Star Trek: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Paul Stamets

The scene at the very end of Choose Your Pain wasn't a first for the toothbrush in Star Trek — Hoshi Sato was seen using her 22nd century version in The Catwalk, and Jake Sisko took his to Tyree in Image in the Sand — but it was a first for the franchise in terms of LGBTQIA+ representation. Through the domesticity of their dental routine, we found out Stamets and Culber were a couple.

The importance of such an understated moment cannot be overstated. After all, for queer Star Trek fans, the everyday is already, by definition, not a big deal, but seeing it on screen can be life-changing. In a 2022 interview with MetroWeekly, Anthony Rapp gave his thoughts on the scene and fan reaction to it:

We were really conscious of how special that little scene in the bathroom was […]. Because it was subtle and small […], we didn't really know […] if it would have any impact per se. And then when it did air, the impact was resounding and immediate. And that was very, very satisfying.

The pair also had to keep their breath extra fresh for another pioneering moment — Trek's first ever male-male gay kiss in Into the Forest I Go. No toothpaste — or powder — needed either for brushing in the 23rd century, but, as Rapp told IndieWire, "Some sort of sonic pulse or laser thing […] you hold in your mouth and it just kind of cleans your teeth for you". If you want, you can buy the toothbrush (albeit with the bristles) Stamets and Culber were using — the real world FOREO ISSA Sonic Hybrid.