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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Amph Engage! The Star Trek: TNG General Discussion

Discussion in 'Community' started by Constant_shadow, Jan 3, 2006.

  1. Constant_shadow

    Constant_shadow Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2005
    Being a closet Trekkie (Only TOS and TNG), I decided to break the ice and make a TNG thread.

    Star Trek: The Next Generation was the second installment in the Star Trek series. The show ran September 28, 1987 ? May 23, 1994, having a total of 128 episodes. Many of us grew up with this show and still watch it from time to time.

    If you would like to know more about Trek feel free to ask. I am posting this chart of crew members and ranks as they change throughout the series. Be warned that there are spoilers so to speak for people new to trek. This is as of first season.

    Character,rank,postition

    Jean-Luc Picard Captain, Commanding officer

    William "Will" Riker Commander, Executive (first) officer

    Data Lt. Commander, Second officer, chief operations officer, science officer

    Geordi La Forge Lt. Junior Grade, later Lieutenant, later Lt. Commander, helm and Ops, later Chief Engineer

    Worf Lt. Junior Grade, later Lieutenant, Ops and Conn officer
    Chief security/tactical officer (after certain events)

    Doctor Beverly Crusher Commander, Chief medical officer

    Deanna Troi Lt. Commander, later Commander Ship's counselor

    Natasha "Tasha" Yar Lieutenant ,Chief tactical officer

    Wesley Crusher Acting Ensign, later Ensign, later Cadet, Dr. Crusher's son, pilot


    I'm hoping this will be a constructive discussion. "Trek Sucks!" is not a productive post.

    Remember that this is a general discussion, so you can talk about anything TNG, from Riker with a beard vs Riker without a beard to Warp drive capabilities. Enjoy!
     
  2. Dark Lady Mara

    Dark Lady Mara Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 1999
    I adore TNG. I have most of the episodes on my external hard drive, actually, so I can watch whenever I please. ;) Don't accuse me of stealing money from the franchise just because I didn't spend hundreds of dollars on the complete set of DVDs, though, since I've been a fan for many moons and suspect I've spent at least that much on the franchise in other ways. ;)

    I firmly believe that TNG was the most intellectual show to ever grace network television. Can anyone else think of something that might come close?
     
  3. PrincessKenobi

    PrincessKenobi Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Aug 12, 2000
    TNG was an amazing show. I miss it.

    ~PK~
     
  4. Constant_shadow

    Constant_shadow Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2005
    Don't worry I won't accuse you of anything. I must say. One season here in Canada costs $170. :eek:

    Truth be told, if you get all the channels here, you can watch it for 6 hours a day! No kidding. Get a VCR and in a few months you can have every episode on DVD or VHS.

    I can't think of any other "grown up" show I liked more as a kid. I still get a laugh out of Data. His calculations to the smallest measurement, his limited sense of humour, the time he got his fingers caught in the finger trap and Picard got mad at him. :p

    The story was always well written. Even the frequently played episodes can't be said to be completely awful.

    The different cultures we got to learn about that were expanded upon form the original series were fascinating to me growing up.

    I don't watch a lot of T.V. anymore. But I Always try to make a bit of time for TNG. I really can't think of a show I like to watch more than it.
     
  5. TheProphetOfSullust

    TheProphetOfSullust Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 10, 2003
    I liked the later seasons, especially the 6th. But the movies they made out of it... bleh. Two mediocre ones (Generaitions and First Contact) and two that were complete crap (Insurrection and Nemesis).

    I love episodes that deal with the forces that shape one's life. "Tapestry", "The Inner Light", "The First Duty"...

    Quality-wise, I believe Star Trek peaked around 1993 (last 3 TNG seasons and first 3 DS9 seasons).

    It's also a bit embarrasing for me to admit this, but I want Picard/Beverly romance to go forward. Of course, that may be because episode I saw to complete the series (I saw every episode, but not in order, and most of them only once) was "Attached", which disappointed me.
     
  6. Jesina_Dreis

    Jesina_Dreis Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 8, 2004
    I grew up watching Next Gen, every night at dinner at my father's place. I've seen all the movies, and I actually liked Nemesis.

    Riker was probably my favorite character, and I loved Deanna. I liked the occasional appearance of Whoopi Goldberg, too. What character did she play?
     
