5 worst Star Trek episodes ever?

[Dan Gurden]

This ones easy, I also notice that everyone finds it easier to keep to a top 5 here too;

1 - Threshold
2 - The Royale
3 - Spocks Brain
4 - Assignment Earth
5 - 11.59

lets face it, those, and a few others are easily placed on the 'Why the hell make this tripe' pile.

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Dan.

"A couple of thoughts from a random mind!"
http://www.theventure.freeserve.co.uk

[Fragon Birg]

OK, I'll play...

1. Spock's Brain
2. Spock's Brain
3. Spock's Brain
4. Spock's Brain
5. Spock's Brain

Seriously,
1. Spock's Brain. When I was a kid, I convinced my dad to watch an episode of Star Trek, because I thought he'd like it and we'd have something to bond about. He agreed. The show was after my bedtime (I taped it). The next day, I asked him how he liked the show. "It was terrible. Something about pain belts and neurosurgery..." Needless to say, we never bonded over Trek.

2. STV: The Final Frontier. Not an episode, but one of the worst things ever produced ever in any medium, so it makes it onto the list by its sheer badness. Whenever my in-the-know friends say something stupid, one of the accepted responses is, "Whydoes... God... need... astarship?"

3. Shades of Grey [TNG]. At least, e.g., The Simpsons have the good taste to apologize when they run a clip show.

4. Galaxy's Child [TNG]. In college, I had finally convinced my roommate to watch an episode of TNG. This was it. See #1 above.

5. Time and Again [VOY]. This was the point where I stopped watching Voyager. I just gave up at this point. A whole new quadrant without any history, and the best they can do are space/time anomolies?

When Spock's Brain comes on Sci-Fi again, I will watch it. Time and Again? I'd punch my mother in the nose if she offered to watch it with me. So why is Spock's Brain #1 when Time and Again is #5? Because I care about TOS, and not VOY. It's just not possible for me to hate Voyager like some others do, because I just gave up on it.

Done. Now I have to take a shower and pop in Balance of Terror.

P.S. Worst characters. TOS: Chekov (boring and even more 2-dimensional than any other character. Only ability of note: Screaming in pain). TNG: Guinan (just plain annoying and pointless). DS9: The Two Daxes (boring boring boring but nifty to look at). VOY: Everyone besides the Doctor and maybe Neelix.

[This message has been edited by Fragon Birg (edited 06-04-2001).]

[Captain Preas]

1 - I cannot remember the title, but the first season Voyager episode that could never have happened...because the only reason for the anomaly was because they got curious about the destroyed world, but the only reason it was destroyed was because they got curious..ARGH!!
2 - Spock's Brain
3 - The DS9 ep with the back-to-nature "stranded" colonists. Kirk would've seduced her or started an insurgency in the hills (possibly both), Piccard would've delivered a speach on the dignity of man that would've shamed them into submission, Sisko...got back in the box. Epitomizes what I disliked about early DS9.
4 - The TNG ripoff of the TOS Psi2000 virus episode.
5 - Threshold

Characters
The only ones I've ever really disliked are Wesley and, to a much lesser extent, Deana. I'm OK with all the other characters.

[Cyradis]

I really can't stand any episode in which the character I can't stand evolves into some higher form of life--such as when Wesley becomes a traveller or when Kes turns into a beam of light.

My other big dislike was any episode of Voyager with Q in it. What was that whole "I want to have children with Janeway" thing about, anyway????

That's the two big dislikes. Other stinkers include Spock's Brain, the gangster episode of TOS, and the episode of TNG when Deanna is impregnated by that entity.

Alison

[Miymaani]

I only have two to mind..

The first: The second TNG episode: "The Naked Now." The biggest problem, apart from it to soon breaking lesbian Trekkie hearts shattering illusions that Tasha 'wasn't straight', it was just too darn soon in the series to start showing the repressed desires of characters we hadn't become externally acquainted with.

Apart from that, it was pretty much dumb, and stopped me from watching Next Gen for three years.


It didn't help that I found the pilot episode rather marginal, to begin with.


And I rather *liked* Spock's Brain.

"Brain and brain. What is brain?"

Kitch factor? Maybe. But too loveable.

