New kids in the class. Let's watch and discuss, Star Trek: The Next Generation

[Seppl]

Starfleet HR is apparently very forgiving. I would have expected Barkley to be discharged.

Starfleet and the Federation as a whole do not believe in that kind of punishment. Especially in that era, when they even had a dedicated counselor on board. They saw that Barcley needed help, he got it, and it worked! What if they had discharged him? Starfleet would have lost a very talented engineer, and Barcley would have ended up who knows where, still having the same problems, and probably using the same coping mechanisms. I think it is a good thing that helping, not punishing, is always the first option they try.

[tomandtish]

Starfleet HR is apparently very forgiving. I would have expected Barkley to be discharged.

Starfleet and the Federation as a whole do not believe in that kind of punishment. Especially in that era, when they even had a dedicated counselor on board. They saw that Barcley needed help, he got it, and it worked! What if they had discharged him? Starfleet would have lost a very talented engineer, and Barcley would have ended up who knows where, still having the same problems, and probably using the same coping mechanisms. I think it is a good thing that helping, not punishing, is always the first option they try.

You're both correct. it's very forgiving AND it seem to be policy.

Let's face it. Plenty of the crew have had things happen to them that would realistically result in months of downtime and counseling. Heck, Picard himself has been through numerous things when any one of them should have resulted in months of therapy (physical and emotional). But he is down for only a month after Best of Both Worlds 2, since the episode Brothers takes place about 33 days later. In that time he was completely healed up physically and apparently able to pass what SHOULD be mandatory psych exams.

[KillianHawkeye]

In fact, it's shown in the episode that it's an unacceptable thing to do. Riker in particular is upset about it, and everyone else is a bit shocked by it IIRC. It's only allowed to continue so that Counselor Troi can explore his psyche and determine how much therapy he needs.



Regarding the review, it's happened before but I'm still not sure how the multiple rating scores work. Russdm give this episode a 3 (average), but also a 1 (likely because of the problematic activities of Lt. Barclay). What does that mean?

I understand objecting to certain content if it's being approved or glorified, but sci-fi sometimes (or often, in the case of Star Trek) addresses problem behaviors in people with the idea of exploring why some things are wrong and what can be done about them. Why would including such things in an episode be bad? It's clearly not being presented in a good light or as being okay.

[Peelee]

Regarding the review, it's happened before but I'm still not sure how the multiple rating scores work. Russdm give this episode a 3 (average), but also a 1 (likely because of the problematic activities of Lt. Barclay). What does that mean?

Yeah, I've never really understood having multiple ratings (and with the reasoning being copy/pasted form issues to boot).

[DigoDragon]

In fact, it's shown in the episode that it's an unacceptable thing to do. Riker in particular is upset about it, and everyone else is a bit shocked by it IIRC. It's only allowed to continue so that Counselor Troi can explore his psyche and determine how much therapy he needs.

"We need this. For research."

But Barkley does get better, yeah. It's just the dangerous AIs that get locked up (if Lower Decks is followed).

[Peelee]

"We need this. For research."

But Barkley does get better, yeah. It's just the dangerous AIs that get locked up (if Lower Decks is followed).

Broccoli also shows to have gotten better in Voyager.

[KillianHawkeye]

Broccoli also shows to have gotten better in Voyager.

Fun Fact: Dwight Schultz actually has more appearances on Voyager than he does on Next Generation.

[russdm]

Regarding the review, it's happened before but I'm still not sure how the multiple rating scores work. Russdm give this episode a 3 (average), but also a 1 (likely because of the problematic activities of Lt. Barclay). What does that mean?

it means that I consider it an episode that has an average score. It does include the material, but it is not enough to drop the episode down in score in my opinion. plus some episodes have both an A plot and an B plot, with some combining of the two and some instances of them being separate. in those cases/occasions, the different plots can vary in quality in my opinion

feel free to question my judgement, i take no offense

[Manga Shoggoth]

it means that I consider it an episode that has an average score. It does include the material, but it is not enough to drop the episode down in score in my opinion. plus some episodes have both an A plot and an B plot, with some combining of the two and some instances of them being separate. in those cases/occasions, the different plots can vary in quality in my opinion

feel free to question my judgement, i take no offense

The trouble is that you shouldn't be giving two values to an overall rating - that's the whole point of a rating.

