The TV Addict 

Bless you for plugging DS9. I may be a little biased (see website), but I think DS9 is the best Trek series. It’s certainly holding up well, nearly a decade after going off the air, and remaining relevant.

I also agree that DS9 is the best of the Treks and that Firefly is worth watching. To me, the best Firefly episodes are: Our Mrs. Reynolds, Ariel, Trash, The Message, Heart of Gold (the one TVAddict mentioned), and Objects in Space, with the very best of all being Out of Gas. That right there is almost half the series; not a bad ratio for great episodes. For the best of Buffy, I would recommend seasons 3 or 5, and definitely ignore season 6 & 7 (ala Gilmore Girls).

I would also recommend, most of all, Babylon 5. Best. TV Show. Ever. At least that’s how I remember it. I’ve been meaning to watch again myself.

One unfortunate problem with B5 is that the 1st & 5th seasons are not quite as good as the middle three. Start at the beginning, and you may wonder why I like it so much. Start in the middle, and you’ll miss a lot of arc setup. It’s a conundrum that often plagues anyone who tries to convert new viewers to it, something discussed several times at www.b5tv.com.

The best stand-alone episodes are Confessions & Lamentations (season 2) and Passing Through Gethsemane (season 3). If you don’t mind starting in the middle, despite missing a lot of setup, you’ll be blown away by B5’s two Hugo award-winning episodes The Coming of Shadows (s2) and Severed Dreams (s3).

One under-rated and prematurely-canceled series from the early ’90’s I’ve been tempted to buy on DVD is Alien Nation. It’s a shame the show only lasted one season. Similar to B5, AN also has a box set of its 5 or 6 TV movies.

Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis are also fun, but with the plethora of reruns on Sci-Fi Channel and in syndication (I’m watching an SG-1 rerun right now), why bother renting or buying.

Deep Space Nine rules the Star Trek series. I was a late convert to DS9, having grown up with the idealized TOS and TNG series. However watching DS9, was a lot like growing up and joining the big boy table. Consequences, intrigues, and lets face it , big space battles, helped bring Deep Space Nine (Terok Nor to those in the know) to the forefront of good sci-fi. Firefly and Buffy, and Angel (except S1-3).

Also how can you hate S6 of Buffy? Sure it was a little flaky, but without that we would have never gotten the delightful “Once More, With Feeling” episode, whose riffs and lyrics still echo in my music system.