Science Fiction Franchises - How many Star Wars and Star Trek series/films have you seen?

[shadowkat]

List Memeage, only culture junkies need apply.

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

Star Wars Franchise

RELEASE ORDER

* † Star Wars (A New Hope) (1977) [I literally saw it the first or second week of release, and was the first kid in my neighborhood or school to see it - my father was determined. We drove an hour out of our way to see it - (first time sold out), so came back.]
* † The Empire Strikes Back (1980) [Also among the first to see it - and read the book, saw it at a huge theater, double decker in Kansas City, that was an hour away.]
* † Return of the Jedi (1983)
*† The Phantom Menace (1999)
* † Attack of the Clones (2002)
*† Clone Wars (2003-2005)
*† Revenge of the Sith (2005)
The Clone Wars (2008-2020)
LEGO Star Wars stuff* (2013-??) - the appeal of lego animation and legos is completely lost on me. (Also they are a nasty organization to work for - my cousin worked for them, so no love, sorry folks.)
Rebels (2014-2018)
* † The Force Awakens (2015)
* Rogue One (2016)
Forces of Destiny* (2017-2018) [I've never heard of this one, so until this list, didn't know it existed. Must be animated.]
*† The Last Jedi (2017)
Solo (2018)[saw it on a plane]
Resistance (2018-2019) - also never heard of it.
Galaxy of Adventures* (2019-2020) - never heard of it.
The Rise of Skywalker (2019) - among the few that I didn't bother to see in the theater.
The Mandalorian (2019-2023)
The Book of Boba Fett (2021-2022)
The Bad Batch (2021-2024)
Visions (2021-2025)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
Andor (2022-2025) [three quarters of the way through]
Ahsoka (2023-2026)
Young Jedi Adventures (2023-2025)
Tales of the Empire (2024)
The Acolyte (2024)
Skeleton Crew (2024-2025)
Tales of the Underground (2025)

I've not watched most of the computer animated series - because video game computer animation jars me - it gives me headache. The people kind of move like robots or stiffly, and my eyes keep trying to make it work, and it doesn't, and I just can't watch it. There's certain types of computer animation that I can't watch. The Star Wars computer animation, Lego movie, and video game animation - it gives me a headache for some reason or other, which is another reason I'm not a gamer.


I've actually seen more of the MCU stuff than the Star Wars stuff. Although I have admittedly watched more of the Star Wars than Star Trek - at least I think I have? Let's see?

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

Star Trek

RELEASE ORDER

* Star Trek - Original Series (1966-1969) 80 episodes
†Star Trek - the Animated Series (1973-1975) - 22 episodes
†* Star Trek - the Motion Picture (1979) [my parents were fans of Star Trek - so my father was insistent, he loved Trek.]
†* Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan (1982)
†* Star Trek III - The Search for Spock (1984)
†* Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home (1986)
†* Star Trek The Next Generation - 1987-1994 (176 episodes)
†Star Trek V : The Final Frontier (1989)
†Star Trek VI : The Undiscovered Country (1991)
†Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 1993-1999 (173 episodes)
†*Star Trek: Generations (1994)
†Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001) 168 episodes
†Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
†Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
†Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005) 98 episodes
†Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
†Star Trek (2009)
Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)
Star Trek: Beyond (2016)
Star Trek: Discovery (2017-2024) 65 episodes
Star Trek: Short Treks (2018-2020) 10 episodes
Star Trek: Picard (2020-2023) 30 episodes
Star Trek: Lower Decks (2020-2024) - 50 episodes
Star Trek: Prodigy (2021-2024) - 40 episodes
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022-) 40 episodes
Star Trek: Very Short Treks (2023) - 6 episode

Hmm, I was wrong, I've seen more Trek than Star Wars. [Morale? Never assume without checking first.] There's only a handful that I've not seen. Who knew? Apparently I'm more of a Trekkie than a Star Wars fan. Granted Trek had more content availability when I was growing up - Star Wars didn't take off again until the 21st century.