Second least favourite is the episode when Tasha dies. (Skin of Evil?) Basically, people arguing with an oil slick/morality parable was *not* a good enough way to spend an hour, never mind kill off a character.

Another one high on my list was a great episode until the end, when Riker falls in love with a genderless J'naii (forget the episode name,) and there's all that drama, especially the touching thing about Worf backing Riker up, ...then they cop out by having Riker's lover reprogrammed in the end, and lose all interest. Personally, I think they should have taken that relationship a lot further.

In similar vein, when they introduced the Trill, Dr. Crusher fell in love with a symbiote, and when that symbiote ended up being transplanted to a female Trill, the episode suddenly ended, with no explanation, further drama, or anything, only the supposition that two female bodies couldn't possibly continue a romantic relationship; which again made a lot of the PC agenda of early Next Gen seem a little hollow.

Some of these episode endings are more disappointing, than part of a 'bad' episode, but, hopefully, future Trek series won't be quite so squeamish about major characters having romantic interests with non-crew people encountered in episodes, ..and relationships, that can stick around for a while instead of seemingly being forcibly returned to status quo by the time the next episode begins.

[8472spy]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Captain Preas:
Characters

The only ones I've ever really disliked are Wesley and, to a much lesser extent, Deana. I'm OK with all the other characters.</font>

The characters that I dislike generally do not belong there. Early-Riker, Troi, Wesley and Neelix.

But I detest Vulcans. Even Spock drives me around the bend some time.

[shock and gasps of horror from the crowd]

Yes, I am a heretic.

Any species that is as intellectually advanced as the Vulcans are would not 1) call themselves logical, and 2) would not believe that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

The Vulcans (at least on the show) do not behave logically; they behave stoically. Stoicism is an ancient human ethical theory that says that emotional restraint is the key to living well. (Cole's Notes Very Extremely Short Introduction to Stoicism)

Often enough, a Vulcan character displays acceptable inductive logic. They rarely display deductive logic. Never mind any of the new-fangled logics that humans have developed in the 20th century. And a species as logical as the Vulcans are supposed to be very much further in the advancement of logics and logical theory.

Additionally, logic and emotion are not diametrical opposites.

As to the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few. This concept is acceptable if one is choosing to sacrifice oneself to save others.

It is not acceptable if the many decide to implement it as a rule.

If the Borg Queen came along and said, "I will leave the UFP alone, if you just give me (insert cast member of your choice here)", the many are not morally justified in giving up that cast member.

Assume the UFP knows she would keep her word. It is very much in the interest of the many not to be assimilated. What is one litte sentient in comparison to all those billions?

The UFP Charter grants freedom to all and the many deciding for the few undermines their rights as sentient beings.

[Homer]

Well, here they are and why:

TOS
City On The Edge of Forever: Crap! Utter crap after they enter the Guardian, I cannot see how one person can lead to Hitler winning.

Omega Glory: Good right up until they enter with an American flag, parallel development, RIGHT!

TNG

The Royale: been stated earlier, better
Naked Now: Great idea, until WESLEY messes it up.
The First Duty: Wesley should have been tossed out on his butt.

DS9:
Invasive Procedures: I am not buying the evacuation due to a stor, but a commando team can sneak in an steal a symbiote.

Voy:

Flashback: Simply for Janeway's speech dissing the TOS Federation and Starfleet. I might have accepted it if she wasn't so TOS herself, prone to action over words.

That's about it, with the exception of the current versions of the first and fifth films, (the first gets new footage, and if we al lucky 5 will get the original ending.) I like ALL other Star Trek eps. Call me sick wierd or too forgiving.

[Julius]

Alright worst 5

TOS: The one with the teenage kid with massive powers. Hated the kid, hated the episode.

TNG: Can't say for sure, but most of the first couple of seasons were pretty hokey.

DS9: Again can't narrow it down to a single episode. But I'm sure it's in the 'Boldly staying where no one has stayed before' era somewhere.

VOY: Endgame. While it does have the merit of being the last load we have to endure from this series. It is by far the smelliest.
I pray the writers of this episode doesn't infect the next series or I fear greatly for the future or rather past of Trek.

