By now, most Trekkies have probably seen or are planning to see Star Trek, the franchise reboot/restart from director J.J. Abrams. Critical reaction has been almost universally positive and the film has found a receptive audience in both fans and non-fans alike. But, that wasn’t exactly how most Star Trek films have been received. Apart from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, the series hasn’t really produced a film that could readily appeal to non-fans. While it’s true that Wrath of Khan and First Contact were extremely popular, they were still mostly popular with Trekkies and sci-fi fans. However, the new film has been attracting the non-sci-fi aficionado as well as the non-Trekkie. On more than one occasion I’ve heard that people who have absolutely no interest in sci-fi or Star Trek as a genre have either seen the movie and liked it or are actually excited about seeing it. In short, the film could wind up being the most successful Trek adventure to date.

Click here to buy movie posters!

But, as most Trekkies will agree (and have probably been trying to tell all of their friends for weeks), quality Star Trek cinema did not start with the Abrams film. There have been some really well-made films in the series (and some dogs) and many of the ten Star Trek films before Abrams’ excellent entry have produced plenty of singular moments. There have been thrilling space battles, fights with assorted Klingons, daring escapes from certain death, and plenty of pathos to give the series some much needed emotional depth. But what are the moments that Trekkies can point to and say to their friends: “See, there is good stuff here! Star Trek doesn’t suck! THAT, right there, was a damn good scene!” In an attempt to single out the moments from the Star Trek film canon that make Trekkies proud to be, well, Trekkies, we sat through all ten films. Some we enjoyed (thank you Nicholas Meyer) and others, not so much (we’ll just pretend that Insurrection and Nemesis never happened), but we persevered and the following list is the culmination of that exhaustive research. Enjoy!

As any real fan knows, the USS Enterprise is as much a part of Star Trek as any member of her crew. Consequently, any list such as this wouldn’t be worth it weight in tribbles if this scene weren’t included. After stealing their ship and racing to the Genesis planet to rescue Spock, they are attacked and disabled by a Klingon Bird of Prey. When all seems lost, Kirk makes the difficult decision to destroy the Enterprise. The pain this act causes him (and will more than likely continue to cause him) is evident when, despite having saved himself and the crew, he asks: “What have I done?”

Although, Kirk’s sarcastic question is totally within character, it just feels off. Much like the disappointing fifth film as a whole, it is more like a straggler from the 1960s-era show than the more intelligent film series. Unlike the other scenes on this list, this one is here not for the “cool” factor or because it is legitimately funny or dramatic. No, it’s here because it’s one of the more ludicrous scenes in all of Star Trek history. Every Trekkie knows this line all too well since it was almost the moment that killed the franchise (thankfully The Undiscovered Country and The Next Generation came along to rectify that). I can still remember muttering the line to myself after leaving the theater in disbelief and dying a little on the inside every time I did. Still, it’s a line that makes you laugh – but only because the franchise was able to overcome it.

After the debacle of The Final Frontier, Nicholas Meyer (who directed Wrath of Khan and helped write The Voyage Home) was brought back into the fold to reclaim the audience the last film lost. The result was a movie that, while it deserves to be mentioned among the best Star Trek films (that would be Wrath of Khan, The Voyage Home, and First Contact) it never really surpasses them. However, it is an excellent sci-fi adventure and features several endearing nods to it being the final voyage of the original crew, none more chock full of pure Star Trek moments than this final scene. In fact, it begins with Kirk saying that the have saved “civilization as we know it,” then segues into a moral lesson, followed by an emotional order to report to Starfleet and be decommissioned, and finally culminates in a joke from the half-human Spock and a whimsical line from Kirk. While the final allusion to Peter Pan may be a bit much (though it does get me every time I watch it), the nod to the crew of Star Trek: The Next Generation in Kirk’s final voiceover is a well-handled passing of the torch.

One of the more eagerly anticipated pairings in Trek history, the meeting of James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard was supposed to be the stuff of legend. Instead, a bit too much of the scene is devoted to allowing Shatner to showcase his equestrian skills. That being said, it’s still a successful moment as it gives Shatner one last time to embody the role he made famous. In fact, Shatner’s presence as Kirk is really the only reason the scene works. Let’s face it, at this point, Patrick Stewart had yet to transcended his character’s television persona and engage a larger filmic one. But, perhaps the scene ultimately is a bridge to that as well (as he would come into his own with First Contact). Shatner takes control of the scene early on and even closes with a trademark Star Trek joke that makes the whole affair feel like the Trek of old.

Although the third film in the series never quite measures up to its predecessor, it is an entertaining sci-fi adventure and serves as a decent lead-in for the far superior fourth film. One thing you can say about it is that it does feature one of the more emotionally packed moments in Trek film history. After Kirk and the rest of the crew risk everything to rescue Spock and bring him back to Vulcan with the hope that he can be saved and a brief religious ceremony, a newly resurrected Spock makes his way past his friends and slowly recalls his identity. I dare any self-respecting fan to not well up when he states: “Jim…your name is Jim.”

