Star Trek Inspired Me

Star Trek has been and always will be a source of inspiration for me. While the Time Travel episodes always got my attention, it was the alternate universe episodes that got me really excited.

Things like this:

If I am ever famous…

One day, I truly hope that there will be an interview somewhere and someone will ask me “what inspired you”. I will probably talk about Douglas Adams and a man called Chris who first introduced me to Admas’ work. But I will also talk about Star Trek.

More specifically I will talk about Wesley Crusher (played by Wil Wheaton). Of all the Star Trek characters that I connected with Wesley was my hero. I wanted to be him. Wesley was smarter than the adults, got to play with the cool toys, and was friends with the best android in the fleet (and the only one).

Any scene of any episode of Star Trek that had Wil Wheaton in it as Wesley made me as happy as the ones that had alternate realities. Later, when Wesley was done being better than everyone else, he became so awesome that he could control all of time and space. After that he did not even need a spaceship – he could go anywhere his imagination could take him. At least that’s how my young mind saw those episodes.

My imagination was ready for that trip. Even as a young teen, give me a cardboard box and some decent pens and I had a time machine, a spaceship, or anything else I wanted. With that homemade cardboard ship, my sister and I explored all of time and space. We took on the galactic empire, we saved the day, we beat up bad guys, and we were awesome.

Wil Wheaton was Star Trek for me

Actually, that’s not true. I had no idea who Wil Wheaton was. But Wesley Crusher, on the other hand,  I wanted to be that kid so bad I could taste it.

Maybe that’s why I love anything science now. Maybe it is why I love watching anything with Wil Wheaton in it too. I mean, sure, it helps that Wheaton is at least as much of a nerd as I am. But the hook for me was Wesley Crusher from Star Trek.

I don’t care if Wesley is not considered cool. I don’t care that as an adult that is a character that makes you cringe. As a youngster, Star Trek but especially, Wesley Crusher inspired me.

Where else but Star Trek could I see a kid that I identified with whose school projects were so cool, they literally saved the day (that definitely happened at least once)?

Future interviewers doing research should definitely ask me about this.

Here is another video with Wil Wheaton in it just because.