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Star Trek 101: A Practical Guide to Who, What, Where, and Why
In the future, a heroic captain and his crew explore the Galaxy in a really fast spacecraft. The crew's standing orders are:
"...to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."™
Simple, straightforward -- that's Star Trek.® So what's all the fuss? Why do news crews always seem to find someone, somewhere dressed up in a Star Trek costume? What could be so interesting to so many people?
Star Trek 101 is the answer. You'll learn just a little about the heroes (Captain Kirk believes that man wasn't meant to live in paradise), the villains (Klingons have a thirst for conquest), and the important aliens (Vulcans live their lives by logic). In the handy recaps for all things Star Trek, you'll discover that the television shows and movies run the gamut from action-adventure to comedy. Just want to sample? The ten essential episodes are offered for your consideration. Star Trek 101 is a quick primer of the television shows and movies that carry the Star Trek name.
"...to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."™
Simple, straightforward -- that's Star Trek.® So what's all the fuss? Why do news crews always seem to find someone, somewhere dressed up in a Star Trek costume? What could be so interesting to so many people?
Star Trek 101 is the answer. You'll learn just a little about the heroes (Captain Kirk believes that man wasn't meant to live in paradise), the villains (Klingons have a thirst for conquest), and the important aliens (Vulcans live their lives by logic). In the handy recaps for all things Star Trek, you'll discover that the television shows and movies run the gamut from action-adventure to comedy. Just want to sample? The ten essential episodes are offered for your consideration. Star Trek 101 is a quick primer of the television shows and movies that carry the Star Trek name.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
23 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 6, 2016
Must-have for any All-Trekker!
BOLDLY READING
This is easily one of the best reference books that you can get about Star Trek.
There are a lot of reference books about Star Trek in the market (I know since I have the luck of having many of them!) and each one is really useful in its own particular way, however I consider that this guide is one of the most useful that you can get.
In fact, I always have this book at hand and it's the one that I check more, all the time. Without exageration, I can't believe there is a week when I haven't check this book at least once (maybe because I need to consult something, maybe just for fun!)
READ A LOT AND PROSPER
The key element in this guide is that it was published when Star Trek: Enterprise had ended and after Star Trek: Nemesis too. So, it covers all Star Trek since the first episode, back then in 1966, until the theatrical film Nemesis.
The book covers all the TV series (even the animated series!) and all the films.
The only that they don't cover are the films by J.J. Abrams due the publication date, but since it's a parallel universe, you can say that this book cover all the "regular" Star Trek Universe.
And well, any book once published is doomed to be outdated soon, and this one is so far only outdated for two movies so far (of course, there is an official announcement about an incoming new TV series on 2016 and there is already a new Abramsverse third movie pending to premiere, but still this one of the most complete reference books in Star Trek that I can tell).
And don't take me wrong! I do like (a lot!!!) the new Abramsverse movies too.
READING FREQUENCIES OPEN
The book has a synopsis for each TV series and theatrical films, commenting the main cast, most important recurring characters, popular alien species, a Top Ten of the best episodes on each TV series and the mention of the worst episode on each TV series, and a guide of each episode aired with a brief resume about it.
For many of those TV series you can find the "companions" that indeed are far more complete about deeper info, but another key element for this particular book is the inclusion of Star Trek: Enterprise since sadly this excellent spin-off doesn't count with so many reference books (for not saying almost none) as the other series do have, so this is another plus for this great reference book.
True, now with Internet you can check all info about all this whenever you want and never will be outdated, but still, if you are Trekker who enjoy the Original Series along with ALL its spin-offs (like me!) and you want to "feel" the pages and to look out for some info, definitely this is your key reference book.
Also, it isn't much expensive since it was published on black & white.
BOLDLY READING
This is easily one of the best reference books that you can get about Star Trek.
There are a lot of reference books about Star Trek in the market (I know since I have the luck of having many of them!) and each one is really useful in its own particular way, however I consider that this guide is one of the most useful that you can get.
In fact, I always have this book at hand and it's the one that I check more, all the time. Without exageration, I can't believe there is a week when I haven't check this book at least once (maybe because I need to consult something, maybe just for fun!)
READ A LOT AND PROSPER
The key element in this guide is that it was published when Star Trek: Enterprise had ended and after Star Trek: Nemesis too. So, it covers all Star Trek since the first episode, back then in 1966, until the theatrical film Nemesis.