On the occasions you need to do something simillar, I would suggest showing that you are judging the plots (or whatever else) seperately, for example:

Main Plot: 3 - Average episode: OK to watch, but nothing amazing.
Side Plot: 1 - Bad episode: Multiple weaknesses (bad acting, bad story, disasterous effects, poor connection to lore)

Or even:

Main Plot: 3 - Average episode: OK to watch, but nothing amazing.
Side Plot: 1 - Bad episode: Multiple weaknesses (bad acting, bad story, disasterous effects, poor connection to lore)
Overall: 3 - Average episode: OK to watch, but nothing amazing.

Note that the three ratings can then be independent - the episode as a whole can be OK (for example, saved by good acting), while the individual plots can still be rated poor.

[russdm]

will take things into account. also will get back to this. finishing up my class so i have been busy with that

[Manga Shoggoth]

will take things into account. also will get back to this. finishing up my class so i have been busy with that

Finals this early in the year? Of just end of term?

[DigoDragon]

Finals this early in the year? Of just end of term?

Brace yourselves, winter break is coming. :3

[russdm]

Season 3 Episode 22
The Most Toys
Stardate: 43872.2

[Plot]
the crew meet with kivas fajo, an independent trader to cure some kind of thing on Beta Agni. the material can be only delivered by Data. then Data blows up.

not really. Data gets captured by some person who works for fajo

the crew mourn Data, well, except for laforge. then the crew does their mission with the cure thing. doctor crusher does some actual medicine. the crew figure out how fajo got involved and rescue Data

then there was stuff with fajo and Data and

the last scene is watching Data talk to Fajo in the jail/brig

[Rating]
1 - Bad episode: Multiple weaknesses (bad acting, bad story, disasterous effects, poor connection to lore)

{Episode Commentary}
to be honest, this is a bad episode because it relies too heavily on contrivances
The first one - Fajo somehow knows where the Enterprise will be in order to affect some planet so that he can get Data to transport the matieral
the second one - fajo knows that Data is currently on the Enterprise and not on some kind of mission elsewhere
the third one - the enterprise is the closest ship for doing the mission
the fourth one - Data is the best pilot, and would be picked for the job
the fifth one - Data is the only one on the ship
the sixth one - that the crew would actually need to get the material from Fajo in the first place and not have any alternates
the seventh one - that the crew would receive the mission or be able to perform it, as opposed getting called away like what happened with Worf's girlfriend
the eighth one - fajo has a force field to prevent Data from touching him, but that doesn't stop Data from harming anyone else
the ninth one - being told that the vault door can't be punched through, Data decides not to make an effort to examine the walls
the tenth one - during the escape plan, Data makes no attempt to disable the ship or the crew; he just tries to escape with Varria. Then there is no effort of Data to disable the others that fajo didn't give his shield to
the elventh one - that Data does very little to actually try to escape, but runs what tvtropes called politeness judo
the twelveth one - that the crew would complete their mission and be capable of figuring out the plot
the last one - that Data is going to be actually having a chance of remaining a captive of fajo

these things make this episode not un-believable. also, i just didn't the story one that i cared about enough. i also, didn't like the ending and that i think it should have ended with fajo getting shot. Would have held a better resolution

So? Do fellow playgrounders agree? Disagree? Comments of your own? Get some discussing going on

Next Episode - Sarek

Trackers)
Starfleet is run by Morons: 1
The Universe/Franchise shook and was changed: 2
I HATE the Borg and wish they were never thought up: 1 (their first episode)
Picard's Gifts: 1
Prime Directive Hell: 1
Q Messes with the Crew, For Laughs: 1
Doctor Who timey-wimey Destructo Enterprise Disco: 2
Klingon Rituals/Rites: 1
Poker Playing: 2
Gene Roddenberry ruins Star Trek: 4 ()
Redshirts Actually wearing a Redshirt Deaths: 1
Hidden Gems: 7
Funny Guest Star Appearances: 9 ()
Rank of Miles:
Prime Directives: 3
Patrick Stewart Speech: 4 (Did I miss an earlier one? I don't think so)
Riker "Patrick Stewart Speech": 1
Riker Romances Something/Someone: 3
Pithy Aesops: 1
Klingon Proverbs/Beliefs/Sentiments: 1) Drink not with thine enemy; A) Several in the Episode, "Heart of Glory"; Klingons know how to deal with spies ; honor matters a great deal;
Worfed (Worf loses to establish danger): 2
Holodeck Mishaps/Breakings/Issues: 1
Actually Alien Aliens: 2
Lore's Appearances: 1
*Data's Emotions: 3
*Troi Troubles: 1
*Money Matters: 1
Polarize the Phase Inverters: 1

[KillianHawkeye]

Damn, that's the harshest review of this episode I've ever seen, bro.

