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When Star Trek does comedy, it's a laugh riot. When it does horror, do you join in the screams?
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00:00Genre episodes can be a fun departure from a standard episode of Star Trek.
00:04As the franchise is so rooted in sci-fi overall, veering away from that or at least altering the
00:09genre to fit another trope can break up the flow of a season, something that Strange New Worlds is
00:15taking to the bank at the moment. In that show alone we've seen a musical, a zombie infestation,
00:20a role-playing D&D inspired episode alongside animated team ups and some good old-fashioned
00:25time travel, if indeed we count time travel as a genre. Yet Star Trek has experimented with form
00:31for decades, peppering its ongoing series with frights, laughter, and weeping. The original
00:36series had both incredible freedom and the restraints of 60s production limits to play with this.
00:42Still, it had many examples of various genres, including some properly frightening moments.
00:47The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine also continued this trend, though of course every
00:52iteration of Star Trek has its opportunity to break the actors out of the technobabble of the week.
00:58Naturally, comedy is something Trek has visited on many occasions. There is something about those
01:02tight space suits and the arched eyebrows of the Vulcans that lends itself to farce. On the flip side,
01:08tragedy has just as many examples in Trek's history. For this list we're concentrating on the televised
01:14portion of Star Trek, so we will visit the movies at another time. For now it's a director's dream as
01:20we
01:20dive into the list of genre highlights across the years. I'm Sean Ferrick for Trek Culture and here
01:26are the 10 greatest genre episodes ever. Number 10. Sci-fi schisms. For our first entry we had to ask
01:35ourselves what constitutes science fiction? Further to that, how could we pick the best example of it
01:41from within Star Trek itself? First, the definition from Britannica.com. Science fiction, a form of fiction
01:47that deals principally with the impact of actual or imagined science upon society or individuals.
01:53In choosing schisms we have used the solanogen-based lifeforms experiments upon the crew of the Enterprise
01:59D, as well as the threat of alien abduction in general, to guide our choice. Science fiction,
02:05as broad a term as it is, often deals with things like technological advancements, as well as body
02:10modification, both of which are on show here. In the spirit of full disclosure, there are many examples
02:17of science fiction as a genre in Star Trek, which is as obvious as it is challenging to pick any
02:22one
02:22example to rise above the rest. Time travel, as we indicated in the introduction, may appear on
02:28another list as its own genre, so many of the options for science fiction will be up for consideration
02:34there. For the episode here there are several moments that help it stand out as an example of
02:39science fiction. Riker's missing time, that chilling scene on the holodeck, poor Ensign Hagler's fate,
02:45and the climax in the alien's realm all combine to tell one of the most enduring, disturbing stories
02:52in Star Trek. The Next Generation undertook many experiments during its run, with schisms skirting
02:57the line of sci-fi and horror carefully. For the close encounters element of this episode,
03:03it's our choice for science fiction, and we have all been in that room before, haven't we?
03:09Number 9. A Fistful of Datas
03:12Western, a genre of novels and short stories, motion pictures, and television and radio shows
03:18that are set in the American West, usually in the period from the 1850s to the end of the 19th
03:24century. There really was only ever one clear winner in this genre, though Star Trek has experimented
03:31with westerns a number of times. In the original series, Spectre of the Gun offered audiences a
03:36view of the OK Corral, while Star Trek Enterprise visited a modern frontier in North Star. While
03:43A Fistful of Datas may blend a couple of genres, looking at you comedy, it is a western at its
03:49core.
03:50You probably know the story, Worf's latest attempt at hiding from Alexander takes him,
03:54in the guise of spending time together, to Deadwood, a lonely frontier town in which he will play the
03:59Sheriff. Thanks to a computer hiccup, Data begins appearing in the most inopportune places,
04:06while director Patrick Stewart rolled the camera with glee. Considering the comedic nature of the
04:12episode, it makes every effort to capture the feel of those spaghetti westerns of yesteryear. Brent
04:17Spiner is having a ball as he swaggers through town, revolver on his hip, while Marina Sirtis embodies the
04:23lone drifter, here to help the sheriff. Even little Alexander gets something to do as the kidnapped
04:29deputy. In other words, it captures all of the tropes of the genre, we see you, piano player closing
04:34the lid before a gunfight, we see you, and lovingly recreates them on the holodeck. It may not be the
04:41most original take on westerns, but it remains Star Trek's premiere offering in that genre to date.
