30th Anniversary TNG Episode Discussion Marathon

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by Nate the Great

Troi: Outwit. Outspeak. Outlive.

Are there some missing first lines here.

Yep, and now they're back. A lot of fivers are in this condition and I keep putting off the repairs because it'll take forever (in most cases I'll be relying on the Wayback Machine), but it was high time to fix at least one.

[NAHTMMM]

Do you have a list of the affected fivers? We could get a collab thread going in the 5MV Talk forum.

[Nate the Great]

Since Voyager starts tomorrow I'd better finish TNG today. I thought I only had to do All Good Things, but no, I have to do Preemptive Strike as well...


May 16th, 1994, "Preemptive Strike"


No fiver


Fair warning, I have plenty of nits, but these are really minor. As a standalone story divorced from DS9 and the prior episodes that set up the Maquis ("Journey's End" in particular), it's a fine story with fine acting.



The Episode


TROI: This is real Bajoran foraiga.
LAFORGE: It wasn't easy to find.



Oddly enough foraiga never appeared in DS9, just a few novels.


TROI: So, where are your new quarters?
RO: Deck four, section eight.



What does this have to do with anything? What's Troi gonna say, "that's too far for me to walk, I'll never visit"?


One problem with using transcripts instead of shooting scripts is that the nonverbal acting is overlooked. Ro seeing Picard walk out the door and being disappointed is an important element that one has to remember when considering the story.


PICARD: Change course to intercept. I'm on my way. I'd like you at the conn, Lieutenant.



Ro just completed Advanced Tactical Training and you want her at the conn? Couldn't she be posted at Tactical next to Worf?



DATA: I will scan their warp signatures. Sir, sensors indicate the attacking vessels are Federation ships.

....
RIKER: Those are Federation ships.
PICARD: Isolate one and magnify. The Maquis. Open a channel.



You know, it stands to reason that the Maquis wouldn't want all of their ships to look alike. A DS9 episode says that the Maquis use Peregrine class ships, too bad they didn't identify which style of Maquis ship, as we've see them use at least five different classes of ship.


In the novel "Pathways" (secondary canon at best), Jeri Taylor called this kind of ship the Antares class. But I would take that with a HUGE grain of salt.


PICARD: You are Federation citizens. Your actions are in violation of our treaty with the Cardassians. Call off your attack.



And here we go. I've ranted about the premise of the Maquis enough already, but since this episode is a direct setup for Voyager I have to bring it up one more time. These colonists who chose to stay in Cardassian space and fight the Cardassians were supposed to have renounced their Federation citizenship per "Journey's End." At which point the Federation should've ignored them and they would've been wiped out by the Cardassians within a year. But that didn't happen for reasons that are beyond me.



RIKER: I never thought we'd be firing on our own people to protect a Cardassian ship.



They aren't your people anymore! Furthermore, you're supposed to be at peace with the Cardassians right now, remember? The Federation is supposed to be accommodating to all people, remember? Leave your bigotry in your quarters, it has no place on the bridge!


WORF: The Cardassian's shields are down to thirty percent.
RIKER: They may not be able to withstand another hit.


What? The entire point of the Maquis ships is that they're smaller and faster, not more powerful than the top of the line warships of the major powers. In no universe should their ships be able to deplete thirty percent of a Cardassian warship's shields in one hit, or even one minute of continual fire.


GUL EVEK: Lately Starfleet seems to look the other way when the Maquis attack.
PICARD: I can assure you that is not the case. We're doing everything in our power to control them.



Well that's a lie. I'll skip the screed this time, but the short version is that "everything in our power" would've been forcibly removing them back in "Journey's End" when they should've. There should be no civilians (not even Cardassian civilians!) in the DMZ right now!


GUL EVEK: They came at us with photon torpedoes and type eight phasers. Tell me, Captain, how do you suppose that a group of civilians acquired such weaponry?
PICARD: I can assure you it was not through official channels.
GUL EVEK: So you don't think the fact that some of the Maquis are former Starfleet officers has anything to do with it?


