What is the official sequence for Star Trek the Original Series episodes?

Question

What is the official sequence of the episodes in the original Star Trek series? I'm interested in the sequence of the story rather than when they were produced or when they aired.

Answer 1

I would think that the episode ordering on the official DVDs would be correct. Wikipedia seems to differ, however.

I can't seem to find a good "Official DVD Order" list other than on Netflix, so I'll paste their list below.

Season 1:

1. Pilot: The Cage
2. The Man Trap
3. Charlie X
4. Where No Man Has Gone Before
5. The Naked Time
6. The Enemy Within
7. Mudd's Women
8. What Are Little Girls Made Of?
9. Miri
10. Dagger of the Mind
11. The Corbomite Maneuver
12. The Menagerie: Part 1
13. The Menagerie: Part 2
14. The Conscience of the King
15. Balance of Terror
16. Shore Leave
17. The Galileo Seven
18. The Squire of Gothos
19. Arena
20. Tomorrow Is Yesterday
21. Court Martial
22. The Return of the Archons
23. Space Seed
24. A Taste of Armageddon
25. This Side of Paradise
26. The Devil in the Dark
27. Errand of Mercy
28. The Alternative Factor
29. The City on the Edge of Forever
30. Operation: Annihilate!

Season 2:

1. Amok Time
2. Who Mourns for Adonais?
3. The Changeling
4. Mirror, Mirror
5. The Apple
6. The Doomsday Machine
7. Catspaw
8. I, Mudd
9. Metamorphosis
10. Journey to Babel
11. Friday's Child
12. The Deadly Years
13. Obsession
14. Wolf in the Fold
15. The Trouble with Tribbles
16. The Gamesters of Triskelion
17. A Piece of the Action
18. The Immunity Syndrome
19. A Private Little War
20. Return to Tomorrow
21. Patterns of Force
22. By Any Other Name
23. The Omega Glory
24. The Ultimate Computer
25. Bread and Circuses
26. Assignment: Earth

Season 3:

1. Spock's Brain
2. The Enterprise Incident
3. The Paradise Syndrome
4. And the Children Shall Lead
5. Is There In Truth No Beauty?
6. Spectre of the Gun
7. Day of the Dove
8. For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky
9. The Tholian Web
10. Plato's Stepchildren
11. Wink of an Eye
12. The Empath
13. Elaan of Troyius
14. Whom Gods Destroy
15. Let That Be Your Last Battlefield
16. The Mark of Gideon
17. That Which Survives
18. The Lights of Zetar
19. Requiem for Methuselah
20. The Way to Eden
21. The Cloud Minders
22. The Savage Curtain
23. All Our Yesterdays
24. Turnabout Intruder

Answer 2

There is no "order of the story" for TOS episodes. TOS was not intended to have an 'arc' like DS9 or Enterprise. Hardly any TV series did so at the time. You can pretty much count on one hand the number of times an episode makes reference to a previous episode, and none of them are important to the plot.

Reading the description of the early years of filming it is clear that the order of episodes was changed for all sorts of reasons other than plot. For example the first episode filmed (after the pilots) was The Corbomite Maneuver, chosen because it was almost all shipboard and meant the production staff would be climbing into the shallow end. It aired well into the first season.

Your only options are the airing date order or the stardate order, which generally corresponds to production order.

Answer 3

So the assumption that the stardates coincide with the production order is not entirely correct.

Here is the first season in order of stardate. (however I do prefer to watch in order of production)

Where No Man Has Gone Before    1312.4 - 1313.8
Mudd's Women                    1329.8 - 1330.1
The Corbomite Maneuver          1512.2 - 1514.1
The Man Trap                    1513.1 - 1513.8
Charlie X                       1533.6 - 1535.8
The Enemy Within                1672.1 - 1673.1
The Naked Time                  1704.2 - 1704.4
Balance of Terror               1709.2 - 1709.6
The Squire of Gothos            2124.5 - 2126.3
What Are Little Girls Made Of?  2712.4
Miri                            2713.5 - 2713.3
Dagger of the Mind              2715.1 - 2715.2
The Conscience of the King      2817.6 - 2819.8
The Galileo Seven               2821.5 - 2823.8
Court Martial                   2947.3 - 2950.1
The Menagerie, Part I           3012.4 - 3012.6
The Menagerie, Part II          3013.1 - 3013.2
Shore Leave                     3025.3 - 3025.8
Arena                           3045.6 - 3046.2
The Alternative Factor          3087.6 - 3088.7
Tomorrow is Yesterday           3113.2 - 3114.1
Space Seed                      3141.9 - 3143.3
The Return of the Archons       3156.2 - 3158.7
A Taste of Armageddon           3192.1 - 3193.0
The Devil in the Dark           3196.1
Errand of Mercy                 3198.4 - 3201.7
Operation -- Annihilate!        3287.2 - 3289.8
This Side of Paradise           3417.3 - 3417.7
The City on the Edge of Forever Unknown 

Answer 4

If you go by star date, here is a link to a good list. The series was not run in order by star date, very confusing.

