When people talk about the fanfic they’re reading, the fan art they’re creating, or whatever fictional couple they’re shipping, they owe a debt of gratitude to Star Trek. Not because it is the end all, be all of fandom (I’ll save that take for another article), but because one specific couple from the show popularized fanfiction as we know it. Published in a Star Trek fanzine called Spockanalia, some of the first Spirk (Spock/Kirk) stories sparked the very beginnings of the fandom we recognize today.
While fanfiction as a genre has changed throughout the decades, Star Trek and its myriad characters are always near the top of the most popular ships. Not only is it a testament to the franchise as a whole, but it really is a tribute to the groundwork laid in Star Trek: The Original Series that inspired the future of Starfleet.
What’s fascinating (as Spock would say) is that often, Star Trek and its fans are not given the dues they deserve. Without them, who knows where fanfiction would be or fandom in any form? It is important to remember what the series gave us as fans and how we’ve used that to color in the lines of what a “fan” is supposed to look like.
Spock, Kirk, and the Evolution of Fanfiction
As I stated before, fanfiction should rightfully be credited to Spock and Kirk. So it is wild that we’ve not gotten an alternate-universe version of Spirk in love with each other at this point. Even just for fans! After all, it is why we have fanfic. The friendship of Jim Kirk and Spock had blossomed into a beautiful fabricated romantic relationship for fans, and we thrived imagining their love story.
But shipping didn’t stop there. Leonard “Bones” McCoy was also shipped with his friends and sure, we have other couples people love to ship together (often either Kirk/Uhura or Spock/Uhura, especially after the Kelvinverse movies). But for the most part, a ship like Spirk is still one of the top ships out there and one steeped in fandom history.
Think of all the times you’ve been scrolling AO3 and read a different outcome for your favorite characters. You owe that to Jim and Spock and how fans clung to their dynamic way back when. From the ’60s and beyond, fanfiction has been connected to Star Trek whether you knew it or not. This has left us with decades of fandom within the Star Trek community where people shared their love for these characters and Starfleet as a whole.
Decades of Fandom
Since its premiere on September 8, 1966, Star Trek has had dedicated fans. They’ve continued to grow throughout the years, with their base growing bigger as new shows get added to the franchise’s roster. But what is so great about Star Trek fans as a whole is that we keep coming back to Starfleet. After Enterprise ended back in 2005, there was a lull in Star Trek shows. 2009’s Star Trek came out and throughout the next few years, we’d get the Kelvinverse movies until Star Trek: Discovery debuted in 2017.
From there, the new era of Star Trek has brought us shows like Star Trek: Picard, Lower Decks, and eventually Strange New Worlds which returns fans to the Enterprise with Spock (Ethan Peck) and Captain Pike (Anson Mount). I know I’m an outlier in that my own love of Trek had nothing to do with myself and everything to do with my brother’s love for it. Still, there’s something so lovely about a fandom that is old enough to include different generations of fans. That dedication to the franchise as a whole has carried it through the ups and downs and it’s why being a Trekkie is so great.
Celebrating those who made Star Trek what it is
Without the brilliant casts of these shows (and the writers who created the stories), we wouldn’t have the Star Trek we know and love. It is why I proudly marched in the United We Trek picket with actors I admire and writers who brought me the Star Trek I know and love. Each cast has characters we connect with. For me, I loved Bones, Spock, and Kirk in TOS. Later, my heart belonged to Riker in The Next Generation. I was also a Janeway girl and I love Seven of Nine.
My point is that you can continue to find something to love in each new version of Star Trek. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for this franchise. For what it did for fandom, for what it continues to bring to fans, and for the brighter future we can all hope for.
(featured image: Paramount)
