The Least Disliked Episode 2023: DISCO Season 2

[BlueStuff]

Our addictive biyearly game of rapid elimination returns - now with more shows than ever. It's generally a lot of fun, providing a chance to mentally revisit those episodes you may not have thought about in a while. With that in mind, why not play again?

So, here's the game. The basic idea is your standard elimination game. I'll provide a list of the episodes for each season and you need to eliminate your least favourite or the one you deem the 'worst.' Please provide an EXPLANATION for why you are eliminating your choice and be sure to copy and paste the list with your choice removed. Finally, leave at least 2 eliminations by other posters before you eliminate another episode.

No tactical voting! You cannot remove an episode just because you feel it would threaten your preferred episode's chance to win. Pretty simple. Enjoy!

Star Trek: Discovery
Hall of Champions
2019 - Project Daedalus
2021 - If Memory Serves
2023 -

Season 2

Brother
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
The Red Angel
Perpetual Infinity
Through the Valley of Shadows
Such Sweet Sorrow (I)
Such Sweet Sorrow (II)

 

[Farscape One]

Until PICARD season 2, this was easily the worst season of the franchise. Frankly, Pike was the only really good thing about the season.

So my first elimination is "The Red Angel".

Holy hell, the whole Red Angel thing was such a mess. And I'm not even sure if it's this one or "Perpetual Infinity" I am trying to eliminate because I don't even remember which scenes were in which episode. So I'm going by airdate order because I know it's one of these two.


Brother
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Perpetual Infinity
Through the Valley of Shadows
Such Sweet Sorrow (I)
Such Sweet Sorrow (II)

 

[Seven of Five]

I love the first two-thirds of the season, but the Red Angel arc just sort of tanks it all. Such Sweet Sorry )I) is such a dumb episode.

Brother
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Perpetual Infinity
Through the Valley of Shadows
Such Sweet Sorrow (II)

 

[Sakonna]

I easily consider "Perpetual Infinity" the worst piece of Star Trek every produced. We are up to 887 installments of Trek now, and if you ranked them in terms of quality "Perpetual Infinity" is my only candidate for slot #887.

Already eliminated "The Red Angel" gets slot #886, BTW.

I don't consider this Trek's worst season (that's Enterprise season 2). There's a lot of great stuff in this season. It's just that the one two punch of "The Red Angel" and "Perpetual Infinity" is the lowest low Trek has yet sunk to. What a grim nadir.

Brother
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Through the Valley of Shadows
Such Sweet Sorrow (II)

 

[Farscape One]

Thanks for saving me the trouble of taking out "Perpetual Infinity".

My next elimination is the finale, "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part II".

It was just too busy, and deeming everything 'classified' is a rather cheap reason for the lack of knowledge of the spore drive and Spock's sister.


Brother
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Through the Valley of Shadows

 

[Vger23]

Until PICARD season 2, this was easily the worst season of the franchise. Frankly, Pike was the only really good thing about the season.

So my first elimination is "The Red Angel".

Holy hell, the whole Red Angel thing was such a mess. And I'm not even sure if it's this one or "Perpetual Infinity" I am trying to eliminate because I don't even remember which scenes were in which episode. So I'm going by airdate order because I know it's one of these two.

EDIT: Correction @Farscape One I had it wrong too!






I feel weird doing it, but I'm going to take out "Brother."

While I don't dislike it, I don't think it was a great season opener. It spent too much time on the "space jump scene" (which we'd seen already in Star Trek 2009, Star Trek Into Darkness and in The Vulcan Hello) and intro of Jet Reno, and not enough time on setting up the key plot points.

What's Left:
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Through the Valley of Shadows

I'm kind of surprised at people's reactions to these episodes. I think S2 of DSC is quite strong. I rewatched it a few months ago and it was better than I remembered. Yes, there's the mid-season jolt, but it's actually kind of amazing things hold up as well as they do given all the behind scenes drama. I think they pulled a rabbit from a hat on this one.

 

[Farscape One]

The Red Angel was the episode where Ariam dies and they beam over to the defunct S31 headquarters.




I feel weird doing it, but I'm going to take out "Brother."

While I don't dislike it, I don't think it was a great season opener. It spent too much time on the "space jump scene" (which we'd seen already in Star Trek 2009, Star Trek Into Darkness and in The Vulcan Hello) and intro of Jet Reno, and not enough time on setting up the key plot points.

