Star Trek: Every* Starbase Ranked Worst To Best
If you're not doing very well in your Star Trek life, it's Starbase 80 for you my friend
*Every starbase? Sorry, do you want me to rank EVERY starbase? Ok, let's get a few ground rules going here.
First - how does poor Starbase 80 stand a chance? (Editor's note: it doesn't!)
Second, in the interest of having as much detail as possible here, we will be consigning those starbases mentioned in dialogue to the great Spacedock in the sky - as pure and valid as they are, there are far too many of them that don't have anything worth reporting on.
Sorry Starbase 4112 but I must ask you to sashay away.
Third - drydock facilities will not be considered here - as gorgeous as they are!
For the entries on this list, we are concentrating on those that appeared on-screen, served a role in the episode, and existed as something beyond a nice shot to close the episode with. For example, while Lya Station Alpha does serve as the location from which the Enterprise-D collected Ensign Ro Laren, it serves no other purpose in the episode - ergo, no entry here.
With those rules in place, let's dive into those postings and locales that offer a stationary holiday spot for Starfleet officers.
18. Starbase 74
Though a Spacedock-type Starbase, 74 lands low here for a couple of reasons. The first is that, despite a bit of aspect ratio fun to make the stock footage from Star Trek III: The Search For Spock fit in the standard television format, the very fact that it is re-used footage makes this starbase ridiculous.
Spacedock is said to be roughly a kilometre in length, with the Constitution-class Enterprise 1701 fitting snugly between those doors. For Starbase 74, the exact same doors are wide enough to allow the far larger - and wider - Galaxy-class Enterprise-D through. This means that the station must be at least twice the size of Spacedock - let's hope it never loses orbit!
The simple truth is that it was chosen to save a bit of money in The Next Generation's first season. The footage of the station with the Enterprise-D would be reused several times, such as episodes like Remember Me, Ensign Ro, and Phantasms. Though always a welcome sight seeing Spacedock, it does baffle the mind a bit to consider its monstrous dimensions. Thankfully, this is something that received an update in Star Trek: Picard.