Best and worst bottle shows

Discussion in 'General Trek Discussion' started by The Overlord, Feb 16, 2013.

  1. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    What were the best and worst bottle show episodes?
     
  2. Salinga

    Salinga Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I liked VOYs "Message in a Bottle"
     
  3. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    Best? Probably "Duet."

    I'd have to think about worst--there are a few groaners.
     
  4. The Overlord

    The Overlord Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I think Duet is the best as well, though I also like Drumhead, that would be my second favorite.

    The worst has to be A Night in Sick Bay, where Archer acted like a childish lunatic for the whole episode. Good bottle episodes forgo special effects and focus on interesting situations and character studies, bad bottle episodes seem like pointless filler and have the characters involve in insipid plots because they couldn't get the budget to do something better.
     
  5. milo bloom

    milo bloom Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Cause and Effect?

    Remember Me was briefly at the star base but was otherwise only on the ship.
     
  6. MacLeod

    MacLeod Admiral Admiral

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    Is that really a bottle show. Bottle shows are usually effects lite, use standing sets, and have maybe one or two guest stars.
     
  7. Dream

    Dream Admiral Admiral

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    "Shades of Gray" has to be the worst!
     
  8. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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  9. SchwEnt

    SchwEnt Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Bottle shows are awesome.

    The Doomsday Machine.
    The Ultimate Computer.
    The Offspring.
    The Drumhead.
    The Immunity Syndrome.
    The Corbomite Maneuver.
    Duet.
    Charlie X.
    The Changeling.

    Lots more.
     
  10. ZapBrannigan

    ZapBrannigan Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I like a lot of bottle shows, but one that does not work for me is TOS "The Mark of Gideon."

    (Spoilers)

    The gimmick of building a fake Enterprise could not work, because the aliens would not have such detailed information, and even if they thought they did, it would never be exact and particularized enough to fool Kirk.

    And it would not be done, because the aliens would have alternative ways of bottling up Kirk that are immensely faster and cheaper than building a huge starship interior.

    But what was wildly impractical and expensive for the Gideonites was transparently easy and cheap for the show.
     
  11. DS9forever

    DS9forever Commodore Commodore

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    DS9's "Civil Defense" is pretty excellent.
     
  12. Tiberius

    Tiberius Commodore Commodore

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    Best is Civil Defence, Duet, Doomsday Machine, etc.

    Worst is Shades of Grey.
     
  13. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    The caveat to "Shades of Gray" is I don't consider clips shows to be bottle episodes. They're glorified "previously" teasers. And there's never been a good one. Ever.

    SG1 had a borderline "okay" one every now and then. But they had so many it was more a matter of probability. Trek only dared try it once and it was so bad they stayed away permanently.
     
  14. Tiberius

    Tiberius Commodore Commodore

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    But it is a bottle show. No guest stars, no real FX heavy bits and the only new set is a bunch of plants on a soundstage. How is that not a bottle show?
     
  15. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Shades of Gray is perhaps more precisely called a clip show, I think is the point, yes?
     
  16. Tiberius

    Tiberius Commodore Commodore

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    Most precisely, it's both.
     
  17. sbk1234

    sbk1234 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I don't think it's been mentioned, yet, but one of my personal favorites is Journey to Babel.
     
  18. Tiberius

    Tiberius Commodore Commodore

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    Not sure if that would count. Sure, there were no new sets, but a lot of extras in rather elaborate make up. Indeed, the only reason that Sarek and Amanda didn't beam aboard was because the budget had been blown on the make upo and extras, so they had to re-use stock footage of the shuttle from The Galileo Seven.
     
  19. Metryq

    Metryq Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    "Let's break out your drinkin' stuff and celebrate the syndicate."

    [​IMG]
     
  20. T'Girl

    T'Girl Vice Admiral Admiral

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    But the opening scene in Shades' is of Riker off the ship, down on a planet, where he gets stung/bitten. So not a bottle show at all.