The Star Trek Book of Friendship dives deep into Picard and Riker’s eternal bro-bond
The primary appeal of Star Trek is watching brave heroes boldly go in the name of discovery, exploration, and diplomacy. But talk to any Star Trek fan and they’ll tell you about the franchise’s secondary appeal: workplace drama. The scifi spectacle might draw fans in, but it’s the relationships between characters that keeps them hooked.
Those friendships are the focus of The Star Trek Book of Friendship, from BenBella Books’ Smart Pop imprint. Kirk and Spock, Bashir and Garak, Janeway and Seven of Nine: They all get their due. The official tribute to the greatest friendships in Star Trek history comes, fittingly, in the form of conversations between two friends. Authors Robb Pearlman and Jordan Hoffman [Ed. note: Jordan Hoffman has written for Polygon.]
Pearlman and Hoffman were gracious enough to provide an introduction to Polygon’s exclusive excerpt to The Star Trek Book of Friendship, also in the form of a conversation between two friends. Read on for that and, below the horizontal line, an excerpt from the book’s chapter on Jean-Luc Picard and Will Riker.
Robb Pearlman: I’m vibrating with the excitement of an overheating warp core! I’ve loved Polygon since my parents first hooked Pong up to our black & white Magnavox.
Jordan Hoffman: How is that possible, that’s from before websites even existed?!
RP: Space and time have no meaning anymore, Jordan, so don’t question it.
JH: Fair enough. Star Trek is loaded with such whacked-out premises, but you know what is the foundation of that show for me?
RP: You aren’t going to start talking about how the USS Reliant is actually upside-down again, are you?
JH: No, but I do want to revisit that at a later point. For me, it’s about the characters, and how they relate to one
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