And that's a lot of Trek. I think that out does the Star Wars franchise ten to one.

Side note? The forgettable film, Star Trek Nemesis? The villain was written with James Marsters in mind - based on his performance as Spike. But Marsters is a die hard Trekkie, and blew the audition. He froze when he met James Patrick Stewart, had similar problem when he met Nimoy. So, Tom Hardy got the role and his career took off instead.

And I've seen more of the DCU and MCU franchise than of those two. Let's face it I'm a sci-fi/fantasy fan, with a weakness for superhero films. I tend to hide this side of myself from most of the folks that I know - current cubicle mate wouldn't understand. I miss my previous cubicle mate who loved superhero films and science fiction.

Comments

[cjlasky7]

* A New Hope (1977)
* The Empire Strikes Back
* Return of the Jedi (1983)
*✝️ The Phantom Menace (1999)

One of the first in line. One of the biggest disappointments of my moviegoing life.

* Attack of the Clones (2002)
* Clone Wars (2003-2005)
* Revenge of the Sith (2005)
The Clone Wars (2008-2020)
LEGO Star Wars (2013-??)
Rebels (2014-2018)
* The Force Awakens (2015)
* Rogue One (2016)
Forces of Destiny (2017)
* The Last Jedi (2017)
* Solo (2018)
Resistance (2018-2019)
Galaxy of Adventures (2019-2020)
The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
The Mandalorian (2019-2023)
The Book of Boba Fett (2021-2022)
The Bad Batch (2021-2024)
Visions (2021-2025)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
Andor (2022-2025)
Ahsoka (2023-2026)
Young Jedi Adventures (2023-2025)
Tales of the Empire (2024)
The Acolyte (2024)
Skeleton Crew (2024-2025)
Tales of the Underground (2025)

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

Star Trek

RELEASE ORDER

* Star Trek - Original Series (1966-1969) 80 episodes

Watched them all a million times. But I didn't see the original run. I caught it in syndication.

†Star Trek - the Animated Series (1973-1975) - 22 episodes
* Star Trek - the Motion Picture (1979)
* Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan (1982)
* Star Trek III - The Search for Spock (1984)
* Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home (1986)
†* Star Trek The Next Generation - 1987-1994 (176 episodes)
Star Trek V : The Final Frontier (1989)
†Star Trek VI : The Undiscovered Country (1991)
†Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 1993-1999 (173 episodes)
*Star Trek: Generations (1994)
†Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001) 168 episodes
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005) 98 episodes
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
Star Trek (2009)
Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)
Star Trek: Beyond (2016)
Star Trek: Discovery (2017-2024) 65 episodes
Star Trek: Short Treks (2018-2020) 10 episodes
Star Trek: Picard (2020-2023) 30 episodes
Star Trek: Lower Decks (2020-2024) - 50 episodes
Star Trek: Prodigy (2021-2024) - 40 episodes
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022-) 40 episodes
Star Trek: Very Short Treks (2023) - 6 episodes

Watched all six. Unfortunately.

I am definitely more of a Trek guy. When Discovery, Picard, Season 5 of Lower Decks, Prodigy and Strange New Worlds come to basic satellite, I will probably watch them all.

P.S. You forgot about Section 31. (Lucky you.)

[cactuswatcher]

Bold = Have the DVD
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).


* † Star Wars (A New Hope) (1977) [I saw at the first showing at the theater in Columbus, Ohio, where I was in grad school. I've never been to the movies when I personally knew such a high percentage of the audience! Many who lived in the same building as I did.]
* The Empire Strikes Back (1980) [I was working a job by the time it came out. I went with family. I don't think we went in the first few weeks.]
* † Return of the Jedi (1983) [With family again this time probably in the first few weeks]
* The Phantom Menace (1999) [by this time I'd moved to Arizona, and didn't care as much about seeing movies early on, as having a more relaxing experience at the theater.
* Attack of the Clones (2002)
* Revenge of the Sith (2005)
* The Force Awakens (2015) [I was seriously disappointed in this one]
* Rogue One (2016) [Liked this one a lot, but what I was hearing about he rest of the Star Wars movies to come, turned me off. I haven't seen any of the rest and don't think I'll ever want to.]


