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Nate the Great 03-09-2018 01:17 AM

"The question will be raised as to why he [Wesley] was selected for this all-important mission rather than someone older who would have the maturity and experience which he has not, as yet, attained." Justman wrote in a memo to GR way back on November 12. "Because of his youth, Wesley Crusher has not yet had to learn to go with the herd and compromise his thinking just because compromising is easier and more socially acceptable. He has the ability to grow with the job and to devise new approaches and new capabilities for whatever unforeseen events we encounter. In effect he is a one-man "think tank" without preconditioned limitations."

Nice try, crew. Exactly the same thing could be achieved with a slightly older enlisted crewman. Someone like O'Brien who didn't go to years of the Academy but is out here after a few months of training. If it were necessary to have a youth perspective on this mission Starfleet Command would've assigned one.

Coming up with a reason for Wesley's special status that viewers would accept proved difficult for writers and producers alike.

So...hold off on introducing the character until you have a reason that the viewers would accept? There's no reason why he couldn't be bopping around belowdecks with the rest of the civilians. Maybe he hangs around Engineering for an internship for a year as a recurring character.

Roddenberry admitted that this character [Data] sprang from the Questor, a similar android seeking its creator in his weel-recieved yet unsold 1974 TV pilot movie, The Questor Tapes.

So...change Data enough to not be a blatant Questor ripoff? Put in a little more effort?

Worf, the lone Klingon in Starfleet, almost suffered from Gene Roddenberry's insistance that "no old races", that is, alien races that appeared in the original Trek, be featured at first in order to distinguish TNG from its predecessor.

So where did "Heart of Glory" come from? I agree that you can't just have reprises from TOS races, but the idea that anything TOS-related is automatically bad is ludicrous. After all, you're trying to get the TOS fans to watch the show, right? Plus doing a total rehash of a TOS episode for the first episode after the pilot makes it look like either the staff was lying, the staff is incompetent, or the staff thinks the viewers at home are idiots who wouldn't notice.

Then again, I'm of the opinion that the Star Trek creators have been bitten on the butt over and over again by the desire to do something different just to do something different, as opposed to wanting to do something different because doing something different has a lot of potential for good storytelling.

Of course it swings both ways, they wanted to be different with Voyager but the studio wanted TNG Part 2.

We start catching up with the episodes in the next post.

Nate the Great 03-09-2018 01:58 AM

Actually, let's take a sidestep to the casting memo reproduced on this page.

I'll only comment on the actors I'm familiar with.

Mitch Ryan was considered for Picard, and played Kyle Riker later. He's a bit too rough around the edges for the kind of captain Picard was supposed to be. Certainly a fellow captain as a recurring character, and I would've liked to have seen him as Kyle at least once more, perhaps in the aftermath of "The Best of Both Worlds." And married to Pulaski just to mess with Will's mind, of course!

Rosalind Chao as Tasha just seems ludicrous (even if John Ferraro seemed to like her). Maybe she could've played Troi.

Eric Menyuk eventually played The Traveller. I could see him play a different sort of Data, perhaps one built by an alien and having a more generic "become more humanoid" goal rather than strictly human.

Kevin Peter Hall eventually starred as Leyor (one of the bidders for the Bazan wormhole) in "The Price". I don't really remember how he did.

Seeing Tim Russ and Wesley Snipes on Geordi's list is just surreal.

Seeing McFadden using her real first name of Cheryl is a bit unsettling. I'm glad that her schedule evidently cleared up so she could take the role.

Nate the Great 03-09-2018 03:14 AM

TNG Companion, "Encounter at Farpoint"

The first pilot outline was a more primitive version of the "exploited alien" subplot. A second starship and a battle are involved. As has been mentioned elsewhere, the Q stuff was only added to pad out the episode past an hour.

Robert Justman said that the editing had to be made a bit less tight to fill the time available. I'm reminded of when SF Debris complained that Voyager filled leftover time with technobabble and DS9 filled it with character work. Apparently early TNG was filled with special effects like STTMP, and we all know how well that turned out.

DeForest Kelley insisted on being paid scale for his cameo.

O'Brien is mentioned with the rank of Lieutentant, but this version of the Companion only goes up to the fifth season, so perhaps his rank was still in flux. I don't have the time to go to his Memory Alpha page for something this trivial right now.

Tasha's one-time use of the skant and Troi's appearance in the miniskirt uniform are mentioned.

Nate the Great 03-09-2018 12:40 PM

TNG Companion, "The Naked Now"

This episode sparked the first of many waves of early criticism from fans who felt that too many TNG plots were being lifted from original-series stories. In this case, however, that was exactly what Gene Roddenberry wanted: a story, like "The Naked Time" of 1966, in which the wants and needs of new characters could be quickly revealed to a waiting audience.

There's a way to achieve that goal without blatantly copying "The Naked Time", Gene. Rick Berman tries to claim that it's a homage, not a copy. Nice try, Rick.

"Code of Honor"

Tracy Torme, an eventual writing staffer, later said he was embarrassed by the shows "1940s tribal Africa" view of blacks and by the fight's uncanny resemblance to the win-or-die battle between Kirk and Spock in "Amok Time".

"Uncanny resemblance"? If you say so, Tracy...

"Haven"

The Companion claims that this is the only time Troi uses "Bill." We've already covered the second time. "Imzadi" won't be used again until "Shades of Gray", a surprise to me.

"Where No One Has Gone Before"

In the original teleplay, Kosinski was responsible for both the warp effects and the accident; he also had a son who felt he spent more time on his career than with him. The crew was in awe of Kosinski in the original script, and the hallucinations were even more bizarre, including the image of Jack Crusher appearing to both Picard and Beverly.

I don't know where you could've fit Kosinki's son into the story, although it would've done a good job of fleshing him out. I wonder what a Jack Crusher hallucination would talk to Picard and Beverly about: giving Beverly permission to date again and telling Picard to stop feeling guilty?

"The Last Outpost"

According to Zimmerman, the Ferengi's poor eyesight accounts for their beady eyes and brightly lit ship's interiors; their huge ears help to compensate by providing them with better hearing.

So that's why the lights were so glaring. I always thought it was to save on the cost of building a Ferengi bridge set! ;)

"Lonely Among Us"

The diplomatic conference was added by Fontana, as in her 1967 original-series script, "Journey to Babel."

If that was Fontana's intent, she didn't do very well. As I mentioned in my original coverage of the episode, exactly what the crew was supposed to be doing was unclear, and having cannibal ambassadors sort of killed the mood.

Apparently O'Brien was in Security this time around. I'm reminded of Leslie back in TOS.

"Justice"

In an earlier draft (before Roddenberry sexed up the locals) there was a rebellion in progress, complete with an execution of the rebel leader. I question how this could've worked if there was a god hovering above the ready to stop any such violence.

"The Battle"

The Ferengi do better in their second appearance, but the "silliness quotient", as Rick Berman put it, made them a "disappointment as a major adversary."

Yeah, and who's fault is that?

No mention has ever been made of the nine years in Picard's life between the Stargazer abandonment and his taking command of the Enterprise, although several incidents are mentioned as having occurred in that era: in "The Measure of a Man" and "The Wounded", including Jack Crusher's death "Family."

"The Measure of a Man" refers to the Stargazer inquiry, but that couldn't have taken that entire time. "The Wounded" and "Family" refer to events during Picard's Stargazer era, not after it (Jack died in 2353, the Battle of Maxia was in 2355).

Memory Alpha makes clear the fact that we know nothing about the nine year gap after the inquiry ended, except for the following:

* He must've been in command of a ship when he met Tasha as referenced in "Legacy". Tasha was saving colonists from a minefield and impressed Picard.
* The novel "The Buried Age" says that he took a sabbatical after the inquiry to pursue archaeology for awhile.

Apparently this episode has the first appearance of the shirt-tugging variant of the Picard Manuver.

Nate the Great 03-09-2018 02:43 PM

TNG Companion, "Hide and Q"

Picard's Shakespeare is apparently open to "A Midsummer Night's Dream", Act III, Scene 2. This is a scene with Oberon and Puck, where Puck explains that he made Titania fall in love with Bottom, followed by the discovery that Puck used the love potion on the wrong couples from Athens, followed by Oberon telling Puck to sort everything out. It's a rather long scene. I suppose the intent is to compare Q with Puck, along with making it clear that even Q has a higher power that he answers to.

"Too Short a Season"

The director admits that there was a bit too much talking in this one.

The first appearance of a Starfleet admiral.

"The Big Goodbye"

TV Guide complained that this episode is too similar to "A Piece of the Action", but Tracy Torme and the fans (and me) disagree. I've seen many different kinds of stories set in the gangster era, there are many directions to take it.

"Datalore"

Before this episode the staff was still working with the original premise that Data was built by aliens.

This is the last of three episodes where Argyle is Chief Engineer. I remembered "Where No One Has Gone Before", but had forgotten about "Lonely Among Us."

"Angel One"

Larry Nemeck says that the only noteworthy scene is the one where Troi and Yar laugh at Riker's native garb. I could dispute that, but I don't want to search for a second example right now.

Nate the Great 03-09-2018 04:12 PM

TNG Companion, "11001001"

Larry likes that this episode showed what Frakes could do, pointing out trombone-playing and doing romance. He also notes that the autodestruct sequence is much more formally worded than in the TOS era.

"Home Soil"

Larry considers this episode to be a pale imitation of "Devil in the Dark", but I must disagree. Certainly it doesn't reach the heights of the TOS episode, but that doesn't automatically make it garbage. Larry does like the "ugly bags of mostly water" bit, though.

I've written out entries for the rest of the season into a separate document to be copied into the regular posts going forward.

Nate the Great 03-14-2018 01:43 PM

March 14th, 1988, "Coming of Age"

Fiver (by Derek)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

Let's get this out of the way up front: This whole premise of "only one person from this group can get into the Academy at this time" is ludicrous. Period. It opens plotholes and is clearly just here for cheap drama. Wesley just happened to be here! There doesn't seem to be a reason why all of these candidates have to be in the same place. Whatever the screenwriters intended Mordack was badly written and his acceptance really does look like filling a quota. This. Is. Badly. Written.

T'SHANIK: You do not look as if you meet the age requirements.
WESLEY: Uh, I'll be sixteen next month.
OLIANA: Happy birthday.

Yeah, about that...why is the age requirement so strict? The age of maturity is different for different species, and there will always be outliers like Wesley.

REMMICK: Yes. To the best of your knowledge, has the Captain ever falsified a log?

Why would Riker know? Is it his job to fact-check the logs?

RIKER: If you want to discuss anything about Captain Picard, you bring him in here and ask him face to face.
REMMICK: You are required to answer my questions, Mister Riker, unless you're trying to cover something up!

Is Remmick supposed to sound intimidating? If so, it didn't work.

REMMICK: So, you are saying Captain Picard had no control over this vessel. He handed it over to Kosinski, who took the entire crew to the edge of the universe.
LAFORGE: No, sir. That's not what I'm saying. Now, Kosinski was sent by Starfleet to improve our warp drive system. Captain Picard was ordered to take him aboard.
REMMICK: According to his own logs, his Bridge crew didn't think highly of Mister Kosinski's theories, yet the Captain allowed him to access to the engines anyway.

The captain was ordered to cooperate with Kosinski, and at the time the chief engineer believed that his work could do no harm. Furthermore, Kosinski did not take the crew to the edge of the universe, the Traveller did.

REMMICK: Do you believe the captain is emotionally and psychologically fit for command of this starship? There is nothing in his history or his personality that would suggest mental lapses?
TROI: Nothing.
REMMICK: Not even the Ferengi incident with his old ship, the Stargazer?
TROI: He was being controlled by a mind altering machine, Commander. Without his knowledge.
REMMICK: I would call that a mental lapse.

Remmick was using the term to imply a fault on the part of Picard, not an external influence. If external influences mattered, I don't think any Starfleet captain could hold their job very long.

REMMICK: Captain, you are completely responsible for that boy's life.
PICARD: Mister Remmick, either get out of my way and keep quiet, or I will have you removed from the Bridge.

I hate Remmick. He's acting like one of those smug ambassadors in TOS, but doesn't have the rank to back it up.

REMMICK: Very original, Captain. But how did that child acquire access to a shuttlecraft?
RIKER: Kurland is a highly qualified Enterprise Academy candidate, fully trained in many areas including shuttles.

That didn't answer Remmick's question, Will. Not in the slightest.

CHANG: It's important to know how you candidates deal with other cultures, other species.
MORDOCK: Then it was a test.
CHANG: Yes. Not all tests are announced, or what they appear to be.

I'm reminded of that old urban legend about divinity students being waylaid by a fake beggar on their way to a test, not realizing that the beggar was the test. Ugh.

REMMICK: You're an android, correct?

What an idiot. Of course Data is an android, it's part of the public record. What did this question achieve beyond making him look like an idiot?

REMMICK: Just how did this contaminant get aboard the ship?
WORF: By accident, sir.
REMMICK: Meaning Captain Picard has no standing procedure for this type of situation?

What situation? "Accident" means unpredicted. You can't have a "standing procedure" for everything because you can't predict everything! Remmick should be focusing on things that might have actually been judgment lapses on Picard's part.

REMMICK: You don't like me very much, do you?
WORF: Is it required, sir?

Great response, although a better one is "have you given me a reason to like you?"

