Beyond the final frontier lies worlds even stranger than those encountered by heroic starship crews week after week. Running parallel to our world are many more. Some slightly different, some dramatically so and with each possibility time splinters into further alternate realities where everything that could be, is.
Star Trek has never been shy in exploring these worlds with Discovery’s last season delving into the effects of travelling between realities while the Bad Robot produced movies starting in 2009 explore those alternate lives in whats known as the Kelvin Timeline. And as we look forward to the return of Star Trek Picard, it looks as if we’ll visit another broken timeline.
Looking back at all those alternate worlds and perspectives, we’re picking out five of the best times we saw our favourite Starfleet officers find themselves outside the “Prime” timeline.
Yesterdays Enterprise
Next Generation (Season 3)
Investigating an anomaly, the crew of the Enterprise witness the ships predecessor, The Enterprise-C, emerge, displaced from it’s own time. Instantly things change; their exploration mission non existent as we see a Starfleet in war mode against an increasingly aggressive Klingon Empire.
History recorded the Enterprise-C being destroyed after responding to a Klingon distress call, hekping to solidify peace between the two. But ambushed by Romulans it was thrown forward in time and as a result, none of that happened. Only Guinan has the spidey sense to realise something went horribly wrong, knowing tactical officer Tasha Yar shouldn’t exist.
Having faith in his close adviser, and knowing that the Federations on the edge of defeat, Picard and his predecessor Captain Garrett decide to send the Enterprise-C back to where it left, save the Klingons and hope to avert the war with Yar going with them to have the meaningful death she was denied in the prime timeline.
In A Mirror Darkly
Enterprise (Season 4)
First in the Original Series in a one off, the Mirror Universe made a return several times on Deep Space Nine where we learned of the Cardassian-Klingon Alliance era before making an impact on Discovery as the entire universe was reimagined in a more sinister light.
However, for a special two parter, Enterprise was the first series to show us the Terrans from their perspective without an outsider from our Prime reality dropping in. Connecting the early stages of the Terran Empire’s conquest into space to finding the USS Defiant from the Original Series lost through time and space, In A Mirror Darkly showed us the trials and treacherous tactics a Terran has to deal with in a backstabbing and power hungry reality.
Timeless
Voyager (Season 5)
Utilising the slipstream drive technology discovered during the events of Hope And Fear, Voyager managed to retrofit their warp drive and find a way home by having Chakotay and Harry Kim fly ahead and feed back information to Voyager to help it survive the trip (bit more complex than that , but lets keep it to TLDR here!).
Harry’s eagerness to save the day outweighs everything else. That eagerness leads to a mistake he cant cover in time. Chakotay and Harry get home with the Flyer. Voyager is thrown out of the slipstream and straight into a crash landing killing the entire crew.
Timeless is far from Voyagers best episode. But Harry Kim is close to the shows Chief O’Brien, so seeing an older and bitter version of him and Chakotay fighting to change the timeline they knew always sets a level of intrigue, especially when intercepted by Captain Geordie La Forge…
Parallels
Next Generation (Season 7)
When it comes to roads not taken, Season 7’s dimension jumping adventure gave us a look at how timelines can branch off with subtle changes as well as dramatic difference. That was the case for Worf when reality begins to change little by little and he realised he wasn’t in Kansas any more.
Skipping through different versions of his life, including a world where Geordie dies and Riker gained full time command of the Enterprise following the battle of Wolf 359, it showed him different aspects of what could have been from joining the command track to entering a relationship with Commander Troi.
Of course he does venture back to his own universe by the end, but would be inspired to try and change some aspects of his life that we’d see in the years that followed.
The Visitor
Deep Space Nine (Season 4)
One of Deep Space Nine’s finest hours of storytelling came down to a young man who lost his father. During a tragic accident, Captain Sisko and Jake end up in Engineering fixing up the Defiant and with a burst of energy, the elder Sisko vanishes in front of his sons eyes.
In the years that followed, Starfleet would withdraw from DS9 and the political landscape would change without the Emissary. But then The Sisko appears again, trapped in time only returning for moments at a time. Growing up without his fathers influence, Jake would become successful but over time obsessive over finding a way to save his father. Realising that their lives are tethered due to the accident, he tries and fails the scientific route before realising there’s only one way to break the connection and reset the timeline; End his own life.
