In response to a discussion in the Movie thread:

I would never want to wear the kinds of outfits Kassidy wears in DS9. My figure isn't bad but I would feel much too self-conscious to wear a catsuit as a regular outfit. Especially in those colors. I can understand the uniforms evolving (I wouldn't be happy about it) but I'll never believe people of the future would ever choose to wear skin tight pjs on their days off.

As long as I'm bumping this up, someone sent me this link a while ago. I wish it had pictures, though.

I thought Jake drew the short fashion straw for the first few seasons. Poor guy didn't even have the decency of a uniform part of the time, so he was just in the metallic fabrics.

From the link above:



I'm shocked that the men-in-miniskirts uniform from TNG wasn't number one on the list. Men in kilts can be quite sexy but that skant was just wrong.

It did get a mention later, although I don't understand how it ended up on a Best list:

Hats by Guinan. Hee.

Awww, I kind of liked Guinan's hats. Certainly, they looked less silly on Guinan than they would have on anyone else.

I agree, starri. They worked because Guinan worked... they emphasized her alienness without crazy-bumpy-forehead stuff.

If they'd tried to put Troi into something like that, though... gah. Yep, Troi definitely needed to get into uniform a few seasons earlier.

Though trying to picture Picard in one of those hats is hilarious.

I'm not a fan of Guinan, nor do I care for her hats.

I haven't looked at the link, but my #1 fashion moment in all of Trek is Mirror-Uhura. Second place, "Tribblelations" Dax.

I'll go with those, although I think Starfleet Commander Kira Nerys from the end of S7 when she had the good hair might eclipse them once I get to those episodes.

It's the lack of eyebrows that proves she's an alien to me! I like Guinan though. To paraphrase Dave Chapelle, she's another Magic Negro!

That link is awesome akg. I think the all-time worst outfit is Wesley's grey jumpsuit with the rainbow stripe. Gross.


Mee-ow! I love that. But I never could figure out the deal with her headband thing.

I always thought Wesley's rainbow was the three department colors. They were in the right spot for a uniform pattern- did he only start wearing that suit when he became an acting ensign?

That site is a bit confusing- apparently, they include Klingons as "Federation," among other things.

The rainbow stripe was before he got a uniform. I think it was civilian, but he wore it a lot. Then Wesley had the ridiculous grey uniform (uniform with whom? Nobody else wore that, ever), and then they finally put him in a real red uniform. Which is good, because dressing your "acting-ensign" differently from the other ensigns only serves to further undermine any authority he might have.

I like Kasidy's outfits. They're utilitarian but still fashionable. Also, considering the funny things they did to Penny Johnson's hair this year on 24, I want to say how much I liked Kasidy's hair.

Definitely, the hairdresser on 24 this season must hate most of the women, especially Mrs. Palmer. She did look good in her DS9 wardrobe but I would have liked to see other fashion options, other than the catsuit, for women. I would have ended up adopting Bajoran customs. The sweaters and robes looked much more comfortable.

I loved Bajoran civvies- all the crocheted vests and comfy-looking pants and dresses. I was also fond of the vedek hats, just because they were so goofy.

Vedek hats always reminded me of Red Dwarf and the mythic hot dog and donut stand on the island of Fush-al.

Or Winn's Vedek hat, which was the Syndney Opera House.

And the site linked above mentioned Quark as a best-dressed, and I couldn't agree more. His suits were outrageous and alien, but they definitely seemed like something the fashionable Ferengi should wear.

Although the onesie he wore as PJs was a little off.

Hee! That's what Dr. Mathra always calls it!

And before that Wes had that ghastly orange sweater. He was just a symphony of bad clothes. Although, in all fairness, I suppose the sweater could be blamed on Dr. Huxtable.

He wore some sort of baggy marron pants with pink satin side panels with the orange-brown sweater. Then he switched to baggy dark grey overall before the rainbow.

Winn's hat, I think, resembled the Bajoran symbol (with her head at the circle).

My favorite of those was the ones with different shades of purple. It wasn't something Sisko could have pulled off, but it just looked so good on the Ferengi.

Also, Bashir in his Risawear was perhaps the best part of "Let He Who Is Without Sin..."

And Kira's dress uniform was that rarest of creatures--a dress uniform that looked nicer than the regular version.

Unless you swing the other way, in which case it's Dax's Risawear. Terry Farrell: making one-piece bikinis sexy again. Oh, okay, Michael Westmore's Trill spots helped.


I kind of like the Insurrection formal uniforms (also used in late DS9). Yeah, they make everybody look like waiters, but they are really fancy without being absurd.

The TNG-era dress uniforms always made me laugh. They were "dress" uniforms, all right.

I grew to like the Captain Stuebing jackets too. I don't think everyone could pull them off, but Picard, Sisko, and Beverly all looked pretty fly.

Which were those, starri? The TNG dress uniforms? Those uniforms got better as the show progressed- they were knee length or more at first, but later became hip length or so.

I can only think that the "Cpt. Stuebing" outfits were the Insurrection dress uniforms... which is the closest to an actual formal "uniform" I've ever seen in the TNG era, waiter-like or no. Of course, the TNG era costumes have always been a problem with me -- whoever first coined the term "going to work in your pajamas" hit it dead on -- until DS9 introduced the jumpsuit (and even at that, I think the First Contact jumpsuits were an improvement).

All that to say, ITA, starri. Gates looked good in that getup.