I'm having a hard time following Evek's line of reasoning. Having former Starfleet officers in positions of Maquis leadership would help with their strategic planning and running the ships efficiently, but I don't know too many Starfleet officers (not currently stationed on DS9 anyway) that have access to the illegal arms merchants.


PICARD: Starfleet does not condone the Maquis' actions in the Demilitarised Zone any more than your government would condone the paramilitary actions of Cardassian civilians.
GUL EVEK: We have taken measures to deal with our colonists who have armed themselves.
PICARD: Considering that they destroyed a Juhryan freighter less than a week ago, I would say that your efforts are meeting with limited success.



Only mention of Juhryans. As I've said before, we don't hear nearly enough about the Cardassian residents of the DMZ. Are there that many resource-rich planets in there that they're willing to mine them without Bajoran labor?


NECHAYEV: No Bularian canapés this time, Captain?
PICARD: I thought twice was pushing it a little.
NECHAYEV: It's just as well. They're extremely fattening.



I'm going to assume that these things are yet another luxury item that replicators can't make with healthier materials properly.

[Nate the Great]

RO: Starfleet wants me to infiltrate the Maquis?
PICARD: Because of your recent training, because you're Bajoran, and because of your past troubles with Starfleet gives you a certain credibility.
RO: Well, that's certainly true.



I'm having trouble with this premise. Had this happened back in Season Five I would've said okay, the Maquis (or proto-Maquis I suppose I should say) would've bought it. But Ro has been back in Starfleet for over two years at this point. Even the Maquis would know about it, in particular because I think that they'd keep tabs on all Bajoran members of Starfleet (there can't be that many at this point).


RO: I've heard a lot about the Maquis. One of my instructors at Tactical Training, a Lieutenant Commander in Starfleet, a man I admired and respected, he was sympathetic to them. He resigned and left to join them.



This is supposed to be a Chakotay reference, but I'm not sure how well it works. Had she said Lieutenant, it would've been an interesting Tuvok reference.



PICARD: We're all sympathetic, Lieutenant. Our civilian population in the Demilitarised Zone is in a very difficult situation, but even sympathy has to end at some point.



And you're sympathetic...why? You gave them the option to leave the DMZ back in "Journey's End", but they didn't take it. They chose to renounce their Federation citizenship and stay. It's no longer the Federation's problem and the Cardassians should've wiped them out by now.



WORF: We are looking for a Bajoran woman, dark hair.
DATA: She is responsible for the death of a Cardassian soldier.
WORF: If we learn that she has been here, this establishment will be closed down.



Does Starfleet have jurisdiction in this bar?


MACIAS: They don't understand the situation here in the Zone. I lived on Juhraya. When the treaty was signed the colony suddenly found itself in Cardassian territory. Some of us chose to stay, take our chances. Then one night I was dragged from my bed and beaten. The authorities clucked their tongues and agreed it was an unfortunate incident, and did nothing.



Suddenly? There was noting sudden about the Federation withdrawal! And you just said that you chose to stay and take your chances. This is what's called buyer's remorse, and it's not the store's fault, it's yours!


KALITA: One that I think we should take seriously. A trader coming from Pendi Two said he could verify that the Cardassians are going to start supplying their colonists with biogenic weapons.
RO: I thought every shipment coming into the Zone was searched.
KALITA: The Cardassians always seem to find a way around problems like that.



What? The Cardassians let Starfleet search every ship going into the DMZ from their space? If you're implying that Starfleet trusts the Cardassian military to search Cardassian civilian ships entering the DMZ, then I have another screed to bore you with.


RO: I have no intention of asking for them. I intend to take them.
KALITA: How? The Enterprise is a fortress.
RO: I know its security systems work. Give me a ship. I can do it.



This is extremely dubious. Presuming that Ro actually left Starfleet two years ago, Worf would've had plenty of time to upgrade the security systems.



