Most hated plot device

[Navboyry]

How many times has the Enterprise been the only ship in interception range? What does the federation have, like three ships? I especially hated when they used this in ST:TMP I mean the dang thing was at Earth, in drydock, there wasn't another starship nearby? At Earth? The capital of the federation? You'd think there would be a few ships in Earth orbit at all times.


Whats yours?

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Enterprise was pretty notorious with Captain Archer being taken hostage almost every episode. So, I must say, hostage situations.

 

[Dale]

Retuning, altering, reversing the polarity of the deflector dish and shooting a magic beam that solves the problem.

 

[JiNX-01]

Holodeck goes haywire.

 

[Orac Zen]

Transporter accidents / malfunctions.

How many times has the Enterprise been the only ship in interception range?

I agree with this one, too. And welcome to TBBS.

 

[trash80]

Scientific experiments have an unforeseen side effect.

 

[Deckerd]

See that nebula? Don't go into it.

 

[Jim Steele]

For me it has to be the A-Team resolution, or the damn-near Deus Ex Machina.

Voyager was the worst offender for this. Every other episode would be resolved by fashioning a technobabble-tastic device out of gel-packs and duct tape, which would swiftly solve the technobabble-tastic problem and reverse any lasting effects thereof. Or something.

 

[STIntergalactic]

See that nebula? Don't go into it.

Unless you're trying to hide...you can ALWAYS hide in a nebula.

 

[Navaros]

Three way tie between:

- Holodeck malfunction

- Space disease that either makes the crew turn on each other or become subservient to aliens taking over the ship or gives the illusion of impending death for all crew members

- "Love interest of the week" that the character meets for the first time and the start of the episode, falls in love with around 20 minutes in, then the love interest is either dead or brainwashed or transported away by the end of the episode

 

[Jim Steele]

- Holodeck malfunction

Oh yes indeedy. Although I'm not surprised they're so prone to failure if they're anything like my keyboard.

On that subject, are we really expected to believe that nobody in the 24th century is employed solely to mop wayward semen from holodeck floors?

Well, I suppose they haven't said otherwise. If anyone needs me I'll be off writing my first fanfic.

 

[KayArr]

Holodeck

 

[St0cker]

The reset button, Temporal paradoxes, Ancient Prophecy, Sports episodes (baseball etc)

 

[Danoz]

The reset button, Temporal paradoxes, Ancient Prophecy, Sports episodes (baseball etc)

I take it you don't care for DS9... minus the reset button. And "Take me out to the holosuite" was a fantastic episode

 

[Danoz]

How many times has the Enterprise been the only ship in interception range? What does the federation have, like three ships? I especially hated when they used this in ST:TMP I mean the dang thing was at Earth, in drydock, there wasn't another starship nearby? At Earth? The capital of the federation? You'd think there would be a few ships in Earth orbit at all times.


Whats yours?

Oh, plot device?

Probably holodeck malfunctions. If they were really that dangerous and you could "turn off" safety protocols... I'm not so convinced that they would be casual recreation when, more than once, a holodeck malfunction has threatened the lives of every person on board.

 

[Vonstadt]

1) Holodec/Transporter malfuntions

2) Reset button - the worst!

3) The only ship nearby (TMP was bad ST:V was worse...no experienced commanders?! horrible use of this already annoying plot device and I m a Jim Kirk fan )

 

[erastus25]

Something on the ship breaks for no apparent reason other than the plot. I love Balance of Terror but its phasers are the worst offender. In one scene they short-circuit just from being fired! What's the point of having phasers if they're going to blow up every time you use them!?!?

 

[TeutonicNights]

Malcolm arriving with a rescue team

 

[Mysterion]

Transporter accidents / malfunctions.

And/or transporter magically retuned to save the day.

 

[Swarles Barkley]

The evil reset button, in all its forms. Hate it.