The book covers all the TV series (even the animated series!) and all the films.
The only that they don't cover are the films by J.J. Abrams due the publication date, but since it's a parallel universe, you can say that this book cover all the "regular" Star Trek Universe.
And well, any book once published is doomed to be outdated soon, and this one is so far only outdated for two movies so far (of course, there is an official announcement about an incoming new TV series on 2016 and there is already a new Abramsverse third movie pending to premiere, but still this one of the most complete reference books in Star Trek that I can tell).
And don't take me wrong! I do like (a lot!!!) the new Abramsverse movies too.
READING FREQUENCIES OPEN
The book has a synopsis for each TV series and theatrical films, commenting the main cast, most important recurring characters, popular alien species, a Top Ten of the best episodes on each TV series and the mention of the worst episode on each TV series, and a guide of each episode aired with a brief resume about it.
For many of those TV series you can find the "companions" that indeed are far more complete about deeper info, but another key element for this particular book is the inclusion of Star Trek: Enterprise since sadly this excellent spin-off doesn't count with so many reference books (for not saying almost none) as the other series do have, so this is another plus for this great reference book.
True, now with Internet you can check all info about all this whenever you want and never will be outdated, but still, if you are Trekker who enjoy the Original Series along with ALL its spin-offs (like me!) and you want to "feel" the pages and to look out for some info, definitely this is your key reference book.
Also, it isn't much expensive since it was published on black & white.
August 17, 2025
This is an “almost” up to date compilation of information on the franchise know as Star Trek. It contains information (thumbnail sketches of the characters, the equipment including the Starship Enterprise, characterizations of all aliens and summaries of each episode for: movies, television series and animation.
Remember that this is labeled “101” so don’t look for profundities. It accomplishes what it sets out to do very well so there is no “mark down” for what it isn’t .
Very handy for those who want to find a particular episode to stream. Nicely organized.
Further thoughts, perhaps forthcoming, as I put it to more use.
Remember that this is labeled “101” so don’t look for profundities. It accomplishes what it sets out to do very well so there is no “mark down” for what it isn’t .
Very handy for those who want to find a particular episode to stream. Nicely organized.
Further thoughts, perhaps forthcoming, as I put it to more use.
June 18, 2022
This serves as a fairly comprehensive overview of the 'Star Trek' franchise up until Abrams' reboot in 2009. I'm not sure if it is really aimed at its target audience of neophyte viewers, but is a good reminder of key episodes and characters for all readers.
May 14, 2019
Really good overview of the series and films of star trek up to star trek enterprise. Really good for star trek fans but also newbies to the phenomena.
March 22, 2012
Star Trek 101 is an excellent reference book for star trek fans or those that are intersted in star trek. It includes a brief overview of series episode (including the animated series which is considered by many to not be canon), descriptions and key points of each movie (except star trek 2009), and the key characters in each series. For fans that have questions such as: exactly what episode did kirk say scotty beam me up?, what is subspace, exactly?, and why do the comand uniforms in TNG have red on them instead of yellow, the book gives brief answers some serious, others obviously intended as a joke.
Star Trek 101 for all it's good points is lacking in a few areas. For the star trek fan that is interested in a detailed look at the star trek universe, they would be better suited finding another book. While breif episodes descriptions are included, that is just what they are: breif! Characters that many fans are immensly familar with and very important to the show are given little to know spotlight and many of the characters that are included, have generic facts that a newbie star trek fan could tell you. In some cases the authors come across as having gotten their information from "research" rather than actually taking an interest in the star trek universe that they are writing about.
Why the four stars, then? Because for all of it's flaws this is a good book. I found out a few things that I didn't know. It's great when you are trying to reference a particular episode and the book is well organized with several excellent photos of the book. The book is well worth it's money, just don't pay to much!!
Star Trek 101 for all it's good points is lacking in a few areas. For the star trek fan that is interested in a detailed look at the star trek universe, they would be better suited finding another book. While breif episodes descriptions are included, that is just what they are: breif! Characters that many fans are immensly familar with and very important to the show are given little to know spotlight and many of the characters that are included, have generic facts that a newbie star trek fan could tell you. In some cases the authors come across as having gotten their information from "research" rather than actually taking an interest in the star trek universe that they are writing about.
Why the four stars, then? Because for all of it's flaws this is a good book. I found out a few things that I didn't know. It's great when you are trying to reference a particular episode and the book is well organized with several excellent photos of the book. The book is well worth it's money, just don't pay to much!!
