How to watch Star Trek

[Barrister]

So I have young boys, and I'd love to introduce them to the joys of Star Trek.  But unlike Tyr's thread, I think this is a much more difficult question when applied to Star Trek.

The Original Series is coming up on its 50th anniversary - that's positively ancient in pop culture.  A lot of TOS episodes really don't hold up very well either - hokey acting, hokey premises, and why does the future look so much like the 1960s?  But some of the best episodes...

Next Generation was pretty good too though.  I mean - the first season or two is a bit rough (been trying to watch on Netflix recently - they don't stand up well).  But once the characters found themselves, it might be a better entry into the world of Star Trek.

I didn't even put DS9 as an option, though I think it's the better series.  It's be hard to get into with no prior exposure to Star Trek.

Finally, I put the modern re-boot for the 'kids these days just can't understand classic sci-fi' vote.

[Valmy]

The Next Generation.  Even that will look sort of hokey to the kids of today, TOS is only for somebody who loves classic TV or is a Trek fan.  The reboot is fun but it is not really Star Trek in my book, it is more of an action series without all the philosophy and stuff that makes Star Trek Star Trek.

[Admiral Yi]

Reboot movies first.  Then , if their interest is piqued, the TOS movies, skipping the first one.  If they want more, pick out some select TOS shows.  Maybe the Goatees of Evil episode.

[CountDeMoney]

They're like, a little past toddlers and shit, right?  At that age, TOS should suit them just fine.  They haven't reached the age of Ideologue-esque pretentiousness over film.

[Razgovory]

Wasn't there a Star Trek Cartoon from the 1970's?

[Barrister]

Wasn't there a Star Trek Cartoon from the 1970's?

There was.  It's so obscure *I've* never seen it though.  And I'd like to see it.

[jimmy olsen]

Wasn't there a Star Trek Cartoon from the 1970's?

There was.  It's so obscure *I've* never seen it though.  And I'd like to see it.

Same here, I've heard it's actually pretty good.

[katmai]

Wasn't there a Star Trek Cartoon from the 1970's?

There was.  It's so obscure *I've* never seen it though.  And I'd like to see it.

Netflix USA has it streaming, two seasons worth.

[CountDeMoney]

Yeah, the animated series had some decent episode story lines.  Fans would dig it.

[fhdz]

The original series + the first two movies are all that they need.

[Syt]

From what I've seen on SF Debris it seems to have a few interesting episodes, yes. Wasn't one even elevated to canon by Roddenberry?

[Syt]

TOS was considered a kids' show in Germany (which explains the somewhat ironic dubbing in places, and also why "Amok Time" was re-edited for Germany to exclude sex references, and why "Patterns of Force" was not shown at all until the mid-90s), so I'd suggest starting with it, and perhaps some of the lighter/more cartoonish stories.

TNG is probably better when they're around 9-12, and DS9 (if they can make it through the first few not so exciting seasons) in their teens.

[viper37]

So I have young boys, and I'd love to introduce them to the joys of Star Trek.  But unlike Tyr's thread, I think this is a much more difficult question when applied to Star Trek.

The Original Series is coming up on its 50th anniversary - that's positively ancient in pop culture.  A lot of TOS episodes really don't hold up very well either - hokey acting, hokey premises, and why does the future look so much like the 1960s?  But some of the best episodes...

Next Generation was pretty good too though.  I mean - the first season or two is a bit rough (been trying to watch on Netflix recently - they don't stand up well).  But once the characters found themselves, it might be a better entry into the world of Star Trek.

I didn't even put DS9 as an option, though I think it's the better series.  It's be hard to get into with no prior exposure to Star Trek.

Finally, I put the modern re-boot for the 'kids these days just can't understand classic sci-fi' vote.

TNG, but the Blu Ray releases, preferably.  They've been cleaned and had their special effects redone, so it looks better.

Forget about TOS, even the blu ray.  It holds value only for those who saw the original series.

[Josquius]

Voyager.
Seriously. I loved voyager when I was a kid, its what got me into ST having first attempted TOS (terrible and dissapointing at the time, still meh) and TNG (terribly dull to me as a kid), I then steadily got into DS9 as that was shown when voyager was having an off-series.

[Duque de Bragança]

TOS was considered a kids' show in Germany (which explains the somewhat ironic dubbing in places, and also why "Amok Time" was re-edited for Germany to exclude sex references, and why "Patterns of Force" was not shown at all until the mid-90s), so I'd suggest starting with it, and perhaps some of the lighter/more cartoonish stories.

TNG is probably better when they're around 9-12, and DS9 (if they can make it through the first few not so exciting seasons) in their teens.

The whole second season of TOS is banned to people under 16 thanks to that. 
The German dub had some value as well, not only technical (dubbed in the '90s)