City on the Edge of Forever was probably the best Trek episode of any series.
I gave my vote to TOS, because I think that really established the tone --or, at least what SHOULD have been the tone-- for the other shows to follow: explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations, etc. Also, I picked it because B5 wasn’t a choice.
Granted, the special effects in B5 aren’t great, especially by today’s TV standards, and believe me, when I aired the first season during lunch breaks at work, I had a lot of resentful coworkers afterwards. However, that quickly faded once we moved on to the “OH! Ah-ha! THAT’s what that meant!” moments that followed in later seasons).
Actually, TOS would be my third choice because TMP wasn’t included. I recognize that compared against the actual series, I don’t think anyone would argue that the TMP era was 50/50 at best. I’ll admit the series had a lot of flaws in characterization, logic, continuity, story, etc., but I always thought the ships were the coolest looking of all of them, and the ST:TWoK-era uniforms were pretty snazzy. So yes, that would be an unreasonable second choice, but it still should have been a choice.
That being said, I think DS9 is over on Netflix on demand, so I should try watching past the first two seasons so I can give it a more fair assessment.
I had a hard time picking between TNG and DS9, but eventually went with the former as I felt that if you watched a random episode from any series, TNG would have the best chance of it being enjoyable. While DS9 has many episodes that are just as good, most of them don’t work so well as stand-alone episodes as they are too firmly entrenched in the overall arc.
Regarding VOY, I feel that it’s very best episodes (say “Blink of an Eye”) can be as good as the best of TNG, but they are few and far between and its worst and average episodes are much, much weaker. It did have the best Star Trek video game, though.
My all-time favourite episode is probably one of either “Darmok”, “Cause & Effect” or “The Inner Light”, coincidentally all from TNG’s fifth season.
There were. I said good not great. There are maybe three or four great episodes of Voyager but there are many good ones.
The problem is that the bad episodes were truly terrible. Examples include Tuvix (where Tuvok and Nelix are merged into a single person), Innocence (Tuvok is trapped on a moon with children who keep disappearing), or Warlord (Kes’ body is taken over by an insane tyrant). In addition episodes centering on several members of the main cast are almost entirely awful - such as Kes, the punching bag that is Ensign Kim, and anything involving B’Elenna Klingon heritage (remember that awful episode when she crosses the proverbial Klingon river Styx? I wish I didn’t)
Even with the good episodes you find that quite a few of them are just rehashes of older pre-Voyager plots - the Future’s End two-parter when Voyager goes back to 1990s California due to a time travel incident is basically Star Trek IV but set in LA, without whales, but with Sarah Silverman and her van.
All that said once you get past the terrible first two seasons and the retchingly bad third season (which has maybe five good episodes) things get better once Kes is killed off and Seven of Nine gets introduced. Season four even has a good Nelix episode - Mortal Coil in which Nelix is brought back from the dead and has an existential crisis. Plus the guest stars get kinda better - besides Andy Dick showing up at one point.
TNG all the way. TOS was novel and had great ideas, but the actual episodes mostly suck majorly unless you live in the 1960s. SOME expections, naturally.
Deep Space Nine was very good, but in my opinion suffered for not having more distinct material. It was derivative in some ways, and when standing next to Babylon 5 - it pales as an “epic” telling. But still, a very good show.
Voyager and Enterprise sucked very very bad, and only the latest Star Trek movie can top them.
The latest Star Trek movie is the worst thing ever to come out with that label, and I have not the words to describe my loathing for it and Abrams.
How about ‘hyperbole’?
While my favorite is TNG, that’s really only because it had the most content I enjoyed. All the series had some great moments, some highs, some lows, and in general I really like most of the characters accross the universes. Not all of course, though as I type this I can’t think of a character outside of the doctor in season 2 of TNG I actively disliked.
You can see my post above this for my thoughts on Trek - but this sentence grabbed my eye, as I really loved this new Trek and the direction it is taking the franchise. Why didn’t you like it, out of curiosity?
TNG was my favorite , as I grew up watching it. DS9 was good, but I never got the vibe the cast got along as well as the TNG group.
Voyager sucked, the only 2 episodes I even recall are the Q episodes.
The Abrams TREK was enjoyable, just too much bloom.
Because I have a great admiration for what Star Trek did and what the underlying message was. The same is true for the characters and especially Spock - which they changed into a semi-horny and excitable teenager.
It’s all about what you take from Trek, though, and I can’t “prove” to you why it’s bad. If you have a different take on Trek - then you will obviously react differently.
Beyond how they completely ignored canon with a laughable excuse - they also made a very bad movie with HUGE logical holes. The villain and his motivation was stupid - and the whole “red matter” is just… Well.
I see Star Trek 2010 as stupid escapist entertainment, which I wouldn’t mind so much - if it didn’t shit all over the franchise.
It’s opportunism at its worst - and Abrams couldn’t grasp what Star Trek is about if he mind melded with Einstein.
I’m sure all this makes me seem like a drooling Trekkie fanatic, and so be it. I’m not though, and I think a lot of Trek has been crap. But I do admire what it did and how innovative some of the ideas were.
I don’t like it when Hollywood exploits strong material to make a buck, but I especially despise it when they also ensure that those strengths can never return in an established franchise.
Absolute truth.
Anybody else really miss this wacky guy?
Wackier than a cardboard cutout of John Candy.
I’ve never really liked Star Trek more than a passing bit on the original. Hated TNG. Was told I should try DS9 and struggled to get past the first few episodes with the horrible acting but I’m glad I did.
Garak makes the series for me.
Garak is the shit, totally my favorite DS9 character.
I’m wrapping up my TNG marathon on Netflix. I watched every episode, beginning to end, and I only skipped a few (mainly Troi episodes, mom or daughter).
TNG was at its best around season 4 and 5. In seasons 6 and 7 they started to move to the galactic politics story lines and I feel the series suffered. I also noticed Patrick Stewart is only in like half the season 7 episodes, I wonder what’s up with that?
My biggest regret about TNG is Michelle Forbes. I really wish she had stuck with the show, the Ensign Ro episodes are some of the best. Except the one where she turns into a kid with Picard and Guinan, I hated that one. What the hell were they thinking with that story?
DS9 is up next. I think the first season is going to be like starting a new workout routine, just suffer through the initial pain until you hit your stride and start getting results.
I loved that episode because it’s so batshit insane. I also loved how they got the same kid who played Picard’s nephew a couple seasons prior to play young Picard in that episode.
Oh, also, again, if you like TNG, you must, must, MUST read Fashion it So, wherein they go through episodes and comment on not only the plot, but the hair, fashions and so on. One of the funniest dang sites around, in my opinion.
DS9 begins in its 3rd season. There are some real gems in there like Shakaar, Defiant and the 2 parter Improbable Cause+The Die is Cast, quite possibly the greatest 2 parter in any Trek.
edit: if you do plan on watching DS9 season 3, skip episodes House of Quark, Equilibrium, Second Skin, Abandoned, Civil Defense, Meridian, Fascination, Prophet Motive, Distant Voices, Explorers and Family Business.
I would submit there are some great season 2 eps, like “Cardassians” for example, but it really begins its stride in season 3, as you said.
I would go so far as to say Garak is my favorite star trek character. He added so much to DS9. He is a major player in what I consider to be the best DS9 (and of any trek series) episode ‘In the Pale Moonlight’.