RO: I set the transporter confinement parameters to maximum. We should be able to fill our hold with medical supplies with just one single beam out.



This bit of Treknobabble is particularly silly. Sure, you can tell the scanners to look for medical supplies and automatically forward the coordinates to the transporters, but there are bandwith restrictions to the actual transporter process. I'll assume that these raiders only have one transporter room and maybe one cargo transporter, there's a limit to how much you can transport in thirty seconds.


RO: We're going to cross the border here.
KALITA: There are sensor buoys all along the border. If we cross anywhere other than a checkpoint, Starfleet will send a ship to investigate.
RO: With the right security codes, we can disable the proximity detectors on the buoys.



Let's put aside the logic behind these buoys and how close Starfleet monitors the border, it's irrelevant when you consider the time restrictions. Ro can exit the DMZ, steal the supplies, and be back before the violation can be investigated.



The bigger problem is how Ro is supposed to know the security codes for the buoys when she's been "out" of Starfleet for years, and even when she was she would've have had access to the buoy codes.


KALITA: How are we going to beam through their shields?
RO: We can't. If we're going to get those medical supplies, we're going to have to take this ship through their shields.



This strategy should've been used more often.

[Nate the Great]

RO: It took me a while, but I managed to patch through into Starfleet's comm. system. I intercepted a communication from one of the checkpoints on the border. They're concerned because a Pakled transport came through carrying retro-viral vaccines.
SANTOS: Why is that a concern?
RO: Well, last week a Ferengi transport came through carrying biomimetic gels. By themselves, neither of these is dangerous, but Starfleet is concerned because with along with other components the Cardassians could put together a biogenic device.



Who trusts the Pakleds to carry vaccines? And at this point I have to wonder if only the Federation has the capacity to make biomimetic gel.


RO: My father played the klavion. When I was very young and afraid of monsters under my bed, he'd play for me. He said that the klavion had special powers. Monsters were afraid of it and when they heard it they would disappear. When I listened to that music he played for me I was never afraid to go to sleep. When he died I realised even he couldn't make all the monsters go away.



Great scene.


RO: Why don't we get acquainted? There's a table in the back that's more private.
PICARD: I'd like that.
(they sit and pretend to be getting close)



This is a wonderful premise. They're pretending to be getting closer when in fact they're drifting apart.



PICARD: Are you saying you want to back out of this mission?
RO: Sir, I don't want to let you down, I swear that I don't.
PICARD: This has nothing to do with me. This is about you. If you back out now, you'll throw away everything you've worked for. We're committed to this mission. My only question for you is, can you carry out your orders? I could put you before a board of inquiry for having lied to me about this operation. I would certainly have you court-martialled if you sabotage it.



This is a big problem. Yes, if Ro backed out now she'd lose some of Picard's respect. But if she doesn't, she could lose ALL of Picard's respect. This is definitely the time for making the choice with the "least bad" outcome. And while Picard may feel that he has to explain the possible outcome, this is not the time. She already feels terrible just by anticipating betraying him, you don't need to burden her any more.


RIKER: She seemed very sure that she was making the right choice. I think her only real regret was that she let you down. Here's my report.
(Picard doesn't move to take the PADD, so Riker puts it on the desk and leaves)



One can only imagine Picard's thoughts right now.


Memory Alpha



* Ro's reference can't be Chakotay because he left Starfleet in 2368, two years ago. Then again, that was established in "In the Flesh", WAY after this episode. Chalk this one up to the writers not keeping proper notes for their successors.
* Ro says that biomememtic gel is legal and nobody finds it unusual that it's being shipped around, but by the time of "In the Pale Moonlight" Sisko clearly says that gel is strictly controlled and not for sale. Maybe the regulations changed.
* Only time Ro's first name "Laren" is used onscreen.
* Last appearance the real Nechayev. A Dominion-created simulation will appear in "The Search", but that's it.


Memory Beta


* Ro's career after this episode (before her cameo in Picard, of course) was a bit sparse, only appearing in a few novels. My biggest memory is her appearance in "Rogue Saucer".

[Nate the Great]

May 23rd, 1994, "All Good Things"

Ah yes, the day that I taped two VHS tapes. One for the Viewer's Choice Marathon, one for the finale. I used to watch this episode a lot, until I got VERY sick of it. The microsecond Picard realized that events in each time period don't affect the others, he should've told the past crew what's going on. And when Beverly told him that there's proof that he's gathered more memories than is possible without considering time travel, he should've done it in the other two time periods.

Fiver by Zeke

The Episode

WORF: I am glad you approve. I have always found the Black Sea at night to be a most stimulating experience.
TROI: Worf, we were walking barefoot on the beach with balalaika music in the air, ocean breeze washing over us, stars in the sky, a full moon rising, and the most you can say is stimulating?
WORF: It was very stimulating.

Here is where you'd hear the canned laughter and the trombonist doing a "wah-wah" noise.

WORF: Deanna, perhaps before there is a next time, we should discuss Commander Riker.
TROI: Why, is he coming along?
WORF: No, but I do not wish. I mean, it would be unfortunate if he. If you and I are going to continue, I do not wish to hurt his feelings.

It is far FAR too late to be having this conversation. Troi should've talked with Will after the events of "Eye of the Beholder".

PICARD: (in dressing gown) Counsellor! What's today's date? The date!
WORF: Stardate 47988.

About 3 PM on December 27th, 2370.

PICARD: I had this feeling I had physically left the Enterprise. I was in another time, another place. I was somewhere in the past.
TROI: Can you describe where you were, what it looked like?
PICARD: You see, it's all slipping away so fast. It's like waking up from a nightmare.

Given the events of prior episodes, in particular "Cause and Effect", you'd think the crew would be trained to write this stuff down ASAP.

TROI: It's all right. Have you considered the possibility that this was just a dream?
PICARD: No, no, it was much more than a dream. The smells, the sounds, the very touch of things, much more real than a dream.

There's a long screed to be had here, but I'll move on.

LAFORGE: Hello, Captain or should I call you Ambassador?
PICARD: Oh, I haven't been called that for some time either.

I find the idea that Picard would resign from Starfleet to be an Ambassador rather dubious. The captain of the flagship is already expected to be an ambassador at times. Frankly the only career in the Federation that I could imagine Picard having after leaving shipboard duty is Academy Commandant.

A later comic book specifies that Picard was the Federation Ambassador to Vulcan.

PICARD: Good Lord, Geordi. Well, how long has it been?
LAFORGE: Nine years.
PICARD: No, no, no. Since you last called me Captain, since we were all together on the Enterprise?
LAFORGE: Close to twenty five years.
PICARD: Twenty five years.

A lot of people assume that this means 25 years after Season 7, including the Star Trek Chronology, when this is absolutely not indicated. It could be 25 years after the events of Nemesis for all we know.

LAFORGE: You've got leaf miners. You might want to use a bacillus spray. My wife is quite a gardener. I've picked up a little bit of it.
PICARD: How is Leah?
LAFORGE: Just wonderful.

I can't really imagine Leah as a gardener.

TASHA: Will this be your first time on a Galaxy class starship?

How would he have even had the chance to visit a Galaxy class before now, they're brand new! I guess. The actual building period differs by source, it could've been a few decades, but this is dubious as we know that the warp core was installed shortly before the launch as opposed to early in construction.

Of the original twelve Galaxy class ships only six were launched in the first wave, the other six were kept partially built until after the Battle of Wolf 359. Many more were built for the Dominion War.

TROI: Is there any indication of temporal displacement?
CRUSHER: No. Usually a temporal shift would leave some kind of triptamine residue in the cerebral cortex, but the scan didn't show any.

I find this rather stupid. We've seen many MANY different methods of time travel and consciousness relocation, both from technology and godlike aliens, and I doubt that they all have the same side effects.

CRUSHER: Your blood gas analysis is consistent with someone who's been breathing the ship's air for weeks. If you'd been somewhere else, there would be an indication of change in the oxygen isotope ratios.

This one is more reasonable, but there's no guarantee that his body time travelled along with his mind. Furthermore, I'm pretty sure that Q could prevent such changes in the isotope ratios if he wanted to.

CRUSHER: Jean-Luc, I scanned for evidence of Irumodic Syndrome, as you suggested. There wasn't any. But I did find a small structural defect in the parietal lobe.
PICARD: A defect that you hadn't noticed before?
CRUSHER: It's the kind of defect that would only show up on a level four neurographic scan.

And he didn't have such a scan after his Borg implants were refused? For that matter, wouldn't the Borg want to fix such a defect?

NAKAMURA [on monitor]: Our operatives on Romulus have indicated that there appears to be something happening in the Neutral Zone, specifically in the Devron System. Our own long range scans have picked up some kind of spatial anomaly in the area.

The Romulans found the anomaly before Starfleet did? Is it closer to the Romulan side?

JESSEL: (cod English housekeeper) How do you like your tea?
PICARD: Tea? Earl Grey. Hot.
JESSEL: Course it's hot. What do you want in it?
PICARD: Nothing.

Always a funny exchange, although knowing how seriously the British take their tea I wonder what the difference is between the British and French ideas of "hot tea".

JESSEL: If you're really his friend, you'll get him to take that grey out of his hair. Looks like a bloody skunk.
DATA: Jessel. She can be frightfully trying at times, but she does make me laugh.

Look, I'll buy that Data is still toying with his appearance decades in the future, but he always listened to the advice of his friends. This behavior seems weird.

(Troi is back in her mini-uniform but not the bun.)

Which is odd, since the creative staff did whatever they could to duplicate the first season without spending a fortune rebuilding the set (the Ops and Conn stations were a lot closer together in "Encounter at Farpoint", as just one example), but makeup should be easy enough to duplicate.

One thing that I kinda wish they'd done for the past scenes as an Easter Egg was bringing back that ugly skant uniform.

Personal log, stardate 41153.7. Recorded under security lockout Omega three two seven. I have decided not to inform this crew of my experiences. If it's true that I've travelled to the past, I cannot risk giving them foreknowledge of what's to come.

This is weird, because he already changed history. The cat is out of the bag.

PICARD: Mister Worf, initiate a level two security alert on all decks until further notice.
TASHA: With all due respect, sir, I'm the Security Chief on this ship. Unless you're planning to make a change.
PICARD: No, of course not. Lieutenant, security alert two.

Akward.

O'BRIEN: Sir, Starfleet has just issued an alert. It appears a number of vessels are moving toward the Neutral Zone between Romulan and Federation space.

I'm glad that they were able to bring back O'Brien for the past scenes, but it does introduce some questions in the minds of the DS9 viewers.

WORF: Captain, it could be a Romulan trick to lure our ships into the Neutral Zone as an excuse for a military strike.

One thing that they forgot to bring up is that at this point in time the Romulans were still in their isolationist period.

O'BRIEN: You have to realise sir, this isn't exactly my area of expertise. The Chief Engineer should be making these modifications.
PICARD: But the Chief Engineer isn't on board.

NONE of the Chief Engineers are on board, all of them are at Farpoint? Given that the ship just launched and the warp core is brand new, there should be a temp from Utopia Planitia keeping an eye on things until a proper chief engineer takes over.

DATA: Ah. Then to burn the midnight oil implies late work?
O'BRIEN: That's right.
DATA: I am curious. What is the etymology of that idiom? How did it come to be used in contemporary language?
O'BRIEN: I don't know, sir.

Ugh. Data may not have colloquialisms in his immediate use vocabulary, but Picard made it clear that he's a walking dictionary. At worse it should take him a few seconds with a cocked head to pull up any definition.

And incidentally, the idiom goes at least as far back as the mid seventeenth century, I thought it only went back to the nineteenth century rail industry.

[Nate the Great]

PICARD: Counsellor, do you remember when I first came on board the Enterprise?
TROI: Yes.
PICARD: What happened after the welcoming ceremony?
TROI: There was a reception in Ten Forward. I introduced you to Worf and the other senior officers.
PICARD: Do you have any memory of my calling Red Alert in Spacedock? Do you remember Starfleet diverting us from Farpoint to the Neutral Zone to investigate a spatial anomaly?
TROI: No.
DATA: It would appear there is a discontinuity between the time periods you described. Events in one time period would seem to have no effect on the other two.

Mike drop. Stop acting like you can mess up history, Picard!

CRUSHER: But you've been to the future. You know it's going to happen.
PICARD: I prefer to look on the future as something which is not written in stone. A lot of things can happen in twenty five years.

But you just establised that the past and present timelines aren't the same, can't you also assume that the present and future timelines aren't the same as well? For that matter, now that you know Picard has a brain defect, can't you fix it at this point to stop the Iromodic Syndrome before it even starts?

LAFORGE: Data's arranged for us to run those tests on you in the biometrics lab. We're ready to go if you are.
PICARD: No, no, no. No, we have to get to the Neutral Zone.

We're given the impression that future Picard has problems with deeper thoughts right now because of the Iromodic Syndrome, but you'd think by now he'd learn to keep his trap shut and take notes immediately to sound more coherent.

LAFORGE: All right. Okay. But first, there is no Neutral Zone, remember?
PICARD: Right. Right. Klingons. In this time period, the Klingons have taken over the Romulan Empire.
LAFORGE: Right now relations between us and the Klingons aren't too cosy.

It's an interesting idea: what caused the breakdown of Federation/Klingon relations? Put aside all that Dominion stuff that is still in it's infancy over on DS9 and that the TNG writers probably aren't paying attention to. All I can conclude is that the Duras faction might've succeeded in starting another civil war, winning this time.

LAFORGE: Captain, I'm sorry. I guess all we can do now is wait and see if the Yorktown finds anything.
DATA: There is another option. We could arrange passage aboard a medical ship.

This raises more questions about Data's present state of mind. He has emotions now and feels loyalty to Picard, but he wouldn't volunteer a dangerous idea like this.

PICARD: Is there anything unusual in the vicinity, Mister Data?
DATA: How would you define unusual, sir? Every region of space has its own unique properties that cannot be found anywhere else.

How I don't miss early Data's literalism.

PICARD: Q! We're here! This has gone on long enough! Counsellor, do you sense an alien presence?
TROI: No, sir.

Troi didn't sense Q at first, and with further exposure the farthest she got was that he's a lifeform that's very different from typical humanoids. And even so, I don't think she can read anyone outside the ship unless she can focus on a viewscreen image.

PICARD: Did you create the anomaly?
Q: No, no, no. You're going to be so surprised when you realise where it came from, if you ever figure it out.

Actually, given that Picard was only able to create the anomaly because he was timeshifting due to Q, I would argue that the answer to the question is yes, if it has to be one or the other.

Q: You obtuse piece of flotsam. You are to be denied existence. Humanity's fate has been sealed. You will be destroyed.

A big problem with this whole premise is a simple question: why do the Q care about humanity but not the other spacefaring species? Do they not see the same potential in the Klingons and Romulans that they saw in humanity back in "Hide and Q"?

PICARD: So what am I going to do? Lock myself in a room in all three different time periods?
RIKER: Captain, maybe not acting is what causes the destruction of mankind. What if you were needed on the Bridge at a key moment, and you weren't there?

We already covered this argument back in "Cause and Effect." It's rather tiring to cover it again.

WORF: The Federation Starships Concord and Bozeman are holding position on our side.

Has Bateson and crew really recovered this fast?

PICARD: I know that I'm an old man and I'm out of touch, but the Worf that I remember was more concerned with things like honour and loyalty than rules and regulations. But that was a long time ago. Maybe you're not the Worf once I knew.
WORF [on viewscreen]: Dor sHo GHA! You have always used your knowledge of Klingon honour and tradition to get what you want from me.
PICARD: Because it always works, Worf. Your problem is that you really do have a sense of honour and you really do care about trust and loyalty. Don't blame me for knowing you so well.
WORF [on viewscreen]: Very well. You may cross the border. But only if I come with you. I am familiar with the Neutral Zone.
PICARD: Terms accepted.

At first I liked this scene, but not anymore. Picard is blatantly manipulating Worf and is acting dishonorably.

PICARD: Tea, Earl Grey, hot.
COMPUTER: That beverage has not been programmed into the replication system.

This is complete nonsense. Earl Grey tea is hardly obscure. And even if it isn't part of the standard menu, it would be part of Picard's replicator profile that follows him from ship to ship. Duh.

PICARD: Beverly, I cannot believe that you are not willing to stay here until we
CRUSHER: Don't you ever question my orders on the Bridge of my ship again!
PICARD: Damn it, I was just trying to. Look, there are larger concerns here. What you don't understand is that
CRUSHER: I understand that you would never have tolerated that kind of behaviour back on the Enterprise and I won't here. I don't care if you're my ex-Captain or my ex-husband.
PICARD: You're right. I was out of line. It won't happen again.

A good scene, even if it seems derivative of the Data/Worf scene in "Gambit".

PICARD: My time shifting. The answer does lie there, doesn't it. Now, tell me one thing. This anomaly we're looking for, will that destroy humanity?
Q: You're forgetting, Jean-Luc. You destroy humanity.

Once again Q is being overly literal. Q is causing Picard to cause the anomaly which will destroy humanity.

CRUSHER: This is amazing. The DNA in his optic nerves is regenerating. Geordi, it's as if you're growing new eyes.
PICARD: How is this possible?
CRUSHER: It shouldn't be possible at all. There's no medical explanation for spontaneous regeneration of an organ.
OGAWA: Doctor we've just gotten reports from two crewmembers who say they have old scars which are healing themselves.

This whole thing is just stupid. First, the problem with Geordi's eyes is not his DNA. Second, why are there crewmen on board (besides Worf, I guess) that didn't heal their scars before now?

[Nate the Great]

CRUSHER:Worf, signal our surrender.
WORF: Tos Vah'cha Worf, do'lo jegh!

Star Trek Minutae declares the translation to be "This is Governor Worf, we surrender!"

CRUSHER: Alyssa lost the baby. I think it's the same phenomenon that affected Geordi. Somehow, the temporal energy from the anomaly caused the foetal tissue to revert to an earlier stage of development. It's as if the unborn child began to grow younger, until finally the DNA itself began to break down.

This is way too dark. I don't know why it's here.

CRUSHER: Will, how long is this thing between you and Worf going to go on?
RIKER: It's been going on for over twenty years. Doesn't look like it's going to end any time soon.
DATA: I suspect the last thing Counsellor Troi would have wanted is for the two of you to be alienated.
CRUSHER: I agree. I think it's time to put it behind you.

As I've said before, I hate the Worf/Troi romance. So I don't care about this scene. It's embarassing that the Joey/Rachel romance over on Friends was done better than the Worf/Troi was.

RIKER: Did I? I didn't want to admit that it was over. I always thought that we'd get together again. And then she was gone.

Given the events of Insurrection and Nemesis, you have to ask what was stopping Riker from asking Deanna out much MUCH earlier. If we're going to act like Riker unilaterally decided not to be with Deanna and keep her in the backup zone for years and years, then Riker is an unredeemable jerk. Either he pursues her again when they reunite on the E-D or they mutually decide not to date each other while both of them are Starfleet officers.

PICARD: Ensign. How do I get to Ten Forward?
ENSIGN: It's four decks down, sir. Section zero zero five.
PICARD: Thank you.

What's the point of this scene? It's already been established that you can ask the computer to direct you anywhere on the ship using the wall panels.

DATA: Sensors are picking up a small temporal anomaly off the port bow.

