One of the most fun things about the Paramount+ era ofStar Trekare all the references to older shows hidden in plain sight. In almost 60 years ofStar Trekhistory, countless fascinating details and elements have been added to theStar Trektimeline. Whether it is the ever-presentself-sealing stem bolts fromStar Trek: Deep Space Nine, or Captain Jean-Luc Picard’s (Patrick Stewart) inescapablefacepalm meme fromStar Trek: The Next Generation,Star Trekhas some of the best long-running jokes in television history.
But what really makes theEaster eggs in Star Trek on Paramount+’s shows so exciting is the fact thatthey demonstrate how much love there is for classicStar Trekamong currentStar Trekcreators.Every hiddenStar Trekreference inStar Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, or any otherStar Trekshow on Paramount+ and Netflix is a game that the creative team plays with audiences. There are countless little references toStar Trekshowsfrom days gone by, and every one of them is worth celebrating in its own right.
10All Of 90’s Trek Appeared In Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery Season 2, Episode 7
One of the subtlest Easter eggs inStar Trek: Discoverycomes in the season 2 episode, “Light and Shadows.” Right around the episode’s 11-minute mark, you can get a clear view of the control panel of the shuttlecraft being piloted by Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and Lieutenant Ash Tyler (Shazad Latif). Although the control console for the shuttlecraft would be destroyed later in the episode,there is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Easter Eggwhen it is shown on screen.
In this quick closeup on the console,the labels “TNG,” “DS9,” “VOY,” and “ENT” are all briefly visible.These four labels are the acronyms for the fourStar Trekshows produced in the 90s:Star Trek: The Next Generation,Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,Star Trek: Voyager, andStar Trek: Enterprise. It is only a brief shot, but it is an undeniably fun nod to the most beloved era ofStar Trek.
9The Names Of Troi & Riker’s Children
Star Trek: Picard
Star Trek: Picardofficially introduced the children of Captain William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Commander Deanna Troi(Marina Sirtis). Although their oldest child,Thaddeus Troi-Riker, tragically died young, their daughter, Kestra Troi-Riker (Lulu Wilson) was still alive and well the last time she appeared inStar Trek: Picard.While seeing the Troi-Riker children is inherently interesting, there is more going on than meets the eye.
It makes sense that the Troi-Rikers would name their children after deceased family members.
Both Thad and Kestra are named after little-known ancestors of their parents.The original Thaddeus Riker was a Civil War soldier, whose existence was only revealed in theStar Trek:Voyagerseason 2episode, “Death Wish.” Similarly, the original Kestra Troi was the deceased older sister of Deanna Troi, and she only appeared in theTNGepisode, “Dark Page.” While the names may be deep cuts forStar Trekfans, it makes sense that the Troi-Rikers would name their children after deceased family members.
8Classic Star Trek Businesses Are Alive And Well In The 25th Century
Star Trek: Picard Season 1, Episode 5
WhileStar Trek: Picardseason 1 episode, “Stardust City Rag,” is probably best known for showing the tragic death ofSeven of Nine’s (Jeri Taylor) surrogate son, Icheb’s (Manu Intiraymi & Casey King), death, it also contains some excellentStar Trekreferences. When Admiral Picard, Seven of Nine, and the rest of their motley crewarrive in Stardust City on Freecloud, a shot of a city street reveals thatbusinesses from several classicStar Trekshows are still thriving decades later.
Mr. Mot (Ken Thorley), the barber fromTNG, appears to have opened more hair salons after the Enterprise. And “Stardust City Rag” revealed that Quark (Armin Shimerman), the Ferengi bartender fromDS9, has properly franchised his space station bar. Eventually,Star Trek: Lower Deckswent on to confirm Quark’s business success, butthe only place to definitively find a Mot’s is in Stardust City.
7Star Trek: Discovery Calls Out A Game Played On Voyager
Star Trek: Discovery Season 2, Episode 9
Because the USS Voyager was stranded so far away from Federation space, it is somewhat unsurprising that, eventually, a child was born on the ship. Naomi Wildman (Scarlett Pomers) was born inStar Trek: Voyagerseason 2, and, as she grew up on the ship,Naomi Wildman developed a love for a game called “kadis-kot.“Since Seven of Nine was the primary person that Naomi played kadis-kot with, it seemed like the game would stay in the Delta Quadrant afterVoyagerended.
In theStar Trek:Voyagerseason 5 episode, “Infinite Regress,” Seven of Nine manifests an unknown child personality who also likes to play kadis-kot.
InStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2, Lt. Commander Airiam (Sara Mitich & Hannah Cheesman) revealed thatthe game was well known in the Alpha Quadrant decades beforeStar Trek: Voyager.Lt. Commander Airiam recalls an encounter where Lt. Commander Keyla Detmer (Emily Coutts) said that she no longer plays kadis-kot with Ensign Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman) or Airiam because they have memorized every possible gambit.
6Captain Pike Wore A Classic Green Starfleet Uniform Before Kirk
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1, Episode 5
From its very title, theStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 1 episode, “Spock Amok,“was always going to be a love letter toStar Trek:The Original Series. The title is a clear reference to theTOSseason 2 episode, “Amok Time,” which first introduced the concept of the pon farr, and"Spock Amok” similarly explores Lt. Spock’s (Ethan Peck) relationship with his fiancée, T’Pring(Gia Sandhu).
Another fun callback toStar Trek: The Original Seriesin “Spock Amok” is howCaptain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) frequently wears a green tunic unlike anything shown in any otherStar Trekseries. In a nod to Captain Kirk’s iconic sense of style,Captain Pike wears a green uniform tunic himself.
