I will concede the bigger, but not necessarily better.
How do I start my roommate on Star Trek?
- Thread starter Jimmy_C
- Start date
I agree with a lot of what has already been said. Show an episode based on what your roommate already likes, maybe pick an episode with an actor he likes, etc. I wouldn't show him a really silly episode to start off with; Trouble with Tribbles would be good, but probably not something like Spock's Brain unless he's into camp.
Also, it probably isn't a good idea to show an episode with a whole lot of complicated back story; if your friend is overwhelmed or confused (or bored), then he might not want to watch any more.
Also, it probably isn't a good idea to show an episode with a whole lot of complicated back story; if your friend is overwhelmed or confused (or bored), then he might not want to watch any more.
Look people are shallow. I speak about my husband specifically here. He wants to see the new special effects and whizz bangery.
He goes look at the hair in TNG or look at the special effects in TOS and that guy with the yellow eyes and says that obviously a person - he's got wrinkles, and laughs.
Once we reel him in (with the pretty lights) he'll eventually want stories with depth. OK he's not all that shallow so maybe he'll like some of the older shows.
At least thats my opinion. It really depends on the room-mates
Yeah, sometimes you have to go with what works. The way I got a couple of friends to sit down and watch all 13 episodes of I, Claudius was by asking them if they wanted to see Captain Picard with hair and wearing a "Roman miniskirt". Their reaction was "YEAH!!! 
"
Of course they had to see the episodes that came previous to Stewart's, since otherwise the story wouldn't make much sense. Then we got bogged down in an argument over whether all of Jesus' life happened between 1 BC and 1 AD (after I mentioned that Augustus had died in 14 AD, the Crucifixion happened during Tiberius' reign, and she claimed the math didn't add up...).
"Of course they had to see the episodes that came previous to Stewart's, since otherwise the story wouldn't make much sense. Then we got bogged down in an argument over whether all of Jesus' life happened between 1 BC and 1 AD (after I mentioned that Augustus had died in 14 AD, the Crucifixion happened during Tiberius' reign, and she claimed the math didn't add up...).
I would not start someone off with VOY, its a decent idea badly executed. Janeway is irregularly written, Chakotay is a bore, Tuvok is underused, Paris is sort of just 'meh', Torres was never properly used, Kim was a bigger bore than Chakotay, the EMH hams everything up, Neelix is irritating, Kes never had a chance, and Seven dominated the series (and not in a good way).
ENT is also another series I'd avoid introducing someone to Trek, even with the vast improvements made in S3/4.
Though it may look dated, you kinda need to start with TOS, be sure to put the series in its proper context though. Then go onto the movies and series from there.
The problem with DS9 is their fanbase like it for all the different reasons, it ought to have been its own regressive themed wartime in space TV series. A bit like Babylon 5 I guess.
Trek in its most accessible glory is with TOS, 1 hour episodes that give you sci fi, action, adventure - if a new viewer can enjoy or atleast tolerate TOS for all its strengths and weaknesses then they can watch another rather than be forced to put up with Klingon blood honor one week, and cheesy banter between Quark and Odo on another.
Put on STAR TREK and the image sells ...
Wait? What? He doesn't like Action, and Science "technobabble"? But he loves Literature? Is he gay?
Sci-Fi Action is my favorite genres of all time. Most of my movie/TV collection is a mixture of those two genres.
If he doesn't like the science or the action aspect of any of these, it's hard to see how he could enjoy any sci-fi action. The only reason why he got into BSG is the human drama of it all. It was more or less a soap opera set in space.
But why would he be scared to watch sci-fi? Is he afraid to learn something?
I thought you were past making this kind of trolling comment - I guess not. Infraction for trolling - any relevant comments regarding this action may be addressed via PM.
All I can go by is my own experiences. My very first ST episode ever was "By Any Other Name", back in 1975. TAS wasn't available in my area at the time, so I had limited options. I remember not wanting to watch ST at the time - I thought it was stupid (a guy with pointed ears? Come on!), but my grandfather told me to sit down, shut up, and watch - or leave. So I stayed, and by the end of the episode, I figured, "Hey, this wasn't so bad after all."
I watched some more episodes - they were on 5 days a week, and I had the choice of 4:30 from Calgary or 5:00 from Edmonton. As a result, it took a couple of years before I finally got to see the first half of "Conscience of the King". It's a good thing the show wasn't serialized or full of arcs, since the episodes were shown pretty much at random. I'd have given up in frustration and never even cared about constantly missing the first half of one of them.
The thing is, back then there really weren't very many serialized shows that weren't soaps. Soaps, I understand. Some storylines take decades to play out, which is why I went on a crash course of General Hospital this summer and watched about 3 years' worth in 4 months. There were so many references to past characters and events in the current storylines, I was getting rather lost.
I never saw Babylon 5 until it was in reruns (mainly because the local channel that aired it kept moving it all over the place and I gave up trying to keep up). But when I finally was able to see the whole series - in the proper order - I really enjoyed it.
If you're trying to interest someone in your favorite TV show - and it's serialized (or at least contains various story arcs), it's important to be able to show the episodes in order and have them available. It saves a lot of time that would otherwise be spent answering questions!
My experience with Trek newcomers is that younger males are easier to hook with DS9, older people or people who want to watch with their girlfriends are easier to hook with TNG. So I'd go with DS9, it has a lot of things in common with Battlestar Galactica which he already likes.
When I wanted to hook a friend on Stargate I started with Shades of Grey. I would start with an early episode that stands on its own, but is also one of the really good ones. Then if he likes it he'll be motivated to start at the beginning. (Ooh. THE VISITOR! Perfect intro ep.)
Or, another friend of mine who got into Trek on his own, he started by watching TNG with his girlfriend. Then when he was away from his girlfriend he powered through DS9 and said he liked it more.
But I have never met a person apart from this board who likes Voyager.
When I wanted to hook a friend on Stargate I started with Shades of Grey. I would start with an early episode that stands on its own, but is also one of the really good ones. Then if he likes it he'll be motivated to start at the beginning. (Ooh. THE VISITOR! Perfect intro ep.)
Or, another friend of mine who got into Trek on his own, he started by watching TNG with his girlfriend. Then when he was away from his girlfriend he powered through DS9 and said he liked it more.
But I have never met a person apart from this board who likes Voyager.
Not all Voyager fans come here, y'know. Some of them aren't into forums at all.
Yeah, but you'd think out of all the people not on this board I've ever spoken to who are fans of TOS, TNG, and/or DS9, at least one of them would express some kind of fondness for Voyager.
Heck, my 58 year old mother who hates dark TV shows and is not fond of serialization got into DS9 this year, and she said she 'Didn't like what she saw of Voyager'.
Come to think of it, the episode of Stargate that I consider the best recruiting material has the same name as the episode of Star Trek that is the worst recruiting material.
Heck, my 58 year old mother who hates dark TV shows and is not fond of serialization got into DS9 this year, and she said she 'Didn't like what she saw of Voyager'.
Come to think of it, the episode of Stargate that I consider the best recruiting material has the same name as the episode of Star Trek that is the worst recruiting material.
The only Star Trek my brother likes is VOY, my son's best-friends Mother, her ex and new partner all like VOY the best (the DVDs were part of the divorce settlement). My husbands friends wife loves Janeway, the young girl who works in the bookshop tells me she loves VOY. Some of them also like DS9.
The guys I know who like TNG are older. No-one I know (not through a board) likes TOS the best.):
The guys I know who like TNG are older. No-one I know (not through a board) likes TOS the best.):
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