Game The Most Disliked Episode Written By Joe Menosky

[Seven of Five]

The Fight is nonsensical, and also a boring watch, so I'm glad it won.

Though, I guess even though it's a dud, at least it tried to be something, like a lot of Menosky's episodes.

 

[Farscape One]

The idea of Chaotic Space is intriguing. I think it's the execution that let this one down.

I was not... hooked. (Yes, I did a boxing pun.)

 

[Oddish]

Not counting Voyager, since every episode of that show was just about equally terrible, I'll go with "Hero Worship" from his TNG/DS9 oeuvre. Man, that one was a stinker!

I actually liked "Hero Worship". I'll take it over cringe like "In Theory" any day.

 

[Farscape One]

I can never call a Data centric episode 'cringe'. It is against my very being.

Some are better than others, obviously... but I will take a not-so-awesome Data episode over many others any day, and three times on Sunday.

Side note: regarding "In Theory", I always thought it was pretty good. And the quick little horror shot of the crewman stuck between decks... space is quite dangerous. Always loved that one.

 

[Qonundrum]

I can never call a Data centric episode 'cringe'. It is against my very being.

Some are better than others, obviously... but I will take a not-so-awesome Data episode over many others any day, and three times on Sunday.

Side note: regarding "In Theory", I always thought it was pretty good. And the quick little horror shot of the crewman stuck between decks... space is quite dangerous. Always loved that one.

In Theory is one of my least Data-centric story, but it's not without its moments and I'd put it over many others too. In context, I like or love most Data stories, especially in the first few years - to the point I almost prefer him as the Pinnochio-like being instead of "I am an android" in season 3 onward.

 

[Crewman6]

I actually liked "Hero Worship". I'll take it over cringe like "In Theory" any day.

They're both bottom-rung Data episodes, but In Theory had a much more interesting premise that was at least occasionally interesting.

Hero Worship was part of Season 5's awful streak of kid-centric episodes that were absolute crap, which included "New Ground", "Cost of Living", "Imaginary Friend" and a piece of "Disaster" (although Disaster was the least egregious of them.)

"Hero Worships"'s biggest crime was just being so mind-bogglingly boring.

 

[Oddish]

Hero Worships"'s biggest crime was just being so mind-bogglingly boring.

Maybe, but that kid did a pretty mean Data impression.

It would have been nice if they told us what happened to him, though... sent to live with relatives on Earth, stuck in Federation orphanage, traded to the Aldeans for specs on their planetary shield, whatever.

 

[Crewman6]

Maybe, but that kid did a pretty mean Data impression.

It would have been nice if they told us what happened to him, though... sent to live with relatives on Earth, stuck in Federation orphanage, traded to the Aldeans for specs on their planetary shield, whatever.

What?? Follow up in TNG? Surely you jest!

Just throw him on the pile with Jeremy Aster, Mirasta Yale, Barash/"Jean-Luc" and countless other dangling one-offs.

 

[Farscape One]

Ironically, I can see a justification for TNG having more one-off characters than even TOS.

In TOS, Kirk's Enterprise mission was going further out than most of Starfleet. They went back within their territory on occasion, but it seemed like they were in the frontier. Basically, much more reason to see characters come back again and again if they were on the ship.

In TNG, the Federation has expanded to be a MUCH larger area, with many more starbases, outposts, colonies, etc. to drop off the characters like Jeremy Aster, Mirasta Yale, Barash, and the rest. It's easy to see the Enterprise making a rendezvous with another ship or place and drop them off to continue their life.

The one series that should never have had one-off characters on the ship was VOYAGER. Even ENTERPRISE could get away with it occasionally because they were not decades away from home.

DS9 actually had the best balance... a huge amount of recurring characters, with some memorable (and some not so memorable) one-offs in the mix. A space station on the edge of the wormhole... you can easily have one or the other without a problem, but they managed to do both very, very well.

 

[Crewman6]

In TNG, the Federation has expanded to be a MUCH larger area, with many more starbases, outposts, colonies, etc. to drop off the characters like Jeremy Aster, Mirasta Yale, Barash, and the rest. It's easy to see the Enterprise making a rendezvous with another ship or place and drop them off to continue their life.

That was literally Captain DeSoto's entire career! Federation Lyft driver.

 

[Sakonna]

I've been trying to motivate myself to watch "The Fight", as that's where the Delta Flyers pod is at this week and I'm rewatching along. But I just can't get into it!

It's funny, season 5 of Voyager is when I first started drifting away and missing episodes, and the same thing is happening with this pod rewatch. I had no trouble keeping up with a weekly Voyager episode for the first 4 seasons, but now that we're in season 5, I find myself failing to keep up with it for the first time. This year of Voyager really breaks the Trek spell for me somehow. Too many pointless Boothby cameos, is that what my breaking point was?

