Effex ", Jeffrey Kaye, New West magazine, 26 March 1979, pp. 58-63
  • "Red alert on the Starship Enterprise", Peter H. Brown, Reader magazine, 23 November 1979, pp. 7, 20
  • "STAR TREK The Motion Picture", Kay Anderson , Cinefantastique , Vol. 9 #3/4, December 1979, pp. 64-67
  • "Star Trek's Enterprising Return", Gretchen McNeese, Playboy magazine, January 1980, pp. 138-144, 172, 308-310
  • American Cinematographer , February 1980 – The Motion Picture theme issue
  • "Into the V'Ger Maw with Douglas Trumbull", Don Shay, Cinefex , issue 1, March 1980, pp. 4-33
  • "Greg Jein-Miniature Giant", Brad Munson, pp. 24-49
  • "Star Trekking at Apogee with John Dykstra", Don Shay, pp. 50-72
  • See also: Starlog magazine
  • Chekov's Enterprise , February 1980
  • The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , March 1980
  • "Star Trek: The Emotional Picture", Chapter 4, Star Trek Movie Memories , August 1995, pp. 81-124
  • "The Dream Fulfilled: STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE", Part Two-Chapter One, The Art of Star Trek , November 1995, pp. 153-200
  • Star Trek Phase II: The Lost Series , March 1997
  • Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 8 , December 2001 – The Motion Picture theme issue
  • Star Trek: Creating the Enterprise , December 2012
  • Return to Tomorrow - The Filming of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , December 2014
  • The First Star Trek Movie , October 2019
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Art and Visual Effects , September 2020

External links [ ]

  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture at StarTrek.com
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture at Wikipedia
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture at the Internet Movie Database
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture script  at Star Trek Minutiae
  • Faces in the crowd – exhaustive list of fan extras compiled by Ian McLean
  • " Star Trek: The Motion Picture " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
  • "The Troubled Production of Star Trek: The Motion Picture " at Den Of Geek!
  • "A troubled enterprise: How Star Trek: The Motion Picture flirted with disaster only to become a surprise smash" at The Independent
  • Simon & Schuster and 40 Years of Star Trek Publishing at StarTrek.com
  • 2 Star Trek: The Next Generation
  • 3 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)

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Series / Star Trek: The Original Series

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"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise . Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before!" — Captain James T. Kirk , the legendary Opening Narration

Star Trek is the first show in the Star Trek franchise. After the release of its spinoff series and the movies, it has been retroactively called Star Trek: The Original Series to differentiate it from the franchise as a whole.

The origin of the show came when Gene Roddenberry was looking to write hard-hitting political and moral commentary and could not do so with the regular dramas of the time. He deduced that by creating a science fiction show borrowing heavily from the film Forbidden Planet , he could slip in such commentary disguised as metaphors for the various current events. As such he pitched Star Trek to the networks as a merging of the two most popular genres of the time, science fiction anthologies and Westerns . note  Notably, he pitched it as " Wagon Train in space ", not " Wagon Train To The Stars ".

While troublesome to produce, the show was a major Trope Maker , especially in Science Fiction (each of the three main characters has a trope named after them, and that's just for starters!). The cast was a dynamic mix of ethnicities and cultures, and while the focus was nearly always on Kirk , Spock and McCoy , they still had a Russian , an Asian and a black African woman in positions of responsibility, authority and respect , despite recent , brewing or ongoing conflicts concerning people of those ethnicities in Real Life . According to the cast members, near everyone in Hollywood wanted to be a part of Star Trek because of the steps forward it was making. In particular, George Takei said that almost every Asian actor wanted to be Sulu because they wouldn't be required to use an Asian accent or engage in Asian martial arts, instead breaking cultural stigma by being a practitioner of European fencing. note  Takei facetiously put down fencing on his resume so he wouldn't be given a katana; once it came up in the script, he got a crash course the weekend before filming. He remains an avid fencer to this day. This also resulted in attracting multiple high-profile guest stars and guest writers, including Harlan Ellison , Theodore Sturgeon and Richard Matheson . Plots varied widely in quality from episode to episode and from season to season, depending upon who was writing and/or directing. An episode chosen at random can be anything from high camp to geopolitical allegory to genuinely intelligent drama, and is likely to be at least two out of those three .

In some ways the show was way ahead of its time ; in other ways, it is a product of its time . The women usually (but not always) appeared in the roles of assistants and secretaries , wearing go-go boots and miniskirts. note  At least some of that was due to Executive Meddling ; additionally, Grace Lee Whitney has mentioned that the female regulars objected to initial efforts to have them wear pants because they preferred showing off their legs . Whitney and Nichelle Nichols were both professional dancers, and Nichols used to whipstitch her skirt shorter in between takes because she thought it was too long, leading to a few shots where you can see her matching panties . While the visual design of the show was ambitious, the actual production quality has not aged well.

The show did have some developmental history before it came to air. The original Trek pilot featured Captain Pike played by Jeffrey Hunter , and Majel Barrett as his first officer . The pilot was praised by the network as great science fiction, but was considered " too cerebral " for the target audience and not as action-packed as the network wanted to market it . This resulted in a near entire-cast replacement for a second pilot episode, except for Spock. In fact, Doctor McCoy didn't appear until after the second pilot was filmed. However, that first pilot has remained as part of the franchise canon and did not go to waste—Roddenberry used a lot of it for the series' only two-parter, " The Menagerie ," which proved a Hugo science fiction award winner, and the pilot has been included in various releases of the series. Captain Pike himself was recast in Star Trek (2009) by Bruce Greenwood , and played by Anson Mount in the second season of Star Trek: Discovery (with Rebecca Romijn as Number One, Ethan Peck as Spock, and the Enterprise herself), wherein afterwards Pike received his own show called Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , coming full circle.

While the show was considered popular with general audiences note  the actors and studio were flooded with mail, and there was a huge amount of tie-in merchandise almost immediately and plenty of demand for more , the Nielsen ratings branded it a flop . Star Trek barely managed three seasons before being officially canceled, with a close call on the second season . Within a few weeks of its cancellation was the monumental first Moon Landing , and as a result the subsequent reruns of Star Trek were more popular than the original run . Television was also changing at the time, starting to account for demographics along with overall ratings, and found that Star Trek had snagged the most coveted 18–35 male group that nearly every show was aiming for. Star Trek conventions were jammed with thousands of dedicated fans, and seeing the potential for a revisit led into production for a new TV series. The first attempt was Star Trek: The Animated Series in 1973, which suffered from Filmation 's cheap production values, but more than compensated by having most of the original writers and cast, producing a great series that earned the franchise's first Emmy Award. Later in the decade, in the hope of creating a Paramount television network, a new Star Trek series was developed, dubbed Star Trek: Phase II . After Paramount's owner ditched the network plan, the intended pilot was reworked into the first Star Trek feature film , Star Trek: The Motion Picture , in 1979, after the monumental success of Star Wars . This led to an ongoing film series, the success of which led to the Sequel Series in 1987, Star Trek: The Next Generation , and another 18 straight years of Star Trek on television.

The subtitle "The Original Series" is a Retronym used solely for commercial clarification once Star Trek: The Next Generation came out. It has always been referred to as Star Trek in its own opening sequence.

Shatner returned to Paramount Television (which succeeded Desilu Studios as the show's production company during the second season) in 1975 for the series Barbary Coast , which was not nearly as successful as Star Trek , lasting only one season. Nimoy also continued with PTV after Star Trek ended, joining the cast of Mission: Impossible , which also began under Desilu.

Common plots:

  • Something will threaten the ship and wreak havoc with the crew, either by harming them directly , manipulating laws of physics/reality or screwing with people's minds .
  • Kirk leads a landing party to a planet with a single major defining element in their culture . Commonly, it will be a society that perfectly mirrors one from Earth's history . note  No need to build new sets for an alien planet when you can just shoot a local city street and reuse props designed for the Roman Empire! Their hosts rudely steal their communicators and phasers, usually because they just can't bear to let them leave . Lots of running around and fistfights ensue. Expect at least one Red Shirt to bite the dust. At the end, Kirk gives a speech to point out what's wrong with the planet's culture . Alternatively, the people on the planet will be a worshipping a " god " who turns out to be a computer that controls every aspect of its citizens’ lives . Kirk will then destroy it to emancipate them, acknowledging that while their new life may become equally dangerous , freedom is a right that should never be sacrificed .

Character profiles and roles in the script:

  • Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ): The ship's exec and Science Officer , in charge of all scientific departments. His Human-Vulcan heritage was intended as an emphasis that we are out in space and alien people are common. While he is very emotionally reserved as a matter of Vulcan cultural tradition , in truth, he is as human as much as he is Vulcan . As a child, he was bullied for his mixed heritage , causing him to occasionally act in rejection of his human half (Thus, calling him "cold-blooded" or "unfeeling" will result in him thanking you for the "compliment"). But he is not as cold as he seems .
  • Leonard "Bones" McCoy ( DeForest Kelley ): Chief Medical Officer , The Heart , and The Watson . The least "military" person on the ship. Given a Promotion to Opening Titles in the second season.
  • Montgomery "Scotty" Scott ( James Doohan ): The Chief Engineer from Scotland , both a reliable officer and daring in battle .

tv tropes star trek the motion picture

  • Hikaru Sulu ( George Takei ): A compulsive hobbyist (botany, gun collecting, fencing) and a Fan of the Past . The ship's helmsman , again an almost unthinkable position then for a minority, especially an Asian .

tv tropes star trek the motion picture

  • Christine Chapel ( Majel Barrett ): Ship's nurse in Mad Love with Spock. Given The Cameo in a couple of the films.
  • Yeoman Janice Rand ( Grace Lee Whitney ): Ms. Fanservice with a Beehive Hairdo . The original Bridge Bunny literally — early reviews of the series called her a "Playboy Bunny–type waitress." She was supposed to be one of numerous yeomen, a "succession of young actresses, always lovely". The yeomen served Kirk as an executive secretary, valet and military aide and were supposed to be treated as completely equal with men of the same rank. Rand and Kirk had Unresolved Sexual Tension until she fell victim to Chuck Cunningham Syndrome . note  By her own account, she was raped by an "executive" attached to the show — her description fits Roddenberry himself — and subsequently fired. Given The Cameo in a few of the films.
  • Harcourt Fenton "Harry" Mudd (Roger C. Carmel): The Trickster , Con Man , and all-around scoundrel, Mudd was the focus of two episodes, and another in the animated series .
  • Cyrano Jones: A more affable, less competent Trickster than Harry, who likewise reappears in an episode of the animated series .
  • Khan Noonien Singh: An Affably Evil Human Popsicle and Designer Baby Übermensch who was once an Evil Overlord . Though he only appeared in one episode , he later became The Unfettered of the second movie .

This series provides examples of the following tropes:

    open/close all folders 

  • Absurdly Dedicated Worker : In "The Return of the Archons" Landru guards his planet, long after its usefulness has ceased. Ditto the automated defense bot Losira in "That Which Survives".
  • Act of True Love : "The Empath", McCoy sacrifices himself to save Kirk and Spock from death or insanity via Cold-Blooded Torture. Again, he lives, but he didn't know that.
  • Adaptation Title Change : Two episodes' titles were changed when James Blish adapted them as short stories: "The Man Trap" became "The Unreal McCoy" (which may have been a working title from a draft script), and "Charlie X" became "Charlie's Law."
  • Adaptational Alternate Ending : In the episode "Operation - Annihilate", Spock is temporarily blinded when they test a cure for a neural parasite on him before using it to free a planetary population. In the novelization of that episode, the planet is freed from the infection before Spock goes through the procedure, which does not blind him.
  • Affectionate Parody : "A Piece of The Action" is an Affectionate Parody of gangster movies.
  • Afrofuturism : Star Trek, while not afro-futurist in and of itself, did have an influence on the genre due to the presence of Uhura; the fact that a black person had a place on a futuristic space ship left a serious impact on young viewers. She was identified in the first episode as a Swahili (there are many Swahili peoples, James Blish described her as Bantu), had a few lines in Kiswahili in a couple of episodes, and the official Star Trek Writers' Guide established that she was from the United States of Africa.
  • In "The Return of the Archons", a computer has effectively stagnated a planet's entire culture into an ongoing, meaningless cycle of merely existing.
  • In "For The World Is Hollow And I Have Touched The Sky", a computer keeps the generational refugees under its watch ignorant of the fact that they're living in an asteroid, and punishes those who try to find the truth.
  • In "The Changeling", one of Earth's probes - programmed to seek out life - collided with and damaged an alien probe that was programmed to sterilize soil samples from other planets. The alien probe used parts of Earth's probe to repair itself, resulting in their programs merging to " seek out life and sterilize it ".
  • In "The Ultimate Computer" the M-5 unit, designed by Dr. Daystrom, goes rogue after it mistakes a wargame for the real thing.
  • In "Dagger of the Mind", Dr. Helen Noel saves the day by using a passage to get to the power room and shut off the Tantalus Colony's force field.
  • In "Miri", the children use an air vent to infiltrate the lab where the Enterprise crew is working and steal their communicators.
  • In "The Trouble With Tribbles", Scotty speculates that the tribbles got into the food processors on the Enterprise via the actual air vents. Spock realizes that the grain the Enterprise is guarding on the nearby space station is in storage compartments with similar vents, prompting Kirk to beam over and leading to the episode's funniest moment.
  • Alice Allusion : "Shore Leave": Both in the characters seen by the good doctor, and the fact that the planet turns out to be one big Wonderland.
  • Alien Non-Interference Clause : The Prime Directive, which forbids any interference with the internal development of pre-warp civilizations. Story-wise, it's used as a plot device to keep the main characters from just using the easy way out of a problem.
  • All Planets Are Earthlike : Considering the technical and budgetary constraints, ridiculously so. The show hand waves it sometimes by making planets specifically based on Earth. Or making the episode actually take place on Earth .
  • The final draft of the “Dagger In The Mind” script clarified that Kirk thought Helen Noel was a passenger at the party, not a member of the crew, and he flirted with her to his embarrassment.
  • All Women Are Lustful : Contrary to his reputation, Kirk doesn't initiate a lot of his kisses, and when he does it's nearly always used as a means to an end.
  • The Horta is initially presented and believed to be (as the episode title states) a "Devil in the Dark", but turns out to be a mother protecting her eggs.
  • Balance of Terror is the first episode to feature the Romulans, who are introduced by launching an unprovoked sneak attack. In the selfsame episode the two main Romulan characters are examples of My Country, Right or Wrong and What a Senseless Waste of Human Life , and it is made very clear that if it weren't for their being on opposite sides of battle, Kirk and the Romulan Commander could have easily been friends.
  • The episode Errand of Mercy marks the first appearance of the Klingons, and in that very episode the Organians - a more enlightened species than Humans or Klingons - predict that at some future date , the Klingons and the Federation will become allies, working together. There's also "Day of the Dove", when after learning that they are being manipulated by an Energy Being into a senseless, endless war with Kirk's crew, the Klingons team up in an Enemy Mine . Kang: I do not need any urging to kill humans. A Klingon kills for his own reasons! Only a fool fights in a burning house!
  • In the Pilot Episode , Captain Christopher Pike's character was subjected to an illusion of Hell when he refused to cooperate with his Talosian jailers. The illusion was stated to be made from information gotten from his own mind, implying that he was raised as a Christian.
  • At the end of "This Side of Paradise" , when the Enterprise is leaving Omicron Ceti III, Dr. McCoy, reflecting on the euphoric effect the planet's spores had on the crew, states that "Well, that's the second time man's been thrown out of Paradise."
  • Captain Kirk's famous line to the alien impersonating the Greek god Apollo in "Who Mourns for Adonais?" : Kirk: Mankind has no need for gods. We find the one quite adequate.
  • In "The Ultimate Computer" , both Dr. Richard Daystrom and, consequently, the sentient M-5 computer he built believe in God. Kirk makes the M-5 realize that in committing murder, it has sinned, and it shut itself down out of remorse.
  • In "Bread and Circuses" , Kirk and Crew come upon a planet dominated by a Roman Empire but with 20th century technology, where a persecuted, pacifist new religion worships a sun god. At the end of the episode, Lieutenant Uhura discovers that this new religion does not worship the Sun but the Son, clearly referencing Jesus. Kirk even considers remaining at the planet for a number of years just so they can "watch it happen all over again."
  • Near the end of "The Way to Eden" , Adam, one of Dr. Sevrin's followers, literally dies on the planet Eden after eating a poisoned apple ; Spock sardonically points this out.
  • Amnesia Danger : In "The Paradise Syndrome", the danger was that the amnesiac character (Kirk) had forgotten that there was a danger.
  • The unfortunate fate that Captain Pike is ultimately reduced to.
  • The fate of Lazarus and Anti-Lazarus in "The Alternative Factor".
  • Charlie's reaction to the ending of "Charlie X".
  • And Your Little Dog, Too! : Villains often find that this trope is what forces Kirk to comply to them. Textbook case in "The Squire of Gothos", with Spock as the collateral.
  • The episode "The Enemy Within" involves a transporter accident separating Kirk from his aggressive side. While the unchecked aggressive side causes nothing but trouble, Kirk realizes he needs that side of him to be an effective leader. Kirk asks this aggressive side "Can half a man live?"
  • In "This Side of Paradise", anger frees Kirk and then Spock from the spores' influence. Later sonic frequencies irritate the rest of the crew and the colonists, freeeing them as well.
  • Antagonistic Governor : Kodos the Executioner, who was governor of a human colony that was facing starvation because of an exotic fungus. He executed 4,000 citizens in order to see to it that the other 4,000 wouldn't starve . He later disappeared, presumed dead, but in reality, had changed his name and was living life as an actor.
  • "Charlie X": Charlie Evans turns out to be a Reality Warper and starts abusing his powers when the crew of the Enterprise doesn't bow down to his every whim.
  • "The Enemy Within": Kirk is split into a good and an evil version . Guess which one is the enemy.
  • "The Devil in the Dark": Subverted. The silicon-based Horta was killing the miners to protect its eggs. The Enterprise crew heal it and communicate with it.
  • "The Doomsday Machine": It is a planet-eating machine from another Galaxy.
  • "The Ultimate Computer": A.I. Is a Crapshoot .
  • "The Tholian Web": The energy web is being created by the Tholians to destroy the Enterprise .
  • Apocalyptic Log : Losira's computer log in "That Which Survives", which explained how her colony died.
  • Applied Phlebotinum
  • Armor-Piercing Question : Surprisingly, one towards Kirk from the leader of the Organians in "Errand of Mercy" when they've stopped the Federation and the Klingon Empire from fighting. Kirk: Even if you have some power that we don't understand, you have no right to dictate to our Federation— Kor: Or our Empire! Kirk: —How to handle their interstellar relations! We have the right— Ayelborne: To wage war, Captain? To kill millions of innocent people? To destroy life on a planetary scale? Is that what you're defending?
  • Arc Words : When Gene Coon was involved, soldier vs diplomat. A lot of the time it’s Kirk’s Conflicting Loyalty and Character Development , but other characters have the conflict too, and it’s a continuing theme for other Trek series.
  • Artistic License – Physics : In "The Naked Time", the Enterprise is observing a planet in the process of breaking up. The only explanation given for why the planet is breaking up is that its star has gone dark, which would make no difference. It's as if it's just spontaneously exploding. What's more, they talk about its mass changing, which absolutely cannot happen under the laws of physics. note  The closest thing in real life would be, A.) Change the effect of gravity in some way (and most of the numbers related to gravity are called 'constants' for a reason), or B.) remove some of the planet's matter, which would change the total mass and either its density or volume (or both).
  • Ascended Extra : Most of the main crew members (with the exception of Kirk and Spock) are not credited with starring roles in the opening credits, even McCoy (for the first season). Many of them don't appear in certain episodes, and don't even receive any real focus or characterization until late season 1 and throughout season 2. Only the movies credit them with starring roles.
  • Aside Comment : At the end of "Journey to Babel", Doctor McCoy looks directly into the camera and happily states, "I finally got the last word."
  • As You Know : In "Wolf in the Fold" Spock explains to Captain Kirk how ordering the computer to compute the value of pi to the last digit will drive the Redjack creature out of it .
  • "Ass" in Ambassador : How many times has the presence of Federation diplomatic personnel actually helped matters? More often than not Kirk and company have to smooth over problems created by overbearing Federation officials. Alien ambassadors aren't much of an improvement.
  • Asteroid Thicket : In "Mudd's Women", Harry Mudd's ship flies through one.
  • Attack Reflector : Played With in the episode "The Corbomite Maneuver". Kirk threatens to use the eponymous strategy with a device embedded in the Enterprise . If any destructive energy hits it, the corbomite creates a reverse reaction of equal strength that destroys the attacker. He was bluffing: there was actually no such device and no such maneuver.
  • Author Appeal : Gene Roddenberry admitted in the book “Where No Man” that a lot of episodes were his sexual fantasies. He’s at least equal opportunity about it, giving Kirk gratuitous shirtless scenes and apparently letting Shatner stick his ass out as much as he wanted, saying fans liked to watch him leave a room.
  • Auto-Kitchen : The Enterprise has slots in the wall which can produce any food desired by inserting the correct computer tape. In The Next Generation , these are replaced by replicators.
  • Ax-Crazy : Captain, no, Lord Garth. Also most of his "court" of fellow asylum inmates, notably Green-Skinned Space Babe Marta, who is compelled to murder those she "loves." note  She is the only green space babe who kisses or is kissed by Kirk; and they certainly don't do it, as she reached for her dagger almost immediately.
  • Badass Crew : The Original Series establishes a long and proud tradition of these in Starfleet.
  • Batman Gambit : Kirk is very good at reading his opponents in battle, and thus can pull these off in ways that would make Batman himself proud. The Corbomite Maneuver is a distinct example, and the entirety of Balance of Terror has Kirk continuously doing this to the commander of a Romulan ship, estimating his every action and intention based on the maneuvers he makes: (Enterprise fires on the still cloaked Romulan ship, scoring a near-miss) Romulan Sub-Commander: "How, commander? HOW?!" Romulan Commander: "He is a sorcerer that one, he reads the thoughts in my brain!"
  • In the episode "Miri", at one point, the Long-Lived children get together and start chanting the word "Bonk" repeatedly (as in "Bonk on the head") as an indication of what they plan to do to the Enterprise crew who have beamed down to their planet.
  • Similarly, the space battle music from the episode "The Doomsday Machine" became a standard used over and over again in later episodes.
  • Beard of Evil : "Mirror Mirror" provides the Trope Codifier of Evil Twins with beards, thanks to the Mirror-universe Spock's natty goatee.
  • Beeping Computers : Computers in the original series beeped because it was a futuristic interpretation of the rather noisy computers of The '60s (which really did have blinking lights too).
  • In "Wolf in the Fold", it turns out that Jack the Ripper was just one of many creatures possessed by a Puppeteer Parasite over the centuries.
  • "Requiem for Methuselah" concerns an immortal being who takes credit for the deeds of many historical figures .
  • Inverted from perspective "Patterns of Force." We follow the crew of the Enterprise looking for John Gill, a Federation historian. It turns out he's created a replica of the Nazi movement on an alien world and made himself the Führer. Said aliens, and their planetary cousins, are shocked to learn of this.
  • Don't insult the Enterprise within earshot of Scotty, much less to his face. The Klingons find this out the hard way in "The Trouble With Tribbles". Then again, they are Klingons, so they may have been looking for that fight.
  • Don't imply to McCoy that logic is a good substitute for compassion in a crisis.
  • Beauty Is Never Tarnished : Very often, Kirk would be sweaty and his hair messed up in a fight, let alone be injured, but look perfect again the very next scene.
  • Benevolent Dictator : Khan Noonien Singh held this reputation, despite his pro-eugenics beliefs and absolute power throughout his conquered empire, he was regarded as the best of the Eugenics wars Super men, with his ruling style being described as "firm but fair" and it being specifically stated that under his rule their was "no mass killings, no wars that weren't started by other parties". By the 23rd century his rule has even become somewhat romanticised, with him being compared to the likes of Leif Ericson, Richard the Lionheart and Napoleon Bonaparte. This reputation even leads to the crew of the Enterprise seriously underestimating just how ruthless and ambitious the still living Khan really was.
  • In "Plato's Stepchildren", Alexander is first seen as a massive shadow against a wall. Said shadow shrinks as he approaches Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, revealing he's actually rather short compared to them. The actor playing Alexander was 3 feet, 11 inches tall.
  • Lazarus in "The Alternative Factor".
  • Charlie Evans does this in "Charlie X".
  • Black-and-White Morality : Averted . The Federation may be a near- Utopia , but they only remain as one through military power. They get called out on this more than once .
  • Black Comedy : "A Piece of the Action", and "The Trouble With Tribbles" both thrive on this trope. It can also be seen in dialogue moments in other episodes, such as this exchange in "This Side of Paradise" where Kirk and Spock ( the only crew remaining on the Enterprise ) are going to build a transmitter utilizing the communicators' emergency channel, but first Kirk has to fight Spock to free him of the spores: Spock: As you are probably aware , striking a fellow officer is a court-martial offence. Kirk: If we're both in the brig, who's going to build the transmitter? Spock: A logical point, Captain.
  • Black Dude Dies First : Averted in "The Galileo Seven" and "By Any Other Name"; in both cases, the black male character survives to the end of the episode while one or more white characters die.
  • Blue-and-Orange Morality : Eminiar and Vendikar, the two warring planets in "A Taste of Armageddon," have so sanitized their war with each other that they no longer send actual missiles—instead they just send computer signals signifying an attack and then have all civilians who happened to be within range of the theoretical attack disintegrate themselves in booths designed for that purpose. The leader of Eminiar considers Kirk a monster because he refuses to allow the same thing to happen to the crew of the Enterprise when the ship is calculated to have been "hit" by an "attack," and even more so when he destroys Eminiar's attack computers, immediately breaking the stalemate between the two planets.
  • Bluffing the Authorities : The episode "City on the Edge of Forever". After Kirk and Spock go back in time to 1930's New York City, they're about to steal some clothing to replace their Enterprise uniforms but meet a police officer and have to explain Spock's pointed Vulcan ears. They come up with a story that Spock is Chinese and had a childhood accident involving a mechanical rice picker and plastic surgery, but the cop doesn't buy it .
  • Bluff the Eavesdropper : In "The Deadly Years", due to having been rapidly aged by mysterious radiation and gone senile, Kirk has been forced to step down from command. His incompetent replacement has led the ship through the Romulan Neutral Zone, and the Romulans are about to destroy them. Suddenly a cure is found, a restored Kirk appears on the bridge and gives an order to relay a message to Starfleet—using a code previously established as having been broken by the Romulans, which briefly causes the crew to wonder if he's still senile. Nevertheless, they open the channels and Kirk sends a message that the Enterprise will self destruct via the Corbomite Device and destroy any ship in a huge radius. The Romulans intercept the message and leave in a hurry .
  • Blunt Metaphors Trauma : Thanks to his incredibly rationalist thinking, Spock has notable difficulty with understanding human euphemisms and metaphors.
  • Boldly Coming : Kirk is the Trope Codifier . That said, Kirk's reputation for sleeping his way across the galaxy has been greatly exaggerated in the public mind ; out of 79 aired episodes, he kisses another character in only 19 of them, and of those, thirteen are while he's under duress or doing it specifically to manipulate them . In fact, Kirk makes out with a woman purely for pleasure, with no other motive or emotional attachment, exactly once in the entire original series. Sex is likewise only implied in a few rare instances: once when he marries a native girl while amnesiac, and gets her pregnant; once when the show returns from commercial to find a woman brushing her hair in his room while he puts his boots back on; a Sexy Discretion Shot to an overhead lamp as Kirk kisses a Sex Slave girl who's been "ordered to please" him note  A line that was cut had Kirk drinking wine and saying "good," eating something and saying "excellent," and then — "And you?" and the woman says "Superb, I'm told." ; and Kirk sitting up in bed taking a call from the bridge, the woman (France Nuyen as the Dolmen Elaan) lying next to him, she rolls over and sits up to lean on his shoulder.
  • Many episodes begin and end on a shot of the Enterprise flying through space as the dramatic fanfare plays her in (or out).
  • A more meta example: Sulu and Rand share a scene in the first episode aired, "The Man Trap". They don't share another scene until the sixth and final movie , with Rand as a Bridge Officer under Sulu's command.
  • Borrowed Without Permission : Incorrigible larcenist Harry Mudd recounts how he managed to escape from a Federation penal colony to Captain Kirk and Mister Spock. Harry Mudd: I... borrowed transportation... Captain Kirk: He stole a starship!
  • Bottled Heroic Resolve
  • Brainwashed and Crazy : This happens in numerous episodes.
  • Brandishment Bluff : "The Corbomite Maneuver" Kirk: This is the Captain of the Enterprise . Our respect for other life forms requires that we give you this... warning. One critical item of information that has never been incorporated into the memory banks of any Earth ship. Since the early years of space exploration, Earth vessels have had incorporated into them a substance known as... corbomite. It is a material and a device which prevents attack on us. If any destructive energy touches our vessel, a reverse reaction of equal strength is created, destroying— Balok: [over intercom] You now have two minutes. Kirk: —destroying the attacker. It may interest you to know that since the initial use of corbomite more than two of our centuries ago, no attacking vessel has survived the attempt. Death has... little meaning to us. If it has none to you then attack us now. We grow annoyed at your foolishness.
  • Episode "Arena". Captain Kirk and the Gorn captain are forced to fight each other with improvised weapons. During their battle, the Gorn captain picks up a boulder and throws it at Kirk, pinning Kirk's leg to the ground.
  • One of the cavemen uses a boulder to pound on the shuttlecraft.
  • During a funeral ceremony, one of the cavemen throws a boulder at Spock, pinning him to the ground.
  • Bread and Circuses : The aptly named episode "Bread and Circuses" explores a planet in which the Roman Empire never fell. Gladiator sports are broadcast on TV and interrupted by commercial breaks.
  • Chekov does more screaming-in-pain than the rest of the crew combined. He even has a torture scene in the episode "Mirror, Mirror". This was explained as a convenient way to show there was mortal peril. In a nice inversion, he's the only one who doesn't get hit with the aging disease in "The Deadly Years". He still ends up getting subjected to a thousand and one medical checks, though. Chekov: Blood sample, Chekov! Marrow sample, Chekov! Skin sample, Chekov! If—if I live long enough, I'm going to run out of samples! Sulu: You'll live. Chekov: Oh yes, I'll live. But I won't enjoy it!
  • Butterfly of Doom : In "The City on the Edge of Forever", Edith Keeler's death must occur or else it will cause an alternate timeline where Germany wins World War II and Starfleet does not exist.
  • The Saurians were later established in Star Trek: The Motion Picture to be lizard people; there were a couple of them on the Enterprise .
  • Calvin Ball : Fizzbin, the imaginary card game Kirk and Spock make up to confuse the gangsters in "A Piece of the Action", is an Ur-Example .
  • Captain's Log : The Trope Maker ; Kirk's famous voice-over logs were conceived as a way of quickly introducing or recapping plot points that may have otherwise been confusing. He seems to do them in his head even when he's nowhere near a recorder. In early episodes (e.g, "Mantrap"), he even adopts an "Ominiscient Narrator" stance when referring to future events. When he says "Captain's log, stardate.... unknown", it can be downright chilling.
  • Cargo Concealment Caper : In the episode "Dagger of the Mind", a criminal from a penal colony sneaks aboard by hiding in a cargo container that's beamed up to the ship.
  • Cartwright Curse : So frequent you could almost take bets on whether the Girl of the Week is going to buy the farm by the end of the episode (or if she doesn't, pull a High-Heel–Face Turn ).
  • Cast Full of Pretty Boys : The show’s habit for putting the main men in obvious mascara and eyeshadow is well-documented and much appreciated. This observation began with the digitally remastered editions and wasn't noticed at the time. The relatively heavy television makeup was designed to create highlights and shadows since the cameras of that time saw flat. So to a 1960s viewer, even watching on a color set, the actors did not look heavily made up.
  • Catchphrase : Dr. McCoy's " I'm a Doctor, Not a Placeholder " and " He's Dead, Jim ." Spock's "Fascinating" and "Illogical."
  • Catch the Conscience : "The Conscience of the King" plays with this trope; a man suspected of being the murderous tyrant Kodos the Executioner happens to be an actor currently starring in a production of Hamlet .
  • Usually in the form of the Enterprise or a second landing party arriving to save the day.
  • Lampshaded in "Friday's Child" when Kirk wonders why " the cavalry doesn't come over the hill in the nick of time anymore ." Then Scotty arrives with a Redshirt Army .
  • While Kirk has a lot of trauma and is a Broken Hero in the show, the writers obviously didn’t know they were going to have a movie series and give him a son that he knew about but had to stay away from. The Autobiography of James T. Kirk can do some fancy Arc Welding with how much Kirk likes running away from his problems; having the kid from “A Piece Of The Action” remind him of David, the traumas of season three pushing him to think he wants to be an Admiral, and reasoning that the more trio-based episodes after the first season is because of what happened with Edith and Sam.
  • Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan took Kirk’s penchant for Just Ignore It and applied it to the nature of the show, forcing him to actually deal with his consistent loss and pain, and certain villains of the weeks coming back to prove he can’t just run away from everything. “Generations” and his 10-Minute Retirement after all he’s gone through, does it as well.
  • Characterisation Click Moment : Originally, Spock didn't have the impassive, scientific characterization he is famous for. Leonard Nimoy said the character first began to click for him in "The Corbomite Maneuver", when the director suggested he "be the scientist, stay detached", and react to Balok's threatening ship with "Fascinating."
  • Cheated Angle : The Enterprise is almost exclusively seen from the starboard side, even straight on angles are slightly turned away. The reason was a combination of budget and limitations of model-making technology, the electronics for the lights were fed in through the port side of the secondary hull and thus the starboard side was the only one fully detailed with painting, windows and decals (including the inside of the port nacelle, which would face the camera). Whenever there was a need to show the port side they would mirror flip the decals and then mirror the footage. The Remastered version of the show, with a CGI model, was able to do this more often.
  • Chewing the Scenery : The Klingon executive officer Korax in "The Trouble With Tribbles" insults the Enterprise For the Evulz , underlining the last two words of this speech loud and clear with a wide-eyed stare: "I didn't mean to say that the Enterprise should be hauling garbage. I meant to say that it should be hauled away as garbage! " note  Fans adore this line and loudly reciting the whole insult parade became a favorite gag at the conventions of the 1970s.
  • City in a Bottle : "For The World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" featured this on a generation ship.
  • " That Which Survives ". Thousands of years ago, a Human Alien civilization called the Kalandans made an artificial planet to live on. Unfortunately, the process created a microorganism that killed the personnel stationed on the planet. By the time they died, the disease had been transported back to the original civilization via supply ships, completely wiping it out.
  • '' Operation: Annihilate! " Going back to ancient times, a number of civilizations on different planets have been destroyed by outbreaks of mass insanity. The cause of the insanity is alien creatures that attack people and inject material into their bodies that takes control of their nervous systems. The aliens make the victims travel to other planets using starships, thus spreading the infection.
  • " What Are Little Girls Made Of? " The aliens who lived on the planet Exo 3 created android robots to serve them. When the androids developed Artificial Intelligence , the aliens became afraid of them and started to turn them off. In self defense, the androids Turned Against Their Masters and destroyed them.
  • " The Changeling ". The interstellar probe Nomad uses its alien technology-enhanced weapons to completely wipe out the population of the Malurian system, killing more than 4 billion people.
  • " I, Mudd ". The aliens who created the androids originally came from the Andromeda galaxy. Their home planet's star went nova and destroyed their civilization except for a few outposts, whose inhabitants died out over time.
  • " The Immunity Syndrome ". The entire population of the Gamma Seven-A system, consisting of billions of inhabitants, is killed by having their Life Energy drained by a giant space amoeba.
  • " Return to Tomorrow ". A half million years ago, a highly advanced Human Alien civilization fought an apocalyptic war that destroyed the surface of their planet, ripped away the atmosphere and killed all living creatures on it. Before the end, a few members stored their minds in advanced devices to wait rescue.
  • " The Empath ". The star Minara is about to go nova, and all of its planets (several of which have populations) will be destroyed. The Humanoid Alien Vians can only save the population of one planet. They do so, but the other civilizations are doomed.
  • " Let That Be Your Last Battlefied ". The Humanoid Aliens of the planet Cheron completely wipe themselves out in a genocidal war.
  • " The Lights of Zetar ". Long ago, every living thing on the planet Zetar was killed. The minds and Life Energy of 100 of its Humanoid Aliens inhabitants traveled into space and search for new bodies to possess.
  • " For the World Is Hollow, And I Have Touched The Sky ". Several thousand years ago, the Fabrini people's home sun went nova and destroyed their planets, but some of them were put on a ship resembling (or disguised as?) an asteroid and sent to another planet.
  • " Plato's Stepchildren ". When the planet Sahndara is destroyed by its sun going nova, almost all of its civilization is annihilated. A small number escape to Earth, then later another planet.
  • " Wink Of An Eye ". On the planet Scalos, radioactive water causes the entire race to live at hyper-accelerated speeds (which tremendously shortens their lifespans) and makes the male part of the population sterile. By the time the Enterprise arrives, there are only a few Scalosians left.
  • " All Our Yesterdays ". When the star Beta Niobe goes nova, its only planet, Sarpeidon, will be destroyed. However, the entire population of the planet has used time travel to journey into the planet's past. They are mentally and physically conditioned to fit in, but their civilization in the future is effectively destroyed.
  • Happens once in a while. In "Journey to Babel", Sarek is accused of murdering a Tellarite ambassador. The culprit is an Orion pretending to be a staff member of the Andorian ambassador. In "Court Martial", Kirk is accused of causing the death of one of his crew members. The crew member has faked his own death and is trying to sabotage Kirk's career, as he blames Kirk for ruining his.
  • Scotty has to do this in "Wolf in the Fold" after being set up for several murders by none other than Jack the Ripper himself—actually an alien entity who took possession over the centuries of (among others) Jack the Ripper and the city administrator investigating Scotty's alleged murders (conveniently stonewalling the investigation in the process).
  • Even Spock gets in on the fun in "The Menagerie", although the crime in Spock's case is mutiny, not murder, and the whole ordeal is arranged by an alien entity just like the other incidents, albeit out of compassion rather than any sinister motive. Then again, unlike in the other cases, Spock is actually guilty, and not mind controlled or framed - he just has a very justifiable motive.
  • Clip Show : "The Menagerie" shows us most of the original pilot episode, "The Cage".
  • Clothing Damage : Kirk must have a pretty steep uniform allowance to cover all of those shirts that get torn up (or completely torn off of him). An unintended case can be seen in "The Savage Curtain" when Kirk's pants split open in the back for a brief moment.
  • Combat by Champion : "Arena" has Kirk vs. Gorn captain. "Amok Time" has Kirk vs. Spock. "The Gamesters of Triskelion" has Kirk, Chekov, and Uhura vs. an Amazing Technicolor Population .
  • Comic-Book Adaptation : Gold Key Comics published its first Star Trek comic in 1967 and the series outlived the TV show by a full decade (ending only because Marvel Comics took over the rights so it could publish comics set post- Star Trek: The Motion Picture ). Early issues are noted for their bizarre artwork and extreme breaks with TV continuity, due in part to the artist being a freelancer living in Europe who had never seen the series and only had publicity photographs to work with. As a result, one issue features a cut-away drawing that suggests that the Enterprise isn't much bigger than a large yacht, while another issue has the Enterprise landing on a planet, decades before Star Trek: Voyager does it. Later, Marvel, DC Comics , and IDW Publishing all took turns publishing comics set in the TOS era.
  • This is the main draw of the franchise for many. Professional people from a variety of fields act professionally and work together to solve problems by the end of the episode.
  • Some newer Trek stuff is controversial with the old fans for the characters acting less professionally and competently and getting by more on luck and Indy Ploys .
  • Constellations as Locations : Implied with the Orions (the original Green-Skinned Space Babes). Background information and later parts of the franchise established that the green-skinned aliens were from the planet Orion, which is located in the Orion Sector (which sector is presumably geocentrically named for the Earth constellation).
  • Corrective Lecture : Attempted by Kirk in "Charlie X", when he attempts to explain to Charlie why slapping Yeoman Rand on the butt was not appropriate behavior, but also not trying to come down hard on Charlie, who had (as Kirk believed at the time) no supervision as a child, being the sole survivor of a crash when he was young. Kirk, trying to avoid having The Talk with Charlie, can only sum it up by saying, "There's no right way to hit a woman."
  • Couldn't Find a Pen : In one episode, a Horta (essentially a lava monster) burns, " NO KILL I " on the ground. Spock wonders if this translates to "I don't kill" or "Don't kill me". Or both? She doesn't explain, so it's left up to the viewer, but she's in agony and more concerned about her kids.
  • In "The Menagerie", Spock gets put on trial for commandeering the Enterprise and taking it to a forbidden planet.
  • " Court Martial ": Kirk gets put on trial for (seemingly) causing the death of a crew member through negligence.
  • Courtroom Episode : " Court Martial ", "Wolf In The Fold"
  • Cowboy Episode : "Spectre of the Gun", in which the main characters are forced to re-enact the gunfight at the O.K. Corral on an alien world.
  • Creator Cameo : Gene Roddenberry himself voiced the ship's cook in " Charlie X ".
  • Credits Montage : Featuring not only stills from the episode in question, but random shots from various other episodes as well.
  • In "Miri" they just do the familiar "nyah nyah-nyah nyah nyah" chant but it's made very sinister.
  • Cunning People Play Poker : The Corbomite Maneuver " when faced with Balok's incomprehensible mothership threatening to destroy the Enterprise, Spock contextualises their situation as a game of chess and concludes Balok has declared checkmate. Captain Kirk changes the game to poker, and then bluffs that Enterprise has a defense feature that will ensure that if it's destroyed, Balok's ship will also get blown up.
  • Spock is totally unaffected by Tribbles. He is only petting it because it is logical ... What's everybody looking at?
  • And cats. He has no particular fondness for the creatures . note  Vulcans were often compared with cats in fan essays of the time, and someone wrote a half-serious essay on how they could have evolved from felidae.
  • And dogs, too. See the space dog in "The Enemy Within".
  • Used as foreshadowing in “The Enemy Within”, as good Kirk (who thinks he’s the original at this point) is weepier than normal and gets distracted by the animal he’s holding being soft while trying to give orders. It turns out to be just a side of him that he needs, along with the toxic aggressive part of himself.
  • The Cloud Minders , which features the oppressive sky-city of Stratos and its subordinate, ground-dwelling Troglytes, some of whom have formed the rebellious Disrupters in an attempt to overthrow the city.
  • Return Of The Archons in which a whole society is run by a mind-controlling computer, and an underground resistance has formed to overthrow it.
  • Daddy's Little Villain : "The Conscience of the King" (a tragic Double Subversion ). The daughter of a former villain in hiding uses their cover as a performing theater troupe to kill off the remaining witnesses to her father's previous crimes as a way of "protecting" him from recrimination. Her father is extremely displeased with her when he finds out, having hoped to start a legitimate new life in their cover identities, and appalled that the blood on his hands had irreversibly stained her, as well.
  • Damn, It Feels Good to Be a Gangster! : "A Piece of the Action". The inhabitants of Sigma Iotia II are so enamored of 1920s Chicago gang culture that they decided to base their entire civilization on it .
  • Damsel out of Distress : Double subverted in “A Taste Of Armageddon”, as Kirk is held hostage and Spock comes in just as he’s got himself out of it. Kirk replies to “we thought you needed help” with admitting he still does.
  • Dangerously Garish Environment : " The Way to Eden " shows a group of space hippies taking over the Enterprise to fly to a "paradise planet." The planet is beautiful enough, but everything on it is lethal , and the hippie leader dies when he refuses to believe it.
  • "For The World Is Hollow And I Have Touched The Sky" is this for McCoy.
  • "A Wolf in the Fold" and "The Lights of Zetar" for Scotty.
  • Days of Future Past : Primarily a Space Western , with Kirk frequently acting as the Army Scout who helps the struggling colonists. But there was also plenty of "Age Of Sail" IN SPACE and the American Cold War IN SPACE.
  • Dead Man Writing : "That Which Survives". Losira's computer message to her fellow Kalandans about the death of the colony. Also the last surviving crewman of the USS Exeter recording a log warning anyone who finds it of the plague (while logging, the crewman succumbs).
  • Averted in "Spectre of the Gun" when Spock surprises McCoy by giving him a genuine compliment. McCoy : "I doubt that this combination of things was ever used for any purpose quite like this." Spock : (Sincerely) "Perhaps they would've been if [these people] had your ingenuity, Doctor." McCoy : (Looks up and blinks in surprise)
  • Death Ray : Phasers, at their highest setting, become Disintegrator Rays .
  • Decadent Court : The Romulan government at several points is implied to be one. The Platonians in "Plato's Stepchildren" started out with a good idea—create a society based upon Plato's Republic —but ended up as this after centuries of isolation. In "The Gamesters of Triskelion," the three brains running the planet have resorted to pitting random aliens against each other in gladiatorial combat after losing their purpose in life.
  • Deconstructed Trope : Kirk uses his sexuality a lot like a male version of a Heroic Seductress , but not only does he see it as Necessarily Evil , gets him a rep in-universe and he’s called out if he gets too cold, but Janice Lester is able to get away with Never My Fault (claiming he left her when it got serious when clearly she was the abusive one) and he’s drugged or coerced in some way no less than four times.
  • Depending on the Writer : The actors themselves have admitted that the characters’ levels of feminism range from early women’s lib with messages like right to choose at best, slightly patronising or just outright sexist insults at worst, depending on who was writing the episode. The main show creators to be sincere feminists were Gene L. Coon and D.C. Fontana.
  • A de-materializer, which breaks down the object in a controlled fashion.
  • A buffer, which holds the disintegrated object until transmission.
  • A transmitter, which transmits the disintegrated object as a beam of energy.
  • A re-materializer, which reintegrates the object in a controlled fashion.
  • invoked Contrary to popular opinion, the transported object is indeed the original object from the start, and the device does not kill living things that are being transported; it's the same matter, just transmuted into energy, beamed to a new location, and then transmuted back to matter. note  People transported are in fact conscious during transport. If there's unbroken continuity of consciousness, then there cannot have been a death. However, as you can probably imagine , transporters can be rather scarily dangerous if some part of the process were to be interrupted .
  • Deus est Machina : Several episodes, notably "The Apple".
  • Deus ex Machina : "Charlie X" (the Thasians), "Shore Leave" (the Keeper), "The Squire of Gothos" (Trelane's parents), "Errand of Mercy" (the Organians).
  • In "Obsession," the vampire cloud, which has been freely munching on the crew, finally heads home to reproduce. Kirk beams down to the planet Where It All Began to deliver a chunk of antimatter. When it blows, it rips half the planet's atmosphere away .
  • In "The Immunity Syndrome", the Enterprise must deliver an anti-matter bomb to the nucleus of the giant space amoeba . In a twist, Mr. Spock volunteers for a separate suicide mission , to deliver the probe that enables Kirk to target the nucleus.
  • The planet Gamma Trianguli VI in "The Apple" includes plants that throw poisonous thorns, rocks that act like anti-personnel mines, and directed lightning strikes. The novelization explains that this is because the planet's 'god' identifies the Starfleet people as a danger and want to eliminate them before they can interfere.
  • The planet Eden in the episode "The Way To Eden". Looks beautiful, but beware of differing chemistry; the fruit is poisonous and the even the grass is highly acidic.
  • Death of the Old Gods : "Who Mourns For Adonais" has the Enterprise meeting Apollo, the last of the Greek gods (who were actually Sufficiently Advanced Aliens ). Kirk pretty much tells him to stuff it, and then gets schizophrenic about whether humanity has Outgrown Such Silly Superstitions as religion in general, or just moved on to Christianity.
  • Depraved Bisexual : Dr Coleman from “Turnabout Intruder” is Janice’s lover, but is also fine with her spirit being in the body of Kirk, and responds to Janice-in-Kirk’s seduction.
  • Devil's Advocate : Spock would occasionally perform the duty of the Devil's Advocate, typically countering McCoy 's or Kirk 's spontaneous, Gut Feeling -inspired actions.
  • Various extra-series material (novels, for example), often refer in a disparaging way to the more "out there" episodes from The Original Series , usually in the form of Starfleet Officials claiming Kirk made up a large number of his reports, with his motive being contempt for his superiors. Invariably mentioned is the universally disbelieved incident in which aliens "stole the brain of Kirk's Science Officer," a reference to the episode in which Spock's brain is, indeed, stolen by alien babes, and which is considered to be the worst episode of the original series, if not of Star Trek as a whole.
  • The foreword to the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture essentially says that the original series is a overwrought dramatization of actual events which should be regarded as unreliable. Fans debate its canonicity, since, while Trek literature is officially considered non-canonical, it's the only novel written by Gene Roddenberry himself.
  • Disintegration Chamber : In "A Taste of Armageddon" the (virtually) warring planets Eminiar and Vendikar use "disintegration machines" to dispose of persons who have been deemed casualties.
  • Disney Dog Fight : At the end of " Requiem for Methuselah ", Robot Girl Rayna Kapec must choose between Flint and Captain Kirk. The strain causes her to overload and die.
  • Distress Call : 14 different episodes (including both pilots) start with the Enterprise receiving or already responding to a distress signal.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything? : The platonians in “Plato’s Stepchildren” are played like domestic abusers. Parmen’s speech after he makes Kirk slap himself for speaking up to him is making excuses for himself and plying the three with gifts. When they force Kirk to act like a horse and Spock to laugh then cry, they blame Bones for what’s happening, and all three men are traumatised by it afterwards.
  • Door Jam : Several episodes (notably "Arena" and "The Tholian Web") contrive ways for Kirk to end up alone facing the Monster of the Week without back-up, whether becaue of alien meddling, transporter malfunctions, or interdiminesional anomalies.
  • Doomsday Device : "The Doomsday Machine" features a planet-eating device.
