DS9 or Voyager? (1 Viewer)

[Chris Huber]

Hey guys, I am thinking of starting to purchase the seasons on 1 series. I have watched all the Next Generation Seasons and am a big fan of it. Being as I liked STNG so much, which one of DS9 or Voyager would I like the most?

Speaking of Voyager, when will all the seasons be released on DVD?

Let me hear what you guys think of both.

 

[Ric Easton]

While sometimes fun and engaging (especially their 2-parters) Voyager was pretty much Next Gen: Redux. If you like characters that grow and change and in the final seasons a huge story arc, go with DS9.

DS9 was a more fulfilling experience, at least for me, and I would go as far as to say it was the best of the modern day Treks (with apologies to Patrick Stewarts stellar acting).

Ric

 

[Scott Kimball]

DS9 is a much deeper, richer show than Voyager. That said, if you dislike long story arcs, you may dislike DS9.

My preference lies with DS9, all the way.

Voyager Season 4 streets September 28. I have not heard definitive release dates for the rest of the series. Originally, the entire series was to be released by the end of the year, but I don't know if that's still the case...

 

[Gord Lacey]

I really enjoyed DS9, and I'd recommend that over Voyager.

If you can afford it, Paramount will release the set in one big set (probably all seasons in shrinkwrap) later this year. You might be able to save some money that way, but you'd also have 48 discs to get through!

Gord

 

[Michael Reuben]

DS9 is the only Trek series I'm collecting.

M.

 

[PhilipG]

DS9. No comparison. The plot, dialogue and acting was much, much stronger.

I recall that Voyager got quite good around season 5 or so, provided you cared for the two characters that centrepieced the show for much of its latter run. I also recall that early Voyager was mostly unwatchable - each show seemed to regurgitate the very worst TNG "spatial anomaly" episodes.

And if you liked TNG so much, Worf becomes a regular in DS9 halfway through its run.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

There's no Contest DS9 is the better Written of the two. It get my Vote for Best Trek Series after the original. Season 1 is a bit weak but it picks up after that. Voyager on the other hand had a pretty good Season 1 and got successfully worse from thereout.

 

[Win Joy Jr]

DS9 - also the only Trek I am collecting...

 

[Sam Favate]

DS9 is an outstanding series. Voyager is, at best, lukewarm.

DS9 expands upon the universe you knew in TNG and makes it more complex and more interesting. In many ways, DS9 was a better show than TNG.

DS9's characters are rich, well-developed and interesting. The supporting cast is the best of any science fiction show I've ever seen.

 

[Malcolm R]

DS9 may be more critically praised, but Voyager is closest to TNG (i.e. starship travelling the galaxy and always sticking its nose into other people's business and getting into trouble for it).

DS9 is daily life on the same space station...day-after-day-after-day-after-day-after-day....

 

[Rob Gardiner]

TNG has the best acting.

DS9 has the best writing.

Voyager has the best... theme song.


Seriously, classic DS9 episodes such as "Duet", "The Wire", "Improbable Cause" / "The Die Is Cast", "The Visitor", "Far Beyond the Stars", and "In the Pale Moonlight" are among the most satisfying hours of television drama ever broadcast.

The 2-hour "Way of the Warrior" is more satisfying than almost all of the Star Trek feature films!

"Trials and Tribble-ations" and "Take Me Out to the Holosuite" are sweet, charming comedy episodes, every bit as endearing as "Data's Day".

Gul Dukat, Weyoun, and "plain, simple Garak" (each appearing in about 2-3 dozen episodes each, TOPS) are among the richest, most fascinating characters in all of Trek. Also, the Cardassians (as seen on DS9) are the most richly-developed alien species in Star Trek.


I didn't keep count in season 1, but in seasons 2 and 3 of Voyager, there was one occasion where the ship encountered an alien planet and the transporters worked correctly. On EVERY other occasion where crewmembers were stuck on an alien planet, the lazy writers relied on a transporter malfunction to generate fake drama. Three seasons of Voyager have produced exactly one "great" episode, worthy of the best of Star Trek. (500 quatloos if you can guess which one this is.) Yet even the weakest seasons of DS9 each have 3-4 truly great shows that no Trek fan should do without.

