alien on star trek

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Star Trek: The 50 Best Alien Races

From Tribble to Andorians, we're ranking the 50 best alien life forms explored in the Star Trek universe...

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The crews of the various iterations of Star Trek boldly went where no one has gone before — and then boldly met a crap ton of alien species.

Star Trek may be the human adventure, but there have been countless non-human beings, critters, menaces, gods, and blobs that have been introduced in the Star Trek  universe. From The Original Series to The Animated Series , to The Next Generation , to Deep Space Nine , the Delta Quadrant and Voyager , to the early adventures of Enterprise , to the modern day films, Star Trek has gifted fans with unforgettable species after species as the five-year mission has turned into five decades of first contact.

There have been vile races bred for combat, omnipotent races that use humankind as puppets, and even a bunch of cute little furry things.  Star Trek just keeps on delivering the cool aliens show after show, film after film. Just imagine the species that will soon be coming to Star Trek: Discovery ! But now is the time to celebrate the past as we present the fifty coolest Star Trek aliens ever to appear in films or TV.

50. Arcturian

First appearance: star trek: the motion picture (1979).

The Arcturian didn’t have a great deal of Star Trek screen time, but this alien race that resembled melted wax (eww) makes our list because it stands as a prime example of the story richness of the Star Trek  galaxy. An Arcturian can briefly be seen in Star Trek: The Motion Picture and the Mego toy company even made two versions of this blink and you’ll miss him creature (one 3 ¾ inch one 12 inch). But what intrigues us the most is this melty guy’s backstory…

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Star Trek costume crafters extraordinaire Fred Phillips and Robert Fletcher came up with a rich history for the Arcturian. According to Philips and Fletcher, the Arcturians were actually a race of clones that made up the bulk of the Federation’s infantry. While never seen on screen, there are legions of these guys running around, just waiting to be sent to some hostile planet to go to war. The Federation has always been portrayed as peaceful and benevolent, but it has the potential to unleash billions of melty looking monsters at a moment’s notice. Yikes.

Arcturians also appeared in the Star Trek daily comic strip and their back story continues to stand as a great example of the vast richness of the Star Trek galaxy, a place where billions of stories exist at all times. Including one about a race of wax soldiers that can be replicated and sent to do the Federation’s will. Eeep.

49. Edosian

First appearance: star trek: the animated series “beyond the farthest star” (1973).

Edosians are a tripedal species and are skilled at using their three arms and three legs in navigation and piloting. Lieutenant Arex, the loyal Enterprise navigator that first appeared in Star Trek: The Animated Series , is a proud member of the Edosian species and was a recurring character during this era of animated Trek. Arex was voiced by Scotty himself James Doohan and was a standout character in the era between The Original Series and The Next Generation .

Arex popped up in comics and novels and took his place of honor among the original crew. Arex also was a character that fully utilized animation as the six limbs and distinct alien features of this character would have been impossible to pull off in live-action back in the day. But thanks to The Animated Series , the distinctive Edosians live on and prosper in Trek lore.

48. Excalbians

First appearance: star trek: the original series “the savage curtain” (1969).

Listen, any species responsible for bringing Abraham Lincoln into the Star Trek  universe has to make this list. The Excalbians are a silicon based life form that possessed the ability to shape shift. These rock beings, who honestly looked like something Steve Ditko would have designed for Doctor Strange, were fascinated by the human notion of good and evil.

So they did what anyone would do in the same situation: they made a recreation of Abraham Lincoln and teamed it with Kirk, Spock, and famous Vulcan goodie-good Surak and sent them up against four representatives of evil — Kahless the Unforgettable of Qo’noS, Genghis Khan, Colonel Green of Earth and Dr. Zora of Tiburon. How’s that for a traditional Survivor Series match?

For this wonderful bit of schlock and for making us believe that Ben Grimm could work in live action in 1969, we salute the ever curious Excalbians.

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47. Caitian

First appearance: star trek: the animated series “the survivor” (1973).

The cat-like Caitians were represented in Enterprise history by M’Ress, a feline female that served both as engineer and a communications officer during The Animated Series . M’Ress spoke in a purring voice and was a skilled operative that stood side by side with the more iconic members of the Enterprise.

Now, I would like to talk about how cool the Caitians were. I would like to talk about how M’Ress was the main character in the Power Records’ Star Trek book and record set Star Trek: Passage to Moauv (1975). I would also like to talk about how a Caitian also appeared in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home …

But I just can’t help but wonder if Captain Kirk did what he does and somehow at some point bed down with this cat woman. This would make Kirk’s TV sci-fi’s first furry and I’m sort of fascinated by this idea. I don’t want to focus on this idea because it kind of reduces M’ress as a character and the Caitian as a race… But then I read that the alien twins that Kirk hooked up with in the first Abramsverse film were confirmed to be Caitian and everything just stirs up again and I fell absolved of all responsibility.

Anyway, M‘Ress and the Caitians might be considered obscure now, but she was a pretty big deal to Trek lore during The Animated Series era. So this race is a purr-fect addition to our list. Did the Enterprise come equipped with a giant litter box? Okay, I need to stop now; this is going to some bad places.

46. Bolians

First appearance: star trek: the next generation (1988).

The Bolians have been a perennial background species since their first Trek appearance in 1988. The first Bolian fans witnesses aboard the Enterprise was an ambassador, but many other Bolians have appeared around the Trek verse since. They have been seen as barbers, manicurists, Federation troops, and high ranking officials.

Bolians are distinctive due to their blue skin and their ridge that bisects their anatomy. They are highly friendly individuals and compassionate. In fact, an episode of Voyager puts forth that Bolians were  supportive of assisted suicide. These deep seated beliefs make the Bolians an intriguing species ripe for future Trek exploration.

45. Lurian

First appearance: star trek: deep space nine “the emissary” (1993).

Lurians were a very rarely encountered species that possessed multiple hearts, lungs, and stomachs. Fans got to know this ellusive species through DS9 regular/bar fly Morn. Yes, Morn is an anagram for Norm, because, like the famed Cheers fat man, in Quark’s Bar, everyone knew Morn’s name.

Morn was a bombastic and talkative fellow who fans never got to actually hear speak. He was a former thief that barely moved away from his bar stool. Morn was also fiercely loyal to Quark and got his little Ferengi pal out of many a jam. But mostly, Morn just sat there and drank stoically.

Although we only ever met one Lurian, we will always remember his name because Morn was such a constant (and inebriated) presence on Deep Space Nine . He also once had a torrid love affair with Jadzia Dax but that is a tale for another time. Raise a glass to the Lurians!

First appearance: Star Trek (2009)

So far, the rebooted Trek films have not really given funs much by way of alien species. The only classic races to get good screen time in the reboots have been Romulans and Vulcans. But the films did give us Keenser the Roylan, Scotty’s diminutive engineering pal.

Keenser first appeared in the first Trek reboot film as Scotty’s ever present companion when Scotty was exiled on the Federation outpost on Delta Vega. When Scotty beamed to the Enterprise, he left Keenser behind which was kinda sad. JJ Abrams and company must have thought so too as Keenser was all of a sudden part of the Enterprise’s crew in Star Trek: Into Darkness .

Keensar is ever loyal to his pal Scotty as the two share one of the best bromances in the galaxy. The fourteenth issue of IDW Publishing’s Star Trek comic gifted fans with Keensar’s origin. It also revealed the name of his species — Roylan — for the first time.

In this issue, fans learned that Keensar was constantly mocked by his peers because he was so tall (heh). It also revealed that Keensar served with distinction aboard the USS Kelvin and was shipmates with none other than George Kirk.

Keensar the Roylan is a constant presence in the new Trek Universe and I’m sure this member of the Roylan species will have many adventures to come.

43. Mugato

First appearance: star trek: the original series “a private little war” (1968).

Because sometimes in space, there are giant, poisonous horned gorillas. What’s not to love about Mugato? He’s kind of cute, very fuzzy, and is as poisonous as the nastiest snake. Poisonous gorillas in space, this is why we love Trek. Sadly, Mugato only appeared briefly, attacking and poisoning Kirk before being disintegrated by Doctor McCoy.

But, remember: as you watch the hard sci-fi and techno jargon of Trek, as you witness the human adventure of Roddenberry’s galaxy, as you watch carbon-based life forms achieve full potential and enlightenment, remember , in this same world there are fuzzy, horned, albino gorillas that will poison the crap out of you.

42. Acamarians

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “the vengeance factor” (1989).

The Acamarians are an advanced race of humanoids that have found a peaceful existence very late in its history. For centuries, the tattooed Acamarians lived in rival clans and their planet was split apart by warfare. One of the clan wars lasted three centuries and wiped one of the combating sides out of existence. When Picard’s Enterprise encountered the Acamarians, the people finally almost found peace.

However, a splinter group known as the Gatherers could not overcome centuries of clan warfare and refused to negotiate, so Picard had to navigate the complex web of Acamarians politics and bitterness as well as the assassination of the Gatherer ambassador to finally forge a peace with the Acamarians.

Despite all these issues, the Acamarians have a rich culture and mirror many contemporary Earth societies that have been splintered by war. Sci-fi works best when it reflects reality, and through the Acamarians, Trek fans got to see some really effective social commentary about tribalism and societal bitterness.

41. Denobulans

First appearance: enterprise “broken bow” (2001).

A Denobulan served aboard the very first Enterprise as the ship’s doctor, thus making the species vital to the origins of the Federation. Our medic in question, Phlox by name, was one of the main protagonists in Enterprise and was a staunch example of the exemplary qualities of the Denobulan race.

Denobulans are loyal but quite hedonistic by human standards. Denobulan males can take up to three wives while the entire race embraces polyamory. As humanity headed off into space aboard the first Enterprise, Phlox served as a constant reminder of the varied belief systems and practices the people of Earth would encounter as space exploration began.

Phlox and the Denobulan held ethics in high regard as Phlox would never allow a sentient being to suffer. Even though the ridge faced Denobulans had fierce tempers, they also were gentle and kind, and valued knowledge and pleasure over confrontation and violence.

Denobulans also have the propensity to puff out their faces when they were threatened — so, yeah, there’s that. Plus, Denobulans have really long tongues. What was it that I said about hedonism and Denobulans? Anyway, these cunning linguists were great doctors as seen through Enterprise ’s first mayor of the sickbay: Doctor Phlox.

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40. Orions

First appearance: star trek: the original series “the cage” (1966).

The green Orion slave dancer that shimmied into the dreams of Trek fans has been an iconic bit of Star Trek lore since her Shakiraesque debut, but the history of the Orions did not stop there…

Although a cosplay staple, the slave girl was just one Orion. Others have appeared in The Animated Series , Enterprise , novels, comics, toys, and one even prominently appeared in the J.J. Abrams Star Trek timeline as Uhura’s roommate and an early romantic partner of one James T. Kirk.

Orions are a species with close ties to the Federation — ties that are explored in some of the better episodes of Enterprise . Although the Orions will long be remembered because of the grinding of the hips of a slave dancer, there is so much more to this green-skinned humanoid species that has been part of Star Trek lore since almost day one.

39. Ocampans

First appearance star trek: voyager “caretaker part ii” (1995).

The Ocampans carry an importance to the Star Trek  universe because Kes, a noted member of the Ocampan species, was a member of the lost Voyager crew for three years. Ocampans are a race with powerful telekinetic powers but, sadly, this race of elf-like humanoids only have a life span of nine years. (So… combine Jean Grey with a mayfly and you get the idea.) 

Ocampans are very accepting of their short life span and a rather enlightened species. Through Kes, the crew of Voyager learned a lust for life as the wide eyed Ocampan enjoyed every minute of her existance even though she was trapped with the Voyager crew. When Kes’ power grew out of control, she left Voyager and her friends, including her constant companion Neelix, and used her abilities to push the lost Voyager out of Borg space and a year closer to home. This sacrifice taught the crew of the Voyager and fans of the show the innate nobility of the Ocampan race.

38. Vidiians

First appearance star trek voyager “the phage” (1995).

While the Ocampans were a nice, little, Tinkerbell-like species that fluttered about Voyager , there were also these Wes Craven nightmares… The Vidiians suffered a disease known as the Phage. The Phage is kind of like a hardcore space Ebola that utterly destroys the infected’s body and organs. So, yeah, Bones McCoy was sort of right about space being a petri dish of death and pain.

The ravaged Phage would wander the galaxy and rob sentients of their organs and body parts. So there you are, doing warp three with caution around the Delta Quadrant, and, all of a sudden, a few Vidiians beam unto your ship and rip out your liver and intestines. Then, they use said liver and intestines to replace their own — whether you filled out your Federation organ donor cards or not.

The Vidiians were eventually cured by the crew of the Voyager, but you have to assume that in a galaxy so big there are still some Vidiians cruising around out there taking hearts and lungs from innocent travelers. Yeesh.

37. Breen

First appearance: star trek deep space nine “indiscretion” (1995).

First off, cool points for the Breen because the helmet that this species wears looks kind of like the helmet Princess Leia used to disguise herself as a bounty hunter in Return of the Jedi . But the space awesomeness of the Breen doesn’t end there…

The Breen’s fighting prowess and technology are so advanced that even the Romulons and Klingon talk about this mysterious species in hushed whispers. And, indeed, when the Breen made themselves known to the Federation during the Dominion War, things got intense. These mighty warriors allied themselves with the Cardassians and the Dominion to take on the combined might of the Federation, the Klingons, and the Romulons.

During this conflict, the Breen destroyed the USS Defiant, the flagship of the Deep Space Nine space station, and managed to attack the Earth city of San Francisco. The Federation managed to develop counter weaponry to defeat the Breen, but many will remember these armored badassess as race of military specialists to be reckoned with.

The alliance with the Dominion cost the Breen, though, and — after the War — it wasn’t easy being Breen.

36. Hunters

First appearance star trek deep space nine : “captive pursuit” (1993).

Imagine a Trek alien that is pretty much Boba Fett mixed with Kraven the Hunter and you have these big game-tracking motherfuckers. The Hunters popped out of the Bajoran Wormhole and had their first contact with the Federation in the DS9 episode “Captive Pursuit.” In this stirring installment of this reporter’s favorite Trek show, fans were introduced to the Hunters and their chosen prey: the genetically enhanced Tosk.

The Hunters (whether this was the species name is unknown) would alter their Tosk prey in order to make the hunt more difficult. The pursuing of the Tosk was an obsession with the Hunters that rubbed members of the freedom loving Federation the wrong way.

The Hunters even gave the Federation a run for its money as the race of killers had advanced tech to assist them in their eternal hunt for Tosk. Sadly, the Hunters only appeared in one episode of Deep Space Nine , but their fighting skills and bloodthirsty rituals will be burned into the minds of Trek fans for a long time.

35. The Salt Vampire

First appearance: star trek: the original series “the man trap” (1966).

Old Salty here, or creature M-113, is a reminder that space can be a really, really dangerous place because there are things out there called Salt Vampires. And, no, this thing doesn’t just hang around a Pringles factory, it freakin’ shape shifts and then kills innocent people and drains them of their salt. Kirk and his crew first encountered this thing as it took the form of a number of the Enterprise’s crew. It almost killed Sulu, Yeoman Rand, Spock, and Kirk before being shot and killed by Dr. McCoy who had no time for such foolishness.

I suppose Kirk could have kept the Salt Vampire alive and just fed it Wetzel’s Pretzels (those things are like licking the ocean), but I guess Kirk felt that a shape shifting thing that looks like it was spat out of the ninth plane of hell that brutally kills people and drains them of sodium probably needed to be deleted from the universe. One has to wonder what special M-114 might be: Cinnamon Vampire?

