Star Trek 101

Cafe Society
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I really haven’t watched or read anything Star Trek related in my life, but lately I’ve been catching reruns of The Next Generation of TNN and I’ve gotten hooked despite the stupid animated ads at the bottom of the screen before every commercial break (I’m conditioned from Buffy on FX, I suppose).

Since I’m a geek, I can’t really be contented with just watching the show and enjoying it, I want to know everything about it that I can. I’ve been making my way through the zillion Trek threads here on SD, but there are a few questions I have anyway.

From what I’ve seen of the original series, it looks kind of… goofy? Is liking Next Generation any indication that I’ll like the original at all? I know it’s a classic, but is it actually good?

If I haven’t seen the original series at all, will I still like/understand the movies that feature that cast? I’m planning on watching some of them at some point (other threads have warned me to beware of 5).

Since there about about a squintillion Trek sites on the internet, are there any that are especially good for, say, character bios and such? I’d like to be able to actually find out what the heck Guinan is, among other things.

What are the best seasons of Next Gen, and was Deep Space 9 as good? I’m not sure if TNN is showing anything in order, but today I saw an epsiode called Yesterday’s Enterprise that I thought was excellent. Oh, and are Voyager and Enterprise as bad as I’ve heard people say there are?

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Here’s a place to start

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Here’s a place to start

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Hey, I just recently got addicted to ST: TNG also! :smiley: Sorry if my enthusiasm causes this post to be a bit long, but I’ve been wanting to talk about it with someone else recently addicted. My boyfriend has been a fan for years, so he knows a lot more than me and doesn’t want to “spoil” me.

The official site for all things Star Trek, www.startrek.com, does have character bios and actor bios if you’re interested. There are also links to official sites for the actors if they have them. The bios do have some spoilers though. Without having seen the episodes, I know about some of the things that happen later on to all of the characters of TNG. It makes me wish I hadn’t read anything just so I can enjoy the shows as they come on TNN.

ST: TOS is a bit goofy I think, but it’s enjoyable. I’ve managed to catch a couple of the best episodes so far, and I find I enjoy them as much as most TNG episodes. I’ve seen all 6 Star Trek movies that star the original cast now, and you don’t need to know the stories from the shows to understand them. The fifth movie is bad, but I think my least favorite is actually the first one; it’s unbelievably boring, IMHO. It was actually watching the movies that made me like the cast.

As far as I can tell, TNN is showing the episodes of TNG in the afternoon in order and the episodes in the evening in order. The later airing is about one season farther along than the earlier one.

From what I’ve read and heard from others, seasons 5 and 6 of TNG seem to be the favorites.

I don’t know anything yet about ST: DS9 though. I’ve only been a fan for about a month or two now, and I’m a little afraid I’ll overload on Star Trek if I’m watching three series all at once :stuck_out_tongue:

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A few things to remember about TOS. The later Star Trek series all had higher budgets and longer shooting schedules than TOS, which sometimes looks cheaply made. And the episodes often have 1960s written all over them, be it the women’s makeup and hairdos or plots with space hippies and such. All that being said, give TOS credit for being a pioneer: it was the first adult science fiction series on television (not counting an anthology series like The Outer Limits). And it did try to address controversial issues of government, war, religion, sexuality, and others, however obvious the metaphors sometimes were, in ways that other series didn’t touch.

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http://www.nexus1.net/TheOriginalsPage.html

http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/st-tng/

http://www.ericweisstein.com/fun/startrek/

http://www.homevideos.com/startreks/index.html

http://ryan.liam.youaremyfriend.com/

http://www.angelfire.com/trek/enterprise_oddities/home.html

Covers a few things Trek. Welcome on board.

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Continuing on the Trek sites, I recommend http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org - an extremely thorough site, full of information on all aspects of the show, including episode reviews, ship diagrams, discussions of “treknology,” inconsistencies in the shows, etc…

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wha–?! when was he on Star Trek?

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I agree that the original Star Trek is a bit goofy by today’s standards but is nonetheless enjoyable. The first two seasons are the best as well as the most intelligent. Ratings were low and the show was almost cancelled then until a fan campaign instigated by Bjo Trimble saved the show for another season. (Remember, this was way pre-internet.) The third season brought much closer studio involvement in an effort to increase the ratings, which of course not only ruined them but also cut out much of what was great about the show.

As for TNG, I think it’s an excellent show once you get past the first season and a half, which were generally pretty lame. DS9, IMO, is even better – and while not eveyone agrees, there’s a general consensus that these two are the best the franchise has ever been.

I think Voyager and Enterprise are both enjoyable enough shows, but neither of them are anywhere near as well put-together as TNG or DS9, nor do either of them have the manic energy that fueled the original series. Finally, as to Star Trek V, I don’t think it’s that bad, but it’s more like a regular episode of the original series than the other movies are, most of which attempt to tell more “important” stories to the Star Trek mythos.

–Cliffy

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One other thing – TNN is scheduled to begin airing DS9 reruns this fall sometime, and Voyager in (IIRC) 2005.

–Cliffy, again

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I recommend the Star Trek Experience at the LV Hilton

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Thanks for all the info and links, guys! I’ll be reading for hours.

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Here’s another site for the Trek geek: www.ditl.org
And I second the vote for Ex Astris Scientia.
Don’t visit either until you have a few hours free!

You really don’t need to watch the first movie at all. You won’t enjoy it, and there are only a handful of things that have any bearing on later movies.

Those being: Kirk goes a little crazy when he’s off space duty too long, the ship has been extensively upgraded, and Spock had a traumatic experience that caused him to be more accepting of emotions.

