I want to get into the Star Trek universe but dont know where to start. I have previously seen first three seasons of Disocvery and first season of picard. Picard was cool but disocvery didnt quite track, a little boring and not adventure focused enough. However loving lower decks now (just started season 4) and want to get into the more canon stuff.
I have access to TNG, DS9, Voyager, Enterprise and SNW. TOS i could probanly get access to if i want, but gotta admit that is not very enticing.
So where to start? TNG?
If it helps (and i dont get shunned for this), i am a stargate guy and love especially sg-1 and the adventure of the week format and the character ensemble
Some advice for TNG. Don’t skip seasons 1 and 2. It’s popular but misguided advice. I finished TNG this year and generally enjoyed these seasons despite their flaws.
To that effect, here’s an optimized episode watch guide for each. Six episodes removed per season to save you 9 hours in total. Return to the skipped episodes later if you’re interested.
<S1 - click to expand>
Watch Encounter at Farpoint 1x01/02 The Naked Now 1x03 Code of Honor 1x04 The Last Outpost 1x05 Where No One Has Gone Before 1x06 The Battle 1x09 Hide And Q 1x10 Haven 1x11 The Big Goodbye 1x12 Datalore 1x13 11001001 1x15 Home Soil 1x18 Coming of Age 1x19 Heart of Glory 1x20 The Arsenal of Freedom 1x21 Symbiosis 1x22 Skin Of Evil 1x23 We’ll Always Have Paris 1x24 Conspiracy 1x25 The Neutral Zone 1x26
Skip/defer Code of Honor 1x04 Lonely Among Us 1x07 Justice 1x08 Angel One 1x14 Too Short A Season 1x16 When The Bough Breaks 1x17
<S2- click to expand>
Watch Where Silence Has Lease 2x02 Elementary, Dear Data 2x03 Loud As A Whisper 2x05 The Schizoid Man 2x06 Unnatural Selection 2x07 A Matter Of Honor 2x08 The Measure Of A Man 2x09 The Dauphin 2x10 Contagion 2x11 Time Squared 2x13 The Icarus Factor 2x14 Pen Pals 2x15 Q Who 2x16 Samaritan Snare 2x17 Manhunt 2x19 The Emissary 2x20 Peak Performance 2x21
Skip/defer The Child 2x01 The Outrageous Okona 2x04 The Dauphin 2x10 The Royale 2x12 Up The Long Ladder 2x18 Shades of Gray 2x22
FYI not to discourage others from commenting (because everyone has their own opinion) but there is a pretty comprehensive guide in the /c/StarTrek sidebar: https://wiki.startrek.website/books/cstartrek/page/the-cstartrek-where-should-i-start-guide
ah very nice, the sidebar is not visible by default on jerboa and i forgot to check this. great resource!
My main advice is: Don’t be afraid to skip an episode if you watch it and you don’t like it. Especially the early seasons of TNG, DS9 and Voyager have some episodes which can easily be skipped. You won’t lose any context.
Yea need to rewire my mindset there, but this is a recurring rec so i think it is one i definitely must heed!
There are several guides on what episode can / should / mustn’t be skipped.
Let’s watch Star Trek has it for every classic show: https://www.letswatchstartrek.com/tng-episode-guide/
But there are of course other guides and as they’re subjective ratings you might want to give episodes a chance even if others didn’t like them.
Start with the best episodic episodes of TNG and DS9. Most of us were introduced to Star Trek out of order, it isnt like modern TV. 90s TV and prior was focused on syndication.
My recommendations would be, TNG: Darmok, Tapestry, The Wounded, Inner Light, Cause and Effect, Lower Decks (The episode that inspired the show). For DS9: In The Pale Moonlight, Duet, Trials and Tribbleations, The Visitor (Rest in peace Tony Todd)
Thanks for the list! I think it will be either this or try to watch TNG from the start and follow the 90s shows. But SNW first is still a contender
Btw what do you mean by syndication?
Syndication is also called reruns, when the show is rerun out of order on TV at a standard Timeslot. Like for me TNG was on every night at 7pm M-F. It was shown in random order as far as I know with I believe them skipping less popular episodes, I honestly never noticed if they did hits for a bit then did a rerun through it or what.
The first season of TNG is considered weak as a heads up, similar for DS9 though DS9 has some bangers in S1, TNG is mostly weak. That said if you like it, you’ll LOVE the rest.
SNW is fantastic and I really recommend it, it is certainly New Trek but it’s a MUCH better successor to the legacy than Discovery.
I was late to the party, so my initial watch order was all kinds of messed up. I went DIS -> LD -> VOY -> DS9 -> TNG -> VOY (again) -> ENT -> SNW. Sadly, have only seen bits and pieces of TOS (and only GIFs of TAS).
Definitely recommend watching the TNG era in order: TNG, DS9, VOY, ENT and then doubling back to watch Lower Decks again (because why not lol). I also recommend watching Prodigy after VOY since it’s basically VOY season 8/9. SNW is a spinoff from DIS, so I’d watch at least seasons 1-2 of DIS before SNW.
Prodigy is a kid’s show, but please don’t let that turn you away. It’s pretty great.
Ok, that was kindof what i had in mind so good to see that suggested. I imagine i can get a lot of addtional fun it of LD after having seen everything else. But then TNG-era before or after SNW?
Never heard of prodigy, ill check that out as well!
For SNW, I don’t think it matters beyond preference. A few other comments suggest watching it before TNG, and that makes sense. Same for ENT, for that matter. I just lump it in with the TNG era since it’s also by Berman/Bragga.
Since you’ve already watched the relevant parts of Discovery, I’d recommend SNW. It spins off directly from Disco season 2, but it’s more episodic and has a wider tonal range. Some episodes are dark and serious, some are plain goofy. Overall you’ll find it much more light hearted and adventurous than Disco.
Otherwise, I’m a big supporter of starting at the beginning. Give a few episodes of TOS a try. Yes, it’s a product of it’s time, but it still holds up as great TV. It’s also one of the few Trek shows that really hits the ground running quality wise - the '90s series tend to take a few seasons to rev up.
Episodic is good!
Im prepared for slow start with TNG-era stuff, not sure if im prepared for TOS. But checking out a few episodes camt hurt, i guess i for some reason think i have to commit to one series from start to end and that is obviously not true
Yeah, definitely not. Picard and Discovery were very serialised, as were the later seasons of DS9, but outside of those you can pretty much dip your toe in to almost any episode and not worry about getting sucked into a whole arc. It’s probably best to keep a low-commitment mindset and skip around a bit until something really works for you.
Since you’re into Lower Decks, I dare you to just follow the episode annotations and canon connection published here and use those as your guide to Star Trek. Every episode of LDS is so full of references to older episodes across different series, that might be a fun way to experience the canon 🙂
Thats a fun idea! If i knew about this before it would have been cool to do it in parallel from the start. I think i at the very least will definitely aim to go through LD again after having seen through 90s stuff if i ever get that far to pick up on the references!
Even if you’ve watched some or all of the old shows in order, I think it could be fun to do a casual rewatch by LDS references. It gives you reason to watch some deep cuts out of context, and probably not the ones you’d be inclined to pick on your own 🙂
TOS is very dated and can be hard to watch at times. You definitely have to be appreciative of the camp and low production.
TNG holds up a bit better. It’s not an adventure show though, and the first season has some real stinkers. I’d say it’s a good starting point to watch the first 3 or 4 episodes then go to season 2 weeks give that a shot. If you like how it’s going then go back and finish S1 and keep going.
DS9 is like tng but also has a bit more edge and does some good deconstruction of the pure optimism of tng. It is still optimistic but also has some cynicism I love it. I don’t think I’d like it as much without a good tng backbone though.
Overall 90s trek isn’t going to really give you a lot of adventure focus, unless you watch the movies. It’s strengths lie in the morality play and the collaborative problem solving, and the idea of a bright future. Picard kind of shits all over that idea of a brighter future but to each their own, I can see why some people would like it.
I think ill reserve TOS for if i become a trekkie! Hehe
I definitely need some of that brighter future-stuff right about now. I think what i mean with adventure of the week i mean problem of the week. It doesnt have to be jungles and temples and stuff. But i dont want that hbo-style “oh we are so dark and you have to pay attention for every fucking second of every episode or you will lose the thread because we are so intrcate and did i mention we are dark now fuck off and get depressed”
I’ll throw my hat in for starting with DS9. I’m just finishing the final season with my partner now - her first watch - and it’s really cemented why its my favourite Trek. It holds up incredibly well.
I’d start with Strange New Worlds. It’s very classic Trek in terms of its themes and stories, but as it’s still being made it has contemporary audiences in mind. If you like it, I would then go to TNG.
It absolutely is not. Everyone is snarky with a bad attitude. It leans way too heavily into pseudo-science magical explanations, and it does dumb stuff like showing Vulcans (who only mate once every 7 years) laying around and making out like a couple of teenagers.
Agreed. I watch SNW when new episodes air, but it’s the one Trek show I’m never tempted to rewatch. It’s basically overengineered fan fiction.
Ugh… I’ve been so reticent to watch modern Trek. I’ve heard such bad things about Discovery and have never been tempted to try it. But I really love the TNG era, so I gave in and watched Picard season 1…man, that was a mistake. Too modern, too snarky, too fucking meta. I swore off modern Trek. But then I read loads of threads saying that SNW was a return to form, and that it felt the most like Star Trek out of all the modern series. So even though I knew I might hate it, yesterday I watched the first three episodes. I’m already so annoyed with it. Super meta, the cast is for the most part way too young, and it’s loose or completely disregarding toward canon (yeah, Spock and T’Pring having sex without Pon Farr… give me a break!), and plotlines that make no sense at all. I’m so annoyed with it. I get that '80s/'90s TV was too earnest for today’s audiences, but SNW feels like a parody of Star Trek, not a worthy successor. So far, nothing feels like actual high stakes. There really isn’t serious drama that I actually care about. When shows are too snarky and meta, it makes it really hard for me to connect with them.
I do recognize that first seasons can be rocky, so I’ll at least stick with it through the end of the season. But I can’t lie, it’s off to a terrible start. I wish we could have shows more in keeping with the tone and themes of TNG and DS9 (or even Voyager!).
I watched Picard too, based on the advice of a friend. It started out seeming pretty promising, and just kept getting worse, all the way to the end.
It’s not actually Star Trek, but the Orville is the best Trek that has been made since DS9. It starts pretty campy and stupid, but it gets really good! They back off the jokes and goofiness, and start making an impactful show after a few episodes. I may have fast forwarded through parts of episode two, but I’m so glad that I stuck with the show. You sound like your tastes align with mine, and I highly advise watching The Orville, and giving it a chance to find its footing.
Ooh yeah I’ve heard people speak highly of The Orville, and I keep forgetting to check it out! If I’m not mistaken, it’s got Penny Johnson (Kasidy Yates) in it, right?
Yes, she’s one of the main characters. She has a pretty interesting storyline throughout the show.
Thanks! Yes i got the impression Snw is better appreciared than Discovery and picard. Im juggling tng-era vs snw as first now
I would start with TNG, then DS9, then it doesn’t really matter after that. All of the other shows pale in comparison IMO. Be aware that quality and entertainment value is significantly better after the first couple of seasons for both shows. It took me around 5 times to finally get into DS9, and I eventually just skipped season 1 and half of season 2.
Edit: TOS movies are pretty good. The evenly numbered ones are great, the odd numbered ones aren’t. But they’re almost all worth watching. The first one is a bit iffy. The second, 4th, and 6th movies are classic Trek and really fun.
Yea i am prepared for a slow start. Leaning towards trying to see it from start to finish and if that gets hard then check out some of the good episodes mentioned here.
Didnt know about TOS-movies, i guess that is a good way to check out that era! I saw three of the tng-films as a kid. I remember liking them, but i was like 12. Only remeber one being very borg-centered
Personally I think TOS movies are better than TNG movies, or at least the even numbered ones are. TNG movies are just okay, despite the fact that I love TNG.
TNG season 1 is a good start its rough around the edges and if it starts to look like the movie “Coming to America” go ahead and skip that episode. Just watch knowing it’s going to get better like Park and Rec but it sets up a lot of storylines that will pay off later and some classic episodes that people forget are season 1 like “Datalore”.
If you remember enjoying Datalore I would advise you never watch it again. It definitely is important to watch from a lore (no pun intended) perspective, but it is actually extremely awkward lol
Measure of a Man is season 2!
You know what you are correct i should have done a search before posting thanks for the correction
If us Star Trek nerds can’t get our facts straight, what hope for humanity?
It’s okay to be wrong! He corrected himself and thanked you — that good sir is what a Trekkie should do. The first duty is to the truth.
🖖
You dare defile Lower Decks by calling other stuff “More cannon”! Experience bij, petaQ! 😉
In all seriousness, though, I would say DS9. The first season is much better than TNG season 1 in my opinion - not perfect, but livable. It mostly gets better from there, though like VOY, be prepared for sudden urges for Rick Berman to “accidentally fall out an airlock”, if you know what I mean.
This might be tinted by DS9 being my favorite Trek series, although Lower Decks is putting up fierce competition for DS9’s top spot in my heart.
hehe i at least assumed the more comedic aspects does not fit into the true star trek lore :p I think i have settled on starting from TNG and moving onto DS9 from there. Still considering SNW first since its not that many episodes.
be prepared for sudden urges for Rick Berman to “accidentally fall out an airlock”, if you know what I mean.
not really but it sounds like some soviet putin stuff!
After watching other Star Trek shows, you’ll find the true beauty is the vast majority of Lower Decks completely fits into canon, as “the true Star Trek lore” contains some ridiculous stuff.
TNG season 3. The first two sessions are pretty rough. Start with 3. If you ever do a rewatch then try starting with season 1. Then try DS9.
TOS is good if you can handle the very low budget look.
I recommend starting with the original series or Star Trek the next generation. Picard and Discovery are probably the worst places to start.
Hehe yea, i can see that - never saw season 2 of Picard which i heard is completely bonkers? I think tos will be a little too old for me, but it seems i will probably check out tng first. Just gotta decide if i wanna jump around like some suggested or just force my way throguh the first seasons
I think Discovery being modern and (mostly) a prequel is a good place to start. It also is a good into to SNW for obvious reasons.
Echoing move to SNW. It has a higher budget than older Trek and follows the current trend of “mini-series” storytelling. Older Trek follows older TV rules (wanted 26 eps to a season so a lot of filler to make it so). DS9 would be my other rec with a heavy caveat that if you’re not feeling an ep skip it and look it up on memory alpha later, particularly for the first season. As it goes on it gets more into the long form storytelling you’d expect with today’s shows, but first few seasons can be a bit rough and there can be a long time between plots being revisited (but when they are they make it count). TNG, Voyager and TOS are mainly monster/problem of the week (Voyager kind of weakly straddles longform and episodic leaning heavily towards episodic). Out of them I’d recommend TNG outside of the first two seasons (first season is TOS scifi tales encore, second season I actually like a lot and has some good eps, but general like is a minority opinion and cast gets retooled in third season anyway).
If you don’t mind kids shows also recommend Prodigy (kinda like a Trek ATLA imo).
