With nearly 1,000 episodes of television among all of the various Star Trek shows, it’s no surprise that some stories have courted controversy. Star Trek has always been ahead of its time with its optimistic view of the future and celebration of diversity. While Star Trek: The Original Series undoubtedly remains a product of the 1960s, the show was progressive for its time and was no stranger to controversy. Star Trek has been responsible for several television firsts over the years and has developed a widespread and passionate fanbase with very strong opinions.
Any franchise with so much content and such passionate fans will inevitably produce some stories that spark strong reactions. Every Star Trek series since TOS has had episodes that got people talking, and modern Star Trek remains as controversial as ever. Since Star Trek: Discovery brought the franchise into the streaming era in 2017, the show has been met with contentious opinions and decidedly mixed reviews. But this level of controversy is nothing new for Star Trek, as the franchise has always found ways to discuss hot-button topics.
10 “The Devil In The Dark”
Star Trek: The Original Series Season 1, Episode 25
- Cast
- William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , Deforest Kelley , James Doohan , George Takei , Nichelle Nichols , Walter Koenig , Frank da Vinci , Eddie Paskey , Roger Holloway , Ron Veto
- Release Date
- September 8, 1966
- Seasons
- 3
- Showrunner
- Gene Roddenberry
When the USS Enterprise investigates a series of deaths at a mining facility, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Spock (Leonard Nimoy) encounter a Silicon-based lifeform called the Horta. After Spock initiates a mind meld with the Horta, he discovers that the creature has simply been trying to protect its young. As a classic Star Trek story, “The Devil in the Dark” has a lot going for it, but it controversially has no speaking parts for women.
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Star Trek: The Original Series was progressive in putting Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), a Black woman, on the bridge of a starship, but she often got sidelined as a character. She does not even get the chance to announce that hailing frequencies are open in this episode. Even Gene Roddenberry noted the lack of women in “The Devil in the Dark,” penning a letter about the topic to producer and writer Gene L. Coon.
9 “Patterns Of Force”
Star Trek: The Original Series Season 2, Episode 21
Unsurprisingly, Star Trek’s “space Nazi” episode stirred up its fair share of controversy. “Patterns of Force” follows Kirk and his crew as they investigate the disappearance of a Federation observer only to find that he has turned an alien planet into a replica of Nazi Germany. John Gill (David Brian) had originally intended to bring order to the lawless society of the Ekosians using a benign form of fascism.
This Star Trek episode features swastikas, a Führer, as well as Nazi slogans and salutes.
Gill stated that Nazi Germany was the “most efficient state Earth ever knew.” Because of this line and the Nazi imagery throughout the episode, “Patterns of Force” was banned from German television until 1995. Rather than inventing an alien society that merely has similarities to Nazi Germany, this Star Trek episode features swastikas, a Führer, as well as Nazi slogans and salutes.
8 “Plato’s Stepchildren”
Star Trek: The Original Series Season 3, Episode 10
The Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Plato’s Stepchildren” was controversial for several reasons. Captain Kirk, Spock, and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) visit a planet of powerful telekinetic aliens with a culture inspired by ancient Greece. When Kirk refuses to stay on the planet, the Platonians punish the captain and his crew members by forcing them to perform for their entertainment.
In one of Star Trek’s most famous moments, the Platonians force Captain Kirk to kiss Lt. Uhura in one of television’s first interracial kisses. Although NBC feared this scene would anger some viewers, they reportedly received very little negative feedback. Interestingly, “Plato’s Stepchildren” was banned by the BBC, not because of the interracial kiss, but due to “unpleasant” content, including torture and sadism.
7 “Code Of Honor”
Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 4
- Release Date
- September 28, 1987
- Seasons
- 7
- Showrunner
- Gene Roddenberry
“Code of Honor” is controversial for being so notoriously bad that several Star Trek: The Next Generation actors have disowned it. When the USS Enterprise-D visits the planet Ligon II to acquire a vaccine, the Ligonian leader kidnaps Lt. Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby) with the intention of making her his new wife. While it would have been nice to see more episodes feature Lt. Yar, “Code of Honor” certainly does her no favors.
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Tasha Yar has no agency throughout Star Trek: TNG‘s “Code of Honor,” as she merely reacts to things as they happen to her. The Ligonians get very little development, and the decision to cast only Black actors to populate the primitive society makes the whole thing feel distasteful at best. “Code of Honor” employs many of the worst cliches from Star Trek: The Original Series and almost nothing about the episode works.
6 “Conspiracy”
Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 25
When Captain Picard realizes that Starfleet Command has given some bizarre orders, he takes the USS Enterprise-D to Earth to investigate. Picard and his crew then discover that a race of alien parasites have taken over several high-level Starfleet officers. Picard and Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) eventually confront the parasite’s leader, who has taken over the body of Lt. Commander Dexter Remmick (Robert Schenkkan).
When Remmick begins transmitting a signal to other parasites, Picard and Riker fire their phasers at him until his head explodes, in one of TNG’s most gruesome scenes. Due to these graphic elements, “Conspiracy” was either edited or banned entirely in the United Kingdom, and a warning was shown before the episode in Canada. Despite this, “Conspiracy” regularly makes it onto lists of favorite TNG episodes, and it remains one of Star Trek’s most shocking moments.
