Date: February 25, 2020

Season 1, Episodes 6 and 7

Setting the Stage: I watched the first episode on Feb 24 around 8 pm as I ate my bacon and cheese veggie burgers with my bacon and cheese cauliflower tots, because I’m cool like that and I had to work an almost 12 hour day. I watched the second episode on Feb 25 around 6 pm with a whole mess-ton of Taco Bell, because I’m an idiot. I also watched “The Battle”, but I’ll write about that tomorrow. Still watching on Netflix, even though it keeps telling me that I’ll really like Voyager and I should watch that instead. Sorry Netflix A.I., someone is already doing that (though mine is a first watch rather than a rewatch) and I have an order to keep. Today’s writing music is random instrumental music that will help me to not fall asleep.

I also wanted to take a minute to plug a Kickstarter I’ve backed called Bad Ass Moms. I personally know at least two of the writers and would love to see at least three of the stretch goals reached. For those that don’t know me personally my Mom passed away in January 2019 at the age of 56 and she had some “bad ass mom” tendencies, so I’m looking forward to reading about some real life inspired and totally fictional moms. Here’s the link, you have two weeks if you want to support the project: http://kck.st/2SimbnD

Favorite Quote from “Lonely Among Us”:

Data: On the contrary, dear colleague. On their return, they drew medical supplies appropriate to the treatment of minor wounds and abrasions on these life forms.

Riker: Which, leaves us with only one conclusion.

Data: Exactly. That they were too engaged in their own affairs to have disabled our ship and murdered the Engineer. Given a choice, they’d rather kill each other than any of us. It’s elementary, my dear Riker. Sir.

Data doing his best Sherlock Holmes impression while still maintaining his Starfleet rigor

“Lonely Among Us” has the Enterprise ferrying two enemy entities, the Anticans (white haired mongoose teeth people) and the Selay (serpent-like), to a peace conference at the planet Parliament. We get to see Starfleet dress uniforms for this group and they quite spiff.

Back on the bridge we see an energy cloud ahead and as Worf is testing one of the sensors he gets electrocuted, yells a fierce battle cry, and then becomes agitated. As Dr. Crusher examines Worf she is also electrocuted and begins to act strangely. As she accesses the computer on the bridge, the electric current goes into the computer of the Enterprise and she comes back to her usual self. Various stations go down and then are repaired, but it’s a mystery. Things start going wrong again as Singh from engineering gets electrocuted and dies, but Wesley thinks something is afoot. I legitimately wrote the word “afoot” before I knew Data was going to go on a Sherlock Holmes kick, honest!

Both Dr. Crusher and Worf experience a time gap in their memory, so Troi decides she wants to try hypnosis and she finds that something had joined with both of them. When Picard touches the console he is now hit with the energy. With his unusual behavior, the crew discusses mutiny or some way to relieve him of command. As they return back to the cloud, the being makes itself known to the bridge, Picard “resigns” from command and electrocutes everyone on the bridge so he can transport himself and the entity into the cloud. The crew pulls some shit out of their ass (I cannot think of another phrase for what happened) and beam Picard back, though he doesn’t remember anything and decides to leave Riker in charge of the diplomatic relations.

I totally feel like the two other alien groups on the ship served no actual purpose other than to maybe show that nothing can ever go smoothly. Data trying to embody Sherlock Holmes is fantastic, and the rest of the crew can’t help but giggle at him. I also don’t understand why the beam knocked Worf on his ass but took over the machines and humans, was it something the Klingon did? I’m a bit disappointed that this episode didn’t highlight the two warring groups, didn’t explore what the energy being was, and ultimately didn’t keep my attention as much as it could have. I rate thee a 5B, comment below if you can guess why.

Favorite Quotes from “Justice”: that’s right, there are TWO 🙂

Data: Would you choose one life over one thousand, sir?

Picard: I refuse to let arithmetic decide questions like that. 

Picard with the evasive and sassy answer

Edo Medicator: God has prevented your escape.

Dr. Crusher: Then your god is unfair. My son had no warning that his act was criminal.

Other Edo Medicator: We cannot allow ignorance of the law to become a defense.

