Star Trek: TNG Season 1 - The Neutral Zone

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

This episode sets up a potential future adversary for the Federation and re-introduces the Romulan race (and does it so they are somewhat politically and psychologically complex species, as opposed to the treatment of the aliens in the Conspiracy episode.) The set up is a bit weak. We get some background and hear that they had dropped off the radar for a lot of years, but now they are back!

At the same time as this is going on, the episode throws in some issues about medical ethics. They take a look at the bigger picture of cryogenic technology and the long-tail effects of this. There is also the very mundane issue of whose job it is to maintain all the cryogenically frozen people and what happens if they run out of funding before a cure is found for whatever killed them? Who should decide when/if they get re-animated? How do they manage to re-integrate into society when/if they are re-animated? Would any of us really be prepared to re-start our lives at some point?

One of the frustrating things about this episode is that is just kind of wraps up without answering the mystery that it started with - the destruction of outposts in the Neutral Zone! The Enterprise shows up, a Romulan ship shows up. They talk. Neither claims responsibility. Then they both turn around and leave the area shrugging their shoulders. I can't remember if this simply sets up something for next season or not. Unfortunately, my fellow Trek fans, I am going to have to wait a while before finding out.

Cool Science/Tech:

• While we don't see it, they refer to the Captain's shuttle.
• The Romulan ship is very cool too!
  

Announcements:

1. This will be my last Star Trek: The Next Generation post for a while. I will continue to do my Trek Tuesday movie posts. But, for a while anyways, the TV show posts will be on hiatus. Mostly, this is becuase we are finally catching up with some other shows. We've borrowed season 1 of Battlestar Gallactica, and feel we should watch that and return it before we continue on with the Star Trek stuff.
2. When they resume, the posts will be moving to a new blog home. I'll be announcing my new blog home soon. Most things are set up already, but I still have a few more tweaks and things to finish off before officially opening the doors. Don't worry, I'll be letting you know when things are ready to go there.
   

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 - Conspiracy

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

As we progressed through season 1, we realized that a couple of our least favourite episodes come at the very end. So, it's been a bit difficult motivating ourselves to watch them again. However, martinis and a new laptop lightened my mood enough so that I could sit through them again.

This episode is mostly somber in tone as it deals with a subtle and wide-spread conspiracy within the ranks of Star Fleet. Thankfully, it starts with a bit of humour to help give a little bit of levity to the situation. We do get a glimpse of the background of Picard and Dr. Crusher, which helps give each of those characters a bit of depth.

I've had a really hard time figuring out what it is about this episode that embodies the Star Trek universe that I love so much. I guess it really just shows how even an insidious force like the one unleashed in this episode can't manage to take down Star Fleet. Even though they manage to infiltrate the highest ranks of the organization, they can't outsmart or over manipulate the crew of the Enterprise.

However, on the flip side, I didn't think they treated the subject in the balanced way that they come to in future episodes. The symbiotic aliens are completely flat with almost no other motivations aside from taking over. Then the episode just kind of ends with the only lasting message being that the aliens managed to send out some sort of homing beacon message. Since I've seen the rest of the series, at least I know that the message seems to have gotten lost along the way or the rest of them changed their minds about invading.

Cool Science/Tech:

• There were a few potential areas that they could have thrown in some shiny tech goodness, but nothing really stood out.

Fun Stuff:

• Riker getting his ass kicked by an old man was kind of amusing. When the old guy takes on Worf, we begin to know that something is REALLY amiss here. I mean, Worf is absolutely awesome and this is an old man. It was a good thing Dr. Crusher knows how to fire a phaser!

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – We’ll Always Have Paris

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

The pacing of this episode felt rather slow to me and the crisis didn’t feel very urgent.  This is what happens when time experiments go terribly wrong!  But that doesn’t feel like the main story for this episode.  It’s actually all about Picard and his old flame resolving things.  Tangentially, it’s also about Dr. Crusher dealing with her feelings for Picard and helps establish some of the sexual tension there.  I wish they’d had more of that aspect and less of the old flame.*

Cool Science/Tech:

• non-linear time experiments
• Anti-matter patching the time rift**

Fun Stuff:

• We get to see more of Picard’s hobbies – fencing!  Unfortunately, my husband reports that they had terrible fencing form.

