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

Amph [NERRRD] Observations, rhetorical questions, comments & 55 Years of Star Trek (General Thread)

Discussion in 'Community' started by Darth Guy, Jun 10, 2009.

  1. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20050709182551/memoryalpha/en/images/6/60/A_briefing_with_neelix.jpg]
    VOY 220: Investigations
    -Premise: Neelix searches for a traitor aboard Voyager using his morning news program.

    -T2Q Comments: Neelix's show is kinda annoying, but then that could be said for any morning show, i suppose. "I'm a Doctor, not a performer."

    This whole speech by Neelix is good, but diminished from knowing Paris is not leaving the show...and would diminish any future episode that would legitimately deal with a Paris departure. Seska returns.

    Neelix's adamant enthusiasm for journalism and journalistic integrity wouldn't ring so hollow if they had established it as a trait of his earlier in the series... and not from a single brief conversation with Harry Kim earlier in this episode.

    I can't help but feel disappointed that they killed off Jonas... I think having him be captured and interrogated, be able to explain his motives and plans, etc would have been more satisfying. Where's THAT Starfleet courtroom episode? Speaking of unsatisfying.. where is our closure on the spy? We don't even get a final Janeway speech?

    Since this resolves the ongoing spy subplot and is surprisingly good despite being a Neelix episode, Definitely Essential.

    Trivia: This episode was originally going to be enturely from the POV of Neelix's show, but after production on the episode began, the studio told them to change that so that the action sequences with Tom being a hero could be seen. This episode features a cameo by King Abdullah bin al-Hussein of Jordan as an extra.


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    VOY 221: Deadlock
    -Premise: While trying to avoid Vidiian territory, Voyager is nearly destroyed by proton bursts coming from an unknown source.

    -T2Q Comments: She's finally having a baby after, what? a year and a half? ok, so the father wasn't human, so I suppose that could explain the extended gestation period. Fetal transport- I guess that would replace a c-section, wouldn't it?

    I like the "TNG: Disaster" nature of the action so far- and addressing the cons of having your doctor powered by the ship's power systems is also a nice touch as well.

    You know, they REALLY need to get some ***damn surge protectors on their consoles- in this franchise, computer terminals are more dangerous than handheld weapons!

    Btw, it''s funny that even newborns get crappy forehead ridge makeup on this show. Clever blocking and camera tricks to duplicate Kess in non-bluescreen/splitscreen shots. Vidian ship is pretty big.

    In either phase, Janeway is really set on blowing up her ship, ha. You know- instead of just Kim and the baby, why not send all 10 or so people that the rift can handle and save as many lives as possible?

    Self-destruct attempt #2- a successful one, so, Voyager Death #1.

    "Mr. Kim, we're Starfleet Officers. Weird is part of the job."

    We need to stress this point again: HARRY KIM IS DEAD AND HAS BEEN REPLACED BY A "DUPLICATE"/TWIN/ALTERNATE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SERIES. I suspect the show never brings that up again, much like how something similar that happened to Picard in early TNG.

    Although they seem to glance over what seems like should have been a lot of casualties as just injuries, as well as a lot of damage to the ship that reset, but other than that- Good Episode, But not Ncessarily Essential. However, it is good to see the Vidians presented as a larger scale threat like this.

    Trivia: Developing episode concepts featuring duplicates of the ship run back to TNG, where the script got bogged down with trying to give everyone and their duplicate a story arc, instead here, they found taking a high concept action approach as a solution.


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  2. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20071012045514/memoryalpha/en/images/3/39/DrayanKids.jpg]
    VOY 222: Innocence
    -Premise: Tuvok is trapped on a moon with a group of alien children who are disappearing, one by one.

    -T2Q Comments: Oh, for the love of- that's not even a forehead ridge appliance- they just slapped a sticker on that girls' forehead!

    The reaction to the children/insight into Tuvok's fatherhood is quite good, but the kids are pretty blah so far. Never thought I'd see/hear a Vulcan sing (Nimoy singing that BIlbo Baggins doesn't count ;)). Benjamin Button people twist only kinda works- it's not built up to and creates a few "why didn't the ambassador tell them?" questions that would have saved everyone a lot of trouble. Average.

    Trivia: The search for polyferranide deposits began back in Tattoo.


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    DS9 419: Hard Time
    -Premise: Convicted of espionage, Miles O'Brien is given the memories of twenty years in prison in a matter of hours. Returning to DS9, O'Brien finds he cannot shrug the memory of his awful experience or rid himself of the guilt he feels over the death of his cellmate.