While the writers of Voyager seemed intent on feeding us as many cliches as possible, the DS9 staff went to great lengths to avoid cliches.

 

[Glenn Overholt]

Long story arc = soap apera in space!

Try to at least see one or two of these before buying anything. They are not cheap!

Glenn

 

[Nicodemus]

Definitely DS9. Voyager is dull and as was said, TNG Redux, just poorly and lazily written version of it.

DS9 is quite dark and it gets even darker as the seasons progress. Also the characters aren't as likeable as in TNG and the style and the feeling of the show is very different. I recommend you to see few episodes of DS9 before buying it. But yes, it's a truly great series. The best Star Trek show. I own both DS9 and TNG and love 'em both

 

[Mikel_Cooperman]

Were we watching the same show? Voyager...Character growth?

It depends what you like. DS9 is a much more satisfying experience but Voyager was fun to watch while you were doing something else since the plots were so simplistic.

 

[Sam Favate]

Voyager always seemed to me to be the most expensive Saturday-morning science-fiction show ever. I watched it seven years, hoping it would live up to the name Star Trek, but it never did.

DS9, on the other hand, started out pretty good and got better and better. By the end of the seven years, I was on the edge of my seat more so than any other Trek show. Taken on the whole, as a series, I think DS9 is the best Trek show. TNG was great, but not consistent. TOS was excellent, but it had its down periods too. DS9 is where its at.

 

[Jason Seaver]

DS9. It didn't suck.

 

[Ric Easton]

Um, I think I was saying DS9 had the character growth!

Ric

 

[Rex Bachmann]

Chris Huber wrote (post #1):


?????

So, are the Klingons "chopped liver"???

 

[Terry St]

TNG and the first couple seasons of DS9 was the last of real sci-fi in the Trek universe. Everything since then has been space opera. While sci-fi revolves around moral/ethical/technological issues and often comments on the present through the future, space opera revolves more around it's characters and the action/trouble they get into. Don't get me wrong, space opera isn't necessarily bad. Heck, the original Star Wars is the archetypical space opera! I'm just pointing out that they're different things.

Of course, there's good space opera and bad space opera. DS9 was pretty good. The first few seasons were very similar to TNG, but in later seasons it started relying more and more on character development and action. Fortunately, the characters were well-developed and the action was well-written. Voyager, by comparison, had neither good characters or good writing. Most of the characters were static snap-shots who evolved even less than TNG characters, which is unforgivable when you consider the fact that Voyager was a space opera and not a sci-fi show. While many people inexplicably loved her, Janeway was simply the worst captain of any Trek series. All other captains could be relied upon to carry their respective shows, but in the later seasons of Voyager Janeway became mere supporting cast for 7of9 and the doctor. 7of9 a.k.a. 36-of-D-Cup's main claim to fame was a bitchy attitude and an eye-popping figure levered mercilessly into ultra-tight spandex and 6" stiletto heels. (I've never met a Voyager apologist who could explain the stiletto heels BTW.) She really wasn't that great of a character, but she did single handedly save Voyager from early cancellation. After she was introduced Voyager practically became the 7of9 show.

Try to watch some 7of9 episodes before you buy any Voyager sets. If you don't absolutely *adore* her then Voyager is not for you. (It has little else to recommend it.)

Personally, the lazy writing of Voyager is what made me hate the show the most. The plots always felt deliberately contrived to put characters into jeopardy "just because". It seemed like every other week Janeway would give her "I don't like bullies" speech and the crew would outfox yet another set of generic unreasoningly evil aliens by modifying the deflector dish. (The deflector dish should have been given top billing right next to 7of9 in the Voyager credits, IMHO) The only possible excuse for Voyager's existence is that it makes the new Enterprise show look good. (although not that good...) Buy DS9 or save your money for the original series sets coming out later this year.

 

[Darren Haycock]

DS9 > Voyager by far.

Btw, I think Avery Brooks did an amazing job.