Summary
With a mobile game crossover and a joint panel at San Diego Comic-Con,Star Trekfans intrigued byDoctor Whomay need a handy episode guide to get them started. AlthoughStar TrekandDoctor Who’s links have become more pronounced in recent months, the connections between two of the most beloved TV sci-fi franchises actually go back decades.Star Trek: The Original Seriesdebuted on UK screens on July, 12, 1969, in the exact same Saturday evening slot vacated by Patrick Troughton’s final season ofDoctor Wholess than a month earlier.
The UK’s broadcast of the firstStar TrekTV showcoincided with the lead-up to the Moon landing, scheduled to take place a week later. Months earlier, theDoctor Whoserial “The Seeds of Death” had depicted a future where space travel had become unfashionable in the decades after man landed on the Moon. The UK listings magazineRadio Times(viaBBC Genome) contained an emotive listing forStar Trek’s second pilot, “Where No Man Has Gone Before”, which perfectly highlights this key difference betweenDoctor Who’s British pragmatism and the idealism ofTOS:
Today the moon - tomorrow the cosmos? The first is fact, the second is so far fiction. Nevertheless this new adventure series looks forward to a not-too-distant future when man will be exploring and colonising the worlds beyond us.
10 Times Star Trek & Doctor Who Crossed Over
Doctor Who and Star Trek are TV’s two biggest sci-fi franchises, but they’re not arch-rivals, and regularly make affectionate nods to each other.
Despite their differing approaches and cultural influences,Star TrekandDoctor Whoshare an optimism and hope for the future. For six decades, both shows have promoted peaceful resolution to the intergalactic crises faced by their protagonists. The Doctor never carries a gun, whileStar Trek’s brave Starfleet officers always have their phasers set to stun. Some ofDoctor Who’s best episodesalso share story ideas and similar moral dilemmas to the very best ofStar Trek, making them a great primer for anyTrekfan who wishes to step into the TARDIS.
14Frontier in Space - Third Doctor, 1973
Perfect for fans of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
“Frontier in Space” throws the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and his companion Jo Grant (Katy Manning) into the center of a political conspiracy with wide-ranging ramifications for the rest of the universe. Framed for agitating tensions between a united Earth government and the Draconians, the Doctor is sent off to a penal colony, where he narrowly avoids an assassination attempt. The similarities between “Frontier in Space” andStar Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, not to mention the overall storyline about intergalactic politics, makes it perfect for easing fans into the world ofDoctor Who.
David Warner, who played Chancellor Gorkon inStar Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country,has also played an alternate reality Doctor in a series ofDoctor Whoaudio dramas.
13Enlightenment - Fifth Doctor, 1983
For fans of Q and Star Trek’s naval traditions.
There’s a long naval tradition inStar Trek, but that’s not why aDoctor Whostory about the Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) participating in an outer space boat race should be appealing toTrekfans. “Enlightenment” introduces the Eternals, a race of bored gods that toy with humanity, staging elaborate competitions. While the Eternals are stuffier, less flamboyant versions ofStar Trek’s Q (John de Lancie) or Trelane (William Campbell), they do feel akin to those omnipotent game players. For added color, the sailing ships in space will recall the Bajoran solar-sailing ship fromStar Trek: Deep Space Nine.
12The Aztecs - First Doctor, 1964
Doctor Who establishes its own Prime Directive
WhileDoctor Whodoesn’t haveStarfleet’s Prime Directive, it does have its own policy of non-intervention, the rules of which are routinely bent. “The Aztecs” is the firstDoctor Whostory to set these rules, with the First Doctor (William Hartnell) memorably telling his companions that they “cannot rewrite history, not one line”. However, the Doctor’s companion Barbara (Jacqueline Hill) attempts to save the Aztec people regardless of this. “The Aztecs” is a thought-provoking morality play that sits neatly alongside the best ofStar Trek’s episodes about the moral complexities of stepping in to save doomed civilizations.
11Dot and Bubble - Fifteenth Doctor, 2024
Doctor Who’s cynical colony world shows we need Roddenberry’s utopia.
Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 5, “Dot and Bubble” was a powerful subversion ofStar Trek’s computer-controlled planet trope. The Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) try to save the colonists of Finetime from their social media apps, only to discover a much darker truth. While the popularity of Charlie Brooker’sBlack Mirrorhas likely led tomodernStar Trekgiving social media allegories a swerve,Doctor Who’s “Dot and Bubble” takes some familiarTrektropes and repackages them for a modern audience.
