Spoiler Warning: There are spoilers ahead for the following Star Trek shows: The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. Minor spoilers are also present for Discovery, Picard, Section 31, and Starfleet Academy.
Today I thought we could have a bit of fun with the Star Trek franchise! If you didn’t know, IMDB – that’s the Internet Movie Database; a website all about films and TV shows – allows its users to rate episodes on a scale from one to ten. The site then brings all of these ratings together, allowing you to view a ranked list of the most-popular episodes in a television series. This time, I’m gonna pick the top five highest-rated episodes for the first five Star Trek series and talk a little about them. I’ll discuss what I liked – or disliked – about each episode, and then I’ll answer a simple question: would I include this episode among my personal favourites? Would it make the cut?
If that sounds like fun, then buckle up! Some of these are going to be controversial, that’s for sure.
Before we get into the list, I have a few caveats and points of note.
Firstly, all of this is subjective, not objective! If I heap praise on a story you despise or criticise one of your favourites… that’s okay. There ought to be enough room – and enough maturity – in the Trekkie community for civil conversations and polite disagreement. This is all just one person’s opinion, at the end of the day. Secondly, I’m a huge Star Trek fan, and I have been since the early ’90s. I don’t adore every single episode, but I still consider myself a Trekkie and a supporter of the franchise, so nothing said below should be taken as “hate.”
Finally, I’m covering the first five Star Trek series – from The Original Series to Enterprise – in this piece, and I’m not counting The Animated Series nor am I including the cinematic franchise. Perhaps a future article can look at the newer Star Trek shows, though they have fewer episodes each and thus picking a top five might be a bit less interesting. For now, though, I’m sticking with the first five shows – so don’t expect any Picard or Lower Decks here. I’ll start with The Original Series and move forward through the shows in chronological order, finishing with Enterprise. Episode rankings are taken from IMDB as of mid-June 2025, and are listed in reverse order – starting with the fifth-highest and finishing with the highest-rated.
Phew! With all the details out of the way, let’s get started.
The Original Series Episode #5:
The Trouble With Tribbles, Season 2
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
The Trouble With Tribbles is absolutely iconic, and it’s one of the few episodes from The Original Series to have genuinely cut through to the mainstream in a big way. If you asked random non-Trekkies about not only The Original Series, but the Star Trek franchise as a whole, it wouldn’t be long before someone mentioned this episode, the tribbles themselves, or the iconic Kirk meme that was born here.
The Original Series could be funny, and The Trouble With Tribbles uses humour to great effect. The character of Cyrano Jones is a ton of fun, and while the conflict with the Klingons and the infestation of tribbles can be tense at points, the episode is best-remembered for its sense of humour. Kirk dressing-down the officers involved in the fight is also an iconic scene – though one that takes a completely different tone. This episode also spawned Trials and Tribble-Ations… which I suspect we’ll discuss in more detail in a moment.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
The Original Series Episode #4:
Space Seed, Season 1
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
Here’s a “hot take:” I think Space Seed’s status is overinflated because of The Wrath of Khan and how popular that film became. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a good episode – but because its story is basically the prelude to such an important film for the Star Trek franchise, I think some folks might be over-appreciating it just a little. There are some great moments between Khan and Kirk, including an epic fight sequence, and we get to see Khan’s “superior intellect” firsthand for the first time.
Space Seed deals with genetic engineering, looking at how wrong that could go, while also using it as a critique of racism and the idea of a “master race.” It was also one of the first Star Trek episodes to delve into the history of the future; its vision of mid-1990s Earth and the Eugenics Wars have become integral parts of Star Trek’s canon. It’s an interesting episode in its own right, and not just because it set up The Wrath of Khan. However… there are stronger episodes from the first season of The Original Series, and while Space Seed is good, there are other episodes that I prefer.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
The Original Series Episode #3:
Balance of Terror, Season 1
IMDB Rating: 8.8/10
Balance of Terror is another absolutely iconic episode. It introduced the Romulans, explored their historical conflict with Earth, and their surprising connection to Spock and the Vulcans. It introduced cloaking technology, the neutral zone, and the Romulan Bird-of-Prey, all of which have become integral parts of the Star Trek franchise, even appearing in recent seasons on Paramount+. This was also Mark Lenard’s first Star Trek role, playing the unnamed Romulan commander. Lenard would go on to play Spock’s father, Sarek.
