Summary
- Michael Dorn's favorite TNG episode is "The Drumhead," widely acclaimed and directed by Jonathan Frakes.
- Dorn's DS9 faves are "Soldiers of the Empire" and "Once More Unto the Breach" - top Klingon episodes.
- Frakes' favorite TNG episode is "The Offspring"; both actors disliked & avoided discussing "Code of Honor."
One of the best things about being a Star Trek fan is going to conventions and hearing the actors who brought the characters to life talk about everything from behind the scenes antics to their personal thoughts about the franchise. During a recent appearance at Rhode Island Comic Con, Jonathan Frakes and Michael Dorn talked about their favorite Star Trek memories and Dorn revealed his favorite, and least favorite, Star Trek episodes.
Frakes, who played William Riker and Thomas Riker in multiple Star Trek series, has stayed quite involved in the Star Trek universe since he first portrayed Riker in TNG. He's returned to the modern Trekverse both as an actor in Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks and as a director for Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Unlike Frakes, Dorn, who played Worf and Worf's ancestor, Colonel Worf, left the Star Trek universe after starring in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and only recently returned for Star Trek: Picard. Both actors are regulars on the Star Trek convention circuit, attending cons like Rhode Island Comic Con all over the country.
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On the stage at Rhode Island Comic Con, as reported by TrekNews.net, Frakes and Dorn began by talking about their memories of the early days on the set of TNG, then transitioned to talking about the show itself, discussing the episodes they thought were the strongest and weakest.
The Favorites
When asked about his favorite episodes, Dorn said he loves "The Drumhead," an episode from the fourth season of TNG. Dorn isn't alone in his admiration for this episode, which was actually directed by Frakes, his partner onstage that day. "The Drumhead" is widely considered one of the best episodes of TNG ever made. The episode is one of the first co-written by Jeri Taylor, who would go on to be one of the showrunners for Star Trek: Voyager.
Since Dorn also spent so much time on DS9, fans asked about his favorite episodes from that series as well. He replied that they were season 5's “Soldiers of the Empire” and the seventh season episode “Once More Unto the Breach.” Though those two episodes aren't often listed among DS9's best episodes, they are some of the best Klingon episodes in the entire franchise.
Frakes didn't chime in with his favorite episodes during the panel, but he has given fans an answer before. In an interview with StarTrek.com, Frakes shared that his personal favorite episode is "The Offspring," which was the first episode of Star Trek he ever directed. It's also widely considered one of the best TNG episodes. Frakes added that though it was his personal favorite, he thought the two-parter "Best of Both Worlds" was "the best TV we did."
The Least Favorite
Dorn also chimed in about his least favorite episode, which happens to be Frakes' least favorite as well. Dorn said that the season 1 episode "Code of Honor" was his least favorite episode of Star Trek. Frakes has said the same on multiple occasions, calling it racist and saying it should be removed from streaming services.
Fans agree wholeheartedly with this assessment, and "Code of Honor" is frequently listed among the top five worst episodes of TNG.
Frakes and Dorn also discussed their return to the bridge of the Enterprise in Star Trek: Picard and their future involvement in the franchise.
- Release Date
- 1987 - 1994-00-00
- Network
- Syndication
- Showrunner
- Gene Roddenberry
- Directors
- Cliff Bole, Les Landau, Winrich Kolbe, Rob Bowman, Robert Scheerer, Jonathan Frakes, Robert Wiemer, Gabrielle Beaumont, Alexander Singer, David Carson, Paul Lynch, Corey Allen, Patrick Stewart, Chip Chalmers, Joseph L. Scanlan, James L. Conway, Robert Lederman, Tom Benko, Timothy Bond, Robert Legato, Adam Nimoy, Robert Becker, David Livingston, LeVar Burton
- Writers
- René Echevarria, Maurice Hurley, Richard Manning, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Tracy Tormé, Hannah Louise Shearer, Stuart Charno, Ira Steven Behr, Sara B. Cooper, Peter Allan Fields, Herbert Wright, Frank Abatemarco, Burton Armus, Hilary Bader, Morgan Gendel, David Kemper, Michael I. Wagner, Philip LaZebnik, Robert McCullough, Susan Sackett, Nick Sagan, Fred Bronson, Robert Hewitt Wolfe, Sam Rolfe
- Franchise(s)
- Star Trek
Cast
-
Patrick StewartJean-Luc Picard -
Jonathan FrakesCommander William T. Riker -
Brent SpinerData -
LeVar BurtonGeordi La Forge
- Seasons
- 7
Sources: TrekNews.net, StarTrek.com