io9’s Charlie Jane Anders has made a list of the top ten best episodes from the entire Star Trek franchise.
Curious to see if your favorite episode made the list? Here’s a sample entry from the list…
7) In the Pale Moonlight (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
When Deep Space Nine is remembered, it’s usually for a couple things: its gritty wartime drama, and its gutsy depiction of the dark side of Starfleet. And probably the best encapsulation of both themes comes from this episode, in which Benjamin Sisko discovers just how far he’s willing to go to convince the Romulans to join the Federation in fighting the Dominion. Like most of the other episodes on this list, it’s an excellent character study, showing how Sisko loses his idealism in exchange for a shot at victory. (I also considered including “The Siege of AR-558,” which shows the cost of war more literally.) It’s also an episode that keeps you on your toes, as Garak’s unscrupulous plan unfolds in a surprising way.
We won’t tell you which episode is number one.
What we will say is our news director disagrees with some of the choices (for example, “The Trouble With Tribbles” while good is highly overrated), it’s an interesting list and certainly a good starting point for debate.
You can read the full list HERE.
I have to agree those are some of the best episodes. I’m glad one from Voyager made the list. The Void demonstrates why I love Star Trek. It’s about showing optimism and cooperating can win over selfishness. Star Trek itself is about how the future and the unknown are not things to fear but to embrace and that human values our courage along with compassion will see us through any challenge.
I pretty much agree with io9’s choices here. The only exception is I would move City on the Edge of Forever into the #1 spot and replace the Tribble episode with the 2-Part Menagerie.
How in the hell is “Duet” not among DS9’s very best? Oh and after thinking on it, ENT did have two episodes that should have been mentioned, “In A Mirror Darkly” parts 1 and 2.