The episode draws on World War II films – particularly submarine films where tense ship-to-ship combat took place without the enemy being in sight. It was one of the Star Trek franchise’s first battle or war stories, laying the groundwork for future space battles. The interplay between Kirk and the Romulan commander – recognising one another as kindred spirits – was incredibly poignant, and the xenophobic character of Lieutenant Stiles grounded the story and gave it another real-world parallel. Stiles was one of the first human Star Trek characters to express such feelings of hatred. Balance of Terror is, in a word, fantastic.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
The Original Series Episode #2:
Mirror, Mirror, Season 2
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
If you’re a regular reader, you may have heard me say this before, but here goes: I really don’t like the Mirror Universe. It lends itself to pantomime-style, hammy, over-acted performances, practically no Mirror characters have any nuance, as they seem to care about nothing beyond murder, torture, and torturous murder, and the whole setting just feels incredibly flat, boring, and one-dimensional. Mirror, Mirror, as the first episode to explore this setting, was interesting at first, and I’m happy to cut it a bit of slack as the progenitor of this idea, though.
Furthermore, Mirror Spock might be one of the best Mirror Universe characters, as he’s shown to be willing to listen to our universe’s version of Kirk. Compared to some of the other caricatures we meet in the episode, Mirror Spock is definitely the most interesting and complex. I suspect that, were it not for the Mirror Universe’s over-use in modern Star Trek, or if Mirror, Mirror had been a one-off, I might rate it a bit more highly. I still think its an interesting episode, and certainly one of the better Mirror Universe stories even all these years later, but it’s also not one of my favourites… and I guess it’s kind of tainted by association with some other, far less-enjoyable visits through the looking-glass.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
The Original Series Episode #1:
The City on the Edge of Forever, Season 1
IMDB Rating: 9.2/10
I knew The City on the Edge of Forever was a popular episode, but I’ll be honest: I didn’t expect to see it at the top of the list, way ahead of the competition! This is a great story, though, one which really leans into the idea Gene Roddenberry had of making Star Trek episodes akin to fables, with complex themes of morality seen through a futuristic, sci-fi lens. The choice Kirk has to make in The City on the Edge of Forever is truly heartbreaking, and the buildup to it is played exceptionally well.
The first season of The Original Series was basically flying blind, seeing what worked. And clearly, time-travel to Earth in the recent past was something that resonated with audiences in a big way. For me personally, time-travel to 20th (or 21st) Century Earth has never been my favourite story concept in Star Trek, as what interests me the most is the franchise’s look at the future. And I would humbly suggest that the existence of the Guardian of Forever could challenge and completely change Starfleet’s mission of exploration – yet the Guardian was only revisited once, in The Animated Series, before disappearing for nigh-on fifty years! Given its popularity, though, and its apparent cut-through to a wider audience, perhaps The City on the Edge of Forever could be a great starting point for new fans?
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
The Next Generation Episode #5:
The Measure of a Man, Season 2
IMDB Rating: 9.1/10
Star Trek can do courtroom drama exceptionally well, and The Measure of a Man is a fantastic example of this kind of storytelling. It’s also an episode with a complex message about the nature of life and sentience – ideas which are arguably more important today, thirty-five years later, than they were at the time of its production. Because we’re attached to Data as a character after spending two seasons with him, and we’ve come to see him as a member of the crew, Bruce Maddox comes across as a real antagonist – someone who’s trying to use his position and a legal loophole to, in effect, “kill” Data.
The episode presents a challenge for both Picard and Riker, too. Riker arguably gets the tougher brief, having to argue against his friend’s right to exist and his sentience. But, as Data would tell him at the end of the story, he did what he had to do and played his part; refusal would’ve led to Data being turned over to Dr Maddox. Picard’s speech about the nature of life, and Starfleet’s mission to seek out new forms of life, is incredibly powerful, too. But… is The Measure of a Man one of the absolute best of the bunch from The Next Generation, when there are so many other outstanding episodes and stories? I’m not even sure it’s the show’s best courtroom episode, with The Drumhead being a genuine rival for that title!