REMMICK: I spoke to officer after officer, at length. I pried into the ships log reports. And yet I could find nothing wrong. Except, perhaps, a casual familiarity among the Bridge crew, but mostly that comes from a sense of teamwork, and the feeling of family.

And if that's a crime, I want no part of Starfleet. Even Vulcans have a sense of teamwork. If you don't want that, go join the Borg, you jerk.

PICARD: Mister Crusher? Why aren't you in your dress uniform for Admiral Quinn's farewell dinner?
WESLEY: I didn't think that would be appropriate.
PICARD: Why not?

"Because I'm an Acting Ensign who shouldn't be going to officer's dinners and doesn't even have a real uniform, much less a dress uniform, sir."

PICARD: Wesley, you have to measure your successes and your failures within, not by anything I or anyone else might think. But, if it helps you to know this, I failed the first time. And you may not tell anyone!

Why would he have to? It's in Picard's public record if anyone cared to look it up.

The Fiver

Picard: Good luck on your test, Wesley. I hope you get into the Academy and never have to visit this ship again.
Wesley: Thanks, sir. But I'm sure that even if I get into the Academy, I'll still want at least one episode a season anyway.

I would've thrown in a reference to his contract, but this still works.

Oliana: Hi. You must be Wesley. I've heard a lot about you.
Wesley: Are you a love interest for me this episode?
Oliana: Not after what I've heard about you.
T'Shanik: I'm also not a love interest; you won't get one until next season.
Mordock: And I'm your rival, so forget about any male friendship between us.
Wesley: Sigh.

"It's gonna be one of those days..."

Remmick: Would you say the Captain was irresponsible to let Kosinski into Engineering?
La Forge: No, why would I?
Remmick: Because that incident resulted in Wesley being made an acting ensign.
La Forge: That is a good point.

Yes, it is.

Remmick: So would you call the Captain sane?
Troi: Of course not. His name's Jean-Luc.
Remmick: What about the time he was mind-controlled by the Ferengi?
Troi: His name was still Jean-Luc.

Hehe.

Memory Alpha

* First episode after Hurley took over from Roddenberry as showrunner.
* Remmick meeting with Yar isn't shown, but it must've happened. I wonder what they would've had to say to each other!

TNG Companion

Larry considers Wesley to be much better written this time. Wesley’s sixteenth birthday party was shot but cut for time.

The tale of this first appearance of the shuttlecraft, initially named the Copernicus III by Probert, is another uncanny echo of the original Trek. In both series, the building of a full-scale shuttlecraft was put off for budgetary reasons until writers made the craft and integral part of a story so that it had to be built.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil is also confused as to why Wesley didn't get in. In particular he points out that Worf and Data wanted Ishara Yar to apply for the Academy, and she can't possibly know as much about the technology as Wesley.
* If both Quinn and Remmick are being controlled by bluegills, why wouldn't they take the opportunity presented by all of these one-on-one meetings to take control of the senior staff?



NAHTMMM 03-20-2018 12:39 PM

Yeah, I have a hard time seeing Sirtis as Yar too. I'm sure she could have managed it with less showy hair.

I'd forgotten how good that "Coming of Age" fiver is.

Quote:

So...change Data enough to not be a blatant Questor ripoff? Put in a little more effort?
It's a fine idea that never actually got used, so may as well recycle it.

Nate the Great 03-21-2018 03:52 PM

March 21st, 1988, "Heart of Glory"

Fiver (by Marc)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

* Picard wants to get more information before separating. So...when will there be enough information to justify separation besides a warp core breach?
* Why did they choose an exploding ship for this walking camera experiment?
* Even after the transmitter experiment ends, they maintain an open commlink so Picard can backseat drive. Ugh.
* Nikolai is mentioned, even if not by name. Whatever family members were invented in Season Seven, he wasn't one of them.
* Why would the Klingon death ritual be a secret? It's not like it's the pon farr or anything...
* I'm glad that the Klingon view of the body as merely a shell was kept consistent.

The Fiver

Korris: Traitor! Sheep! Peacenik!
Worf: I have heard worse insults before.
Konmel: Vulcan!
Worf: But not that one yet!

Redshirt! Bolian! Pakled! 23rd-century Federation official!

Worf: I like being the only Klingon serving on a Federation ship.
Riker: If our roles were reversed, I'm sure I'd feel the same way.
Picard: Gentlemen, may we please stop discussing these hypothetical scenarios and get on with our work?

Yes, completely hypothetical. Smirk.

Memory Alpha

* First appearance by perennial guest star Vaughn Armstrong, best known as Admiral Forrest on Enterprise.
* Using Geordi's VISOR as a camera won't happen again, at least for official use. The Romulans will hack his VISOR in "The Mind's Eye" and Soran will do it in Generations.
* First appearance of the perennial Klingon armor.
* Note the usage of "Kling" as the name of the Klingon homeworld before "Kronos" was invented. The Star Trek Encyclopedia attempts to reconcile this by using "Kling" for the First City.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil wonders why they didn't separate the saucer when a Klingon is pointing a weapon at the warp core.
* The Klingons admit to taking over a freighter and destroying a Klingon ship, and Worf takes them on a tour of the most vulnerable parts of the ship? Huh?
* The Guild asked why they couldn't turn off the warp core, but they also wondered why Korris couldn't have been beamed out and his weapon disabled.
* Geordi had normal sight for a few minutes back in "Hide and Q", so he should know Data doesn't glow. Furthermore, wouldn't Juliana Soong glow as well, blowing her cover?
* Why is the platform around the warp core made out of glass? The Voyage Home introduced transparent aluminum a year and a half before!

TNG Companion

The Klingon speech heard here was invented by Hurley, but in future Marc Okrand would be brought on board to bring some consistency.

Nate the Great 03-21-2018 03:58 PM

I apologize for the short entry. It was much longer, but the forum kept inflating the character count and insisting that the post was too long even though it's clearly not. Ugh.

Nate the Great 04-11-2018 11:35 AM

April 11th, 1988, "The Arsenal of Freedom"

No Fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

A few big nits before we get started:
* Far too much blatant padding with people on the bridge and people on the planet expositing to each other.
* The blatant fakeness of the Rice illusion is pathetic. If a bit of the padding had been chucked room could've been made for more Rice/Riker interaction. Come to think of it, couldn't a different illusion have been created for each away team member a la "The Man Trap", allowing for some characterization for Yar and Data?

And let's get some compliments out there up front: even though the plot is stupid there was some nice characterization. And at least this episode is the fun kind of stupid, where technobabble is kept to a minimum to make room for some humor.

RIKER: Paul Rice is confident to the point of arrogance, he but carries it well because he's usually right. He's a risk taker.
PICARD: Really?
RIKER: I'll give you an example. One of the final tests in advance navigation at the Academy provides the student with three options. Rice was given this test, rejected their options and offered one of his own.
PICARD: That's taking a risk.
RIKER: And it paid off. He received the top grade and now that same test has four options.

It's a shame they couldn't have namedropped Kirk and the Kobayashi Maru here.

WORF: Commander, weren't you offered the Drake?
RIKER: Yes.
TASHA: You gave up your own command to take this assignment?
RIKER: At the time I thought it would be more advantageous for me to do a tour on the Enterprise.

Okay, let's say that at this point the whole "the Enterprise will be leaving the known Federation for twenty years, and that's why children are on board" thing had been abandoned. Even so, Riker will be offered a few more commands in the next few years. Shouldn't "tour" still imply that he's not going anywhere for a few years? I thought Riker thought he just needed a little polishing before taking his own command, not years of training.

DATA: Captain, we are being hailed.
RIKER: How can that be from a planet with no people?
PICARD: Your sensors indicated no intelligent life forms?
DATA: Correct, sir.

First, nobody's ever heard of autodialers? "The Thaw" comes to mind immediately. Second, shouldn't Data say that he can't find any known forms of intelligent life?

SALESMAN [on viewscreen]: If you need a little something special, be it for one target or multiple targets, we got it. You'll see it here on Minos, where we live by the motto 'peace through superior firepower'.

So...many...political...jokes...must...resist...ch eap...shot...And also stop talking like Captain Kirk.

SALESMAN [on viewscreen]: To be totally armed is to be totally secure. Remember, the early bird that hesitates gets wormed.

We're definitely led to believe that Minos had no prior Federation contact, so did the computer scan the "language banks", find an appropriate Earth metaphor, and then edit the video and audio feeds to insert it? And all for a rather mild joke?

TASHA: Commander, I recommend a minimum complement.
RIKER: Oh? I would have thought otherwise.
TASHA: We'll keep the first landing party small and mobile, until I'm confident that whatever killed the inhabitants of this planet isn't still down there.
RIKER: Okay.

The problem here is that they're specifically pointing out that the away team is small, implying that elsewhere they'd be much larger (including a few disposable security officers, of course). Too bad in general the away team is always "small and mobile", so what's the point in reminding us of plot holes?

RICE: Tell me about your ship, Riker. It's the Enterprise, isn't it?
RIKER: No. The name of my ship is the Lollipop.
RICE: I have no knowledge of that ship.
RIKER: It's just been commissioned. It's a good ship.
RICE: Refresh me, would you, Riker? What's its size, it's complement?
RIKER: Who is here with you?
RICE: What's the armament on the Lollipop?

This is some clever thinking on the part of Riker.

DATA [OC]: He appears to be in some kind of stasis.
PICARD: Theorise, Mister Data. What would be the purpose of such an encasement?
[Jungle]
DATA: Typically, the purpose of such an enclosure is for storage.
PICARD [OC]: Which would suggest what?
TASHA: That sooner or later someone or something will be along to collect him.

"Sir, it would suggest that this script was far too short and these irrelevant digressions had to be inserted to fill time." It would also suggest that the screenwriter was inept, because it would've been nice to have a scene or two where the deaths of Rice and the Drake crew was actually mourned.

PICARD: Yes. Doctor Crusher, this is the Captain. Meet me in Transporter room three. Mister La Forge, you have command of the Bridge.
LAFORGE: Aye, sir.
PICARD: And whatever happens down there, your prime responsibility is to the ship.
LAFORGE: Understood, sir.
TROI: Captain, I take great exception to your decision to beam down.
PICARD: Noted.


One, in the first season La Forge is still a junior officer, there are many more people on board who could and should take command before him, Logan among them. Second, situations like this are exactly why the captain shouldn't go on away missions. And it's not like danger is merely a possibility right now, events on the planet are dangerous right now. Picard should've been raked over the coals for this idiocy, possibly by Norah Satie.

Ship's log, supplemental. Lieutenant La Forge in command. I am unable to beam up the away team due to an unseen assailant attacking the ship. To make matters worse, Chief Engineer Logan is on his way to the Bridge, and he's not paying a courtesy call.

That last sentence is not log material, that's sitcom narration.

LAFORGE: I'm in charge until relieved by Commander Riker or Captain Picard.
LOGAN: You're ignoring my greater rank and experience.


So pull rank, Logan! This script really needed a better editor...

LAFORGE: I have a responsibility to them as well. Mister Logan, you are going to take command of the Saucer Section. Backup crew, report to the main Bridge.
LOGAN: You're going to separate?
LAFORGE: Yes, and I want you to take the saucer section and proceed immediately to Starbase one zero three.

"You mean ask Starfleet to send another ship to tow the saucer. You do know that at impulse it'll take us years to get anywhere, right?"

PICARD: Your grandmother was a doctor?
CRUSHER: No.
PICARD: Oh. She was a botanist, then?
CRUSHER: No. She helped to colonise Arveda Three.
PICARD: Arveda Three? That's such a tragedy. Did she survive?
CRUSHER: Yes. Once the medical supplies had run out, she had to use what was at hand. So she learned all about roots and herbs, and then taught it to me.
PICARD: You were part of that colony. I didn't know that. But then there must be a lot of things about you that I don't know.
CRUSHER: Quite a few.

Memory Alpha specifies that despite the contradictions this grandmother is in fact Felisa Howard from "Sub Rosa". I am confused about this business of Picard not knowing that Beverly was on Arveda Three. Shouldn't he know the major biographical details of all of his senior officers, even before you factor in his infatuation with her in particular?

TASHA: We could split up.
RIKER: What good would that do?
TASHA: Confuse it, delay it. Something.
RIKER: It would still get us. It would just take a little longer.
TASHA: It might give one of us long enough to get out of range.
RIKER: Out of range?
TASHA: Forget I said it. These devices wiped out an entire planet. I don't think it has a range.

I'm reminded of "Devil in the Dark" when Spock argues that it's pointless for him and Kirk to separate when being chased by a Horta. Also, are they implying that the devices that are chasing them are the same model as the devices that are attacking the Enterprise? I don't think these two models have the same range.

Memory Alpha

* Just like in "Angel One", shooting had to be stopped for a few days because the script wasn't ready. I'd argue that it still wasn't quite fully baked yet.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Riker was in stasis when Picard beamed down. Wouldn't he be angry that the captain is down here?
* La Forge drops the shields to beam the away team back while the Enterprise is still in the upper atmosphere? Um, wouldn't this damage the ship?


Nate the Great 04-11-2018 10:32 PM

I forgot to keep up with the TNG Companion. Here we go...

“Heart of Glory”

At last—a Klingon show!

Worf’s backstory was finally fleshed out here. Despite many complaints that previously unseen family members kept popping up in Season Seven, Nikolai Roshenko was referenced here, if not by name. The Klingon speech heard here was invented by Hurley, but in future Marc Okrand would be brought on board to bring some consistency.

