TOS Villains: Best and Worst

[Praetor Baldric]

A great plot means a great conflict. A great conflict usually means a great villain. For me, it seems that the better episodes of TOS had a lot to do with how compelling the villain was. Here are my top 5 best and worst TOS villains:

Best:
5. Redjac
4. Gov. Kor
3. Doomsday Machine
2. Romulan Commander (BOT)
1. Khan

Worst (5 = least bad or most tolerable, 1 = please die now):
5. The Earps
4. The Gorn
3. Romulan Commander (TEI)
2. The Providers
1. Gorgon

I left out characters like Mudd, Cyrano Jones, the Squire, and Charlie X (all of whom I thought were great) because I have trouble classifying them as "villains." I see them more as nuisances that Kirk and company had to overcome as opposed to forces that intentionally sought to antagonize them out of pure malice and/or political reasons.

How about your list?

 

[TheSubCommander]

Have to agree with you mostly on Best 4, disagree on #5...
5. The Gorn
4. Gov. Kor
3. Doomsday Machine
2. Romulan Commander (BOT)
1. Khan

Worst (5 = least bad or most tolerable, 1 = please die now):
5. Landru
4. Dr. Sevrin
3. The Excalbians
2. Gorgan (Melvin Belli)
1. Dr. Janice Lester

 

[CaptPapa]

My favorite/best villians . . .

5 - Doomsday Machine/Nomad/M5/Gorn

4 - Henoch/Losira/T'Pring/Trelane/Balok

3 - Romulan Commander(BOT)/Romulan Commander(TEI)/Kor/Lenore Karidian

2 - Mirror Spock/Evil Kirk

1 - Khan

As for the other part, I don't care for 'worst of' anything lists regarding Star Trek

 

[BillJ]

Best:

1. Romulan Commander - Balance of Terror
2. Pro-Counsel - Bread and Circuses
3. Captain Ron Tracy - The Omega Glory
4. Gorn Commander - Arena
5. Anan VII - A Taste of Armageddon

 

[Praetor Baldric]

My favorite/best villians . . .

5 - Doomsday Machine/Nomad/M5/Gorn

4 - Henoch/Losira/T'Pring/Trelane/Balok

3 - Romulan Commander(BOT)/Romulan Commander(TEI)/Kor/Lenore Karidian

2 - Mirror Spock/Evil Kirk

1 - Khan

As for the other part, I don't care for 'worst of' anything lists regarding Star Trek

Ah, you're cheating! But seriously, I feel you on this. I should clarify that when I talk about "the worst of anything" to do with TOS, keep in mind that I am discussing it within the context of TOS which, because I consider it to be the most awesome show in TV history, any of its "worst of's are absolutely stellar compared to what can be found in any other program.

 

[FormerLurker]

Villains like the Gorgan and Janice Lester had the misfortune of being in badly written episodes. Imagine if "And the Children Shall Lead" had been written by Theodore Sturgeon. How badass would the Gorgan have been then?

 

[CaptPapa]

My favorite/best villians . . .

5 - Doomsday Machine/Nomad/M5/Gorn

4 - Henoch/Losira/T'Pring/Trelane/Balok

3 - Romulan Commander(BOT)/Romulan Commander(TEI)/Kor/Lenore Karidian

2 - Mirror Spock/Evil Kirk

1 - Khan

As for the other part, I don't care for 'worst of' anything lists regarding Star Trek

Ah, you're cheating! But seriously, I feel you on this. I should clarify that when I talk about "the worst of anything" to do with TOS, keep in mind that I am discussing it within the context of TOS which, because I consider it to be the most awesome show in TV history, any of its "worst of's are absolutely stellar compared to what can be found in any other program.

I couldn't help it, I had to list more than five.
As for the worst of _____ , if I go there, I try something like 'least favorite'. I know, pretty silly, but . . . . .
I'm pretty much with you on TOS, but as for the other series, and the reboot for that matter; to each their own. They're not wrong, just different.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Best:

1. Romulan Commander - Balance of Terror
2. Pro-Counsel - Bread and Circuses
3. Captain Ron Tracy - The Omega Glory
4. Gorn Commander - Arena
5. Anan VII - A Taste of Armageddon

Great list! I was thinking of Tracy for my own top 5, since he--as a starship captain--was a pound for pound match for Kirk in almost every way--only he was utterly malevolent.

With that said..

1. Kor - Errand of Mercy
2. Khan - Space Seed
3. Captain Tracy - The Omega Glory
4. Dr. Tristan Adams - Dagger of the Mind
5. Romulan Commander - Balance of Terror

Honorable mention:

1. Kang - Day of the Dove
2. Romulan Commander - The Enterprise Incident
3. Mirror Sulu - Mirror Mirror

Worst:

1. Parman - Plato's Stepchildren. Pissy and self-absorbed is best played by Dr. Zachary Smith.

2. Sevrin - The Way to Eden. Fringe/cult leaders--not compelling. He was annoying.

 

[publiusr]

Redjak and the entity in Beyond the Farthest Star for best.

