April 5, 2063, if you didn't know, is First Contact Day. That's the day in which humanity made (will make) first contact with an extraterrestrial species. More specifically, Vulcans. The date was made canon in Star Trek: First Contact.
And on April 5, Paramount Plus celebrates First Contact Day with a whole mess of Star Trek. We're talking recorded panels across the greater Trek universe. We're talking marathons of curated episodes in the spirit of First Contact Day. And we're also talking 20 percent off merch at shop.startrek.com because if you can't put it on a T-shirt, is it really a celebration?
The panels themselves should be worth tuning in. There are five in all, and here's how they break down, from 3 to 5:45 pm Eastern time:
- Star Trek: First Contact 25th Anniversary Panel: Will include Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner and Slice Krige as they share behind-the-scenes memories of the 25-year-old film.
- Creating First Contacts Panel: Will include Star Trek: Discovery costume designer Gersha Phillips, senior concept designer Neville Page, VFX supervisor Jason Zimmerman, and makeup and prosthetics department head James Mackinnon from Star Trek: Picard.
- Women in Motion Panel: Includes Discovery's Sonequa Martin-Green, Picard's Michelle Hurd and Isa Briones, and Lower Decks' Dawnn Lewis "as they look back at how “Star Trek: The Original Series” actress Nichelle Nichols helped pave the way for women of color on television and overall, her lasting impact on not only Star Trek, but science and culture."
- Second Contact Panel: Mike McMahan (creator of Lower Decks), Paul F. Tompkins (host of Star Trek: The Pod Detective), Spiner and Frakes will talk about some hilarious B-plot stories from past series that paved the way for the current generation of series.
- Star Trek: Prodigy Panel: Executive producers Kevin and Dan Hagerman are joined by Kate Mulgrew (Star Trek: Voyager), who's reprising her role in Prodigy.
There's also the marathon of First Contact Day-related episodes, which will begin at noon Eastern on April 5. They'll include:
- Star Trek: The Original Series: Season 1, Episode 18 – “Arena”
- Star Trek: Lower Decks: Season 1, Episode 1 – “Second Contact”
- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Season 4, Episode 7 – “Little Green Men”
- Star Trek: Short Treks: Season 2, Episode 6 –“Children of Mars”
- Star Trek: Voyager: Season 4, Episode 1 – “Scorpion, Part 2”
- Star Trek: Discovery: Season 2, Episode 2 – “New Eden”
- Star Trek: The Animated Series: Season 1, Episode 7 – “The Infinite Vulcan”
- Star Trek: Enterprise: Season 1, Episode 6 – “The Andorian Incident’
- Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season 4, Episode 15 – “First Contact”
- Star Trek: Picard: Season 1, Episode 8 – “Broken Pieces”
And that's just for starters. There's even more coming to StarTrek.com/FirstContact, and you'll also be able to stream the events on Pluto, Twitch, and YouTube.
Paramount Plus Key Info
- What is it? Paramount's streaming service features bags of movies, TV dramas and plenty of original content.
- Is there a free trial? Yes, it's normally 7 days, but until end June there's a month's free trial for new customers.
- How much does it cost in the US? $4.99 (with ads) or $9.99 (ads-free).
- How much does it cost in the UK? £6.99 (there's just one plan).
In addition to Star Trek, Paramount Plus has live sports, including NFL games and international football. There also are a host of Paramount Plus original series.
Paramount Plus is available on every major streaming platform, including Paramount Plus on Roku, as well as on Paramount Plus on Amazon Fire TV. It's also available on Apple TV, Android TV, Google TV, smart TV platforms, and on the web.