“The Arsenal of Freedom”

This episode was originally conceived as a Picard-Crusher love story, but Lewin recalled that Gene Roddenberry changed his mind and opted instead for this extremely ambitious action-adventure yarn/morality tale about arms merchants.

Last appearance of saucer separation until “The Best of Both Worlds Part II”.

NAHTMMM 04-14-2018 02:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81309)
April 11th, 1988, "The Arsenal of Freedom"

No Fiver

Really? . . . Huh. Maybe some other fiver references this episode.

Quote:

Memory Alpha specifies that despite the contradictions this grandmother is in fact Felisa Howard from "Sub Rosa". I am confused about this business of Picard not knowing that Beverly was on Arveda Three. Shouldn't he know the major biographical details of all of his senior officers, even before you factor in his infatuation with her in particular?
Classic Starfleet Stupid. See also "Journey to Babel" where Kirk didn't know his First Officer was the son of a Vulcan ambassador until the time was dramatically right for him to find out.

Nate the Great 04-18-2018 01:12 PM

April 18th, 1988, "Symbiosis"

Fiver (by Nic)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

Main points:

* Dr. Crusher should know a narcotic when she scans one, and she should know what withdrawal symptoms look like. This Season One mentality of "if humanity doesn't experience it anymore, it's pointless and not worth remembering" is infuriating.
* Neither side has the high ground, which I suppose was intentional. But the problem is that neither side is sympathetic either. TOS pulled this off with Bele and Lokai, Troyius and Elas, and so forth, so when was this skill forgotten?
* These planets are not Federation members and are not subject to Federation law, so if they were just upfront about what this stuff was and asked for transport back home, our heroes couldn't do anything about it. Remember "The Outrageous Okona"?
* Picard asserting that they can't interfere is correct, so why is he getting so much backlash from the crew? Especially when TNG was supposed to be the anti-TOS at this point. No conflict and all that...
* The conversation between Tasha and Wesley was good, but it went too far into Very Special Episode territory and lasted too long. Even Kirk speeches didn't last that long.
* In this case, even if technically Federation law prohibits interference, I still would've, but in subtle ways. Isn't there a chemical or countermold that could be seeded on Brekka to make this mold gradually die off over a few decades? If the drug keeps getting more expensive, eventually alternatives would have to be developed, right?

The Fiver

Yar: Wow, electrical powers. Certainly a weapon that's hard to confiscate.
Riker: You're a big help. I don't see much of a future for you in Starfleet Security.

Given that this is the last pre-"Skin of Evil" appearance of Yar, I get that this is gallows humor, but personally I think it goes a little too dark.

Romas: The felicium is the only medicine that keeps us alive!
Crusher: And I don't suppose that there's a cheap generic version on the market?
Langor: No, that would infringe our patents.

It's sad how this joke has grown gradually less funny over the years...

Picard: You believe that felicium is a narcotic, Doctor?
Crusher: Yes! Everyone on Ornara is addicted to it!
Picard: I can't imagine what it must be like to depend on a chemical substance. Computer -- tea, Earl Grey, hot.
Crusher: Isn't that your twelfth cup since this morning?
Picard: Find someone who drinks that much coffee, then complain.

Point taken. One wonders how Janeway would deal with these people...

Crusher: I'm prepared to resign to protest your policy on this!
Picard: You'll have wait till Lieutenant Yar leaves the ship. She's in line ahead of you.

Dark. And overkill.

(The Enterprise sails away at Ludicrous Speed)

Sails?

YouTube

Tasha waves good-bye. This was her last episode filmed, after all.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil pointed out the biofilter thing as well, including the conflicts with "Angel One."

TNG Companion


This episode will most likely be remembered for three things; the teaming of two Star Trek II actors in guest roles, the late Merritt Butrick (his name was misspelled in the credits as “Merrit”) and Judson Scott [one of Khan’s followers]; the overbearing Nancy Reagan-era “Just Say No” anti-drug speech Tasha gives Wesley; and the REAL last scene for Denise Crosby.

Nate the Great 04-25-2018 02:57 PM

April 25th, 1988, "Skin of Evil"

Oh boy, here we go. As a prelude, I understand why Denise Crosby wanted to leave, but I think she made a mistake.

Fiver (by Kira)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

WORF: The martial arts competition is in three days. Are you prepared?
TASHA: I will be if you'll meet me on the holodeck later. I need your help on the Mishiama wrist-lock and break. If it works on you, I can use it on anyone.
WORF: A valid assumption. Who is your first competitor?
TASHA: Science Officer Swenson.
WORF: You will defeat him easily.
TASHA: I'm more concerned with Lieutenant Minnerly's kick boxing.
WORF: You are favoured in the ship's pool.
TASHA: You bet on me?
WORF: A sure thing.

Like Crosby said, if she'd gotten more scenes like this maybe she wouldn't have left so quickly. I wonder why she didn't push a bit harder, maybe form a block with the other actors to demand better writing and more varied plots or else everyone is leaving at the end of the season.

LYNCH: Captain, I'm in the middle of realigning the dilithium crystals.
PICARD [OC]: There is an emergency. We need warp drive. How long?
LYNCH: Twenty minutes. Maybe more.

Look, I get it, you can't always schedule disasters and routine maintenance to not conflict with each other. That's not practical. But something as simple as "have two sets of dilithium crystals and swap between them, so warp drive is never out of commission for more than a few minutes at a time" should be practical. It's not like we can recycle dilithium in the 24th century-oh wait!

LYNCH: Prime matter-antimatter injectors. Set ratio at twenty-five to one.

Would people please stop treating the matter/antimatter mix ratio as having possible values other than 1:1! Please! What's that other 24 parts of matter going to do besides spray across the bottom of the warp core? Throw in technobabble about slowly focusing the plasma stream if you need to pad out achieving warp capability if you have to!

(The oil slick ripples, and speaks)
ARMUS: Very good, tin man.

Seriously, where did Armus hear this colloquialism? He's obviously not telepathic. Further signs of bad writing. You don't make references Earth culture if the speaker doesn't have a connection to Earth!

RIKER: We have no choice. We're here to negotiate for our team. What do you want?
ARMUS: Maybe I want nothing.
RIKER: Then you would have killed all of us.
ARMUS: I still might.
RIKER: What do you want? Tell me. Maybe we can reach an accommodation.
ARMUS: If I tell you, will you give it to me?
RIKER: I might. It depends.

Okay, Riker asked what Armus wants, and he deflects. We'll come back to this.

ARMUS [OC]: They perfected a means of bringing to the surface all that was evil and negative within. Erupting, spreading, connecting. In time it formed second skin, dank and vile.
TROI: You.
ARMUS [OC]: Yes.
TROI: They discarded you and left.

There's an interesting discussion to be had here about these aliens who somehow removed the impurities from their own beings and combined them to create a sentient lifeform.

ARMUS: Don't you want to ask me what I want?

They DID! If you want something, just say so, it's too late to be offended that you weren't asked.

DATA: I think you should be destroyed.
ARMUS: A moral judgment from a machine.

Given Armus' origin, why is the concept of a sentient machine so incomprehensible for him?

I suddenly wonder if a tractor beam from the ship could scoop this guy up and toss him into where the next state would be.

(Armus transports Picard into the shuttlecraft)

HOW!?! Telekinesis is one thing, independent teleportation is another. Armus is clearly not supposed to be on the same level as Q or a Douwd or whatever. Just create a path for Picard to follow, then cut to Picard walking into the shuttle, it wouldn't cost an arm and a leg.

DATA: Sir, the purpose of this gathering confuses me.
PICARD: Oh? How so?
DATA: My thoughts are not for Tasha, but for myself. I keep thinking how empty it will feel without her presence. Did I miss the point?
PICARD: No, you didn't, Data. You got it.

A good scene. The episode really wasn't about Data, but he can still learn something.



Nate the Great 04-25-2018 03:02 PM

The Fiver

Yar: I hear there's a betting pool for the upcoming martial arts tournament.
Riker: Did you bet against her, Worf?
Worf: Bet against Lieutenant Yar? Ha! Over her dead body.
Yar: Thanks, Worf. That's very sweet of you.
Riker: But Tasha, he said --
Yar: Don't ruin the moment.

I wonder if "I'll take what I can get" could've been worked in here.

Picard: Picard to Engineering. I need warp and I need it now, Mr. Lurch!
Lynch: (over the comm) My name is Lynch, sir.
Picard: Whatever.

Is that supposed to be an Addams Family reference? I don't get it.

Riker: Tasha and Beverly don't want to get their shoes dirty.
Picard: Be a man, Will! Take your jacket off and use it to cover the puddle for them.
Riker: Are you kidding? Those stains would never come out.

Good joke, but the uniforms won't have separate jackets for a few seasons yet.

Armus: I'm not letting you near your shuttle!
Yar: Oh yeah? What are you going to do, kill me? I'm a regular! In your face!
Armus: Does this look like the Original Series?
Yar: Hahahahaha! No, our captain has far less hai...uh oh.
(ZAP!)
Yar: GAK!

Nice joke. Contractual immortality is always a great gag.

Riker: Armus is extremely dangerous. He's toying with us.
Picard: Then there's only one possible course of action.
Riker: Send down another away team?
Picard: Absolutely.

Obviously!

Data: Armus is approaching again. He most likely wants to torture one of us for amusement.
La Forge: Not it.
Crusher: Not it.
Data: Not it.
Riker: Huh? What are we -- Aaaaaaaa!

I wonder if a redshirt gag would've worked here, even when Security wears yellow, now.

Data: I feel worse for myself than for Tasha.
Picard: That's only natural, Data. You've lost a valued friend.
Data: Not to mention it will be years before I get any action again.

Depending on your definition of "action", it'll either be Ard'rian in two years, Jenna in three years, or the Borg Queen in nine years.

Memory Alpha

* Writer Keith DeCandido refutes fan dissatisfaction with the death, saying that there's no such thing as a good death. How short sighted. Main characters should never be killed in a method that might as well have been a TOS redshirt. Tasha could've been tricked by Armus into joining Troi in the shuttle, then chooses to fight back, perhaps jumping into Armus with a tricorder set to temporarily disrupt Armus' energy field allowing the Enterprise to beam up the shuttle crew. Wouldn't that be a better death? Then again, we wouldn't have had "Yesterday's Enterprise", so who knows...

YouTube

Picard taunts Armus
Data is confused about mourning
Betting on Tasha is a sure thing

Nitpicker's Guide

* If Troi is in the shuttle and Riker is a few hundred feet away, why aren't they using their telepathic bond?
* If Armus is holding Riker hostage or something, why isn't there a bulge when he covers the shuttle to talk to Troi?

TNG Companion

“Gene felt we couldn’t kill the creature, because it is not up to us as human beings to make a moral judgement on any creature that we meet because we are not God,” Hannah Louise Shearer [one of the screenwriters] has said.

Director Scanlan filmed Tasha’s farewell message two ways: looking straight ahead at the camera (his preference, and more logical) and nodding in the direction of each person as she talks about them (completely illogical unless she left behind directions on who was to stand where).

Nate the Great 05-02-2018 01:18 PM

May 2nd, 1988, "We'll Always Have Paris"

Fiver (by KJP)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

As a summary, this is another episode that abuses science (at least standard Trek science) but has good character work. Which I suppose is better than the other way around.

DATA: Sensors show nothing, sir, but it appears a moment in time repeated itself exactly for everyone.
LAFORGE: Just like a feeling of deja vu.

Even as a child I found it odd that even after using the term "deja vu" the characters kept using alternate terms, dancing around the slightly foreign word as if afraid that it'll confuse or discourage the viewers from continuing to watch.

DATA: Computers were also affected, which would indicate the phenomenon was not an illusion but occurred in real time.

Now that's an interesting question: how would a computer feel deja vu? Would it record a set of calculations twice? I'm reminded of the Department of Temporal Investigations story "God, Fate, and Fractals", which feature tricorders that are specifically designed to retain data even if timeline alterations change the memories of the DTI agents.

RIKER: Captain, you act as if there's a connection between the time distortion and the distress signal.
PICARD: There is. Paul Manheim. Fifteen years ago he went off to work on experiments relating to non-linear time. It appears he may have achieved some measure of success.


Another interesting question: how much of Picard's knowledge of Manheim is basic scientific interest and how much comes from his connection with Janice?

PICARD: Yes, what is it, Counsellor?
TROI: I think you would prefer to discuss this in private.
PICARD: That's not necessary. Go on.

I do wonder why this conversation had to take place on the bridge. Was the script running long and there wasn't time to move things to the ready room or conference lounge?

COMPUTER: Holodeck three is clear.
PICARD: Location, Paris, Cafe des Artistes, as it appeared twenty two years ago. April the ninth, fifteen hundred hours, three o'clock. Warm spring day.
COMPUTER: Programme complete.

A horrifying thought...sensors keep track of everything that happens in public spaces everywhere on Earth with this kind of precision and distribute the data to all Federation facilities that have holodecks. And somehow records at least basic psychological profiles of everyone at the time of recording, along with recent biographical information to make them seem real. I thought unauthorized holographic recreations of real people was illegal!

Furthermore, it must be remembered that holodeck technology at the time was limited. Maybe Jack Crusher and Noonien Soong could record versions of themselves to stand in one place and talk, but true interactivity was still years off.

