Published Oct 24, 2026, 9:20 PM EDT

Terry Terrones is an entertainment writer for Polygon. His work has appeared in The Hollywood Reporter, Parade Magazine, Paste Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, The A.V. Club, The Wrap, TV Insider, and other national outlets. He is a member of the Television Critics Association, the Critics Choice Association, and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

This Captain Kirk speech says more about what Star Trek stands for than any other line in the original series.

Captain Kirk's best Star Trek quote isn't 'Live long and prosper'

Image: Paramount

Certain lines of dialogue become so famous they almost stop belonging to the movies and TV shows that produced them. “May the Force be with you.” “I’ll be back.” “You're gonna need a bigger boat.” You don't need to know the context. The words have long since transcended their original context.

Star Trek: The Original Series has plenty of those.…