“Canon” – Oxford English Dictionary definitions
A collection or list of sacred books accepted as genuine.
A general law, rule, principle, or criterion by which something is judged.
In the genre fiction world, nothing is more divisive than Canon. From Harry Potter characters’ romantic choices to Star Wars consigning entire realities to oblivion, nothing is more likely to provoke flaming feedback on social media than a brisk discussion of what is or isn’t Canon.
The fact that there are two entirely separate Wiki sites for Canon and non-Canon Trek that constantly cross-reference between themselves suggests that we need to focus on the suspension of belief essential to the enjoyment of any fictional universe. Of course, ‘Friends’ or ‘NCIS’ are as much fictional universes like Star Trek, although maybe not as complex or with as many loose threads that their fans can pull on.
Star Trek has always had a fairly relaxed way with Canon. Probably because no one still expected to be working in the universe fifty plus years after it started. TV storytelling in 1967 was very different to 1997 or 2022 and the “weird, but strangely human, the planet of the week” episodes that were the staple of The Original Series generally get ignored when creating new stories that build on previous episodes.
The consistency demanded of writers and showrunners is next to impossible to fulfil when faced with planets occupied by 1920s gangsters, and Olympian gods. Retrospectively suggesting that Apollo might be a Q or pulling in another later addition to the cast of goodies, baddies and random aliens is of course all part of the fun of watching a show like Star Trek. In fact, there are lots of TOS stories where the Q could be used as a Deus Ex Machina.
The ever-changing shape of Spock’s family tree is a case where suspension of belief is the only way to move past his half-brother, adopted sister and stepmother. Not to mention Saavik, their child and another son who pops up in a couple of books. The important questions are “are we enjoying the stories, the performances and the ships”? Watching the writers tie themselves in knots to explain why no one has mentioned Discovery or Spock’s sister over the last fifty years can be entertaining. I wish I had thought to bet on there being a “we must never speak of this again” scene at the end of Season two of Discovery.
The fact that Canon in Star Trek has always been presumed to be what’s on-screen allows the book writers to play with stories that don’t fit entirely, and even to create their own timelines. The Shatner-verse was clearly there for one reason only, but it’s his world and they are his books and for the most part fun reads. The recently ended Lit-Verse built a brilliant internally consistent universe to explore stories that enhanced the characters and situations that we were already familiar with. Then there is Star Trek Online which is another self-contained universe, and doubtless others that I’ve not thought of.
Dan Gunther of the Positively Trek podcast describes what he calls “head-Canon,” in which he has fun playing with the inconsistencies and errors that creep in, due to all this stuff being written by humans, and helping it all line up in a neat row. That’s great and talking about these things and speculating is part of being engaged with a series like Trek. My “head Canon” says that Star Trek has long ago established that there are multiple universes, so everything can quite happily take place in its own little bubble and the stress that some of us seem to inflict on ourselves online, or in the privacy of our TV rooms, is mostly not worth it.
What will Kirk be doing in Strange New Worlds? Will it fit with everything previously established about him? We’ll find out, but my guess would be almost certainly not. The main good thing about Kirk appearing is that my daughter now has to watch some Star Trek in order to see her favourite actor playing him. That is why he is there, to get Paul Wesley into Trek, and my daughter watching it, as well as to boost the viewing figures with all the casual watchers for whom Kirk is still the only real Star Trek Captain.
There are so many reasons for Canon to be a wobbly thing on which to base our involvement in the stories. The shifting about the timeline of the Eugenics Wars, originally in the 1990s and now anywhere from 2050 to the 22nd Century is one major event that has fallen foul of the longevity of Star Trek. With season two of Picard set in 2024, there was an opportunity for Seven of Nine and Raffi to reference the DS9 episode ‘Past Tense’ and comment on current urban poverty in episode three. Erasing timelines can become habit-forming and the constraints placed on the production of Picard by Covid 19 are glaringly obvious.
Keeping the eighty-year-old star locked up in the ship/soundstage, and the almost empty “Los Angeles” for instance. The compromises to enable filming to happen at all will almost inevitably produce gaps in the plot. Those gaps will spark debate online I’m sure, but with enough stress, angst, and unpleasantness in the world outside the window, Picard like all of Star Trek gives us somewhere to escape to. Spending so much time grinding our teeth over the minutiae of plot and character erodes the experience of what is after all only a TV show.
So, here’s a revolutionary thought to finish. Looking at the definitions that the OED offers, should we just get over ourselves and learn to love good storytelling in books and games and engaging performances on screen? Is it possible that Canon just doesn’t matter? Answers on a postcard…
