Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episodes

[TorontoTrekker]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

TFF was badly executed, as a result of Paramount being cheap. I think it would have been a much better film had it gotten TVH's budget, for example. It was still flawed - the idea that Spock had a fully Vulcan half-brother who rejected Vulcan philosophy is one of the more "out there" concepts - but there was the germ of a decent movie trying to get out.

Similarly, I think Nemesis was a much better movie on paper. It suffered from having someone directing it who wasn't a director, and glossed over the thematically important bits in favour of nonsensical action seqences.

I can't argue with the rest of that list, though I agree that "Sub Rosa" belongs on any list of poor episodes, along with "Up the Long Ladder."

And while I don't have the hate-on that many fans have for "A Night In Sickbay," I will never figure out how it managed to get a Hugo nomination.

 

[Harvey]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

TFF was badly executed, as a result of Paramount being cheap. I think it would have been a much better film had it gotten TVH's budget, for example.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was budgeted at $24 million (and came in at $23 million) in 1986.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier was budgeted at $30.5 million (and came in at $31.25 million) in 1989.

Adjusted for inflation (from '86 to '89 dollars), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home would have cost $26 million (and was budgeted at $27.13).

However you slice it, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier had more money to spend than its predecessor.

 

[TorontoTrekker]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

TFF was badly executed, as a result of Paramount being cheap. I think it would have been a much better film had it gotten TVH's budget, for example.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was budgeted at $24 million (and came in at $23 million) in 1986.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier was budgeted at $30.5 million (and came in at $31.25 million) in 1989.

Adjusted for inflation (from '86 to '89 dollars), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home would have cost $26 million (and was budgeted at $27.13).

However you slice it, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier had more money to spend than its predecessor.

Really? That surprises me - I'd always thought Paramount cut the budget for TFF by comparison to the previous films. Guess I should have looked up the numbers to confirm that before I posted.

But still, a lot of the shortcomings of the film could, in my mind, have been fixed with maybe one more script draft and a little looser purse strings.

 

[Harvey]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was the only film in the series to have a reduced budget compared to its predecessor. 3, 4, and 5 each cost more (about 42% more) than the previous film in the series. 6 was made for roughly the same budget as 5 (as a cost-cutting measure).

But, yeah, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier looks cheap to my eyes, too. It's probably mainly because of the awful visual effects, which are easily the worst of the series, but the production design has never impressed me, either. There are a couple of big sets (Nimbus III; the shuttle bay), but neither of them are very impressive (mostly, they're just dull). The rest of the movie seems to take place in barely refurbished sets from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Granted, those were refurbished from the previous films, but Shatner never put his own spin on them (Meyer, in my estimation, did better with the "submarine" look in 6, while still using the same basic sets).

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Did they even see SubRosa? I must admit I haven't seen the whole thing. I turned it off half-way through it was so stupid. I really think thats the worst TNG episode.

I agree, "Sub Rosa" was embarrassing.

I also recall disliking TNG "The Battle," the one where Picard is hallucinating aboard the USS Stargazer. TNG Year 1 and 2 in general had plenty of bad episodes.

For the worst ST of all time, I would pick VOYAGER "The Fight." I like the series, but this episode bored me to tears. It's the one where Chakotay hallucinates that he's a boxer. Dreary.

 

[Plum]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

What do you think of this list?

I don't think "A Night in Sickbay" belongs on it.

As far as that goes, neither does Star Trek V, nor (were I at all inclined to make a "worst of" list) would I put "Threshold" among the worst of the worst.

Oh yes you would. The former is a story that completely rips the hero into an insufferable and selfish twit while the latter leaves the hero a pregnant lizard.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Other Trek clunkers that should be on this list:

TOS: Plato's Stepchildren
TNG: Sub Rosa
DS9: The Emperor's New Cloak
VOY: Elogium
ENT: These Are The Voyages
Films: INS

 

[Commishsleer]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Try to watch this clip from the original series. It is so over the top. I'm giggling like a little girl watching this a second time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhQA-06kSLU
Plato's Stepchildren

That third season, they just were going through the motions. The incredulous look on McCoy's face is priceless.

I know a lot of people are critical of Plato's Stepchildren because of this scene. Just like I have to look past the Gorn, Mugatu etc. If you look past the OTT horsey ride you can see how Kirk and Spock are suffering and that Spock is being forced to nearly kill Kirk. In the next scene Spock nearly loses it. I think its a pretty good episode for Spock. I may be the only one though.

CommishSLeer you would breed with LON SUDER before Paris?!

And I thought I had a Trek pet hate..

If it was Lon Suder I'd have to choose Artificial Insemination in case I looked at him funny.

Actually I don't even dislike Paris. The big question is though who would you pick between Riker and Paris?

 

[Gepard]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

"A Night in Sickbay" is the worst episode of Star Trek ever produced. It absolutely deserves the #1 spot on this list.

 

[Robbiesan]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

I know a lot of people are critical of Plato's Stepchildren because of this scene. Just like I have to look past the Gorn, Mugatu etc. If you look past the OTT horsey ride you can see how Kirk and Spock are suffering and that Spock is being forced to nearly kill Kirk. In the next scene Spock nearly loses it. I think its a pretty good episode for Spock. I may be the only one though.

Actually I don't even dislike Paris. The big question is though who would you pick between Riker and Paris?

Spock was such a unique character of the time period. There were few biracial characters, and because he was, I totally was into every episode. I could completely identify with him.

Still the overacting is not limited to one character. I have no idea what the director was thinking. I get the marionette-like control but honestly, how did they do their parts with a straight face at all? That dance routine by Spock is just jarring.