5Captain Pike Visits A Klingon Monastery 100 Years Before Worf
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1, Episode 12
Captain Pike’s trip to the Klingon monastery on Boreth was one of the most impactful events ofStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2. The time crystals Captain Pike encountered there showed him his future disfigurement, and that revelation has haunted him throughoutStar Trek: Strange New Worlds.Captain Pike’s journey to Boreth established a firm connection betweenStar Trek: Discovery, Strange New Worlds, andStar Trek: The Original Series.
By making it Boreth in particular, the creative team forStar Trek: Discoveryincluded a clever nod toTNG.
But there was one more, less obvious connection. Decades after Captain Pike’s eventful trip to the Klingon monastery,Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn) would travel to Boreth in theStar Trek: TheNext Generationseason 6 episode “Rightful Heir.“The writers forDiscoverycould have written any Klingon monastery as the location of Klingon time crystals, but by making it Boreth in particular, the creative team forStar Trek:Discoveryincluded a clever nod toTNG.
4Star Trek: Picard’s Soji Has A Deep Cut Voyager Callback
Star Trek: Picard Season 1, Episode 6
InStar Trek: Picardseason 1’s “The Impossible Box,” Soji Asha (Isa Briones) learns that her childhood memories were implanted as part of her android programming. The impossible box in question is the lunchbox which holds fabricated mementos of Soji’s youth. While the contents of the lunchbox are very important to Soji’s storyline, the design on the box is interesting in and of itself.Soji has an “Adventures of Flotter” lunchbox,referencing a holoprogram fromStar Trek: Voyager.
“The Adventures of Flotter” is a holoprogram beloved by Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), Ensign Harry Kim (Garrett Wang), Lt. B’Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson), and, of course, Naomi Wildman.Since “The Adventures of Flotter” was apparently a popular program, it makes a lot of sense that it would feature in Soji’s childhood memories.Still, the design on the top of the lunchbox is only visible for a few frames, so catching this Easter egg always feels like a real accomplishment.
3Captain Pike And Captain Picard Kept Saddles On Their Enterprise
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 7
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’series premiere established that Captain Christopher Pike loves riding horses. Indeed, he quite literally rides his horse through the snow to meet a landing shuttle. It shouldn’t be too surprising, then, thatCaptain Pike keeps a saddle in his USS Enterprise ready room.InStrange New Worlds’iconic crossover episode “Those Old Scientists,” Ensign Bradward Boimler (Jack Quaid) got so excited by the saddle that he hopped right on it.
InStar Trek Generations, Captain Picard and Captain Kirk bonded by riding horses together.
A saddle is more than just Captain Pike’s memento, it’s also a clever nod to ahobby Captain Pike shares with Captain Picard.InStar Trek: The Next Generation’s"Starship Mine,” Captain Picard explained, “A saddle is a very personal thing. It has to be broken in, used, cared for.” InStar Trek Generations, Captain Picard and Captain Kirk bonded by riding horses together. Captain Pike’ssaddle turns out to be a cheeky reference to a long-standing tradition among Captains of the Enterprise.
2Star Trek: Picard Returns To A Classic Original Series Location
Star Trek: Picard Season 1, Episodes 2 and 3
For two episodes ofStar Trek: Picard, Admiral Picard visits Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) at her home inVasquez Rocks in California. And that’s not just speculation based on filming locations - the location is flashed on the bottom left of the screen. Vasquez Rocks is an iconic setting forStar Trek.It’s the real-life filming location for Captain Kirk’s fight with the Gorn, it’s Mintaka III inStar Trek:The Next Generation, and it’s Tarok inStar Trek: Voyager.Vasquez Rocks is a piece ofStar Trekhistory, and it absolutely deserved to appear as itself inPicard.
1Star Trek: Lower Decks Reveals What Dax’s Mystery Lover On DS9 Looks Like
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5, Episode 3
InStar Trek: Lower Decks' season 5 episode, “The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel,” Mike McMahan’s animated comedyfinally reveals what a Gallamite looks like. ThroughoutStar Trek: Deep Space Nine,Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax’s (Terry Farrell) relationship with the unseen Gallamite, Captain Boday, is a running joke, and Galamites were described as having transparent skulls and notably toothy smiles.
WatchingLower Decksfeels like reading a love letter to long-term fans of Star Trek.
Star Trek: Lower Decksfinally put an image to that description, but it kept it as a cheeky Easter Egg by only showing a pair of Gallamites as unnamed background characters. WatchingLower Decksfeels like reading a love letter to long-term fans ofStar Trek.All of the classicStar TrekEaster eggs hidden in new shows prove just how much the creative teams care in the Paramount+ era ofTrek.
Cast
Star Trek: Picard follows retired Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, played by Patrick Stewart, twenty years after the events of Star Trek Nemesis. The series delves into Picard’s life post-Starfleet, as he navigates a new chapter filled with unresolved past events and new challenges.
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery is an entry in the legendary Sci-Fi franchise, set ten years before the original Star Trek series events. The show centers around Commander Michael Burnham, assigned to the USS Discovery, where the crew attempts to prevent a Klingon war while traveling through the vast reaches of space.
Star Trek Lower Decks
The animated comedy series Star Trek: Lower Decks follows the support crew on one of Starfleet’s least significant ships, the U.S.S. Cerritos, in 2380. Ensigns Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Boimler (Jack Quaid), Rutherford (Eugene Cordero), and Tendi (Noël Wells) have to keep up with their duties and their social lives often. At the same time, the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies.