04:47Number 8. Romance, The City on the Edge of Forever. Romance, literary form usually
04:54characterized by its treatment of chivalry that came into being in France in the mid-12th century.
05:00The City on the Edge of Forever is considered the height of romance in Star Trek, despite its sci-fi
05:06and time travel leanings, because there is simply no denying the chemistry between William Shatner
05:11and John Collins. Though the story ends in tragedy, that too is baked into the fibre of romance, so much
05:18so that the story itself tells you it must be so, Edith Keillor must die. From Spock's lips to our
05:25broken
05:25hearts, this was a doomed romance from the beginning. Having said that, Kirk's obligation to see history
05:32set right may break the code of chivalry, but would saving her have really given her a better life?
05:38After all, her movement led, however indirectly, to the Nazis winning the war. What sort of future would
05:44that look like? One could easily argue that the real romance of the original series was between
05:50Kirk and Spock, or even Kirk and the Enterprise. For further details, see Gene Roddenberry's novelization
05:56of the motion picture. On second thoughts, maybe don't. But in terms of pure episodic romance, it must be the
06:03tragedy of Edith Keillor, James T Kirk, and a well-meaning Leonard McCoy. Why must romance be so often
06:10combined with pain? Harlan Ellison, who hurt you? Actually, when you read the behind the scenes of this episode,
06:16you know very much who hurt him. You know very much. Number 7. Noir, Suspicions.
06:23Film noir, a style of filmmaking characterised by such elements as cynical heroes, stark lighting effects,
06:29frequent use of flashbacks, intricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosophy.
06:35Suspicions, the sixth season episode of The Next Generation, offered a compelling mystery for both
06:41Dr. Crusher and the audience. The narrative structure plays with time. We are brought into the story at
06:47roughly the midpoint, while Guinan helps excise the exposition from Crusher. Though the episode doesn't
06:53fully utilise the tropes of film noir, it's thin on the ground with dramatic lighting. Following the Doctor's mission,
07:00both via flashback and misdirection, helps it land here. The episode also plays on the audience's assumptions.
07:07How could a Ferengi be interested in scientific research? Surely the Klingon must be the violent one.
07:12In doing so, the eventual reveal about Jo Brill lands. Crusher's desperate attempt to clear her name,
07:19despite the hesitation from Picard and the rest of the crew, helps make her the hero the story really
07:25needs to hit those final tropes. Having the dead man hide inside the shuttle's closet is the cherry on
07:30top. It's an episode that keeps on giving. A particular highlight is Ogawa's role,
07:35who is of course played by the late great Patty Yasutake. Here, she is the investigator's man on the
07:41inside, so to speak. This too is a trope that benefits from years of backstory. Ogawa and Crusher have
07:47worked together for years. Even if the rest of the crew are slow to help, there's always one plucky
07:53person ready to tackle the case. Suspicions is not just a riot, but also a great example of
07:59investigative noir played in the 24th century. Number 6. Action Adventure The Way of the Warrior
08:07Action adventure is a genre of film, according to Merriam-Webster, featuring characters involved in
08:12exciting and usually dangerous activities and adventures. Star Trek is no stranger to the genre.
08:19When technology began to catch up with the imagination of the franchise's writers, larger
08:24set pieces began to appear. The original series did an incredible amount of action with the limitations
08:30of the day, while the next generation used it sparingly, preferring to centre much of the action
08:36around conversation. Along came Deep Space Nine and things began to change. While action appeared in
08:43the pilot, it was the destruction of the Odyssey and the Cardassian-Romulan invasion of the Gamma Quadrant
08:49that spurred the show into new heights. The Way of the Warrior took every trick the show's production
08:55team had learned and depicted the new direction for the show, the Klingons going nuts. The fourth season
09:01opener is a feast for the eyes, though it has a compelling story to go with it. Worf's introduction
09:07is handled with care, while the arrival of Avery Brooks' bald head signalled a new direction for Star Trek.
09:12It's all about the attack on the station, and Deep Space Nine didn't disappoint. A fleet of Klingon
09:18ships began its bombardment, followed by hand-to-hand combat on the promenade, Ops and the habitat ring.