*The outfit his old flame was wearing made me cringe every time she was on screen.  Silver shiny baggy jumpsuit – yuck!

**You know you’ve watched too much Star Trek when you start to remember inconsistencies in the science of Trek . . . “But didn’t Wesley say in that other episode that there is only one correct matter/anti-matter ratio?”

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Skin of Evil

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

There are many people who rejoice at this episode as it marks the end of a character that they didn’t particularly like and is the beginning of the reconfiguration to the bridge crew that we all came to know and love. 

The episode really speaks to the value of life as well as being a comment on how your environment and experiences can shape you.  For all the advancements of the Star Trek universe, this episode also demonstrates that there are some things that even they cannot overcome, such as death.

One of the things in this episode that I had totally forgotten about, but liked this time around was Deanna’s role in her own rescue.  Even though she was trapped in the shuttle, she was still using her knowledge of psychology to do what she could to help her own situation.  Her resolve, intuition, and wisdom are really what makes her character excel in her position.  It’s refreshing to see a woman character who succeeds at being awesome without supreme athletic skills or a niche specialty.

I found the ending sad this time through.  They just left the skin of evil there and couldn’t help at all.  He wasn’t saved or destroyed, he was left there for an eternity of rage, sadness, and loneliness.  I guess it was one more problem that they didn’t have the resources to tackle and had to just accept it as is.

Cool Science/Tech:

• A holo-recorded speech

Fun Stuff

• A reference to Data as ‘tin man’ by the creature.  Maybe one day I’ll do a blog post highlighting all the literary aspects of the Trek universe . . . if I’ve got the time.

Quote

• No goodbyes just good memories ~ Tasha Yar

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Symbiosis

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

This episode is all about drug addiction and the ethics of imposing our values onto another culture.  It’s really just a big message episode.  Not that it’s bad or anything, it just isn’t the most gripping or interesting episode they ever did.  I find these types of messages interesting as it gives the writers a chance to make a comment about current issues, but it’s really all there is to the show.

Cool Tech/Science:

• People that can control an electrical surge through their body.

Fun Stuff:

• Geordie gets to pick his own heading and chooses a system they’ve never been to before – heart of an adventurer!

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – The Arsenal of Freedom

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide

I never realize just how busy I get when I’m traveling. I thought that I had already posted about a couple of episodes but I guess not, so here goes . . .

This was always one of my favourite episodes. It definitely is a lesson against extremes of all sorts along with one on ethics and responsible science/tech.

One of the other themes that I also find fascinating is humanities inherent mistrust of machines and robots. You can see it come up again and again in sci-fi and fantasy that the machines will one day wipe out humanity if we make the machines smart enough. I wonder if it’s just paranoia or if it has something to do with a species-wide feeling that we deserve to be wiped out; that any purely logical beings will take one look at us and decide that we are definitely inferior.

We also get to see a bit of internal politics on the Enterprise when Geordie’s command is questioned by another officer. I’m glad that we didn’t see more of that in the show, but it did give Geordie’s a chance to show his leadership ability. I’m glad that he eventually switches to a different career stream in engineering as I think it really helps to show all the different aspects of running a star ship when we have a main character represented in each of the areas.

Cool Science/Tech:

• Evolving weaponry

Fun Stuff:

• The USS Drake is one of the ships that was offered to Will, but that he passed up to be commander of the Enterprise. The Drake is just one of the many ships that Riker could have captained, but that gets destroyed during the series.

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Heart of Glory

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

So, I think it’s safe to say that the episodes that focus on the Klingons, their mythology, philosophy, and beliefs, are among my very favourite.  There is something in them that calls to my own warrior within.  I like Klingon quotes and like to throw some of them out there once in a while.  This episode gets into a bit of Worf’s past and Klingon politics as well. 

Some of my favourite Klingon spiritual beliefs in this episode are surrounding death.  The Klingon death yell I think has a very Norse appeal to it.  The yell is a warning cry so that the dead know that a Klingon warrior is about to arrive.  They also have the belief that the body is just a shell for the soul. 