Bold = Have the DVD
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.

Star Trek

RELEASE ORDER

* Star Trek - Original Series (1966-1969) 80 episodes [I saw none of these in their initial run. Instead I saw all them in reruns seven years or so later.]
Star Trek - the Animated Series (1973-1975) - [I saw a few of these, but made no effort to keep track of when they were on.]
* Star Trek - the Motion Picture (1979) [I saw it with family, and was a bit shocked at how much of a retread of old material it was. It's the worst Star Trek movie I've seen.
* Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan (1982)
* Star Trek III - The Search for Spock (1984)
* Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home (1986)
* Star Trek The Next Generation - 1987-1994 (176 episodes) [I have DVDs of the later seasons. I watched all the first few years, but wasn't a huge fan then.]
*Star Trek V : The Final Frontier (1989) [Not the best, but I don't hate it like some fans.]
*Star Trek VI : The Undiscovered Country (1991)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 1993-1999 (173 episodes) [I kind of got tired of it as the years went on]
Star Trek: Generations (1994)
Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001) 168 episodes [I saw the first few episodes, and started calling it Star Trek School Marm (Kate Mulgrew never impressed me). Afterward I only saw one once in a while.]
Star Trek: First Contact (1996) I've seen it. I rented it. Just as glad I didn't buy it.
Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005) 98 episodes. [I've only seen a few episodes. I didn't catch my fancy.]
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) Another one I rented. Maybe not as weak as First Contact, but I had no desire to buy the DVD. I let Star Trek go on without me after that.

[kazzy_cee]

I did not know that about James Marsters!

[shadowkat]

Agreed on Phantom Menace. Ugh, Lucas. The mistake was Lucas's friends didn't want to do the films and persuaded Lucas to handle the writing and direction. Just No. Lucas can't write dialogue to save his life, and he sucks at plotting - he's all about the world-building and special effects. What people don't know is Lawrence Kasdan wrote part of scripts for the first two-three films, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher changed a lot of their lines, and while Star Wars was directed by Lucas - he had help with the script. And the second two films weren't directed by Lucas. That unfortunately didn't happen with the next three films. So, you got a ton of world-building, and not a lot else in the prequel films. It's the problem with a lot of science fiction and fantasy - is the writers of it - often get bogged down in all the world-building that they lose track of the characters and the story.

Section 31 wasn't on IBMD's list. (No, I did not do it from memory - I had no idea there was a series called Very Short Treks or Short Treks.) Also I did forget about it. I've not seen it. I was looking forward to it - then read the abysmal reviews, and chose to skip. Strange New Worlds is also getting bad reviews all of a sudden - people do not like Season 3.

[shadowkat]

You might want to try Andor, if it ever becomes available to you outside of Disney +. It's the series leading up to Rogue One. Sort of the back story to Rogue One.

And if you liked Rogue One, you'll most likely like Andor.

[shadowkat]

He keeps telling the story in interviews. I found it entertaining, considering how disappointly and bad Nemesis truly was. I also didn't realize it was a young Tom Hardy in the role.

[cjlasky7]

Besides Kasdan, one of the great unsung heroes of the franchise was Marcia Lucas, who edited A New Hope and helped Lucas shape the characters into something resembling humans (and not archetypes from 1940s movie serials).

HARRISON FORD (to Lucas): You can type this shit, but you can't say it!

And because he thinks in archetypes and nostalgia bait, Lucas cannot write dialogue for normal people. That became painfully clear in the prequels (especially TPM).

