Consensus fan favorite series

[Plomeek Broth]

Hypothetically if you had to rank the series popularity from most to least from what every Trek fans thoughts were on the matter and average all of the opinions out, what would the ranking be most popular to least popular?

Not what is your personal ranking of the series best to worst but what if you had to guess the average consensus from all fans on the matter.

If I had to guess- correct me if you think I'm wrong

TNG - golden age of Trek

TOS - most iconic one that started it all

DS9- seems to be most critically acclaimed in retrospect, great story arcs and acting and darker more realistic themes (my favorite series)

VOY - TNG Lite - seems like a wasted opportunity in regards to general storyline that could have been much stronger than reboot episodes every week . Should have been long story arcs about the entire journey. Thought some of the acting on this one was weaker too. Except EMH and Seven

ENT - Don't know why this one gets such a bad rap. It looks stunning and it's pre Trek so it's not going to be the same and feel exactly the same by default.

TAS- Figured I would throw in here. Due to being animated not as much of a hold over fandom.


Bonus

Films

TOS films - captured the best of the crew and several of them really hit the mark as broad appeal big time Hollywood popcorn films with magic and wonder

NuTrek - Films look the slickest. Can't imagine these on the small screen.

TNG - crew was best on small screen when they could be more cerebral and not become massive rifle wielding action heroes.

What are your thoughts?

 

[MacLeod]

I don't think we'll ever get a consensus on which is the best series. So many factors come into play :-

Which show was your introduction to ST.
Demographic(s)

That being said I think I would rate DSN as the best of the Trek shows. Sure like the other shows it had it's good episodes and it's not so good episodes. But it added so much to the Universe of Star Trek, it explorded the Klingons, Cardassians, Bajorans etc.. Now of course that wasn't to some peoples tastes which is fair enough.

I would rate S1-2 of ENT and VOY as some of the weaker entries into Star Trek. They basically took the TNG formula and rehased it. Barely adding anything new. Same old stories that we had already seen before, and during the mid 90's or so Sci-Fi shows were in the in thing and I'm sorry to say that some of them where at least tryng to put a new spin on an old stroy. They might fail but at least they tried. It might have been down to network interferrence but they played it to safe.

 

[F. King Daniel]

My thoughts are that "consensus" and "(Star Trek) fans" have no place in the same sentence.

TNG was very highly rated, Enterprise the opposite. The 2 new movies have made the most money, Nemesis was a complete flop. But as to which were better... you'll never find agreement.

 

[sonak]

well, it's a cinch that it's either TOS or TNG. VOY and ENT don't enter the conversation. DS9 has a very vocal fanbase for favorite series, and might even win on THIS board, but again is not in the conversation for favorite among all fans.

From 1990-early 2000s, I would have said it was TNG. Now I might say TOS.

 

[Dale Sams]

Yeah if you held a gun to my head and said, "Who wins a worldwide poll tomorrow!"

TNG
TOS
VOY
DS9
ENT

Im putting DS9 below VOY because I think if you polled *everyone*, a lot of people would say "Enh. I never watched that. I caught a little of VOY, it was okay."

 

[MacLeod]

When I attended some ST (and other)conventions back in the 90's. DSN seemed to win out as favourite when you asked other fans for their favourtie ST show. Unless the convention was say specifcally a VOY convention.

 

[Greg Cox]

You're never going to get a consensus. There are too many generations and different flavors of Trek out there by now. People who grew up on the TNG-era stuff are going to have a very different perspective from us older fans who grew up on TOS and don't automatically think of TNG as "the golden age of Trek."

And, trust me, a few years from now there's going to be an entire generation of Trekkies for whom the new films are the "real" Trek . . .

 

[Dale Sams]

I think an interesting poll would be, "If you pulled up a random episode of each series, which is most likely to keep you entertained." For me, TNG would not fare well in that poll.

 

[1001001]

This board tends to favor DS9, but that's not my experience out in the real world.

I would say either TOS or TNG is the most popular, but that's just a guess.

 

[Ethros]

I would imagine TNG to be the most popular. As I could see reasons why certain fans may dislike ENT, VOY and DS9. And maybe more younger fans, ie those who didn't grow up with it, find it hard to get into TOS.

Whereas in regards to the franchise and not the show, TNG just is 'Star Trek' really.




