Ranking every Star Trek series from the worst to the greatest

3. Star Trek: The Original Series

“Blasphemy!” we hear you cry. “How can the original Trek show not be your number one?” Well, there are certainly thousands of fans who agree with you. Star Trek: The Original Series (or just Star Trek when it first came out) is the groundbreaking show that paved the way for every other entry on this list. When it premiered in 1966, it forever changed the landscape of television, telling complex, often taboo stories about deeply human and political issues by using the guise of science-fiction to avoid outwardly “touchy” subjects.

The Original Series also gave rise to one of the most iconic ensemble casts of all time: William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy take top billing as Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock, but Sulu, Uhura, Chekov, Scotty, and Bones are all top-notch characters who have stood the test of time and since become iconic in their own right. Where modern Trek shows have high-tech CGI and glossy visuals, The Original Series had to rely on the strength of its storytelling to propel the science-fiction aspects, which resulted in some charming (if not cheesy) visual effects that are laughably dated today.

As silly as the Gorn may look, though, The Original Series can never be overstated in its impact on the landscape of science-fiction and television as a whole. Without it, we wouldn’t have the massive franchise we know and love today, so the least we can do is put it at number three in our ranking.