When and how did you become a Star Trek fan?

[Gary7]

You can put me down as another one who can't remember a time without being a fan. I grew up with my mum and grandparents (and for some time my uncle lived at home too). My granddad was the only one who wasn't a fan, so I grew up with TOS repeats on the BBC.

Well, consider yourself lucky! My stepfather's typical reaction when coming into the TV room and seeing me watching Star Trek: "Jamieeee, he's watching Star Trek again!". Even though I had "1st dibs" by being in the middle of watching a show, if there was something he wanted to watch at the same time, I had to step aside. We didn't have a 2nd TV and no VCR at the time. At the point where I'd come up with the idea of recording the audio of Star Trek episodes by putting my cassette recorder external microphone up near the TV speaker, there were times he'd come into the room and sit down with a newspaper. You could hear him coughing and flipping the newspaper pages on the audio, essentially ruining it. I tried asking him to try being quiet as I was recording and he'd get mad at me and rustle the papers even more. The day we got a VCR couldn't come fast enough, and thankfully they did just a few years later.

So my being a Star Trek fan wasn't exactly an asset in my family. I only ever received criticism for it, not support or praise. I'd bought a few Star Trek spaceship models and built them... "why don't you build something that's from our time, not fantasy?" Getting out of the house and on my own finally allowed me to freely enjoy Star Trek without criticism hanging over my shoulder.

 

[Admiral2]

My grandfather also had a negative reaction to Star Trek. Whenever I was staying with my grandparents and he would see me watching TOS he would invariably say "You still watchin' them old phony pitchers?" (Exact quote). It was a bone of contention between us. It would be years before I would be as cynical as he was and could see his point.

 

[Yassa Justice]

After i watched the first JJTrek movie.

 

[guyute03]

Became a fan as a kid watching TOS episodes on re-run with my Dad, but TNG is when it was solidified. That show made me a Trek & Sci-Fi fan for life... and DS9 became the show I grew into adulthood with. DS9 also my favorite TV show ever.

 

[rahullak]

They used to show TNG intermittently on Star World in the late nineties here in India. That piqued my interest. Once the show came on regularly in the beginning of the next millennium, I was hooked. I only ever watched TNG for about 7 years (intermittently). Began and completed DS9, VOY and ENT between 2008-10. Began seriously getting into the Litverse in that same period. Now I am a fan despite the almost total lack of Trek interest in India. Though not to the extent of collectibles and visiting cons.

 

[Kilana2]

They used to show TNG intermittently on Star World in the late nineties here in India. That piqued my interest. Once the show came on regularly in the beginning of the next millennium, I was hooked. I only ever watched TNG for about 7 years (intermittently). Began and completed DS9, VOY and ENT between 2008-10. Began seriously getting into the Litverse in that same period. Now I am a fan despite the almost total lack of Trek interest in India. Though not to the extent of collectibles and visiting cons.

Despite the lack of Trek interest in India Star Trek is still a global phenomenon. It has fans all over the world.

 

[SlytherinCarlin17]

I listened to the Star Trek (Kelvin) movie on in the background while I was out in the living room as my dad watched it. I didn't think it was very interesting until my mom and dad started having a discussion about it and how it differed or was similar to the Original Series. I ended up watching it in my room a few weeks later, and was hooked on Karl Urban as Bones. I wanted to explore a 'ship' that came to me, and there were SO many stories.

I started watching the OS, and couldn't help but get invested even though at the same time I was laughing at how campy the show was. The Gorn episode had me rolling. But I watched every episode of the OS, then got through the first movies, and caught Voyage Home on the TV and cackled about the whales. It was just ludicrous, but I was hooked on the franchise and I haven't looked back. My plan is to watch every single episode of every ST show available.

 

[RPOW0614]

I always assumed I saw the first episode when it first aired. Doing a little research before writing this tells me I was only 4 when the original series premiered so I guess I first saw the show when it went into syndication a few years later. My earliest memory of Trek is the spinning cube from "The Corbomite Maneuver".

