TLDR; Is PRO TNG or PIC era? Do Trek eras as we know them even matter anymore?
Edit: Fixed TOK to be TWOK era. My 2 brain cells had failed me there.
Before I give my problem, here’s what I find the conventional Star Trek eras to be (including some common sub-eras that some might consider distinct):
- ENT era: 2150s-2160s
- TOS era: 2250s-early 2290s
- TWOK era: 2270s-early 2290s
- Lost era: 2290s-roughly 2330s
- TNG era: 2340s-early 2380s (I count Enterprise C as roughly the start of the TNG era. At the very least, the shuttle for the Hansen’s ill-fated trip in the 2350s has the trappings of the TNG era).
- DS9/VOY/TNG film era: 2370s, maybe early 2380s
- PIC era: mid 2380s-early 25th century (I think the Utopia Planetia in 2385 is my cutoff)
- DIS era: 32nd century
I think most newer series have obvious placements, e.g:
- DIS starts in the TOS era, then starts its own era.
- SNW is in the TOS era (I’d argue it’s straight up canon, based on LD).
- LD is TNG era, based on LCARS designs and the story conventions it parodies/pastiches.
However, the main thing that is ruffling my feathers is that PRO’s placement in my framework is very confusing. It exists on an awkward border between TNG and PIC.
On one hand, some of its storytelling conventions fit better with PIC, not to mention the fact that the Utopia Planetia attack occurs at the end of PRO.
On the other hand, PRO continues some TNG era characters that aren’t yet elderly versions of themselves.
This goes back to the initial question: Do we place the vast majority of PRO in the TNG era (and have like the last five minutes of season 2 [hopefully not the show] in PIC era), or do we extend the Picard era backwards to 2383 to include PRO in its entirety?
The 2383 solution might work, as that leaves 2382 in the TNG era for the 5th season of Lower Decks.
When it comes to the overlapping shows, it might be better to frame things around events rather than series. Like, Dominion War, Romulan Evacuation, etc. But then, there are still some gaps in there, or unrelated adventures that aren’t really defined by those major events.
I’d probably just start the PIC era in 2399. We only see the 2380’s in a handful of flashbacks. Prodigy definitely has some PIC connections, but it’s far more a continuation of Voyager, and it starts like a year after season 5 of Lower Decks.
It’s super annoying, but even though they’re all airing at the same time, Picard, Lower Decks, and Prodigy all take place at slightly different times. At least they’re consistent with TNG stardates, where 41000 is 2364, and each 1000 stardates equals one Earth year, so you can get a year from a captain’s log entry. From Memory Alpha:
Lower Decks: 2380-2382
Prodigy: 2383–2385
Picard: 2399-2341 (Ignoring flashbacks)
I miss the TNG / DS9 / VOY era, when shows airing concurrently all take place at the same time.
What is TOK era? In drawing a blank of what show is abbreviated TOK
I think I blocked that one out. When it revealed Vulcans descended from ancient Hylians it was very upsetting to me, because it completely retconned all the erotic Spock fiction I had written.
You can’t say something like that and not post the fanfic. Share your dirty Spock!
I think I meant to put TWOK, for Wrath of Khan. TOK was an IB class I took in high school, so my brain defaulted to that.