This scene from The Voyage Home (also known as the “Whale Movie” by the general public) features one of the more oft-quoted lines from the Star Trek lexicon. What is an innocent query to Chekov – looking for the “nuclear wessels” – is simultaneously a meditation on the Cold War (which was in full Reagan-mode when the film was released) and a damn funny fish-out-of-water moment. It’s interesting to note that the many passersby in the scene are not really actors but rather people who just happened to be on the street as the crew shot the scene as cinéma vérité. The stone-faced motorcycle cop is also a real officer who was directing traffic for the day’s shoot. This is a great example of a Star Trek film at its best – entertaining and thoughtful.

This wonderfully-written scene from The Voyage Home incorporates pretty much everything that makes the first incarnation of the Star Trek films endearing. There’s a Vulcan neck pinch, a bit of wry commentary on modern society, and much more but, above all, it’s a scene that illustrates the relationship between Kirk and Spock which is really what the series is all about when you get down to it. It’s also succeeds in being easily identifiable to the audience. Star Trek is at its moral best (as are most well-told stories) when audiences can associate, at least on some level, the events unfolding around the characters to their own lives. It’s also one of those scenes that almost everyone can agree expertly showcases the humor of Star Trek.

This film is universally agreed to be the best of those featuring the crew of The Next Generation. It certainly helped that the best Star Trek villains since the Klingons are the focus here, but the film is simply an excellent sci-fi action-adventure flick (sure, it’s also got a few Star Trek lessons crammed in there, but that’s just part of the fun). While Patrick Stewart held his own in Generations, it wasn’t until this installment that he stopped sleepwalking through these films and proved himself capable of carrying the entire franchise and wrestled the mantle of top Star Trek captain away from Shatner. In particular, it is in this scene that Stewart’s Picard truly takes control of the franchise. I doubt anyone will fail to get chills when he cries “The line must be drawn here!” The allusion to Moby-Dick is an added bonus and a nice nod to that novel’s frequent references in Wrath of Khan.

This may be one of the hardest scenes for any fan of the original series to watch. It’s made more so by the excellent performances of Shatner and Nimoy as they say goodbye to each other. The depth of Spock and Kirk’s relationship, which is achingly and brilliantly illustrated here (and echoed more joyfully at the end of The Search for Spock), is the cornerstone of the Star Trek universe and the lessons on friendship, loyalty, and duty have never been conveyed more powerfully than they are here. This scene, from the most adored Trek film to date, has also provided some of the more beloved lines from the entire canon. Spock’s declaration to Kirk: “I have been and always shall be your friend” is so poignant and perfectly Trekkian that it was not only revisited in The Search for Spock but in the new Abrams film as well. Similarly, the claim that “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few…or the one” has since taken on a life of its own and has become an example of the underlying message of Star Trek. Finally, Kirk’s eulogy of Spock is one of Shatner’s finest Star Trek acting moments and is one of the few times that sadness is acknowledged by the swashbuckling Kirk.

This is hands down the coolest scene on this list. While that may be coming more from a fanboy perspective than a critical one, it’s still an awesome scene. It’s got a chillingly insane Khan played with absolute bravado by Ricardo Montalban and stalwart Shatner delivers his lines in his trademark staccato while simultaneously chewing every bit of scenery on the sparsely decorated set. Heck, he even manages to chew the scenery when an exterior shot of a moon is shown on screen. Now that’s talent they don’t teach at the Actor’s Studio.

I ask you, what ardent fan doesn’t secretly enjoy this rather lengthy ode to the most famous ship in Starfleet history? Director Robert Wise knew that fans would want to see an updated version of the ship and he delivered that and more here. While this pseudo-love scene between Kirk and his old ship may be a bit too much for the non-fan, it is directed by same man who made The Day the Earth Stood Still, West Side Story, and The Sound of Music so let’s assume that he knows how to shoot iconic film scenes.

Apart from those found in the scenes discussed above, the Star Trek films have been ripe with quotes that fans have repeated ad nauseam to anyone within earshot. While an authoritative list would more than likely approach somewhere near 100 of the greatest, we wanted to acknowledge just a couple of our favorites without getting too involved. So, here are four of our favorite Star Trek film lines (not the best mind you, just our favorites) recreated as cartoons (well, sort of). Enjoy!

This line from Sulu cracks me up every time. While it’s not the cleverest line George Takei has ever delivered or even the best part of The Search for Spock, there’s a certain humor and style that is captured here that feels right at home in the Star Trek universe.

Okay, so maybe this is more “silly” than “clever.” As in, “Oh look, the android swore. Ha!” But, sometimes goofy works and it does just that here. While Generations is a rather plodding and uninspired film, the piece is granted a moment of humor that, unlike earlier “Data Grapples with His New Emotions” moments doesn’t feel quite as strained.

It’s a clever twist on a classic insult (even if it’s a bit dated). Plus, it doesn’t hurt that Worf delivers the line as he’s the ultimate Trek badass.

One of the funniest lines from what is arguably the funniest Star Trek movie produced to date. It just goes to show that when someone you’ve never heard swear before does so, it can be pretty damn funny.