Which should I watch? TNG or Enterprise?

[jcourtenay]

i agree with shatnertage, definitely watch ENT first

[DevilEyes]

BillJ wrote:

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See I'd rather a show actually have the balls to offend people than to be so bland that they put me to sleep. YMMV.

I think you got TNG mixed up with South Park...

Unfortunately, in the case of TNG S1&2, it wasn't about having balls, it was about lacking brains. They weren't trying to offend anyone, on the contrary, they were trying to be as politically correct as possible (check out the 'drugs are bad, mkay?" speech by Tasha in "Symbiosis")... The offensiveness was a product of sheer stupidity. I bet they thought they were making a very deep statement about gender politics in "Angel One" and apparently Maurice Hurley thought it would be cool if the dumb breeding stock immigrants in "Up the Long Ladder" were Irish like himself, i.e. dreadful Irish stereotypes...

[BillJ]

ProtoAvatar wrote:

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And as usual, the only "argument" you can come up with is name-calling -- which is just pathetic, BillJ.

Do you even know what discussion your in?

[PsychoPere]

ProtoAvatar wrote:

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Have you even looked recently at the 2 first seasons of TNG? At the last season of TOS?

I can't answer for anyone else, but I have recently seen the third season of TOS and the first two seasons of TNG, as part of an entire franchise (re)watch that I'm currently working my way through (I'm in DS9 season seven at the moment). Frankly, I'd take a bad TOS episode over bad TNG, VGR, or ENT episodes.

And before you dismiss this as "nostalgia" - I'm 23 years old, so I never saw TOS first-run or in its first rounds of syndication. If I "grew up" with any Trek, it was TNG, yet TOS (followed now by DS9) is my favorite series.

ProtoAvatar wrote:

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[...] Nowhere in its course does Ent even approach that level of awfulness.

I disagree.

From season 1: "Unexpected," "Fusion," "Rogue Planet," "Acquisition," "Desert Crossing," "Two Days and Two Nights."

From season 2: "Carbon Creek," "A Night in Sickbay," "Singularity," "Vanishing Point," "Precious Cargo," "Future Tense," "The Crossing," "Regeneration," "First Flight," "Bounty."

From season 3: "Extinction," "Rajiin," "Exile," "North Star," "Carpenter Street."

From season 4: "Storm Front," "Bound."

[sonak]

Well first off, let's all relax and allow each poster to have their own opinions on the shows without getting testy at one another.


Yes, TNG season 1 (but not IMHO) season 2 had it problems, with several episodes being quite bad. However, as BillJ pointed out, there's a "fun factor" there while I see Ent as coming off as just tired and dull in seasons 1-2.

And even in season 1 there's still "heart of glory," "110011001," "conspiracy" and "the big goodbye" which showed TNG gaining some footing. I don't think I like any episode of season 1 of ENT as much as any of those episodes.

I'm not influenced by "nostalgia." I'm far too young to have been a fan of TOS when it was in its first-run yet I have always LOVED that show for its adventure, the relationship of the "big three," its (usually) smart stories, etc. It wasn't even ON in re-runs for a long time when I became a Star Trek fan and I used to have to find videotapes of certain episodes and stuff to watch it, and what I saw always made me want to come back for more.

Like BillJ, I'm always in the mood for some TOS or TNG episodes. But Ent? not nearly as much enthusiasm.

[BillJ]

sonak wrote:

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Like BillJ, I'm always in the mood for some TOS or TNG episodes. But Ent? not nearly as much enthusiasm.

I obviously have some love for Enterprise, all four seasons are sitting on my DVD shelf.

[SFRabid]

Remove the first two seasons of TNG and replace them with the last two seasons of ENT. That gives you a good 7 year series.

[billcosby]

ElfEars wrote:

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Unfortunately, in the case of TNG S1&2, it wasn't about having balls, it was about lacking brains. They weren't trying to offend anyone, on the contrary, they were trying to be as politically correct as possible (check out the 'drugs are bad, mkay?" speech by Tasha in "Symbiosis")... The offensiveness was a product of sheer stupidity. I bet they thought they were making a very deep statement about gender politics in "Angel One" and apparently Maurice Hurley thought it would be cool if the dumb breeding stock immigrants in "Up the Long Ladder" were Irish like himself, i.e. dreadful Irish stereotypes...

Yep. And those examples are being kind. Justice was an atrocious train wreck that in hindsight actually makes it fun to watch!

Ironic since TOS had a lot of brains behind it.

I think when TNG started they were really referencing TOS and it went overboard... by the time they got it out of their system (season three began) it was basically a work of art.

[Freman]

At least ENT doesn't have a clip show. That, to me, is TNG's eternal shame.

[Tom Riley]

I would say start with TNG, and then go ahead and watch ENT. I liked them both, but liked TNG better, mainly because it's what I grew up with.

[Eckauskas]

RyuRoots wrote:

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Asking "Should I watch TNG or ENT?" is like asking "Should I eat a delicious steak or pour some ants into my trousers?" Watch TNG, and skip ENT.

This, this, a million times this.

[BillJ]

Eckauskas wrote:

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This, this, a million times this.

That's a good way to miss some great episodes. Not necessarily an Enterprise fan, but did get some entertainment value from it sporadically throughout the series. YMMV.

[Eckauskas]

BillJ wrote:

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That's a good way to miss some great episodes. Not necessarily an Enterprise fan, but did get some entertainment value from it sporadically throughout the series. YMMV.

You misinterperet my point here.

It's not that I wouldn't watch Enterprise, just that TNG is far and away the better series.

[CaptJimboJones]

I'm *gasp* a fan of both. I'd recommend watching all four seasons of Enterprise first, then all seven of TNG.

[Marten]

TNG, but Enterprise is certainly not bad. It's just not TNG.