A Star Trek fan? You are if you continue reading this blog post. But that is unfair because I am going to discuss about Star Trek Timelines. Have you ever asked how Star Trek Online and Star Trek XI movie fits together?
Ever wondered if the events of one affects the other? For example, we know that in Star Trek XI, Ambassador Spock was thrown back in time and never returned. The movie even went on to suggest that the whole timeline was rebooted, that the timeline Ambassador Spock came from is as good as gone. But is it really?
Follow up:
If we are going to talk about the movie which is considered by Trekkers as canon or official, then the story appears to have been rebooted. But, it was never rebooted (yes, breath). There was a timeline split. Imagine a group of kids walking in a straight line, then along the way some walked in the other direction creating a new dirt path. That is a “timeline split”. The original path is still there unaffected by the new path and vice versa.
We now have two “main” timelines for story-telling and continuity. The original timeline called “Prime Reality” in Star Trek terminology, and the “alternate reality” or “Nero Reality” as I prefer to call it (which is more clear and distinctly shows when this reality first existed).
The Nero Reality will be where (more likely than not) live-action movies and potentially new TV series will be set. The Prime Reality will be where the current products – from books to comics to games, will continue on (of course we will see books, comics, and games set in the Nero Reality). This is where Star Trek Online lives, it continues the story of the Prime Reality after (from their perspective) Ambassador Spock and the Romulan Nero were pulled into a black hole, which makes them technically and officially dead.
Since Star Trek XI started on the year 2387-Prime and told us how the capital and home planet of the Romulans were destroyed, it also affected the backstory of STO. Ambassador Spock is dead, the Romulan Empire is in a much deeper chaos, and it changes the political landscape of the Alpha and Beta Quadrant. Below is an official graphical representation of the timelines.
(click to enlarge)
Everything clear? Now if you have questions as to the canon status of STO, you sheald read this: Star Trek Online – Continuing the Franchise.
And before you go, here is a “timeline” video of what happened leading up to 2409-Prime (25th Century), Star Trek Online’s starting year (30 years after the tenth movie: Star Trek: Nemesis).
You can also start reading short stories of what happened a year before and two years after 2387-Prime.
- Path to 2409: 2386 (2386 Supplemental Log)
- Path to 2409: 2387 (2387 Supplemental Log)
- The Path to 2409: 2388 (2388 Supplemental Log)
- The Path to 2409: 2389 (2389 Supplemental Log)
More (canon) fiction here.