8) The Corbomite Maneuver
This episode features one of the first truly weird alien encounters in all of Star Trek—the creepy Blalok of the “First Federation” who is, hilariously, revealed to be an elaborate puppet used by the actual child-like Blalok. “The Corbomite Maneuver” is also one of Star Trek’s earliest highlights of Kirk’s approach to commanding the Enterprise, putting him in a risky encounter with a seemingly hostile alien warship that tests both his tactical acumen and how willing he is to put his crew in danger.
