Half a Decade of Primitive Culture
Running Time: 1 hour 30 minutes 29 seconds
Download / RSS / Send us a message / Discuss the show / Support Trek.fm
Star Trek’s original five-year mission was brought to a premature end in 1969. But over the ensuing half-century and more, the franchise has continued boldly going to new frontiers. By the 1980s, when a second generation of fans came to seek out fresh adventures, the voyage had become a continuing mission … with no end in sight.
In this episode of Primitive Culture, recorded earlier this year on our own five-year anniversary, host Duncan Barrett is joined by show co-founder Tony Black to look back on a half-decade of podcasting, and to consider how Star Trek has changed since the good ship Primitive Culture left spacedock in 2017. We also share some news about the future of the podcast. Because, as we know, all good things …
Chapters
Intro (00:00:00)
Nu-Trek Is… (00:01:45)
The Five-Year Frontier (00:39:37)
“It is of endings that I wish to speak.” (00:48:32)
PC Trek Ranks (00:53:25)
Hosts
Duncan Barrett
Guest
Tony Black
Production
Duncan Barrett (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer)
Music in Star Trek. We take a look at how Trek’s underscore has developed over more than half a century with musicologists Jessica Getman and Evan Ware.
Half a Decade of Primitive Culture. In this special episode, recorded earlier this year, we look back on the podcast and how Star Trek has changed in the time we’ve been podcasting.
Cardassian war crimes and The Man in the Glass Booth. We look at the DS9 episode “Duet” alongside The Man in the Glass Booth, as well as the presentation of war crimes in Star Trek more generally.
Autistic representation in Star Trek. We look at Trek’s history of (accidental) representation of neurodiversity, considering characters such as Data, Seven of Nine, Reginald Barclay, and Sylvia Tilly.
Star Trek’s Double Troubles. We look doppelgängers and duplicates from The Original Series through Lower Decks.
Trans Representation in Star Trek. We look at how Star Trek accidentally addressed the topic in TNG and DS9.
The Alien franchise and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. We take a look at “All Those Who Wander” alongside the Alien franchise.
How Star Trek’s leaders reflect our own. We talk about the parallels between Star Trek’s leaders and our own, and ask whether Star Trek has finally managed to marry the military ethos of Starfleet with the business of intergalactic politics.
Star Trek’s backdoor pilots. We take a look at the original attempt to establish a spinoff series, “Assignment: Earth,” as well as more recent examples including Strange New Worlds and more potential offspring of Discovery.
What if it wasn’t the Vulcans who made first contact? In honor of First Contact Day, we imagine how things might have played out for humanity had it been the Klingons, Romulans, or others passing by on April 5, 2063.