DATA: Actually sir, that may be an incorrect analogy.
PICARD: How so, Data?
DATA: A hiccup is a spasmodic inhalation with closure of the glottis. accompanied by a peculiar sound. If we were to continue this analogy to a body function, what occurred would be best represented by a--

By a...what? At best I would equate the Manheim Effect to a form of seizure. If you loosened the definition, maybe amnesia that only goes back a very short amount of time.

PICARD: This is Captain... This is the Captain of the USS Enterprise responding to your signal for help.

I get that Picard is uncomfortable about meeting Jenice right now, but even so, this seems like cowardice. Starfleet captains shouldn't exhibit this kind of weenie behavior when on duty.

JENICE: Paul's always been interested in time. He's never believed that it was immutable, any more than space is immutable. Over the last decade, he came to believe that we reside in one of infinite dimensions, and what holds us here is the constancy of time. Change that and it would be what he called opening the window to those other dimensions.

So altering certain temporal variables would allow us to exist in physical dimensions other than the three we currently occupy. I'm not sure what the appeal would be.

PICARD: Did he anticipate that these experiments might be dangerous?
JENICE: I didn't think so. Now, in retrospect, he probably did. That would explain all the unusual precautions he began taking, even before the accident. The force field, the elaborate security system. Every time he started a new experiment, he insisted that I stay in what he called a protected room.

I'm not sure how you would shield a room to resist temporal effects. You'd probably need to infuse the forcefield with tachyons or somesuch.

(Jenice kisses Picard's cheek and leave)
PICARD: She's an old friend.
CRUSHER: I gathered that.

Understatement of the century. We'll be returning to Beverly later.

DATA: I cannot be sure, sir, but I believe Manheim has developed a method for harnessing energy from the pulsar.

What? I thought Manheim set up shop here because of the gravitational conditions. How do you tap the energy from a star from so far away?

MANHEIM: We were able to locate an energy source in the centre of this planetoid.

What? This brings to mind bad memories of the Icarus Base from Stargate that is on a planet that has a naquadria core that can somehow power a Stargate. Blech.

JENICE: I knew you wouldn't come to me.
PICARD: No, not under these circumstances.

This is good. It's not that Picard is scared that he'll be tempted to have an affair with Jenice, it's that he doesn't want to cause her unnecessary pain or distract her from her husband.

JENICE: I've thought a lot about this over the years, and perhaps you're leaving out your greatest fear. The real reason you left.
PICARD: Which was?
JENICE: That life with me would have somehow made you ordinary.
PICARD: You're wonderful. And am I that transparent?
JENICE: Only to me.

I suppose Picard would've had to give up Starfleet and return to archaeology. I suddenly wonder if Professor Galen would've liked her.

CRUSHER: I don't think I want to talk about what I think you mean.
TROI: Captain Picard
CRUSHER: I can't compete with a ghost from his past. No one could.

You know, if Gene didn't want this relationship to exist, why did it keep showing up? Scenes like this in the first season create questions relating to "Lessons". In that episode Beverly claims that at this point all that there was was vague chemistry. This scene implies more than that.

MANHEIM: She never would admit this, but she has had a terrible time these last years. Had we not been so isolated, she might have left me, and I never would have known. At least, not right away.

"Isolated." Right. The Hansens were isolated, the Manheims were just a little bit off the beaten path. There's a difference.

DATA: In both cases, the time distortions occurred along the same continuum as a preview or a reprise of a specific point in time.
PICARD: Where we are, where we were, and where we will be.

This makes it sound like the distortions aren't altering history (movement is only along the axis of the timeline), which is nonsense. When the loop places two versions of a person in the same place, both retain memories of the encounter, which I would call an alteration (movement goes "off the rails" of the prior timeline).

PICARD: I think it should be only you because you seem more able to control the effects of the time distortion.
DATA: Oh, I see, sir. That is quite true, sir. I see time as a constant, whereas humans perceive time as flexible.

What? It was said earlier that the Manheim Effect appeared on sensors. That means that it affects machines as well. And it will affect Data. And I think Picard should've used something like "cope with" rather than "control." If Data can emit a subspace field that he can tune like a radio to deal with temporal alterations, that's news to me.


Nate the Great 05-02-2018 01:20 PM

The Fiver

Picard: Ah, the Holodeck. No better place to be when there's time warps and spatial anomalies about.

I'll say. Remember "The Big Good-Bye" when a slightly weird alien sensor scan totally broke this thing? And that would have less affect than time warps and spatial anomalies.

Picard: This is the captain of the Enterprise, but definitely not the man who stood you up in a Paris café years ago.
Female Voice: Oh, hi, Jean-Luc.

Using "but" instead of "and" makes it sound like multiple Enterprise captains have stood her up. Maybe she had a date with John Harriman the previous week...

Crusher: It's only the first season -- should I be jealous yet?
Picard: Nothing is outside the realm of the P/C 'shippers.

Fair enough.

Crusher: Dr. Manheim is awake, but not fully aware.
Dr. Manheim: My mind feels like it is floating between two places.
Crusher: He seems to be suffering from an overdose of New Age music.

This sounds like a topical joke that didn't age well. Sorry.

Picard: Now remember, Mr. Data, when fixing a time anomaly, you have to have an appropriate "time" catch phrase to use at the crucial moment.
Data: Okay, how about... "Time to take out the trash"?
Picard: Ugh. I would think any Starfleet officer could come up with something better than THAT.

Janeway sure did...

Riker: [I'm] just wondering how I would have handled the situation of dealing with the attractive wife of an eccentric scientist on a remote space station.
Picard: Right, as if that could ever happen again.

Ha ha. "That's as likely as discovering that Kreiger Waves actually exist!"

Nitpicker's Guide

* Supposedly the recreation of the cafe is accurate, but Jenice said that it rained that day. Even if you posit that there's some sort of Back to the Future II-style weather control in play, there should be wet furniture around.
* The Eiffel Tower jumps around in the holodeck scenes so you can see it as much as possible. It's almost like the studio thinks the viewers are so stupid that the won't remember that this is Paris unless the Eiffel Tower is always in view.
* When Troi takes Jenice to the holodeck when Picard is already inside the computer gives Troi the option to stop the program. Huh? I would think that the occupants of a holodeck should have priority unless the people outside use a security override.
* The computer presents the arch when Jenice uses "exit" in a casual manner, not as a command. Phil comments that this would create all sorts of unwanted side effects when commands don't have to be preceded by "Computer."

TNG Companion

As originally pitched there was a lot more romance, but it was toned down. The writer’s strike affected filming. Many staff members thought that Jenice and Picard lacked chemistry, but actress Michelle Phillips took cues from the script and acted like a faithful wife to Manheim. The menu at the holographic café includes such in-jokes as Croissants D’ilithium, Targ Klingon a la Mode, and Tribbles dans les Blankettes.

YouTube

The Manheim Effect at the turbolift
Data plugs the hole
Jenice wanted a painless lie

NAHTMMM 05-06-2018 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81326)
COMPUTER: Holodeck three is clear.
PICARD: Location, Paris, Cafe des Artistes, as it appeared twenty two years ago. April the ninth, fifteen hundred hours, three o'clock. Warm spring day.
COMPUTER: Programme complete.

A horrifying thought...sensors keep track of everything that happens in public spaces everywhere on Earth with this kind of precision and distribute the data to all Federation facilities that have holodecks. And somehow records at least basic psychological profiles of everyone at the time of recording, along with recent biographical information to make them seem real. I thought unauthorized holographic recreations of real people was illegal!

Picard had to tell it that it was a "warm spring day". So presumably it just took the temporally closest snapshot of the cafe, adjusted the sun for that time of day (almanac), and populated it with, perhaps, a few of the servers who worked there and agreed to be recorded, and added in Generic Parisians.

Quote:

Data 1: Uh oh, there are three of me now. Hmm....
Data 3: Helloooooooooooooo....
Data 2: ......Hellooooooooooo....
Data 1: ............Helloooooooo....
All Three Datas: Hello.
Data 3: I always wanted to do that.
Now that's turning a problem into an opportunity.
Quote:

Picard: Before we say farewell and you return to your husband, may I ask what you think of our Holodeck's re-creation of the French café?
Jenice: Very authentic. I haven't seen our waiter in over an hour.
:D

Nate the Great 05-09-2018 12:03 PM

May 9th, 1988, "Conspiracy"

No fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

LAFORGE: So the guy staggers to his feet and goes back to the girl, right? Well, she smiles, looks him right in the eye and says 'just try that in hyperspace!'

Hyperspace? What's that? If Memory Alpha is to be believed, the only other mention of "hyperspace" in Trek is a "hyperspace physics" question in "Coming of Age."

Seriously, where were the science consultants? This joke would work equally well if you invoked zero gravity instead.

RIKER: Increase to warp six.
LAFORGE: Aye sir. Full impulse.

No comment.

TROI: I know I won't. I've been really looking forward to a nice swim.
DATA: You are aware, Counsellor, that the holodeck can be programmed to recreate an oceanic environment.
TROI: Data, it's just not the same.

How? This is a perpetual problem where the holodeck is concerned. If the simulation isn't perfect, why is it available? Why bother with the thing at all?

WORF: Swimming is too much like bathing.

The season's almost over, and the writers still don't have a firm grasp on his character.

DATA: Commander Riker. I am receiving a Code Forty Seven.

Joe Menosky is the guy who will inflict 47 on the fandom, and he won't show up for a few years, so this instance is just a coincidence.

PICARD: You're using a Code Forty Seven. I have to know what this is all about.
KEEL [on monitor]: Not over subspace, no.
PICARD: Oh, for God's sake, Walker. This is a secured channel--

Why do "secure channels" exist if they're not really secure and people can't trust them?

WORF: Two are frigates. The Renegade commanded by Tryla Scott, and the Thomas Paine, Captain Rixx commanding.
DATA: The third is just coming into range now, sir. It is Ambassador Class heavy cruiser, USS Horatio.

A frigate is a warship that is built for speed. These ships are of the New Orleans class, a modified, smaller version of the Galaxy class. Their sister ship, the Kyushu, was destroyed at Wolf 359.

KEEL: Do you recall the night you introduced Jack Crusher to Beverly?
PICARD: You know full well I hadn't even met Beverly then. You introduced them.
KEEL: My brother introduced them.
PICARD: You don't have a brother. Two sisters, Anne and Melissa. What the hell is this all about?

Nice characterization.

PICARD: Tryla Scott. It's said you made Captain faster than anyone in Starfleet history, present company included.

It's said? Isn't something like that rather easy to verify?

RIXX: Starbase twelve was completely evacuated for two full days. No explanation given.

You'd think the press would demand and explanation for that. Furthermore, what would such a thing accomplish for the bluegills' plan?

KEEL: We're not sure yet. Damn it, Jean-Luc. I tell you that some of Starfleet's top command people are changing. This could affect the very core of our organisation. Officers I've known for years are bluffing their way through talk of old times.
RIXX: That's their weakness, a lack of memory.

A perpetual problems with large-scale replacement plots. It takes much more than what's on the official records to duplicate a person's personality and responses. It's too bad this isn't the last time Trek will attempt to feed us this kind of nonsense.

KEEL: Tell Beverly I said hello.

It's not like this was a meeting that we were attempting to keep secret-oh, wait!

PICARD: I trust Keel completely. If he felt it necessary to violate regulations, he must have had a good reason.
TROI: But you're putting your career at risk for him.
PICARD: Friendship must dare to risk, Counsellor, or it's not friendship.

A good message, but in this case I don't think enough evidence has been presented yet.

PICARD: Take us out of orbit, Mister La Forge.
LAFORGE: Aye, sir.
PICARD: Resume heading to Pacifica, warp factor eight.

Why wasn't the discussion with Troi conducted en route? And why not use warp nine to minimize the delay and the appearance that something strange is going on?

CRUSHER: I understand the Horatio was in orbit around Dytallix. Did you see Walker?
PICARD: No.

A classic example of "do what I mean, not what I say."

DATA: Startling. Quite extraordinary, in fact.
COMPUTER: Directions unclear. Please repeat request.
DATA: That was not a request. I was simply talking to myself.

I know that Data has talked to himself before, but having this appear before he gets his emotion chip seems odd.

DATA: The orders were given with great subtlety. To use an aphorism, Starfleet's left hand did not know what its right hand was doing.

Sometimes it gets annoying when Data understands metaphors during some episodes and not others. Returning to the plot, sometimes I wonder how Starfleet ever keeps everything straight. There are just too many planets and ships to keep track of. Can you imagine the number of middle-management drones filling whole starbases worth of cubicles that would be required for all this coordination?

Captain's personal log, supplemental. While it is quite unusual for a starship to return to Earth, we seem to be left with no other choice. I have apprised the remaining bridge crew of our situation.

And yet the trip from the frontier to Earth didn't seem to take long. The Enterprise has just traveled across almost half of the Federation in a day or so. It's almost like the writer's can't do math...

SAVAR [on viewscreen]: Greetings Enterprise. I am Admiral Savar. This is Admiral Aaron, and I believe you already know Admiral Quinn.

Yes, we keep three admirals around at all time to talk to starships who show up at unexpected times. We apparently have nothing better to do...

AARON [on viewscreen]: Governor Delaplane of Pacifica informs us that you cancelled your scheduled stop there. Is this true?
PICARD: Yes, sir, it is.

