Should I watch Star trek?

[Automission]

I find myself a completionist of sorts, as in if I watch a Tv series I need to watch all of its spin offs to follow the story. Except with Star Trek there must be at least £500 worth of DVD series' to watch and films.

I'd just like to ask, is it worth my time and money? No doubt it'l give me plenty of programming to watch, but then again I'm not even sure I want to invest the time to watch it all. I'd never get to do anything else!

So for any heavy fans, what are your opinions? should I go buy it and watch it all? Can I skip some series and not miss out any continuity, etc? Or should I not bother?


Lets see, does it match well to stargate style tv? Entertainment wise, is it as humorous or a lot more serious science fiction story lines? do the DVD's even cost as i estimated?

[kmiller1610]

Star Trek is mostly based on the morality play with a Sci-Fi overlay. Except for Deep Space 9, which has many more shades of gray, it is a series that seems dated and quaint to many, modern viewers.

There is also a strong philosophical overlay, exploring the nature of man. There are characters in each series that represent a single feature of human behavior or trait. Because these symbolic messages are so persistent, some people find the broad "points" being made somewhat redundant.

Personally, I gradually fall in love with good characters, I like philosophy and I like a big, ongoing story. So I love Trek.

Hope this helps a bit with your decision.

[DigiFluid]

TOS, TNG, DS9 -- Must watch
TAS -- Eh
VOY, ENT -- Avoid at all costs

That'll save you a good amount of money and time.

[jelgate]

I find myself a completionist of sorts, as in if I watch a Tv series I need to watch all of its spin offs to follow the story. Except with Star Trek there must be at least £500 worth of DVD series' to watch and films.

I'd just like to ask, is it worth my time and money? No doubt it'l give me plenty of programming to watch, but then again I'm not even sure I want to invest the time to watch it all. I'd never get to do anything else!

So for any heavy fans, what are your opinions? should I go buy it and watch it all? Can I skip some series and not miss out any continuity, etc? Or should I not bother?


Lets see, does it match well to stargate style tv? Entertainment wise, is it as humorous or a lot more serious science fiction story lines? do the DVD's even cost as i estimated?

I would say yes. It contain many simliar story telling as stargate did. Probably the most important is exploring not just worlds but also morality. Its not a humorous but it has its moments. Continuinty is not a huge problem and crossovers are usually quite small. Each of the 5 series is different and each has their strengths and weakness. DS9 was good for exploring human morality while TNG was more of a the literal exploring of worlds

[Automission]

to be fair if I did buy them I'd probably just avoid the animated series and enterprise of course. I've heard some good things about voyager. Deep space nine was the one i was concerned over, I hear its almost like a sitcom in space.

[jelgate]

to be fair if I did buy them I'd probably just avoid the animated series and enterprise of course. I've heard some good things about voyager. Deep space nine was the one i was concerned over, I hear its almost like a sitcom in space.

I want to know who told you that? DS9 is definatly not a sitcom. Your not missing much skipping TAS but you might want to reconsider ENT. Despite all its flaws their are some really good stories in ENT especially in the later seasons

[Descent]

So for any heavy fans, what are your opinions? should I go buy it and watch it all? Can I skip some series and not miss out any continuity, etc? Or should I not bother?

Lets see, does it match well to stargate style tv? Entertainment wise, is it as humorous or a lot more serious science fiction story lines? do the DVD's even cost as i estimated?

The Original Series that started Star Trek back in the late '60s does not hold up well at all. Yes, it is one of the main reasons why Sci-Fi is what it is to this day, but it's not necessary to watch. If you can handle bad special effects and lots of cheesiness, then you should check it out.

I would personally suggest starting with the TOS movies (2, 3, 4 and 6) and then go for TNG.

TNG started out like TOS but with better special effects and less cheesiness, before eventually becoming it's own show. The regular actors/characters are great and there's a reason why Sci-Fi fans consider this to be a classic. Just don't expect 'huge' action scenes/space battles from this one.

