Just recently started my second viewing of TOS, and I was surprised how well the writing held up.
Tap for spoiler
There’s one episode where a guy builds an artificial human, and his wife is like “Did you have sex with it?” And he responds “Robots can’t feel love.” “Did you have sex with the robot?” “They only follow commands, it could no more love than a toaster!” and everyone just kind of stares at him for a beat before moving on and you can tell from that moment on everyone knows he built a sex bot.
It definitely has its fun moments. I was not expecting to see Spock get bullied by the crew! Very uncomfortable scenes that really just felt like punching down on neurodiverse folks but also helped me really sympathize with Spock.
I think it does a good job of showing the reality of how clunky integration of different groups can be, and how even in a future where humans have “solved” racism amongst themselves, it’s not a lesson that can be buried with the past yet.
The frustrations that the crew has with Spock’s behaviors that are baffling to them, and vis versa, how Spock feels (and frequently verbalizes) about what he thinks are human failings, are very real reflections of how different groups learn to understand each other better. The friction of their interactions is the point, as well as showing that they are incredibly loyal to each other and care about each other’s wellbeing at the end of the day.
This is the heart of Star Trek, in my opinion - seeing them actively grow together despite their occasional rude outbursts and misunderstandings.
Everything was roughly in chronological order (watch until movie 6 before starting The Next Generation) until 2001 with Enterprise, which jumps back a couple of centuries for better or worse.
My favorite is Star Trek (AKA The Original Series). That is what started it all, and what I started with. But most people would probably suggest you start with The Next Generation, because The Original Series often looks very dated.
IMO it’s not the “look” that makes TOS seem dated (although I guess it doesn’t help); it’s something about the direction/dialogue/story pacing. It just “feels” like an old show the same way a '60s sitcom feels different from a '90s sitcom, even without any attempt at futuristic sets or whatever.
I, for one, vote for starting with TNG, a couple of seasons in.
It’s definitely the look that’s dated. Rando crystal colored buttons, solid displays, pens and paper, using a crescent wrench in 23rd century century engineering…it’s definitely a product of its time.
I think season 1 of TNG is a perfectly fine start. It’s definitely the worst season, and you should go in knowing that (they were incredibly high on the indigo child shit). But at the same time it serves as a decent intro to the main crew, premise, and what all is happening. Also the fact that season 2 has a different medical officer, before crusher comes back should be noted
The i would say most “accepted” and beloved trek would be TNG (the next generation), having Picard as Captain.
DS9 and Voyager are spinoffs off this show, and play in roughly the same time period. DS9 is a lot less episodic in format, having a coherent plot for most of the later seasons.
There is also TOS, the original series with Captain Kirk and Mister Spock. This would be the place to start if you want to watch in release order, although you should be warned that due to how old the show is you may find some things a little jarring.
There are more recent shows as well, with the most well received being strange new worlds. Chronologically this plays even before the original series and has a very different pacing compared to the older shows, so you might want to save that for last.
Personally i would suggest you start with TNG and then move on to DS9, both fantadtic shows (though the first season is a bit rough in both, but once they find their footing it gets great).
Okay I’ll admit I’ve never watched any Star Trek but the amount of memes and content here has me curious to start.
If anyone has a “where to start” recommendation let me know.
Start where it all began! The original is a fun watch.
Just recently started my second viewing of TOS, and I was surprised how well the writing held up.
Tap for spoiler
There’s one episode where a guy builds an artificial human, and his wife is like “Did you have sex with it?” And he responds “Robots can’t feel love.” “Did you have sex with the robot?” “They only follow commands, it could no more love than a toaster!” and everyone just kind of stares at him for a beat before moving on and you can tell from that moment on everyone knows he built a sex bot.
I had to look up the exact exchange, because this line always makes me laugh too. Her tone, lol
KORBY: You think I could love a machine?
CHAPEL: Did you?
It definitely has its fun moments. I was not expecting to see Spock get bullied by the crew! Very uncomfortable scenes that really just felt like punching down on neurodiverse folks but also helped me really sympathize with Spock.
I think it does a good job of showing the reality of how clunky integration of different groups can be, and how even in a future where humans have “solved” racism amongst themselves, it’s not a lesson that can be buried with the past yet.
The frustrations that the crew has with Spock’s behaviors that are baffling to them, and vis versa, how Spock feels (and frequently verbalizes) about what he thinks are human failings, are very real reflections of how different groups learn to understand each other better. The friction of their interactions is the point, as well as showing that they are incredibly loyal to each other and care about each other’s wellbeing at the end of the day.
This is the heart of Star Trek, in my opinion - seeing them actively grow together despite their occasional rude outbursts and misunderstandings.
When in doubt, just watch release order.
Everything was roughly in chronological order (watch until movie 6 before starting The Next Generation) until 2001 with Enterprise, which jumps back a couple of centuries for better or worse.
My favorite is Star Trek (AKA The Original Series). That is what started it all, and what I started with. But most people would probably suggest you start with The Next Generation, because The Original Series often looks very dated.
IMO it’s not the “look” that makes TOS seem dated (although I guess it doesn’t help); it’s something about the direction/dialogue/story pacing. It just “feels” like an old show the same way a '60s sitcom feels different from a '90s sitcom, even without any attempt at futuristic sets or whatever.
I, for one, vote for starting with TNG, a couple of seasons in.
It’s definitely the look that’s dated. Rando crystal colored buttons, solid displays, pens and paper, using a crescent wrench in 23rd century century engineering…it’s definitely a product of its time.
I think season 1 of TNG is a perfectly fine start. It’s definitely the worst season, and you should go in knowing that (they were incredibly high on the indigo child shit). But at the same time it serves as a decent intro to the main crew, premise, and what all is happening. Also the fact that season 2 has a different medical officer, before crusher comes back should be noted
Cheers, much appreciated!
At the beginning…
Oh boy.
The i would say most “accepted” and beloved trek would be TNG (the next generation), having Picard as Captain.
DS9 and Voyager are spinoffs off this show, and play in roughly the same time period. DS9 is a lot less episodic in format, having a coherent plot for most of the later seasons.
There is also TOS, the original series with Captain Kirk and Mister Spock. This would be the place to start if you want to watch in release order, although you should be warned that due to how old the show is you may find some things a little jarring.
There are more recent shows as well, with the most well received being strange new worlds. Chronologically this plays even before the original series and has a very different pacing compared to the older shows, so you might want to save that for last.
Personally i would suggest you start with TNG and then move on to DS9, both fantadtic shows (though the first season is a bit rough in both, but once they find their footing it gets great).
Wow, thanks for the detailed answer, much appreciated!
TAS
And then when your eyes start hurting TOS
I’ve seen most of pre-DISC trek and a solid chunk of the newer stuff, and I understand maybe a third of the memes here.
I think this is just what getting old is 🤣
TNG, in order is a good start. I’m still working through it with the dsmr inspiration driving it.
I would start with TNG.