I mean, I guess Fatjo or whatever his name is doesn't actually seem smart enough to pull off a caper like this, but the parts that we do see are well performed and the actual plot of the episode is well acted. The villain seems adequately competent, for the most part, and there's nothing wrong with contrived circumstances if we're given one party with the means and motivation and the time to set up those circumstances. And in the end, the episode provides an interesting window into Data's relative morality functions.

But also, in all honesty, Data is the only crew member with a potentially unlimited lifespan. So exploring Data's mortality as an android is something worth looking at (and worth writing about), and we'll see it again in the 5th season finale "Time's Arrow" (and again in later things).

[russdm]

Damn, that's the harshest review of this episode I've ever seen, bro.

I mean, I guess Fatjo or whatever his name is doesn't actually seem smart enough to pull off a caper like this, but the parts that we do see are well performed and the actual plot of the episode is well acted. The villain seems adequately competent, for the most part, and there's nothing wrong with contrived circumstances if we're given one party with the means and motivation and the time to set up those circumstances. And in the end, the episode provides an interesting window into Data's relative morality functions.

But also, in all honesty, Data is the only crew member with a potentially unlimited lifespan. So exploring Data's mortality as an android is something worth looking at (and worth writing about), and we'll see it again in the 5th season finale "Time's Arrow" (and again in later things).

I was going to rate it a Poor Episode but those contrivances, I couldn't get around. I really like sense and common sense in my Science Fiction

While I agree with your comments, there are too many contrivances to make the story work well. We aren't given enough information about how Fajo found out things, which would have helped to establish how threatening he could be. Instead, he comes across as being more of an opportunist that had "Plot" powers handed to him: The anti-android shield; knowing that the Enterprise would be there; that he could get the material both to do the poisoning and be able to cure it; that the cure material would require Data to transport

We learn that Fajo is an independent trader with a thief for a father, but nothing about if Fajo learned any skills from his father. Nor do we learn anything about how he found out what he needed to disable Data first off and then have a force field/shield that works agaisnt Androids.

if you remember from earlier, the only known Androids in existence at this point are Data and Lore. well, for the ones that employ positrons or whatever "Space Magic" that Soong used to make his Androids. Since Fajo hasn't appeared before this, how did he even know that what he had would actually work against Data?

if Data is as rare and unique as Fajo claims, then how the Heck does he have something that is supposed to protect him against Androids like Data and how does it even actually work? It would have to be tested at some time, unless Fajo got it un-tested, meaning that might not have actually worked.

Explaining anything about how Fajo might have connections in the Federation that He could have used to learn things would have worked better to be included. That would have allowed for getting a sense of the preparations that Fajo did. He claims about making great efforts, but without learning what those are, it is just empty lines with no meaning behind them.

the writers could have gone to the effort to let us know these things, but chose not to make the effort. if they don't want to make Fajo appear that effective, then it is their fault not that of the viewers

I really like Logic and Logical Deductive Reasoning in my Star Trek because it claims to be Science Fiction, so I expect Science to play a role and also, Star Trek TNG takes itself seriously. I can accept things in Star Wars that I wouldn't accept in Star Trek because Star Wars is Space Opera, and also because I love Star Wars but only like Star Trek.

[Manga Shoggoth]

This is actually one of the episodes I have seen and remember. I think you are a little harsh - I'd have rated it as a 3: It's an OK story, has some nice character work for Data (I actually started liking the character after this episode)...

... And the ending completely demolishes Fajo. I mean, he doesn't even have the cold comfort that he was taken down by an opponent that he had hurt and forced into action. Data literally had no emotional reaction for him to take pleasure in. Even Data's decision to shoot was based on a pure "you have just killed, and if I allow you to live you will carry on killing" logic.

I mean, I guess Fatjo or whatever his name is doesn't actually seem smart enough to pull off a caper like this, but the parts that we do see are well performed and the actual plot of the episode is well acted. The villain seems adequately competent, for the most part, and there's nothing wrong with contrived circumstances if we're given one party with the means and motivation and the time to set up those circumstances. And in the end, the episode provides an interesting window into Data's relative morality functions.

Agreed. Sometimes "successful" people appear more completent than they are while they are not putting a foot wrong, but once they start making missteps (or move into an area they don't understand) they quickly find they are out of their depth. Fajo might even have been competent in his own backyard, but had no idea what he was getting into and even if he had managed to handle Data one more time, the Enterprise crew (without his knowledge) were already on to him.

[Velaryon]

It wasn't a great episode, but I think giving it a 1/5 is a little too harsh. There are some things that strain credulity a bit, but the actor playing Fajo was just so hateable that he sticks in my memory decades later. Heck, any time I saw him pop up in some other show, I'd always remember him from this one throwaway TNG episode. That deserves some degree of respect in my book.

[russdm]

to be honest, my original starting out score was "Poor", because the crew had the mission of curing something (the whatever on that place) that sounded boring and not interesting and then the crew were getting that dangerous stuff for the cure. Again, sounded boring. i blame the "monster of the week" format here

so I was already going in with low expectations

then Data gets disabled by what looks to be your standard Pad that everyone has. What gives? how did that work and why? no explanation happens (first bad mark)

the crew thinks that Data died, but again "monster of the week", he will be fine at the end anyway

Fajo and Data have stuff, we learn about Fajo's shield. what the literal heck? how would he have that and how would it work? no explanation happens (this gives the episode a second bad mark)

Fajo boasts about the vault door and how Data would take ages breaking it down with his android strength. how the heck does Fajo know what strength Data has as an android? no explanation happens (third bad mark) also why doesn't Data consider the walls in the vault? the door is not the sole part of the vault. (fourth bad mark)

the crew learn about how Fajo did the poisoning whatever and that he was going to get Data. (Bad Marks: how does Fajo know the Enterprise will be the only ship to deal with the problem when Starfleet doesn't always seem to know where the Enterprise will be; how is Data the most qualified candidate or the only one who can deliver the material; why was Data going by himself and not with someone to monitor the material if it is as dangerous as claimed; Data has to pilot the shuttle when they should have just stuck the material in a shuttle on autopilot and then use the tractor beam to move the shuttle) (that's 4 more bad marks)

during the story, Fajo claims to have the "famous" Data but never explains how or why Data is "famous". fajo calls him the "Famous Commander Data" as if whoever Fajo shows Data off to would know who he is (another bad mark) Don't ever assume that anyone in universe/in-story would know what the audience does

at no point does Fajo talk about having learned anything of Data's history or anything that would allow for Fajo to show off Data. For how much Fajo claimed to have made an effort, Fajo doesn't seem to actually know anything. Fajo is presented to us as a collector that has knowledge but he can't tell anything about Data to others? (that's another bad mark)

then it gets decided that Data will try to kill Fajo but unfortunately for the series, o'brien stops that from happening.

no, no, no

that is completely unacceptable. if Data had managed to kill Fajo, then we could have explored how Data deals with the aftermath and how/if that changes how Data is perceived by others. we could have explored how Data learns how humans would handle or not having done that. we could have gotten a considerable amount of future growth for Data

that is a very big missed chance and the biggest bad mark for the episode.

in fact, a better episode would have been about what would drive Data to kill, with the crew and Picard experiencing the result of that kind of choice. it is already a big thing for a human to handle, to kill someone or be driven to kill, to say nothing about how Data would experience

missed chance that the writers heavily erred on ignoring

yeah I do get that people disagree

[KillianHawkeye]

I dunno man, all these complaints seem really petty to me.

Like, obviously the data padd was booby trapped with enough voltage to knock out Data. It wasn't just a coincidence that it shocked him, it was part of their plan. How did they know how much it would take to stun him? How did they know that an anti-positron device would protect Fajo? How did they know how strong Data is? Why does he think Data is famous?

The answer is that Data is a publicly known person, whose famed and unique position as the only fully-sentient android in Starfleet gives him a certain renown and also makes him the subject of scientific study. Like, even the Klingons and Romulans have heard about Data, why wouldn't other random people? His general capabilities are quite well known and the information is available to anyone who knows where to look for it. It's well known that he is a positronic lifeform. It's well known that he can lift X kilograms and withstand Y amounts of energy or whatever. These are not state secrets.

