One Month of Trek: Philosophy Day

In honor of the release of JJ Abram's Star Trek (a.k.a the best movie of the year and every other year that didn't release a Star Trek movie), I have decided to hold Star Trek month on my pop culture blog. I will be talking about Star Trek in all its forms-- its 5 main television series, books, movies, comics, and perhaps even some of the merchandise and/or toys.

There will be 30 days of Trek, starting on May 15th, where I will share my various viewpoints on several aspects of the Star Trek universe. (I would have done this when the new Star Wars movies came out, but they were so shitty that even my fan-colored glasses couldn't handle such abysmal dialogue. "You're breaking my heart, Ani..." Motherfucker.)

*ahem*

In any case, I would like to kick things off by introducing my favourite philosophical moments in Trek history. Star Trek is many things, but in my humble opinion its most powerful aspect is its ability to make one question one's view of the world. ST: TNG alone is littered with so many powerful moments that I could write a book about the Awesomeness that is Jean-Luc Picard's shiny noggin.

For fans of the other series, though, I'll try to keep my TNG fangirl-ism to a minimum. ;)

And so without further ado, I give you....

1) TNG 2x02 "Where Silence Has Lease"



Quite possibly my favourite exchange between Picard and Data. In all innocence, Data asks Picard: "What is death?" and Picard responds by outlining both theist and atheist beliefs. Data asks "And which do you believe?" Picard responds that he believes in both... because in the future, everyone is as indecisive as I am. Boo-yah!

2) TOS: 1x28 "The City on the Edge of Forever"

Widely considered as one of the best episodes of the original series, this whole episode is pretty much one long philosophical debate. Of course, since it's Kirk we're talking about here, a debate doesn't actually occur (unless you count Spock saying "Edith Keeler must die" over and over again a debate). Still, to make a long story short-- the crew gets thrown back in time, Kirk falls in love with a girl (surprise, surprise), and they find out that she must die in a horrible accident in order to avert a disastrous timeline (our Edith is something of an activist). Spock is, as always, the voice of reason, and in the end Kirk must stand by and let his lady-love be killed in a pointless accident.

Now, before all you yuppies start screaming "Butterfly Effect" or whatever other spins on this classic scifi theme have come out, you have to remember that this was pretty heavy stuff back then. This was 1967-- Adam West was Batman for crying out loud.

Anyway, here's a trailer that pretty much tells you everything:



3) ENT 3x10 "Similitude"

Enterprise was never a particularly popular Star Trek series, and (canon-obsessed) fans never quite warmed up to it. Still, it will always hold a special place in my heart for giving us "Similitude"-- a powerful, poignant episode about the moral ethics of cloning in order to harvest healthy organs for injured people.

I love this episode because while it acknowledges that clones are in fact real people, it did not apologize for its final resolution. Ending in the exact opposite way as the highly improbably "The Island", Captain Archer makes the tough choice to order Commander Tucker's clone to his death in order to save the original's life.

Unfortunately, I don't have a clip for this one (YouTube kept yielding fanvids instead of actual clips), but rest assured that this is one of the best (if not the best) episodes of Enterprise, ever.

If you've never seen Star Trek (TNG, VOY, DS9, TOS) and want to try watching one of the series', I highly suggest starting with Enterprise. It's fun, has great effects, a great cast, and you won't be too nitpicky about future canon to appreciate it.

4) VOY 1x01 "The Caretaker"

It's impossible to talk about morality without touching on Captain Janeway and Voyager. The entire series was based on her making a moral choice that stranded her and her crew in the Delta quadrant, which pretty much meant that they were 75 years away from Federation space. Basically, Janeway ensured that no one on her ship would ever live to see their loved ones again (except for the two vulcans on board, since they Live Long and Prosper ;D), and her crew tries to make the best out of a crap situation.

Oh, and did I mention that the Delta quadrant is where the fricking Borg live?

Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated... right after we make you wet yourself like a 2-year old girl.

No clip of this one again, because YouTube is full of fanvids and furry animals. Still, I think it's safe to say that as far as philosophical debates go, this one's a doozy. After all, they spend seven seasons trying to justify Janeway's choice. ;)

And that wraps up today's list of Philosophical favs. Every fan has their own favourite clips, so please feel free to comment and share yours! Just remember-- no hating on other series, okay? Sam Beckett has feelings, too.