  7. Jedi Merkurian

    Jedi Merkurian Future Films Rumor Naysayer star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    May 25, 2000
    I think Q was misunderstood. Most reviews referred to him as a villain. Q wasn't evil, he was just an *******.
     
  8. Dark_Lady_Jada

    Dark_Lady_Jada Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 7, 2004
    Q was just a naughty boy with too much power. ;)

    My very favorite episode is Q-pid. I love when Worf throws down his hat and says "Sir! I am not a Merry Man!" [face_laugh]

    I also adore Brent Spiner and think he is one of the most underrated actors of our time.
     
  9. Everton

    Everton Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Jul 18, 2003
    'Tapestry' is probably the highlight of Picard and Q's relationship.
     
  10. Master_Jedi80

    Master_Jedi80 Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    May 27, 2005
    I love the next generation...
    as far as star trek in general goes, i like the "Kirk and Spock and Crew" Movies, all the ST:TNG movies...
    i saw a few episodes of voyager, never liked DS9, and the new one enterprise, i havent seen

    But TNG i love!

    My favorite episode is called "Defector"

    I was going to name my favorite character, but i really like a lot of them.
    riker is the man! Picard is the man!!

    here is a link i just found.. ST:TNG cast and episode giude...Hopefully it can help in any discussions about the show... (i hope its accurate)

    http://stng.36el.com/


    Make it so!
     
  11. Master_Jedi80

    Master_Jedi80 Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    May 27, 2005
    Here is something cool. have you heard of the band Phish?

    On the Phish album "Hoist" , track 4 is called Rikers Mailbox... Even cooler is Jonathan Frakes (riker) plays Trombone on this intrumental track...

    Phish: Hoist
    Tracks:
    --1: Julius
    --2: Down With Disease
    --3: If I Could
    --4: Riker's Mailbox
    --5: Axilla (Part II)
    --6: Lifeboy
    --7: Sample In A Jar
    --8: Wolfman's Brother
    --9: Scent Of A Mule
    --10: Dog Faced Boy
    --11: Demand

    Notes: Phish: Trey Anastasio (guitars, vocals); Page McConnell (piano, organ, vocals); Mike Gordon (bass, mandolin, vocals); Jon Fishman (drums).

    Additional personnel: Alison Kraus (vocals); Bela Fleck (banjo); Morgan Fichter (violin); The Richard Greene Fourteen (strings); Jonathan Frakes (trombone) ; Rickey Grundy Chorale, Jean McClain, Rose Stone (background vocals).
     
  12. Jedi Merkurian

    Jedi Merkurian Future Films Rumor Naysayer star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    May 25, 2000
    Was that the one with Cadet Picard & the Nausicans?
     
  13. Everton

    Everton Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Jul 18, 2003
    Yes. The climax of the episode is tremendous:

    Q: I gave you something most mortalsnever experience... a second chance at life. And now all you can do is complain?

    Picard: I can't live out my days as that person. That man is bereft of passion and imagination. That's not who I am.

    Q: Au contraire. He's the person you wanted to be... one who was less arrogant, and undisciplined as a youth.

    (beat)

    One who was less like me.

    A beat as Picard realizes that Q is right. Q takes the opportunity to rub it in.

    Q: The Jean-Luc Picard you wanted to be, the one who did not fight the Nausicaan, had quite a different career from the one you remember. That Picard never had a brush with death... never came face to face with his own mortality... never realized how fragile life is... how important each moment can be... so his life never came into focus. He drifted through much of his career, with no plan or agenda... going from one assignment to the next, never seizing the opportunities that presented themselves...

    (beat)

    He didn't lead the Away Team on Milika Three to save that ambassador... he didn't take charge of the Stargazer's Bridge when its Captain was killed... and no one ever offered him a command.

    (beat)

    He learned to play it safe. And he never, ever got noticed by anyone.

    Picard: You're right. You gave me the chance to change and I took that opportunity. But I freely admit now that it was a mistake.

    Q's eyes sparkle for a moment.

    Q: Are you asking me for something, Jean-Luc?

    Picard swallows his pride.

    Picard: Yes.

    (beat)

    Give me a chance to put things back to the way they were before.

    Q: Before, you died in Sickbay. Is that what you want?