09:24Almost every supporting character gets something to do, including some truly hilarious moments between
09:29Garrick and Ducat. A common refrain among Star Trek fans is that the fourth year is where Deep Space Nine
09:35really took off, and with exploding Vorcha-class attack cruisers and the arrival of General Martok,
09:41it's impossible to disagree with them. Number 5. War, the Siege of AR-558
09:48War, as a genre, is a little harder to pin down. According to OxfordReference.com,
09:54the war film is generally, if somewhat arbitrarily, regarded as featuring scenes of combat that are
10:01dramatically central and that determine the fate of the film's principal characters, hence the other
10:06commonly used term. Much of Deep Space Nine and Star Trek Discovery depict the horrors of war in their run,
10:13with both examples delivering enormous space battles as well as ground assaults. One might consider
10:18Sacrifice of Angels for this entry, with that particular episode being a strong contender for the
10:23previous action adventure entry, but the true greatest example of the war film is the Siege of AR-558.
10:30When Star Trek confines itself to space battles, however exciting they are, they lose that personal
10:36connection to the characters. Yes, consoles will explode and people can and do die, but it is often a cold,
10:42detached depiction. The Jem'Hadar assault on the Starfleet forces in the Siege of AR-558 is brutal,
10:48deadly and devastating. Though Starfleet wins the day, there is no real victory here. Nog becomes the
10:56heart of the episode, as he goes from a naive, bright eyed ensign to a badly injured, shell-shocked
11:02officer. We are introduced to characters who, in a lesser episode, may have been consolidated to redshirt
11:08status, but here are given room to breathe and emote. When Vargas is killed, it means something.
11:14When Kellan dies protecting Esri, it means something. This, combined with Paul Bylargian's haunting score,
11:22plays on the audience's discomfort and horror at what they're witnessing. It remains one of the darkest
11:27episodes in Star Trek's run for exactly that reason. Number 4. Comedy, The Trouble with Tribbles.
11:34This genre is one of the most straightforward ones on the list. According to Britannica.com,
11:39comedy is a type of drama or other art form the chief object of which, according to modern notions,
11:46is to amuse. The original series took itself quite seriously, despite adding in the occasional jokes,
11:51often at Spock's expense, for some of the earlier episodes. It was still establishing what Star Trek
11:56was, so dipping into the comedy pool too early could have thrown the writers for a loop. By the time
12:02that
12:02The Trouble with Tribbles aired, Star Trek knew exactly what it was, and the episode shines because
12:07of it. The Klingons had been established. Kirk and Spock's relationship had been established. Audiences
12:13knew what to expect when a rogue trader came into town. Starbases were often spots of bureaucracy and
12:18tedium. Mix all of these and one gets the perfect outcome. A funny episode that elicits laughs almost 60
12:25years later. Almost all of the principal cast appear, George Takei was unavailable as he was filming the
12:31Green Berets, and they all get farcical parts to play. Hora and Chekhov introduce the Tribbles to
12:36the Enterprise, McCoy analyzes them, Spock fawns on them, and Scotty gets into a fistfight with the Klingon.
12:42William Shatner shines as the put upon captain who would rather do anything else than deal with the
12:48squabbling of directors and delegates, though maybe not if it meant standing under more of those storage
12:53units. The episode works so well that it was revisited in a tribute to the franchise's 30th
12:59birthday. The comedy is so well done that the joke works twice and Trials and Tribulations is just as
13:05much fun to enjoy. Number 3. Wolf in the Fold. Horror film motion picture calculated to cause intense
13:14repugnance, fear, or dread. For the original series Dip into Horror, author Robert Bloch of Psycho fame
13:21created a story that has both aged well in that it still manages to elicit scares today and badly
13:28in that some of the logic is as far from logical as it's possible to be. A spectral version of
13:34Jack
13:34the Ripper is a truly terrifying idea, one that has been revisited in the years since. Haunting,
13:40possession, murder. Wolf in the Fold plays with each of these tropes, helping to build the oppressive
13:46atmosphere that Scotty finds himself in almost at once. Bloch, writing in Psycho, touched on revulsion
13:53and confusion particularly in how Norman Bates deals with women. Unfortunately, shortcuts were taken in
14:00the script for Wolf in the Fold which don't gel with the rest of Star Trek. McCoy's worry that Scotty
14:06was in an accident caused by a woman, so may grow to hate all women, is nonsense and only serves
14:12to place
14:12the finger of suspicion on the engineer. However, the true dread of the episode works in the spooky, misty
14:18streets, the things that go bump in the night, and the endlessly terrifying voice of John Fielder,
14:24swapping his joyous Piglet era tone for an evil ripper one. The story may be a reuse of one of
14:30Bloch's
14:31earlier ideas, but in large part it works, not least because of the enduring image of James Doen
14:37standing over a corpse, bloody knife in hand. Number 2. Heist. Bada bing bada bang.