    -T2Q Comments: Miles crazy aged hair looks ridiculous... old age makeup fails the franchise yet again. Seems like Miles should call up Picard and ask him about dealing with the memories of a false lifetime... but, seriously, how would he be fit for duty at all in the immediate future? He'd have to remember tech stuff he hadn't thought about or worked on for 2 decades.

    Ok, criticism retracted- they're actually dealing with that in the story. This I like.

    Yeah, you knock those obviously-empty containers over, Miles. Good Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential (but recommended!).

    Trivia: Story for this episode is by Daniel Keys Moran (same author as the various Boba Fett tales) and was originally pitched during the 1st season but took several attempts by Robert Wolfe, Piller and Behr to get it made. Hard Time takes the original pitch and adds the killed-cellmate angle from an unproduced pitch that would have shown Ensign Jaxa (from The First Duty and Lower Decks) was still alive and had been in a Cardassian prison. Actress Margot Rose appears in both this episode and TNG's The Inner Light. One of the annual "O'Brien-Must-Suffer" episodes.



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    DS9 420: Shattered Mirror
    -Premise: Professor Jennifer Sisko uses Jake to lure Sisko to the "mirror universe" to help the rebels build another starship Defiant.

    -T2Q Comments: "I imagine that's why you don't have any fiends." "Look whose talking."

    I wonder what Sherry Palmer thinks about Sisko visiting the AU version of his dead wife.

    Alt-Garrak, huzzah! Alt-Worf, huh, hadn't thought about his inclusion having an impact on the Mirrorverse.

    "You are attempting to shift the blame away from yourself!"
    "Am I succeeding?"

    "Spoken like a Klingon!"
    "I'm trying..."

    Neat shot- essentially Defiant in drydock, something we've never seen before.

    "But at least..what?"
    "But at least I could please her from time to time."
    "You...are not my type."
    "I never said I was."

    This whole chase around DS9 battle is really quite fun. I suppose this sequence shall hereby be kno
     
  3. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20071217082556/memoryalpha/en/images/b/ba/Jake_and_Onaya.jpg]
    DS9 421: The Muse
    -Premise: A mysterious woman helps Jake write a novel; Lwaxana Troi, pregnant with a son, asks Odo to help her escape her husband.

    -T2Q Comments: That transport is whipping around the station pretty fast- surely there's some kind of speed regulation when being that close to the station? (outside of battle, obviously).

    Mama Troi returns...with an awfully cliche cliffhanger for the teaser "I'm pregnant", plus it's paired with a goofyily exagerated expression of reaction by Odo; and the goofy expression carriers over as the scenes picks up- did no one tell the actor to dial it down?

    The stuff with the titular Muse is interesting, Mama Troi's plight, not so much (I even forgot she got married, quite frankly), however, tying it back to the her lost child from TNG: Dark Page is an interesting connection. Briefly touches on Odo/Kira, and has some nice symbolism throwing back to the first Odo/Mama Troi episode where he had to rest in her lap, now she in his.

    As a bit of meta observation, the Muse speaks of writing in a stream of conciousness and then editing later- not much unlike what I do with this episode viewing project, ha.

    That's not Evilyn, is it? It is! I'd recognize Meg Foster's eyes anywhere.

    So her husband is a Technomage and a Klingon. Am I the only one to notice that Jake doesn't take any of the pages he's just written with him? If I was writing what I thought to be my best work, i wouldn't just leave them laying around in a relative strangers' room.

    That's Lyta/Patricia Tallman as the nurse. And another magic energyball lifeform that can pass through walls and travel through space.

    So, I'm mixed on this one- it's ultimately handled competently but the whole marriage plotline I don't care for and it makes the more interesting Muse plotline feel like more of a distraction that forces in an obligatory "we need more scifi stuff here" moment and combines it with a cliched ending- I suppose I wish they could have focused more of the episode on that and the nature of creativity and inspiration and it would have been more satisfying. Average.

    Trivia: Originally titled "Playing House". The pitch for this episode came from Majel. The script meeting took twice as long as even a problematic script would and was the longest in the entire seven year run of DS9. Producers and crew were all unhappy with the episode, citing script problems and directorial problems- though Meg Foster was universally praised.