Wait a second. Picard defied orders and never bothered telling Starfleet about it? That seems like something needing at least a disciplinary hearing, doesn't it?

CRUSHER: The parasite appears to stimulate the victim's adrenal glands, generate great strength.

Can we all agree that this is nonsense and move on?

(The bowl contains live mealworms. Picard recoils)

What was the point of this? Even if bluegills eat mealworms, their host bodies don't.

LAFORGE: Any idea what the message was, Data?
DATA: I believe it was a beacon.
PICARD: A beacon?
DATA: Yes, sir. A homing beacon, sent from Earth.

It's too bad that this will never be followed up on in canon...

Nitpicker's Guide

* At the end Riker calls for Security, and not only do Worf and La Forge show up instead to save the cost of hiring extras, but they're not even armed. And the weird part is, Crusher is armed when she arrives!
* Wouldn't the biofilter catch these bluegill things?
* Picard is able to dodge a phaser blast. I guess these things don't travel at light speed after all...


Nate the Great 05-15-2018 11:23 PM

"Conspiracy" coverage, part two

Memory Alpha

The viewers didn't like the episode, so there was never a followup. It was too different from what they thought of as "Star Trek." Oh, the irony...

Various expanded universe sources gave different origins for the bluegills:
DS9 relaunch: The Trill discovered them. One of them took over Audrid Dax's husband. Another took over Shakaar, leading to his death.
Star Trek Online: The solanogen aliens from "Schisms" created them on orders from the Iconians. Weird. Furthermore joined Trill are immune to them.

Memory Beta

They make the host want to eat worms and insects, often using Klingon and Ferengi cuisine as a cover.

Cardassians are immune to them.

TNG Companion

Gene didn’t want the bad guys to be real Starfleet officers, we had to wait for The Undiscovered Country for that.

The mail brought some cries against the gory scenes of death and worm-eating, but Torme took issue with Variety for labelling it TNG’s “most notorious” episode so far.

I also disagree. At least this episode is better structured and had better acting than most other Season One episodes.

Nate the Great 05-16-2018 01:35 PM

May 16th, 1988, "The Neutral Zone"

Fiver (by Marc)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

I found plenty to riff on with practically every line, so I'll have to go with highlights:

* Riker should've done a full analysis of what the sleeper ship was before deciding its fate.
* The pods were independent of the ship except for power, and the ship wasn't broadcasting any identifying information. This didn't accomplish anything except provide opportunities for Riker and Picard to be grumpy and to pad out the episode. An episode that didn't need padding because the padding was stealing screentime from the Romulans.
* When the people were found they should've been kept in stasis until they could awaken surrounded by counselors, etc.
* This "the people were frozen after death" thing seems to exist only so Riker and Picard can argue that they could've left the dead people alone. Is this supposed to make them look good?
* Okay, so Offenhouse could afford to set up a fund to support this sleeper ship, but what about the others? It seems like Claire's husband and Sonny did a one-time payment.
* It doesn't occur to anyone to keep the ancient humans away from aliens until they could cope with being in the future. And wouldn't this be Troi's job?
* Our heroes look down on these humans, why? Just looking at the other first season races, the Ligonians and the Angel Oneians seem much worse. Furthermore, aren't Starfleet officers trained to deal with races that have barely invented warp and would have such limitations?
* The Romulan plot steals too much from "Balance of Terror". Maybe having two neighbors not know much about each other works in the more frontier-like 23rd century, but these days the Federation would insist on continual diplomatic contact.
* The problem with the frozen people is that, like many other plots in the first two seasons, the writers have to make our heroes look good by making the guest stars look bad. Instead of, y'know, doing their jobs and writing the main cast correctly the first time.
* The frozen people are mainly left alone until our heroes want to spend time with them. Really, there aren't any junior officers around to keep them company? A schoolteacher or two to catch them up on recent events and technological advances?
* Offenhouse is simply let onto the bridge by the computer. Huh? Couldn't the computer be programmed to recognize authorized users and not let anyone else on unless accompanied by an authorized user? Or at least trigger an alert on Worf's board so he'll be prepared for the unauthorized user?
* The Romulans were squeezed into one scene. Absurd. There were plenty of scenes with the frozen people that could've been cut.
* The question of the missing colonies and the Romulans wasn't followed up on early in Season Two. Big mistake.

The Fiver

Ralph Offenhouse: Could I see today's issue of the Wall Street Journal?
Riker: I'm afraid that we don't carry it.
Offenhouse: Well get a copy somewhere! I want to find out how my Enron stock's been doing since 1999.

Wow, topical joke. As I've said before, these things are time capsules...

Data: Would you care for some replicated pecan pie?
L.Q. "Sonny" Clemonds: Gee, I dunno -- this here hunk o' pie looks like resequenced protein. Don't y'all have a chef on board?

Is this just an Enterprise joke, or were you tying this into Janeway in "Prime Factors", too?

Sonny: I need some uppers for the morning and some downers for the evening.
Crusher: Here's a prescription for ice-cold showers and steamed milk with nutmeg.
Sonny: I had something stronger in mind, if ya catch my drift.
Crusher: Sorry, but "Janeway Blend" coffee and Data's poetry are both controlled substances.

Hehe. I suppose you could've thrown in a request for references before giving Sonny a license for such things, but it would've been overkill.

Memory Alpha

* The script couldn't be revised much because of the Writer's Strike. I call this a poor excuse. Furthermore, the industry should have contingencies for such things, among which should be that the writers can only go on strike between seasons (with perhaps another opportunity at the midseason break).
* An extra wore Troi's skant from "Encounter at Farpoint."
* The display of Claire's family tree originally had many pop culture references, but these had to be replaced for the remastered version.
* First of three times when a character welcomes someone from the past to the twenty-fourth century.

Memory Beta

* Offenhouse made the most appearances in the novels, most notably appearing as the Federation Ambassador to the Ferengi Alliance.
* Sonny returned to music and eventually cleaned up his act.
* Claire helped to counsel the similarly time-displaced Bozeman crew.

Nitpicker's Guide

* The Enterprise is sitting around doing nothing while our crew waits for Picard's shuttle to arrive so they can head for the Neutral Zone. Why not just warp over to where Picard is and save time?
* If the commpanels are only for ship's business, how do the civilians on board talk to each other if they don't have commbadges?
* Phil points out that this is yet another situation where the saucer should be left behind because it's known ahead of time that battle is possible.
* Spock's been talking to Pardek for decades, but there's no data more recent than the Tomed Incident for Troi to research?
* It's said that the Romulans have been in hiding for fifty years and nobody's heard from them, yet they attacked Narendra Three twenty years ago! Or are you going to tell me that this is like their attack on Khitomer or the Ferengi's attack at Maxima, where the details aren't known until much later?

NAHTMMM 05-25-2018 11:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81336)
Returning to the plot, sometimes I wonder how Starfleet ever keeps everything straight. There are just too many planets and ships to keep track of. Can you imagine the number of middle-management drones filling whole starbases worth of cubicles that would be required for all this coordination?

In the enlightened future, middle management is kept to a minimum. That's why there is only one major ship in a sector at any given time, less of this bureaucracy to deal with.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81338)
* Offenhouse made the most appearances in the novels, most notably appearing as the Federation Ambassador to the Ferengi Alliance.

Debtors Planet is pretty okay, especially given that it features both Wesley and the Ferengi.

Nate the Great 05-26-2018 12:32 AM

I wonder what would've happened had the Romulans found the frozen people first. Would they have killed them outright, or abduct them? Would they provide any useful intelligence as to current human behavior?

Flying Gremlin 06-13-2018 10:01 PM

I am catching up on things, so I had a few points to make. Please forgive me if this seems a little bit disjointed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81238)
February 15th, 1988, "When the Bough Breaks"

...

RADUE: We must return now to Aldea. Our eyes are very sensitive to bright light.

I get that this is a clue for the radiation sickness reveal later, but delivered in this way it really does seem like a Chekov's Gun to incapacitate them later, doesn't it? It's a shame the writer never thought of it.

Okay, so how do I use the SPOILER tag again?

Spoiler: Ah, here we go! 


Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81326)
May 2nd, 1988, "We'll Always Have Paris"

...

PICARD: Did he anticipate that these experiments might be dangerous?
JENICE: I didn't think so. Now, in retrospect, he probably did. That would explain all the unusual precautions he began taking, even before the accident. The force field, the elaborate security system. Every time he started a new experiment, he insisted that I stay in what he called a protected room.

I'm not sure how you would shield a room to resist temporal effects. You'd probably need to infuse the forcefield with tachyons or somesuch.

Chronitons, but that's not important right now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81326)
May 2nd, 1988, "We'll Always Have Paris"

...

MANHEIM: She never would admit this, but she has had a terrible time these last years. Had we not been so isolated, she might have left me, and I never would have known. At least, not right away.

"Isolated." Right. The Hansens were isolated, the Manheims were just a little bit off the beaten path. There's a difference.

Commenting on two different points on the same episode. My, my.

"Isolated" might be referring to the personal isolation rather than locational. Besides, it did not sound like they regularly entertained visiting ships period, much less Federation starships. It would be like being stuck on a small island that could still see cargo ships going by, but never having any of those ships visit.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the Great (Post 81337)
"Conspiracy" coverage, part two

...

Star Trek Online: The solanogen aliens from "Schisms" created them on orders from the Iconians. Weird. Furthermore joined Trill are immune to them.

I didn't mind STO's Bluegill explanation, though one of the few Starfleet officers to get the parasite in-game was a Trill. The fact that she's unjoined explains why it even worked at all, which was interesting to see considering Kyla VanZyl's bio does not list whether she is joined or not. The Bluegills were used to make sure an Iconian servitor race stayed loyal - they were originally going to use them on the Tal'Shiar Romulans, but you know that Romulan treachery has no bounds already, and Sela does not play well with following orders, only giving them.

I have further reading on the subject of the Bluegill in STO.

Nate the Great 11-17-2018 07:22 PM

Season Two doesn't start until next Wednesday, but as a prelude I'd like to return to something from the series bible:


Tasha has a beau ideal too, which happens to be fifteen year old Wes Crusher. Deprived of her own childhood by the harsh life of her "hell planet" home, she treats this person like the most wonderful person imaginable. Wes is the childhood friend that Tasha never had.

And tie it to something from the third issue of the TNG comic book (covered by Linkara here)...


(Tasha and Wesley are playing a game of tag with harmless phasers. He "tags" her and she dramatically crumples to the ground clutching her chest.)
Tasha: Wesley Crusher, you sneak! How could you turn on me like this? After all we've done together, all we've meant to each other, you turn on me...


It really is fascinating sometimes seeing what the expanded universe does in the early days when all they have is the series bible and a few photos to work from, isn't it?

Nate the Great 11-21-2018 12:22 PM

November 21st, 1988, "The Child"


No fiver
Transcript

Memory Alpha


Background Information



* The Phase II stuff is at the end, we'll do the TNG episode first.

* I understand why Geordi was promoted, but it still doesn't make sense within the chain of command. Having him change departments for a season before the promotion would've opened up many storytelling possibilities, but of course this is TNG Season Two. A shame...
* Pulaski was introduced in the worst way possible. A senior officer not reporting to the captain before assuming her duties is worthy of disciplinary action unless there's a BIG medical disaster. And Troi doesn't count, a lesser doctor (Selar?) could've handled that for a day just as well.
* Pulaski's interactions with Data could've waited until a later time, this episode was overloaded as it was.



The Episode

* Georgi has to replicate something five hundred times. Industrial replicators haven't been invented yet, but in this case I think an alternative could've been found; like automated fabrication units or using the replicators on the Repulse as well.

* As SF Debris says, it's laughable how little the pregnancy or birth affects Troi. I'll forgive nonsense like this in Avengers #200 with Carol Marcus, as comic books have a younger audience. But this isn't a comic book. Here you could at least drop some technobabble about how somehow the baby is flooding her body with endorphins or how in this case the connection between mother and child is much more efficient to put less strain on her body.
* It's nice that Data wants to serve as birthing coach, but Pulaski's statement that usually the father is present seems overly obtuse. She knows that there's no father, she knows that now is not the time to make people any more uncomfortable, she chooses a miraculous birth as the time to make fun of Data (very unprofessional), etc...
* Introducing Guinan and Pulaski in the same episode was a bad idea, especially when you had the Wesley and Troi plots to worry about already. To be frank this episode should've been put off a week or two (if it had to happen at all, of course), and move up The Outrageous Okona (plenty of room to spare in that plot!) to introduce the new status quo.
* They can't even blow the specimens into space, because they'll still be a danger. So no secondary backup exists? Fit the cargo bay with special radiation emitters to flood the thing with death rays if needed!


Memory Alpha

* First episode where Wesley wears a communicator. Really?
* First time the three light bars were used to activate the transporter. These are of course a homage to the three slider switches used by Scotty and Kyle in TOS.



Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil also finds the idea that the specimen modules can't be jettisoned ridiculous. Dump it into a star!
* Where did Ian's Y chromosome come from?

* Ian can sense people's emotions even though Betazoids don't develop their empathic abilities until puberty (except for Tam Elbrun, of course). He could've dropped a line of exposition saying that he turned on this ability early to learn more.


