What's the best and worst episode of TNG.

[Admiral Shran]

Worst: Masks

WORST: I have to agree "Masks" is by far the worst episode of TNG, and Trek altogether.

Worst: Masks.

I've never understood the hate for Masks. I've always liked it. It is by absolutley no means the best episode; I wouldn't even say it's in the top half of them. But it also certainly isn't the worst, not by any means.

issreliant, you honestly believe that episodes like And the Children Shall Lead, Spock's Brain, Code of Honor, The Last Outpost, Justice, The Outrageous Okona, Shades of Grey, Move Along Home, Let He Who Is Without Sin..., Valiant, Profit and Lace, Threshold, The Fight, Acquisition, and TATV are all better than Masks?

 

[carlmarx]

Best: The Best Of Both Worlds, Part I
Runners-Up: The Inner Light, Darmok, Yesterday's Enterprise, Measure Of A Man, Chain Of Command Part II

Worst: Shades Of Grey
Runners-Up: Sub Rosa, Code Of Honor, Justice, Lonely Among Us

I hate to always be that person that can't help giving five answers instead of one, but at least I'm not alone. haha.

 

[nick1983]

This is my first ever post, but thought I would chip in with this one.
Best - Best of Both Worlds I for me, even though its an obvious one
Worst - Probably Shades of Gray although Justice pushes it close

 

[Teiwaz]

Best - The Drumhead - Soooo powerful.

Worst - Up the Long Ladder - This really appalled me with the calm, unconflicted way Pulaski and Riker killed their clones and the obscene depiction of the 'Irish'.

No way worse that the atrocious holodeck farces in Voyager. I wanted to puke over the tv when those came on.

Where was the European Hegemony anyway? Definetely alternate universe material.

Drumhead was brilliant, I rate it as highly as the DS9 episodes of Homefront and Paradise Lost. However my favourite was Masks/Damork (can't decide which) for the concepts that were attempted if not for how well it was actually implemtented. Very imaginative envisioning of alien cultures - moreso than usual. Masks for its concept of a civilisation that held onto it's mythology and used its technology to bring it too life within a structure of ritual and drama and Damork for the language based on metaphor.

The worst I think was the Okona one, Ocorny it should be - didn't show the crew in a good light at all - especially the female half (assuming that they were half given that main cast was six male to three female - counting on fingers) you'd think they didn't have a holodeck...

 

[scout]

Best - The Drumhead - Soooo powerful.

Worst - Up the Long Ladder - This really appalled me with the calm, unconflicted way Pulaski and Riker killed their clones and the obscene depiction of the 'Irish'.

No way worse that the atrocious holodeck farces in Voyager. I wanted to puke over the tv when those came on.

Where was the European Hegemony anyway? Definetely alternate universe material.

Drumhead was brilliant. However my favourite was Masks/Damork (can't decide which) for the concepts that were attempted if not for how good they were actually. Very imaginative envisioning of alien cultures - moreso than usual - pity one of them was dead.

The worst I think was the Okona one, Ocorny it should be - didn't show the crew in a good light at all - especially the female half (assuming that they were half given that main cast was six male to three female - counting on fingers) you'd think they didn't have a holodeck...

I've never actually watched the entirety of the Voyager holodeck episode that garners the most hate around here (one where J falls in love with holodeck character) as I'm not a masochist so can't really comment on that.

I agree on Darmok - its my second favourite episode from TNG. Masks is very interesting, as you say, because it actually explores an alien culture in more detail, than the passing nod to an inconvenient detail about a culture shoehorned in to create a plot point for the 'heroes' to navigate.

Although as I'm now watching TNG again from the beginning I think I have to change my vote from 'Up the Long Ladder' to 'Code of Honour'. Objectively its much worse, especially with the 'He man' attraction that Yar admits to Troi. After all, women are so lacking in direction and purpose without a man desiring them and oh, everything else about it. Though I still actively dislike 'Up the Long Ladder' more.

 

[Teiwaz]

Although as I'm now watching TNG again from the beginning I think I have to change my vote from 'Up the Long Ladder' to 'Code of Honour'. Objectively its much worse, especially with the 'He man' attraction that Yar admits to Troi. After all, women are so lacking in direction and purpose without a man desiring them and oh, everything else about it. Though I still actively dislike 'Up the Long Ladder' more.

I dislike the episodes about LaForges search for love for much the same reason and sometimes feel he should have been killed off for being a weedy disgrace to the gender. I also have a thing about Riker being too manly - I feel like he's going to shave that beard off in an episode, turn to camera and try to sell me aftershave or disposable razors.

 

[indianatrekker26]

Best: The Best of Both Worlds
Runner-ups: Yesterday's Enterprise, The Measure of a Man, The Inner Light

Worst: Shades of Grey
Runner-ups: Code of Honor, The Naked Now, Eye of the Beholder

 

[GalaxyX]

I'm having a hell of a time choosing. TNG for me seems to have almost no gray area. It's either awesome, or bland, and a bit of it is horrid.

I'll post my favorites and why I like them, then the worst ones in my mind and why I hate them.

Best: Where no one has gone before. This is what to me Trek is about; the exploration of strange and new worlds (and not just the discovery of forehead aliens as it seems to turn out later on), and in this episode, man did they go to a strange and new world! The only thing holding the episode back was the stuffyness of the characters, with the actors still uncomfortable in their roles, and the length (it was too short! Longcat dissaproves!). Scenes like Picard bumping into his passed away mother were haunting! Few other episodes ever got this epic.

