I may have a chance to begin my wife's education on Trek. She's lived "around" it for five years now but hasn't taken the time to really become familiar with it yet. She feels that with all the Trek out there it's just overwhelming.
But we may have time this anniversary to begin her education.
What 10 Trek TOS episodes would you consider to be essential to the series? Not necessarily the 10 best or your favorite 10, but the 10 that are most important in establishing what Trek is, the 10 that have the most impact on the characters and the franchise as a whole.
Posted by Dukhat (Member # 341) on :
quote: Not necessarily the 10 best or your favorite 10, but the 10 that are most important in establishing what Trek is, the 10 that have the most impact on the characters and the franchise as a whole.
Isn't that kinda synonymous?
I know this is a given, but number 1 should obviously be "City on the Edge of Forever."
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
The Cage Amok TIme Space Seed Plato's Stepchildren
THe last one especially. It showed the first interracial kiss on American Television.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
Let's see...the first ones that come to mind for me are "Where No One Has Gone Before," "Balance of Terror," and "The Menagerie" (both parts). Whatever you do, don't let her see "The Naked Time" and "Spock's Brain." (Maybe Naked Time after she's gotten to like ST....but never, ever let her see Brain.)
I also pretty much agree with Sean and HerbShrump.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
You mean Dukhat. The menagerie might be good in place of The Cage. If you want to intro her to trek, it is probably not good to do it with an episode that requires too much thinking. Probably the only time I will agree with Network execs...
Posted by Johnny (Member # 878) on :
Plato's Stepchildren? Okay, it had the first interracial kiss, but how much impact would that have on anyone now? The scene with Spock being ridden like a horse would stick in the memory more. I wouldn't let anyone see it if I wanted them to take Trek seriously.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
But in the context of history, it was one of the episodes that made trek groundbreaking. ANd despite some of their cheesy acting and situations, the majority of the episodes have something to teach. Unlike today where Enterprise was pretty much all action, boobs, and repeating old storylines. I think Trek became less teaching and more action in the latter seasons of voyager.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
I am losing it, as I said on the other thread. Tooootally losing it. Sorry Dukhat and HerbShrump.
I agree with Sean on the basis of history. You'd just have to explain to the wifey that it was in fact the first interracial kiss, and how Trek in the TOS and TNG eras were full of social commentary.
For example, that episode whose name escapes me with the half-black, half-white people. It's a little TOO obvious considering the colors chosen, but a great message nonetheless.
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
Also for consideration:
Arena - should be better than it is, as it sags in the middle, but a very good example of what Trek is about. If you don't like Arena, perhaps "The Corbormite Maneuver" instead, which also suffers from mid episode sag.
"Assignment: Earth" - one of the better lighter episodes. It's not very Trek, as it's mainly about Gary Seven, but on balance, it's still good. Again, an alternitive to this one might be "A Piece of the Action".
I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned "The Doomsday Machine", "Court Marshal" (one of the best of TOS I think), "Devil in the Dark", or even "Operation: Anihilate", although that one might be better after a few easier episodes.
The trouble is that most of the time "what is Star Trek" is summed up by the cliched episodes that don't stand up too well today. I would reckon you'd be better off throwing in some of the less good episodes ("Bread and Circuses", "The Enemy Within" - that sort of thing).
It's like Carl Sagan said about putting Bach on the Voyager Golden Record. If you only show her the very best, why would she want to watch any more? Some of the best episodes for showing what I think G R wanted to say are the mediocre ones.
That said, I agree fully with Dan. Never let her know of "Spocks Brain".
Posted by Harry (Member # 265) on :
Why not "The Naked Time". It was written to showcase the characters, and was apparently a favorite of the cast (or, at least, George Takei). The best scene it gives is the Spock and Kirk scene, which for the first time shows Spock as having deep emotions.
(The whole premise is a bit of a lame trick of course, that was used again on TNG. But it does give some typical Star Trek scenes).
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
Or come to think about it season 3. Tell her it all ended after Assignment: Earth.
She'll thank you in years to come.
