are any star trek books canon

The history of defining canon [ ]

As Star Trek grew in both size and popularity in the 1980s, fans considered how to treat the ever-growing collection of episodes, films, novels , comics , reference works , and more.

In 1988 , Paramount Pictures removed Star Trek: The Animated Series (aired 1973 – 1974 ) from canon. However, the definition of Star Trek canon as encompassing all released TV series and films has been generally accepted since TAS was first released on DVD (with the explicit caveat included that "views expressed on the DVD didn't necessarily represent the studio's position"); the studio officially changed its removal of TAS from canon by listing the animated series as a part of established canon in its database at StarTrek.com . [2] (X) [3] (X) [4] (X) [5] (X)

In 2007 , CBS Consumer Products ' Senior Director of Product Development Paula Block was asked about the topic of Star Trek canon for IDW Publishing 's " Focus on... Star Trek " issue:

'Canon' in the sense that I use it is a very important tool. It only gets muddled when people try to incorporate licensed products into 'canon' – and I know a lot of the fans really like to do that. Sorry, guys – not trying to rain on your parade. There's a lot of bickering about it among fans, but in its purest sense, it's really pretty simple: Canon is Star Trek continuity as presented on TV and Movie screens. Licensed products like books and comics aren't part of that continuity, so they aren't canon. And that's that. Part of my job in licensing is to keep track of TV and Movie continuity, so I can help direct licensees in their creation of licensed products. It gets a little tricky because it's constantly evolving, and over the years, Star Trek 's various producers and scriptwriters haven't always kept track of/remembered/cared about what's come before. [6]

In 2012, executive producer, writer, and creative consultant Roberto Orci was asked by TrekMovie.com about canon regarding the then-upcoming Star Trek videogame as well as the tie-in comic books for which he had served as creative consultant and co-writer. [7]

TrekMovie.com: When I was at E3 I spoke to a VP from Paramount who said the upcoming  Star Trek movie game is canon from their perspective. So will you guys just wave the canon wand over the game, comic books and upcoming comic books that you are involved with?

Roberto Orci: Well I always say that I arrived in Star Trek where the rules of what is canon had already been established.

TrekMovie.com: Yes, but some of the exceptions were that extended universe things done by creators of filmed canon were also canon. My argument also is that in previous times there was a plethora of filmed material to fill out the canon of the prime universe. So the extended universe stuff was a little bit extra on the side. . . . [T]he difference with previous Trek is that you guys are overseeing all of this. These rules aren't written in stone from my perspective and I think a lot of fans would like to hear you say, "yes these are all the adventures of Kirk, Spock and the gang and it is all canon and all ties together into a single universe." Again, with the caveat that you reserve the right to contradict any of it in a future movie and that would trump. That's my pitch to you.

Roberto Orci: OK, based on that then with you Anthony Pascale as a witness, I hereby declare anything that we oversee to be canon.

This implies that the comics for which Roberto Orci had served as creative consultant were considered canon (such as Star Trek: Countdown ) as well as the video game . However, Orci later disputed the canonicity of the game, noting: " [I] said and have said exactly what you just said [that canon is limited to on-screen material] forever, but Pascale [TrekMovie.com editor] pushed me, he won't give up! [I] have said a million times that we cant (sic) determine what is canon. [O]n this day, [I] said something else. '[C]onsistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.' " [8]

Star Trek: very Short Treks is described in its trailer as "anything but canon". Nevertheless, it is an official Star Trek production, presented as a series of episodes. As such, it falls into the general definition of acceptable resources for Memory Alpha, but is labeled separately. For more details, please see our canon policy .

Non-canon [ ]

Licensed [ ].

A large body of licensed Star Trek works exists that, while approved for publication by Paramount , is not considered part of Star Trek canon. This includes most of the novels, comics, (computer) games , and older reference books such as the Star Fleet Technical Manual . Memory Alpha allows for the truncated covering of these sources under the " Apocrypha " heading within an article's appendices, thus separating this content from the canon-only sections of articles.

Over the years, background information from non-canon works has worked its way into canon Star Trek . These for example include not only the first names of Hikaru Sulu and Nyota Uhura , but also James T. Kirk 's middle name "Tiberius" from The Animated Series when it was still considered non-canon. Remastered Star Trek also added further examples, such as the design of the non-canon 23rd century Starbase 47 being used for Starbase 6 , and the Constitution -class registries derived from Greg Jein 's article " The Case of Jonathan Doe Starship " written as a fan. One of the more remarkable transitions from apocrypha to canon concerned the inclusion of several Starfleet ship-classes originally created for the Star Trek Online computer game from Cryptic Studios in the second and third seasons of Star Trek: Picard .

Unlicensed [ ]

There is a large body of non-canon unlicensed work produced by amateur filmmakers. On paper, Paramount Global supports and encourages the creation of fan fiction and released a set of guidelines to avoid the licenser's objection against fan-produced Star Trek films. [9]

The recent growth of films and episodes produced by former Star Trek cast and crew has garnered much greater attention than traditional fan fiction. Projects that fall into this group include Star Trek: New Voyages , Star Trek: Of Gods and Men , Star Trek: Axanar , Star Trek Continues , and Star Trek: Renegades .

It is these projects, in particular, that have come under intense scrutiny from CBS with its new rules as the producers of both Axanar [10] and Renegades [11] experienced to their detriment in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

The participation of former Star Trek staff and the increasing production value sophistication of these projects notwithstanding, Memory Alpha consider these productions as fan-produced, therefore remaining outside the purview of this wiki.

See also [ ]

Internal links [ ].

• Retroactive continuity policy

External links [ ]

• Memory Beta – the wiki for licensed Star Trek works, both canon and non-canon, but excluding fan fiction
• Star Trek Expanded Universe – the wiki for documenting Star Trek fan fiction
• Memory Gamma – the wiki for writing Star Trek fan fiction
• What is Canon?  at Ex Astris Scientia
• Star Trek canon at Wikipedia
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Star Trek Books , Star Trek Novels - August 29, 2022

Are Star Trek Novels Canon?

Later Star Trek book writers were advised not to sway too far from the details and style of the franchise shown on film. Novels written in the 1960s through the early 80s usually deviate from canon more than later books. As most novels are not written by authors affiliated with Star Trek's production staff, most books are considered unauthentic. If something written in a novel is later mentioned in a film, the mentioned information becomes canon, while the rest of the book remains not canon.

Star Trek Canon

Roddenberry influence, from non-canon to canon, episode and movie novelizations, original tie-in novels, star trek novels that everyone should read, spock must die, by james blish, the entropy effect, by vonda n. mcintyre, the final reflection, by john m. ford, star trek tie-in books that are canon, star trek: voyager  –  mosaic and pathways, star trek: countdown, enjoy it all.

Sean C Mahannah May 2, 2021

I’ve found quite a few of them on Amazon & some on eBay. Have you tried those places?

Stephanie Fuchs May 2, 2021

I want to order the Star Trek Kelvin Timeline novels, but can’t find the site to order them from… used, paperback, or hardcover. Can anyone help me?

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What is Canon?

The term "canon" is occasionally referred to by the people who make Star Trek, and much more frequently by the fans and here at EAS. The usefulness of the canon is under permanent debate, as are the interpretations what has to be regarded as canonical and what not. This write-up attempts to clarify what canon actually is, why it exists, how we can handle moot cases and how the canon policy at EAS works.

Although the concepts are different (which becomes evident as soon as we're looking at more than one timeline), "canon" and "continuity" are often used interchangeably. Read also the separate article on The Continuities of Star Trek .

Definitions

General definition of canon.

The word "canon" has more than one meaning in the English language. Several definitions can be found on the disambiguation page at Wikipedia (see the latest version of "Canon" at Wikipedia). The following two are relevant for the assessment of the Star Trek canon:

• "A list of books accepted by an ecclesiastic communion as authoritative or divinely inspired. The term was originally Christian, referring to books declared divinely inspired by the canons of Church councils..."
• "In fiction, the officially authorized interpretation of characters and events. In fandom, the term is often used to distinguish between 'canonical' accounts (i.e. those authorized by the copyright holder) and those of fan fiction, sometimes called fanon ..."

As we can easily recognize, the word originally used for the "divinely inspired" literature of Christian churches has been adopted to denote the valid parts of a fiction. In this sense, canon stands for what we could find in the history books or other records of the fictional universe. Certainly the canonical fictional universe is not supposed to be as authoritative as the teachings of a church. Still, there are various similarities.

Side note "Canon" is a noun, the correct adjective would be "canonical". Yet, it has become quite common to use "canon" in the way of an adjective, such as in "It is canon that all Vulcans can meld their minds." This is how the word is often used here at EAS too, although "canonical" would be correct in this example.

Star Trek's canon

This is the practical explanation of canon as it could be found at the official Star Trek website until 2006:

"As a rule of thumb, the events that take place within the real action series and movies are canon, or official Star Trek facts. Story lines, characters, events, stardates, etc. that take place within the fictional novels, the Animated Series and the various comic lines are not canon.

There are only a couple of exceptions of this rule: the Jeri Taylor penned novels 'Mosaic' and 'Pathways'. Many of the events in these two novels feature background details of the main Star Trek: Voyager characters. (Note: There are a few details from an episode of the Animated Adventures that have entered into the Star Trek canon. The episode 'Yesteryear', written by D.C. Fontana, features some biographical background of Spock.)"

Many of these positions, especially those concerning TAS and Jeri Taylor's novels, sound like they were arbitrarily made up and are debatable, as will be pointed out later. But the key statement is that only "events within the real action series" are canon. At least that much is generally accepted. Irrespective of any concerns of how they could possibly fit together, this definition of canon encompasses the live action TV shows (TOS, TNG, DS9, Voyager, Enterprise, Discovery, Picard) and the feature films (classic and Abramsverse), all in the versions in which they were shown on TV or in the theaters, respectively.

Side note The notion that any books could be canonical is contested by professional writers posting at TrekBBS. Paramount's policy that Jeri Taylor's novels should be canon is said to be non-existent and may have been made up just for the fans.

From 2006 to 2010, the following more elaborate explanation could be found at startrek.com:

"As a rule of thumb, the events that take place within the live-action episodes and movies are canon, or official Star Trek facts. Story lines, characters, events, stardates, etc. that take place within the fictional novels, video games, the Animated Series, and the various comic lines have traditionally not been considered part of the canon. But canon is not something set in stone; even events in some of the movies have been called into question as to whether they should be considered canon! Ultimately, the fans, the writers and the producers may all differ on what is considered canon and the very idea of what is canon has become more fluid, especially as there isn't a single voice or arbiter to decide. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry was accustomed to making statements about canon, but even he was known to change his mind.

In the publishing world, there used to be two exceptions to the novel rule: the Jeri Taylor-penned books 'Mosaic' and 'Pathways.' Many of the events in these two novels feature background details of the main Star Trek: Voyager characters and were to be considered as references by writers on the show. Now that the show is over, some of those events may never be incorporated into a live action format, so the question of whether details from these novels remain canon is open to interpretation.

With regard to the Animated Series, there are a few details from the episode 'Yesteryear,' written by D.C. Fontana, that reveal biographical background on Spock and planet Vulcan. Details from this episode have been successfully incorporated into the canon of Star Trek (such as in 'The Forge') and now that the Animated Series is out on DVD, we hope that even more can make its way in!"

Note that the revised definition is overall watered down. While the canonicity of some facts from the movies (obviously because of fan reactions to "Star Trek V") is suddenly questioned, TAS is slated to become canon (following a fan vote at startrek.com). Another former article on the site confirms this intention, and the TAS DVD special features even assure the viewers of the full canonicity of the series. Something of further interest is that at startrek.com canon is now stated to be a question of if and when something from the previously non-canon realm is incorporated into a canon series. This practice may work out well for the people who make Star Trek. In its ultimate consequence it would remove the need to care about canon at all. But it makes the decision if and where to draw a line increasingly complicated for the archivists and hence essentially for the fans.

Canon vs. official

In a simple approach it may seem that anything about the fictional Star Trek Universe that is officially released by Paramount/CBS should be automatically canonical. But as the word "official" is rather used as an administrative or legal term as opposed to "canon" as a purely fictional quality, the two are different. While Paramount Pictures or CBS may *officially* endorse books or games of their licensees, this does not imply that these products are *canon* too. On the contrary, as will be explained further down, Paramount/CBS keeps licensed products strictly non-canon.

This is merely the negation of "canon". If only live action is to be taken into account, then Star Trek novels, no matter if written by licensed authors or by fans, are never canon. In order to avoid misunderstandings: The designation "non-canonical" does not imply that they are badly written or that loyal fans should not read them. It just says that they are not a part of the canonical Star Trek Universe and are therefore irrelevant in its assessment. All novels, comics, reference books, calendars, role playing games, computer games, fanfic websites, merchandising items and everything else dealing in any way with Star Trek is non-canon, regardless of its origin or authorship.

Fans occasionally refer to material whose canonicity is debatable as "apocryphal". Wikipedia (see the latest version of "Apocrypha" on their server) defines the term like this:

• "In Judeo-Christian theologies, apocrypha refers to religious Sacred text that have questionable authenticity or are otherwise disputed. When most in the Western world refer to the Apocrypha , they are typically referring to the 14 books excluded from Protestant Bibles..."

In Star Trek fandom, the term "apocryphal" represents any information that is not canon in a narrow sense, but is by some treated like, or accepted as, canon. This may include The Animated Series, the books by Jeri Taylor, selected information from any other novels, reference books, deleted scenes or behind-the-scenes information. However, accounts from the live series, which are canon by their very definition, shouldn't be declared "apocryphal" just because some doubt its canonicity - even if there was an according allusion in the former FAQ at startrek.com.

In fandom, licensed Star Trek literature and games are sometimes referred to as "beta canon", most often in conjunction with TAS being fully canon. While "apocryphal" may become obsolete, the classification as beta canon establishes a new and somewhat more authoritative additional level between "canon" and "non-canon". In more recent years, writers working for the additional production have begun to include facts from beta canon into canon (or official) Trek, such as the species of Rok-Tahk, the Brikar.

