10 Star Trek Scenes Even More Impressive When You Know The Truth

In the opening scene of The Next Generation pilot Encounter At Farpoint we are introduced to the Galaxy-class Starship for the very first time as it descends down into frame. The final draft of the script, co-authored by D.C. Fontana and Gene Roddenberry, makes a point to highlight the magnitude of the vessel, employing a plethora of adjectives of scale: "gigantic new Enterprise," "immensity," "enormous," "immense span […] of the outer surface". The enigmatic reveal of Captain Picard, as he walks from shadow into the light framed by Enterprise viewport, is not featured in this draft aside from mention of "OTHER INTRODUCTORY ANGLES".

The impressive quality of these opening scenes lies not simply in the magnificent special effects, the mellifluous dialogue, and the majestic editing, but in the fact that it was a bloody miracle they were made and aired in the first place!

If you’ve watched the documentary Chaos On the Bridge, you’ll know that the title is a euphemism. Reviving Star Trek for a new series twenty years after the first was a herculean task – writers and producers faced "enormous expectations" with a not-so-enormous budget, the whims and ego of Gene Roddenberry, and some dubious fans who weren’t thrilled with the idea of no Kirk and no Spock. Finding a network proved a challenge, Roddenberry at first refused to write a two-hour script, and Patrick Stewart’s toupee was flown half-way round the world before they finally decided to cast him bald.