Rank the Star Trek TOS movies

[Morrus]

TOS movies only (1-6)!

1. IV The Voyage Home
Wrath of Khan is maybe a better movie but this one is so much fun. It’s the most rewatchable for me. Plus a great soundtrack.

2. II Wrath of Khan
The usual choice, and probably the actual best movie. Probably don’t need to explain this one. Another awesome soundtrack (even if it is re-used in/from Aliens).

3. III Search for Spock
A controversial choice I know. The theft of the Enterprise is so good. I actually liked Doc Brown as a Klingon. It has some dire bits, sure, but there’s some decent character work in here too. Underrated I think. The middle part of a great trilogy.

4. VI Undiscovered Country
I guess it’s technically better than III. But I don’t enjoy it quite as much. Plus they’re all so old at this point! I find the ice prison planet section pretty weak, even a bit cringey.

5. I The Motion Picture
Anything is better than V, right? This one has its moments. And the premise is awesome. The execution maybe not so much. I don’t mind the slow Enterprise beauty shots, but the long glowy cloud sequences are pretty tedious.

6. V The Final Frontier
Oh my, as George Takei would say. This one is a hard watch. Plus since when did the Enterprise have 94 decks?

 

[MarkB]

I'd swap the first two, but otherwise that order works for me.

 

[JEB]

As a kid I didn't hate Trek V, and by the time I grew up I wondered if folks were doing it a disservice. Then I watched it for the first time as an adult several years ago... yikes.

 

[MGibster]

1. The Wrath of Khan - It's kind of funny to watch this and hear Kirk and Bones talk about what it means to grow old and become obsolete. Picard's like "Hold my beer."

2. The Voyage Home - This is probably the only Trek movie that even non-Trekkies will enjoy. I saw this in the theater with my mother and even she enjoyed it. "Probably too much LDS."

3. The Undiscovered Country - This was a fantastic send off for the orginal crew. Connecting it to real world events at the time, many of us really hoped we'd have a good relationship with our adversaries from the now defunct USSR.

4. The Search for Spock - We joke about the odd movies being bad, but this one was okay. It just wasn't as good as Wrath or Voyage.

5. The Motion Picture - It has a decent enough plot even if it was borrowed from a TOS episode, but the execution was terrible. Yeah, I want to see the new Enterprise as much as the next guy, did we need to spend 10 minutes showing off the new model?

6. I know I saw this in the theater back in 1989, but I don't think I ever bothered to watch it ever again. I did read the novelization because I was that kind of nerd. I probably need to give this one another chance, but, eh, I don't want to.

 

[Richards]

I find myself in complete agreement with Morrus's rankings.

Johnathan

 

[Twiggly the Gnome]

I'd swap the first two, but otherwise that order works for me.

I'd actually switch Morrus' last two. FF has a sort of a glorious train wreck appeal, but viewing TMP is like watching paint dry, and I just can't those pastel pajamas masquerading as uniforms. Christopher Plummer as General Chang elevates UC from mediocre to good fun.

 

[Zardnaar]

Haven't watched them in a while but same order.

There's really only 1 good one for non Trekkies. I didn't get Khan then or now. III was a bit boring the rest worse than III. VI may have been OK (it's been a while).

 

[Parmandur]

1. Voyage Home - because it is the only one thst really feels like a feature length episode TOS

2. Wrath of Khan - because it is a great movie

3. Undiscovered Country - also a great movie

4. The Motion Picture - actually not that bad

5. The Search for Spock - actually not that great

6. Thw Final Frontier - hot garbage, though very mockabke in a MST3K sort of way

 

[ichabod]

1. Wrath of Khan
2. Undiscovered Country (pretty cool, and that last battle is awesome)
3. The Motion Picture (Not that bad)
4. The Voyage Home (Not that great, but no real bad bits)
5. The Search for Spock (Good bits and bad bits)
6. The Final Frontier (Bad bits and bad bits)

I was taking a linguistics class at the time Undiscovered Country came out. The professor had the final exam be about Klingon.

 

[Irlo]

1. Wrath of Khan.

2. through 5. in no particular order:

A. The Motion Picture. I was a sorely disappointed 12 year old when this was released in '79. In '89 I watched it on VHS at x2 speed and enjoyed it quite a bit. Drugs might have been involved.

B. The Search for Spock. Uh, no. This movie undid Spock's heroic and moving sacrifice in WoK. Nimoy should have left the franchise. And the re-casting of Saavik killed it for me.

C. The Voyage Home. A bit too goofy for my tastes.

D. The Undiscovered Country. I saw it once 30+ years ago and barely remember it. I should probably watch it again. But then again -- is that the one where Spock forces a mind-meld with his traitorous protege? I should probably not watch it again.

6. The Final Frontier. Firmly in last place.