This word is obviously a portmanteau of "fandom" and "canon". Wikipedia (see the latest version of "Fanon" on their server) says about "fanon":

• "Fanon is a fact or ongoing situation in fan fiction stories related to a television program, book, movie, or video game that has been used so much by fan writers that it has been more or less established as having happened in the fictional world, but it has not actually been established as having happened on the show, book or movie itself. Fanon is a portmanteau word of fan and canon..."

So "fanon" denotes views and opinions that are non-canon but widespread in fan fiction. Examples include minutiae like Uhura's first name Nyota, which was never mentioned on screen until 2009 when it finally became canon, or the notion that Romulans did not have warp drive in 2266, which is just a perpetuated misconception, as can be seen in the article about Warp Drive and Romulan History . More examples along these lines are listed on the page about False Canon .

Semi-/quasi-canon

These words are often used to denote material, which is either not canon in its entirety or whose canonicity remains debatable. The latter could be described as "apocryphal" too.

Parts of the fandom or of licensed literature that are in irreconcilable contradiction to canon facts may be called "anti-canon". In a discussion dealing just with canon facts it is irrelevant whether non-canon evidence may help or obstruct the assessment. But when reading (fan) fiction it is obvious that a knowledgeable fan may accept non-canon facts but will not appreciate it as soon as it becomes anti-canon.

Personal canon or "headcanon"

These terms can be found in social media, discussion forums or on personal blogs. Many fans have decided to include additional works (such as TAS, novels or even fan fiction) to their so-called "personal canon", or they deny parts of the franchise their otherwise definite status as canonical (like some purists disregard Enterprise or even everything that came after TOS and the first six movies). A "personal canon" may and is supposed to be more consistent than the official canon and may contribute to a "fanon". Yet, owing to its arbitrary nature and limited validity a "personal canon" usually obstructs the assessment of canon material.

Expanded Universe

The expansions of the Star Trek canon in the form of novels and of Star Trek Online are sometimes referred to as "Expanded Universe", rather than as beta canon. However, unlike in the case of Star Wars, this is not an officially endorsed or coordinated concept in Star Trek. Overall, there have been increasing efforts to align licensed works with each other and with canon in more recent years, but they don't form a unified science fiction universe. So the term beta canon describes better how the novels and games relate to canon Trek.

The reasons for the existence of an ecclesial canon are diverse. It is debatable whether it was created in the first place to defy heretics who might take away power and prosperity from the official church, or whether it was first of all a honest matter of faith. Regarding the Star Trek Universe, the canon has a relatively harmless impact on the lives of most fans and it certainly is not intended by TPTB to control the fans. Still, there are reasons for a canon of the Star Trek Universe.

Canon and continuity

As outlined in the article on the Realism of (Science) Fiction , Star Trek is (or at least, used to be) a franchise with internal consistency, as opposed to shows that are rebooted or that even take pleasure in creating deliberate continuity errors. Yet, during the three seasons of The Original Series from 1966 to 1969, there was no obvious canon policy, just as there was no particular attention to inter-episode continuity either. But as the fictional universe kept growing, it was necessary to come up with rules what has to be taken into account by future writers (the canon), as well as with a collection of such canon data for reference (The Star Trek Encyclopedia and its forerunners that must have existed behind the scenes).

Keeping looks and events in new episodes compliant with canon is a quality mark of the show, at least until the end of Star Trek Enterprise in 2005 and increasingly since 2020 again.

Canon and creativity

Canon may be seen as an obstacle to creativity, simply because not all real-world possibilities are allowed to be exploited in-universe. On the other hand, in a creative process canon boils down to a simple list of what has been shown or told before and what not. This is not really a creative limitation. On the contrary, knowledge of canon can help avoid rehashes of a previous story. There is always a risk that writers consciously recycle plots just because they think it is a good idea to show familiar situations already established in the canon. Still, they better closely base their stories on canon events than just on stereotypes.

The knowledge about canon may have a quite beneficial impact on storylines. A prominent example is DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations" with its slavish adherence to the canon events of TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles". Another one is the Vulcan arc of ENT: "The Forge", "The Awakening" and "Kir'Shara" that successfully removes a previous continuity error concerning Vulcan Mind Melds from canon. These episodes are commonly said to be among the most creative and most enticing installments of all Star Trek.

Canon and commerce

Star Trek takes place in many different forms, among which the TV series and movies are (or at least, should be) in the center of interest. In addition, Trek-themed novels, comics and computer games are available as well as typical merchandising items such as action figures, t-shirts and coffee mugs. Any company with the intention to sell anything with "Star Trek" printed on it needs a license from the brand owners Paramount Pictures and CBS Television. This franchise makes up a major part of the business.

Paramount and CBS give away the valuable name of Star Trek to various third-party products, and they have an interest that these products adhere to certain standards. But irrespective of their quality, these products are not supposed to tell stories that have an impact on the TV series or movies. The copyright owners want to maintain full control of their own creative base.

There is actually an even more important reason why Paramount and CBS do not want any licensed products, especially those of literary relevance (novels and games), to be canon. If Paramount or CBS decided to adopt anything that was not originally created by an employee but by a contractor, they might have to pay royalties for each and every mention of this character or concept! So the Kzinti species from The Animated Series (TAS: "The Slaver Weapon") never found its way into any of the live series. The episode involving the Kzinti was written by Larry Niven, based on one of his novels ( The Soft Weapon ). Niven was irritated when Dean Foster wrote the novelization of the episode instead of himself, although he contradicts the common rumor that he threatened legal actions against Paramount ( interview at Trekplace). Nevertheless it seems that Paramount preemptively banned the Kzinti from canon Star Trek, as well they prohibited their use in licensed works in at least three cases ( Kzinti at Memory Alpha). Still, it was planned to finally include them in the fifth season of Enterprise. Another prominent example is the character of T'Pol, who was named T'Pau in the draft of the series. But TPTB cautiously changed it to T'Pol in order to avoid the due credit to the author of TOS: "Amok Time", Theodore Sturgeon, in every episode. T'Pau was eventually included in the Vulcan arc on Star Trek Enterprise, though.

Canon and practicability

Star Trek writers are expected to be creative and not perfect librarians (something that is largely left to the fans and particularly Memory Alpha today after Richard Arnold and later the Okudas used to fill that role). With 600 hours of TV it is already extremely hard to come up with stories that are original and still not in contradiction to previous installments. Without the help of the Star Trek Encyclopedia and other reference works as well as of their colleagues and editors, writers would find themselves lost in a confusing maze of facts that must be taken into account. This would become many times as complicated if they additionally had to take into account all novels. All of them because where could a line be drawn? And what about the games? They establish many facts as well. At some point it wouldn't be possibly any longer to insert new data because the adventures would fill many lifetimes of characters or ships, with incalculable inconsistencies.

Canon and the fans

As already mentioned, the term "canon" shows up in fan circles a lot more frequently than on startrek.com or in official reference works. Even casual viewers, who may not be aware of the word "canon", care more about it than the studio could hope for. They notice goofs like the epitaph "James R. Kirk" because everyone knows that his true name is "James T. Kirk". They wonder if the contents of novels or comics may have any bearing on the TV series. They compare Star Trek with other franchises like Marvel or DC Comics where the establishment of a credible (non-multiverse) canon is practically impossible because of lacking continuity. In this regard the canon policy gives the fans something to chew on. It allows to limit discussions among fans to a reasonable common ground, and it ultimately enables the setup of websites like Memory Alpha, which would be a bottomless pit without the canon foundation, and of EAS, which would become utterly pointless. In this sense, the canon allows Star Trek to earn a "meta quality" when fans take care of episodes that the production staff has long finished and almost forgotten.

Interpretations

As already mentioned in the introductory note, the criteria for what type of evidence is canonical under which preconditions are under permanent discussion. Moreover, Gene Roddenberry and his successors are said to have included additional material to the canon, as well as they purportedly removed some of the live action from the canon. It will be discussed in the following whether the material in question should be acknowledged as canon, and whether the said exceptions are useful. But most notably, new rules are required for the alternate universe movies produced by J.J. Abrams (since 2009), for the e re-imagined universe of Star Trek Discovery (since 2017), as well as for old and newly produced animated Star Trek.

The views in this section reflect the canon policy at EAS; other fan-made websites may arrive at slightly different conclusions, considering that the Star Trek Universe has become very complicated, contradictory and controversial in more recent years.

Novels and games

Only televised Star Trek is canon. This explicitly excludes books, and above all the myriad of novels based on Star Trek. None of them are canon in the view of Paramount/CBS, although many of them would fit into the timeline and would be largely free of anti-canon notions. The above mentioned royalty issue forbids (or makes it very unlikely) that characters established in the books ever find their way into canon Trek. The same applies to all Trek-themed games and other merchandise.

Novels based on movies

The circumstances seem to be different if a novel is directly based on a feature film, written by the same author and usually more comprehensive than the movie. One prime example is the novelization of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" by Gene Roddenberry that adds many facts and aspects that can't be found in the movie. If much of the book's content is canon because it describes the events on the screen, shouldn't the rest be canon too?

Novels by Jeri Taylor

The two novels Mosaic and Pathways were explicitly mentioned on the official Star Trek website to be theoretically canon, the reason being that Jeri Taylor, at that time co-producer of the series, added essential background information on the Voyager main characters. But can this statement be maintained, considering that Voyager writers have been ignoring the novels all along? If they should have looked up facts there when writing episodes but actually didn't do it, the canonicity of her two books is at most theoretical, and some smaller parts may be even anti-canonical.

Star Trek: The Animated Series

Gene Roddenberry is said to have decanonized TAS, but this is uncertain. The official website previously stated that it is non-canon, but without giving reasons. The Star Trek Encyclopedia and all other official manuals written since the late 1980s (since the canon officially exists) are without references from The Animated Series. Nonetheless TAS may be treated as canon according to the TAS DVD and the official site (until 2010), at least partly because of a fan vote at startrek.com. Yet, the official website also used to state that the canonicity of TAS, even if it is earned effortlessly, must be gradually confirmed by referring to events from TAS in future incarnations of Star Trek.

TAS: Yesteryear

This particular TAS episode ( review ) is commonly regarded as the best of the whole series. But its quality alone should not be the reason to include it to the canon, especially considering the problems of partially canonical material. The actual reason cited for TAS: "Yesteryear" to be canonical is that it adds to the background of Spock's character. While this is true and is quite useful, it is still no reason why these facts should be made canonical and other events from TAS not. Moreover, if canonicity were just a matter of quality or of usefulness, disappointed fans could turn the tables and demand that trainwrecks like "Star Trek V" or VOY: "Threshold" be declared non-canon.

Star Trek: Lower Decks

According to creator Mike McMahan, his animated comedy series Lower Decks is canon. McMahan as well as other sources repeatedly cite that the series fits well into the year 2380 and respects the visuals and other facts of previous Trek series of the era. Yet, the classification of Lower Decks being fully canon is in contrast to the status of TAS, which is commonly debated and still not fully recognized until today.

Star Trek: Prodigy

Just like Lower Decks, Star Trek: Prodigy has been declared canon by its producers, with much the same rationale.

Very Short Treks

Very Short Treks is an animated anthology series that was created in 2023, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of TAS. It includes absurd situations, out-of-character behavior, instances of breaking the fourth wall and sometimes plain tastelessness, which goes well beyond what is customary in the other animated comedies. According to the trailer, the series is "anything but canon" .

Star Trek V & VI

It may be just a rumor that Gene Roddenberry wanted these two movies removed from canon, allegedly because they don't reflect the true spirit of Star Trek. We may have to wonder anyway why Roddenberry was so opposed to the alleged racism in "Star Trek VI" (according to director Nicholas Meyer), a movie that came into the theaters after his death, that he condemned it before it was even completed.

"Discoverse"

The first two seasons of Star Trek Discovery are officially set in the 2250s of the Prime Universe. There is no doubt that the producers of the series consider Discovery an integral, fully canon part of Star Trek. Yet, the series does not adhere to the existing canon at all on the visual side . Established looks were completely redesigned far beyond what could qualify as a visual update, most obviously everything related to the Klingons . The changes are much more than only cosmetic. They are not rooted in real-life progress of visual effects and make-up techniques but unquestionably in the desire to create something very different looking than the Star Trek as we knew it. Furthermore, the series establishes events that couldn't realistically have occurred in the 2150's and lots of technology that should not yet exist or should not exist at all. The latter is explained in "Such Sweet Sorrow II", but more like in an "out of sight, out of mind" fashion. After the setting of Discovery has been changed to the far future, where the damage to the continuity can be kept in check. The spin-off Strange New Worlds continues to take place in an era whose facts and looks it respects somewhat more than Discovery and eventually ditches the rebooted Klingons.

"Abramsverse"

It was the intention of producer and director J.J. Abrams and his staff to reboot the franchise while respecting Star Trek's continuity . "Star Trek (2009)" takes place a few years before The Original Series, but establishes an entirely new timeline (officially called the Kelvin Timeline). It would be possible for the "Abramsverse" to be fully canon . At least, this is the official position.

Star Trek: Countdown and Nero

These two comic series are tied into the story "Star Trek (2009)". In an interview with Trekmovie.com , dated 9 December 2008, "Star Trek (2009)" writer Bob Orci said that he personally considered some novels canon, but that it is not up to him to declare Countdown canon. In a later Q&A session , dated May 22, 2009, he explained the inconsistencies between the movie "Star Trek (2009)" and Countdown with the comic being non-canon. The same applies to the Star Trek: Nero comics and the whole story about Nero's imprisonment on Rura Penthe.

Official reference books

Books are non-canon because of their printed nature, even those officially released by Paramount/CBS via Pocket Books and with people working on the show as authors ( reviews ). The TNG Technical Manual and the DS9 Technical Manual can be regarded as apocryphal because a good deal of them consists of facts that supplement the scarce technical information given in the series itself and that were expected to be an official guideline for the writing staff too. The same applies to the Official Starships Collection and other ship-related publications by Eaglemoss in more recent years with their information on names and registries that were supposedly on the actual CG models. The Star Trek Encyclopedia extracts data from the canon episodes. Where it is correct, it is a reproduction of canon facts, but not canon by itself. Even a few occurrences of False Canon can be found in the Encyclopedia .