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
The Next Generation Episode #4:
All Good Things…, Season 7
IMDB Rating: 9.1/10
I’m pleasantly surprised to see the series finale here. All Good Things is a fantastic episode, and a great way to bring The Next Generation full-circle. Q makes a return, setting one of his best and most complex puzzles yet, challenging Picard to think about time itself in a non-linear way. Having three distinct time periods on the go in a single story was challenging, but it was so creative and clever how Picard instantly moved between them. There was some fantastic cinematography on this side of the story, too, with close-up shots lingering on Picard as he slid between the three different eras.
It was great to welcome back Denise Crosby as Tasha Yar, and to catch a glimpse of our characters’ lives in the future, too. Some of the ideas originally presented here would later become plot points in Star Trek: Picard more than twenty-five years later, keeping a thread of consistency across different iterations of the franchise. All Good Things was a spectacular finale, one that brought together the entire crew in different and creative ways, and its anti-time eruption was a genuine challenge and puzzle for Picard.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
The Next Generation Episode #3:
The Best of Both Worlds, Seasons 3-4
IMDB Rating, Part I: 9.3/10
IMDB Rating, Part II: 9.2/10
For some bizarre reason, IMDB ranks the two halves of The Best of Both Worlds separately, but I’m amalgamating them for my list. This story brought back the Borg for their first major clash with Starfleet – and what a clash it was! The Battle of Wolf-359, Borg assimilation, Picard’s transformation into Locutus, Riker’s challenging relationship with Commander Shelby, and the Borg’s first major attempt to attack Earth. The tension builds slowly across the first part, culminating in Picard’s abduction and assimilation – a cliffhanger to end Season 3 in just the most shocking and incredible way!
Part II picks up the action, and sets a huge challenge for Riker – and the entire Federation. The crew of the Enterprise-D want to rescue Picard and undo the damage done to him by the Borg, but they’re also Earth’s last line of defence after the Borg Cube made light work of the assembled Federation ships at Wolf-359. The plan to kidnap Locutus, then Picard managing to break through his Borg assimilation just enough to strike the crushing blow… it was all pitch-perfect, fantastic, outstanding television. There’s a reason why The Best of Both Worlds is held in such high esteem.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
The Next Generation Episode #2:
Yesterday’s Enterprise, Season 3
IMDB Rating: 9.2/10
Now that I see how highly-ranked Yesterday’s Enterprise is, suddenly the decision to bring back the character of Rachel Garrett in the recent Section 31 movie makes a lot more sense! Joking aside, this really is a fun episode. One question I remember having, as a Trekkie in the early 1990s, was this: what happened to the Enterprise-B and Enterprise-C? Yesterday’s Enterprise introduces the Ambassador-class Enterprise-C and explains its pivotal role in history, maintaining the alliance with the Klingons and preventing a catastrophic war that threatened to wipe out the Federation.
We get an examination of a disturbing alternate reality, one in which the Federation and Klingons have been at war for years. Guinan plays a hugely important role, too, being the only character aware of how different the timeline could be. Tasha Yar makes a return, and this episode also tees up Sela as a future villain. Yesterday’s Enterprise also presents an impossibly tough decision for Picard, Garrett, Yar, and Lieutenant Castillio – returning the Enterprise-C to its own time means certain death for all on board, but staying in this war-ravaged future would likely mean the demise of the entire Federation.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
The Next Generation Episode #1:
The Inner Light, Season 5
IMDB Rating: 9.4/10
This wasn’t a huge surprise. The Inner Light is widely praised by fans of The Next Generation as one of the show’s best episodes. But I’ll level with you: I’m just not into it. There’s some emotional storytelling, sure, and the impact of these events would have repercussions for Picard. But I struggled to really connect with most of the long-dead people of Kataan, and this episode’s deliberately slow pace and departure from the Enterprise-D and most of our familiar characters just… well, to be blunt, I find it pretty boring.