Posted by HerbShrump (Member # 1230) on :
My plan at some point, maybe this trip, is to do a Space Seed/Wrath of Khan double feature.
My thoughts were (in no particular order):
1. Where No Man Has Gone Before - Successful Pilot 2. Space Seed - Impact on the movies 3. Amok Time - Spock's marriage 4. Journey to Babel - Spock's parents 5. City on the Edge of Forever - Spock no-brainer
Some good suggestions you all have there.
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Obsession. Errand Of Mercy. Journey To Babel. Ultimate Computer, but not because of starship warfare.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Um...The Trouble with Tribbles?
Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
For the World is Hollow, and I Have Touched the Sky.
a bit fruity, and most definitely an episode to watch after a little more introduction, but the title is one of the best in television!
Posted by Fabrux (Member # 71) on :
quote:Originally posted by shikaru808: For the World is Hollow, and I Have Touched the Sky.
a bit fruity, and most definitely an episode to watch after a little more introduction, but the title is one of the best in television!
You've never watched Babylon 5, have you?
Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
Eh, here and there. Never really got into it. I'm assuming they got some great titles too?
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Are you going to show her the remastered trek, or the original cut?
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
If you're trying to introduce your wife to STAR TREK, then, I think, you want to introduce her to that STAR TREK philosophy: people aren't who or what they seem, people can work together regardless of their differences, yada-yada, that high-morality stuff, self-sacrifice, blah-blah. That said:
Arena The Devil in the Dark The Corbomite Manuever Day of the Dove The Guardian of Forever The Trouble With Tribbles A Private Little War Obsession Let That Be Your Last Battlefield The Doomsday Machine
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Actually, I might put "This Side of Paradise" on that list in place of Tribbles or Doomsday.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Did I actually put down "The Guardian of Forever" as an episode title? I'm tired. You know what I meant.
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Do it the old fashioned way, start at the beginning and watch it through till the end, Brain and all. That is the real way to get the full TOS experience.
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
I sat down and watched Spocks Brain after this last night.
It's alot funnier than I remember.
Posted by Captain Serek (Member # 1038) on :
My choices would be:
The Cage Where No Man Has Gone Before Arena Space Seed The Menagerie City on the Edge of Forever Court-Martial The Doomsday Machine Amok Time The Trouble with Tribbles Journey to Babel The Ultimate Computer Day of the Dove The Empath Savage Curtain
The reason for these choices is it shows a diversity of Trek as a whole.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Maybe Eylan of Troyus (sp). It shows that there are still rotten, bitchy, spoiled people in the 23rd century.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
I think it's kind of repetative to show both "The Cage" AND "The Menagerie."
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
THen just show the menagerie, as it gives The Cage as a flashback, omitting some of the parts that make it hard to follow. Also, it has that cool wheelshair... Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Aha! A double yes!
Posted by Omega (Member # 91) on :
I'm not familiar enough with TOS to answer this one, unfortunately. All I know is that "The Trouble with Tribbles" must be on the list. If you want an episode a non-Trekkie girl will like, that's probably one to get your foot in the door with. I intend to try it on my fiancee after we get married in 59 days.
To be off-subject for a moment and answer shikaru's question, B5's episode titles were... impressive, would be a good description. "And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place", "Sleeping in Light", "Intersections in Real Time", "A Late Delivery From Avalon", some were pretty cool. Others, "And All My Dreams, Torn Asunder", "Movements of Fire and Shadow", just got to be a little much. "Falling Toward Apotheosis", "The Very Long Night of Londo Molari"...
Andromeda had some good titles early on, like "It's Hour Come Round at Last", "Una Salus Victus", and "Forced Perspective". Even somewhat later ones, like "Double or Nothingness", were still cute. My personal favorite for ep titles is still Farscape, though. I love the "We're So Screwed" trilogy. And ANYTHING is better than Smallville's seven years of one-word titles, which Voyager seemed to get pretty close to at times...
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Married? Two months? Does that mean you'll finally be getting your dick wet?