Although as Wayne Campbell said...
"Ah yes, it's a lot like "Star Trek: The Next Generation". In many ways it's superior but will never be as recognized as the original."

 

[Plomeek Broth]

Why do most people rate Voyager over ENT?

 

[Smellmet]

Difficult one this as the series span over so long a time and are in several 'flavors' so to speak. As a fan since the late 70's I would say that DS9 was the best series, but then you could argue if it was that popular why didn't it get 4 movies made lie TNG did? TOS started it all, Voyager had it's moments, and like Enterprise I think it's underrated, but by the time Voyager came along the franchise was heading for over saturation and ultimately stale-ness which is what almost killed the franchise entirely by the time Nemesis hit the screen.

For all the haters I at least think JJTrek is trying to inject a sense of TOS-style escapist adventure back into the franchise, and is steering clear of the technobabble from Berman Trek which was one of the things that were dragging it down in the end.

Star Trek is like a buffet and I like to dine out on it all...

Gun to head though and series wise it's
DS9
TNG
TOS
VOY
ENT

 

[Smellmet]

Why do most people rate Voyager over ENT?

Being honest, I still haven't seen the final series of Enterprise and only half of season 3, that's the only reason I've got it bottom, I't simply the least familiar to me

 

[MacLeod]

Sure if we are talking in general audiance rather than fan (which was the question asked) then TOS and TNG would know doubt win. They simply had greater popularity amongest the general audiance.

 

[Ethros]

For me ENT s1&2 and ENT s3&4 are almost two different shows, thus in my 'Top 4' Treks look like this
DS9
ENT 3&4
TNG
ENT 1&2


Probably VOY after that, it's a close call though with the above. ENT 1&2 isn't amazing, but at least it felt like it was going somewhere, whereas VOY had a few great episodes, generally it just always felt like a 7 year disappointment

 

[Greg Cox]

Whereas in regards to the franchise and not the show, TNG just is 'Star Trek' really.

Let me guess. You didn't grow up in the sixties or seventies, right?

Like I said, this is a generational thing. Nobody my age is likely to concede that "TNG" trumps everything else.

Don't get me wrong. I watched all the latter-day shows religiously, too, but TOS is Star Trek to me. Just like TNG is to you.

 

[LOKAI of CHERON]

I don't believe there's any particular data set/statistics on the subject - but certainly - if we're talking about public awareness in "popular culture", TOS is comfortably king IMHO. TNG has a fair level of "penetration" (LOL) for sure, but not on the scale of TOS - and possibly, it's been on a backward slide recently.

Reference fans, I'd say it's close run thing between TOS/TNG - with a vocal and hardcore DS9 minority as others have stated. It's difficult to make a meaningful case for VOY/ENT!

 

[The Lensman]

Whereas in regards to the franchise and not the show, TNG just is 'Star Trek' really.

Let me guess. You didn't grow up in the sixties or seventies, right?

Like I said, this is a generational thing. Nobody my age is likely to concede that "TNG" trumps everything else.

Don't get me wrong. I watched all the latter-day shows religiously, too, but TOS is Star Trek to me. Just like TNG is to you.

Yep, 'cause I'm your age and I find the statement that "TNG is 'Star Trek'" beyond laughable. It's like saying Captain Marvel is more Superman than Superman.

The television show that was called "Star Trek" is Star Trek, in more than just name. It had a certain feel that defines it and defined it for almost twenty years before there was a spin-off.

Because Star Trek meant Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and the Enterprise.

I enjoy the spin-off's in varying degree's, but none of them are more "Star Trek" than the source material.

 

[Gotham Central]

I think that amongst fans generally, it tends to be a tossup between TOS and TNG. Which comes out on top is usually determined by age over anything else. Amongst "hardcore" Trek fans, DS9 tends to come out on top because it was the one that played the most with the established Trek universe and brought new ways of storytelling and washed away some of the sheen of "utopian perfection" the dominated TNG (giving it a more TOS realness).

Voyager and Enterprise tend to be more niche shows. Those that choose it as their favorite seem to be younger and newly introduced to Trek. Voyager tends to have a disproportionate number of female fans compared to the other shows.

 

[nightwind1]

TOS
TNG
DS9
ENT
VOY