  • Doppelmerger : In one episode, a Teleporter Accident results in both Captain Kirk and a doglike alien getting turned into two individuals, one of whom has all of their negative traits. They eventually get fused back together in the transporter, and while the alien dies (ostensibly from too much fear), Kirk survives.
  • Double Standard: Abuse, Female on Male : Lampshaded in “Turnabout Intruder” when Lester in Kirk acts like it’s ludicrous to imagine a small woman like Lester overpowering a muscled man like Kirk. Ends up being an example anyway, as she’s Easily Forgiven to the point where even Shatner complained nothing was resolved, and Nimoy was disgusted she’s just treated as a stupidly Hysterical Woman , by design. His rant on this subject for the book Shatner: Where No Man is well known and often quoted online.
  • Even discounting the times he uses his prettiness and charm to get himself or his crew out of trouble, Kirk has a pretty bad track record on the whole being able to consent, whether it’s the one Green-Skinned Space Babe of the series forcing a kiss on him in “Whom Gods Destroy”, the Bed Trick in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , Deela enjoying kissing him when he’s not aware of her in “Wink Of An Eye”, mind raped in “Dagger Of The Mind” to believe he had sex and was in love, or having sex with Elaan after her tears drug him. He’s not exactly happy about all of it, but it seems to be something he feels like he just has to deal with.
  • Spock gets his own turn in “This Side Of Paradise”, Leila deciding that she wants him to stay, and giving him no choice in the matter by subjecting him to spores that affect his mind.
  • Doves Mean Peace : The Elba II and Tantalus Penal Colonies (which are both colonies that dealt with trying to treat the insane and cure them of their insanity) use insignias with a dove in it.
  • Downer Ending : "Who Mourns For Adonais", "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield", "The City On The Edge Of Forever", "Requiem for Methuselah", "Charlie X" and "A Private Little War".
  • Dramatic Chase Opening : "The Return of the Archons" starts with Sulu and another crewman running from some pursuers in a city street. They're both caught.
  • Dramatic Downstage Turn : Several instances, especially during dramatic scenes featuring female cast members. One simple example appears in a conversation between Leila and Spock near the end of the episode "This Side of Paradise".
  • Dress-Up Episode : a lot . "A Piece of the Action", "Return of the Archons", "Assignment: Earth", "The City on the Edge of Forever", that one where they ended up dressed as Nazis ("Patterns of Force")... This trope was popular because it allowed them to use standard, pre-existing costumes, props and sets, rather than having to make expensive new ones. There had been very few science fiction television shows (as opposed to movies) up to that time, outside of children's series like Captain Video and Tom Corbett Space Cadet . Series like One Step Beyond (1959) and The Twilight Zone (1959) often had people in normal clothing facing unusual situations. There were very few props hanging around to be re-used, unlike today, when science fiction has been popular for a long time.
  • Perhaps the most famous example, Captain Pike from the first pilot. More accurately, everyone but Spock was replaced.
  • The 2nd pilot episode, "Where No Man Has Gone Before", has Ship's Doctor Mark Piper, Communications Officer Alden, and Yeoman Smith. They were replaced by Leonard McCoy, Lieutenant Uhura, and Janice Rand, respectively, in the series.
  • Drowning My Sorrows : Bones and Kirk have a tendency to drink together, especially when Bones thinks Kirk isn’t handling shit well.
  • Dude, She's Like in a Coma : Deela from “Wink Of An Eye” is upfront about liking to kiss Kirk when he’s not aware of her, teasing that he’s probably used to that happening to him, and coos over him being pretty while he’s unconscious.
  • Spock's no slouch either. He's in the Vulcan Scientific Legion of Honor, and received two decorations for valor from Starfleet Command.
  • Duel to the Death : "Arena", "Amok Time", "The Gamesters of Triskelion".
  • Dutch Angle : Used in "Wink of an Eye" to denote the scenes taking place in hyper-accelerated time.
  • Dysfunction Junction : Despite the Status Quo Is God (series-only, not the films), everyone except Chekov is a mess; Kirk bases his identity on serving the Enterprise and thinks he doesn’t deserve to be happy, Spock is subject to Half-Breed Discrimination from everyone and has an estranged family , Bones has Chronic Hero Syndrome and killed his dying father only for there to be a cure months later, Chapel’s fiance goes insane and kills himself, and All There in the Manual has Uhura be a lonely Stepford Smiler , Scotty start drinking after his nephew dies at his post, and Sulu’s home be victim of a terrorist attack when he was young.
  • Dying Race : The Talosians in "The Menagerie," the Calandans in "That Which Survives," and the Scalosians in "Wink of an Eye."
  • And speaking of warp, the original Enterprise uses warp all the time, even for combat maneuvers, unless circumstances force them to rely on her impulse drive. Later series have ships use warp drive when they need to get from one place to another very quickly while sticking to impulse for combat and in-system maneuvers.
  • Though it's more subtle and less jarring than the transition from pilots to series, the first half of the first season (produced by Roddenberry) has a much stronger Wagon Train to the Stars emphasis, with the Enterprise functioning as a deep space exploration vessel whose missions often involved surveying uncharted space and re-supplying isolated frontier posts. When Gene Coon took over as showrunner, he introduced the United Federation of Planets, the Prime Directive, and the Klingon Empire, and the Enterprise took on many more diplomatic and strategic missions more consistent with a Cold War setting than The Wild West .
  • In this series, the Klingons are generally duplicitous schemers while Romulans are honor-bound warriors . This is the exact inverse of how these two races would be portrayed in later series. The more primitive make-up also means both races lack their forehead ridges ; the Klingons are just copper-skinned humans while the Romulans are more explicitly identical to Vulcans.
  • The Prime Directive functions quite differently in this series compared to any other — here it's effectively "don't make contact with primitive civilizations unless you absolutely have to, and never give advanced technology to primitives". The Prime Directive is waived in cases where said civilizations would be in danger from external forces (usually the Klingons) if the crew didn't act. By the time of Star Trek: The Next Generation , the Prime Directive has been redefined as "don't get involved in the affairs of any other civilization, regardless of their technology level, even if they ask you directly for help".
  • Speeds of Warp 10 and higher are mentioned a few times. Later series would establish Warp 10 as infinite speed and the absolute maximum way that speed can be quantified.
  • Most viewers are familiar with the red, blue, and green/gold uniforms used throughout most of the show, but in the first few episodes produced - including the pilot and " Where No Man Has Gone Before " - members of the Services department wear bronze uniforms. Notably, Spock, Gary Mitchell, and Lt. Kelso in "Where No Man Has Gone Before" all wear bronze uniforms that are quite distinct from Kirk's gold uniform.
  • Kirk takes point on almost every landing party. Later series (especially Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager ) have The Captain stay on the ship more often while the Number Two leads the away teams. In addition, the later series give the captain an office next to The Bridge for filling out paperwork and meeting with people one-on-one, something Kirk didn't have.
  • Easily Forgiven : The Kelvans in " By Any Other Name ". They hijack the ship, threaten the entire crew, and kill a female yeoman as a demonstration of their power (she wasn't acting as a danger to them in any way). And yet, at the end, Kirk forgives and agrees to help them.Then again, this could be sheer pragmatism given the Kelvan's power level and the fact that he has barely managed to convince them not to kill the rest of his crew (which they could do very easily).
  • Eat Dirt, Cheap : The Horta. It's a silicon lifeform that eats rocks.
  • Aside from the “you’ll be taught how to use your tongue” line, Kor in "Errand Of Mercy" circles Kirk and very obviously looks at his ass.
  • In “Spock’s Brain”, a woman comes onto the Enterprise, makes everyone collapse and because Kirk fell in a way that shows off his ass, she checks it out.
  • The Echoer : Played with. The episode "Assignment: Earth" has the mysterious Gary Seven conduct a covert operation on Earth during a 1968 orbital platform launch. While at his workstation, a secretary named Roberta walks in. Gary Seven needs to know what happened to two other agents on the same assignment, so he has Roberta sit at a dictation machine: an electric typewriter with a microphone and speech recognition software. When the machine starts typing every word Roberta says, she gets increasingly flustered, and Gary Seven is compelled to switch it off.
  • Eldritch Starship : The ethereal Thasians' ship, an odd lighting effect; the Planet Killer, a conical machine miles long that eats planets; and Balok's enormous, odd spaceship, the Fesarius .
  • Empathic Healer : Gem of " The Empath " heals injuries by taking the patient's pain into herself.
  • Empire with a Dark Secret : In " The Mark of Gideon ", there is a germ-free "paradise" of a planet which is willing to join the Federation. However, the reason why they invite only Kirk to their planet is so they can decrease the planet's overpopulation by using Kirk, who had a rare disease in his blood, to infect people.
  • The Klingons team up with the Enterprise crew in "Day of the Dove" to escape the emotion-eating entity that wants them to fight to death for its amusement.
  • In "Errand of Mercy", ironically, Kirk and Kor seem to be united in their mutual loathing of the Organians, somewhat to Kirk's surprise and Kor's amusement.
  • Enforced Cold War : Examples abound, since the show was written during the Cold War. Examples of this include the plots of "Balance of Terror", "Errand of Mercy", "The Trouble with Tribbles", "Friday's Child", and "Elaan of Troyius".
  • Enlightened Self-Interest : In " Whom Gods Destroy ", the insane Garth tries to convince Kirk and Spock that they should be friends (with the implication that the other option would be "or I kill you"). Spock: On what, precisely, is our friendship to be based? Garth: Upon the firmest of foundations, Mister Spock. Enlightened self-interest.
  • Escort Distraction : In "Mirror, Mirror", Lieutenant Uhura gets slinky-minky with Mirror!Sulu on the bridge so that Mirror!Sulu won't notice a warning light on his com panel. Engineer Scott is disabling the ship's phasers and bypassing transporter protocols in an effort to return the landing party to their correct universe. Once the tampering alert stops flashing, Uhura curtails the snugglies.
  • Everyone Can See It : A growing trend in the series and movies would be for Kirk and Spock to be off in their own little world, and background characters look either curious or annoyed. Original Series fans often viewed this (and wrote fan fiction accordingly) as close comrades thinking alike or even incipient telepathy rather than sexual interest, especially after Kirk was shown in a few episodes picking up on things intuitively.
  • "Everybody Laughs" Ending : Well, everybody but Spock. "Shore Leave", "The Trouble With Tribbles", "The Galileo Seven", "Spock's Brain". An actual plot point in "Day of the Dove", when the laughter drives the Energy Being away.
  • Evil Is Hammy : "The Enemy Within" has Evil!Kirk Chewing the Scenery .
  • Evil Twin : "The Enemy Within", which featured Kirk's evil self separated from his good self via transporter malfunction, and "Mirror, Mirror", which featured an entire universe of evil twins.
  • Explosive Breeder : The Tribbles are hermaphroditic and born pregnant. McCoy: The nearest thing I can figure out is they're born pregnant... which seems to be quite a time saver!
  • Expositron 9000 : The ship's computer.
  • A key example can be found in the episode "Requiem for Methuselah". In Flint's home, Mr. Spock finds a waltz by Johannes Brahms written in original manuscript in Brahms' own hand, but which is unknown. Likewise, Flint has a collection of Leonardo da Vinci masterpieces that have been recently painted on contemporary canvas with contemporary materials. Flint later admits that he was Brahms and da Vinci , among others.
  • "Who Mourns for Adonais?" reveals that the Greek gods were actually nearly-immortal aliens who helped inspire and build classical Greek culture in exchange for being worshipped .
  • The Face : Uhura is the Communications Officer , though Kirk handles important parleys, negotiations, and First Contacts himself.
  • Fade Around the Eyes : In the episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before", in one scene with Gary Mitchell after he has undergone his transformation, the rest of the screen fades out, leaving only his silver eyes visible.
  • Failed Future Forecast : The fact that it was a show set in the future but made while the Soviet Union was still around means that a lot of things said by the Russian Chekov got outdated. There's his My Grandma Can Do Better Than You exchange with Scotty where Scotty tells Chekov that Scotch whisky is a man's drink, and Chekov replies that it was invented by a little old lady from "Leningrad" . Chekov also attributes one of the "Russian inwentions" to somebody in Minsk, which was part of the Soviet Union but is now in modern-day Belarus.
  • Fallen Hero : Gary Mitchell, John Gill, Garth of Izar.
  • In "The Immunity Syndrome" Spock is in a shuttlecraft, adrift, and losing power. Kirk gives the order to bring the shuttle aboard, but Spock, fearing such a delay would endanger the ship, tries to warn them off. McCoy is having none of it. McCoy: Shut up, Spock! We're rescuing you! (nods at Jim, who nods back) Spock: ( Fascinating Eyebrow ) Why thank you, Captain McCoy.
  • Fan of the Past : Sulu and his Fleeting Passionate Hobbies , which the rest of the crew regard as unusual for the time period.
  • For people more into the men, the original uniforms, even untouched, were particularly flattering. The tendency for Kirk to get his shirt off or torn certainly counts, too. "Charlie X" features Kirk shirtless and in tights. It's very distracting. Also, Sulu goes topless in "The Naked Time".
  • And then for the fetish crowd, there's "Patterns of Force" with its whips, chains, and shirtlessness.
  • " The Devil in the Dark " has a mining colony be terrorized by an unknown creature. Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock explore the mine, and find the creature - a Horta. When it advances, they fire their phasers at it, creating a wound and causing it to retreat. However, once Spock conducts a psychic rapport with the creature, he and Kirk realize it's a brood mother defending her egg clutch. Doctor McCoy is brought in to heal the creature, which he does with silicon-based spackling compound. This ad hoc bandage works well, to the doctor's surprise.
  • In " Journey To Babel ", Bones performs surgery on Spock's father Sarek. As a Vulcan, Sarek's organs are arranged a bit differently than a human (his heart is where a human's liver is, for example), and Spock is the only crew member who can donate blood to him.
  • The episode " Spock's Brain " has a humanoid alien incapacitate the crew of the Enterprise . Upon recovery, they discover that she has absconded Spock's brain, leaving his body alive but mindless. It becomes the episode's mission to track down the brain thief and recover Spock's brain before his body fails from lack of purpose. Bones is ultimately able to operate on Spock and get his brain back in.
  • Dr. McCoy seems full of it, insulting Spock's "green blood," "computer" mind, and other Vulcan traits. Kirk and Spock often comment on the differences between Vulcans and Humans, but in a Gentleman Snarker way without any malice.
  • Spock gives back as good as he gets with his snarking about "human emotion." However, the context makes it clear that this is nothing more than banter amongst good friends and colleagues. Anyone but Kirk, Spock, McCoy, or (occasionally) Scotty trying to invoke this trope gets smacked down hard (usually—and appropriately—by Kirk, but Scotty does it to a junior officer in at least one episode).
  • Several episodes also revolve around two alien species' hatred of each other for no good reason.
  • Fascinating Eyebrow : When Spock raises his eyebrow, he says "fascinating" very nearly every time.
  • Feigning Healthiness : Whilst transporting numerous dignitaries in " Journey To Babel ", Captain Kirk is hospitalised by an assassin and Spock takes over command of the Enterprise. Meanwhile, Spock's father Sarek (one of the diplomats) needs a blood transfusion, with Spock as the only viable donor. However, as the quantity needed would also put him out of action for several days, Spock's sense of duty won't allow him to relinquish command whilst the ship is still in danger. To avoid him being responsible for his father's death, Kirk fakes an early recovery to retake command. He initially plans to simply hand over control to Scotty and return to his own treatment once the operation has started, but at that moment the Enterprise is attacked, forcing Kirk to stay on the bridge during the battle in spite of his wounds.
  • Female Gaze : The show had a loving relationship with Kirk’s ass, including a lingering shot of it as he walks out of his quarters in “The Corbomite Maneuver”. Nichelle Nichols in “Where No Man…” discussed the trope, summing up why female fans responded so well with both Kirk and Spock; Spock was emotionally unavailable, leaving women to want to get through to him, and Kirk was emotionally open as a man, when not many male characters were like that.
  • The Final Temptation : In "This Side of Paradise", the spores caused the target to be content with living a simple comfortable life, abandoning any greater ambitions.
  • Food and Animal Attraction : In "The Cage", during one of the illusions the Talosians create for Captain Pike, a horse starts nuzzling his jacket pocket in search of the sugar therein.
  • Forbidden Fruit : In "Requiem for Methuselah", the only part of Flint's mansion that Rayna Kapec is forbidden to enter is one specific room. Guess where she wants to go more than anywhere else? Flint doesn't want her to go in there for a good reason. It's the laboratory where she was created: she's a humanoid robot . The clue is when she tells Kirk that the area just outside that is the place she goes when she's troubled and wants to think things over.
  • Forceful Kiss : Deela plants one twice on Kirk in “Wink Of An Eye”, who struggles against her both times and is more concerned that all of his crew are in slow motion. Any other kisses between them are him trying to get her guard down. He gets a few of these in general, as well as can aggressively kiss women himself if he’s desperate or doing a particularly cold con.
  • Force-Field Door : The ship's brig has one of these.
  • In “Court Martial”, much is made of how Kirk has devoted his life to the service, and he could finally have had a breakdown, causing a lapse in judgement. Later episodes will have him genuinely messing up, and more on how his Married to the Job life is unhealthy, getting taunted in “Shore Leave” about how he can sleep forever if he wants to.
  • “Miri” is Close to Home for Kirk, Bones and Spock. For Spock it’s being between two worlds (a carrier, but still can’t go back to the ship), for Kirk we’ll see in “Conscience Of The King” why he assumes kids would just want comfort after a massacre, and for Bones, who had to let his father die, he has to race to find a cure before the last one of them goes mad and kills himself.
  • In “What Little Girls Are Made Of”, Kirk and his robot clone have a discussion about food, which ends by Robot Kirk (who knows Kirk’s backstory) smugly telling the real one he’ll never starve. A few episodes later, we find out that as a child, Kirk was a survivor of a famine-induced massacre.
  • In " Amok Time ", McCoy uses the fact that Spock hasn't eaten for three days in an attempt to convince Kirk that something is wrong, and Kirk dismisses it as simply being Spock in one of his contemplative phases.
  • Another example is " The Paradise Syndrome ", where Spock hardly eats for weeks while studying the obelisk.
  • Forgotten Fallen Friend : Everyone who got killed on the show. Deconstructed in the movies, movie novels and the All There in the Manual bios, as Kirk intentionally tries to forget about losses, because otherwise he can't deal. There's a tinch of evidence for this in the show too, as some characters like Dr. Korby or Sam Kirk are alluded to in episodes before they get axed, but never after.
  • Forgot the Call : In "The Paradise Syndrome", Kirk loses his memory and becomes a simple farmer, living on a planet with a bunch of displaced Native Americans.
  • A Form You Are Comfortable With : Trelane (" The Squire of Gothos "), the Organians (" Errand of Mercy "), the Thasians (" Charlie X "), the Metrons (" Arena "), and the Kelvans (who get stuck in that form in " By Any Other Name .")
  • Frequently-Broken Unbreakable Vow : Captain Kirk's willingness to break the Prime Directive whenever he needs to save the Enterprise and/or a "stagnant" culture is well known. He's also a hypocrite on the issue, condemning Captain Tracy in "The Omega Glory" for doing something he has done before and will do again.
  • Freudian Trio : Kirk (Ego), Spock (Superego) and McCoy (Id) form the page image for this trope.
  • Spock risks his career, and possibly his life, for his former captain (Pike) in "The Menagerie". Kirk does the same for Spock in "Amok Time", and again in the third movie.
  • Friends Are Chosen, Family Aren't : Spock has a very good relationship with his crewmates (particularly Kirk and McCoy ) considering he's culturally required to be The Stoic , but he has severe issues with his father, to the point where they didn't speak to one another as family for almost two decades. Stories involving his family show a different and troubled side to Spock.
  • FTL Test Blunder : "The Naked Time" has Spock and Scotty performing a Dangerous Forbidden Technique to restart the Enterprise's warp engines after they'd been shut down. It was an untried technique, with the possible consequence of blowing up the ship, but not doing it would guarantee crashing on a collapsing planet. Fortunately, the only consequence of the forced restart was that the Enterprise was flung three days back in time, introducing the idea of using the warp drive for time travel to the series, which would feature in other episodes and the franchise as a whole.
  • The Gadfly : Chekov and his constant, deliberately erroneous references to Glorious Mother Russia . It's made very clear that he only does it to mess with people's heads.
  • The paradise planet in "That Side of Paradise" is a lush world where no one can die and fills everyone with an innocent joy, even Spock. Spock outright calls it "a true Eden" and the episode ends with Kirk and McCoy concluding that the trouble they had on the planet means man was meant to leave the Garden of Eden.
  • The name "Eden" pops up in the episode "The Way to Eden", which is about a group of space hippies searching for the mythical paradise Eden. It turns out to be a False Utopia . Although Spock strongly encourages the hippies to continue to look for the real Eden, or make it themselves.
  • The Garden is also referenced in the episode "The Apple", where a race of innocent humanoids serve a "god", Vaal, a computer shaped like a serpent head. According to Chekov, the original Garden was located just outside Moscow. After Kirk and company save the day and destroy the false god, the knowledge of good and evil is then known by the inhabitants. Spock makes a reference and Kirk asks if there is anyone onboard who remotely resembles Satan. Spock: No-one to my knowledge.
  • Genocide Survivor : In "The Conscience of the King", Kirk is stated to be a survivor of a genocide on the planet Tarsus IV, where the Governor ordered thousands of citizens killed to ensure the rest could survive, using eugenics to decide who lived and died. Oddly, Kirk's status as a survivor of a genocide is rarely touched on elsewhere in the series.
  • George Lucas Altered Version : The late 2000's saw the series get a high-definition transfer for the series, but created special edition versions to show in syndication with remaking the existing visual effects shot for shot, some enhanced visuals to expand the environment and some newly created shots to help flesh out the story (largely establishing shots to help capture the look of other planets and cultures, including one of Starfleet Command). By and large the effort was made to capture the look and feel of the original FX with updated CGI renders rather than trying to play catch up on later parts of the franchise, though established Trek production legend Mike Okuda was the one to oversee it.
  • In the episode " The Naked Time ", Kirk does this to Spock. After several slaps, Spock finally retaliates and sends Kirk flying across the room. It does seem to work though.
  • Kirk attempts it on McCoy, who is under the influence of the Lotus-Eater Machine in " The Return of the Archons ". This one isn't so successful.
  • Get Back to the Future : "Tomorrow Is Yesterday", "All Our Yesterdays".
  • Get It Over With : Dr. McCoy has a version of this when he is attacked by Khan in Sickbay in " Space Seed ": Dr. McCoy: Well, either choke me or cut my throat. Make up your mind! Khan: English... I thought I'd dreamed hearing it. Where am I? Dr. McCoy: You're in bed, holding a knife at your doctor's throat. Khan: Answer my question. Dr. McCoy: It would be most effective if you would cut the carotid artery, just under the left ear.
  • Glowing Eyes of Doom : Gary Mitchell gains these when he gains godlike powers.
  • In " The Paradise Syndrome ", an amnesiac Kirk is mistaken for a deity by transplanted American Indians on a distant planet.
  • " Who Mourns for Adonais? " has an actual surviving Greek God who reveals he's just a powerful alien who had become too used to being worshiped by mortals.
  • In " The Omega Glory ", Spock is mistaken for the devil. (This was actually a real-life objection the producers had to his appearance.)
  • Godwin's Law of Time Travel : " The City on the Edge of Forever " has a plot where McCoy saving the life of Kirk's Girl of the Week causes a peace movement that leads to the US losing WWII and the Federation never existing. The episode ends with Kirk letting her die to preserve history.
  • Godzilla Threshold : In " A Taste of Armageddon " where Kirk and the landing party are being held captive by a civilization whose leaders' simply will not listen to reason and Kirk see that things are going to go from bad to worse to apocalyptic, he interrupts their leader speaking to Scotty through a communicator. Speaking quickly before he's restrained, he gives Scotty an encrypted order the aliens don't understand (General Order 24). Scotty calls them back to inform them that if they don't play ball, he'll use the Enterprise's weapons to destroy the entire surface area of their planet. His quiet, grim tone when he's telling them this leaves no doubt that he'll go through with it.
  • Gold-Colored Superiority : The captains wear gold uniforms. Anyone wearing a Red Shirt is not so lucky. This all changes starting with Star Trek: The Next Generation , however. The command uniforms were originally a greenish shade close to chartreuse, but the color came out on many people's TV sets as yellowish, so eventually the producers threw in the towel and changed them to gold.
  • In " The Alternative Factor ", Matter!Lazarus goes stark raving mad upon learning of the existence of his Anti-Matter double and becomes bent on destroying him, even if it means the destruction of both universes.
  • " Is There In Truth No Beauty? " revolves around Kollos, an ambassador of the Medusan race , whose physical appearance is so hideous: or maybe so beautiful: that any humanoid who looks at them directly goes insane. This is a subversion, as Kollos, in contrast with Shoggoths and Eldritch horrors, is clearly a good guy.
  • In "Patterns of Force," John Gill, a Human historian, broke the Prime Directive and encouraged the inhabitants of Ekos to institute fascism in order to combat its disorganized anarchy. It worked.
  • In "That Which Survives," a people rendered extinct by disease tried to prevent others from their planet from joining them by setting up a self-defense mechanism. It worked.
  • The adults in "Miri" tried to prolong their lives through bioengineering. They ended up creating a disease that did preserve life, but only in children. Adults are killed within a week.
  • "The Ultimate Computer" is meant to replace starship captains, but ends up killing Red Shirts because it is the most efficient way of doing things.
  • Good Cannot Comprehend Evil : In "The Savage Curtain", Surak, Spock, and President Lincoln have a hard time understanding the motives and actions of the opposing "evil" side. Only Kirk seems to have a grasp of their potential for deceptiveness and duplicity.
  • In "Return of the Archons" Spock decks somebody with an ordinary punch and Kirk says "Isn't that a little old-fashioned?"
  • Good Republic, Evil Empire : Why the Federation is unlike the Klingons, according to Kirk.
  • Got the Whole World in My Hand : The Terran Empire's sigil from "Mirror, Mirror" shows a dagger stabbed through the Earth.
  • Grand Theft Me : In " Turnabout Intruder ", the Girl of the Week and Mad Scientist Dr. Janice Lester uses an alien device to swap her mind into Kirk's body (poor, desperate girl) in order to fulfill her dream of being a starship Captain, because, y'know, chicks can't do that stuff in The Future (although it's made fairly clear that her mental instablity and not her gender is what prevented her from achieving success, for which she irrationally blames Kirk)... Anyhoo, Hilarity Ensues , and we get to watch William Shatner act like an Large Ham with a side of girl, instead of the usual Large Ham .
  • Grand Theft Prototype : In "The Enterprise Incident", the Starfleet Command sent the Enterprise on a mission to steal a cloaking device so they could learn how to neutralize it.
  • The Great Repair : In " The Galileo Seven ", an Enterprise shuttlecraft is pulled off course and crashes on an unknown planet. The crew is repeatedly attacked by primitive humanoids, and there's dissent over Commander Spock's decisions while Scotty attempts to repair the shuttle.
  • In the episode "Bread and Circuses" Bones gives Spock a Grudging "Thank You" and receives a Think Nothing of It in return. McCoy: Spock, er, I know we've, er, had our disagreements. Er, maybe they're jokes, I don't know. As Jim says, we're not often sure ourselves sometimes. But, er... what I'm trying to say is... Spock: Doctor, I am seeking a means of escape. Will you please be brief? McCoy: What I'm trying to say is, you saved my life in the arena. Spock: Yes, that's quite true. McCoy: [indignant] I'm trying to thank you, you pointed-eared hobgoblin! Spock: Oh yes, you humans have that emotional need to express gratitude. "You're welcome," I believe is the correct response.
  • There's another one in "Let This Be Your Last Battlefield". One of the aliens of the week is set up as someone who's hotheaded and difficult, but ultimately at least somewhat sympathetic. Viewers get a hint of that second half coming when in his first exchange with Kirk and McCoy, after reacting very angrily to their (perfectly accurate) accusation that he had stolen a Federation ship, the alien visibly pulls himself together enough to thank them quite sincerely for rescuing him.
  • The Guards Must Be Crazy : In "A Taste of Armageddon", "Space Seed", "All Our Yesterdays", "A Piece of the Action" and "Whom Gods Destroy".
  • "A Piece of the Action" is the funniest example. Captain Kirk positively revels in giving all the mob chiefs offers they can't refuse.
  • The series was partially inspired by the Horatio Hornblower books.
  • Guy on Guy Is Hot : Practically a fandom nod in “Wink Of An Eye”, as Deela notes Kirk “feels great affection for the Vulcan”, and wonders if she can make him demonstrate that, the actress’s tone of voice knowing full well what she’s insinuating.
  • Halloween Episode : " Catspaw ", which was first broadcast on October 27, 1967.
  • Hands-On Approach : In “Requiem For Methuselah”, and as he still has no clue how to play from “Piece Of The Action”, Reyna teaches Kirk to play pool.
  • Hate Plague : In "Day of the Dove", an Energy Being that feeds on hate brings the Federation and the Klingons, who are trying to abide by the peace treaty, into conflict. It goes as far as implanting False Memories so that the manipulated will have an extra source of conflict. Those who are killed are somehow brought back to life with their fatal wounds healed to fight again. Once they all figure it out, the creature is repelled from the ship by laughter. Lots and lots of laughter.
  • He Who Fights Monsters : This trope is why Alexander, the court jester of the Platonians in "Plato's Stepchildren", refuses to take McCoy's concoction that will give him psychic powers. As much as he loathes Parmen for his abuse, the idea that he could turn out as cruel and manipulative as his master, along with even greater psychic abilities to boot, sickens him even more.
  • "This Side of Paradise" After Kirk deliberately provokes Spock to anger to kill alien spores manipulating him. Spock says that striking a fellow officer is a court martial offense. It's clear Spock is embarrassed by his emotional behavior, no matter how involuntary. Kirk reasons, logically as Spock notes, that if they're both in the brig no one can build the device needed to free the rest of the crew.
  • "Amok Time" has Spock in the grip of blood fever during a bout of pon farr . Spock explains the situation to Kirk and McCoy, who both tell him that they'll never tell another soul about the private information he's divulged to them. This is especially poingnant for the Doctor, as he and Spock are Vitriolic Best Buds , and it would be easy for him to mock Spock over it, but he never does.
  • The Hero : Captain Kirk
  • And Spock in Amok Time when he believes he has killed Kirk.
  • High-Heel–Face Turn : Frequently with women Kirk seduced.
  • Historical Domain Superperson : In the episode "Requiem for Methuselah" the Enterprise crew meets an old human named Flint who is both immortal and possessed of superhuman strength. Flint was originally born around 3800 BC and lived as many notable historical figures during his long lifetime including King Solomon, Alexander the Great , Johannes Brahms , Leonardo da Vinci , and Lazarus. He kept his immortality secret by letting each persona eventually "die" and establishing a new identity elsewhere.
  • Hollow World : "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched The Sky" has a variation, a shell covering an artificial planetoid to hold the atmosphere in.
  • Hollywood Torches : In "Errand of Mercy" and "Catspaw".
  • Holodeck Malfunction : Subverted in the episode " Shore Leave ". The planet's safety protocols are working just fine, but the landing party doesn't know that and thinks they are actually in danger. The protocols do break down when the Enterprise returns to the planet in the animated series because the guy in charge died in the meantime and the AI chose to go rogue through sheer boredom.
  • Honor Before Reason : In "Spectre of the Gun", Kirk refuses to ambush the Earps, in spite of the severe danger they present. Even after one of them kills Chekhov, he doesn't kill the defeated party.
  • Hotter and Sexier : Look at “The Corbomite Maneuver” in comparison to “The Cage”. The women’s uniforms go from turtlenecks and pants to mini-dresses, and stern Chaste Hero Pike gets replaced with Captain “tits out in the hallway” Kirk.
  • Human Aliens : Most alien races encountered are indistinguishable from humans, even the Klingons; they weren't given rubber foreheads until the films. This is mostly due to budget reasons, though it's odd that only Spock requires a disguise whenever the crew infiltrates an alien world.
  • Humans Are Interesting : Or fascinating , even.
  • Spock as well, in "Operation Annihilate" where he is in unbearable pain as a result of being infected by an alien parasite and nearly driven insane. He still insists on returning to duty, claiming (truthfully) that he can control the pain with Vulcan techniques.
  • I, Noun : " I, Mudd ".
  • I Have Your Wife : Plenty of villains seem to know that threatening Spock will get Kirk to cooperate (at least for a while), and vice versa. Sometimes it’s “I have your crew”/”I have your captain” but mostly it’s just those two.
  • "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight : Kirk and Spock in "This Side of Paradise"; Kirk has to get Spock angry enough so he can overcome the influence of the mind-altering spores. It worked a bit better than Kirk was counting on.
  • Idiosyncratic Cultural Gesture : "Journey to Babel" reveals that Vulcan couples extend their pointer and middle fingers from their hand and touch the tips as a sign of being in a relationship.
  • I'm a Doctor, Not a Placeholder : Trope Maker ; Dr. McCoy's Catchphrase whenever called upon to perform a task or give advice outside of his expertise.
  • Imperiled in Pregnancy : In " Friday's Child ", a usurper named Ma'ab kills Aka'ar, the Teer (tribal king), in an attempted coup. He then demands Aka'ar's pregnant wife Eleen and her unborn son killed, as the unborn son is the true heir of succession. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy have to go on the run with Eleen to keep her safe.
  • The Gorn in Arena shrugs off injuries that would kill a human and is very strong, but isn't very agile. Kirk finally manages to stop it using an improvised cannon.
  • The two aliens in "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" are the last members of their respective races and still continue to fight it out.
  • Impostor-Exposing Test : In "The Trouble with Tribbles", the Tribble dislike for Klingons is used to identify the Klingon spy disguised as a human.
  • Improvised Bandage : A mysterious alien creature has been menacing some Federation miners, and Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock investigate. When they encounter the creature, it ignores warnings to stay back, so they fire phasers at it. The creature is wounded, and retreats. Later, the pair discover the creature is intelligent, and menaced the miners to protect its eggs. A silicone-based spackling compound is used to patch the creature's wound, and its hatchlings start digging tunnels faster than the miners ever could.
  • Improvised Weapon : The rough-and-tumble fights often involve these. Kirk in particular is a master: ropes, pillows, and that stick thing resembling a reactor control rod he uses to beat Khan.
  • In-Camera Effects : The series would achieve the shaking of the bridge when under attack by simply shaking the camera and getting the crew to wobble about . Later SF productions with a bigger budget, such as the Trek films, replaced the cheesy effect with Practical Effects : sets would be placed on top of a large platform and the camera would be still while the entire set was shaken. That would be counted as Practical Effects .
  • Industrialized Evil : In "A Taste of Armageddon", the Enterprise discovers two planets are involved in a bizarre war in which computers simulate the conflict, and civilians deemed "killed" in the simulation are required to report to disintegration chambers. The people willingly go to their deaths, believing that in doing so, they are preventing an actual war from breaking out.
  • Inertial Impalement : In "The Menagerie", during the illusionary battle between Captain Pike and a Rigelian warrior, Pike is kneeling in a courtyard holding up a broken spearhead braced against the ground. The warrior jumps down on him and impales himself on the spearhead.
  • Inexplicable Cultural Ties : A key element of Roddenberry's goal for the series, to tell stories applicable to Earth in The '60s . The alien-culture-of-the-week will therefore be similar enough to one from Earth to get the point across. "Bread and Circuses" acknowledges the prevalence of these and implies that the phenomenon is understood by Federation scientists, providing an alternate Trope Namer , the Hodgkin's Law of Parallel Planet Development.
  • Innocuously Important Episode : “Shore Leave”, character-wise, as Finnegan calling Kirk old leads to Kirk actually getting an edge in their fighting, and upgrades his wish to just rest for a few days to a deeper need to “ sleep forever ”. “The Deadly Years" is similar, showing Kirk’s denial over his getting older and less competent, taking it the worst out of all of them, and learning the lesson that he needs to be young in order to be a good Captain. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan even does a Continuity Nod to it.
  • Interplay of Sex and Violence : Kirk and Spock’s fight in “Amok Time” gets… grindy. Spock choking Kirk out cures him of Pon Farr, and while said choking is happening, Kirk starts to put his legs around Spock’s back.
  • Involuntary Group Split : Happens to Kirk and Spock in "Devil in the Dark".
  • It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time : Why Sarek married Amanda Grayson: "At the time, it seemed the logical thing to do."
  • It's the Same, Now It Sucks! : invoked Used by Spock as a Logic Bomb in "I, Mudd": Spock: [to Alice 27] I love you. [to Alice 210] However, I hate you. Alice 210: But I'm identical in every way with Alice 27. Spock: Yes, of course. That is exactly why I hate you; because you are identical. [both Alices succumb to the logic bomb] Spock: Fascinating.
  • Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique : Garth uses this on Dr. Cory and Kirk in "Whom Gods Destroy" in an attempt to learn the transporter code word. Naturally, it doesn't work.
  • Jack the Ripoff : Subverted : the killer actually is Jack the Ripper , who was really a noncorporeal alien possessing human bodies .
  • Jekyll & Hyde : In " The Enemy Within ", a Teleporter Accident splits Kirk into Good and Evil halves. They both have to be convinced that they need each other before the split can be undone.
  • Jerkass Has a Point : In “The Trouble With Tribbles”, with the exception of Chekov, nobody in the bar objects when the Klingon calls Kirk a swaggering dictator with delusions of godhood, which gets the betrayed Puppy-Dog Eyes look from Kirk later on.
  • Jerk Jock : Though not a jock, Kirk was tormented endlessly by upperclassman Finnegan when he was younger. One of his fantasies is finally getting to punch him out.
  • The titular device in " The Ultimate Computer " is designed to run a starship with a minimal crew; the Enterprise is chosen for its test run.
  • In "A Taste of Armageddon" entire governments have been replaced this way.
  • Judicial Wig : When Trelane puts Kirk on trial for defying him in " The Squire of Gothos ", he wears a white and long curly wig along with his judges' robes.
  • Just Testing You : Kirk and Scotty set up a challenge/response password before Kirk beamed down to a planet in order to prevent imposters from getting beamed up. Naturally a shapeshifter takes Kirk's form and tries to get Scotty to beam him up. When he doesn't know the password, he tries to cover it up by saying that he was just testing Scotty. Scotty catches on immediately and concludes that Kirk must be in trouble, since the real Kirk would never "test" him like that.
  • Kill the Cutie : Edith Keeler in "The City on the Edge of Forever". After all, You Can't Fight Fate .
  • Kill the Poor : In the episode " The Cloud Minders ", on the planet Ardana, rather than being killed, the poor are enslaved and forced to live out their entire lives underground.
  • Kirk Summation : The Trope Namer and Trope Maker . Kirk (or occasionally another character) would often either try to reason with the episode's antagonist or put them in their place before ending things.
  • Knockout Gas : In the episode "Space Seed". After Khan takes over the Enterprise, Kirk orders that all decks be flooded with Neural Gas, which would render everyone aboard unconscious. That attempt fails, but later the attempt succeeds.
  • Watching in production order, Spock is understating it when he says the crew has had a few rough months in "Shore Leave", with two court martials , Kirk being revealed to have survived a genocide and suffering Mind Rape helped on by the ship psychologist , Spock getting a load of racism , everyone going insane on a planet where all the adults die , and Chapel losing her fiance .
  • Gene Coon in “A Piece Of The Action” did a gentle poke of how much a Lust Object Kirk was in the show, with Krako putting his hand on Kirk’s shoulder guiding him away, and both Shatner and Nimoy’s faces have Here We Go Again! expressions.
  • The “alternate earth” of “Miri” has Kirk saying in voiceover, just on the edge of sighing, “it seems impossible, but there it is”.
  • WEEEEE ...THE PEEE -PLE!
  • The actual reason was revealed recently: Control freak Roddenberry often rewrote, and re-rewrote, and re-re-wrote the scripts up to the last nanosecond, such that it became very difficult to memorize lines. Instead of asking "Line?" and ruining the take, Shatner would laboriously strive to remember what he was supposed to say, creating the effect.
  • Last of His Kind : "Who Mourns for Adonais?", "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield". "Devil in the Dark" plays with this one; the Horta is merely the last of her generation , trying to guard over a massive hoard of eggs until they hatch.