I don’t hate The Inner Light, but it’s actually been a while since I even watched it; I tend to skip over it when re-watching The Next Generation as it just doesn’t do much for me. There are some positives, and I appreciate that this episode’s events were referenced more than once going forward; the impact it had on Picard’s character was significant. It also spawned one of the Star Trek franchise’s best and most-recognisable melodies: the Ressikan flute theme. However… it’s not among my favourite episodes, not from The Next Generation as a whole nor even from Season 5, which I generally consider to be the show’s strongest individual season.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Deep Space Nine Episode #5:
The Way of the Warrior, Season 4
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
The Way of the Warrior brought the character of Worf to DS9, establishing him as a regular for the second half of the show’s run. At first, I gotta admit that it felt a little odd to see Worf interacting with Sisko, Dax, and the others… but it didn’t take long for him to settle into his new role! The Way of the Warrior also re-established the Klingons as antagonists – at least for the remainder of the season. After the transformation in Federation-Klingon relations that we saw in The Next Generation, this was a change of pace, and it set up several fun episodes across the season.
Gowron and Martok were fun additions to the story, which also progressed the changeling infiltration storyline that was a precursor to the Dominion War. Worf’s inner conflict between his Klingon heritage, his friendship with Gowron, and his ties to Starfleet was on full display, and the way he had to navigate that difficult environment was riveting stuff. Michael Dorn put in one of his best and most complex performances as Worf, and Sisko got a bit of an arc that harkened back to his own considerations about his future in Starfleet from the beginning of Season 1. All in all, a fun, action-packed episode.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Deep Space Nine Episode #4:
Duet, Season 1
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
Duet is an episode of twists and turns, double-bluffs and triple-bluffs – and it presents a fascinating story of a man trying to atone for the crimes of his government. Through the character of Marritza, Duet also examines the idea of the complicity of low-ranking personnel in heinous crimes, something we deal with all too often in the real world. Marritza forced Kira – and us as the audience – to see the Cardassians as more than just faceless thugs and murderers, exploring the complex nature of Cardassian morality and using that sci-fi lens to examine real-world conflicts.
Duet is a powerful story for Kira, and Nana Visitor puts in one of her best performances. It’s also a good story for Odo, as we see his steadfast dedication to finding out the truth – no matter what others might’ve wanted to believe or think. Duet builds its twists and turns masterfully, eventually leading to a genuinely heartbreaking conclusion. It’s a powerful episode, one that showed the benefits of Deep Space Nine’s slower pace and focus on a single setting.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Deep Space Nine Episode #3:
The Visitor, Season 4
IMDB Rating: 9.1/10
The Visitor has some interesting elements. It’s always fun for me, as a Trekkie, to catch a glimpse of a possible future for some of our beloved characters, and The Visitor shows us that. It’s also a relative rarity insofar as it’s a Jake Sisko episode – Jake only appeared in 71 episodes across Deep Space Nine’s run. Tony Todd, playing the older version of Jake, gives a genuinely emotional performance, which has to be one of the best individual performances by a guest star pretty much anywhere in Star Trek.
So I appreciate what The Visitor does. Its story highlights the importance of Benjamin Sisko and his role in the history of the Federation, it’s a great Jake-Ben story, focusing on their relationship, and its glimpses of the future were fun. However… it’s not one of my absolute favourites in Deep Space Nine, despite all of the positives. There are simply other episodes that I find to be more enjoyable, powerful, emotional, or entertaining, and while I’m not surprised to see The Visitor at or near the top of other fans’ lists… it wouldn’t be there on my own list. There isn’t one overwhelming “issue” or “problem” I can point to, which I guess is a tad frustrating. It’s simply that I could think of at least a dozen episodes I’d rank higher.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Deep Space Nine Episode #2:
Trials and Tribble-Ations, Season 5
IMDB Rating: 9.3/10
Made to celebrate Star Trek’s thirtieth anniversary, Trials and Tribble-Ations was an incredibly creative episode. The filmmaking technology required to blend new actors in with old footage was still relatively new, having been pioneered by the film Forrest Gump, and I’m fairly sure I’m right in saying that this episode was the first time it was used for television. As a celebration of the Star Trek franchise, you could hardly think of anything better than a story connecting the old with the new – in this case, having Sisko and his crew travelling through time, meeting Captain Kirk and visiting the original USS Enterprise.
