Star Trek: Discovery Haters Need to Get a Grip

I think I have some Trekkie street cred. My tiny, toddler butt was planted in front of the TV when Star Trek debuted in 1966, and since then I’ve seen every episode of every show multiple times. Same for the movies, even the J.J. Abrams alt-universe versions. I have two uniforms and attend conventions. To say I love the Star Trek universe is to understate the state of my world.

“Infinite diversity in infinite combinations”

That’s what Gene Roddenberry wanted. That’s what he created, and that’s what everyone who came after him has attempted. Opinions vary widely on the success of his successors in creating new Trek worlds, but until I recently joined some fan groups on Facebook, I had no idea how vitriolic some of those opinions are.

The first convention I attended was a gift to myself for my 50th birthday in 2014. The kids were grown and I was no longer a single mother living in poverty. It was time. As the plane taxied down the runway, it occurred to me that this was also the first solo vacation I had ever taken. It was a big year for firsts. To be completely honest, I was a little nervous and worried. How “alone” was I going to feel?

Not at all, it turned out. Star Trek convention-goers are the friendliest, nicest people anywhere, in my experience. They/we are delighted to be confronted with hundreds or thousands of fellow fans, and I found it easy to make con friends.

“Can I take your picture?” Thanks, and hello new friend. This happens a lot.

There was no convention in 2020, for obvious reasons, and I decided to skip the 2021 convention, for personal reasons. In a short-lived fit of melancholy I joined some fan groups on Facebook to have some sort of connection with other Trekkies. It didn’t open my eyes to anything actually Trek-related, but it really opened my eyes to some of the fans. Though how anyone with hateful, arrogant, spiteful, rude, and downright mean opinions can be a fan is beyond me, unless they’ve always held up the Romulans as the heroes of the universe, or something like that.

Here’s the thing: Trekkies love to nitpick. We can deconstruct minutiae. There’s no detail that goes undiscussed, no question is unasked. There’s also plenty of debate. Best episodes, best movies, best captain. It can get heated, but remains respectful. Especially if we’re talking about in-person conversations that end in a toast with one’s favorite alcoholic beverage.

This isn’t the case online. You thought you’d be safe in the comments section in a Trek group. You were wrong. Well, for the most part you were right, but there’s a far bigger share of haters than you expected.

What the Haters Get Wrong

Trekkies love to point to precedent for anything they disagree with. That’s not canon! This ignores the fact that Trek has always been about looking forward, not looking back. Gene Roddenberry went as far as he could go with the show, given the times and the censors. Censoring television was a much bigger deal back in those days than it is now. It still exists, by the way. It was groundbreaking, but he certainly wanted to go further.

With that said, even though every Star Trek show is set in the future, so that looking forward is a given, each series was written for the time period it aired.

It feels deliberate. I mean, what would I know, really, since I’ve never been a fly on the wall in a writers’ room. But, even if it isn’t a conscious decision, even the best imaginations live in the here and now, and I think that bleeds through into dialogue and plots.

The 1960s was a time of social upheaval and changing cultural mores. Star Trek addressed many issues of the day and set many of them in the future to soften the blow to the many people fearful of and resistant to change. The Next Generation was an optimistic show, in contrast to the hedonistic 1980s. Humanity would grow out of reckless, superficial, selfish pursuits and evolve into something more responsible – to ourselves and others. And so it goes, and so it went.

Then came September 24, 2017. Star Trek: Discovery debuted, and has aired, during an incredibly divisive time in our history. During a time when the social norms of politeness and respect went out the window, from the highest levels of government to the regular guy on the street.

“It’s a shit show.”

“It’s the worst written Trek show ever.”

“Why does everyone cry all the time? There’s no crying in Trek.”

“How many times do they have to say ‘I love you’? It’s ridiculous.”

“It’s just a terrible show. I hate it.”

“It’s too woke and politically correct.”

"Discovery ruined Star Trek."

They say “I love you” to remind us that we should be doing the same. They cry to remind us that it’s okay and natural to show emotion and be a badass at the same time. It is “infinite diversity in infinite combinations”, not “some diversity in combinations we approve of, but not too much or it’ll be too woke”.

Star Trek: Discovery doesn’t shy away from showing us that peoples of all kinds will still be complex in the far future. That we won’t be shed of the base emotions that make us far from perfect. It does show that we’ll still be trying to be better. To do better. That’s the message we need these days and that’s what they’re giving us.