star trek original series khan episode

Space Seed (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Story and script
• 4.4 Effects
• 4.6 Deleted scene
• 4.7 Reception
• 4.8 Continuity and trivia
• 4.9 Apocrypha
• 4.10 Production timeline
• 4.11 Remastered information
• 4.12 Video and DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Guest stars
• 5.3 Featuring
• 5.4 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.6 References
• 5.7 Deleted references
• 5.8 External links

Summary [ ]

The Enterprise encounters the Botany Bay

In 2267 , the USS Enterprise encounters a spacecraft floating in deep space, sending out a signal in Morse code . Captain Kirk recognizes it as being similar to the DY-500 class , but Spock points it out as being the much older DY-100 , built back in the 1990s .

Spock identifies the vessel from its outer hull markings as the SS Botany Bay , but finds no registry of the ship in the computer library; however, he points out that records of the era from which the ship was launched are fragmentary, as the 1990s was the era of the Eugenics Wars , a "strange and violent period in your history" as Spock puts it. Faint life signs are detected on board, and Kirk has the ship go to red alert as it closes in on the mysterious vessel to investigate.

Act One [ ]

Aboard the derelict vessel

The Botany Bay takes no action as the Enterprise approaches it, the only sign of life being the faint life readings. Now certain the ship is a derelict, Kirk orders Scott and Doctor McCoy to join an engineering party to board the ship and investigate the life readings. Kirk also requests the services of the ship's historian , Lieutenant Marla McGivers . In the transporter room , Scott takes note of the life support systems coming back on, as if the ship is expecting them to transport over. " Very interesting, " Kirk notes.

" A man from the 20th century coming alive… "

The landing party materializes on board the Botany Bay , and Scott confirms that the vessel is Terran in origin, using old style atomic power and computers with transistor units . He tells Kirk that he would " love to tear this baby apart. " McGivers speculates that the ship is a sleeper ship, designed for long periods of interplanetary travel due to the limits of space travel technology in that era until the year 2018 .

One of the life units is then activated, and Kirk asks McGivers if this could be the leader; the lieutenant does not reply immediately, seemingly smitten with the appearance of the man, but eventually answers that it's likely, as the leader would be awakened first to determine if circumstances warranted the reviving of the others. She also speculates that the man could be Sikh , from the northern region of India , noting that they were the most fantastic warriors. Scott then reports that there are 84 people held in suspended animation , all of varied ethnic origins.

The life support unit malfunctions , likely due to the accumulation of dust , and its occupant's life readings begin dropping. As McGivers begs Kirk to save him, he breaks the glass on the stasis unit to release him. Taking shaky breaths as he regains consciousness, the man asks in a hoarse whisper how long he had been asleep; Kirk estimates the time at two centuries. Kirk flips his communicator open to request that McCoy and the man be beamed aboard the Enterprise immediately for further medical attention. " Magnificent, " McGivers states.

Act Two [ ]

McCoy is conducting a medical analysis on the unidentified man at sickbay on the Enterprise . McCoy is amazed at the physical and recuperative power of the man.

" Well, either choke me or cut my throat! Make up your mind! "

Aboard the Botany Bay , Scott notes that twelve of the life units had failed and that their occupants have consequently died, leaving seventy-two alive from the 1990s, thirty of the survivors being women. Spock can find no record in the vessel in any of the computer libraries. Kirk suspects that since Botany Bay was the name of an Australian penal colony, this might have been a way to deport criminals.

Spock refutes this, as it would be a seeming waste of Earth's then most advanced spacecraft, but has no other explanation of his own, lacking sufficient facts. Spock also notes the extremely low probability that a vessel of this type could have survived for so long, and managed to leave Earth's solar system . Kirk orders Lieutenant Spinelli to have the Botany Bay put under tow, and to set course to Starbase 12 .

" Khan is my name. " " Khan – nothing else? " " Khan. "

In sickbay, Kirk arrives to speak to the man. McCoy notes his superior bodily strength and efficiency of his lungs , hinting at his Augment origin. McCoy estimates that the man could lift both he and Kirk with one arm. He tells Kirk that it would be interesting to see if the man's brain matches his body. McGivers arrives, while Kirk chides her on her performance on the landing party. She admits to finding the man fascinating, in a purely professional way, as her position aboard the Enterprise is historian. Kirk thanks her for admitting this, noting " If I can have honesty, it's easier to overlook mistakes, " then dismisses her.

Later, the man awakes from his slumber and goes through some exercises of Hatha yoga; then, hearing Dr. McCoy at work, the man notes a scalpel among a collection of antique medical instruments on the wall. He takes it, and moves back to his bed, feigning sleep. McCoy arrives to check his vital signs, and the man reaches towards McCoy's throat, threatening him with the scalpel. McCoy sarcastically, and in an admirable display of calm, tells him to make up his mind to choke him or cut his throat, adding that it would be best if he would cut the carotid artery , just under the left ear . The man says he admires such bravery, and lets McCoy take back the scalpel. McCoy simply and calmly tells him that he was just trying to avoid an argument. The man demands to speak to the captain of the vessel, and McCoy calls Kirk, saying he is a man with "many questions."

McGivers meets Khan

Kirk arrives, identifies himself as the captain, and asks the man his name. The man avoids the question, and asks what the ship's heading is. Kirk answers that it is Starbase 12, a planet in the Gamma 400 star system , the Enterprise 's command base in that sector . The man identifies himself simply as "Khan". Kirk attempts to question Khan further, but he declines to elaborate on his history, claiming he is "fatigued". He says that he was once an engineer of sorts, and would very much like to study the ship's technical manuals . Kirk and McCoy then show him how to use the computers to access such information. He is later visited by McGivers, asking her to "sit and entertain" him, rearranging her hairstyle to something more "attractive".

" Social occasions are only warfare concealed. "

In the officers' mess, the crew prepares a full-dress banquet, and McCoy wonders if the Enterprise is hosting a fleet admiral ; Kirk replies it was McGivers' idea to welcome Khan to their century . Dressed for the occasion, Khan meets with McGivers in her quarters, decorated with portraits of great conquerors of the past, including Richard the Lionheart , Leif Ericson , Alexander the Great , and Napoleon Bonaparte , as well as an unfinished portrait of Khan in the 20th century. Khan tells her he is honored, but cautions her "such men dare take what they want", before passionately kissing her, which she apparently doesn't mind.

McGivers' affection for Khan becomes apparent

At the banquet, Khan explains the nature of his journey from Earth, going in search of "adventure", believing there was nothing left on Earth. Spock comments on the Eugenics Wars as a conflict to end tyranny, while Khan replies that it was an effort to unite Humanity, calling his era "a time of great dreams, great aspirations"; while there were dozens of petty dictatorships, Khan declares one would have ruled eventually, like Rome under Caesar , " think of its accomplishments! ", he intones. Kirk bluntly asks why Khan fled, asking if he was afraid, goading Khan to declare, " We offered the world order ! " to which Kirk responds by asking "We?", noting Khan's reference to a master race. Khan congratulates Kirk on his discovery of Khan's intent, then says he says he is "fatigued" again, and returns to his quarters.

McGivers appears at Khan's quarters, and apologizes for how he was treated at the dinner; Khan comments their reaction is understandable, given that he is something of a "mystery" to them. McGivers confesses that she knows exactly who he is, and wonders if he is going to like living in her century, to which Khan replies that he will have to remold it to his liking. Showing the darker side of his nature, Khan tells McGivers he intends to take control of the Enterprise and demands her help, bullying her into submitting to his desire; unwilling to lose him, she promises to do anything he asks.

Act Three [ ]

" From 1992 through 1996, absolute ruler of more than a quarter of your world. "

In the briefing room , Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scott consult the historical records and determine that their guest is Khan Noonien Singh , one of the genetically engineered tyrants of the Eugenics Wars, and the last to be overthrown. From 1992 to 1996 , he was absolute ruler of one quarter of the Earth, from Asia to the Middle East . Scott admits he's always held a "sneaking admiration for this one", with Kirk and McCoy adding that his rule lacked the usual massacres and internal wars endemic to tyrants; Spock counters that he also severely curtailed freedoms, and is alarmed at the romantic tone of the Humans towards a ruthless dictator. Kirk replies that they can be against him and admire him all at the same time. " Illogical, " Spock says. " Totally, " Kirk responds. The captain then orders security to place a 24-hour guard on Khan's quarters, effective immediately.

Khan, wearing a Starfleet uniform

Later, Kirk visits Khan in his quarters. Khan is wearing a Starfleet uniform , with a red shirt like that worn by the ship's engineers or security guards, and is "lost in thought". He comments on his door being locked from outside with a guard posted. Kirk admits it was "unusual treatment" for who he is, and wishes to know the truth about Khan's departure from Earth. Khan replies that he and his followers sought a new life and a chance to build a new world, plus "other things" he did not believe Kirk, who he considered mentally and physically inferior, would understand. Khan then comments on how little mankind has changed despite its technical advancements, and that he and his people would do well in this century. After Kirk leaves, Khan breaks out of his quarters by forcing the sliding door open with his bare hands, and then brutally knocks out the guard outside, taking his phaser . Meanwhile, McGivers holds transporter chief Kyle at phaser-point, beaming Khan over to the Botany Bay to revive his people.

Security alerts Kirk that Khan has escaped; shortly afterwards, communications become jammed, the turbolifts disabled, and life support on the bridge cut off. Kirk calls engineering to find out why, and is answered by Khan, who now controls engineering with his followers and has cut off life support — demanding that Kirk surrender the ship to him, or die of suffocation.

Act Four [ ]

The bridge crew watches as Kirk suffocates

The bridge crew suffocates to the point of passing out. Kirk and Spock are the last to fall unconscious; before passing out, Kirk, making a log entry, states he takes full responsibility for Khan taking over his ship. When the crew awakens, they are being held at phaser-point by Khan's men in the briefing room while Khan holds Kirk captive in McCoy's decompression chamber ; and the rest of the bridge crew in the briefing room , who watch helplessly as the video screen shows Kirk suffocating.

Khan threatens to kill the captain unless the bridge crew cooperates with the augments. None of the captive crew agree to join him and Khan becomes infuriated by their resistance, threatening them all with suffocation. McGivers then excuses herself, unable to watch the torture of Kirk and the brutal way that Joaquin , one of Khan's henchmen, treats Uhura — violently striking her across the face. As Khan continues to rage, the video screen goes blank as the channel to the decompression chamber is unexpectedly cut. Joaquin demands of Uhura how to regain the picture, but she refuses to respond and he prepares to strike her once again. Khan stops Joaquin with a gesture, telling the crew that Kirk is dead and Spock be taken in to die next.

Meanwhile, McGivers comes to Kirk's aid by using a hypospray to knock out the guard who was watching him in the decompression chamber. She frees Kirk from the chamber, and urges him not to hurt Khan. Spock and an augment arrive just then. Kirk surprises and confronts Khan's man who is subsequently incapacitated by Spock using a Vulcan nerve pinch .

In the briefing room, Khan realizes something is wrong when he cannot contact his men, specifically, Rodriguez , Ling , and McPherson . Kirk and Spock then succeed in flooding the ship with knockout gas , but Khan is able to avoid the gas by escaping to engineering and cutting it off, rigging the ship to blow up with an overload. Kirk rushes to stop Khan with a phaser, but Khan ambushes the captain and crushes the phaser with his bare hands, as easily as one would crumple a piece of paper. The two men come to blows in engineering, with Kirk eventually defeating the genetically engineered man by knocking him out with a makeshift club, and saving the Enterprise from destruction.