    Among those the Muse mentions she's inspired are an english poet named John Keats, a BC Roman poet named Catullus and the alien Tarbolde- one poem of whose was quoted by Gary Mitchell in Where No Man Has Gone Before. The novel Jake begins writing is "Anslem", which also appeared in The Visitor. Jake is reading a Hortio Hornblower novel in this episode- the same novel he read in The Visitor. One of the ambassadors that boards the station early on was played by John Paul Lone, who won the guest spot for designing the makeup of the Rasiinian species. This is Majel Barrett's last appearance as Lwaxana Troi in Star Trek and her final on-screen Star Trek appearance.


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    VOY: 223: The Thaw
    -Premise: The crew attempts to rescue three aliens in stasis from a bizarre computer program that is based on fear.

    -T2Q Comments: I quite like the initial premise to this one so far- though once again we have a way too human forehead rac
     
  4. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20060802000856/memoryalpha/en/images/a/a6/Tuvix.jpg]
    VOY 224: Tuvix
    -Premise: After a transporter malfunction, Tuvok and Neelix are merged into a single being. In the search for a way to restore them to their original forms, a moral dilemma is faced as the new being does not want to be terminated.

    -T2Q Comments: Dammit, Neelix is annoying. When the JJ reboot of Voyager happens 40 years from now, can we please leave him behind? Oh god...this premise does not bode well...

    So far my initial fears, despite the kinda stupid premise, haven't played out- Tuvix is much more preferable to Neelix. The one flaw here in trying to present this merged condition as untreatable/irreversible (just like my rain coat!) doesn't fit with the rest of the franchise undoing ridiculous amounts of genetic mutations and changes- they were able to undo Janeway and Paris turning into lizards, and who knows how many other types of changes that happened on TNG, yet can't undo a humanoid to humanoid change?

    "With a primitive imaging technology called x-rays", wow, been a while since we have had some of that we-are-future-uber mentality expressed- surely x-rays have been used before in the franchise?

    Tuvix has Paris slow to impluse yet we still see warp star straks outside Janeway's window in the next shot. That isotope sure does spread quickly- think they'd have to wait a bit for it to permeate the whole body.

    Epilogue, you ****ers, epilogue! You getting as bad a SG-1 is with that! Maybe even worse.

    So, yeah, that ended up being a rather good episode (but then, Neelix was technically not in it at all, so that certainly helps ;)) managing to overcome the sillier setup by the time it becomes more about the execution debate, though it may have been stronger if I didn't dislike Neelix as much- thus making the choice harder.

    Also, we never get any relvance or elaboration on why Tuvok was "being too much like himself" at the start, which would have seemed relevant to me- at the very least, since that wasn't relevant to the episode (the episode could have started aboard ship trying to beam them up) they could have dropped that opening scene entirely and used the runtime to include an epilogue scene with everyone dealing with the experience (Kess & Neelix in particular, though Tuvok and Kess and Tuvok and Janeway would have been nice too- although I could understand wanting to leave Janeway where she was).

    Good Episode But Not Necessarily Essential.

    Trivia: According to an unauthorized reference book, this episode was the most debated of Voyager's first 5 seasons, regarding Janewya's decision to separate Tuvix. While writing an episode in Enterprise's 3rd season, Similitude, Manny Coto strived to avoid making it too similar to this episode.


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    VOY 225: Resolutions
    -Premise: Voyager is forced to abandon Captain Janeway and Chakotay when they are infected with a terminal illness. Tuvok leads Voyager on a mission to find a cure.

    -T2Q Comments: it's interesting that Harry stays behind after Tuvok dismisses everyone...no explanation though. The farewell speech is nice (especially Tuvok's closing line) but it kinda feels hollow in the same way the conversations about Paris's departure from Voyager were- we know it's not for real/permanent so it loses impact and takes away from any such speeches that might need to be delivered for real in the future. The short of it is: don't give a goodbye speech unless they are actually leaving (or are at least departing for multiple episodes).

    I do like how the previous Vidian stories are being factored into events here-the destruction of a ship, Torres's potential relevance to the Phage, etc. Also, shouldn't Tuvok be wearing red now? Tuvok's change of heart isn't fully convincing to me, but it works well enough- though
     
  5. Chancellor_Ewok

    Chancellor_Ewok Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Nov 8, 2004
    I think it looks fine. I bought TNG Season 1 the other day on DVD and it looks VERY good.
     
  6. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
  7. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080327224413/memoryalpha/en/images/5/5c/Odo_melting%2C_Broken_Link.jpg]
    DS9 426: Broken Link (SEASON FINALE)
    -Premise: Odo is plagued by an unknown ailment that threatens to kill him. Meanwhile, the Federation and the Klingon Empire move closer to war.

    -T2Q Comments: Garrak, huzzah!