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Welcome to the fold, shy guy. Have you bought your pointed ears yet? I’m bored so le’me dissect your post here.

Goofy isn’t how I’d describe it… it’s more… kitschy. Yeah, that’s it.

And no, liking TNG is by no means an indicator that you’ll like TOS. We Trekkies can be pretty divided on what constitutes good Trek and what doesn’t. You have the dopes like NoClueBoy who swear that TOS is the bestest ever, then you have your typical fan who prefers TNG, then you have the super intelligent and sexy people like me who prefer DS9.

Yeah… the movies are pretty accessible to the non-Trekkie. As a matter of fact, watching Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is one of the things that turned me into the huge fan I am now and I HATE TOS. I recommend you watch Star Treks II through VI but skip V unless you’re like me and want to watch them all despite your better judgement.

Go to your local library and check out the Star Trek encyclopedia or, better yet, just buy it. One of my favorite books. I just wish I knew where I put mine. :mad:

Just so you know, “Yesterday’s Enterprise” is one of the best Trek episodes ever of any of the series. Try not to use it as a measuring stick 'cause most everything else will pale in comparison.

So far as TNG’s best seasons go, do yourself a favor and avoid the first two at all costs. They’re dreck. You’ll recognize them as what they are by either having a) a beardless Riker or b) a doctor other than Crusher. If you see either of these, change the channel!. Season three kicked serious booty and it was pretty good for the remaining four years but lost some steam in its seventh, and final, season.

DS9’s the best series, Voyager is okay if you’re either a true neophyte or a hardcore fan that wants to watch it all, and Enterprise isn’t too bad, but isn’t all that good either. It’s rather hit or miss.

Speaking of which, don’t read the Enterprise threads with Kn*ckers, viva, Tars, CPlant, Linus, me, and others if you want to talk Trek. On the other hand, if you want to talk about pandas, belly button lint, naked Hoshi, and other pressing matters… please, do jump in.

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DS9 is just now coming out on DVD in the UK (we are up to season 3) I have been buying them as they come out and can highly recommend them. Personally I prefer DS9, then TNG then Voyager (haven’t seen much Enterprise yet)

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One thing TOS has that all other Trek cannot even touch is the music. TOS has some of the best TV music ever written.

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I’d like to add that if you watch the original Star Trek series, a great many sight gags from The Simpsons and Futurama will suddenly make sense.

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A few must see* episodes:

TOS:

The Cage
Charlie X
The Enemy Within
What Are Little Girls Made Of?
Balance of Terror
The City On The Edge of FOrever
Mirror, Mirror
The Trouble With Tribbles
A Piece of the Action
Assignment: Earth
The Paradise Syndrome

TAA:

Slaver Weapon

TNG:

11001001
Elementary, Dear Data
Q Who?
Yesterday’s Enterprise
Captain’s Holiday
The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & II
Family
Q pid
The Drumhead
Darmok
The Inner Light
Chain of Command, Part II
Ship In a Bottle
Starship Mine
The Pegasus
Lower Decks
All Good Things, Parts I & II

DS9:

The Emmissary, Parts I & II
Q Less
The Jem’Hadar
Past Tense, Parts I & II
Through the Looking Glass
Little Green Men
Our Man Bashir
Trials and Tribble-lations
Doctor Bashir, I Presume?

Voy:

Caretaker, Parts I & II
Phage
Jetrel
Tuvix
Basics, Parts I & II
The Q and the Grey
Distant Origin
Scorpion, Parts I & II
Year of Hell, Parts I & II
Q2
Endgame, Parts I & II

Ent:

Broken Bow
The Andorian Incident
Dear Doctor
Two Days and Two Nights
Shockwave, Parts I & II
Carbon Creek
A Night In Sick Bay
Cease Fire
Future Tense

Movies:

The Wrath of Khan
The Voyage Home
The Undiscovered Country
First Contact

*must see means important for canon or an exceptional episode

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**
Star Trek (TOS feh! The Show was called Star Trek damnit!) is so maligned and yet still remains entertaining after nearly 40 years. It has been less than 15 since TNG went off the air and most of its episodes date even worse in their namby pamby attitudes and touchy feely story lines… hell they almost turned the Klingons into a bunch of wussies like they did to the Romulans.

Give me a Captain like Kirk any day!

I like DS9 as well but that was because they got back to action and battles! The Captain was willing to break rules to get results

Star Trek was not as much about getting out of situation with nifty technobabble but rather through human ingenuity of a more personal means also by the power of human relationships.

Kirk didn’t recombobulate the phase differential of the isolinear relays of Nomad to destory the renegade probe… that man talked it into destroying itself!

Spock may have been a scientist who would use technology but in the end it was the trusty nerve pinch or the hands on mind meld that could help save the day.

McCoy may have waved his medical tricorder and administered drugs but most of his dialogue didn’t centre on the facinating make up of the diseases or some mediobabble he talked about greater issues representing the human heart (read emotions)

The show was about human relationships and of all the series none came close to the Kirk/ Spock/ McCoy team.

I end my rant here and say welcome to the wonderful world of Trek… Shy guy. By the way… if you want to go full hog you must never accept anyone telling you Star Wars is better than Star Trek in any way . The most you may agree with them is by giving a begruding “it was ok, and the effects were pretty good.”

Always follow up pointing out how awful the last two movies were. If they bring up Star trek V or Insurrection just retort “Jar Jar Binks” and walk away smugly!

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Take that, Aes! :stuck_out_tongue:

A good show is a good show, doesn’t matter to me what series it’s in. :dubious:
ftr, we haven’t been Trekkies since the early 80s or so. We are now Trekkers
Trekkies is a great movie, btw, as is Galaxy Quest.