I was at Star Trek: Mission New York back in 2016, all this stuff was hanging up all over the Jacob Javits center about Star Trek: Discovery, but there was barely anything talked about. The vibe at the con was weird, there were no mentions of Discovery from the attendees. There was no buzz online, nothing. Everything was focused on Star Trek: Beyond.

I have to give credit to the Kelvin-Verse movies. They showed that the public still had an appetite for Star Trek, even if it was a little grittier, and updated for the 21^st Century. The first new Star Trek Content in 4 years and it was pretty good, except for that second one.

But we’re not here to talk about that, we’re here to talk about Discovery.

Then I heard almost nothing about the new series for about a year. There were rumblings here and there, like it was about someone who we get to see make captain, everyone was hoping it was Number One from The Original Series. Then 2017 happened and the USS Discovery flew over the Hudson River.

We were in for something big.

And Star Trek: Discovery was big. It was going to be a flagship series on CBS’s new Streaming Platform, CBS All Access. It was going to take place before The Original Series, and it was going to feature Michael Burnham, a first officer who was going to make her way into the Captain’s Chair. The production on this show was fantastic. The font used for the Klingon Subtitles was not, but it picked up the serialized nature that Deep Space Nine started and I loved it from the start.

Finally, a Star Trek series that I could start at the beginning. It had all the history of the shows that came before, but was making its own path. This was Star Trek for the modern TV viewing audience and it had one of the toughest jobs out there, to appeal to new fans and keep the old fans interested.

The haters started, “I never had to pay for Star Trek before I’m not going to do that now”, “This isn’t real Star Trek”, “bad writing”, “she cries too much”, “This isn’t ‘Gene’s Vision’, blah blah blah no one cares. According to these “critics” Alex Kurtzman made a show so bad that he got fired from CBS about 800 times.

Discovery kept going for five years, and Mr. Kurtzman still has a job.

Star Trek is back in my life full force. I’ve attended premieres, After Trek tapings, special events, advanced screenings, and conventions. I’ve met most of the cast and they are some of the kindest, most likable people in the whole franchise. Sonequa Martin-Green just radiates joy every time she’s around the fans. I am so glad that this franchise got passed into the hands of the cast that it did, and it is going to continue on for a long time because of them.

So, Thank You Star Trek: Discovery. Thank you for bringing this fandom back into my life and letting me  virtually and sometimes in person meet some Trekkies that are truly some great people. Thank you for the characters and the stories. Thank you for helping me and a lot of other people I know get through the pandemic lockdown years. Thank you for getting Wilson Cruz back on my screen. Thank you for reintroducing Christopher Pike, Number One, and Spock, Thank you for the representation and inspiration you’ve given so many people.

But most of all, thank you for ushering in the new age of Star Trek. Thank you for:

Star Trek: Picard
Star Trek: Lower Decks
Star Trek: Prodigy
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
Star Trek: Short Treks
Star Trek: Section 31
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

…and every other media that’s been made since 2017 that has Star Trek in the title.

I wish the cast and crew the best and I hope to see you all around at conventions and get to hear about all of your new projects.

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