  • "The Trouble With Tribbles": Kirk asks Scotty what it was that the Klingons said that made him disobey orders and start a fist fight with them. Scotty passionately replies, "They called the Enterprise a garbage scow! Sir."
  • "Friday's Child": Upon learning that the new baby destined to one day rule a tribe is named Leonard James Akaar, Spock cannot help but be flabbergasted by the smugness of Kirk and McCoy. Spock: [genuinely exasperated] I think you're both going to be insufferably pleased with yourselves for at least a month. Sir.
  • Scotty also has his own leitmotif, typically used in lighter moments. It is prominently heard in both "The Trouble with Tribbles" and "By Any Other Name".
  • Let's You and Him Fight : In "Amok Time" Spock's "fiancée" has chosen another, and elects to invoke a ritual in which the two fight for her hand. He's perfectly willing to fight Spock for her, but she elects Kirk as her champion instead - for reasons that Spock later describes as "logical." Unfortunately, since Vulcans have a really bad case of mating fever, Spock is not in his right mind at the time and fully capable of killing his much weaker captain and Kirk (who agreed to be the champion because he thought he could simply throw the fight and walk away) doesn't know it's a Duel to the Death till it's too late to back out.
  • Liberty Over Prosperity : In "Space Seed", after Khan's attempt to take over the Enterprise fails, Kirk says that he and his followers can either be punished under Starfleet regulations (which would presumably involve a long prison sentence) or accept exile on an uninhabited planet. Khan: Have you ever read Milton , Captain? Kirk: I understand. [later] Scott: It's a shame for a good Scotsman to admit it, but I'm not up on Milton. Kirk: The statement Lucifer made when he fell into the pit. "It is better to rule in hell than serve in heaven."
  • Star Trek: 25th Anniversary is a combination flight simulatior/ Adventure Game voiced by the original cast, plus one generic Redshirt who is routinely the first to perish should the player screw up. The game was followed by Judgement Rites , in which Chekhov and Uhura are finally allowed to join the landing party (something they rarely did in the series).
  • There was also a 25th Anniversary port for the NES , though the setting and storyline are different. As exhaustively covered (and suffered) by The Angry Video Game Nerd , the final level deposits Kirk back on Iotia II, where Bones foolishly bet and lost his communicator in a card game. This causes a calamity in the future, forcing Kirk to complete a massive Chain of Deals to get the communicator back.
  • The Game Boy version of 25th Anniversary again changes the storyline, this time involving a Doomsday Machine roaming through space. Work on a defensive weapon begins in earnest, but the weaselly Klingons dissemble the device into 12 pieces and scatter them all over space, requiring Kirk to Catch 'Em All .
  • Star Trek: Starfleet Academy takes place in Kirk's era, though the Enterprise does not appear. It is, however, possible to beat the infamous Kobayashi Maru scenario by naming yourself " James T. Kirk ", unlocking a prototype ship.
  • Star Trek (Bally) was tied to the original television series, with minor art changes to help promote The Motion Picture .
  • Star Trek (Data East) was released in time for the 25th anniversary of the show.
  • Bally's Star Trek , originally featured the crew in their television designs. Soon after production, however, it was redecorated to bring it closer to Star Trek: The Motion Picture instead.
  • Data East's Star Trek was released as part of the 25th Anniversary of the television series. Features oodles of character cameos on the playfield and a great transporter effect on the backglass.
  • Lima Syndrome : Deela kidnaps Kirk to be a Sex Slave in “Wink Of An Eye”, and demands the right to like him. Of course she wants him to be docile, and then decides she likes him better as a Defiant Captive , so her assertions to the trope are nebulous.
  • Literal Maneater : The salt vampire from the episode " The Man Trap " mostly operates this way, though there is one exception where it takes on a hunky male form to attract Lt. Uhura.
  • Literal Split Personality : In "The Enemy Within", Kirk gets split into his good half and his evil half.
  • Literary Allusion Title : Rather famous for the grandiloquent episode titles. There's "The Conscience of the King", "Bread and Circuses", and "Is There In Truth No Beauty" among others.
  • Lobotomy : The episode " Spock's Brain ", in which aliens, to put it simply, steal Spock's brain, and the episode revolves around the Enterprise crew getting it back and reattaching it.
  • Logic Bomb : One of Kirk's favorite tactics for dealing with rogue computers ; it invariably causes a shutdown, and occasionally a self-destruct. Examples include "The Changeling", "I, Mudd", "Return of the Archons", "The Ultimate Computer", and "Wolf In The Fold".
  • Long-Lived : The children in "Miri" (hundreds of years) and Mr. Flint in "Requiem for Methuselah" (six thousand years). The tie-in novel Cry of the Onlies has Flint coming to the children's planet to be a mentor for them, especially those who chose to have treatments so they would age at a normal rate.
  • Loss of Inhibitions : In "The Naked Time," the crew experiences strange feelings and behaviors after a landing party investigating a mysterious disaster beams back to the ship, gradually infecting almost everyone. Dr. McCoy ultimately realizes the water on the planet had mutated, causing it to affect the brain like alcohol. While some effects more resemble delusions (e.g., Sulu calling Kirk "Richelieu" , unless he's playacting), a lot of them (Sulu leaving his station early to fence at the gym, Christine Chapel making an Anguished Declaration of Love to Spock, Spock breaking down in tears over his inability to accept either part of his heritage completely and Kirk confessing how stressed he feels because of his position) fall under the lack of inhibitions that alcohol typically causes.
  • Lotus-Eater Machine : This was the plot of the original pilot, " The Cage ," though Pike sees through the ruse easily. However, another character trapped there doesn't want to leave the setup—and knows that it's all an illusion—as after having been horrifically mangled in a crash the aliens were able to restore the illusion of her original beautiful appearance. They give her a illusory Captain Pike to live with until the real Pike returns to the planet in a later episode made up of the original pilot.
  • In "A Private Little War", Kirk and McCoy discover that the Klingons gave flintlock weapons to village-dwelling native people who didn't have guns before. Instead of their tradition of peaceful trade with the nearby hunter-gatherer people, the Klingons encourage the villagers to attack them. To restore the balance of power, Kirk provides the hunter-gatherers with similar weapons. McCoy compares their situation to the "Brush Wars" of the mid-20th Century .
  • "Bread and Circuses" features a world with 1960s-level tech (television, firearms) but a society that mirrors the Roman Empire , complete with the slow rise of Christianity (albeit 2000 years late).
  • Ludicrous Precision : Spock's figures, constantly. Discussed in "Errand of Mercy".
  • Machine Empathy : Scotty could often sense when something was wrong with the Enterprise from subtle changes in her "feel". Possibly justified, because machines cause vibrations that engineers familiar with said machine can actually feel when touching it, such as through the hull of a starship—Scotty himself confirms this in the NextGen episode " Relics " when he compares the Enterprise -D to his Enterprise with Picard.
  • Made a Slave : Season three has the dubious honour of trying to do this five times in one season, with Bones, Kirk, Spock, Chapel and Uhura used for entertainment in “Plato’s Stepchildren”, Bones again forced to stay in “For The World Is Hollow And I Have Touched The Sky” and “The Empath”, Kirk kidnapped for breeding in “Wink Of An Eye” because he’s “pretty”, and captured in “Mark Of Gideon” to spread an STD and stem overpopulation.
  • Mad Love : Nurse Chapel and Spock (well, on Chapel's side, at least), McGivers and Khan.
  • The Mafia : "A Piece of the Action" is an entire episode revolving around a Mafia planet.
  • The Main Characters Do Everything : Kirk and his highest bridge officers often beam into danger despite the presence of specialists on board for that purpose.
  • Male Gaze : In "Mudd's Women", the camera rather obviously pans to the women's derrieres as they walk along the corridors of the Enterprise after leaving the transporter room.
  • The Man in Front of the Man : In "Patterns of Force", a society of Human Aliens has emulated the regime of Nazi Germany, complete with atrocities committed in for racial and cultural motives. The officers of the regime carry out the orders of their Fuhrer, who they only see via television broadcast. It turns out later that the Fuhrer was drugged and under the control of his Deputy. It was the Deputy Fuhrer who was really responsible for giving orders to the Nazi forces, while the true Fuhrer had good intentions all along.
  • Mars Needs Women : "Mudd's Women"—Mudd is transporting the women to provide companionship to lonely colonists.
  • Martyr Without a Cause : All three of the main trio have admitted at some point that peace and happiness are not regular emotions for them, and are just that little too willing to sacrifice themselves. The kicker is that Bones will complain when Kirk and Spock act like self-sacrificial idiots, but then do the exact same thing himself.
  • Master-Apprentice Chain : Pike—>Kirk—>Sulu (although seen briefly in TOS, the Pike-Kirk relationship is only shown in any detail in the reboot and in the non-canon Expanded Universe ). Chekov appears to be a mentee of Kirk as well, but ends up on a different career path (in Starfleet Intelligence as opposed to starship command) after the second movie.
  • Mate or Die : The Vulcan pon-farr period provides a biological imperative that strong, as seen with Spock in " Amok Time ". The Federation has no knowledge of it, as Vulcans do not speak of it even among themselves.
  • The drone-like Lawgivers in "Return of the Archons." In that case, the drone-like humanoids were controlled by an intelligent supercomputer.
  • The original builders of the Androids on Exo III were also stated to have been a society of biological creatures who ruined their homeworld and retreated underground where they became a more mechanized, machine-like society.
  • The Kelvans from the Andromeda Galaxy are implied to have a culture like this; they are completely organic beings, but in their true form they experience none of the sensory distractions of humanoids, and consider themselves much more efficient. They go about trying to take over the Milky Way with very straightforward methods (transforming Kirk's crew into vulnerable dust-cubes that only their technology can restore to human form, for example) but without any of the typical Trek villains' hamminess. The Federation is saved from them by the fact that, when in artificial humanoid form, the Kelvans become Sense Freaks and can be incapacitated in a variety of ways, such as by the effects of alcohol or unfamiliar emotions like pleasure or jealousy.
  • The Eyemorg (humanoid female) society in the infamous episode "Spock's Brain" were totally reliant on a mechanized underground industrial complex run by advanced computers (for which purpose they tried to steal "Spock's Brain," because they lacked the knowledge to maintain this infrastructure themselves); this was in contrast to the primitive, Ice Age-like culture of males that lived on the surface.
  • The Fabrini who lived aboard a generational asteroid ship, which they all believed was actually a planet, were similarly run by an advanced, tyrannical computer called The Oracle. The Fabrini were less "rigidly mechanical" and more "rigidly traditional" though, the rigid traditions being enforced by The Oracle.
  • The Doomsday Machine is a planet-eating, extragalactic superweapon hypothesized to have destroyed its creators, and is now moving through the Federation's part of the galaxy. It's practically indestructible, and has an anti-proton beam capable of easily obliterating most starships, and consumes entire planets. In the end, it isn't even destroyed, just shut down due to internal damage.
  • Nomad is a hybrid of human and alien probes which travels through space on a mission to "sterilize" planets, i.e. kill all organic life forms for no other reason than they are imperfect. It was first encountered after killing four billion people , is powerful enough to easily outgun the Enterprise despite only being about five feet long, and can bring the dead back to life. It was only beaten by showing it that it, too, was imperfect , motivating it to self-destruct.
  • Men Are the Expendable Gender : Only three female personnel are killed in the whole series, whereas dozens of male Starfleet personnel are killed. In one of the three aversions, "By Any Other Name", the Black Dude Dies First trope is also averted, as the white female redshirt is killed by the Kelvans (sparing the black male redshirt in the party) when the Kelvan could have killed both of them just as easily.
  • Military Science Fiction : The U.S.S. Enterprise is the focus of the show, and she is explicitly a military vessel in the service of The Federation Star Fleet . However , due the fact that the Enterprise operates entirely in deep space, her crew complement is not comprised entirely of soldiers. Instead, the crew consists of spacemen who are specifically qualified to operate the ship. This doesn't in any way reduce her status as a military craft: the Enterprise is designed to and fully expected to both facilitate and withstand combat, and is often diverted from her explorations - by order from Starfleet Command - to perform various missions of a purely military nature, such as stealing sensitive technology from the Romulan Empire, or preventing the Klingons from establishing a base in a tactically important area. This strongly contrasts some of the later installments, particularly Star Trek: The Next Generation , which takes on a much more relaxed tone in comparison . "Although the Enterprise is a military vessel, its organization is only semi-military. The "enlisted men" category does not exist. Star Trek goes on the assumption that every man and woman aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise is the equivalent of a qualified astronaut, and therefore an officer." - The Making of Star Trek, page 209. "I'm a soldier, not a diplomat." - James Kirk
  • Used by the Platonians in "Plato's Stepchildren", with the most blatant example being Parmen forcing Spock to laugh and cry.
  • Mirror!Spock forcibly mind-melding with Dr. McCoy in "Mirror, Mirror".
  • The Neural Neutralizer in "Dagger of the Mind" was used for this. Upon learning that it works, Dr Noel inserts a one night stand into Kirk’s mind when it didn’t go that way originally, though she draws the line at Adams installing an obsessive love for her in him.
  • Minored In Ass Kicking : The reserved, cerebral Spock and his skill at hand-to-hand fighting (Vulcan nerve pinch! Judo chop!).Helped by his Vulcan strength.
  • Dilithium crystals are a fundamental aspect of the Star Trek universe, as all Federation starships use them for their Faster Than Light engines. They have basically one important property: they are able to safely interact with antimatter to produce a controlled reaction. They cannot be replicated and can decay in quality, which adds to some tension in either repairing the imperfections in the existing crystal, or finding new sources of dilithium.
  • Star Trek's technical manuals all try to provide consistent explanations for the science and technology of the series.
  • Mirror Universe : "Mirror, Mirror" features an alternate universe where the Federation is part of the tyrannical Terran empire.
  • Monster Is a Mommy : "The Devil in the Dark" has the Horta, which is only protecting its eggs.
  • "Obsession". A couple of red shirt security personnel are drained of blood and killed by the vampire cloud in the opening scene.
  • "The Devil in the Dark". Two miners and an Enterprise Security man are destroyed by the Horta's acid secretions, one in the first scene.
  • "Wolf in the Fold". Several women are slaughtered by the "Jack the Ripper" entity during the episode. One of them dies before the opening credits.
  • Monster of the Week : In SF author David Gerrold's book about writing the episode "The Trouble With Tribbles", he recounts seeing the first episode broadcast, which featured a creature that sucked all of the salt out of people's bodies, thereby killing them. He hoped Star Trek wasn't going to turn out to be a Monster of the Week show, which ironically for him, it did. (Only if one considers political intrigue, human(oid) assassins, hostage situations, high tech pseudo wars, missing persons, (sometimes in other times or dimensions), and direct military conflict to (somehow) equal "monsters of the week").
  • Mood Lighting : Whenever Kirk is putting the moves on a female (of any species), the lighting softens, playing up the female's sexiness.
  • Morality Chain : Kirk keeps Bones and Spock from being at each other’s throats (lampshaded in his final orders in “The Tholian Web”, assuming now that he’s dead the two are locked in mortal combat), Kirk calls Spock the “noblest half of himself”, and Bones keeps the other two from too much self-sacrifice.
  • In "The Empath", when aliens offer Kirk the choice of sacrificing McCoy or Spock, McCoy takes out Kirk with drugs. Spock is glad; since this leaves him in command, he can make the sacrifice himself. McCoy proceeds to drug him as well and sacrifice himself.
  • Ensign Garrovick attempts to do this in "Obsession", but Kirk isn't knocked out, and has no intention of sacrificing himself anyway. Just using himself as bait.
  • Muggle in Mage Custody : Alexander is a dwarf who is not given the psychokinetic power that the other denizens of Platonius have. As a result, he is treated as a court jester and slave, and subjected to cruel treatment, particularly from Parmen.
  • Multinational Team : Each of the bridge crew represents a part of the world (and an alien).
  • In multiple episodes, they use their phasers to create a heat source, by shooting a rock.
  • In one episode, Yeoman Rand uses a phaser to reheat Kirk's coffee!
  • Mundanization : Episodes in which the crew visits Earth's past, or a planet that unusually mimics it, derive a lot of the humor from the Fish out of Water setting.
  • In " Turnabout Intruder ", when a crazy ex-lover of Kirk switches bodies with him and the suspicious crew has no valid proof and she begins ordering the deaths of anyone who opposes her, Scotty suggests to McCoy that they mutiny, since they know that it would throw the captain into a fit and they would be able to stop him under regulations.
  • Spock's actions in transporting Captain Pike to Talos IV constitute a mutiny, for which he is put on trial—which is a ruse to buy him more time.
  • Kirk considers the crew's actions in "This Side of Paradise" to be a mutiny: they abandon the ship due to being Brainwashed and Crazy .
  • My God, What Have I Done? : Dr Noel from “Dagger Of The Mind” puts a one night stand into Kirk’s mind (they originally just danced and he talked about the stars), but immediately regrets it once Adams tortures him and makes him think he’s dangerously in love with her. When Kirk says Adams died alone, without even a tormenter for company, she gets the message.
  • My Grandma Can Do Better Than You : The exchange where Scotty tells Chekov that Scotch whisky is a man's drink, and Chekov replies that it was invented by a little old lady from Leningrad.
  • My Sensors Indicate You Want to Tap That : in the episode "Mudd's Women", the computer tells the all-male hearing board the effect the women are having on them: elevated heart rate, sweating, rapid pulse. All except Spock.
  • Neck Snap : The Vulcan tal-shaya technique performed by the Orion spy in "Journey to Babel".
  • "The Immunity Syndrome" has Spock states that the Vulcan crew of the U.S.S Intrepid would have been incapable of realizing that they were dying without a logical explanation.
  • "I, Mudd": Realizing that the androids were wholly logical, Spock prescribes a hefty dose of human illogic as just the thing to deal with them .
  • Also from "I, Mudd", Chekov discovers that the android girls were programmed by Harry Mudd...which he decides isn't necessarily a bad thing. Alice 118: We are programmed to function as human females, lord. Chekov: You are? Alices: Yes, my lord. Chekov: Harry Mudd programmed you? Alices: Yes, my lord. Chekov: That unprincipled, evil-minded, lecherous kulak Harry Mudd programmed you? Alices: Yes, my lord. Chekov: This place is even better than Leningrad.
  • "The Enemy Within", after a transporter accident splits Kirk into two people, one good and one evil, it's revealed that his good side isn't capable of command. Spock postulates that it is humanity's faults, tempered by their morals and ethics, that give them the ability to lead.
  • Sylvia in “Catspaw” gets angry at Kirk for trying to seduce her, and he calls her out on how she captured him, has him chained up for half the episode, and brainwashed his crew, so why shouldn’t he try?
  • Niceness Denial : In "Amok Time", Spock hugs Kirk and gleefully shouts his name when he finds out he's not really dead . However, Spock claims that he did this not because he sees Kirk as a friend, but rather because he's relieved that a captain hasn't been lost.
  • Noble Male, Roguish Male : Bought up by Nichelle Nichols in the difference between how Kirk and Spock are treated in-universe (and by female fans). Kirk gets Eating the Eye Candy , ripped shirts and women kidnapping him because he’s pretty. Spock on the other hand, is actually wanted as a romantic partner any time he has to cope with a Girl of the Week , Expanded universe novels will further this on, Kirk having an undeserved reputation as someone who sleeps with anyone and Spock only looking more aloof and repressed (so I Can Change My Beloved ) in comparison.
  • No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction : At the end of " This Side of Paradise ", McCoy notes that this is the second time mankind has been thrown out of paradise. Kirk comments that, no, they left on their own, because maybe it's mankind's fate to only be happy when they have to struggle and fight for everything they get.
  • No Immortal Inertia : In " Miri ", children live for hundreds of years due to a virus, but when they reach puberty, they become ill and insane and die within a few weeks.
  • The character played by Majel Barrett in "The Cage" is referred to only as "Number One," the unofficial nickname attached to her position as Captain Pike's first officer.
  • Neither the male Romulan Commander played by Mark Lenard in "Balance of Terror" nor the female Commander played by Joanne Linville in "The Enterprise Incident" are ever referred to by name.
  • Non-Standard Prescription : Doctor McCoy has Scotty visit a club with a belly dancer, saying it's a prescription. In the films, Bones drinks Romulan Ale for "medicinal purposes." The ship's doctor in the original pilot also gives Pike a glass of martini instead of medicine, stating that there are things that people will tell their bartender that they refuse to tell their doctor.
  • Although paper still exists, characters take notes on what are obviously tablet computers. Most characters find reading e-books off of screens to be more convenient than hauling wood pulp around. And this was over forty years ago.
  • The characters are reading what the series calls "microtapes." Yet another example of Zeerust , in that microfilm was predicted to replace paper books back in the 1960's.
  • Averted in the unaired pilot, where the ship's computer produces printouts.
  • No Social Skills : Charlie Evans, due to being raised by Energy Beings .
  • No Transhumanism Allowed : Discussed . When Khan is awoken in " Space Seed ", he has a discussion with Kirk once they have determined his identity, lamenting the fact that the humans of the 2260s are practically indistinguishable from those of the 1990s. He was hoping to awaken in a world of genetically modified Ubermenschen like himself, at the very least.
  • Not Rare Over There : In "Elaan of Troyius", the ship's dilithium crystals crack in the middle of a battle. Unfortunately, there are none left... until they realize that Elaan's necklace has a bunch of them. She surrenders it gladly, bemused that they would want what to her planet are Worthless Yellow Rocks .
  • In the episode " Balance of Terror ", the defeated Romulan Commander says that he and Kirk "are of a kind," just before blowing himself up. Romulan Commander: You and I are of a kind. In a different reality, I could have called you friend. We are creatures of duty, captain. I have lived my life by it. Just... one more duty... to perform .
  • In the Gene Coon written “Errand Of Mercy”, the Organians don’t see much difference between Klingon rule and the Federation (and neither does Kor), no matter how much Kirk would like to think otherwise.
  • Not So Stoic : "Amok Time" has Spock react in excitement when Kirk isn't dead.
  • Novelization : between 1967 and his death in the late 1970s, James Blish adapted virtually every TOS episode in short-story format for a series of paperback books ( Star Trek 1 , Star Trek 2 , etc.). A handful of leftover stories were subsequently adapted by his widow, J.A. Lawrence, as the final Star Trek 12 volume, plus the Harry Mudd stories were combined with an original novella to form the novel Mudd's Angels . Early Blish volumes exhibit Early-Installment Weirdness as they are based on early scripts of some episodes, resulting in noticeable differences in plot and characterization from the broadcast episodes.
  • Numbered Homeworld : Rigel VII ... XII ... how many of those were there, anyway?
  • A famous example is Edith Keeler from "The City on the Edge of Forever". A time-traveling Dr. McCoy saves her, and because she lives, she leads a pacifist movement that prevents crucial war research during WWII, causing the Nazis to win the war. Kirk has to let her die to reset the timeline.
  • The Organians look like this for most of "Errand of Mercy". Spock describes the planet as a stagnant culture, and the planet seems to be populated by amiable old men who placidly allow the Klingons to conquer them, rebuking Kirk and Spock's efforts to inspire a resistance because they abhor violence so much they'd rather allow arbitrary executions than fight back . It's only at the end that we learn the Organians have simply pretended to be harmless (and executed, and humanoid) to make their visitors feel at ease . When tensions come to a head, they revert to their luminous true forms and make both sides sit in the corner.
  • The most infamous example might be the fight in " Amok Time ", which features a stunt double that looks nothing like William Shatner fighting an equally non-Leonard-Nimoyish stuntman.
  • Though you could also cite the fight between Ricardo Montalban's stuntman and whoever was doubling for Shatner in " Space Seed ".
  • Or the fight in " Court Martial ", where seemingly two random guys fought in place of actors William Shatner and Richard Webb.
  • In " Wolf in the Fold ", Hengist, (played by the non imposing John Fiedler), is doubled by someone a few inches taller and more than a few pounds heavier.
  • Of the People : In the episode "The Return of the Archons", outsiders are said to be not of the body.
  • Oh, Crap! : In "Amok Time" Kirk is chosen to face Spock in battle. Kirk agrees, reasoning that, if things get bad, he'll quit and Spock will be declared the winner. Then, when the lirpa (the staffs with really big blades) are produced, T'Pau announces, "If both survive the lirpa , combat will continue with the ahn-woon ." When Kirk asks about what she means, she tells him "This combat is to the death."
  • Omnicidal Maniac : Matter!Lazarus from "The Alternative Factor". In order to kill his enemy, his Anti-Matter double, he has to cross the threshold into the other universe, but bumping into said enemy while in the same universe will destroy both universes. Despite knowing this, he's so far gone that he simply doesn't care.
  • Once Done, Never Forgotten : In "Court Martial", this turns out that Ben Finney, the man Kirk supposedly killed by accident and caused the titular court martial to happen and who actually faked his death to try to make Kirk go to jail and in the climax tries to crash the Enterprise on a planet with everybody on board believes that, because of "one little mistake" that Kirk reported while they served in another ship earlier in their careers, he was being constantly mocked by everybody else in their class, who made Captain before him. It's made pretty obvious as the episode goes that Finney has become completely freaking insane from his obsession over this, including constantly sending letters to his daughter Jame ranting about it (which make Jame accept that maybe her father is crazy enough to try to frame Kirk) and the wide-eyed glee he shows as he tries to kill Kirk with his bare hands at the climax.
  • One-Hit Kill : The Romulan Plasma Torpedo is this, but only at close range .
  • One-Winged Angel : Sylvia in "Catspaw" turns into a giant cat when Kirk refuses to obey her.
  • The Romulans appear in one episode per season: "Balance of Terror" in season 1, "The Deadly Years" in season 2 note  though they are not seen onscreen and their ship is reused stock footage from "Balance of Terror" , and "The Enterprise Incident" in season 3.
  • Kirk faces a different Nefarious Klingon Commander once per season: Kor in season 1's "Errand of Mercy", Koloth in season 2's "The Trouble with Tribbles", and Kang in season 3's "Day of the Dove". (Both Koloth and Kang were intended to be a returning Kor, but the actor who played him was unavailable both times.)
  • Once for Yes, Twice for No : if not the Trope Maker , then certainly the Trope Codifier with Captain Pike's portrayal in " The Menagerie ".
  • Orchestral Bombing : Like many dramatic series of its era, the show makes full and effective use of a brassy orchestral soundtrack. In fact all music used in this series was recorded especially, avoiding the use of common "library" music heard in many other series such as The Twilight Zone and The Fugitive .
  • The alien Kirk hunts down in "Obsession" is a shapeless cloud that can travel through space at warp speed without a ship, that subsists off of human blood.
  • In the first episode aired, "The Man Trap", the monster can appear as someone the viewer finds attractive... but its true form is a shaggy creature with a lamprey-like mouth, that feeds through its fingers , on salt .
  • Outlaw Town : "A Piece of the Action" has a planet whose culture has modeled itself after 1920s gangster culture.
  • When his memories are about to be transferred over to an android double, Kirk quickly mutters, "Mind your own business, Mr. Spock. I'm sick of your half-breed interference, do you hear?" Later on, when the android meets up with Spock, it says those lines, alerting Spock that this isn't their captain and prompting him to quickly gather a team to beam down. (" What Are Little Girls Made of? ")
  • Also occurs in "Day of the Dove," when Chekov is ranting about the Klingons having murdered his brother Piotr. Sulu immediately knows something is wrong because Chekov's an only child.
  • The rest of the crew is alerted to Janice Lester's hijacking of Kirk's body by her increasingly irrational and paranoid behavior in "Turnabout Intruder."
  • Used as part of a Batman Gambit in "Mirror, Mirror" when the crew convinces the Mirror Universe Spock to assist them in returning home and to set up the Heel–Face Turn that Mirror!Spock would perform later on, as referenced in subsequent episodes of DS9 and Voyager . Mirror Spock: You must return to your universe, and I must have my captain back.
  • Out-of-Character Moment : "The Naked Time", "This Side of Paradise" and "Amok Time" are entire episodes about this trope.
  • Papa Wolf : Kirk considers every man and woman under his command his responsibility, and if you harm them, he will not be happy.
  • Parental Title Characterization : Spock, when not calling his parents by name, calls them "Mother" and "Father". This is because Vulcans ( his father's species ) tend to be quite formal in their language and don't tend to openly express affection.
  • "The Squire of Gothos" has Trelane getting punished by his "parents" (who appear as blobs of energy)- just in time to stop him from finishing off Kirk.
  • In "Charlie X", the alien species that raised Charlie return to take him back before he can do any more damage, and they undo most of the damage that he has already done, though they are unable to bring back the crew of another ship which Charlie destroyed, probably because there wasn't enough left after the explosion.
  • People Puppets : "Plato's Stepchildren", and a literal example in the ending of the original version of " Catspaw ".
  • Pilgrimage : Between the original series and the first movie Spock resigned from Starfleet and went to a monastery on Vulcan to eliminate his emotions. Everyone wears robes and meditates.
  • Planet Spaceship : In "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky", a group of aliens have been sequestered inside a large interstellar asteroid for so long that they have forgotten that they are actually inside one.
  • Pleasure Planet : "Shore Leave" takes place on a planet where aliens go for amusement and the Enterprise crew finds danger and weirdness.
  • Plot Hole : "The City on the Edge of Forever" makes no attempt to explain how Kirk, Spock, and McCoy get back after fixing the time rift in Earth of 1930. They simply show up. The Guardian of Forever heavily implies it can pull them back if the timeline was reset.
  • Pointy Ears : On Spock and other Vulcans; appropriate for Space Elves . Romulans, which are related to Vulcans, also have pointed ears, and Spock comes in for some Fantastic Racism when the visual similarity is noticed.
  • Polarity Reversal : The Trope Maker .
  • Poorly Disguised Pilot : " Assignment: Earth " was intended to spin off a series of the same name. The existing script was reworked to include the Enterprise , but the focus is still clearly on Gary Seven and the other new characters; Kirk and his crew have almost no impact on the outcome.
  • Powerful and Helpless : This trope is mentioned directly by McCoy in Whom Gods Destroy when the Elba II penal colony is overrun by the inmates and turned chaotic while their landing party is still on the now shielded and unapproachable planet. The Enterprise in orbit, though powerful enough to destroy a planet, can do nothing to get their men back - using the phasers to blow away the shield runs the risk of killing everyone they're trying to save . Scott: "We could blast our way through the (force) field, but only at the risk of destroying the Captain, Mister Spock and any other living thing on Elba Two." McCoy: "How can we be powerful enough to wipe out a planet and still be so helpless?"
  • In his final log in "Where No Man Has Gone Before", Kirk merely notes that Mitchell "gave [his] life in performance of [his] duty", and omits the part where he first gained vast psionic powers and began to think of himself as a god who regarded humans as insects to be crushed. Justified in that not only is Mitchell not at fault for what was effectively an injury sustained in the course of duty (the galactic barrier which they had been ordered to explore) but he is also Kirk's friend from their academy days.
  • Likewise, in "The Doomsday Machine" Kirk states that his log will note that Commodore Decker died in the line of duty, omitting the part where the man pretty much went insane with survivor's guilt and almost got the crew of the Enterprise killed. It's heavily suggested that Kirk is attempting to imply by omission that Decker performed a Heroic Sacrifice by piloting the Constellation into the Doomsday Machine to destroy it, instead of the truth, that he went out in a futile suicidal gesture by crashing into the machine with a shuttlecraft. Note that Spock is the one who brings up Kirk logging Decker as having died in the line of duty, which he seems to endorse despite having been in a power struggle with Decker for most of the episode. Although he doesn't say it in so many words, he obviously felt for Decker in the same way that he felt for Gary Mitchell.
  • " Day of the Dove ". An entity that feeds on hate and violence invades the Enterprise , setting Kirk and Klingon Captain Kang and their crews against each other. Realizing that they're being manipulated, Kirk and Kang refuse to fight each other, Kang even giving Kirk a good-natured (for a Klingon) slap on the back that almost has the Captain reeling, but they manage to drive out the entity by refusing to feed it with their hatred.
  • "The Menagerie": Pike realizes that the Talosians cannot read strong, violent thoughts, and also that they rely on him to supply the imaginations they use to fuel the illusions they attempt to trap him in. So he sits in his cell, stewing in hatred and anger until the Keeper gets careless and Pike seizes him. note  Footage came from the unaired pilot episode "The Cage".
  • In the episode " And The Children Shall Lead ", the evil entity called Gorgan gets its power from the fact that the children believe it has power. When that belief is taken away, Gorgan dies rather messily.
  • There is only one curse in the entire series, occurring at the end of " The City on The Edge of Forever ". It's notable for being one of the few curse words on American TV during the 1960s and showing just how hurt Kirk is as a result of the Bittersweet Ending . Kirk: Let's get the hell out of here.
  • Bones does say "Don't give me any damnable logic..." in one episode , and a gangster from the gangster episode does say "hell" in a non-religious context. Neither case is given the emphasis of Kirk's declaration.
  • Prodigal Family : Spock got estranged from his father after joining the Starfleet instead of the Vulcan Science Academy and rejecting his betrothal to another Vulcan. The trope is ultimately subverted as Sarek dies before he can get properly re-introduced in his son's life.
  • Proud Warrior Race : While the Klingons and Romulans are the expected examples, there are many species in this series that fit this trope.... including humanity to some extent.
  • Proxy War : " A Private Little War " has the Klingons supplying increasingly advanced firearms to one tribe of a primitive planet, to install them as a puppet leader of that world. Another tribe, one that Kirk had met years before, begins to demand similar weapons by the end, and Kirk begins arranging a Federation-aligned alliance of tribes to oppose the Klingon-controlled ones. He even references the brush wars of the 20th century as he does so.
  • Psycho Ex-Girlfriend : Janice Lester in "Turnabout Intruder" is an ex-lover of Kirk's. She uses a machine to steal Kirk's position by swapping their brainwave patterns .
  • Psycho Serum : McCoy's adrenaline-like drug in "The City on the Edge of Forever" causes temporary insanity when injected at overly high doses. When the ship hits some turbulence, he accidentally injects himself with a very high dose.
  • Charlie Evans from "Charlie X".
  • Trelane from "The Squire of Gothos." Made even better by the fact that while he looks like an adult human, by his species' standards Trelane is a child.
  • Psychotic Smirk : Chekov gets a particularly nasty one in "Mirror, Mirror" when he threatens to kill Kirk for disobeying an order. Doubles as Slasher Smile .
  • In "Space Seed", Khan Noonien Singh was named for Kim Noonien Singh, one of Roddenberry's buddies from World War II . Roddenberry hoped that the name would attract the attention of the Real Life Singh in hopes that they would reconnect.
  • David Gerrold did a similar thing in writing "The Trouble With Tribbles"; the space station on which the episode takes place is in orbit around "Sherman's Planet". Gerrold's girlfriend at the time was one Holly Sherman.
  • Pummeling the Corpse : In " A Private Little War ", the previously violence-averse Tyree snaps when he sees his wife stabbed to death. In the ensuing climactic battle, Tyree rushes and quickly overpowers the man who stabbed his wife, and staves in his head with a large rock. Tyree's mind, clouded with berserk fury, does not register that his opponent is dead, so he spends the rest of the battle bashing the corpse's shattered head. Even after the battle ends, Tyree continues to bash the unresisting corpse until Kirk stops him.
  • The appropriately-named Agony Booth in the episode "Mirror, Mirror."
  • The neural neutralizer in "Dagger of the Mind" is not intended as such, but ends up being used this way.
  • The Klingon Mind-Sifter in "Errand of Mercy."
  • In "Operation: Annihilate!", parasitic creatures that resemble flying pancakes attack planetary colonists—and eventually Spock.
  • In "Wolf in the Fold", the Enterprise crew encounters "Redjac", a noncorporeal parasite responsible for numerous serial killings throughout the centuries. One of the humans it possessed was Jack the Ripper.
  • Put on a Bus : Yeoman Rand during the first season. (Grace Lee Whitney later said that the producers wanted girl-of-the-week guest stars as love interests for Kirk.) The starship comes back for the movies and a time travel episode of Voyager .
  • In the episode "Who Mourns for Adonais". Kirk and Dr. McCoy are discussing Lieutenant Carolyn Palamas. McCoy: One day she'll find the right man and off she'll go, out of the service.
  • Implied in the episode "Balance of Terror", when Kirk marries two officers , but is interrupted as a Red Alert goes off. The groom reminds the bride that for the moment he's still her superior officer. note  Though she could simply be transferring in some way - many militaries ban married couples from being in a direct chain of command.
  • Taken up to eleven in " The Tholian Web " where there are three different time-sensitive crises (plus the non-time sensitive crisis of McCoy and Spock starting to lose their temper towards each other worse than usual due to everything else that's going on) going on at the same time: Kirk is lost in another dimension and running out of oxygen in his space suit, the Tholians are building the titular web around the Enterprise which will be unable to escape if it's completed before they fix their weapons and figure out a way out of it, and the part of the space they're in is also causing the crew to suffer Space Madness unless McCoy figures out a way to nullify its effect.
  • Radio Silence : In "Balance of Terror", the Romulan ship heads home under cover of a cloaking device and comm silence. Unfortunately for them, one of the officers violates orders in order to call home base to report the success of their mission, and the transmission is detected.
  • Ramming Always Works : How Kirk destroys the titular device in "The Doomsday Machine", using a derelict starship to which Scotty manages to restore some engine power.
  • Rape by Proxy : Downplayed in “Plato’s Stepchildren”, as Spock and Kirk are forced to kiss Chapel and Uhura to the sadistic joy of the Platonians, and all four are traumatised and disgusted; Chapel not wanting her crush on Spock to be used like this, and Uhura feeling safe around Kirk, until now.
  • Ray Gun Gothic : The Original Series was the last of the classic examples. Soon afterwards, 2001: A Space Odyssey and the Real Life moon landings introduced more realism into the genre.
  • Readings Are Off the Scale : Said by everyone : Spock, Chekov, Uhura...
  • Real Award, Fictional Character : In " The Ultimate Computer ", Dr. Richard Daystrom is cited as a 2243 Nobel Prize winner for the invention of duotronic computers.
  • Reality-Changing Miniature : In "Catspaw", Silvia's little silver Enterprise causes the real ship to overheat when the model is exposed to a flame, and the old girl to be surrounded by a force field when the model is encased in hard plastic.
  • In "Miri", the kids on a planet identical to Earth are hundreds of years old.
  • In "Requiem for Methuselah", Flint is thousands of years old and posed as various historical figures .
  • Reckless Gun Usage : Two instances, both involving Time Travel and the not-gun-shaped Phaser. In "The City On The Edge of Forever", a 1930s bum gets hold of one and vaporizes himself playing with it . In "Tomorrow Is Yesterday", Kirk is captured by Air Police in 1969, and cringes (with priceless facial expressions) as they fiddle with his weapon, toss it around, and several times almost press the trigger, conflicted between justifiable fear and the need to not let them know who he is or what they have.
  • Red Shirt : Actually an Unbuilt Trope : By and large, most of the people who die in a given episode tend not to be very plot-important, but only 24 red-shirted crewmembers died across all 80 episodes, in a series fraught with evil computer programs , shape-shifting salt vampires , planet destroying superweapons , and explosive rocks . Considering their job, and the fact that the ship has 430 crewmembers, that's not bad for a five-year mission.
  • Redemption Equals Death : Dr. Elizabeth Dehner in the 2nd pilot episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and Captain Merik in "Bread and Circuses".
  • Religion of Evil : The cult of Landru in " The Return of the Archons ".
  • Repressive, but Efficient : " Patterns of Force ", in which a lawless planet adopts Nazism as its hat with the justification that it was "the most efficient state the Earth ever knew." Their version of Nazism is treated in-universe as just as flawlessly efficient.
