Without the original Star Trek, released from 1966 through 1969, there would not be Star Trek. Over the course of three seasons, the series boldly went where quite literally no one had gone before. While some may prefer later iterations of Star Trek for one reason or another, one cannot deny that Tos created the template from which every subsequent incarnation is derived.

Personally, the original series is not only my favorite version of Star Trek but also my favorite TV show in general. Despite growing up in the 2000s, I’ve never minded the “cheesy” effects or the lack of continuing stories. In fact, those are actually things I really appreciate about the show’s format.

As much as I love the original Star Trek, I don’t think every episode is perfect. A ranking could definitely be made of the relative quality of every episode. Rather than going through all 79 episodes,...