Riker? You mean RE-Kirk. That's what we called him way back when. It took awhile before the writers gave him any decent lines. He was a complete caricature at first.
...
You know, Patrick Stewart is a trained Shakespearean actor. When he cites "What a piece of work is man...."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irYYBx8djsU

...then he must have inwardly cringed at the writing, for it's supposed to be very ironic and hardly praiseworthy of humanity. He does preface it that way, but I doubt any thesbian of his training would ever make that mistake.

Lots of people take that quote out of context.

This wailing by the Ferengi made me deeply concerned about TNG. I thought, "Oh no. We don't have the Romulans and Klingons...but the Ferengi as a foil? Seriously?" It was so campy. Thank goodness it got better soon after.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4gtPUP5H6o
STTNG The Last Outpost

Am I the only one who thinks this episode was like the campy Batman episodes? The only thing missing is the "Pow".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EEyQIAemn0

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

CommishSLeer you would breed with LON SUDER before Paris?!

And I thought I had a Trek pet hate..

If it was Lon Suder I'd have to choose Artificial Insemination in case I looked at him funny.

But.. the GENES. The serial killing. The eyes!

Actually I don't even dislike Paris. The big question is though who would you pick between Riker and Paris?

I have nothing against Paris though he has no appeal, the question for me would be who would I pick between Suder and Riker.. and much as I loathe that smarmy arrogant git I would have to take Riker because I sure am not going to mix my genes with a serial killer. Bad bad bad.

Paris looks real hot in this conversation.

 

[DS9forever]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

For DS9's worst episode, I would pick "Meridian" over "Profit and Lace". At least Armin Shimerman and the other actors playing Ferengi give good performances; Terry Farrell didn't and I liked her acting for the most part elsewhere in the series.

 

[AgentCoop]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

The worst DS9 episode in my opinion was the one where Worf and Dax go to Risa and Worf joins the Insufferable Killjoys.

"Up The Long Ladder" was a truly embarassing TNG outing.

 

[Greg Cox]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

I barely remember "A Night in Sickbay," which doesn't speak well of it, but which also means that it couldn't have been too jaw-droppingly bad. I find it hard to imagine that it was worse than, say, "The Alternative Factor," Star Trek V, or that dreadful Voyager ep where all the decks got re-arranged by yet another inexplicable space-time anomaly. (I'm convinced the writer of that episode must have gotten lost and disoriented at a Trek convention once and decided that would make good episode!)

I will actually defend the likes of "Threshold" and "Sub Rosa" or "Spock's Brain" on the grounds that they're entertainingly insane. Give me some sublime silliness over something dull and forgettable.

 

[1001001]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

I'm surprised (and disappointed) that Move Along Home didn't make the top (bottom) six. That episode is just terrible.

A Night in Sickbay didn't bother me that much. There were a lot worse episodes than that (IMHO).

Early TNG and Late TOS both had some real clunkers.

As for movies, the only two I can't stand to watch are TMP and Nemesis. TMP is stunningly boring and Nemesis is so bad it makes me angry...

 

[Robbiesan]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

I actually liked Nemesis. It wasn't terrible. As enjoyable and silly as IV was, "Where are the nuclear wessels?" V was just terrible. "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"? Seriously? In that whole film, only a few scenes were memorable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZC_v6BRWPM

Nemesis gave budding actor Tom Hardy a start. He and Linda Park were in a play together shortly thereafter and had a fling.

EDIT: Note that 50 minutes (!!!) of the film was cut, and that this was character dialogue which might have fully explained things. Sounds like the film might be a very different one if ever seen in its entirety.

 

[The Transformed Man]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Any "Worst of" Star Trek list which does not include "The Alternative Factor" is a total joke. By far the worst Trek episode ever... and "Way to Eden" and "Shades of Gray" should be on that list as well.


Yancy

 

[Greg Cox]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

Any "Worst of" Star Trek list which does not include "The Alternative Factor" is a total joke. By far the worst Trek episode ever... and "Way to Eden" and "Shades of Gray" should be on that list as well.


Yancy

Hard to argue with this!

 

[Nightdiamond]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

It seems that episodes with crazy sci fi themes are viewed as the worst.

But I liked Turnabout Intruder. I found it hilarious .
Pretty interesting too.


For TNG, Masks is pretty bad. I simply can't get through that episode.

Add the "Data is having weird dreams" and "the ship is alive" episodes too.

For DS9, The Emperor's New Cloak. It completely ruined the alternate universe concept.


Star trek Movies-- I can't put Nemesis as the worse, but it's close to it, along with Insurrection.

For some reason, I can never get through a single viewing of them, even though I start out watching them from the beginning.

 

[Robert Comsol]

Re: Sfdebris lists his picks for worst Star Trek movies and Tv episode

I wouldn't put ST V on such a list because of all the Trek films it looks to me like ST V still is the only one with a philosophical message in the best tradition of Star Trek:

KIRK: You know that pain and guilt can't be taken away with the wave of a magic wand. They're things we carry with us, the things that make us who we are. ...If we lose them, we lose ourselves. I don't want my pain taken away. I need my pain.

(however it sucks that the only one showing this kind of "awareness" is the great James Tiberius Kirk aka Bill Shatner )

But what about "These Are the Voyages"? IIRC it's a crossover episode that managed to equally disappoint ENT and TNG fans.

RIKER: I think I'm ready to talk to Captain Picard. I should have done it a long time ago. (..."but I'm under orders from Admiral Pressmann not to discuss the issue with the captain." )

Bob