"Unimatrix Zero, Part II" was the 2020 winner of this game.

Next up: "The Most Disliked Episode Directed By Allan Kroeker" Hope to see you all there!

MOST DISLIKED WINNERS, 2022
MAJEL BARRETT APPEARANCE: TOS, Season 3: "And The Children Shall Lead"
'HEY, THIS PLANET IS JUST LIKE EARTH!': TOS, Season 3: "Plato's Stepchildren"
ROMULAN: TAS, Season 2: "The Practical Joker"
DIRECTOR WINRICH KOLBE: TNG, Season 5: "The Masterpiece Society"
5TH SEASON: TNG, Season 5: "The Perfect Mate"
ROMANCE-OF-THE-WEEK: TNG, Season 6: "Aquiel"
KLINGON: TNG, Season 6: "Birthright, Part II"
DIRECTOR CLIFF BOLE: TNG, Season 7: "Liaisons"
DIRECTOR LES LANDAU: TNG, Season 7: "Dark Page"
WRITER RONALD D. MOORE: TNG, Season 7: "Journey's End"
7TH SEASON: TNG, Season 7: "Firstborn"
HOLIDAY: DS9, Season 3: "Meridian"
CARDASSIAN: DS9, Season 6: "Sons & Daughters"
MIRROR UNIVERSE: DS9, Season 6: "Resurrection"
FERENGI: DS9, Season 6: "Profit And Lace"
COMEDIC/LIGHT-HEARTED: DS9, Season 6: "Profit And Lace"
JEFFREY COMBS APPEARANCE: DS9, Season 7: "The Emperor's New Cloak"
WRITER JOE MENOSKY: VOY, Season 5: "The Fight"
HOLODECK: VOY, Season 6: "Spirit Folk"
MAQUIS: VOY, Season 7: "Repression"
BARCLAY: VOY, Season 7: "Inside Man"
2-PART/DOUBLE EPISODE: VOY, Season 7: "Flesh And Blood"
RECYCLED TITLE: ENT, Season 1: "Terra Nova"
VAUGHN ARMSTRONG APPEARANCE: ENT, Season 2: "Shockwave, Part II"
DIRECTOR DAVID LIVINGSTON: ENT, Season 3: "Harbinger"
SEASON PREMIERE: ENT, Season 4: "Storm Front, Part I"
EVERY 47TH RELEASE: ENT, Season 4: "Storm Front, Part I"
VISIT TO EARTH'S PAST: ENT, Season 4: "Storm Front, Part II"
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER'S 100 BEST EPS: ENT, Season 4: "Home"
TIME TRAVEL/TRAVELER/LOOP/ANOMALY: DIS, Season 2: "Perpetual Infinity"
FEMALE DIRECTOR: DIS, Season 2: "Perpetual Infinity"
SEASON FINALE ANTAGONIST: DIS, Season 2: Control
DIRECTOR JONATHAN FRAKES: DIS, Season 3: "There Is A Tide..."
47TH EPISODES: DIS, Season 4: "The Examples"
4TH SEASON: DIS, Season 4: "The Galactic Barrier"
4TH & 7TH EPISODES: ST, Season 2: "Ask Not"
TREK NOIR: PIC, "Broken Pieces"
CAST CROSSOVER: PIC, "Et In Arcardia Ego, Part 1"
GUINAN: PIC, "Monsters"
BORG/XB: PIC, "Mercy"
Q: PIC, "Mercy"
COUPLE: LD, Carol Freeman/Admiral Husband
REGULAR CHARACTER: PRO, Drednok

TOTAL SHOW WINS
SNW & Movies: 0 wins
TAS, ST, LD & PRO: 1 win each
TOS: 2 wins
VOY & PIC: 5 wins each
DS9 & DIS: 6 wins each
ENT: 7 wins
TNG: 8 wins

 

[Oddish]

in TNG, the Federation has expanded to be a MUCH larger area, with many more starbases, outposts, colonies, etc. to drop off the characters like Jeremy Aster, Mirasta Yale, Barash, and the rest. It's easy to see the Enterprise making a rendezvous with another ship or place and drop them off to continue their life.

I know that. And I could totally see why Timothy would leave the Enterprise. In this universe where dying at 100 is dying young, the boy probably has living grandparents (or even great grandparents), and maybe aunts and uncles as well.

But couldn't they have told us, in the episode's denouement?

 

[Farscape One]

They could have and TNG has been guilty of that here and there, but VOYAGER is even more guilty of not putting in simple dialogue to resolve things.

 

[Oddish]

VOYAGER is even more guilty of not putting in simple dialogue to

You're preaching to the choir on that one!