Star Trek Technical Manual

Prior to TNG, the STTM ( review ) was commonly regarded as authoritative, yet no one called it "canon" when it was released in 1975. It was a time when no Star Trek was on air and when fans were hungry for any kind of information. So the author, Franz Joseph Schnaubelt, got the blessing from Gene Roddenberry to write a technical manual of Star Trek. Franz Joseph went ahead and created a manual that included schematics of canon devices, rooms, uniforms. He supplemented this with what we would call fan fiction today, namely the Federation Charter, emblems of alien civilizations and the ship schematics.

Even if we attempt to establish an exception, the STTM as a whole fails to fulfill the requirements for canon data in several regards. First of all, a definition of canon didn't technically exist when the STTM was written. And as unfair as it may seem, just when Roddenberry set up the canon policy for TNG, the STTM was not included.

Side note Some time prior to TNG, they didn't get along with each other any longer, and it is said that Roddenberry intentionally laid out technical specs of TNG so as to disparage Franz Joseph's work - but this doesn't really belong here. If you would like to know more about Franz Joseph's background, please visit Trekplace .

Secondly, no printed publication, not even the official technical manuals by Sternbach or Okuda, are regarded as canon themselves, but at most as apocryphal. Thirdly, certain major parts of the manual are of a debatable nature or are anti-canon, like the alien emblems, the map of the galaxy, the Federation Charter (actually a mostly literal rip-off of the UN Charter) and the circuit schematics of the tricorder etc. I simply wouldn't want to include these just to have a couple of more ships on the list.

Fandom reference books

Unlike the at least apocryphal TNG Technical Manual , the DS9 Technical Manual and the Star Trek Encyclopedia , publications like those of FASA, Jackill or Todd Guenther are unquestionably non-canon, as is the Spaceflight Chronology too. The same applies to some more recent books like Star Trek Star Charts ( review ) or The Starship Spotter . From Paramount/CBS's viewpoint they fall into the same category as novels, even if some depictions from FASA manual made it into TNG episodes. But this must be seen rather as an accident because the Art Department is usually quite careful not to include copyrighted material.

Star Trek Online

Ship designs from the MMORPG Star Trek Online appear in the second and third seasons of Star Trek Picard. This has prompted some fans to declare that "all STO ships are canon now" or "all of STO is canon now" . This is a misconception. Single ships from the Star Trek Technical Manual or even from other sci-fi universes have appeared in Trek shows and movies before, without making them canon within the Star Trek Universe.

Klingon language

The Klingon language devised by James Doohan for the first feature film consisted of just a few words and was later developed to a fully-fledged language by linguist Mark Okrand. Applying the same criteria to the language as to anything else in Star Trek, only the Klingon spoken on screen is canon (regardless of its consistency and of Okrand's involvement), not the complete grammar and vocabulary created by Okrand.

Behind-the-scenes information

This is an interesting point to be considered because some of the behind-the-scenes information is widely accepted without actually being canonical. For instance, the Miranda class was never called by that name in any episode, not even in a screenplay. Still, it has become the commonly accepted name of the ship class thanks to the Star Trek Encyclopedias (well, until the 1990s rivaled by the fandom name "Avenger class"). Fundamentally, behind-the-scenes information as it can be found in official reference manuals is just as apocryphal as these books are in their entirety.

Script contents

Like with information from behind the scenes, most screenplays (or preliminary version thereof) include additional lines or annotations that find their way into fandom but not into the final episode or movie. We certainly need to disregard them as soon as they are contradicted by canon facts. This happens with the so far common notion that the Klingon BoP in "Star Trek: The Search for Spock" was actually a Romulan vessel. The Klingon retro-BoPs in ENT: "Expanse" is the ultimate proof that there is no Romulan link. In some other cases there were little facts, especially names in scripts that were not mentioned on screen.

Cut scenes/additional scenes

Did Picard and Data drink wine in "Nemesis" or not? The DVD has an additional scene, which is not in the theatrical version. Moreover, this scene is not embedded into the very movie track, but separate. The same question, with a more definite impact, crops up in "Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country". The scenes with Colonel West were cut from the movie, but inserted into later releases. So does he exist at all? And what about Kirk's orbital skydiving in "Generations", which was only available in the internet so far, not on DVD?

TOS and TNG Remastered

Whilst the producers have reassured that nothing is changed in the storylines, the remastering (TOS-R) of The Original Series still stirs up continuity issues. The remastered version comes with improved effects such as of phaser shots, with new planetscapes and with new vessels too. TOS-R is designed to be more internally consistent. But which is correct: the old phaser beams that were occasionally red, or the new consistently blue ones? The old blurry planets, or the new highly detailed ones? Note that, once again, the question what is canon should not be primarily about quality or taste. The same question arises with the remastered version of TNG (TNG-R), although here the changes are less extensive.

Parallel timelines/universes

Many fans tend to disregard silly or otherwise disagreeable events like the DS9 version of the Mirror Universe because it is not "our" universe after all. Some extend this practice to whole incarnations of Star Trek, such as Star Trek Enterprise, the Abrams movies or Star Trek Discovery. They assert that these take place in alternate universes and hence should be discarded as non-canon. The official canon policy, however, makes no difference between such "unreal" and "real" events. Even the content of dreams or hallucinations is canonical in the sense that it is visible on screen.

Contradictory canon

Their canon nature doesn't prevent information from the live action series from sometimes being contradictory. This may happen because of negligent writing but also in case of a conscious reboot. In some cases the contradictions may be explained away rather easily. But by no means such speculation should itself be declared canon, although fans are tempted to believe into the validity of their favorite hypothesis. Actually much of the fanon came to life as such conjectural explanations. A prominent pre-Discovery example of contradictory canon is the Trill Problem , a fundamental revision of the nature of this race that defies a complete explanation. Star Trek Discovery takes this one step further, by redesigning the Klingons, the arguably best-known race of Star Trek, without providing an in-universe rationale.

Ex Astris Scientia

No, I don't suffer from megalomania. The reason why I'm listing EAS as a candidate for a canon source is that some fans refer to my website as canon. But actually EAS does not create any canon content. It can only convey canon data and, in debatable cases, suggest reasonable solutions with a minimum of speculation.

The real world

Is the real world canonical in Star Trek? The question wouldn't occur in a galaxy far, far away. But since Star Trek aims to depict the very future of humanity, its past has to be taken into account. The real world influences Star Trek by providing historical side notes, character and ship names and locations on Earth. In this sense the real world is definitely canonical, although Star Trek sometimes alters the course of human history or even the laws of physics. As long as the fictional events are set far enough in the future, there is no danger of our real world becoming "non-canon". The article on 21st Century Earth History demonstrates what happens if this precondition is not given.

There are good reasons for a canon policy - at the CBS/Paramount as well as here at EAS. But fans shouldn't go as far as refusing everything non-canon from the outset; Star Trek can be more than the collected facts in the Okudas' Encyclopedia . On the other hand, there is the kind of fans who stir up canon and fandom at will, be it because of their limited knowledge about the Star Trek Universe or because they don't want their creativity be limited by the canon. In my many years in the fandom I have encountered lots of either type of fans, and any shade in between.

One typical situation is that some people in a message board explicitly talk about the number of nacelles on canon starships and someone throws in that the Federation class and Saladin class (from Franz Joseph's Star Fleet Technical Manual ) are odd-nacelled. The result is a fruitless discussion about the definition of "canon", about the authority of Roddenberry, Okuda, Paramount or Pocket Books, about books which should be considered canon because they are written by Jeri Taylor, about Colonel West and the Starfleet Marines, and so on. Very often ideas of False Canon or "headcanon" are involved too. This is one more reason why a well-established canon is a useful reference.

As a universal reference, the idea of a canon in an uninterrupted continuity worked well in the years between 1994 (release of the first Star Trek Encyclopedia ) and 2005 (end of Star Trek Enterprise). The Abramsverse and ultimately Discovery call the principle of canonicity into question. While the new Star Trek is canon by its very nature, it establishes numerous facts that cannot be reconciled with the pre-existing continuity. It is an ongoing process, at EAS just like in the whole fandom, to handle the extreme discrepancies, and (as far as EAS is concerned, I can't speak for other fan projects) to still apply the same well-established criteria as they were valid until 2009. In particular, EAS will neither resort to lackadaisical apologist statements like "there are many races of Klingons, hence the differences" (unless this shows up in a canon story), nor will I declare Discovery non-canon (because it's not up to me to make such a decision).

The canon policy at EAS accepts the definition of canon given by TPTB as a way to avoid unnecessary discussions. Actually, I would go as far as saying that EAS couldn't exist without the canon because if there were not one supposedly true and authentic version of the fictional universe, it would become utterly pointless to file and analyze anything about it beyond a mere list what happened in which episode or book. In contrast to websites that are based on a "headcanon", EAS neither ignores canon accounts at the outset nor adds non-canon information. EAS includes some apocryphal reference works (but no beta canon) only if these fill in necessary details that would never be mentioned in an episode. This doesn't mean that EAS slavishly follows the interpretations put forth in reference works.

But canon is not everything. Every fan should feel encouraged to include whatever he likes to his personal view (not "personal canon") of the Star Trek Universe. That's what I'm doing with my ship designs, the ASDB and the Starfleet Museum too. I would never want to miss the fan-made stuff all around the planet because they really enrich the universe, no matter if I "believe" in their existence. I probably can't help those who don't even want to see anything that has not the seal of Paramount/CBS on it or the other extreme group, those who don't care about the idea of Star Trek and turn Starfleet into a military organization with big-gunned warships. For anyone in between, canon is a common ground. Everything else is left to our imagination and tolerance or better, mutual understanding. There are always possibilities!

The Realism of (Science) Fiction - whether Star Trek is really "bordering on silliness"

False Canon - accounts which are incorrectly regarded as canonical in fandom or in official Trek

The Visual Continuity of Star Trek - examples of if and how visual continuity was maintained through the generations

The Continuities of Star Trek - from a single timeline to a multiverse, and how to deal with that

The Problems of Canonizing TAS - dealing with possible continuity and compatibility issues

Star Trek (2009): Reboot or Multiverse? - thoughts on the continuity and the canon status of the movie

Dealing with Continuity Issues of the Abramsverse - general thoughts and the policy at EAS

Some screen caps from TrekCore . Some ideas, especially concerning cut scenes, script information and other moot cases, were inspired by an article at Green Mole . Thanks also to the people at the SCN for discussing issues of canon. Thanks to Andrew Briggs for pointing me to the reason for Gene Roddenberry to condemn "Star Trek VI", to Kobi for correcting some facts about the Kzinti and to Spike for the revision of the alleged official canon policy.

https://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/inconsistencies/canon.htm

Last modified: 02 Feb 2024

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Fleet Yards

56 Years Later, Star Trek Canon Finally Addresses Its Trickiest Moral Question

Genetic engineering doesn’t make you a villain.

People will never get over Khan. From his introduction in the 1967 episode “Space Seed,” to the famous Wrath of Khan , to the Benedict Cumberbatch version in 2013, and most recently, his distant descendent, La’an Noonien-Singh in Strange New Worlds , Star Trek’s most infamous genetically enhanced supervillain casts a long shadow. But, 56 years after Khan’s debut, the Trek canon is flipping the script on the nature of Khan’s villainy. For a long time, Star Trek has (mostly) posited that people like Khan were evil because they were genetically enhanced. But what Strange New Worlds presupposes is — maybe not?

In the Season 2 Strange New Worlds episode “Ad Astra per Aspera,” Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn) faces legal charges. In a bit of retcon, Season 1 of SNW established that Una was secretly an Illyrian, an alien culture that practices genetic modification as a way of life. In “Ghost of Illyria,” we learned that Una had hidden her genetic modifications to blend in at Starfleet, and in “A Quality of Mercy,” Starfleet arrested her for violating its anti-genetic modification laws. Why can’t you be genetically modified in the open-minded, egalitarian Star Trek future? Well, it all comes down to Khan.

Khan’s genetics backstory explained

Khan in “Space Seed.”

When “Space Seed” aired during Star Trek’s first season in 1967, the show was still making up its future history. Even the year The Original Series took place hadn’t been established. Khan says he’s been sleeping for “200 years,” but because this episode of TOS was later established to have taken place in 2267, it’s more like 271 years. But the point here is that Star Trek pre-history begins in the 1990s.

“Space Seed” established that Khan was a tyrant who ruled part of Earth in the 1990s and was exiled in suspended animation “sleeper ship” in 1996. This conflict was called the Eugenics Wars, which in “Space Seed” Spock calls “the era of your last so-called World War.”

Trek canon has been stuck with this tricky chronology ever since. Once the Eugenics Wars failed to occur in the real 1990s, various Treks lampshaded or outright contradicted their date and Khan’s rise to power. Greg Cox's trilogy of novels, The Eugenics Wars , began in 2001 and combined fuzzy Star Trek history with real ‘90s history by making Khan’s rise to dominance a secret war fought under false flags and without the general public's knowledge. In the 1996 Voyager two-parter “Future’s End,” the crew traveled back to 1996, where they shrugged their shoulders at the fact there was no evidence of an ongoing World War III. More recently, in Strange New Worlds and Picard Season 2, it’s been suggested the Eugenics Wars led to World War III, and that led to a third of the Earth’s population dying. Then you’ve got a Mad Max -style Earth until 2063 when the Vulcans make first contact.

Trek canon has some wiggle room. In “Space Seed,” Spock said, “Records of that period are fragmentary.” So if you think the new Trek canon is retconning Khan’s origins a bit, brace yourself for even more changes in the future. Was Khan really around in the 1990s? Or was he on Earth later?

How Strange New Worlds goes deeper than TOS

Yetide Badaki as Neera.

