Editing Romulan (section)

==History==

===Original development===
The Romulans are a fictional extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek universe and were devised for the episode "[[Balance of Terror]]". In 2014, the episode was rated the best in the franchise by ''[[io9]].'' They were reused for the second-season episode "The Deadly Years" and the third-season episode "The Enterprise Incident".<ref name="io9st100">{{Cite web
| url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-top-100-star-trek-episodes-of-all-time-1641565699
| title=The Top 100 Star Trek Episodes Of All Time!
| first=Charlie Jane
| last=Anders
| date=October 2, 2014
| publisher=[[io9]]
| access-date=May 21, 2019
}}</ref>

They are humanoid beings originating from the planet Romulus and are known for their cunning, secrecy, and often adversarial relations with other civilizations, especially the [[United Federation of Planets]]. Physiologically, Romulans are similar to Vulcans, another species in the Star Trek universe. In fact, Romulans share a common ancestry with Vulcans and are considered an offshoot of the same species. They have pointed ears and arched eyebrows, and possess great strength, intelligence, and longevity.

The Romulans diverged from their Vulcan counterparts millennia ago due to ideological differences. While Vulcans embraced logic and the teachings of Surak, advocating emotional control and pacifism, the Romulans rejected these principles. They embraced their emotions and maintained a more militaristic and secretive society. Romulans are known for their cunning strategies, espionage, and manipulation in political affairs. They have a powerful and formidable military, with their signature warbird starships being a symbol of their might.

Throughout various Star Trek series and films, the Romulans have been portrayed as complex adversaries with deep-seated cultural traditions and a sense of superiority over other species. Their interactions with other factions in the Star Trek universe often involve political intrigue, espionage, and attempts to expand their influence in the galaxy. 

While based on the [[Roman Empire]], they took on the adversarial role of [[Cold War]] era [[China|Communist China]], with the fictional government the [[United Federation of Planets]] playing the role of the [[United States]], and the [[Klingons]], based on the [[Mongol Empire]], acting the role of the [[Soviet Union]].<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |title=Creating the Romulans — Forgotten Trek |url=https://forgottentrek.com/the-original-series/creating-the-romulans/ |access-date=2023-06-02 |website=forgottentrek.com}}</ref> As a result, the Romulans were generally portrayed as mysterious, but also "highly militaristic, aggressive by nature, and ruthless in warfare".<ref name="auto" /> The make-up required for an episode including Romulans in the Original Series became too expensive and time-consuming, so the Romulans became largely overshadowed by the [[Klingons]].<ref>Reeves-Stevens, 35.</ref>

===Reintroduction in the 1980s and 1990s===
After the launch of ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' in 1987, the show's writers introduced the Romulans in the final episode of the first season, "[[The Neutral Zone (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|The Neutral Zone]]", which aired in the U.S. in May 1988.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|pp=59–60}} The episode was written by [[Maurice Hurley]], who later acknowledged rushing it, putting together a script in a day and a half.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|pp=59–60}} In the episode, which is set in the year 2364, the Starfleet ship [[USS Enterprise-D|USS ''Enterprise''-D]]—whose crew are the series' main protagonists—responds to the disappearance of Federation colonies along the Neutral Zone, fearing that it reflects growing Romulan activity in the region. Investigating, the ''Enterprise'' crew encounter a Romulan spaceship; it is stated that this is the first encounter between the two peoples for 53 years. The Romulans reveal that they have had colonies destroyed on their side of the border too, and the two species agree to share information on the issue in future.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=59}} In later episodes it is revealed that these colonies were destroyed by a previously unknown species, the [[Borg]], whom the show's writers had devised as a new alien antagonist following dissatisfaction with their previous attempt, the [[Ferengi]].{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}} Initial thoughts by the script-writers had proposed a multi-episode storyline in which the Federation and Romulan governments would co-operate to fight the Borg; ultimately only certain elements of this idea entered "The Neutral Zone", and the Borg would be introduced not in the first season, but in the second-season episode "[[Q Who]]".{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}}