Later, at a formal hearing , Kirk drops all charges against Khan and his people, considering it a "waste" to put Khan in a penal colony, and gives him the offer of taming the uninhabited world of Ceti Alpha V an offer which Khan accepts referencing a quote from Milton's Paradise Lost that "it is better to rule in Hell than to serve in Heaven." Marla McGivers is given the option of court martial or accompanying Khan and his people. Khan warns her it will be difficult at first to survive, to find food, and Marla chooses to join Khan and his people. As soon as Khan and his people leave, Kirk and Spock express an interest in returning to Ceti Alpha V in a hundred years to learn "what crop will sprout from the seed they planted".

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Memorable quotes [ ]

" I fail to understand why it always gives you pleasure to see me proven wrong. " " An emotional Earth weakness of mine. "

" Your attempt to improve the race through selective breeding. " " Oh, now wait a minute. Not 'our' attempt, Mr. Spock. A group of ambitious scientists'. I'm sure you know the type. Devoted to logic, completely unemotional… "

" Care to join the landing party, Doctor? " " Well, if you're actually giving me a choice… " " I'm not. "

" I signed aboard this ship to practice medicine, not to have my atoms scattered back and forth across space by this gadget. "

" Insufficient facts always invites danger, Captain. "

" Where am I? " " You're in … " (Khan squeezes McCoy's neck) " You're in bed, holding a knife at your doctor's throat. " " Answer my question. " " It would be most effective if you would cut the carotid artery just under the left ear. "

" Khan is my name. " " Khan, nothing more? " " Khan. "

" Superior ability breeds superior ambition. "

" Would you reveal to war-weary populations that some eighty Napoleons might still be alive? "

" Such men dare take what they want. "

" Tyranny, sir? Or an attempt to unify Humanity? " " Unify, sir? Like a team of animals under one whip? "

" You are an excellent tactician, Captain. You let your second-in-command attack while you sit… and watch for weakness. " " You have a tendency to express ideas in military terms, Mister Khan. This is a social occasion. " " It has been said that social occasions are only warfare concealed. "

" You fled. Why? Were you afraid? " " I've never been afraid. " " But you left at the very time mankind needed courage. " " We offered the world order ! "

" Go or stay, but do it because it is what you wish to do. "

" He was the best of the tyrants and the most dangerous. "

" There were no massacres under his rule… " " And as little freedom! " " No wars until he was attacked… " " …Gentlemen?! "

" We can be against him and admire him all at the same time. " " Illogical. " " Totally. "

" It appears we will do well in your century, Captain. "

" The trip is over. The battle begins again. Only this time it's not a world we win. It's a universe. "

" Your air should be getting quite thin by now. Do you surrender the bridge? " " Negative. " " Academic, Captain. Refuse and every person on the bridge will suffocate. "

" Nothing ever changes, except man. Your technical accomplishments? Improve a mechanical device and you may double productivity but improve man and you gain a thousandfold. I am such a man. "

" My vessel was useless. I need you and yours to select a colony planet, one with a population willing to be led by us. " " To be conquered by you… a starship would make that most simple, wouldn't it? "

" Each of you in turn will go in there! Die while the others watch! "

" It does not matter, the captain is dead. Take Mr. Spock next. "

" If I understood your manuals, that's an overload in progress. Your ship flares up like an exploding sun within MINUTES! "

" I have five times your strength. You're no match for me! "

" Those men went on to tame a continent , Mister Khan. Can you tame a world? "

" I will take her . And I've gotten something else I wanted. A world to win, an empire to build. "

" It is better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven. "

" It would be interesting, Captain, to return to that world in a hundred years and to learn what crop has sprung from the seed you planted today. "

Background information [ ]

Story and script [ ].

• "Space Seed" writer Carey Wilber used the 18th-century British custom of shipping out the undesirables as a parallel for his concept of "seed ships", used to take unwanted criminals out to space from the overpopulated Earth (hence the name " Botany Bay "). In his original treatment, the Botany Bay left Earth in 2096, with one hundred criminals (both men and women) and a team of a few volunteer lawmen aboard. ( The Star Trek Compendium , p. 57)
• Also in Wilber's original treatment, the Khan character was a Nordic superman named "Harold Erricsen". This evolved in the first draft, where the character first introduced himself as "John Ericssen" but was later revealed to be Ragnar Thorwald, who had been involved in "the First World Tyranny". Thorwald was more brutal in this version of the story, where he dispatched the guard outside his quarters with a phaser . ( Star Trek Magazine  issue 120 , The Star Trek Compendium , pp. 57-58)
• Gene Roddenberry questioned Wilber's notion of wasting a high-tech spaceship and expensive resources on criminals – just as Kirk and Spock pose the same question in the episode itself – and came up with the concept of "a bunch of Napoleons" sent to space in exile. ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One )
• James Blish , forced to work from non-final script drafts at the time, still used the name "Sibahl Khan Noonien" in his novella adaptation of the episode for the 1968 Bantam Books ' anthology Star Trek 2 , which indicated that the name change was a late decision.
• According to an archived version of StarTrek.com , the official Star Trek website, earlier versions of the script had the SS Botany Bay as a CZ-100 class ship, located by the USS Enterprise in the Coalsack Nebula , and the class designation nearly persisted into the final script. [1] The script Blish had to work with still contained the "CZ-100" designation, which made it into his novelization of the episode, though the reference to the Coalsack Nebula had been removed.
• A line to be said by Kirk at the end of the episode was scripted but cut from the filmed episode, saying he hoped Khan and his followers would not come looking after them. James Blish included this as the last line of his write-up of the episode in Star Trek 2 . [2]
• George Takei ( Sulu ) does not appear in this episode. Neither does Walter Koenig ( Pavel Chekov ), owing to Koenig not yet having joined the series.
• John Arndt ( Fields ) was a regular extra; he also played unnamed crewmen in " Miri " and " Dagger of the Mind ". When Arndt appeared in " Balance of Terror ", his character was named "Fields". His part seems to have been edited out of this episode. ( citation needed • edit )
• The background actor playing the Augment who is hypoed by McGivers in sickbay previously appeared as a member of the Alfa 177 science team in " The Enemy Within "; he went on to later appear as a Klingon in the final planet scene in Kor 's office in " Errand of Mercy " and as another Klingon in " Day of the Dove ". The identity of this extra is unknown.
• Although only one hallway of the Botany Bay is seen in detail, the design crew took the time and effort to build the beginnings of several other corridors with their own life support canisters, despite their only being seen for a few seconds.

Effects [ ]

• The Botany Bay model was actually designed by Matt Jefferies before he came up with the Enterprise . He described it as an "antique space freighter" and put it aside for a chance to use it in the series. ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One )
• The effects scenes featuring the Enterprise and the Botany Bay were filmed at Film Effects of Hollywood .
• The creation of this episode evidently reused a lot of music from earlier episodes. For instance, most of the music used in this installment was taken from " Charlie X ", composed by Fred Steiner . Some of Alexander Courage 's cues from " The Cage " were reused too, most notably the " Talosian illusion" theme. One piece of music from " Where No Man Has Gone Before " was reused in the climactic fight scene in Engineering between Kirk and Khan.

Deleted scene [ ]

• A scene featuring a female character named "Baker", who was a friend of Marla McGivers , was scripted and filmed, with Baker played by Barbara Baldavin (who previously appeared as Angela Martine in " Balance of Terror " and " Shore Leave "), but it ended up as a deleted scene . Several sources still claim Baldavin as appearing in this episode as "Baker". [3] Portions of this deleted scene are available to watch in Star Trek: The Original Series - The Roddenberry Vault .

Reception [ ]

• Jeff Russo cited this as one of his favorite episodes and scores from TOS . ("Standing in the Shadow of Giants: Creating the Sound of Discovery ", DIS Season 1 DVD & Blu-ray special features) Actually, this episode did not feature an original score, rather stock music from previous episodes, most notably " Charlie X " by Fred Steiner .
• The book Star Trek 101 (p. 17), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block , lists this episode as one of "Ten Essential Episodes" from the original Star Trek series.

Continuity and trivia [ ]

• The preview trailer for this episode has the stardate as 3142.3.
• Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a sequel to this episode, while Star Trek Into Darkness portrays a different set of events leading to Khan's introduction to the 23rd century .
• In this episode, Spock is shown using the Vulcan nerve pinch in sickbay on one of Khan's Augments. When Spock tries using the same technique on Khan in Star Trek Into Darkness , however, it doesn't work. One explanation is that Khan found a way to make himself immune to it.
• The Eugenics Wars , and the notion of genetically augmented Humans, also served as background for TAS : " The Infinite Vulcan " as well as several fourth season episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise : " Borderland ", " Cold Station 12 ", and " The Augments ".
• In "The Augments", Khan and his followers are referenced by Malik .
• When he accepts the choice of living on the planet, Khan alludes to the rebellious angels' exile to Hell in John Milton 's Paradise Lost . Kirk clarifies by quoting part of Satan's speech: " Here we may reign secure; and in my choice / To reign is worth ambition, though in Hell: / Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven " (Book 1, 261-63).
• This episode contains several references to future Earth history that created issues when real life caught up with the mid-1990s timeframe of the so-called "third world war" mentioned by Spock. Specifically, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: First Contact (the latter of which was coincidentally released in 1996 , the supposed year of the Botany Bay 's launch) established that the third world war actually occurred in the first half of the 21st century, and the Eugenics Wars of the 1990s were a different conflict. Finally, SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow " established that due to multiple time travel incursions over the years, history was changed so that the conflict, which originally occurred in the 1990s, was not only delayed until the first half of the 21st century as part of the world war, but that Khan himself would not even have been born yet by 1996, instead being a young child in the early 2020s.
• Although the character of Chekov had not yet been created by the time of this episode's making and therefore does not appear in this installment, Khan remembered him years later, in The Wrath of Khan .
• This is the only appearance of Transporter Chief Kyle in which he has no dialogue.
• At the banquet, Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scott are the only officers wearing dress uniforms.
• This is the only episode in which Scott wears his dress uniform without his ceremonial tartan kilt.
• Lieutenant McGivers wears no braid on the sleeves of her uniform.
• Khan goes through a record five changes of costume for a male cast member of the original series. Firstly, he is draped in gold mesh when he is brought back to consciousness; he is then in a short-sleeved sickbay tunic while recuperating; during his scene with McGivers in her quarters and while at dinner, he is seen in a jacket with oval patterns; while consulting with Kirk in his quarters, he is in an Enterprise engineering tunic; and finally, when he returns to the Botany Bay , he wears the red jumpsuit of his fellow exiles.
• In this episode, " The Menagerie, Part I ", and " The Menagerie, Part II ", one can see the other end of the briefing room set – a wall with a viewing screen was added in. Usually, the room is only seen from the end nearest to the door. The rotating viewer, usually seen on the top of the table, is missing here.
• One of the instruments on the back wall of the Botany Bay eventually found its way to the transporter room, as a scanner (with an added viewer that was similar to the one on Spock's science station) in the second season .
• The unique engineering "clubs," one of which Kirk used to subdue Khan during their fight, were never used or even seen in another episode, nor is the collection of ancient medical instruments that adorns the wall of sickbay. The mirror that figures during McGivers' hairdo scene is seen again in " The Deadly Years ".
• The cryogenic chambers from the Botany Bay were recycled and built into the sickbay set from season 2. Also, one of them served as the decompression chamber in " The Lights of Zetar ".
• Footage of the Botany Bay was later recycled as the ore freighter Woden in " The Ultimate Computer ".
• Kirk's phaser is accidentally knocked off his belt when he smashes the glass to free the reviving Khan aboard the Botany Bay . The phaser can be seen falling to the floor (when viewed in slow motion) as Kirk uses the flashlight (that Scotty had been carrying in his right hand) on the window. Scotty can be seen grabbing the flashlight off the transporter console just before they beam over.
• There is a fairly egregious continuity error in this episode. In the transporter room, Scott (wearing a red shirt) and Kyle (wearing blue) are manning the controls at the beginning of the scene. Scott leaves to join Kirk, McCoy, and McGivers on the transporter pad, presumably leaving Kyle to operate the controls. Yet, the red-sleeved arm of Scott is seen activating the transporter (via recycled footage from " The Enemy Within ").
• When William Shatner accidentally knocks his phaser prop off his belt as he breaks the glass to Khan's cryogenic chamber, DeForest Kelley can be seen glancing down toward it and then up again several times. Presumably, he was not sure if the take had been ruined or was expected to continue. Given the time that would have been involved in replacing the glass, he appears to have erred on the side of caution.
• One questionable take from this episode occurs when the camera pans over the mostly unconscious bridge crew as Kirk records his captain's log with commendations for the fallen crew. There are seven visible people on the bridge, but there seem to be eight in total (with the navigator, later seen in Khan's prisoner's row but not in the bridge sequence). From the beginning of the pan, it shows Spock, Uhura, Brent (played by Frank da Vinci ), Leslie (played by Eddie Paskey ), a red-shirted extra (played by Ron Veto ), Spinelli , and then Kirk. Kirk reads off the names of only five crew members: Uhura, Thule , Harrison , Spinelli, and Spock. It seems that one reference is intended to be to the Eddie Paskey character, but that is unlikely since Kirk mentioned both with the rank "technician first class" and the Leslie uniform has lieutenant stripes. While it is odd that Leslie (and the unnamed-in-this-episode navigator who is sometimes referred to as " Hadley ") was skipped in the mentions, it leads to the conclusion that the red-shirted man was Harrison (or possibly Thule, who remains unseen, unless it was meant to refer to blue-shirted Brent).
• The conversation between Khan and Kirk in sickbay is reprised in the ST : episode " Ephraim and Dot " (incidentally giving the Enterprise sickbay a previously unseen window).
• The changes to the timeline established in SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow " also serve as rationale for Spock and Uhura and Kirk being unaware of who Khan is, despite all having served with La'an Noonien-Singh and SNW : " Ad Astra per Aspera " indicating Khan's name was well-known by the TOS era.