Such a premise could’ve felt gimmicky and fan-servicey. Worse, it could’ve been poorly-written! But Trials and Tribble-Ations was fantastic, and I can vividly remember watching it when it premiered, absolutely stunned at seeing the DS9 crew in TOS uniforms – and Captains Sisko and Kirk meeting face-to-face. The frame narrative involving the Department of Temporal Investigations was fun, too, and kept the story grounded in the 24th Century. The premise was exceptionally fun, the technology worked perfectly, and the end result was exactly what the writers and producers intended: a genuine “love letter” to Star Trek and the Trekkie community.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Deep Space Nine Episode #1:
In The Pale Moonlight, Season 6
IMDB Rating: 9.4/10
Yes, yes, yes! In The Pale Moonlight is an absolutely outstanding episode, full of moral grey areas, sneaky schemes, and one of Star Trek’s most recognisable memes to boot! There was a time, shortly after its broadcast, when In The Pale Moonlight seemed incredibly controversial in the Star Trek fan community; I vividly remember conversations online about “betraying Gene’s vision of an enlightened future” and Sisko’s actions being so far beyond the pale that they’re indefensible! I’m both astonished and thrilled to see that the passage of time has been kinder, and that fans now appreciate just how brilliant this episode is.
Sisko and Garak made for a wonderful pair in this episode, scheming together to drag the Romulans into the Dominion War under false pretences. What holds the episode together, though, is the absolutely incredible log entry that Captain Sisko records. This is one of Avery Brooks’ best performances in the entire series, showing off his wonderful range as Sisko runs the gamut of emotions, re-telling the story of how he lied, broke various laws, and was complicit in the murder of a Romulan senator. An absolutely riveting, must-watch episode for any Trekkie.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Voyager Episode #5:
Message in a Bottle, Season 4
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
I adore Message in a Bottle. The episode marks the halfway point of Voyager’s run, making it the perfect moment to establish a tentative link between the stranded ship and the Federation back in the Alpha Quadrant. It was also a ton of fun to get a story where the Romulans are the antagonists! Guest star Andy Dick made a perfect foil for Robert Picardo’s Doctor as a newer version of the Emergency Medical Hologram, and the two performers had great on-screen chemistry, leading to some absolutely hilarious interactions.
The USS Prometheus was an incredibly fun concept, too, and we got a really detailed look at the ship both inside and out, which was great. It was such a clever idea to send the Doctor’s programme to the Alpha Quadrant, and what resulted is not only one of Voyager’s funniest episodes, but one that packs a powerful emotional punch right at the end. After more than four years alone, Captain Janeway and the crew finally have one small link to Starfleet, and Starfleet promises to work on ways to get them home.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Voyager Episode #4:
Living Witness, Season 4
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
Living Witness has been a topic of discussion for a while here on the website thanks to Discovery’s far future setting! It was an interesting idea for an episode, one that took on the complex idea of the unreliability of history and memory, initially painting the crew of the USS Voyager as villains centuries after the ship passed by a planet. It’s definitely a story with a message, one that’s in keeping with Star Trek’s established formula of looking at real-world issues through a sci-fi lens.
Parts of Living Witness can feel challenging and even uncomfortable, as we’re forced to watch some very inaccurate depictions of the crew of Voyager. The Doctor has a hard time convincing people of his version of events, too, which adds another layer to this. But that’s part of the point and message of the story! All that being said, I think there are better Voyager episodes. Living Witness is creative and clever, and really, nothing about it is bad per se. I can just think of other episodes that I’d rank more highly.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Voyager Episode #3:
Timeless, Season 5
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
Timeless shows us just how badly wrong Voyager’s journey could’ve ended up! Trying a new method of propulsion to reach the Alpha Quadrant, the ship ends up crash-landing, killing everyone apart from Chakotay and Harry Kim. The older versions of these characters – who’ve had years to sit with the consequences of what happened – travel to the wreck site to right that wrong. The crash sequence and the visual of the wrecked Voyager beneath the ice are both absolutely stunning and incredibly impactful.