New costumes were designed for the actors playing Romulans, created by the show's costume designer [[William Ware Theiss|William Theiss]].{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|p=227}}
The newly designed Romulan ship that appeared in "The Neutral Zone" was built as a miniature model by [[Greg Jein]].{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}} The ship featured a newly designed Romulan crest, featuring a stylised bird of prey clutching two planets, Romulus and Remus, in its claws.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}} Later in the series, this ship type would be explicitly referred to as a "warbird".{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}} In 1989, [[Aluminum Model Toys|AMT]] released a plastic kit of the vessel, alongside other kits for a Ferengi ship and a [[Klingon]] bird of prey vessel.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=60}}

The Romulans were re-used for the second-season episode "[[Contagion (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|Contagion]]", written by Steve Gerber and Beth Woods and first aired in March 1989. In this episode, the ''Enterprise''-D entered the Neutral Zone to answer a distress call and ends up in conflict with a Romulan vessel, with both spaceships being disabled by an alien computer virus.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|pp=79–80}} "Contagion" was the first episode in the ''Star Trek'' franchise in which the Romulan ship was given a name, in this case the ''Haakona''.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=80}} In the third-season episode "[[The Enemy (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|The Enemy]]", written by David Kemper and Michael Piller and first screened in November 1989, the ''Enterprise''-D is depicted rescuing a crashed Romulan ship.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=107}} The episode introduced the Romulan character Tomalak, played by [[Andreas Katsulas]], who would reappear in three further ''Next Generation'' episodes.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=107}} It also further established the idea of a significant enmity between the Romulans and the Klingons, with the ''Enterprise'''s Klingon officer, [[Worf]] ([[Michael Dorn]]), refusing to donate blood to save the life of an injured Romulan; the scriptwriters had debated whether to include this, with Dorn initially reticent.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=107}}

Three episodes later, in "[[The Defector (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|The Defector]]", written by Ronald D. Moore and first screened in January 1990, a Romulan admiral is presented as seeking to defect to the Federation.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=110}} The episode is the first in the franchise to include images of Romulus itself and introduced the design of a Romulan scout vessel.{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=110}} "The Defector" also includes a reference to the Battle of Cheron, an incident in the 22nd century Earth-Romulan War that was previously mentioned in "Balance of Terror".{{sfn|Nemecek|1995|p=110}}

====''Deep Space Nine'' and ''Voyager''====
For "[[The Search (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|The Search]]", the opening two-part episode of the third season of ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'', a Romulan link was introduced. The episode, which was written by [[Ira Steven Behr]], [[Robert Hewitt Wolfe]], and Ronald D. Moore, featured the introduction of a new Starfleet ship, the [[USS Defiant|USS ''Defiant'']]; the scriptwriters included the idea that it had been equipped with a cloaking device by the Romulans in return for intelligence that the Federation gathered on another alien power, [[Dominion (Star Trek)|the Dominion]]. A Romulan character, T'Rul ([[Martha Hackett]]), was included to oversee the device's use aboard the ''[[USS Defiant|Defiant]]''.{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|pp=160–161}} The show's writers had initially planned on including T'Rul as a permanent fixture on the show but decided that she did not offer enough potential for new storylines.{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|p=163}}

The Romulans were reused later that season in "[[Visionary (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|Visionary]]", where they are presented as attempting to destroy the [[Deep Space Nine (fictional space station)|Deep Space Nine]] space station as part of their plan to collapse the nearby [[wormhole]] and thus prevent a Dominion invasion of the [[Alpha Quadrant]], the region of space where both the Federation and Romulans reside.{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|pp=216–217}} Three episodes later, the follow-on episodes "[[Improbable Cause]]" and "[[The Die Is Cast (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|The Die Is Cast]]" again featured the Romulans, in this case portraying a joint mission by the Romulan Tal Shiar and Cardassian Obsidian Order to fatally cripple the Dominion by eradicating its leaders, [[List of Star Trek races#Changeling|the Founders]].{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|pp=224–225, 231–232}} For these episodes, new Tal Shiar outfits were designed; Moore related that this was partly his decision, for he "hated, underline hated, the Romulan costumes [introduced in the first season of ''The Next Generation'']. Big shoulder pads, the quilting, I just loathed it".{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|p=227}} Costume designer [[Robert Blackman]] noted that his team created eight new Romulan uniforms, using the same fabric as the old ones but "dyed it down slightly, and we made them much sleeker and a little more menacing".{{sfn|Erdmann|Block|2000|p=227}}

