Poll: Best TNG Episode

What is the best TNG episode?

Poll: Best TNG Guest Star

Poll: Best "Villains"

Well, we've just pod-casted and reviewed "The Wounded," which very capably introduced the Cardassians, and this naturally sets our thoughts towards the question of the "best villains" in Star Trek. Of course, by villains, we mean an antagonistic culture. I am of the opinion, and I think Kevin tends to agree with me, that single villains are generally a bad idea. They always end up seeming to chew scenery, or require incredible amounts of power or ability in order to be a real threat as a singular person. Antagonistic cultures, on the other hand, are much more realistic. Just like our own Cold War, or our current "war" on "terror" (whatever these terms are taken to mean), it is usually an opposing mindset or philosophy that presents the greatest and most animated conflicts.

I mean, just look at these creeps!

So, without further ado, here is a poll asking just these sorts of questions. Which antagonistic culture do you enjoy the most in Star Trek, any series or movie? And yeah, speaking of movies, I left the Son'a off the poll. They are objectively lame and need not be included.



Justify your choice in the comments!

Poll: Regarding "Troi Episodes..."

Apparently, the Deanna Troi character is not a fan favorite. This isn't my personal opinion - I rather like her. But there is such a prevailing opinion that she is a weak character and that episodes focusing on her generally suck, that no less a source than tvtropes.org lists a trope titled "Good Troi Episode." Their description:

In an ensemble show, you'd expect episodes which center around a poorly-used and poorly-received character to, themselves, be poorly-received. Usually you'd be right- but every now and then you have an anomaly. An episode centered around a poor character actually turns out to be a good episode.

Well, we've just reviewed "The Loss," and found it to be an adequate episode all around. But it got me to thinking - what do we and our viewers hold to be the best Troi episode?

I always liked this look better than the "boob dress."

In designing this poll, I went through my list of TNG episodes and determined whether there was a main character to the A story (many episodes focus on one character, though some do not). This is what defines a "Troi" or "Geordi" or whoever episode. The main action of the plot has to revolve around that particular character's growth or struggle. Thus, some episodes were really more Lwaxana episodes (that's a topic for another day...) than Deanna Troi episodes. "Menage A Troi" was the exceptional case, since it seems to focus almost equally on both of them. So after thus distilling the episode list, here is the poll:

What's the best "Troi Episode?"

Tell us what you think! Post a justification for your choice in the comments.

Vote: What's your pick for the best TOS episode?

In preparation for our TOS Season 3 and series recap, we want to hear from you. Please let us know what episode you consider the best of TOS. Feel free to use whatever criteria you choose. We'd love to hear in the comments why you picked the episode you did. After our recap, we'll post our own Top 10 list. Stay tuned!

What's your pick for the best TOS episode?

If your pick isn't on the list, please let us know in the comments!