10 Events That Changed Star Trek Forever

Long before the Earth was united in a peaceful coalition, and before humans developed warp drive, things were looking grim. Humanity had been experimenting with enhancing the species through genetic manipulation, and this had led to a band of so-called 'superior' despots trying to run the show. In Star Trek's history of the early 1990s, one such 'Augment' (or 'Superman,' as he is referred to in The Original Series episode Space Seed ) – Khan Noonien Singh – ruled over more than a quarter of Earth. The battle to defeat the Augments – known as the Eugenics Wars – cost at least 30 million lives and led to a blanket ban on genetic engineering, the ramifications of which were still being felt centuries later.

Any human or alien who had been the subject of genetic manipulation was barred from serving in Starfleet. Having hidden the fact that she was an Illyrian (who use genetic engineering), the last we saw of Una 'Number One' Chin-Riley in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds was her arrest. Julian Bashir, who had similarly covered-up his genetically-engineered status to get into Starfleet, was eventually given special dispensation to remain. It was only in 2384, after some excellent testimony from Admiral Janeway, that Starfleet knowingly allowed a genetically-engineered person, Dal R'El, to at least begin the process of entering the Academy by serving as a warrant officer in training under Janeway's command.

Before trying their hand at cybernetics, the Soong family also produced a couple of crackpot geneticists. In the early 21st century, Adam Soong tried to enhance humanity through its genes and, as part of his efforts, created a series of (failed but one) human clones. His research was destroyed by the end of the Star Trek: Picard season two episode Farewell, but he was seen fishing out a paper report entitled 'Project Khan' (dated 1996). His descendant, Arik Soong, continued the madness in the 22nd century with a few of the Augment embryos that had been preserved from the Eugenics Wars. When the Klingons saw the potential in this, it resulted in a virus that caused the smooth-head phenomenon.

Of course, Khan himself would be found aboard the SS Botany Bay by the Enterprise in 2267. Gone again, then back again in full-on revenge mode, he would be permanently gone again in the movie that needs no citation.