Star Trek: Every Hero Ship Ranked Worst To Best
There have been ten hero ships throughout Star Trek, but let's see which left the biggest impact.
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00:00I want to open this list by saying that over at TrackCulture, we are blessed to have a lot of wonderful voices contributing to all of our articles, all of our videos, all of our thoughts.
00:12The thing is, we're not always going to agree on everything.
00:16Sometimes we sit down in a room and we can all go, yep, this is exactly how things should be and everything is fine.
00:22And other times, somebody will make a suggestion and they will be laughed into oblivion, as the prophets willed it.
00:29This article was originally written by Marcus Fry, who is a wonderful, wonderful person, and because I'm going to disagree with almost every one of their points,
00:37I think what you should do is head over to our website, whatculture.com, and check out the original article, so that you can see what Marcus thought, compare it to what I thought, and then we can have some sort of jousting competition.
00:50With that big, lovely intro out of the way, let's get down to it.
00:55Here is every hero ship ranked worst to best.
00:58Number 10, La Sirena.
01:01Before y'all think I'm a hater, bear with me.
01:05The SS La Sirena is an unregistered Kaplan F-17 freighter that Cristobal Rios acquired after leaving Starfleet.
01:12Now, in Picard, Jean-Luc needed a fast, dependable ship to get to where he was going, and thanks to Raffi knowing Rios, that was perfect, they sorted him out with La Sirena.
01:23The reason La Sirena scores so low on this list is that not because there's anything particularly wrong with the ship, although the Irish hologram does have me asking questions,
01:36it's because when compared to the others on this list, it just doesn't really stack up.
01:41It definitely does the job, and it definitely is agile, it's got some fairly nifty weaponry, I love their transporter and the fact that it's the size of half a cargo bay,
01:52but for me, it just doesn't hold up next to ships like Defiant, like the Enterprise, pick an Enterprise, or like some of the newer ships as well.
02:03So for me, it's a lovely, lovely freighter, it's quick, it's cool, I really do, despite what I just said about the Irish hologram, enjoy the ship-wide hollow emitters, but it has to kick off our list today.
02:17Number 9, the Enterprise NX-01.
02:20Now, I can hear our happy working relationship with Doug Drexler just vanishing into the distance, but my reason for putting the NX-01 so low is it's nothing to do with aesthetics,
02:34it's nothing to do with, well, we love Enterprise here, so it's certainly nothing to do with that.
02:39It's that, when compared to the other ships on this list, this one was a wonderful prototype, sure, and this one was a great one for getting the ball rolling, but again, it just doesn't stack up so much next to the rest, so let me go through it.
02:55So, being set in the 22nd century gave the writers of Enterprise a unique opportunity to explore the origins of Starfleet and the Federation, as well as their tech.
03:03The Enterprise NX-01 was great in this regard, we got to see earlier forms of many of the iconic devices used aboard every Starfleet ship in the original series and beyond.
03:12Instead of tractor beams, they used physical grappling hooks, instead of shields, they polarised hull plating, instead of photon torpedoes, they just chucked rocks out the window.
03:20Alright, not quite, they were equipped with spatial torpedoes which have a lower explosive yielding range.
03:25Additionally, the transporter was a new invention, and you get to see that develop over the four seasons.
03:31Now, altogether, the NX-01 gave us great insight into the evolution of Starfleet tech, but for us, it's hampered by its very purpose.
03:42Its purpose was to be an earlier version of Starfleet, and for that, it does an absolutely brilliant job.
03:50But, again, when you compare it to those on this list, we love it, Enterprise, we love you, Doug.
03:56In the words of Paramount, to Garret Wong, someone's got to be the ensign.
04:01Number 8, the USS Enterprise-1701.
04:04Now, if anyone's still listening to this list, I appreciate you and thank you very much.
04:10The Enterprise-1701 is the pinnacle of starship design in the 1960s.
04:15It was crucial for introducing a new aesthetic, a new sleek, a new mature, if you like, version of space travel when it comes to, at the time, relatively mid-budget sci-fi.
04:30Now, while Star Trek was never invented as a B-movie, you know, bug-eyed monster of the week sort of show,
04:36it was beautifully steeped in that kind of history, while still forging ahead with its own.
04:42The way the nacelles sit behind the saucer section and the star drive section below is now one of the most recognisable designs in all of literature.
04:51Matt Jefferies did a wonderful, wonderful ship design for this new series.
04:58Now, the only reason it scores as lowly as this is because, amazing as it is, it set the template for things to come afterwards.
05:07So, it was when you are given a wonderful prototype, you have only to build and improve.