Apocrypha [ ]

• Although Kirk inquires as to the exact date of the launch of the Botany Bay , he never receives an answer. The novel The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume Two revealed that it was launched from Earth on January 5 , 1996 and began its journey through space six days later, though decades later, the episodes " Farewell " and " Strange New Worlds " would imply this dating to be implausible.
• There are several non-canon explanations for the fact that, even though Chekov doesn't appear in this episode, Khan remembers him, in The Wrath of Khan , from the timeframe of this episode. All of these explanations point to some off-screen contact between the two characters. In To Reign in Hell: The Exile of Khan Noonien Singh , for example, it is revealed that Chekov led a failed attempt to retake Engineering from Khan.
• A cat version of "Space Seed" was featured in Jenny Parks ' 2017 book Star Trek Cats .

Production timeline [ ]

• Story outline "Botany Bay" by Carey Wilber : 29 August 1966
• Revised story outline "Space Seed": 1 September 1966
• First draft teleplay by Wilber: 26 October 1966
• Second draft teleplay: early- December 1966
• Revised teleplay by Gene L. Coon : 7 December 1966
• Final draft teleplay by Coon: 9 December 1966
• Revised final draft teleplay: 12 December 1966
• Second revised final draft teleplay by Gene Roddenberry : 13 December 1966
• Day 1 – 15 December 1966 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge
• Day 2 – 16 December 1966 , Friday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge , McCoy's office , Sickbay
• Day 3 – 19 December 1966 , Monday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. McGivers' quarters , Wardroom (redress of Briefing room ), Briefing room
• Day 4 – 20 December 1966 , Tuesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Briefing room , Khan's quarters , Corridors
• Day 5 – 21 December 1966 , Wednesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Corridors , Transporter room , Engineering
• Day 6 – 22 December 1966 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 10 : Int. Botany Bay ; Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Decompression chamber
• Original airdate: 16 February 1967
• Rerun airdate: 24 August 1967
• First UK airdate (on BBC1 ): 27 September 1969
• First UK airdate (on ITV ): 31 January 1982

Remastered information [ ]

• "Space Seed" was the eleventh episode of the remastered version of The Original Series to air. It premiered in syndication the weekend of 18 November 2006 . For the revamped episode, a highly detailed model of the Botany Bay was created, aged and weathered appropriately.
• The next remastered episode to air was " The Menagerie, Part I ".

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• " Space Seed " is released on Super 8 film, 1970s
• RCA CED Videodisc released Space Seed & The Changeling 1981
• UK VHS release ( CIC-Arena Video ): catalog number VHL 2057, April 1983
• Original US Betamax release: 1985
• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 13 , catalog number VHR 2306, release date unknown
• US VHS release: 15 April 1994
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 1.9, 30 December 1996
• Original US DVD release (single-disc): Volume 12, 23 May 2000
• As part of the TOS Season 1 DVD collection
• As part of the TOS Season 1 HD DVD collection
• As part of the TOS Season 1 Blu-ray collection
• As part of the Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• William Shatner as Kirk
• Leonard Nimoy as Spock

Guest stars [ ]

• Ricardo Montalban as Khan
• Madlyn Rhue as Marla

Featuring [ ]

• DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
• James Doohan as Scott
• Blaisdell Makee as Spinelli
• Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
• Mark Tobin as Joaquin
• Kathy Ahart as Crew Woman
• John Winston as Transporter Technician

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Barbara Baldavin as Baker (scenes deleted)
• Bobby Bass as a Enterprise security guard
• William Blackburn as Hadley
• Robert Buckingham as Human Augment
• Dick Cangey as Otto
• Frank da Vinci as Brent
• Joan Johnson as Human Augment
• Robert H. Justman as Security Guard (voice) [4]
• Eddie Paskey as Leslie
• Jan Reddin as an Enterprise operations table attendant
• Frieda Rentie as a Enterprise lieutenant
• Ron Veto as Harrison
• Joan Webster as a Enterprise nurse
• Elite Guards 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , and 7
• Enterprise command crew woman
• Enterprise command table attendant
• Enterprise crewman 1
• Enterprise crewman 2
• Enterprise crew woman
• Gary Combs as stunt double for William Shatner
• Chuck Couch as stunt double for Ricardo Montalban

References [ ]

20th century ; 1990s ; 1992 ; 1993 ; 1996 ; 2018 ; ability ; absolute ruler ; adventure ; air ; Alexander the Great ; ambition ; " ambitious scientists "; anesthesia gas ( neural gas ); animal ; answer ; area ; argument ; arm ; armory ; Asia ; atom ; atmosphere ; atmospheric controls ; Australia ; authority ; barbarism ; battle stations ; beats per minute ; bed ; bioscanners ; bioscanners report ; boarding party ; body ; " Bones "; Botany Bay ; Botany Bay , SS ; Botany Bay sector ; brain ; bust ; Caesar, Augustus ; carotid artery ; century ; Ceti Alpha V ; Ceti Alpha star system ; chance ; charge ; choice ; choke ; circuit ; colony planet ; commendations ; communication channel ; communications officer ; compliments ; computer system ; conclusion ; contact ; continent ; convalescence ; courage ; CQ ; crew woman ; crop ; curiosity ; dark ages ; DY-100-class ; DY-500-class ; danger ; date ; death ; deck ; decompression chamber ; deportation ; dictator ; dictatorship ; dinner engagement ; doctor ; door ; dozen ; dream ; dust ; ear ; Earth ; efficiency ; emotion ; empire ; engineer ; engineering officer ; engineering section ; engineering specialist ; English language ; Ericson, Leif ; error ; estimate ; Eugenics Wars ; European ; evolution ; expedition ; exploding sun ; fact ; failure ; Flavius ; formal hearing ; fleet admiral ; freedom ; French Army uniform ; full alert ; gadget ; Gamma 400 star system ; genetics ; gladiator ; group ; hair ; heading ( course ); heart ; heartbeat ; heart flutter ; heart rate ; heart valve ; heat ; Heaven ; Hell ; historian ; history texts ( history books ); hobby ; hour ; hull ; Human ; Human history ; idea ; inch of mercury ; India ; intruder control circuit ; intruder control system ; irritation ; knife ; landing party ; Latin ; leader ; library tape ( record tape ); light ; Life Sciences ; life support system ; life support canister ; liftoff ; Ling ; log book ; logic ; Lucifer ; lung ; lung efficiency ; malfunctioned ; manual ; massacre ; marooning ; McIvers ; McPherson ; mechanical device ; medical specialist ; medicine ; mercury ; meteor ; Middle East ; Milton, John ; military terms ; mind ; minute ; mistake ; Morse code ; name ; Bonaparte, Napoléon ; nation ; nature ; nuclear power ( atomic power ); Oriental ; overload ; oxygen ; Paradise Lost ; patient ; penal colony ; penal deportation vessel ; percent ; permission ; person ; photograph ; physical power ; planet ; pleasure ; population ; power ; product ; productivity ; profession ; programming ; psychologist ; question ; rebirth ; record ; recuperative power ; registry ; regulations ; relay junction ; reorientation center ; respiration pattern ( breathing ); Richard the Lion Heart ; Rodriguez ; romance ; romanticism ; Rome ; savage ; scalpel ; scar ; scientist ; Scotsman ; second ; second-in-command ; section ; Sector 25712 ; security alert ; seed ; selective breeding ; sensor ; shore ; short circuit ; Sikh ; sleeper ship ; social occasion ; space ; space vessel ; specimen ; spray bottle ; standby alert ; Starbase 12 ; Starbase 12 planet ; starship ; star system ; strangulation ; strength ; suffocation ; supermen ; surrender ; suspended animation ; tactician ; technical library ; technical manual ; technician first class ; theory ; thing ; thousand ; throat ; Thule ; towing ; tractor beam ; training ; transistor units ; transporter beam ; transporter technician ; treatment ; turban ; turbo elevator ; tyrant ; universe ; voice ; Vulcan neck pinch ; war ; warrior ; weapons department ; whip ; world war ; year

Deleted references [ ]

Baker (deleted material) ; Hanson ; physics lab ; rec room

External links [ ]

• "Space Seed" at StarTrek.com
• " Space Seed " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " Space Seed " at Wikipedia
• " Space Seed " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/StarTrekS1E22SpaceSeed

Recap / Star Trek S1 E22 "Space Seed"

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Original air date: February 16, 1967

The episode which was the basis for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .

It all begins when the Enterprise comes across the S.S. Botany Bay , an apparent derelict from the 1990s , which the characters handily remind each other was when Earth was nearly destroyed in a world-wide war which was not World War III . This war was caused by scientists creating genetically-superior humans . These superhumans decided to Take Over the World , but ultimately ended up fighting amongst themselves.

Kirk, Bones, Scotty and Lt. Marla McGivers (Madlyn Rhue, our Girl of the Week ) beam onto the Botany Bay , finding it full of Human Popsicles . Ricardo Montalbán , who we're told is Indian , wakes up and McGivers falls in Love at First Sight . In Sickbay, he's discovered to be superhuman, holds a knife to McCoy's throat and says his name is " Khan ", but refuses to answer any other question. Kirk decides it's a good idea to let Khan look at all the technical information on the Enterprise . Meanwhile, McGivers gets to have a rather lame love scene with Khan in which we learn she wears her hair in a 1960s updo (which looks uncannily like a wig) because it's "comfortable."

Kirk and Spock question Khan some more and he as good as admits that he was one of the superhuman Evil Overlords from the '90s. McGivers takes Khan's side and apologizes to him for how rude everyone else was. He then manipulates her into agreeing to help him hijack the ship. With her help, he unfreezes his Evil Minions and takes over Engineering. It turns out he actually learned a bit from those tech manuals and cuts off life-support systems to the bridge. After everyone has passed out, he treats them to Kirk's torture in a decompression chamber, offering to let him live if someone joins him.