    Picard thinks for a moment, but he's determined.

    Picard: I would rather die as the man I was... than live the life I just saw.

    They look at each other for a long beat. Q seems to be waiting for something. Finally Picard breaks the silence.

    Picard: Please?

    Q smiles a self-satisfied smile.



    I think it's a wonderful passage of dialogue worth reading. Finally, we get a glimpse of Q's true power. There's something behind all that arrogance and show.
     
  14. Jesina_Dreis

    Jesina_Dreis Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 8, 2004
    I think that's really the essence of him, Everton. Well... that, and to drive everyone batty.

    Q was a fascinating character.
     
  15. battlewars

    battlewars Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 5, 2005
    i honestly feel next gen was/is my favorite show, besides 'generations' the movies sucked for me. does anyone else feel really bitter as to how the next gen films were potrayed on the big screen? i agree with the above poster always thought picard and beverly would finally get together in the films, and that they would have a great movie featuring Q
     
  16. Everton

    Everton Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Jul 18, 2003
    I think Q functioned best when we knew very little about him - a great unquestionable and unknowable power. This was the way of things in TNG, but had he made a major appearance in a Trek movie the writers would undoubtedly have expanded his lore. And regrettably, that's exactly what happened in Voyager... they a) humanised him too much and b) showed too much of the Continuum. But the Voyager thing is a complaint for another thread.
     
  17. Sara_Kenobi

    Sara_Kenobi Jedi Grand Master star 7

    Registered:
    Sep 21, 2000
    If the next film goes ahead, I do hope that Q is in it. He's been a missing element in the films so far.
     
  18. Master_Jedi80

    Master_Jedi80 Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    May 27, 2005
    I enjoyed all the TNG films...

    But, after Generations and First Contact... i felt, Insurection and Nemesis-- were more on a level of "really good episodes", as opposed to Movie!!
    to make my point a little clearer, i felt there should have been more of an impending doom, or just something more important to the universe or humanity then what the plot points were.

    I enjoy the flicks, i just think there should have been more on the line, especially if nemesis is the final chapter.
     
  19. AmmersVI

    AmmersVI Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 25, 2005
    ^ I agree. I'm a fan of TNG show. ~Hopefully one of these days I'll be able to afford the complete series on DVD.
    Until then... I'm hearing that there may be a new film. Is there really a new Trek film in the works?
     
  20. Everton

    Everton Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Jul 18, 2003
    I remember reading a quote from Partick Stewart late last year saying that he wouldn't be adverse to the idea.

    Hmmm... okay maybe not a quote, but this article was the sort of thing: ---> here.
     
  21. AmmersVI

    AmmersVI Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 25, 2005
    Thanks for the link. Well, if nothing else, it sounds hopeful!
     
  22. Juliet316

    Juliet316 37X Hangman Winner star 10 VIP - Game Winner

    Registered:
    Apr 27, 2005
    TNG was my favorite of the Treks. My favorite eps were Best of Both Worlds which probably lends to my enjoyment of First Contact which I also loved, but more for the fact of revisiting what Picard feels is his greatest failure and humilation rather than the action itself.
     
  23. KnightWriter

    KnightWriter Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 6, 2001
    There needs to be a mention of arguably the greatest TNG episode, "Yesterday's Enterprise". I don't think most people are aware that it was written in segments by a number of writers, and at the last minute. Each segment between commercial breaks represents a different writer, and it all came together to equal classic television.

    Great, great work.
     
  24. Juliet316

    Juliet316 37X Hangman Winner star 10 VIP - Game Winner

    Registered:
    Apr 27, 2005
    If I remember my reading correctly it was five writers, and the late Michael Pillar took his name off the writer's credits at the last minute because the writer's union would only allow four writers to be listed in the credits.

    I agree KW, it was a great episode, and one that also had ramfications for Trek that stretched into it's fourth and fifth seasons.

    I just wish there had been more followup with Sela.:(
     
  25. jaina_clan_solo

    jaina_clan_solo Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 14, 2005
    I grew up knowing about/watching TNG. As I watch it know, the depth and intricacies of the stories still amazes me. I think the thing that I love most about TNG (and the other treks.. although not to the same extent) is the ability it has to take on such controversial issues.

    Q is one of the most fascinating characters of all time.


    jcs