These things are not stated outright, but are very easy for most of us to infer from prior episodes and general knowledge. It's easy enough for most of us to imagine someone spending enough time and resources could make a plan to kidnap Data, and my guess is that he did spend at least several weeks or months setting all this up. Most of us can just assume that this is what happened, because the details of all this are honestly not important to the story. Not you, apparently, you're getting stuck on irrelevant minutiae.



To be frank, these episodes are only 42-ish minutes, and there simply isn't time to explain how the bad guy planned everything out in advance when that isn't the point of the episode. This episode is about two things: how Data's friends feel when they think he is dead (and how they'll leap into action upon realizing they've been duped), and how Data deals with being placed into captivity (and the morality of his attempts to escape).

You're right that the plot to take the Enterprise away only to give them a clue that they need to go back and find Data is a bit weak, but the emotional content is what carries the rest of the episode. If you get hung up on the details of how the villain planned to capture Data, or how the Enterprise crew discovered that Data was still alive, you're simply missing the point of the episode.

[russdm]

I dunno man, all these complaints seem really petty to me.

If the show wants to move away from the general camp of the original series and be more serious, then yeah I will take it a little more seriously too

And some of the complaints are petty

Like, obviously the data padd was booby trapped with enough voltage to knock out Data. It wasn't just a coincidence that it shocked him, it was part of their plan. How did they know how much it would take to stun him? How did they know that an anti-positron device would protect Fajo? How did they know how strong Data is? Why does he think Data is famous?

The answer is that Data is a publicly known person, whose famed and unique position as the only fully-sentient android in Starfleet gives him a certain renown and also makes him the subject of scientific study. Like, even the Klingons and Romulans have heard about Data, why wouldn't other random people? His general capabilities are quite well known and the information is available to anyone who knows where to look for it. It's well known that he is a positronic lifeform. It's well known that he can lift X kilograms and withstand Y amounts of energy or whatever. These are not state secrets.

So you are basically saying that Starfleet permanently fails in regards to something like HIPPA (that privacy rights and medical thing) and also in keeping anything private about people in their employ. then they teach the same. given what happened with broccoli that is true

These things are not stated outright, but are very easy for most of us to infer from prior episodes and general knowledge. It's easy enough for most of us to imagine someone spending enough time and resources could make a plan to kidnap Data, and my guess is that he did spend at least several weeks or months setting all this up. Most of us can just assume that this is what happened, because the details of all this are honestly not important to the story. Not you, apparently, you're getting stuck on irrelevant minutiae.

I think having Fajo say to Data that Fajo heard about Data and was curious so Fajo sought out everything that Fajo could possibly learn would remove a good many of my complaints and shows that Fajo was committed. just a line or two of dialogue and we are solid

because it feels more like Fajo saw an opportunity and jumped on it as being good luck. with hap-hazard preparation that managed to work

To be frank, these episodes are only 42-ish minutes, and there simply isn't time to explain how the bad guy planned everything out in advance when that isn't the point of the episode. This episode is about two things: how Data's friends feel when they think he is dead (and how they'll leap into action upon realizing they've been duped), and how Data deals with being placed into captivity (and the morality of his attempts to escape).

I think that this episode had two plots put together because how Data's friends feel when they think he is dead deserves an episode of its own and Data being a captive feels like it should be its own episode.

they do it better in an episode in a later season with Ro Laren and Geordi with the plot there (relating to dead people)

You're right that the plot to take the Enterprise away only to give them a clue that they need to go back and find Data is a bit weak, but the emotional content is what carries the rest of the episode. If you get hung up on the details of how the villain planned to capture Data, or how the Enterprise crew discovered that Data was still alive, you're simply missing the point of the episode.

hey, the season decided to grow the beard for the series. so we should be expecting better average quality of the episodes

as for emotional content.......

lololololololol


umm, Star Trek Nemesis does it better in a scene and manages to carry more emotional feeling of the cast than does this episode. so does the episode with Ro and Ggeordi

of course nemesis didn't have "we need to complete the mission then maybe we can mourn Data if we remember"

I think that the only ones who seem to be affected is Worf (who gets Data's job and says that he will honor it as his predecessors did), Geordi, Wes, and Picard. don't recall the others being all that broken up. i think that Riker reminisces about when he met Data in Nemesis, which is a lovely scene

if not a bad episode, i would consider it a poor one. or i can cut them a lot of slack to say that it is just average