One of the early DC Comics was about the last mission of 1701 before it headed to drydock pre-TMP. At one point, Will Decker comes on board, wearing the new grey uniforms, and Uhura says she likes them.

Scotty: "What? I do not fancy zippin' aroun' space in a pair o' pajamas!"

Uhura: "Well, perhaps you'd feel a little different, Scotty- if you spent the last five years in a miniskirt."

Scotty: "Oh, erm, yes, there is that..."

And yet, NN was always so pro-skirt. In fact, she was the only woman in the movie-era uniforms to have a skirt instead of pants.

Great gams on that broad.

Come to think, did Scotty ever wear a kilt? I seem to remember one from Spock's funeral.

Then again, neither a kilt nor a movie-era skirt would be quite as short as on TOS (or those things on TNG).

We've never seen the Enterprise crew's dress uniforms, have we? I wonder what they'll eventually come up with for those. Something a little closer to modern military dress uniforms, I hope.

I have to nitpick Phlox's slippers. After specifically showing us his heinous toenails, they showed him later in normal slippers that would never have accomodated those talons. They looked comfy for the actor, but would have been murderous on the character.

Doesn't he cut them regularly? He wears normal shoes.

As for ENT dress, the admirals wear them- they're dark blue jackets, white shirts, dark ties.

ETA: Those may be "shore" uniforms as opposed to "ship" ones, but we've seen the "ship" uniforms worn on Earth too.

I know we got a lot of Al in dress whites, but did we ever see Sam in Quantum Leap dressed up? Because for some reason, the idea of seeing Archer in something akin to dress whites is very appealing, but I'm wondering if we've already seen Scott that way.

nelamm, Scotty wears a kilt as part of his dress uniform in "The Savage Curtain." I don't recall if that's the only time we see him in a kilt during the series, but he's definitely wearing one then.

Doesn't he wear one for Spock's funeral in WoK?

starri, I just checked my DVD and he's wearing the standard black bells at Spock's funeral.

Poo, I was sure I was right.

However, the Niners in their Vegas-wear in "Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang" is something I am sure about. Yowsah, Kasidy and Kira are especially smokin'.

Need more evidence that the Bajorans are the best dressers in the quadrant? I watched Conundrum last night. Ro's dress when she seduces Riker is fabulous. It's not trying too hard to be "futuristic". It's not overtly lingerie. It's just a sexy little dress in a good neutral color, good filmy fabric, flattering to her figure. I'd wear it!

Good fashion on TNG? The Evil Fashion Romulan must have had his or her memory wiped, too.

My God, Daniels's uniform is horrible. It is the most hideous thing this side of Shinzon's clothes ...

It looks a lot like Shinzon's clothes, if I'm remembering right (I might not be. Repression of horrible memories, you know).

I was watching You are Cordially Invited... last night and admiring Jadzia's Polynesian party dress. It's a non-offensive mauve, gathered at the top with a straight neckline and wide straps, empire waist, knee length. It really sets off her spots! I think it's the same dress she wore to the Gratitude Festival in Fascination. (Hmmm, maybe I should make this for the wedding in Vegas.) It must be Bajoran. I'm am thoroughly convinced they are the only people in the Trekverse that have any fashion sense! Like the gorgeous blue dress Dukat tried to give Kira in Sons and Daughters. I don't for a minute believe that was a Cardassian design (no offense to Mr. Garak--his Ferengi waiter uniforms are perfect!). I was sad that we never got to see it worn, when he re-gifted the dress to Ziyal. I bet she would've been gorgeous in blue. That girl's a real stunner.

Not only did ShutUpDaniels' outfit look like whodunnit and why, but his hair. was. atrocious. That whole get-up was a cross between a leather daddy's outfit, something out of Dune, and the Michelin Man.

And the less said about Shitzon's Rubbermaid Beetle Outfit, the better.

bump

Wow. The insanity of alien costuming.

I'm still watching DS9 and TNG on Spike (because who can afford the DVD sets?) and I almost peed my pants when I saw Marc Alaimo as a Cardassian on TNG. Somehow, over the years, I forgot that early Cardies wore bondage thongs on their faces.. but only on their ships, apparently. I think dumping those was a very, very good call. It would have been tough to take Dukat seriously if he had a thong on his head.

Hmm, now that I think about it, Armin Shimmerman's first appearance as a Ferengi on TNG was pretty scary in terms of costume as well.. fur vests, whips, and head bump tattoos... Yeah. His DS9 kit for Quark was a big improvement.

You mean like Scorpius?! Dang. I don't remember that at all.

I'm so glad they moved away from the discarded Barbarella costumes for the Ferengi. Sure, lots of the fabrics and cuts that Quark and his staff wore were hideous, but I felt like they were consistently Ferengi. And 'sides, Jake and Garak sported some incredibly questionable looks as well. I can't blame it on Bajoran fashion trends, because they had the earth tones and crocheted dusters thing goin' on.

I forgot the Cardassian headgear, too. Thankfully, the Internet did not.

They wish they were as cool as Scorpius's chin-thong.

Man, I forgot that -- awesome image search, Cleo!

I still don't remember that even after looking at the image. The things we block from our memories.

Oooh, excellent! I tried to find a picture, but failed. I mean, I didn't know what to search for.. "Cardassian head bondage thong" was just not gonna be entered into Google by me.

Dude, it's weird looking at somebody else with Dukat's face.

Thanks for hunting that down, Cleo.

Very, very wise.

That doesn't look familiar to me, either. Because of the novels, I now like Gul Macet, by the way.