Race Study: Klingons

Cool Science/Gadgets:

• Visual Acuity Transmitter – a technology that never takes off
• The Klingons assembling a disrupter and force field breaker from shoes and such

Fun Stuff:

• Klingon death yell – ok, maybe not everyone finds this fun/cool

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Coming of Age

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

This episode is really all about tests of all different kinds . . .

• aptitude
• qualification
• character
• loyalty
• interpersonal skills

As Wesley gets tested along with some other youths, the adult crew members of the Enterprise are being tested in more ways than one.  Picard gets to show off some of his piloting skills.  The episode sets up some things for a later episode as well. 

I found a couple of good quotes/truisms too.  First from Worf: “Thinking about what you can’t control only wastes energy.”  I find this is a very Klingon attitude and one of the first times that Worf really gets to share some of his personal philosophy.  Second from Picard: “You have to measure your successes and failures from within.”  Very captain-like if you ask me.

This was also one of my least favourite episodes.  I think it’s due to the choice of the guest starring star fleet officers, perhaps related to the bad costuming of the early episodes.

Cool Science/Gadgets:

• Shuttlecraft

Fun Stuff:

• We get to see the dress uniforms

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Home Soil

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

This is actually one of my favourite episodes.  It involves a scientific mystery and digs into the nature of life and sentience. 

The other really cool thing this episode deals with is terraforming science.  It’s something I find really interesting because the planets that are closest to us are also ones that aren’t really suited to human life.  But what if we could change that and change the planets so we could live there?  It opens up limitless possibilities for the expansion of humanity across the galaxy.  But, with a science that grand in scope, there will be all sorts of other issues as well.  How do you determine if there are no other life forms on the planet?  Are some life forms acceptable?  Where do you draw that line?  Who gets to decide how to design a planet?  You can just imagine all the different interest groups trying to influence things one way or another!  And then there’s also the thought that our planet got it right by some cosmic miracle.  Who are we to be ‘playing God’ on another planet and trying to shape it to our needs?  It’s one of those issues that I can’t really get onto one side or another about, I just continually debate and consider issues in my head.

Cool Science/Gadgets:

• terraforming

Favourite quote:

I am a gardener of Edens.

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – When the Bough Breaks

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

One of the biggest differences between the original series Star Trek values and the Next Generation of Star Trek values, is the introduction of family.  In the original series, the crew was a family.  In The Next Generation, while the crew is very much a family to each other, they also have families on board the ship and this adds another array of issues to explore. 

This episode is a chance to demonstrate the importance of family connections to humanity.  Whenever children and families come into play in an episode it was always a good opportunity to show one of the weaknesses of Captain Picard, who is extremely uncomfortable around children.

The show also has a few cautionary messages about global warming, taking technology for granted, and that a great blessing/advantage can also be a great weakness/disadvantage as well.

Cool Gadgets/Science:

• medical tricorder
• planetary shield and cloak

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Too Short a Season

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

I really tried to like this episode, but I just find it kind of flat.  We do get to see the limitations that the Prime Directive places on people in situations of war and terrorism.  We get to see the implications and ripples that reach into the future when the Prime Directive is ‘interpreted differently’ as the character puts it. 

It also touches on the relative merits of age and wisdom vs. the vitality of youth and the issues that would arise if we really could turn back time and regain our youth. 

Fun Stuff:

• . . .

I really tried to see some fun stuff but the episode is rather dry and dramatic.  Between the wheelchair, 40 years of civil war, and some bad acting by the guest stars, there really wasn’t much to geek out about.

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – 11001001

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

Ever wonder what will happen if our growing dependence on Crackberries, iPods, cell phones, laptops, etc. were to continue to grow so that we become more and more integrated with technology, to the point where we would be inseparable from our machines? What drama would then ensue if the planetary hard drive got corrupted or crashed!!!!!!!

Interesting scientific musings aside, this is another really fun where we get to peek into the passions of the crew members, and the holodeck gets shown off once more. Perhaps it’s a comment about balancing work with play. A balance that each of the crew members handles differently.

In the holodeck they really take a look at the implications of creating images of human being who seem real and what would happen if there were to be a character created who was self-aware of their situation.