 

[ToddPence]

BEST

1. Khan, "Space Seed"
2. Kor, "Errand of Mercy"
3. Kang, "Day of the Dove"
4. Tracy, "The Omega Glory"
5. Garth, "Whom Gods Destroy"

Honorable mention to the Romulan commanders of both "Balance of Terror" and "The Enterprise Incident"

WORST

1. Gorgan, "And the Children Shall Lead"
2. The evil Lazarus, "The Alternative Factor"
3. Kras, "Friday's Child"
4. Korob, "Catspaw"
5. Plasus, "The Cloud Minders"

 

[JRoss]

Best:
5. Excaliban evil team
4. Planet Killer
3. Mark Lenard's Romulan
2. Khan
1. Kang

Worst
5. Kor
4. That guy who framed Kirk
3. That mind-switchy lady
2. Sylvia and Korob
1. Gorgon

 

[Praetor Baldric]

WORST

1. Gorgan, "And the Children Shall Lead"
2. The evil Lazarus, "The Alternative Factor"
3. Kras, "Friday's Child"
4. Korob, "Catspaw"
5. Plasus, "The Cloud Minders"

When I was a boy, I thought that Plasus was played by Art Carney of Honeymooners`fame!

 

[mach7]

For the best

Kahn
LORD Garth
Gorn
Romulan Commander (both)

Worst

Janice Lester
Janice Lester
Janice Lester
Janice Lester
The Gorgon

 

[AtoZ]

Best:

1. Romulan Commander - Balance of Terror
2. Pro-Counsel - Bread and Circuses
3. Captain Ron Tracy - The Omega Glory
4. Gorn Commander - Arena
5. Anan VII - A Taste of Armageddon

 

[Gary7]

Funny how the Gorn made it in people's "best" list. I didn't really care for the outlandishly fake looking lizard incarnation, and the repetitive "clearing of the throat" type bellow from it was silly, but what really spoiled it for me was the narrow mindedness... attacking an outpost without fully understanding the capabilities of your potential enemy, and not even trying a diplomatic approach first ("hey, this planet is ours so you need to leave"). It could have been a basic message first, then after a few months of pause with no sign of the humans leaving, THEN attack.

Anyway, I'm also of the camp that I enjoyed most of the villains and would find it hard to pick a top 5. It's far easier to pick the failures.

Worst:
1. Gorgan, "And the Children Shall Lead"
2. The evil Lazarus, "The Alternative Factor"
3. Dr. Janice Lester
4. Lt. Cmdr Finney
5. Dr. Sevrin

 

[BillJ]

Funny how the Gorn made it in people's "best" list. I didn't really care for the outlandishly fake looking lizard incarnation, and the repetitive "clearing of the throat" type bellow from it was silly, but what really spoiled it for me was the narrow mindedness... attacking an outpost without fully understanding the capabilities of your potential enemy, and not even trying a diplomatic approach first ("hey, this planet is ours so you need to leave"). It could have been a basic message first, then after a few months of pause with no sign of the humans leaving, THEN attack.

But we simply don't know that they didn't attempt communications first. It may have been something that the colony on Cestus III didn't recognize as a message.

 

[Gary7]

Survivor: "They came in space normal speed, using our regular approach route, but they knocked out our phaser batteries with their first salvo. From then on we were helpless. [..] They poured it on, like, like phasers, only worse, whatever they were using. I tried to signal them. We called up. Tried to surrender. We had women and children. I told them that! I begged them! They wouldn't listen. They didn't let up for a moment."

So pretty obvious that they made themselves known before the attack. And the starbase was defenseless after only the first salvo took out the base phaser batteries. There was no need to continue destroying, and yet they did. I don't know how the communication issues were, if they understood or not, but the universal premise of respect for life is not hard to appreciate and follow. They could have taken prisoners. The indigenous population wasn't military but civilians, so there was no need to wipe them out. To me that depicts a ruthless bloodthirsty species.

GORN [OC]: You were intruding! You established an outpost in our space.
KIRK [on viewscreen]: You butchered helpless human beings
GORN [OC]: We destroyed invaders, as I shall destroy you!
MCCOY: Can that be true? Was Cestus Three an intrusion on their space?
SPOCK: It may well be possible, Doctor. We know very little about that section of the galaxy.
MCCOY: Then we could be in the wrong.
SPOCK: Perhaps. That is something best decided by diplomats.
MCCOY: The Gorn simply might have been trying to protect themselves.

KIRK: No. No, I won't kill you. Maybe you thought you were protecting yourself when you attacked the outpost.
(He throws the dagger away, stands up and shouts to the sky)

Meh... that was a pretty weak argument. "Protect themselves?" No, it was the territory they were seeking to protect. No Gorn lives were threatened or lost. They could have taken out the phaser batteries, landed, then forced everyone to leave the planet in whatever vehicles they had. But that isn't their way. A question of civility.