Childhood Science Fiction: Television (Part 12)

The final post on science fiction television influences from my childhood today, and I’ve left the biggest to last: Star Trek.

And bonus section on comic book science fiction show crossovers.

Star Trek (1966-1969)

What can you say here that hasn’t been said before. Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek is one of the definitive science fiction television shows of all time, spawning ongoing sequels (an animated show; The Next Generation; Deep Space Nine; Voyager; Enterprise; endless films; and most recently Discovery).

When I was a child Star Trek was broadcast on Saturday afternoon, as part of its wider syndication, so watching it was hit or miss depending on what my family was doing. Still, it forms part of the popular culture backdrop to my life in the 1970s. I still watch the reruns today, and have a bunch of episodes on DVD and VHS.

I also had this LP which had the theme song and various others on it.

There were, and have been, a huge range of toys and other merchandise. For example, I’ve got one through twelve of James Blish’s books containing multiple episodes from the three seasons of the show.

For an engaging look at Star Trek merchandise from the original season watch the Star Trek episode from the Netflix documentary series, The Toys that Made Us.

Comic Book Crossovers

One things I’ve been enjoying recently have been the comic book crossovers between science fiction universes, as well as the DC universe. So my childhood Star Trek, Doctor Who, and Planet of the Apes characters get to mingle with each other as well as the Legion of Superheroes and the Green Lantern Corps.

Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation²