Star Trek any good?
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I would say: Yes, yes it is worth watching. True, there are some stupid and some really bad moments in the series, but overall it is one of the landmark contributions to Science Fiction in the latter half of the 20th Century.aba1 said:
If you were jumping right into the series blind, it's probably best to start with the good show. Hands down my favorite Star Trek series is Deep Space Nine. It maintains the sense of wonder and adventure from The Original Series and The Next Generation, and then goes out of its way to do something different. It is still Star Trek, but it is just enough removed from the rest of the series that it can stand on its own.
It also has the most solid track record, with by far the best pilot episode and some really cool action sequences that put the rest of the series to shame.
I would start there.
Yes.
I seen a good selection of episodes from every series and while they're not always great, overall it's just a really entertain show.
My favourite is the original series, but that's mainly cause I have a weakness for hammy acting and campy outdated special effects.
I seen a good selection of episodes from every series and while they're not always great, overall it's just a really entertain show.
My favourite is the original series, but that's mainly cause I have a weakness for hammy acting and campy outdated special effects.
There are many episodes of the original series and the Next Generation to skip, but then there are many episodes of those that are quite good as well.
You actually haven't seen any Star Trek? Not even by accident? /Shocked
Well uh, I donno what to say. I guess you should try sampling some episodes or maybe one or two of the movies, and see for yourself. Not all of it is good, not by a long shot, but there is some great stuff in there. Trouble is "great stuff" is subjective as hell, and while most episodes--especially of Next Generation--are pretty stand-alone, I think some of the impact may be lost without knowing at least a little of the background.
One thing about Trek is that with so much material, it has something for just about everyone. I suggest having a look at Memory Alpha [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Portal:TV_and_films] or the wikipedia pages to find episodes or movies that sound like they suit your tastes and go with it.
Well uh, I donno what to say. I guess you should try sampling some episodes or maybe one or two of the movies, and see for yourself. Not all of it is good, not by a long shot, but there is some great stuff in there. Trouble is "great stuff" is subjective as hell, and while most episodes--especially of Next Generation--are pretty stand-alone, I think some of the impact may be lost without knowing at least a little of the background.
One thing about Trek is that with so much material, it has something for just about everyone. I suggest having a look at Memory Alpha [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Portal:TV_and_films] or the wikipedia pages to find episodes or movies that sound like they suit your tastes and go with it.
OP, why are you making threads when you could be watching awesome thought experiments, Patrick Stewart delivering speeches, and William Shatner trying to act?
OP, you need to go watch some Star Trek right now. I suggest The Best of Both Worlds as a first episode, it's one of the best ever made.
It's a two parter, and you can find part 1 <link=http://www.putlocker.com/file/D54396E5E13938FF>here and part 2 <link=http://www.putlocker.com/file/8A62F6396597181B>here.
Note to mods: Despite the appearance, the links go to a streaming site, not a download site. It's set up like Rapidshare with anonymous links and waiting for free users, but you can't download anything from it -- at least not without a paid account. As such, it is no more against the TOS than a youtube link would be.
Note to OP: The links will take you to a rapidshare style "wait before you click on the link" page. The wait time is literally two seconds, and you want the link labeled "continue as free user."
Edit: Forgot to mention (because I don't have Netflix) but I'm pretty sure all episodes of all series are available through that. So watch through Netflix if you have the option.
It's a two parter, and you can find part 1 <link=http://www.putlocker.com/file/D54396E5E13938FF>here and part 2 <link=http://www.putlocker.com/file/8A62F6396597181B>here.
Note to mods: Despite the appearance, the links go to a streaming site, not a download site. It's set up like Rapidshare with anonymous links and waiting for free users, but you can't download anything from it -- at least not without a paid account. As such, it is no more against the TOS than a youtube link would be.
Note to OP: The links will take you to a rapidshare style "wait before you click on the link" page. The wait time is literally two seconds, and you want the link labeled "continue as free user."
Edit: Forgot to mention (because I don't have Netflix) but I'm pretty sure all episodes of all series are available through that. So watch through Netflix if you have the option.
Key word being trying. But on topic yeah I would recommend The next Generation out of all of them. Deep Space 9 is ok but I don't like the religious undertones that aren't hid very well. Voyager . . . . . The Doctor is kind of cool, it has it's moments. The original is ok if you can forgive some bad effects.Kahunaburger said:
Overall, it's worth a see. I never liked Deep Space Nine, but I leave that part up to you. Star Trek is too big to say good or bad on the whole, since one series may be dramatically different from the next.aba1 said:
Star Trek Voyager was a nice spin on an old Star Trek formula. Start with Star Trek: The Next Generation, then finish up with Voyager, these are definitely the best series.
It's very much worth watching, but beware the technobabble. I used to not mind it, now it drives me crazy.
Ha! Check out the differing opinions here!
I'm personally a DS9 fan, but I think the best recommendation is probably to get on Netflix and try some of everything. One mans Voyager is another mans Enterprise, so sampling some of it all is probably going to be the best way of finding out if you like any of it.
And expect naff special effects right off the bat.
I'm personally a DS9 fan, but I think the best recommendation is probably to get on Netflix and try some of everything. One mans Voyager is another mans Enterprise, so sampling some of it all is probably going to be the best way of finding out if you like any of it.
And expect naff special effects right off the bat.
