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Serving on a starship isn't easy and requires both intelligence and experience. Starfleet has some of the best and brightest people the United Federation of Planets has to offer. Even so, that doesn't mean that the members of the crews aren't bound to make mistakes. Sometimes, their decisions are downright dumb or at the very least questionable.
The general rule is that the longer a Star Trek series goes on, the sillier decisions the characters make. And even when their actions don't have serious consequences, the fans often notice what the Star Trek characters did wrong this time around!
5 Captain James T. Kirk: Tearing His Uniform All The Time
James T. Kirk is universally considered one of the best Starfleet captains of all time, a true legend. He made the first contact with multiple alien civilizations, prevented wars, and saved the day more than once. However, Kirk has a weakness as well. Other than his soft spot for beautiful (alien) women, it's his ability to tear his uniform on almost every mission outside the ship. As a result, Kirk rotates through new uniforms faster than any other crew member of his ship.
While others would have to be more careful, as a captain, Kirk doesn't have to bother himself with taking such things into consideration... instead, he just does what he wants. Of course, it's not entirely his fault as his opponents often go for his uniform and tear it for him... including Kirk's best friend and first officer Spock when they fought to life and death! Kirk and new uniforms are never going to be best friends, but that's alright because Kirk makes up for it with his other skills.
4 Random Enterprise Crew Members: Wearing The Color Red (And Serving Under Kirk)
Star Trek: The Original Series can be surprisingly brutal, considering how many unfortunate crew members meet their end in the series. This never happens to a member of the main ensemble, though. Instead, the dubious honor of dying less or more heroically goes most often to the so-called red shirts - aka the crew members who serve under Captain Kirk and wear red uniforms.
Red is a color that suits many people but on the starship Enterprise, wearing a red uniform more often than not equals a death sentence, with the few notable exceptions being Uhura, and Scotty. Considering how often the red shirts die, it's unwise from other crew members not to transfer into a different department on the ship as soon as possible. This way, they can get a uniform of a different color (either a blue one or a gold one) and have a bigger chance of staying alive.
3 Various Characters: Not So Clever Romances
Just like heroes from other movies and TV shows, Star Trek characters don't often make the wisest decisions when it comes to dating. And sometimes, when the relationship doesn't work out, it can be awkward to continue to serve on the same ship. Some romances seen on Star Trek take the cake, though, when it comes to the sheer level of awkwardness. For example, one of them is the brief relationship between Data and Tasha Yar. Both of them are under the influence at the time, and Data, who has very little experience with human emotions, doesn't know how to approach Tasha afterward.
Still, it's not as bad as Data's later kiss with the Borg Queen - considering that the Queen is ruthless and would make Data a part of her mindless Borg collective if she had the chance. Data isn't the only one who handled romance questionably. Q wanted Captain Janeway to be the mother of his child and was surprised when Janeway didn't jump at the chance. Then again, judging by Q's behavior toward Picard that could sometimes constitute flirting, Q just doesn't get humans, at least not in this area. But by far the strangest Star Trek romance happened between Tom Paris and Janeway... when they were transformed into salamanders! It's impossible to believe unless a person sees it.
2 Spock: Marooning Kirk
Spock is one of the smartest characters in all of Star Trek... but that doesn't mean he's not capable of making a dumb decision. One such decision happens when Spock maroons Kirk on the ice planet Delta Vega instead of just throwing him in the brig. Not only does it mean risking Kirk's safety, but it's also over the top decision. Then again, Spock is emotionally compromised at the moment because of the death of his mother and the destruction of his home planet.
And if he didn't maroon Kirk on Delta Vega, Kirk never would have met the older Spock played by Leonard Nimoy and figure out what he needs to do in order to defeat Nero. So all's well that ends well, but Spock still should have known better than to maroon Kirk on a planet... and think that just marooning Kirk was enough to stop him from finding his way back onto the ship! Especially since Kirk previously stated to Spock he didn't believe in no-win scenarios.
1 Captain Jonathan Archer: Bringing His Dog With Him
There's no denying that Captain Archer loves his dog Porthos, considering the way he treats and cuddles his dog. At the same time, Archer is a busy man, and he spends a lot of time on the bridge of his ship or working elsewhere or visiting new planets. As a result, Porthos is often left alone in Archer's quarters.
As all dog owners and lovers will know, leaving a dog alone for a prolonged period of time is never a good idea because it means the dog might get lonely and miserable. While Porthos seemed to have dealt with Archer's absence pretty well for the most part, he still deserved better. Perhaps Archer could have gotten Aramis, Athos, or maybe D'Artagnan as well, so that Porthos would always have company.