TOS Analysis (and comparison to TNG)

[Vger23]

So, it's kind of a slow day (muggy and disgusting out...just got back from vacation...etc). I was ranking and analyzing the seasons of TNG and it got me thinking about how I'd compare TNG to TOS. I went and did the same kind of analysis on TOS...and here's how it came out:

Rankings key: 3- favorite/classic, 2- rewatchable/average, 1- not rewatchable

Season 1
The Man Trap 2
Charlie X 1.5
Where No Man Has Gone Before 3
The Naked Time 3
The Enemy Within 2
Mudd's Women 1
What Are Little Girls Made Of? 2
Miri 1
Dagger of the Mind 2.5
The Corbomite Maneuver 3
The Managerie pt1 3
The Managerie pt2 3
Conscience of the King 2
Balance of Terror 3
Shore Leave 2
Galileo Seven 2
Squire of Gothos 2
Arena 3
Tomorrow is Yesterday 2
Court Martial 1.5
Return of the Archons 2
Space Seed 2.5
Taste of Armageddon 2
This Side of Paradise 2
Devil in the Dark 3
Errand of Mercy 3
The Alternative Factor 1.5
City on the Edge of Forever 3
Operation Annihilate! 2

Average Score: 2.3
(10 favorites, 2 stinkers, 16 re watchable)

Season 2
Amok Time 3
Who Mourns for Adonais? 1
The Changeling 2
Mirror, Mirror 3
The Apple 1.5
The Doomsday Machine 3
Catspaw 1
I, Mudd 2
Metamorphosis 2
Journey to Babel 3
Friday's Child 2
The Deadly Years 1.5
Obsession 2.5
Wolf in the Fold 2
Trouble with Tribbles 3
Gamesters of Triskelion 2
A Piece of the Action 2.5
The Immunity Syndrome 2
A Private Little War 2
Return to Tomorrow 2
Patterns of Force 2
By Any Other Name 2.5
The Omega Glory 2
Ultimate Computer 3
Bread and Circuses 2
Assignment: Earth 2

Average Score: 2.2
(6 favorites, 2 stinkers, 18 re watchable)

Season 3:
Spock's Brain 2
The Enterprise Incident 3
Paradise Syndrome 2
And the Children Shall Lead 1.5
Is There In Truth No Beauty? 2.5
Spectre of the Gun 3
Day of the Dove 3
For the World Is Hollow… 2
Tholian Web 3
Plato's Stepchildren 1
Wink of an Eye 2
The Empath 2
Elaan of Troyius 2.5
Whom Gods Destroy 1.5
Let That Be Your Last Battlefield 2
Mark of Gideon 1
That Which Survives 2
Lights of Zetar 2
Requiem for Methuselah 2
Way to Eden 1.5
Cloud Minders 2
Savage Curtain 2
All Our Yestersays 3
Turnabout Intruder 1

Average Score: 2.1
(5 favorites, 3 stinkers, 16 re watchable)

TOS SERIES ANALYSIS:
Average Episode: 2.17
21 "Favorites" (27%)
7 "Stinkers" (9%)
51 "Rewatchable (64%)

Compare this to TNG...
TNG SERIES ASSESSMENT:
Average Episode 1.96
36 Episodes as "Classics / Favorites" (20%)
41 Episodes as "Stinkers / Not Rewatchable (23%)
98 episodes as "Average/Rewatchable" (56%)

S3 and S5 are the only seasons that touch TOS (average scores for S2 TOS 2.2 and S3 of TOS 2.1, against S3 and S5 of TNG at 2.1 apiece) Nothing comes close to TOS season 1 with 2.3 average per episode, and 10 favorites.

It doesn't surprise me that I rate S2 and S3 of TOS very closely. Many drone on about how awful S3 is. For me, it's virtually indistinguishable from S2. In fact, if you were to eliminate just one or two flubs (Turnabout and Plato probably), it would be better.

