Game The Most Disliked Comedic/Light-Hearted Episode

[Summer Solstice]

That was awesome. Phlox and Archer were careening around Sickbay like two drunk frat boys, and Hoshi just zip, snags it.

And it can't be the first time the bat has escaped... Perhaps Phlox was trying to distract Archer from worrying about Porthos.

I occasionally like to envision a Kelvin timeline TNG reboot, with Marina Sirtis recurring as Lwaxana. Lean into the Betazed matriarchy -- this Lwaxana is actually a skilled spy, using the "classic" Lwaxana man-crazy persona as cover to get everyone to underestimate her.

That would be awesome. Now I'm wondering what mirror universe Lwaxana is like.

 

[Vale]

Saving TNG: "Up the Long Ladder", because Barrie Ingham is hilarious. And it's still got fewer offensive Irish stereotypes (and fewer atrocious Irish accents) than the Voyager Fair Haven episodes.

TAS Season 2: “Bem”
TNG Season 2: “The Outrageous Okona”
TNG Season 5: “A Matter Of Time”
DS9 Season 2: “Rivals”
DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Looking For Par’Mach In All The Wrong Places”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Brennyren]

Saving "Bem," for a creative use of animation. Also because it doesn't make me gag, unlike some of our remaining choices!

And it's still got fewer offensive Irish stereotypes (and fewer atrocious Irish accents) than the Voyager Fair Haven episodes.

Like that's hard....

TNG Season 2: “The Outrageous Okona”
TNG Season 5: “A Matter Of Time”
DS9 Season 2: “Rivals”
DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Looking For Par’Mach In All The Wrong Places”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Qonundrum]

Up next:

TNG Season 2: “The Outrageous Okona”

This episode could have been a lot stronger; a lot of elements are there... But while the clunker list started a while ago, Okona - ostensibly this outrageous party animal - actually does something extremely nice (if not cliche...) -- and that's overshadowed by a crap script that tries to do a sub-"Romeo & Juliet" paired with "Three's Company". Add in a comic, who ends up being the straight guy opposite Data (and Guinan, as it's the Data/Guinan pairing that steal this show)...

Some juvenile sex jokes up the ante for some, or down it for others - but it's all in the viewpoint of the viewer as to whether they like it or not.

If nothing else, Okona's hair style needs to make a comeback. So easy to maintain and has a healthy sheen... also doubles as a jump rope...

Also, the story may have been a partial influence for Ace Rimmer...

What's left:
TNG Season 5: “A Matter Of Time”
DS9 Season 2: “Rivals”
DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Looking For Par’Mach In All The Wrong Places”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Oddish]

And it's still got fewer offensive Irish stereotypes (and fewer atrocious Irish accents) than the Voyager Fair Haven episodes.

I considered saving that one for the "smoking Klingon booze" bit alone. But Riker's clone-killing rampage changed my mind.

Looking for Par'Mach is my next save. Liked Worf's "I will apologize for this later" bit, and the final scene in sickbay was awesome.

TNG Season 5: “A Matter Of Time”
DS9 Season 2: “Rivals”
DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Qonundrum]

Saving TNG: "Up the Long Ladder", because Barrie Ingham is hilarious. And it's still got fewer offensive Irish stereotypes (and fewer atrocious Irish accents) than the Voyager Fair Haven episodes.

The sci-fi slant is also interesting - discussing replicative failure of clones the same way that you copy a VHS videocassette a couple dozen times and it stops being watchable... like in the good old days when Doctor Who's missing episodes were ferried at conventions and something about those seemed such a mystique... they still often are... There's also another allegory or two in this episode, which are worthy in of themselves... But the overall idea of putting two splinters of the same species back together, each so distant in mannerisms and motivations, is a clever one in of itself - and capable of more than what was shown on screen. If only they didn't waste 10 minutes of Riker getting it on with a little more exposition on that instead... (well, it's closer to 5 but it's all good...)

The Dr Pulaski/Worf scene is much awesome and is worthy of much praise, even if "Klingon tea ceremony" is lacking the sort of verbiage later-TNG would start to employ.

The episode also introduces the same fire suppression system, which is promptly forgotten in later episodes - such as "Generations", just how did Guinan light up all 500 candles and yet the system never activated?

 

[Vale]

The episode also introduces the same fire suppression system, which is promptly forgotten in later episodes - such as "Generations", just how did Guinan light up all 500 candles and yet the system never activated?

If the doors can read the script, so can the fire suppression system...

 

[Vale]

Saving TNG: "A Matter of Time". Matt Frewer's character is one I'd have liked to see return at some point, and he's such an engaging presence I almost find myself egging him on and wanting him to get away with it. One can only imagine what Robin Williams would have done with the role as originally planned. Only a weak ending mars an otherwise perfectly enjoyable episode that, in fine Trek style, raises a few interesting philosophical points along the way.

DS9 Season 2: “Rivals”
DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Sakonna]

Hmmm. I kind of like some of the vibe of "Rivals." The world of DS9 feels nicely large and lived-in in this one.

I mean, everything about the story is lousy, but... yeah, "kind of like some of the vibe" is about the end of my positive commentary on that one.

SUSPENSE! Three Ferengi failures (well, I like half of one of them) and two unsatisfying Short Treks. Who will emerge victorious???

DS9 Season 3: “Prophet Motive”
DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Sakonna]

The episode also introduces the same fire suppression system, which is promptly forgotten in later episodes - such as "Generations", just how did Guinan light up all 500 candles and yet the system never activated?

They were holo-candles, as shown in some episode of Discovery.

 

[Brennyren]

We're down to two I don't remember, one I do remember but refuse to save (hello there, "Profit and Lace"!), and two I haven't seen. Somebody else will have to put this round out of its misery....

 

[Farscape One]

"PROPHET MOTIVE" is saved. Bashir's story was fun, and Quark becomes of the few people to actually have contact with the Prophets.


DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[dupersuper]

“The Escape Artist”: I admit it, I laughed. Interesting potential tie in to I, Mudd as well.

DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Oddish]

Abstaining from here on out. Hate the "Ishka singlehandedly establishes female equality on an entire planet" plotline, and haven't watched Short Treks.

 

[Qonundrum]

Well, one of these I refuse to touch with a 10 meter pole.

DS9 Season 5: “Ferengi Love Songs”

Has President Skroob Quark playing with his dolls again.


What's left for what barely won't be a three-way tie:
DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 1: “The Escape Artist”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[Sakonna]

Just correcting the list, as "The Escape Artist" was saved. I'll leave the final elimination for someone else...

DS9 Season 6: “Profit And Lace”
ST Season 2: “Q&A”

 

[CorporalCaptain]

ST Season 2: “Q&A”

I enjoyed it for what it was.

 

[Vale]

I suspect to the surprise of very few...

 

[Oddish]

Nasty episode. It deserves it.

 

[Richard S. Ta]

I suspect to the surprise of very few...

Yep, I guessed it when I first looked at the complete list.