Star Trek Phase II Version

(Information from my copy of Star Trek Phase II The Lost Series)


* The entity explores Uhura and Chekov before Ilia. One presumes that Uhura wasn't chosen because Ilia's mental powers would be more useful.
* Ilia points out that she hasn't broken her vow of celibacy. A valid point, but that should be a bit farther down the list of questions if you ask me. Unless you're going to tell me that Deltans can sense their children from the point of conception.
* Ilia's child Irska is a girl, getting around the missing Y chromosome bit.
* Somehow Irska is human, despite Ilia being Deltan. One wonders what the point of this is.
* The external threat is an alien ship, not samples. More dramatic, but less personal, it's a tossup which is better.
* Irska plays a more direct role in helping the ship than Ian.

Nate the Great 11-28-2018 12:08 PM

November 28th, 1988, "Where Silence Has Lease"


No fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha


The Episode

I could nitpick the technology for hours, but I don't have the time. The problem is that with a little thought I could solve most of them, so why couldn't the writing staff?


* Troi and Picard are worried about Riker joining Worf on the holodeck. Does Worf disable the safeties?

* I don't like it when they depict Worf as blind with bloodlust. This level of barely contained rage could put a mission or crewmember at risk.
* I call a probe vanishing without a trace worthy of Yellow Alert, why are they ribbing Worf so much?* Now is not the time for Pulaski to rib Data. Furthermore it's established elsewhere that she's not a bridge officer (for some reason), so why is she here if there's no medical emergency?
* I get not wanting to instigate hostilities, but if the Romulan fires first without hailing first I say that hostilities have been instigated. Knock it off with the warnings, Picard, it makes you look weak!
* The sheer number of powers exhibited by Nagilum worries me. He's on the level of the Talosians if you ask me. Manipulating senses and ship sensors at this level is scary.

* Nagilum can contact ships outside his boundaries, but didn't until the end. I don't think he can claim moral superiority, or even equality.


Memory Alpha

* Between this episode and "Contagion" various things about the Yamato were changed. There are explanations for these, but I vote for the MST3K quote: "They just didn't care!"


Nitpickers Guide

* Much confusion about Pulaski's bridge officer status. In "Thine Own Self" it's established that you can't become a full commander without getting bridge officer status. So how is Pulaski a full commander? Troi seemed to imply that a Lt. Commander can be chief medical officer.

* Phil repeats my two data point comment.
* Phil also brings up the confusion about O'Brien's rank.



YouTube

* Animal Worf almost kills Riker
* Worf and Riker and two Yamato bridges
* Picard talks to Data about death

Nate the Great 12-05-2018 01:21 PM

December 5th, 1988, "Elementary, Dear Data"


Fiver (by Derek)

Transcript
Memory Alpha


The Episode

I need a shorter way to say "horrible misuse of established Treknology, good character work, would work better in isolation." I do enjoy the performances, especially Daniel Davis as Moriarty. Back in the day I enjoyed his performance as Niles the butler on The Nanny as well.


* I get that Geordi would want to make a model Victory, I do. It's great that people still want to make things and not just replicate them. But it shouldn't be in Engineering, that was stupid.

* Geordi wants to participate in the Holmes program, but doesn't know the basic workings of the Victorian age. Ugh. Was that "haven't they invented the electric light yet" bit supposed to be a joke? Because it isn't, it just makes him look like an idiot.
* At least they're trying to humanize Pulaski and make her interactions with Data more reasonable. Took them long enough.
* You'd think by now a Doyle/Holmes randomizer would've been built into the program anyway. Ugh.
* The way they describe the holodeck isn't quite right. I could write whole essays on how the thing should work, but you guys wouldn't be interested. Let's just say that they imply that the walls are nothing more than huge TV sets, and it's not that simple.
* It's been discussed by other people (including SF Debris) that some of the simpler props must be replicated, as it would be more energy efficient. Specifically he mentions when someone consumes food on the holodeck. Supposedly this would explain how Moriarty can create a drawing of the Enterprise that can exist off the holodeck. I had a whole tech lecture typed out, but the short version is that holographic puppets and replicated props each have their downsides, and the simplest scenario is to assume that everything is holographic and tasteless unless the user specifically requests a replicated prop be substituted.

* Once again everyone acts like the holodeck can't be unplugged manually. No 24th-century fusebox? Nothing that can be severed with a plasma torch?



The Fiver

La Forge: Yeah. Check out my model ship. Isn't it great?
Data: No. And you've never expressed an interest in building model ships before.
La Forge: Don't worry. I never will again either.


Good point. It's a shame we couldn't have tied Worf into this subplot before. After all, he's the one with model experience.



La Forge: (writing and narrating) "It was a dark and stormy night..." Dang it. This is Reading Rainbow.
Inspector Lestrade: Holmes, there's been an awful crime committed. Mr. Boddy has been murdered!
Data: Ha! Ms. Scarlet with the candlestick in the Study! Go me!
La Forge: Data, how could you possibly know that?
Data: Take a look. It's in a book. It's Sherlock Holmes.
La Forge: That's it. I'm leaving.



I'll just toss you this fan cover of the Reading Rainbow theme...


Data: Ha! Mrs. Peacock with the wrench in the Kitchen! Go me!


Given the surroundings, wouldn't the candlestick in the Study make more sense?


Computer: What do you want?
Moriarty: I'd like a burger and fries... supersized.
Computer: Sigh. I thought I made you sentient.



Another time capsule joke. I would've based the punchline on something like "I thought I gave you better taste than that", but I'm not sure which is better.


Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil brings up the image vs. replicated thing again.
* He wonders why Data and Geordi left Moriarty's lair (which has an arch) to go down the street to call for the arch. Phil seems to think that the arch's location relative to a holographic environment is fixed each time a program is loaded. This is ludicrous.

* There's discussion about whether Moriarty meets the definition of a sentient being established in "The Measure of a Man." I'd argue that he does, but that's a discussion for another time.

Nate the Great 12-12-2018 08:20 PM

December 12th, 1988, "The Outrageous Okona"

A lot of people bash this episode, but I consider it a guilty pleasure. My only real problem is that Data's subplot doesn't really resolve. Surely there is some stepping-stone lesson to humor that he could've discovered without upsetting the status quo too much.

No Fiver (is this one reserved?)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

* It seems odd that they specify that a humanoid race colonized this system, then have these guys indistinguishable from humans. This place couldn't be a human colony like in "Up The Long Ladder"?
* Why does Okona's ship have to be sublight only? I hate the concept of impulse-only ships in general, but this is just silly. Even when you limit space to just the solar system, it's big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely--SLAP!
* As has been covered elsewhere, Deanna may define Okona as a "rogue", but that's a horrible way to establish a character trait, especially when the character isn't written to fit it.
* Okona asks if Data has ever been drunk. Data correctly notes that he can't become intoxicated, but I'd still like a reference to the events of "The Naked Now", no matter how obliquely.
* Loading twice the cargo capacity in canaries...I get that it's a scientifically inaccurate joke, but I'm going to link to a Mythbusters clip anyway.
* Guinan's android/humanoid joke is absolutely awful. As others have said, any joke that you have to explain isn't funny.
* Fish aren't amphibians. They couldn't use alligator/reptilian?
* A monk, a clone, and a Ferengi? It's almost like I made a thread about that joke ten years ago or something...
* The laser thing is often brought up in the Star Trek/Star Wars debate. I choose not to delve too deep into this issue, as it's clear that real world lasers=/=Star Wars lasers=/=Star Trek lasers. As for who would win in a fight between the Death Star and a Borg cube, the Borg cube would. It can regenerate and is full of individually expendable drones.
* Why did they kill time with tracking down Okona? It always infuriates me when people can't be tracked with internal sensors. As it seems clear that Okona isn't human, setting the sensors to look for a Madenan life signs should be a simple task. For that matter, wouldn't there be some form of limited-function commbadge for guests (and Wesley) to use?
* I find it disturbing that the Enterprise crew considers the idea that fathers have an obligation to children that they help conceive archaic. Eesh.
* It would've been fun if Data's hobby of telling lame jokes had continued.

Memory Alpha

* They say that Data saying that he hasn't be drunk from alcohol is a reference to "The Naked Now." I still say they could've made a more overt reference.

Nitpickers Guide

* Phil wonders if Okona could see Troi on the viewscreen, because if he could, wouldn't he flirt with her?
* He also wonders what makes Guinan an expert on humor. What makes her not an expert, I wonder. It's not like she's ever solemn when she doesn't have to be!

TNG Companion

Jerry Lewis was approached to play the part of The Comic, but had scheduling problems. The 3D chess set has a few pieces that are references to Lost in Space.

Nate the Great 12-12-2018 08:21 PM

I have to catch up on the TNG Companion notes:


“Where Silence Has Lease”

According to Hurley, this superalien’s name [Nagilum] is the reverse spelling (minus one l) of Mulligan. The name was chosen because actor Richard Mulligan, the star of Soap and Empty Nest, was originally sought to play the role.

My parents remember Richard Mulligan more for Empty Nest, but sadly I know him best as Barnaby from the remake of Babes in Toyland.

“Elementary, Dear Data”

The ending originally filmed was dropped from the version aired: the paper with Moriarty’s sketch of the Enterprise is significant not because of what he’s drawn but for the fact that it exists off the holodeck. Picard is then aware that the character can somehow be saved, as opposed to the gone-awry holodeck images of “The Big Goodbye”, and so his explanations to Moriarty were seen as a lie by Gene Roddenberry, who didn’t want Picard to stoop to deception.

I have no problem with the Enterprise drawing: we’ve seen before how simple, static objects like snowballs and possibly food are replicated but the more complex stuff is merely illusion.

NAHTMMM 12-23-2018 12:43 PM

Quote:

La Forge: Can you say Reading Rainbow?
Data: Reading Rainbow.
La Forge: I think I like seventh season Data better.
I love this running gag.
Quote:

Pulaski: In that case, Data sucks. He's a toaster. Data, you couldn't solve an original Sherlock Holmes mystery if your life depended on it.
Data: I accept your challenge. I will solve an original Sherlock Holmes mystery and your life will depend on it.
Pulaski: Good!
Another favorite you didn't mention.

Nate the Great 01-09-2019 12:38 PM

January 9th, 1989, "Loud as a Whisper"


Preface: I get the intended message, but this is yet another episode where we are supposed to accept completely implausible plot holes (specifically about telepathy, deafness, etc.) to facilitate character work. Ugh.



Fiver (by Marc)
Transcript

Memory Alpha


The Episode

* Creators, please stop showing Picard in his ready room doing non-work related stuff. He has quarters for that!

* Troi, stop vocalizing private emotional states when they aren't relevant! At best you should ask for clarification and shut up when Worf says that he's not expecting battle.

* "Talk to Riva and not his chorus" should be in the mission briefing. It made Picard look like an idiot and everyone look like they never do any homework for their missions beyond the one-sentence summary.
* Another instance of laser activity as marking a more primitive weapons technology than phasers. Given that we know what lasers can do, I wish they'd ignored the TOS instances of the term as being '60s-era stupidity and invented another term for a more primitive energy weapon technology.
* You'd think there would be technology to nullify energy weapons within a given area. By all means make it extremely bulky so you can't use it without preparation time, and make it so you can only block certain frequencies (I don't think these guys can "modulate the frequencies to a higher EM band", do you?), but it should be possible!
* Worf raises a good point, but you wonder why the Klingons haven't invented a gestural language by now, even if it only includes the concepts needed in battle.
* As SF Debris said, this episode is the exact wrong one to mention the possibility of Geordi getting real eyes. Not only does it conflict with the message, it makes you wonder why they can make substitute eyes but not substitute ears for Riva.


The Fiver

Chorus: Riva is deaf. We three interpret his thoughts and serve as his voice.
Intellect: I speak in matters of logic and reason.
Passion: I represent emotion and spontaneity.
Harmony: And I strive to maintain balance between the others.
Picard: I'm surprised you don't also have a Scottish engineer on your team.
Harmony: We do, but he is on holiday this week.



Nice invocation of the Trinity, but if you're going to invoke Scotty a more specific joke would've been appropriate. He went on vacation to Argelius, he has a hangover from a scotch binge, he's stuck in a Jefferies tube, etc.


Data: I have been studying various sign languages in the hope of communicating with Riva, but I am not sure which one will work best.
Picard: Choose one and give us a demonstration. What would be the sign for "happy"?
Data: " :) "
Picard: I'd skip to the next choice if I were you.



I wonder how you're supposed to say that out loud. Given that, here's a random list of ASCII emoticons...



Memory Alpha

* So Riva's actor, Howie Seago, wanted an episode to dispell myths about deaf people. I wonder what he could mean, beyond "deaf people have brains just like hearing people". Besides, if hearing people aren't supposed to grab deaf people's heads and shout at them, why did this appear in the episode?


Nitpickers Guide

* If the locals have mere lasers, how did it destroy Riva's chorus layer by layer? I'd think lasers would just punch holes in a person to kill them.
* Phil has a problem with how the chorus's robes were billowing as they beamed in, saying that the transporter would have to manipulate them atom by atom as they were materializing. I think Phil was being overly critical on this one. This isn't the first or last time that people will move during the period when they are within the annular confinement beam. This is just one example of a forgivable cheat that has to exist for the show to exist, just like the humanlike aliens, perfect Universal translation along with holographic projections over everyone's lips to make it look like they're making English words with their mouths, etc.

Nate the Great 01-23-2019 11:18 PM

January 23rd, 1989, "The Schizoid Man"

No fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha

First, off, one thing that's always bugged me about Graves is that he looks way too young. He even looks younger than Soong! Maybe they should've made him an alien to compensate. Had they specified that he's a long-lived race (possibly a Rigelian, specifically a Zami) they could've avoided the problem entirely.