34. Cheron

First appearance star trek: the original series “let that be your last battlefield” (1969).

When we first met the Cheron, there was only two members of this species left: Bele (played by the Riddler himself, the great Frank Gorshin) and Lokai. Bele was hunting Lokai whom Bele deemed a traitor after the planet Cheron was wiped out due to centuries of racial wars.

Apparently, some Cheron were black on the left and white on the right while other members of this advanced species possessed the opposite skin alignment. Due to this difference, the entire population — save Lokai and Bele — were eradicated. Bele hijacked the Enterprise and used his vast array of mental capabilities to hunt for Lokai.

The whole opposite was a thinly veiled, but powerful allusion to the destructive potential and sheer idiocy of racism — a message as powerful today as it was in the ’60s. Of course, you know I’m going to say that Mego made a Cheron doll, a toy I treasured in my childhood and called Oreo Man.

We should all have an Oreo Man during our most innocent years. But who knew my beloved Oreo Man was actually a genocidal racist madman that used his vast power to almost destroy the Enterprise? Oh, Oreo Man…

33. Nausicaans

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “tapestry” (1993).

One of the surlier races in the galaxy, Nausicaans are big hairy warriors that hire themselves out as mercenaries throughout the galaxy. A Nausicaan had quite the impact on the life of Jean-Luc Picard. When the future captain of the Enterprise was an ensign, he played a stirring game of domjot with some Nausicaan thugs (as one does). Picard and his pals accused the Nausicaans of cheating and the bad-tempered badasses stabbed Picard through the heart. This required Picard to get an artificial heart. (The more you know!)

The Nausicaans gave the crew of Deep Space Nine a hard time as well. This hairy race of pirates even encountered Captain Archer and the original crew of the Enterprise back in the day, proving that big hairy thugs that cheat at domjot remain big hairy thugs that cheat at domjot.

All that aside, Nausicaan fighting prowess is equal to the fighting prowess of Klingons and the only thing that keeps the Nausicaans from being more of a threat is their mistrust and their inability to come together as a species. Instead of being intergalactic conquerors, the Nausicaans have remained bullies, raider, and cheaters. But they do have killer 80s rocker hair, don’t they?

32. Kazon

First appearance: star trek: voyager “caretaker” (1995).

The Kazon were the first race that the crew of the Voyager encountered when they arrived in the Delta Quadrant, and — as far as d-bag, aggressive alien species go — the Kazon take the space cake (because when you put the word space in front of something, it sounds like you are in the future).

The Kazon race was separated into rival sects, which made negotiating with them as a whole almost impossible. They were once a slave race that served the Trabe, but the Kazon were a fractured species before and during its enslavement. Despite their disloyalty to each other, the Kazon were fierce combatants who were unwilling to negotiate a peace treaty with the Trabe or Voyager.

The Kazon had advanced technology and a back-stabbing blood thirst that introduced the crew of the Voyager to the Delta Quadrant and caused Voyager to be trapped in what was going to be a very hostile place, if the battle-hardened Kazon were any indication.

31. Metrons

First appearance: star trek: the original series “arena” (1967).

We do so love the Gorn. And what alien species was responsible for Kirk’s immortal battle with the Gorn? Why that would be the shiny and nigh omnipotent Metrons.

The Metrons possess tremendous mental powers and can control matter and energy. These human like aliens fiercely guard their sector of space and regard even the most minor intrusion as a great trespass punishable by death. When the Enterprise and a Gorn vessel find themselves in Metron space, the Metrons mentally teleport both Captains to a remote planet and force them to fight.

The Metrons are intensely xenophobic and regard other races as barbaric, so when Kirk spares the Gorn, the aloof Metrons are impressed and free both vessels. You see, a simple act of kindness was all it took to free the Enterprise from the Metrons’ wrath and impress a race of people that do not impress easily. Also, the Metrons wear sparkly evening gowns so they have that going for them…

30. Horta

First appearance: star trek: the original series “devil in the dark” (1967).

The Horta may look like a pile of bile soaked dog puke, but, hey, it was featured in William Shatner’s favorite Star Trek episode, so we have to give this blob of silicon its props.

The Horta was first encountered by a group of miners. After a miner was killed, Kirk and company were called to see what was up. They encounter the Horta, an extremely alien-looking beastie. After the creature is injured, Spock attempts a mind meld but the creature is in too much pain for Spock to connect with it. Soon, the crew of the Enterprise learns that the creature is the lone survivor of its race charged with protecting the eggs of the next generation of Horta. So Kirk and his pals dedicate themselves to protecting the thing’s little vomit eggs from the angry miners.

All jokes aside, the Horta was classic Trek alien: a semi-cheesy-looking beastie that stars in an episode with a powerful theme. The Horta was a prime example that all life has merit and even something that looks like a half-digested taco only wants to survive and thrive. By saving the Horta, the crew of the Enterprise shows that their most important mission is to contact and understand all life, no matter what it looks like. Thank you for that valuable lesson, Mr. Horta.

29. Greek Gods

First appearance: star trek: the original series “who mourns for adonis” (1967).

Wait, what? Oh, by the bristling beard of Zeus, the Greek Gods exists in the Star Trek  universe. 

The legendary deities of ancient Greece were actually super-powered aliens that lived on Pollox IV. They would visit Earth back in ancient times and bask in the worship of primitive humans. Well, the humans of the Enterprise were no primitives, and — when the Pollox IV alien that called itself Apollo trapped Kirk and his crew on the planet and refused to allow them to leave — Kirk and Spock fought back, kicking a god’s ass in the process.

Sadly, we never saw the other Greek gods. (Because could you just imagine Kirk versus Zeus?) But, it was established the other gods existed — and that they wore togas and laurel leaves like they were going to a frat party. The fact that this all exists in the same galaxy as Klingons and Borg just makes me very happy.

28. Hirogen

First appearance: star trek: voyager “message in a bottle” (1998).

The Hirogen are a nasty Delta Quadrant species of reptilian hunters that view any other sentient beings as prey. When the Hirogen chose a victim, the religious ritual of the Hunt began and all aspect of Hirogen culture centered on this blood sport. After the Hirogen tracked and captured its prey, they would remove the victim’s skeletal system, muscles, internal organs, ligaments, and tendons and keep these parts as trophies.

The Hirogen ran afoul of the Starship Voyager a number of times and Captain Janeway and her elite crew always found ways to defeat these hunters. In one of the Hirogen’s more bone headed moves, they created advanced holograms that could feel fear and pain. These thinking holograms quickly became more advanced than the Hirogen and turned the hunters into the hunted.

Despite this addlepated move, the Hirogen were always a feared species for those that traveled through the Delta Quadrant because they were essentially Predators dropped into the middle of the Star Trek universe.

27. El-Aurians

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “the child” (1988).

El-Aurian were a race of wise and peaceful people that transverse the galaxy to listen to the stories of others. When the Borg wiped out the El-Aurian’s home world, the galaxy lost a race of wise listeners… Or it almost did, because the surviving members of this race spread out across the galaxy.

Fans met the El-Aurians when The Next Generation introduced Guinan, the proprietor of Ten Forward, the bar of choice for the crew of the Enterprise. When Guinan came aboard, the members of the Enterprise had a kind and quick-witted being to bounce their problems off of, and Guinan listened. It was a shame that so many people like Guinan were lost to the Borg as the El-Aurians long lived goodness was a boon to the galaxy.

But not all El-Aurians were benevolent. Tollan Soran was an El-Aurian survivor that was aboard a ship of refugees with Guinan when the ships ferrying the El-Aurians refugees was lost to the fiery Nexus ribbon. It seemed that the legendary Captain Kirk was killed in this rescue attempt, but it turns out Kirk was trapped within the Nexus.

Soran became obsessed with returning to the Nexus and his Ahab like need for knowledge led to the first and only meeting between James T. Kirk and Jean Luc Picard. Soran was an anomaly to the El-Aurians species as most of the race used their centuries of wisdom to spread enlightenment wherever they went.

26. Tellarites

First appearance: star trek: the original series “journey to babel” (1967).

Along with Andorians and Vulcans, Tellarites were one of the first species to join the United Federation of Planets. A Tellarite first appeared in The Original Series episode “Journey to Babel,” where Sarek, Spock’s father, was framed for the murder of a Tellarite ambassador.

Sarek was able to solve the crime, freeing his name and forging a long-lasting peace with the Tellarities. Early contact with the Tellarites was recounted in Enterprise , but members of the specials also popped up in The Next Generation and even in a couple of films. Tellarites, with their distinctive beards, hooves, and stubbornness, have long been one of the backbone species of the Federation.

25. Tamarians

First appearance star trek: the next generation “darmok” (1991).

“Temba, his arms wide. Shaka, when the walks fell.” Who can forget these poetic, yet somewhat ominous phrases spoken by Dathon the Tamarian to Captain Picard when the two were trapped on a hostile world together?

Trek lore has it that the Federation and the Tamarians only had seven encounters over the years because the Tamarian language was so hard to comprehend. Well, if he was to survive, Picard would have to understand it (and fast) because Dathon beamed Picard down to the planet in order to teach the human captain a language that was as complex as it was beautiful.

It turns out Tamarians only communicate in metaphors (I’ve had grad school professors like that), and in order for the Federation and the Tamarians to build an accord, Picard would need to understand those metaphors. “Shaka when the walls fell,” has become quite a famous little moment of Trek myth as the Tamarians stand as a metaphor themselves — for cultural understanding and empathy.

24. Species 8472

First appearance: “star trek: voyager” part 1 (1997).

Species 8472 are so deadly that they even make the Borg poop their cybernetic underroos. (Hey, do you think when the Borg poops they all go at once? Or does one go make while the rest of the Collective just snickers? This is now the most ever written about Borg poop on the internet. Or is it? I’m not googling that.)

Anyway, Species 8472 existed in an extra-dimensional bit of hell known as fluidic space. When the Borg discovered the fluidic dimension, the ever deadly race of cybernetic killers busted through the dimensions and attempted to assimilate Species 8472. 8472 was having none of that and fought back, creating weapons that could slay the Borg with ease. In fact, 8472 was able to destroy the Borg Cubes in seconds. (Man, that’s like taking down the Death Star with a single bullet.) Sadly, Species 8472 also took out many innocent Delta Quadrant planets, which forced the crew of Voyager to get involved.

The Borg and Voyager had to form an unlikely alliance to drive Species 8472 back to fluidic space. 8472 was one of the closet things Trek fans ever got to Lovecraft-like cosmic horrors, as even the Borg could not stand up to these waling nightmares. This species appeared a few more times on Voyager until Captain Janeway was able to broker a peace with these terrors that exist behind the fabric of time and space.

23. The Gorn

Oh, the Gorn. Who doesn’t love Gorn? Of course, this rubbery looking and cold blooded reptilian monstrosity first appeared in the classic TOS episode “Arena,” where Kirk had to go mano-e-lizardo with the captain of a captured Gorn vessel. What followed was one of the most classic fights in Trek history as Kirk had to fashion a makeshift cannon to defeat this alien monster.

Despite its primitive appearance, future novels established the Gorn as a technologically-advanced race and, you just have to admit, Trek lore has not even scratched the surface of the Gorn. Imagine the spin offs. The Gorn Identity. Gorn to be Wild. Gorn on the Fourth of July. Fans were able to witness the Gorn home world for the first time in DC Comics’ Star Trek the Next Generation: The Gorn Crisis .

The Gorn were also one of the aliens made by Mego in its second set of Trek dolls. Fun fact: Mego’s Gorn looks nothing like the TV Gorn, as Mego just reused Marvel’s Lizard mold, painted it brown and decked old Gorny in the outfit used for the Klingon doll. Despite this lack of toy respect, and despite one of the cheapest prosthetic heads ever seen on TV, the Gorn’s battle with Kirk is still forever burned into Trek lore.

22. Tholians

First appearance: star trek: the original series “the tholian web” (1968).

Get a load of these psychedelic xenophobes. Yeah, the Tholians might look like a funky black light album cover come to life, but, really, they are brutal, territorial, hateful, and will do anything to keep other species out of Tholian territory. But, hey, they are known for the punctuality, so take heart in the fact that, when they kill you, it’ll be done in a timely fashion.

The Tholians cruise around their sector of space in geometric rainbow ships, making the aesthetic of the race more Yes album cover and less cool space despots. The Tholians first encountered the crew of the Enterprise when the USS Defiant flew too close to Tholian space.

Always protective of their borders, the Tholians phased the Defiant out of real space and into an interspace dimension. Kirk himself was phased out of time and space (for Shatner, it wouldn’t be the first or last time this happened), but Spock and the Enterprise were able to get their captain back and pimp-slap the Tholians.

The Enterprise under Jonathan Archer also ran afoul of these crystalline killers. The Tholians are a great example that in space, threats can come in any shape and even rainbows can kill you.

21. Talaxians

First appearance: star trek: voyager “caretaker” (1995).

One of the friendlier species of the Delta Quadrant, the Talaxians — or more accurately, an individual member of the Talaxian species — was pivotal to Voyager’s survival during the years it spent trapped in the Delta Quadrant.

Talaxians became dispersed throughout the Delta Quadrant after a devastating war with the Haakonian Order. Talaxians had no real home world, but that did not break their spirits. Talaxians are a very spiritual, upbeat, and whimsical race that — when confronted with two unpleasant paths to take in life — will find a third, happier path to traverse. This spiritual ability to find light and hope in any circumstance made the Talaxian Neelix indispensable to the crew of the Voyager.

Neelix was the cook and morale officer aboard Voyager and helped his friends out of many spiritual and literal crises. Throughout its wanderings in the Delta Quadrant, Voyager encountered many Talaxians that were always willing to lend a hand. Sadly, many aggressive species like the Borg also targeted the peaceful Talaxians — but, like Neelix, the Talaxians always found that third path.

Keep going, because we’ve got more aliens for you!

20. Organians

First appearance: star trek: the original series “errand of mercy” (1967).

When Kirk, Spock, and the crew of the Enterprise first encounter the Organians, a non-distinct humanoid species, this new race appeared to be akin to an 18th century agrarian Earth society. Spock commented that his tricoder has more technology than the entirety of the Organians planet.

Sadly, the Organians home world became caught up in a war between the Federation and the Klingons. Kirk warned the Organians leaders that war was coming but the Organians were completely unconcerned… When the Klingons arrived and began to take Organians hostages, the Organians remained unconcerned — because, apparently, the Organians are millions of years more advanced than either Klingons or humans. The Organians mentally disabled the Klingon and Federation ships in orbit around their planet and calmly disarmed Kirk, Spock, and the Klingons.

The Organians have an advanced form of ESP and can predict future events. They also can possess the bodies of others. An Organian told Kirk that, one day, Klingons and humans would be friends — something ‘ol James T. couldn’t wrap his head around, but something Next Gen fans would know to be true. So here’s to the Organians, the Amish space gods of the galaxy.

19. The Traveler

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “where no one has gone before” (1987).

Now, let’s all be honest. Yeah, we love Wil Wheaton as he is truly nerd royalty and has done a great deal over the last few years as a sort of geek ambassador. But, real talk: no one really liked Wesley Crusher. We love Wesley’s mom, Dr. Beverly Crusher, but Wes was kind of the Jar Jar Binks of Star Trek . The Traveler freed us of all of that.

The Traveler is a member of a mysterious race of immensely powerful beings. The Traveler could transverse time, space, and heavenly bodies at will and could use his thoughts to manipulate nature and reality. The Traveler seemed to be second only to Q in terms of power and omnipotence.