DS9 is just fantastic and is the best of the franchise. If you like serialized/arc heavy and sometimes dark Sci-Fi shows, then this one is a must see. The characters are deep and layered and it has stuff that other Trek series wouldn't dare do. The later seasons pull off some amazing space battles, so with this one you can not only expect great characters/writing, but also great action.

Voyager is a pretty standard Trek show, much more like an action heavy TOS/TNG. I personally loved it when I was growing up, but now I look back at it as 'average' for the most part. Some of the characters are good/great, others... not so much. And a lot of them got wallpapered in the later seasons. But if you're looking for a Trek series with more humor and more action, I think you'll do fine with Voyager.

Enterprise is one that I've only seen a couple episodes from. It doesn't seem too good/interesting to me and people generally regard it as the worst series of the franchise. The special effects are (apparently) fantastic though, but that can only get you so far.

So really, it's all about checking it out for yourself. The humor you would find in a lot of the series is not as funny/clever as Stargate's, but it's still got plenty of moments.

Note that DS9 and TNG didn't get really interesting/awesome until their third seasons.

[Automission]

heh so I'd have to invest the time. Might buy them all regardless, but still probably skipping the animated series and enterprise. I may change my mind one day though. You recommend all the movies too or only the few you suggested? would I miss anything by not seeing them all, other than poor storylines?

Also what are the bonus features like on the next generation discs? Just I've seen two versions. One with just the episodes, £100. One with everything. Guess how much? SEVEN HUNDRED AND FIFTY POUNDS. Yes you read that right. £750!

now that's a lot for a leap of faith in a Tv show!

[DigiFluid]

The Original Series that started Star Trek back in the late '60s does not hold up well at all. Yes, it is one of the main reasons why Sci-Fi is what it is to this day, but it's not necessary to watch. If you can handle bad special effects and lots of cheesiness, then you should check it out

FALSE FALSE FALSE

TOS is the gold standard of old science fiction and is still compelling and immensely watchable today!

[Karhedron]

FALSE FALSE FALSE

TOS is the gold standard of old science fiction and is still compelling and immensely watchable today!

No...not false, just different opinions.

Although I am with Digi here. If you can stand watching older shows (and the added cheesiness), then give it a go.
It is not really necessary to enjoy TNG, but for me,having watched TOS, made it even more enjoyable. It delivers quite some background information.

[Automission]

Is there an all in one boxset for the first season? I couldn't find one earlier.

[DigiFluid]

No...not false, just different opinions.

I know. And Descent knows that. I just like giving DS9Superior pals a hard time

[DigiFluid]

Is there an all in one boxset for the first season? I couldn't find one earlier.

Every Trek series has season releases out there, the only Trek that isn't out for purchase yet is the movie that was recently in theaters.

[jelgate]

Is there an all in one boxset for the first season? I couldn't find one earlier.

Yes, In fact I would recommend the complete series boxsets. You'll save money

[Descent]

You recommend all the movies too or only the few you suggested? would I miss anything by not seeing them all, other than poor storylines?

I recommend starting with Wrath of Kahn, Search for Spock, The Voyage Home, Undiscovered Country... and then after you're done with TNG, you should check out those movies as well. Generations and First Contact are easily the best of those movies

You can skip over The Motion Picture, it's very slow and has a few neat moments, but it's not essential at all. Unless you want to watch the worst Trek film ever, you can skip over Final Frontier.

As for TNG movies: Insurrection and Nemesis are both mixed bags and a lot of people really didn't like Nemesis, but... they both still have their fans. I think you should watch them for yourself and decide what you think about them. Nemesis is 'the end' for the TNG crew, so it can be considered essential.

FALSE FALSE FALSE

TOS is the gold standard of old science fiction and is still compelling and immensely watchable today!

Maybe to you, but for some people these days, it's very hard to sit through a lot of those episodes. I've enjoyed the few episodes I've seen, but at this point, the show is not for everyone.