I have to credit my mom getting me hooked. I loved the sci-fi, she loved Shatner. Don't get me wrong, she was a life long sci-fi fan and avid reader, she just had a crush on "The Shat", LOL.

I have been a fan ever since. Except for a few clunker episodes that all of the different incarnations have had and a couple of bad movies, I have enjoyed this show almost all of my life.

 

[publiusr]

So my being a Star Trek fan wasn't exactly an asset in my family. I only ever received criticism for it, not support or praise.

My parents were between that extreme to neutral at times.

Getting out of the house and on my own finally allowed me to freely enjoy Star Trek without criticism hanging over my shoulder.

My folks were up in years when they adopted me--not in good health. Trek got me in an optimistic mood.

 

[Greg Cox]

I gotta admit, this thread is making me very grateful for my parents, who always encouraged my interest in sci-fi, comic books, and horror. It was my dad who introduced to me to this stuff, but even my mom, who didn't understand SF at all, never had a problem with it. As long as my grades were good, what I watched on TV or read for pleasure didn't matter.

I think the only restriction they ever imposed was to politely ask me not to read my SON OF SATAN comic books at Grandma's house.

(At home was fine.)

 

[Mareika]

Interesting that there are so many people out here who became Star Trek fans by watching the Original series.I for myself can`t get in this.I tried, but it`s so old. I love some of the movies though.

 

[Greg Cox]

I for myself can`t get in this.I tried, but it`s so old.

So are we.

Trust me, back in the 1960s, we weren't going, "Ooh, this is so old."

 

[CaptainMurdock]

I caught a rerun of The Original Series back in fall of 2007. I was 16. I only knew about TNG, DS9 and VOY vaguely. I had no idea the original series existed. I only remember Berman era trek which when I was really young I dismissed as basically "Star Wars for old people." As I grew older I found I like older television shows, they really know how to capture the imagination. Anyway It was around prom week and It was late. The show was literally in it's last minute and I was like what is this cheesy sci fi show? I shrugged it off and then I heard the awesome theme music. It grabbed me instantly and I wanted to hear it again. So I waited for the next week and at the same time I watched my first episode of TOS. The Omega Glory. It was a strange new experience. I felt like I was watching a space western. Not too far from the truth. The episode was a bit bonkers but I liked it. Then came the part where Kirk found the Declaration of Independence. I was extremely confused but I went along with it. Kirk's dramatic reading of the words were magnetic. So much charisma. I got to hear that awesome theme song again. But this time, I wanted to see all of this show and rented the series from my local library and watched the whole series over the winter. Super Mario Galaxy had also come out that year so my craving for sci fi was super high. And with that TOS is my favorite series.

 

[Anthony Dawson]

Growing up in the 60's I was into scifi from an early age and when TOS came to UK television (not till '69 I think) I was enthralled from the start.
I was a bit young to appreciate the emotional nuances and the anti-war, pro-diversity subtext, but I liked the aliens and the space battles.
Then I discovered James Blish's novelisations, Stephen E. Whitfield's 'The Making of Star Trek' and the Corgi Fotonovels, all of which helped carry me through the desert between TAS and TMP.

 

[The Realist]

When I was a kid, I was a big fan of Lost in Space. Especially loved any episode with monsters -- "The Keeper," the two-parter with the guy who kept the freaky alien menagerie (that inevitably escaped) was nirvana. Was totally not interested in Star Trek; every time I caught a few minutes of that show, they were always talking.

Then I happened across "Arena" one day, saw Kirk fighting a guy in a rubber lizard suit, and never looked back. I was a hardcore trekkie for, like, the next 30 years, till Star Trek: Enterprise finally cured me of that. (The Gorn giveth, and Archer taketh away.)

