I need to rewatch "A Quality of Mercy," because I'm not sure I put together the Hansen thing.
Also, while I'm a little tired of SNW introducing legacy characters, since we've come this far I really want to meet a young Leonard McCoy, one of my all-time favorite characters.
New in 2024, a toy based on movies from the 1980s! That legitimately is a funny contraption they've put together. Thanks for sharing!
On overall technical skill, it's gotta be Miles. He's an excellent engineer on two completely different systems AND manages to (at least occasionally) make them interface.
If it were specifically about Starfleet tech, I would be obliged to give it to Scotty.
"Want to" might be a stretch, but I do *plan* to watch it, I just haven't taken the time yet.
Ezri or Hugh if I want to get better.
Migleemo if I want to be entertained.
Deanna if I want to ignore my problem.
All three are potential ways of dealing, so I'm glad for the variety.
Jack Crusher if I want...why is he on this list?
@BigDaveX I hadn't considered this before, but do you think that might be because we saw so many other Excelsior-class ships? We see several original Constitutions, but only a couple refits, one Ambassador, a handful of Galaxies, a couple Sovereigns, a couple NXs, one Odyssey, one Con-III.
Does that relative rarity help make the other Enterprises stand out more, or is there something uniquely mundane about the B in its appearance?
That's awesome, @Michael Benucci ! I'm glad you found more to enjoy in it this time around!
And I absolutely agree with your critiques that the Ba'ku/Son'a aren't the most compelling species and also that the humor and story lack some sophistication.
My favorite is the refit original, almost certainly for mostly nostalgia reasons.
My least-favorite, aesthetically, is the D, followed by the F. (The J takes the actual top spot, but that may or may not exist?)
My least-favorite from a story standpoint is the G and I'm mostly happy to pretend there are only OG through E in my memory, haha.
@Scyphi Fair point! I agree that following up on Picard's trauma in TNG would've been a great thing. This might be more head-canon-y than anything else, but I take the fact that they didn't as part of his character rather than a failure of the writing. He's SO repressed, SO in control, SO stiff-upper-lip that we just don't see it. And, while it wouldn't be unprecedented for someone like that to eventually snap and mow down a Borg with a Tommy gun, I have a bit of a hard time buying it for some reason when I watch the movie. I'll have to watch it again and see if I can pin down why!
I leaned toward going with TNG for similar reasons as @Scyphi , then for TWOK—it's very good, but come ON—but I ended up voting for First Contact.
To me, First Contact's introduction of the Borg Queen was a massive storytelling error that set the Borg on a path toward being a lame, has-been antagonist.
Also, I think Picard is *dramatically* out of character for much of the film. I understand that he's angry and suffering post-traumatic stress, but that was true for years and rage-blinded-vengeance-monkey was never his go-to move.
While I think the overall concept was good and it was an otherwise well-produced film, those are pretty major flaws for it to be so highly favored and ranked. It feels to me like it gets a pass on those from a lot of fans because it's a beautiful and action-packed movie...but it just doesn't really hold up for me.
I genuinely enjoy Insurrection and have never really understood the hate for it. The most oft-repeated complaint I see is that it doesn't feel movie-scale, it's just a long TNG episode, which...okay? I like TNG episodes! I agree it's not the best film or that it should've been up for any awards or anything, but I think it has a number of pros (which is not to say it doesn't have cons!), including:
It's the only time we get to see the Enterprise-E being majestic and powerful rather than getting absolutely wrecked by Borg/Remans.
I think it does a decent job of exploring Picard's psychology specifically and ideas around aging more generally.
In line with DS9, it exposes the Federation's/Starfleet's (i.e., humanity's) willingness to overlook their ideals when they're uncomfortable and to not examine that instinct too closely AND counters that with our heroes' commitment to their morality.
It *finally* gets Will and Deanna (back) together, which relationship is one of the brightest spots for me in PIC.
It gives us a glimpse of post-Dominion War realities.
It's just kinda fun, like a less-great equivalent to TVH, between the more intensely dark and serious FC and NEM.
Macey seems like a relatively honorable sort, especially for a Cardassian, so I went with him. Possibly that's based entirely on beta canon, though, I don't remember the episode super well.
I'd actually really like to see a continuation of some of the old lines. DS9, late TNG and VOY didn't get much love when it came to toys and ENT onward basically have nothing in comparison to the absolute glut of early TNG and basic characters.
I prefer the aesthetic of metal, but the practicalities (and sound dampening!) of carpet.
Also, if sonic showers are good enough for the crew, surely sonic vacuums can take care of the carpet.
@Scyphi If an admin can't tell at a glance, they shouldn't be making a snap judgment. If something is flagged, for whatever reason, to that level, refer it to one of the (active, present and helpful) moderators for a determination by people with actual context.
Like..."worst" could absolutely be used in a truly derogatory or rude way, but it's also just a qualitative evaluation. *Something* is the worst in any category and, while often subjective, it oughtn't be taboo to use the word.
I think it also depends on the user's track record. If @Michael Benucci was constantly using the format "What's the worst ____?" for his poll posts, I could see action being taken, as that's a negative skew. But even a cursory glance at his contributions prove that's not the case. He posits all sorts of questions.
Variety is the spice of life, or, more relevantly: there's infinite diversity in infinite combinations. The occasional "worst of" poll isn't going to ruin a community and admins really should just butt out unless called in (this is a pretty universal truth in my view, not specific to Fandom).
Gomtuu, ideally when the species had more members. Being able to explore space in a symbiotic relationship with a crew sounds better than most of these other options.
@SPG inc You're the first person I've seen have a positive take on that pairing! IDIC, indeed.
These are probably my two favorite ships, so it's a hard choice!
The fact that Miles and Keiko are nowhere to be found is a travesty.
Past Tense is a great episode of television and I love it. That said, it has little to do with the rest of DS9, so I went with Improbable Cause/The Die is Cast.