Celebrate Star Trek Day With Free Episodes
Sure, Labor Day was nice (certainly a day that Chief O’Brien approves of), but for Star Trek fans, the most important day comes less than a week later. September 8 is Star Trek Day, and Paramount has decided to help the fandom celebrate by releasing the premieres of most Trek episodes for free on a variety of platforms. That means you will be able to say “stream me up, Scotty” and watch these free episodes on Paramount+’s YouTube page, the Paramount+ free hub, Pluto TV, Amazon, Apple, and Roku from September 7 to September 13.
Stream Me Up, Scotty!
Just which episodes will you be able to stream for free on Star Trek Day? For The Original Series, you will be able to stream “The Cage,” the very first pilot for this legendary franchise. The pilot is notably missing major franchise figures like Kirk and Dr. McCoy, but it gives you a chance to learn more about Strange New Worlds characters like Captain Pike and Number One before you stream that latest spinoff’s premiere episode fittingly titled “Strange New Worlds.”
Of Course You’re Going To Binge On TNG
For Star Trek: The Next Generation, you can watch the two-part episode (originally broadcast as a movie-length premiere), “Encounter at Farpoint.” This episode admittedly pales in comparison to how good TNG would get starting in season 3, but it still provides a fun and often surprising introduction to this new ship and characters. Plus, let’s face it … we wouldn’t be celebrating Star Trek Day at all if this successful spinoff hadn’t breathed new life into the franchise.
Plenty Of Spinoffs To Go Around
Speaking of spinoffs, you can similarly stream the two-part premieres of Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. If you’d rather spend Star Trek Day celebrating something even more retro, you can also watch the premiere of The Animated Series, “Beyond the Farthest Star.” With voice acting from the original cast, this show laid important groundwork for character development in later shows like Discovery (whose premiere episode “The Vulcan Hello” is also available to stream).
Taking A Voyage To Voyager Territory
If you’re still in the mood for animated fare, be sure to check out the premiere of Star Trek: Lower Decks, “Second Contact.” Sadly, Paramount has not made the premiere of fellow NuTrek cartoon Prodigy available for free on Star Trek Day, though those with Netflix should check out this cartoon for its great connections to Voyager. Those who still need more of a Voyager fix should know Paramount is offering the premiere of Picard (“Remembrance”) for free, a show that brought back Seven of Nine and, eventually, Tuvok.
Live Action On-Screen And Off-Screen
Several Short Treks episodes are also available to stream for free on Star Trek Day, including “The Trouble With Edward,” our personal favorite.
If you’d rather celebrate your favorite franchise in meat space, Chicago’s Taste of Chicago will have a replica of the Enterprise’s Captain’s Chair, and artistic interpretations of that chair are also available in Berlin’s ALEXA Mall and Vancouver, British Columbia’s Richmond Centre.
At all these locations, you can get a photo and an enamel pin for “taking the chair,” though we doubt that fans need much encouragement to channel their inner William Shatner and sit in the big seat.
Take The Chair, Make A Difference
Fans who do need more encouragement, though, should know this is more than a fun photo opportunity: Paramount has launched the “Take the Chair, Make a Difference” campaign charity in conjunction with DoSomething.Org, Code.org, and Outright International.
This campaign encourages fans to ask themselves the question “What would I do if I were setting the course to the future?’”
If your instinctive answer was “ramming speed,” don’t worry. You don’t need a phaser to melt away all that anger. All you have to do is stream some free Star Trek episodes, available from September 7 to September 13.
