David Farnor | On 26, Sep 2017

trek Hov: Discovery tagha’ naDev ‘ej vIta’Qo’ accessible puS reH!

Star Trek: Discovery is finally here, and it’s more accessible than ever. While the latest entry in the sci-fi franchise is streaming exclusively on CBS All Access in America, Netflix is releasing the show worldwide – and maybe a little further.

The streaming giant prides itself on its gargantuan reach, reaching almost 200 territories worldwide and catering to a growing number of them with original content from different countries and an increasing number of localised languages and subtitles. Five years ago, it only supported English, Spanish and Portuguese. Now, Netflix supports over 20 languages – including languages like Korean, Chinese, Arabic and Polish. Now, there’s a new one: Klingon.

Yes, the new Star Trek series is available for Klingons to stream in their native tongue of tlhIngan Hol – just in case they don’t want to follow the series in English, Polish, French, or Arabic. To experience it, just go to the subtitle menu and select “Klingon”.

First invented by Scotty, aka. James Doohan, on Star Trek: The Motion Picture in collaboration with producer Jon Povill, it’s seen grown into a fully-fledged language, with Marc Okrand penning The Klingon Dictionary in 1985.

“We’re quickly approaching an inflection point where English won’t be the primary viewing experience on Netflix,” said Chris Fetner, Director of Media Engineering and Partnerships, and Denny Sheehan, Director of Content Localization & Quality Control, in a Netflix blog post earlier this year. “Our desire to delight members in ‘their’ language, while staying true to creative intent and being mindful of cultural nuances is important to ensure quality.”

Cultural nuances are more important than ever in Star Trek: Discovery, as almost no one has seen a Klingon in more than 100 years – and when they announce themselves at the show’s open, they make it clear that they do not come in peace.

All 15 episodes are now available to stream with Klingon subtitles, meticulously translated by Klingon teacher Lieven L. Litaer, who is known from his courses on YouTube and Twitter.

What’s it like to watch the whole of Star Trek in Klingon? To give you a taste, here’s their leader’s chilling speech on their home planet of Klinzhai, laced with the race’s war-heavy vocabulary. You can read our spoiler-free review of the opening double-bill here. (It’s in English.)

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