Redartz: Happy Tuesday everyone! It's been a very busy Fourth of July weekend, so I haven't had a chance to devise a 'head start' topic today. So I'm counting on you all; give us all a subject upon which to opine!
15 comments:
Anonymous
said...
This coming Friday, July 12th, is the 50th anniversary of Star Trek's debut on British TV (BBC 1) so to celebrate that cosmos-shattering event my question today is:
Which is the best Star Trek series and which is the worst?
Kind of pressed for time momentarily, so short answers. Best: TOS, with Voyager as a close second, or maybe even 1A. Worst: Enterprise (my teeth grate just thinking about it).
Best: DS9, it was my go-to show during grad school. (The one you force yourself to quit studying for which ensures that you don't burn out) I didn't much care for the messianism surrounding Sisko, but the development of the characters and the politics in the Dominion War kept me watching. Worst: Voyager. The maquis slid a little too easily into their roles as Starfleet officers for my taste, and the discoveries of the Delta quadrant were underwhelming.
For me, DS9 is the best ... I like the darker take on the Star Trek Universe. I actually didn't mind Enterprise (though the temporal cold war plotline was pretty stupid), so I'll have to say Voyager is my least favourite; it had some good (or great) episodes, and I actually think Seven added something to the show that was missing, but when I think of bad or boring Trek episodes, Voyager seems to have a lot of them.
COlin - I enjoy the question but I never watched any Star Trek except for the original series when surfing and catching it in mid-program, LOL.
And to this day, I can't understand why I will never voluntarily turn on Star Trek. I don't have a desire to sit down and watch it, but if I surf and catch it in the middle of a program I stay tuned.
OMG--- what a long day--- LATE home after a long (un-air-conditioned) rehearsal. . .
I'm gonna quibble (in a totally good-natured way), Colin, with the labels "Best" and "Worst", here. . . 'cause really "Favorite" and "Least-Favorite" seem to called for with such a subjective topic, eh? Mind you, TOS, STNG, DS9, and VYGR are the only series I've watched-- never got to Enterprise, me. BUT-- I love all four of those anchor-series, even as I recognize that they certainly all had some pretty clunky seasons at times (TOS 3rd season; STNG- most of the 1st season; DS9- a lot of the first season, etc). It's like picking your favorite kid, y'know? DS9 gets lauded a LOT as one of the top 5 SF series of all time--- but it might be my least favorite overall by just a smidge-- I have a very tough time getting past Avery Brooks' EXTREMELY stilted line delivery, which seems to be a quirky actor-habit of his. And the constant politics/intrigue undercurrent does wear me out-- although I realize that's a huge appeal for a lot of fans. And then a tie for first for the other three-- as different as they all are. Voyager might even get a fondness-boost in my book because I remain staunch in my opinion that Janeway wins the Who's-the-Best-Captain contest, hands-down. The prolonged, desperate situation she and her crew were placed in was by far the toughest test of Leadership mettle that any of the series presented. And she flippin' came through-!
HB, don't want to turn this into "let's rag on DS9" thread (because I still like the show, even though it's not my favorite), but you've touched on something I hardly ever see discussed in this context (to the point that I'd begun to think I'm the only one who noticed it): the fact that Brooks seemed to have a very limited range as an actor. Yes, his line delivery often seems stiff, and it's like he has only two settings: brooding and angry. As for Voyager and Janeway - no argument from me.
Edo- Re: Brooks-- yep, with often very, very odd word-emphasis choices. . . and just doesn't seem to have an innate sense of comic delivery when it's called for (although he always gives it the ol' college try). BUT-- I recalled (and then confirmed) that his background and MUCH of his career was rooted in classical theater. . . he started out very much as a stage guy, and in an academic-heavy system, at that. In fact, he's a fully tenured professor at Rutgers, where he's been for some 40 years (!!). And I feel like maybe that's what doesn't translate as well to the small screen-- 'cause I feel like "classical actor" is what we're seeing with Sisko. Lordy, it makes me nervous to criticize him, 'cause the man has LEGIT credentials in the theater world. . . who am I to give him notes-??
(He probably wins the "Captain with the Best Smile Contest", too, to be fair---)
I'll go with TNG as my favorite. I've watched the Original series, and sampled a few of the others. But Next Generation is the only one I actually made the effort to watch from week to week. Mainly, I suppose, due to the appeal of Patrick Stewart...
TOS for me. But honestly, for the other series' I've only watched all the episodes of TAS. I did view about 3 solid seasons of TNG, and was fairly entertained.