But as bad as the prequels were, the sequel trilogy might be worse. There was no coordination from the Disney braintrust on the general direction of the series and no flow from one movie to the next.

You started off with Abrams' 100% recycled Star Wars movie (which was kind of fun, actually); then Rian Johnson came in with HIS ideas....

And then the braintrust just threw all that away and handed it back to Abrams (after Treverrow flamed out). It was pure hash.

Rise of Skywalker was the only Star Wars movie I did not see in the theaters. I saw it on television FOUR YEARS after release.

Strange Not-So-New Worlds

[cjlasky7]

Why has fandom suddenly turned on SNW? There are a number of explanations:

1. The scripts aren't quite as sharp as Seasons 1&2.

2. The continuity police is up in arms. Complete continuity break regarding the Gorn. (Yet ANOTHER Spock romance?)

3. Or maybe fandom has come to the realization that--despite the innovative episode formats (musical! animated!--the series has no real reason to exist except as nostalgia bait.

[yourlibrarian]

That's really surprising that that's the spin he's put on it now. Back in 2006 he actually showed the footage of his Nemesis audition at a convention. I thought he was quite good in it. This was from my write-up:

Ever since I heard that James had been up for the role of Picard's clone in Star Trek: Nemesis, I'd been sorry he hadn't gotten it. Not because I enjoyed the film, because I didn't really, or because the actor chosen had not done well. I thought he was good. But for selfish reasons I loved the idea of being able to see James and Patrick Stewart facing off, and to see him sinking his teeth into that part. I don't think getting it would have done him much good given it was a genre film and didn't do well. But -- Patrick Stewart! And then he'd have been a part of Trek as well, which was my first fandom way back when.

So I was thrilled to get a few moments of that when they showed his screen test on Saturday night. I wasn't clear from seeing it if he had actually done it with Patrick Stewart, it looked like he was acting with a green screen. Stewart was in uniform and they were speaking in a corner of something that looked a bit like a ship nook. As it was S6 when this happened (11/1/2001 according to the reel, which misspelled November), he looked very Spike-like, in bleached hair, a black tank top and wearing a chunky silver necklace. It was a bit disconcerting (and sad also to think we won't see him like that again -- or likely much other fresh footage from that time). But watching it I thought he did an amazing job with the scene. It's hard to believe he didn't blow the producers/director out of the water with that performance. I wish I had a copy of this.

https://yourlibrarian.dreamwidth.org/30018.html

[colls]

I love that story about James Marsters.

I was a Star Wars fan first, didn't watch much Trek until TNG came out - although I remember the whale movie and think that might've been my first? IDK, the stuff I read or watched in late-80's/early-90's is kind of a blurr anymore (LOL)

[shadowkat]

Yeah, I was a Star Wars fan first as well. I found Star Trek to be too scary - keep in mind I was six, and it was in reruns. Star Wars - I saw when I was about 11.

I remember Trek - because we watched the episodes in college in the lounge, together. The old original ones, and the new ones. It was the show that I watched a lot with other people in college - I ran across a lot of Trekkies in college.

[trepkos]

I hadn't heard of "Star Trek: Short/Very Short Treks" or "Prodigy" so thanks for that!

[shadowkat]

Interesting - because from what I understood - he did the audition in 2002 (at the end of the season - not in 2001) - they filmed his scenes separately and quickly in the finale of S6, so he could take off to do the audition. [He says this in all his Q&As and interviews, including Schmactors, going back years.)

What you may have seen was the audition tape that he sent in to Star Trek. Then he had to go back and film in person? Or maybe there were two auditions? One with Stewart and one prior?

But all of the interviews state that he did it at the end of 2002, and he blew it, because he fanboyed Stewart. He was too much of a Trekkie for his own good.

It did help Tom Hardy - this was his first role - and Hardy has had a sizable career since then.