This is a HUGE plot hole. The anomaly wasn't there, but now it is, and it gets larger as it goes back in time. Ugh.

DATA: It would require taking the ship into the anomaly itself. Once inside, we may be able to use the engines to create a static warp shell.
LAFORGE: Yeah, Data, that's right. And the shell would act as an artificial subspace barrier separating time and anti-time.

As Treknobabble goes, this is more reasonable than most. The part that bugs me is the use of "shell" instead of "field."

PICARD: I understand your concerns, Lieutenant, and I know if I were in your position I would be doing the same thing. Looking for answers. But you're not going to find any because I don't have any to give you.

Ugh. You do have answers to give, you are choosing not to for reasons that have already been proven to be irrelevant.

Q: Is that all this meant to you? Just another spatial anomaly? Just another day at the office?

A great line, I remember it from the TNG screen saver.

Q: The anomaly. My crew. My ship. I suppose you're worried about your fish, too.

Another great line.

The Fiver

Picard: Beverly, you have to believe me. I remember travelling in time.
Crusher: I want to believe, Mulder, but until we have proof....

Yikes did that joke not age well. X-Files hasn't had the staying power that some of its contemporaries didn't. And yet Phil Farrand made a Nitpicker's Guide for it.

Picard: Obviously. Mr. Worf, I need you to prepare your security teams for --
Yar: Hello? I'm security chief.
Picard: Ah yes. My apologies; I've not yet mastered the difference between my manly girl and my girly man.
Past Worf: That is entirely understandaHEYYY!

Burn!

Future Riker: (over the comm) No way am I lending you a ship. That area is Klingon territory now.
Picard: So?
Future Riker: So you might run into Worf.
Picard: So?
Future Riker: Worf's a wad.

Wad? Zeke, you remind me of when LittleKuriboh slips up and uses his native accent in YGOTAS.

Future La Forge: All right, so Riker won't help us. What's the backup plan?
Future Data: Hiding inside torpedoes that are being fired into that sector.

Fie on you for reminding me of Sito Jaxa, Z.

Picard: Can I at least ask you some questions?
Q: But of course. You're familiar with the Captain Pike two-light system, I'm sure.
Picard: THERE ARE F--
Q: Don't even think about it.

Hehe.

Future Worf: No, I won't.
Picard: Will you do it for a Kahless Snack?
Future Worf: Yes, I will.

I'm always amazed that new Scooby Doo shows and movies are still being made, even if they've been of very uneven quality lately.

Picard: Mr. O'Brien, plot a course for the Neutral Zone.
O'Brien: But won't the Romulan detection grid spot us?

Why would the Romulans need a detection grid, and especially now, during their isolation period?

Puddle of Goo: Hi! I'm the birthplace of life on Earth.
Anomaly: Like hell you are!
Puddle of Goo: GAK!
Picard: This is disturbing for more reasons than I can list....

Ha ha.

Q: The trial never ends. It's like the O. J. trial. But I'm confident that if you keep up the good work, you'll get off easy. And who knows? Maybe I'll show up now and then to do the "you must acquit" chant.

Well, that one didn't age well.

Memory Alpha

* Having a fourth timeline from "The Best of Both Worlds" was considered. I don't think it would've worked in a two-part episode.
* Not only is the warp speed limit no longer in effect in the future timeline, but the entire scale was modified to allow for warp factors beyond ten again.

Nitpicker's Guide

* There aren't any skunks in England, it would be more appropriate for Data's housekeeper to compare his hair to a badger.
* What happened to the Romulans? Wasn't Tomalak going to go to the Devron system?
* The future Klingon ships can fire while cloaked, so why did they bother uncloaking?
* Phil has a problem with past Troi mentioning Ten Forward when it never appeared in Season One. I can't believe that Phil is that dense, this one seems a bit too OCD.

Nitpicker's Guide for "Preemptive Strike" (I forgot to do this earlier)

* Phil also brings up the contradictions with "Journey's End".