05:14There is no denying whatsoever that the original Enterprise is a beautiful ship.
05:20And, for me personally, aesthetically, my favourite Enterprise is the refit 1701 and 1701A from the movies.
05:29So, it is not that I personally think this one doesn't look great, because it does.
05:35It is the forebear for everything that came after, it is a fantastic design, and it is a very loved eighth entry on this list.
05:45Number 7, USS Discovery.
05:48The Crossfield-class USS Discovery was based on the original designs for what would become the refit 1701 for the motion picture.
05:56You can see that in the nacelles that jut out from the triangular star drive section, with that smaller circular saucer section sitting above it.
06:05The Discovery raised some eyebrows when it was first seen in the teaser trailer for Star Trek Discovery.
06:11The nacelles at the time were much shorter, and it much more closely resembled that original design.
06:17When it was finally revealed in episode 3 of Star Trek Discovery's first season,
06:22those nacelles had taken rather a lot of Viagra and had become about half a football field long.
06:28And yet, any issues that were presented in the initial season of Star Trek Discovery have long since been rectified.
06:37The Discovery, and indeed the Discovery A, have very much earned their position in the Starfleet pantheon of beautiful ship designs.
06:46Unusual, sure, but beautiful.
06:48The interior of the ship, while sometimes a little bit cold, has warmed over the four seasons,
06:54particularly into the fourth season, where we start to spend more time in crew quarters, particularly Saru and Burnham.
07:02The bridge is a fantastic design. It was a somewhat interesting choice that they decided to add what was effectively the entire interior of Spacedock
07:10during the third season finale fight in the Turbolift. However, that has since been addressed and fixed.
07:16The design features, of course, the spore drive, which caused headaches for fans in seasons 1 and 2 of Star Trek Discovery,
07:23but now that it's been flung into the far future, it's absolutely fine.
07:26And it is now a very, very cool piece of technology.
07:29It allows Discovery to visit anywhere they want in the galaxy.
07:33You know, I think it brings them up to about two light-years before the galactic barrier,
07:37almost like that was a plot point in season 4, eh?
07:40Having earned its place in Starfleet history at this stage, Discovery is a strong, strong vessel,
07:47one that took an absolute pounding against Control, and yet still manages to hold its own up against the 1701.
07:54Hats off, Discovery. Kudos.
07:56Number 6, USS Protostar.
07:58Now, the Protostar is an advanced, strong, fast little ship.
08:03Star Trek Prodigy is impressing younger and existing audiences of Star Trek by introducing the protodrive via this ship.
08:12The ship itself is a beautifully sleek design that evokes both memories of the Dauntless, Voyager,
08:18and some of the Kelvin universe vessels as well.
08:21Armed with, finally, a replicator for support ships,
08:25which would explain so much of how Voyager managed to hang on to all of those shuttles,
08:29this ship has managed to hold its own against the Diviner,
08:32and against other ships around the Delta Quadrant.
08:35It managed to help its crew escape to another quadrant while being chased,
08:38although they did have to turn straight around after that, and for further details, watch Prodigy.
08:42The recent trailer that was released for Prodigy's second part of its first season
08:47showed its size up against the new Dauntless class,
08:50which really hammered home that the Protostar is generally a test vessel or support vessel,
08:56as it's roughly the size of several runabouts placed back-to-back.
09:00The Dauntless dwarfs it.
09:02Now, it's not about size, it's about use,
09:05and the Protostar, so far, has proven a very effective, very covetable ship,
09:11and one that we are very, very much enjoying watching its journey.
09:16Number five, the USS Defiant and the Sao Paulo.
09:19The Defiant-class ship, which was introduced in the beginning of DS9's third season,
09:23was a complete departure from everything that we'd seen before in terms of Starfleet vessels.
09:28It was equipped with a cloaking device, thank you very much Romulans,
09:31and also featured a blockier, stockier design.
09:35It was Starfleet's first warship.
09:38Now, this went completely against what Gene Roddenberry wanted for Star Trek back in the 1960s,
09:44and yet, times had changed.
09:46Therefore, the need for the ships in Star Trek changed with it.
09:50You can almost hear the Twitter users running to say,
09:54not my Star Trek, and Gene would be spinning in his grave.
09:58But, think about how enduring the Defiant was.
10:01It survived so many battles with the Dominion,
10:04it survived a battle with the Borg,
10:06it survived many, many tussles with the Cardassians,
10:09as well as other various ships.
10:12Looking at you, Klingon fleet.