I’m not usually wild about episodes where the magical, perfect Seven of Nine is the only one who can save the day! But in Timeless, her involvement works really well, and scenes with the Doctor and the older Chakotay and Kim are intense and emotional, too. It was also great fun to see Geordi La Forge in an episode of Voyager! A very creative premise and great execution.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Voyager Episode #2:
Scorpion, Seasons 3-4
IMDB Rating, Part I: 8.9/10
IMDB Rating, Part II: 8.8/10
IMDB counts the two halves of Scorpion separately, but I’m combining them. To be honest, Scorpion is a story I have mixed feelings about. Voyager over-used both the Borg and Seven of Nine in the second half of its run, and both of those issues kind of began here. On its own merit, Scorpion is great. The Borg and Species 8472 are both powerful and dangerous enemies, and the idea of Janeway teaming up with the Borg when there were no other options was a great twist on the anticipated Borg conflict. Seven of Nine, despite my later feelings about the character, also gets a great introduction.
And I guess the point of this exercise is to try to judge these episodes on their own. Scorpion may have led to too many Borg and Seven stories later on, but it should get a pass as the first of them – and arguably the best, too. It was definitely an explosive cliffhanger to end the show’s third season, and I like how truly different and “alien” Species 8472 feel compared to a lot of other Star Trek races we’ve seen. It’s also an important episode for Voyager, introducing Seven of Nine and setting the stage for Kes’ departure.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Voyager Episode #1:
Blink of an Eye, Season 6
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
I’ll level with you: I did not see this coming! The only Voyager episode rated 9/10 by IMDB’s users is… Blink of an Eye? Really? I guess I’m more out-of-touch with the Trekkie community than I thought! Don’t misunderstand me: I don’t particularly dislike this episode. It’s an interesting premise and a fun look at a very “alien” kind of world. But as the best episode in Voyager’s entire run? Did the writer or director start a campaign to get people to upvote it, or something? I just… I genuinely would not have expected to see Blink of an Eye hailed as everyone’s favourite.
There was something in Blink of an Eye that I felt didn’t work particularly well. The Doctor supposedly spent years alone on the planet after a transporter glitch, but after a couple of lines of dialogue the profound impact that had wasn’t really explored or acknowledged. With that exception, though, I think Blink of an Eye makes good on a quite creative core idea. I certainly enjoy the episode and what it has to offer. But as the absolute best of Voyager? I’m afraid I’m still not convinced.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Enterprise Episode #5:
Zero Hour, Season 3
IMDB Rating: 8.5/10
As the culmination of a season-long arc to stop the Xindi and their super-weapon, Zero Hour is intense. Hoshi is traumatised, Archer seems to make the ultimate sacrifice, and T’Pol commands Enterprise on a mission to destroy the Sphere-Builders’ base. There’s a lot going on, but it builds to an explosive finale… with just enough left at the very end for one final twist, a twist which sets up the beginning of Season 4 and the end of Enterprise’s Temporal Cold War storyline.
I found the conflict with the Xindi to be interesting overall, but there’s no denying that the season dragged its feet reaching this point. The time travel stuff was never my favourite part of Enterprise, so in that sense I’m glad to see Zero Hour as the beginning of the end of that particular ongoing storyline. Where this episode succeeds is with its core characters. Two pairings/interactions stand out: T’Pol with Trip and Archer with Hoshi. However, the story finds time to give everyone a moment in the spotlight, and its bittersweet moment as Archer is apparently killed while succeeding in his mission was, on first viewing, at least, genuinely impactful.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Enterprise Episode #4:
Azati Prime, Season 3
IMDB Rating: 8.5/10
Another episode from near the end of Season 3’s ongoing conflict with the Xindi and Sphere-Builders, Azati Prime sees Archer and the crew getting closer to their objective. We get to see Archer confront the creator of the Xindi weapon, Degra, and a bit more of an exploration of who the Xindi are and how the Sphere-Builders have been able to manipulate them. Archer’s “suicide mission” attack plan always felt a bit over-the-top, but in the context of the story it works well enough.
This is also the episode where we see the Enterprise-J – a future version of the famous starship. I enjoy the Enterprise-J sequence; I just wish the episode’s budget had allowed us to spend a bit more time in this setting! Though the Temporal Cold War was never my favourite part of the show, this moment with Daniels and Archer was surprisingly fun. As an episode taking place partway through a season-long story arc, it can be hard to know where to place Azati Prime, but I think it does its thing well enough.
Would It Make The Cut?