Thanks for the link. I followed it, and I actually saw the play Teachers in London in 1988, or thereabouts. It was the same year I saw Head in Chess. It was okay, not great. I don't remember it well - just that I saw it. Chess, I remember much better.

[shadowkat]

Rise of Skywalker was the only Star Wars movie I did not see in the theaters. I saw it on television FOUR YEARS after release.

Yep, same. I saw it a year after its initial release. I found it easier to follow than Last Jedi.

I remember being annoyed by both, for different reasons.

Force Awakens - I thought set a few interesting things up? But Rian Johnson ignored them, or didn't like them and by the time it got back to Abrams - he was too busy trying to come up with a clever twist on what he set up in Force Awakens, to really make it work or pay attention to what was in the second film. So we basically had three stand a lone films, that almost work better separately than together. Add to that? Carrie Fisher died while they were making Last Jedi. She was supposed to be the focus on Rise of Skywalker. Her death threw the whole thing off kilter. I actually, think she was supposed to be more of a focal point in Last Jedi - but again her death threw it off. As a result they had to yank Harrison Ford back for Rise.

Say what you will about the Prequels - at least they had a cohesive through line and worked together as a trilogy. The sequels were more entertaining than the prequels, but didn't work as a cohesive whole nor as a trilogy. Also, I despised Adam Driver after seeing them. I've struggled watching him in anything else since then.

Re: Strange Not-So-New Worlds

[shadowkat]

I think it's most likely #3. From what I've read - I've not seen more than four episodes from S1, so wouldn't know - it's the fanfic feel of it that is bothering a portion of the fandom. (Not everybody, some people are still enjoying it.)

[shadowkat]

Harrison Ford also famously stated: People don't talk like this, George. (He and Carrie Fisher kept changing the dialogue). Ewan McGregor and Liam Neeson didn't feel comfortable doing that - they aren't writers and good at improv.

[cjlasky7]

That's the real shame about the prequels--because they DO work as a cohesive trilogy. The underpinning of all three movies--how the galaxy gradually shifts from a democratic Republic to a fascist dictatorship-- works PERFECTLY.

If only Lucas could write actual characters to give weight to this tragedy.

Re: Strange Not-So-New Worlds

[jesuswasbatman]

All of those for me. I'm not a continuity nitpicker but I really hate the idea of the Gorn as all-evil animalistic monsters and it's not a depiction of a sapient species that I ever wanted to see on a Trek show.

[jesuswasbatman]

Prodigy is really superb.

[jesuswasbatman]

The failure of Nemesis almost destroyed Hardy's career - he had to go back to doing stage and TV work in the UK for years, and didn't become a big star until Bane in The Dark Knight and then Mad Max.

Central Themes

[cjlasky7]

Every great post TOS Trek series explores a central theme:

TNG - What makes us human (and where is humanity going)?

DS9 - Who are we in times of great crisis?

VOY - Who are we if you strip away the comforts of our civilization? (Sadly, they never fully explored this theme.)

ENT - Despite our differences, can we come together and live in this world/universe? (S4 only.)

LD - Why is Star Trek so cool?

I see no compelling central theme in SNW. It can be entertaining, but there's always something...lacking.

[colls]

Yes - TNG was high school & college timeframe for me, too! If I recall correctly, we're similar in age so it makes sense.
I remember one girl in our dorms dressed up as a Vulcan for Halloween my freshman year. I don't know if anyone watched it in the lounges - not in my dorm building at least.

[shadowkat]

Same - it started towards end of high school - and went through college for me as well. And yeah, we had folks dress up too.

[shadowkat]

I did not know that. It was a forgettable film. I didn't realize it was Tom Hardy who played the role - until Marsters mentioned it off-hand in a podcast. Because he's unrecognizable in it.

[shadowkat]

In some respects - Andor does a better job with this theme - then the prequels.

[shadowkat]

That's the second rec - I've seen for it.