Told from the perspective of an older Jake Sisko recounting his life to an aspiring writer, The Visitor’s alternate timeline and sci fi leanings are secondary to Jake’s story of loss, suffering and love for the father he feels responsible for and would, in the end, give his life to save.
About the author
Them From That Thing: Wallace Shawn
Unlike nearly every other iteration of Star Trek, Deep Space Nine's stories revolved around a large extended cast being thrown into the mix thanks to it's more static core setting, Beyond it's core regular cast members, the show made time for evolving young prospects like Nog, old soldiers like Martok to take the fight to the Dominion, and even followed the rise of Damar from political puppet to revolutionary. One of the most iconic in extending the cast was the iconic character actor Wallace Shawn. Making his first appearance in season one's The Nagus, Shawn's part was that of the head of the Ferengi power structure and would help to explore and expand Quark's culture and family. But even layered in complex heavy make up, he'd still be instantly recognisable with his distinct voice and comedic timing. Having had a […]
“So, this is goodbye.” Walter Koenig. 1936-2026
The Star Trek community has lost one of its most cherished members as original series actor, Walter Koenig, has died at the age of 90. He passed away on 25 October 2026 at his home in North Hollywood, surrounded by his daughter and niece. For generations of Star Trek fans, Koenig was far more than the young navigator who served under Captain Kirk. Joining Star Trek at the beginning of its second season, Koenig stepped aboard the Enterprise as Ensign Pavel Chekov, a young Russian officer at a time when the United States and the Soviet Union remained locked in the tensions of the Cold War. His presence aboard an American-led fictional starship was a small but meaningful expression of Star Trek's enduring belief that humanity could overcome its divisions and work together towards a better future. Appearing in […]
[Q2&A] The Quadrants of Command
Quadrant 2 is free for anyone in the UK, EU (and more!) to join. With a solid base in the UK, we have members from around a dozen other countries including units in France and Japan. One query we often get in our inbox is why don't we include the countries that have produced Star Trek – the United States and Canada? The answer is simple. We don't host those members. Quadrant 1 does. Starfleet Command Quadrant 2. It's quite the mouthful. If you're a curious fan wandering by wondering why we opted for a club name that had that many syllable, it comes down to our history and how SFC formed and evolved over the years. Originating in 1974, Starfleet Command began in the United States, an idea by fans that quickly gained the support of creator Gene Roddenberry […]
[Retro Review] Dagger Of The Mind
Dropping by a penal colony focused on rehabilitating the criminally insane, the Enterprise beams down some much needed supplies while one of the inmates sneaks on board to beg for asylum. But it's no regular stowaway. Dr Simon Van Gelder used to be part of the staff before he began to lose his mind and he's not just afraid of having dodgy meals and no windows, but reveals to Kirk that the facility runs through torture and abuse. Van Gelder arrived broken. His memories scattered, and any glimpse of those memories would trigger a painful and violent reaction. The colony's lead scientist and essentially warden, Dr Tristan Adams, waves it off claiming Van Gelder's techniques were tested on himself and that the rest of his story was delusional ramblings. Not entirely convinced, and given a heavy nudge by McCoy, Kirk […]
[Treknology] Shields Up! Red Alert!
