Vger23 is ultimately right, there is no point in being offended - certainly after a certain point. They're just stories, fiction, based loosely on real life and are left open to interpretations.
The offense, as I'd see it, might be more related to story ideas let down by poor execution or construction and not living up to their potential or wallowing in stereotypes.
"Code of Honor" and "Justice" are both extremely racist and overly simplistic in their approach. I do imagine how CoH wouldn't have been blinked at if the Ligonians were all white, so there's a lot more going on than just the basic script - audience perceptions also being an issue and I try to find other points of view. And the basic idea of people living by a code, utterly, is actually an interesting one - and actually shows how Picard is the one who has no honor, in this and other episodes since Picard violates the prime directive (PD) numerous times - along with the "reinterpretation of the week" that goes along with the PD that Picard makes at the time.
Still, can anybody attempt to say Jessie Lawrence Ferguson didn't steal the show as Lutan? He's a great actor who made a two-dimensional role far better than what was on paper.
And depending on source, Russ Mayberry was fired because he hired all black actors or because he was overtly racist
toward the actors.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_of_Honor_(Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation) cites references to both claims.
As for Justice, it doesn't even cover STDs and other problems that the story should be addressing as produced. What with the
original storyline was about was a society that overdid the death penalty for any crime being the original focus. Rewrites turned the story from that into a brainless, continual orgy between oiled up people (who were all blond haired and blue-eyed so that's no less racist than hiring a bunch of actors who are all black). Add to the fire is how the writing was quick to shove aside any prime directive babble to get Wesley returned to the ship for no reason. The "Edo God" should have destroyed the Enterprise over Picard's antics.
Both stories had interesting plot points but were subverted.
Thankfully there are many season 1 episodes that set the bar higher than those two examples of "epic fail". Which includes "Symbiosis", which is nowhere near as bad as its reputation makes it out to be.
"The Outcast" is claimed by its makers it's about discussing gay people but what's shown on screen is closer to "our society things intercourse is bad so we make everyone in test tubes and use genetic engineering and drugs to prevent "the urges", but some still want to procreate in the old fashioned way". For which Jonathan Frakes himself said the claimed notion of the story would make more sense if the outcast that had the hots for Riker was male (which would still be open-ended enough to write off as any number of possibilities.) Even "Ethics" takes a more solid stance on its controversial points. "Outcast" feels like it belongs in season 1.
"Wolf in the Fold" - an otherwise great story is let down by the flimsy explanation that a bonk on the head led Scotty to become misogynist to the point of multiple premeditated murders of solely women. Yes, they're trying to make Scotty look like the baddie to the audience to get them to believe Scotty might even be responsible but, wow, it doesn't begin to work.
Also wanted to respond to some of these points:
Where to start!
We have Sisko and his war crimes in For the Uniform.
I still have to disagree with that premise. The Maquis are terrorists and already engaged in the same actions if not worse. Sisko couldn't continue to talk. Especially as the alliance with the Cardassians had been more proven at this point and the Maquis were doing what's far worse than "war crimes".
Eddington was the war criminal, wantonly acting in premeditated slaughter, disobeying orders, treason, treating with the enemy (rather directly), and so on.
Up the long ladder - killing is fine, so long as it's your clone. Not to mention the offensive Irish stereotyping.
I forgot about that one. On initial viewing I didn't notice the stereotype of the "drunken Irishman" and even back then I knew my ancestry, which includes Irish blood. Just a guy overburdened with stress who turned to alcohol. The next time I saw the episode, several years had gone by and - woah - I understand the episode is trying to show the same race having diverged culturally to have to work together again, but they did NOT need to resort to such one-dimensional stereotypes.
Killing the clone is mildly bothersome, since it was tantamount to abortion. And until I had read that Eartha Kitt was the product of a rape, my opinions were much different. The decision is still up to the individual (as Troi and Picard both rightly prove), but wow... "The Child" is an impressive episode for what it tackles. But I digress. It is still Pulaski and Riker who kill their own clones. That's fair.