When the Traveler first met ‘lil Wesley Crusher, he compared the lad to Mozart. This caused Captain Picard to promote Crusher to ensign. Later in his Starfleet career, Crusher began to have doubts about his lot in Starfleet. The Traveler convinced Crusher to leave Starfleet after Crusher began to develop powers similar to the Traveler.

As Crusher’s powers grew, the Traveler took him on as protégé, teaching the former ensign how to best use his vast powers to help the galaxy. Wesley left the Enterprise with the Traveler as his very own Yoda and, for this, Trek fans hold a great debt to the Traveler as he freed us from the oft times insipid Crusher.

You know, looking back, I wouldn’t mind a novel or two explaining what happened to Crusher later in life. So, I guess we can give the Traveler credit for not only freeing us from Wesley, but also for making Bev’s boy into an interesting part of the Star Trek universe.

18. Crystalline Entity

First appearance: star trek: the next generation: “datalore” (1988).

The Crystalline Entity is basically the Galactus of the Star Trek  universe. The Entity is a giant, electromagnetic engine of cosmic death that lives to consume organic matter. It goes from planet to planet, absorbing all organic matter and leaving dry husks of death behind. A Crystalline Entity destroyed the outpost where Commander Data was created, essentially making Data an intergalactic android orphan.

Despite its destructive power, the Crystalline Entity is a beautiful sight: huge and multi-faceted, colorful and shimmering — frankly, an artist’s dream. But, behind the beauty, lies a bite that can lay waste to entire species.

This giant snowflake of death was pivotal in the origins of Data and is one of the most feared species in the entire galaxy. There are other Crystalline Entities out there in the void of space, but, thankfully, encounters with them are very rare. As of yet, no Crystalline Entity has been seen hanging out with a silver guy on a surfboard… but we remain hopeful.

17. Betazoid

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “encounter at farpoint” (1987).

For seven seasons and a handful of films, Star Trek fans got to know a very special Betazoid: Counselor Deanna Troi. Troi was an exemplary member of the Betazoid race — a mostly peaceful people that possess empathic and telepathic powers.

Most Betazoids, including Troi, use their powers for the benefit of others. The Enterprise was saved many times thanks to Troi and her fantastic abilities as she served with honor and distinction about the Federation flagship. Betazoids are indistinguishable for humans except for their all black irises. It’s a very cool thought that there is a race of Charles Xaviers in the Star Trek  universe and, with more Star Trek coming our way soon, let us hope we have the honor to meet more Betazoids.

Fun fact: Gene Roddenberry wanted the Betazoid women to have four breasts. Can you imagine trying to take Troi seriously with four breasts? Thankfully, Roddenberry was talked out of this silliness and the Enterprise’s resident Betazoid counselor became the stuff of Trek legend.

16. Talosians

First appearance: star trek pilot “the cage” (1965).

You know we had to include the first aggressive alien species ever encountered in a Trek episode. And, yes, we’ll get this out of the way quickly: the Talosians’ heads look like asses. We know. ‘Ol fanny foreheads. Butt heads. Get it all out of your system. Okay, done? Good.

The Talosians were the sole survivors of a nuclear holocaust. The remaining Talosians manifested the power to create illusions. These beings grew addicted to the illusions and abandoned technology. Like the Lotus Eaters of old, their existence was now tied to their narcotic-like illusions. Soon, the Talosians grew bored. The buttheads lured alien races to their planet and fed off the psyche of their victims.

Captain Pike of the Enterprise and his science officer Spock were drawn to the Talosian home world. The Talosians tempted the Federation officers with everything they could desire, but — through the minds of both men — the Talosians learned that humans hated captivity. The Talosians showed compassion and let Pike and Spock go. Later, Spock would return to the Talosian planet after Pike was left paralyzed. The Talosians once again showed compassion as they allowed the broken Pike to live his life on the planet.

The Talosian story ends sweetly, but just remember that, somewhere in the galaxy, there are siren-like, androgynous aliens (the male Talosians were actually played by female actors), ready to lore victims into a life of captivity. The Talosians were Trek’s first encountered, named alien species and they are also some of the most memorable as these illusion-casting humanoids set the standard for all Trek species going forward. Not bad for a bunch of ass-heads.

15. Vorta

First appearance: star trek: deep space nine “the jem’hadar” (1994).

The Vorta were genetically bred by the Founders to be the perfect military commanders and strategists of the Dominion. Vorta are sly, cunning, and corrupt. Try to imagine an entire species of Littlefingers and you get the idea.

In addition to the strategic acumen baked into Vorta DNA by the Founders, Vorta are also programmed to believe that the Founders are gods — and the Vorta serve their gods in all things. The Vorta created the Jem’Hadar and could clone themselves so the Dominion would never be without its master strategists for long. Even after death.

But, like the Jem’Hadar, the Vorta were programmed to serve. Upon capture or defeat, a Vorta was programmed to commit suicide, and during the Dominion War, many Vorta pulled the trigger on their own demise. The Vorta was one of the most cunning and immoral races Starfleet ever faced, even if the immorality was inserted into their genetic makeup by another species.

14. Xindi

First appearance: star trek: enterprise “the expanse” (2003).

The Xindi are a collective of six subspecies — avian, arboreal, primate, reptilian, insect, and aquatic — that form a single race. As a whole, the Xindi posed a great threat to the early Federation.

The Xindi worship a race known as the Sphere Builders and, when this mysterious race warns the Xindi that they will be involved in a war with Earth, the Xindi preemptively strike, killing millions of humans. Jonathan Archer and his crew take the fight to the Xindi who provide the first crew of the Enterprise its greatest challenge.

The Xindi was one of the first warnings to humanity that not every race is benevolent as the six races of this advanced culture reined death upon an Earth that was still getting used to the idea of contact with alien life.

13. Trill

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “the host” (1991).

Trills are an advanced species of humanoid that are passionate and kind in most of their dealings. Some Trills are joined with wise Symbiotes that chose different member of the Trill species with which to share a mutual bond. The Symbiotes retain the personalities and memories of each host and pass these aspects on to the new hosts.

The first Trill Trek fans encountered was named Odan. Odan quickly struck up a romance with Dr. Beverly Crusher and, when Odan was tragically killed, the Symbiote was moved into the body of William Riker. Riker had long been friend-zoned by Crusher, so this began one of the most awkward romances in Trek history.

It also gave fans the legacy of the Trill, a legacy that continued into Deep Space Nine with the beloved Jadzia Dax. Through Dax, fans learned about almost every aspect of Trill life. It was a fascinating meditation of duality, sexuality, and identity and the character of Jadzia Dax was almost a dozen disparate characters in one. When Jadzia was lost, the Symbiote moved into Ezri Dax, a wonderful new character that continued the exploration into what it is like being many beings at once.

12. Tribbles

First appearance: star trek: the original series “the trouble with tribbles” (1967).

They’re fuzzy, they squeak, they can be deadly — who doesn’t love Tribbles? Ask any casual fan to name a Trek alien, and there’s a good chance Mr. Joe on the street guy will say Tribbles because these bundles of fur are just that darn famous.

“Trouble with Tribbles” — The Original Series  installment that first introduced these puff balls — allowed Shatner, Nimoy, and company to really flex their comedy chops. But, when you break down the threat the Tribbles represented, they actually are pretty terrifying… Imagine a species that reproduces so fast, a ship can be suffocating on the things in a matter of days. That’s a bit more Giger than Pokemon.

Despite the threat, the Tribbles also brought the laughs to generations of fans. Of course, the Tribbles were revisited in the classic DS9 episode “Trials and Tribble-ations” and also played a major role in the recent film Star Trek: Into Darkness . To quote a great man from a rival space franchise: “Not bad for a little fuzzball.”

11. Jem’Hadar

One of the greatest and most efficiently deadly militaries the galaxy have ever seen, the foot soldiers of the Dominion — the Jem’Hadar — are also one of the more tragic species that can be found in the Trekverse.

Jem’Hadar reach maturity in the span of about three days. They are genetically programmed to be the perfect galactic foot soldier by their masters, the Vorta. To insure control, the Vorta have withheld an essential enzyme from the Jem’Hadar genetic makeup. This enzyme is supplied to the Jem’Hadar in the form of The White, a liquid that the Jem’Hadar has filtered into their systems through a tube in their necks. Essentially, Jem’Hadar are drug-addicted soldiers unleashed upon the galaxy.

The Jem’Hadar were the main Dominion force that laid siege to Deep Space Nine during the Dominion War and were nearly unstoppable. The need for The White was a religion to the Jem’Hadar, who became one of the most feared species in any quadrant.

Jem’Hadar are incredibly resilient and possess keen minds that help them plan for battles. Despite all this, most Jem’Hadar die very young due to the fact that they are essentially cannon fodder for the Dominion. Yet, the Jem’Hadar value duty and loyalty above all else as they embrace their lot as pawns of the Dominion. All for The White.

The Top 10 Star Trek aliens await on the next page!

10. Changeling

First appearance: star trek: deep space nine “the emissary” (1993).

As we all know, life in the Trek universe can take many and varied forms. One of the most profoundly different races of the Trek galaxy are the Changelings, a race of intelligent liquid-based shape shifters that reshaped the political climate of the galaxy with the same ease that they reshape their bodies.

The Changelings were also known as The Founders and were the puppet masters behind the Dominion War. From their wormhole homeworld, the Changelings manipulated the universe. The Founders used entire races like chess pieces showing the Federation and its enemies that there are beings that exist within and behind the galaxy that are willing to go any lengths for power.

But not all Changelings were adversarial. Through Odo, Trek fans saw another side to this fascinating species. Odo was the constable aboard DS9 , a by-the-books cop who went to any lengths (literally) to solve crimes. He was a defender of his Federation friends, particularly Kira Nerys the woman he learned to love. When the Founders merged their liquid forms with Odo, they learned about humanity, and his love and bravery spread even to the hidden spaces of the galaxy.

Plus, The Changelings are an alien species that can easily disguise themselves as furniture. You can’t teach that!

9. Andorians

First appearance: star trek: the original series “journey to babel” (1968).

The Andorians are an aggressive yet advanced race that was one of the first alien races that formed the original Federation of Planets with humanity.

The Andorians have distinctive blue skin, white hair, and two protruding antennae. The blue skinned humanoids have an advanced armada and a long history of conflict with the Vulcans. This conflict was put aside as Andorians entered into the Federation and, with it, decades of peace. But peace wasn’t easy, as seen in Star Trek: Enterprise,  in which Federation Captain Archer and Andorian Captain Thy’lek Shran developed an adversarial relationship that, thankfully, culminated in a friendship based on mutual respect.

The Andorians are more than a bit xenophobic as they refer to humans and Vulcans as “pink skins” and have a long standing mistrust of everything not Andorian. In fact, the Andorians don’t even trust their offshoot race, the very rarely encountered, white-skinned, psychic Aenar.

Enterprise is a bit unfairly-maligned by some Trekkers, but it will always be the show that took the Andorians from background characters to a narratively-explored race with deep contradictions. Of course, I need to mention that the Andorian was also one of the final Trek dolls Mego produced. It is very sparkly.

8. Ferengi

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “the last outpost” (1987).

I would  tell you some facts about the Ferengi, but I’d have to charge you about ten bars of (snarl, drool) gold-pressed latinum first. Because that’s what drives the Ferengi race: cold, hard, glimmering, wonderful cash-money.

By the time fans met the crew of the Kirk’s Enterprise, most races in the galaxy had abandoned cash-based economies to focus on the improvement of science and technology for all beings. But not the Ferengi. These big-eared, fanged critters utilize science and technology to procure cash and heaven help any sentients that stand in their way.

Fans first me the Ferengi in Next Gen as the greedy race of miscreants became the first real adversaries Picard’s crew had to face. The Ferengi in Next Gen were vile and greedy, sort of like spacefaring Daffy Ducks. But, in Deep Space Nine , fans were introduced to Quark, Rom, Nog, and other Ferengi that had a streak of nobility. Oh, they were still as greedy as they come, but this Ferengi family, saved the DS9 space station more than once. Heck, Nog even became the first Ferengi to serve in Starfleet.

In DS9 , fans learned many of the finer points of Ferengi culture. For example, Ferengi women aren’t allowed to wear clothes. In addition to their odd dress codes, the Ferengi live by the Rules of Acquisition, an almost religious text that teaches the Ferengi the best ways to make money. Quark constantly had to choose between loyalty to his friends and his Ferengi impulses for cash and this often humorous double nature led to some fun dramas.

But, if you have a piece of latinum in your pocket, be warned that there are many Ferengi out there who would kill for it because that is the Ferengi way.

7. Romulans

First appearance: star trek: the original series “balance of terror” (1966).

All sentient races in the galaxy have a good, healthy fear of the Romulans — and with good reason. In many ways, the Romulans are like the anti-Vulcans. In fact, Romulans are an offshoot of the Vulcan race. Centuries ago, the Romulans rejected the Vulcan idea of repression of emotions and struck out on their own, finally settling on the twin planets Romulus and Remus and forging an empire.

Where Vulcans are cold, collected, and benevolent, Romulans are fiery, aggressive, and often power hungry. This passionate need to conquer led to the Earth/Romulan war, the first time humanity experienced total war on an intergalactic scale. Earth was eventually victorious and, during the conflict, no human ever actually saw a Romulan. Years later, it was the crew of the Enterprise that actually saw what Romulans looked like and it was Mr. Spock that postulated a common ancestry between Vulcans and Romulans.

The Romulans were based on the aggressiveness and culture of the Roman Empire, which is seen through the race’s military aggression and clothing. Despite years of ill will, the Romulans sided with the Federation in the Dominion War. A Romulan also changed reality, as fans of the new Trek films know…

A Romulan named Nero used a Red Matter device to destroy Romulus and punch a hole in time and space. Nero then went back in time and destroyed the USS Kelvin, causing a new reality to splinter off from the original Trek timeline — a reality Trek fans are currently enjoying in films.

Romulans have touched every part of Trek history and have even created a huge amount of it. They continue to serve as a counterpoint to the Vulcans and their name brings fear and respect throughout the Trek galaxy.

If you can imagine God in the Star Trek   universe, you understand Q. Q isn’t a kind god or an emotionally-distant god, hungry for worship. Q is a curious god that wants to test the intelligent races of the galaxy — particularly Jean-Luc Picard, captain of the Enterprise.

Q is a member of The Q, a race of omnipotent beings that observe the universe from afar and interfere in the lives of mortals when it suits their whims. The Q are a force of nature, appearing when and where they want to bring gifts or utter destruction to lesser beings. It all depends on a Q’s whims. Q became a sometimes-ally, sometimes-antagonist to the crew of the Enterprise and even popped up on DS9 and Voyager . (And, really, how awesome would it be to see Q pop into J.J. Abrams’ Kelvin Universe?)

Q is everywhere and everything. Wherever Q went, great storytelling followed — mostly because of the deeply complex and often comedic relationship between Q and Picard. Whether it was TV, comics, or novels (most notably the eminently readable Q Continuum trilogy by Greg Cox), The Q’s force of nature omnipotence have made them one of the most feared and gloriously divine species in the Trek universe. Yes, in Trek, Q definitely stood for quality.

5. Bajorans

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “ensign ro” (1991).

It is apropos that the Bajorans and Cardassians are so close on this list because the two races are forever linked in the mind of Trek fans. Trekkers first met the Bajoran through Enterprise Ensign Ro Laren, a fiery and ultra-capable young Starfleet cadet.