  • Resort to Pouting : "Tomorrow is Yesterday" introduces a rather inconvenient modification to the Enterprise's main computer, the installation of a feminine personality. After it refers to Kirk as "dear" one too many times when he specifically ordered it not to, he makes a notation in the log that he considers it a fault. If it cannot be repaired, his recommendation is that the whole thing be scrapped. There is an entirely audible pout as the computer replies with a sulking "Computed."
  • Rewatch Bonus : While the thinking he can just assimilate other cultures would be called out later on by the Gene Coon era, “The Enemy Within” shows most of the flaws and positive qualities that would last Kirk the rest of his life, from even his good side wanting to pretend something bad never happened, to his bad side only showing intelligence when it’s time to act weak but charming, and his compassion both helping and harming him.
  • Right-Hand Cat : Isis (to Gary Seven) in "Assignment: Earth" and Sylvia (to Korob) in "Catspaw".
  • Rude Hero, Nice Sidekick : Inverted ; Captain Kirk is a charming Officer and a Gentleman . By contrast, his first officer, Spock, is more tactless and ruthlessly pragmatic. The fact that he's also The Stoic when he does these things probably doesn't do his image any favors.
  • Trying to explain Spock's Pointy Ears to native people. The cake-taker has to be this gem, from "The City on the Edge of Forever": Spock: You were saying you'd have no trouble explaining [the ears]. Kirk: [to a cop] My friend... is obviously Chinese. I see you've noticed the ears... well, they're... actually easy to explain... Spock: Perhaps the unfortunate accident I had as a child...? Kirk: ...the unfortunate accident he had as a child. He caught his head in a mechanical... rice picker... but, fortunately, there was an American, uh, missionary living close by who was a, uh, skilled, uh, plastic surgeon in civilian life who... Cop: All right, all right. Drop those bundles and put your hands on the wall.
  • Chekov claiming everything was "inwented in Russia." Chekov: It makes me homesick... just like Russia. McCoy: More like the Garden of Eden , Ensign. Chekov: Of course, Doctor. The Garden of Eden was just outside Moscow. Very nice place.
  • Rubber-Forehead Aliens : Infamously, the Klingons (though they didn't even have the budget for that until the movies). Vulcans are Rubber Pointy Ear Aliens.
  • In "The Omega Glory", the Yangs have a sacred text which turns out to be identical to the US Constitution.
  • In "A Piece of the Action" our heroes discover a planet has been using a book about gangs in 1920s Chicago (left by a previous Federation vessel) as their holy book.
  • Sadist : The Platonians enjoy humiliating Kirk and company in “Plato’s Stepchildren”, the wife especially looking like she’s finding it all sexually appealing.
  • Sadistic Choice : Everyone is forced to make these every so often.
  • Sailor Fuku : In the episode "Court Martial", Jame Finney wears a futuristic version of this.
  • Sarcastic Devotee : Both Spock and Bones are devoted to the captain, but are also quite willing to question/make sarcastic comments about his orders when the situation warrants it. Spock: Captain, you are an excellent starship commander, but as a taxi driver, you leave something to be desired!
  • Science Is Good : The show portrays a fairly utopian, post-scarcity, post-racism future for humankind, with Cool Starships and Faster-Than-Light Travel . Unlike many science-focused works, the original series is fairly idealistic and romantic, showing respect for both nature/tradition and new science and medicine.
  • Scientifically Understandable Sorcery : While there are plenty of incidents where the Enterprise crew seems to encounter the supernatural, said supernatural thing is always shown to have a scientific basis when sufficiently analyzed by the characters. That said, sometimes the thing is too advanced to analyze with the Enterprise's technology, and thus remains indecipherable (though not actually thought of as "magic"; they just acknowledge that what they've encountered is so far above/beyond them that they can't realistically understand the principles it works on).
  • Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! : Whenever Kirk violates given orders, it's specifically to avoid the loss of his ship and crew, or to avoid making a situation worse by not seeing it through to the end.
  • Trelane, the Squire of Gothos... at least until Kirk breaks whatever it is he has behind that mirror. In the episode "Catspaw", Sylvia and Korob... until Kirk shatters the power transmuter wand tied to the illusions to themselves and the planet. You may notice a theme .
  • Justified/Played with in "Charlie X", because he really doesn't understand the rules .
  • Gary Mitchell from "Where No Man Has Gone Before".
  • Screw the Rules, They're Not Real! : In " A Taste of Armageddon ", Jim Kirk and his crew discover that the Planet of the Week, Eminiar VII, is conducting a Forever War with a neighboring planet, Vendikar, entirely by computer simulation, with the "simulated" casualties ordered to report to the government for euthanasia. They're horrified but aren't allowed to do anything about it under the Prime Directive ... until the computer erroneously marks the Enterprise as a valid target and designates it "destroyed". Kirk refuses to abide by the Eminian-Vendikari rules, and instead starts blowing up the euthanasia booths and ultimately the computer. The Eminian head of state complains that with the computer gone, their underlying civilizations will be destroyed by war instead of merely people's lives. Kirk counters that the simulated war has taken all the horror out of the conflict, and with it any incentive to make peace , and how about they try that instead.
  • Khan Noonien Singh and his cryogenically frozen followers, in the episode " Space Seed ".
  • In "The Alternative Factor" , if Lazarus and his insane counterpart from the antimatter dimension were ever to meet in the same universe, that universe would be destroyed. Both of them are sent into an intermediate dimension so that this can never happen, and where the two of them will be locked in combat for all eternity .
  • Sealed Orders : In "The Enterprise Incident", Captain Kirk receives secret orders to steal a Romulan cloaking device . As part of The Plan , he acts like a Jerkass as a form of Obfuscating Insanity .
  • Second Episode Introduction : McCoy doesn't appear in either of the pilots, but does appear in the first proper episode.
  • Secret Test : Balok in "The Corbomite Maneuver", the Ekosian Resistance in "Patterns of Force", and Korob in "Catspaw".
  • Self-Destruct Mechanism : The Enterprise has one on board. It requires simultaneous voice input from three senior officers to activate.
  • Serious Work, Comedic Scene : The show does this practically Once per Episode , breaking the tension of an episode's conflict with a joke. For example, the episode Spock's Brain features this exchange after Spock starts describing the culture of Sigma Draconis VI: McCoy: I should never have reconnected his mouth. Kirk: Well, we took the risk, Doctor.
  • Send in the Search Team : Whenever the Enterprise loses track of important personnel on a planet, they send in the Redshirt Army to find them. This occurs in several episodes, with varying degrees of success.
  • Sensible Heroes, Skimpy Villains : Almost everyone in the mirror universe dresses skimpier than they do in the main universe. Though you'd be hard-pressed to take the basic female Starfleet uniform and make it skimpier without violating broadcast codes, they found a way.
  • While both hammy, Kirk vs Mudd. In both episodes, Mudd complains that Kirk is uptight and needs to take orders (from him, specifically), while Kirk always fires back that Mudd is a criminal sleazeball.
  • " This Side of Paradise " has the Enterprise on a rescue mission to settlers on a Federation colony, supposedly endangered by deadly radiation.
  • In " The Way to Eden ", the crew of the Enterprise meets a group of space hippies who hope to settle a new colony on a planet they call Eden.
  • In " The Trouble with Tribbles " the Federation and the Klingons are competing to develop a colony world. The Enterprise is tasked with delivering a special grain hybrid to kickstart the colony's agriculture. A Klingon agent subsequently poisons the grain.
  • In the episode "Mudd's Women", Mudd has pills that he claims makes a woman more attractive.
  • Mirror Universe Spock is this for many viewers.
  • Shapeshifting Seducer : The pilot episode and the season 2 episode "Catspaw" feature women who change shape to find a form that pleases the captain.
  • Shirtless Scene : Kirk has a lot of these.
  • Shout-Out : To the show's precursor Forbidden Planet , which included the early line, "We'll reach D.C. point at 1701."
  • Showing Off the New Body : In “Return To Tomorrow”, Sargon puppets Kirk’s body, saying it’s excellent and complimenting Bones on “maintaining” it, while Janice Lester in “Turnabout Intruder” takes the opportunity to grope his abs when she steals it.
  • Show Some Leg : Lampshaded in “Is There In Truth No Beauty” when Spock needs a diversion to mind meld with Kolos, Kirk knows just the thing: flirting with Miranda Jones to distract her. For once it doesn’t work, and she’s only annoyed by the deception.
  • Shown Their Work : In " Tomorrow Is Yesterday ", the Enterprise travels back in time to 1968. It's mentioned that three astronauts are taking part in a manned moon shot on Wednesday. Two years after the episode aired, Apollo 11 blasted off on July 16, 1969 (a Wednesday) carrying three astronauts (Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins). Given that the Apollo program was already getting started around the time of this episode, however, it was already known that there would be three astronauts per spacecraft, and odds were good that at least one of the craft bound for the moon would launch on a Wednesday.
  • Silly Rabbit, Cynicism Is for Losers! : In " A Taste of Armageddon ", the Eminian leader insists that peace is impossible and that their 500-year-old simulated war with declared casualties reporting in to be neatly and cleanly killed is the lesser of two evils. Kirk insists that they can make peace if they just try harder, and helpfully provides them with motivation to do so by shutting down the war computer and forcing them to choose between real-world messy warfare and swallowing enough pride to find a peaceful solution.
  • " Let That Be Your Last Battlefield " is a commentary on race relations; two aliens who have mirrored skin tones (right side of the face black, left side white and vice versa) fight over this difference. When they reach their homeworld, they discover that they are the Last of Their Kind ; everyone else killed each other in the race war. They keep fighting anyway.
  • In " A Taste of Armageddon ", the two warring powers have forgotten why they were fighting in the first place!
  • Sliding Scale of Continuity : The series adhered to the level 2 of continuity ( Status Quo Is God ) well enough that with a scant few exceptions and Character Development for the main three (Bones and Spock are less at each other's throats, Kirk tries to be less of a soldier) you can watch the series in any order and it generally makes perfect sense.
  • Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism : The show was mostly on the idealism end of the spectrum, showing that in the future, humanity managed to finally stop fighting with each other and form a world government free of racism and other evils. It’s particularly notable seeing as how it was made during a time when America’s biggest issues were racism and the threat of nuclear war.
  • Slut-Shaming : Both played straight and ultimately avoided with Kirk, as in episodes like “Dagger Of The Mind”, he’s gently teased by Bones and Spock for accidentally flirting with Dr Noel, but when things go badly wrong and she shoves a false one night stand in his brain, they’re both sympathetically hovering around him at the end of the episode, and it’s not treated as something he deserved. Played straight as an arrow with both in-universe and out “Kirk Drift” though.
  • Smart People Play Chess : Spock, logically, as well as Kirk, who was stated to be quite bookish at the academy, play 3-D chess. They are often seen playing while having a conversation relevant to the plot.
  • Many individual episodes also employ this trope: when a landing party beams down to a planet, there is usually exactly one woman on the team, whose narrative function is to have a romance arc with either another member of the landing party, or the episode's villain.
  • "The Way to Eden" features a group seeking a world where they can set up such a society. In the end, it doesn't work out (both because the planet they've chosen is uninhabitable, and because their leader is a nut), but it's interesting that, out of the whole crew, the one who is most sympathetic to their goal is Spock. Spock : Miss Galliulin... It is my sincere hope that you do not give up your search for Eden. I have no doubt but that you will find it, or make it yourselves.
  • "Errand of Mercy" features an alien society that thrived for eons without technological advancement. Although , they really don't need to use technology. They are, after all Sufficiently Advanced Aliens .
  • In "Balance of Terror", both the Romulan and the Enterprise crews cut their ship's power to avoid detection. During this, the crews whisper so they will not alert the enemy. This is actually justified by the fact that starship sensors are established to be able to detect even very faint vibrations - such as heartbeats - from very long distances: the impact of voices hitting the hull could give them away.
  • Space Is an Ocean : The Enterprise is a "ship," equipped with "torpedoes," and the crew is arranged along naval lines. Several touches are intended to put the audience specifically in mind of the age of Wooden Ships and Iron Men : the in-ship intercom's attention chime is a bosun's whistle, and the standard bit of incidental music played when the Enterprise is in flight is in a style often used for incidental music accompanying a sailing ship under way.
  • Space Mines : In the episode "Balance of Terror", the Romulan ship uses one of its self-destruct devices as an impromptu mine in an attempt to destroy the Enterprise . It's also noted in the Writer's Guide that the Enterprise's photon torpedoes can be used as mines, but this is never actually done in any episode.
  • Space Western : Gene Roddenberry famously pitched the series as " Wagon Train to the stars". The first season in particular gives the impression of the Enterprise'' crew as frontiersmen exploring and expanding into a vast and untamed wilderness.
  • Spock knew that the shapeshifter in question couldn't hold another identity for more than a few minutes. He says so, and explains that all he has to do is wait. That's when the "Shoot him! No, shoot us both" dialogue occurs.
  • Leonard Nimoy hated this episode, noting that as The Smart Guy Spock should have been able to easily and quickly create the kind of highly personal trick questions only his best friend, Kirk, should be able to answer properly to identify himself. According to Spock, he did not make his choice based on the order to shoot them both, but rather based on which one was winning: Kirk was recovering from serious injuries and thus was at a disadvantage against the healthier duplicate.
  • "The Man Trap" features a shapeshifting creature that drains the salt from people. It shapeshifts several times before settling on shifting into McCoy's form. It can be spotted by its tendency to curve its index finger and nibble slightly on the arc of the finger.
  • In "The Enemy Within", Kirk is split by a transporter accident into his "good" and "evil" halves. In what might be considered a subversion, it turns out Kirk's "evil" half is not so much evil, as driven by passion and base instinct, and Kirk's "good" half, the logic and intellect side, is incapable of acting competently without it.
  • In "What Are Little Girls Made Of?", Spock is able to spot the android Kirk because the genuine article focused on a particular out of character thought, embedding it in the android's programming.
  • Despite the franchise's well-earned reputation for Rubber-Forehead Aliens , the original series did introduce some nonhumanoid aliens in some of the series' most highly-regarded episodes: the Horta in "Devil in the Dark," the tribbles in "The Trouble with Tribbles"; the true forms of Sylvia and Korob as seen at the end of "Catspaw"; and several non-corporeal aliens . Within the limits of the special effects technology available at the time, the original series actually did fairly well in this regard. Additionally, the Kelvans are stated to have had a truly bizarre physiology before taking on human form to steal the Enterprise .
  • TOS also introduced the Tholians, an extremely xenophobic race that had the general appearance of a virus. Despite only appearing in one episode, they became a fan favorite and the subject of wild speculation. Eventually, throughout the remainder of the franchise, a few canonical facts were given about the species: They have six legs, no evidence of a circulatory system, require temperatures above 400 degrees Kelvin to survive (lower temperatures would cause their carapace to rupture and eventually explode), have two sexes despite being hermaphroditic, and can emit radiation as a means of communication.
  • Stealth in Space : The Romulans' cloaking device technology shields them from both visible light and sensor readings, but also blinds the ship itself, and draws so much power that it must be dropped in order to fire, allowing for " Balance of Terror " to be a submarine episode (specifically, the 1957 film The Enemy Below ) Recycled IN SPACE!
  • Stealth Pun : The name of the librarian in "All Our Yesterdays" is "Atoz". Which is what you get if you take the phrase "A to Z" and compress it.
  • Stinky Flower : Discussed. When Kirk and his crew are spouting Non Sequiturs to get some robots to shut down , Spock says that " Logic is a wreath of beautiful flowers that smell bad ".
  • Straw Vulcan : Among other examples, in " The Galileo Seven ", we're shown Spock's first command, as the shuttle he is in charge of crashes on a desolate planet filled with savage aliens. Spock determines that a display of superior force will logically frighten away these aliens while the crew make repairs to the shuttle. Instead, as Dr. McCoy points out, the aliens have an emotional reaction and become angry and attack, something Spock did not anticipate. In the end, Spock's desperate act of igniting the fuel from the shuttle to create a beacon proves to be the correct action since it gets the attention of the Enterprise and allows for a rescue. When called on this "emotional" act, Spock replies that the only logical course of action in that instance was one of desperation. Also, much of the conflict in the episode comes from Spock steadfastly refusing to take the emotional reactions of the men under his command into account, or to even acknowledge that they have them, expecting them all to act like cool, logical Vulcans. Spock's been around humans long enough he should know this attitude is illogical.
  • The Strength of Ten Men : In "Space Seed," Khan's "I have five times your strength!" Spock, as well, being half-Vulcan - he's thrice as strong as a human. This is not always apparent since he tends either to avoid physical confrontation or end them instantly with a nerve-pinch to shut down the opponent, but on the few occasions he ended up in a fight, this trope is clearly in play.
  • "Metamorphosis": Lost scientist Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the warp drive, is discovered by the Enterprise . He has an otherworldly companion that allowed him to live for centuries, not unlike the fey servant of the Ur-Example of this trope, Prospero .
  • "Requiem For Methuselah": Mr. Flint owns a planet in the Omega system. He has a number of robots as servants and a beautiful female ward named Rayna Kapec. He has tremendous technological power, enough to destroy the Enterprise. He has two dark secrets. The first is that he is an immortal man from Earth and is thousands of years old. The second is that his ward is not human, but actually an android robot in female form, and he needs to have her emotions wakened so she will love him. Her name may be a reference to Karel Čapek , who coined the word "robot".
  • Styrofoam Rocks : In "Return of the Archons", a melon-sized "rock" bounces off a stuntman's head and he keeps running. Apparently it wasn't supposed to hit him at all, and was left in under time pressure.
  • Sufficiently Advanced Alien : "The Corbomite Maneuver", "The Squire of Gothos" and more.
  • Super Cell Reception : Naturally, the communicators came before cell phones, but they look much like them (having arguably inspired their modern look), and are often subject to both ends of this trope.
  • Take a Third Option : Kirk is famous for these. When faced with two undesirable options in "Operation: Annihilate!", he outright tells his crew to go and find him a third one.
  • Talking the Monster to Death : Usually with Kirk delivering a Logic Bomb to a psychotic computer.
  • Talking Is a Free Action , by way of the Captain's Log used to bring viewers up to speed on current events. In "By Any Other Name", as the Enterprise approaches the Energy Barrier, Kirk records a log detailing a plan to defeat the Kelvans—while the Kelvans are on the bridge with him.
  • Tall, Dark, and Snarky : Spock definitely fits into this trope.
  • Tap on the Head : Often played completely straight with the human characters, especially Kirk, but Spock uses his famous Vulcan nerve pinch instead.
  • Chekov was supposedly introduced after an article in the Soviet state newspaper Pravda allegedly mocked the show for not having a Russian, when the Russians had been the first into space.
  • Chekov was then used as a delivery vessel for a number of minor Take Thats to the Russians for the remainder of the series, turning In the Original Klingon into an art form: Chekov: It makes me homesick. It's just like Russia. Bones: More like the Garden of Eden, Ensign. Chekov: Of course, Doctor. The Garden of Eden was just outside Moscow—a very nice place, must have made Adam and Eve very sad to leave.
  • The insult "Herbert" that the space hippies use in "The Way to Eden" was definitely a Take That at a real-life Herbert. However, no-one is exactly sure who it was supposed to be: depending on who you ask, it was either Herbert Hoover or Herbert Solow, who was the show's production executive for the first two seasons.
  • Uhura's normal place on the bridge was directly behind the captain's seat, the center of attention and focus. Many, many shots of Kirk included her. " There's a black lady on TV ", indeed.
  • Team Kids : Uhura, Checkov, and Sulu are the Team Kids to the Kirk/Spock Team Mom and Dad, with Bones and Scotty as uncles . This is made apparent in "Who Mourns For Adonis", when Checkov suggests he comfort Lt. Palamas. Kirk asks him how old he is and when Checkov tells him, Kirk says he's too young.
  • Teenage Wasteland : "Miri" features a planet where a virus has killed off all the adults, leaving the children to look after themselves.
  • Teens Are Monsters : Charlie in "Charlie X." Being a juvenile Reality Warper with boundary issues doesn't help, though he does turn out to have a serious Freudian Excuse for his actions.
  • Many (usually the transporter being out of order and unable to beam the heroes aboard), but notably in " The Enemy Within ", which creates an Evil Knockoff and a wimpy knockoff of Kirk.
  • The lack of safety features of the transporter is highlighted in Season 3's "And the Children Shall Lead", when Kirk and Spock accidentally transport two crewmen into open space because the transporter system doesn't have any mechanism to warn that they are not locked on to a habitable location.
  • Teleport Interdiction : Federation correctional facilities, such as the Tantalus penal colony in "Dagger of the Mind" and the Elba II asylum in "Whom Gods Destroy", include security fields that prevent beaming in or out while in operation.
  • Sulu doesn't appear in " Space Seed ". He was replaced by Makee K. Blaisdell as Lt. Spinelli.
  • Scotty and Sulu are absent from " The Alternative Factor ". For unknown reasons they were substituted in the roles of engineer and helmsman by Charlene Masters and Leslie, respectively.
  • During filming of the episode " The Gamesters of Triskelion ," George Takei was busy filming The Green Berets . Chekov took his place in the script, with a barroom brawling style in the episode's fight scenes taking the place of the martial arts scenes planned for Sulu.
  • Ditto " The Trouble with Tribbles "; Chekov's instant recognition of quadro-triticale makes more sense knowing that the script was originally written for Sulu, as Sulu had an established background in botany.
  • Uhura doesn't appear in " The Doomsday Machine ", her duties assumed by Lt. Palmer, played by Elizabeth Rogers.
  • For " Turnabout Intruder ", the final episode, Uhura takes the day off and is replaced by a Lieutenant Lisa. ( Nichelle Nichols had a singing engagement that conflicted with the shooting schedule.)
  • Tempting Fate : In "The Menagerie", a few episodes before several traumatic missions and causes for my greatest failures , Kirk calls having to be part of Spock’s mutiny trial hearing the worst moment of his service. The Talosians tell him at the end that Pike has illusion and he has reality, and he can’t quite keep up the smile.
  • In The Cage, Talosian society is revealed to be so addicted to their own natural ability to create realistic psychic illusions that they allowed their entire civilization to crumble around them while they endlessly enjoyed the fake realities they constructed.
  • In The Apple, the Enterprise encounters a society that has been kept in primitive cultural stagnation by an advanced computer that carefully controls the entire planet they live on.
  • That's an Order! : Occurred in 13 different episodes.
  • This Is No Time for Knitting : In "Court Martial", McCoy is aghast to find Spock playing chess against the computer while Kirk is losing a court martial for criminal negligence. However, Spock reveals that he has been using the chess games to confirm that the ship's computer's memory banks have been tampered with to frame Kirk: since he's the one who made the chess program to begin with and thus the computer has to be at least as good as he is, he should only be able to force a stalemate at best, but he's won several games in a row by that point, proving that something is wrong with the computer.
  • This Was His True Form : The shapeshifting creature in "The Man Trap"; the two telepathic aliens in "Catspaw".
  • There Are No Therapists : Bones is apparently an expert on space psychology, and tries to Team Dad everyone, but he tells Edith he’s no psychiatrist.The crew could really use one.
  • Those Wacky Nazis : "Patterns of Force" features a planet of Nazis!
  • The Three Faces of Adam : Kirk is The Hunter (brash, impulsive and adventurous), Spock is The Lord (wise, rational and logical) and Bones is The Prophet (cynical, outspoken and compassionate).
  • Throwing Your Sword Always Works : During one of the illusions that Captain Pike is subjected to in the original pilot episode, he winds up using this on a giant warrior threatening the Love Interest , causing it to fall and get impaled.
  • Time Bomb : "Obsession", "The Immunity Syndrome", "The Doomsday Machine".
  • "Wink of an Eye" features aliens who move so fast that they're invisible to the naked eye and everyone else appears frozen to them. (Interestingly enough, so long as none of the aliens or the people they abducted into their 'timeframe' by means of a drug are actually around to watch, both they and the crew seem to function in parallel and on the same timescale just fine. This point is never addressed.)
  • Kirk receives the drug when it's slipped into his coffee, inadvertently making it look like he's on a rush.
  • Time Travel : "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" has a time disturbance send the crew back to Earth of the 1960s. "The City on the Edge of Forever" has a weird time portal on a strange planet send the Power Trio back to the 1960s. "Assignment: Earth" has them do it deliberately for "historical research."
  • Time Travel Episode : In " The City on the Edge of Forever ", Bones accidentally steps through a time portal that takes him back to the 1930s, where he inadvertently changes the timeline so humans never went into space. It's up to Kirk and Spock to follow him and repair the damage.
  • Time-Travel Romance : Kirk falls for Edith Keeler in the 1930s in "The City on the Edge of Forever." Unfortunately, You Can't Fight Fate .
  • Time-Travelers Are Spies : "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Assignment: Earth".
  • Doubling as a Wham Line , from the episode "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky". Old Man: You are... not of Yonada? Kirk: No, we're from... outside your world. Elder Yonadan: Where... is outside? Kirk: [solemnly] Up there. Outside, up there, everywhere. Elder Yonadan: So they also... [seizes in pain, whispers] Many years ago, I climbed the mountains, even though it is forbidden. [winces in pain] Kirk : Why is it forbidden? Elder Yonadan: [winces in pain] I am not sure. [winces again] But things are not as they... teach us, for the world... is hollow, and I... have touched the sky! [screams in pain, falling over dead]
  • Most of the episodes get a Title Drop, including "Obsession", "The Changeling"' and yes, "Spock's Brain".
  • That's What I Would Do : In "Balance of Terror", this is Kirk's comment after the nameless Romulan commander dodges one of the Enterprise 's attacks: "He did exactly what I would have done. I won't underestimate him again."
  • Thousand-Yard Stare : Kirk has one in “Is There In Truth No Beauty”, telling Bones “we’re all vulnerable in one way or another” before staring off briefly with a haunted expression. He’s had a lot of brandy.
  • Token Minority : Played with. On the one hand, Star Trek was perhaps the first mainstream show to actively do this, as part of its utopian themes. However, people from all sorts of minorities were shown almost every episode, which means they were hardly tokens, but also most of these characters were minor or one-shot. Among the main cast, it could be said that Sulu and Uhura fit this trope.
  • One Girl of the Week has a guy obviously in love with her who is Too Dumb to Live. Given that said girl had to spend four years on Vulcan to retain her sanity, I'm sure trying to make her feel strong emotions is a wonderful idea! Oh, and what better way to get a girl to like you than by ruining her career by murdering the ambassador she's accompanying? The ambassador is an Eldritch Abomination the mere sight of which can make humans go mad. Just walk up, look it straight in the whatever-seeing-organs-it-possesses, and kill it. What could possibly go wrong?
  • Special mention to Joe Tormolen in "The Naked Time" for taking off the glove of his hazmat suit to fucking scratch his nose. He then just leaves the glove off for no apparent reason, touching things with his bare hands. Then when Spock stresses the importance of not touching anything and they have to be decontaminated, Tormolen says nothing, doesn't even seem nervous like he's thinking "Hey, maybe I shouldn't have done that." His stupidity gets him killed and the entire crew infected.
  • Touched By The Monster : Interestingly it’s Kirk that gets grabbed a lot by Ruk in all the stereotypical damsel ways in “What Are Little Girls Made Of”, including one bit where he’s held by the waist and forced in close.
  • Tragic Bromance : Kirk and Spock, both ways. Kirk is completely broken when Spock dies, and doesn’t expect that he’ll actually come back, and in The Autobiography of Spock , Spock wonders if he could have saved Kirk one last time, and can’t bring himself to visit the man’s grave.
  • Trespassing to Talk : During the first season episode "A Taste of Armageddon", Kirk escapes captivity and waits in his captor's office to have a calm, albeit at gunpoint, conversation about the reasons for Kirk's imprisonment.
  • The Federation has a peace treaty with the Romulan Star Empire that established a demilitarized zone along their mutual border, the Romulan Neutral Zone. " Balance of Terror " revolves around a string of Romulan raids on Federation listening posts along the Neutral Zone, meant to test the Federation's willingness to retaliate for breaches in the treaty.
  • " The Savage Curtain ": Kirk points out to Colonel Green that he was notorious for striking his enemies while in the midst of negotiating with them.
  • True Companions : Kirk, Spock and McCoy.
  • Kirk must face the Gorn captain in " Arena " in a Duel to the Death to determine which of them has trespassed into the other's territory.
  • Kirk vs. Spock in " Amok Time " is the other classic example. Spock is badass enough when he's in his right mind. Spock driven beyond the point of insanity by his mating instinct is horrifying for Kirk and McCoy!
  • Turns Red : The Companion, when Kirk and crew attack it with something like an EMP; it takes Cochrane to stop it from killing our gallant crew.
  • Turn the Other Fist : The episode "The Trouble With Tribbles" features this kind of punch by good ol' Scotty when a Klingon is insulting the Enterprise .
  • Two Girls to a Team : For most of the show, there are two women in the core cast: Lt. Uhura and Nurse Chapel. Initially, Yeoman Rand was part of the cast as well, but the actress was let go in the middle of the first season. Only one episode ("The Naked Time") features all three women; Nurse Chapel and Yeoman Rand never interact with each other, but Uhura seems to be on fairly good terms with the both of them.
  • Two of Your Earth Minutes : Occurs in multiple episodes.
  • In the episode "The Galileo Seven," Spock's legs get pinned between a large rock and a cliff. After he is freed, he is visibly limping; however, later in the episode, he is shown walking around the bridge with no indication that the injury had ever occured. Justified in that Spock may heal faster than humans and that McCoy may have had a chance to treat his injuries in the meantime.
  • Underestimating Badassery : In " Errand of Mercy ", the Klingons conquer Organia, not knowing that the Perfect Pacifist People living there are actually ludicrously powerful Energy Beings . They didn't need the Federation's help to rescue their planet .
  • Unknown Relative : In the episode "Journey to Babel" Kirk is surprised to meet Spock's parents . It's a little unrealistic that a Starfleet captain tasked with transporting a distinguished delegation to a vital conference would have no idea that Vulcan's ambassador to the Federation is his first officer's father.
  • Unlimited Wardrobe : Guest star Barbara Anderson (Lenore Karidian, "Conscience of a King") shares the record with Ricardo Montalban and Joan Collins for the most costumes worn in an episode (six).
  • Unsuccessful Pet Adoption : Zigzagged. In "The Trouble with Tribbles", Uhura adopts a Tribble (a little fuzzy alien), but has to give it away because all Tribbles multiply like crazy and are "born pregnant". However, it's a bit ambiguous on whether Tribbles are usually kept as pets. They are sold, but Kirk and other such characters frequently comment on how bad they are as pets.
  • Unwitting Instigator of Doom : Doctor McCoy (and Edith Keeler) in "The City on the Edge of Forever".
  • Updated Re-release : The remastered episodes, with redone special effects, HD film transfers, and rerecorded stereo soundtracks.
  • Khan suffers a brief one when no one from the bridge is willing to join him, even with Kirk's life at stake.
  • In " Turnabout Intruder ", Dr Janice Lester grows increasingly unhinged as the rest of the suspicious crew begin to mutiny and rebel against her orders while she's in Kirk's body.
  • "The Conscience of the King" deals with trying to discover if actor Anton Karidian really was a murderous tyrant named Kodos the Executioner. By the end of the episode, this has happened to two villainous characters. Karidian, who is Kodos and becomes spooked when he overhears an argument between Riley and Kirk about his past during a performance of Hamlet , breaks down backstage during the intermission , believing the voices to be ghosts from his past. At the same time, his daughter Lenore reveals she has murdered seven of the nine witnesses who could still identify him, and plans to kill Kirk and Riley, even swearing she would destroy a planet to save him. Kodos breaks down further as he realizes his actions in the past have corrupted his own child as well. In true Shakespearian fashion, this causes a chain reaction that ends in the death of Kodos, who dies trying to stop Lenore from shooting Kirk and instead takes the lethal blast meant for Kirk. Lenore is pronounced completely insane in the epilogue, as she believes her father to be alive and well.
  • Evil Kirk in "Mirror, Mirror". " I. ORDER. YOU!!!! "
  • And Evil Kirk in "The Enemy Within". "IIIIIII'MMMMMMMM CAPTAIIIIIN KIIIIIIIRK!"
  • Virus and Cure Names : Rigellian Fever, cured by Ryetalyn.
  • In "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky," the inhabitants of Yonada believe themselves to live on a "world" but are actually living in a hollowed-out asteroid that has been turned into a starship, as one elderly Yonadan discovers by comitting the titular act, before being killed for his "heresy" by the Oracle that controls their ship.
  • Wanting Is Better Than Having : Spock in "Amok Time", almost word for word. Spock: After a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing after all as wanting. It is not logical... but it is often true.
  • War Hero : Captain Kirk is openly stated to have been decorated many times for valor. Kirk doesn't talk about his awards or display them, preferring to keep them locked away in his quarters. His record is so impressive that in the episode " Court Martial " where Kirk was framed for the death of a crewman and put on trial, the prosecutor tried to have his decorations entered into the record without being read aloud to the court. Fortunately, Kirk's defense attorney saw right through this ploy and insisted that more of Kirk's list of medals be read into the record. Cogley: I wouldn't want to slow the wheels of progress. But then on the other hand, I wouldn't want those wheels to run over my client in their unbridled haste. Stone: Continue. Computer: Awards of Valor, Medal of Honor, Silver Palm with Cluster, Starfleet Citation for Conspicuous Gallantry, Karagite Order of Heroism... Cogley: Stop. I think that's enough. I wouldn't want to slow things up too much.
  • Weakened by the Light : In "Operation: Annihilate!", the parasites that infected the colonists on the planet Deneva are destroyed by bright light.
  • Weapon Running Time : In "Balance of Terror" , the Romulans' plasma bolt travels at sublight speed and has a limited range. This allows the fleeing Enterprise to travel far enough before the bolt hits that it survives the weakened bolt's impact. A full-power hit would have destroyed the ship.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist : The Vians in " The Empath " use a beautiful, mute empath in combination with our Power Trio to determine whether her race is worthy of survival before their sun goes nova. Their methods consist of torture and mutilation, resulting in gross physical and psychological damage. Turns out that the empath's race is worthy of preservation, and the Vians, logical and possessed of their own morals and ethics regarding life , needed only "good old-fashioned human emotion" to help them see that.
  • We Need a Distraction : Both “By Any Other Name” and “Is There In Truth No Beauty” have the woman notice that Kirk is trying to seduce them as a blatant distraction.
  • Kirk is often upset whenever one of his crew members (usually a Red Shirt ) dies. He is also clearly upset when the Romulans decide to self-destruct rather than surrender in "Balance of Terror".
  • What's more, the Romulan Commander himself sees his own mission the same way: he's testing new weapons (a cloaking device and extremely powerful plasma torpedo) to see if the Romulans have a sufficient technological edge to win another war against the Federation, and to see if the Federation has grown soft in the intervening years. He is haunted by the fact that if his mission goes well, a new war will be the result, with senseless wastes of Human and Romulan lives on both sides. Nevertheless, he fights to the best of his ability, as his duty demands. This all serves to highlight the fact that he and Kirk aren't so different.
  • What Measure Is a Non-Human? : The Horta (rock monster) in "The Devil in the Dark".
  • Where's the Fun in That? : "The Squire of Gothos". Kirk asks his captor, "Where's the sport?" in simply hanging him, as he had planned. Instead, Kirk talks his captor into staging a "royal hunt" . This buys Kirk enough time for a Deus ex Machina rescue.
  • Who Even Needs a Brain? : In "Spock's Brain", Spock's brain is stolen by aliens who use it as a computer to run their planet's infrastructure. For some reason, his autonomic functions still work, but he is completely unconscious. Kirk has to get the brain back quickly, because Spock's Vulcan physiology is especially dependent on that tremendous brain. (While a brain-dead human could be kept "alive" easily for quite some time.) So that they can restore the brain quickly when they find it, McCoy rigs up a device that fits on Spock's head and allows his lifeless body to walk around, manipulated by a remote control. With three buttons. S.P.O.C.K has made a song called "Mr. Spock's Brain", based on the above episode.
  • Wide-Eyed Idealist : Edith Keeler in "The City on the Edge of Forever", a passionate advocate of peace— in the face of Nazi Germany . Spock: She had the right idea ... but at the wrong time.
  • With Great Power Comes Great Insanity : "Where No Man Has Gone Before", and to a lesser extent (or at least power level), "Whom Gods Destroy".
  • World of Ham : A galaxy of ham, in this case. With most of the principal cast being classically-trained stage actors and having earned their early TV credentials in Westerns, note  and, in Shatner's case, as a television lawyer in a Canadian Perry Mason copycat it comes with the territory.
  • Worthy Opponent : Several examples, with the Romulan commander in "Balance of Terror" being a particular standout.
  • Usually it's to show how evil the villains can get, as the main characters would rarely ever do it (unless their body is taken over or if they are under the influence of something). In one episode alone, one minion slaps Uhura and would do it on two more occasions if others hadn't stepped in.
  • Another instance is when an ex-lover of Kirk's, while in Kirk's body, hits Kirk, who is in her body. This shocks the rest of the crew, who at this point haven't learned about the change and grow suspicious, as Kirk would never hit a girl like that.
  • Kirk chins Shahna, his "drill thrall" in "The Gamesters of Triskelion", into unconsciousness, but it doesn't get him very far.
  • However, Kirk has a weird tendency to lay his hands on female characters as part of "normal" conversation, including grabbing them by the arms or shoulders and shaking them, even women he hasn't been sleeping with. This tendency towards physical conversation also extends to male crew members.
  • This tendency doesn't extend to when the girls hit first. Both Kirk and McCoy have slapped women right back in a few episodes.
  • In the very first episode, when the salt vampire disguises itself as Nancy, the woman archaeologist who's supposedly been living on the planet, it's Spock who convinces McCoy by beating the living shit out of "Nancy" , who isn't affected at all, finally pretty casually backhanding Spock clear across the room.
  • Xanatos Gambit : "Amok Time". T'Pring benefits no matter who wins the duel. Turns out Vulcans love these, since they are, as Spock comments, "Logical. Flawlessly logical." They're always looking to turn some kind of benefit from plans and events.
  • Ye Olde Butchered English : T'Pau in "Amok Time" consistently messes up "Thee" and "Thou," using "Thee" as second person singular subject.
  • You Can't Fight Fate : In "The City on the Edge of Forever", Edith Keeler must die so that Germany doesn't win World War II and wipe the Federation from existence. (Had she lived, she would have founded a peace movement that would have delayed the United States' entry into the European front of WWII, allowing Nazi Germany sufficient time to develop the atomic bomb and thus win the war.)
  • Averted, at least for a decade or two, with the "microtape" data cartridges, which look very much like 3.5" diskettes and can store a fantastically large amount of information compared to modern technology. note  as in, one of them can store the entire Internet as of 2017. At the very least recording tapes still exist as a means of long term bulk data storage, with higher capacity tapes and better formatting being made to fill this niche need.
  • Maybe the in-universe designers of the Enterprise wanted the crew to remember they were talking to a machine , but 21st century GPS units sound much more human and less mechanized than the ship's computer voice.
  • There is now a remastered version of Star Trek with modern, CGI special effects. In contrast to the changes done on Star Wars , the remastering is generally (though far from universally) well-received (it helps that the Blu Ray release utilizes seamless branching to allow the viewer the choice of watching the episodes as they were originally broadcast, or with the updated special effects). It should also be noted they only remastered the original special effects and didn't take the opportunity to tweak any plot points . The CGI also embraces a degree of Stylistic Suck , so that the improved effects aren't jarring against original footage.