I say it is worth watching, though you will have to overlook the special effects, they won't look good now. My favourite is the original series, but I recommend watching an episode from each season to see what one you would enjoy the most. Not all of it is good but it is a fun show to watch.
The original series from the 60s is... well, hilariously camp with some shockingly good writing for it's era. Tropes summed it up best as "at any given moment either high camp, intelligent sociopolitical commentary, or great science fiction, and usually two of the three."aba1 said:
The Next Generation is the high water mark. There's some really good material there, though the last few seasons are a bit long in the tooth, and it took them a few years to distance themselves from the 60s series.
DS9... okay, generally speaking, DS9 has a lot of fans, it's got a fairly vehement fan base, though personally I've always been of the opinion that for what DS9 tries to be, Babylon 5 (which, for the random record is not Star Trek) actually does it better. So, if you're asking for a general recommendation, I'd say Babylon 5 over DS9.
Voyager... honestly, by Voyager you're going to be filtering through a lot of bad or downright stupid looking for anything worth salvaging. There's some fandom for the later seasons, and there are a few engaging characters, but I can't really recommend it.
Enterprise was a victim of it's time. With few exceptions, it's bad to really bad. It was an attempt to grind out the 60s idealism with late 90s early 2000s gritty without really going wholesale into that shades of grey approach that DS9 took.
As for the films?
The original film is camp. Watchable, but not particularly good. It managed to secure funding on the coat tails of Star Wars' success, and it never really succeeds at doing anything aside from stretching out a television episode with an absolutely insane FX budget.
Star Trek 2 is quite possibly the best film in the franchise. More Horatio Hornblower in space than anything else it sets up a really solid tragic story.
Star Trek 3 is meh. It bridges 2 and 4, but other than that, there isn't much to say.
Star Trek 4 is a lot of people's favorite. It's actually a time travel plot involving 1980s San Fransisco and whales. Some of it is really really funny.
Star Trek 5 is gawdwaful. Best watched with the guys from MST3k riffing it, which they did.
Star Trek 6 is a personal favorite, but it's also primarily an allegory for the end of the cold war. So, for a political science or history student it's pretty interesting/amusing, for anyone else, less so.
Generations is a swap to the TNG cast, and there isn't much positive to say.
First Contact is almost more of a horror film with Trek. You kinda need to see Best of Both Worlds for this one to really make sense, but otherwise it's one of the high points.
Insurrection and Nemesis are both bad films. Maybe if you really latch on to TNG and really need to see it through, but otherwise neither of these is really worth watching.
The 2009 reboot is a straight up action romp. Not really great, but certainly watchable.
For reference, the only ST DVDs I own are three of the films, 2, 6, and First Contact, and the Original Series, so that should kinda tell you what I value out of the franchise.
Oddly, as I've gotten older, I've gotten to the point where I find the original series least offensive in that regard, since what little technobabble there is tends to be either plot irrelevant or goofy as hell. Even TNG starting in season 5 irks the hell out of me now over that.Da Orky Man said:
Each series has it's own merits.
The Original Series has that retro charm as well as William Shatner's 'acting'
The Next Generation had Patrick Stewart, and each episode is pretty much self-contained.
Deep Space 9 is renowned for it's multi season arcs and character development.
Voyager had the whole "We're 5000 light years away from any help" setting.
Pick what interests you and have an open mind if you decide to take the plunge.
The Original Series has that retro charm as well as William Shatner's 'acting'
The Next Generation had Patrick Stewart, and each episode is pretty much self-contained.
Deep Space 9 is renowned for it's multi season arcs and character development.
Voyager had the whole "We're 5000 light years away from any help" setting.
Pick what interests you and have an open mind if you decide to take the plunge.
I used to watch some Star Trek with my parents as a child, and I distinctly remember having a certain amount of fun doing so.
Those days are long gone though, and I wish I could go back to never having seen any of it. I just can't watch it anymore - can't even put my finger on why, but that's the way it is.
So you have a unique opportunity there - to never watch any Star Trek until the day you die. The catch is: You'll never know if you'd probably have liked it. A risk worth taking?
Those days are long gone though, and I wish I could go back to never having seen any of it. I just can't watch it anymore - can't even put my finger on why, but that's the way it is.
So you have a unique opportunity there - to never watch any Star Trek until the day you die. The catch is: You'll never know if you'd probably have liked it. A risk worth taking?
Like any TV show, it has it's good episodes and bad episodes. But unlike a lot of TV shows, it also occasionally knocks it out of the park with an amazing episode.
I had an ex who was not into sci-fi in any form. I showed her Best of Both Worlds from TNG and she was hooked.
There was the whole thing regarding DS9 and Babylon 5 where the creator of B5 said he took the idea to Paramount who nicked it and did DS9. However, even with the season arcs, DS9 is along with the rest of Trek pretty much self contained episodes so you can dip in and out without too much head scratching.
I'd suggest that you have a look online for the best rated episodes and start by watching them.
I had an ex who was not into sci-fi in any form. I showed her Best of Both Worlds from TNG and she was hooked.
There was the whole thing regarding DS9 and Babylon 5 where the creator of B5 said he took the idea to Paramount who nicked it and did DS9. However, even with the season arcs, DS9 is along with the rest of Trek pretty much self contained episodes so you can dip in and out without too much head scratching.
I'd suggest that you have a look online for the best rated episodes and start by watching them.