It is the holodeck character that points out the ideal work situation in the future – everyone has found work that consumes and enthralls. Don’t I wish! That’s one of the things that I find so appealing about this vision of the future . . . you can go wherever your interests take you. We’re getting closer to it now with the internet making information so readily available but still have a ways to go before everyone is truly free to live out their passion.

Race Intro: The Binars (though, I don't think they come up again).

Fun Stuff:

• We find out the Riker plays trombone and enjoys jazz, though I take exception to his comment that Blondes and jazz seldom go together.
• Picard’s piloting skills are also introduced as he has to pilot the Enterprise back at the end of the episode.
• We have a blind man teaching an android how to paint.
  

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Angel One

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

So, here we have another ‘issue’ episode.  This time, we’re examining gender imbalance.  Can’t have one of these episodes without some sort of crisis going on in the background, so this time, everyone on the ship comes down with a cold that is transmitted by smell.  Weird, I know. 

Fun Stuff:

• This episodes establishes the beginning of a very basic formula: away mission + Riker + women = Riker ‘goes native.’  For the sake of diplomacy of course ;)
• Apparently in the future, ski fashions turn REALLY ugly!

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 - Datalore

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

As I progress through the first season, I can see all the different ways that this season laid out a foundation for the series to grow and expand on.  This episode established two recurring villains and a great recurring character with the appearance of Lore and the Crystalline Entity.

We really get in to some bogeyman territory here with a villain that is never really explained but has terrible powers.  I think it’s part of human psychology to fear things like this, which is why it shows up in the show. 

The episode has a brief mention of the Laws of Robotics invented by Asimov and his vision of a positronic brain.  It also shows an alternate vision of how things might turn out if artificial intelligence is possible.  Another theme that is touched upon with the larger story arc that develops with Data and his brother is the debate between Nature vs. Nurture.  Or, in this case, programming vs. experience. 

Cool Gadget/Science:

• Data has an off-switch – Shhhh! Don’t tell!

Fun Stuff:

• We really get to see Brent Spiner’s range as an actor since he gets to play both parts.
• Incidentally, for any of those twitter folks out there, Brent Spiner, Levar Burton, and Wil Wheaton are all on twitter.  (And I am too.)

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – The Big Goodbye

Link to StarTrek.com episode guide.

One of the things that The Next Generation did really well was that it allowed the characters to develop a lot of personality and interests.  With the holodeck, the writers also have the fun opportunity of sticking the characters in real settings from history, without figuring out the sticky science of time travel and polluting the timeline.  Here we get a prime example of that as we see the first of many holodeck episodes that illustrate the characters background and interests.  In this case, it’s the beginning of a recurrence of holodeck mysteries, this one featuring Dixon Hill, one of the captain’s indulgences and heroes. 

We also get our first glimpse of the potential dark side of the holodeck technology as things get a little too real, as well as a bit of the philosophical implications of the reality for the people who are created.

Science Highlight:

• Holodeck technology – the Captain even gives a little speech about it.

Fun Stuff:

• The Original Series was always good about having random scholars and scientists on board.  These characters were usually disposable and only really served as a font of information about whatever situation they were in.  Here, we have a crewmember who is the literature historian and specialist in the 20th century show up and get shot.  At least they didn’t put him in a red shirt!

Star Trek TNG – Scheduling update

Just wanted to do a quick post letting people know that I probably won’t be posting any Star Trek episode reviews this week.  There isn’t a fixed schedule for it, so I’m just fitting it in around normal life events.  Life events right now are featuring a lot of re-scheduled Christmas family events that got cancelled due to the snow and weather in December.  Plus, we’ve been serious about the media ban in the bedroom, so less media is being watched in general.

But, next week, there will be a review for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and probably a few Star Trek TNG episode commentaries as well.

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Haven

Link to StarTrek.com Episode Guide

It’s really all a matter of perspective. Cultures clash again when it comes to wedding rituals and each culture thinks that its own is evolved and the other barbaric. The episode also has a nice heavy-handed caveat about using technology responsibly. Because, if you don’t, you will inevitably wipe out your entire species. It’s a good thing they had all the petty bickering and wedding planning to lighten up the tone of the episode!