What's Left:
New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Project Daedalus
Through the Valley of Shadows

I'm kind of surprised at people's reactions to these episodes. I think S2 of DSC is quite strong. I rewatched it a few months ago and it was better than I remembered. Yes, there's the mid-season jolt, but it's actually kind of amazing things hold up as well as they do given all the behind scenes drama. I think they pulled a rabbit from a hat on this one.

Actually, "Project Daedalus" was the one Airiam was killed. I remember this because that and only 3 other episodes this season I really liked. (I am happy that all are still in the game currently.)

 

[Vger23]

Actually, "Project Daedalus" was the one Airiam was killed. I remember this because that and only 3 other episodes this season I really liked. (I am happy that all are still in the game currently.)

Correct, I had confused it because the funeral was in TRA episode. I corrected my original post a few min ago.

 

[Sakonna]

Speaking of “Project Daedalus”, that’ll be my next elimination. Killing Airiam was a mistake. If nothing else, I needed the visual interest she provided on this bridge crew overstocked with regular humans.

And I find the episode too manipulative for my tastes.

I also love how they hyped this as the first all-female Trek away mission, for it to then be the most disastrous one we’ve seen since “Skin Of Evil.”

if they were going for female empowerment, maybe cut the leader becoming so hysterical she becomes incapable of doing her job.

New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves
Through the Valley of Shadows

 

[Farscape One]

Speaking of “Project Daedalus”, that’ll be my next elimination. Killing Airiam was a mistake. If nothing else, I needed the visual interest she provided on this bridge crew overstocked with regular humans.

And I find the episode too manipulative for my tastes.

I also love how they hyped this as the first all-female Trek away mission, for it to then be the most disastrous one we’ve seen since “Skin Of Evil.”

if they were going for female empowerment, maybe cut the leader becoming so hysterical she becomes incapable of doing her job.

You know, there were actually all female away teams before.

"THE SIEGE" - Kira and Dax (though it was a specific mission to find a sub-impulse raider.)
"THINK TANK" - Janeway and Seven.

Not to mention a lot of single person away teams, like Torres in "DREADNOUGHT" or Janeway in "SACRED GROUND" when she was going through the ritual. (And going back with Kes to heal her, so that's another two female away team.)

 

[Seven of Five]

Through the Valley of the Shadows is the continuation of the Control crap. I did enjoy the Pike stuff on Boreth, but it's not enough to save the rest of the episode.

New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
Light and Shadows
If Memory Serves

 

[Farscape One]

Taking out "Light and Shadows".

This seemed like a tedious episode, with all the scenes with Ash and Section 31.


New Eden
Point of Light
An Obol for Charon
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
If Memory Serves

 

[Sakonna]

"An Obol For Charon" This level of closeness between Saru and Burnham hadn't been dramatically earned yet -- not even remotely. Disco does have a bad habit of telling us development it should instead be showing.

New Eden
Point of Light
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
If Memory Serves

 

[Seven of Five]

Point of Light continues Ash's pointless S2 arc and should have been dispensed with after his story concluded in the first season.

New Eden
Saints of Imperfection
The Sound of Thunder
If Memory Serves

 

[Sakonna]

Oh man I looooooove "Point Of Light." The staging of those convos between Burnham and Ash! Incredible!

 

[herofhyrule]

Of the four remaining episodes, I find that "Saints of Imperfection" is the weakest. It's not bad, the other three are just better.

New Eden
The Sound of Thunder
If Memory Serves

 

[Sakonna]

I'll eliminate "The Sound Of Thunder." I like it, but the scripts of the other two are much tighter.

"The Sound Of Thunder" does have that crazily sloppy ending. The Kelpiens used to be the predators, so obviously that's the correct order of things, we'll just flick a switch and instantly make them all that again! What could possibly go wrong?

New Eden
If Memory Serves

 

[Seven of Five]

I'll eliminate New Eden then which I would have eliminated sooner as I love The Sound of Thunder. The Kelpian arc, and Saru in particular have been real highlights through the show's run.

If Memory Serves is just perfection. The sequel to The Cage all of these years in the making. Magical.

 

[Vger23]

It would appear that the best episode definitely won this round!