Star Trek parodies and pop culture references
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference
(written from a Production point of view)
Over the years, Star Trek's position as a cultural icon has resulted in many parodies and pop culture references of it on other television shows and movies. While some have been subtle tip-of-the-hat references, others have been complete copies, with the intention to reference Star Trek. Additionally, many small acknowledgments may not warrant inclusion, such as the use of the TOS transporter sound for various shrink rays, teleporters, etc. on SpongeBob SquarePants.
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[edit] Fan-made parodies
[edit] Hick Trek
Produced by ATOZ Films in the 1980s, this white-trash parody of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan played at conventions for years until a "Special Edition" version, with added effects, was released on video in 1999. In the film, the Redneck Federation Starship RSS Bovine battles spacefaring cats.
[edit] Jandrew Edits
Jan Van Den Hemel and Andrew Hussie reedit clips from TNG with comedic results, as see at their web page Jandrew Edits.
[edit] Star Track
Star Track: Idomo [1], formerly Star Track: The Next Hesitation, is a web series that takes a satirical approach to expanding on the Star Trek universe. Produced in Montreal, Quebec, it is one of the only known Star Trek fan films to be produced regularly in Canada. Episodes are released at a rate of one per year.
[edit] Steam Trek
Steam Trek [2] is an online parody of the original Star Trek. The premise is a conception of how the original Star Trek might have been produced by George Melies, a hundred years ago, at the dawn of silent films. The "distant future" is taken to be 1980, and the USS Isambard is steam-powered with coal fuel.
[edit] Stone Trek
Stone Trek [3] is an online animated parody of the original Star Trek. The premise is basically Star Trek meshed with The Flintstones, featuring a 1960s styled laugh track, and Hanna-Barbera sound effects. The series follows the adventures of the crew of the USS Magnetize. The show keeps count of how many redshirts end up getting killed in the episodes. The show also parodied the plot of Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace, with the Magnetize having to save Queen Armadillo from the Fashion Police.
[edit] Fanboys
Fanboys is a film about a group of Star Wars fans who travel to California in order to steal a pre-release copy of The Phantom Menace. It is significant to Star Trek in that it contains significant scenes of Trekkies as well as parodying the enmity between some fans of the two series. William Shatner also has a cameo.
The Trekkies in the film are portrayed as hopeless nerds who dress in uniforms, etc. and are first encountered giving a speech at the site of a statue of James T. Kirk. However, the speaker says that Paramount has threatened to sue them if they use the real likenesses of the actors. The Star Wars fans ask several humorous questions before the speaker pulls open one of their jackets, revealing the Darth Vader T-shirt, and says, "Yup, just as I thought. We've got a couple of Lucas-hounds on our hands." There is a big chase scene that concludes with the Star Wars guy becoming enraged ("Nobody calls Han Solo a bitch!") and driving through the statue with his van. The head Trekkie, holding its head in despair, yells the famous line: "KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!"
Later, the group arrives in Las Vegas, where they are to meet a secret contact of the founder of Aint It Cool News. This turns out to be Shatner, a Celine Dion-like fixture at Star Trek: The Experience. When he gives the group their supplies, they are shocked and ask how he did it, to which he replies: "Are you kidding? I'm William Shatner. I can score anything." However, the Trekkies have followed them, intent on seeking revenge. Through a comedy of errors, a pimp/bouncer fighting the uniformed Trekkies - once again, "Nobody calls Han Solo a bitch!" - as the group escapes.
[edit] Other parodies
- Sev Trek [4] by John Cook, is a web comic parody of Star Trek (as well as many other popular sci-fi shows) from The Original Series to Enterprise. It even spawned a computer animated "episode" of Sev Trek: TNG.
- Former Mystery Science Theater 3000 co-stars Mike Nelson and Kevin Murphy recorded audio commentary tracks mocking Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and Star Trek Generations. The commentaries were made available as an Internet-only download through Nelson's RiffTrax service.
- A late chapter in the PS2 game Rogue Galaxy is entitled "All Good Things..."
- In the episode "Card Wars" of Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series, the characters make frequent references to the Star Wars series, prompting Tristen Taylor to ask, "What's with all the Star Trek quotes?"
- A side quest in the video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is called The Trouble with Gizka, a possible reference to "The Trouble with Tribbles".
- Stand up comics have also been known to reference Star Trek as part of their acts. Bill Bailey has pointed out how his microphone makes him look like a Klingon motivational speaker, and Eddie Izzard has a routine of how the crew of the Enterprise could defeat enemies with different Phaser settings. Two such examples are the 'depression', and 'I've left the oven on' settings.
