What are your controversial Star Trek opinions?

[CorporalCaptain]

Mayweather has no arc over the course of the show. Who he is in episode 1 is who he is in the final episodes.

He has a definite arc in "Horizon", one of building a bridge between himself and his family.

Controversial opinion: "Horizon" is in the top ten episodes of ENT.

Also in the top ten:

"Azati Prime"
"In a Mirror, Darkly", both parts
"Dead Stop"
"Carbon Creek"
"Twilight"

I'll leave three wild cards for now.

 

[kkt]

Well, that's gonna depend on what the adjective modifying the noun is gonna be, isn't it?

When you say "Federation ambassador," do you mean "Ambassador of the United Federation of Planets to X," or do you mean, "Ambassador of Federation Member X to the United Federation of Planets," or do you mean, "Ambassador of Non-Federation State X to the United Federation of Planets?" Because that's gonna tell you who the ambassador works for.

Like, I think we can all agree that the ambassador of a foreign state to the Federation has no authority over Starfleet. Similarly, I have a lot of trouble imagining that the ambassador of a Federation Member State to the Federation would have authority over Starfleet, because ultimately, that ambassador does not work for the Federation -- they work for the individual Federation Member rather than the UFP as a whole.

To me, it makes far more sense to assume that only ambassadors of the Federation itself would have any legal authority over Starfleet, in specific circumstances. And I think it makes sense that in an interstellar state where real-time or near-real-time communication with the Federation government is not always possible, the Federation might legally empower some of its ambassadors to make certain foreign policy decisions on behalf of the Federation in specific circumstances.

In "A Taste of Armageddon" Kirk must have had orders from Starfleet Command to carry Ambassador Fox to Eminiar VII and put the Enterprise at his disposal as they try to open diplomatic relations. An ambassador is just another civilian passenger, with no authority to divert the ship from its planned duties, unless there's orders to that effect from Starfleet.

 

[Oddish]

Controversial opinion: "Horizon" is in the top ten episodes of ENT.

It's actually pretty decent, yeah. And cements Mayweather as the most competent person in that crew. Not only did he placate the Kreetasians and fly the shuttle pod to Mars when the autopilot went, but he also turned his brother's firefighter's wimpy plasma cannon into pirate-smashing death rays!

 

[kkt]

That's why DS9 should have had an eighth season, to have that finally happen. As well as other loose ends.

In any case, I wonder why things were that bad to begin with. For instance, in "Rivals", when Quark was talking about the orphans not having blankets. Maybe the Federation couldn't easily address a global famine, but you can't tell me that they couldn't have handled a few thousand blankets!

Wait, you're gonna use Quark as a trustworthy source?

 

[kkt]

Behr got a lot right. He developed his characters, even the ones who were starting to slip into the background. And he brought background characters into the foreground, too. And his promotions were exactly as they should have been.

But he did make a few mistakes. Having the Ferengi alliance basically transformed by one person. Introducing Section 31 and then ONE EPISODE LATER ignoring their existence. Invalidating Dax's death by bringing up a replacement one episode later. So, just because he thought Bajor shouldn't have joined the Federation didn't mean he was right.

There was no stardate mentioned in "Inquisition" so if you'd like you can adopt the head canon that it took place after "Pale Moonlight"

 

[kkt]

The way they did it was all right. That they did it so soon, and that they had to do it at all... those are the things I have issues with.

It made sense to me. The writers know they're only going to have one season with Ezri so they want to start developing her character right away. The natural start is showing her confusion as a result of being joined without preparation.

 

[kkt]

You forgot make money.

Making money is just a means to the ends.

 

[kkt]

This is just a fact.

TMP and TWOK are the indispensable duo. The are The Corbomite Maneuver and The Doomsday Machine.

I like "Corbomite" and "Doomsday Machine" better than any of the movies.

And TSFS is kind of like having a sequel to Casablanca in which Rick decides to join forces with Major Strasser - let's completely ignore the wisdom of the previous film.

 

[kkt]

O’Brien made a terrible Klingon. He looked like the ultimate village idiot of Qo’onos!

It worked well enough for the job...

 

[Oddish]

There was no stardate mentioned in "Inquisition" so if you'd like you can adopt the head canon that it took place after "Pale Moonlight"

 

[Macintosh]

I always thought Mayweather should have been an older character. Maybe a Boomer captain who’d lost his ship and joined up with Starfleet.

Wasn't that actually the original outline for the character? Or am I conflating multiple things?

I think what isn't a controversial opinion is that Enterprise was a brilliant concept, let down by flawed execution.

 

[Richard S. Ta]

Controversial Opinion -

Despite misgivings, overall I do quite like ENT.

 

[Tallguy]

Controversial opinion: I like when other people like things. Whether I like them or not.

I just don't like it when people make things that I want to like and I don't like them. But I guess it's OK if other people like them.

 

[fireproof78]

I don't feel any need to want to like something. If I like it, then great. If not, then also great. There's plenty more things out there to enjoy. I can want to like something all day long but my mind probably won't change that necessarily.

 

[BillJ]

I just don't like it when people make things that I want to like and I don't like them. But I guess it's OK if other people like them.

I just dislike when I'm told I should like them.

 

[Tallguy]

I just dislike when I'm told I should like them.

I HATE that!

 

[fireproof78]

Controversial opinion: no one should like anything. At all.

 

[Ovation]

Controversial opinion: William Shatner is the second best director of the TOS films and number one is NOT Nicholas Meyer. (Robert Wise is the best one.)

Note: best direction DOES NOT mean best story/script. Nor does it mean best special effects.

 

[cooleddie74]

Shatner did have an amazing eye for colors, picture composition and texture. TFF is a beautiful film to look at.

 

[jaime]

Wise, Shatner, David Whothisface on Generations, then Frakes. Meyer/Nimoy jostle for mid-tier, and Baird is def last.

Edit to add: Shatner also cast *extremely* well, with not one dud.