5 “Up The Long Ladder”
Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 2, Episode 18
Like “Code of Honor,” “Up the Long Ladder” is another episode that feels outdated even for the 1980s. Not only does the episode employ exaggerated Irish stereotypes, but it also fails in its intended commentary on immigration. “Up the Long Ladder” follows two separate storylines that never quite come together. One involves the Irish Bringloidi colony, while the other involves the advanced Mariposa colony of clones.
“Up the Long Ladder” tries to be funny and, while some of the jokes land, others fall flat. Commander Riker comes across as a bit of a creep toward the daughter of the Bringloidi leader, and later, Riker kills a clone of himself with no consequences. There are some interesting ideas in “Up the Long Ladder,” but they get buried under the awkward humor and disparate storylines.
4 “The High Ground”
Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3, Episode 12
“The High Ground” is a solid Star Trek: The Next Generation episode with one line of dialogue that makes it controversial. The episode follows Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), as she finds herself a captive of a terrorist group on a war-torn planet. Compassionate to a fault, Beverly begins to sympathize with the terrorists, even as she abhors their methods. The story takes an interesting look at both sides of the conflict, never fully taking either side.
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As Captain Picard and his crew speak about instances in Earth’s history where terrorism has proved effective, Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) mentions the 2024 unification of Ireland. When “The High Ground” aired, the conflict known as the Troubles was still ongoing in Northern Ireland, which led the BBC to ban the episode. “The High Ground” was not shown unedited in the United Kingdom until 2006.
3 “Rejoined”
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Season 4, Episode 6
- Release Date
- January 3, 1993
- Seasons
- 7
- Showrunner
- Michael Piller , Ira Steven Behr
When the widow of one of Jadzia Dax’s (Terry Farrell) former hosts visits Deep Space 9, the two struggle with their lingering feelings for one another. As Jadzia and Lenara Kahn (Susanna Thompson) work together to create an artificial wormhole, they begin to grow closer despite the fact that it is taboo in Trill culture to become involved with a previous host. The two women eventually share a kiss in Jadzia’s quarters.
Terry Farrel cites “Rejoined” as one of her favorite
DS9
episodes, partly because of the positive reactions it garnered from queer fans. Avery Brooks, who directed the episode, has also cited it as a favorite.
As one of the first lesbian kisses on television, the scene with Jadzia and Lenara stirred up quite a bit of controversy when it first aired in 1995. After “Rejoined” aired, the DS9 production office reportedly received more calls and letters than they had for any previous episodes, with both negative and positive reactions. Ultimately, “Rejoined” told a story of lost love and the episode generally receives positive reviews today.
2 “Tuvix”
Star Trek: Voyager Season 2, Episode 24
- Cast
- Kate Mulgrew , Robert Beltran , Roxann Dawson , Robert Duncan McNeill , Ethan Phillips , Robert Picardo , Tim Russ , Garrett Wang , Majel Barrett , Jeri Ryan , Jennifer Lien , scarlett pomers , Martha Hackett , Tarik Ergin , Manu Intiraymi , Nancy Hower , Alexander Enberg , Dwight Schultz , Josh Clark , Simon Billig
- Release Date
- January 16, 1995
- Seasons
- 7
- Showrunner
- Michael Piller , Jeri Taylor , Brannon Braga , Kenneth Biller
In one of Star Trek: Voyager’s most talked about episodes, Neelix (Ethan Phillips) and Lt. Tuvok (Tim Russ) are merged together in a transporter accident, becoming a new person named Tuvix (Tom Wright). Two weeks after the accident, the Doctor (Robert Picardo) finds a way to separate Tuvok and Neelix, but Tuvix has become his own person and doesn’t want to die.
Star Trek: Lower Decks
offered its own take on Tuvix dilemma in the season 4 premiere, “Twovix.”
Faced with an impossible decision, Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) eventually proceeds with the separation, even as Tuvix begs for his life. The moral conundrum at the heart of “Tuvix” has no easy solutions, and Janeway’s decision has stirred up controversy among fans since the episode aired. Even today, “Tuvix” remains a hot-button topic among Trek fans, especially since Star Trek: Lower Decks offered its own take on Tuvix dilemma in the season 4 premiere, “Twovix.”
1 “These Are The Voyages…”
Star Trek: Enterprise Season 4, Episode 22
- Release Date
- May 13, 2005
- Seasons
- 4
- Showrunner
- Brannon Braga
The series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise follows Commander Riker and Counselor Troi as they recreate the final mission of the Enterprise NX-01 on the holodeck. Critics of the finale felt that this framework made the episode feel too much like Star Trek: The Next Generation and did a disservice to the cast of Enterprise. Because of this, the episode often makes it onto lists of the most hated Star Trek episodes.
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Another controversial aspect of the episode is the death of Commander Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer), which some have argued felt forced and heaped more unnecessary suffering on T’Pol (Jolene Blalock). It makes sense that Enterprise would end with the founding of the United Federation of Planets, but the holodeck setting makes “These Are the Voyagers…” feel like a hollow ending for the Enterprise NX-01 crew, cementing it as one of Star Trek’s most controversial episodes.