I grew up on Trek. TNG, DS9, Voyager and Enterprise. I've only watched a handful of TOS, it just doesn't appeal to me. While I'm looking forward to Into Darkness, it is the TV shows that embody what Star Trek is all about.
You could say that these shows are the television equivalent of Pearl Jam for me. TNG would be my 10, DS9 my No Code or Binaural, Enterprise my Riot Act. Voyager.... well...it's got it's moments. Maybe Backspacer. I want to say Creed but I actually like Voyager.
DS9 is my favorite of the group. Once Sisko shaved his head and grew the goatee in Season 3 it was on! It was also one of the first television shows to have story arcs throughout multiple episodes and have an overreaching arc for the series as a whole. It really kept me on edge for the next episode. DS9 gave us Gul Dukat, Odo, the Wormhole, the Gamma Quadrant, the Dominion Wars. It made the Ferengi into a viable race. I love Quark, Rom, Nog and even Brunt of the FCA. Wallace Sean as Grand Nagus Zek!
The show could do everything well. Drama, action, comedy... they mostly pulled it all off. They could do social commentary without being preachy. They'd throw in standalone episodes to help with the pacing and to stretch the creative writing of the team. "The Visitor" is a bona fide tearjerker. "Far Beyond The Stars" took us back to 1940s America, we got to see the entire main cast sans make up as a writing staff for a sci fi magazine. Sisko was now Benny Russel a black writer who was portrayed as a white man in the magazine. An excellent episode that dealt with race and had atmosphere to spare.
I've got all the episodes of all the shows and revisit them often. It's like comfort food, a favorite pillow, a worn pair of jeans that fit just right. It's like Pearl Jam.
I hope this thread goes where no thread has gone before. I'd like to discuss individual episodes in earnest. Let's all go to Quarks or 10 forward and have a few Raktajinos, maybe a bowl of Gagh and let's talk Trek!