10:14It finally met its end in the second battle of Chintoka,
10:17in the seventh season of Star Trek Deep Space Nine.
10:20Now, although it went out firing,
10:23it was disappointing and saddening to see that the Breen's energy-dissipating weapon
10:28was able to take down one of our favourite ships.
10:31Which, of course, was the point.
10:33As the shot revealed, all of the other ships behind it,
10:35you see Galaxy-class vessels as well,
10:37to go, even if the Enterprise-D was there in that fight,
10:40it's not like that would have done much better.
10:42The Defiant did fantastically for the three and a half years
10:45that it served before it was destroyed,
10:46and the Sao Paulo, although we didn't get very much to see,
10:50seemed to do quite well in what you leave behind as well.
10:53Number four, the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E.
10:58Introduced in Star Trek First Contact,
11:00the Sovereign-class USS Enterprise-E
11:03is easily one of the most beautiful ships on this list.
11:06The sleek design, accentuated by the fact the saucer section
11:10goes straight into the star drive section without a neck to target,
11:15shows that the Enterprise-E is a follow-on, in a way, from the Defiant.
11:19With the Enterprise-D having been destroyed in orbit of Viridian-3 in the previous film,
11:24it was known that we needed an Enterprise that could stand up to more of a direct assault,
11:29and the Enterprise-E's design accentuates this.
11:32John Eaves worked very, very closely with the producers
11:36to come up with something that would show it was still a ship of exploration,
11:40but one that had teeth.
11:42Now, it was tested early in Star Trek First Contact with the Battle of Sector 001,
11:46leading directly into the fight against the Sphere,
11:49and then it was almost completely assimilated over the course of the film,
11:53and yet still bounced back for Star Trek Insurrection and Star Trek Nemesis.
11:57In both of those films, the ship took a pounding as well,
12:00so the ship's strength is not in question.
12:02The ship's comfort is also not in question, as it was shown across all three films
12:07just how much there were creature comforts everywhere.
12:10Didn't you see the Mintaken tapestry on the back of Picard's chair?
12:15God, I love who watches The Watchers.
12:16The Enterprise-E remains one of the most instantly recognisable ships in all of Star Trek,
12:22as well as one of the most fist-pumping arrivals in all of Star Trek.
12:26It appears in what is, for many, one of the best Star Trek films,
12:30and it also appears in what is, for many, one of the worst Star Trek films,
12:34so I'm not going to name them. You decide.
12:36With the close-up on the deflector dish,
12:38the nacelles that got pushed back between Star Trek First Contact and Star Trek Insurrection,
12:42and the front of the saucer section which was completely shmuzzled
12:45and then rebuilt at the end of Nemesis,
12:47this is a strong, beautiful, elegant ship that I'm kind of considering asking out on a date.
12:54Number three, the USS Cerritos.
12:56The California-class Cerritos was a bit of an eyeful
13:00when it first appeared in that teaser poster a few years ago.
13:03It was very clearly inspired by ships like the Galaxy-class and Ambassador-class
13:08with the circular saucer section,
13:10and then their relative lack of star drive section was a bit like,
13:14wait a minute, I thought this was Starfleet?
13:17However, it perfectly encapsulates the purpose of the ship,
13:20which is the Kali-class ships are the workhorse of Starfleet.
13:25They get sent in to do the dirty work that the other ships don't want to do,
13:29and in that respect, it is perfectly fit for design.
13:32Now, we've seen in recent episodes just how many mazes of wiring
13:37and Jeffreys tubes and hydroponics bays and Duplo skeletons are sitting on the Cerritos.
13:42It is quite a bit larger than perhaps we first thought when we first saw it,
13:46and it does exactly what it says in the tin.
13:49You go in and make First Contact and make friends and everything's great
13:52and you warp off and then the Cerritos comes in to usually mop up the damage.
13:56It had its entire outer hull stripped away at the end of the second season
14:00and was absolutely fine.
14:02It saved much larger ships like the Archimedes.
14:05It has always been there to get the job done
14:09and has still managed to take a complete and utter kicking
14:12from the Paklets on several occasions.
14:15The Cerritos is to the Kali-class what the Enterprise is
14:19to whatever class of ship the Enterprise is that week.
14:22It is truly one of the stars of Starfleet.
14:25Now, while it might not shine as bright as a Galaxy or Sovereign-class,
14:29it is still out there keeping the light going.
14:32Number two, USS Voyager.
14:34The Intrepid-class Voyager was introduced in Caretaker,
14:37the opening episode to this new series.
14:39Voyager featured a new design.
