Amongst the many and myriad franchises available on M-Net Movies Collection pop-up channel on DStv 111, we have Star Trek. If you’ve heard of it but never watched it, now is your chance to watch not one or two or three of the feature films in the franchise, but all thirteen.
But I know nothing about Star Trek, we hear you say. Where do I start? Which movie comes first? Is this the franchise with that green guy who places his verbs at the end of his sentences? Do not despair. We are here with the 411 on Star Trek. Here’s what you need to know.
It’s not Star Wars
Nothing will incur the wrath of a Star Trek fan (commonly called a Trekkie) quite like calling it Star Wars (and vice versa). Star Trek was created by Gene Roddenberry and has been around since 1966. Star Wars was created by George Lucas and has been around since 1977. Star Trek is full of Vulcans. Star Wars is full of Jedis. The star of the skies is the USS Enterprise, while in Star Wars it’s the Millennium Falcon.
Captain Kirk, Spock, Sulu? They’re all from Star Trek. Han, Leia, Luke? They’re from Star Wars. And the little green guy who speaks like this he does, is Yoda. From Star Wars. The franchises may have things in common - and it’s not unusual to find that many fans like both – but they are two separate entities. Nothing would evoke ire and eternal damnation more than asking something like “is Star Trek set in a galaxy far, far away?” or “do they speak Klingon on Tatooine”? So rather than blunder into a pop culture faux pas, watch the Star Trek movies and brush up on all things Trekkie.
It started with a TV series
While Star Wars started with a movie, Star Trek started with the television series. The first feature film was released in 1979 and since then there have been more TV shows, more movies, books, comic books, and games. You name it, Star Trek’s got it. It would take less time to traverse the universe than it would to explore this franchise. OK, not really. But there’s a lot of Trekkie stuff out there and there’s always more coming.
There are thirteen movies
On M-Net Movies Collection pop-up channel you’ll get to watch all thirteen feature films in the Star Trek franchise. Imagine if we tried to present all the Star Trek content out there. The universe would collapse. Well, probably not. But you’d never leave your couch again. Ever.
Let’s break down the movies. They will be aired in the chronology they were released, but it’s always useful to have a guide (within a guide), which we provide below with the dates and times you can watch them on M-Net Movies Collection 111.
The Original Series
We don’t mean the original TV series. We mean the original series of movies. There are six of them:
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), 2 November at 15:04
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), 3 November at 15:22
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), 4 November at 15:50
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), 5 November at 15:40
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), 6 November at 16:25
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991), 7 November at 16:20
The Next Generation
With the next collection of movies, new characters started being introduced, with the movies eventually starring just the new characters. Here are the four movies in the Next collection:
Star Trek Generations (1994), 8 November at 16:00
Star Trek: First Contact (1996), 9 November at 16:20
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), 10 November at 16:15
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), 11 November at 15:55
The Kelvin Timeline
The three most recent films are kind of reboots, but kind of a continuation. Because, you see, it’s the same characters as those in the movies from the original series, but played by different actors. How, you ask? Well, it’s a different/alternative/other timeline. Hence its name: The Kelvin Timeline. It consists of:
Star Trek (2009), 12 November at 15:50
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), 13 November at 15:30
Star Trek Beyond (2016), 14 November at 15:30
Don’t let all this detail bog you down, confuse you, or scare you off. Star Trek is great entertainment filled with memorable characters, action, adventure, and romance. It also deals with important themes and social commentary and envisions a future that will leave you feeling a little more hopeful about the fate of humanity. And couldn’t we all use a little hope right now?
Watch the Star Trek movies on M-Net Movies Collection pop-up channel 111 or on DStv using any connected device.
Follow the conversation on social media using #MMoviesCollection.
Please note dates and times are subject to change.
Feature image: The cast of Star Trek: The Motion Picture