Ro had everything it took to get ahead in Starfleet. She was loyal, dedicated, brilliant, and strong willed. Yet, the past of her people, the Bajorans, was filled with so much tragedy. The loyalty to her race led Ro away from Starfleet and into the waiting arms of the Marquis, a group that abandoned Starfleet to form a renegade fleet of rebels dissatisfied with Federation doctrine.

Ro’s discontent was expanded upon by the inclusion of the Bajorans in Deep Space Nine . In DS9 , fans learnt of the suffering that the Bajorans were forced to endure at the hands of the Cardassians. Bajorans were a race of freedom fighters, a highly scientific and artistic race that had to embrace militarism and xenophobia in order to survive.

In DS9 , fans learned almost every aspect of the Bajoran race. What began with Ro continued the Kira Nerys, the second in command of the Deep Space Nine space station and a woman who would do anything to keep her people free and punish her former oppressors.

DS9 introduced many Bajoran notables in its many seasons, and not all of them were benevolent. Of all the races introduced in Star Trek , the Bajorans might be the most tragically human as they had to see their own darkness in order to survive the unthinkable in order to survive the Cardassians.

4. Cardassians

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “the wounded” (1991).

Nowhere in the Trek universe have there been a race more troubling, more complex, and more narratively-interesting race than the Cardassians. Fans first met the lizard like, leathery Cardassians in the Next Gen episode entitled “The Wounded,” in which the martial struggle between the Cardassians and the Bajoran was introduced.

The Cardassians were first seen as Nazi-like war criminals that committed a horrible genocide against the Bajoran people. The anger against the Cardassians, amongst other points of discontent, caused a large segment of Bjorn sympathizers to break off from the Federation and form the Marquis.

Cardassians warred with both the Federation and the Klingon Empire and took both fleets to the absolute limits. When the Cardassian/Bjorn conflict ended with the Bajoran victorious, it was up to the Federation to help the galaxy heal. The Federation set up the Deep Space Nine space station to oversee this transition of power as Cardassians began to be tried for war crimes that were simply unthinkable in such an enlightened galaxy. 

At this time, fans met Gul Dukat and Garak. Garak in particular demonstrated that there was more to the Cardassians than violence. He became a DS9 wildcard who, for the most part, was loyal to peace and harmony.

However, both Garak and former Cardassian military leader Gul Dukat had spilled their fair share of blood and the Cardassians began to stand-in for any race that committed genocide. Parallels were drawn not only to the Nazis but to Imperialistic Europe and to America’s treatment of indigenous peoples as well.

The Cardassians were a difficult mirror to look into because they exposed many societal flaws of the contemporary world. Through rich, powerfully crafted characters like Garak, Trek reminds viewers that in all species, there is the capacity for tremendous good and unthinkable evil.

3. Borg

First appearance: star trek: the next generation “q who” (1989).

Throughout Trek history, the wonderful men and women who have crafted stories for Star Trek have often reminded fans that space can be a cruel and terrible place — but no race has represented the horrors of the Final Frontier more than the Borg.

The Borg is a race of cyborg drones that share a hive mind. Their only aim is to assimilate the universe and make all Borg. Borg are mindless automatons that answer to the Borg Queen and the Collective. They are unstoppable and fiercely efficient. The Borg roam the galaxy in their distinctive Borg Cubes and, when they encounter any organic race, that race is forcibly assimilated into the Borg. All hopes, history, art, passion, and individuality become part of the Collective while the individual becomes a living weapon, a husk dedicated only to the Borg. Famously, Jean-Luc Picard fell to the Borg and was transformed into Locutus. As Locutus, Picard came an eyelash away from assimilating the Enterprise.

Later, through characters like Hugh Borg and Seven of Nine, some humanity was given to the Borg. Hugh was an injured Borg healed by Picard’s crew, while Seven of Nine broke her programming and served on Voyager. Through both characters, more and more history was revealed about the Borg. Fans even got to meet the Borg Queen in the film Star Trek: First Contact  — and what an H.R. Giger nightmare that was.

Throughout the decades, Star Trek has been the most hopeful of sci-fi franchises. Trek is infused with humankind’s potential for greatness and a hope for an enlightened future. The Borg serve as a reminder that technology can lead to paradise, yes, but it can also lead to a cold future of pure horror where individuality is worthless and resistance is futile.

2. Klingons

When we first met the Klingons, they were classically humanoid aliens that mirrored the worst of humanity. In the earliest Klingon appearances, Klingon society was portrayed as brutal and despotic. They were slave masters that would do anything to crush any opposition.

The Klingons were constant threats. At times, the Klingons seemed to be analogous to the Nazi Third Reich. In other instances, they resembled Communist Russia. But whatever real world nightmare the Klingons represented at any given moment, whenever a Klingon Bird of Prey warped into a confrontation with the Enterprise, fans know that intense action would follow.

When the Klingons returned in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , this brutal race’s appearance was altered. Suddenly, Klingons were shown to have deep forehead ridges and a more bestial appearance. The real reason this was done was because Trek now had a budget, but there has never been an in story reason for the Klingon alteration. This just adds to the mystique of the Klingon race.

Klingons take the next step of their story evolution in Star Trek: The Next Generation . Now, a Klingon served on the bridge of the Enterprise, and it could be argued that this Klingon — Mr. Worf — was the very model of what a Starfleet officer should be. Through Worf, Next Gen explored every aspect of Klingon culture and made it more like a race of honorable technologically-advanced Vikings or Mongols than an analogy to fascism. That exploration continued into Deep Space Nine and, through the half Klingon-half human engineer B’Elanna Torres, onto Voyager .

There is an actual a Klingon language that exists in the real world. A whole freakin’ language has been created inspired by these honorable and violent warriors of the cosmos. So, raise a glass of Klingon Warnog, grab your Bat’leth, and salute the Klingons — a race that started out as typical villains, but evolved into one of the most engaging and inspiring races in the galaxy.

1. Vulcans

Is there any race in genre fiction more beloved than the Vulcans? This race of logic-driven, emotionless, pointy-eared people have defined the Star Trek experience since day one.

In the Star Trek pilot, “The Cage,” the world was introduced to science officer Spock, a cold, calculating yet brave and benevolent alien who loyally assisted his captain. Fifty years later, Spock is still the strong right hand of the Enterprise. The Vulcan’s lack of emotion serves as a perfect narrative contrast to human nature, with the interactions and differences between Spock, McCoy, and Kirk as the beating heart of Trek since Roddenberry first put pen to paper.

But the wonder of the Vulcans don’t end with Spock. Over the decades — through countless books, films, TV episodes, and comics — many Vulcans have taken center stage and have, in the words of the most famous Vulcan of them all, fascinated fans for generations…

There has been Sarek, Spock’s father who dared to follow his emotions and take a human wife. There has been Tuvok, the brave and able Vulcan officer who served on Voyager. There has been T’Pol, the sometimes cold but always loyal commander that served as the first officer of the first Enterprise. By being so alien, all these characters and so many more have shown the world what it means to be human.

Trek lore has delved deeply into Vulcan history, creating one of most fully-functioning and detailed fictional worlds in all of sci-fi. Sadly, in the latest set of Trek films, Vulcan has fallen and this magnificent race is endangered. But take heart that Spock, Vulcan and Earth’s favorite son, is endeavoring to rebuild the race that has long made Star Trek so awesome.

Marc Buxton

Marc Buxton is an English teacher/private tutor by day,and a super-hyper-uber geek by night. Marc spent six years on the frontlines as a comic retailer before…

15 of the Most Bizarre Alien Species Featured in 'Star Trek'

"star trek" aliens.

"Star Trek" is filled with unusual aliens, ranging from the humanoid to the crystalloid to the god-like. Here are some of the more unique species from the live-action "Star Trek" series. Please note: We deliberately exclude the more well-known alien races, and limit each of the series to three entries to try to include samples from across the canon. If we missed anything bizarre, tell us in the comments!

1. Salt vampire ("Star Trek: The Original Series," 1966-1969)

The very first episode of "Star Trek" showed promise when it came to weird aliens. An old flame of one of the crew members, Nancy Crater, turns out to be a projection of a sort of salt vampire that soon runs amok on the USS Enterprise. This alien species cannot live long without salt, so it attacks crew members and sucks them dry of essential salts. The creature is eventually stopped in part by a sort of mouse trap that — of course — uses salt. [ What I Learned by Watching Every 'Star Trek' Show and Movie ]

2. Horta ("Star Trek: The Original Series," 1966-1969)

This is a species of silicon-based life (humans, by comparison, are carbon-based) that prefers to feed on rocks. In a moving episode, "The Devil In The Dark," the crew discovers that the aliens are actually intelligent and very loyal to their offspring — but only after the Vulcan alien Spock does a mind-meld with one of the creatures, which is being persecuted by miners angry at the destruction it has caused.

3. Gorn ("Star Trek: The Original Series," 1966-1969)

A member of this extremely strong (but intelligent) reptilian species engages in famous hand-to-hand combat with Capt. James T. Kirk in the episode "Arena." The only way Kirk manages to overpower him is by finding the ingredients for gunpowder on the alien planet on which he is trapped, using his own uniform to help with the ignition. As an honorary mention, we should also include The Metrons, a species that can manipulate energy and matter at will — these are the aliens that set up the fight in the first place, because they are mad at their space being invaded.

4. Q ("Star Trek: The Next Generation," 1987-1994)

Simultaneously terrifying and witty, Q is a seemingly supernatural being who pops up on the USS Enterprise periodically to play tricks on the crew. Some of his memorable actions include giving Q-like powers to a member of the Enterprise (arguing that humans always love learning), and putting humanity on trial for its past crimes while wearing period uniforms from over the centuries. Q, however, isn't all trickster. Alongside his antics, he does warn humanity about the approach of the Borg, which is trying to assimilate all species into a collective. [ The Evolution of 'Star Trek' (Infographic) ]

5. Tamarian ("Star Trek: The Next Generation," 1987-1994)

This species is a tongue-twister for the usual translators that Starfleet officers carry. While the translators can literally tell us what the Tamarians are saying, it's hard to understand what is going on because the species is speaking in metaphors. (Some examples from Memory Alpha: "Temba, his arms wide/open," which means a gift, or "the river Temarc in winter," which refers to the need for silence.) In the episode "Darmok," Capt. Jean-Luc Picard must learn to communicate with a Tamarian quickly before they are both killed by a hostile beast.

6. Crystalline Entity ("Star Trek: The Next Generation," 1987-1994)

This alien goes in the "beautiful but deadly" category, as the crystalline entity was breathtaking to watch in space — it looked a bit like a snowflake, or small and shiny diamonds. However, the entity had a nasty side to it: It could quickly devour all life in its wake. The USS Enterprise finally defeated the entity by sending graviton pulses that eventually broke it into pieces. But sadly, the crew couldn't stop the pulses in time when they realized the creature might be trying to communicate with them.

7. Changeling ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," 1993-1999)

Fans of the series will instantly remember changelings, as their numbers included one of the series' main characters — Odo, the sarcastic security officer aboard the space station Deep Space 9. Changelings were made up of an orange liquid that in the "Star Trek" universe is technically referred to as a "morphogenic matrix." Changelings were able to morph into pretty much anything they wanted to, including inanimate objects or even to resemble humans. [ Love of 'Star Trek' Inspires Highly Illogical Careers ]

8. Jem'Hadar ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," 1993-1999)

Jem'Hadar were one of a few "Star Trek" aliens with very different life cycles than humans. In their case, they were created in "birthing chambers" and were able to reach maturity in just three days. They also fed on a drug called Ketracel-white, which contained an enzyme they needed to survive. That enzyme was deliberately withheld during birthing by the Vorta, who created the Jem'Hadar; this gave the Vorta power over the Jem'Hadar and a captive economy for distributing the drug.

9. Trill ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," 1993-1999)

A main character on "Deep Space Nine" was from the Trill species — Jadzia Dax. Most of the Trill were fairly unremarkable, but there were a small number (including Dax) who lived with a symbiont inside their bodies. This symbiont was intelligent, but required a host organism to survive; it was common to transfer symbionts to young bodies when the older host organism was close to death. This meant that in the case of Dax, the symbiont transferred from an older man to a younger woman, prompting surprise from an old friend, Capt. Benjamin Sisko, the first time he met the younger Dax on Deep Space 9.

10. Hirogen ("Star Trek: Voyager," 1995-2001)

This alien was a brutal enemy of anything in the "Star Trek" universe, simply because the Hirogen consider themselves the dominant species and anything they run across as prey. Their entire culture was focused on hunting down other species, and they had the ability (if required) to break down bones and muscle tissue to eat the prey. Not someone you'd want to invite to dinner.

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Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist) Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission. Her latest book, " Why Am I Taller ?", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary instructor in communications and science at several institutions since 2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well) to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace

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• Why Aliens Are So Important to <i>Star Trek</i>

Why Aliens Are So Important to Star Trek

Excerpted from TIME’s Star Trek: Inside the Most Influential Science-Fiction Series Ever . Available at retailers and at Amazon.com .

Since the time of the Greek philosopher Anaximander, humans have gazed up at the heavens and wondered: Is anyone else out there? For some, the idea that we might be the most advanced beings in all of creation offers a sense of supremacy. Others find it a lonely thought.

Reality has yet to offer a conclusive answer one way or the other, leaving our imaginations to run wild. If aliens do exist, what might they look like? How would they behave? And crucially: Would they be friend or foe? Thinkers no less great than the physicist Stephen Hawking have warned of the latter possibility. “If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans,” Hawking remarked in a 2010 documentary on the subject.

Thankfully for the curious among us, science-fiction writers have stepped up to fill our imaginations with myriad possibilities.

Their creations have extended far beyond the archetypical “little green men.” H.G. Wells’s 1898 War of the Worlds, widely hailed as an exemplar of the genre, gave us terrifying Martian invaders and their tripodal death machines. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) offered Klaatu, who visited Earth to urge humanity to end our warlike ways. And of course there was E.T., the disarmingly cute alien simply in need of a ride home.

But nothing in science fiction has contributed to the depth of the extraterrestrial encyclopedia like Star Trek. From the Bajorans (a proud people struggling to recover from another species’s hostile occupation of their world) to the Tamarians (a seemingly incomprehensible race that turns out to communicate through mythology and metaphor), Star Trek’s writers have dreamed up nearly 300 different alien species and counting, according to the fan website Memory Alpha. And that’s just the humanoids.

How can one franchise spawn so many aliens—and so many memorable ones, at that? Necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention. Science fiction typically uses spaceships, death rays and time travel as devices to offer ominous warnings about the ways humanity can go awry. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry flipped that script, introducing to a 1960s audience a future in which an interated cast of humans (and, just to drive the point home, one actual alien) work together to better understand their universe.

That utopian vision was essential to Trek’s DNA, but it was also a tremendous challenge for one group of people: Star Trek writers, who faced the daunting task of writing stories in which the main characters all got along just fine.

“Gene was very big on not wanting to create conflict among the characters on the show,” says Rick Berman, who led the Star Trek franchise after Roddenberry died in 1991 until 2005 and produced several series and feature films. “He felt that humans, especially Starfleet humans, had evolved to a point where he didn’t want to see conflict between them.”

Yet conflict is at the core of all great storytelling. So if the Enterprise crew couldn’t squabble with one another, Star Trek writers had to find friction elsewhere. Aliens came to the rescue. “Often we were telling stories of how humans had progressed, or not, in the far reaches of space,” says longtime Star Trek writer D.C. Fontana. “But sometimes the theme of the tale was better told by demonstrating how aliens approached or solved problems, or how they failed.”