- In Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, Captain Marvel tells Superman, Deathstroke the Terminator and the Joker that their enemy is called Dark Kahn. Joker replies with a Kirk-like "KHAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!" with appropriate echoes. When Joker is finished, Deathstroke promptly tells him to shut up.
[edit] I'm a doctor, not a...
Dr. Leonard McCoy's signature phrase "I'm a doctor, not a..." occurs in several parodies and homages to Star Trek:
- Dr. McCoy (as played by Dan Akroyd): "I'm a doctor, not a tailor, dammit." (The Last Voyage of the Enterprise)
- Dr. McCoy (as played by Phil Hartman in response to William Shatner (as Kirk) stating someone needs medical attention): "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a - oh, sure!" (Star Trek V: The Restaurant Enterprise)
- Doctor Cottle: "I'm a doctor, not a Viper pilot!" (Battlestar Galactica)
- Tolin Dorden: "I'm a medic, not a soldier!" (Gaunt's Ghosts)
- DeForest Kelley: "I'm not a doctor, I'm a convicted murderer." (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In)
- DeForest Kelley: "How should I know? I'm an actor, not a doctor." (a commercial for Trivial Pursuit)
- Star Trek t-shirt: "Dammit Jim, I'm not a doctor, I just play one on TV" [5]
- Dr. Helena Russell: "I'm a doctor, John, not a miracle worker!" (Space: 1999)
- Wreck-Gar: "I'm a doctor, not a forklift." (Transformers)
- HK-47: "Dammit, master, I'm an assassination droid, not a dictionary." (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic)
- Ace Ventura: "For God sake, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a pool man." (Ace Ventura: Pet Detective)
- Dr. Carson Beckett: "I'm a medical doctor, not a bloody fighter pilot!" (Stargate Atlantis)
- Dr. Doppler: "Dang it, Jim, I'm an astronomer, not a doctor! I mean, I am a doctor, but I'm not that kind of doctor." (Treasure Planet)
- Will Smith: "Dammit, Jim, I'm a black boy from Philly, not a doctor!" (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air)
- Zoolander's Father: "Damnit, Derek, I'm a coal miner, not a professional film or television actor." (Zoolander)
- McCoy: "Forget it. I'm a doctor, not a patsy." (Family Guy)
- William Shatner: "Dammit, I'm a Doctor, not a... oh!" (Saturday Night Live)
- Leotard Buns McCorduroy: "Dammit Gym, I'm a doctor not a... on my way sir!" Sev Trek currently available at Star Trek Minutiae
- Nita: "Sker', I'm a wizard, not an engineer!" (Wizards at War)
- On the TV series Unfabulous, Principal Brandywine uses lines that follow the pattern of, "This is school [or name of a school-related object or place], not a/an/the [event, time, place or object unrelated to school]!", or "You're a middle school student, not [a famous person who does what the student is doing]!", or "I'm a middle school principal, not a doctor [or other jobs outside school]!"
- An elderly man, when inquired about potions: "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a miracle worker. Ask someone else!" (Final Fantasy IX)
- Marvin (the manic depressive robot in the motion picture of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) after being told to "freeze", states: "I'm a robot, not a refrigerator."
- In the animated TV series X-Men: Evolution episode 7, "Storm", a mutant with weather altering powers,says "I'm a weather witch, not a snowplough!"
- Stranded with four others on a deserted planet in "a Donner party situation," McCoy says, "Dammit, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a–" then is interrupted by the others saying "–a cannibal, yes, we know, we know." McCoy then lowers his head and asks himself, "Am I really that predictable?" (Robot Chicken)
- At one point in the Wii video game Trauma Center: New Blood, surgeon Valerie Blaylock says "We're doctors, not diplomats!"
- In Spiderman 3, when asked about the mysterious black substance shown him, Peter Parker's science professor remarks, "What do you want me to do? I'm a physicist, not a biologist."
- On the television series Eleventh Hour episode 11 Dr. Jacob Hood, trapped with his handler in a freezer remarks, "I'm a scientist not MacGyver, shoot the door".
- Dr. McCoy (voiced by Frank Welker): "Darn it Yakko, I'm a doctor not a magician." (Animaniacs)
- Robot running soda fountain: "I am a robot, not a miracle worker." (SpongeBob SquarePants)
- Mrs. Tutweiller: "I am an educator, not a warden!" (The Suite Life on Deck)