At this point, McGivers has had enough and sets Kirk free , begging him to let Khan live. This leads to Kirk and Khan's Stunt Doubles having a big Professional Wrestling -style fight which ends in Khan's defeat despite his superior strength due to Kirk breaking off a mechanical lever from the ship as an Improvised Weapon . Kirk and Khan agree that he and his followers will be dumped on the savage planet Ceti Alpha V, providing Khan the opportunity to build his own empire. McGivers decides to go with Khan rather than face court-martial. Kirk and Spock speculate about what will become of them:

Spock: It would be interesting, Captain, to return to that world in a hundred years and learn what crop had sprung from the seed you planted today . Kirk: Yes, Mr. Spock. It would indeed.

Space Tropes:

• All Girls Want Bad Boys : McGivers certainly does, which is how Khan is able to manipulate her.
• All There in the Script : In the original script, the Botany Bay's log stated that the ship was originally headed for the Tau Ceti star system. note  Which is 12 light-years away. Even after two centuries a ship would arrive there if it were traveling at only 6% the speed of light, which is slower than the fastest theoretical propulsion technology theorized by the time the actual '90s rolled around. Examination of the ship reveals a damaged steering system, which has sent the Botany Bay careening off-course into deep space.
• Admiring the Abomination : This seems to be the reason Kirk keeps underestimating Khan. In fact, while discussing Khan in the briefing room, Kirk, Bones and Scotty give Spock a good shake when they admit a certain admiration for Khan, even if they still acknowledge he's evil. Spock is vocally uncomfortable romanticizing Khan's history, and he's got good reason to be, considering what Khan's planning that very moment.
• Affably Evil : Khan. He's surprisingly charming and polite for being a former dictator. Or not, considering how many dictators have come to power through charm and charisma.

• Ambition is Evil : As Spock describes Khan and his fellow augments, "Superior ability breeds superior ambition."
• Badass Bookworm : McCoy tells Khan to " make up [his] mind " how to kill him and even tells him the "most effective" way to do it . Even Khan is impressed. McCoy : Well, either choke me or cut my throat. Make up your mind. Khan: English. I thought I dreamed hearing it. Where am I? McCoy : You're in bed, holding a knife at your doctor's throat. Khan: Answer my question. McCoy : It would be most effective if you would cut the carotid artery, just under the left ear. Khan: (releases him) I like a brave man. [lowers the scalpel] McCoy : (humbly) I was simply trying to avoid an argument.
• Kirk. He beats the tar out of a supposed "superman" with nothing but his bare fists and a PVC pipe. Note that immediately before this, Khan tells Kirk he can't hope to win in a fistfight , "I have five times your physical strength." That makes Khan stronger than Spock , who we've seen hand Kirk his ass several times; Vulcans are about three times as strong as humans.
• Scotty scores a one-punch knockdown of one of Khan's henchmen, before escaping the briefing room.
• From Dr. Bashir I Presume? (DS9 5x16) : "Two hundred years ago, we tried to improve the species through DNA resequencing. And what did we get for our trouble? The Eugenics Wars. For every Julian Bashir that can be created, there's a Khan Singh waiting in the wings. A superhuman, whose ambition and thirst for power have been enhanced, along with his intellect. The law against genetic engineering provides a firewall against such men, and it's my job to keep that firewall intact."
• Born in the Wrong Century : Marla feels this of herself, preferring to be in the more "adventurous" 1990's.
• Catching Up on History : Khan does this by reading through the Enterprise's computer logs that contain the last 200 years of history that he missed.
• Clash of Evolutionary Levels : The genetically-engineered supermen certainly consider it their right, and in Khan's case even duty , to rule over humanity. Because they are superior.
• Death Glare : One of Khan's Mooks smacks Uhura when she hesitates to carry out Khan's order. Good thing Marla intervenes, because by the looks of Uhura's face, she was about to seriously beat that guy's ass.
• "Die Hard" on the Enterprise : The Ur-Example of this as far as the Star Trek franchise goes (and there would be a lot more examples - we're looking at you, Enterprise ). Kirk and his crew have to sneak through the Enterprise to undermine Khan and his followers.
• Diagnosis from Dr. Badass : Dr. McCoy , with a newly-awakened Khan holding a scalpel to his throat, merely tells him that the recommended procedure for a quick kill would be to sever the carotid artery. After Khan praises McCoy for bravery, he simply states that it would be a quicker death than the jugular vein that was Khan's initial target.
• The 1990s-set Eugenics Wars are described by Spock as, "your last so-called world war." From this, we can presume that the Eugenics Wars is the conflict that's meant when Spock mentions World War III in " Bread and Circuses ." Of course, this would be retconned by Star Trek: The Next Generation , which moved World War III to the mid-21st century.
• The fact that sleeper ships became obsolete in 2018 would seem to imply that that's the year that Faster-Than-Light Travel was invented. James Blish 's 1968 episode novelization outright states that, "they didn't have the warp drive until then," and as late as 1985, The Official Star Trek Quiz Book places the discovery of warp drive in 2018. This is, of course, at odds with current canon, in which the warp drive was invented in 2063. Michael Okuda's official Retcon is that sleeper ships were made obsolete by "advances in sublight propulsion technologies," which seems unlikely given the vast distances in space. It is possible Marla is only referring to Solar System planets, which do currently take multiple years for Earth spacecraft to visit.
• Everyone Knows Morse : The Botany Bay is transmitting the letters "CQ", which Uhura recognizes immediately. To be fair, she is the Communications Officer, so knowing morse code is her job. However, Kirk appears to recognize Morse as well and even shuts Uhura down as she's translating it, saying "we're hearing it, Lieutenant" as if the entire bridge understands.
• Evil Counterpart : One of the reasons Khan became so popular; he is a perfect match for Kirk in both fighting prowess and strategic capability.
• Evil Overlord : Khan, with charisma to spare. You think this episode is bad, wait'll you see Wrath Of Khan!
• "Facing the Bullets" One-Liner : When Khan wakes up in sickbay, he purloins a scalpel; when Dr. McCoy returns he grabs him by the throat and holds it to his neck. Bones remains calm enough to respond, "Well, either choke me or cut my throat. Make up your mind!" Khan is impressed by his courage.
• One of the novels note  The two-volume The Eugenics Wars: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh by Greg Cox makes a truly heroic effort to fit it into real history, explaining how the wars could have happened with no one knowing about them (however that requires omitting a lot of the history the episode recounts on this).
• The Star Trek: Khan comic miniseries goes the Alternate History route instead, depicting Khan and his followers nuking Washington DC and Moscow — in 1992!
• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , meanwhile, suggests that the Eugenics Wars have been moved forward in time to the mid-21st century, overlapping with World War III, as a result of the Temporal Cold War. In the episode, " Tomorrow And Tomorrow And Tomorrow ", Khan is about 10 years old in 2022.
• This episode establishes that slower-than-light ships like the Botany Bay will be obsolete in 2018. In the actual year 2018, humanity did not have sleeper ships or even leave the solar system.
• Fangirl : McGivers is one for, as Khan puts it, "bold men from the past", such as Leif Erikson , Richard The Lion Heart , Napoléon Bonaparte , and Khan himself . She even draws Fan Art of them!
• Forced to Watch : In one of Khan's nastier moments, he makes the crew watch Kirk suffocate in an effort to force them to follow him. And he plans to break the crew by continuing to do so . Khan : Each of you in turn will go in there! Die, while the others watch!
• The fact that Khan's people are in stasis in a ship called the Botany Bay would raise alarm bells, as Botany Bay was a prison colony in Australia.
• Unintended at the time, but Spock's musing on what they would find upon returning to the planet on a later occasion essentially serves as a Sequel Hook leading into Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .
• Freudian Slip : Marla tells Khan how fascinated she is by men of...that is, the world of the past.
• Godwin's Law : Conspicuously inverted. Khan is frequently compared to historical figures, but they're all pre-20th century figures with mixed historical reputations like Alexander and Napoleon. He is never compared to 20th century figures like Hitler and Stalin, whose reputations are more firmly negative. Presumably, that would have ruined the theme about Khan being somewhat romanticized.
• The Guards Must Be Crazy : Khan, a superstrong megalomaniac, is being held in a room with one guard outside the door. He busts out and flattens the guard in short order. At least in the resulting trial, the Red Shirt bailiffs are too smart to allow that stunt again and have multiple ones holding him at phaser point to make sure he behaves himself.
• High-Heel–Face Turn : McGivers , after a manner of speaking. She still loves Khan, but she is unwilling to watch him execute her captain and the other officers.
• "I Can't Look!" Gesture : Uhura turns off the viewing screen on which Khan is showing them Kirk suffocating.
• Hey Kirk, really think it's a good idea to let the superpowered stranger get complete access to the technical blueprints of the ship?
• Hey Kirk, do you think the girl who is enamored with the ambitious superman who is able to manipulate people should be allowed to hang out with him that much?
• Hey Kirk, why is only one guard watching a genetically-enhanced superhuman?
• Hey Khan, what compelled you to let the only non-genetically superior member of your team, who explicitly expressed discontent in watching her former captain die, to roam freely within the ship at that precise moment?
• However, fifteen years later, Khan returns as the villain in the second Trek feature film, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . Not only do the events in that film greatly influence the rest of the TOS-era movies, but the second , third , and fourth films are popular enough to convince Paramount to launch the TNG era , which continue today in the Nu-Trek era. "Space Seed" and TWoK also set up several plot points for both the subsequent TV installments and the reboot movies .
• Taken together, all of this makes "Space Seed" possibly the most important episode in Trek history, elevating Star Trek itself from a popular 1960's science-fiction series, to a multi-billion dollar, global franchise.
• Khan as a dictator during the Eugenics Wars mentioned in this episode was initially treated as a Cryptic Background Reference in the distant past, with later parts of the franchise having to shuffle around the continuity due to handily lasting the 30 years needed to reach Khan's stated time period. Eventually it conflated the Eugenics Wars as one aspect of World War III that nearly destroyed Earth but set the stage for First Contact , with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds stating that Khan was at the center of it all (while also saying various Time Travel adventures has altered the details ).
• Instantly Proven Wrong : When the Enterprise first approaches the Botany Bay , Spock says that the mysterious vessel couldn't be from Earth... until Uhura picks up an Earth Distress Call . Kirk: I thought you said it couldn't possibly be an Earth vessel. Spock: I fail to understand why it always gives you pleasure to see me proven wrong. Kirk: An emotional Earth weakness of mine.
• Instant Sedation : Of the Knockout Gas variety. Khan escapes the briefing room before it can affect him. Scotty also escapes, but clearly got a mouthful and is noticeably weakened. And of course, Starfleet hyposprays can put even a genetically-engineered superman under before they're done hissing.
• Kick the Dog : One of Khan's men slaps Uhura after she refuses to follow one of Khan's orders. She shoots him a Death Glare in response.
• Kirk, as usual. Not even a silly little thing like suffocation can stop Jimmy-boy from serving up the ham.
• Khan has all the pomposity and charisma you'd expect from an Evil Overlord . Especially when you upset him.
• Letting Her Hair Down : Marla does this for Khan after he criticizes her updo.
• A Lighter Shade of Black : While still an Evil Overlord , Khan is said to have been the most benevolent of all the genetic supermen, ordering no massacres and never waging wars until he was attacked.
• Meaningful Name : The Botany Bay is named after Great Britain's first penal colony in Australia.
• Meditation Powerup : Khan performs some brief breathing exercises when he first regains enough strength to stand up and just before he prepares to forcibly pull the door of the quarters he's confined in open.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast : Come on, Kirk, his name is Khan . Why Don't Ya Just Shoot Him?
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero : The ending becomes this in retrospect, as it sets up the events of The Wrath of Khan .
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished : Kirk takes in Khan and his men after he finds them floating in space and on the verge of dying when their ship systems fail. Khan returns the favor by attempting to kill Kirk and take over his ship . Much, much later, in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , Chekov calls out Khan for this, pointing out that Khan and his people were marooned precisely because of this. Speaking of Kirk, not too much longer after said scene with Chekov, Kirk's son David gets murdered, immediately followed by the Enterprise 1701-nothing biting the dust. This all culminates in Kirk's demotion at the end of The Voyage Home.
• Pointed out by Spock In-Universe . The human command crew view Khan through distant centuries, remembering him from their history classes fondly as the least evil of the Eugenics Wars' genetic supermen and they have the impression he was 'firm but fair'. Spock has a different and, it turns out, more accurate perspective that Khan was still a ruthless tyrant. This is probably meant to reflect how people romanticize historical figures like Napoleon and, indeed, Genghis Khan, as well as the old saying that Mussolini 'made the trains run on time' (in fact, McGivers lovingly lists Napoleon as one of the figures whom Khan reminds her of).
• That said, Kirk argues that they may admire him on some level but are still aware of who he is. Given that episode ends with Kirk exiling him on a uncivilized planet, preventing him from harming anyone but still giving him a chance to create civilization on his terms, the story arguably supports his view of Khan more than Spock's (this also echoes what happened to Napoleon-he was exiled twice to different islands).
• Not Even Bothering with the Accent : Ricardo Montalban, a Spanish-Mexican actor, was playing a Punjabi Sikh, but made no attempt to sound like one.
• Obvious Stunt Double : The fight between Ricardo Montalbán 's stuntman and whoever was doubling for William Shatner (possibly Gary Combs).
• Obviously Evil : Khan might as well have "Supervillain" stamped on his forehead.
• Planet Baron : Khan becomes this after he is defeated but given a planet to colonize and rule, though we learn in The Wrath of Khan that the planet later died, prompting Khan to seek revenge on Kirk for marooning him there.
• Pride : Khan's Fatal Flaw .
• Prison Ship : Khan and his followers were put on the Botany Bay and launched out of the solar system. The ship is named after an Australian penal colony.
• Put on a Bus : Khan and his followers. It came back , though .
• Recycled Soundtrack : The creation of this episode evidently reused a lot of music from earlier episodes. For instance, most of the music used in this installment was taken from " Charlie X ", composed by Fred Steiner. Some of Alexander Courage's cues from " The Cage " were reused too, most notably the "Talosian illusion" theme. One piece of music from " Where No Man Has Gone Before " was reused in the climactic fight scene in Engineering between Kirk and Khan.
• Sacred Hospitality : Khan tramples all over it.
• Sealed Evil in a Can : Khan Noonien Singh and his cryogenically frozen followers.
• Sleeper Starship : Khan and his crew were kept in stasis aboard the Botany Bay due to it being launched before the warp drive was invented.
• Small Role, Big Impact : Within this episode Khan is a Villain of the Week , if quite a bit more complex and charismatic than most and concludes the story with a Worthy Opponent relationship with Kirk. This made him deemed viable to return as the Big Bad in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , which in turn has made him referenced in various forms across the rest of the franchise.
• Smug Super : Khan, full stop. He has no problem telling Kirk and Co. to their faces that they are "honestly inferior."
• The Social Darwinist : This is Khan full stop —and a large part of the reason he is so horrible.
• Stealth Pun : The Morse code signal that the Botany Bay is transmitting is "CQ" or "seek you." note  In ham radio circles this is a fairly standard way to request a conversation.
• Super-Speed Reading : One of Khan's powers, which he demonstrates by reading through over 200 years of history in the Enterprise's computer files in a matter of minutes.
• Super-Strength : To a minor degree. Khan brags that he has five times the strength of Kirk, a fit but average-sized man, and Bones says that in his professional medical opinion, Khan "can lift both of us with one arm." We see him pry knock out a guard in one punch, crush a phaser in his hands, pull open the door to his quarters on the Enterprise unaided, and effortlessly throw Kirk across the room.
• Sure, Let's Go with That : McGivers tells Khan, "I know exactly who you are," and Khan looks pretty worried until she continues, "Leif Ericsson, Richard the Lion-Heart, Napoleon..." and her other romanticized heroes, to Khan's immense relief.
• Take Over the World : Seemingly Khan's raison d'etre; in fact, he mentioned to his awakened followers that the entire universe could be theirs, once they have the Enterprise.
• Taking You with Me : With Khan's plan to take the Enterprise going south, he activates the Self-Destruct Mechanism , forcing Kirk to take him out and shut the sequence down.
• Temporary Substitute : Sulu doesn't appear in this episode. He was replaced by Makee K. Blaisdell as Lt. Spinelli.
• Too Annoyed to Be Afraid : After Khan wakes up, he grabs McCoy by the throat and holds a scalpel to his throat. McCoy shows no fear, tartly telling Khan to "either choke me or cut my throat, make up your mind".
• Übermensch : Khan and his followers are physically and mentally superior to ordinary humans.
• Virtue Is Weakness : When Marla McGivers asks to be excused from seeing her captain and the other officers executed, Khan comments "I had hoped you would be stronger."
• Would Hit a Girl : Khan and his underlings.
• The depiction is obviously cheesy, but the idea was that Kirk knew 23rd century fighting techniques far more advanced than anything Khan has ever seen. He's much stronger, but inexperienced.