==== ''Star Trek: Nemesis'' ====
[[File:Logo Romulan.svg|thumb|right|A stylized version of the Romulan logo was created for the ''[[Star Trek: Nemesis]]'' publicity materials, but was never used in-universe.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hillebrand |first1=Jörg |last2=Schneider |first2=Bernd |title=The Evolution of the Romulan Emblem |url=https://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/inconsistencies/romulan_emblem.htm |website=Ex Astris Scientia |access-date=30 September 2022}}</ref>]]The Romulans were the major antagonists in the 2002 film ''Star Trek: Nemesis'', with much of the action set on Romulus. The film also introduced the Remans, inhabitants of the other planet in the Romulan system, who serve as a slave labor caste in Romulan society.

==== ''Star Trek: Enterprise'' ====
In [[Star Trek: Enterprise (season 4)|season 4]], the Romulans played a pivotal role in the episodes "[[Kir'Shara]]", "[[Babel One]]", [[United (Star Trek: Enterprise)|United]]", and "[[The Aenar]]". In "Kir'Shara", it's revealed that Administrator V'Las of the Vulcan High Command is actually conspiring with a Romulan agent to "reunify" their two peoples through force. The agent, Major Talok, chases Captain Archer, T'Pol and T'Pau through the area of Vulcan known as The Forge throughout the episode, although his true nature isn't revealed until the end. In addition, in the previous episode "[[Awakening (Star Trek: Enterprise)|Awakening]]", Archer learned from [[Surak]] that during the "Time of Awakening", a Vulcan schism of those who "sought a return to savage ways" and "marched beneath the raptor's wings" (later the symbol of the Romulan people) perpetrate a cataclysmic nuclear attack upon [[Surak]] and his enlightened society. Soon after Surak's death, these Vulcan recidivists abandoned their homeworld to colonize the planets Romulus and Remus.

In "Babel One", "United", and "The Aenar", the Romulans plot to destabilize their sector of space by using drone ships disguised as vessels from various cultures to turn their enemies against each other. These drone ships are piloted remotely through telepresence by Gareb, a young Aenar kidnapped by the Romulans who had lied to him that he was the last of his people. The plot was exposed by the efforts of the ''Enterprise'' crew and instead resulted in the humans, [[Vulcan (Star Trek)|Vulcans]], [[Andorian|Andorians]], and Tellarites uniting to defeat the Romulan threat, bringing them closer together than ever. The ''Enterprise'' then enlists the help of Gareb's sister Jhamel who telepathically contacts her brother and informs him of the truth. Gareb turns on the Romulans, destroying one drone ship and allowing the ''Enterprise'' to destroy the other, foiling the Romulan plot. In retaliation, Romulan Admiral Valdore kills Gareb for his betrayal.