Posted by HerbShrump (Member # 1230) on :
I know I've never seen TOS in order.
Of course, you gotta understand. It was a different time. Oh sure, the TV stations probably showed them in syndication order, but we're talking pre-cable days. Black and white television sets.
I'd mess with the UHF and VHF antennas and watch Star Trek three times every Sunday.
Interesting idea, watching them all in order.
It probably won't be the remastered. I don't have the episodes so I'll be borrowing them.
We've rented a cabin (like we do every year) for 4 or 5 nights. This cabin doesn't have satellite TV and is in the hills of southern Ohio so reception will be terrible. We're planning on bringing a bunch of DVDs.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
This isn't sci-fi, but I liked Friends' episode titles. They were all of the formula "The One Where *insert major plot point or reference*" which I thought was a rather amusing joke, and potentially quite useful as well.
*cue flamers for mentioning Friends*
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Herb, you seem to be as old as I am.
Posted by HerbShrump (Member # 1230) on :
Daniel, I guess "Scrubs" titles are the same way. They're all "My" this or that...
Ritten, I'm 36. Probably double the age of others on here.
Posted by Fabrux (Member # 71) on :
The youngest buck on here is 15... everyone else is at least 20, IIRC.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Soon to be 16. I like SCRUBS. Some of the titles do differ however, when there told in someone else's P.O.V. THen they are His story I, or their story II, or Her Story, yada yada yada. I remember when my dad dirst showed me TOS. I thought the vulcan's name was Mr. Spot, and for TNG, I was watching Mr. Warp, of Mr. Wart.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Well I'm still 19...
Anyway, I always like the episode titles of Reboot since they took the titles of famous shows or movies and related them to computers or the show.
The Quick and the Fed Web World Wars(www) Where No Sprite Has Gone Before Number 7 The Episode With No Name Web Riders on the Storm Cross Nodes My Two Bobs Life's a Glitch Crouching Binome, Hidden Virus
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Come to think of it, I registered in july 07, so I was 14 when I joined this here play group.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
"I remember when my dad dirst showed me TOS. I thought the vulcan's name was Mr. Spot, and for TNG, I was watching Mr. Warp, of Mr. Wart."
You have Lwaxanna Troi syndrome. "Oh, Mr. Woof..."
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
It is also where I picked up one of my many phobia's/obsessions. THe Picard Maneuver. Didn't outgrow the fear of my skin touching the fabric of my jacket untill 6th grade. ALways walked everywhere with my shirt tucked in. I looked like a pasty white Urkle, without the suspenders.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
There was this guy at our highschool who never spoke to anyone, constantly listened to Mozart and Beethoven on an actual tape-driven Walkman, always wore dress slacks and shoes with a tucked-in shirt, and had several very *large* crucifixes hanging from his neck. So you weren't too bad, Sean Posted by B.J. (Member # 858) on :
"actual tape-driven Walkman"
You say that like it's unusual. *checks profile* Oh, right, you're 12 years younger than me.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Strange, I owned a walkman, that was tape driven. Infact, I didn't get a cd player untill 5 or 6 years ago, and even now, I have like 5 cd's. I don't own an mp3 either. I know a guy like that .Sorta. He does not wear crucifixes, doesn't listen to a walkman, but does listen to classical music, and soes wear formals with a hoddie virtually every day. And black dress socks, even when he does wear jeans and a tee.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
I've bought MP3 players for $12. There's really no excuse for not having one I had a tape player when I was 5 or 6...got a CD player when I was, oh, 11 or so. Haven't owned one of those since 2002 or so, though. At that point it was a player for data CDs containing MP3s and WMAs.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
I dont listen to music enough. When I do, it is in a car cd player, or on my tapedeck/clock radio when I go to sleep. Right now, I am listening to the nitpicker's fun and games for classic trekkers, voiced by denise crosby.
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Dude, seriously. Am I gonna have t'go up to Buffalo & deliver an asskicking?
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
WHy would you want to do that?
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
Your sign is attracting him as moth to a flame.
