Star Trek: TNG Season 6 “Schisms” and “True Q”

Just gettin’ my 8th Grade Science Experiment on.

I’m going through “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and reviewing every episode, complete with commentary and a grade from A-F. I’ve also included a score and comment from my wife, who has never seen the show before. There are SPOILERS for each episode below.

“Schisms”

Plot

Riker is having problems sleeping, and it begins to creep into his working life on board the Enterprise. He and others convene to share some of the strange experiences and discover they’ve been having the same “dream” that features some disturbing content, suggesting they might be kidnapped each night. La Forge, Dr. Crusher, and Data work together to find a way to track the people who disappear, and when Riker does, he wakes up and thwarts the aliens who have been abducting people from the Enterprise.

Commentary

Okay, let’s just throw this out there (probably again): how the heck do they not just have a monitoring system on board the Enterprise that lets security know when someone just disappears off the ship or when someone comes on board? Seriously. They are able to track people at all points on board. How is this not a basic safety feature both for individuals and the ship’s security? Not having this stretches credulity quite a bit in many episodes, and this is one of the more blatant ones. It’s just hard to believe something like this could actually happen.

The scene in which the people who have been taken away describe their experience on the holodeck is also super weird in a number of ways. The weirdest thing is the unannounced and un-introduced random woman who is there. We know the other people, but who the heck is she? Why doesn’t she have a uniform? Or a name? We never find out. Oh well.

All of that said, there is a strong sense of creepy foreboding surrounding this episode that makes it somehow not terrible despite the aforementioned problems. Is it impossible to believe that this could actually happen? Yes. Is it still enjoyable? Yes.

Grade: B- “It’s pretty weird and it relies too much on me not thinking about it.”

Wife’s Grade and Comment: B “There was nothing wrong with it, it just wasn’t that great.”

“True Q”

Plot

Amanda is a young woman who has been offered the chance to join Starfleet and have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to trial run it on the Enterprise. However, she keeps making things happen, and it turns out Q is involved in testing her. She is actually one of the Q Continuum, and she must either decide to take on her identity as Q or give up her powers forever under penalty of death. Ultimately, she struggles mightily with the decision, but cannot give up her powers in the face of people who have needs. She goes to join the Q.

Commentary

What would you do when faced with a decision like this? Give up the life you live and everything you thought was real and wanted to do in exchange for near-omnipotence? It sounds obvious that you’d pursue the omnipotence, but “True Q” makes a solid case for how difficult the decision would actually be.

It helps that Amanda was solidly acted. It would be hard to believe this was a dilemma at all if the actor hadn’t pulled it off, but she did. Q was his usual ridiculous self, and I also noticed yet again how uncomfortably close he gets to everyone. Is it necessary for him to creep so closely to Amanda as he trains her? Why are his hands always on Riker or Picard? He’s very touchy-feely. Maybe that’s what all Q are like. Weird.

I used to really not like Q episodes because I found him so annoying, but I’ve discovered as I watch these in order, several of the Q episodes are quite good. This is another entry in that string of success. It is well-written and well-acted.

Grade: A- “An interesting look at facing an extremely difficult choice.”

Wife’s Grade and Comment: B+ “I liked the way they dealt with Amanda’s self-discovery and personality, but Q was kind of a creep.” 

Links

J.W. Wartick- Always Have a Reason– Check out my “main site” which talks about philosophy of religion, theology, and Christian apologetics (among other random topics). I love science fiction so that comes up integrated with theology fairly frequently as well. I’d love to have you follow there, too!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter for discussion of posts, links to other pages of interest, random talk about theology/philosophy/apologetics/movies/scifi/sports and more!

Star Trek: TNG– For more episode reviews, follow this site and also click this link to read more (scroll down as needed)! Drop me a comment to let me know what you thought!

SDG.

Re-Read of “The Legend of Drizzt” – The Icewind Dale Trilogy

It has been many years (13 or so) since I read the tales of the Legend of Drizzt Saga. For those who are familiar with this series, the name evokes memories of adventurous tales of grand action. For the uninitiated, these books are perhaps the definitive experience for those wanting to read fantasy works set in the universe of Dungeons and Dragons. Nerd hats on, everybody. Here, I review volume II of the Legend, which contains the Icewind Dale Trilogy: The Crystal Shard, Streams of Silver, and The Halfling’s Gem.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy

The “Icewind Dale Trilogy” is a fast-paced fantasy adventure following Drizzt and company as they fight enemies, get pursued by assassins, and more.

Salvatore does an excellent job here of keeping the action moving. The books never seem to drag–a problem that existed in the Dark Elf Trilogy. Here, readers are thrust into action scene after action scene without letting up. This was an excellent decision because that also means there is little time in the whirlwind of activity to reflect on the total coherence of the story. More on that later, but for now it is worth noting that at no point did I feel like these books dragged or that the story had crawled to a stop.

The overarching plot isn’t quite as cohesive and interesting as the Dark Elf Trilogy’s was. This trilogy feels quite a bit like a Dungeons and Dragons campaign with a few points linking all the adventures together. It just is not as tied together as the prequel trilogy. Although enemies do persist and there is a general sense of a broader world, there is little sense I do have to wonder, too, why it is referenced as the “Icewind Dale Trilogy” when, realistically, only the first book deals much with Icewind Dale proper. It’s a minor complaint, but there it is.