14:44Star Trek Deep Space Nine appears again as we discuss heist as a genre. According to Masterclass.com,
14:51a heist movie centres on the planning and execution of a robbery. There is a simple, easy example of the
14:58best heist in Star Trek and that is Bada Bing Bada Bang from Deep Space Nine's seventh season. Not only
15:04is
15:04it a tremendously fun episode, it is also the last episode in the show's run before the final Dominion
15:11War arc kicks off. In Vic's lounge, something is wrong. The program has glitched, gangsters have
15:18appeared and things look grim for everybody's favourite crooner. Rather than reset the program
15:23and risk permanent damage to Vic, the crew decide to play things out within the confines of the holosuite.
15:28That is to say, they're going to rob the casino, force the gangsters out and give Vic his home back.
15:33It's a riot from start to finish with almost all of the major players joining in.
15:37Worf may sit this one out, but watching Cisco toss stacks of dollars into the air is worth the price
15:42of admission alone.
15:43The clock is ticking as Nog tries to crack the safe while Cassidy does her best to distract the guard
15:48outside.
15:49Bashir plays his Bond fantasy, Kira plays Footsie under the table and Odo does the neck trick to great amusement.
15:55Not even a poisoned Bobby Riley can spoil the day and the heist goes off without too much of a
15:59hitch.
16:00High stakes at the casino are low stakes in the alpha quadrant, but Bada Bing Bada Bang is easily the
16:06greatest heist in Star Trek, and that includes the theft of a Jem'Hadar fighter that followed mere episodes later.
16:12Number 1 Fantasy Cupid
16:16Though Star Trek may delight in science fiction, it owes a debt to fantasy as well. Fantasy is, per Britannica
16:23.com,
16:23imaginative fiction that relies on strangeness of setting such as other worlds or times,
16:28and of characters such as supernatural or unnatural beings. There are many examples in recent years of
16:35Star Trek using this genre of storytelling. Strange New Worlds had its Elysian kingdom, and Lower Decks was
16:41visited by the Hysperians in Where Pleasant Fountains Lie. Both of these examples owe a debt to Q,
16:46Vash, and the Sheriff of Nottingham? Worf may not have been a merry man in Cupid,
16:52but many of us in the audience were merry watching him shatter Geordie's loot. Poor Data ended up with
16:57an arrow in his chest, but it barely dented him. To be fair he could take a hail of bullets
17:00and reply
17:01with greetings, so we're not that shocked. The trip to Sherwood Forest may have been an ill-advised gift
17:06from Q, but it was another example of Star Trek using comedy, and now fantasy, to break up the
17:12standard when it came to the series. The next generation could take giant swings when it needed
17:17to, and little John Riker may very well have done so with that staff, but when they landed, they
17:22landed well. It may not have come with an accompanying Bryan Adams tune, but this tale of Robin and his
17:28band of merry men was fantastic, and one for the ages. Thank you very much folks. Did you enjoy this
17:34list? Let us know in the comments below, and if you did, perhaps we could do something of a series
17:38of this where we concentrate on one list per genre? Let us know if that's something you would like to
17:42see.
17:43Until then, thank you everyone who is subscribing, we really, really appreciate it. Every
17:47subscriber makes a difference, and when you do, you're awesome. If you want to get some of our
17:51merch you can do so at the link underneath the description of this video, and please make sure
17:55you're following us on the various socials, we're at TrekCulture or at TrekCultureYT on Instagram.
18:00I have been Sean Ferrick, you have been a bunch of legends, make sure that you live long and prosper
18:04until I see you again, and put some peace out into the world because that is what is needed, peace.
18:10Thank you so much.
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