Video Example(s):

S.s. botany bay.

Captain Kirk, Dr. McCoy, Scotty, and Lt. McGivers investigate an old sleeper ship from the year 1996.

Example of: Sleeper Starship

• Star Trek S1 E21 “The Return of the Archons”
• Recap/Star Trek: The Original Series
• Star Trek S1 E23 "A Taste of Armageddon"

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55 Years Ago: ‘Star Trek’ Fans Meet Supervillain Khan

On Feb. 16, 1967, Star Trek fans met possibly the most convincing villain of the entire franchise when the first-season episode “Space Seed” aired.

The USS Enterprise encountered a drifting ship, seemingly at least 200 years old, with confusing life signs detected within. Beaming across, Captain Kirk and his party discovered a crew of 84 humans in suspended animation, all but 12 of whom remained alive. Kirk rescued the leader from his failing life-support unit, and Khan Noonien Singh made his first impression in Gene Roddenberry’s universe.

Seeking at first to hide his identity, one of Khan’s first acts was to threaten the life of Dr. McCoy. Suspicions aroused, Kirk and Spock established that Khan was the leader of a genetically modified race of humans that ruled a large part of the world as a dictatorship during the eugenics wars of the 1990s, then escaped their fate on their sleeper ship, the Botany Bay .

After coming close to killing Kirk and briefly taking command of the Enterprise , Khan was finally captured and a trial was held aboard the ship. Kirk decided on leniency, offering Khan the chance to build a new society on an uninhabited planet. Agreeing to take historian Lt. Marla McGivers with him after she’d fallen under his spell and tried to help him steal the Enterprise , Khan accepted the offer by referring to a John Milton line: “Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heav’n.” As the war criminal left to begin a new life, Spock observed, “It would be interesting, Captain, to return to that world in 100 years and learn what crop had sprung from the seed you planted today.” Kirk replied: “Yes, Mr. Spock, it would indeed.”

Watch Khan Threaten McCoy on 'Star Trek'

The episode rates highly among fans and critics, and Ricardo Montalban’s performance as Khan retains a sharp tone all these years later. It does have its flaws, notably the way McGivers is depicted as a pushover for Khan, the fact that super-intelligent advanced humans can take over a starship but don’t know how to operate a viewscreen and the fight scene between Kirk and Khan where the stunt doubles’ faces are visible.

But in other terms, it delivers strongly. The respect shown between Kirk and Khan is notable, as is the development of the Kirk-Spock relationship, especially when the Vulcan expresses amazement that his shipmates admire their enemy and to be told by Kirk that humans “have a streak of barbarism in us,” whether they like it or not. It’s also the first episode where Scotty, played by James Doohan, began to become a main character in the show.

Watch Khan Argue With Spock on 'Star Trek'

“I don’t know how I was cast, except at that time they knew I had a fairly good physique,” Montalban said later , adding that there was a requirement for someone who had “proven he could act” but also had the appearance of a superman. He added that it was essential for him to understand the intent of writers Gene L. Coon and Carey Wilber - namely that Khan’s mission was “to conquer the Enterprise and rule the world.” “One of the most difficult things for an actor to do is what we call exposition – setting the stage … you have to use [your] humor, energy, inventiveness so that people don’t go [ yawn ]. And for seven years all I did on Fantasy Island was exposition. Setting the stage for somebody else. … There was never any emotion. That’s why, when I did Khan, I was able to really put the emotion out there!”

His emotion was so effective that, 15 years later, Montalban was invited to play the character again in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , which is generally regarded as the best of the original cast movies. “They went through all the villains,” Montalban recalled, explaining that after the mixed response to Star Trek: The Motion Picture , the producers knew they needed an enemy with more character than a computer. “When they came to mine, they said, ‘Wait a minute. It would be interesting to see what happened to him on that planet.’”

It was indeed, to the extent that it’s arguable that Star Trek could have permanently ended if the return of Khan wasn't such a success. The character returned in 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness – played by Benedict Cumberbatch  this time – and he’s been referred to in several spin-off series.

Watch Khan and Kirk Fight It Out on 'Star Trek'

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Why 'Star Trek' Kheeps Khoming Back to Khan

The iconic villain still haunts the Federation 55 years after his first appearance.

The genetically-engineered superhuman Khan Noonien Singh first entered the Star Trek universe in the classic Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Space Seed", originally a one-off villain that presented a formidable challenge for the crew of the Enterprise. Khan, and the episode itself, proved so popular that he reappeared, and continues to appear, directly or indirectly in almost all the Star Trek franchise’s movie and television properties. The question is, how does an antagonist who first appeared 55-years ago stand above other threats to the Federation?

Episode 22 of Star Trek: The Original Series' Season 1, "Space Seed" introduced actor Ricardo Montalban as Khan Noonien Singh, one of the first human villains in the series. Rescued by the Enterprise from the 200-year-old derelict ship SS Botany Bay, Khan is wakened from suspended animation. Despite Spock's ( Leonard Nimoy ) research that identifies Khan as a product of selective breeding, an augmented human who had helped conquer a third of the Earth in the Eugenics Wars of the 1990s, the rest of the command crew are captivated by their guest. His true nature is revealed when he coerces Lieutenant Marla McGyvers ( Madlyn Rhue ) into helping him waken the rest of his crew aboard the Botany Bay and take over control of the Enterprise. Kirk ( William Shatner ) eventually takes Khan out, regaining control of the Enterprise. He holds a hearing to judge the fate of Khan and his followers, but in a shocking turn he drops all charges, unwilling to see their potential wasted. He offers Khan a choice: join society as a commoner, or settle on the uninhabited, fertile planet Ceti Alpha V. Opting for the latter, Khan, his crew, and Lieutenant McGyvers are transported to the planet.

RELATED: How 'Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan' Is the Franchise's Most Human Story

Nothing that happens in the episode is believable without Montalban. He infuses Khan with a depth over and above that of a standard villain. He is charming and mysterious, selling his enchantment of the Enterprise crew with more than mere words. He is sly and intelligent, with Montalban's voice invoking a soothing tone atop a hint of malice. You believe Khan is more than a mere man, and you sense an air of authority about him.