[Gnoman]

I think that the only ones who seem to be affected is Worf (who gets Data's job and says that he will honor it as his predecessors did), Geordi, Wes, and Picard. don't recall the others being all that broken up. i think that Riker reminisces about when he met Data in Nemesis, which is a lovely scene

There's a time to mourn, and a time to put on the stiff upper lip and get the job done. The couple of times Kirk "dies" in the original show aren't really that different - maybe a bit more undercurrent of sadness, but this is mostly buried until just before it is revealed that he survived.

[The Glyphstone]

Have we gotten to 'Measure of a Man' yet? Data might still legally be Starfleet property, so even if they have privacy laws like HIPPA it wouldn't apply to a piece of (unique) equipment any more than a particularly souped up tractor on a farm somewhere.

[hamishspence]

Have we gotten to 'Measure of a Man' yet?

Measure of a Man was Season 2 - this late Season 3 episode would be set around 1 year later.

[The Glyphstone]

Measure of a Man was Season 2 - this late Season 3 episode would be set around 1 year later.

Okay, so he does at least have rights now. Still a comparatively long period of time for information about him to be floating around the galaxy. If alien empires recognize him on sight, I'm prepared to accept that a professional con man has heard of him.

[theNater]

during the story, Fajo claims to have the "famous" Data but never explains how or why Data is "famous". fajo calls him the "Famous Commander Data" as if whoever Fajo shows Data off to would know who he is (another bad mark) Don't ever assume that anyone in universe/in-story would know what the audience does

In addition to being the only known sentient android in the quadrant, Data is also the sole survivor of a lost colony, the first of his kind to join Starfleet, and the center of a landmark legal ruling. These are all newsworthy traits; anyone who keeps up with Federation news will be at least vaguely aware he exists.

I think having Fajo say to Data that Fajo heard about Data and was curious so Fajo sought out everything that Fajo could possibly learn would remove a good many of my complaints and shows that Fajo was committed.

Fajo is clearly obsessed with rare and unique things, and Data certainly qualifies. Given that, it would have been weirder if he had not been studying Data.

because it feels more like Fajo saw an opportunity and jumped on it as being good luck. with hap-hazard preparation that managed to work

No, Fajo prepared for an opportunity, and took it when it arose. When he saw a news article titled something like "First Android in Starfleet Joins Flagship", he had his vault reinforced, the fake PADD and the shield built, and stores of the poison and the antidote placed in his cargo bay. He had all these things ready, probably for multiple years, just in case he ran in to the Enterprise. Then, when he did, he poisoned the nearest inhabited planet, flew off to a inconspicuous distance, and waited. The antidote was not safe to transport or tractor beam because he specifically picked it for those qualities.

Note that if his plan had failed in the early stages, it costs him next to nothing. Maybe it's a different ship, or it is the Enterprise but they send a different pilot. Then all he does is refrain from blowing up the shuttle. After that, he can just buy more poison and antidote or come up with a new plan.

[russdm]

Fajo is clearly obsessed with rare and unique things, and Data certainly qualifies. Given that, it would have been weirder if he had not been studying Data.

No, Fajo prepared for an opportunity, and took it when it arose. When he saw a news article titled something like "First Android in Starfleet Joins Flagship", he had his vault reinforced, the fake PADD and the shield built, and stores of the poison and the antidote placed in his cargo bay. He had all these things ready, probably for multiple years, just in case he ran in to the Enterprise. Then, when he did, he poisoned the nearest inhabited planet, flew off to a inconspicuous distance, and waited. The antidote was not safe to transport or tractor beam because he specifically picked it for those qualities.

I would have liked a couple of lines of dialogue expressing what you said and I would be good; would have no complaints. Otherwise, it feels more like he had some items just lying around in general (the anti-android shield, poison and cure)

[russdm]

Season 3 Episode 23
Sarek
Stardate: 43917.4

[Plot]
The crew go to pick up Sarek, that famous Vulcan. He needs to finish one last mission. The problem? Sarek is experiencing some awkward Vulcan Aging problems.