Picard: I don’t know how to communicate this, or even if it is possible, but the question of justice has concerned me greatly of lately. And I say to any creature who may be listening, there can be no justice so long as laws are absolute. Even life itself is an exercise in exceptions.

Riker: When has justice ever been as simple as a rule book?

Picard: It seems the Edo Lord agrees with you, Number One.

A really charged speech for Picard and an interesting view on enforcing the law and justice

“Justice” sees the Enterprise coming back from establishing a colony on one planet and exploring another to see if it is suitable for shore leave. I already know this episode is going to be a shit-show because shore leave is never easy to come by. Data and Worf report a glitch, Picard approves shore leave, and Wesley beams down as part of the away team to be sure it’s suitable for children. The planet, Edo, has scantily clad and very affectionate inhabitants and the away team is very eager to explore. Back on the ship the crew tries to identify the mystery object, when a half-transparent vessel appears and sends a ball of energy to communicate with Picard. It warns Picard to “leave my children alone” and attaches itself to Data, who passes out. Wait, didn’t this happen already on The Animated Series episode “Bem“? It’s also very Charlton Heston.

Back on Edo Worf and Riker discuss sex and it’s suuuuuper awkward, but thankfully the inhabitants tell their visitors that there is no crime because if you break the law you get executed and all of the officers share the surprised Pikachu face while also realizing Wesley is not with them… dun dun dun. Of course while Wesley is playing with the other teenagers he breaks a law (he fell onto some plants, the criminal), the Edo mediators try to kill him, and Riker is not having any of that. Picard beams down and is clearly stuck between the Prime Directive and saving the life of Dr. Crusher’s son. Having just made Wesley an acting ensign, this seems like a waste to me. Picard beams back up with one of the Edo women and she identifies the vessel to be “god”, who then becomes mad so they have to beam her back before “god” attacks the Enterprise. Data finally awakens and is able to explain the vessel’s purpose. They all beam back down, Picard tells the inhabitants of Edo that Wesley will not be executed, and they try to beam back but are stopped. The exchange in my second favorite quote happens and they are able to get back aboard the Enterprise.

I’m super torn with this episode. On one hand we had to go through all of that just to have the crew be denied shore leave? Sigh. On another hand we have a mystery vessel and a new culture to explore, one that is quite risque, but both are left unexplored at the end. On yet another hand, hey I’m using a cheat card here, we have a great discussion about the topic of justice and what it looks like to different people in different places. With justice being such an important topic in today’s political climate, it’s important to see all of the sides to every action. I feel like I’ve just made a really bad pro/con list and didn’t really come to a conclusion, so this episode earns itself 5 pumpkin seeds.

TA Out!

Date: February 24, 2020

Season 1, Episodes 4 and 5

Setting the Stage: I began watching these episodes on Sunday while husband finished staining the fence in our backyard. Fortunately/unfortunately the smell of stain makes me gag, so I had to sit inside with alllllll the fur babies, watch Star Trek, do laundry… woe is me. Although I’m a bit ahead in my viewing, I am behind in my writing. I’m chowing down on some leftovers while writing this post and realizing why it always takes me so long to eat my lunch. I’m also supposed to be going to Florida for Pensacon this weekend, so I hope to still be able to watch and write during this crazy week. Today’s writing music is Music for Reading by Halidon Music, as found on YouTube.

Favorite Quote from “The Last Outpost”:

Tarr: We will return your worthless T9 device and we offer the life of our second officers as required by the Ferengi code.

Data (to Geordi): Fortunately, Starfleet has no such rules involving our second officers.

Tarr: Is this to your satisfaction, Picard Captain?

Picard: Your offer may be inadequate, but I will discuss it with my staff. Stand by for further communications.

Tarr misunderstanding the situation, Data with the humor, and Picard rolling with it

“The Last Outpost” begins with the pursuit of a Ferengi vessel, that looks an awful lot like a mushroom, because they stole a device. We’re about to be in a First Contact situation, but the Ferengi fire twice and then the Enterprise loses power and both ships are stopped in place. Picard calls a conference to sift through all of the options but, in a strange turn of events, the Ferengi think the Enterprise is asking for their surrender as they are also in the strange force field. The nearby planet is an outpost for the now defunct TKON Empire, so Picard sends an away team to investigate and also ask the Ferengi to send a delegation of their own. The away team is separated upon arrival and the Ferengi attack but Yar shows up with a phaser, much to the chagrin of the Ferengi who do not work with or even clothe their females, yikes.

