Star Trek: The Original Series - TV-G

A cultural icon that's lived long and prospered.

TV Rating: TV-G Network: G4, Syndicated, TV Land Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley Genre: Science Fiction
Available on: DVDDownload

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that, compared to today's visually stunning special effects, this show was very low-budget in both props and special effects and may consequently seem silly to modern kids. But beyond that, the series was a metaphor for the upheaval of the 1960s. Behind the storylines of space travel and aliens are important social commentaries on racism, sexism, politics, and the fear that machines might one day rule the world. Taken at face value, though, most of the adventures are pretty innocent and are fine for young tweens and up.

Families can talk about the importance of respecting differences and not asking others to conform. Parents can also stress the value of teamwork, even when not all participants agree. The show also prompts a lot of fun/imaginative questions. What would our world be like if money was no longer used? If sickness and injuries were easily healed with high-tech medicine? If we could travel the universe and visit other planets? Would you be afraid, or would you embrace new ideas and new concepts? Would you be open to learning about other races, or is the idea scary?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Jane Boursaw

What can you say about the cultural icon that is STAR TREK? It's the show that launched a thousand spin-offs, movies, books, games, action figures, and conventions.

Created by Gene Roddenberry, the original series ran from 1966 to 1969 and chronicled the adventures of the U.S.S. Enterprise, a spaceship representing the United Federation of Planets in the 23rd century. Capt. James T. Kirk's hypnotic narration at the beginning of each episode says it best: "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."

But Star Trek isn't as much about space as it is about the people on the Enterprise. Among them are brash, emotional Capt. Kirk (William Shatner); logical Vulcan Spock (Leonard Nimoy); and hot-headed Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley). Roddenberry also made a point of including crew members of various ethnic backgrounds, including Japanese Lt. Hikaru Sulu (George Takei), Russian Ensign Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig), and Scottish Lt. Cmdr. Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (James Doohan).

Highlights of the series include Spock and Bones' ongoing war of words (and emotion vs. logic), Kirk always pushing Scotty to give the engine more power, and Bones' innate fear of the transporter. And, of course, Kirk's interracial kiss with African-American Lt. Nyota Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), which made TV history.

In their 80 episodes, the original Star Trek crew encountered deadly diseases, alien races, time warps, beautiful women in skin-tight outfits, and furry creatures called Tribbles. Kirk was put on trial for crimes against humanity, split into two alter-egos (good and evil), and cloned into an android. And oh, those classic lines! "Beam me up, Scotty," "He's dead, Jim," "Set phasers on stun," and "There's no signs of intelligent life here" are common fodder for T-shirts, coffee mugs, and bumper stickers.

Forty years later, the series still succeeds in syndication because its messages about racism, sexism, politics, and respecting differences really are timeless (even if the special effects aren't ... though the early episodes are being remastered and enhanced with more up-to-date effects and imagery). At the core of the show is the idea that humans are complex creatures, and dilemmas often have no right or wrong answer.

When Star Trek premiered on Sept. 8, 1966, the critics hated it. It barely survived past the first few episodes -- but in 2000, the show was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the largest number of movie and TV spin-offs, including Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. Live long, and prosper.

Fans might also like the other Star Trek series (as well as the big-screen movies), Babylon 5, Battlestar Galactica, and Stargate SG-1.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Women wear skimpy, skin-tight outfits (with mini-skirts and go-go boots). Some alien races portray women as subservient, while others have women in power. Crew members often flirt -- most notably, Capt. Kirk, who falls in love quite often. Some kissing (including the ground-breaking interracial kiss between Kirk and Uhura).
Violence Most episodes include some fighting, be it physically wrestling each other or using "phasers" (their weapons) or photon torpedoes. Blood is never shown. Mind control is a frequent plotpoint.
Language Mild. "Dammit, Jim!" -- uttered by Bones -- occurs in many episodes.
Message
	Social Behavior Storylines often revolve around alien races with different social norms than humans (sexism, racism, politics), but the Enterprise crew is not supposed to interfere. The message: Respect one another's differences.
	Commercialism Lots of Star Trek products out there, but nothing in the show itself.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Some drinking in social settings. Scotty is often involved in drinking contests with other humans and aliens.