Ranking every Star Trek series from the worst to the greatest
9. Star Trek: Lower Decks
Although we’d like to say that every Trek show is great in its own way, one of them had to come last on our list, and unfortunately, that show is Lower Decks. Star Trek: Lower Decks, which is also the most recent show in Trek canon (it premiered last month on CBS: All Access), follows the exploits of a group of ensigns who work on the lower decks of the USS Cerritos. In addition to its animated format (all but one other Trek shows are live-action), the setting of Lower Decks is what makes it stand out from the rest because, traditionally, Star Trek follows the story of the Bridge Crew.
While focusing on the lower-ranked members of the crew certainly isn’t a bad idea, Lower Decks markets itself as a comedy (and a slightly raunchy one, at that), but unfortunately for the show, it just isn’t funny. Although a few of the characters show promise, the ragtag group aren’t very likable people, nor are the week-to-week stories significant enough to keep us interested, even for the 25-minute runtime.
We commend the creators of the show for taking a creative risk with Lower Decks, but sadly, the show just doesn’t feel like Trek. If you strip away all the superficial trappings, the through-line through every other Trek show is sorely missing from Lower Decks, and that’s what lands it at the bottom of our list.
8. Star Trek: The Animated Series
We don’t hate animation, we swear! However, Star Trek: The Animated Series comes in at number eight on our list, and for good reason.
Where our biggest nitpick is that Lower Decks doesn’t feel enough like Star Trek, the reason we’ve placed Star Trek: The Animated Series so low on the list is that it’s not much more than an animated rehash of the far superior The Original Series. The Animated Series relies entirely on the audience’s knowledge of (and affection for) TOS, and because of that, we can’t justify putting it higher than any of the other Trek shows that stand on their own two feet.