(The Amazing Thing I learned today is that there are three subspecies of Rigelians to compensate for the different depictions across canon: the reptilian, the Vulcanoid, and the four-gendered. I'm most familiar with the Vulcanoid i.e. "the emotional Vulcans that aren't Romulans", I especially recommend the novel Mind Meld)

Sit back and get comfortable, there's plenty of TOS-era conversational plot holes and stupidity here.

The Episode

Medical log, Stardate 42437.5. Ira Graves is arguably the greatest human mind in the universe.

Cue Azetbur quote, but let's get serious here. I think that the title of "greatest human mind" should go to more of a Renaissance Man than this guy, closer to Da Vinci than Hawking. Graves seems to be tech only, no art or anything.

PICARD: Starfleet Command considers Graves' work on molecular cybernetics is reaching a critical stage. They consider this a priority one action.

Putting aside what "molecular cybernetics" is, I hate this line. It shouldn't matter who Graves is or what he's doing. He's a Federation Citizen in trouble, that should be enough.

DATA: When I stroke the beard thusly, do I not appear more intellectual?
TROI: I'm sorry, I have to go now. Goodbye.

Great scene.

WORF: We are receiving a transmission from Gravesworld, sir. It's unfocused. Not directed specifically at us.

Did the creators think that the audience had forgotten what "general distress call" means?
WORF: Our records show that she and Graves are the only ones living on the planet, Captain.

This isn't like Paul Manheim's work, there's no particular reason why this planet needs only two people. Repeat previous rants about tiny planetary populations.

PICARD: And what about Graves?
PULASKI: He's one man.

I think Pulaski was a little too callous with this line. Two thousand colonists are certainly more important from a triage standpoint, but she could've worded this better. If nothing else they could've moved the line about Selar further up and avoided this issue.

RIKER: Why don't we execute a long range transport of an away team to assist Doctor Graves at earliest possible moment. We'd come out of warp just long enough to energise the beam.

I hate this whole forced tension thing. A transporter cycle takes five seconds. Figure that coming out of warp and going into warp takes five seconds each. They're implying that they're tweaking things to have the transport cycle bite into the warp cycle. i.e. instead of a car coming to a full stop to let someone out the car is slowing down just long enough to toss someone out the door before speeding off. This is stupid. You are endangering the away team's lives to save less than five seconds!

PICARD [OC]: Transport. This may be a little tricky. I would like you to handle it.
LAFORGE: Yes, Captain.


Why isn't O'Brien handling this?

RIKER: Phaser on stun, Mister Worf. We don't know what's going on down there.

One, a phaser should always be on stun by default unless the officer specifically changes the setting because they're in a war zone. Two, you know what's going on, a medical emergency!

TROI: This might sound crazy, but for a moment I thought I was stuck in that wall.
WORF: For a moment, you were.

I never did understand how people are supposed to sense things when they're nothing but a bunch of atoms being disassembled and reassembled.

GRAVES: Ridiculous! I'm as healthy as a Rigelian ox!

I wrote the Rigelian essay above before noticing this. Cue Twilight Zone theme.

GRAVES: He's a Klingon, Kareen. Kareen has lived here since her father died when she was very young. Her only knowledge of unhuman races comes from me. Klingons and Romulans don't look much alike, Kareen, even though they act much alike.

Why is this here? Even if the latest advancements in holodeck technology haven't gotten out here yet, pictures still exist, right? And I'll bet small holographic sculptures like Tasha Yar or those musicians Riker observed in "Haven" were invented before full-blown holodecks! How does Kareen not knowing what a Klingon looks like benefit the story?

DATA: Lieutenant Commander Data
GRAVES: Shhh! Absolutely no aesthetic value whatsoever. Looks like Soong's work.


So at this point they hadn't settled on Data looking like a young Soong yet?

Nate the Great 01-23-2019 11:18 PM

GRAVES: It's an ancient little tune called 'If I Only Had A Heart.' A plaintive lament sung by a mechanical man who longs to be human. It's his only wish.

You know, this thing of whether the Tin Woodman is a real mechanical man like Tik-Tok or is actually a magically animated puppet is a bit befuddling. I'm inclined to believe the latter. The Tin Woodman is not mechanical and doesn't want to be human (he was a Munckin to start with, remember?), he just wants to feel emotion.

DATA: I believe I have a few words to say, sir. (steps up to the case) Just look at that face. The face of a thinker. A warrior. A man for all seasons. Yes, Ira Graves was all that and more. But he was not perfect. Perhaps his greatest fault was that he was too selfless. He cared too much for his fellow man, with nary a thought for himself. A man of limitless accomplishments, and unbridled modesty. I can safely say that to know him was to love him. And to love him was to know him. Those who knew him, loved him, while those who did not know him, loved him from afar.

The phrase "laying it on with a trowel" comes to mind. Then again, how many men get to write their own obituary?

DATA: When you get to be my age, you will understand.
WESLEY: Your age? Data, chronologically, you're not much older than I am.

Data was constructed in 2336 or thereabouts, Wesley was born in 2348. I'm not sure if twelve years counts as "not much older".

DATA: That is ridiculous. I am as healthy as a Rigelian ox.

I never noticed this repetition before. It's a shame that Selar heard it the first time and Pulaski the second time, or else this would've been a useful Chekov's Gun. And did the audience need one more piece of evidence to figure out what's going on?

DATA: May I ask a question?
LAFORGE: I think you just did.
DATA: Quite correct. Then may I ask another question after this one?
LAFORGE: You can ask me anything you want.
DATA: Why am I lying on the floor in this undignified position with the four of you standing over me, displaying expressions of concern?
PICARD: I've heard more than enough. You're you again.

Great scene.

Memory Alpha

* First appearance of an away team/landing party that contains no humans: Klingon, android, Vulcan, half-Betazoid.
* Only in-person appearance of Dr. Selar, although she'll be namedropped here and there for the rest of the series. For the future adventures of Selar most people will think of the New Frontier series, but may I recommend the novel The Eyes of the Beholders? Plus she appeared in the Strange New Worlds short story "Q'uandary" where she serves as midwife for Q's wife (who I call Lady Q in honor of I, Q) in the background of "The Q and the Grey".

Nitpicker's Guide

* Since Pulaski's initial turbolift journey is backed by her narration, she doesn't have the chance to tell the computer where she wants to go. You'd think they could toss in a "Bridge" before the narration starts...
* Supposedly the Enterprise went into warp the instant that the away team materialized, and yet they use their commbadges to talk to the ship after arriving. Since when can communicators reach ships that aren't in orbit?
* In Volume II Phil uses the term "cabbagehead" for "idiot", a term that I haven't encountered in years. And the Amazing Thing I Learned Today is that this bit of slang dates all the way back to the Victorian era.
* Phil wonders about the bedside manner of a Vulcan doctor. I have to admit that while sounding vaguely racist, this idea might have some merit. Wouldn't a Vulcan doctor prefer to either serve on a Vulcan-only ship or focus on medical research?

Nate the Great 01-30-2019 07:53 PM

January 30th, 1989, "Unnatural Selection"

Prelude: TOS did the rapid aging episode better on the whole, but at least Pulaski got some good character work this week. Another episode where the plot holes are big enough to drive a shuttlecraft through.

No Fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

Captain's log, Stardate 42494.8. The Enterprise is bound for Star Station India to rendezvous with a Starfleet medical courier. We've been told only that our presence is imperative.

Why the mystery?

DATA: Two point two milli-parsecs, bearing three zero at one four five degrees.

2.2 milliparsecs is about 68 million kilometers, a little larger than the orbital radius of Mercury. For communications to be so broken at such a distance without a clear explanation is weird. Furthermore, why is the Enterprise so close to the Lantree if they weren't supposed to rendezvous or anything? TLDR: The "milli" is unnecessary.

PICARD: Adjust course to intercept. Warp seven.

Warp 7 is over 656.14 times the speed of light. To cover 68 million kilometers would take two minutes. On screen this is more like thirty seconds. One wonders why the creators even bothered pinning down numbers to the warp factors.

RIKER: Captain Telaka was my age, sir.

Riker is 30. I kinda thought that even in the 24th century captaincies at this age were extremely rare, meant for the exceptional. Yeah, I'm being pedantic.

PULASKI: All right. We could beam up one child in styrolite in suspended animation.

This episode was the only appearance of styrolite. I'm not sure what advantage this plastic bubble is meant to have over a stasis pod. Surely stasis pods with additional medical barriers have been invented by now. Furthermore I'm unsure how this thing is supposed to sustain the occupant. Suspended animation requires machinery.

O'BRIEN: It's the styrolite. I'm altering the delta-T so the styrolite coding materialises two micro-seconds ahead of the child.

It sure sounds like this stasis field is just a plastic bubble.


PULASKI: This child is in better health than we are. His immune system is so advanced it may not be possible for him to contract disease.

I hate this common notion in scifi that it's possible to make a body immune to all disease. Hasn't it been proven that disease will evolve in parallel with treatment?

PULASKI: I did, Commander. I assume that you're qualified to pilot this shuttlecraft.

And this is why people hated Pulaski, she kept up the android-bashing way longer than needed. I get the intended parallel with McCoy and Spock, but at least on TOS the jabs eventually turned into playful repartee, not continually building of barriers.



Nate the Great 01-30-2019 07:53 PM



RIKER: A blood test, a tissue sample, anything that would have a sample of Doctor Pulaski's original DNA.
DATA: No, sir. Her records were shipped by way of Starfleet headquarters. They have not caught up with us yet.
RIKER: This is ridiculous. A cell, a single cell. Let's check her quarters.

Another contrivance. Pulaski should've kept a clean sample of her own genetics as a medical precaution. And it takes weeks to transmit a few records via subspace?

Memory Alpha

* In later episodes it's stated over and over that genetic modification for enhancement is illegal. So what happened here?
* In addition to "The Deadly Years" the transporter was used to reverse aging in "The Lorelai Signal."
* First appearance of O'Brien as transporter chief.

Nitpickers Guide

* Doesn't this episode establish that immortality is possible? Just reset back to an earlier physical pattern!
* Phil also has a problem with the skewed priorities I mentioned.
* Couldn't they test the transporter deaging with someone who does have their transporter trace on file? You know, save the lives of the people who don't have a hatred of transporters?


Nate the Great 02-06-2019 10:55 PM

February 6th, 1989, "A Matter of Honor"


No fiver
Transcript
Memory Alpha


The Episode

* We see the return of the officer exchange program. This worked with the Klingons because we are allies with them and the militaries are separate. Benzites? They're Federation members, they officers should be no different. The best I can come up with is that Benzites prefer to serve on Benzite-only ships, akin to the Vulcan Intrepid in TOS, and this is the first time one has served on a mixed ship. A better candidate for the program would be a Ferengi officer. It would've been a good episode and provide a lot of conflict.
* I'm not sure how I feel about the Mendon/Mordoc thing. Issue one: even if the actor proved to be a good fit for the Benzite race, it should've been easy enough to tweak the makeup so that he doesn't look exactly like Mordoc. Issue two: this confusion seems to be less of a joke than an expression of human race blindness. Not a good reflection of the evolved humanity, is it?
* The target range is a nice idea, too bad the technology didn't exist yet to make it very impressive. At this point it looks very fake and very much "let the actor shoot wherever and whenever and we'll fix it in post." ugh.
* "I don't recall hearing of a Federation officer serving ever on a Klingon vessel." First, Starfleet officer. Second, Star Trek V was released later that year, this would've been a good time to namedrop Spock serving as a gunner. Advertising the movie, etc.
* "I have studied and know everything about my heritage." I'm reminded of SF Debris' explanation of how Worf is different from other Klingons: he only saw the romantic (not that kind of romantic) aspects, not the harsh realities.

* Mendon just wandering around and commenting on other people's work seems odd. Just what position is he supposed to be filling in the officer exchange program? When Riker went over, he was first officer. When Kurn came over, it looked like he was temporarily being second officer. But what is Mendon's job? If anything I could see him taking Wesley's position of helmsman while Wesley is studying or doing another project.
* Pulaski not knowing about Klingon cuisine seems odd. Having Geordi here would make more sense.
* O'Brien would be afraid to serve on a Klingon ship? He served in the Cardassian wars, this is nothing! If anything he should've said something about avoiding one particular Klingon dish; it has unfortunate results on the Human body. Or maybe ask for a specific Klingon beverage (they can't drink bloodwine ALL the time, right?).
* Mendon reports to Worf? He's in Science blue, wouldn't he report to Data?
* Tactics has never seen a human before? That seems rather unbelievable. If anything I would expect Klingon schooling to include the tactics of the Federation (just in case), Romulans, Cardassians, etc. including pictures. Just tweak the line to say he's never MET a human before!
* How did this bacteria get from the Pagh to the Enterprise? Simplest solution: The Enterprise was towing the ship at the start of the mission as the result of events before the episode and some of this bacteria moved along the tractor beam.
* This Benzite thing of not reporting anything until it had been fully studied and an appropriate response contrived seems odd. At minimum Data should've been informed, it's not like he ever complains of an increased workload!
* "There are no old warriors." I get that this is just an expression and shouldn't be taken literally, but it's still a disturbing thought.
* Riker's "one or both" quip is clever, but I wonder how it got past '80s censors.
* A twelve-centimeter opening in a hull wouldn't be noticed? I jolly well expect a hole almost five inches across should be sensed by the computer!
* Kargan thinks that this is an attack by the Enterprise. Let's count the ways that this is ridiculous.