 

[Delta Vega]

I remember the first look at Star Trek in what must have been 1968/69 on BBC News
They were heralding this new TV series set in space, in the future
The clip they showed was Kirk fighting the Gorn, from "Arena"
When I saw it, I was 8 or 9, I immediately thought "I can't wait to see this"
I've been a fan since
I was never a big TNG fan, but warmed to DS9 after a while, loved Voyager initially, but grew to see the deficiencies in it after a while
Enterprise, I was a big fan of and still am
Discovery was slow and a bit unfamiliar at first, then got better, then they fucked up the rushed ending to season one
I'm looking forward to seeing how it develops
But my first love was and always will be Star Trek 66-69

 

[HugeLobes]

First time I watched the DS9 pilot, which was around 2010.

To this day, my favourite thing about Trek is it’s willingness to tackle such a variety of tones and plots. Incidently, that’s my main reason for disliking DISCO. The DS9 pilot has the more creative sci-fi wormhole stuff, interesting character work with Sisko, and a fantastic final confrontation. I couldn’t believe there was a show like this.

 

[plentode]

I wish I could remember the moment that made me a fan. It was at such a young age that I can only guess at what hooked me. Perhaps a VHS copy of the TOS films made appearances or maybe I caught glimpses of the early TNG seasons on my parent's television. I've asked over the years and unfortunately my parent's memories are unreliable at best. It may well have been (of all films) seeing The Final Frontier in theater. I've been told that I was "probably" there for it, albeit I was only closing on turning 3 years old.

I can remember vividly watching seasons 4-7 of TNG first run and eating earlier seasons up in re runs. I don't remember being taken to see TUC in theaters, but I know I was there. Apparently I was so excited my mom took at picture of me outside the theater with the poster in the background. By the time Generations rolled around, I can remember seeing the entire film in theater as I saw it on my birthday. One of my favorite early moments was reading (maybe in TV Guide or something similar) that the Sci-Fi Channel (back when they were about Science Fiction...) had acquired the rights to air The Original Series. I seem to remember Leonard Nimoy taking part in this endeavor. I think spoke briefly before each episode. Anyway, it was so exciting for me as I had seen virtually none of TOS at this point save for the films. Sure I'd seen photos in books and magazines of TOS and I had a vague recollection of a big cigar in one episode that I saw on a little portable B/W television. That big cigar turned out to be the Doomsday Machine.

So I've been a fan my entire life. I can't ever see that changing. I made it through my school age years where it wasn't popular to be a Trekkie. I was made fun of often, but not to the level I would call bullying... Although I do remember, after a certain point, either hiding being a fan or just not talking about it with my classmates. The message of Star Trek was always there for me. Thankfully my parents both enjoyed (to varying degrees) the many incarnations, so I was always indulged in watching whatever series or film that was on television or hitting theaters.

DS9 is my absolute favorite, followed closely by TOS and TNG. I loved the Voyager premise, but I was always left disappointed by their pushing of the reset button. I hated ENT, but as the years have passed, I've gradually warmed to it. The films are more of a mixed bag for me. Star Trek has always seemed more at home on television, so my opinions change with each re-watch.

While I haven't been a fan of the most recent installations (DSC and the Kelvin films), I still watch and support them. They may not be what I have in mind, but they have captured an audience. That's a good thing in my estimation. Audience = Interest. The more interest you have, the more Star Trek we can expect. At some point, I figure that something will be produced that is more up my alley. That's what I'm hoping anyway. If not, then there will always be re runs.

 

[Doctor Sevrin]

I can't recall what the first episode of Star Trek TOS was, but it must have been around 1975/76? when I was 10 or 11...watching the reruns on CBS. I guess I was hooked right away, been a fan ever since. I remember TOS being on rather late, around 9 or10 pm and I always had to go to bed halfway through the episodes, which sucked!! It was several years before I was able to watch an episode all the way through. I hated TNG for years because it was too different that TOS, but after I gave it a chance I was hooked and consider it my 2nd favorite Trek series.

 

[Winterwind]

I saw Star Trek for the first time as a little kid in '77.

My grandparents had taken me to see Star Wars and after seeing it, just learning to read, I mistook Star Trek for Star Wars in the TV Guide. I was hooked.