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It's a loaded question, but production order does make more sense, especially with the early episodes. For example, "Where No Man Has Gone Before," the second pilot episode, falls several episodes into the airdate order, even though it clearly takes place before any of the episodes preceding it. Ultimately, though, the episodes are very self-contained and it shouldn't matter too much.
Wecome to the forum, J47. Anybody who wants to watch Star Trek is never a bad person.
I already know I'm going to be a minority of one but I'd watch them in neither order. Things do peter out in the third season. The first season is also definitely stronger than the second season. If you watch the episodes in either production or air date order, you suffer from a deteriorating quality of shows.
Since Star Trek never did any arcs, if I was you, I'd write down the names of all 78 episodes (79 including The Cage) and put them in the proverbial hat. I'd pull a name out of that hat and watch that episode.
I already know I'm going to be a minority of one but I'd watch them in neither order. Things do peter out in the third season. The first season is also definitely stronger than the second season. If you watch the episodes in either production or air date order, you suffer from a deteriorating quality of shows.
Since Star Trek never did any arcs, if I was you, I'd write down the names of all 78 episodes (79 including The Cage) and put them in the proverbial hat. I'd pull a name out of that hat and watch that episode.
It's true that in terms of a viewing experience, it doesn't make much difference. But if you're going to watch them in some particular kind of order, I think the production order makes the most sense. I never understood the fascination with the original airing order.
Enjoy the Trek! I would take issue with calling television in the late 60's a young child... It was over 25 if not 30 years old! The 'golden age' of TV had already come and gone. Sure in terms of its eventual lifespan it was 'only' 25 years old, but let's not pretend like Trek or other shows of the times where like shamen throwing shadow puppets on the cave wall.
Over the years of its syndication we never had a choice but with the disks we do. We watched ours in production order just because we could. I recommend production order.
Welcome to the TOS forum J47. It's good to see you here.
Since I watched the series as it aired originally, airdate order has always made the most sense to me (except for Where No Man Has Gone Before which should be watched first). There's some good arguments in favor of production order though and one of these days I'm going to rewatch the whole series in that order.
Since I watched the series as it aired originally, airdate order has always made the most sense to me (except for Where No Man Has Gone Before which should be watched first). There's some good arguments in favor of production order though and one of these days I'm going to rewatch the whole series in that order.
Color TV was certainly in its infancy then, and much of Trek's design was meant to play up the fact that it was "IN COLOR!"
Regardless of the relative age of television in general, I would advise a newcomer who likely grew up with multiple Trek shows to try to see this show in its historical context, and not judge it by the standards established by later shows that only built upon what the original had established. This was the original, and its appeal as the only show quite like it was obvious for the first 20 years of its existence. I watched other space-based sci-fi/adventure shows as a kid, some over a decade newer...but the original Star Trek was, in those days, the undisputed gold standard of space-based sci fi television. To get corny...this show really was going where no show had gone before.
Syndication success?
When I was a wee lad, I used to be scared of TOS. I confused the premises of Lost in Space and Trek, and thought that the crew had been sent out from current Earth on a five year mission but they got lost and couldn't come back.
I used to cry and think it so unfair that Earth was doing nothing to help them.
Just watch it in the order the episodes are on the disks. It's just easier.
Watching in the order they aired is a nice connection with the past. You are in a way reliving the experience of the original fans and watchers who also watched in this sequence in the days before it was possible to record programmes or buy tape and disc sets. Whichever way, enjoy them!!
Regards
Regards
Nah, it makes you a normal person.
When Trek XI comes out, bet there will be a whole lotta new people watching TOS. That should be interesting. Reactions vary widely, I've found.
Indeed, I either watch what's on the TV or pick and choose from my collection of tapes.
indranee said:
to the OP: please watch them in the order they are in the dvd discs with one exception: Where No Man Has Gone Before needs to be watched before all others.
oh, and welcome to Trek! glad to have you here
Note my colleague specifies "DVD" above. If you're planning to watch the HD-DVD version, as you are probably aware they are not the same episodes that aired back in the 1960s. They've been updated with new special effects, the theme music has been re-recorded (trivia note: the infamous opera singer didn't originally appear on the season 1 version of the theme), and there have also been "revisions" made to some episodes as well which have been documented and debated extensively here and elsewhere.
I leave it to you to judge which version you prefer, but if you want the true Star Trek experience, I recommend watching at least some of the original versions first so you can have a sense of the true history of the series.
In terms of viewing order, I agree Where No Man Has Gone Before should be your first stop since it was the pilot episode, in terms of Kirk and Spock. There is an earlier pilot episode, The Cage, with a different cast, and it's on DVD too, but it's better suited to be watched after you become familiar with the classic TOS crew, and in particular see the episode The Menagerie which incorporates footage from The Cage (but the Cage fits into the continuity on its own, too).
The first regular episode that aired was The Man Trap, but it's not a very strong opening and Roddenberry didn't approve of it being shown first. The first episode filmed was The Corbomite Maneuver and I'd say that should be watched second as it serves as an introduction to some of the supporting cast like Uhura.
I also recommend seeing "Tomorrow is Yesterday" fairly early on as it was the first time-travel episode and the technique used was revisited in a later episode as well as the movie Star Trek IV. It also contains references to an organization called UESPA, predating the decision to establish Starfleet as Kirk's superiors. As noted, there are no real arcs to worry about, but some of the backstory did get revised and tweaked as the episodes progressed.
After that, it's pretty much catch-as-catch-can. The Menagerie is the only 2-parter to worry about. Try to watch the iconic The Trouble with Tribbles later in the viewing (preferably after you've watched all of season 1) as it's funnier if you know the characters better. Avoid episodes like Spock's Brain and the Omega Glory until the end. Those are IMO the show's worst episodes, but it's not too hard to find a list of TOS episodes that are considered the worst by the fanbase (or you can just start a thread here); they're still worth watching, but save them till after you've seen all the good ones. And even in the much-maligned season 3 there were some very good episodes. You can also easily find a list of the episodes widely considered the best and start with them if you want to dive right in at the top.
Cheers!
Alex
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