If you put aside the trickiness of early Star Trek chronology, what’s interesting about “Ad Astra per Aspera” is that it inverts previous assumptions about the Federation, and turns the existence of Khan into a scapegoat for massive bigots at Starfleet. Season 1 of Strange New Worlds explored this a bit with La’an’s backstory and Number One getting arrested for being an Illyrian, but now it’s going much deeper. Here, Una’s Illyrian lawyer, Neera (Yetide Badaki), has no love for the Federation or Starfleet, because she’s experienced prejudice for being genetically altered her entire life. Neera makes it clear the Federation has used Khan’s atrocities to justify widespread discrimination.

This stigma runs so deep that, during a private conversation with La’an, Neera points out that just because you’re descended from a supervillain —La’an is distantly related to Khan — that doesn’t mean “there’s a monster” inside you. La’an is human, but Neera and Una are not, and thus Strange New Worlds makes a leap that Trek has never quite made before.

Una and Neera in Strange New Worlds .

In the Deep Space Nine episode “Doctor Bashir, I Presume?” it’s revealed that Julian Bashir was genetically enhanced by his parents when he was very young. A similar conflict arises, and Khan is alluded to, but there’s a crucial difference. In TOS and Deep Space Nine , the idea that genetic alterations could be a cultural norm is never explored. It’s always viewed as a moment where science goes too far. Julian is nice in spite of his genetic modifications, but his parents still transgressed human cultural norms.

Strange New Worlds builds on all of this and makes the subject much more interesting because while Una has violated Federation law, we see an entire culture of Ilyrians living and thriving in the Volterra Nebula. Some may pass for human, but judging people by their appearance is a practice Star Trek has often strived to dismantle. When Pike visits the Illyrian world to recruit Neera, the environment is hostile to his biology. The Illryians aren’t monsters. Pike is the gas-mask-clad outsider, and a representative of the Federation the Illyrians view as narrow-minded bigots.

The resolution of “Ad Astra per Aspera” creates a loophole where Una can stay in Starfleet while making it clear Starfleet isn’t changing its mind. This preserves canon, but the impact is deeper than dot-connecting. With this episode, Strange New Worlds has pointed out that the so-called utopia of the Federation still has its biases and bigots, and that even in the 23rd Century, humans can do better.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streams on Paramount+.

This article was originally published on June 24, 2023

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Columns > Published on August 24th, 2020

The Best Star Trek Novels: A Personal List

Star Trek has always been my fictional comfort food. When times are tough, I can always put on an episode or open a book and things aren’t so bad for a while. I don’t know if it’s the excitement of scientific discovery, the positive vision of humanity’s future, or just the premise of a diverse and competent crew working together to make the galaxy a better place—I almost always end a Star Trek story feeling a little more hopeful than when I began. If, like me, you’ve watched all the Star Trek out there and still want more, here’s a list of books to get you started.

The Rihannsu Series

This series of novels follows the Original Series crew as they become entangled in various Romulan plots to dominate the galaxy, beginning with a secret lab of psychic super soldiers and climaxing with a doomsday weapon aimed at the heart of Federation space. Kirk is initially sent to investigate the hijacking of a Starfleet vessel. There he meets and (eventually) befriends Ael, commander of Bloodwing , a warship full of defectors from Romulus. Together, the two crews work to keep the simmering tensions between the interstellar powers from boiling over into all-out war. The Rihannsu books provide a densely detailed portrait of Romulan history, philosophy, and culture. You will come to understand the origins of their language, and how it shaped the thinking of their people and their quixotic sense of honor. While all of this is technically non-canon, you can definitely see its influence on the show Picard . If you always wanted to know more about this fascinating yet enigmatic people, Rihannsu and Picard make an excellent pairing.

Buy My Enemy, My Ally at  Amazon

"Metamorphosis"

The Enterprise-D finds a seemingly magic mountain on the planet Elysia. Commander Data is sent to investigate and ends up literally going on a Hero’s Journey, complete with a quest to help a fair maiden by traveling into the underworld. This adventure tests Data to his limits, for at the end awaits a treasure beyond compare, the android’s only wish: to become human. That would be enough to explore for any novel, but  Metamorphosis keeps going past where the credits would normally roll on an episode. We get to follow Data through his awkward first steps of being human, learning how to live with a fragile fleshy body, and coping with his new limitations. My favorite moment is when Data realizes he no longer has all of Starfleet’s databanks in his memory and will have to actually do his homework to prepare for briefings. The story keeps twisting from there, and goes to some pretty ridiculous lengths that I won’t spoil for you. The whole book feels like a metafictional commentary on narrative structure, and I love it just a little bit more every time I read it.

Buy Metamorphosis at  Amazon

"Planet X"

Speaking of ridiculous premises, there was a comic in which the crew of the Enterprise-D entered the Marvel Universe and fought Kang the Conqueror with the help of the X-Men. Even more ridiculous, this novel is a sequel to that comic book. This time, the X-Men end up in the Star Trek universe and help Picard and crew resolve the civil upheaval on a world experiencing mutations in its population. People are developing strange and dangerous powers, and the rest of the society hates and fears them for it. The X-Men find this all too familiar, and together with the Enterprise crew, they manage to bring both sides of the conflict together to find a peaceful way forward. There’s lots of fun bits like characters commenting on the uncanny resemblance between Captain Picard and Charles Xavier, years before Sir Patrick Stewart played the latter role. My personal highlight is Worf and Wolverine fighting X-Men villains together on the holodeck. Is it great literature? No. But it is a fun and weird pop cultural artifact worth exploring if you can find a copy.

Buy Planet X at  Amazon

The Mirror Universe Series

The Mirror Universe is a dark reflection of the Star Trek universe we know and love, and the source of endless “evil twin” plots. Basically, everything is its opposite. In the Mirror Universe, the tolerant and peace-loving United Federation of Planets is actually the xenophobic and warlike Terran Empire. Instead of the collegiate atmosphere of cooperation, these human supremacists are motivated solely by hatred and self-interest. In the Terran Empire, the quickest way to a promotion is literal backstabbing. The rest of the universe is similarly warped, and these books will take you on a guided tour through it all. You will learn the history of the Terran Empire’s bloody rise and catastrophic fall, follow the adventures of a space pirate named Luc Picard, and witness the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance crushing the galaxy beneath its boot heel. Just a few of the bizarre reflections you will witness as these books take you to all your favorite corners of a familiar galaxy to see just how different things could be. Honestly, it reads like what would happen if they tried to do a “darker and grittier” Star Trek reboot. If you enjoyed Discovery’ s voyage to the Mirror Universe, this series is for you.

Buy Dark Mirror at  Amazon

The Cold Equations Series

This series is all about the many different forms of artificial life that exist in the Star Trek galaxy. Doctor Noonien Soong is surprisingly not dead, and leads the crew of the Enterprise-E on a merry chase as he carries out a crazy complicated plan to resurrect his artificial son. On his journey you will learn a great deal about his life and work, as well as the development of Data. Once Soong succeeds in bringing him back, Data proves himself to be a chip off the old block, setting out on a quest to resurrect his departed daughter, Lal. Along the way they discover a secret Fellowship of Artificial Intelligences, from whom they learn the ancient history of artificial life. Of course, it turns out the AIs are scheming to destroy all organic life in the galaxy, but the books take this plot in an unexpected and much more satisfying direction than the more recent Picard . Finally, if you were wondering what the hell happened to Wesley after he vanished from TNG, these books have answers for that, too.

Buy The Persistence of Memory at  Amazon

The Department of Temporal Investigations Series

Time travel is a big no-no in Starfleet. Divergent timelines, alternate histories and temporal revisionism are all frowned upon by the members of the Department of Temporal Investigations. It’s their job to keep people from screwing around in the timestream and rewriting history. If you fly your ship back to the past and pick up a whale, you’ll likely get to have an unpleasant chat with Agents Dulmer and Lucsly. The regulation of time travel is a fertile subject for sci-fi, and this series covers every angle from policing abuses to helping victims of temporal displacement cope with their situation. There are complex political machinations between the different states as they try to agree on responsible rules for time travel. It’s fascinating to witness the debates of a governing body composed of people not just from different places, but also different eras. These books are able to cover (nearly) the entirety of Star Trek history, making narrative connections between almost every time travel event in the canon. It’s a real treat for completist fans, and has a ton of fun playing with all the tropes and toys in the time travel box. The second book in the series is both a sequel and its own prequel. They’re honestly some of the best time travel books I’ve ever read, Star Trek or not.

Buy Watching the Clock at  Amazon

The Klingon Empire     Series    

If you’re tired of reading about very polite and pleasant professionals working together in the post-scarcity utopia of the Federation, perhaps you’ll enjoy a rousing adventure with Star Trek’s beloved space vikings: the Klingons. The Empire must expand again, meaning there is battle, honor and glory to be had—a Klingon’s three favorite things. The first three novels of this series embed you with the crew of the IKS Gorkon on a tour of duty. It’s one of few stories that explores Klingon culture beyond the warrior class. The books use multiple point-of-view characters to paint a complete picture of life in the Empire at all levels of their society, from lowly medics to mighty commanders. It’s also a fun way for fans to catch up with all of the Klingon supporting characters from the shows. And of course, no Klingon tale would be complete without an epic battle. At one point, they pause their war of territorial conquest to fight a civil war on the side over the outcome of an honor duel. If you’ve ever been intrigued by Star Trek’s greatest warriors, the Klingon Empire series will show you a good time.

Buy A Burning House at  Amazon

The Q Continuum Series

This series focuses on the impish immortal prankster Q. He has once again kidnapped Picard to take him on a wild transcendental trip to learn about the secrets of the universe. They go back in time to see Q’s misspent, troublemaking youth and witness the secret history of the Q Continuum. But on this stroll down memory lane, Picard learns about a terrible threat that awaits them beyond the bounds of their galaxy. The Q Continuum is preparing to face its greatest foe, an utterly malevolent being with the ability to reshape reality at will, more powerful than even the Q. Picard and the Enterprise end up playing referee in a battle between gods for the fate of all existence. This series is another treat for completists—through Q’s life story, the novels manage to tie together the most extensive history of the Star Trek universe I had ever read at the time.

Buy Q Space at  Amazon

Star Trek is a fictional universe of unlimited narrative potential, perfectly built to support a never-ending collection of stories. Sometimes I find it hard to believe Star Trek didn’t begin as a novel, as its dense ideas and rich world-building are perfectly suited to the form. These are just a few of my most fondly remembered favorites. It is by no means a complete or ranked list. Any of the listed series will be worth your time, but there’s plenty more where that came from. If there are any great ones I left out, feel free to leave them in the comments.

About the author

BH Shepherd is a writer and a DJ from Texas. He graduated from Skidmore College in 2005 with degrees in English and Demonology after writing a thesis about Doctor Doom. A hardcore sci-fi geek, noir junkie and comic book prophet, BH Shepherd has spent a lot of time studying things that don’t exist.  He currently resides in Austin, where he is working on The Greatest Novel Ever.

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Published Aug 3, 2012

Ten for Ward #5 – 10 Trek Novels "the Canon" Passed Over

You know, Star Trek used to be pretty simple.

Back when I was a kid, there was Star Trek: The Original Series , and the cartoon, and... well, that was pretty much it. Okay, not really. After all, there were toys, and games, and model kits, and comic books, and the occasional novel here and there. Back in those days, Star Trek was a show that aired every day after school on the local UHF channel, and it had its casual and hardcore fans (of which I was among the latter), but for a long time, no one seriously thought there’d ever be more to it. So, a lot of those old comic and novel writers were on a pretty loose leash, allowed to do all sorts of things with the Enterprise gang. After all, there was no new episode coming next week, so why couldn’t the wild adventure as told in the odd paperback really happen to Kirk and company?

With the advent of the Star Trek films and subsequent television series and the greater attention paid to “media tie-in” products like novels and comics, the writers of such “additional material” eventually found themselves operating under guidelines designed—more or less—to ensure such stories didn’t conflict with what was shown on screen. Only the editors and licensing officials at Paramount (now CBS) know how many tie-in story pitches were scrapped because they drifted too close to a film or episode in some stage of development.

Even with such safeguards in place, the occasional contradiction manifested itself, usually in the form of a TV episode or movie coming along and offering a different take on some character or plot point which already had been the focus of a comic book or novel. That’s one of the hazards of writing such material, which isn’t considered “canon” by the producers of the parent television or film property. Contradictions or “overwriting” are just going to happen. Such is life.

Does this “canceling out” of older stories told in comic or prose form make such tales any less worthy of being read and enjoyed? Oh, heck no, just like an older science fiction novel doesn’t stop being good even though real history passes it by. I still think The War of the Worlds is one of the benchmark alien invasion stories, despite us knowing that there are no Martians on Mars (assuming you believe the government disinformation campaigns). Clive Cussler’s Raise the Titanic! , written a decade before the wreck was discovered by Robert Ballard, is still a cracking adventure yarn, even though the whole thing hinges on the ship being found one in piece.

So, what about Star Trek novels that no longer “fit?” I call books like these “canon fodder,” in that they’ve been overwritten, superseded, or otherwise rendered “incompatible” due to television episodes or films subsequently added to the vast “ Star Trek canon.” Some fans choose to view such tales as now taking place in some “alternate reality,” like those posited in the The Next Generation episode “ Parallels ” or even the 2009 Star Trek film. Me? I tend to look at the films and episodes as the “real history” of the Star Trek characters, and the tie-in stories in a vein similar to historical fiction.

Yes, I know that’s a bit geeky. Have we met?

So: Ten novels passed over by “the Star Trek Canon.” For this article, I solicited titles from readers on my blog and Facebook page. This obviously isn’t a complete list, and I wanted to make sure that every television series got some love and attention, so feel free to add your favorites in the comments section. Also, we’re not worrying about how the 2009 film might’ve jacked things around. After all, it jacked EVERYTHING around, right? With that in mind, here we go:

Spock Must Die! – James Blish, 1970. Not counting the “children’s book” Mission to Horatius from 1968, this was the first original Star Trek novel. A transporter accident creates a duplicate Spock, and one of them is eeeeeeeeeevil, and there’s no way for Kirk to tell them apart. With war against the Klingon Empire looming, one of the Spocks must be destroyed, but which one? At the end of the book, the Organians lay the smack-down on the Klingons, taking away the Empire’s warp drive capabilities for 1,000 years. Of course, this will be contradicted by the time Klingons show up in the The Animated Series , which came along three years after this novel’s publication.