Data’s supposed to be one of the smartest beings in the known universe? So who does he turn to for comedy advice?
Joe Piscopo.
The Okona episode was indeed outrageous - that's what the audience felt while sitting through all 44 minutes of it, for a multitude of reasons.
Elaan of Troyius. Let’s not mince words: this episode is about as sexist, chauvinistic, and borderline racist as original series Star Trek gets. It plays on stereotypes of women in general and Asian women in particular, and it depicts Kirk’s slapping of Elaan as a righteous act.
It's a (then-)modern and partial remake (or at least influenced by) of "The Taming of the Shrew". And rest assured, humans were far more myopic and sexist when the original was written, which was well over 400 years ago. The slap is inappropriate, but that then begs the question what would a person do as a response? If the episode is that bad, how should it be remade as?
Man, I could go on and on with TOS.... here are some fun ones of general sexism:
"Please sit and entertain me" - Khans chat up line in Space Seed
Khan was from another time with another set of beliefs. Add in the magnetism he was said to have as a leader type figure, Khan would say what's needed to win people over. And he had the hots for Marla. Who wouldn't?! (I'm more offended by Kirk shrugging off history so quickly, implying McGivers was useless on the ship only until they found the sleeper ship. Kirk's a real piece on that episode as well, given how he treats her and Uhura. He's arguably more sexist than Khan. )
That, and any actor other than Ricardo Montalban, apart from arguably Roger Delgado, couldn't begin to sell a line that needed confidence and suave magnetism to build supporters with. Not that I'm aware of, anyway - I couldn't see Ashton Kutcher, John Barrowman or Richard Howland acting it right. Yes, that's all typecasting based on known range from the actors brought up. Maybe if there's an audition one could sit through and analyze...
"suspect preys on women because women are more easily and more deeply terrified, generating more sheer horror than the male of the species." - Spock, Wolf in the fold
WitF was sexist for way too many reasons. But at the same time, they're saying this entity also took the form of Jack the Ripper. The treatment of Scotty in the episode seems worse in terms of using stereotypes against women and misogyny.
"The, er, impostor had some interesting qualities, wouldn't you say, Yeoman?" - Spock To Rand after being assaulted by Kirk in the enemy within.
Only Spock could get away with that line, Vulcans don't see things the way others do, not to mention being part human as well. Anyone with multiple backgrounds would. (I'm Irish, Scottish, and British, among others... there's already a plethora of war, conflict, and hatred from those three to those three over the eons. But it's not those eons anymore, long since then. Origins aren't always in direct line toeing with the present. "Evolution" is as much a relevant term as "learning", otherwise I'd feel as torn as a Capulet. Or maybe a Montague? )
Then again, why would a Vulcan mock? If he was not mocking but genuinely wondering in curiosity if Rand had the hots for Kirk in his "bad boy" form. (cue the MGTOW followers who say women prefer the bad boys...)
"That unit is defective. Its thinking is chaotic. Absorbing it unsettled me." - Nomad to Spock
"That unit is a woman" - Spock explaining women to Nomad - The Changeling.
That one is inexcusably offensive. Uhura has been proven competent many times, even told she's the only one who can put things to rights (e.g. Spock to Uhura in "Who Mourns for Adonis", if memory serves, it's been a while but it involved her repairing of the communications equipment... and if Spock couldn't do that since he was otherwise the fix-all-everything-all, that's a big compliment. And needed staff redundancy, Scotty was on the landing party.)
""it's better to be dead than to live alone in the body of a woman." - Janice Lester, Turnabout Intruder.
All the writer needed to do was address Janice's psychiatric illness or radiation poisoning instead of "body of a woman" and the whole issue would have been dealt with before it began. But late season 3 often didn't even try to be progressive. Neither did Nomad.