And when Khan was brought back for 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , Montalban gave the performance of his life, hearkening back to the qualities he brought from "Space Seed" and more. Ceti Alpha V had been rendered uninhabitable due to a cataclysmic event on Ceti Alpha VI, taking the lives of many, including his wife. This Khan was outraged over the loss of his wife, furious that no one thought to check on their welfare, but still calculating, taking control of the USS Reliant and plotting his vengeance on Kirk in cold detail. His thirst for vengeance, and his rage at being thwarted by Kirk, would lead to his death. In bringing Khan back, Star Trek II single-handedly rescued the Star Trek movie franchise that started off with the disappointing Star Trek: The Motion Picture , delivered a fan-favorite entry that to this day tops many lists as the best of the Star Trek films, and brought, "It is very cold... in space" and "KHAAAAAAN!" to the movie-quote lexicon. Whoever didn't know Khan from his first appearance certainly knew, and flat-out loved, Khan now.

But, now he was dead. Short of turning the character into some sort of Federation Freddy Krueger, this great rival of Kirk and the crew was inaccessible. The successful reboot of the franchise with 2009's Star Trek led to hopeful speculation the character would be revived in the follow-up Star Trek: Into Darkness , and he was, but actor Benedict Cumberbatch is no Montalban. Apart from the controversial whitewashing of Khan, Cumberbatch just didn't have the same draw, the same charisma that was brought to the villain by Montalban, disappointing the fan base.

Yet Khan is now so iconic, his legacy withstood the setback of Darkness to open up story possibilities and pique interest in other Star Trek properties, with the mere mention of his name laying a foundation of exposition going in. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has a character named La’an Noonien Singh ( Christina Chong ), security officer, and the name alone has stirred up postulations on how the two are connected. Season 2 of Star Trek: Picard ended with Dr. Adam Soong ( Brent Spiner ) revealing a file labeled “Project Khan”, leading to even more hypotheses, and a subdued hope that maybe this opens the door for an actual encounter between Khan - maybe a clone or other similar augmented warlord — and Picard ( Patrick Stewart ).

The Star Trek universe is filled with a deep history of enemies that have risen to challenge Starfleet. The Klingon Empire, first introduced in the original series episode "Errand of Mercy" and a continual presence throughout Trek history. The Borg, who entered the franchise in Season 2 of Star Trek: The Next Generation (and the antagonists in Star Trek: First Contact , arguably the best of the TNG films). Gul Skrain G. Dukat ( Marc Alaimo ), the Cardassian that plagued Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . It's easy, though, to make aliens the enemy. There's already an inherent distrust of the unknown, so the mere suggestion that an alien is anything less than noble and honest makes for a quick trip down that rabbit hole. Additionally, time and time again the villains of the franchise are shown to be allies of the Federation when faced with a common threat, or become full-fledged members of Starfleet at some point in the franchise. Worf ( Michael Dorn ), the Klingon Chief Security Officer on board the USS Enterprise-D, or former Borg drone Seven of Nine ( Jeri Ryan ) all come to mind.

Khan, however, stands alone. His humanness is relatable. His charisma draws you in. His thirst for vengeance a cause for fear. Khan is irredeemable, but you believe in his desire to better the situation for those in his care. He continues to impact the world of Star Trek because Trek needs him to. Khan's history is a known history, and anything that touches on that history is guaranteed to capture the imagination of even the most casual of Trekkers in a way that others simply can not.

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Published Nov 24, 2019

He Tasks Us: Remembering Ricardo Montalban

The 'Wrath of Khan' actor would have been 99 this week.

StarTrek.com

Ricardo Montalban, one of Star Trek ’s greatest guest stars, made unforgettable appearances as Khan Noonien Singh in the :Space Seed” episode of Star Trek: The Original Series and in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . The beloved Mexican born actor was born on November 25, 1920, meaning he would have turned 99 years old this coming week. Sadly, he passed away in 2009, but we at StarTrek.com continue to honor his life and legacy with a look back at his life.

Montalban, born in Mexico City, Mexico, was the youngest of four children of Castilian Spaniards who had immigrated in 1906 , according to The Los Angeles Times . He ventured to Los Angeles as a teenager with his oldest brother, Carlos, who had lived in the city and worked for the studios. Montalban was already a star in his native Mexico when he was discovered by an American producer in 1942. He became a popular contract actor for MGM from 1945 to 1955, and starred alongside several of Hollywood's most glamorous leading ladies.

"When I first played Khan (on television) I really enjoyed it," Montalban told journalist Ian Spelling during a 1994 interview for the New York Times Syndicate . “The show was treated with all seriousness by everyone and that spirit got to me.”

Beyond Star Trek , Montalban was no doubt best known for his role as Mr. Roarke on the television series Fantasy Island . The show ran from 1978 to 1984. He also made a mark as a pitchman, appearing in many commercials touting the virtues of Chrysler’s Cordoba, including its “soft Corinthian leather.”

It was during Montalban’s sixth season of playing the composed, almost emotionless Mr. Roarke on Fantasy Island that he received the offer to reprise his role as Khan in The Wrath of Khan . "I was dying to do something other than Mr. Roarke," he told the New York Times Syndicate in 1994. "It was wonderful because Khan had become so passionate and consumed with avenging his wife's death by getting Kirk."

After a screening of The Wrath of Khan in 2012, Walter Koenig, called Montalban "a delightful man" and added, "That was his chest," drawing laughs. Koenig also shared a memorable story about a pre-shoot cocktail party. He and Montalban made small talk, and Montalban declared that they'd get on well. Montalban then asked Koenig who'd be playing Terrell. Koenig let his inner imp get the better of him. " Fernando Lamas ," he replied. Lamas, of course, was a Montalban contemporary and frequent competitor for roles. Despite his joke, Koenig and Montalban apparently did get on well during production.

Montalban’s long career encompassed the stage, screen and television. Along the way, he won an Emmy Award and was nominated for a Tony Award. He earned his Emmy, for Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Series, for a turn on How the West Was Won (1976). And his Tony nomination — as Best Actor in a Musical — came in 1958, when he co-starred opposite Lena Horne in the Broadway production of the Caribbean fantasy, Jamaica .

He served as vice president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1965-1970, and further, 1970, Montalban founded an organization called Nosotros to improve the image of Latinos and Hispanics in the entertainment industry, both in front and behind the camera, and to expand their employment opportunities in the industry.

The Ricardo Montalban Theatre opened in Hollywood in 2004 to serve as a training ground for artists and talents. It was the first major theater facility in the United States to carry the name of a Latino artist.

By the early 2000s, Montalban’s spinal problems required that he use a wheelchair. Still, he continued to work. He lent his voice to such animated series as Kim Possible, Family Guy and American Dad! , and he appeared on screen in Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams and Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over , with the magic of visual effects enabling him to fly in the latter family film.

Montalban’s Star on the Hollywood Walk of fame, awarded on February 8, 1960, can be found at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.

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Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan is getting an official prequel — in podcast form

Kirk and Khan’s story will be charted by director Nicholas Meyer

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Khan is returning to the Star Trek universe — you just won’t be able to see him.

Revealed during Paramount Plus’ Star Trek Day, Star Trek: Khan - Ceti Alpha V is a scripted podcast that will chart the events between the character’s appearance in the original series’ episode “Space Seed” and his vengeful emergence in the celebrated Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan . Nicholas Meyer, who directed Wrath of Khan , will spearhead the project, which will see Trek venture into the narrative podcast space for the first time.

Meyer’s storied career in the Star Trek universe only began with the Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan . After the movie’s box office success, Meyer stepped away to other projects, but found himself lured back as a co-writer for another celebrated installment: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Then, in 2016, Bryan Fuller recruited him to work on what would eventually become Star Trek: Discovery . The show saw its fair share of upheaval, with Fuller eventually departing the project and the Trek’s current overseer, Alex Kurtzman, using it to jumpstart an entire slate of franchise projects. And while Meyer was not involved with subsequent seasons of Discovery , Picard , or Strange New Worlds , he’s been lingering in the Trek quadrant; earlier this year, he told TrekMovie that he was actively working on a new Trek movie pitch , while also remaining in talks with Kurtzman. Whether the podcast is a new evolution of that pitch is unclear, but Meyer’s commitment to Trek is unquestionable.

“Nick made the definitive Trek movie when he made Wrath , and we’ve all been standing in its shadow since,” said Kurtzman in a statement. “Forty years have offered him a lot of perspective on these extraordinary characters and the way they’ve impacted generations of fans. Now he’s come up with something as surprising, gripping and emotional as the original, and it’s a real honor to be able to let him tell the next chapter in this story exactly the way he wants to.”

Though in development, the project was announced without a clear release date or any casting, which should leave Trek fans appropriately on edge. Though Ricardo Montalbán and William Shatner’s respective portrayals of Khan and Kirk remain iconic in their own right, they aren’t sacred ground; Benedict Cumberbatch portrayed a reimagined version of Khan in Star Trek Into Darkness , while Chris Pine has played Kirk in three rebooted Trek movies. A new version of Kirk, played by Paul Wesley, will be introduced in Strange New Worlds season 2. Anything goes in this new era of Trek.

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Star Trek: The Original Series: Khan #3: To Reign in Hell Paperback – May 23, 2006

• Book 3 of 3 Star Trek: The Eugenics Wars
• Print length 384 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Star Trek
• Publication date May 23, 2006
• Dimensions 4.5 x 1.25 x 7 inches
• ISBN-10 0743457129
• ISBN-13 978-0743457125
• See all details

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About the author, product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Star Trek (May 23, 2006)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0743457129
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0743457125
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.4 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.5 x 1.25 x 7 inches
• #17,654 in Space Operas
• #20,079 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction
• #28,755 in Science Fiction Adventures

About the authors

Gene roddenberry.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Greg Cox (born 1959) is an American writer of science fiction, including works that are media tie-ins. He lives in Oxford, Pennsylvania.

He has written numerous Star Trek novels, including The Eugenics Wars (Volume One and Two), The Q Continuum, Assignment: Eternity, and The Black Shore. His short fiction can be found in such anthologies as Star Trek: Tales of the Dominion War, Star Trek: The Amazing Stories and Star Trek: Enterprise logs. His first "Khan" novel, The Eugenics Wars: Volume One, was voted best sci-fi book of the year by the readers of Dreamwatch magazine. Cox can be found in a bonus feature on the "Director's Edition" DVD of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

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Star Trek: The Original Series episode guides - All TOS episodes rated, reviewed

In those days before the Federation had continuity, there was Star Trek: The Original Series. Watch the TOS stories in any other you wish; it rarely matters, as essentially every single episode in TOS is a bottle episode. Ultimately, however, many TOS episodes are retconned into prequel stories (e.g. “The Menagerie”, “Space Seed”, “City on the Edge of Forever”), sequels (e.g. “Mirror Mirror”) or even crossovers (“The Trouble with Tribbles”) for the other series and movies.

Star Trek: The Original Series – the seaons, the key episodes

Season 1 – In the 1960s, TV was a different beast. Serialization (and thus continuity) was essentially non-existent. Each story plays out over a single episode only (with one exception in three years of Star Trek), thereby not allowing for much character development each season of Star Trek’s original run is really barely indistinguishable from another – but at lest that means that season 1 isn’t filled with the “growing pains” every other ST series goes through. The biggest highlights in Star Trek’s first year has got to be “The Menagerie” (episode #s 11 and 12), an eerie story of Captain Kirk’s doomed mentor Captain Pike, and “City on the Edge of Forever” (#29), a neat twist on the traditional “preserve the past” time travel tale. Also of note: “Space Seed” (#22), the introduction of Star Trek II baddie Khan.

Season 2 – Ensign Chekov joins the bridge crew for season 2, which manages to have some fun in the explicitly comic “Trouble with Tribbles” (#15) and the absolutely bananas “Assignment: Earth” (#26). And Spock fans dig on “Amok Time” (#1) and Journey to Babel (#10) for the info doled on that wacky Vulcan culture.