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Sometimes it just is the right thing to do.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Oh I get it... KICK ME.... I had better go load the Remington...
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
You're not old enough to shave.
Posted by Joshua Bell (Member # 327) on :
quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: I've bought MP3 players for $12. There's really no excuse for not having one I had a tape player when I was 5 or 6...
And so it continues. My 5-year-old son has a 40GB MP3 player. I can only assume that the next step up is when he needs a phone and iPhone-equivalents are dirt cheap too.
....
What was the topic again? Oh...
Rather than picking specific episodes, I'd pick important themes and work backwards from that:
* Serious Kirk/Spock/McCoy episode * Classic Klingons * Classic Romulans * 1960's social commentary * High-concept SF * Lowbrow humor * Energy beings * Kirk-outwits-computer-with-logic * Time travel/Alternate universes
Skimming the episode list, I'd pick from these:
* Serious: Enemy Within, Amok Time, Paradise Syndrome, Galileo Seven * Klingons: Day of the Dove, Errand of Mercy * Romulans: Balance of Terror, Enterprise Incident * 1960's: City..., Let That Be..., Omega Glory, Private Little War, Patterns of Force, The Cloud Minders, The Way to Eden * High-concept: The Cage, WNMHGB, Metamorphosis * Lowbrow: Mudd's Women, Catspaw, I, Mudd, Trouble With Tribbles, Spectre of the Gun, Piece of the Action, Shore Leave * Energy beings: Charlie X, Who Mourns..., * Computer: The Changeling, The Apple, Ultimate Computer * TT/AU: Assignment: Earth, Return to Tomorrow, Mirror, Mirror, All Our Yesterdays
However... I'd reserve at least 3 of the 10 slots for "others", as to focus on these extremes misses the bulk of Star Trek. Something like Dagger of the Mind, Corbomite Maneuver, Journey to Babel or The Naked Time.
So pick specialty episodes that hit more than one topic - e.g. "Day of the Dove" lets you cross of Klingons and Energy Beings.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Yeah, Mirror,Mirror is deffinately one for the list. And I was reffering to the shotgun. THe Remington, as opposed to the Winchester, or the Sears & Roebuck.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
I think Squire of Gothos is a good energy being one - then she'll get that Futurama episode's joke Posted by Joshua Bell (Member # 327) on :
quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: then she'll get that Futurama episode's joke
Wow, okay, how many TOS episodes/films do you need to see to *really* get "Where No Fan..." ?
* "The Menagerie" (court marshal/witness chair) * "City on the Edge of Forever" (the Guardian) * "Spectre of the Gun" (fight in the old west) * "Day of the Dove" (glowy energy being make people fight!) * "Arena" (making stuff out of things; Vasquez Rocks) * Star Trek II ("Bill, you are, and always shall be, my friend. But I just signed a six-month lease...") * Star Trek IV ("Nu-cle-ar wessels") * Star Trek V (Uhura's fan dance) * "Squire of Gothos" (spoiled energy being) * "Time Trap" (combine ships to escape)
(You also need "The Savage Curtain" to understand "Kif Gets Knocked Up A Notch" - Evil Lincoln, raaaaaarrrrrrr!!!!)
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
Real simulated evil holographic Lincoln is back!!!
Point taken Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Will he be shot by a real simulated nice holographic John Welkes-Booth?
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Wilkes. And it's a middle name.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Minor detail.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Well, unless you've been going around referring to him as "Mr. Wilkes-Booth", which would make people think you are crazy.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Dude, they already think that.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
A fair point.
Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
Was that a self-pwned...?
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Yes. I have no problem acknowledgeing other peoples insults. I get them so often that I could really care less. I do believe that insults are okay, as long as the other person can roll with it. People comlain when my tic causes me to swear or stutter, I , just tell them that it means I can swear whenever, wherever, and get away with it.