The Starless World – Gordon Eklund, 1978 (suggested by Rich Handley on Facebook). Kirk and the Enterprise discover a Dyson sphere while searching for the lost starship U.S.S. Rickover. To this point, such constructs were theoretical, and so far as Spock can determine, this is the first “real” sphere to be found. That’ll last until 1993 or so, when the TNG episode “ Relics ” features Picard and the Enterprise-D stumbling across a Dyson sphere of their own, thinking it’s also the first such discovery. What, didn’t they read Gordon’s book?

Strangers from the Sky – Margaret Wander Bonanno, 1987 (suggested by Josh Ward on Facebook). Using some nuggets of “future history” postulated in the wonderful 1980 book Star Trek: Spaceflight Chronology , this novel gives us insight into the first official contact between humans and Vulcans, while spinning a tale of the actual meeting which took place decades earlier but which remains a secret. Though 1996’s First Contact gave us the “real” dope on this historic event, my inner fanboy likes to think the earlier, clandestine meeting still could’ve taken place. Hey, it even works with the later Enterprise episode “ Carbon Creek ,” which shows us that Vulcans were on Earth in the 1950s!

Imzadi – Peter David, 1992 (suggested by Josh Ward on my blog). Still ranked as one of the most popular TNG novels, Imzadi provides us with the “inside scoop” on the relationship Will Riker and Deanna Troi shared while Riker was stationed on Betazed early in his career. Framing that is a storyline set in two other time periods, with “modern-day” Commander Riker visited by his future self, who warns him that Deanna’s life will soon be in danger and only he can save her. But, is “future” Riker tampering with time itself in his quest to save his one true love? Personal and professional developments for the TNG characters as they moved from the TV series to the films serve to derail several of the novel’s key components (Hey, no spoilers, but one hint: “Data.”), but that doesn’t change the fact that this remains a wonderful story and one of Peter David’s best Trek tales.

Dark Mirror – Diane Duane, 1993 (suggested by Chris Lunt on Facebook). The Enterprise-D is drawn into the same mirror universe accidentally discovered by Captain Kirk a century earlier, and Picard learns that the Terran Empire is planning an invasion of our universe! This more-advanced empire and its logical progression from what was depicted in the original TOS episode “ Mirror Mirror ” is fun all on its own, but Deep Space Nine , over the course of several episodes, would pretty much obliterate this take on the “mirror universe.” Subsequent novels set in the parallel reality were then required to follow the continuity established in those episodes as well as the Enterprise 2-parter, “ In a Mirror, Darkly .”

Federation – Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens, 1994. As the original cover says, this epic novel is “a story that spans two generations,” with parallel plotlines featuring Kirk and Picard and their respective Starships Enterprise, along with a villain who threatens both captains and their crews. It also includes “an origin story” of sorts for Zefram Cochrane, extrapolating a history for the “inventor of warp drive” based on what little information was provided in the original Star Trek episode “ Metamorphosis .” First Contact , released two years later, provides a completely different take on the Cochrane character, but Federation remains a perennial fan-favorite. I still listen to the audiobook version (read by the late Mark Lenard) at least once a year.

Mosaic, Pathways – Jeri Taylor, 1996 and 1998. Written by Voyager ’s co-creator herself, Mosaic is the story of Captain Kathryn Janeway, while Pathways turns the spotlight on the rest of the main characters. During Taylor’s tenure on the TV series, several bits of Janeway’s personal history as conveyed in the novel also found their way into episodes (“ Coda ,” to name just one prime example), though after her departure such continuity hand-shaking began to wane. This was particularly true of those snippets of backstory presented in Pathways for the other characters. Despite this, both novels remain reader favorites, and still do a fine job representing some of the strongest character insight for Janeway and her crew.

Seven of Nine – Christie Golden, 1998 (suggested by Christopher L. Bennett on my blog). As Voyager traverses a region of space which is home to several civilizations that have fallen victim to the Borg, Seven of Nine is haunted by visions and odd reminiscences. Then, she begins to relive the memories of individuals she assimilated while still part of the Borg Collective. Written as a sequel to the episode “ The Raven ” from Voyager ’s fourth season, this idea also was later explored (in quite different fashion) in the fifth-season’s “ Infinite Regress .”

Rebels trilogy – Dafydd ab Hugh, 1999 (suggested by David Henderson on my blog). With a framing story that features the Bajoran government ordering Kai Winn to assume command of DS9 while Sisko and the Defiant are away from the station, this trilogy also gives us new insight into the Cardassian occupation of Bajor. Caught up in the turmoil of that time is a young freedom fighter named Winn Adami, and for the first time we learn the story of her struggles and battles during the occupation. Later DS9 episodes would establish a different backstory for Winn, and while both versions might work at the “broad stroke” level, the angle taken for Winn’s character on screen does set the stage for actions she’ll take during the Dominion War. You know, that whole “Pah-wraith” thing and all.

Starfleet: Year One – Michael Jan Friedman, 1999-2000. Not a novel in its original form, Year One was first presented as a serial with installments appearing in the back of Star Trek paperback novels published between August 1999 and July 2000. Providing readers with one of the first in-depth looks at Starfleet’s earliest days and adventures, the storyline was to be the first in a series of such serials, with author Friedman tackling the next “year” in sequence. Mere months after the release of the final Year One installment, Enterprise was announced as the fifth live-action Star Trek television series, and it would end up giving us a wholly different take on the same general timeframe. Subsequent novels set during this period would take their cues from the TV series, leaving Year One as something of an enjoyable “historical oddity.”

Okay, that’s a good start. Who’s got more?

The Ten for Ward backlist:

“ Ten Star Trek Historical Events Which Should’ve Happened by Now ” – February 2012

“ Ten Favorite Star Trek Games ” – November 2011

“ Ten Favorite ‘Classic’ Star Trek Comics ” – September 2011

“ Ten Favorite ‘Old’ Star Trek Books ” – June 2011

Dayton Ward is the author or co-author of numerous novels and short stories, including a whole bunch of stuff set in the Star Trek universe, and often working with friend and co-writer Kevin Dilmore. He’s also written (or co-written) for Star Trek Communicator , Star Trek Magazine , Syfy.com , and Tor.com , and is a monthly contributor to the Novel Spaces writers blog. As he is still a big ol’ geek at heart, Dayton is known to wax nostalgic about all manner of Star Trek topics over on his own blog, The Fog of Ward : http://daytonward.wordpress.com .

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How Strange New Worlds' Writers Define Star Trek 'Canon'

"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is a prequel, which means that by definition it operates under storytelling constraints. The season 1 finale, "A Quality of Mercy," re-enacted the classic "Original Series" episode "Balance of Terror," all to show why things must proceed as the audience knows they do.

We've talked before about how "Strange New Worlds" uses a loose approach to canon , but even if the minor details don't always add up, the bigger picture ones have to. According to co-creator/showrunner Akiva Goldsman, the "Strange New Worlds" writers' room isn't just winging it when it comes to canon either. Speaking to Collider , Goldsman and his show-running partner Henry Alonso Meyers defined their own take on "Trek" canon.

Asked if they consider "Star Trek" comics or novels canon, Goldsman gave a firm, "No." "Unless it's appeared on screen, it's technically not canon, it's secondary reference material," Goldsman explained. This makes sense since "Star Trek" is primarily a television and film franchise. Few people except Trekkies will ever read tie-in literature, so why keep yourself and your story bound to it?

Goldman added that this "onscreen" definition of canon means that "Star Trek: The Animated Series" is canon and could be considered seasons 4 and 5 of "The Original Series." This is a marked change from previous uncertainty about whether that series "counts." What did Meyers have to add?

The frustrations of canon

Meyers stressed that "Strange New Worlds" is a show meant to be enjoyed by "Trek" die-hards and newcomers alike. "We really don't want to alienate," Meyers said, and that approach is plenty evident onscreen. As for how this affects characters with locked-in fates, he explained:

"Yes, we know where they're gonna go; yes, we have an idea because we've been told where they come from, but the characters don't know where they're gonna go, and so that's how we approach them. We approach them like they're real people who are experiencing actual emotional moments that we wanna see."

Basically, it's the journey, not the destination. Meyers specifically says that when writing for James Kirk (Paul Wesley), the focus is always on who Kirk is now , not the man he'll become. That means Wesley's acting material is always "in the moment," not recitations of old beats.

However, I think Meyers inadvertently reveals why canon can be frustrating. Knowing Captain Pike's (Anson Mount) ultimate fate adds a sour taste to his weekly adventures in "Strange New Worlds," one that's hard to dislodge — especially since the show keeps reminding us of it. The same goes for Spock (Ethan Peck) and Nurse Chapel's (Jess Bush) budding romance; we know it won't work out since they're not together in "The Original Series."

Part of me wishes that "Strange New Worlds" would drop the prequel framing and embrace being an alternate retelling of these characters. That would free up possibilities for storytelling and emotional investment. Plus, "Star Trek" is no stranger to alternate timelines; look at the 2009 "Star Trek" film . I don't foresee this happening though. So, we'll just have to pretend we don't know the ending and live in the moment as the characters do.

"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is streaming on Paramount+.

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Star Trek Novels and Canon

Discussion in ' Trek Literature ' started by JPW , Jul 15, 2008 .

JPW Ensign Newbie

Before I start, yes, i know what canon is, and yes, i know that the Star Trek novels aren't considered canon. What perplexes me more is why this is still the case. In fact, why it was ever the case. I simply don't understand the reasoning behind the decision to draw a great big line between Star Trek TV and Star Trek literature. Surely what the novelists come up with would be of great benefit to the canon? For example, the recent Terok Nor trilogy adds great insight into what becomes DS9. So why not make it canon? Another example is the gap fillers, such as the A Time to... series, which actually helps canon by explaining some characters absence! (e.g. Perim) This topic has had a greater voice for me after several of the series (in fact, is it all now?) have had a literature 'relaunch'. Surely this carrying on of canon opens the door for the novels to be regarded in the same way? Surely Star Trek is Star Trek? Alas, if i'm talking rubbish, feel free to shoot me down. JPW  

Brendan Moody Vice Admiral Admiral

As a practical matter, making the novels canon would require the producers of the television programs/movies to keep track of everything that happened in them to make sure there were no contradictions. That's a hefty amount of work to add to the already substantial pressures of producing modern TV and film. More to the point, the TV shows and movies reach an audience of millions, while the novels reach an audience of thousands. Making the novels canon, and requiring filmed Trek not to contradict them, would restrict the entertainment produced for those millions for the benefit of the thousands-- not a logical artistic choice. If the TV/film producers want to "canonize" particular elements from the novels, they can do so obliquely by including those elements in the shows and movies. That provides the benefits you allude to without the drawbacks I've mentioned. It's happened before. Canon doesn't matter a whole lot, anyway. Who cares what's more "real" within a fictional construct? If the novels are entertaining Star Trek stories, that's really all that matters.  

Andrew Harris Writer Red Shirt

It's a perfectly valid question, but the answer also makes a good deal of sense. For one, Star Trek has always primarily been a film and television property, and it's not realistic (or pragmatic) to expect the writers to be automatically familiar with every novel, comic book, video game, etc. that's ever written--and nor does it suit their purposes to be limited on TV or film by something that was published in a book. Second, just about all of those books, comics, games, etc., are created not by Paramount/CBS, but by a licensee (Pocket Books, IDW, etc.) and so they aren't necessarily positioned to be creating "official" content with everything that they produce. For that matter, even those in charge of "canon" don't always get it right, so it doesn't make tremendous sense to complicate things even more.  

David Mack Writer Rear Admiral

^ Licensed content is official content. Star Trek novels published by Pocket Books and Star Trek comics published by IDW are "official" Star Trek products.  

Miami Blues Cadet Newbie

Licensed products are officially Trek products, but they are not part of what is considered canon by Paramount simply because they are products of someone other than Paramount. Theye are simply considered ancillary products which bring in revenue for the studio and for the licensees. The original Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual is a good example. A licensed product, but not "true." Consider the Barbara Hambly novel, "Ishmael," which ties in Trek to Columbia Pictures' "Here Come the Brides." Published by Pocket as a licensed, official Trek novel, but not canon in any sense of the word. Even Shatner's "Starfleet Academy" novel isn't in the canon. It's just a licensing deal to exploit the Star Trek resources. Enjoy the novels if you can, but remember that no one at Paramount cares enough to guide them the way that Lucasfilm guide the Star Wars books. It's all just a money-making scheme.  

Deano2099 Commander Red Shirt

The flip is also that if the novels were considered 'canon', so the TV producers knew they wouldn't be able to contradict them if they wanted to, they'd likely place a lot more restrictions on the writers to not do certain things 'just in case' they wanted to use a character in a different way at another time. And it doesn't really matter. As far as I'm concerned, the books offer the definitive account of the universe. Like David says, they're official products. That some TV guy might contradict something said in a book at some point in the future really doesn't bother me.  

captcalhoun Admiral Admiral

* reads first sentence. breathes sigh of relief * * reads second sentence. reads third sentence * * runs screaming into the night *  

Miami Blues said: ↑ It's just a licensing deal to exploit the Star Trek resources. Enjoy the novels if you can, but remember that no one at Paramount cares enough to guide them the way that Lucasfilm guide the Star Wars books. It's all just a money-making scheme. Click to expand...

Christopher Writer Admiral

JPW said: ↑ Before I start, yes, i know what canon is, and yes, i know that the Star Trek novels aren't considered canon. What perplexes me more is why this is still the case. In fact, why it was ever the case. I simply don't understand the reasoning behind the decision to draw a great big line between Star Trek TV and Star Trek literature. Click to expand...

nx1701g Admiral Admiral

Deano2099 said: ↑ The flip is also that if the novels were considered 'canon', so the TV producers knew they wouldn't be able to contradict them if they wanted to, they'd likely place a lot more restrictions on the writers to not do certain things 'just in case' they wanted to use a character in a different way at another time. Click to expand...

