Star Trek crossovers

Several characters within the Star Trek franchise, primary and secondary, often made crossover appearances between one live-action series and another. This included appearances of established characters on premiere episodes of new series, a few long-term transfers from one series to another, and even crossovers between Trek films and television. A few crossover appearances, such as that of Spock on The Next Generation and the time-travel of the crew of Deep Space Nine to the era of The Original Series were especially lauded by both fans and critics.

Appearances in series premieres

After the original series, a character from an earlier series appeared in the premiere episode of each new series. These were the appearances of Leonard McCoy in "Encounter at Farpoint", the first episode of The Next Generation; that of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in "Emissary", the first episode of Deep Space Nine; Quark and Morn in "Caretaker", the premiere of Voyager; and Zefram Cochrane (from the TOS episode "Metamorphosis" and the film Star Trek: First Contact) in "Broken Bow", the premiere of Enterprise.

Long-term transitions

Two long-term transitions were the transfer of Worf and Miles O'Brien from permanent characters on Next Generation to permanent characters on Deep Space Nine. Worf stayed on Next Generation until its conclusion, then transferred from the start of season 4 of DS9. Chief O'Brien had appeared in fifty episodes of Next Generation, but only gained opening credits billing on DS9, in which he appeared in almost every episode of all seven seasons. While not seen as often as Chief O'Brien, his wife Keiko O'Brien also transitioned as a series regular guest star from Next Generation to Deep Space Nine, bringing their daughter Molly. Miles O'Brien reprised his Next Generation role in that series' finale "All Good Things...".

Episodes and films focused on crossovers

An especially significant crossover is Spock's appearance on the two-part Next Generation episode "Unification". Spock meets Data and they exchange opinions on the relative value of logic and emotion, and share mutual impressions of Next Generation's Captain Picard (who for Spock is a model of logical behavior, and for Data is a model of what it means to be human). Critics such as Ina Rae Hark have noted this encounter between two non-human characters summarizes their contrasting attitudes to humanity, Data embodying Spock's ideal of pure logic, while Data aspires to be more human.[1]

Scotty appears in TNG Season 6, Episode 4 "Relics". Three Klingon characters from TOS also appear on DS9 together as Dax's old friends.

Recycled footage from the original series episode "The Trouble with Tribbles" is used extensively in Deep Space Nine's time-travel episode "Trials and Tribble-ations". In addition to extensive archival footage of cast from the original series, actor Charlie Brill (portraying Klingon spy Arne Darvin) appears in both new and archival footage. The episode was designed to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the original series. Critic Matthew Kappell notes that the new episode simultaneously "parodies and valorizes" the original series, highlighting the discontinuities between two eras of Trek while trying simultaneously to weave them together.[2]

The film Star Trek Generations brought Kirk and Picard, Enterprise captains from different centuries, together to defeat a common enemy. It also marked the passing of the film franchise from the original series cast to that of The Next Generation.

William Riker and Deanna Troi from The Next Generation appear in a flash-forward to the future in "These Are the Voyages...", the final episode of Enterprise. This episode was widely criticized by both cast members and fans for playing more like a Next Generation episode to the point of being an inappropriate wrap-up for the series.[3][4]

Film to television crossover

In the Voyager episode "Flashback", events from the film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country play a pivotal role, and are re-enacted with largely the same actors thus allowing George Takei to reprise his role as Hikaru Sulu. The episode contains the added revelation that the ship Voyager's Tuvok was on Sulu's ship Excelsior at the time. Critic Lincoln Geraghty cites this as an example of the Trek's ongoing propensity for reverential recognition of earlier versions of the series.[5]

Characters more prominent on subsequent series

A few occasional recurring characters introduced in one series continued into other series, sometimes attaining more significant roles in their subsequent Trek series than in the one in which they were first introduced:

All crossovers

Character crossovers

The Original Series on The Next Generation
The Original Series on Deep Space Nine
The Original Series on Voyager
The Next Generation on Deep Space Nine
The Next Generation on Voyager
The Next Generation on Enterprise
Deep Space Nine on The Next Generation
Deep Space Nine on Voyager
Voyager on The Next Generation
Voyager on Deep Space Nine

Actor Crossovers

The Original Series on The Next Generation

The Original Series on The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager:

The Next Generation on The Original Series
The Next Generation on Deep Space Nine
Voyager on Deep Space Nine
Voyager on The Next Generation

Intercompany crossovers

Star Trek has had a few intercompany crossover stories in comic books. These include:

Marvel Comics franchise, X-Men.

DC Comics franchise, Legion of Superheroes.

IDW Publishing, Doctor Who

Boom! Studios, Planet of the Apes

DC Comics franchise, Green Lantern

Upcoming crossovers are:

DC Comics franchise, Green Lantern

Dark Horse Comics, Alien

References

  1. ↑ Hark, Ina Rae (2008). Star Trek: BFI TV Classics. MacMillan. p. 64. ISBN 9781844572144.
  2. ↑ Kapell, Matthew Wilhelm (2010). Star Trek as myth: essays on symbol and archetype at the final frontier. McFarland. p. 83. ISBN 9780786447244.
  3. ↑ "Jolene Blalock interview". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on 2006-03-18. Retrieved 2008-11-08.
  4. ↑ Salem, Rob (2005-05-09). "Trek fatigued, producer admits. Enterprise limps off to oblivion". Toronto Star. p. E1.
  5. ↑ Geraghty, Lincoln (2007). Living with Star Trek: American culture and the Star Trek universe. I.B.Tauris. p. 51. ISBN 9781845112653.
  6. ↑ Nemecek, Larry (2003). The Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion: Revised Edition. Simon and Schuster. p. 127. ISBN 9780743457989.
  7. ↑ Erdmann, Terry; Paula M. Block (2000). Star trek: Deep space nine : companion. Simon and Schuster.
  8. ↑ Schuster, Hal (1996). The Trekker's guide to Voyager: complete, unauthorized, and uncensored. Prima Pub. ISBN 9780761505723.
  9. ↑ Dillard, J.M.; Susan Sackett (1996). Star trek, where no one has gone before: a history in pictures. Pocket Books. p. 186. ISBN 9780671002060.
  10. ↑ Johnson-Smith, Jan (2005). American science fiction tv: Star Trek, Stargate and beyond. I.B.Tauris. p. 88. ISBN 9781860648823.
  11. ↑ Cinefantastique: Volume 36 2004

External links

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