[Re'k]

TOS: Shoreleave. McCoy dies but he gets better, Kirk plays with an illusory old school buddy, and worst of all, Hikaru Sulu doesn't seem to think it's that strange that he finds old police revolver, loaded, in the bush.

TNG: The Pegasus. 'Fleet wasn't allowed to research cloaking tech, but some guy came up with a working phase cloak system in his spare time?

DS9: Valiant. Let's send a ship of cadets to go sink the Bismarck! Let's watch them decide to continue their mission when all the trained crew are dead! Let's not. Wasn't there a Vulcan aboard ship who had the ability to think straight?

VOY: The Omega Directive. There's a molecule, you see, and it can blow up the galaxy. Starfleet captains have orders to destroy these molecules without the help of their crews. Only captains know about this. Brevet captains, who will eventually be sent back to their previous roles as first officers or whatever and would thus be a security risk, must get to sit and watch their ship shut down. Oh, and this molecule (not atom!) can be safely destroyed with a photorp.

Worst Scenes: "Insurrection" gets both my #1 and #2! First, Riker and Deeana in a hot tub. Second, Riker runs down to Radio Shack and picks up a Wingman Extreme thinking that 1990's joystick technology will save the Enterprise. Who directed this, anyway? Ah, it's Jonathan "Too Cool" Frakes!

[Robbert Raets]

It seems many people dislike Insurrection, but I think there are some good ideas in it. Data not having been a child, for one, and the Baku's desire to leave tech behind and live peacefully. But the whole 'fountain of youth' stuff is rediculous. And Picard argues that the Baku are the 'natural' owners of this planet! Not to mention Rikers Ego-trip...
I've been watching TNG since I was eleven or twelve years old, and Riker was one of my role-models (no, this is no joke!), and one of the reasons I've stopped shaving. And now the BASTARD shaves!! Argh...

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'Who would have thought... A brave Ferengi!'
Gowron, to Quark, son of Keldar.

[lone wolf]

Okay, here's my modified 5 worst Star Trek episodes (as always in no particualr order):

1) STV: Endgame.
2) TOS: Spocks Brain.
3) STV: Threshold.
4) DS9: Can't remember title, epsiode about colony who didn't use technology.
5) TNG: Elementary, my dear Data.

And my least favourite characters from Star Trek:

TOS: Kirk
TNG: Wesley Crusher
DS9: Kai Winn
VOY: Kes
ENTERPRISE (on principle because of the name): Phlox (or whatever stupid name they're calling the CMO).

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"I hate all monkeys, Me.
From Chimpan-a to Chimpan-zee"

Troy McClure, The Simpsons.

[Lee T]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Homer:
TOS
Omega Glory: Good right up until they enter with an American flag, parallel development, RIGHT!</font>

I've just seen this one a week ago and I agree, it was quite ridiculous when they started the america vs communist stuff.



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Hoping You'll understand all of this

[Space_Cadet]

What about the episode with the space hippies in TOS?

[C5]

Oooh shiny resurrected thread !!! Let me play too:

TOS : The Omega Glory. Come on, what exactly was this story about ? It looks like three stories patched together only to have Kirk stammer the US constitution. Urk (not that I have anything against the US constitution, but I don't think it has much to do in Trek).

TNG : Any of the first season. I think Angel One could win the palm, though. I hate when it seems the writer's shouting at me "Hellloooo?? We are doing an episode about equal rights here, do you see ?? Hellooo ? What do you want for it to be more obvious ?"

DS9 : The one where Quark dresses as a women (Profit and lace, IIRC). Cross dressing jokes, really.... and people complain because of the decon scenes in ENT...

VOY : Not seen all of it, but Resistance wins it. Yeah, I know lot of people liked it, but I really don't see what's so enthralling in seeing a poor madman win the heart of Janeway and Tuvok screaming in pain. Oh well...

Not seen enough of ENT to comment, so I'll keep it at that. Of course, any TNG first season episode is a candidate, as is half of TOS and any Ferengi episode in DS9.

[qerlin]

Originally posted by Space_Cadet
What about the episode with the space hippies in TOS?

AHHH!!!! My Eyes! Ahhh!!! My ears! Bad impromptu hippie music; kill me!!!! Please!