MHJH Lieutenant Red Shirt

Geoff Thorne Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

MHJH said: ↑ Miami Blues said: ↑ It's just a licensing deal to exploit the Star Trek resources. Enjoy the novels if you can, but remember that no one at Paramount cares enough to guide them the way that Lucasfilm guide the Star Wars books. It's all just a money-making scheme. Click to expand...

RedJack said: ↑ MHJH said: ↑ Miami Blues said: ↑ It's just a licensing deal to exploit the Star Trek resources. Enjoy the novels if you can, but remember that no one at Paramount cares enough to guide them the way that Lucasfilm guide the Star Wars books. It's all just a money-making scheme. Click to expand...

Rush Limborg Vice Admiral Admiral

You know...I might not be so hard for the screen/TV writers to be consistent with the books if there was a Star Trek Book Encyclopedia , or some such thing. Come to think of it, NO writer would ever get lost in miscontinuity ever again! Alas, it probably wouldn't sell very well, now that the Golden Age has come and gone.  

MHJH said: ↑ RedJack said: ↑ MHJH said: ↑ Explain to me, exactly, how what Shelly Shapiro does for Del Rey and Lucasfilm is different than what Marco Palmieri, Margaret Clark, and Paula Block do for Pocket and CBS? Click to expand...

RedJack said: ↑ I'm always happy when new data presents. If Lucas says now that he couldn't be bothered, that, too, is his prerogative as the god of his universe. I don't know anything about Ms. Shapiro or her oversight of the Star Wars EU but, if the implication is that the Trek editors don't care, I'm here to tell ya that's horseshit. Click to expand...

BrotherBenny Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

Rush Limborg said: ↑ the Golden Age has come and gone. Click to expand...

Greg Cox Admiral Premium Member

Again, it's a matter of practicality. "Wait! Cut! We have to rewrite the script of our million-dollar tv episode because it contradicts p. 17 of some book by Greg Cox . . . . " Never going to happen.  

Steve Roby Rear Admiral Premium Member

Greg Cox said: ↑ Again, it's a matter of practicality. "Wait! Cut! We have to rewrite the script of our million-dollar tv episode because it contradicts p. 17 of some book by Greg Cox . . . . " Never going to happen. Click to expand...

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Weird Star Trek Novels That Are Enjoyable To Read

I n February 1970, Bantam Books published the first original Star Trek novel. James Blish's Spock Must Die! received mixed reviews from critics, but it laid the foundation for many hundreds of further novels . Perhaps the golden era of Star Trek prose was under Pocket Books, who produced an ambitious continuation of TNG and DS9 long before Star Trek: Picard .

Some of the tie-in novels are good, some are bad, and some are just plain strange. From vanity projects to starship-sized plot holes, Star Trek's authors went where no one had gone before (and sometimes where they shouldn't have gone). Though they may be on the stranger side, here are a few books that fans of the franchise will doubtless enjoy.

The Enterprise War - John Jackson Miller

John Jackson Miller's 2019 novel answers a pertinent question: where was the Enterprise during Star Trek: Discovery 's Federation–Klingon War? Miller shows Pike's Enterprise caught in a different war between the Boundless and the Rengru, aliens who hope to use the starship to tip the scales in their favor.

RELATED: Most Charismatic Star Trek: The Next Generation Characters, Ranked

The Enterprise War has an exciting plot, but stumbles slightly when it comes to reconciling the Pike era with the rest of contemporary Trek. Spock's references to Michael Burnham seem out of place alongside obscure characters from Star Trek 's failed pilot, while the Enterprise 's saucer separation recalls TNG rather than TOS or Discovery . Miller's novel walks a fine line between anachronisms and tropes. The result is a weird blend of eras, but one that readers are sure to enjoy.

The Good That Men Do - Andy Mangels & Michael A. Martin

Few fans were impressed when Star Trek: Enterprise ended by killing off one of its crew. In terms of both scriptwriting and direction, the noble sacrifice of engineer Trip Tucker is an anticlimax. This shortcoming inspired authors Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin to consider an alternative: what if Tucker's death was a hoax?

RELATED: Star Trek: The Relationship Between Vulcans & Romulans, Explained

The Good That Men Do (2007) claims that Tucker never died; instead, he left the Enterprise to work for Section 31 . This coverup allowed him to investigate a new threat posed by the Romulans. The book holds a strange place in Star Trek canon: it is as much an apology as it is a novel, although the Romulans' machinations make for an entertaining read.

Disavowed - David Mack

While the Star Trek Relaunch series provided fans with some franchise highpoints, it had started to stumble by the time of David Mack's Disavowed (2014). Six years earlier, Mack had torn up the status quo with his Destiny trilogy, focusing on a massive Borg invasion . The trilogy is excellent—but its fallout left subsequent novels unsure of where to take the series.

Mack's story, centered on Julian Bashir, reinvents the Star Trek novel as a tense espionage thriller as the Starfleet doctor and Section 31 operative travels to the Mirror Universe to halt a scheme by the evil Breen. Mack's prose is propulsive, but Disavowed represents the Star Trek world at a crossroads. The book's weirdness lays not in its writing, but in its attempt to reinvigorate the series with a focus on espionage rather than exploration.

Broken Bow - Diane Carey

Star Trek 's writing has been the subject of parodies aplenty, from shows like The Orville to movies like Galaxy Quest . In 2020, the franchise itself got in on the fun, with cartoon series Lower Decks spoofing on Star Trek 's tropes. Yet Lower Decks was not the first time that Star Trek' s own writers took a swipe at the franchise. The 2001 novelization of "Broken Bow" derided the Star Trek: Enterprise episode it was meant to retell.

RELATED: Star Trek: Enterprise Actor Slams How Her Character Was Written

Author Diane Carey wrote extensively for Star Trek 's novels (the hero of her 2000 novel Challenger was written to resemble Enterprise 's Scott Bakula, though the book predated his casting). Yet when it came to novelizing Bakula's first real adventure, Carey was so unimpressed with the script that she used the characters' internal monologues to criticize the story's plot. The author was allegedly blacklisted for her mischief, but she turned an otherwise by-the-numbers novelization into a sneaky practical joke.

A Singular Destiny - Keith R.A. DeCandido

Readers might expect a sequel to TNG and DS9 to feature a hero like Captain Picard, or a fan favorite like Kira Nerys. Yet although Keith R.A. DeCandido's 2009 novel does feature DS9 's Ezri Dax, its star is diplomat Sonek Pran, a wholly original character. This stylistic deviation allows A Singular Destiny to interrogate the state of the Relaunch universe . The Borg may be gone, but a new threat is rising in the form of the Typhon Pact, an alliance of several hostile states including the Breen and the Gorn.

Despite the scope of its universe, Star Trek can become bogged down by revisiting the same characters and tropes. DeCandido's novel bucks this trend, making this immersive political thriller an essential chapter in the Relaunch saga.

Fearful Symmetry - Olivia Woods

Viewers of DS9 may recall the episode "Second Skin," in which Bajoran Kira Nerys was disguised as a Cardassian. Fearful Symmetry claims that the woman that Kira impersonated, Iliana Ghemor, was also altered to look like Kira, but fell into the clutches of Gul Dukat , who imprisoned and abused her. Driven mad, the impostor plots her revenge in Olivia Woods' 2008 novel.

While it's odd that Dukat never mentioned his prisoner, the novel's true weirdness is its two-in-one physical format. Fearful Symmetry is made up of two narratives: the front cover depicts Kira, while the rear is an alternate cover showing Ghemor. Starting the book in one direction shows Kira's investigation into her duplicate, while starting in the opposite direction provides the troubled life of Ghemor. This parallel structuring allows the novel's form to mirror its content, a clever gimmick.

Killing Time - Della Van Hise

The possibility of a deeper, potentially romantic bond between Kirk and Spock has intrigued fans for decades (the term "slash fiction" is attributed to stories about the pair), but Star Trek 's writers were unwilling to offer any confirmation. Father of the franchise Gene Roddenberry was particularly opposed to the idea. He was displeased, to say the least, when author Della Van Hise snuck suggestive material into her 1985 novel.

RELATED: Captain Kirk's Redemption Of Spock In The Mirror Universe

First editions of Killing Time (which involves the Romulans altering history to try and defeat the Federation) were recalled and destroyed, although some were purchased by fans. A revised edition removed the offending content. Rumors circulated that an even more explicit version existed, although Van Hise denied these claims. If nothing else, Killing Time demonstrates the importance of checking a book before it's sent to the printers.

The Return - Garfield Reeves-Steven & William Shatner

Actor Leonard Nimoy was so impressed by Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , in which his character died, that he asked for Spock to return from the dead . William Shatner, on the other hand, was so unimpressed by Kirk's death in Star Trek: Generations that he decided to take matters into his own hands, co-writing a series of novels in which a resurrected Kirk continues the fight against evil.

The resulting Shatnerverse (comprising ten novels by Shatner and Judith and Garfield Reeves-Steven) is generally considered non-canon even by novel fans, with some regarding it as an ego trip for Shatner. Kirk's transition into a quasi-Messianic figure certainly has all the hallmarks of a vanity project, as does his role in the total defeat of the Borg in 1996's The Return . The Shatnerverse novels may not fit into any version of canon aside from their own, but they represent an interesting diversion for those who like their books heavy on fan-service and light on common sense.

MORE: Best Starfleet Ships Of The 23rd Century

Den of Geek

Star Trek Just Addressed One of Deep Space Nine’s Biggest Unanswered Questions

The Star Trek: Discovery episode "Mirrors" includes a HUGE reveal about the Breen, an odd alien species from Deep Space Nine.

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This Star Trek: Discovery article contains spoilers.

“I wonder what the Breen look like under those helmets?” asks Ezri Dax in the Deep Space Nine season seven episode “‘Till Death Do Us Part.” That’s a strange question, given that Ezri and Worf had been captured by the Breen and interrogated for some time. But despite their close and uncomfortable contact with the hostile alien species, neither hostage learned much about them.

“They say no one has ever seen one and lived to speak of it,” Worf answers.

Ezri continues in her usual lighthearted manner. “Maybe they’re all furry. It’s supposed to be very cold on Breen.”

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“One thing is certain.”

“They’re horrible cooks?”

“They are dangerous,” responds Worf, with even greater gravity than the Klingon usually assumes. “They do not tolerate incursions into their space. During the Second Empire, Chancellor Mow’ga sent a fleet of Klingon ships to conquer their homeworld, and they were never heard from again.”

Until today, that bit of dialogue encapsulated everything that Trekkies knew about the Breen. First mentioned in The Next Generation, the Breen appeared most prominently in the final season of Deep Space Nine , in which the Breen presented a threat that undid whatever gains the Federation had made in the Dominion War.

When the Dominion first entered the Alpha Quadrant through a wormhole from the Gamma Quadrant, they threatened to immediately overwhelm the Federation. As a result, the Federation had to align with longtime antagonists the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Star Empire. That confederation was more than a match for the Dominion/Cardassian alliance, but then the Dominion upped its hand by enlisting the terrifying Breen. It would take a miracle for the Alpha Quadrant forces to win. Fortunately, the Federation had a miracle on its side in the form of the Prophets (and the morally flexible Section 31 ) and won the war.

The Breen rarely appeared after Deep Space Nine concluded, and it’s easy to see why. They felt like they came from another universe, even moreso than the alien oddities that often appeared on Star Trek . With their monocular helmets and gravelly, indistinguishable voices, they felt like something out of Star Wars — specifically, they felt like riffs on Princess Leia’s bounty hunter disguise at the start of Return of the Jedi . Although they get a couple of nods in Voyager and, of course, Lower Decks , the Breen were largely relegated to a handful of non-canon novels.

That is, until the Star Trek: Discovery season five episode “ Mirrors .” In that episode, we finally learn that L’ak, a courier who has been chasing past Discovery in a search for Progenitor tech with his partner Moll, is a Breen who doesn’t wear helmet that hides his face, showing us for the first time what the species actually looks like under the armor. That’s a surprise because L’ak appeared to be just a regular green-skinned alien, a little lizard-esque in appearance, almost like a Reptilian Xindi from Enterprise .

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In fact, “Mirrors” does a lot more than just show us the face of the Breen. We also learn more about their culture, getting a sense of why they refuse to use a Universal Translator in conversation with other races and of their political system. In a move that recalls another Star Wars property, The Mandalorian , the Breen consider their helmets their true faces, and in fact have a transparent look when they remove that helmet.

But as L’ak makes clear, the Breen have the capacity to change, something hinted by the warmth and softness performer Elias Toufexis brings to his imposing character. Not only has L’ak made his skin non-translucent, but he’s adopted Federation Standard (aka English) and moved beyond his hierarchical culture.

Those changes are a good thing, because the Breen have always created problems for Star Trek canon. As many fans have noted, although Worf insisted that no one had seen the Breen under their costumes, Kira and others stole Breen uniforms to move behind enemy lines at one point on the series. They must have gotten a glimpse of the Breen then, right?

For Ronald D. Moore , one of the key creatives during the ’90s Star Trek era, that’s not necessarily the case. “There’s nothing in those helmets. I don’t think there’s a guy in there, which is something we never got around to saying,” Moore said in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion . “Or maybe there’s a little slug, some tiny little creature in there. I never wanted them to be humanoid in any way.”

“Mirrors” goes against Moore’s wishes then, but that shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. Discovery started its life by radically altering the Klingons. Looks like it will be ending its life by radically altering the Breen. But this time, it’s for the better.

Star Trek: Discovery is streaming now on Paramount+.

Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

Screen Rant

The 15 best star wars books of all time.

Star Wars is far more than just a film phenomenon, with a staggering number of books published over the years. Here are the pick of the crop.