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The Church of Trek

In Futurama, the Star Trek fandom grew from easy-to-punch nerds to a religious cult that influenced countries, eventually getting to the point that world leaders executed Trekkies en mass and scrubbed every known existence of Star Trek from public knowlege.

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

  • When an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk resumes command of the overhauled USS Enterprise in order to intercept it.
  • A massive alien spacecraft of enormous power destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers as it makes its way towards Federation space. Admiral James T. Kirk is ordered to take command of the USS Enterprise for the first time since her historic five-year mission. The Epsilon IX space station alerts the Federation, but they are also destroyed by the alien spacecraft. The only starship in range is the Enterprise, after undergoing a major overhaul in drydock orbiting Earth. Kirk rounds up the rest of his crew, and acquires some new members, and sets off to intercept the alien spacecraft. However, it has been three years since Kirk last went into deep space--is he up to the task of saving Earth? — Colin Tinto <[email protected]>
  • The dazzling, refurbished USS Enterprise soars proudly once again in this ultimate space adventure. When a massive alien spacecraft destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers, Captain James T. Kirk returns to the newly-transformed USS Enterprise to take command. William Shatner is joined by Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , and the cast from the acclaimed "Star Trek" television series. The alien spacecraft of enormous power enters Federation space and neutralizes everything in its path. The entire crew mobilizes at warp speed to stop the alien intruder from its relentless flight toward Earth. — Robert Lynch <[email protected]>
  • In 2273, a Starfleet monitoring station, Epsilon Nine, detects an alien force, hidden in a massive cloud of energy, moving through space towards Earth. The cloud destroys three of the Klingon Empire's new K'I'Inga-class warships and the monitoring station on route. On Earth, the star ship Enterprise is undergoing a major refit; her former commanding officer, James T. Kirk (William Shatner), has been promoted to Admiral and works in San Francisco as Chief of Starfleet Operations. Starfleet dispatches Enterprise to investigate the cloud entity as the ship is the only one in intercept range, requiring her new systems to be tested in transit. Kirk takes command of the ship citing his experience, angering Captain Willard Decker (Stephen Collins), who had been overseeing the refit as its new commanding officer. Testing of Enterprise's new systems goes poorly; two officers, including the science officer, are killed by a malfunctioning transporter, and improperly calibrated engines almost destroy the ship. Kirk's unfamiliarity with the new systems of the Enterprise increases the tension between him and first officer Decker. Commander Spock (Leonard Nimoy) arrives as a replacement science officer, explaining that while on his home world undergoing a ritual to purge all emotion, he felt a consciousness that he believes emanates from the cloud. Other officers are Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley), the chief medical officer. Montgomery Scott (James Doohan), the Enterprise's chief engineer. Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig), the Enterprise's weapons officer. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), the communications officer. Hikaru Sulu (George Takei), the Enterprise's helmsman Enterprise intercepts the energy cloud and is attacked by an alien vessel within. But this time, Spock is able to discern that the alien vessel has been trying to communicate with the Enterprise. Spock fixes the Linguacode and transmission frequencies of their reception and the attacks on the Enterprise stop. A probe appears on the bridge, attacks Spock and abducts the navigator, Ilia (Persis Khambatta). She is replaced by a robotic replica, another probe sent by "V'Ger" to study the crew. Decker is distraught over the loss of Ilia, with whom he had a romantic history. He becomes troubled as he attempts to extract information from the doppelganger, which has Ilia's memories and feelings buried within. Spock takes a spacewalk to the alien vessel's interior and attempts a telepathic mind meld with it. In doing so, he learns that the vessel is V'Ger itself, a living machine. Shortly thereafter V'Ger transmit a signal in simple binary code on radio and asks for the creator. When it receives no response, it fires probes into the atmosphere that Enterprise calculates will rid the planet of mankind. Ilia the robot tells Kirk that V'Ger has calculated that the Carbon lifeforms infest the creator's planet as it infests the Enterprise and hence needs to be eliminated to stop interfering with the creator's work. Spock suggests that V'Ger is a child and asks Kirk to treat it as such. Kirk tells Ilia the robot why the creator has not responded but won't reveal that to V'Ger. V'Ger has a huge power surge (in the manner of throwing a tantrum). Kirk holds and says to Ilia robot that he will only reveal the information to V'Ger directly. As such, the Enterprise is pulled towards the V'Ger's central brain complex. At the center of the massive ship, V'Ger is revealed to be Voyager 6, a 20th-century Earth space probe believed lost. The damaged probe was found by an alien race of living machines that interpreted its programming as instructions to learn all that can be learned and return that information to its creator. The machines upgraded the probe to fulfill its mission, and on its journey the probe gathered so much knowledge that it achieved consciousness. Spock realizes that V'Ger lacks the ability to give itself a focus other than its original mission; having learned what it could on its journey home, it finds its existence empty and without purpose. Before transmitting all its information, V'Ger insists that the Creator come in person to finish the sequence. Realizing that the machine wants to merge with its creator, Decker offers himself to V'Ger; he merges with the Ilia probe and V'Ger, creating a new form of life that disappears into another dimension. With Earth saved, Kirk directs Enterprise out to space for future missions.