Some attempt is made to keep this hidden, but in the end, with Sarek sending out Hate!Vibes or something, Picard does a mind meldy. Then the mission is complete and Sarek can go home

[Rating]
5 - Excelent episode: Episode excels in most or all ways - major character development, good story and so on

{Episode Commentary}
Yeah, that description was not the best. The episode though happens to be one of the best ones. the story is pretty simple - Sarek is finishing up one last bit of diplomacy, but the story is also about how Sarek is getting old and experiencing one kind of aging for Vulcans. So it ends up being a pretty powerful episode.

Having Mark Leonard come back is pretty awesome, and it affects the characters/actors. Great performances come from all around, aside from Dr. Crusher, who happens to be a little useless. Not much of a Doctor she is.

Picard having to confront the reality of Sarek versus the Ideal of Sarek is staggeringly good, especially when Picard has to confront letting people know that Sarek can't do the job anymore. Having to come up with a solution that leads to a dignified ending for all concerned is powerfully emotional.

The best scenes are Picard bascially emoting out Sarek's feelings. happens to be a rather touching scene.

we also learn that Spock got married

So? Do fellow playgrounders agree? Disagree? Comments of your own? Get some discussing going on

Next Episode - Menage a troi (more Troi Fun)

Trackers)
Starfleet is run by Morons: 1
The Universe/Franchise shook and was changed: 2
I HATE the Borg and wish they were never thought up: 1 (their first episode)
Picard's Gifts: 2 (mind meld with Sarek)
Prime Directive Hell: 1
Q Messes with the Crew, For Laughs: 1
Doctor Who timey-wimey Destructo Enterprise Disco: 2
Klingon Rituals/Rites: 1
Poker Playing: 2
Gene Roddenberry ruins Star Trek: 4 ()
Redshirts Actually wearing a Redshirt Deaths: 1
Hidden Gems: 8
Funny Guest Star Appearances: 10 (Mark leonard)
Rank of Miles:
Prime Directives: 3
Patrick Stewart Speech: 4 (Did I miss an earlier one? I don't think so)
Riker "Patrick Stewart Speech": 1
Riker Romances Something/Someone: 3
Pithy Aesops: 1
Klingon Proverbs/Beliefs/Sentiments: 1) Drink not with thine enemy; A) Several in the Episode, "Heart of Glory"; Klingons know how to deal with spies ; honor matters a great deal;
Worfed (Worf loses to establish danger): 2
Holodeck Mishaps/Breakings/Issues: 1
Actually Alien Aliens: 2
Lore's Appearances: 1
*Data's Emotions: 3
*Troi Troubles: 1
*Money Matters: 1
Polarize the Phase Inverters: 1

[Gnoman]

It isn't surprising that Spock's mother isn't around anymore, but it is interesting that he married another human after her. One of those things that hint at a richer character life than you get to see on screen.

[Carl]

I know you've jumped ahead an episode, but regarding Fajo and his plan. I allways assumed the shield was an another one of his collected toys. Not somthing he or anyone else could easily come up with, but somthing someone could have done one time and it's somthing that someone like Fajo would want to collect.

The info about data goes back to prior episodes, but also in a roundabout way will be called forward in future episodes in both TNG and other series. The federation laws as written don't cover a lot of situations with artificial lifeforms and a number of episodes were spent addressing this, (hence why Picard drew so much flak from longtime fans). Given that and a lack of details around his immediate post discovery pre-starfleet life there's a big gap in terms of how he was handled. a lot of info could reasonably have gotten out then. Also him being the best pilot is kind of a given, he's an android and he's also the only person on record to ace the manual dockick piloting on the first try, (even if that was never officially released, scuttlebut will have likly gotten out).

The point regarding the cure and why Enterprise would have to go to him for it was actually addressed, the nearest location that fajo knew of with it, (note the Enterprise didn't), was weeks away even for Enterprise. He didn't even need to be that close to the planet to ensure they'd come to him because almost no one has the stuff.

I'll agree it's not the strongest episode mind. But a lot of the flaws you point out are directly or indirectly addressed somwhere.

[russdm]

I'll agree it's not the strongest episode mind. But a lot of the flaws you point out are directly or indirectly addressed somwhere.

So, everything that has come out up to the current episode through TV based on release is considered by me to be canon. The TV shows don't count the novels and anything else, so I don't either. If it was said or shown in a previous episode then it would count. Or if it was in: the original series, the animated series, the movies that were released so far, the previous next generation episodes