Star Trek—The Animated Series: Beyond the Farthest Star

According to Gene Roddenberry, it wasn’t official franchise canon, yet many devotees have tried to sneak it in through back doors, like licensed novels. Regardless, fans were thrilled to have new Star Trek, especially during the desert years of the 1970s. In fact, real deal Trekkers welcomed the Trekness of the animated episodes, thanks to the original cast-members and executive producer-story editor D.C. Fontana, who wrote several previous and future Star Trek episodes. The animated format also allowed them to present big, cosmic science fiction elements that would have been poorly served by the quality of 1973 TV special effects. That was especially true of the pilot, “Beyond the Farthest Star,” which airs tonight as a new addition to the ME-TV Tunes line-up.

“Beyond the Farthest Star” is indeed the first animated episode, but some Southern California stations jumped ahead to the second episode, to avoid “equal time” complaints during George Takei’s campaign for LA City Council. Ironically, this episode does not prominently feature Sulu. Arguably, exploring the familiar characters’ personas in general takes a backseat this time around to portraying the kind of teamwork that made the original such a classic.

During a far-distant stretch of their exploration mission, the Enterprise falls into the gravitational pull of a weird alien spacecraft that looks more like a system of branching vegetation than a conventional rocket or flying saucer. According to the warning message left behind by the centuries-dead insectoid crew, they fell victim to an invasive parasitic entity that operates very much like an AI virus.

Admittedly, Filmation’s animation looks dated by contemporary standards, but many of the visuals, especially the vine-like spaceship are still really cool. In fact, the retro vibe is nostalgically charming, Yet, hearing the voices of William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy doing their thing as Kirk and Spock is pure joy. The additions of James Doohan and Nichelle Nichols as Scotty and Uhuru, who also have considerable bridge roles to play in this episode, should seal the deal for skeptical fans.

Sadly, Walter Koenig’s Chekhov was cut from the animated series for financial reasons, but he wrote two later episodes. His replacement, the three-armed Arex, also voiced by Doohan, became a cult-favorite within the Trekker community. (His unidentified alien race, differed in various novelizations, either Edosian or Triexian.) This isn’t a spotlight-showcase for him either, but it represents his introduction to the fanbase.

The pilot, written by Samuel A. Peeples (who also wrote the original series’ “Where No Man Has Gone Before”), sets the tone for the animated show, refusing to dumb-down the big ideas for a Saturday morning audience. Arguably, its premise of a lifeless derelict ship harboring a deadly and mysterious entity would resurface in many subsequent films and series (like Event Horizon).

Yet, some fans remain skeptical, mainly because the animation so awkwardly reflects its era. However, the writing it what is really important, because it sustains the excellence of the original series. Very highly recommended, Star Trek: The Animated Series starts its run on Me-TV Tunes tonight (9/20), with “Beyond the Farthest Star” (and it streams on Paramount+).