===Reboot: 2009–present===
[[File:Nero from Star Trek.jpg|thumb|right|For the 2009 ''[[Star Trek 2009|Star Trek]]'' reboot film, the design of the Romulans was significantly altered; although keeping the pointed ears, the V-shaped forehead ridges were removed and various [[tattoo]]s were added.]]
After ''Star Trek: Nemesis'' proved a financial failure and ''Star Trek: Enterprise'' was cancelled, the franchise's executive producer [[Rick Berman]] and screenwriter [[Erik Jendresen]] began developing a new film entitled ''Star Trek: The Beginning'', which was to be set during the 22nd century Earth–Romulan War. The project never materialised.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hughes |first1=David |title=The Greatest Sci-Fi Movies Never Made |edition=Revised |date=July 15, 2008 |publisher=[[Titan Books]] |isbn=978-1-84576-755-6 |pages=35, 37, 44–46}}</ref> Instead, the decision was made to reboot the series by creating a film using the characters of the original ''Star Trek'' series but played by new actors. Putting together a script for the new film, the director [[J. J. Abrams]] stated that he wanted Romulans to be the antagonists because they had featured less than the Klingons in the original ''Star Trek'' series.<ref>{{cite news |first=Helen |last=O'Hara |title=Klingon Subplot Revealed |work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |date=November 14, 2008 |url=http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=23656 |access-date=November 14, 2008}}</ref> The film's writers, [[Roberto Orci]] and [[Alex Kurtzman]], thought that it would feel backward to demonize the Klingons as villains again after they had been presented heroically in later ''Star Trek'' series; they also wanted to use Spock as a central character in the film and believed that the Romulan presence would continue Spock's story from his last chronological appearance in "[[Unification (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|Unification]]".<ref name="OKGeekMonthly">{{cite news |first=Anthony |last=Pascale |title=Star Trek Writers Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci |publisher=TrekMovie.com |date=April 30, 2009 |url=http://trekmovie.com/2009/04/30/interview-roberto-orci-alex-kurtzman |access-date=May 1, 2009}}</ref>

In the 2009 Abrams reboot film, titled ''[[Star Trek (2009 film)|Star Trek]]'', the planet Romulus is destroyed by a [[supernova]] in the year 2387. A Romulan mining ship, the ''Narada'', survives and travels back in time to the 23rd century; its commander, [[Nero (Star Trek)|Nero]] ([[Eric Bana]]), is committed to destroying the planet Vulcan to punish [[Spock]] for failing to save Romulus. The actors playing Romulans in this film wore three prosthetics applied to their ears and foreheads, while Bana had a fourth prosthetic for the bitemark on his ear that extends to the back of his character's head.<ref name="MakeUp">{{cite web |first=Joe |last=Nazzaro |title=FX artists create new aesthetic for 'Star Trek' franchise |work=Makeup Mag |date=April 6, 2009 |url=http://makeupmag.com/news/newsID/426 |access-date=April 6, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090412173309/http://makeupmag.com/news/newsID/426/ |archive-date=April 12, 2009 }}</ref> The film's Romulans lacked the V-shaped ridges on the foreheads, which had been present in all of their depictions outside the original series. [[Neville Page]] wanted to honor that by having Nero's crew ritually scar themselves too, forming [[keloid]]s reminiscent of the "V"-ridges. It was abandoned as they did not pursue the idea enough.<ref name="PageDesowitz">{{cite news |first=Bill |last=Desowitz |title=Creature Designer Neville Page Talks Star Trek |work=[[Animation World Network]] |date=May 15, 2009 |url=http://www.awn.com/articles/people/creature-designer-neville-page-talks-istar-treki|access-date=May 17, 2009}}</ref>

[[Jean-Luc Picard|Picard's]] reaction to the destruction of Romulus is the backstory and central premise of ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]''. The series begins with Picard in self-imposed exile at his French vineyard following his resignation in protest to Starfleet's handling of Romulans and androids. Picard has two live-in Romulans at his estate.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/star-trek-patrick-stewarts-picard-series-reveals-new-details-1174452 |title='Star Trek' Boss: Picard Leads "Radically Altered" Life in CBS All Access Series |last1=Couch |first1=Aaron |last2=Goldberg |first2=Lesley |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=January 8, 2019 |access-date=March 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109034808/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/star-trek-patrick-stewarts-picard-series-reveals-new-details-1174452 |archive-date=January 9, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> At least two groups of Romulans survived: one group formed the Romulan Free State, while the other group was evacuated to the planet of Vashti.

In the ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'' episode "Unification III", Ambassador Spock's dream of Vulcan/Romulan reunification has been achieved. The Romulans have returned to their ancestral homeworld (since renamed '''Ni'Var''') and reunified with their Vulcan cousins. When the Vulcans decided to pull out of the Federation due to the apocalyptic event known as the Burn, it was actually the Romulans who wished to remain, according to Starfleet Admiral Vance. In the episode "All Is Possible", Ni'Var rejoins the Federation.