Every so often a site will decide to rank the Star Trek series in worst to best order. With more series having been added to the franchise, we have more to take into consideration now, and Entertainment Weekly's Chris Snellgrove took on the task of a new ranking order recently, calling it "our definitive take on every show in the sci-fi franchise." And the choices are bound to cause some disagreements, some of them vehement. In fact, the opposition has even started in the comments section.
Entertainment Weekly chose Star Trek: Picard as the worst of the series, and that set many fans off. Though the series wasn't everyone's cup of tea, the third season of Picard was an epic success and gave the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast a much better send-off than they'd gotten in their final movie together, Star Trek: Nemesis.
While the entertainment site chose Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as the best of the Star Trek series, DS9 has long been considered an underdog in the rankings. It was a darker show and harder to get into because it wasn't episodic. You had to follow the storyline from beginning to end. That takes it out of the top spot for many fans, though it doesn't make it any less of a good show.
Star Trek: Prodigy coming in at number eight was a shock, considering how well-loved this animated series is. Of course, the writer admits that this is because it's a series designed for younger viewers, but, in all reality, Prodigy is probably watched by more adults than youngsters.
The shock comes in at placing Star Trek: Voyager lower on the list than Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. It's rare to see a Roddenberry-era series ranking lower than the Nu-Trek series, and this might have worked had there been an explanation given as to how the series were chosen.
While each series is given a description as to why it's good [or bad in the case of Picard], there's no indication as to how the rankings were made. What made Strange New Worlds rank better than Voyager? Of course, this is all based on opinion, but tackling such a controversial subject is akin to shouting that Star Trek is better than Star Wars in the center floor of the Star Wars Celebration.
There is no series of Star Trek that is perfect. Every one of them had some episodes we'd rather skip over on a rewatch, but choosing the best series of them all is a risky endeavor when it comes to fan opinion because, to some fans, the one you choose as the worst is their favorite.