I had a similar thought. There's a change in Kirk's face that's, well, not acceptance, but says, "Well, sh¡t, looks like I'm going to be a hero after all."
The very best TOS episode
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I had a similar thought. There's a change in Kirk's face that's, well, not acceptance, but says, "Well, sh¡t, looks like I'm going to be a hero after all."
Devil in The Dark. A mystery plot, respect for other species at the risk of Kirk and Spock , the best Mind Meld which was my favourite ST speciality.
There are good stories about William Shatner and the filming of this.
'I am a doctor not a bricklayer!'
There are good stories about William Shatner and the filming of this.
'I am a doctor not a bricklayer!'
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Best, CotEoF, for the cinematic quality... but I also think of Corbomite as a sort of perfect concept. Trek eventually came to be more about itself, (its own internal history, its own characters) than about anything "out there". Corbomite though is basic and perfect-- encountering something very, very alien, and figuring it out. I'd love to have tied the makers of the 24th century shows into chairs and forced them to watch CM over and over.
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Devil in the Dark is another great choice. Probably Op Annihilate too.
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Devil in the Dark is another great choice. Probably Op Annihilate too.
City on the Edge of Forever is my absolute favourite, as it sweeps me away every time I watch it.
There are a lot of good episodes though. For a rough list of 20:
City on the Edge of Forever
Balance of Terror
Amok Time
Mirror, Mirror
Devil in the Dark
Errand of Mercy
The Doomsday Machine
The Trouble With Tribbles
The Enemy Within
The Enterprise Incident
Metamorphosis
Journey to Babel
The Galileo Seven
Tomorrow is Yesterday
Charlie X
The Ultimate Computer
The Corbomite Maneuver
Obsession
Day of the Dove
The Tholian Web
There are a lot of good episodes though. For a rough list of 20:
City on the Edge of Forever
Balance of Terror
Amok Time
Mirror, Mirror
Devil in the Dark
Errand of Mercy
The Doomsday Machine
The Trouble With Tribbles
The Enemy Within
The Enterprise Incident
Metamorphosis
Journey to Babel
The Galileo Seven
Tomorrow is Yesterday
Charlie X
The Ultimate Computer
The Corbomite Maneuver
Obsession
Day of the Dove
The Tholian Web
I'm not sure what is the best one, but I have about 78 favorite episodes.
One of my absolute favorites is Balance of Terror.
The long running battle, which is action packed but also very well thought out with a lot of strategy, is excellent. I get tired of so many things where the overall strategy is drive right up to them and try not to blow up before they do.
Also, Mark Lenard is great as the Romulan Commander. He's the enemy, but he's not evil or cackling foil, he's someone we might have wanted to know as a friend if given different circumstances, he even feels the same and say so. Decius is kind of a jerk, though.
Two more things that make this one my especial favorite. I love the opening sequence where Kirk walks onto the bridge and everyone just reports to him without his saying a word. Everyone is doing their jobs and the whole crew is good at doing them, not just the captain. That's another one so many other things have failed, a captain who's a superhero with a bunch of drones is not how things really usually work.
I also like the reaction shots that happen through out the episode, but especially right after base 4 is destroyed. Even if someone didn't get a load of lines, they still got to react and emote a bit rather than being the back of a head in the viewscreen shot or set dressing while Kirk is speaking.
Actually, there's more, but I'm jamming up the thread.
One of my absolute favorites is Balance of Terror.
The long running battle, which is action packed but also very well thought out with a lot of strategy, is excellent. I get tired of so many things where the overall strategy is drive right up to them and try not to blow up before they do.
Also, Mark Lenard is great as the Romulan Commander. He's the enemy, but he's not evil or cackling foil, he's someone we might have wanted to know as a friend if given different circumstances, he even feels the same and say so. Decius is kind of a jerk, though.
Two more things that make this one my especial favorite. I love the opening sequence where Kirk walks onto the bridge and everyone just reports to him without his saying a word. Everyone is doing their jobs and the whole crew is good at doing them, not just the captain. That's another one so many other things have failed, a captain who's a superhero with a bunch of drones is not how things really usually work.
I also like the reaction shots that happen through out the episode, but especially right after base 4 is destroyed. Even if someone didn't get a load of lines, they still got to react and emote a bit rather than being the back of a head in the viewscreen shot or set dressing while Kirk is speaking.
Actually, there's more, but I'm jamming up the thread.
I don't usually think fondly of Season 3, but I did like "The Tholian Web" and "The Enterprise Incident" now that I think of it.
City on the Edge of Forever or Mirror, Mirror. I also liked The Trouble with Tribbles and Balance of Terror. heck, it's hard to pick just one!
Thats too bad. I think season 3 is excellent.
Best episode would have to be a cross between Arena, Doomsday Machine, Mirror,Mirror, Day of The Dove, The Tholian Web or City On The Edge of Forever or a few many others I could list here, but I won't...
JB
JB
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Maybe it would make for an interesting thread to talk about "most representative episode" or "episode that presents Trek at its purest"... That seems to be what a lot of this thread has ended up being about... not necessarily "best" episode... CotEoF is best for me, but not representative of ST, doesn't encapsulate what's best overall about Trek... but for me, Corbomite Manoeuver does, and it also represents what's great about science fiction in general, written or filmed. We should usually start from there... "What the hell IS that out there?!"
Call me stupid but I thought you had a thing about The Invaders episode Doomsday Minus One, Matt! Can't think why?
JB
Oh yeah "The Trouble with Tribbles" is also a good one.
I'd probably add Amok Time, Devil in the Dark, and the Corbomite Manoeuvre to that list. City on the Edge of Forever is great but it doesn't quite top my list - probably on par with the Trouble with Tribbles. I also have a soft spot for quite a few less brilliant episodes such as the Doomsday Machine, the Enemy Within, the Immunity Syndrome, the Tholian Web, Is their Truth in No Beauty, and All Our Yesterdays. Lots of silliness but great fun.
Oh yeah, "Amok Time" was another good one.
As you might have guessed... I didn't look at the list of episodes...
A little context. I'm 39, born in 77. I started watching TOS around the time that Star Trek 3 can out. WPIX 11 in NYC used to do Star Trek marathons on holidays and I would watch most of it and even VCR some eps while I slept.....anyway the context is because my favorite episode going back to that time in my life has always been A Piece of the Action. I've never reevaluated that thought. 2nd place would probably be A City on the Edge of Forever. That's my Dads favorite episode and who does t want to be like their father.
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