Date: May 25, 2020

Season 7, Episodes 8 and 9

Musical Accompaniment: Moonglow Woods

Interstellar News: Walmart is a lawless place and I hate people. As today is Memorial Day, I choose to remember those who served and are no longer with us. I am sorry for what others do in the name of freedom that does not live up to your sacrifice.

Favorite Quote from “Attached”:

Picard: You’re staring at me.

Crusher: I was just thinking about how to get out of here.

Picard: There may be a structural flaw that would allow us to escape.

Crusher: Right.

Picard: Beverly, the important thing during any confinement is to think positively and not give up hope. There is a way out of every box, there is a solution to every puzzle. It’s just a matter of finding it.

I am 100000% with Picard on this.

“Attached” begins with the Enterprise arriving at Kesprytt III for the evaluation of part of the planet that has petitioned for membership into the Federation. The Kes are those interested in membership and the Prytt are not interested in talking to anyone, least of all the Kes. Picard and Dr. Crusher discuss this request over their usual breakfast and then beam down together, only to be subverted to a Prytt prison and implanted with devices in their brain stem. One of the Prytt, however, deliver them a way to escape.

The Kes set up a communications room on the Enterprise and it’s clear they are paranoid and believe in conspiracies. The Prytt, it is revealed, believe the Federation is there to team up with the Kes to destroy them. The device has some interesting side effects, like Picard and Crusher brain-sharing and also having to be physically close to one another. This ultimately leads them to share their feelings and some deep emotions. Meanwhile, Riker uses some “cowboy diplomacy” and gets the Kes and Prytt together and are finally able to retrieve Picard and Crusher, who had made it to the border unscathed. The return and, over dinner, decide to remain friends who are quite fond of each other.

Here’s the thing that gets me about this episode, and yes it’s only the one thing. Crusher has, at least twice, been in a position where she has had to tell Picard something before it was too late, and she’s the one to walk away? What the fuck? I mean we all know how “Lessons” turned out and it’s absolutely never a good idea to get involved with someone you have supervisory power over, unless one person is willing to change their career. I absolutely love that a show did the “will they, won’t they” and the answer wasn’t “they will”, but the fact that it was Crusher who walked away was a bit mind boggling. It’s also interesting that Picard, the hormonal mess we saw in “Tapestry“, would go on to be such a model best friend. I never understood why people liked the dude in Love Actually who was a total dick to his best friend’s wife, mostly because he was in love with her, and then he shows up and tells her and she thinks it’s the sweetest thing.

It’s one thing if Jack and Beverly were polyamorous and Picard was able to talk to them both about it, but methinks they were a monogamous couple and Picard chose the correct path of not making advances on his best friend’s wife. After Jack died, Picard was again ever the model of tact and didn’t want to take advantage of Beverly in a time of grief, plus he was grieving on his own. Years later when she’s about to come on the Enterprise, in the end, he doesn’t let his emotions get the best of him and wants the right person for the job. I still think it would have been stronger to see that Picard had learned from “Lessons”, but all’s well that ends well. Also, they totally mess with Riker before their implants are removed and it adds a little lightheartedness to all the deep emotional sharing . In fact, all of the ridiculousness of the Kes and Prytt on board the Enterprise was fantastic, especially because Riker is soooooooo not the diplomat that Picard is. This was a very cute and adorable episode to put to rest that age old question, “can a heterosexual man and a heterosexual woman be just friends?”. 6 “yeses” from me.

Favorite Quote from “Force of Nature”:

Rabal: I don’t think we can look at space travel the same way anymore. We’re going to have to change.

La Forge: I’ve been in Starfleet for a long time. We depend on warp drive. I just don’t know how easy it’s going to be to change.

Rabal: It won’t be easy at all.

Change is always hard, but we are always able to adapt.

Data’s Not Really An Android: “I cannot stun my cat.”

“Force of Nature” opens with Data coming to collect Spot from La Forge, who was thinking about being a cat-dad, and La Forge insisting that Spot needs training. The Enterprise is investigating the missing Fleming and comes across a downed Ferengi vessel. The DaiMon explains that they were attacked and the Enterprise offers to help speed up the repair process. While in a debris field they are disabled by a verteron pulse and two aliens beam aboard accusing the Federation of killing their planet.

Rabal and Serova explain that their research shows certain places in space could form a rift after too much exposure to warp drive. Picard agrees to review the research and make a recommendation if they can speed up the repairs. Serova helps the repairs along but is dismayed when Picard offers only to contact the Science Office to do more research, while Rabal is simply grateful someone is actually listening. Serova decides to take their ship and overload it to prove the rift can be created, which is does and kills her in the process. The Fleming is stuck in the rift, the Enterprise goes in after it, but they activate their warp drive making it impossible to escape. La Forge, however, creates a plan and it works. The Federation council restricts warp to a top speed of 5 and hopes others will follow.

There were too many things going on in this episode. There’s the whole training Spot thing, the missing ship, the Ferengi, the verteron fields, La Forge’s competition with Kaplan, and the actual plot of “are warp drives harmful?”. That’s a lot for one damn episode, especially since their primary mission was to find the Fleming. Looking at just the warp drive plot, which at the time I am sure was a veil for global warming, I am seeing a lot of parallels with TOS and today’s Covid-19 pandemic. TOS had quite a few episodes that always were making some sort of political commentary in their own way; think of “LTBYLB” or “The Voyage Home“. What hit me the most was when they were all sitting around the table at the end discussing the pros and cons of warp drive and hoping that others will follow their lead. As I have been separated from some of my loved ones for 75 days now, I have complied with social distancing and protecting myself (and others) while out in public. I see others who are complying and others who are not, and it drives me insane. If everyone who could just stayed home for a month, we would have been fine, but people think they can do what they want and aren’t always prepared to deal with the consequences.

In the end, Serova doesn’t actually prove anything about use over time… just what happens if you blow shit up in the right place. Still, it gets the attention of the people in charge and hopefully everyone learned a lesson. As someone who has very little patience, I feel like a hypocrite thinking that Serova should have given them more time and went through the bureaucracy and proper channels… but to be honest she really should have exhausted every option before resorting to suicide to prove her point. If you take away everything else and just focus on Data/Spot and the wonder twins, this wasn’t a terrible episode. We see how well trained Data is, good girl Spot! We also get an episode that has some good environmental commentary and is relevant even 20+ years later during this worldwide pandemic. However, all of the other stuff is still in there and I can’t go above warp 3 for this.

TA Out!

Date: May 24, 2020

Season 7, Episodes 6 and 7

Musical Accompaniment: The Moonstruck soundtrack

Interstellar News: I woke up way too early to watch Moonstruck with a dear and beloved friend, had a wonderful Zoom meeting with my Mom’s side of the family, and got some more Trek in. Oh, and it rained.

Favorite Quote from “Phantasms”:

La Forge: Sounds like it must have been pretty strange.

Data: Strange is not a sufficient adjective to describe the experience.

La Forge and Data discussing his dreams.

Worf’s One-Two Punch: “I will feed him.”

“Phantasms” begins with Data’s first nightmare, a new warp core for the Enterprise that’s proving to be a little finicky, and an invitation to the Admiral’s Banquet for Picard that he has no idea how to get out of. Data wonders what Spot dreams about, talks with Troi about his nightmares, and she encourages him to try again. This time he dreams a doozy where Worf is eating a super weird cake, Crusher is sucking some liquid out of Riker’s head with a straw, Troi’s head is attached to the cake in the shape of her body, and three strange men show up and dismantle Data again, just in time for him to wake up and realize he’s late for work.

Data has a free association psychoanalytical therapy session with Freud in the holodeck where they cover transference, the three parts of the human psyche, and psycho-sexual development as Freud hasn’t caught on that Data is an android. La Forge is still having lots of trouble with the warp core and one of the admirals keeps checking in on Picard’s progress. Data starts having waking dreams and Troi begins to be concerned, especially when he up and stabs her during one of his waking dreams. However, it turns out that Dr. Crusher finds these organisms that are taking over everyone, and the warp core, and it’s Data’s dreams that help the crew figure out how to stop them. Picard misses the banquet, oh shucks, and Troi brings Data a Data-shaped cake to help even the score.

Many people believe that “the couch” is what therapy is like, and they are both right and super wrong. “The couch” is a type of therapy used with free association and a few other interventions, but there are 10+ theories of counseling that use other methods. Psychoanalytical may have been the first or maybe the most well known, but most counselors use a combination of theories and tools to assist their clients. This episode makes great use of the fact that Data likes to review all avenues for advice, even if they aren’t always the best ones. He uses Freud in the holodeck because the doctor was a renowned therapist and a pioneer in his field, but he also wouldn’t know an android from a hole in the ground and Troi is obviously the better fit for Data, which he realizes at the end of the episode.

Data is also the super bestest cat-dad, as he was so concerned for Spot and that scene between him and Worf was absolutely adorable, and sort of like every time I leave instructions for someone to take care of my fur-babies. I was fascinated by they way Data’s mind found a way to help him process the information around him even if he wasn’t aware of it on a conscious level. Each time he visits the dream world some elements are the same, some are different, and some are just way out there… like, what’s with the mint frosting? The analog telephone inside of Data? Was this episode absolutely ridiculous? Yes. As a sequel to “Birthright, Part 1” we see how the dream program interacts with the real world, and it’s a compelling, though slightly weird, story. We also are propelled into Data’s journey to becoming human and, my friends, going to weekly therapy sessions is a big step in the right direction. We all need someone to talk to, even if we don’t have any presiding mental health concerns. Worldwide pandemic aside, there’s everyday stress. Anyway, I absolutely loved the use of dream analysis and the technical correctness of the therapy, so I’ll give this episode 7 sessions on the Freud couch.

Favorite Quote from “Dark Page”:

Lwaxana: Actually it’s a very efficient way of communicating. If two Cairn were having this conversation it would have been over minutes ago.

Picard: Really?

Picard suddenly wishing the was telepathic.

“Dark Page” has the Enterprise playing host to the Cairn, telepathic peoples who had no use for verbal speech before connecting with the Federation. Lwaxana Troi, of course, is the ambassador who has been helping them out and is desperate for her daughter to be married already… sigh. After introducing Deanna and Maques, Lwaxana blows up at Riker and winds up in sick bay. Dr. Crusher explains Lwaxana needs to lay off the telepathy, it’s overused, but of course she doesn’t listen and passes out. Deanna believes there’s something wrong with her mother’s metaconscious, so Maques helps form a bridge between them.

The first round, Deanna is met with barriers; a wolf, Hedril, her father, and is eventually kicked out by her mother. Deanna and Picard are on the case when Picard realizes there’s a seven year gap in Lwaxana’s journals, so Deanna heads back in. This time she gets through to her mother only to realize that she had an older sister who died because both parents turned their heads for just one second. Mother and daughter cry it out, Lwaxana is healed, and Deanna asks her mother to tell her about Kestra.

This was a damn deep episode and I was absolutely not prepared for the ending. I was also not prepared for Kirsten Dunst, who plays Hedril, or for the guy who plays Maques to stare so much in this episode. They did do quite a good job keeping the pacing of the episode while also making me believe that Maques was a non-native English speaker trying his hardest. I was also quite fascinated by this form of communication. Looking back on all of the Lwaxana episodes, things start to make a little more sense. She’s lost so much and she just wanted to have more family again. As someone who is an only child, I totally get how the weight of the family tree can feel like it’s on your shoulders sometimes, all the times. The problem here is that Deanna was not an only child, she was the second child and never knew. This revelation pulls both characters into focus, but it’s so fucking sad and heavy. Deanna, of course, is ever the counselor… because you just can’t shut off that part of your brain even if you just found out you had a sister you never knew. This episode makes me sad, so instead of rating it I’ll leave you with a song that will make your eyes leak: “Ten” by Yellowcard.

TA Out!

Date: May 23, 2020

Season 7, Episodes 4 and 5

Musical Accompaniment: Soothing Relaxation by Peder B. Helland

Interstellar News: I have no idea where the day went, but there was lots of Scrubs and Star Trek, so it was definitely not bad.

Favorite Quotes:

Data: Dismissed. Mr. Worf, I am sorry if I have ended our friendship.

Worf: Sir, it is I who has jeopardized our friendship, not you. If you will overlook this incident, I would like to continue to consider you my friend.

Data: I would like that as well.

Worf: Thank you, sir.

Super damn adorable, formal, and polite.

Riker is a Raconteur: “Great story. I’ll remember it next time I’m in a knife fight.”

Troi: He’s all right. He’s only stunned.

Data: I must admit, I am experiencing a similar sensation.

Riker: This is going to take a little time to explain.

Data does have feelings!!!! Excellent few lines there…

Quick Summary:

Part 1: We open to the Cantina on Mos Eisley, I mean some bar in a galaxy far, far, away, I mean, hmmmm let’s try that again. We open to Troi dealing with a sleazy bartender, Riker being his charming self, Worf making up stories about Riker’s made up sister, and Dr. Crusher being a badass, all to find out Picard has been vaporized and is dead. Riker gets permission to investigate so he, Worf, La Forge, and random security guard #236 beam down and find themselves under attack. 236 dies, Riker is captured, and then Data loses the ship Riker is now on. Their investigation leads them to Calder II, as it might be the next target of the ship they were pursuing.

On the mercenary ship Riker meets Baran, a whole host of other aliens, and… Picard, who is going by “Galen”. When their ship is in danger, Picard rigs it so Riker can save the day and get in good with Baran. Picard later confides in Riker that the mercenaries have weapons that can act as transporters and they are stealing Romulan artifacts and looking for a particular one. Turns out they are also heading to Calder II where Picard and Riker do some quick thinking and Data gets the message. Of course, the mercenary ship then fires on the Enterprise… dun, dun, dun.

Part 2: The ship does minimal damage to the Enterprise and Data plays along, making a good show of it as it were, so the mercenary ship high tails it out of there. Picard antagonizes Riker and then goes back down to evaluate the ruins and finds one that matches the profile Baran was looking for. Riker tries to get in with Baran, who wants him to root out who is on “Galen’s” side. Picard identifies the artifact to be Vulcan, not Romulan. The Romulan who sort of acts like a Vulcan (Tallera) confronts Picard and confides in him that she’s Vulcan security and explains about the Stone of Gol (a Vulcan weapon).

On the Enterprise, Data lectures Worf about how to be a first officer. They then encounter a lone Klingon named Koral who is not very talkative and apparently has the last piece of weapon. Picard and Riker are part of the away team to board the Enterprise but “Galen” gets the drop on Riker and everyone beams back to the mercenary ship, without Riker. “Galen” has a successful mutiny, kills Baran, but is later thrown under the bus by Tallara – who isn’t really a Vulcan operative. The rest of the crew only cares about their money so Tallara, Picard, and two crew members beam down. Tallara assembles the weapon, kills the two crew members, and just as she’s about to kill Picard, Worf, Riker, and an away team is there to help. Picard’s figured out that the resonator only kills when there is no peace and Tallara can’t kill anyone, not even Worf. Data points out that Picard is supposed to be dead and Riker is an outlaw, so they both get some sleep and Data stays in charge for just a while longer.

My Thoughts and Impressions: When Riker first sees that Picard is alive, and several other times during Part 1 (Oh I have a pregnant sister, do I now?), he has the ABSOLUTE WORST POKER FACE I have ever seen in my life! Given how often we’ve seen them play poker, I’m a tad surprised. Riker and Picard play things quite convincingly, and I think they really enjoyed beating the crap out of each other after years of serving together. Maybe it was just me enjoying the slapping, maybe. Later when Worf and Crusher see Picard is alive they don’t even raise an eyebrow, true champions those two. Troi, on the other hand, has her I’M SHOCKED FACE on the entire time Riker and Picard are in the room, and even Data has a moment before he remembers to go with the flow. Picard also plays the snotty and surly Galen super well, almost like he’s a really good actor or something.

Data’s chat with Worf was fantastic, adorable, and spot on. Data took to the captain’s chair quite well, as he did for real in “Redemption“, and as he does during the gamma shift. Worf, however, took at little time and reprimand to settle in. When you transition to a new position, sometimes your habits follow you from your old position. I always thinking about all the different hats I wear: teacher, supervisor, advisor, colleague, wife, mom, daughter, and so on. Sometimes those hats interfere with one another and I have to pick one. Worf’s “tactical hat” was still on when he needed to switch to the “first officer” hat and Data needed to remind him. They are also both so damn polite and formal in their professionalism, if only there was also a Vulcan involved in that conversation… one can dream.

I enjoy how Worf always thinks outside the box and he works well with Data who tries to reign him in. Data does this with La Forge a lot too. Worf’s scheme for searching the Klingon shuttle was devious and he’s quite the Slytherin. When Tallara uses the word “illogical” I instantly thought, hmmmm maybe she’s Vulcan, and it turns out she was. I was super disappointed that the resonator was such a bum weapon (don’t turn to the dark side and you’ll be just fine!), but I was super stoked that all of Worf’s Klingon Tai Chi is paying off. Also, the last bit of humor with Picard, Riker, and Data was superb and you could certainly tell that Brent Spiner was having a hard time keeping a straight face. This two-parter had its moments and was certainly better than the finale/opener, so that earns them a score of 6.5 meters above average.

TA Out!

Date: May 22, 2020

Season 7, Episodes 2 and 3

Musical Accompaniment: The soundtracks from Spider-Man 1, 2, and 3… the Tobey Maguire days, and some random Warped Tour compilation albums.

Interstellar News: It was sunny… and then it rained, but at least I got a walk in. Five loads of laundry completed over the last two days, go me!

Favorite Quote from “Liaisons”:

Worf: I do not see why it is necessary to wear these ridiculous uniforms.

Riker: Protocol.

Worf: They look like dresses.

Riker: That is an incredibly outmoded and sexist attitude. I’m surprised at you. Besides, you look good in a dress.

Worf making a good point about dress uniforms, but Riker making an equally good point and poking fun at Worf, just a smidge.

Worf’s One-Two Punch: “Klingons do not procrastinate. It is a… tactical delay.”

“Liaisons” begins with an exchange of some sort; Picard is heading to Iyar with a pilot named Voval, Troi will be showing around Ambassador Loquel, and Riker’s ambassador, Byleth, decides to go with Worf. Troi and Loquel get along nicely, but he becomes a bit obsessed with the concept of “dessert” and is fascinated by a child… apparently Iyaarans come out of pods fully grown. Byleth is demanding, temperamental, and rude to Worf, which turns into a physical fight between the two at a poker game.

Meanwhile, Picard and Voval encounter an issue and have to crash land on a planet. Voval is hurt and while looking for help Picard gets struck by lightening and saved by a woman named Anna. Anna has apparently been stuck on the planet, alone, for seven years and instantly falls in love with Picard. Anna tells Picard Voval is dead and that the device on him is to help his broken ribs, but Picard only has eyes for escape. Anna brings back a part, though she “accidentally” damaged it in the process, and Picard is suspicious of her behavior. At one point she literally throws herself at him and then runs away when he tells her “no”. Suddenly Voval appears and they go to search for Anna, but Picard realizes something is fishy and Anna turns into Voval. Their species did not understand pleasure, antagonism, and love, so each ambassador was charged with trying to experience it. They return to the Enterprise and the Iyaarans depart with more knowledge than before.

Wow was this episode stupid. The best parts of the episode were all of the ones with the usual crew and the ones with Loquel, but only because he was adorable. I’m glad they went the food route with experiencing pleasure because I don’t think I could have taken two attempted rapes in one episode. His surprise at eating food for fun, his delight at seeing a tiny human, and his general lack of reaction at the poker game when the fight was on truly made me smile. Byleth was just an asshole and I’m surprised it took Worf so long to beat him up, that Klingon really has way more self-control than he gives himself credit for. Anything with Voval/Anna, though, was just awful and I want to forget all about it… just as Picard probably does. This is another attempt at alien races experimenting on the Federation folks instead of talking to them, sigh. Only 2 pieces of chocolate cake for Loquel, and Loquel alone. Alright fine, Worf and Troi can also each have their own piece.

Favorite Quote from “Interface”:

La Forge: What are you doing?

Data: I will monitor the interface and attempt to keep you safe. I can not have you confined to quarters for something you have not yet done.

La Forge: You know we could both get in a lot of trouble for this.

Data: There is a high degree of probability that you are correct.

Data toeing the line.

“Interface” begins with La Forge, sans VISOR, climbing through the Jeffries tubes and reaching through fire to engage the suppression system, when we see he’s hooked up to a probe and he’s virtually controlling it. The Enterprise is on a rescue mission as the Raman is trapped and the plan is to use this experimental probe with La Forge at its helm. An admiral contacts Picard to explain the Hera is missing and La Forge’s mother is apparently the captain, rut roh Raggy.

La Forge decides to go ahead with the mission as he believes his Mom is still alive, just missing, and the crew of the Raman might be alive. La Forge listens to his mom’s last message and feels guilty about not getting back with her when he could. Unfortunately the crew of the Raman is all dead and then La Forge gets hurt. La Forge’s Dad is talking about having a service and La Forge refuses to believe any of it until he has more physical proof, he wants to hold onto hope. He and Data chat, but Data isn’t really comforting either. On the second try running the probe, La Forge sees an image of his mother explaining that her ship is on the surface and they need help. He latches onto this and refuses to hear anyone refute his belief, so much so that he disobeys orders and goes back. Turns out the image of his mother was a life form that was trapped on the Raman and needed help to get back to the surface, but La Forge walks away with some closure.

I’m not sure what alternate reality I just stepped into with the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad Trek episodes, but I want out right now. There’s cool VR technology and it’s barely explored. La Forge’s mother is beautiful and in just the one snippet of her message I feel everything about her conveyed by La Forge’s brief conversation with Troi. The biggest problem is we are the ones who don’t get closure at the end of the episode. Maybe they’ll revisit it later (though my two insider Trek-sperts say “no”), but there’s no resolution for the viewer. To be honest this would eat at La Forge if she was just missing forever, I sincerely doubt he was able to jump from denial to acceptance that quickly. For an engineer, especially, dealing with uncertainly is the absolute worst. You want to plan for as many contingencies as possible and you want your answers in black-and-white, grey is the worst.

Considering La Forge is the last of the bridge crew to have their family introduced, and given they are in Starfleet you’d think it would have been easier, but there’s no feeling involved. I think I felt more when Riker was telling the story about his mom than I did from anything La Forge did. I did like that Data did La Forge a solid because he knew he needed it, and Troi was only given a little bit of time but did excellent with the counseling as always. Allowing La Forge to be visor-less was also awesome, though I thought it was maybe a dream in the first sequence. I loved when he saw his reflection and remarked about how he had forgotten how handsome he was. All told, however, it’s these little moments that make me not take this episode altogether… but it’s not great either. A family tree of 4 with two parents and two children for this episode.

TA Out!

Date: May 21, 2020

Season 6, Episode 26 and Season 7, Episode 1

Musical Accompaniment: I’m attempting to listen to my “5 star” playlist on iTunes, the stuff that has words in it. We’ll see how long that lasts.

Interstellar News: Happy wedding anniversary to me and the hubs. We celebrated four years together by ordering Indian food and eating ourselves stuffed while watching Scrubs. Then we watched the Season 6 finale and the Season 7 opener, where nothing new happened in the credits.

Favorite Quotes:

Newton: Do not patronize me, sir. I invented physics. The day that apple fell on my head was the most momentous day in the history of science.

Hawking: Not the apple story again.

Data: That story is generally considered to be apocryphal.

Just three scientists and an android playing poker, nothing to see here folks.

Picard’s Poetry: “It tells you that these things are wrong, doesn’t it, Data? So how can actions that are wrong lead to a greater good?”

Data: Anger is a negative emotion. I wanted to concentrate on something more positive.

Troi: Data, feelings aren’t positive and negative, they simply exist. It’s what we do with those feelings that becomes good or bad. For example, feeling angry about an injustice could lead someone to take a positive action to correct it.

Troi with some excellent psychology to help Data understand his feelings.

Quick Summary:

Part 1: The Enterprise responds to a distress call from Ohniaka III and encounter an unknown ship that is completely ignoring them. Worf, Data, and Riker beam down to find dead people and THE BORG! A firefight ensues and Data gets angry, which is weird because he’s not supposed to experience emotions, and then the Borg just high-tail it out of there. Back on the ship they all discuss how the behavior of the Borg has changed while Data tries to experience other emotions, he even watches porn! La Forge tries to explain what anger feels like, and fails, but Troi and Data have an excellent discussion about emotions and Data’s concerns that he will become a bad person. Admiral Nechayev reams out Picard for not ridding the world of the Borg and orders him to not make the same mistake. The Borg ship attacks again and beams two onto the bridge. One survives and identifies himself as Crosis, does something to Data, and the two leave in a shuttlecraft through a conduit that, when the Enterprise follows, they find to be 65 light years away from where they were. Crusher is left in charge of the ship so that everyone can go down to the planet and find Data. Picard, Troi, and La Forge find a structure but are captured by the Borg with Lore as their leader and are surprised that Data has joined him.

Part 2: Lore explains what happened when Hugh returned to the Borg collective and has Data imprison Picard, Troi, and La Forge, and also take their com badges and La Forge’s VISOR. La Forge explains that he can see the carrier wave that Lore is using to influence Data. La Forge is also taken by Data to go get experimented on. The Enterprise is being attacked by the Borg ship again so she beams as many people up and then warps away with a few more than her skeleton crew, though Worf, Riker, the Captain’s team, and 47 others are still stranded on the planet. Riker and Worf go to search for the Captain’s team but encounter Hugh and some other Borg who did not drink Lore’s Kool-Aid for very long. Picard and Troi try to break out, and fail, but are able to steal something to try to break Lore’s connection to Data. Crusher returns and beams everyone back except for our six bridge crew members, enables the metaphasic shielding so they can hide out in the sun for a bit, and Taitt comes up with a plan and blows up the Borg ship. Lore, meanwhile, is giving Data emotional fixes like they were drugs to try to stop his ethical program from working. Lore asks Data to kill Picard, then asks the Borg to kill Data when he can’t go through with it, but Hugh interferes and there’s another brawl, including Worf and Riker to the rescue. Data confronts Lore, deactivates him, and finds that the emotional chip made for him has been damaged… but Data’s relationship with La Forge will be just fine.

My Thoughts and Impressions: This reminds me a lot of Angel vs. Angelus as Data’s ethical program works very much like Angel’s soul. The unfortunate thing is we don’t get to see how Data is without Lore’s influence. Is he really able to make his own choices or is he only a function of his programming? On paper, I think this story could have been really compelling, but in practice it just sucked. I never really felt like I understood what Lore was really doing, how he used the Borg to get to Data in the first place, or why he even needed Data. Was it just the one Borg ship or all Borg everywhere? Also, almost every admiral we’ve encountered has been a supreme douchebag, for lack of a better word. I wonder why that is? There are also some serious issues on the Enterprise because their damn shuttlecraft keep leaving unauthorized, I mean come on! I’m also only slightly disappointed that Data didn’t leave on his own accord. It would have made more a more interesting story if he wanted to see what being bad was like and then realized what it would cost him, rather than be essentially drugged.

I did find it humorous that the same actor that played Jo’Brill played Lieutenant Barnaby and was the one to enable the metaphasic shielding. I also loved Ensign Taitt, she had the exact amount of enthusiasm and sass I like in an ensign. Crusher felt more sure of herself in command than Troi did, but I am sure she was glad to hand things back to Picard. The poker game at the beginning of Part 1 was fun, Hawking and Newton were full of sass, but Einstein left something to be desired. It was also a bit ridiculous that each time there was a four some, there was a “red shirt” with the group that got killed just for the hell of it. Those scenes brought me back to TOS where that was done almost every episode, and it’s not a good look for TNG as it didn’t bring any meaning to the story. To be honest these two episodes didn’t have a whole lot of “good” between them.

As good as Season 6 was, I hate how it ended. Still, I updated my Rankings page… you should check it out. Overall these two episodes earn themselves a cute, little 2.

TA Out!