Things got off to a rocky start. Putting aside Spock—a full-fledged member of the Enterprise crew—the first extraterrestrial to appear on Star Trek was a C-list monster that could have been pulled from any bad ’50s sci-fi flick. A shape-shifter with a serious salt craving, the nameless creature killed off Enterprise crew members by sucking the sodium out of them. The so-called “salt vampire” wasn’t a big hit. Thankfully, matters improved from there.

Humans are complex creatures, capable of being logical, tactical, aggressive, greedy and lustful all in a single one-hour episode. But Star Trek aliens are typically guided by one prime mover. Often it is some trait shared by many people. A desire for conquest, perhaps, or the pursuit of wealth or the urge to protect one’s offspring. That made them a thinly veiled stand-in for whatever driving force they represented, giving the writers a way to craft stories that were less about aliens and more about us. Simply put, Star Trek aliens are a mirror in which we see the best and worst of ourselves—and one in which we see that we’re not as different from one another as we might think.

“The concept of having aliens on a week- to-week basis, sometimes new, sometimes ones that the audience was familiar with, gave the writers the ability to represent all the different qualities of humanity,” says Berman. “Whether it’s avarice or whether it’s a hive-like mentality or whether it’s emotions or whether it’s a desire to be more human, these were all qualities that the aliens allowed us to play with. We could not have done the show without that.”

Case in point: In the third-season Next Generation episode “The Survivors,” Capt. Jean-Luc Picard and his crew find a couple who appear to be the only survivors of an attack on a Federation colony. But when they are offered safe harbor aboard the Enterprise, they refuse, insisting they be left where they were found. It’s an odd request, given their situation. A series of other strange happenings, such as a warship appearing to drive the Enterprise away from the planet, convinces Picard that something is amiss with the pair, who are named Kevin and Rishon Uxbridge. Picard is eventually able to trick Kevin into revealing the truth: he’s not a human but a member of an all-powerful species called the Douwd. Kevin admits that he created a fictional version of Rishon after she was killed in an attack by a murderous race called the Husnock. What’s more, Kevin, who considers himself a pacifist, reveals that in his rage over losing his wife, he killed the Husnock. And not just the Husnock who attacked his world but all of them, everywhere in the universe.

Kevin’s reaction is perfectly “human.” Who hasn’t wished ill will on those who do us wrong? The difference, of course, is that Kevin has the power to satisfy his rage to a horrific extent. Picard, typically motivated by justice, admits that the Federation has “no law to fit” Kevin’s crime, instead letting him live in exile on the planet. The captain concludes, “We leave behind a being of extraordinary power and conscience. I am not certain if he should be praised or condemned. Only that he should be left alone.”

With the possible exception of Spock and the rest of the Vulcans, Star Trek’s best-known aliens are the Klingons. A ruthless warrior race obsessed with battle and honor, the Klingons originally served as a two-dimensional foil for Kirk and company. Many have viewed them as a bellicose stand-in for the great space-race enemy of the original series’ era, the Soviet Union. But so popu- lar have the Klingons become over the decades that theirs is the most widely spoken fictional language in the world, according to Guinness World Records. (Take that, Lord of the Rings fans.) There’s even an ongoing copyright battle over who owns the Klingon language, which has generated some of the more entertaining legal briefs of our time.

At least some of the credit for that popularity is due to actor Michael Dorn, who played the Klingon bridge officer Worf in The Next Generation. That series took the original, more-cartoonish Klingons and gave them depth and relatability. Klingons, as it turns out, are a lot like us. The Klingons are warmongers, like some humans. The Klingons are obsessed with rituals, like some humans. The Klingons are driven by a fierce dedication to their family, like some humans. One of Star Trek’s best Klingon stories came in “Sins of the Father,” a third-season Next Generation episode in which Worf’s late father is accused of treason. As much as it pains him to do so, Worf decides to shoulder the blame in accordance with Klingon custom, despite his father’s innocence, a move that will help preserve the Klingon Empire’s political status quo and keep the empire from spiraling into chaos that could ultimately harm millions. It’s a deeply human story, a meditation on family pride as much as it is a revealing look into the intricacies of Klingon politics.

If the Klingons were Star Trek’s original villains, the Borg were the show’s best. A technologically advanced race of cyborgs, the Borg are bound together into a hive mind called “the Collective.” Just looking at the Borg, a terrifying hodgepodge of man and machine, is enough to send shivers down your spine. But the real terror lies in their motivation: intergalactic racial purity. When the Borg encounter a new species, they either add it to the Collective through forced “assimilation” or simply kill it off.

It’s unclear which is the worse fate. In part, Star Trek is a celebration of humanity’s individuality. The Borg are everything Trek’s humans are not: obedient, robotic, conformist. So great is the fear of assimilation that in the Star Trek film First Contact, an Enterprise crew member who’s going through the horrific process begs Capt. Picard to kill him out of mercy. Picard—who had once been assimilated himself but was saved in a daring rescue by his crew—obliges. “The concept of being assimilated was terrifying, because it seemed like you had no control over it and no ability to combat it,” says Jonathan Frakes, who played Star Trek’s Cdr. William T. Riker and directed First Contact as well as Star Trek: Insurrection.

The Borg, who first appeared in a 1989 episode of The Next Generation, are typically considered a commentary on fascism and racial cleansing. But in a sense, they are aliens posing questions we didn’t even realize we would soon be facing. Can we real-world humans be addicted to constant connectivity through our smartphones, as the Borg are to the Collective? (Cut a Borg off from the hive mind, and the alien’s nonplussed reaction is not unlike that of a teenager stripped of an iPhone.) Does social media give us a platform on which to connect with others to enhance our common understanding, or does it create a hive mind that rejects unpopular opinions, as does the Collective? Should we enhance our physical and mental capabilities with technological implants, as the Borg do? Watch the Borg stories with these pressing questions in mind, and they only become more fascinating.

Given the prominence of races like the Klingons and the Borg, it might seem as if Star Trek’s aliens are almost always villains. That’s far from the case. The greedy Ferengi, introduced early in The Next Generation, were intended as such at first. But fans considered them too silly to be a serious threat. Instead, the Ferengi soon turned into walking, breathing commentaries on the advantages and flaws of unbridled capitalism. If Donald Trump were a Star Trek alien, he would be a Ferengi. They’re driven entirely by making money; they always want the better part of the deal. (They also happen to be some of the most sexist creatures in Trek: they outright ban women from business, though their society undergoes reforms as their story line progresses.) These characteristics put them in stark contrast with Star Trek’s humans, who work not for money but “to better ourselves and the rest of humanity,” as Capt. Picard once put it.

Star Trek’s quintessential Ferengi was Quark, a seedy intergalactic businessman and bartender who was brought to life by actor Armin Shimerman in Deep Space Nine, the franchise’s third television series. Quark often quoted from “the Rules of Acquisition,” a sort of Ferengi guidebook that could double as Gordon Gekko’s personal manifesto. Example rules include “Never place friendship above profit,” “Never allow family to stand in the way of opportunity” and “War is good for business.” But Deep Space Nine’s writers went beyond using Quark as a mere punching bag for Wall Street. In the season-three episode “The House of Quark,” for instance, we see him use his business-like cunning to escape certain death in a duel with a Klingon. The lesson? Sometimes greed is good.

Star Trek writers were skilled at constantly adding depth to the aliens who reappeared through the series. Just as the Klingons’ belligerence was leavened with stories about their love of honor, the warlike Romulans turned out to be literally related to the Vulcans—a glimpse at Trek’s most logical race with the worked only in pairs, providing a lesson about the power of cooperation. And Star Trek: Voyager’s “Year of Hell” offered the history-alerting Annorax, who aimed to use his time weapon to restore his people’s empire to its former glory but killed his own wife in the process, revealing the cost of stubborn pride.

On one level, Star Trek is a science-fiction show about a group of intellectually enlightened humans exploring the far reaches of the galaxy, all to better their understanding of their world. But the show is really about us, back here in the present day, and the common ties that bind us. What better way to show us we’re all alike than through the lens of outsiders? “Aliens are really important in science fiction because they give a little distance character-wise and story-wise so that you can actually have stories about beauty and youth and racism, and on and on and on,” says John de Lancie, who played Star Trek’s godlike character Q. “It puts it on the character of an alien to be able to say things that sometimes you can’t say straight out. I think the aliens in Star Trek and the aliens in most science fiction have a lot of value in that respect.”

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Star Trek: The 10 Best Alien Races, Ranked

Many of Star Trek's alien races have become huge parts of the franchise, and the best of them have captured the imaginations of fans for decades.

Star Trek has been one of American pop culture's biggest sci-fi franchises for sixty years now. Fans have thrilled to the adventures of the intrepid officers of Starfleet and the many aliens they've encountered, as the show found a way to mix action, science, and thoughtful storytelling. One of the best parts of the show is the way it used its alien races to talk about modern humanity and create characters that challenged fans' views of the Federation.

RELATED: Star Trek: 5 Reasons To Make Another Movie With The Current Cast (& 5 Not To)

Over the years, many of these alien races have been fleshed out and become huge parts of the franchise. The best of them have captured the imaginations of fans for decades.

10 The Jem'Hadar Are More Interesting Than They Seem

At first, the Jem'Hadar seemed like another stereotypical warrior race to act as the foot soldiers of the Dominion, and this was basically true. However, fans were surprised by how complex they could be every time any spotlight was put on the genetically engineered soldiers. A race of honorable warriors whose faith was used against them, the tragedy of the Jem'Hadar made them interesting.

While there weren't too many Jem'Hadar centric episodes, the few that were produced made an impact on fans. They're an underrated race in the Star Trek mythos, one that is ripe for a return.

9 The Desperation Of The Vidiians Made Them Into Relatable Villains

Star Trek: Voyager sent the titular ship into the Delta Quadrant, far away from the familiar races of Star Trek past. The series often just used the archetypes of those more well-known aliens to create new ones, like the Kazon, but the Vidiians were quite different from anything fans had seen before. The entire race was ravaged by a disease called the Phage and traveled space stealing organs in order to keep themselves alive.

When fans learned the truth behind their organ snatching ways, it made them extremely sympathetic, and later appearances by the Vidiians played into that. They represented the best of Star Trek's aliens, changing fans' perception of them as the race evolved.

8 The Trill Were A Very Different Kind Of Alien Race

The Trill first appeared in the season four The Next Generation  episode "The Host." The host race of the Trill in that episode looked very different from the ones that came after in Deep Space Nine, but it wasn't the first time a race went through massive cosmetic changes in Star Trek. What didn't change is the premise behind the aliens.

RELATED: Star Trek: All Movies, Ranked According To IMDb

A symbiotic race, the long-lived Trill symbionts were put into the body of different humanoid Trill over the centuries. Jadzia Dax was the exemplar of this, becoming one of the most balanced  Star Trek  characters ever , her years of experience making her into a multi-faceted character. Each Trill was an amalgamation of lives, and this allowed the writers of DS9 to play with queer ideas that Berman era Trek didn't often touch on.

7 The Q Were A Race Of Omnipotent Tricksters

Q is one of the most intelligent Star Trek antagonists , and his entire race followed suit. First introduced in  The Next Generation 's   pilot "Encounter At Farpoint," Q became a Star Trek icon. Nearly every resulting Q played up the impish trickster persona that actor John De Lancie created for the character. Fans loved Q and learned more and more about his race and home as the years went by.

The Q are such a uniquely Star Trek race of godlike aliens. They serve to remark on humanity's growth and play amusing tricks on them. Even the least loved Q episodes are among the most beloved in franchise history.

6 The Bajorans' Story Of Occupation And Rebellion Was Unique In The Star Trek Mythos

The Bajorans were a very different kind of Star Trek race. First introduced in The Next Generation  with Ensign Ro Laren, they'd get fleshed out by Deep Space Nine  and become one of the richest and most interesting Star Trek races. Protected by the non-corporeal Prophets, who they worship as gods, their society went through trials and tribulations before they were enslaved by the Cardassians.

The Bajorans were a deeply spiritual people and as fierce as they come, embracing terrorism to fight against their oppressors. Their story was one of the most interesting of all the big Star Trek races.

5 The Borg Are Star Trek' s Most Iconic Villains

The Next Generation  is now known as a fan favorite, but the first few seasons weren't among the best of Trek . In fact, an argument can be made that TNG didn't truly become great TV until the Borg were finally felt in full force in the season three finale "The Best Of Both Worlds." While they were introduced in "Q Who" in the first season, they wouldn't become icons until that epic season finale.

The Borg represented the most frightening enemy of them all, the loss of individuality. They were an implacable foe that couldn't be reasoned with, and even fighting them was often was futile. They forced the crews to think outside the box and made for great TV.

4 The Cardassians' Embrace Of Fascism Made Them Terrifyingly Fascinating

The Cardassians had their genesis in The Next Generation ,   but came to prominence in Deep Space Nine   with some of the show's best episodes revolving around them . While they were often the villains, especially after they sided with the Dominion, they were also shown to be more than just a race of stereotypical evildoers, especially the character Garak.

The race was openly fascist and built their entire society around that idea. They were equally repellent and interesting, showing viewers the split sides of fascism and how it would affect individuals through the actions and characters of Garak and Dukat.

3 The Ferengi Became One Of Star Trek 's Most Fun Races

The Ferengi were introduced in the first season of The Next Generation  and were meant to be a new big villain race for the show. Their portrayal evolved over time until Deep Space Nine,  when Ferengi bar owner Quark became a main character, and fans were introduced to the hyper-capitalist lifestyle of the Ferengi. Ferengi episodes became among the show's most beloved, yet another reason why DS9 has some of the best seasons of Trek .

RELATED: Star Trek: 6 Things That Still Hold Up Today

The Ferengi were often the most entertaining aspect of every episode they were a part of, and their evolution as a race was a key subplot. Their lampooning of capitalism made them an interesting part of the openly socialistic Star Trek mythos.

2 The Klingons Became One Of Star Trek' s Most Popular Races

The Klingons were the main antagonists of TOS and have evolved over time from the villainous cliches of the '60s into one of the most popular Star Trek races. Creator Gene Roddenberry pulled this off by putting Worf on the bridge of the Enterprise-D in The Next Generation  to show that the enemies of yesterday could be the friends of today.

Worf served as the perfect character to bring the new Klingons to life, as actor Michael Dorn's portrayal of the character made him a fan favorite. Multiple Klingon-centric episodes fleshed out the race, and their culture and language are well known to all fans of Star Trek.

1 The Vulcans Have Always Been A Huge Part Of Star Trek

Spock was the first Star Trek alien fans were introduced to, and the Vulcan race would be established as one of the Federation's most important . Their place in Starfleet and their role in shepherding humanity into the stars was a big part of multiple Star Trek shows. The Vulcans have become a huge part of pop culture, with even non- Star Trek fans knowing something about them.

As they became more fleshed out, they'd only get more interesting. Their cold logic was revealed to be a veneer over volcanic rage that they had to control at all costs. This juxtaposition made them intriguing, and they were always great for human characters to play off.

NEXT: 10 Reasons It Doesn't Actually Make Sense To Pit Star Wars Against Star Trek

Michael Dorn (right) played the Klingon Worf in the Star Trek franchise.

What ‘Star Trek’ May Have Right—and Wrong—About Alien Life

Will we ever salute Vulcans or cuddle tribbles? An astrobiologist explores the latest thinking on the forms alien life might really take.

Over an illustrious 50-year history, Star Trek TV shows and movies have introduced audiences to some of the most famous fictional aliens. Be they Klingons, Cardassians, Vulcans, or tribbles, the Trek universe abounds with distinct and diverse extraterrestrials.

