Happy 25th Star Trek: The Next Generation

25 years ago today I was sitting on the floor of my grandmothers bedroom waiting to watch this new sci-fi tv show I’d seen this ad for. Two hours later I was amazed, blown away by what I’d just seen, and completely unsure how I’d survive an entire week before I’d be able to see the next episode.

I did survive, and I watched the next episode, and the one after that, and the one after that, for the next seven years. In it’s entire run I only missed 1 episode (Attached, season 7) on it’s initial broadcast (or the rebroadcast on the following weekend which I usually watched anyway).

What effect has this had on my life? Aside from the countless hours spent watching Star Trek in its various incarnations, it also was a gateway into reading. I mentioned in my Earthsea post how I started my fantasy reading with Narnia. My introduction to sci-fi books was here. When my mother saw my rabid interest in Star Trek, she used it to get me into reading by handing me the first 2 novels that came out for TNG, and a couple from the original series. If it wasn't for these Star Trek books, I might never have gone to Narnia, might never have become a reader, an activity that I wasn’t at all interested in doing at that point in my life. Why read when I could go ride my bike or play with my friends?

Now? Now I have 3 shelves of of paperback, double stacked, a shelf of hardcovers, also double stacked, and a small collection of Star Trek RPG books and reference books.