Voyager v.s. The Next Generation and Deep Space 9

[Lighthammer]

I don't think it's really fair to compare the series. They all had their strong points, they all had their weaknesses. They all had really good episodes, they all had bad episodes.

Why isn't it? I think it was a series of progression (no pun intended). I truly feel like we consistency got progressively stronger stories the longer Trek was going on. I also feel like we (collectively as fans) also got collectively more critical too, and on many points some of criticism was very fair and on some points it wasn't.

Watching the series for tried and true progression, Enterprise was better then Voyager which was better then DS9 which was better then TNG which was better TOS.

They all have their memorable points. They all have things we love about each series. They all have things we hate about the series. I won't deny that there are prejudices each of us have that will elevate one series above another, but really, I think its hard to objectively say strictly from a technical stand point, the newer the series, the better it is with one important caveat: Robert Picardo made a very good point in "The Captains (2011)" when he said no Star Trek series really got good until mid way through season 3; that was when each series really started to find itself. TNG, DS9, Voyager and Enterprise all have that one episode right around season 3 where everything all of a sudden seems to finally work.

Honestly, after hearing that and really seeing it in action after thinking long and hard about it, I've always wondered how much better Star Trek TOS may have been after season three if it would have gotten four more seasons. Heck, I'll admit, I keep wondering how much better Enterprise would have been. Season 4 was really, truly, the best Star Trek ever seen on screen IMHO. I dare dream how cool seeing the Romulan War on screen and the formation of the Coalition of Planets would have been.

 

[jaz'a]

I vote "voyager".. I'm not sure if I voted it was the best of the three, or the worse. The poll is a little confusing.

For me it's simple - whilst there are some voyager episodes I struggle to watch, there are far more DS9 episodes that I couldn't sit through and I haven't found a single TNG episode that I've been able to watch. In the case of the latter I don't think it is because TNG was a bad show, just that it has aged really badly. Whereas with DS9 and Voyager I don't have that issue.

As for DS9 been unwatchable... Jadzia Dax. I couldn't stand that character, and it turned me off the entire show. It was until season 7 that I could really enjoy it and one season isn't enough to get me over the line. Yet, I really love the idea of the trill. I think well done, it could give a character real complexity but I didn't feel that with Jadzia.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Jadzia grew on me from utterly meh to a good character to bounce Quark, Bashir and (in a slashy way) Kira off of. Grew on me over multiple rewatches so it took a while.

Ezri was enchanting from day one.

 

[jaz'a]

I am starting to rewatch DS9 from season 1. Only half a dozen episodes in, but I haven't turned it off mid episode yet. There are so many fans of it, I figured I should give it another go and since I have recently hooked up with netflix, it doesn't cost me anything. Maybe she will grow on me.

Ezri I absolutely loved and I wish we had more than one season with her.

No Janeway though, so every DS9 episode has a few Voyager in between - Trek without Janeway is just missing something for me.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

- Trek without Janeway is just missing something for me.

You are obviously a person of excellent taste.

 

[Relayer1]

There are several reasons for my choice.

Cast - I like all of the major characters and cast members on TNG and DS9. I can't get on with Janeway and Tuvok in Voyager and aren't that keen on Kes, Paris and Torres. Neelix was annoying too but Ethan Phillips is such a great actor that he grew on me. DS9 also had the advantage of a stellar supporting cast with Dukat, Garak, ROM, Nog etc. DS9 for me.

Writing - all had duff episodes but overall TNG and DS9 were well written. DS9 particularly so. Voyager just...wasn't. DS9 again for me.

Format - TNG and Voyager were episodic. DS9 had a great story arc and was in many ways deeper and thus more mature. Voyager was ideal for a strong arc and some sort of continuity and they threw it away. No damage from episode to episode, little mention of integration problems with the Maquis, replicator rationing while running the holodek, infinite shuttles etc. etc. DS9 again.

I'm a Niner...

 

[KaraBear]

I vote "voyager".. I'm not sure if I voted it was the best of the three, or the worse. The poll is a little confusing.

For me it's simple - whilst there are some voyager episodes I struggle to watch, there are far more DS9 episodes that I couldn't sit through and I haven't found a single TNG episode that I've been able to watch. In the case of the latter I don't think it is because TNG was a bad show, just that it has aged really badly. Whereas with DS9 and Voyager I don't have that issue.

As for DS9 been unwatchable... Jadzia Dax. I couldn't stand that character, and it turned me off the entire show. It was until season 7 that I could really enjoy it and one season isn't enough to get me over the line. Yet, I really love the idea of the trill. I think well done, it could give a character real complexity but I didn't feel that with Jadzia.

