Favorite Star Trek Doctor

[_random_]

People often compare the captains, but I thought this is a topic with plenty of potential as well. I'd have to choose Phlox myself. A lot of people rank Enterprise poorly in comparison with other series, but it definitely got his character right. He's pretty ridiculously likable.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

This topic came up over at TrekBBS several months back, and somebody posted a whole host of old photos from pre-TOS movies.

Damn, Deforest Kelley was a remarkably sexy man in his younger years!

But yeah, in characterization, what the actor brought to the role, how he presented himself to the audience, the integrated whole of the character, Doctor McCoy is definitely my favorite.

The others, in my ranking:

2. Voyager's EMH
3. Dr. Julian Bashir
4. Dr. Crusher
5. Phlox

I would nominate Dr. Katherine Pulaski as another candidate, since she was the CMO of the ship during Season 2 of TNG. I liked her better than Crusher.

 

[_random_]

Out of curiousity, how does that compare to your general ranking of the series?

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Katherine Pulaski would come in at #3, pushing TNG ahead of DS9. Julian Bashir is nicer to look at, but Katherine Pulaski was the more competent Doctor.

 

[G-Max]

EMH: Ensued Much Hilarity

He combined the frequent grumpiness and sarcasm of McCoy (even saying "I'm a doctor, not a doorstop" in First Contact) with the "ridiculously likable" traits that later showed up in Phlox. Favorite moment: hearing the ship's computer say "Last chance to be a hero, doctor..." in the daydream episode.

Least favorite? Probably Bashir. His only memorable moments were those with Garak or O'Brien, and those moments were only memorable because of Garak and O'Brien. By the way, Garak is the most awesome character from anything with "Star Trek" in the name, ever.

 

[GoodSarmatian]

I can't remember anything memorable about Phlox,
Voyager, while being generally sub-par, had the best Doctor in all of Trek.

[TROLL]
And Pulaski is missing on that list.
[/TROLL]

 

[Leoreth]

I'd even prefer Pulaski over Crusher. I mean, Pulaski was an annoying person (the best word to describe her is on the filter), but at least she had a character and no stupid children. Crusher herself was a non-entity, and the cast could've used some internal conflict.

Actual troll:
The medical officer of Voyager who dies in the first episode is missing on that list

 

[Terxpahseyton]

I thought the EHM to be awesome in the beginning, with its grumpiness and all the potential for puns or serious topics his role as a hologram offered. But he later on lost much of his grumpy charm and turned rather whiny or uninterestingly happy.
Which leaves me no other choice but to vote for grumpy original: McCoy!

Second goes to Bashir. I just found him likable and his genetics were interesting to boot.
Third: Crusher (though I would have liked her more as an exemplary pro-choicer)
Fourth: EHM (he really annoyed me later on)
Fith: Phlox (look at me! I am smiling! Hi hi! Dull....)

edit: Oh Pulaski.. well...who?
edit nr2:
@Leoreth
They were not supposed to have internal conflict. They were enlightened and all.
But you are right of course. This was a terrible decision of Gene Roddenberry. Like those unrealistic series of perfect American families. Teaches you little. Distorts much. Bores a lot.
edit3:
And you are right with Dr. Crusher. I explored my feelings about her - and had none! So she got third place for not being annoying.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

The medical officer of Voyager who dies in the first episode is missing on that list

I can't even recall his name...

But there are a couple of other Enterprise CMOs missing from the list:

1. Dr. Boyce
2. Dr. Piper

One of them was from the original pilot "The Cage/Menagerie"; the other was the CMO in "Where No Man Has Gone Before."

 

[Renner]

Had to go with McCoy with the EMH as a close second. Perhaps if the EMH had retained a bit more of his snarkyness in later seasons it could have been a bit more of a tossup.

 

[Glassfan]

Crusher was such eye candy.

 

[Leoreth]

@Leoreth
They were not supposed to have internal conflict. They were enlightened and all.
But you are right of course. This was a terrible decision of Gene Roddenberry. Like those unrealistic series of perfect American families. Teaches you little. Distorts much. Bores a lot.
edit3:
And you are right with Dr. Crusher. I explored my feelings about her - and had none! So she got third place for not being annoying.

Exactly. I mean, it's not that bad in TNG where the enlightenment concept at least worked and it was a different time overall. But when they first set up to have a lot of tension in Voyager and then threw everything overboard to have the "Starfleet is one happy family" (Maquis? What's that?) setup again, it got annoying.

 

[vypernight]

McCoy by a huge margin.

Phlox would be second for me as he was diffrent and interesting.

Crusher was okay, nothing good or bad.

I saw Pulsaski as nothing but a horribly-attempted clone of McCoy, right down to the fear of transporters.

I didn't watch much VOY and barely any DS9 so I have no opinions on those two.

 

[Smellincoffee]

McCoy or The Doctor. I suspect The Doctor would win if McCoy didn't have the power of being the original.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

I didn't watch much VOY and barely any DS9 so I have no opinions on those two.

Do
watch
DS9
Now.

But I congratulate you to skipping VOY.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

People often compare the captains, but I thought this is a topic with plenty of potential as well. I'd have to choose Phlox myself. A lot of people rank Enterprise poorly in comparison with other series, but it definitely got his character right. He's pretty ridiculously likable.

Bollix. Enterprise is the second best series, after TNG, and Phlox was one of the best parts of it. He delightfully combines the nerdy obsession with stuff with the traditionalism of an old man (even though he isn't), and a compassion for humans where most other aliens in the series show them disregard or scorn, even after being beaten or outsmarted by them.

McCoy comes in a very close second. He's rough around the edges and ready to kick some ass, but he's going to use just as much energy to heal you after the fight is over, too.

EMH was completely forgettable (as is Bashir, apparently, since I can't remember him), and Crusher is really too dull for anything other than being stared at, and must also bear the responsibility for having mothered that adolescent scourge of the universe known as Wesley.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

Is there actually a single person who does not hate the guts of Wesley? Even Jar Jar Binks has fans.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

Is there actually a single person who does not hate the guts of Wesley? Even Jar Jar Binks has fans.

I hate Wesley because he's nails on the chalkboard compared to the rest of the characters. In another setting, he might be more appropriate (he'll always be a Wally Cleaver level of nauseating, though), but against the backdrop of people like Picard, Data, and LaForge, he's utterly intolerable. I understand that having one or two characters who contrast with the rest of the cast can be desirable and useful, but Wesley's character does that in all the wrong ways; it's destructive rather than constructive. Jar Jar is similarly so, except that in Wesley's case his physical presence can be justified (his mom is there, it's part of his Starfleet training, etc), Jar Jar's simply cannot. Compare Wesley to Riker, whose contrasting character compliments the team.

 

[warpus]

I liked Voyager's Doctor the most. Phlox was too silly, Bashir was great but the Doctor was more likeable, Crusher was cool but there was nothing special there, and bones? I didn't really watch much TOS, but from what I've seen I'd pick the doctor over him too

 

[Leoreth]

Enterprise is the second best series, after TNG

The first time I hear someone say that. Why?