Not being a gone-native, deep-cell Trekkie, I'm not sure if this a common observance, but I think the strongest common aspect of all four series' is that they recognize the appeal of a larger-than-average ensemble cast for a TV show-- and that the cast leans heavily into quirky character roles as opposed to leading men/women types. Which rather became the model for a number of Sci-Fi series over the years, didn't it? (Babylon 5; Battlestar Galactica reboot--)
All the plot-twisting in the world doesn't pull us in unless we're invested in those characters, y'know?
I'd probably choose The Original Series as my favourite (HB, you're right - I shouldn't have said "best" and "worst") but I was a fan of TNG, DS9 and Voyager too. I only saw two episodes of ENTERPRISE which never appealed to me because it was a prequel as is STAR TREK: DISCOVERY which nobody has mentioned.
Interesting fact: the BBC showed the episodes of Star Trek season 1 in a completely different order from the original run - beginning with the 1965 pilot "Where No Man Has Gone Before" which had originally been the 3rd episode broadcast on American TV. I think Mr. Spock would be pleased with the BBC's logical decision to SHOW THE PILOT EPISODE FIRST.
I don't know if I watched Star Trek's debut episode on July 12th 1969 - I was only 3 years old at the time but I'd already started watching Dr. Who and the new Star Trek series was sitting in Dr. Who's vacated slot on Saturday evenings.
And what a coincidence that Star Trek debuted in Britain just a week before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon !!
Colin, it sounds like the BBC aired the episodes in the order of their production, rather than the way they were originally aired in the US, which actually makes more sense. It's always kind of weird watching episodes like "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and the "Corbomite Maneuver" (episode 10) which were obviously among the first to be made, after a number of more 'polished' episodes.
And since Killraven mentioned TAS, I have to say that I just consider that season 4 of TOS rather than something separate.
I totally overlooked TAS (The Animated Series)-- hunh. Agreed that it's more like a Season 4 of TOS, yep. Haven't really watched it in decades. The one time I did catch a bit of an episode not too long ago, I was mightily, mightily, MIGHTILY underwhelmed by Bill Shatner's palpable lack of energy, effort, and commitment to character and moment in his Voice-over work. Just a guy readin' lines from a page for a paycheck. . . hopefully the whole series wasn't like that--- anyone have a recollection?
15 comments:
This coming Friday, July 12th, is the 50th anniversary of Star Trek's debut on British TV (BBC 1) so to celebrate that cosmos-shattering event my question today is:
Which is the best Star Trek series and which is the worst?
Kind of pressed for time momentarily, so short answers.
Best: TOS, with Voyager as a close second, or maybe even 1A.
Worst: Enterprise (my teeth grate just thinking about it).
Best: DS9, it was my go-to show during grad school. (The one you force yourself to quit studying for which ensures that you don't burn out) I didn't much care for the messianism surrounding Sisko, but the development of the characters and the politics in the Dominion War kept me watching.
Worst: Voyager. The maquis slid a little too easily into their roles as Starfleet officers for my taste, and the discoveries of the Delta quadrant were underwhelming.
For me, DS9 is the best ... I like the darker take on the Star Trek Universe. I actually didn't mind Enterprise (though the temporal cold war plotline was pretty stupid), so I'll have to say Voyager is my least favourite; it had some good (or great) episodes, and I actually think Seven added something to the show that was missing, but when I think of bad or boring Trek episodes, Voyager seems to have a lot of them.
COlin - I enjoy the question but I never watched any Star Trek except for the original series when surfing and catching it in mid-program, LOL.
And to this day, I can't understand why I will never voluntarily turn on Star Trek. I don't have a desire to sit down and watch it, but if I surf and catch it in the middle of a program I stay tuned.
Weird?
OMG--- what a long day---
LATE home after a long (un-air-conditioned) rehearsal. . .
I'm gonna quibble (in a totally good-natured way), Colin, with the labels "Best" and "Worst", here. . . 'cause really "Favorite" and "Least-Favorite" seem to called for with such a subjective topic, eh? Mind you, TOS, STNG, DS9, and VYGR are the only series I've watched-- never got to Enterprise, me. BUT-- I love all four of those anchor-series, even as I recognize that they certainly all had some pretty clunky seasons at times (TOS 3rd season; STNG- most of the 1st season; DS9- a lot of the first season, etc). It's like picking your favorite kid, y'know? DS9 gets lauded a LOT as one of the top 5 SF series of all time--- but it might be my least favorite overall by just a smidge-- I have a very tough time getting past Avery Brooks' EXTREMELY stilted line delivery, which seems to be a quirky actor-habit of his. And the constant politics/intrigue undercurrent does wear me out-- although I realize that's a huge appeal for a lot of fans. And then a tie for first for the other three-- as different as they all are. Voyager might even get a fondness-boost in my book because I remain staunch in my opinion that Janeway wins the Who's-the-Best-Captain contest, hands-down. The prolonged, desperate situation she and her crew were placed in was by far the toughest test of Leadership mettle that any of the series presented. And she flippin' came through-!