Back on the ship Dr. Crusher and Picard are trying to help with the failing life support systems, but it looks grim. On planet, the power gathers into the head of an old man that turns into a corporeal form. The Ferengi lie to this entity through their fanged teeth, blaming everything on the humans. When it looks like Riker will be attacked, Sun Tzu saves the day and power is restored to the Enterprise. In, what I feel is a throwback to the Tribbles, they beam aboard a box of Data’s Chinese finger traps as a “thank you” to the Ferengi vessel.

I always love a good first contact situation, and to see how well Riker handled himself at the end was a reason I see he’s a good fit on the away team and a promising “Number One”. The Ferengi, however, were not what I was expecting given all the lead up to their reveal. It was quite disappointing to see them reduced to a punchline rather than an adequate foe. Maybe the idea was to stray as far away from the Romulans and Klingons as possible, but who knows? There were bits of humor peppered into this episode, but it didn’t do much for anyone buy Riker who became chummy with the guardian of the outpost. This episode earns a 6:1 aspect ratio.

Favorite Quote from “Where No One Has Gone Before”: 

Riker: Sir, shall I send for Doctor Crusher?

Picard: Why? Is someone ill? Or would you rather tell her about this, Wes?

Wesley: If you don’t mind, sir, I’d like to sit here awhile. I’ll tell her later.

Riker in complete understanding of the situation, Picard being oblivious for a second, and Wesley being a typical child who forgets to tell their mother everything, sigh

“WNOHGB” opens with a man named Kosinski beaming aboard, with his assistant, in order to run an assessment and some tests on the engines. The actor who plays Kosinski has been in a ton of stuff, but I know him best from Monk, and am sorry to hear he passed away several years ago. Kosinski is going 5,000 miles per minute about how awesome he is but Riker explains that not only his permission is needed, but that of the chief engineer before anything can be done. Wesley, who is working on a school project, quickly bonds with the assistant and hangs around to observe the test.

When testing at warp 1.5 the assistant begins to phase and something is happening to the warp engine and they begin to pass warp 10 (which has never been done before). The Enterprise has traveled over 2 million light years and at least two galaxies over from their own. Picard asks him to take them back and Riker looks over to see what is happening to the assistant part way through the second test. Though the Enterprise never left warp 1.5 this time, they are in a new place (hence the title), and they went even more forward in time and space- over a billion years away, extra yikes!

On the bridge Worf’s pet shows up, then Yar’s cat, and Picard almost falls out into space when trying to exit the turbo lift… always check before you exit folks! Time, space, and thought starts to meld together and the crew starts to experience strange things. Picard sees his mother, which is heartbreaking for a minute, and she’s everything I thought she would be. The assistant is actually a traveler who wants to experience the reality of the Enterprise and he’s a focus for thought. Picard tells the crew to not have any stray thoughts, and all I’m thinking about is the Stay Puft Marshmallow man, haha.

They try again to make their way back home and as the Traveler is fading, Wesley holds his hand to try to give him strength… which magically works and they make their way back home, but the Traveler disappears. Wesley is made an acting ensign because of his heroism and that the Traveler called him a genius.

Okay, so I get that the Traveler had to tell Picard something about Wesley to make it practical for him to be a part of the team. It’s hard to really fit a kid into an adult setting if you don’t have a reason. I also totally understand the kid that’s too smart for their own good and is so much ahead of their time and soooooo much better with people much older than they are, because I was that kid. Sometimes I still feel exactly like that kid. I can imagine that having a young man save the crew time and time again will get boring if this happens every episode, but for it to happen once in a while makes sense. Adults sometimes don’t always remember what it’s like to see a problem with a fresh set of eyes or with a different life experience.

I totally love that they really have the discussion about “do we stay or do we go” because, on one hand, this is essential Starfleet to go forth and discover things. On the other hand, as Picard puts, who would they report this to? Also, I sincerely hope that the message is received in 50 years and one the crew laughs about that one time they got sent to a really far away place in the cosmos. I’m also glad they didn’t just get through on the second try, that they had to figure out what really happened, but it was cheesy as hell that it took a little hand pump and a kind word. Doesn’t make me like this episode any less, and it’s a solid 9 on my completely made up scale of awesomeness… and finally we’re getting somewhere with these TNG episodes.

TA Out!

Date: February 23, 2020

Season 1, Episodes 2 and 3

Setting the Stage: I watched “The Naked Now” on Friday and “Code of Honor” on Saturday still watching on Netflix. Loki, the most skittish and least likely to hang out for Trek, sat on my lap for the entire first episode! I was soooooo happy, maybe we’ll make a Trekkie cat out of him yet. Honestly I’d settle for some affection at least once a week or month even, that’s how infrequent it is. Today was another 5-load laundry day. How on Earth do two adults have so many dirty clothes in one week? Today’s writing music is The Dark Knight soundtrack, by Hans Zimmer.

Favorite Quote from “The Naked Now”:

Riker: Data, I need help in locating some library computer information.

Data: Specifics, sir?

Riker: All I have is a vague memory of reading somewhere about someone taking a shower in his or her clothing.

Data: Ah. The body Geordi discovered.

Riker: I believe it may have happened before.

Data: To someone, somewhere.

Riker: This ought to be easy for someone written up in bio-mechanical texts.

Riker pandering to Data’s earlier comment

The description of “The Naked Now” sounds exactly like an Original Series episode, “The Naked Time“. Turns out, it is aaaaand it isn’t. The Enterprise is in communication with the Tsiolkovsky until someone pulls the escape hatch and it’s quiet. The away team beams aboard and it’s still interesting to see Riker going instead of Picard. When they get back to the ship, everyone checks out fine except for La Forge… seriously when will everyone learn OSHA is not to be trifled with? Wear your gloves kids! Dr. Crusher confines him to sickbay, leaves the room to take some notes, and he inexplicibly takes off his communicator/badge thing and LEAVES SICKBAY. I told you the communicator thing would come into play, just didn’t expect that so soon. Also, let me pause right here. WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING? If someone is confined to sick bay, then the CMO should call in security or, I dunno, confine them to sickbay. Also, are we too early for red shirts to get owned? Have I missed their deaths without realizing it? Okay, back to the episode.

La Forge runs into Yar and touches her face, then she breaks into Troi’s quarters to find something pretty, touching Troi in the process. This continues until most of the ship has been infected and… my goodness (fans herself), there is waaaaaay more overt sexual contact than was in The Original Series. I mean there was innuendo a plenty, but Data and Yar very obviously go to have sex, another yay for the 80’s?! Riker remembers something about someone, and Data, of course, finds the records of “The Naked Time” but the solution doesn’t work and, of course, Wesley has locked himself in engineering. The star collapses and “drunk” Data is our only hope for putting all of the chips back in the right place. Dr. Crusher figures out the inoculation and away we go.

Considering this was pulled as a plot for Season 1 of TOS, I really liked how this episode was done to set it apart. You give the nod to TOS by having Data pull the records, but of course it’s never as simple as rinse and repeat, there’s always something different. What I didn’t like was how childish, churlish, high-schoolish (pick your favorite) almost the entire crew was acting. Wesley I get, he is actually a child, but everyone else was just not right and I can’t put my finger on it. For a remake, or is it a reboot, it was okay but there wasn’t anything to write home about (I may have watched “WNOHGB” today, heh) so this episode is another 5ive.

Favorite Quote from “Code of Honor”: 

Picard: Wesley?

Wesley: I haven’t stepped one foot on your bridge, Captain.

Riker: It’s all right, sir, I’ll see that he leaves immediately.

Picard: No.

Riker: No?

Picard: Why don’t you sit at Ops next to Lieutenant La Forge.

Wesley: Sir?

La Forge: Sir?

Picard: Is the whole ship deaf?! Sit down over there, young man. Temporarily.

Picard with the sass and everyone else making sure they heard correctly.

“Code of Honor” begins with negotiations to get a vaccine from Ligon II and we get to see the cargo transporter, nifty. A red carpet is set down for Lutan, the leader, and the visitors are totally confused about Yar being in charge of security because she’s a, gasp, woman! Picard is very diplomatic and they exchange pleasantries, but Lutan wants Yar to show him through a holodeck, but I think he has more sinister intentions. Yar shows them a martial arts simulation and, as the two men go to return to their planet, they snag Yar at the last moment and beam back down with her. Picard asks everyone for their opinion and decides to wait as it is likely the custom of the Ligonians.

Dr. Crusher cannot replicate the vaccine but it does work and is badly needed. Data figures out that Picard needs to politely ask for her back and at the banquet prepared in his honor, he needs to publically ask for Yar, which he does. However Lutan wants to keep Yar and make her his first one, which the current first one, Yareena, is absolutely NOT okay with and challenges Yar to a fight with these weird claw-like weapons. Yar hits a striking blow and then beams up with Yareena. Once Yareena was “dead”, Dr. Crusher revitalized her and Yareena was free to choose a new first one. Since the women on Ligon II are the ones who own all of the land and such, she decides to choose Hagon as her first one and offers Lutan the position of second one, fascinating.

It is nice to see the exploration of different cultures. Picard tries really hard to make sure he is abiding by their culture, as he is a visitor and needs them to cooperate, while also doing everything in his power to save his security chief. It’s also interesting to see the women saving the day (Crusher, Yareena, and Yar) and making their own decisions. I was a little disappointed that, aside from the drama of the men absconding with Yar at the beginning and the first look at the fighting ring, there was no surprise or mystery. It was your typical “bad guy of the week” episode, and I was hoping for something stronger or more meaningful. I know first seasons aren’t always the best, you’re still getting your footing and such, but this didn’t really do much to tell us about any of the crew – aside from Yar being totally suited for the position of security chief and what I’m sure is going to be the first of many “WHY ARE THERE WOMEN IN CHARGE?” lines, which is going to get real old, real fast. This episode earns a threeve, a combination of three and five, from another popular Stewart. If you’ve never seen this SNL skit, here’s your chance:

I’ve now heard about the prime directive in every episode now, maybe it’s important? It’s also interesting to hear Riker leave a log more often than any of the non-Kirk characters did in TOS. Though every time Riker is called “Number One” I think of Austin Powers (and yes, I know, technically he’s Number 2 and it’s not the actor that always plays him, but Rob Lowe, man!).

TA Out!

Date: February 22, 2020

Season 1, Episode 1 (Parts 1 & 2)

Setting the Stage: After a week of watching Star Trek movies, I find myself with a new crew and a double episode, fascinating. I started around 1:30 pm on Friday, but there were a lot of breaks to be had. I’m back to watching on Netflix. For the first episode, I’m given the option to skip the intro, but I won’t since I’ve never seen it and I will watch an intro exactly once per season. I notice that the introductory words now say “to go where no one has gone before” and am glad we have moved to the 1980’s. Today’s writing music is a mix of random instrumental tracks, as played by my iTunes on shuffle.

Favorite Quote or Scene:

Data: I shall endeavor to function adequately, sir.

Riker: Yes. When the captain suggested you, I looked up your record.

Data: Yes, sir. A wise procedure, sir, always.

Riker: Then your rank of Lieutenant Commander is honorary?

Data: No, sir. Starfleet class of ’78. Honors in probability mechanics and exobiology.

Riker: Your file says that you’re a…

Data: Machine, correct, sir. Does that trouble you?

Riker: To be honest, yes, a little.

Data: Understood, sir. Prejudice is very human.

A conversation between Riker and Data in the Holodeck

Quick Summary with my Impressions: We open with Captain Picard, who is new-ish to the ship and explains that he’ll be getting a new first officer and some other key positions. There are now three chairs on the bridge: one for the first officer, one for the ship’s counselor, and one for the captain (in the middle, of course) and some nifty new uniforms. There’s also a Klingon on the bridge! As the Enterprise (new ship, who dis?) forges ahead to Farpoint station, something resembling a Tholian web blocks their path and a being named “Q” beams aboard unannounced. Dressed as a pirate, and then a World War II era soldier (and several other costume changes later), Q tells the crew to leave; they are savage humans and have gone too far. Picard tries to explain humans may have been savage in the past, but they’ve gotten over that. I mean, hellllllo there’s a Klingon in Starfleet what more proof do you need?! Q doesn’t believe them and freezes Torres, who is thankfully restored in sickbay.