Season 3 – As mentioned above, a fan campaign saved Star Trek for a third series, but NBC executives were not enthused about supporting the marginally successful series and cut the show’s operating budget in half. However, Star Trek Guide must say that tripling the budget could not save scripts like those for “Spock’s Brain” (Can all Vulcans live without a brain or just Spock?), “Specter of the Gun” (Scotty’s dead because he *thinks* he’s dead?) and “The Savage Curtain” (Kirk, Spock, Vulcan hero Surak and Abe Lincoln vs. Genghis Khan, Klingon Empire founder Kahless, 21st-century Earth dictator Mr. Green – who did it in the kitchen with a revolver – and fuzzy chick Zora?) Dude.

Screen Rant

Wrath of khan would've been ruined by a rejected star trek: tng episode.

A spec script for TNG would have pit Picard's Enterprise against a resurrected Khan, undermining his character and ruining the end of Star Trek 2.

• Khan Noonien Singh's legacy was almost tarnished in a rejected Star Trek: TNG episode.
• TNG's final movie, Nemesis, effectively remade Wrath of Khan with Picard and Data.
• A potential fifth TNG movie involving Khan never materialized due to the failure of Nemesis.

A rejected storyline for Star Trek: The Next Generation would have undermined Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban) and ruined the ending of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . Widely considered to be one of the best Star Trek movies of all time, The Wrath of Khan has left a lasting impression on the franchise to this day. There have been many attempts to recapture the spirit of the acclaimed Star Trek: The Original Series movie, with the most notable being J.J. Abrams' controversial Wrath of Khan remake, Star Trek into Darkness .

Star Trek: The Next Generation is also guilty of revisiting Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan in pursuit of a great movie idea. The final TNG movie, Star Trek: Nemesis , effectively remade Khan with two Star Trek: TNG characters fulfilling the roles of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Captain Spock (Leonard Nimoy). In Nemesis , Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is faced with an implacable enemy, while Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) sacrifices himself to save the crew of the starship Enterprise. However, this wasn't the only time that Picard and Data revisited The Wrath of Khan .

Star Trek’s Khan Noonien Singh Strange New Worlds & TOS History Explained

Star trek: tng's unmade khan episode explained, somehow, khan returned, and fought the next generation of the starship enterprise..

In 2017, Vulture revealed that writer-producer Marc Bernardin sent a spec script to the Star Trek: The Next Generation production office that was entitled "Past Present" . The episode was set up as a sequel to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , but with a wild twist ending. From what Bernardin remembered, the story involved the USS Enterprise-D navigating an unpopulated region of space, when they're attacked by a mysterious foe. With the Enterprise disabled, their enemy is revealed as Khan Noonien-Singh, who was resurrected by Star Trek 2 's Genesis device .

Marc Bernardin was the supervising producer on Star Trek: Picard season 2, which suggested that one of Data's ancestors was involved in the creation of Khan Noonien Singh and his fellow Augments.

By the end of the speculative episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation , it was revealed that Khan was not alive, and was actually a holographic reproduction created by Data to test the crew's battle-readiness. Picard, concerned about the crew growing rusty while navigating an unpopulated region of space, inadvertently ordered Data to create his elaborate simulation, complete with inertial dampener manipulation. While the return of Ricardo Montalban would have been a draw for audiences, the reveal that he was merely part of what Bernardin called "a big-ass motion simulator ride" would have seriously undermined his ending.

Star Trek Also Wanted To Bring Back Khan For A TNG Movie

Khan could have returned in tng's unmade fifth movie..

Star Trek: Nemesis was never planned to be the end of the Star Trek: The Next Generation movies, so screenwriter John Logan and Data actor Brent Spiner began plotting a fifth entry. John Logan and Brent Spiner's " Justice League of Star Trek " pitch would have teamed up Tom Hardy's Shinzon with Khan Noonien Singh, and some other franchise super villains. To combat the threat posed by Star Trek 's super villain team-up, Picard goes back through time to get the assistance of Captain Kirk and Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula).

The expense involved in Logan and Spiner's pitch for a fifth Star Trek: The Next Generation movie, and the failure of Star Trek: Nemesis at the box office meant that the story was never developed further. That was definitely for the best, as it sounds like it would have repeated many of the flaws of Nemesis , namely too much focus on Picard and Data at the expense of the rest of the Enterprise's crew. The biggest flaw in the " Justice League " concept, however, was that Kirk and Khan had already had their greatest battle in the unimpeachable Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is available to stream on Max.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.

A Complete Timeline of Star Trek

Star Trek stands as one of the most enduring and influential pop-culture franchises on the planet. From a comparatively humble cult TV series, it has expanded into an entire universe of speculative future history encompassing dozens of movies and TV shows. With more projects on the way, it doesn't look to slow down anytime soon. That can lead to a convoluted timeline, particularly in the early days when no one expected it to last as long as it has.

Star Trek: The Original Series producers didn't worry about what came before or after their show, and series creator Gene Roddenberry had a way of simply ignoring episodes he considered sub-par. Writers Michael and Denise Okuda are largely credited with firmly establishing a canonical Star Trek timeline during the expansion of the franchise following Star Trek: The Next Generation . That's resulted in a definable, if complicated, fictional history to chart the rise of the United Federation of Planets and its development through centuries of galactic history. Here's a breakdown of the Star Trek in-universe timeline, divided roughly by era.

The Early Years of Star Trek's Timeline Are Vague

Wrath of khan creates star trek's biggest plot hole, and the real-life explanation is hilarious.

The early years of Star Trek 's timeline run into a number of real-world continuity issues. This was most notable with the Eugenics Wars , which originally took place in the 1990s, but has since been retconned to an indeterminate point in the future. They're linked to the rise of genetically augmented humans who conquer and rule much of the planet, led by the notorious Khan Noonien Singh. The Eugenics Wars culminate in a Third World War, and the ensuing nuclear apocalypse all but destroys civilization. Khan and his followers escape the planet in a stasis ship, and await their rendezvous with Captain Kirk in The Original Series episode, "Space Seed."

The most important event after that arrives on April 5, 2063, subsequently known as First Contact Day. As depicted in Star Trek: First Contact , scientist Zefram Cochrane develops a faster-than-light engine and tests it in his vessel, the Phoenix . A Vulcan survey vessel notices the feat and makes first contact with Cochrane in Bozeman, Montana that evening. With the Vulcans' help, humanity quickly gets back on its feet. Hunger and poverty are eliminated by the early 22nd century, and even war itself has ended on the planet by 2113. A world government is established in 2150, uniting the globe under a single unifying body for the first time in human history.

Enterprise Reveals The Founding of the Federation

Why star trek: enterprise used shuttles instead of transporters.

The events of Star Trek: Enterprise begin just one year later, in 2151, as humanity launches its first earnest efforts to explore the galaxy. Captain Archer and the crew of the Enterprise spearhead the effort, resulting in key first contact with such important species as the Andorians and the Tellarites. It also comes with new conflicts, notably the Xindi crisis of 2153 which lasts for nearly a year. That is followed in 2156 by the Earth-Romulan War , which stretches out over four years. Humanity, Andorians, Vulcans, and Tellarites all join forces against the common threat, resulting in the defeat of the Romulans and the establishment of the Neutral Zone.

The victory leads immediately to the founding of the United Federation of Planets in San Francisco in the year 2161, organized by the four victorious species. Several decades of peaceful exploration and expansion follow, led by Starfleet vessels who set out to explore in the name of peace, coexistence, and scientific understanding. That marks the end of the events of Star Trek: Enterprise and a relative blank spot in the timeline for a little less than a century.

The 23rd Century Brings War, Peace, and The Original Series

The complete history of vulcans in the federation era of star trek.

With the exception of a few peripheral events, the next few decades are quiet as far as canon events go. The timeline picks up again properly with the beginning of Star Trek: Discovery as open war breaks out between the Federation and the Klingon Empire in the year 2256 . The war lasts for a year and proves costly to both sides, ending thanks to efforts of the USS Discovery to stabilize the political situation in the Empire. The Discovery vanishes approximately one year later during the battle with the rogue AI Control , jumping ahead in time to the 32nd century in the process.

With the end of the war comes another era of peaceful expansion and exploration. That encompasses the events of both Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek: The Original Series , as Starfleet "boldly goes where no one has gone before." As the 23rd century continues, the franchise shifts to the first six big-screen Star Trek movies. That culminates in the events of Star Trek VI in 2293, resulting in the Khitomer Accords and long-term peace with the Klingon Empire . Captain Kirk is presumed dead a short time later as depicted in the movie Star Trek: Insurrection , officially bringing The Original Series era to a close.

The Next Generation Kicks off The 24th Century

10 best star trek: the next generation characters.

The early decades of the 24th century are another blank spot in the Star Trek calendar, marked by a few notable events but otherwise leaving a good deal open for speculation. The most important development during that time is the Battle of Narendra III in 2344 , where the Federation vessel USS Enterprise-C sacrifices itself to defend a Klingon colony from Romulan attackers. This results in a formal alliance between the Federation and the Klingons.

Star Trek: The Next Generation officially begins in the year 2364, with the Federation enjoying a golden age of peace and prosperity. The Enterprise-D under Captain Picard serves as Starfleet's flagship, conducting missions of diplomacy and peaceful exploration. The Enterprise first encounters the Borg in 2366 , during The Next Generation's Season 2 episode "Q Who." The Borg invade the Federation a year later, and come within a hair's breadth of destroying the Earth before the Enterprise crew saves the day during the Season 4 premiere, "The Best of Both Worlds Part II."

The Dominion War and the Delta Quadrant Mark DS9 and Voyager

How star trek: the next generation disserviced this fan-favorite character.

In 2369, a stable wormhole to the unexplored Gamma Quadrant opens near the planet of Bajor, kicking off the events of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . What at first seems a conduit to a whole new sector of space soon becomes an existential threat. The Dominion is a powerful totalitarian government in the Gamma Quadrant ruled by a species of shape-shifting Changelings. The Dominion sets its sites on the Alpha Quadrant , and launches an invasion in 2373. The Federation is forced to rally its long-time foes in the Romulan Empire to its side, who join with Starfleet and the Klingons to finally defeat the Dominion in 2375.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Borg launch another attack on Earth in 2373, and again come perilously close to assimilating the entire Federation before Jean-Luc Picard and his crew put a stop to them during the events of Star Trek: First Contact. Amid it all, the USS Voyager vanishes in the year 2371, having been flung into the far reaches of the Delta Quadrant and launching a seven-year journey to return to Federation space.

The 24th Century Ends with Peace and Old Enemies

Star trek: lower decks paid off a deep space nine character arc.

The end of the Dominion War marks the beginning of another extended period of Federation-led peace. Voyager returns from its long journey in 2378 , and the Enterprise averts a surprise attack from the Romulan Empire in 2379 during the events of Star Trek: Insurrection . Beyond that, peace prevails, which leads the way to lighter Star Trek series such as Star Trek: Lower Decks (which begins in 2381) and Star Trek: Prodigy (which begins in 2383).

That comes to an end with the implosion of the Romulan Empire, whose sun is doomed and whose most militant factions sabotage any chance at Federation aid by orchestrating the destruction of the Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards on April 5, 2385. Two years later, the Romulan sun goes nova, seemingly killing Mr. Spock, who was attempting to halt the explosion and creating the Kelvinverse timeline of the 2010s big-screen Star Trek movies. It renders the Romluans a scattered and defeated people. Jean-Luc Picard is able to repair some of the damage done to the two powers in Star Trek: Picard, Season 1, then rejoin with his crewmates in Season 3 to defeat a unified Dominion/Borg attack on the Federation in the year 2402.