14:41It was an oblong saucer section,
14:44a star drive section that was attached directly to it,
14:47and moving nacelles.
14:48The nacelles would rise up when the ship was going to warp
14:51as this was shown to make a more effective warp drive.
14:55The ship was able to land with the struts that were revealed in the 37s,
14:59which became the first episode of season two of Star Trek Voyager.
15:04The one criticism that Voyager often gets is that the premise for the show,
15:08which was the conflict between the Federation officers and the Maquis officers,
15:12and the fact that Voyager was stuck so far away from a space dock,
15:16is what keeps this from the top spot.
15:17The ship was a little too clean.
15:20So, although it was fantastic,
15:22and it lasted, and it faced against the Krennum,
15:25and it faced against the Borg, and the Kazon,
15:28and, and, and, and, and,
15:31it always looked like it had just been rolled off the showroom floor.
15:34Now, that is a minor gripe on my part,
15:37because I love this design.
15:39The deflector dish, the shuttle bay with the revolving door of shuttles
15:43that just never seemed to run out,
15:45which we addressed in our protostar entry,
15:47and the fact that when we know it got home,
15:49it became a museum,
15:51just goes to show how enduring Voyager was.
15:55Now, the design was used once on Deep Space Nine,
15:57to stand in for the Bellerophon,
15:59although it would have been lovely to see it in some of the movies,
16:02because it is such a well-designed ship.
16:05The bioneural gel packs that became, effectively,
16:08the nervous system for the computer core
16:10were an interesting idea that were never really followed up on.
16:13There were many ideas introduced in this ship
16:15that should have gone on to become mainstays across the board.
16:21It features, in my humble opinion,
16:23the most beautiful engineering set of any of the hero ships,
16:27and also, I kind of love the bridge the most as well.
16:30Number one, the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D.
16:351987 saw the introduction of the Galaxy Class Enterprise-D,
16:39designed by Andrew Probert.
16:41This would feature a much larger design
16:43than the Enterprise we had seen before,
16:44because this was not only a ship of exploration,
16:47but it was also, effectively, a ship of diplomacy,
16:50a ship of colonization, a ship of conferences.
16:53It needed the space.
16:55It was a chonker of a ship.
16:57It was different from what came before,
16:58in that the nacelles were much smaller
17:01when compared to the dimensions of the Constitution Class.
17:05It was able to face off against ships like the Borg Cube,
17:08it was able to face off against Cardassian, Klingon, Romulan vessels,
17:12but all that time, the Enterprise-D was never a ship of war.
17:15It was always a ship of exploration.
17:18The brightly lit corridors, the slower pace of life on board,
17:22and, of course, the large horseshoe tactical station
17:26that surrounded the command chairs on board the bridge
17:29all led to this being the most iconic design
17:33when it comes to Starfleet vessels,
17:35and it seems to be the one that newer ships tend to base
17:39their, at least, initial designs from.
17:43The Enterprise-D went before her time, over Verdian III.
17:47She was a victim of the film industry rather than anything else,
17:51because the sets were designed for television screens at a 4-3 ratio,
17:56not the widescreen format of cinema.
17:58The ship was shown in several versions throughout its run.
18:01We had, of course, the version that we saw in yesterday's Enterprise,
18:04which showed a bridge that would serve as the inspiration
18:07for the bridge on Star Trek Generations,
18:09and also the three-nacelled version that rocked up in All Good Things.
18:13The Enterprise-D in the Galaxy Class
18:15remains one of the most endearing designs ever shown in Star Trek.
18:19It is a personal warmth when I see this ship,
18:22as I know exactly that I'm home.
18:25Thank you very much, everyone, for listening to this list.
18:27Thank you very much to the wonderful, wonderful Marcus Frye,
18:30who is cursing my name and stabbing pins into my voodoo doll right now,
18:35and that is absolutely fine.
18:36I thoroughly recommend you go over to the website and read their article,
18:39and then compare the points and tell me why I'm wrong.
18:42Thank you very much to the wonderful Martin,
18:44who had to turn my words into a moving picture video.
18:49You're a good man.
18:50If you agreed with this list, or if you disagreed with this list,
18:52head on into the comments below and let me know.
18:54Remember that you can catch us over on Twitter, at TrekCulture.
18:57You can catch myself, at SeanFerric, on Twitter,
18:59and the various socials as well.
19:00Now, until I see you again, make sure that you live long and prosper.
19:02Make sure that you look after yourselves.
19:04To our friends in Ukraine, stay strong, stay fighting.
19:06We are with you.
19:07Everyone have a wonderful week.
19:08Make it so.