Star Trek: The Animated Series

:"Star Trek Animated" redirects here. For the fanzine, see Star Trek Animated (Star Trek zine).
Star Trek: The Animated Series ran for just over a year. 
The series used almost all of the original cast's voices (minus Walter Koenig), and animation allowed for more aliens and fantastical plots and sets. 
The animated series introduced a three-armed, three-legged, long-necked, alien member of the bridge crew, named Arex, and a cat-like alien crew member named M'Ress. 
Although the show never caught on with all fans, many elements within it carried over into fanon and canon. Just a few:
* Amanda's maiden name, Grayson
* the appearance of sehlats
* Kirk's middle name was revealed in this series as Tiberius
* Spock was bullied as a boy 
* the Recreation Room, a precursor to the holodeck 
* Klingon commander Kor's command of the battlecruiser Klothos.
==Promoted Heavily, and Personally==
The show was heavily promoted by D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold, and Gene Roddenberry in newsletters and letterzines, and was often accompanied by pleas to "give it a chance." 
Some of this correspondence was very personal and employed a manipulation of fan loyalty and fan desperation to see their show return in any form. In the early 1973 open letter, STAR TREK is coming back as an animated series!, Fontana wrote: "Please do not prejudge the series or dismiss it as a "kiddie show" not worthy of your attention because you will be doing a great injustice to Gene Roddenberry and all the other talented people who will be working hard to give you STAR TREK again..." She also wrote in early 1973: "I will personally destroy the next person I hear dismissing "Star Trek" in animation as "just a cartoon" not worthy of their attention. I am working hard -- and so are all the other people I mentioned -- to give them "Star Trek" just the way it was." from Despatch #15 
Another source of detailed info about the show is In Her Own Words: An Interview with Dorothy Fontana (1974).
A letter from David Gerrold in Star Trek Action Group #2 (June/July 1973) implored fans to watch the new show, saying "this is NOT a kiddie show."
See the transcription of the early 1973 speech: I'd like to talk about STAR TREK, past, present and future, and I don't know whether you're going to like what I have to say. by D.C. Fontana. Fontana also explained and defended an episode in the 1974 essay, Notes on 'Yesteryear'.
See David Gerrold's 1973 comments at You have asked what you can do to help bring STAR TREK back on the air..
In 1974, Gerrold had a lot to say about this series in 2-5YM Interview with David Gerrold.
In December 1973/January 1974, Gene Roddenberry, wrote "Executive Memo": 
==Is It Canon?==
From an undated interview with David Gerrold, who contributed two stories to TAS: 
Writer-producer D.C. Fontana discussed the TAS Canon in 2007: 
From a fan discussion in 1978: 
==Is It a Cartoon?==
Despite all the frustration about the original Star Trek not winning Emmys fans felt it deserved, AND fans' insistence that the animated series was NOT a children's' cartoon, the animated series won an Emmy Nomination along with Captain Kangaroo, Fat Albert, The Cosby Kids, and Zoom. Zoom was the winner.
==Is It for Children or Adults?==
==Fan Art==
Image:fanzinereviewzine.jpg|Cover of Fanzine Review 'Zine #1, featuring Arex the Edosian by Gordon Carleton, 1976
Image:Futurewings1-5.jpg|Internal art from Future Wings, which claimed "artistic license" for modifying Aleek-Om and Prince T'char's Filmation look, 1978
Image:Futureback.jpg|Back cover art of Future Wings, which claimed "artistic license" for modifying Arex's Filmation look, 1978
Image:Beyondantares18-19-7.jpg|Arex and M'Ress in the new uniforms, art by Ian McLean, Beyond Antares #18/19, 1982
==Fan Craft==
Image:BabyArexdoll.png|A Francine Ellison-created baby Arex the Edosian, 1983
Image:StarshipExetercomic.png|M'Ress the Caitian appears in a fan-made Starship Exeter online comic, Home is Not a Place, 2004. (Thanks Kail Tescar)
Image:Actionfigurethelin.jpg|Customized Thelin the Andorian and Jan Grey action figures of "Yesteryear", with ReAction Spock and Hallmark ornaments of Arex & M'Ress, 2019
Image:Aureliancustom.png|Ian McLean's customized Loom Aleek-Om the Aurelian of "Yesteryear", 2019
==Fans Online==
* Curt Danhauser's Guide to Star Trek: The Animated Series previously available at Curt Danhauser's Guide to The Animated Star Trek - GeoCities Site
* Curt Danhauser's new episodes site 
* Kail Tescar's Star Trek: The Animated Series
* Kail Tescar's original comics site
* Yesteryear online comic adaptation
*STAR TREK: THE ANIMATED SERIES FANSITE (This site features high-quality screen-grab images including a few Caitian) and sounds. It also has a fan art section, virtual postcards, a Message Board, and AVI files)
==Fan Reaction==
===1973===
 
===1974===
===1975===
===1976===
 
===1979===
 
===1983===
===1985===
 
==Further Reading and Meta==
* Open Letter by "S.T.A.B. Paramount" Regarding a Proposed Boycott of All Paramount Productions (July 1973)
* The Cheapening of Star Trek, essay by Ed Dahlheimer (1973)
* and 
==Notes==
==References==
*