Quick Links

• Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade by Delilah S. Dawson (canon)
• New Jedi Order: The Unifying Force by James Luceno (Legends)
• Kenobi by John Jackson Miller (Legends)
• Lost Stars by Claudia Gray (canon)
• I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole (Legends)
• Shatterpoint by Matt Stover (Legends)
• Victory’s Price by Alexander Freed (canon)
• Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule (canon)
• Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson (canon)
• Darth Bane: Path Of Destruction by Drew Karpyshyn (Legends)
• Bloodline by Claudia Gray (canon)
• Heir To The Empire by Timothy Zahn (Legends)
• Revenge Of The Sith novelization by Matt Stover
• Darth Plagueis by James Luceno (Legends)
• New Jedi Order: Traitor by Matt Stover (Legends)
• There are 605 Star Wars books, 359 in Legends and 246 in canon, catering to all types of readers.
• Many of these books are deep character studies, fleshing out characters from the big and small screen.
• Here are the top 15 Star Wars books of all time, ranging from the latest releases to classic Legends content.

Star Wars is far more than a film franchise, and here's our ranking of the best Star Wars books of all time. The Star Wars Expanded Universe existed since 1976, but really came into prominence in the 1990s, with Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire launching a new generation of books to accompany the Star Wars movies and shows . Now, Star Wars books are generally divided into "Legends" (the old Expanded Universe) and canon - and both are worthy of note. Looking through, it's staggering to see just how many Star Wars books have been published.

Here is Screen Rant's ranking of the top 15 Star Wars books of all time, both canon and Legends. We've chosen stories that are masterfully written, intensely personal, and still important in terms of their impact on the franchise as a whole. We'll be updating this list regularly as new books are released.

15 Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade by Delilah S. Dawson (canon)

The thrilling backstory of a jedi turned inquisitor.

Why would a Jedi Knight become one of the Imperial Inquisitors ? That question drves Delilah S. Dawson's Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade , which tells the story of Iskat Akaris. This unusual novel turns a villain into a hero, and there are striking parallels between Iskat and Anakin Skywalker - even if, this time, there is no hint of redemption. Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade is dark and intense, feeling almost like a companion for Matt Stover's novelization of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith - and it's hard to think of a higher compliment.

An intense glimpse into the dark side

Darth Vader's Inquisitors have become an essential part of Disney canon, but it's relatively rare to get such an intense look into a villain's perspective. Iskat Akaris is a surprisingly compelling main character, radicalized in part because of her own dark nature and in part because of Jedi deficiencies. This is a stunning glimpse into the dark side, written with skill and flair.

Buy Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade from Amazon

Disney Just Released One Of The Best Star Wars Stories Of The Last 10 Years (Don't Miss It)

14 new jedi order: the unifying force by james luceno (legends), the avengers: endgame of star wars legends.

From 1999 to 2003, the Star Wars Expanded Universe embarked on a 19-book-long epic called the "New Jedi Order." This chronicled the galaxy's war with the Yuuzhan Vong , an extragalactic race who worshiped pain and were immune to the Force. Matters came to a head in James Luceno's The Unifying Force , the grand finale, which culminated in the climatic Battle of Yuuzhan'tar (the Yuuzhan Vong name for the recaptured Coruscant). Luceno is a master of continuity, and weaves the many plotlines and cast members together skillfully.

The end of the New Jedi Order

In The Unifying Force , James Luceno brings together so much of the Expanded Universe for this final installment in the longest Star Wars book series ever. Luceno is a master of referencing even obscure Expanded Universe details, and because of that, this book is an incredibly satisfying read for Star Wars book fans. One of the best finales in all of Star Wars media, The Unifying Force is a masterful must-read for fans, but probably only after they've read the 18 books preceding it.

Buy The Unifying Force from Amazon

13 Kenobi by John Jackson Miller (Legends)

Obi-wan's legends story on tatooine.

John Jackson Miller's Kenobi was published long before the Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney+ TV show was even a twinkle in Kathleen Kennedy's eye, and it told the story of Obi-Wan Kenobi on Tatooine. A fan-favorite novel, Kenobi tells a very different story to the TV show, focusing more on Tatooine than other planets. It's set during the early days of Obi-Wan's self-imosed exile to the Dune Sea of Tatooine.

A smaller, simpler, Obi-Wan tale

John Jackson Miller's novel focuses on Obi-Wan's struggle to acclimatize himself to life as a hermit in the desert, and he deals with local conflicts between moisture farmers and Tusken Raiders, all the while asking what role a Jedi should have in this new galaxy. Kenobi is a much more character-driven story than the version told in canon , which makes it well worth a read. Plus this time, Obi-Wan really is centered on his charge to protect Luke Skywalker.

Buy Kenobi from Amazon

12 Lost Stars by Claudia Gray (canon)

Romeo & juliet in the original trilogy era.

Set over the course of 16 eventful years in the Star Wars timeline , Claudia gray's Lost Stars tells the story of two ordinary citizens in the galaxy whose love story is torn apart by the Galactic Civil War. Ciena Ree and Thane Kyrell both grew up on the Outer Rim world of Jelucan, where they gradually fell in love before going to the Imperial Academy. There, they are exposed to the Empire's war effort firsthand with the first Death Star; Thane leaves the Empire to join the Rebel Alliance, while Ciena stays with the Empire.

Opposite sides of the Galactic Civil War

They may end up on opposing sides in a galaxy-spanning war, but Thane and Ciena never cease thinking of one another. Their paths cross a few times as Claudia Gray masterfully weaves their tales, and they both participate in all the big events from the Original Trilogy, from Hoth, to Endor, and even beyond – at Jakku. Gray's beautiful Lost Stars may technically be a young-adult novel, but to many readers it is of a higher quality than most other Star Wars books.

Buy Lost Stars from Amazon

11 I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole (Legends)

An x-wing pilot becomes a jedi.

A rare case of a Star Wars book being written from a first-person point of view, I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole is a fascinating Legends novel . Following the Corellian pilot and later Jedi Corran Horn , I, Jedi explores what it means to be a Jedi, and inherit that mantle from one's family. The book doubles as a partial retelling of the events of the Jedi Academy Trilogy by Kevin J. Anderson, and tells the story of Horn's quest to free his imprisoned wife Mirax by learning the ways of the Force.

The story of a Jedi trained by Luke Skywalker

I, Jedi reads almost like a journal as readers experience Corran's journey into training under Luke Skywalker in the first person. Training with the Jedi Master on Yavin 4 is not Corran's first foray into action, though, as he was previously one of the main characters of the well known Rogue Squadron novel series. I, Jedi really brings together the often-separate military and Jedi sides of Star Wars books, and is a great read for any Star Wars fan.

Buy I, Jedi from Amazon

10 Shatterpoint by Matt Stover (Legends)

Mace windu's clone wars novel.

The Clone Wars Multimedia Project ran from 2002 to 2004, and it told the story of the Clone Wars across multiple mediums (most notably in Genndy Tartakovsky's Clone Wars series). The first novel was Matthew Stover's Shatterpoint , a deep character study of Jedi Council member Mace Windu. The title is derived from Windu's unusual Force power of "shatterpoint," which allows him to perceive the weakness in any person or situation.

Master Windu's search for his Master

Windu's former master, Depa Billaba, is lost on a mission to Mace's home planet of Haruun Kal . Shatterpoint takes a deep look at Mace Windu's character, showing what it means to be a keeper of peace in a galaxy at war. Mace is relentlessly focused in his mission to find his master, no matter what darkness he must face.

One of the most prominent Jedi during the prequel era, Mace Windu served as a crucial member of the Jedi Council, considered second only to Yoda himself. Windu was a remarkable figure among the Jedi, having turned his own temptation toward the dark side to his advantage, even creating a new lightsaber form known as Vaapad. Mace ultimately failed in his mission to protect the Jedi, apparently killed by Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker at the end of the Clone Wars.

Buy Shatterpoint from Amazon

9 Victory’s Price by Alexander Freed (canon)

Alphabet squadron's finale.

The Alphabet Squadron Trilogy is one of Star Wars canon's crowning achievements. The three books in it are well-loved by fans of both canon and Legends, and Victory's Price by Alexander Freed is the culmination of it all . As the third book in the trilogy, Victory's Price finishes the story of the trilogy in a beautiful and nuanced way, exploring the difficulties that come from ending a war.

The Battle Of Jakku & the end of the Galactic Civil War

In Star Wars canon, the Galactic Civil War ends at the Battle of Jakku just a year after the Battle of Endor. But it never feels more earned than Victory's Price , when Alphabet Squadron - named after their unconventional mix A, B, U, Y, and of course X-wings - fight at Jakku. The book takes deep, intentional strides to characterize these pilots, as their actions in the war come to the forefront of their and other minds at war's end.

8 Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule (canon)

The high republic begins.

Lucasfilm's Star Wars: The High Republic transmedia initiative has introduced readers to the High Republic Era - a period between 500 and 100 years before the Skywalker saga. It's proven important enough to make its way on to the small screen in the upcoming Star Wars TV show The Acolyte , and Charles Soule's Light of the Jedi serves as a primer . Soule is the mastermind behind the whole project, and he does a great job of introducing a half-familiar galaxy.

The Jedi Respond To New Threats

Light of the Jedi begins with an immense hyperspace disaster which wreaks havoc across the galaxy. The Jedi Order respond to it in spectacular fashion, truly showcasing them at their height. This all further builds into a conflict that tests and changes the Jedi into what we see them as in the prequels. The Acolyte takes place during this same era too, so reading Light of the Jedi should be good prep for the upcoming series.

7 Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson (canon)

The first order captain's backstory.

Gwendoline Christie's Captain Phasma didn't exactly get to do a lot onscreen in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and she met an untimely end in Star Wars: The Last Jedi . Fortunately, Delilah S. Dawson's Phasma tells her backstory and fleshes her out as a character, and it is one of the best Star Wars books ever written . One of the comparatively few novels set in the sequel trilogy era, the adventure that is Phasma absolutely blew reader expectations out of the water.

Phasma's post-apocalyptic upbringing

Golden's novel is framed as an interrogation by Resistance spy Vi Moradi (the star of the Galaxy's Edge theme park). Moradi has been investigating Captain Phasma, and she's spilling her backstory to another First Order captain, intent on taking her down. Christie explores a rough and post-apocalyptic story, putting flesh on the bones of Phasma's character by revealing who she was before she joined the First Order. Phasma is delightfully unique, shocking, and genre-bending, while still retaining the "feel" of Star Wars .

Buy Phasma from Amazon

6 Darth Bane: Path Of Destruction by Drew Karpyshyn (Legends)

The end of the sith.

First mentioned in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace , Darth Bane is the Sith Lord responsible for establishing the Rule of Two. He's one of the most important Sith Lords of all time, and his Legends story is told in Drew Karpyshyn's Path of Destruction . The first book in the legendary "Darth Bane Trilogy," this heavily adapts some previous comics to tell Bane's origin and his journey to the fateful Battle of Ruusan, where everything changed for the Sith, and for the galaxy as a whole.

Bane Begins The Rule Of Two

This book is essentially an origin story for the Baneite Sith, revealing how and why the Rule of Two became necessary. It's steeped in the dark side of the Force, making it a fascinating glimpse into the Sith philosophy. By the end of this story, the Sith Brotherhood of Darkness is gone, and the pattern that would run on to Palpatine is established. This is an essential read for any Star Wars fan who likes the dark side or the Sith.

One of the most important ancient Sith Lords, Darth Bane became convinced in-fighting among the Sith was the real reason they would inevitably lose - again and again - to the Jedi. He formulated the Rule of Two, a dogma that means there can only ever be two Sith at any time: one to wield power, and the other to crave it.

Buy Path of Destruction from Amazon

5 Bloodline by Claudia Gray (canon)

Princess leia's darth vader tragedy.

There's a massive time gap between the Star Wars original trilogy and the sequels. Claudia Gray's Bloodline focuses in on Leia Organa, revealing what happened to her in the waning years of the New Republic. Before the rise of the First Order, Leia was a vocal opponent of the re-militarization of the Republic, instead encouraging individual systems to improve their own defenses. Sensing a shadowy conspiracy, Leia made a bid to become Chancellor - but her career came to an untimely end when her opponents publicly revealed that Darth Vader was Leia's father .

The origins of the Resistance

Bloodline is a unique book, with Claudia Gray given tremendous room for world-building. It's set six years before Star Wars: The Force Awakens , and it fleshes out the politics of the new Republic, some groundwork for what would become the First Order, and even the very beginning of the Resistance. It's skillfully written, with Gray perfectly capturing Leia's character, and anyone who wants to see how the galaxy of the sequel trilogy came to be really needs to check this out.

Buy Bloodline from Amazon

4 Heir To The Empire by Timothy Zahn (Legends)

Grand admiral thrawn's first appearance.

It's impossible to overstate how important Heir to the Empire , the beginning of Timothy Zahn's "Thrawn Trilogy," really is. It reinvigorated the Star Wars Expanded Universe back in 1991, and introduced characters whose impact endures to this day - most notably Grand Admiral Thrawn , who's become a major canon villain after his live-action debut in Ahsoka . In Legends, Heir to the Empire is the story of a unified Imperial Remnant making a desperate last push to overthrow the New Republic - pretty much the same story destined to be retold in The Mandalorian era.

Heir To The Empire: 10 Things That Are Now Star Wars Canon Again

The eu's foundation & original trilogy's continuation.

Released in 1991, Heir to the Empire started the formal Expanded Universe, and therefore established a lot of its iconic elements. Thrawn wasn't the only one to be introduced; former servant of the Emperor and future wife of Luke Skywalker, Mara Jade first appears here too. Lookiing beyond the character debuts, though, Heir to the Empire captures the magic and feeling of the original trilogy in a truly special way, making it a must-read for all Star Wars fans.

Grand Admiral Thrawn

The only alien to ever ascend to the rank of Grand Admiral, Thrawn is a strategic genius who hails from an isolationist race known as the Chiss. Thrawn's motives are enigmatic, but his tactical brilliance made him a vital asset for the Empire. Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger successfully defeated Thrawn during the Battle of Lothal, resulting in Thrawn's exile to the distant planet Peridea in another galaxy, but the Grand Admiral has now returned.