** First, the ships only crossed paths because of Riker, if Picard wanted to destroy the Pagh it's because he wants to kill random Klingons. The Klingons may like killing people, but even they don't believe in indiscriminate bloodshed; there has to be a reason.
** Second, in terms of technology the Enterprise is several levels above the Pagh, plus it's full of Starfleet engineers that can turn rocks into replicators. If Picard wanted to destroy the Pagh I'm sure Geordi could come up with a more subtle and untrackable method. The muon wave from "The Next Phase" seems like a better method all around, especially when you consider that Klingon engine self-diagnoses are less thorough than Federation ones.

** Third, Riker is on board! Why beam him onto a ship that you intend to destroy?
* O'Brien will wait until forty thousand? Assuming he means kilometers, that's the operational range of the transporters anyway, he has to wait until forty thousand!


Memory Alpha

* The reason John Putch returned was because the head appliance was made to fit him alone, and it was cheaper to hire him than another actor. I still say that the appliance could've been tweaked to not be Mordock anymore.

* First appearance of Klingon bloodwine.
* The Pagh has phasers instead of disrupters. Call this another example of bad editing in the script phase, or someone on set not knowing the difference. If it was a person, s/he should've been fired. The difference between phasers and disrupters is Trek 101.
* O'Brien later served on a Klingon ship in "Shadows and Symbols". I think that the difference is that it was explicitly a single mission plus he had friends with him for moral support.


Nitpicker's Guide

* Back in "Coming of Age" Mordock was declared the first Benzite in Starfleet, oops. Another reason why Mendon shouldn't have worn a Starfleet uniform to make the officer exchange bit more plausible.
* The parasite is declared to be "subatomic". Huh? "Microscopic" isn't enough?
* Cutting off the affected chunk of hull to prevent further spreading isn't discussed. Do Klingons even keep spacesuits on their ships?


YouTube

Riker on the Klingon ship. Stay tuned for the second half when he encounters the Klingon women at dinner.




Nate the Great 02-14-2019 12:43 AM

February 13th, 1989, "The Measure of a Man"

As a prelude, I do like this episode, but there are contrivances all over the place.

Fiver (by Zeke)
Transcript
Memory Alpha

The Episode

DATA: This game is exceedingly simple. With only fifty two cards, twenty one of which I will see, and four other players, there are a limited number of winning combinations.
LAFORGE: There's more to this than just the cards, Data.
DATA: Of course. The bets will indicate of the relative strength of each hand.

I've never played poker for money, and even I think that this is overly simplistic. As the saying goes, you play the man and not the cards.

PULASKI: The game is seven card high/low with a buy on the last card. And just to make it more interesting, the man with the axe takes all.

I've seen this episode many many times and only now am I looking up the definition of "man with the axe." This is a nickname for the King of Diamonds, so called because he carries an axe and not a sword. I assume this means that while in the normal poker game all suits are equal, she is declaring that diamonds is the highest suit for this hand.

PICARD:If we weren't around all these people, do you know what I would like to do?
PHILLIPA: Bust a chair across my teeth?
PICARD: After that.
PHILLIPA: Ain't love wonderful.

And later...

PHILLIPA: When I prosecuted you in the Stargazer court martial, I was doing my job.
PICARD: Oh, you did more than your job. You enjoyed it.
PHILLIPA: Not true! A court martial is standard procedure when a ship is lost. I was doing my duty as an officer of the Judge Advocate General.
PICARD: You always enjoyed the adversarial process more than arriving at the truth.

Talk about tonal whiplash. Why were two such conflicting relationships established? We'll be returning to this.

MADDOX: Yes, I evaluated Data when it first applied to the Academy.
DATA: And was the sole member of the committee to oppose my entrance on the grounds that I was not a sentient being.

Not to be a jerk, but establishing Data's sentience and rights seems like a necessary step before he entered the Academy. Because being an Academy student and later a Starfleet officer grants more and more rights, and there shouldn't have been a wobbly foundation to build them upon.

MADDOX: I was afraid this might be your attitude, Captain. Here are Starfleet's transfer orders separating Commander Data from the Enterprise, and reassigning it to Starbase one seventy three under my command.

I would've brought this up during the hearing. Maddox doesn't believe that Data is sentient or has rights, but exploits the Starfleet command structure to his benefit where necessary. Upon reflecting on this line today I wonder about this transfer. What duties is Data supposed to do under Maddox's command? Later on Phillipa implies that the transfer is for the purpose of "experimental refit." You can't "refit" a Starfleet officer. Phillipa also implies that Data can refuse the procedure if sent with Maddox. If Phillipa is assuming that Data has the right to refuse later, why won't she let Data refuse NOW?

PICARD: Data, I understand your objections, but I have to consider Starfleet's interests. What if Commander Maddox is correct, there is a possibility that many more beings like yourself could be constructed.

It's in Starfleet's interests to create more Datas regardless of Data's rights? That almost sounds like Section 31 thinking, doesn't it?
DATA: Sir, Lieutenant La Forge's eyes are far superior to human biological eyes. True? Then why are not all human officers required to have their eyes replaced with cybernetic implants? (Picard looks away) I see. It is precisely because I am not human.

As I've stated before (the PNQ thread?), I disagree that Geordi's VISOR is superior to biological eyes. The thing is, even IF we accept this as a fact, cybernetic augmentation is a completely different philosophical issue that creating android slaves.

PHILLIPA: My God, twice in as many days.
PICARD: I need your help.
PHILLIPA: An historic moment.

Admittedly she has the right to be snarky, but whether she wants Picard's affection or his respect, her sarcasm is not helping!

PHILLIPA: So you came to me for help.
PICARD: Yes, I came to you. You're the JAG officer for this sector. I had no choice but to come to you.
PHILLIPA: Wait! I didn't mean it that way. I'm glad that you felt you could, well, come to me.
PICARD: The word trust just isn't in your vocabulary, is it. Good try, nine out of ten for effort.
PHILLIPA: I wish things were different.
PICARD: I wish I could believe that.

Again, does she want his affection or respect? This schizophrenia is very confusing.

DATA: Is it not customary to request permission before entering an individual's quarters?
MADDOX: I thought that we could talk this out, that I could try to persuade you.

So does Maddox respect Data as a sentient being or not? He barges in and handles Data's stuff because he doesn't, yet wants to talk to Data because he does. Ugh.

MADDOX: You are endowing Data with human characteristics because it looks human. But it is not. If it were a box on wheels I would not be facing this opposition.

No, we are endowing Data with human characteristics because he thinks like a human, communicates like a human, works and collects and makes love like a human. If a box on wheels did these things, I hope these Federation types would give it the same rights and respect. Remember the microbrain?

MADDOX: If I am permitted to make this experiment, the horizons for human achievement become boundless. Consider, every ship in Starfleet with a Data on board. Utilising its tremendous capabilities, acting as our hands and eyes in dangerous situations.

So do you want Data to be a slave or a remote control toy? If the former, we've got another problem. If the latter, I don't know of many remote control toys that you can have a real conversation with.

MADDOX: Rights! Rights! I'm sick to death of hearing about rights! What about my right not to have my life work subverted by blind ignorance?

Your life work? You want to reverse engineer an android! Everything we've seen indicates that his prior work in cybernetics consists of studying and reverse engineering the less invasive aspects of Data. At least Ira Graves created his own stuff. And blind ignorance of what?

MADDOX: Let me put it another way. Would you permit the computer of the Enterprise to refuse a refit?
PHILLIPA: That's an interesting point. But the Enterprise computer is property. Is Data?

It's not an interesting point because the Enterprise computer isn't alive and wouldn't refuse refit because it doesn't have the capacity to say yes or no to anything.

PHILLIPA: Captain, that would be exceedingly difficult. This is a new base. I have no staff.

So take the case to the nearest starbase that does have a complete legal staff! Seems pretty obvious. And how is Phillipa's office considered in active service if it's one person?
PICARD: We will put to rest this question of your legal status once and for all. Now, I have been asked to represent you, but if there is some other officer with which you would feel more happy?
DATA: Captain, I have complete confidence in your ability to represent my interests.

As I said on TV Tropes, this is heartwarming.

RIKER: Access all available technical schematics on Lieutenant Commander Data.
COMPUTER: Working.
(Then up pops 'emergency manual control' and Data's off-switch location is displayed. Riker is fascinated at this new information, then realises the implication)

As I said on TV Tropes, this is a tearjerker. Duty compels him to destroy one of his closest friends.

Nate the Great 02-14-2019 12:44 AM

(Data goes to the witness chair and puts his hand on a scanner on the table)
COMPUTER: Verify. Lieutenant Commander Data.

Again, we're acting like Data's Starfleet rights exist even if we're not sure he's alive.
RIKER: What is the capacity of your memory, and how fast can you access information?

How is this relevant to whether or not Data is sentient?

RIKER: Your Honour, I offer in evidence prosecution's exhibit A, a rod of par-steel. Tensile strength, forty kilobars. Commander, would you bend that?
PICARD: Objection. There are many life forms possessed of mega strength. These issues are not relevant to this hearing.

Exactly! What is this proving, that Data is a machine? We already knew that.

PICARD: You're talking about slavery.
GUINAN: I think that's a little harsh.
PICARD: I don't think that's a little harsh. I think that's the truth.

While very powerful emotionally, logically this slavery thing doesn't make sense. Declaring something to be a slave is also automatically implying that it's a sentient person, just one of lesser worth.
PICARD: Commander Riker has also reminded us that Lieutenant Commander Data was created by a human. Do we deny that? No. Again it is not relevant. Children are created from the building blocks of their parents' DNA.

The problem here is that humans can reproduce themselves by converting food into babies. No external mechanism required.

PICARD: Do you like Commander Data?
MADDOX: I don't know it well enough to like or dislike it.
Um, if Data is a toaster you can't like it. It sure sounds like Maddox was acknowledging that Data is a person here.

PICARD: A single Data, and forgive me, Commander, is a curiosity. A wonder, even. But thousands of Datas. Isn't that becoming a race? And won't we be judged by how we treat that race?
If Data isn't a sentient person, multiple Datas can't form a race, it's just a bunch of robots. Picard skipped a step here.

DATA: Sir, there is a celebration on the Holodeck.
RIKER: I have no right to be there.
DATA: Because you failed in your task?
RIKER: No, God, no. I came that close to winning, Data.
DATA: Yes, sir.
RIKER: I almost cost you your life!
DATA: Is it not true that had you refused to prosecute, Captain Louvois would have ruled summarily against me?
RIKER: Yes.
DATA: That action injured you, and saved me. I will not forget it.
RIKER: You're a wise man, my friend.
DATA: Not yet, sir. But with your help, I am learning.
Great scene.

The Fiver

Captain's Log: The Enterprise has docked at a magnificent but unfinished starbase. I'm to meet with Admiral Schubert in the morning.

Schubert's Symphony No. 8 is unfinished. Talk about an obscure joke.

Riker: I'll see your five and raise forty-two.

As the wise man said, 47 is 42 adjusted for inflation.

Picard: I need your help.
Louvois: Oh, did you blow up another ship?
Picard: No. Not... yet.

Not yet? The destruction of the E-D isn't his fault, the E-E is sort of his fault but it didn't blow up.

Worf: What kind of goodbye party is this? Where's the jazz music? Where's the death inflicted by me on the people playing the jazz music?
Riker: (in the doorway with his trombone) Um... I'll just be turning around then.

I hope this is a reference to "The Next Phase."

Guinan: You know, if Maddox wins, they'll eventually make more Datas. Soon there could be thousands, all intelligent but legally bound to obey their human masters. It would be like....
Picard: Tribbles! Guinan, you're so right! This is just like the tribble trade!

Since when do tribbles obey humans?

Memory Alpha

* Melissa Snodgrass: "As to the issue of law in Gene's vision. He nearly killed 'The Measure of a Man' because according to Gene there were no lawyers in the 24th century because if people had criminal intentions they 'had their minds made right'. I found that chilling." Yeah, brrrr. Brainwashing criminals. The case of Garth implies that there can be medication to cure insanity, but I doubt you can chemically eliminate criminal behavior entirely.
* First mention of the Daystrom Institute. As Phil mentions in the Nitpicker's Guide, why would you name anything after Richard Daystrom, the guy was out of his mind!

Nitpickers Guide

* Given what we know of Data's age, Maddox is too young to evaluate Data at the appropriate time.
* Phil wonders why the computer states that Data's current assignment is the Enterprise when he's been transferred to the Starbase. I argue that the transfer is in flux until this hearing is over. I'm reminded of Miracle on 34th Street when Kris answers the question "Where do you live?" with "That's what this hearing will decide."
* In Datalore the off switch was on the right side, in this episode the off switch is on the left side. I argue that Riker could easily reach across Data's back.
* Phil points out that by letting Data into the Academy and overruling Maddox, Data's sentience was already acknowledged if unofficially.
* Phil wonders why "toaster" would be a known quantity in the 24th century, enough for people to coin a phrase based on it. I argue that we use lots of quotes that use obsolete words in the present day.

YouTube

The extended ending, Data comforts Riker
Poker
Guinan, Picard, and slavery


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