For now, such exotic civilizations remain in the realm of science fiction. But scientists have plenty of ideas about what real alien life might be like, and what our chances are of ever discovering whether we are alone in the universe .

In the past few decades, scientists have developed exquisitely sensitive equipment to search for other habitable worlds and to hunt for greetings from across the cosmos. To date, astronomers have found more than 3,500 planets beyond our solar system, and they calculate that many more remain undiscovered. (See how aliens might contact us using giant laser doodles .)

Even more exciting, we’ve found handfuls of planets that seem to be in the so-called habitable zone —the region around a star where the temperature is just right for liquid water to exist on a planetary surface. Water is a key ingredient for life as we know it, and its presence seems to have driven biological development right from the start.

“The fact that on Earth life emerged quickly just after conditions became habitable suggests that this could happen often in other systems, too,” says Daniel Apai , an astronomy and astrobiology researcher at the University of Arizona and the NASA Astrobiology Institute.

“Life persisted for about four billion years on Earth and survived a variety of planetary challenges, suggesting that it is very difficult to ‘sterilize’ a planet once it’s taken a foothold,” he adds. “So chances are good that life is relatively common in the galaxy.”

For Hungry Minds

Spreading seeds.

If we ever do find aliens, would they be anything like the beings that populate Star Trek ? While the show writers have imagined some highly unique creatures, from non-corporeal energy beings to intelligent clouds, most aliens encountered by the Enterprise crew have been carbon-based life-forms that are all too often humanoid.

The striking similarity between humans and the show’s most famous aliens, including Romulans, Vulcans, and Andorians, has been a point of contention with many fans over the years. In Star Trek: The Next Generation , the franchise writers attempted to explain this convenient lack of biological diversity using a real scientific theory called panspermia .

Captain Kirk deals with troublesome tribbles in Star Trek.

Proponents of this theory argue that life on Earth may have been seeded by hardy microbes—or at least, by raw ingredients such as amino acids—that traveled here via comets or asteroids. While there’s no direct evidence to back up this claim, missions such as the Rosetta orbiter have found the building blocks of life on comets, and we know tough organisms such as tardigrades can survive unprotected in space.

Scientists also believe early Earth was bombarded by meteors, which could have delivered a “starter kit” for life from elsewhere in the galaxy.

Building on the panspermia concept, Star Trek suggested that an ancient humanoid life-form intentionally seeded worlds around the Milky Way, creating new species that assumed their basic shape. While each of these species may have split off on its own evolutionary path, they are all essentially long-lost relatives. (Find out how Star Trek is right about almost everything .)

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While there is a case for panspermia, chances are slim that we will encounter humanoid life-forms in the real universe, Apai argues. Some theories suggest that local environmental conditions and evolutionary events left to chance will most likely shape the future of any life-form, making it totally unique.

“While there are examples for parallel evolution in the terrestrial biosphere—for example, similar eyes evolving in very different, unrelated species—it seems unlikely to me that we would encounter alien life that would be humanoid,” says Apai.

It’s a Small Galaxy?

Instead, given the only example we have, some researchers suggest that the most common form of life across the galaxy may be what’s most abundant here on Earth: microbes.

“On Earth, it took only a relatively brief period for life to emerge and reach the capability to photosynthesize, but it took billions of years for complex animals to emerge, and intelligence and technical civilization have only been present for about 0.000001 percent of Earth’s past,” says Apai. In other words, our planet’s history has been dominated by a wide array of microscopic life.

There’s also a good chance that the basic molecular building blocks we see on our world will be common throughout the universe.

The horta was a silicon-based life form in Star Trek.

“Given the availability and its chemical properties, it is a good guess that carbon may often be the key species that provides the backbone, the molecular scaffolding, for biomolecules,” says Apai.

Still, astrobiologists are trying not to be too Earth-centric in their theories about alien life—there’s always the chance that if we do manage to find extraterrestrials, we’ll stumble upon silicon-based creatures like the horta or sentient minerals like the crystalline entity.

“We are looking for everything we can find and trying to exclude no possibilities that we can conceive,” says Apai. “Of course, I am still certain that we will be surprised when we will first be able to study extraterrestrial life.”

Follow Andrew Fazekas on Twitter , Facebook , and his website .

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Published Nov 21, 2023

A Field Guide to Alien Greetings

Here's a guide to what to say, and what to expect, when making First Contact.

StarTrek.com

Cosmic diplomacy is a complicated game. First Contact with any new alien species requires a delicate approach — first impressions are important, and when something goes wrong, it can be awkward at best. At worst, a poor First Contact leads to an intergalactic incident! But there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for proper behavior in the company of another species.

Any good Starfleet officer will need to know when to muster up the patience for the Chandrans’ three-day ritual to say “hello,” or when to avoid Hirogen space — they’re more the type to shoot first, and make contact later, if at all.

With that in mind, here’s a field guide on how to greet alien species, and what to expect when they greet you.

Star Trek: First Contact

Vulcans are known for holding logic as a core value, placing it in greater esteem than emotion. That doesn’t mean they’re not gracious, however.

In Star Trek: First Contact , the Vulcans that arrive in Bozeman, Montana greet their human hosts by holding up the Vulcan salute — holding one’s hand up with the middle and ring fingers separated. This gesture is often accompanied by the phrase, “ Live long and prosper ,” which, like the Hawaiian “ Aloha ,” doubles as a farewell.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Honor is king in the Klingon Empire — social niceties are not.

Where a Romulan or Cardassian might employ cordiality as pretext for deception, a Klingon will always let you know where you stand, if not always gently. “Good morning” or “How do you do?” generally don’t apply on Qo’nos. A traditional Klingon greeting is “ nuq’neH ,” which translates to “What do you want?” though the mechanics of it are a little delicate — only ask when being approached, not when approaching.

"Parth Ferengi's Heart Place"

The profit-seeking Ferengi have a hand gesture, not unlike the Vulcans, that they use when greeting other Ferengi. They hold their wrists together, and when in the presence of nobility like the Grand Nagus, also bow in submission. But should one invite you into their home, expect them to say, “ My house is my house ,” to which you would reply, “ As are its contents .”

"Little Green Men"

It’s also helpful to have a universal translator on hand, however, so as not to make the mistake of the 20th Century humans in Deep Space Nine ’s “ Little Green Men ” who confused head-smacking as a method of communication.

"The Collaborator"

In general, greeting a Bajoran is pretty straightforward.

A simple “hello” or “good day” will suffice. But because of their spiritual nature, there are situations that call for more formality. For instance, during the Gratitude Festival, as seen in Deep Space Nine ’s “ Fascination ,” the traditional way to greet a Bajoran is “ peldor joi .” Which would accompany the burning of Bateret leaves and renewal scrolls.

"Let He Who Is Without Sin..."

Inhabitants of the “pleasure planet” Risa , a popular vacation destination for members of the Federation, have an Epicurean philosophy that they’re more than happy to share with guests. That hedonistic lifestyle is precisely what makes it so appealing after a lengthy mission in the Alpha Quadrant, and upon arrival on Risa, the Risians will typically greet visitors by saying “ All that is ours is yours. ”

They’re quite generous, and they expect you to enjoy yourself. And for some extra attention, display a horga’hn statue to signal that you’re open to jamaharon .

"Unification, Part I"

As their adversarial relationship with the Federation of Planets has shown, Romulans tend to have, at best, a skeptical view on outsiders.

That being said, there are formal greetings in Romulan society, as heard in The Next Generation episode “ Unification ,” such as “ Jolan tru ,” which can be translated as “ May your day be filled with peace .” Saying so wouldn’t necessarily smooth out any potential hostilities in the Neutral Zone, by any means, but it certainly couldn’t hurt.

The Children of Tama

"Darmok"

Picard discovered, in “ Darmok ” on The Next Generation , that the Children of Tama, aka Tamarians, would prove complicated, as their interpersonal communication relies on a series of metaphors based on their own mythology and history.

For instance, “ Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra ” signifies cooperation. So be prepared for their fairly complicated hello — " Rai and Jiri at Lungha. Rai of Lowani. Lowani under two moons. Jiri of Ubaya. Ubaya of crossroads, at Lungha. Lungha, her sky gray .”

This is essentially their way of introducing themselves to a new culture. Return the favor by saying, “ Temba, his arms wide ,” (offering a gift) or “ Temba, at rest ,” which is a sign of peace.

"The Tholian Web"

The Enterprise ’s first encounter with the Tholians in “ The Tholian Web ” put them viewscreen-to-viewscreen with a foreign entity that resembled a psychedelic cube with eyes. They’re a crystalline species with six legs that look a bit like a praying mantis with a hard, mineral outer shell.

Upon encountering them, expect to hear a high-pitched series of clicks and chirps, which can be a bit piercing to the ears, but is still modulated through universal translator. Just be honest and forthright in your response; as Loskene says to the Enterprise , “ We do not tolerate deceit .”

"Terra Firma, Part 1"

Terrans are humans, technically, but being from the Mirror Universe, there are some notable differences.

For one, they’re more sensitive to light than humans from our universe. Another, they live in a cutthroat, dog-eat-dog society where hostilities run deep. As such, they have a different set of formalities than the Federation, namely that their greeting to one another is the Roman salute — one arm extended out forward, palm down — accompanied by a hearty cry of, “ Long live the empire! ”

For the sake of not provoking those hostilities when in the Mirror Universe, it’s probably best to return the greeting.

One-on-one encounters with the Borg don’t really happen. Each member of the Borg Collective is interconnected, part of a hive mind working in unison, and communicating with one is communicating with all of them. However, they have a single-minded mission to assimilate people and technology that will allow them to advance and remain dominant as a society.

There are variations of their standard greeting, though it generally goes something like this, “ We are Borg. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile. ” Once they’ve greeted you, however, they intend to assimilate you — they’re upfront about that — so there’s no need for a response! Contact isn’t advised.

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This article was originally published on October 21, 2020.

Jeff Terich (he/him) is a freelance writer from San Diego who writes about pop culture, art, and music. He can be found on Twitter at @1000TimesJeff.

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Star Trek's Borg Owe A Big Debt To Alien

Best star trek: ds9 episode from each of the show’s 7 seasons, every star trek series, ranked worst to best.

• Star Trek and Alien share iconic actors, showcasing their talents in both classic sci-fi franchises.
• Brad Dourif impressed in Star Trek: Voyager and channeled creepiness reminiscent of his Alien character.
• Idris Elba transitioned from Prometheus captain to Star Trek Beyond's villain, showing versatility in both franchises.

10 actors have explored the final frontier in Star Trek and faced deadly Xenomorphs in the Alien franchise. Ridley Scott's Alien premiered in 1979 and remains one of the most influential science fiction horror films of all time. Following Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and the doomed crew of the Nostromo, Alien spawned numerous sequels, prequels, and crossovers, including projects that are still in the works as of 2024. From the facehugger to the chestburster to the adult Xenomorph, the team behind Alien also created some of the most iconic visuals in cinema.

Star Trek has its own fair share of iconic aliens, though not even the Borg, inspired by H.R. Giger's Alien designs, are quite as viscerally horrifying as those in Alien . Beginning when Star Trek: The Original Series premiered in 1966, Star Trek became an even more expansive franchise than Alien , with a dozen TV series and 13 Star Trek movies . From the 1970s until today, every decade has seen new Star Trek and Alien projects, so it makes sense that several actors have appeared in both franchises.

Star Trek's malevolent Borg have a major connection to the xenomorphs from the Alien franchise and their creator, H.R. Giger.

10 Brad Dourif

Star trek: voyager / alien: resurrection, star trek: voyager.

Brad Dourif only appeared in three episodes of Star Trek: Voyager as Ensign Lon Suder , but his character made quite an impression. A Betazoid member of the Maquis, Suder suffered from violent tendencies he tried to control, but he had no outlet for them as a crewmember of Voyager. In Voyager season 2, episode 16, "Meld," Suder murdered Crewman Frank Darwin and was confined to his quarters on the ship.

Brad Dourif made Suder complex and suitably creepy.

When the Kazon attacked and took over Voyager in the Star Terk: Voyager two-parter , "Basics," Suder helped retake the ship. Brad Dourif made Suder complex and suitably creepy, perhaps channeling some of the psychopathic traits of Dourif's Alien: Resurrection character, Dr. Jonathan Gediman. Gediman was part of the science team that cloned Ellen Ripley, and he became a bit too obsessed with the Xenomorphs.

9 Leland Orser

Star trek: deep space nine, star trek: voyager, star trek enterprise / alien: resurrection, star trek: deep space nine, star trek: enterprise.

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 2, episode 10, "Sanctuary," Orser played a Skrreean farmer named Gai, who was bonded to the Skrreean representative Haneek (Deborah May). In a later episode of DS9 , season 3, episode 21, "The Die is Cast," Orser appeared as a Changeling masquerading as Romulan Tal Shiar agent Colonel Lovok. Orser's next Trek appearance came in Star Trek: Voyager season 4, episode 5, "Revulsion," where he portrayed Dejaren, a hologram who developed a hatred for organic lifeforms.

In his final Star Trek appearance, Orser played Loomis in a Star Trek time travel episode — Star Trek: Enterprise season 3, episode 11, "Carpenter Street." Loomis was a human blood bank worker who had been recruited by the Xindi in 2004 as part of their plan to destroy humanity. Leland Orser appeared in Alien: Resurrection as Larry Purvis, a civilian who became an unwilling host to a Xenomorph egg.

Leland Orser has become most known for playing unstable or even psychotic individuals, including the sadistic serial killer in 1999's The Bone Collector .

8 Ron Perlman

Star trek: nemesis / alien: resurrection.

Before achieving mainstream fame portraying Hellboy in Guillermo del Toro's two Hellboy movies , Ron Perlman appeared in Alien Resurrection as the crass mercenary, Ron Johner. Premiering in 1997, Alien: Resurrection was one of the first big Hollywood films Perlman starred in. His Star Trek appearance came not long after, in 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis , where he was physically unrecognizable as the Reman Viceroy.

Although the Viceroy is never named in Star Trek: Nemesis , he serves as the second-in-command of the Reman forces and becomes one of Praetor Shinzon's (Tom Hardy) most trusted advisors. The Viceroy used his telepathic abilities to help Shinzon violate the mind of Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) , although this contact allowed Troi to trace the Viceroy's mind later. The Viceroy is eventually killed in a one-on-one fight with Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes).

7 Raymond Cruz

Star trek: deep space nine / alien: resurrection.

Long before Raymond Cruz appeared as Tuco Salamanca in Breaking Bad , he played human soldier, Vargas, in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 7, episode 8, "The Siege of AR-558." Vargas was one of the soldiers assigned to protect the communication array on the planet known as AR-558. Vargas survived the five-month assault until Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) arrived with reinforcements, but he was killed during the Jem'Hadar's final attempt to take the array.

Cruz almost made it to the end of Alien: Resurrection, but became the last causality of the Xenomorph .

In Alien: Resurrection , Cruz portrayed Private First Class Vincent "Vinnie" Distephano, a dedicated soldier initially on the side of Dr. Mason Wren (J. E. Freeman). Wren was part of the scientific team that cloned Ellen Ripley as part of their plan to recreate the Xenomorph species. After Wren tried to betray the other survivors, Distephano switched sides. Cruz almost made it to the end of Alien: Resurrection, but became the last causality of the Xenomorph .

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had an astonishing run of episodes across seven seasons, but which of its 173 episodes best represent each season?

6 Jenette Goldstein

Star trek generations / aliens.

