As a kid i loved watching the next generation and deep space 9 with my dad. Ive always liked sci fi, more of a (stargate fan) and wanted to get back into star trek, but Im just so lost on timelines and whats going on. There are like 6 kirks and I have no idea how/where to get started with watching this again.

  • ScrivenerX@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    A quick rundown of what is out there:

    TOS - the original series - I don’t think it holds up too well, only watch if you get into Trek.

    Suggested episodes - trouble with tribbles and balance of terror

    TNG - the next generation - the basis of modern Trek. Probably what most people think of with star Trek

    Eps - measure of a man, darmok, inner light and cause and effect

    DS9 - deep space nine - my favorite, the story of the dominion war and the fate of cardasaia. It has a slow start but really picks up

    Eps - duet and in the pale moonlight

    VOY - voyager - I’m not a fan but it’s popular, jerri Ryan and Robert Picardo are the best parts of the show

    Eps - year of hell pts 1&2

    ENT - enterprise - it’s been a long road getting from there to here, but your time is finally here. It’s campy and bad, but I love it. Go in with low expectations and come out with a love of Shran.

    Eps - not going up suggest any, quality tends to trend upwards over the course of the show, but there isn’t any one episode that highlights anything good about the show.

    DISCO - discovery - the start of nutrek. It isn’t as bad as some people say, but it isn’t great. There are some good characters, I like Tilly, some neat twists and callbacks (Lorka) but on a whole it’s just meh.

    Eps - none for DISCO every episode builds towards a season arc pretty directly, so it’s not good to watch out of order

    Picard - it’s bad. Season 3 is better if you are a big fan of TNG, DS9 and VOY, as an entry point it’s awful.

    Eps - I didn’t enjoy any enough to recommend

    LD - lower decks - funny animated star Trek. I think it’s great, but very referential to old series. Not a good jumping on point.

    Eps - wej Duj and much ado about Boimler

    SNW - strange new worlds - still running and great. An excellent jumping on point, pretty and well acted

    Eps - ad astra per aspera and the Elysian Kingdom

    • Emperor_Cartagia@startrek.website
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      1 year ago

      Ok, so as a starter, I’d recommend that someone going by the above do a kind of seven episode primer on Star Trek and what it’s about. Moral/Ethical philosophy.

      TOS - Balance of Terror, is preemptive aggression ever justified?

      TNG - Measure of a Man, what makes a person a person?

      DS9 - In The Pale Moonlight, do the ends justify the means?

      VOY - I’d go with Equinox parts I & II over Year of Hell, but also a “do the ends justify the means.”

      ENT - Judgement, is justice arbitrary or universal?

      Skip DISCO, plenty of issues to be examined but each one takes a whole season.

      Skip LD, there’s a few issues but they’re not as well presented.

      SNW - Strange New World

      • Tired8281@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        +1 for Equinox. The Void from season 7 also covers similar ground, with a dose of ‘maybe Starfleet’s ways of thinking are correct’.

        • ScrivenerX@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          There are good prime directive episodes, but on a whole they just aren’t good intros to the shows.

          For example, Pen Pals from TNG has some great moments. The crew indulging Data, everyone knowing Data has an emotional connection with the little alien girl, except Data. Good discussion about the morality of intervention. And a large chunk is Wes being whiny also pretty goofy make up on alien girls hands. It’s good, but not an intro to Trek good.

  • thejoker95@startrek.website
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    1 year ago

    to get back into Star Trek I would recommend either Strange New Worlds or Lower Decks. Strange New Worlds is Star Trek heart and soul. Lower Decks is a comedy but also does a great job capturing the heart and soul of Star Trek.

  • Naura@startrek.website
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    1 year ago

    Strange New Worlds is a great starting point. SNW is set in the 5 year mission before Kirk’s 5 year mission on the enterprise. There are some arcs that you might not get but it’s not necessary to know what the episode is about because it is episodic. I watched the corresponding TOS / Discovery episodes with Captain Pike after I watched the SNW episodes to fill in the parts that I really didn’t get but here is a list of the episodes I watched.

    The Menagerie Part 1 and 2 (TOS) -> Through the Valley of Shadows (DIS) -> A quality of Mercy (SNW) -> Balance of Terror (TOS)

    Picard season 3 is an absolute must if you watched next gen / DS9. For the whole season to make sense you’ll probably want to watch the last 2 seasons of DS9. If you watch the last 2 episodes of picard season 3, watch TNG’s best of both worlds part 1 & 2, All good things… (the series finale), and Voyager’s Endgame (the series finale) it’ll make more sense.

    the last 2 seasons of DS9 is very political and heavy but many people say it’s the best trek - however now SNW is getting close to taking the title.

  • PunchingBag@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    After being gone from it since Star Trek Enterprise, my wife and I got back in with Star Trek Lower Decks (oddly enough). If you can handle it being animated (and goofy), it is actually a very dearly written love-letter to TNG and some of the most important moments in Star Trek lore. We appreciated that it didn’t try to reinvent characters that already exist, and did a good job of bringing on old actors for cameos. They bring on people from TNG, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager all the time to reprise their roles.

    There’s a live-action Star Trek currently running that I can’t attest to, but it has a crossover with Lower Decks that means I’m going to give it a try.

    • GCanuck@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      My friend. Watch Strange New Worlds. Best Trek since TNG (imho).

      It does lean a little towards the silly more than I’d generally like, but even the silly is good.

      And the cross over episode was top notch.

    • StandingCat@lemmy.worldOP
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      1 year ago

      Ill give Lower decks a shot!

      I do have to say one of the things that has turned me off from the ones I’ve tried to start up is the repeated attempts to revive/reinvent the old characters. Not a fan of reboots.