Different writers, directors and plot points paint Starfleet as multiple and occasionally conflicting things. Both a military and exploratory force, there's many layers to the fleet and how it operates. Handling everything from border defence to mapping unknown territories, even the most mundane mission in peace time can be a risky one. Especially as not every new person you meet will want a cup of tea and a chat, and accidentally dropping into someone's back garden doesn't always go down well.So when the shooting starts, you have to be ready to defend yourself, and in a world of weaponry that could burn an entire planet into ashes, sticking some armour on your hull just isn't going to cut it. One of the most vital systems always ready on stand by, deflector shields help to keep a ship and it's crew […]
Behind the Viewscreen: Gene L Coon
As it's creator, the name Gene Roddenberry is part of the Star Trek legend. But when it came to shaping what the show was, and forming it's foundations, there was another Gene behind the scenes who help build on and refine the shows concepts into the world we know today. Originally brought into the fold in August 1966, Coon was hired to handle day to day production and script revisions during the shows first season, with his first credit appearing on the first seasons eighth episode, Miri. Beyond that day to day production, as well as his creative relationship with Roddenberry, Coon's efforts would help shape the shows identity, helping to form it's unique blend of science fiction, drama and political commentary and in shaping the shows moral compass that would be a keystone of the Star Trek experience. Giving […]
Related
A Fistful of Picard
While Star Trek first launched in 1966, for a huge number fans of science fiction, it wasn't Kirk's adventures that defined Star Trek. It was Picard's. Leading the show into huge success, revitalising and rebuilding what Star Trek was, Patrick Stewart brought a refined performance to bring a measured, intellectual leader to the bridge of the Enterprise. With an incredible calm and restraint, Picard's aura was one that commanded respect through his ability to listen, understand and lead with his conscience. Following the sad loss of the legendary actor, we figured it's time to put our feet up, have some Earl Grey (hot, of course) and look back at some of the Captains finest hours. Measure of a Man TNG Season 2 Episode 9 Hoping to learn from and build on Data's systems, Dr Bruce Maddox comes aboard the Enterprise […]
A Fistful of Spooky Encounters
Since it's inception Star Trek hasn't just been a sci fi show, but a show that used it's science fiction setting to tell a variety of stories from a large pool of themes and styles. And since we're officially in 'Spooky Season' on the countdown to Halloween, why not take a look at some of Star Trek's best dives into darkness? EMPOK NOR DEEP SPACE NINE, SEASON 5 Deep Space Nine is falling apart and thanks to the war, O'Brien can't exactly ask the Cardassians for spare parts. But he has a plan. Along with Nog and Garak, O'Brien leads an engineering crew to another abandoned Cardassian station to salvage what they can. Only problem is... there's a reason it was abandoned... Possibly the most straight forward horror story in the series, Empok Nor was host to an experiment gone […]
A Fistful of Undercover Operations
Occasionally when exploring the wonders of deep space, our heroes of Trek have been summoned to - or by sheer accident - become another person to fulfil their mission. Whether it's O'Brien mixing with gangsters or Picard becoming a mercenary, Star Trek's filled with episodes where our favourite explorers have to become someone else to save the day.... FACE OF THE ENEMY The Next Generation Season 6 Waking up on the Warbird Khazara, Deanna Troi finds herself in a bit of a pickle. Kidnapped and surgically altered to take the place of a Tal Shiar Commander she finds herself led by her handler, N'Vek, to lead a secret mission after the Commander had been killed. Out of her comfort zone, Troi has to convince the crew she's the real deal despite the ships skipper knowing something's not quite right.... In […]
A Fistful of Down To Earth Adventures
Warping through the stars always searching for the next adventure, it's rare that Star Trek ever comes home to Earth. Through all the series, and highlighted in Enterprise, the third rock from our sun is kinda important in the grand scheme of things but our eyes are always far beyond the stars. So for no particular reason at all - certainly not any recent new series launching - we're taking a look at Trek's more Earthbound moments.... Homefront/Paradise Lost Deep Space Nine Season 4 The Founders said they were everywhere. Now we know they're on Earth. Recordings revealed a founder during the bombing of a Federation meeting on the home-world and Sisko is recalled. His knowledge and experience with the Dominion is vital to securing Earth against the inevitable war. But while the Dominion may be the enemy, they aren't […]
A Fistful of ‘Spirk’
We've been spoiled with Spock in the past few years with Discovery introducing a younger iteration of the character long before he became the refined man of logic that made him famous, and continued that story through Strange New Worlds and his time under Captain Pike's command. As Strange New Worlds continues, giving more history to the original series line up and the early meetings of Spock and Kirk as it makes way for the beginning of the Kirk era, we thought we'd look back at some moments that made the partnership one of the most popular combinations in science fiction. JOURNEY TO BABEL TOS Season 2 Spock's got a bit of an issue with sharing. Secret brother who was shunned. Secret sister who's fate was classified. And despite trusting the Enterprise crew with his life, it was clearly only […]
A Fistful of O’Brien
Entering the Star Trek world as an unnamed extra with a few bits of dialogue, O'Brien soon became a fixture on the Enterprise D as it's transporter chief before moving to Deep Space Nine to head up engineering and operations on what was thought to be a backwater outpost before it became one of the most strategically important stations in the quadrant!As the only enlisted or non commissioned officer to feature in the main cast of any Star Trek show to date, O'Brien stands as the only working class hero in the Star Trek universe with a vast and varied career taking from the front lines of the Cardassian war as a soldier, to the front lines of the Dominion War as an engineer, retrofitting DS9, keeping the Defiant from blowing itself apart, and even sniping Dominion troops. All in […]