Jenette Goldstein is best known for her role in Aliens as Private Jenette Vasquez, a cocky marine who is part of the team sent to investigate Hadley's Hope colony. Like her fellow marines, Vasquez questions Ripley's experience with the Xenomorph on the Nostromo and believes their mission will be an easy one. Vasquez helps keep Ripley and the young survivor, Newt (Carrie Henn), alive, although she later sacrifices herself to avoid being taken by the aliens.

Jenette Goldstein only had a small role in Star Trek Generations , as a science officer on board the USS Enterprise-B in the opening sequence of the film. Although Goldstein has only had minor roles in the Star Trek franchise , her Aliens character, Vasquez, partially inspired the character of Lt. Tasha Ya r (Denise Crosby) on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Jenette Goldstein also voiced the USS Enterprise computer in two episodes of Star Trek: Short Treks.

5 Daniel Kash

Star trek: discovery / aliens, star trek: discovery.

Daniel Kash joined the Star Trek family in Star Trek: Discovery season 3, episode 10, "Terra Firma, Part 2," with a brief appearance as Duggan, an ally of Captain Gabriel Lorca in an alternate timeline of the Mirror Universe. Kash's more memorable Star Trek appearance came in Discovery season 4, episode 8, "All In," in which he plays Haz Mazaro , the owner of the Karma Casino Barge.

Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) had dealings with Mazaro and reached out to him when they were looking for black market isolynium. In Aliens , Kash portrayed Private Daniel Spunkmeyer, a member of the Marine Combat unit sent to investigate Hadley's Hope colony. Spunkmeyer served as a copilot on the dropship Bug Stomper before he was killed when a Xenomorph stowed away on board.

4 Chelah Horsdal

Star trek: discovery / alien vs. predator: requiem.

Upon arriving in the 32nd century in Star Trek: Discovery season 3, Michael Burnham and her crew begin working to aid and rebuild the United Federation of Planets. In the premiere episode of Star Trek: Discovery season 4, Chelah Horsdal's Laira Rillak is elected as the new Federation President . At odds at first, Captain Burnham and President Rillak become close allies, as they fight to save the Federation from the Dark Matter Anomaly in Star Trek: Discovery season 4.

As a Human, Bajoran, and Cardassian hybrid, President Rillak comes from three different species that have historically been on opposing sides. Laira presents a brighter, more unified future, and her time as a top Federation ambassador prepared her well for the job of the presidency. In Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem , Chelah Horsdal played Darcy Benson, whose husband and son were killed by Xenomorph chestbursters while on a hunting trip.

3 Mark Rolston

Star trek: the next generation, star trek: enterprise / aliens, star trek: the next generation.

Character actor Mark Rolston portrayed Private Mark Drake in Aliens, one of the Marines sent to check on the Hadley's Hope colony. In his first Star Trek role, Rolston played Lt. Walter Pierce in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 7, episode 18, "Eye of the Beholder." Pierce had killed his girlfriend and her lover out of jealousy while working on the USS Enterprise-D, and Counselor Troi felt empathic traces of the murder eight years later.

In Star Trek: Enterprise season 2, episode 17, "Canamar," Rolston plays Enolian criminal Kuroda Lor-ehn. After escaping prison, Kuroda had been recaptured when he met Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula), who had been wrongly imprisoned. Archer eventually earned Kuroda's trust, which helped the Captain get back to the Enterprise. Mark Rolston also appeared briefly in Enterprise season 4, episode 6, "The Augments," as the Klingon Captain Magh.

Mark Rolston provided the voice for Portal 63 in the video game, Star Trek: Resurgence .

There are 11 Star Trek TV series (and counting) over 58 years. From The Original Series to TNG to Strange New Worlds and Prodigy, we rank them all.

2 Winona Ryder

Star trek (2009) / alien: resurrection, star trek (2009).

Winona Ryder played Amanda Grayson, the human mother of Spock (Zachary Quinto), in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek (2009) . In the alternate Kelvin timeline, Amanda was killed when Nero (Eric Bana) destroyed Vulcan. In Alien: Resurrection , Ryder starred as Annalee Call alongside Sigourney Weaver's Ripley 8. Call kept her true identity as an Auton secret synthetics had been outlawed after a failed uprising.

Call was originally meant to kill Ripley 8 before the Xenomorph inside her could be harvested, but she arrived too late. Despite being a machine, Call felt sympathy for mankind , which led her to sabotage the Xenomorph breeding program. One of the few characters to make it out of an Alien movie alive, Call apparently achieved her goal, destroying the Xenomorphs and making it to Earth in one piece.

1 Idris Elba

Star trek beyond / prometheus, star trek beyond.

As revealed in Star Trek: Beyond , Idris Elba's Krall had formerly been a Federation soldier and Starfleet officer by the name of Captain Balthazar M. Edison. When Edison's ship, the USS Franklin, crash-landed on a distant planet, he found alien technology that allowed him to siphon energy from others to prolong his own life. Edison grew to hate the Federation, and he became so mutated that he no longer appeared human, and he became Krall.

Krall's search for a powerful alien weapon eventually brought him into conflict with Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine), who succeeded in killing him.

Before taking on the role of the villainous Krall in Star Trek Beyond , Idris Elba portrayed Jalek, the Captain of the scientific vessel Prometheus in 2012's Alien prequel, Prometheus . Jalek eventually sacrificed himself and his ship to prevent the mysterious Engineers from destroying humanity. Whether they are exploring strange new worlds in Star Trek or trying not to get eaten by a Xenomorph in Alien , several actors have left their mark on two of science fiction's biggest franchises.

Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek (2009), & Star Trek Beyond are all streaming on Paramount+.

Star Trek Generations is streaming on Max.

Darmok (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 1.6 Act Five
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Production history
• 4.2 Story and script
• 4.3 Production
• 4.4 Cast and characters
• 4.5 Continuity
• 4.6 Reception
• 4.7 Merchandising
• 4.8 Video and DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Also starring
• 5.3 Guest stars
• 5.4 Co-stars
• 5.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.6 Stunt double
• 5.7 Stand-ins and photo doubles
• 5.8.1 Children of Tama language references
• 5.9 External links

Summary [ ]

The USS Enterprise -D is on a mission to attempt to establish communications between the Federation and the Tamarians after several previous attempts by the Federation over the last century had failed. The Tamarians had arrived at the planet nearly three weeks prior and began transmitting a signal towards Federation space . Upon arrival, the Enterprise and the Tamarian vessel make a rendezvous in orbit of El-Adrel IV . The two parties try to communicate but, like the occasions before, neither party can comprehend what the other party is saying. Captain Dathon disarms his first officer of a knife -like weapon and repeats, “ Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra .” Suddenly both he and Captain Picard are transported off of their ships to the surface of El-Adrel IV. Data finds that the Tamarian vessel projected a scattering field in the ionosphere of the planet, preventing both the Enterprise and themselves from using their transporters .

On the planet, Picard watches the Tamarian captain approach. He suddenly holds up two knives.

Act One [ ]

" Sensors show that Captain Picard and the Tamarian are in apparent good health, approximately twenty meters from each other. "

Lieutenant Commander Data also finds that the scattering field is blocking communications. However, sensors can still penetrate the scattering field, allowing either party to monitor Picard's and Dathon's locations. Lieutenant Worf suggests it might be a contest between champions. Seeing that they are in good health, Riker attempts to communicate with the Tamarian first officer, with no success. He has Worf prepare a shuttlecraft to get the captain, betting the Tamarian ship won't fire on it, as blocking transporters and firing on vessels are two totally different things, Riker reasons.

On the surface of El-Adrel IV, Picard and Dathon once again try to communicate, as Dathon passes one of the two knives to Picard, repeating " Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra ." Picard assumes that Dathon wants to engage in combat and refuses to take his knife. Frustrated, Dathon says " Shaka, when the walls fell " but Picard cannot understand the terms that Dathon is using and both men become frustrated with their failure.

As nightfall approaches, Picard is still stuck on the planet's surface. He tries to make a fire but cannot. Dathon then does something akin to prayer and goes to sleep, taking one of his knives out for protection. However, he cannot sleep knowing that Picard will go through the night cold. Dathon takes a branch from his fire and throws it to Picard. He says " Temba, his arms wide. " While Picard does not understand what or who Temba is, he understands that Dathon is trying to help him, and thanks him for the fire.

Act Two [ ]

Worf takes the shuttle Magellan with Ensign Kellogg to the surface of El-Adrel IV to rescue Captain Picard. As they begin to descend, the Tamarian vessel fires upon the shuttle and disables the starboard nacelle , destroying the shuttle's thrusters and forcing it to return to the Enterprise . Data reports that the Tamarian's phaser beam was precisely attenuated for that effect. " Nice shooting, " Riker says.

In the observation lounge , Riker has Data and Counselor Troi analyze the log of the communication between themselves and the Tamarians and consult the ship's computer with the words and names mentioned and find several commonalities. Data and Troi deduce that the Tamarian language is entirely based on metaphors derived from their own experience and mythology , making their language extremely difficult for a non-Tamarian to understand because without knowing the people or things in the metaphor, the metaphor is impossible to comprehend. Lieutenant Commander La Forge and Ensign Lefler then attempt to modify the transporters to transport Captain Picard through the dampening field.

The following morning, on the planet's surface, Picard and Dathon are still no better off in their attempts to communicate with one another. Picard wakes up to find Dathon missing. He examines his things, finding what looks like a captain's log, then he returns, shouting at him. Picard notices that Dathon repeatedly uses the phrase " Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra ", but he does not understand who or what they were. Dathon is still insistent in giving Picard one of the knives, but again Picard refuses.

Act Three [ ]

Picard and Dathon hear a loud roar in the distance and rocks fall from the cliffs behind the two men. Picard realizes that Dathon and he are not alone on the planet's surface. As the creature approaches Picard and Dathon, Picard realizes that Dathon is not offering him the knife to fight him, but to arm him against the creature, and accepts the weapon. When Dathon speaks again, referring to what sounds like a battle plan, Picard suddenly understands that the Tamarians communicate by citing example – by metaphor. Dathon utters a phrase that sounds like he was relieved that Picard finally understands him

Meanwhile, Worf detects a highly localized EM disturbance in fairly close proximity to Picard and Dathon, which is rapidly approaching them. La Forge, Lefler, and Chief O'Brien are almost ready to attempt to beam Captain Picard back aboard the Enterprise . Riker orders them to try early, but La Forge isn't hopeful. They make preparations for Transporter room 1 where O'Brien is ready.

The creature attacks Dathon and Picard wounds it, but the creature strikes Picard, ripping his shirt. Dathon makes a return attack and draws the creature. Just then, O'Brien makes the attempt to transport Picard while the creature is striking Dathon. Picard is furious with being transported as it immobilized him, leaving him unable to help the Tamarian captain. The transport ultimately fails, and Picard is left on the planet as the creature moves away from Dathon. Picard holds him as they say " Shaka, when the walls fell. "

Act Four [ ]

The Tamarians lower the scattering field to a deeper level of the planet's ionosphere, making transport impossible and forcing the crew to devise a new way to bring the captain back to the Enterprise . Riker has La Forge work on a way to disable the field generator on the Tamarian ship. The Enterprise 's sensors show that Dathon's life signs are fluctuating and they know that the Tamarians know this also, but, surprisingly, no action is taken by the Tamarians to save their captain. Troi and Data explain the difficulty with their language, that it is based on narrative imagery. One must know the context as well as the words of the language.

Back on El-Adrel IV, Picard sits down next to a dying Dathon near the fire and asks him about Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra. It seems that Darmok and Jalad were two legendary travelers, strangers who faced and defeated a common enemy on the island of Tanagra. Picard realizes that Dathon knew of the creature on El-Adrel IV and brought them both here so that they could re-enact the events between Darmok, Jalad, and "the Beast" at Tanagra. Dathon's hope was that by facing a common enemy, the two sides could learn to understand one another and bring the two species closer together. Now that Picard understands how the Tamarians communicate, Dathon wants to hear one of his stories. Picard, at first, tells Dathon that he is not much of a storyteller and that he probably would not understand it anyway. Despite this, Picard begins to recite an old story from Earth , very similar to that of Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra, about Gilgamesh and Enkidu at Uruk , and how two enemies became friends through hardship. Dathon appears impressed and amused by Picard's story. Dathon dies during the night, but not in vain, as he has become the first Tamarian to successfully establish communications between his people and the Federation.

Act Five [ ]

Back on the Enterprise , La Forge and his staff have developed a way to disable the Tamarians' scattering field – by firing a highly focused single phaser beam aimed at the generator on the Tamarian vessel. Commander Riker gives the order to fire on the Tamarian vessel. The shot disables the generator, allowing Chief O'Brien to beam Captain Picard aboard just as the creature is about to attack him again. The Tamarians return fire, severely damaging the Enterprise and crippling the ship's warp drive . As Picard returns to the bridge , he orders hailing frequencies to be opened with the Tamarian vessel. The Tamarians reply angrily but they quickly calm down when Picard addresses them in their metaphors. He explains that although the mission was a success as far as establishing communications between the two peoples is concerned, Dathon gave his life to accomplish it. Picard holds up Dathon's journal, and the Tamarians beam it into the first officer's hand, after which he pronounces that this successful contact will henceforth be known as the story of "Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel". Picard offers the knife to the Tamarian officer, but the Tamarian insists that Picard keep it.

Later, Picard is reading the Homeric Hymns in his ready room when Riker stops by with the damage reports for Picard to review. He notices the book and Picard explains that maybe more familiarity with their own mythology may help them relate to the Tamarians. Picard also notes to Riker that Dathon sacrificed his life in hope of communication, and wonders if he would have been willing to do the same. Riker leaves, and Picard picks up the knife and looks out of the ready room window into space while repeating the gestures he saw the Tamarians engage in upon learning of their captain's death, paying his own silent tribute to his fallen comrade.

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D), 2368
• First officer's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Darmok and Jalad… at Tanagra. "

" Picard and Dathon… at El-Adrel. "

" In my experience, communication is a matter of patience, imagination. I would like to believe that these are qualities that we have in sufficient measure. "

" Shaka, when the walls fell. "

" I have encountered 1,754 non-Human races during my tenure in Starfleet. "

" Temba, his arms wide! "

" That's how you communicate, isn't it? By citing example… by metaphor! Uzani's army… with fists open… " " Sokath, his eyes uncovered! " (meant as a metaphor to comprehension)

" Imagery is everything to the Tamarians. It embodies their emotional states, their very thought processes. It's how they communicate and it's how they think. "

" Our situation is analogous to knowing the grammar of a language, but none of the vocabulary. "

" Darmok, and Jalad… on the ocean. " " Darmok and Jalad… they left together . "

" Temba, his arms wide. " " I'll go along with that. "

" Gilgamesh, a king. Gilgamesh, a king. At Uruk. He tormented his subjects. He made them angry. They cried out aloud, "Send us a companion for our king! Spare us from his madness!" Enkidu, a wild man… from the forest, entered the city. They fought in the temple. They fought in the streets. Gilgamesh defeated Enkidu. They became great friends. Gilgamesh and Enkidu at Uruk. " " At Uruk… " " The… the new friends went out into the desert together, where the Great Bull of Heaven was killing men by the hundreds. Enkidu caught the Bull by the tail. Gilgamesh struck him with his sword. " " (laughing) Gilgamesh… " " They were… victorious. But… Enkidu fell to the ground, struck down by the gods. And Gilgamesh… wept bitter tears, saying, "He who was my companion, through adventure and hardship, is gone forever. "

" Temarc! The river Temarc in winter! " " Darmok…? " " …and Jalad at Tanagra. Darmok and Jalad… on the ocean. " " Sokath, his eyes open! " " The beast at Tanagra. Uzani, his army. Shaka, when the walls fell. "

" Temba, his arms open. " " Temba, at rest. " " Thank you. "

" New friends, Captain? " " I can't say, Number One… but at least they're not new enemies. "

(Sees Picard's book) " Greek, sir. " " Oh… the Homeric Hymns . One of the root metaphors of our own culture. " " For the next time we encounter the Tamarians? " " More familiarity with our own mythology might help us to relate to theirs. The Tamarian was willing to risk all of us just for the hope of communication…, connection. Now the door is open between our peoples. That commitment meant more to him than his own life. Thank you, Number One. "

" Picard of the Federation. Of the Starship Enterprise . Of the planet Earth! "

Background information [ ]

Production history [ ].