10Turn Left - The Tenth Doctor, 2008
Doctor Who’s version of DS9’s The Visitor.
“Turn Left” is one of the best episodes ofRussell T Davies' firstDoctor Whoera, and shares similar themes toStar Trek: Deep Space Nineseason 4, episode 3, “The Visitor”. Both episodes are high concept alternate reality tales that have an emotional realism to their storytelling and performances. WhileStar Trekfans won’t recognize the events that the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) fails to avert in “Turn Left”, the emotional performance by Catherine Tate is more than enough to sell the impact of each tragedy. Much likeDS9’s “The Visitor”, “Turn Left” is a powerful piece about loss and the impact of one’s choices.
9The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood - Eleventh Doctor, 2010
Voyager borrowed a classic Doctor Who storyline.
“The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood” is a retelling of the classic Third Doctor serial, “Doctor Who and the Silurians”, but this time featuring the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith). Both stories focus on the complex relationship between humanity and their predecessors, the Silurians, a species of evolved reptiles. In “The Hungry Earth”, the Eleventh Doctor gets a second chance to bring peace to both parties, but it’s made difficult by prejudice and distrust from humans and Silurians alike.TheStar Trek: Voyagerepisode “Distant Origin” introduced the Voth, a variation on the same idea as the Silurians, who left Earth behind to travel the stars.
8The Tomb of the Cybermen - Second Doctor, 1967
“Resistance is useless”
The Silurians aren’t the onlyDoctor Whomonster thatStar Trekhas borrowed from over the years.The Borg Collective’s “resistance is futile” catchphrase is eerily similar to that of the Cybermen inDoctor Who, who tell the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) that “resistance is useless”. In “The Tomb of the Cybermen”, the Second Doctor joins an archeological dig that results in the reawakening of his old enemies, the Cybermen. Combining both the greatest love and greatest fear of Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart),“The Tomb of the Cybermen” is aStar Trekfan’s best intro toDoctor Who’s answer to the Borg.
The 2012Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Whocrossover comicAssimilation²saw the Borg and the Cybermen team up against the Eleventh Doctor and the crew of the USS Enterprise-D.
7Vengeance on Varos - Sixth Doctor, 1985
The Gamesters of Triskelion for the age of video nasties.
TheDoctor Whoserial “Vengeance on Varos” is likeStar Trek: The Original Series' “The Gamesters of Triskelion” for the age of video nasties. The Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) and Peri (Nicola Bryant) land the TARDIS on Varos, a planet with a brutal approach to reality television. Varos' brutal entertainment is designed to keep the masses docile while corporate interests strip the planet of their minerals. In a classicStar Trekset-up, the Sixth Doctor and Peri join a band of rebels to overthrow the oppressive regime. It’s bleaker than the averageDoctor Whostory, but retainsStar Trek’s sense of justice.
Both Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant have appeared in the fan-made webseriesStar Trek Continues.
Every Doctor Who Actor Who Appeared In Star Trek
Star Trek and Doctor Who remain two of the biggest science fiction franchises, and several actors have made appearances in both.
6City of Death - Fourth Doctor, 1980
A time travel comedy to rival Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
“City of Death” is one of the bestDoctor Whostories of all time, primarily for its comic script, inventive time travel storyline and Parisian locations. In “City of Death”, theFourth Doctor (Tom Baker)and Romana (Lalla Ward) are embroiled in a plot to steal the Mona Lisa to fund time travel experiments that will wipe out life on Earth. Both “City of Death” andStar Trek IV: TheVoyage Homecomment on subjects that are still incredibly relevant today, from the rise of AI art to the ecological crisis facing humanity, but do so with a great deal of wit and humor.
5The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances - Ninth Doctor, 2005
“…give me some Spock”
It’s not onlyStar Trek: Lower Decks' Lieutenant Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) who thinks Spock is hot. In the classicDoctor Whotwo-parter “The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances”, Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) complains that the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) isn’t “more Spock.” However,Star Trekreferences aside, the Steven Moffat two-parter is a chilling sci-fi horror about medical technology gone wrong, rewriting all of humanity in the image of a scared little boy in a gas mask.Strange New Worldsseason 2 recently told a similar story, albeit as a comedy, when alien technology accidentally removed his Vulcan DNA.