Star Trek (TOS) by Stardate

Eps Air Date  PCode Stardate Title                                    
-=- -=======- -===- -======- -=====================================   
 0. - PILOT -     1 Unknown  "The Cage"

 3. Sep 22 66     2 1312.4   "Where No Man Has Gone Before"[TOS1]      
 6. Oct 13 66     4 1329.1   "Mudd's Women"[TOS1]
10. Nov 10 66     3 1512.2   "The Corbomite Maneuver"[TOS1]
 1. Sep  8 66     6 1513.1   "The Man Trap"[TOS1]  
 2. Sep 15 66     8 1533.6   "Charlie X"[TOS1]  
 5. Oct  6 66     5 1672.1   "The Enemy Within"[TOS1]
 4. Sep 29 66     7 1704.2   "The Naked Time"[TOS1]
14. Dec 15 66     9 1709.1   "Balance of Terror"[TOS1]                 
17. Jan 12 67    18 2124.5   "The Squire of Gothos"[TOS1]              

 7. Oct 20 66    10 2712.4   "What are Little Girls Made Of?"[TOS1]    
 8. Oct 27 66    12 2713.5   "Miri"[TOS1]                              
 9. Nov  3 66    11 2715.1   "Dagger of the Mind"[TOS1]                
13. Dec  8 66    13 2817.6   "The Conscience of the King"[TOS1]         
16. Jan  5 67    14 2821.5   "The Galileo Seven"[TOS1]                 
20. Feb  2 67    15 2947.3   "Court Martial"[TOS1]                     
11. Nov 17 66    16 3012.4   "The Menagerie, Pt. I"[TOS1]              
12. Nov 24 66    16 3013.1   "The Menagerie, Pt. II"[TOS1]
36. Oct 27 67    30 3018.2   "Catspaw"[TOS2]                           
15. Dec 29 66    17 3025.3   "Shore Leave"[TOS1]                       
18. Jan 19 67    19 3045.6   "Arena"[TOS1]
27. Mar 23 67    20 3087.6   "The Alternative Factor"[TOS1]            
19. Jan 26 67    21 3113.2   "Tomorrow is Yesterday"[TOS1]
22. Feb 16 67    24 3141.9   "Space Seed"[TOS1]                        
21. Feb  9 67    22 3156.2   "The Return of the Archons"[TOS1]
23. Feb 23 67    23 3192.1   "A Taste of Armageddon"[TOS1]  
25. Mar  9 67    26 3196.1   "The Devil in the Dark"[TOS1]   
26. Mar 16 67    27 3198.4   "Errand of Mercy"[TOS1]                  
45. Jan  5 68    46 3211.7   "The Gamesters of Triskelion"[TOS2]  
38. Nov 10 67    31 3219.4   "Metamorphosis"[TOS2]                     
28. Apr  6 67    28 3134.0   "The City on the Edge of Forever"[TOS1]  
29. Apr 13 67    29 3287.2   "Operation - Annihilate!"[TOS1]           
33. Oct  6 67    39 Unknown  "Mirror, Mirror"[TOS2]                   
30. Sep 15 67    34 3372.7   "Amok Time"[TOS2]                      
24. Mar  2 67    25 3417.3   "This Side of Paradise"[TOS1]       
32. Sep 29 67    37 3451.9   "The Changeling"[TOS2]
31. Sep 22 67    33 3468.1   "Who Mourns for Adonais?"[TOS2] 
41. Dec  8 67    40 3478.2   "The Deadly Years"[TOS2]   
40. Dec  1 67    32 3497.2   "Friday's Child"[TOS2]

43. Dec 22 67    36 3614.9   "Wolf in the Fold"[TOS2]
42. Dec 15 67    47 3619.2   "Obsession"[TOS2]    
34. Oct 13 67    38 3715.0   "The Apple"[TOS2]
39. Nov 17 67    44 3842.3   "Journey to Babel"[TOS2]
54. Mar 15 68    43 4040.7   "Bread and Circuses"[TOS2]  
35. Oct 20 67    35 4202.9   "The Doomsday Machine"[TOS2]   
48. Feb  2 68    45 4211.4   "A Private Little War"[TOS2]
46. Jan 12 68    49 4598.0   "A Piece of the Action"[TOS2]  
47. Jan 19 68    48 4307.1   "The Immunity Syndrome"[TOS2]
68. Dec 20 68    57 4372.5   "Elaan of Troyius"[TOS3]            
50. Feb 16 68    52 Unknown  "Patterns of Force"[TOS2]  (not 2534 - see notes below)
61. Oct 25 68    56 4385.3   "Spectre of the Gun"[TOS3]   
52. Mar  1 68    54 Unknown  "The Omega Glory"[TOS2]
37. Nov  3 67    41 4513.3   "I, Mudd"[TOS2]     
44. Dec 29 67    42 4523.3   "The Trouble with Tribbles"[TOS2]   
55. Mar 29 68    55 Unknown  "Assignment: Earth"[TOS2] 
51. Feb 23 68    50 4657.5   "By Any Other Name"[TOS2]
53. Mar  6 68    53 4729.4   "The Ultimate Computer"[TOS2]  
49. Feb  9 68    51 4768.3   "Return to Tomorrow"[TOS2]

58. Oct  4 68    58 4842.6   "The Paradise Syndrome"[TOS3] 
62. Nov  1 68    66 Unknown  "Day of the Dove"[TOS3]
59. Oct 11 68    60 5027.3   "And The Children Shall Lead"[TOS3]
57. Sep 27 68    59 5031.3   "The Enterprise Incident"[TOS3]
67. Dec  6 68    63 5121.0   "The Empath"[TOS3]
71. Jan 17 69    72 5423.4   "The Mark Of Gideon"[TOS3]
56. Sep 20 68    61 5431.4   "Spock's Brain"[TOS3] 
63. Nov  8 68    65 5476.3   "For The World Is Hollow, And I Have Touched The Sky"[TOS3]  
60. Oct 18 68    62 5630.7   "Is There In Truth No Beauty?"[TOS3]
64. Nov 15 68    64 5693.4   "The Tholian Web"[TOS3]
72. Jan 24 69    69 Unknown  "That Which Survives"[TOS3] 
66. Nov 29 68    68 5710.5   "Wink of an Eye"[TOS3]
69. Jan  3 69    71 5718.3   "Whom Gods Destroy"[TOS3]
73. Jan 31 69    73 5725.3   "The Lights of Zetar"[TOS3]
70. Jan 10 69    70 5730.2   "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield"[TOS3]
65. Nov 22 68    67 5784.0   "Plato's Stepchildren"[TOS3]
76. Feb 28 69    74 5818.4   "The Cloudminders"[TOS3]
75. Feb 21 69    75 5832.3   "The Way to Eden"[TOS3]  
74. Feb 14 69    76 5843.7   "Requiem for Methuselah"[TOS3]  
77. Mar  7 69    77 5906.4   "The Savage Curtain"[TOS3]
79. Jun  3 69    79 5928.5   "Turnabout Intruder"[TOS3]  
78. Mar 14 69    78 5943.7   "All Our Yesterdays"[TOS3] (funny final title)  

Answer 5

For me, it makes more sense to watch them in production order and ignore any stardate discrepency. Watching the 2nd pilot after 2 normal episodes just seems wrong.

Answer 6

Production order is the order I have always found most satisfying, particularly as there were changes to the sets and the costumes in the early episodes, and production order is the only way these are consistent rather than being rolled back then reinstated.

The first full UK video release was in production order, and it is of great frustration to me that the DVD and Blu-ray releases have been in broadcast order.

Answer 7

Gene wanted the show to appear in the order it was filmed, not the order is was aired. This is why he "invented" the star date story about to explain the shows being out of sequence. I remember I was there. Here it the order Gene Roddenberry wanted them to be seen in, Netflix lists them in the order they appeared on TV which is NOT the correct order.

1. The Cage (unaired pilot)
2. Where No Man Has Gone Before
3. The Corbomite Maneuver
4. Mudd's Women
5. The Enemy Within
6. The Man Trap
7. The Naked Time
8. Charlie X
9. Balance of Terror
10. What Are Little Girls Made Of?
11. Dagger of the Mind
12. Miri
13. The Conscience of the King
14. The Galileo Seven
15. Court Martial
16. The Menagerie (Parts I and II)
17. Shore Leave
18. The Squire of Gothos
19. Arena
20. The Alternative Factor
21. Tomorrow is Yesterday
22. The Return of the Archons
23. A Taste of Armageddon
24. Space Seed
25. This Side of Paradise
26. The Devil in the Dark
27. Errand of Mercy
28. City on the Edge of Forever
29. Operation: Annihilate!

Answer 8

In the 2009 CBS remastered DVD edition - 3 season box set, the episodes appear in the release date sequence with the original un-aired Pilot "The Cage" feathered at the end on the 3rd disk, with commentary by Gene. However, on each DVD main menu episodes are identified with a single number. This is separate from the star date and runs out of sequence with the release dates. These numbers correspond to the production sequence listed above and seem to make the most sense in the evolution of characters and the ST universe.

Answer 9

Michael and Denise Okuda, in the official (but not necessarily canonical or accurate) Star Trek Chronology: The History of the Future 1993 give the TOS episodes in production order. so one could say that if you go by the DVD release the airdate order is official for TOS, and if you go by Star Trek Chronology: The History of the Future the production order is official for TOS.

If someone has a list of episodes ranked in order of quality they can watch or show them in quality order starting with the best to get someone to like the series, or start with the worst and work up in quality knowing that the episodes will get better and better.

I guess someone could also plan to watch the episodes in alphabetical or reverse alphabetical order.

As a general rule most Star Trek TV shows can be viewed and/or fictionally happen in at least four different logical orders listed in no particular order:

1) Airdate order.

2) Production order.

3) Stardate order (some episodes don't have stardates, including all Enterprise episodes, and thus need to be placed rather arbitrarily.

4) By order of season, and within each season all episodes with stardates ordered in stardate order, and stardateless episodes placed rather arbitrarily. Since there is some overlapping of stardates between seasons, this allows for the first, second, and third seasons of TOS to correspond with the first, second, and third years of the five year mission, for TAS to be the fourth year, and for TOS novels to be the firth year of the five year mission, a popular fanon.

I hope to write a book about Star trek chronology someday, giving three alternate chronologies for readers to choose from.

In one chronology I will put every episode of TOs, TAS, TNG, DS9, and Voyager in stardate order when they have stardates and in the most logical order when they don't. I have a highly original theory about Next Generation era stardates.

As most of us know, during the second or third season and later seasons of TNG the creators managed to produce and air the episodes so that production order, original syndication airdate order, and stardate order are exactly the same for almost all episodes. thus there will be very few problems with putting the majority of all Star Trek episodes and movies in order according to my theory about Next Generation era stardates.

And I intend to extend the Next Generation era stardate system back to the second and first season of TNG, the TOS movies, and TAS and TOS.

But won't there be problems with that, like for example, tasha Yar being alive in an episode ith a later stardate than the one she was killed in?

No, because I believe that highly episodic TV shows should be thought of as being about the adventures that could happen to the characters and thus that do happen to them in various alternate universes. Thus Tasha Yar can be alive in one universe after being killed in a totally different alternate universe. And thus TOS episodes with stardates too close together or even overlapping can and must happen in alternate universes to each other.

TAS episodes can have stardates overlapping with first, second, and third season episodes because they happen in alternate universes where the Enterprise has different equipment and some different officers than in the live action episodes. Animated episodes that seem like sequels to live action episodes are actually sequels to somewhat similar but not identical series of events happening in alternate universes to those live action episodes.

My second chronology would almost always put the episodes in production order - except in cases like "Unification Part II" being produced before "Unification Part I".

So from the second or third season of TNG on the episodes would be in the same order as in the first chronology. But in the first and possibly second season of TNG and in the TOS movies, TOS, and TAs, the productions will be in production order and a different stardate system will be used to explain how stardates can go up and down and up and down again and to predict and calculate when in Earth time a particular statedate can be found.

my third chronology would be like the second in having the episodes mostly in airdate order which will be mostly identical with production and stardate order for everything after the second or third season of TBG, and will have a different stardate system for everything before, explaining and calculating how they go up and down and up and down again.

What about the way the sets and costumes and characters gradually changed, especially in the first few episodes produced? Since the episodes mostly all happen in alternate universes, they can happen in alternate universes where old style uniforms are replaced by new style uniforms, for example, at different times.

So basically there is no real official order for TOS episodes but production order is probably closest, and I hope to produce three separate chronological systems to make production order, stardate order, and airdate order make equal sense.

Answer 10

The only REAL way to watch any show from this era which doesn't have a defined arc relating events from previous episodes to later episodes is DEFO Not airdate order, or Stardate order or even production order but the order that the episodes were ACTUALLY FILMED IN as that would maintain the most honest continuity available.

Production order doesn't always represent filmed order.

So wheres a list of FILMING episodes as in production diary?

Answer 11

Production order has always been my preference and the only "logical" choice. The first US DVD release (40 volumes, 2 episodes per disk) was in production order, but all US DVD releases since have instead been in air date order.