Of course, people taking notice of it can make it worse. I had an uninformed infidell in one of my classes last year who tallied up the amout of times I swore and stuttered and texted it to their friends accross the room. But, I can laugh at it. I got them back. I caught them cheating on a test, and like the good little brown noser that I am, turned them in. THey failed the class that quarter for that. Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
Haha well good for you dude. A "fuck-it" view on negativity always works best IMHO.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
In my case, literally. Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
I liked the 'No, fuck you!" he nailed them with.
Tell it to them like this, "If you are insulting me you are leaving someone else alone."
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
I have actually found that if I use big words, and not text speak, it confuses them, and they go away to go smoke their cigaretts, or put on their Fentynol patches.
Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
Fentonyl...? This forum requires me to google a lot...
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
When I was a young private in the Army I did that to a lot of NCOs. One NCO had to pull another guy off to the side often to ask for a translation.
Officers caught on too quick though, that sucked.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
heh I was too unpopular for it to work. I just got sticks thrown at me (literally, at least once, anyway). I remember one time the Spanish teacher was trying to explain how things in other languages are sometimes spelled differently than English and he wrote "haus" on the board - German for house if you can dig it - and I corrected him to "Haus." One kid asked how I could possibly know that; another one said "He just makes this shit up." And that pretty much sums up the attitude of people toward me back then - I wasn't smart, I was making shit up The thing I thought about then that helped, Sean, is to remember that once you get out of highschool in a few relatively short years, the world around you will be entirely different and not full of yukking fools anymore. Especially if you pick a good university...
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Yeah, they stop yukking.
Posted by shikaru808 (Member # 2080) on :
Yukking? I would assume thats a limey word except that you're from Illinois....
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Well, for me, cost wise, it is either University of Buffalo, or NY State University at Buffalo, maybe Erie Community College, but UB has an excelent teaching program, so if I want to become a teacher, that's the route I'll go. I actually like High school so much, that I wouldn't mind staying there. Infact that is my goal. I graduate, then go to college and hopefully become a History and Global Sciences teacher at Hamburg High School. THing is, Most of my old teachers will still be there, so that might be a bit strange. Before all that, I must figure out my health problems and get them in check.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Hey, Herb: FUCK YOU.
Ever since this thread, wanna know what I've got in my DVD player? My classic TREK DVDs. No time for Netflix. Dragged myself away long enough to get a job, and now I'm here -- LIGHTS OF ZETAR on the tube -- preparing to relocate to a new city while Kirk's trying to figure out why the eff Scotty ain't in Engineering.
Okay, so kidding on the "FU", but, still ... I've watched more Classic Trek in the last week than I have in the last year.
Don't forget to post what episodes you're going to show ... if you haven't already, anyway.
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
DC? Why the change?
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Got a job in the area: office doings at a startup. I could wear a tie, if I wanted, but they'd mock me mercilessly. I'm actually looking for not only an apartment down there, but also a part-time job (bookstore! bookstore!) to help cope with the higher cost of living. Everything needs to be convenient to the DC Metro: giving the car to my dad when I move.
And, when I say 'office doings', I just mean that I'll be working in an office. It's a really cool gig, but I'm not going to go into any detail about it. I start next week.
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Oh word.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
I went on a school trip to DC once. Great food. And all the museums are free.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
And a kick ass public transportation system! (Compared to Baltimore, anyway).
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Yeah, they got those hydrogen busses.
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Snay in a town full of polytics and no car, oh, in the injustice of it all!
Posted by Pensive's Wetness (Member # 1203) on :
No, it means that no one can use his creations from TCotEoF in any future Star Trek-related material unless they pay him huge amounts of money. And since the only medium it's ever been used in were books and perhaps comics (and one episode of TAS), it really isn't all that big a deal.
Posted by Pensive's Wetness (Member # 1203) on :
that affects (or rather, that's always affected) movies and materials, right. the spector of someone pulling a HE on them?
Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
So, we can be pretty sure we won't see the Guardian in the next movie?
Posted by Krenim (Member # 22) on :
The demo for Star Trek Online that they've been showing at conventions and such revolves around the Guardian of Forever. I'm betting that's gonna be cut.
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I had a tape player when I was 5 or 6...![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
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