⛔ No. ⛔
Enterprise Episode #3:
Carbon Creek, Season 2
IMDB Rating: 8.5/10
I usually don’t enjoy Star Trek stories, in any series, which involve time travel to 20th or 21st Century Earth. So Carbon Creek, which is primarily a flashback, not even featuring most of the regular cast, taking place in the 1950s… it shouldn’t be an episode I care for very much. But you know what? It’s a surprising amount of fun, and watching a crew of pre-First Contact Vulcans struggling to exist in human society made for some funny and even emotional moments.
I’m glad there aren’t too many Carbon Creeks in the Star Trek franchise. Any franchise which overcomplicates its own fictional history risks turning viewers away or making future stories less impactful. But as a genuine one-off episode, this ’50s setting, dripping with cute Americana, really does work. The Vulcan characters are all distinct and engaging, T’Pol’s frame narrative as she recounts the tale to Archer and Tucker is fun, too, and yeah. Just an all-around enjoyable affair, and a bit of a change of pace.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Enterprise Episode #2:
Regeneration, Season 2
IMDB Rating: 8.5/10
If you read my provocatively-titled piece Ten Star Trek Storylines That Should Be Non-Canon a few weeks ago… you might think you know where I stand on this one! Long story short, the history of Borg-Federation contact is already stupidly overcomplicated thanks to Voyager and First Contact. Throwing in this episode with Archer coming face-to-face with 24th Century Borg drones, and ending with them transmitting a message to the Delta Quadrant? I mean… it’s just another narrative hurdle, in a sense.
However! Regeneration is a ton of fun if you take it on its own merits. No one expected Captain Archer and his 22nd Century crew to encounter the Borg, and given that these Borg are from the future to boot? It made the Collective feel genuinely frightening and dangerous again, something I’ve argued that Voyager had begun to lose toward the end of its run. So yes, this episode complicates things for Star Trek as a whole, and it kind of makes Starfleet look incompetent! But… I really like it. And I’m pleased to see the controversy that swirled around the episode at the time of its broadcast has died down.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
Enterprise Episode #1:
Twilight, Season 3
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
I knew Enterprise fans thought quite highly of Twilight, but I don’t think I expected to see it top the list! This episode takes place in an alternate timeline, one in which the Xindi weapon was successful. I liked the subtle callback to The Wrath of Khan’s Ceti Alpha V, and the implication that, even if humanity had been able to remain hidden, another disaster was only a century away. That just added to the tragedy of the situation.
Where Twilight excels, though, is in its character relationships. This version of T’Pol, having lived with Archer for years as his caretaker, is much softer and completely different, and the relationship between them has clearly evolved. Jolene Blalock plays this incredibly well, so it’s no wonder, really, than this episode is held in such high esteem. Phlox, Tucker, and others also get moments in the spotlight as the Xindi finally track down humanity’s last outpost, and while the episode’s conclusion has always felt a little rushed to me, I think overall it’s a pretty solid story. After Season 3’s serialised arcs, this alternate timeline made for a fun change of pace.
Would It Make The Cut?
✅ Yes. ✅
So that’s it.
Photo Credit: Forgotten Trek
We’ve looked at the top five highest-rated Star Trek episodes for the first five shows… according to the randos over at IMDB, anyway! There were a few surprises in the mix – both in terms of inclusions and exclusions. Looking down the full episode ranking lists, I was genuinely shocked to see some of my favourites languishing in the lower reaches, and some episodes I generally don’t care for soaring high! But I hope this has been a bit of fun, at any rate.
I’m already formulating another idea – maybe taking a look at a few of the lowest-rated Star Trek episodes and sharing my thoughts on those, or doing the same thing again with the modern shows. If I’m gonna do that, though, I’ll actually have to finish watching Lower Decks and Prodigy! Those are still on my to-do list.
Thanks for joining me this time. And thanks to IMDB for publishing these ratings and lists. It was a lot of fun to revisit these episodes and spend a little more time in the Star Trek galaxy.
All five Star Trek series discussed above can be streamed on Paramount+ in countries and territories where the platform is available. The Star Trek shows are available to purchase on DVD; The Original Series, The Next Generation, and Enterprise are also on Blu-ray. The Star Trek franchise – including all shows, films, and other properties mentioned above – is the copyright of Paramount Global. Credit to IMDB for the episode ratings, which were accurate at time of publication in June 2025. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.
Trekking with Dennis 