I didn't care for Jadzia either. She was too perfect, knew everything, all the men were in love with her. It was annoying

I felt bad for the actress that played Ezri, so many fans gave her a hard time because she replaced a loved character. But I loved Ezri, I felt for her. She had a really difficult time. Not being prepared to get the trill, dealing with memories from the past hosts, being back on DS9 wher she knows everyone, remembers being married, but nobody there knows who she is

 

[Bad Thoughts]

As for DS9 been unwatchable... Jadzia Dax. I couldn't stand that character, and it turned me off the entire show. It was until season 7 that I could really enjoy it and one season isn't enough to get me over the line. Yet, I really love the idea of the trill. I think well done, it could give a character real complexity but I didn't feel that with Jadzia.

I didn't care for Jadzia either. She was too perfect, knew everything, all the men were in love with her. It was annoying

I felt bad for the actress that played Ezri, so many fans gave her a hard time because she replaced a loved character. But I loved Ezri, I felt for her. She had a really difficult time. Not being prepared to get the trill, dealing with memories from the past hosts, being back on DS9 wher she knows everyone, remembers being married, but nobody there knows who she is

I admit that was originally taken with Terry Farrell: she was stunning without being overtly sexual. Consequently, I gave her a pass. Now, I see how bad of an actress she is. Except with her repartee with Michael Dorn, she was almost always outclassed. Only in Rejoined did she outperform her partner.

Nicole de Boer was a far better actress, more full of life, but she stepped into an impossible situation. There wasn't enough time to flesh out the character. Even introducing Ezri in Season 6 would have been more successful.

 

[dub]

"All of the men" were not in love with Jadzia. I was in love with Kira.

 

[KaraBear]

"All of the men" were not in love with Jadzia. I was in love with Kira.

haha, I meant all of the men on the show. In fact most of the guys I know in real life prefer Kira

 

[dub]

"All of the men" were not in love with Jadzia. I was in love with Kira.

haha, I meant all of the men on the show. In fact most of the guys I know in real life prefer Kira

I know what you meant, silly! But all men were not in love with Jadzia. Just Quark, Bashir and Worf. But Quark and Bashir also had a number of other flings throughout the series. In a way each of them were ladies' men. So the fact that they drooled over Jadzia was not surprising. It also added some comic relief in my opinion, and also highlighted the loneliness of those fellows. Worf and Jadzia complimented each other surprisingly well. And thank God for Worf coming to DS9, because I think that was the last piece of the puzzle that really brought some personality out in Jadzia. They were opposites in many ways, and that worked really well on screen (for me). I agree Jadzia was among the weakest of the characters (development-wise) early in the series. I think they all started loosening up quite a bit around season 3. But yes, Jadzia took more time to fully "get there" than some of the other characters. You might even say the same about Sisko. Somehow removing all of that facial hair really did something for the character and the actor. LOL! They were smart to actually take some time to develop Ezri from the start when she joined the series even though she was only there for one season. Some fans complain about the Ezri-centered episodes breaking up the momentum of the big serial story that was going on. But after re-watching, I think that was a really smart move on the part of the writers. Otherwise Ezri would just be..."meh."

But in response to the original question, I don't think it could ever be settled and I certainly don't think it would be settled in this forum with a poll that puts DS9 with TNG (two very different shows) against VOY, again a very different show. I think we all have our ranks of the shows, and that's fine. Each show has its own flavor.

 

[DigificWriter]

Deep Space Nine is my absolute favorite of the 5 Star Trek series, but Voyager is a close second. Even though it didn't live up to the absolute maximum of its potential due to decisions made behind-the-scenes, it is and was still a solid series that couldn't have been done as it was without Deep Space Nine and the ways that that series changed the 'Star Trek formula'. Voyages seems on the surface to be a return to the TOS/TNG standalone formula at first glance, but what it actually does is merge that formula with the heavily serialized formula of DS9 to create a hybrid approach that works very well for a series that's about a single ship stranded thousands of light-years from home.

 

[Finn]

What one could do is have six study viewing groups, of perhaps 100 each. They must not have seen any Trek, preferably not having heard of it if possible (all 600 of them).

Each group should have the same or similar ratio of education, identity, upbringing, backgrounds, etc (as similar as possible)

Each group will view each series in different order

1. TNG-DS9-VOY
2. TNG-VOY-DS9
3. DS9-TNG-VOY
4. DS9-VOY-TNG
5. VOY-TNG-DS9
6. VOY-DS9-TNG

I have a feeling the results might be interesting, depending on how the data is collected for each group