HB
HB, don't want to turn this into "let's rag on DS9" thread (because I still like the show, even though it's not my favorite), but you've touched on something I hardly ever see discussed in this context (to the point that I'd begun to think I'm the only one who noticed it): the fact that Brooks seemed to have a very limited range as an actor. Yes, his line delivery often seems stiff, and it's like he has only two settings: brooding and angry.
As for Voyager and Janeway - no argument from me.
Edo- Re: Brooks-- yep, with often very, very odd word-emphasis choices. . . and just doesn't seem to have an innate sense of comic delivery when it's called for (although he always gives it the ol' college try). BUT-- I recalled (and then confirmed) that his background and MUCH of his career was rooted in classical theater. . . he started out very much as a stage guy, and in an academic-heavy system, at that. In fact, he's a fully tenured professor at Rutgers, where he's been for some 40 years (!!). And I feel like maybe that's what doesn't translate as well to the small screen-- 'cause I feel like "classical actor" is what we're seeing with Sisko. Lordy, it makes me nervous to criticize him, 'cause the man has LEGIT credentials in the theater world. . . who am I to give him notes-??
(He probably wins the "Captain with the Best Smile Contest", too, to be fair---)
HB
I'll go with TNG as my favorite. I've watched the Original series, and sampled a few of the others. But Next Generation is the only one I actually made the effort to watch from week to week. Mainly, I suppose, due to the appeal of Patrick Stewart...
TOS for me.
But honestly, for the other series' I've only watched all the episodes of TAS.
I did view about 3 solid seasons of TNG, and was fairly entertained.
But nope, TOS all the way.
Not being a gone-native, deep-cell Trekkie, I'm not sure if this a common observance, but I think the strongest common aspect of all four series' is that they recognize the appeal of a larger-than-average ensemble cast for a TV show-- and that the cast leans heavily into quirky character roles as opposed to leading men/women types. Which rather became the model for a number of Sci-Fi series over the years, didn't it? (Babylon 5; Battlestar Galactica reboot--)
All the plot-twisting in the world doesn't pull us in unless we're invested in those characters, y'know?
HB
Thanks for the comments :)
I'd probably choose The Original Series as my favourite (HB, you're right
- I shouldn't have said "best" and "worst") but I was a fan of TNG, DS9 and Voyager too. I only saw two episodes of ENTERPRISE which never appealed to me because it was a prequel as is STAR TREK: DISCOVERY which nobody has mentioned.
Interesting fact: the BBC showed the episodes of Star Trek season 1 in a completely different order from the original run - beginning with the 1965 pilot "Where No Man Has Gone Before" which had originally been the 3rd episode broadcast on American TV. I think Mr. Spock would be pleased with the BBC's logical decision to SHOW THE PILOT EPISODE FIRST.
I don't know if I watched Star Trek's debut episode on July 12th 1969 - I was only 3 years old at the time but I'd already started watching Dr. Who and the new Star Trek series was sitting in Dr. Who's vacated slot on Saturday evenings.
And what a coincidence that Star Trek debuted in Britain just a week before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon !!
Colin, it sounds like the BBC aired the episodes in the order of their production, rather than the way they were originally aired in the US, which actually makes more sense. It's always kind of weird watching episodes like "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and the "Corbomite Maneuver" (episode 10) which were obviously among the first to be made, after a number of more 'polished' episodes.
And since Killraven mentioned TAS, I have to say that I just consider that season 4 of TOS rather than something separate.
I totally overlooked TAS (The Animated Series)-- hunh. Agreed that it's more like a Season 4 of TOS, yep. Haven't really watched it in decades. The one time I did catch a bit of an episode not too long ago, I was mightily, mightily, MIGHTILY underwhelmed by Bill Shatner's palpable lack of energy, effort, and commitment to character and moment in his Voice-over work. Just a guy readin' lines from a page for a paycheck. . . hopefully the whole series wasn't like that--- anyone have a recollection?
HB
re: TAS Edo, yeah I can respect that as a 4th season. I'll still put it a tic better than season 3. :-)
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