February 24, 2016
I read this as part of my literary celebration of 50 years of Trek.
And yes, I read all 734 plot synopses, plus the descriptions of the feature films etc. It certainly helped me see new connections, often subtle ones, and coincidences, in the world of Trek lore. I hadn't realized, to provide a superficial example, that episode 142 of Voyager is called "Muse," while episode 93 is called "The Muse." I hardly knew anything about The Animated Series before reading this reference work.
The style is breezy but informative. Unfortunately there were a few minor errors; for example, describing the Talaxians on page 171, the book states that "thirty thousand Talaxians were killed in a war with a species known as the Haakonians." In the episode summary of "Jetrel" (a great episode, btw) on page 183, the book gives the correct figure when it describes Jetrel as the Haakonian scientist "responsible for the deaths of three hundred thousand" of Neelix's people. Some of the ship dimensions also deviate slightly from other vetted sources. Finally, a post-Enterprise summation, or closing comments on the franchise as a whole at the time the book was published, would have been nice. But overall it delivers what it promises with a pretty high degree of accuracy.
And yes, I read all 734 plot synopses, plus the descriptions of the feature films etc. It certainly helped me see new connections, often subtle ones, and coincidences, in the world of Trek lore. I hadn't realized, to provide a superficial example, that episode 142 of Voyager is called "Muse," while episode 93 is called "The Muse." I hardly knew anything about The Animated Series before reading this reference work.
The style is breezy but informative. Unfortunately there were a few minor errors; for example, describing the Talaxians on page 171, the book states that "thirty thousand Talaxians were killed in a war with a species known as the Haakonians." In the episode summary of "Jetrel" (a great episode, btw) on page 183, the book gives the correct figure when it describes Jetrel as the Haakonian scientist "responsible for the deaths of three hundred thousand" of Neelix's people. Some of the ship dimensions also deviate slightly from other vetted sources. Finally, a post-Enterprise summation, or closing comments on the franchise as a whole at the time the book was published, would have been nice. But overall it delivers what it promises with a pretty high degree of accuracy.
February 3, 2011
An excellent guide to the grandeur that is Star Trek :). As a beginner to the franchise, but an instant fan, this book is perfect for introducing you to everything you need to know to watch any of the Star Trek series' or movies. With many cool features like different tech explanations, alien species/character indexes, individual episode synopsis' and much more, this is the ultimate guide to anything Trek. A must read for long time fans, or new time enjoyers, and if you are a newbie like me, get ready for an incredible ride.
P.s had to include this, favourite mentioned quote in the book was from 'Star Trek VI: the undiscovered country'
Spock: "there is an old Vulcan proverb; only Nixon could go to China." :p
P.s had to include this, favourite mentioned quote in the book was from 'Star Trek VI: the undiscovered country'
Spock: "there is an old Vulcan proverb; only Nixon could go to China." :p
October 6, 2009
A fun introduction to Star Trek for the uninitiated, and a tongue-in-cheek review of Trek's various incarnations for those in the know. Two minor quibbles--William Riker is referred to as "Jonathan" in the episode synopsis for "These Are The Voyages..." (283), and Tom Paris is listed as having been "drummed out of Starfleet Academy after he lied about his involvement in an accident that killed several students" (163) (he had already graduated--I suspect the authors confused Paris with the character of Nick Locarno, also played by actor Robert Duncan McNeill). Other than that, I would recommend this to anyone interested in learning more about the series.
August 21, 2009
Not at all ashamed to admit I am a total Star Trek nerd! This was a great guide to all the various series and films. Superb quotes from all my favorite characters.
How many of you can boast that you speak a little Klingon?
jIna Schu' vaj!
How many of you can boast that you speak a little Klingon?
jIna Schu' vaj!
June 3, 2021
Contrary to what the authors claim, this book is solely for the novice fan. I've been watching and reading about Star trek for five decades. Decently written, but there's nothing here that was a surprise.
November 20, 2008
fantastic for neophytes, but hardcore fans have long since had this info seared into their brains.
January 25, 2011
It works as a refresher for old-school fans, but it works even better at its main task: teaching new fans about the world of Star Trek...and why that world is bloody amazing!
June 11, 2011
More of a "reference" book as opposed to something you'd sit down and read, kept it handy while watching the episodes
May 1, 2015
nice book about star trek!
November 18, 2009
Mostly harmless.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews