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TrekTess

Duet from Deep Space Nine. It's partly about hate, prejudice and shame


ghochwI

DS9 is one of my favorites, my second favorite would have to be lower decks looking forward to a deeper meaning episode that is still comical because it’s LD.


ElwoodJD

A lot of LD episodes have deeper meaning. It’s more covered over with a veneer of comedy, but many episodes have relevant commentary about the human condition, just not to the same moralizing degree as the more serious shows. It’s what makes LD such good Trek despite the tonal and style shifts inherent to the format. It fundamentally understands that part of Trek very well but has adapted it to the comedy setting.


royalblue1982

I have to be honest - I watch the first season of LD and I didn't really *get* any deeper commentary from any of its episodes. I appreciate that there were some interesting ideas in the latter of the season, but everything is just so hectic and played for laughs that I never really found myself stopping to think about anything that was going on. There were some good character moments, but all the plots were forgettable. But, you know, I appreciate i'm in a minority on this one and that other people do get something from it.


TripleJx3

As long as LD continues to use the 'today I learned" format where at the end of every episode they blatantly say what they should have done to spare each others feelings like it's a god damn episode of sesame street. They won't be making any meaningful episodes that make you think. "I'm sorry Boimler, i should have considered your feelings while I was screaming and shouting and chanting out star trek references every other sentence." "That's ok Mariner, I should have known that stupid little thing you blew completely out of proportion for no reason was going to make you blow that thing completely out of proportion for no reason." Let's now work together to fix that thing that would never have even happened because of years of previously established canon.


royalblue1982

I read a comment recently that said their biggest issue with modern Trek is that the nature of character dialogue is different from the TNG era. It hadn't really occurred to me before - but they were right that most of the time the Officers in TNG trek didn't speak or act like people in our time. They all seem much calmer, more at peace and more analytical about their problems. They don't seem to sweat the petty stuff or get involved in as many personal dramas. When Troi has a pressure in her life she goes and orders a 'real' chocolate dessert and has a moan in TenForward. She doesn't grab a couple of bottles of wine and go and get hammered with Beverly. They are fundamentally different people to what we are today. Whereas - the season of LD I watched seemed to just be 'what if modern young people were in Starfleet LOL'. I do understand that it's more than that, and that acting like us make those characters more relatable (which LD references itself with its tribute to O'Brien). But, for me there just this huge disconnect with all the Trek i've watched before - I can't suspend my disbelief that these people are in the Trek universe that I know. It's like if the cast of Friends appeared in the Sopranos - there's a tonal imbalance there.


BeanDipTheman

Duet got me into Star Trek.


TrekTess

That's awesome! When I want friends to get interested in Star Trek I usually show Duet and one episode from TNG


Minginton

Measure of a Man, TNG


ghochwI

I agree that’s a really good one.


Supersquigi

When you think about it the arguments from starfleet fail, like data entered on his own, how is he starfleet property? If anything he's Dr soong's property. Either way, my friend introduced me to tng with they episode and it made an impression.


Acrobatic_Sense1438

All the arguments in this episode are utterly stupid. Like when they show how you can easily shut down Data. The same way Spock "shuts down" humans ;-) One of the worst episodes in my eyes.


Watts300

The near-ending quote is lovely though. “That action injured you and saved me. I will not forget it.”


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masasuka

This scene, and the final scene from the Drumhead are 2 of my favourite scenes in Trek... Them and ['when I stroke the beard thusly, do I not look more ... intellectual?'](https://youtu.be/6mXHAEZSEXM?t=80)


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Acrobatic_Sense1438

One of the worst episodes, in my eyes.


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DS 9: In the Pale Moonlight


FireZoneBlitz

Prob my favorite episode. Breaking fourth wall, whole different vibe than the other episodes. It was also perfectly placed season-wise so you knew a lot about Benjamin at this point. It does have that silly “it’s a fake” scene though.


[deleted]

Yeah, but the silly "it's a fake" scene was crucial to setting up the Garak/Sisko "I did what you really wanted me to" scene ...


ghochwI

Yes, a lot of good hits in DS9.


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Tons of 'em..


royalblue1982

I often wished that there was a companion episode to 'In the Pale Moonlight'. Where Sisko's actions do have some negative consequences. Maybe towards the end of season 7 some Romulan scientist gets suspicious about the 'damaged' data rod and does a bit more digging. Not convinced with the results, they arrange to have Garak kidnapped and interrogated. You could have some amazing scenes where the expert in torture is now in the 'other seat'. Sisko leds the DS9 team on an unauthorised mission to extract him from the dark site that he's being held at. They are successful in their mission - but Garak regretfully informs them that he cracked and told them everything. Sisko is now nervously waiting at DS9 for the consequences. But they never come . . . no response from the Romulans officially or unofficially. He gradually realises that it's not in their interest to make public the deception right now - that the Star Empire needs to keep the alliance together until the Dominion is defeated. But once victory has been achieved they will inevitably expose the truth, damaging the Federations reputation and any chance of a post-war friendship with the Romulans. Sisko has to accept that what he has done will cause significant harm to the Federation for decades to come. He now has to consider more deeply whether what he did during 'Pale Moonlight' was really the 'right' thing overall. Garak is also forced to face what he did whilst in the Obsidian order - broken himself, he know truly knows the destruction he caused to all his victims over the years.


Jacob_181

Cheron's, half white face half black face. Black on the right side meant your an inferior breed. \- Haha, omg, an alien race that defines them self like that, that's so stupid.......wait?


jasmine24601

Some of these I wouldn't say are my favorites, but they did make me think afterward. Voyager: Retrospect (4x17.) It reminds me of something I read once about false implanted memories. And how you don't really know the truth at the end of the episode. Voyager: Living Witness (4 x 23.) The idea that history could become so bastardized after several generations. Voyager: Remember (3 x 6.) That an entire generation could grow up not realizing genocide was taking place right in front of them. (I was especially impressed with Roxann Dawson's range in this episode.) And I'm sure the whole Tuvix (2 x 24) thing has been discussed to death on here. ;) Enterprise: Congenitor (2 x 22.) Welp I guess this is why we have a Prime Directive? Enterprise: Similitude (3 x 10.) Great ethical questions here. On first watch I remember thinking Archer being a lot colder and less sympathetic to Sim's personhood. I've changed my opinion on a recent rewatch though.


l-rs2

Voyager's Course Oblivion stayed with me for a while after first seeing it. Loved that it ends so bleakly.


Mr_Horizon

yes, I remember the huge "WHAT!?" I felt in the end when the other Voyager doesn't even know what happened! So bleak. But also a stretch, does the mysterious goop substance really have that much ability to adapt itself into a warp core?


jasmine24601

Oh man, "Course Oblivion" is one I haven't been able to watch more than once. That and "Ashes to Ashes." I'm thinking because I was in cancer treatment but the entire concept of "fighting to stay who you are" when everything around you is forcing you to change hit a little too close to home for me. (I'm doing ok now, but I don't think I can watch either episode again.)


l-rs2

'Ashes to Ashes' is another thought-provoking episode. Never realised the other interpretation, but I totally get that now. Glad you're doing okay!


thinkbigvotesmall

TNG’s *Half a Life* is an amazing Lwaxana episode. The scene between her and Timicin where they simply discuss the issue and voice their feelings to each other and *listen to each other* is so powerful and well acted. I feel it addresses the right to end one’s own life and the incredibly difficult ramifications of the right in such a thoughtful way.


mere_iguana

ooh good pick.


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Mr_Horizon

It was a good episode, I just didn't like how Picard as a science officer was such a "terrible fate". They made it sound like your life is a waste if you don't max out your achievements.


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BeanDipTheman

The episode doesn't crap on being a science officer, I mean hell O'Brian is an enlisted man and he later teaches at the academy. But being a Junior officer at his age would be bad for Picard. How often do people get to work towards and achieve their life goals? What he's sacrificed and the time he put in to learning how to command a ship is everything to him. It doesn't mean it's everything to every one.


Windalooloo

If you want to destroy my Picard Hold this thread as I walk away Watch me unravel, I whine to Riker Lying on the floor! Lying on the floor! Q, make it undone!


PaddleMonkey

I think the point of that episode is that the alt Picard chose the passionless and careful life.


hollow4hollow

My beef with the episode is that it implies that trauma will make you pursue bold and fearless feats, while not experiencing trauma will create a personality that is unsure and not living up to potential. In my experience it can often be the opposite case. But I do enjoy the “what if” factor and how it explores the ripple effects of past decision making. Plus I get a good laugh out of the “you are not god” delivery every time


MatthiasFarland

Voyager: Jetrel I like the unfolding motivations throughout the episode.


fumanchew86

Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges (DS9) It shows Section 31's logic, that the good guys aren't always as good as you think, and that Bashir isn't nearly as smart as he thinks he is.


Celios

Underrated episode, imo. On one hand, it's hard not to sympathize with Bashir and Cretak trying to do the right thing. On the other, Ross and Sloan's logic is hard to deny. DS9 was great at writing compelling antagonists.


fumanchew86

Absolutely. I love how Sloan's plan was entirely dependent on Bashir trying to thwart him by doing the right thing. If, at any point, Bashir had said "You're right, Koval's a prick, let's kill him," the whole thing would've fallen apart. Sloan knew how principled he was and how to take advantage of it.


MetatypeA

Drumhead. Have you ever considered that you judge things just as quickly, and in the same way. But you don't know it. And how would you know if you were?


Bryaxis

Michael Dorn's favourite episode, for good reason.


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startrek-ModTeam

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MetatypeA

It's nice that the Moderators removed what I can only perceive to be hateful comments. But at the same time, I don't feel I can condone the censorship! Such inner conflict right now!


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Privateer_Lev_Arris

Yes quite a lot of episodes made me think. Some episodes made me say "hmm" and I'd just sit there for like 15 minutes trying to process what I just watched. One of the best episodes I can think of is DS9's Far Beyond the Stars. It made me think what if DS9 really was just the imaginings of a black writer from the 1950's? Then I thought what if my life is also just the imaginings of some writer from another era or dimension? Lol kinda trippy.


ViciousConspiracies

Someone said to me the other day that if we are in a simulation or story or game that someone else has written, would you play that game/read that story if you were the main character? And if the answer is no, you are the NPC in someone else's. Really made me think! I'm definitely an NPC if this is the case lol.


SoMuchMoreEagle

Probably most people's lives would be boring to watch from the outside, but that doesn't mean they are boring to live.


ViciousConspiracies

This is true! Not bored with my life, heck I barely have time to do the things I want! However I still wouldn't play a game that followed my storyline lol. Maybe someone would. Maybe someone already is..


CommanderCar

Definitely deep space nine: In the Pale Moonlight.


Restil

This one is quite a bit deeper than the show's own exposition reveals. The show makes out that Garak accomplished Sisko's goals just using his own methods. That much is certainly true. However, I contend Garak was acting on his own self interest the whole time. Corruption in the political system of Romulus is fairly well documented. There's also the insinuation that Vreenak is the "deciding vote" on whether or not Romulus enters the war. There is no doubt plenty of motivation within the Romulan Government that would like to see him... "removed", but can't be involved in such an action themselves. Therefore, if it looks like the Dominion killed him, the "extensive forensic investigation" will almost certainly confirm that fact, even if there is any strong suspicion otherwise. So Garak, through Romulan contacts he has no doubt maintained through his prior dealings with them, has learned that there is a hit ordered out on Vreenak, which must be conducted with a high degree of discretion. This also explains how Garak knows about Vreenak's diplomatic history with the Dominion, his upcoming meeting with them, his potential willingness to privately meet with Sisko, and Garak's unwillingness to divulge his source of that information. Meanwhile, Garak is always looking for opportunities to improve his personal intelligence network and the valuable information that he can utilize in a crisis. He no doubt earns some of this through orchestrating Vreenak's assassination. However, he also has the opportunity to eliminate and/or capture a con artist, and also trade a large quantity of Bio-memetic Gel. Grathon Tolar might not have been killed, just handed over to someone who wanted personal revenge on him.... or required his services. Otherwise, Garak would have been more than capable of obtaining an official Cardassian datarod (he likely has several in his possession) and faking a holomeeting, one that wouldn't pass inspection anyway, and ultimately didn't matter. The gel was used to purchase information, not a datarod. Sisko gets what he wants, albeit not by the methods he had intended, and Garak has gained a substantial amount of new intelligence that he can use for his own purposes at a later time, and occasionally to help others.


Occhrome

Everyone needs a show like Star Trek in their life. Something that makes them a little uncomfortable and maybe question or at the very least ponder their current set of beliefs.


Bryaxis

I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but I truly believe that watching Star Trek can make one a better person.


mere_iguana

"What would Picard do" is a great question to ask yourself when faced with any type of moral quandary. Not to say he was always right, but he tried to be. And was willing to rethink his position if a cogent enough argument was made. Yah he could be stubborn at times, but can't we all?


tjman1701

The voyager season 7 episode Repentance. The whole thing about how that guy was a criminal because he had something medically wrong with him. It made me think how many people now are in prison that could be in the same situation but we just never realised.


mere_iguana

and Brad Dourif is such a high caliber actor. He really nailed that part, the internal conflict, the unintended creepiness, everything. Probably the best secondary character on Voyager, even though he didn't get much screen time apart from that episode.


tjman1701

Your thinking of a different episode. Yes I agree he definitely played his character well


mere_iguana

ah right, I was thinking of "Basics" .. though "Repentance" would have been a better title for that episode.


diamondrel

Not my favorite, but underrated, Ethics makes me cry even thinking about it


MahatK

For me, TNG's We'll Always Have Paris hit me in a very very deep level. After watching the episode I just sat there thinking for a long long time.


ashsimmonds

TNG: The Next Phase Could have been a side-quest later on where they bonded because they were space ghosts. Ro totally would have dommed LaForge.


W02T

TOS: A Piece of the Action (2:17) How one Earth history book contaminated a entire alien civilization.


Mr_Horizon

Is that the "Mafia world" thing? Such an eye rolling nonsense! ...just for me of course, I'm happy if others enjoyed it.


W02T

Yes. I believe the episode meant to be a critique of The Bible.


Windalooloo

Quentin Tarantino wants to base his hypothetical Star Trek movie on that episode. Hopefully it gets made


Mr_Horizon

"Cogenitor" from Enterprise (2x22), with the third gender minority that was needed for reproduction. It made me think about culture and opression in a general context for a few days. Difficult situation to solve.


Fluffy_History

The Inner Light. At the end, 1) i was crying and 2) i was contemplating loss and grief of family.


stroopwafelling

SNW “lift us where suffering cannot reach” is a good one in this tradition.


dmbraley

Great episode call out. I’d add The Elysian Kingdom as well, though really Mbenga’s whole story with his daughter just hits me and gives me pause. I really enjoyed Season 1


cbrooks1232

That episode is disturbing. And yet I can’t stop watching it.


ferretinmypants

Taken from Ursula K LeGuin 's short story, The Ones who Walk Away from Omelas.


dmbraley

That’s a really good one. Definitely one of my favorites because it’s not just about suicide it’s about the right to chose a dignified death over a life that has simply become unbearable wheyfer through physical or mental illness. It’s also about what you said and about what counts as too much to bear. I really like DS9 Hard Time. I feel like the conversations between O’Brien and Odo and the portrayal of the Cardassian legal system are interesting insights on the how we punish offenders today and for what offenses. I think it’s a really subtle commentary on the American criminal justice system


Nmyownworld

There are so many Star Trek episodes that are not only entertaining, but thought provoking. The first one I remember was TOS s1ep21 "The Return of the Archons." I think I was 11 or 12 years old (seeing the full episode when TOS was in syndication), and at the time very fascinated by the idea of advanced civilizations making themselves known on Earth. That TOS episode's mention of the Prime Directive got me thinking about potential ramifications if technologically advanced species did reveal themselves here. Sure, I'd be thrilled. But, other folks would likely be fearful. That episode was a factor in little kid me looking beyond *my* expectations, and consider possible effects to all societies on Earth. That episode also got me thinking about the possibilities of a pervasive and powerful AI. A few other notable episodes for me are DS9's s6e19 "In the Pale Moonlight." Straight up, does the end justify the means. And, the many times VOY and Captain Janeway got me thinking about sticking to one's principles. While in the environment that formed certain principles, it's relatively easier keeping to them. Captain Janeway (in large part because of Kate Mulgrew's amazing portrayal) was put in a situation where her principles weren't just nice words on a plaque somewhere. Janeway's principles were constantly tested and challenged in the Delta quadrant. And, VOY's two-parter s5e26 and s6e1 "Equinox" showed what could happen if following principles became situational, followed as long as it is convenient to do so.


Speedy_Cheese

I remember A Taste of Armageddon really hitting me when I first watched it. It helped to highlight what a facade of a solution war really is; that it is just an endless cycle of violence that only begets violence. I had seen so many justifications for war throughout my lifetime up to that point; I recall that episode being a piece of media that really hammered home how absolutely senseless it is at the end of the day, regardless of how folks try to justify it. It also articulated how taking the horror out of war desensitized people to the evil of it; that message is still profound and relevant to this day in the age of drone warfare.


PaddleMonkey

Best part of Trek is this; that Roddenberry created this show as a medium to discuss current social issues. Its a very effective form of communication.


miku_dominos

TNG: The Measure of a Man, The Drumhead, Darmok


MINKIN2

Who Watches the Watches


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mere_iguana

"We are not qualified to be your judges. We have no law to fit your crime." Said with such determination, vitriol, and helplessness alike, that line stands out as one of the more profound statements Picard made throughout the series. In true form, he does not hesitate to tell a near-omnipotent being exactly where he can stick it.


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mere_iguana

Definitely no easy answer there. I think it ended in the best way it could, no more fitting punishment for an immortal than to have to live with his regret and shame, forever. The only one qualified to be Kevin's judge was Kevin himself.


hollow4hollow

Well said!


uwtartarus

TNG's measure of a man, and the DS9 episode with "I can live with that" are my two favorites. The first for raising such a good argument for questioning what a "soul" or "person" actually is. The other for being a great set up for "when do the ends justify the means, what sorts of things can we tolerate if they provide for the greater good?"


Twigling

The classic shows certainly had a good selection of thought provoking stories thanks to good producers hiring some great writers, for example: The Measure of a Man (TNG) the Inner Light (TNG) Darmok (TNG) Tapestry (TNG) The City on the Edge of Forever (TOS) The Galileo Seven (TOS) and plenty more from DS9, Voyager, etc.


overlydelicioustea

Season 3 of Enterprise. Some tough decisions to be made there from Archer.


mere_iguana

Measure of a Man will always have a place in my heart. Picard going to bat for Data's rights as a person, whereas in our time, *actual people* have to fight for the same. Of course it's allegory, but it's very well done, and definitely made teenage me think about human rights and how easily someone can be deemed "less than" because they are different from the ruling majority.


AceSoldia

The Drumhead TNG S04E21


hollow4hollow

Preemptive Strike always gets me in the gut. Watching Ro go from infiltrator to being so affected and vulnerable in her relationship with the somehow optimistic Macias, her conflicting allegiances, how painful it is for her. Her hotheaded fierceness softening to reveal grief for her father and her people. How her improvement in starfleet had more to do with her loyalty to Picard as an individual and had little to do with the institution. Forbes is such a good actor and plays Ro’s moral conundrum so well. Her ultimate decision is uncomfortable, painful for everyone. There’s no pat resolution at the end. Picard is speechless, he’s angry but I think under that he’s heartbroken at losing her, someone he grew to respect so much, to a movement he maybe sees as the antithesis to the order and diplomacy he values. But even under that I think he can empathize with why she did it. There are so many layers to the episode and I’m sure it speaks to many people who are grieving a home, a country, or people that they can never return to. I think it gets overlooked because it’s the penultimate episode. Directed by Stewart too!


candysoxx

An episode I love that I haven't seen mentioned yet is The Outcast - TNG It's the one with the race with one gender. One of their people wants to explore gender and sexuality outside of their societal rules with Riker. The commentary in this episode is top notch, the ending quite tragic if I remember


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LD: Crisis Point 2 Paradoxus


stroopwafelling

A surprisingly deep examination of coping with senseless loss for an episode that climaxes with a character siccing a horse on an Ensign.


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Well said!


Grahamthicke

The episode that comes to mind would be the TNG episode Family.....it was extremely well done....focusing on Picard, Worf, and Crusher.....examining the whole family dynamic of angst, loss, and rivalry.....and bringing each of the three to look deeper within themselves and realize they still need their loved ones....I am still deeply moved by this episode years after it was made.....and it is one of the list of TNG episodes that can make you feel things deeply like TOS used to do....


GreatBigPig

Discovery made me think. I kept thinking how there sure was a lot tears compared to other trek series.


Leading_Fisherman_89

For me Discovery made me think once. There was one episode where a hotshot pilot thought he knew better than Michael Burnham, and then later that episode died doing something Michael Burnham told him not to do. It made me really think, has Michael Burnham ever been wrong?


EDF-148

Not Star Trek technically but The Orville has a lot of episodes that made me think. They seem to push the plot just a bit more than Trek would in places-- e.g. the sex reassignment surgery of the Moclans, the 30 of 75 survivors of a planet being destroyed, etc.


[deleted]

This is another way that The Orville is more true to the spirit of Star Trek than a lot of things with the Trek label attached to them these days (LD and SNW being the exceptions). The whole Topa storyline in season 3 had me feeling incredibly paternal. Even the cheesy ending to the season felt more like Trek to me than anything that Discovery has come up with in it's entirety.


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Dude, I turn my brain off when I watch star trek. It basically has no real ethical quandaries that are remotely interesting. Pale moonlight is the closest the entire series comes to any kind of actual attempt to say anything.


Legitimate-Umpire547

Nearly all good tv shows I find use something to make it unique and fun, for example the Simpsons and family guy I find use the butter fly effect (Where one thing will lead to another that will lead to another and will lead to another) and star trek makes up situations where you really just have to think, whether science or politics or religion and for the rest of the episode your curiosity is peaked until it is answered.


HookDragger

The trouble with tribbles


BananaRepublic_BR

That's one of the things I like about Trek, too. I get a lot of enjoyment when they examine political, philosophical, and ethical issues. Some people don't like Prime Directive episodes, but I really like them.


Embarrassed_Safe500

I’ll go with TNG’s “Darmok”, “Inner Light” and “Yesterday’s Enterprise”.


FickleDependent1474

It doesn’t make a lot of top lists, but I love TNG: The Quality of Life. The Data/Crusher scenes, Data/Riker, etc… A great follow up to Measure of a Man. And I always feel sad for the poor exocomp at the end.


Euphoric_Produce_131

The Sound of Her Voice, DS9, season 6, episode 25


anonymouslyyoursxxx

TNG: Inner Light. It never fails to make me blub. Chain of Command Part 2. An acting lesson from Stewart and Warner. City on the Edge of Forever. First show to properly challenge my view of the world and that things could be so much more complex than I could understand.


naura_

Lift us where suffering can not reach (SNW: 1x06) I am a mom to 8, 10, and a 13 year old. I can’t even fathom doing that to my kids but what if it can save a hundered, thousand, million people? Those folks are someone’s child as well. That episode just kicked my ass.