Beyond the cultural differences between Betazoids and Humans, the episode also takes a look at the idea of destiny vs. free will. It’s kind of nice to see that even though the technology has advanced so far, there are some things that are still beyond explanation.

This episode also prompted a discussion between L and myself on the image projected of the ‘ideal Captain’ theme that came up in this episode. Do you think the role of Captain is one that is supposed to be a life of solitude, without family and personal connections? Even though the Federation is rather sugar coated, they are still a military organization at their core. And military life doesn’t always blend well with family life. Or, is it just that Riker’s intense ambitions lead him to choose his own career route over the possibility of a family?

Recurring Character Intro: Lwaxana Troi, played by the magnificent Majel Barrett Rodenberry, who recently passed away on December 18th, 2008.

Lwaxana Troi is another character who is always a pleasure to watch. My own descriptions of her can’t do it justice, so I thought it would fun to throw in some quotes about her from the episode . . .

• Lwaxana Troi: I am Lwaxana Troi, daughter of the Fifth House, Holder of the Sacred Chalice of Rixx and the Holy Rings of Betazed. Who are you?
• Deanna Troi: I should warn you, Sir, my mother is a little ... eccentric
• Lwaxana Troi: I am always serious, dear boy. Only my pleasant nature makes it appear otherwise.

Some fun stuff that I found writing this blog post:

• Memory-Alpha – A Star Trek wiki!
• Star Trek Minutiae

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – Hide and Q

Link to StarTrek.com Episode Guide

What a brilliant move it was to create a recurring character who could pop in and out at will and cause all kinds of chaos! He really puts the Enterprise on the receiving end of a breach of the Prime Directive (well, I guess it’s only a breach if Q actually followed the Prime Directive).

On the surface the show is about temptation and the old saying that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. But Q’s return really provides a foil against which humanity can be measured. The undercurrent running through the episode is the human drive for change and self-evolution. At the heart of Star Trek is the drive for exploration, learning, change, and the human potential for limitless growth. Picard even hints that Q might feel threatened by what humanity might become in the future. With Q’s access to limitless power there is no motivation for change, growth, or improvement. But humanity has flaws and limitations which provide the impetus for change.

This episode provides another link between Star Trek and literature. This time delving into Shakespeare! Q is great for bringing out the literary elements as he is a character that embodies Drama. He is often ridiculous and goes over the top to illustrate his messages. So, it’s only fitting that he bring up one of Picard’s favourite authors and quote from Hamlet. One of my favourite Picard quotes: “Oh I know Hamlet, and what he might say with irony I say with conviction - What a piece of work is man. How noble in reason. How infinite in faculty. In form, in moving, how express and how admirable - in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a God.” The episode is worth watching just for that scene between Q and Picard!

A bit of background: The Picard Maneuver

I mentioned ‘The Picard Maneuver’ in my post about ‘The Battle’ and The Nighthawk commented that he hadn’t heard of the shirt one before.  So, I just had to dig up something that would demonstrate it.  You only really need to watch the first bit and you should get what I meant with my shirt comment.

 

Star Trek: TNG Season 1 – The Battle

Link to StarTrek.com Episode Guide

One of the things I enjoy about Star Trek is that you always have this tension between an almost idyllic picture of the Federation and the fact that there are still really difficult decisions that need to be faced. I also like this episode because it reinforces the fact that the Federation is idealistic but not stupid. They may hope for the best from every situation, but they aren’t going to go in blindly without protecting themselves either.

We get to see the Ferengi again and their emphasis on profit is reinforced. They talk a little bit more normally in this episode and we get the tiniest sense that the majority of their legal code revolves around sound business principles in the pursuit of profit. The Ferengi and Federation come together in an awkward philosophical agreement at the end, declaring that there is no profit in revenge.

Cool Science:

• The common cold has been cured in the future – huzzah!
• Headaches have also been mostly eradicated – that would just be so nice!

Cool Gadget:

• The evil thought-maker device – forbidden even for the Ferengi!

Fun stuff in this episode:

• The real ‘Picard Maneuver’ is described – the one with the ship, not the shirt :D