Runner up: Remember Me?: The whole concept of people dissapearing and realizing at the end that you're trapped in a universe you created yourself that is collapsing is freakin' gold! I never get sick of that episode! "If nothing is wrong with me, maybe there's something wrong with the universe!"

Another runner up: AGT: Great use of Q to book end the series. Great time travel story. I loved how Data was still extremely loyal to Picard after everyone else had basically turned into an asshole (BTTF influence here?), and watching the upgraded Enterprise pummel the Klingons was a bit of awesome fanboyish delight! I wish that would have been the ship in the movies and not that hideous Ent E.

Worst? Hmm, Angel One was pretty bad but funny to watch for the comedic value. I think it's the episode Liaison where that telepathic guy is using Deanna as a container for purging evil emotions into and she's dying from it? Man that was cringe worthy, but for me The Outcast has to be the most downright horrid episode TNG ever made. Whatever the story was trying to say (being gay is ok and suppressing it is a bad thing) what I hated the most is how ridiculous the episode seems to portray that race.

1. They obviously have male/female, but suppress with drugs they have to constantly take to be "neutral". So what happens if they go off the drugs? Well, they turn back into their male/female original persons. So what's the point of forcing the drug on a planetary scale like that? To what end?

2. Riker goes off to rescue the female he fell in love with, but alas, it's too late, she has been forcibly injected with the drug again, turning her into an automaton again and Riker had to give up the rescue.

Ahhh......hello!!!!! if she goes off the drug for a day or two, she........turns back into the woman you love!!!!! Grab her, sedate her, wait for the drug to wear off, and presto, things are right as they should be!!!

The Outcast, definitely TNG's worst episode. Spock's Brain was amazing compared to this dreck.

 

[DonIago]

Man of the People, not Liaisons.

Also, I believe you got Outcast wrong. The population was naturally androgynous, but some members of the race had psychological (not physical, I don't think) inclinations towards male/female. We're never really told what the treatment involved, though I suspect mental reconditioning was a part of it...even if Riker had abducted Soren, I don't think there was ever a guarantee that the person he knew would have resurfaced.

 

[Michael]

I've never understood the hate for Masks. I've always liked it. It is by absolutley no means the best episode; I wouldn't even say it's in the top half of them. But it also certainly isn't the worst, not by any means.

Agreed 100%. The hate this episode gets around here is incredible. I loved the episode as a child and still think after all these years that it is at least passable. Spiner's performance is fine and the science-fiction concept is interesting.

1. They obviously have male/female, but suppress with drugs they have to constantly take to be "neutral". So what happens if they go off the drugs? Well, they turn back into their male/female original persons. So what's the point of forcing the drug on a planetary scale like that? To what end?

2. Riker goes off to rescue the female he fell in love with, but alas, it's too late, she has been forcibly injected with the drug again, turning her into an automaton again and Riker had to give up the rescue.

Ahhh......hello!!!!! if she goes off the drug for a day or two, she........turns back into the woman you love!!!!! Grab her, sedate her, wait for the drug to wear off, and presto, things are right as they should be!!!

I think you are in for a surprise when you happen to rewatch The Outcast someday, because I'm afraid you got a lot of it wrong.

Also, I believe you got Outcast wrong. The population was naturally androgynous, but some members of the race had psychological (not physical, I don't think) inclinations towards male/female. We're never really told what the treatment involved, though I suspect mental reconditioning was a part of it...even if Riker had abducted Soren, I don't think there was ever a guarantee that the person he knew would have resurfaced.

Exactly. The episode was about gender, not sex. Physically, all J'naii were androgynous and had the same uniform social gender. However, some of them happened to have urges for maleness or femaleness.

Also, the word "drugs" is never uttered in the episode.

 

[Lor'Vela]

Best: Where no one has gone before. This is what to me Trek is about; the exploration of strange and new worlds (and not just the discovery of forehead aliens as it seems to turn out later on), and in this episode, man did they go to a strange and new world! The only thing holding the episode back was the stuffyness of the characters, with the actors still uncomfortable in their roles, and the length (it was too short! Longcat dissaproves!). Scenes like Picard bumping into his passed away mother were haunting! Few other episodes ever got this epic.

And there I was thinking I was the only one who thought that way. I'll go with your choice and reasoning too.

As for the worst, there are many to choose from, but for right now, my mind is saying "The Loss". Sorry, but the whole episode is a Troi whinge-fest for me.

 

[Admiral Shran]

I've never understood the hate for Masks. I've always liked it. It is by absolutley no means the best episode; I wouldn't even say it's in the top half of them. But it also certainly isn't the worst, not by any means.

Agreed 100%. The hate this episode gets around here is incredible. I loved the episode as a child and still think after all these years that it is at least passable. Spiner's performance is fine and the science-fiction concept is interesting.

Thank you. I was starting to think that I was the only one who could at least enjoy it.

 

[DonIago]

I'm not sure I would say I enjoy Masks per se, but I do agree that the level of hostility it receives is surprising and unwarranted to me.

Actually, I'd think people would enjoy it for a few of the same reasons they'd enjoy Darmok.

 

[GalaxyX]

I didn't hate Masks, but I did not like Brent Spiner's acting in it. He just didn't convince me he had those personalities in him.