The part of the stories that I think I enjoyed most when I read these books so long ago was actually the part I most frequently found myself skimming this time around: the action. I know I already talked about how it is good the books stay fast-paced, and it is. My point, though, is that a lot of the fights feel very similar. Scimitars slash, hammers whirl, axes cut in half, bows fire–all with abandon. But after a while it feels like the characters are just going through the motions. The fights began to get meshed together in my mind, with just settings and a different order of enemies slain to differentiate them. They’re clearly choreographed and thought out, but–maybe this is a symptom of being older–I just wanted more plot.

What Salvatore did do quite well regarding the plot, however, was character development. Each main character (and indeed most of the secondary characters) felt like real people with motivations and personalities that were generally distinct. Whether it was Cattie-Brie or Bruenor, Wulfgar or Drizzt, the characters were all well written and interesting. Moreover, the villains themselves were intriguing and had enough backstory or mystery surrounding them to keep me interested.

Overall, the Icewind Dale Trilogy was a solid read. It’s not going to blow readers away with the plot, but it will provide several good afternoons full of sweeping adventure. And really, that’s much of what fantasy is all about.

The Good

+Fast-paced
+Good character development
+Glimpses of moral issues
+Interesting villains

The Bad

-Repetitive action
-Weak overarching plot
-Why is it called “The Icewind Dale Trilogy”?

The Verdict

Grade: B+ “It drags at times, but ‘The Dark Elf’ Trilogy is an intriguing introduction to a fantasy legend.”

What do you think?

Links

J.W. Wartick- Always Have a Reason– Check out my “main site” which talks about philosophy of religion, theology, and Christian apologetics (among other random topics). I love science fiction so that comes up integrated with theology fairly frequently as well. I’d love to have you follow there, too!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter for discussion of posts, links to other pages of interest, random talk about theology/philosophy/apologetics/movies/scifi/sports and more!

SDG.

Star Trek: TNG Season 6 “Man of the People” and “Relics”

Besties.

I’m going through “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and reviewing every episode, complete with commentary and a grade from A-F. I’ve also included a score and comment from my wife, who has never seen the show before. There are SPOILERS for each episode below.

“Man of the People”

Plot

An empath diplomat comes on board the Enterprise with his mother, who is immediately quite hostile towards Counselor Troi. Shortly thereafter, the “mother” dies, and the empath asks Troi to help with a ceremony for the dead, which in fact binds Troi to him and channels his anger and other emotions into her. She begins to age startlingly quickly and also exhibits a strong desire to channel her emotions. The crew realizes something is wrong but doesn’t pinpoint it until Troi is dying and the empath is on a planet in diplomatic talks. They manage to sever the empath’s ties to Troi by using a decoy, which leads to his death.

Find a fuller plot summary here.

Commentary

Sometimes it seems like Troi is a one-trick pony. She has her moments, but the writers have yet to really cash in on her as well as they could. “Man of the People” is another example of this. I can almost see the brainstorming session: “Okay, we’re gonna have this empath guy who uses his abilities to trap women to absorb his anger and stuff and it ages them and makes them die.”; “Yeah, and because he’s empath and Troi is empath they automatically are attracted to each other and he decides she’s his next victim!” “Yeah! That sounds great!”

We get it. Troi has empathic abilities. Does that mean she is the only one ever who has alien empaths interested in her? It seems like it so far, and “Man of the People” felt distinctly deja vu. It really isn’t a bad episode, because the gradual changes in Troi’s character and appearance are disturbing and the story is pretty solid. The problem is that it is just another example of why it always has to be Troi. But why?

It’s not at all a bad episode. It just feels like one that has been done differently before, many times.

Grade: B “It’s not a bad episode, but it feels very deja vu. Troi is always the target!”

Wife’s Grade and Comment: B+ “It made me hate the bad guy so well!”

“Relics”

Plot

The Enterprise is investigating a wrecked Starfleet ship when they discover that someone is apparently in a transporter loop. When they retrieve the person, it turns out to be Scotty, the chief engineer from the original series! He has been stuck in the loop for decades, and as he struggles to reintegrate with Starfleet life, he talks to Geordi, Data, and Picard (among others). Meanwhile, the Enterprise gets stuck inside the huge sphere-like world that was built around the local star. La Forge and Scotty must resolve their differences and save the Enterprise, which they do, of course! High fives all around.

Commentary

BEAM ME UP SCOTTY!

Sorry, I had to. It’s what I called out when he first showed up on the transporter pad in the derelict ship. Beth, my wife, really wasn’t expecting to see him, that’s for sure!

It was delightful to see Scotty on board the Enterprise again, but this episode is more than just bringing a guest star back from the previous series. Indeed, it is far more thoughtful than one might expect, as Scotty has to struggle with his own perceived uselessness and his desire to be helpful. There is a surprising amount of melancholy found here, but it is balanced with a good helping of humor and a well-paced plot.