• Story outline by Philip LaZebnik (along with a one-page introductory memo) sent from Michael Piller to Rick Berman (also forwarded to Gene Roddenberry ): 11 December 1989 [1]
• In a two-page memo, Piller suggests Joe Menosky try to tackle this episode's story: 28 August 1990 [2]
• Menosky replies with three-page memo to Piller: 4 September 1990 [3]
• Final draft script: 8 July 1991 [4]
• Filmed: 18 July 1991 – 26 July 1991
• Additional filming at Bronson Canyon : 5 August 1991
• Creature scenes filmed: 8 August 1991
• Second unit footage filmed: 26 August 1991
• Additional second unit shots filmed: 28 August 1991
• Premiere airdate: 30 September 1991
• First UK airdate: 28 December 1994

Story and script [ ]

The location map for the two-day location shoot at Bronson Canyon

• This episode had the longest gestation period of any episode during Michael Piller 's tenure, taking around two years to make it to the screen. Rick Berman hated the premise, but Piller thought it was interesting and was determined to make it work, so he finally gave it to Joe Menosky . ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 228)
• Menosky recalled that Philip LaZebnik 's story involved members of an away team who in turn each met a mysterious alien boy drawing in the dirt. The boy greeted each of the team with the single word "Darmok?" Regardless of the response, the crewmember was catapulted into orbit in a strange cocoon. At the end, Picard realized that "Darmok" meant "play" and sat down in the dirt with the child. Menosky felt this was too similar to the "Bridge of Death" scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail and didn't work in the context of the show. However, he did like the word "Darmok". ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 219)
• After being assigned to rewrite the script, Menosky struggled for several days with no results. He recalled, " So when Michael reconvened the staff to talk about it, I truly thought that I might be fired. But Michael was really excited. He'd just seen Dances with Wolves and was completely blown away by the scene with Kevin Costner 's character and the Native American warrior around the campfire, who don't speak a word of each other's language, but finally make themselves understood. Michael announced, 'That's it: one man, one alien, alone on a planet, around a fire. They don't know each other's languages, they struggle to overcome their differences, and finally break through to communication. And maybe there's a big monster.' " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 219)
• Menosky then wrote Piller a memo, outlining themes of language, communication and mythology, which greatly impressed Piller. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 219; Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 228) A copy of this memo is available here .
• In devising the Tamarian language , Menosky was inspired by three sources: the work of psychologist James Hillman (who had emphasized "all is metaphor"), the quote "Every word is a poem" from translator and poet John Ciardi , and the dense historical metaphors present in Chinese poetry and philosophical works such as the I Ching . ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 220)
• The story about Gilgamesh and Enkidu is from one of the world's earliest known literary works, a Babylonian poem entitled the Epic of Gilgamesh (said to have been dated from around 2150 BC-2000 BC). The story of Gilgamesh and Enkidu at Uruk is itself a metaphor for the situation of Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel: two people, initially combatants, come together to become friends and fight a common foe, a battle in which one of them is struck down and the other mourns his loss. ( Mission Overview: Year Five , TNG Season 5 DVD special features) According to Menosky this similarity was a combination of "writer's luck" and inevitability. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 220)

Production [ ]

• "Darmok" was filmed between Thursday 18 July 1991 and Friday 26 July 1991 , on Paramount Stage 8 , 9 , and 16 , as well as on location at Bronson Canyon . An additional day was Thursday 8 August 1991 , on which the blue screen unit filmed the creature scenes with stuntman Rex Pierson on Paramount Stage 9. Second unit for this episode filmed on Monday 26 August 1991 , on Paramount Stage 9 and 16. When the following episode " Ensign Ro " returned to location at Bronson Canyon on Monday 5 August 1991 , another sequence was filmed for "Darmok", involving Rex Pierson and photo doubles Ron Large and Lanier Edwards . Photo double Dana Vitatoe filmed additional second unit shots on Wednesday 28 August 1991 , on Paramount Stage 9.

Cast and characters [ ]

• Patrick Stewart deemed this episode as worthy of winning awards. He stated this was " because it was a brilliantly written episode based on the myth of Gilgamesh and with one of our most distinguished guest stars, Paul Winfield . " ( Mission Overview: Year Five , TNG Season 5 DVD special features) Winfield was previously seen in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan as the ill-fated Captain Clark Terrell .
• The call sheet dated 18 July 1991 featured an "uncast actress" in the role of Lt. Larson . In the final episode, this role became Robin Lefler , who was played by Ashley Judd .

Continuity [ ]

• This is the first episode which introduces a new captain's uniform : a gray undershirt with an open red jacket. The uniform was designed by Robert Blackman to make Captain Picard stand out from the rest of his crew, at the suggestion of actor Patrick Stewart . [5] Although the jacket has a black yoke like the standard uniforms, the yoke is made of a material that looks like leather and has a quilted pattern. Also, the red portion of the jacket is made from a material that looks like suede. In further episodes, the yoke is replaced with the same material of the rest of the jacket.
• This episode marks the first appearance of the Type 6 shuttlecraft .
• This episode marks the first appearance of Ensign Robin Lefler , who later played an important part in discovering the Ktarian game conspiracy with Wesley Crusher in the episode " The Game ".
• This is also the first appearance of Data's redesigned quarters. The previous set used for Data's room was modified to serve as Kirk and Spock 's quarters in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and was demolished after filming was complete. ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Special Edition) text commentary )
• This episode is also notable as it is the only time a phaser beam is emitted from the main photon torpedo tube. It is admitted to be a post-production mistake in the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 177). This was corrected for the remastered version by replacing the shot with a close-up of the phaser array from " The Best of Both Worlds ". The original shot does appear on the Blu-Ray in the trailer for "Darmok".

Reception [ ]

• Michael Piller remarked, " I just think 'Darmok' is the prototype of what Star Trek should be. It dealt with a very challenging premise and many of our best shows are scripts that have been around a long time… He created a whole language for that episode and it's just astonishing. The episode worked on every level; it had the philosophy dealing with language and what it does for us, two great acting performances, it had a monster and a space battle – it had everything. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 228)
• Director Winrich Kolbe commented that he had mixed feelings on the episode. " Storywise, it was a hell of a story. It was almost flawless. It tangled a very interesting subject and a very complicated subject as well, and I think it did it well. " However, he felt somewhat constrained in how he could film the planet scenes with the monster. Furthermore, he noted the difficulty in directing scenes in an alien language. " Can you imagine not speaking Russian and… having to write an article in Russian? It makes it kind of difficult. Even though I had a translation of the dialogue, it wasn't quite there and for me it was like directing a Russian movie without speaking the language, but you work your way through it. So that was an additional challenge. The episode seems to have struck a chord. It's a show we can all be proud of. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 228)
• Despite his initial resistance to the idea, Berman later named "Darmok" as one of his all-time favorite episodes. ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages ) Shortly prior to its initial airing, he commented, " It's a wonderful two-person piece […] It's going to be a terrific episode. " ( Star Trek: The Official Fan Club Magazine  issue 82 , p. 6)
• Patrick Stewart referred to the episode during the funeral service of Gene Roddenberry , who died less than a month after the episode aired. Stewart noted that the cast had just appeared in an episode dealing with the roots of mythology and metaphor. Joe Menosky recalled, " He used it as a way to validate and praise Gene's creation . That moment might have been the proudest I've ever been about anything I've written for Star Trek . " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 219)
• This episode has been used by linguistics teachers to aid in students' understanding of how languages work and evolve. ("Mission Overview: Year Five", TNG Season 5 DVD special feature; [6] )
• Doctor Who writer and producer Russell T Davies liked the billing blurb for this episode so much that he deliberately didn't watch it, later saying, " I love the idea so much, I'd rather think about it. Forever. " Nearly twenty years after the episode first aired, Davies wrote a Doctor Who episode with a premise that he reckoned was similar to this one . ( SFX , issue #200, p. 140)
• A mission report for this episode, by John Sayers, was published in The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 18 , pp. 12-15.

Merchandising [ ]

• A scene of "Darmok" between Dathon and Picard replaced with cats is featured in Jenny Parks ' 2018 book Star Trek: The Next Generation Cats . [7]

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 51, September 1992
• As part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: The Next Generation - 10th Anniversary Collector's Edition under the "Picard" section, 29 September 1997
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, Paramount Home Entertainment ): Volume 5.1, 24 June 2002
• As part of the TNG Season 5 DVD collection
• As part of both Region 1 and 2 releases of the Star Trek: The Next Generation - Jean-Luc Picard Collection
• As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Captain's Log collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Patrick Stewart as Capt. Jean-Luc Picard
• Jonathan Frakes as Cmdr. William Riker

Also starring [ ]

• LeVar Burton as Lt. Cmdr. Geordi La Forge
• Michael Dorn as Lt. Worf
• Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher
• Marina Sirtis as Counselor Deanna Troi
• Brent Spiner as Lt. Commander Data

Guest stars [ ]

• Richard Allen as Tamarian first officer
• Colm Meaney as Miles O'Brien
• Paul Winfield as Dathon

Co-stars [ ]

• Ashley Judd as Ensign Lefler
• Majel Barrett as Computer Voice

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Cameron as Kellogg
• Tracee Lee Cocco as Jae
• Gerard David, Jr. as operations division ensign
• Jeremy Doyle as operations ensign
• Norman Hunte as Tamarian bridge officer
• Michael Moorehead as science division ensign
• Teri Noel as Tamarian tactical officer
• Rex Pierson as El-Adrel IV entity
• Keith Rayve as command division ensign
• Joycelyn Robinson as Gates

Stunt double [ ]

• Gerard Williams as stunt double for Paul Winfield

Stand-ins and photo doubles [ ]

• David Keith Anderson – stand-in for LeVar Burton
• Lanier Edwards – photo double for Paul Winfield
• Ron Large – photo double for Patrick Stewart
• Nora Leonhardt – stand-in for Marina Sirtis
• Tim McCormack – stand-in for Brent Spiner , Colm Meaney and Patrick Stewart
• Lorine Mendell – stand-in for Gates McFadden
• Greg Poole – stand-in for Richard Allen , Paul Winfield and Michael Dorn
• Bill E. Rogers – photo double for Paul Winfield
• Richard Sarstedt – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes
• Dennis Tracy – stand-in for Patrick Stewart
• Dana Vitatoe – photo double for Brent Spiner
• James Washington – stand-in for Michael Dorn and Paul Winfield
• Unknown actress – stand-in for Ashley Judd

References [ ]

47 ; 2268 ; " a matter of "; ability ; act of war ; adventure ; aft ; alien ; " all right "; amplification pathway ; analogous ; angry ; annular confinement beam ( confinement beam ); annular convergence ; answer ; arm ; army ; assumption ; " at a loss "; " at the very least "; atmospheric ionization scan ; balcony ; beast ; bioscan ; black ; bluff ; border ; bull ; captain's log ; challenge ritual ; chance ; children ; Children of Tama (aka Tamarians ); choice ; city ; colony ; " come on "; communication ; communications channel ; companion ; computer ; concentration ; confidence ; confinement resolution ; contest ; continent ; country ; " course of action "; court ; creature ; cross reference ; cultural interchange ; D region ; dagger ; damage ; damage report ; danger ; database ; day ; death ; density ; desert ; door ; E region ; Earth ; " educated guess "; ego ; El-Adrel IV ; El-Adrel sector ; El-Adrel system ; electromagnetic disturbance ; electron ; EM carrier ; emotional dynamic ; emotional state ; emperor ; enemy ( foe ); energy output ; Enkidu ; evasive maneuvers ; experience ; eye ; face ; failure ; Federation ; Federation space ; fire ; fist ; " for all we know "; " for instance "; " for what's it worth "; forest ; friend ; frozen dessert ; Gallos II ; generosity ; Gilgamesh ; " go ahead "; god ; grammar ; gray ; Great Bull of Heaven ; Greek language ; ground ; hail ; " hello "; Homeric Hymns ; hour ; hundred ; hunter ; hyperionization ; image ; imagination ; impression ; impulse ; individual ( person ); intention ; ionosphere ( upper atmosphere ); island ; Jalad ; Kanda IV ; kilometer ; king ; knife ; Lerishi IV ; lifeform ; lifesign ; life support linguistic database ; location ; madness ; Magellan ; Malindi VII ; mathematical progression ; maximum range ; meaning ; meeting ; metaphor ; meter ; minute ; motivation ; mytho-historical ; mythology ; nacelle ; name ; narrative ( story ); narrative imagery ; navigational ; NBT ; nonaggression pact ; noun ; Number one ; ocean ; " of course not "; offline ; onboard system ; " out of the question "; overload ; particle beam emitter ; particle scattering field ; particle sustaining beam ( particle beam ); patience ; percent ; phase sequencer ; phase transition sequencer ( phase sequencer ); phaser ; phaser pulse ; place ; plasma reactor ; polarity coil generator ; polaron ; positron ; power surge ; prefire chamber ; proper noun ( proper name ); propulsion ; quality ; race ; Razna V ; red ; red alert ; resonance frequency ; risk ; river ; road ; romance ; Romeo and Juliet ; ruling family ; rumor ; sacrifice ; search index ; security team ; self-identity ; Seventh Dynasty ; Shantil III ; Shiku Maru , SS ; shunt ; Sigma Tama IV ; silence ; Silvestri, A. ; sky ; sleep ; solution ; " sort of "; space ; spacecraft identification file ; " stand by "; starboard ; Starfleet ; status ; storyteller ; strategy ; street ; subject ; subspace carrier ; subspace signal ; surface ; sword ; tail ; tale ; Tamarian deep space cruiser ; Tamarian language ; Tamarian vessel 08 ; tear ; temple ; term ; territory ; thermal input coefficient ; thought process ; thruster ; time index ; " tipped our hand "; " too much "; trade agreement ; transporter ; transporter beam ; Transporter Room 1 ; transporter signal ; understanding ; universal translator ; Uruk ; variable induction field ; vocabulary ; warp drive ; warrior ; week ; " what the hell "; " who the hell "; wild man ; winter ; year

Children of Tama language references [ ]

Anzo ; Bahar ; Bakor ; Bashi ; Callimas ; Chenza ; Darmok ; Darmok (colony); Darmok (emperor); Darmok (food); Darmok (hunter); Jiri ; Kadir ; Kailash ; Kanza ; Kiazi ; Kira ; Kiteo ; Kituay ; Lashmir ; Lowani ; Lungha ; Mirab ; Mo Moteh ; Rai ; Shaka ; Sokath ; Tanagra ; Tanagra (beverage); Tanagra (island); Tanagra (ruling family); Temarc ; Temba ; Ubaya ; Uzani ; Zima ; Zinda

External links [ ]

• " Darmok " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " Darmok " at Wikipedia
• "Darmok" at StarTrek.com
• " Darmok " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• "Darmok" script  at Star Trek Minutiae
• " Darmok " at the Internet Movie Database
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)