      • thejoker95@startrek.website
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        1 year ago

        I’m the same way regarding reboots. that’s the main reason I really dislike discovery’s 1st season and certain plot points. while Strange New Worlds is a reboot of sorts as well it is amazing. it’s just a real shame certain things are going to have to be “undone” to line up with existing canon as SNW has done an exceptional job all around and the changes they’ve made work really well.

    • obi_one@lemmy.ml
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      1 year ago

      Watching this now. I’m enjoying it more than I expected and would also recommend it.

    • Naura@startrek.website
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      1 year ago

      I’m reiterating, watch SNW!

      you’re missing out. I’m a 90s trek girl however SNW has the right amount of cheese for it to be really great and easier to watch than TOS

    • WagnasT@iusearchlinux.fyi
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      1 year ago

      Such a surprisingly good show. I expected just a complete clown show but most of of the episodes are well written and the characters actually do grow over time. I love how Boimler has a nerdgasm at the mention of anyone from TNG, DS9, or Voyager. Even the intro theme really fits the vibe of TNG and i watch it every time. Them noping out of the borg fight cracks me up every time. I use arch btw.

    • MudMan@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      Season one of Lower Decks almost put me off the show entirely. It’s trying too hard to be Rick and Morty in Star Trek. There’s a particular joke about what people do in the holodeck that is so trite and obvious I almost stopped watching right there.

      It does find its own much more gentle tone after that, though. I actively like it now. I’d start in Season 2, but it’s not a bad way to keep it light and episodic. I still think Season 1 of Strange New Worlds is an easier transition from the old shows, though.

      • PunchingBag@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I think you make a good point. Some of the humor is pretty low for a Star Trek medium. It does catch its stride as it goes along.

  • StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website
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    1 year ago

    Many of us feel the impulse to recommend whichever Trek first pulled us in. Others are completists or like to get everything in release or chronological order.

    I see lots of recommendations starting along these lines here. That might not best for you OP. I’ve had the personal experience of watching everything in first run in release order, but I don’t know if I would attempt that if I were wanting to break back in after a long hiatus.

    If you liked the original 1960s show (TOS) with Kirk, Spock and McCoy, Strange New Worlds may be your best entry point now. It takes place on the original Enterprise under an earlier captain, 10ish years before the time of the original show. Kirk and Spock are the same people you know but younger, and necessarily played by new actors. It’s designed to be a gateway show for fans who’ve never seen any Star Trek so you won’t be lost trying to figure out where things fit in. (The movies with Chris Pine as Kirk are set in a separate universe.)

    If you were a Next Generation fan, then you might wish to start with Picard season three or Lower Decks.

  • ItsaMamaLuigi@startrek.website
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    1 year ago

    Either Strange New Worlds (if you want new Trek) or go back and rewatch The Next Generation and Deep Space 9. Three best series IMO. The old ones hold up; SNW is up there with them.

  • nutbiggums@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Start with The Next Generation, just remember the first two seasons are the weakest by far. Really picks up in S3/4.

    Then do DS9 and Voyager. Enterprise is worth watching if you get there.

    Or start watching Strange New Worlds, it’s freaking awesome and modern but has the same feel as old Trek.

    • Luci@lemmy.ca
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      1 year ago

      I stand by my claim that TNG is better when Riker has a beard and its best when Geordi has a beard!

    • jerkbank@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I rewatched TNG in its entirety during peak pandemic. Season 1 is pretty painful, but the rest holds up well. I tried to watch DS9 afterwards and bounced off it pretty hard. It’s got such a different vibe from TNG. Voyager is a little closer to TNG, but missing some of the campiness that I enjoy.

      I’m really liking Lower Decks, Strange New Worlds, and Picard Season 3 (avoid Picard Seasons 1&2 at all costs, just skip them as they have nothing to do w/ S3).

    • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I tried watching TNG a few times and holy shit it was so bad. There’s no way I can slog through two seasons to get to the decent bits

  • SokathHisEyesOpen@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Honestly I’d start back by watching TNG and then DS9 again. I assure you that you’ve forgotten a lot of it and you can experience it all again!

  • Taleya@aussie.zone
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    1 year ago

    Snw & lower decks. They’ll get you started and you can pick up additional from there

  • flamingmongoose@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    1 year ago

    Go back and finish Deep Space Nine if you didn’t watch it consistently, it’s great and probably the most adult Trek. If you’re looking for less of a commitment, Strange New Worlds is great. The only plot point you need to know going into it is

    spoiler

    Pike has seen his future and knows he’s destined to become severely paralysed

    Discovery is pretty standalone but it’s a very odd show. Everyone is very emotional and every episode is super dramatic. Not to everyone’s taste but good if you want a Trek that reflects more modern TV.

    Enterprise gets quite good as well, despite it’s flaws.

    • bunnyknuckles@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Ent season 1: ehh, I guess I’ll keep watching

      Ent season 2: well, that was better than s1

      Ent season 3: man, that was really good

      Ent season 4: oh boy, I can’t wait for season 5

      Ent finale: No. Try again.

  • changingfmh@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    TNG, in my opinion. It’s arguable about it being the best, but I think it’s the fairest entry point. It was meant as a starting point in a way other shows were not.

    First 2 seasons are bad, so I’d recommend an episode guide to skip past the offensive and bad.

  • MdRuckus @lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I would watch them by order of Discovery, Enterprise, Strange New Worlds, The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Lower Decks and Picard.

      • MdRuckus @lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Nope. Discovery was originally set in 2256, eleven years before Enterprise. Discovery has a lot of time jumping, so past the first two seasons it would no longer be considered before.