 

[StarCruiser]

I might disagree on some of the "stinkers" and the like but, overall - fairly balanced. I do agree that TNG S1 and 2 are not very good and S3 - 4 - 5 picked up the pace a bit.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

I might disagree on some of the "stinkers" and the like but, overall - fairly balanced. I do agree that TNG S1 and 2 are not very good and S3 - 4 - 5 picked up the pace a bit.

TNG, DS9, VOY, and ENT all took a season or more to hit their stride. TOS was good from Day One.

 

[Vger23]

I might disagree on some of the "stinkers" and the like but, overall - fairly balanced. I do agree that TNG S1 and 2 are not very good and S3 - 4 - 5 picked up the pace a bit.

Where do you disagree...? Perhaps I was too harsh!

 

[StarCruiser]

Spock's Brain is pretty much a "1" - hard to watch unless you take it as a comedy episode (does have a few good character moments).

Miri and Who Mourns for Adonis, I generally like better - 1.5-2 on those... Alternative Factor - .5 or less... Just can't stand that one.

 

[Phaser Two]

Where do you disagree...? Perhaps I was too harsh!

I think you did a good job with your rankings. I was happy to see my "non-traditional" faves like FC, WIF, ROA and WOE all earn no less than 2s.

 

[Pauln6]

Yeah, while I disagree with a few of the rankings, I agree with the overall sentiment. TOS started out really strong and gradually got weaker. I think that's typical for largely episodic TV. TNG was more of a bell curve and that's typical of many modern shows that build character arcs but struggle a bit to keep things going after some of them reach fruition.

 

[Steven P Bastien]

When I do rankings, I have to use the following scale because, for me, all Star Trek episodes are rewatchable.

Rankings key: 3- favorite/classic, 2- rewatchable/average, 1- rewatchable/bad

 

[Vger23]

Yeah, while I disagree with a few of the rankings, I agree with the overall sentiment. TOS started out really strong and gradually got weaker. I think that's typical for largely episodic TV. TNG was more of a bell curve and that's typical of many modern shows that build character arcs but struggle a bit to keep things going after some of them reach fruition.

I don't think it "got weaker". I just think S1 was insanely good. The lower-rated seasons of TOS are equal to the highest-rated seasons of TNG.

 

[Vger23]

When I do rankings, I have to use the following scale because, for me, all Star Trek episodes are rewatchable.

Rankings key: 3- favorite/classic, 2- rewatchable/average, 1- rewatchable/bad

That's fair

 

[Ssosmcin]

I don't consider any episode of the original series "un-rewatchable." No matter how bad they might have gotten, there's always something for me to enjoy. Music, performances, direction, whatever.

TNG, on the other hand, was deadly dull at its worst. I almost never go back to it.

 

[johnnybear]

Plato's Stepchildren anyone?
JB

 

[plynch]

I like it.

 

[BillJ]

I'm not much for numerical ratings, that is just a bottomless rabbit hole.

There are probably more TNG episodes that I like vs. TOS episodes that I like, which is due to TNG's higher episode count. But TOS is like a drug, and I keep coming back to it again and again.

 

[Phaser Two]

Numerical rankings have their uses. But I also agree with @Steven P Bastien that all episodes of Star Trek are rewatchable, even my least favorites such as The Alternative Factor and The Enterprise Incident. I have not rewatched Plato's Stepchildren in a while and I don't remember if I skipped the compelled-torture scenes last time I did.

 

[Steven P Bastien]

Yes, but I have to make a confession. "Plato's Stepchildren" and "And the Children Shall Lead", while rewatchable for me, will only be rewatched by me when it comes on TV. I will never choose those for DVD or streaming, simply because there are better choices. However, when they do come on TV, there is almost nothing else that could come on TV that would make me miss those. Maybe only big events like the Superbowl or other rare spectacle. This gets back to the premise that "even the worst of Star Trek is better than the best of most other things".