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When it premiered on NBC in September 1966, Star Trek was described by its creator, Gene Roddenberry, as "Wagon Train to the stars." Featuring a racially diverse cast, trips to exotic planets, and encounters with an array of alien beings who could be either friendly or hostile, the program opened up new vistas for television. Along with The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits, Star Trek represented one of the small screen's rare ventures into science fiction during the 1960s. Although the original series was a modest success during its three-year run, its afterlife has been nothing less than a cultural phenomenon. To celebrate the show's debut fifty years later, it's time to reexamine one of the most influential programs in history.

In Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek: The Original Cast Adventures, Douglas and Shea T. Brode present a collection of essays about the series and its various incarnations over the years. Contributors discuss not only the 1960s show but also its off-shoots, ranging from novels and graphic novels to toys and video games, as well as the films featuring Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and the rest of the Enterprise crew. Essays address the show's religious implications, romantic elements, and its role in the globalization of American culture. Other essays draw parallels between the series and the Vietnam War, compare Star Trek II to Milton's Paradise Lost, posit Roddenberry as an auteur, and consider William Shatner as a romantic object.

With its far-reaching and provocative essays, this collection offers new insights into one of the most significant shows ever produced. Besides television and film studies, Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek -- a companion volume to The Star Trek Universe -- will be of interest to scholars of religion, history, gender studies, queer studies, and popular culture, not to mention the show's legions of fans.

Table of Contents:

• Introduction - Star Trek: In the Beginning, Roddenberry Said... - by Douglas Brode
• Chapter 1 - Wagon Train to the Stars: Star Trek, The Western Frontier, and American Values - by John Wills
• Chapter 2 - Of Television and the 1960s: Star Trek, Vietnam, and the Transformation of the United States - by H. Bruce Franklin
• Chapter 3 - Milton and Rodenberry: Structural Parallels between Star Trek II and Paradise Lost - by Shari Hodges Holt
• Chapter 4 - Boldly Unruly: Star Trek in Play - by Scott Duchesne
• Chapter 5 - Warp Speed: The Physics of Star Trek - by Phil Kesten
• Chapter 6 - From the United States to the Federation of Planets: Star Trek and the Globalization of American Culture - by Lane Crothers
• Chapter 7 - Minimalist Interiors/Imagined Exteriors: Spatial Complexity in the Star Trek Saga - by Mervyn Nicholson
• Chapter 8 - Decaying Orbits: Men, Women, and Fear of Extinction in Star Trek: The Original Series - Ina Ray Hark
• Chapter 9 - The Matter of Gender in Metamorphosis: Women, Romance, and the Queerness of Desire - by David Greven
• Chapter 10 - Captain Kirk 4-EVER: William Shatner as Romantic Object - by Victoria Amador
• Chapter 11 - Pragmatism and Meaning: Assessing the Message of TOS - by Anne Collins Smith and Owen M. Smith
• Chapter 12 - Belief System in Star Trek: The Original Series: Secular Humanism, Traditional Religion, and Cultural Imperialism - by Sara Boslaugh
• Chapter 13 - What Does a Starship Need With God?: Divinization, Deicide, and the Re-Affirmation of Faith in Star Trek I-VI - by Michael Smith
• Chapter 14 - Always Bring Phasers to an Animated Canon Fight: Star Trek's Saturday Morning Original Cast Adventures - by David S. Silverman
• Chapter 15 - The Audience as Ultimate Auteur: Female Fans and Early Trek 'Vidding - by Francesca Coppa
• Chapter 16 - Sarek's Tears: Classical Music, Star Trek, and the Exportation of Culture - by Daniel Sheridan
• Chapter 17 - Of Authorial Primacy and Literary Adaptation: TOS and William Shatner's Captain's Trilogy - by Alexis Finnerty

As one of the most influential shows of all time, Star Trek continues to engage fans around the world. But its cultural impact has grown far beyond the scope of the original seventy-nine episodes. The show spawned an unprecedented progeny, beginning with Star Trek: The Next Generation, followed by three additional series of space exploration. Film versions featuring Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and other original crew members first appeared in 1979, followed by a number of successful sequels and ultimately a reboot of the original show. From the modest ambitions of the show's creator, Gene Roddenberry, Star Trek gradually transformed into a true franchise, an expanded universe that continues to grow.

In The Star Trek Universe: Franchising the Final Frontier, Douglas and Shea T. Brode have collected several essays that examine the many incarnations that have arisen since the original program concluded its run in 1969. Every aspect of media into which Star Trek has penetrated is covered in this collection: the four television shows, literature, toys, games, and the big screen reboot of the original series featuring the Enterprise and her crew. Essays address a number of elements, particularly how the franchise has had an impact on gaming, fandom, and even technology. Other essays consider how race, gender, and sexuality have been addressed by the various shows and films.

After a half century of boldly exploring topical issues that concern all of humanity, Star Trek warrants serious attention -- now more than ever. Looking beyond the entertainment value of its many versions, The Star Trek Universe -- a companion volume to Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek -- offers provocative essays that will engage scholars of gender studies, race studies, religion, history, and popular culture, not to mention the show's legions of fans around the planet.

Table of Contents:

• Introduction: Gene Roddenberry's creation as an abiding pop culture phenomenon - by Douglas Brode
• Supernatural Star Trek?: Star Trek and the Re-enchantment of the World - by Murray Leeder
• Holodeck History: Past, Present, and Future on the Final Frontier - by Cynthia J. Miller and A. Bowdoin Van Riper
• Star Trek and the Information Age: How the Franchise Imagined/Inspired Future Technologies - by Anthony Rotolo
• Forward to the Past: Miscegenation Constructs in the Star Trek Mythos - by Denise Allesandria Hurd
• Science Fiction as Social Consciousness: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Star Trek: The Next Generation - by Brian L. Ott and Eric Aoki
• Radically Performing the Borg?: Gender Identity and Narratology in Star Trek - by Tama Leaver
• Manifest Destiny to the Stars: New Frontiers, Old Colonialism, and Borg Assimilation - by Lynette Russell and Nathan Wolski
• Resistance is Futile: Cyborgs, Humanism, and the Borg - by David J. Gunkel
• Shakespeare in Space: A Trek toward Plurality - by Melanie Lo¨rke
• Toward a Non-Dystopian Future: Romance and Realism in Star Trek: The Next Generation - by Rebecca Barrilleaux
• Enjoying an "Original Relation to the Universe": Star Trek: The Next Generation and Emersonian Transcendentalism - by April Selley
• Adaptive Harmonics: Star Trek's Universe and Galaxy of Games - by Douglas Brown
• The Making of a Star Trek Video Game: Voyager: Elite Force and Creative Collaboration - by Brian Pelletier
• Plastic Bodies and Lost Accessories: The Next Generation Action Figures in Relation to Their TV origins - by Jonathan Alexandratos
• Fantastic Licensing: The Ongoing Mission of Trek Comic Books - by Stefan Hall
• Help When Times are Hard: Bereavement and Star Trek Fan Letters - by Lincoln Geraghty
• Rebooting Utopia: Reimagining Star Trek in Post-9/11 America - by Norma Jones