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Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner, and Persis Khambatta in Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

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'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' is the most beautiful 'Trek' film, and the least human

Entertainment Geekly's 'Star Trek' series begins with a partial defense of the weird first film

Darren is a TV Critic. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFranich for opinions and recommendations.

tv tropes star trek the motion picture

Star Trek turns 50 this year. It is the most important of the great pop culture franchises, maybe, the first realized vision of a cross-platform fictionalized universe. There are long-running narrative ideas that predate Trek ‘s 1966 TV debut, sure: James Bond, Middle-Earth, Godzilla, Spider-Man, Superman, Sherlock Holmes. But the Star Trek half-century is the half-century of fandom, canon, mythology, spin-offs, young faces growing old across sequels and reboots. It is the age that fandom took over the movie industry – or the age of the movie industry co-opting fandom. Consider: The other franchises had to come to Hollywood. Trek started here – to the south, in Culver City, at Desilu Productions, rescued from development oblivion because Lucille Ball had serious sway.

If you want to understand everything fascinating about our movie moment – the push and pull between fans and creators, between beloved actors and the characters who define them, between the executives with all the money and the creators with all the ideas, between the demand for more of what has already worked and the constant need to set off in bold new directions, between the infinite creative possibilities of special effects and the infinite destructive possibilities of special effects – you need to understand Star Trek . It is the miracle of modern entertainment.

Star Trek turns 50 this year. It is the most inessential of the great pop culture franchises, maybe, forever chasing the stylistic advances of younger upstart entertainments, forever entrapped in narrative tropes and hackneyed philosophy, a vision of the future long past. Once progressive in vision, the franchise turned conservative in its desperate curation. In Trek , you see the beginning of the Faustian bargain between fan and executive – between the person who wants more of the same, and the person unwilling to try anything new – that would transform genre storytelling from the fascinating fringe into the vanilla mainstream. In Trek , you see the end of science fiction as a venue for ideas; the never-ending birth of remake culture; you can pinpoint the moment when every movie needed to be an action movie.

If you want to understand everything depressing about our movie moment – how every movie is an advertisement for another movie, how the most expensive films in history have less emotional impact than a middling episode of Better Call Saul , how directors became crossing guards, how actors became spokespeople, why a Pulitzer Prize-winning author is working on the Hasbro Cinematic Universe – you have to understand Star Trek . It is the downward spiral, the totalitarian Mirror Universe. It is modern entertainment’s original sin.

There is no simple way to understand Star Trek . There are high highs and low lows. There is canon and fanon, a general sense that continuity doesn’t matter running alongside a fierce protection of holy canon. There are arguments: Kirk vs Picard, Deep Space Nine vs everything, Voyager was secretly brilliant the whole time, J.J. saved Trek , J.J. ruined Trek .

Best to focus in, I think. On July 22, the 13th Star Trek movie will arrive in theaters. If Star Trek Beyond is awful, it still might not be the worst Star Trek movie. If Beyond is fantastic, it still might not be the best Star Trek movie. Trek cinema is all over the map: Thrilling, boring, experimental, primitive, expensive, shoestring. Maybe Star Trek should only be a TV show. (A new one arrives 2017.) Maybe Star Trek should only be about an Enterprise . Maybe it should just end. Maybe we’re just beginning. Every week from now until Beyond , we’ll look closely at one of the movies, in chronological order from Kirk to Picard to Kirk again. Hopefully, we’ll understand more at the end.

There are some moments in Star Trek: The Motion Picture that are so beautiful – serene, cosmic, passionately alive with the possibility of The Infinite. You want to cry, you don’t know why. There are planetscapes and solaric abstractions and effervescent fugue-core incoherence rippling across electric oceans. The villain in The Motion Picture is one such abstraction: A demi-god vapor-planet of unknown origin and unknowable purpose. It is the first thing we see in the movie, and we never really see it at all.

In the first scene of The Motion Picture , three Klingon ships approach the cloud. In 1979, a Star Trek fan would have recognized the design of the Klingon ships. But things would have also looked different, to that diehard Trek fan. The camera follows the ships move across the stars – the kind of special effect that was practically impossible when Star Trek was on TV.

The Klingons are different, too: more alien, with makeup and forehead prosthetics. The subtext could be understood by a child: Star Trek is now $tar Trek !. And things sound better, too. The Motion Picture opens with the new Star Trek theme by Jerry Goldsmith, one of the greatest and most instantly recognizable musical cues in the last four decades. And the first scene is set to Goldsmith’s Klingon Battle Theme. That track might actually be better than Goldsmith’s theme tune, the way John Williams’ “The Imperial March” is deeper, richer, funnier, more dramatic than the Star Wars main theme.

The Motion Picture needs you to know that it’s a movie, by god. It’s right there in the title: “The Motion Picture,” a phrase connoting something bigger, better, more official , maybe even more pure than all that had come before. (You can feel an implication: Wouldn’t Star Trek be even better on the big screen?)

Today, “The Motion Picture” is a meaningless title. It runs along another outdated idea: That movies are fundamentally better than television. Almost four decades on, TV is more like movies, and movies are more like TV. And – roll with me, please – “motion pictures” stopped being A Thing You Watch and started being Your Life And How You Express Yourself. Your ten-year-old nephew makes motion pictures. Your ten-year-old nephew films from better angles than Robert Wise.

Wise directed The Motion Picture. He is one of perhaps twenty people who you could say saved Star Trek , and he is one of perhaps thirty who you could say almost destroyed Star Trek . (The lists overlap. Gene Roddenberry’s on both, at the top.) But if you allow for some wide wiggle room in your definition of “authorship,” all the best motion pictures in The Motion Picture comes from Douglas Trumbull.

Trumbull was a special-effects guy, worked on some of the most famous sequences in 2001: A Space Odyssey , was just finishing Close Encounters of the Third Kind , would soon craft the neon gritworlds of Blade Runner . An impressive run, and one that maybe Trumbull himself only appreciates as a complimentary prize from fate. In the early ’70s, Trumbull directed Silent Running , a Big Idea space thinker that earned the kind of negative money cult sensations always earn.

Trumbull only agreed to do The Motion Picture out of spite. Paramount was in a jam; he was on contract to them; they needed him; he wanted nothing to do with Paramount ever again. So he agreed to finish the movies’ special effects on a tight turnaround, on the condition that he would never have to work with Paramount again. He worked his team hard – in his own telling, Trumbull wound up in the hospital for two weeks, exhausted. Working alongside onetime protégé John Dykstra (who created some of the most memorable effects in Star Wars ) and much of the Close Encounters team, Trumbull the weirdest and gorgeous and often wildly incongruous visions ever seen in a science fiction movie.

Much of it looks unreal, like this early shot of Planet Vulcan, rendered across matte paintings and smoke effects and the tease of rockform gargantuans. Who knows how this played in 1979, so soon after Star Wars imagined alien planets as real on-location set-ups in Tunisia and Guatemala.

In the best and maybe most despised sequence from The Motion Picture , the Starship Enterprise enters the godcloud, and, for 10 minutes, we see an interior that seems to hold the cosmos. It’s the closest thing to a tesseract ever caught on film: The deeper we go, the more there is.

There’s a shot in this sequence that may be the single most stunning image ever captured in a Star Trek project. Maybe that doesn’t matter as much as we think; maybe the franchise only gets worse when the people involved think “stunning images” are what define Star Trek . But, toward the end of this journey inwards, the camera pulls back to what a cinematographer might call a “Cosmically Extreme Long Shot,” and we see the great starship Enterprise , a tiny speck on this monster’s horizon.

Later, Spock puts on a spacesuit and goes on his own private journey through what you can only safely describe as a cosmic vaginal endoscape. The cutting strategy is familiar to anyone who saw 2001 : Spock’s face, something crazy, Spock’s face, something crazy. At the end of Spock’s journey, there is a woman – Ilia, but it doesn’t matter, names don’t matter in The Motion Picture , nothing any person does really matters. We know that’s not the real woman; she’s back on the Enterprise , or some version of her is.

But Spock is tantalized. To the extent that any character has a “journey” in The Motion Picture , Spock has been seeking something the whole movie. A higher state of consciousness, maybe? He seems to find it here, in this glowing representation of WOMAN. An unearthly glow encompasses him, erasing his face from our sight. He reaches out his hands – to mindmeld, to know .

The mindmeld blasts Spock backwards. The effect is, no other way of saying this, orgasmic. Spock describes the strange thoughts he experienced, inside the creature’s brain. “Is this all I am?” he says. “Is there nothing more?”

The Motion Picture ‘s monster is in the midst of an existential crisis, it turns out. It was a computer, created by man – Voyager 7 6, or “V’GER,” a satellite sent out to the stars. In the stars, it found more computers, which gave it inconceivable power. It has seen everything now – and, in achieving total cosmic awareness, it has also achieved sentience. It lives: So what?

In The Motion Picture , the “what now” is… well, sex. Or togetherness. Or the awareness of other life. Or the knowledge that we live only so that we can create other things that live. It’s all a bit abstract – but don’t Zen Buddhists seem pretty happy? The movie ends with Ilia and Decker – another nothing character, they might as well be named Eve and Adam, Woman and Man, Thing One and Thing Two – bonding with the cloud-thing. The climactic image of them – receiving enlightenment? ascending to a higher state? dying? being reborn? – is one of the silliest and most transcendent special effects shots ever.

“I think we gave it the ability to create its own sense of purpose,” concludes SpockKirk. You might point out, rightly, that “creating a sense of purpose” is not the most dramatic concept for a movie. You might also point out, just as rightly, that “creating a sense of purpose” is the central experience of humanity. How do you put such a vague but universal experience onscreen? How do you conjure up the fear that there is no purpose? Maybe you need a new language, something beyond words. Cinema, or whatever cinema used to be.

Decades later, Wise worked on a special cut of The Motion Picture . It was released with added digital effects – not the first time a major moment in Trek history happened because of Star Wars , not the last time a terrible moment in Trek history happened because of Star Wars . That special cut adds in a few shots that seem to clearly identify what V’Ger looks like. This is helpful only if you think that incoherence was The Motion Picture ‘s problem, and not its saving grace. The first Star Trek film has almost no real story, and the characters are only “characters” because we know their names and faces from a long-dead TV show. But you could spend a long time pondering the image of the Enterprise , dwarfed and surrounded by V’Ger.

You wonder what it must have been like, to see that on a big screen. You wonder what it must have felt like, to only see motion pictures on the big screen. You wonder, above all, what it was like to feel so small in the universe.

The Motion Picture depends on you loving space – and I mean “space” both ways, as in “everything outside of Earth” and as in “height and depth and width and distance.” In 2016, nobody pays much attention to outer space, except as one more piece of nostalgiabait trending curiosity. (Is Pluto still not a planet?) And maybe we don’t pay as much attention to the other definition of space: What does distance mean, to digital natives?

So The Motion Picture is beloved by film theorists and special effects nerds and people who treat marijuana as a sacrament. But in 2016, special effects are too common – and marijuana too legal – to feel sacred.

–––––––––––––––––––

Kirk looks at the Enterprise for the first time around minute 16 of The Motion Picture , and doesn’t stop until minute 23. Kirk and Scotty are riding a little shuttle to their ship, and that ride takes seven minutes of screen time. It is slow, and nothing “happens,” unless you love Douglas Trumbull’s special effects and Jerry Goldsmith’s music, unless you can groove onto the idea that “Looking” is an active state. ( Wrath of Khan is to The Motion Picture as The Motion Picture is to Solaris .)

Kirk’s returning to the old ship after years behind a desk. He ascended from the captain’s chair to become, ahem “Chief of Starfleet Operations.” One of the many accidental gags in The Motion Picture ‘s nonsense script is that Kirk must have been truly terrible at operating Starfleet. There is a giant killer gas cloud coming towards Earth – and “the only starship in interception range is the Enterprise .” The only starship? Isn’t Earth, like, the center of Starfleet Operations? Wouldn’t this be, like, the Joint Chiefs saying, “We’ve only got one fighter jet defending Washington!”)

Kirk is out of practice. “You haven’t logged a single star hour in two years!” declares Commander Decker, the man who would have been in charge of the Enterprise if Kirk hadn’t unretired himself. Decker is played by Stephen Collins, with retroactively creepy blandness . There is a ghost of a good idea here, the whole DNA of Wrath of Khan : What if Kirk is too old for this? But part of the strangeness of The Motion Picture is that the special effects sequences are vivid, mad with pulsating power – and the scenes with human beings are void, stilted, static. Wise shoots with wide angles and deep focus, so you can appreciate how full this Enterprise is of humans standing immobile, unresponsive.

Wise had a huge budget, and so he built huge sets, each less compelling than the last. The Enterprise ‘s Rec Room looks as playful as a prison cell, and the observation lounge allows crew members to sit on asylum sofas and contemplate the eternal void.

You could say that the whole problem of Star Trek – or a problem that many brilliant creators and actors have grappled with – is how stilted the core ethos of the franchise is, on narrative and visual levels. Star Trek must have a cast of characters who obey authority and work together. Everyone’s an officer in some codified organized military or other. Everyone wears a uniform. Because most of the action happens with the main characters on “The Bridge,” most of the climactic sequences in Star Trek history happen with all our heroes sitting down.

Wise does not try to bring life to this structure. He doesn’t send the crew into a fistfight, doesn’t blow up the ship, doesn’t ram spaceships into each other. He does send a couple characters out into space – but they don’t fire lasers at anyone. Late in the long first act, Dr. McCoy arrives on the Enterprise , and Kirk asks him for help. Look at how Shatner insistently extends his hand; that is the closest Kirk comes to an action scene in The Motion Picture .

Maybe the problem was Roddenberry. The creator of Star Trek spent the decade after Star Trek trying to bring back Star Trek . He would not let it die. You think of George Miller, returning to create the perfect Mad Max 30 years later. Or maybe you think of George Lucas, who returned to the saga he created with no clear sense of what made the saga work so well. Or maybe you think of other people – Chris Carter? Roger Kumble ? Anyone on Fuller House who isn’t John Stamos? – returning to the most popular item on a long-dormant IMDb page.

Roddenberry was devoted to Star Trek , but he carried the blame for all the perceived faults of The Motion Picture . This is the only Trek film Roddenberry really worked on. History repeats: Years later, Roddenberry was booted from The Next Generation . Mythology holds that Roddenberry’s utopian vision was the antithesis of drama. So in The Motion Picture , Decker is only ever mildly upset with Kirk, and Kirk is only ever mildly concerned about Spock.

The film can’t even commit to a lack of emotion. One of Ilia’s first terrible lines is, “My oath of celibacy is on the record, Captain.” Soon, celibate Ilia is transformed into an emotionless robot – two different layers of Spocklike indifference! But Ilia can’t keep her eyes off love interest Decker, and Decker can’t stop smiling at her. Here again, another ghost of a good idea – what if Kirk Junior had to romance Lady Spock for the good of the cosmos! – but the outcome is never in doubt, the drama never dangerous.

Roddenberry was a utopianist. He believed in the best ideas about humanity getting along. This is the beautiful thing about Star Trek , and it is why people who love Star Trek get nervous whenever some new Star Trek thing tries to be dark, or less-than-hopeful. It strikes me that the vision of Starfleet in The Motion Picture is as close as Roddenberry ever got to a pure utopia. Everyone is so… serene. Everyone is so… peaceful. Everyone is so… bland. George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, and Walter Koenig are only in the movie to smile at Kirk.

Kubrick’s big joke in 2001 was that the computer was more human than the humans. That’s another accidental joke in The Motion Picture . Shatner, dangerously toned-down, seems more Vulcan than the Vulcan. The Enterprise crew listens patiently to Kirk giving commands, follows orders. Spock pursues great knowledge, with no ambition or thirst. He seeks cosmic transcendence with all the exhausted energy of a TSA officer opening her 31st carry-on of the day, knowing there’s probably nothing inside but a toenail clipper and a forgotten half-empty water bottle.

The Motion Picture has a simple problem: It’s too goddamn slow. Every other Star Trek film is, in some way, a reaction against that complaint. But the slowness creates the great parts of The Motion Picture – those long moments of sound and image, unencumbered by plot or character or even dialogue. You could argue that The Motion Picture is 2001 for Dummies, or the misbegotten mash-up of 2001 and Star Wars with placeholders where characters should be.

But The Motion Picture is reaching for something no other Trek film has even tried to reach for. It is Head-Trip science fiction, Big Question science fiction. No one involved can think of a compelling way to dramatize those questions. Surely there was a way, though! You think of “Balance of Terror,” one of the greatest of all Star Trek stories. “Balance of Terror” is a bottle episode about people in one set trying to outthink people on another set. Like a lot of great original series episodes, it might as well have a declarative title: “THIS IS ABOUT THE COLD WAR.” The characters have no psychology: They exist as mouthpieces for thought-notions, “Let’s shoot first,” “Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt,” “We can’t trust anyone,” “We need to trust someone.” The narrative is Socratic, but there’s nothing wrong with that. Not every fight needs to be choreographed.

Could The Motion Picture have worked like that, as a thoughtful exploration? It still almost does, even if everyone besides DeForest Kelley looks bored. There’s no other film like it – besides maybe Final Frontier (more on that in four weeks). So The Motion Picture is a fascinating curio. There are better Trek s, but they’re smaller, too, and maybe less ambitious. This could be the last Star Trek ever. Will anyone ever even try to write the last Star Trek ?

FASHION NOTES:

Further sign of the cognitive dissonance that powers The Motion Picture : The special effects are colorful, neon-dark against the infinite, and the clothes are beige, gray, light brown, and off-white. The clothes look like furniture, the furniture looks like clothes. These are the shortest-lived of the Trek uniforms, and the extras all look like they’re wearing pajamas. I am not sure we will ever be in a moment like this again: One of the most expensive movies of the year takes for granted that you want to see middle-aged men wear V-necks.

But, devil’s advocate: The Motion Picture uniforms are the only Star Trek costumes that look made for comfort. They are loose, turtlenecks and sweatshirts, onesies, shirts that don’t ever get tucked in. Witness the Holy Trinity in slanket-chic.

The grand exception is Ilia, played by Persis Khambatta. An Indian model with silent-cinema eyes, Khambatta was cast as Ilia when The Motion Picture was going to be a new TV show, and her character only just barely transitioned to the feature film, with the barest whisp of a backstory and a kinda-nude scene. Captured and reprogrammed by V’Ger, Ilia returns to the Enterprise in a barely-there bathrobe with a cowl and high heels – a clear sign that V’Ger is much kinkier than the movie allows.

WORTH NOTING FOR FUTURE FRANCHISE REFERENCE:

The first lens flare in any Star Trek film occurs about 35 minutes into the original theatrical cut. You can see it floating next to Sulu’s head. This was almost certainly a mistake brought on by Wise’s abject love for unnecessary camera trickery. But penicillin was a mistake, too.

THE ENTIRE MOVIE IN ONE SHOT:

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture

1979, Sci-fi, 2h 12m

What to know

Critics Consensus

Featuring a patchwork script and a dialogue-heavy storyline whose biggest villain is a cloud, Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a less-than-auspicious debut for the franchise. Read critic reviews

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Star trek: the motion picture videos, star trek: the motion picture   photos.

The Federation calls on Adm. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the Starship Enterprise to contain an immense nimbused object that's on a crash course with Earth. After investigating, the crew discovers that the alien cloud harbors artificial intelligence with an ominous primary directive. Crisis strikes when a probe dispatched by the energy cloud attacks the crew, abducting navigator Lt. Ilia (Persis Khambatta). An android look-alike containing her memories shows up soon after.

Genre: Sci-fi

Original Language: English

Director: Robert Wise

Producer: Gene Roddenberry

Writer: Alan Dean Foster , Harold Livingston

Release Date (Theaters): Dec 6, 1979  wide

Release Date (Streaming): Dec 16, 2009

Runtime: 2h 12m

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Production Co: Paramount Pictures, Century Associates

Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Surround

Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

View the collection: Star Trek

Cast & Crew

William Shatner

Admiral, Captain James T. Kirk

Leonard Nimoy

Commander Spock

DeForest Kelley

Lt. Cmdr, Leonard H. 'Bones' McCoy, M.D.

Stephen Collins

Capt., Cmdr. Willard Decker

Persis Khambatta

Lieutenant Ilia

James Doohan

Commander Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott

Nichelle Nichols

Lt. Cmdr. Uhura

Walter Koenig

Lt. Cmdr. Pavel Chekov

George Takei

Lt. Cmdr. Hikaru Sulu

Majel Roddenberry

Lt. Cmdr. Christine Chapel, M.D.

Grace Lee Whitney

Lt. Cmdr. Janice Rand

Mark Lenard

Klingon Captain

Billy Van Zandt

Alien Ensign

Robert Wise

Alan Dean Foster

Harold Livingston

Screenwriter

Associate Producer

Gene Roddenberry

Jerry Goldsmith

Original Music

Alexander Courage

Non-Original Music

Thane Berti

Cinematographer

Richard H. Kline

Todd C. Ramsay

Film Editing

Marvin Paige

Harold Michelson

Production Design

Leon Harris

Art Director

Joseph R. Jennings

John Vallone

Linda DeScenna

Set Decoration

Robert Fletcher

Costume Design

Phil Rawlins

Unit Production Manager

Daniel McCauley

Assistant Director

Douglas E. Wise

Second Assistant Director

News & Interviews for Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Your Epic Movie Franchise Binge Guide: The Best Way to Watch the Biggest Series

Every Star Trek Movie Ranked from Worst to Best

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Critic Reviews for Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Audience reviews for star trek: the motion picture.

I've heard George Lucas talk about the change of pacing between films of the 1970's and of films now. He talked about how the pacing of the first Star Wars film was considered rapid at the time but by today's standards, pretty slow. I feel the same can be said about the first Star Trek film (The Motion Picture). The first hour of this film is quite a drag. The special effects are dated, but sometimes that can be forgiven if the story around it is epic (Original Star Wars). The story for this film is embroiled in mystery as we don't even know who or what the villain is for close to an hour and a half. Overall, I think I can say I enjoyed watching Star Trek: The Motion Picture as it brings back all of the same characters and dynamics from the original series, but the story dragged and I don't feel like this was the particular plot they should have revolved the first feature film around. The enterprise this time is investigating an alien spacecraft that gets mysteriously close to earth, known as V'Ger. Captain Kirk returned back to his position as head of the Starship Enterprise. Kirk replaced the new head of the enterprise, Decker. Obviously, you know that the dynamic between the two will have plenty of tension knowing there's two captains in the same ship, but it doesn't go to the extent that a normal Hollywood film would do. Yes, the tone and feel of the film is the same as the series but I think it was lacking the magic. There's a lot of time in the film spent on showing the numerous special effects shots and set pieces they created for the film. With that said, I don't feel like there was enough time spent on character development for people who didn't know the characters from the TV show. It's not that Star Trek: The Motion Picture isn't a good entry in the series, it's just that there's merely nothing special at all about the film. Its constantly told to us that this mission is to save the entire human race and has a huge scope, but we don't really see that being played out. I liked the ending reveal involving V'Ger, but it didn't save the film from being an average entry in a history franchise. +Same feel as the series +Cool reveal -Don't get a sense of the scope they were going for -Too much time spent on establishing shots and showing off average special effects 6.3/10

tv tropes star trek the motion picture

The first Star Trek film directed by Robert Wise manages to capture the vibe of the TV show and offer fans a good two hours of entertainment. Although, this film isn't a classic by any means, it's still enjoyable for what it is. There has been far better science fiction film, but this first film in the Star Trek franchise is quite good despite the fact that it does show its age. With this film, director Robert Wise crafts something entertaining, a film that has a good storyline, impressive performances and an effective mix of action and thrills. Fans of the show will surely enjoy this picture, and it's an effective continuation of what Gene Roddenberry accomplished with his show. I enjoyed this film, but like I said, it looks dated and the effects on-screen don't hold up too well. Nonetheless it's still an effective, entertaining Sci Fi film, one that should be seen by genre fans looking for a well constructed film. The sequel;, Wrath of Kahn would definitely improve on the elements that are lacking within the film, but as it is, Star Trek: The Motion Picture is entertaining from start to finish, but as a whole, it does leave a bit to be desired, which is what the follow up would improve upon. I must admit, I never was big into Star Trek, but I enjoyed this film and I felt that director Robert Wise, of whom I've enjoyed his previous work, is well suited to tackle this first big screen outing of the classic show. Despite the fact that I don't believe that this film is a genre classic, as it really didn't break new grounds in the genre, this film will surely appeal to viewers that are looking for a good Science Fiction film to watch.

Movie made to show how far special effects advanced and to make money thanks to success of tv show.

I have to admit, I've never really been a "Star Trek" fan. It's always seemed boring to me, and over my head. Heck, most sci-fi is, except the big alien invasion movies. Not sure what it is, the just don't really do much for me. However, when the J.J. Abrams reboot came out a few years back, I gave it a chance and loved it. With the sequel coming up, I figured I would go back and watch some of the old movies to get a grasp on "Star Trek" as a whole and see if I missed something and missed out, or if it's still just not for me. I was told by a true Trekkie to just start with the second movie, and he was probably right. But, my OCD prevailed and I started with number one. This first movie is horrible. If I were a Trek fan when this was released(1979) I would have been furious and may have given up altogether. It's long(just over 2 hours) and very boring. I understand "Trek" is more hardcore sci-fi than other movies/shows, but this is ridiculous. It's pretty much everyone on the enterprise sitting and talking the entire movie. At some point you need action, and this movie fails to deliver it. As for the acting, it's not all bad, because the characters are interesting and Kirk(William Shatner) is pretty funny. Shatner is easily the best thing about the movie, and if not for him and his charisma, this would be a complete waste. Also, this movie is very dated, and time has not been kind to it at all. I plan on watching more because I've heard it gets a lot better, but this is a horrible first movie for any franchise

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How 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture’s Cerebral Take on the Franchise Remains Fascinating Over 40 Years On

The much-criticized big-screen debut of 'Star Trek' is long overdue a revaluation.

The road to Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a long one. Initially conceived by series creator Gene Roddenberry in 1969 following the cancellation of the original television series, it wasn’t until six years later that Paramount Pictures agreed to begin development on the project. But despite a revolving door of some top writers in science fiction pitching ideas, disagreements regarding the budget and Paramount’s desire for an epic blockbuster led to Roddenberry abandoning the project in favor of a new television show, tentatively named Star Trek: Phase II . Except when that fell apart too, Paramount had a big issue on their hands. Production had been set to begin in a matter of weeks, with a full cast and crew already hired and an entire season of sets and scripts under construction. There was no way Roddenberry could afford to let all that work go to waste, and as luck would have it, he had no intention to either.

The result was Star Trek: The Motion Picture , built from the ashes of Phase II that reused as many resources from its parent project as it could, most notably the script “In Thy Image” that had been intended as the show’s pilot episode (albeit one that got heavily rewritten when the jump to a feature film was made). With The Sound of Music and West Side Story director Robert Wise in the directing chair progress was finally being made, and despite several behind-the-scenes troubles that resulted in hourly script rewrites and special effects being worked on right to the final deadline, Star Trek finally hit the big screen in December 1979.