Picard decides to try and catch them by surprise so he orders Worf to stay on the bridge (the Klingon in him is NOT happy, the Starfleet officer in him knows his orders) while he and some others move to another part of the ship that will detach from the saucer, fascinating. Apparently on this ship there are family members, so it makes sense for Picard to only put himself and a few of his officers in danger. Picard, Yar, Data, and Troi are put on trial by Q, but Picard argues they should be able to demonstrate they are not like their ancestors.

We move to Farpoint station, which is likely the beginning of Part 2, where we meet Riker, Dr. Crusher, and her son Wesley. Strange things are afoot here, and the Enterprise is determined to find out what before making an alliance with the folks on planet. Another new item here is that their Starfleet badges act as both communicators and their GPS coordinates, I’m sure this will free up their hands and be a plot device from here on out. Picard wants to test Riker and orders him to manually attach the part of the ship they detached earlier, and you know that’s not SOP when even the android raises his eyebrows at that order. We get a surprise cameo from an older-than-dirt McCoy, who is still as crotchety as ever and has achieved the rank of admiral.

The landing party is now called the “away team”, which I like, and Picard does not go, which also makes a boatload of sense. In fact, all of those on the away team make much more of a logical choice, and I have no idea why Spock never commented on the illogical choice of McCoy and Kirk coming along, but I digress. Here they do an awesome job with the music; soft when Dr. Crusher and Picard first lock eyes, childlike wonder when Wesley is given permission to peruse the bridge, and back to action when there’s an unknown ship approaching. That unknown ship looks strangely like the underbelly of Farpoint station and it starts shooting at the old city where the aliens are located, interesting. Turns out Farpoint station is actually just one of a mated pair of giant space jellyfish who can manipulate matter. The Enterprise helps the jellyfish reunite, solves the mystery of Farpoint station, and gets Q to agree that they aren’t as young and savage as they appear, but Q threatens to return.

I am glad to see more a more diverse bridge. A Klingon, two women (one who is only half human, oh my), an android, and some Starfleet officers of various backgrounds walk onto a bridge and it gives me hope. That hope is quickly dashed, unfortunately.

I am not fond of the security chief, Tasha Yar, I hope she gets better over time because I would love to see her kicking ass and taking names. It took a while for me to understand what Diana Troi’s character was supposed to be, and I’m also not impressed. I hope she has better showings in later episodes, because at least her character and background are very interesting. Picard is like the wise teacher you once had that makes you think about what to say before you say it, or a beloved Uncle who values your input. Riker is a young man with a lot to prove, but he seems honest and genuinely motivated to excel at his position. Dr. Crusher is amazing and I think I’m going to like her much more than I did McCoy. While McCoy had some excellent lines and gave amazing snark, Beverly Crusher does all that, is a single mom, and doesn’t appear to have a racist bone in her body. Wesley Crusher is absolutely going to be that meddlesome kid, sigh. Geordi La Forge is an awesome step forward in that his character has two things, he’s black and visually impaired, and I’m super stoked to see how amazing of a crew member he’s going to be. Above all, I think I’m going to really like Data and I’m sure none of you are surprised.

I’m excited to see the ensemble cast and hope that their future outings are much more promising. I notice some things are similar to The Original Series or some of the movies (like Troi and Riker give me serious Decker and Ilya vibes), and other things are trying to be different in order to distinguish themselves from the prior series. This doesn’t really remind me of anything else pop culture-wise at the moment, but I’ll report back if something clicks later. I suppose with 7 total seasons, the episodes have to get better – right? Now that we’re back to a TV Series, I’m back to my nonsense ratings. As this was the first episode, I’ve got to go with a rating of 5 tomatoes of various shapes, sizes, and ripeness.

TA Out!