The Far Future Beckons

'we broke barriers': star trek: discovery star celebrates show's diversity.

Star Trek canon comes to a halt at the beginning of the 25th century after the events of Picard Season 3. That leaves a vast stretch of centuries that have not yet been defined in Star Trek canon, and will presumably be filled in by series to come. In that time, the Federation continues to expand until it is more than double the size it was in the 24th century. Then disaster strikes in the form of an event called The Burn, which instantly renders all dilithium in the galaxy inert in the year 3069. Every active warp engine detonates, causing widespread disaster and rendering interstellar travel exponentially more difficult.

The arrival of the Discovery in the year 3188 -- beginning with the premiere in Season 3 -- changes all of that. After destroying the tyrannical Emerald Chain, Captain Michael Burnham and her crew set about restoring the shattered Federation, which leads to the events of Discovery's final three seasons. With the series bowing out at the end of Season 5, subsequent Star Trek projects will have a new final frontier in the 32nd century -- uncluttered by earlier shows -- thanks to the leap forward in time.

Star Trek is currently streaming on Paramount+.

The Star Trek universe encompasses multiple series, each offering a unique lens through which to experience the wonders and perils of space travel. Join Captain Kirk and his crew on the Original Series' voyages of discovery, encounter the utopian vision of the Federation in The Next Generation, or delve into the darker corners of galactic politics in Deep Space Nine. No matter your preference, there's a Star Trek adventure waiting to ignite your imagination.

Created by Gene Roddenberry

First Film Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Latest Film Star Trek: Nemesis

First TV Show Star Trek: The Original Series

Latest TV Show Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Cast Nichelle Nichols, Scott Bakula, Kate Mulgrew, Jonathan Frakes, Patrick Stewart, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Avery Brooks, Deforest Kelley, James Doohan

TV Show(s) Star Trek: Animated, Star trek, Star Trek Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek Lower Decks, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Prodigy, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Trek: Lower Decks

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

The Savage Curtain

• Episode aired Mar 7, 1969

Kirk, Spock, Abraham Lincoln and Vulcan legend Surak are pitted in battle against notorious villains from history for the purpose of helping a conscious rock creature's understanding of a co... Read all Kirk, Spock, Abraham Lincoln and Vulcan legend Surak are pitted in battle against notorious villains from history for the purpose of helping a conscious rock creature's understanding of a concept he does not understand, "good vs. evil". Kirk, Spock, Abraham Lincoln and Vulcan legend Surak are pitted in battle against notorious villains from history for the purpose of helping a conscious rock creature's understanding of a concept he does not understand, "good vs. evil".

• Herschel Daugherty
• Gene Roddenberry
• Arthur Heinemann
• Arthur H. Singer
• William Shatner
• Leonard Nimoy
• DeForest Kelley
• 29 User reviews
• 11 Critic reviews

• Captain James Tiberius 'Jim' Kirk

• Mister Spock

• Chief Security Guard
• (as Carol Daniels DeMent)

• (as Robert Herron)
• Ghengis Khan
• Lieutenant Hadley
• (uncredited)

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia Lincoln tells Kirk, "There is no honorable way to kill, no gentle way to destroy. There is nothing good in war, except its ending." This speech, written by the Star Trek screen writers, has become so popular that some people mistakenly believe it to be something the real Abraham Lincoln said.
• Goofs Mr. Lincoln asks Captain Kirk, "Do you still measure time in minutes?", to which Kirk replies, "We can convert to it, sir." Hours and minutes are used regularly in the Trek Universe.

Abraham Lincoln : [interrupting] What a charming negress. Oh, forgive me, my dear. I know that in my time some use that term as a description of property.

Uhura : But why should I object to that term, sir? You see, in our century, we've learned not to fear words.

• Alternate versions Special Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
• Connections Featured in Bring Back... Star Trek (2009)
• Soundtracks Theme Music credited to Alexander Courage Sung by Loulie Jean Norman

User reviews 29

• sambase-38773
• Dec 30, 2021
• March 7, 1969 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• Stage 32, Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
• Paramount Television
• Norway Corporation
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 51 minutes

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Star Trek Just Doubled Down on Its Wildest Body-Switching Concept

Welcome back to Trill.

Body switching is a classic sci-fi trope. From Freaky Friday to Farscape , and of course, most of Quantum Leap, the idea of the consciousness from one person inhabiting the body of a different person will never stop being the fuel for speculative stories that are both hilarious and profound. But, when Star Trek invented the “joined” species of the Trill in 1991, it took the body-switching/body-surfing trope to a new level. While a specific Trill symbiont might live for several hundreds of years, this slug-like creature generally inhabited a humanoid host. This “joining” often created a new hybrid personality each time, sort of like Time Lord regeneration from Doctor Who mashed up with internal alien parasites from Alien; a chest-burster that never burst, but just stayed in you forever.

And if all of that wasn’t wild enough, on June 12, in the episode “Facets,” 1995, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine added a new wrinkle to Trill canon. Not only were the memories of all the previous hosts alive and well in the current symbiont, but, through a process called “zhian’tara,” a specific host’s personality could leave the symbiont and enter into the body of... anyone! Basically, this was Trill joining via spacey magic, and now, 29 years after “Facets,” Star Trek: Discovery is doubling down (tripling down?) on this very specific form of consciousness transfer in the Season 5 episode “Jinaal.” Spoilers ahead.

The Trill host trick

Dax and Odo discuss sharing memories in “Facets.”

Although the Trill were established in The Next Generation episode “The Host,” the vast majority of Trill canon comes from Deep Space Nine , thanks to the presence of Jadzia Dax, who later, in Season 7, switched hosts and became Ezri Dax. But, in the memorable Season 3 episode “Facets,” Jadzia’s previous host, Curzon, left her body through the zhian’tara process and settled in the body of the station’s resident shapeshifter, Odo. From that point, Odo’s entire personality was merged with Curzon’s, which put everyone on the station in a deeply uncomfortable position.

As a stand-alone episode of DS9 , “Facets” remains a fantastic story about memory, regret, and what one generation owes the next. But, the legacy of “Facets” is easily the concept of zhian’tara, which was used to save Gray Tal’s consciousness in Discovery Season 4, and now, in Season 5, is being employed again to unravel an 800-year-old mystery.

Discovery’s return to Trill

Cubler (Wilson Cruz) takes on an ancient Trill tradition in Discovery Season 5.

The planet Trill was first seen in DS9 in the episode “Equilibrium,” but Discovery has actually visited the planet more times, starting in the Season 3 episode “Forget Me Not,” and now again, in “Jinaal.” This time the need to transfer the memories of one previous Trill host into someone else is all connected to the secrets Jinaal Bix has about researcher of the Progenitors in the 24th century.

After transferring Jinaal’s consciousness into Culber, the entire personality of our stalwart Starfleet doctor changes, and, just like “Facets,” he suddenly becomes cockier, and more evasive. If you watch “Facets” right after watching “Jinaal,” the parallels are clear. While Curzon’s secret was connected to something personal, Jinaal’s secret has broader implications. Turns out, Federation scientists were working on cracking the Progenitor tech during the era of the Dominion War, and so they decided to bury any knowledge of the technology to prevent any planet or government from weaponizing their research.

Interestingly, this detail dovetails with Picard Season 3 a bit, in which we learned that Section 31 was pushing different Federation scientists to weaponize the organic nature of Changelings. Basically, the Dominion War created a lot of corrupt scientific research within the Federation, making the top-secret Daystrom labs that Riker, Raffi, and Worf raided perhaps just a small sample of the horrible top-secret weapons the Federation has developed.

What Discovery does is make it clear that Jinaal did the right thing at the time by hiding the research — even if that doesn’t help our heroes at the moment.

A classic Original Series nod

Sargon enters Kirk’s body in “Return to Tomorrow.”

Of course, within the canon of Trek, the Trill weren’t the first time the franchise explored the concept of sharing consciousness. Spock transferred his katra to Bones in The Wrath of Khan , and Kirk switched bodies with Janice Lester in the controversial final TOS episode “Turnabout Intruder.”

But, one wonderful 1968 episode from TOS Season 2 — “Return to Tomorrow” — featured ancient beings borrowing the bodies of Kirk, Spock, and Dr. Ann Mulhall in order to build more permanent, android bodies. When the ancient being of Sargon enters Kirk’s body, one of the first things he says is: “Your captain has an excellent body.”

Now, 56 years later, when Jinaal finds himself in Culber’s body, he says something similar: “Wow, this guy really works out!”

Across decades of internal canon, Star Trek can make the same body-switching joke, and make it work, in any century.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 drops new episodes on Fridays on Paramount+.

• Science Fiction

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Teases A Muppets Episode, And We Hope They're Not Joking

"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" might be considered the most lighthearted show in the vast canon of "Trek." It's a series that returned to an episodic structure, allowing its stories to conclude at the end of an hour, rather than stretching them across an entire season — and sometimes well past their breaking point. The old-world structure has allowed the showrunners to experiment with genre in ways not previously tried on "Star Trek." One episode may be a body-swap comedy, while the next is a terse horror tale. There are a few steely, soul-crushing wartime dramas sprinkled throughout, but their headiness is leavened by lightweight time-travel stories, party-animated crossovers, and an episode in which Spock becomes a human and eats too much bacon . The most notorious "Strange New Worlds" episode is likely "Subspace Rhapsody," a full-on musical . 

Trekkies who prefer more professional, mature characters may bristle a little at the constant levity of "Strange New Worlds," but the writing is slick enough on the show to offset any legitimate concerns. The characters are strong, the nostalgia is wielded correctly ("Strange New Worlds" features mostly legacy characters), and the plots are classically "Trek," no matter the genre. 

In a profile on the current state of "Star Trek" printed in Variety , the current regime of showrunners said that they're not done experimenting. "Strange New Worlds" is currently between its second and third seasons, and ideas are being floated for what might lie ahead. Director Jonathan Frakes noted that he's working on a murder mystery episode. And, although it was only a joke, executive producer Akiva Goldsman floated the idea of a Muppet episode. "As long as we're in storytelling that is cogent and sure handed, I'm not sure there is," Goldsman said with an impish smile. "Could it do Muppets? Sure. Could it do black and white, silent, slapstick? Maybe!"

Given the tone of "Strange New Worlds," there's no reason this couldn't happen.

Pigs in spaaaaaace!

I'm sure Goldsman meant felt puppet characters on "Star Trek," and not literally the Disney-owned Muppet characters. My deepest apologies to those who wanted to see Captain Pike (Anson Mount) converse with Kermit the Frog, or Spock (Ethan Peck) butting heads with Sam the Eagle. Plus, the Muppets already had their own sci-fi segment via their "Pigs in Space" shorts that date back to the original "Muppet Show." The ship on "Pigs in Space" was called the Swine Trek, so the two franchises are already somewhat chummy. 

There was also precedent for a Muppet episode of a mainstream sci-fi/fantasy show in an "Angel" episode called "Smile Time" from 2004. In that episode, the titular vampire (David Boreanaz) is transformed into a living Muppet-like puppet creature by an eerie magical egg. As a puppet, Angel and his compatriots must do battle with the makers of a demonic children's show. Don't worry: Puppet Angel returns to normal after a few days. "Angel" is a show about vampires and spells, so turning a character into a puppet is more narratively organic than whatever situation might arise for it to potentially happen on a science-based program like "Star Trek." 

But then, if "Star Trek" can orchestrate technobabble to explain a musical episode, a puppet episode wouldn't be too far behind. The tone of "Strange New Worlds" matches the whimsical lightness of "Angel" anyway, so the showrunners have every excuse to make good on Goldsman's little joke. 

And, yes, Trekkies would love to see a silent episode. But a quick reminder: "Star Trek: Voyager" already did a few black and white episodes.