RELATED: Every ‘Star Trek’ Movie Ranked from Worst to Best

And the result was not what Paramount had been hoping for. While the film was a modest success at the box office, the film received a mixed response from critics with criticism directed at its slow pacing and lack of action. Roddenberry was forced out of creative control for the sequel, The Wrath of Khan , which placed a greater emphasis on action and received a much warmer response in turn, becoming the template future Star Trek films would follow. This also resulted in The Motion Picture feeling like a bizarre anomaly in its own franchise, with a tone in vast contrast to later entries. The slow pacing has led to fans dubbing it The Slow Motion Picture, and it is generally accepted that newbies should skip this one in favor of its more accessible sequels. But to do so would be doing a disservice to a film with more merit than its reputation suggests. The Motion Picture will not appeal to those who prefer films of a more reasonable length with an explosion or two thrown in for good measure, but for those looking for a more thoughtful and cerebral take on the science fiction genre, there is plenty to appreciate.

The film’s story, written by seemingly every writer in Hollywood but credited to just Harold Livingston , sees recently promoted Admiral James T. Kirk ( William Shatner ) taking command of the newly refurbished USS Enterprise as he investigates a mysterious cloud of energy known as V’Ger that destroys everything in its path, and which is currently on a collision course with Earth. And that’s basically it. The script feels like exactly what it is; an episode of a TV show that has been stretched to fit a feature film, and that does create some problems. The plot remains rather stationary throughout its runtime, lacking much in the way of exciting set pieces or even a clear villain that’s more than just a cloud, but Wise takes advantage of the minimalist plot to craft an experience like no other.

For one, nothing in the franchise’s sixty-year history captures the grandeur of space like this. While future films may have had larger stories when compared to the simplicity of this, none of them come close to the levels of splendor The Motion Picture imbues into every moment. The sequence of Kirk and the ship’s engineer Scotty ( James Doohan ) boarding the retrofitted Enterprise lasts six minutes, most of which consists of reaction shots of the two actors as they bask in the ship’s glory. To some it’s an overlong sequence that could be completed in a fraction of the time, but the excellent special effects and grandness of Jerry Goldsmith’s musical score combine to make it an utterly memorizing scene. Beauty for beauty’s sake, a concept that too few films embrace. This same sense of grandeur persists throughout the film, where even the most mundane of moments are presented with enough pomp and ceremony to fill a musical (the echoes of Wise’s previous work can clearly be felt). Space is the ultimate of grand concepts, and with many contemporary films (including some in the same franchise) barreling through entire galaxies in the blink of an eye like the characters are just casually driving down a country lane, it’s refreshing to see a film bask in the wonders of science fiction, where even the most distant of stars glow with the power of endless possibilities.

But the film’s methodical pace also allows for richer characterization than its successors. The friendly comradery between the crew of the Enterprise is gone here, replaced by a coldness that alienated fans of The Original Series , but it’s a decision that allows Wise to explore these characters in new but refreshing ways. Ten years have passed since audiences last saw these characters, and rather than picking things up like no time has passed, it genuinely feels like ten years of hardship have befallen them. Kirk is a far more vulnerable character than his television counterpart, with his unfamiliarity with the retrofitted Enterprise the source of much conflict with its new captain William Decker ( Stephen Collins ). He demotes Decker and takes command of the ship, partly due to his greater experience dealing with such events, but also for his own selfish desires to pilot a starship again after spending the last few years trapped in the offices of Starfleet Operations. It’s a decision that nearly destroys the ship when he activates warp speed, causing Kirk to gradually accept the importance of his crew rather than assuming his decisions will always be correct. It’s nothing revolutionary, but it develops his character beyond being just a standard hero archetype he often falls into, whilst also providing a standalone arc that ensures The Motion Picture feels like a complete feature rather than just another episode of a TV show. Shatner, while never the best of actors, does an admirable job playing a more reserved version of his signature character, and the result is his best performance in the role.

This richer characterization also extends to the film’s supporting cast. Chief medical officer Leonard McCoy ( DeForest Kelle y) is unhappy about being drafted back into action, only softening to the idea after Kirk tells him there’s a thing out there that he needs help dealing with (with McCoy’s response “why is any object we don’t understand always called a thing” being the film’s defining line). Even Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ), never the most excitable of characters, seems more emotionally distant than ever. When he first appears on the Enterprise there’s no grand entrance or reprise of classic Star Trek music as he reminisces with his old friends, he merely appears and resumes his work without even glancing at most of the crew. It’s as though, amongst the vast emptiness of space, everyone has lost their humanity, a feeling echoed by the clinical nature of the costumes and set design. But this is also a film where people strive to be better, where its idea of a dramatic sequence is not explosions and fighting but Kirk and McCoy desperately trying to get Spock to open up about his problems, so they can help him. Sparks of humanity are hard to come by, but when they do, they are cherished like they’re the most valuable thing in the universe. The budding romance between Decker and the ship’s navigator Ilia, while in any other film just a forced addition to widen mass-market appeal, becomes the cornerstone which the entire climax depends on. By the time the end credits roll Kirk and his crew have resumed their close friendship The Original Series thrived on. It took over two hours to get there, but the optimistic future Gene Roddenberry had envisioned is back, and it’s stronger than it has ever been.

The film’s special effects were one of the few elements to receive praise when it first released, and rightfully so, even if it wasn’t an easy process getting there. After the original special effects supervisors were fired following a full year of work that had yielded almost no usable footage, legendary visual effects maestro Douglas Trumbull was brought onboard. His work on 2001: A Space Odyssey and Close Encounters of the Third Kind had earned him an excellent reputation in Hollywood, giving him effectively an unlimited budget to complete years’ worth of effects in just nine months. Work continued right up to the eleventh hour, but Trumbull and his team managed it, and their work remains impressive to this day. The magic of the docking scene or the film’s famous light probe sequence wouldn’t be half as good without his work, and it took several years before the series again featured effects that replicated the brilliance of Trumbull’s work.

Perhaps the most impressive element of The Motion Picture is its villain, or lack thereof. V’Ger, the evil cloud that has been causing everyone such problems, is actually Voyager 6, a space probe programmed to gather knowledge from every corner of the universe, and also something that had been thought lost centuries ago. In reality, it gathered so much information that it achieved sentience, but in doing so became a being of pure logic that began to question its own existence. The reason for its journey to Earth isn’t to cause mindless destruction, it merely wants to question its creator about its place in the universe, with the havoc it is causing being an unintended consequence of its newfound sentience. It’s a remarkable change of pace when compared to the villains in virtually all other science fiction properties whose motivations can often be boiled down to just power, money, or revenge. Instead, The Motion Picture opts for a lonely machine than just wants a purpose in life, and our characters go about solving this methodically and thoughtfully without a trigger ever having to be pulled.

It’s a mindset that encompasses the entirety of The Motion Picture , a film that favors contemplation about the human soul in lengthy scenes full of subtle performances and cleverly written dialogue, rather than hurrying through the dull bits to get to the next action scene. Not that such films are inherently bad, of course. The Wrath of Khan placed a greater focus on action and proved to be a perfectly enjoyable summer blockbuster, but the unique approach of The Motion Picture makes it a film that is long overdue a revaluation.

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  • Films of the 1970s

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

  • View history

Ten years after the Cancellation of the original Star Trek series, it had been Vindicated By Reruns and so Paramount decided to make The Movie with none other than Robert Wise (director of The Day the Earth Stood Still , West Side Story and The Sound of Music ) at the helm. As a side note, the general story is nearly identical to the Original Series episode "The Changeling", with elements from "Obsession" and the Animated Series episode "One Of Our Planets Is Missing" — and in fact the movie's story was intended to be the pilot of the abandoned Star Trek : Phase II .

The plot sounds simple enough. An unstoppable entity calling itself V'Ger is heading towards Earth, destroying all in its path, and the Enterprise is sent out to investigate. The story was originally written to be 45 minutes, stretched to 2½ hours, most of which involved the bridge crew staring at special effects in awe. Wise's declared intent at the time was to create a 2001: A Space Odyssey for that era.

The novelization of the film is noteworthy for two reasons: it is the only prose Star Trek fiction ever written by series creator Gene Roddenberry, and it contains a footnote explicitly addressing rumors that Kirk and Spock were lovers (it may or may not have cleared that up )

In (funnily enough) 2001, a Director's Cut was released. It is faster paced and actually includes a shot that shows the entirety of V'Ger. It also revealed that the original film was more of a workprint and Wise was not allowed to trim it to a more reasonable length because the suits feared such information would ruin the reputation ahead of time.

Adjusting for inflation, this film has the second-highest budget of any Trek movie (behind only J.J. Abrams' reboot ) and the special effects to prove it. A slightly remixed version of the Fanfare Jerry Goldsmith wrote for this film later became the theme music of Star Trek: The Next Generation . Also, the characters of Decker and Ilia, guest characters in the film originally intended as regulars for Phase II , are arguably early versions of Riker and Troi . Willard Decker and William Riker even have similar first names, with "Will" as their nickname.

  • Most of these aliens get fleshed out in the novel Ex Machina , which is set immediately after the movie, incorporating bits of their original descriptions from the production diary. The Saurians, meanwhile, at least get mentioned every time someone pulls out a bottle of "Saurian brandy, which was around in the Original Series .
  • And the Adventure Continues... : It ends with "The Human Adventure is Just Beginning"
  • Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence
  • Avoid the Dreaded G Rating : The 2001 special edition.
  • Big No : Decker during the wormhole scene, though this is partially due to the wormhole slowing down time for the ship.
  • Body Horror : Not clearly seen, but the transporter malfunction apparently results in this.
  • At least they didn't explode.
  • Bizarrely enough, McCoy 's famous distaste for transporters is played for laughs shortly afterward.
  • Celebrity Paradox : A rare nonhuman example is Played With in that the real life Space Shuttle Enterprise was named after the starship Enterprise as a work of fiction, but is shown in-universe as a precursor and namesake to the starship.
  • Justified, in that Decker did know the refit Enterprise better than Kirk at that point. Overriding an order from Kirk even saved the ship from being destroyed by an asteroid.
  • Deleted Scene : Character scenes cut in favor of Leave the Camera Running scenes. This makes the special edition favored by fans.
  • Dull Surprise : Two crew members suffer a hideous death at the hands of a malfunctioning transporter. Kirk's response is a flat, affectless 'Oh my God.' without a change of expression. Particularly startling when it comes from William Shatner .
  • Dyeing for Your Art : Persis Khambatta, who played Ilia, was very reluctant to shave her hair, as it was a huge part of her image. She even asked for insurance on her hair in case it didn't grow back. Thankfully, it did.
  • Edited For Television : For once this was a good thing! ABC helped in financing the movie in exchange for the first Network airings of the film. To get the most for their money, ABC added many scenes to pad out the three hour (with commercials) time slot. When viewers tuned in that Sunday Night, they saw for the first time Uhura defending Kirk's taking over command, the Ensign who beamed up before McCoy, the tear on Spock's cheek as he cried for his 'brother'...in other words all the bits that made it seem like a Star Trek story. Ok...so we also got the Kirk space walk scene with the studio rafters in the background, but hey, nothing's perfect.
  • Everything Trying to Kill You : Actual deaths in this movie consist of a Klingon getting vaporized for shooting torpedoes at the approaching V'Ger; Commander Sonak, who dies horribly on his commute in to work; and Ilia, who is vaporized by a scan . Earth is nearly destroyed by a probe they themselves had sent out centuries ago that was looking for its mommy.
  • Foreshadowing : Spock describes V'Ger's homeworld as "a planet populated by living machines with unbelievable technology." 10 years later , came the Borg... (see also Leitmotif for a possible connection between V'Ger and that race)
  • Four-Star Badass : Kirk. To quote Uhura: "[Their chances] of coming home from this mission in one piece may have just doubled."
  • Future Spandex : The movie has this in spades. The main cast threatened to quit if they didn't get rid of them seeing how not everyone looked good in them. Plus, the spandex costumes were hard to get into and out of, requiring the help of assistants every time the actors needed to use the bathroom, hence the uniform change in the rest of the Star Trek movies.
  • Guide Dang It : It's never mentioned in the film that Decker is the son of the crazed Commodore Decker who piloted a shuttle into a Doomsday Machine, and the Enterprise was his big chance to prove he wasn't crazy like his Dad. That explains why he's none too pleased with Kirk casually commandeering the Enterprise (or some of his crew grousing about it.)
  • In Space Everyone Can See Your Face : Spock has an (untethered!) spacewalk scene using thrusters, and Kirk has a much shorter spacewalk to catch Spock when he comes flying back. You can see both their faces, though slightly obscured.
  • Instant AI, Just Add Water : Kirk surmised that V'ger "amassed so much data it achieved ... consciousness itself!"
  • Jet Pack : Sort of. To get a closer look at V'Ger's nerve center, Spock steals a "thruster suit" — a space suit with a rather impressive thruster pack attached.
  • The Juggernaut : V'Ger
  • Jurisdiction Friction : Admiral Kirk is back on the Enterprise , but he occasionally finds himself at odds with the ship's commander, Captain Decker. At one point, Decker countermands one of Kirk's orders during a crisis, and ends up saving the ship from destruction as a result.
  • Kicked Upstairs : Captain Admiral Kirk, before the movie begins. Ironically, Gene Roddenberry infamously got kicked upstairs as well because of the film's disappointing critical reception.
  • Leave the Camera Running / Padding : Its Fan Nickname isn't The Motionless Picture for nothing.
  • In Star Trek: First Contact , also scored by Jerry Goldsmith, the Borg's leitmotif is very similar to V'Ger's leitmotif from this movie, perhaps lending credence to the popular fan theory that the "planet of machines" was the Borg homeworld. (This is also supported by Spock, after melding with V'Ger, saying that " Any show of resistance would be futile, Captain. ")
  • Machine Monotone : Probe!Ilia.
  • Magical Security Cam (sort of): when the Klingon ships are discombobulated by V'Ger whilst being observed by Starfleet personnel, the live feed continues even after the last ship has vanished. How and by whom was this footage broadcast?
  • Mandatory Unretirement : McCoy.
  • Manly Tears : Spock weeps for V'Ger.
  • At least, it tries until the scenes where all the "V'Ger must merge with the Creator" business takes a turn into ultra-mystical wackiness.
  • Par for the course for Robert E. Wise.
  • Notable Commercial Campaigns : No less than Orson Welles narrated the original trailers and ads for the film.
  • The Only One : The Enterprise is the only starship available to confront V'ger.
  • Which brings us back around to Everything Trying to Kill You .
  • No Seat Belts : Averted--the fact that seat belts were a subject of public discussion in the late 1970s and that the bridge crew kept thrashing around falling out of their seats in TOS probably helped. This bridge has chairs with armrests that fold down over the legs. They do look kind of awkward, though.
  • Our Wormholes Are Different
  • Permission to Speak Freely?
  • Pilot Episode : As mentioned above, the script was written as the pilot episode to a new television series, and was hastily being rewritten after filming had already started (hence the addition of Spectacle ). In fact, if you watch it with this in mind, you might spot that the finished product still hits many of the beats required of most television pilots, such as introducing the characters, and relaunching the ship, elements which weren't strictly necessary for the story that's being told here, but which make perfect sense in context of setting up the format for a new television show.
  • Planet of the Apes Ending : kind of - V'Ger turns out to be the (fictional) NASA probe Voyager 6
  • The Power of Love : It causes Decker, Probe!Ilia, and V'Ger to Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence .
  • Putting the Band Back Together
  • Real Life Writes the Plot : They chose Voyager as the design of what became V'Ger because it was a current event--Voyager 1 and 2 were launched in 1977, and by the time the film was released, both had already visited Jupiter. Mixes with a bit of Hilarious in Hindsight as there were only two Voyager probes... no matter that only two were ever planned.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni : The usual Kirk/Spock dynamic is handily pointed out by the film's poster.
  • Actually, it was a security man who gets zapped and "absorbed" by the probe just before Ilia does. They cut his death to give Ilia's more dramatic weight.
  • Not wearing red shirts didn't seem help the two crew members horribly mangled by the transporters, or the crew of Epsilon IX.
  • Robot Girl : Probe!Ilia. And intentionally or not, she strongly resembles the machine-man from Metropolis .
  • Which is why the DVD version reduces 82 (which is the entire Solar System ) to 2.
  • Many people did not catch that it was the V'Ger cloud they were describing. Granted, it still seems far more than what would be needed to hide a ship even if it was the size of Earth . . .
  • This story takes place a few hundred years after the voyager probes were launched. Voyager 6 fell into a black hole to emerge at the planet of the machine intelligences. At the speeds that the voyager probes left the solar system, it would take thousands of years to reach the nearest celestial body (Alpha Centauri), so presumably much longer to rendezvous with a black hole somewhere in space. Also, V'ger traveled through normal space in the film, so how did it get from the Klingon imperial space to human space so quickly?
  • Although the five minute trip around the Enterprise could be seen as a Fandom Nod thank you to those original Trekkies in 1979 who had to put up with the plastic model Enterprise effects of the series for 10 years before finally seeing her on the big screen.
  • Hilariously, one of the first thing Ilia tells Kirk after reporting for duty is that her oath of celibacy is on record. Apparently she'd heard about Kirk's reputation , and felt she needed to cut him off at the pass.
  • Space Clothes
  • Space Opera : Heavily influenced by 2001: A Space Odyssey , the first movie is very different in tone from the rest.
  • Special Effects Failure : Literally averted. The first special effects company couldn't get the job done, so Douglas Trumbull and John Dykstra had to be hired late in the production.
  • Spiritual Successor : To 2001: A Space Odyssey .
  • Switch to English : Klingons speak Klingon with subtitles to set the mood and then speak English for convenience.
  • Take That : A number of early promotion materials released to the press during production contained the tag line "There is no Comparison", an answer to those who speculated Paramount was just going to make a Star Wars rip-off.
  • Technology Marches On : According to Dr. McCoy the new Sickbay is like "...working in a damned computer center.".
  • Technology Porn
  • Teleporter Accident
  • We Want Our Kirk Back : Noone at the end seems terribly upset at the departure of Captain Decker.
  • You Look Familiar : Spock's father is a Klingon Captain! (Although admittedly you wouldn't recognize him unless you knew it was the same actor under the heavy make-up.)

Tropes seen in the novelisation of Star Trek : The Motion Picture include: [ ]

  • The Novelization also reveals the identity of the female transporter accident victim, as well as why Chekov and Sulu suddenly get goofy around the bald chick (females of her species can emit pheromones that make males want to mate with them).
  • Given Shatner's usual tendency to over-emote , dull surprise might actually be a sign that he's profoundly affected by the deaths.
  • Bi the Way : Part of the footnote of Kirk's denial that he and Spock are lovers can be read this way.
  • Fandom Nod : To the Kirk/Spock shippers. See Ship Tease below.
  • Mindlink Mates : Spock hears Kirk's thoughts from light years away, and later on it's mentioned that, "It was common knowledge that telepathic rapport between Vulcan and human was possible only in cases of extraordinarily close friendship ."
  • Ship Tease : The word t'hy'la, as mentioned above, along with the famous footnote in response that seems, on the surface, to debunk Kirk/Spock but could just as easily be used as evidence for it .
  • 1 Low Tide in Twilight/Characters
  • 2 Metamorphosis (manga)
  • 3 Double Standard Rape (Female on Male)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Cast & crew.

William Shatner

Admiral/Captain James T. Kirk

Leonard Nimoy

Commander Spock

DeForest Kelley

Lt. Cmdr, Leonard H. 'Bones' McCoy, M.D.

Stephen Collins

Cmdr. Willard Decker

Persis Khambatta

The Enterprise's first feature, with smarts outdoing guns.

Information

© ™ & © 1979 by Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved. Star Trek and related marks are trademarks of Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved.

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture /Trivia

  • Heartwarming
  • Nightmare Fuel
  • Awesome Music
  • Creator Backlash : Most of the cast hated the costumes they wore throughout the majority of the movie, which have been derisively referred to as "space pajamas" by many. By The Wrath of Khan , this had been fully rectified.
  • Deleted Scene : Character scenes cut in favor of Leave the Camera Running scenes . This makes the special edition favored by fans.
  • Dyeing for Your Art : Persis Khambatta, who played Ilia, was very reluctant to shave her hair, as it was a huge part of her image. She even asked for insurance on her hair in case it didn't grow back. Thankfully, it did.
  • Edited For Television : For once, this was a good thing! ABC helped in financing the movie in exchange for the first Network airings of the film. To get the most for their money, ABC added many scenes to pad out the three hour (with commercials) time slot. When viewers tuned in that Sunday Night, they saw for the first time Uhura defending Kirk's taking over command, the Ensign who beamed up before McCoy, the tear on Spock's cheek as he cried for his 'brother'...in other words, all the bits that made it seem like a Star Trek story. Ok... so we also got the Kirk space walk scene with the studio rafters in the background, but hey, nothing's perfect. This version was later released on VHS as a "Special Longer Version".
  • Fandom Nod : To the Kirk/Spock shippers in the novelization.
  • Star Trek: The Motionless Picture
  • Star Trek: The Slow-Motion Picture
  • Star Trek: The Motion Sickness
  • Where NOMAD Has Gone Before (alluding to the fact that it's a blown-up version of the episode "The Changeling". NOMAD was the space probe in the TV version).
  • Hey, It's That Sound : Yep, that's Star Trek: The Next Generation ' s theme tune playing at the beginning in its first appearance, and unrelated to the series it ended up representing. Roddenberry liked it so much he used to for Next Generation .
  • Real Life Relative : William Shatner's then-wife, Marcy Lafferty, played Chief DiFalco (who took over for Ilia as navigator after she was...abducted by V'ger).
  • Real Life Writes the Plot : They chose Voyager as the design of what became V'Ger because it was a current event--Voyager 1 and 2 were launched in 1977, and by the time the film was released, both had already visited Jupiter. Mixes with a bit of Hilarious in Hindsight as there were only two Voyager probes... no matter that only two were ever planned .
  • Screwed by the Lawyers : The shooting was hounded by not one, but two legal feuds, with Roddenberry the target in both of them. Gene found himself becoming an enemy to cowriter Harold Livingston and star Leonard Nimoy, the latter of whom wanted nothing to do with the film; it took literal begging from Jeffrey Katzenberg to get Nimoy into the film, and Livingston had a few contract clauses that were meant to limit Roddenberry's power.
  • Technology Marches On : According to Dr. McCoy the new Sickbay is like "...working in a damned computer center."
  • The script was regularly being rewritten during filming.
  • The first special effects house couldn't get the job done so John Dykstra and Douglas Trumbull were hired late in the production and had to rush things
  • Wise didn't want to shoot for more than 12 hours a day, resulting in the production getting behind schedule a mere two days after principal photography started.
  • It was so over budget that Paramount executives were keeping a running tab each day of how much (they had trusted Roddenberry despite the fact that he had never produced a feature film; after this they knew better than to let him again).
  • According to Jeffrey Katzenberg, then the executive in charge of production for Paramount, the released film was essentially a rough cut that no one had seen in its entirety before shipping.
  • He also looks suspiciously like the Romulan commander in the episode "Balance of Terror", making Mark Lenard notable for being the only actor to have played all three of the major recurring non-human races in the Original Series' canon.

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  4. 'Star Trek: The Original Motion Picture Collection' 4K UHD Review

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  5. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

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COMMENTS

  1. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (Film)

    The one that gave Klingons their trademark forehead ridges.. Star Trek: The Motion Picture is the first movie in the Star Trek film series, released in 1979.. Eight years after the Cancellation of the original Star Trek series, which had gone on to be Vindicated by Reruns, the blockbuster successes of Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind convinced Paramount Pictures to follow up by ...

  2. Star Trek (Franchise)

    When the Phase II network project died and the insane success of Star Wars made sci-fi films profitable again, Paramount elaborated the series pilot into The Movie, which ultimately led to a whole line of movies.. Movies in the franchise include: December 7, 1979 — Star Trek: The Motion Picture (c. 2273) — Kirk rallies the old crew to intercept a technological Eldritch Abomination heading ...

  3. Star Trek / Characters

    Cpt. Jean-Luc Picard. Recurring Crew and Dependents. Other recurring characters. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Starfleet Crew. Federation and Bajor. Quark's Bar, Family, and Other Ferengi. Cardassian Union. Gul Dukat.

  4. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a 1979 American science fiction film directed by Robert Wise and based on the television series Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry, who also served as its producer.It is the first installment in the Star Trek film series, and stars the cast of the original television series.In the film, set in the 2270s, a mysterious and immensely powerful alien cloud known ...

  5. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Tropes seen in the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture include: All There in the Manual: It's stated in the novelization that Commander Willard Decker is the son of Commodore Matt Decker from the TOS episode "The Doomsday Machine". The Novelization also reveals the identity of the female transporter accident victim, as well as why ...

  6. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    "The Human adventure is just beginning…" "Ten years ago, a television phenomenon became a part of life, shared in 47 different languages, read in 469 publications, and seen by 1.2 billion people. A common experience remembered around the world. Now Paramount Pictures brings the memory to life." - 1979 TV ad After an eighteen-month refit process, the USS Enterprise is ready to explore the ...

  7. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

    Recently viewed. Star Trek: The Motion Picture: Directed by Robert Wise. With William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan. When an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk resumes command of the overhauled USS Enterprise in order to intercept it.

  8. Star Trek: The Motion Picture: Symbols and Tropes

    Get all the details on Star Trek: The Motion Picture: Symbols and Tropes. Description, analysis, and more, so you can understand the ins and outs of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. ... Symbols and Tropes. Back; More ; Voyager VI. The revelation that V'Ger is just…a super-evolved version of NASA's Voyager space probe completely changes our ...

  9. Star Trek: The Original Series (Series)

    Later in the decade, in the hope of creating a Paramount television network, a new Star Trek series was developed, dubbed Star Trek: Phase II. After Paramount's owner ditched the network plan, the intended pilot was reworked into the first Star Trek feature film, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, in 1979, after the monumental success of Star Wars.

  10. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

    Synopsis. In 2273, a Starfleet monitoring station, Epsilon Nine, detects an alien force, hidden in a massive cloud of energy, moving through space towards Earth. The cloud destroys three of the Klingon Empire's new K'I'Inga-class warships and the monitoring station on route. On Earth, the star ship Enterprise is undergoing a major refit; her ...

  11. 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' is the most beautiful 'Trek' film, and

    The Motion Picture opens with the new Star Trek theme by Jerry Goldsmith, one of the greatest and most instantly recognizable musical cues in the last four decades. And the first scene is set to ...

  12. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Movie Info. The Federation calls on Adm. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the Starship Enterprise to contain an immense nimbused object that's on a crash course with Earth. After ...

  13. Comparing The Three Versions of Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture premiered on American network television - ABC, to be exact - on February 20, 1983. Not only was this the first TV showing of the movie, but it also introduced a ...

  14. Category:Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    On this All The Tropes the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Go to top. Category: Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Category; Discussion; English. ... Media in category "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" The following 3 files are in this category, out of 3 total. Drydock.jpg 300 × 264; 11 KB.

  15. Why Star Trek: The Motion Picture Remains Fascinating 40 ...

    The film's story, written by seemingly every writer in Hollywood but credited to just Harold Livingston, sees recently promoted Admiral James T. Kirk ( William Shatner) taking command of the ...

  16. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Tropes seen in the novelisation of Star Trek: The Motion Picture include: All There in the Manual: It's stated in the novelisation that Commander Willard Decker is the son of Commodore Matt Decker from the TOS episode "The Doomsday Machine". The Novelization also reveals the identity of the female transporter accident victim, as well as why ...

  17. Star Trek/Characters/Film Series

    On this All The Tropes the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. ... 1 Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Toggle Star Trek: The Motion Picture subsection 1.1 Commander Willard Decker (Stephen Collins) 1.2 Ilia (Persis Khambatta) 1.3 V'Ger. 2 Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Toggle Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ...

  18. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Apple TV. Available on Prime Video, iTunes, Hulu. The U.S.S. Enterprise proudly soars into cinema in the original Star Trek movie classic. When an unidentified alien destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) returns to the newly transformed U.S.S. Enterprise to take command.

  19. Star Trek

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) ... The following tropes are common to many or all entries in the Star Trek franchise. ... (creator of the franchise) from the late-'80s/early-'90s, only live-action Star Trek TV episodes and films are considered canon. This has been hotly debated by fans, and occasionally ignored by scriptwriters.

  20. Star Trek: The Motion Picture/Trivia

    Creator Backlash: Most of the cast hated the costumes they wore throughout the majority of the movie, which have been derisively referred to as "space pajamas" by many.By The Wrath of Khan, this had been fully rectified.The Wrath of Khan, this had been fully rectified.