Once again, we realize how much La Forge has come into his own. He is an epic character now, with a full-bodied background and persona. His interactions with Scotty seem so on-target because Geordi really is so by-the-book and precise that we know he would act that way in his interactions with others and his care for anything in engineering. It provides a stark contrast with Scotty’s way of doing things–one that the writers banked on to show how they might learn from each other.

Honestly this is just a fun episode, and it could have gone terribly. The fact that it didn’t is a testament both to how strong the characters have become (here’s looking at you, Geordi!), as well as some good writing. A great episode.

Grade: A “Geordi’s interactions with Scotty were phenomenal character building. Set alongside a great story, this is a fantastic episode.”

Wife’s Grade and Comment: A “It had a good message and great nostalgia factor.”

Links

J.W. Wartick- Always Have a Reason– Check out my “main site” which talks about philosophy of religion, theology, and Christian apologetics (among other random topics). I love science fiction so that comes up integrated with theology fairly frequently as well. I’d love to have you follow there, too!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter for discussion of posts, links to other pages of interest, random talk about theology/philosophy/apologetics/movies/scifi/sports and more!

Star Trek: TNG– For more episode reviews, follow this site and also click this link to read more (scroll down as needed)! Drop me a comment to let me know what you thought!

SDG.

Hopes for the next Star Wars Movies

We all have hopes and dreams for the rest of the new Star Wars trilogy. Here, I will be sharing mine. There will be all kinds of MAJOR SPOILERS in this post for the movie, so please avoid reading it until after you’ve seen it.

Side Characters 

The informant and her muscle man at Maz’s Castle were particularly interesting. In the Star Wars: The Force Awakens Visual Dictionary I discovered that they are named Grummgar (the big guy) and Bazine (the woman with the black and white dress). According to that dictionary, Grummgar is a “big game hunter and gun-for-hire” who enjoys trophies of both the animal variety and the gorgeous woman variety. Having them show up as antagonists later would be pretty fun, in my opinion. I could see them working together to try to carry out an attack on Luke or Rey. Basically, I just want to see them again. I’d love to have a book like Tales from Jabba’s Palace that was instead Tales from Maz’s Castle. They need to get the books going again and expand the universe more.

I would like BB-8 to continue to be comic relief while still having a more serious personality. They did well with BB in “The Force Awakens” and I’d like that to continue.

Rey

First off, I want to say I think it’d be really dumb if she ends up being specifically related to Han/Leia or Luke. For one thing, it would be another example of a problem in the prequel trilogy: everyone knows each other/is related to each other. There is a whole galaxy of people available! Why must everyone be related to everyone else? For another, it doesn’t make sense in the plot they’ve already set up. Han and Leia had no recognition of her–and she remembered her parents well enough to wait for them–so it doesn’t make sense there. As for Luke, it stretches credulity to think that he would just abandon his daughter or that it really makes any sense for him to have fled across the galaxy over his nephew if he’d already abandoned his daughter.

Another intriguing aspect of Rey is what kind of lightsaber she might end up with. Her use of the quarterstaff opens up the possibility of her use of a double-bladed lightsaber, which would be awesome. The movie poster putting Kylo Ren’s red lightsaber along her quarterstaff also highlights this aspect. What color saber might she have? I don’t know, but I’m hoping for her to be a Jedi with the double-blade.

I’ve enjoyed how dynamic the discovery of Rey’s force powers has been, and I hope that continues. It was interesting to have her figure out how to do a mind control trick as opposed to witnessing it or being taught to do it.

Kylo Ren

Kylo Ren’s journey to the Dark Side must be explored, even if it is only through flashbacks. Moreover, they have set him up to go further down the path towards the Dark Side and so the question is whether he will have a redemptive moment or not. I think it would be better to not have a recapitulation of Vader and instead have a final battle scene in which Rey must kill Ren to end his threat. Think about it: a lightsaber scene akin to the Darth Maul vs. Qui-Gon Jinn/Obi Wan scene from Episode I (yes, I do think that scene, at least, was pretty well done) that features Rey vs. Ren. I’d love to see a huge, big scale lightsaber dual between the two as the capstone on the trilogy. Make it happen!

Finn

I’d like to learn more about how Stormtroopers are trained. It seemed like they are apparently taken at birth and trained in the system from birth, but how is this much different from a clone army (apart from not being clones)?

Finn’s development as a serious force on the battlefield is also full of possibility. He has elite Stormtrooper training. Could he end up as a major player in ground battles going forward? I think so. He needs to get a weapon all his own, though.

What about You?

What would you like to see in the movies going forward? What do you think of the scenarios I lined up? Let me know in the comments.

Links

Star Wars: The Force Awakens- A Christian perspective– I offer a worldview-level analysis of the film from a Christian perspective.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Review– Here is my more traditional review of the movie.

J.W. Wartick- Always Have a Reason– Check out my “main site” which talks about philosophy of religion, theology, and Christian apologetics (among other random topics). I love science fiction so that comes up integrated with theology fairly frequently as well. I’d love to have you follow there, too!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter for discussion of posts, links to other pages of interest, random talk about theology/philosophy/apologetics/movies/scifi/sports and more!

SDG.