Ooh tough one.
Although my top choice is a no brainier.
1. TOS - season one is just classic after classic, and has an atmosphere of adventure, freshness and excitement that was rarely matched in later Trek. It’s not just great Trek, it’s truly ICONIC television history. I love it and have watched it more than any other Trek.
2. DS9 - I’m going with DS9 even though they had a couple of stinkers (“The Passenger” is far worse that “Move Along Home”, which is at least kind of entertaining) and, for a while, a notable lack of energy and drive. It boasts the greatest pilot of any Trek show (Emissary is better than many of the Trek movies IMO), even if, afterward, it kind of spends a while trying to find its own identity and style. By the season end, however, we got two knockout and incredibly mature, sophisticated and beautiful episodes which elevate the entire season. “Duet” deserved an award; it was a phenomenal piece of television.
3. DSC - sorry, not sorry! despite the outcry and deluge of hate, this made me excited for Trek for the first time in nearly two decades. It has ambition, edge, a thrilling pace and it takes chances, even if it doesn’t always entirely gel together. Lorca was fucking fantastic and I enjoyed the twist-based nature of the plot. I hate the Klingon redesign, although it’s not a deal killer for me, and I wish the producers hadn’t watered things down with each subsequent year. The show would lose its edge and bold energy somewhat. For all the behind the scenes chaos it’s amazing to me this season was as enjoyable as it was.
4. TNG - yeah, I know objectively season one is all over the map, with some really terrible episodes and stilted characters, but, as with DSC…I LOVE the freshness, the boldness, the sense of edge which faded with later, more “comfortable” seasons. The music is fantastic still! Maybe I partly love it for nostalgic reasons too; along with TOS, it’s part of my “comfort Trek” viewing.
5. PRO - I’ve yet to rewatch this and I was sceptical at first (it initially has the look and feel of a Star Wars spin-offs, not Trek) but this show’s first season is compelling, charming, funny, sweet and the serialised plot arc is handled adeptly. I found myself growing fond of the characters and looking forward to more. While they aren’t very good at human faces (that’s meant to be Chakotay? That’s …Jellico?!) much of the animation is beautiful to look at. Good music too.
6. PIC - I never quite got the hate for s1 because for me, it was an enjoyable ride from the very start. I found s1 audacious, bold and filled with potential, most of which was sadly not to be realised (with a cast that was basically ditched by the end of season two and season three being a completely different—albeit better—series in my view). This felt like prestige tv Trek, with some cool new characters and an intriguing premise. I was hooked. Things did falter midway through. I still hate “Stardust City Rag” and find it horribly bleak and gratuitously violent. The death of Hugh is was a sore point and the Borg were utterly wasted. The planet of androids was a goofy concept better suited to TOS style, yet I still found the Picard/Data scenes utterly moving in the finale and didn’t find the AI plot as objectionable as others. In all, I was satisfied.
7. SNW - I’m currently rewatching season one, and, halfway through, it’s reinforcing my mixed feelings about this show. On the whole I definitely like it, I love the casting and it has buckets of confidence and panache right out of the gate. It is also refreshing to get back to the episodic format. I do find it has pacing issues (some episodes drag, frankly) and an unfortunate tendency on the part of the writers to simply riff on (or remake) past classic episodes, and the tone doesn’t quite sit with me; a little too MCU, and “quippy”. Less smug quips and more original storytelling and I’ll be happy going into season two. I’ll see how my opinion changes as I finish my rewatch (and get through the two stinkers, “Serene Squall” and “Elysian Kingdom”).
8. VOY - actually a decent enough first season, if not spectacular. There are some good offerings and it does succeed in conveying a tone of danger and desperation. The characters are mainly fine at this point, yet something just doesn’t quite ignite for me. While a rewatch last year made me appreciate this show a little more, it’s still hampered by its tendency to simply be TNG 2.0. It had so much potential but they dial it right back in the final scene of the pilot where they give the Maquis Starfleet uniforms (what if they didn’t WANT those institutionalised pyjamas?). Much potential that was only sporadically realised.
9. ENT - some good ideas, and I initially had some hope for this show, but, man, it’s a slog. I rewatched the first season about ten years ago and just couldn’t make it onto the second, which I recall getting even more boring. It’s pretty basic and dull as Trek goes; it’s the weakest set of characters Trek ever gave us and the creative team were just clearly burnt out by this point. There is potential and some good moments, but it’s not something I’d care to rewatch again.
10. LDS - i was initially excited about this show, as Futurama is one of my all time favourite shows and I thought this might be Trek’s answer to that. Unfortunately, the humour was rather too hyperactive and obnoxious for my taste, and I found Mariner absolutely insufferable in the earlier episodes. The show is curious thing; a parody that doesn’t quite know it’s a parody. The show does improve, and I watch it, but sometimes not until days or weeks have passed after a release. I’m delighted so many fans love it, but this is a curious beast I still don’t quite know how to place it in Trek lore. I’m glad it exists, but it’s not quite for me.
