If you could make ONE change to each trek series...

[BigJake]

Are the holodeck episodes really that much worse than "Roman Planet" or "Gangster Planet" or "Western Planet" from TOS?

They basically were TNG's versions of those episodes, but done with less excuse (TNG had big enough budgets that it didn't need to go there) and an arguably lamer pretext (holodeck malfunctions were such a regularity that it was amazing they were allowed within ten parsecs of a starship).

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Are the holodeck episodes really that much worse than "Roman Planet" or "Gangster Planet" or "Western Planet" from TOS?

They basically were TNG's versions of those episodes, but done with less excuse (TNG had big enough budgets that it didn't need to go there) and an arguably lamer pretext (holodeck malfunctions were such a regularity that it was amazing they were allowed within ten parsecs of a starship).

Basically, indeed (yes) and definitely (yes).

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Some more changes I would make:

TOS - Replace Ensign Chekov as Navigator with Ensign Ilia.

TNG - Replace Doctor Pulsaki permanently with Doctor Selar.

DS9 - Either keep Opaka on the series for a little longer, or have her return whenever Sisko had an Orb experience / Prophet encounter.

VOY - (Totally agree with making it serialised and having repercussions for the ship/crew, so taking that as a given...) Kill Chakotay off and have Tuvok become the new XO, with Ayala taking over at Security.

ENT - Don't hire Scott Bakula.

 

[dub]

DS9 - Either keep Opaka on the series for a little longer, or have her return whenever Sisko had an Orb experience / Prophet encounter.

Yes to both of those ideas! Or perhaps make her death a mystery in an early or mid-season episode (make it a real death), keep bringing her back in visions, then in a later season episode reveal that Winn killed her.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

DS9 - Either keep Opaka on the series for a little longer, or have her return whenever Sisko had an Orb experience / Prophet encounter.

Yes to both of those ideas! Or perhaps make her death a mystery in an early or mid-season episode (make it a real death), keep bringing her back in visions, then in a later season episode reveal that Winn killed her.

Opaka is dead? I believe she's still alive in the Gamma Quadrant. On the other hand, I would have welcomed a more robust recurring role.

 

[dub]

Opaka is dead? I believe she's still alive in the Gamma Quadrant.

Sorry, yes - poor choice of words. Though she might as well be dead. She's stuck on that planet with those annoying people. If she leaves, she dies.

 

[Captain Rob]

^^ That statement would seem to apply to all of us.
Given current technology. If we leave, we die.
And boy is there alot of annoying people here.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

And boy is there alot of annoying people here.

Yes. Yes there are

 

[T'Girl]

While we're at it, can we do something about BeLanna's hair?

 

[Clark Terrell]

While we're at it, can we do something about BeLanna's hair?

What's wrong with her hair?

 

[ALF]

TOS: Another season.
TNG: Another season.
DS9: Ro Laren as a major character (but not replacing Kira).
VOY: Replace the entire cast, minus the Doctor.
ENT: Another season.

 

[T'Girl]

For the majority of the shows run, Belanna's hair was "helmet hair," it had no style or personality.

 

[Clark Terrell]

TOS: Another season.

I'd have been in favor of this if they'd shown the end of the five-year mission and the Enterprise's return to Earth. It would have been a cool setup for TMP.

TNG: Another season.

I'm sorry, but I don't agree. TNG's seventh season was extremely weak compared to the previous three or four. "All Good Things..." was a great finale, but the series itself was on its last legs. Another season may have killed the show and made films impossible.

DS9: Ro Laren as a major character (but not replacing Kira).

I like this idea. But would you have given Ro a role similar to what she had in the re-launch novels, or would she have been a member of the Maquis?

VOY: Replace the entire cast, minus the Doctor.

I'd have gotten rid of Beltran, Wang and Phillips, all of whom irritated me to no end. But I love Kate Mulgrew as Janeway despite how poorly her character was written. The same goes for Robert Duncan McNeil as Tom Paris, probably my favorite character of the series. I also like Jeri Ryan a great deal despite her being overused compared to the rest of the cast. It's not her fault she's a beautiful woman or that TPTB wanted to use her to market the show.

ENT: Another season.

If and only if they did the Romulan War.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

VOY: Replace the entire cast, minus the Doctor.

I'd have gotten rid of Beltran, Wang and Phillips, all of whom irritated me to no end. But I love Kate Mulgrew as Janeway despite how poorly her character was written. The same goes for Robert Duncan McNeil as Tom Paris, probably my favorite character of the series. I also like Jeri Ryan a great deal despite her being overused compared to the rest of the cast. It's not her fault she's a beautiful woman or that TPTB wanted to use her to market the show.

The only characters I'd want to see being retained would be: Janeway (written and developed consistently), Tuvok (probably the best Vulcan), Torres (a refreshing take on Klingons), Paris (he was pretty inoffensive during the show) and Kes (I will never forgive the PTB for axing her). Chakotay and Kim were just dullness personified, the EMH was just hammy and far too convenient to have around, Neelix was grating, and Seven was just tiresome and also made things far too easy for them.

 

[JiNX-01]

TOS: Much less womanizing for Kirk (or at least have McCoy giving him shots for VD occasionally.)

TNG: A LOT LESS "perfection" within the main cast. People getting along all the time is boring.

DS9: Skip season one (snore) and go straight to season two.

VOY: In episode one marry off Neelix and Kes and send them off on a really really really long honeymoon.

ENT: Cast Connor Trinneer as captain.

 

[Pauln6]

I think for all of them I would have a slightly larger recurring cast but with fewer of the recurring characters appearing in each episode to mix up relationships, politics, and attitudes more and maybe kill off a few recurring characters as they went i.e.

1. TOS - keep using Rand and use other characters more and more often as a focus for aspects of the plot like first half of season one.
2. TNG - keep using Tasha, Ro, Vash, Tomalok etc
3. Go bak in time and kill whoever thought it was a good idea for Kai Winn to shag a Pah wraith.
4. Chell & the dodgy Maquis, the twins, keep Kes around until Year of Hell
5. Keep using Shran etc more like the fourth season.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

One change I would make to the universe in general is I would make it so the transporter only works if there's a physical transporter fixture on both ends.

The transporter is one of those story-breaking technologies where they have to constantly make excuses why you can't just use it and end the story, and substitutes technobabble solutions for dramatic action solutions. Limiting its reach would eliminate the need for a lot of excuses not to use it and create a lot more dramatic endings.

Kind of like Stargate had those epic ground battles at the gate, Star Trek would have to have more of those instead of just "I finally cut through the interference captain! I've got him!"

 

[Clark Terrell]

One change I would make to the universe in general is I would make it so the transporter only works if there's a physical transporter fixture on both ends.

I agree with this and find that the transporter becomes an all too convenient escape hatch for the characters when they get into trouble. I can accept that there may be auxiliary transporter circuits on the bridge or elsewhere that enable other forms of site-to-site transport, but the use of these mechanisms should come at the cost of considerable power loss.