Buy Heir to the Empire from Amazon

3 Revenge Of The Sith novelization by Matt Stover

The stunning companion to episode 3.

Since 1976, every Star Wars movie has been accompanied by a novelization. Most of these are absent from this list, simply because they're technically adaptations. But Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith 's novelization is just too good to ignore , actually improving on the movie due to the depth of its character-work. Stover worked closely with Lucas, and he takes the movie's momentous plot and expands on it greatly. This is a truly special book.

Revenge of the Sith Is The Best Star Wars Story Ever Told (Just Not Lucas' Version)

Masterful poetry of the republic's fall.

Written in a much more mythical and flowery style than many other Star Wars books (and science-fiction books in general), this novelization makes the fall of the Republic and the Jedi Order feel truly epic. Stover focuses his narrative in on Anakin and Obi-Wan even more than the movie (he skips the Kashyyyk plot), and there's a repeated maxim that " This is what it feels like to be Anakin Skywalker " - a line that becomes increasingly powerful as the story continues. Stover's novelization is arguably the definitive way of experiencing the story of Revenge of the Sith.

Buy the Revenge of the Sith novelization from Amazon

2 Darth Plagueis by James Luceno (Legends)

Palpatine's master & the phantom menace.

Briefly mentioned in Revenge of the Sith , Darth Plagueis the Wise was Emperor Palpatine's Sith master, whom he killed. And while never actually appearing in the films, Plagueis is one of the most important characters in the entire Star Wars universe's grand scheme. As Darth Plagueis by James Luceno reveals, he was behind all the events of The Phantom Menace , and was incredibly important to Palpatine's backstory.

The true beginning of the Skywalker Saga

Darth Plagueis is by James Luceno, who is a true lore-master of the old Star Wars Expanded Universe, and thus the book has so many tie-in details and Easter eggs. There's a sense in which this book - published in 2012, two years before Star Wars canon was reset - serves as a beautiful finale to the entire Expanded Universe. Darth Plagueis , while taking place before the films, serves as the perfect, essential, capstone prequel to the entire Legends Expanded Universe . Broad strokes of the book seem to be canon too - giving it a lasting impact.

Buy Plagueis from Amazon

1 New Jedi Order: Traitor by Matt Stover (Legends)

The tortured journey of jacen solo.

Matt Stover's Traitor takes the first place in our list, the 13th book in the New Jedi Order series, and we consider it the best Star Wars book ever written. This tells the story of acen Solo, a young Jedi Knight and son of Han and Leia, as he is tortured and taught by the ex-Jedi Vergere at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong. A poetic masterpiece through and through, this wrestles with the nature of the Force and the dark side, and it contains some of the best moments in all of Star Wars Legends. It is the crown jewel of the entire "New Jedi Order" series.

The most philosophical Star Wars book

As Vergere tortures and teaches Jacen, the Force and those who wield it are explored on a philosophical level like never before. The meaning of the Jedi, the Sith, the light, and the dark are all questioned, picked apart, and put back together in a way that changes the entire Star Wars universe. It certainly helps that this intense story is written by the incredibly skilled Matthew Stover, making Traitor an absolute pleasure to read. If you pick up only one book on this list, make it this one.

Buy Traitor from Amazon

• April 26, 2024 | Michael Dorn Wanted Armin Shimerman To Play The Ferengi That Worf Killed In Star Trek Picard
• April 26, 2024 | Podcast: All Access Gets To Know The Breen In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ 505, “Mirrors”
• April 25, 2024 | Prep Begins For ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 3 Finale; Cast And Directors Share BTS Images
• April 25, 2024 | Jonathan Frakes Sees Opportunities With Streaming Star Trek Movies, Weighs In On “Filler Episodes”
• April 25, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Reflects On Its Choices In “Mirrors”

Podcast: All Access Gets To Know The Breen In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ 505, “Mirrors”

| April 26, 2024 | By: All Access Star Trek Pod Team 6 comments so far

[ Discovery 505 review starts at 17:00]

Anthony and Laurie start with a  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds production update, then round up the latest on the William Shatner documentary, a new  Discovery coffee table book, and IDW’s “Star Trek: Celebrations” comic. Then they play some audio from Tony’s recent interview with Carlos Cisco, co-writer of this week’s  Star Trek: Discovery  episode, “Mirrors.” After that, they give “Mirrors” a full review; Tony liked it more than Laurie, but they both enjoyed the Moll and L’ak backstory. After a quick reminder about the PanCAN Purple Stride walk happening this weekend, the wrap up the pod with a Paramount business update courtesy of The Town and a recent interview with makeup legend Michael Westmore on The 7th Rule .

Prep Begins For ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 3 Finale; Cast And Directors Share BTS Images

‘William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill’ Documentary Arrives On VOD On Friday

Coffee Table Book On The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Makeup Artistry Of Glenn Hetrick Coming In September

Exclusive First Look At Artwork From ‘Star Trek: Celebrations’ – IDW’s One Shot Comic For Pride Month

THEORY: Did ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Finally Resolve The “Calypso” Mystery?

Podcast: Armin Shimerman, Kitty Swink, Jonathan Frakes & Juan Carlos Coto—Trek Against Pancreatic Cancer

Trek Against Pancreatic Cancer participation and donation page

Carlos Cisco on Twitter

Elias Toufexis (L’ak) on Twitter

The story of Dread Pirate Roberts (from  The Princess Bride)

Ten Star Trek Fun Facts From Michael Westmore’s Memoir

Anthony:  The Town podcast: Which bidder is best for Paramount?

Laurie: Michael Westmore on The 7th Rule talking about “Allegiance”

Let us know what you think of the episode in the comments, and should you be so inclined,  please review us on Apple .

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I hear you on missing stuff. “The Ultimate Computer” made the rounds on one of the legacy channels last night. In the opening scenes, McCoy, Kirk and Spock make their way to engineering to see Dr. Daystrom. After some conversation, McCoy starts going off on the tech, Daystrom looks square at him and asks “who are you”? In all the times I’ve seen this episode over the decades, Daystrom throwing shade at McCoy had never registered on me…..

I can hear it in William Marshall’s voice as I read it! Hey, it’s always fun to discover something new in TOS episodes I’ve seen a thousand times. There’s a great scene in “Wink of an Eye” where Kirk is asking McCoy if he’s going crazy and Nurse Chapel is totally eavesdropping in the background… it’s so funny! I think I only noticed it for the first time a few years ago.

Great podcast per usual!

I agree with most of the thoughts about Discovery and per usual agree with Laurie this was the weakest of the season so far. There were just waaay too many missed opportunities, not very much happening and clear it was very much shot on a budget.

But it is cool to see the Breen back. That was a big plus.

But I really enjoyed the section where you guys talked about how Discovery was originally trying to avoid canon it’s first year compared to today and be more its own thing. I have been saying this forever now and believe Discovery was originally just a reboot but simply not called that. Everything about that first season just felt so off from Trek of old.

They were clearly trying to reboot the franchise for a different time and audience and move away from the old style and canon of the classic shows.

But I think they really underestimated how much fans wanted the old style and canon back and panicked once the complaints flowed in and why we got Spock and Pike the next season and Picard was announced after that.

I have also said this before as well but if Discovery was a bigger success than the other shows would be in its image, both look and style. Instead they been running from it with the other shows.

SNW is a direct spin off and yet it feels and acts like the Roddenberry/Berman era of shows being episodic again, A and B stories and doing alien/anomaly/crisis of the week. There is not a single episode (OK maybe the musical lol) that couldn’t fit into any of the old shows TOS-ENT.

It is ironic the new era tried to be something different from Berman Trek just to basically be that again with shows like LDS, Prodigy, Picard season 3 and SNW. It just proves A. nostalgia is always a strong tool and B. Old fans ultimately still control this franchise for better or for worse.

My personal take on SNW is that they’re not getting the canon balance right either. They rely too heavily on TOS instead of forging their own path more. It’s why I’ve been so happy with Discovery’s approach this season, particularly when they take something we don’t know a lot about but have heard of and then add to it. SNW has all the ingredients to tell brand-new stories with new aliens and characters, and I hope they start doing more of that and less leaning back into TOS.

Hi Tony and Laurie. I felt compelled to thank you both for the podcast. You put a lot of work into each episode despite currently not getting much in the way of feedback or comments. I can’t help but notice that in general, comments across the Discovery articles seem quite low in terms of numbers compared to previous shows. In particular, Picard S3 where for example, some episode reviews garnered +600 comments, so many in fact, that I could only get round to reading a fraction of them. Perhaps Discovery is more niche than previous Trek series.

While I did enjoy last weeks episode, watching Discovery for me still feels a bit like watching The Cage. It’s labelled Start Trek and has Trek iconography scattered throughout and yet IMO it lacks the warmth and connection I felt towards other series.

Thank you, Scott! Appreciate the comment. It’s true I am greedy for comments and we don’t seem to get a lot of them, or reviews on Apple. It sometimes feels like we are just out there in the void! I am always interested to hear what people think of the podcast, what they’d like us to do more of or less of.

'Star Trek: Discovery' season 5 episode 5 'Mirrors' is a quality installment, but weighed down by another anchor of nostalgia

This entire episode was more than likely written for the sole reason that the sets from "Strange New Worlds" could be utilized.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Star Trek: Discovery" season 5, episode 5

The chase across the galaxy for the Progenitors MacGuffin continues, offering chances to insert stand-alone, episode-length adventures along the way. And this week's installment, entitled "Mirrors" features a brief and very random reminder that the Mirror Universe exists. 

And that alone would've made an genuinely enthralling episode, but...Alex Kurtzman et al could not resist the temptation for an utterly pointless and thoroughly unnecessary throwback to the USS Enterprise. Honestly, these people have a serious problem, they should seek help. 

To put all of this into context, the crew of the USS Discovery continue their pursuit of Malinne 'Moll' Ravel (Eve Harlow) and L'ak (Elias Toufexis) and that chase leads them to er...well, you know, a giant, space-time swirly orifice that fills the viewscreen. Apparently, it's some sort of wormhole that's spectacularly unstable because of the constant matter/anti-matter reactions that are taking place at the opening. It's actually more than a little reminiscent of the inside of the V'ger spacecraft from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" and that's just fine. 

Watch Star Trek on Paramount Plus: Get a one month free trial  

Get all the Star Trek content you can possibly handle with this free trial of Paramount Plus. Watch new shows like Star Trek: Discovery and all the classic Trek movies and TV shows too. Plans start from $4.99/month after the trial ends.

But it's what they find inside that grinds gears. Since the Discovery is too big to squeeze through the constantly opening and closing orifice, Capt. Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Book (David Ajala) take a shuttle through only to find...the ISS Enterprise. Yes, indeed, last seen (and only seen, actually) in the epic "The Original Series" episode "Mirror, Mirror" (S02, E04).

While beaming back to the USS Enterprise during an ion storm, Kirk, McCoy, Scotty and Uhura materialize aboard a almost-identical Enterprise in a parallel universe. Here, the United Federation of Planets has been replaced by the Terran Empire and its inhabitants are violent and cruel. Their only hope is to artificially reproduce the effects of the storm to facilitate a return to their own universe. (" I mperial S pace S hip replaces the traditional " U nited S pace S hip.")

And while the idea of finding a derelict, 900-year-old starship from the latter half of the 23rd century is a great idea, in the name of the Great Prophet Zarquon, why-oh-why did it have to be the Enterprise? There are — at least — 10 other Constitution Class starships that could've been potentially chosen and thus still allowing the updated sets from "Strange New Worlds" to have been used. 

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The USS Cayuga (NCC-1557), USS Constellation (NCC-1017), USS Defiant (NCC-1764), USS Excalibur (NCC-1664), USS Exeter (NCC-1672), USS Hood (NCC-1703), USS Intrepid (NCC-1631), USS Lexington (NCC-1709), USS New Jersey (NCC-1975) and the USS Potemkin (NCC-1657). And those are just the ones that are canon. Another new vessel could just as easily have been introduced as it's not unknown for Nu-Trek to bring brand new ships to the line.

And of course Burnham makes reference to the fact that her brother, Spock, served on this ship, which is probably another reason why the Enterprise was forced upon the writers. And according to some extremely rushed exposition, most of the crew escaped the weird wibblywobbly wormhole and went on to lead peaceful and productive lives — we assume somewhere not too far away given how long ago it happened and the current location in deep space — in a somewhat Space Seed scenario. Another interesting throwaway remark from Burnham was, "Crossing between universes has been impossible for centuries now," which shuts down that potential story avenue rather abruptly. 

But let's also focus on why this episode could've been near-faultless if only someone could counsel Paramount showrunners on how to ween themselves off of nostalgia addiction. This week we get to see the whole Moll and L'ak backstory...and it's rather good and to add to that, Book and Moll confront the fact that they're distantly related. You know, because that makes things much more absurd orderly. (See how Burnham had to be related to Spock.)

The pacing of this episode, and with the exception of using the Enterprise, when any other Constitution Class starship could've worked — and served to expand the Mirror Universe a little bit — this is an enjoyable episode. It's a shame though that this is following the same cookie cutter seasonal storyline template by relying very much on a quest to follow while having standalone episode-long adventures to fill in the gaps, but hey, it can't be much worse than last season. So, there's that.

The fifth and final season of "Star Trek: Discovery" and every other episode of every "Star Trek" show — with the exception of "Star Trek: Prodigy" — currently streams exclusively on Paramount Plus in the US, while "Prodigy" has found a new home on Netflix.  

Internationally, the shows are available on  Paramount Plus  in Australia, Latin America, the UK and South Korea, as well as on Pluto TV in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland on the Pluto TV Sci-Fi channel. They also stream on  Paramount Plus  in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In Canada, they air on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and stream on Crave.

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When Scott's application to the NASA astronaut training program was turned down, he was naturally upset...as any 6-year-old boy would be. He chose instead to write as much as he possibly could about science, technology and space exploration. He graduated from The University of Coventry and received his training on Fleet Street in London. He still hopes to be the first journalist in space.

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