Ranked: The Ultimate Guide to Every Star Trek Series Finale

The truth is, not all “Star Trek” finales have been equally successful. Some have managed to end on a high note, while others still draw the ire of fans today. So, which finales truly stood out, and which ones continue to haunt the series’ legacy? Let’s examine the nine “Star Trek” series finales to determine the best and the worst among them.

One of the most infamous finales is that of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” with the 2005 episode “These Are the Voyages…” It was so poorly received that it effectively shelved the franchise until “Star Trek: Discovery” premiered in 2017. The main criticism is that it doesn’t serve as a proper conclusion to “Enterprise.” Instead, it feels more like an episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” centering on William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) using the holodeck to reflect on the original USS Enterprise’s final mission.

Interestingly, the stumble was unnecessary, as “Enterprise” had a suitable finale in “Terra Prime,” the penultimate episode of Season 4. This episode does a commendable job of tying up the series’ loose ends, prompting many fans to consider it the true conclusion, ignoring “These Are the Voyages…” entirely. As one fan noted on Reddit, “I skip the finale on rewatches. Archer’s speech at the end of ‘Terra Prime’ is the perfect end to the show.”

Not only does this narrative decision reduce the actual “Enterprise” characters to holodeck simulations for the series finale, but the episode makes some plot choices that were ill-received, such as killing Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer) seemingly just to shake things up. During a panel discussion at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017 (via TrekMovie), “Enterprise” co-creator Brannon Braga openly admitted that the finale was an experiment gone wrong. “It was a kind of a slap in the face to the ‘Enterprise’ actors,” he said. “It was the only time Scott Bakula was ever mean to me. I regret it.”

Weirdly enough, the fumble wasn’t even necessary because “Enterprise” already had a decent finale. “Terra Prime” – the penultimate episode of Season 4 — does a fair job at closing out the series, so some viewers prefer to just pretend that it’s the real finale and that “These Are the Voyages…” doesn’t even exist. “I skip the finale on rewatches,” one fan admitted on Reddit. “Archer’s speech at the end of ‘Terra Prime’ is the perfect end to the show.”

“The Counter-Clock Incident” closes the book on the two-season voyages of “Star Trek: The Animated Series.” While the show’s existence in the grand “Star Trek” canon is more than justified — after all, it proved that the franchise could exist beyond the confines of the parent show — “The Animated Series” is nevertheless a fairly cheesy ’70s Saturday morning cartoon with all the negative trappings of a badly-made Filmation show. This is why “The Counter-Clock Incident” can be a fairly tough watch, despite a relatively fun premise.

The episode introduces an important figure: The USS Enterprise’s very first captain, Robert April (James Doohan). The elderly Admiral April’s visit aboard his old vessel couldn’t be more convenient when the Enterprise ends up in a universe where time flows backwards. This eventually turns everyone on board into kids, but, fortunately, the much older Robert April and his wife Sarah (Nichelle Nichols) stay functional for long enough to pull off a last-minute save.

“The Counter-Clock Incident” is not the worst episode of the show. On the contrary, it’s one of the essential “Star Trek: The Animated Series” episodes to watch. But the thing is, it also definitely doesn’t feel like a series finale. It’s just a very offbeat episode of a very offbeat show, which is not the kind of imagery a series finale wants to evoke. When stacked up against all the other “Star Trek” series finales, it’s definitely near the bottom of the pile.

The third and final season of “Star Trek: The Original Series” closes with “Turnabout Intruder,” a “Star Trek” episode that would never air today due to its frankly rampant sexism. When the Enterprise rescues survivors of a research exhibition gone awry, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) finds himself trapped in the body of Dr. Janice Lester (Sandra Smith) while the villainous Lester inhabits Kirk’s own corporeal form. On paper, this allows for some classic doppelgänger entertainment — Lester tries to pass for Kirk as Spock (Leonard Nimoy) grows suspicious. The episode even attempts some progressive commentary, as Lester’s villainy is motivated by the glass ceiling at Starfleet, though it’s somewhat muddied by her other motivation of getting back at her ex (Kirk, of course), not to mention the way the show portrays both her and Starfleet.

Dr. Lester is a ranting, angry villain who’s wholly unable to control her emotions. As such, she’s completely unable to pass for Kirk and her mental health is soon called out, which is not the best look for a character whose entire motivation is being victimized by institutional sexism. Which, as it happens, is only ever present in this episode — just look at the number of women holding high-ranking Starfleet positions across the franchise’s shows. At the end of the day, “Turnabout Intruder” has some idea seedlings here and there. In the grand scheme of things, however, the episode comes across as uncomfortable and is wholly unfit to close the series. When Looper ranked every version of Captain Kirk to appear in “Star Trek,” Lester’s body-swapped villain came near the bottom.

“Star Trek: Discovery” splits opinion — it’s liked by the critics, but large sections of the fandom didn’t take to the show. After big swings like the time jump, the status quo-wrecking Burn event, and numerous large-scale threats, “Life, Itself” isn’t a bad series finale. However, it is a weird one, and that’s because it never expected to be one — the episode was already filmed when Paramount+ announced it would be the series finale.

Much of the episode takes place in the Progenitors’ realm, where Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) engages in gravity-defying battles and eventually forms a tentative alliance with Moll (Eve Harlow) to get out. Elsewhere, other characters get their own awesome moments. We even finally get to see a Progenitor (Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama), and the mysterious Kovich (David Cronenberg) turns out to be a familiar face from a past “Star Trek” show. 

There are many individually great moments in the episode. However, the key weakness of “Life, Itself” is its tendency to handwave its big points and remove them from the board. The Progenitors aren’t the be-all and end-all of existence, and their potentially galaxy-changing tech is destroyed. Major enemies are vanquished with relative ease. Of course, much of this has to do with the fact that the series finale status was thrust upon the episode unexpectedly.

The final 16 minutes of “Life, Itself” are a last-minute addition where an older Burnham interacts with some of her old crew members before sending the Discovery to the events described on the “Star Trek: Short Treks” episode “Calypso.” This is a very rushed coverage of the rough ideas the show had for the sixth season that never came, and it doesn’t really mesh with the rest of the episode. 

What fans may not know is that Patrick Stewart was initially afraid that “Star Trek: Picard” would undermine his past “Star Trek” work, but the show managed to walk the tightrope between being a nostalgia act and bringing something completely new to the table. The series finale, “The Last Generation,” skews a bit toward the nostalgia sector, but this show was never going to end without diving as deep into the old-school “The Next Generation” pool as it could get away with, was it?

After the penultimate episode, “Võx,” revealed that the Borg are behind Jean-Luc Picard’s (Stewart) health issues and his son Jack Crusher’s (Ed Speleers) visions, we start “The Last Generation” from a position of true fan service. Starfleet and Jack are both overwhelmed by Borg machinations, so it’s up to the old guard to set out on the trusty old Enterprise-D. As such, we get to see the ship and the core crew of “The Next Generation” in a final showdown against their worst enemy, which is just as air punch-worthy as you’d expect. 

After the Borg threat is inevitably vanquished, the episode slides in aftermath mode, tying up remaining plot threads and allowing classic characters time to reminisce. The non-“TNG” characters get their moments, too: The USS Titan-A becomes the latest iteration of the Enterprise, with Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd), and Jack picking up the space adventure baton. The show even manages to cram in a Q (John de Lancie) cameo stinger, despite the character seemingly dying in the Season 2 finale, “Farewell.” It’s all very charming, nostalgic, and perhaps even a touch predictable. But hey, if there was ever an Enterprise crew that deserved a happy ending, it was this one.  

“Star Trek: Voyager” came to a close in 2001 with the two-hour whammy of “Endgame,” which reveals that the USS Voyager finally found its way home and that Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) was promoted to an admiral. This would all be fine and well, if it wasn’t for the fact that the way back home cost Janeway a large chunk of her crew, including Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan). The solution: Admiral Janeway travels back in time to assume command of the Voyager over her younger Captain Janeway self in order to fix things. The problem: Fixing things means taking on the Borg Queen (Alice Krige) on her home turf. 

Watching the two Janeways interact is a fun time and the Borg are a fantastic endgame villain for the eternally overwhelmed crew of the USS Voyager. Many fans view “Endgame” as a high-concept and well executed finale — essentially a “Star Trek: Voyager” movie in its own right. However, others have been less enthused with it. One issue is that the time we spend with the “Voyager” folks enjoying their return to home is short and rushed. Some “Voyager” fans felt the ending was abrupt because the show’s episodic storytelling and “impossible journey” premise didn’t really lend itself to endings. As such, the finale is interesting, but still divisive enough to keep it out of our top three.  

“Star Trek: Lower Decks” wrapped up with Season 5’s “The New Next Generation.” It pays off the penultimate episode, “Fissure Quest,” where assorted alternate-universe clone characters mess around with a space rift and cause a multiverse-destroying energy wave. In the series finale, the USS Cerritos has to deal with this situation and manages to stabilize the multiversal rift. What happens before, after, and during this high-stakes mission is prime “Lower Decks” — a detail-filled, laugh-a-minute fireworks display that’s also full of heart and character.

What’s great is that even the Cerritos gets to shine, as it transforms into completely different vessels (including a Mirror Universe warship and the Enterprise-D from “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) whenever the waves surrounding the rift hit it. Is this the best “Star Trek: Lower Decks” episode? Probably not, but it’s very satisfying and it functions brilliantly as a series finale, making it worthy of a spot in our top three. Despite the wild shenanigans going on during the episode, “The New Next Generation” manages to remain coherent and it gives all the characters plenty of meaningful things to do.

What’s interesting is that, when Looper ranked every “Star Trek” series’ first season, “The Next Generation” came dead last. The fact that the series finale takes second spot on this particular list is a testament to just how much the writers turned things around across the show’s seven seasons. “TNG” ended in 1994 as a well-respected series, and, fittingly, “All Good Things…” is one of the best “Star Trek: The Next Generation” episodes.

The episode revolves around the show’s focal point, Patrick Stewart’s Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Thanks to Q’s machinations, Picard begins to abruptly experience three different time periods: The episode’s present, the lead-up to the show’s premiere, and a retirement future that “Star Trek: Picard” would eventually expand upon. Each timeline provides one clue to solving the mystery of a strange rift that can potentially destroy humanity.

“All Good Things…” is a puzzle box, an effective send-off, and a masterpiece in covering all available bases thanks to its multiple-timeline approach. The past timeline both elevates the pilot episode and allows characters who have departed the show to return for one last hurrah. The timeline of the future offers a tantalizing glimpse into things to come. The present one serves as the hub for the episode’s mystery. The Enterprise-D ultimately goes down in history after saving more lives than ever before, and its crew has never looked better.

There’s no other “Star Trek” finale that answers the call as well as “What You Leave Behind,” the beloved closer of “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.” The highly-rated episode not only manages to tie a neat bow around the swooping show’s key concepts, but it does so in a legitimately heartwarming and effective way.

Much of “Deep Space Nine” revolves around dealing with the antagonistic Dominion, Breen, and Cardassians. “What You Leave Behind” puts the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans up against all of these antagonist forces in a decisive battle. Another important aspect of the show is Benjamin Sisko’s (Avery Brooks) adversarial relationship with iconic villain Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo). They finally settle the score here, facing each other as the respective emissaries of the Prophets and the Pah-wraiths in the Bajoran Fire Caves.

Most impressively, the series-long arc of the Bajorans revering Sisko as a religious figure comes to a natural conclusion, as the erstwhile captain effectively ascends to another plane of existence. Combine all this with satisfying conclusions to many of the other characters’ storylines and the confirmation that the Deep Space Nine space station survives to see another day, and the whole episode is a fantastic reminder of what “Star Trek” can be at its very best.