    "What's wrong?" "I've been bluescreened!" ;)

    Ah, we return to Gowron and his baby blues and the Klingon plot that started the season. Maybe the pregnancy sneezes are a consequence of those nose ridges, ha. This purple haired chick... I think they were trying too hard (though apparenly she's shown up before, just never named until now).

    "Someone is requesting permission to come onboard."
    "Who is it?"
    "...Garrak."
    "Tell him the ship is off limits to Cardassian spys."

    Offsetting shot of the Defiant surrounded by so many Jem'Hadar ships. The female Changeling looks different this time around. That warp flight shot of the Defiant being escorted by the Jem'Hadar ships is quite lovely- it's not the type of shot we've really had in Trek before, and is more B5-esque than anything else.

    That's... a lot of Changelings. you know, i actually remember this scene too, so i must have tuned in for this one. The stone skipping moment is great, ha!

    "Sabotage, assaulting a Federation officer, attempting to incite war between the Federation and the Dominion.."
    "Yes- but my heart was in the right place."

    I don''t remember the ending though, so it's an interesting chunk of memory at play here. Definitely Essential.

    Trivia: Chalan Aroya was originally written to be a recurring character as a love interest for Odo for the 5th season but the producers felt she wasn't right for Odo and so abandoned that notion.


    Up next: VOY 226/301: Basics, Parts I & II.


    The Babylon Project Log:

    -Space stations ending with a numerical designation that are of commerce ports in nature (prominently featuring a casino area), near a giant swirling blue vortex passageway (wormhole/jumpgate) used for travel and a location of advanced creation (prophet temple/Great Machine).
    -Hard-edged female second in command, pessimistic, sarcastic security chief. somewhat ethnic doctor.
    -Characters named Dukat/Dukhat
    -A spiritual race recently coming free of occupation by a more militaristic civilization, the conflict of which led the spiritual race to become more militant themselves.
    -Gambler conman (Quark/Londo) has somewhat fluctuating antagonistic friendship with hard-edged chief of security (Odo/Garabaldi).
    -Characters played by Julie Caitlin Brown have a long-standing grudge against a notorious murderer who has prolonged their life at the expense of others through scientific experimentation (Rao Vantika/Jha'dur "Deathwalker").
    -The term "Changeling" has significance in relation to early parts of both series (the B5 pilot "the Gathering" and DS9's "Vortex" & beyond), though applied to different elements (technology versus a species).
    -A main character slowly constructs a device (chrysalis/clock) piece of piece in their quarters while conversing with a subordinate .
    -A main character often referred to as Chief (Miles/Garibaldi) has a recurring assistant (Neela/garibaldi's Aide) who is a plant by another faction that attempts to bring about political change by assassinating a prominent rival leader (Bariel/Santiago) in the first season finale so that one of their faction may replace him (Adami/Clark). Their plot is uncovered by the Chief character.
    -The Circle/Homeguard Bajoran for Bajorans, vandalism with a symbol; subdues and brands an alien on the middle of the forehead with their logo
    -Second Season opens with a command officer (Sinclair/Kira) being reassigned from the station to be among the religious order of a species heavily involved with the operation of the station, partly due to prophecy
    -A near-human alien race has their hair up in a fan-style to represent social status.
    -A character played by Julia Nickson (Catherine/Cassandra) romances (or attempts to romance) the commander of the station (Sinclair/Sisko)
     
  8. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20051124195541/memoryalpha/en/images/d/d3/Voyager_landing.jpg] [image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20070611045607/memoryalpha/en/images/e/e7/Voyager_crew_stranded.jpg] [image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20051126092606/memoryalpha/en/images/d/d6/Man_overboard.jpg]
    VOY 426: Basics, Part I (SEASON FINALE)
    -Premise: On a mission to rescue Chakotay's son from Maje Culluh, Voyager is captured by the Kazon-Nistrim in a sneak attack, the crew taken hostage, and Paris is believed to be dead.

    -T2Q Comments: Yay! Suder! (following up from Meld). Also the return of Seska...and maybe the death of Seksa, offscreen at that?

    The almost casual combat with the Kazon Raiders is almost comical in a "swatting a flies" type of way.

    "It feels like we're being pecked to death by ducks." ::spit-take:: Not nibbled to death by cats? (check the date on episodes aired)

    "Hold your fire, Mr Tuvok- they may have torpedos to waste, we don't" well, the numbers will see about that, but if they have such torpedos, maybe it;d be a good idea to try to acquire some of those eventually?

    The Doctor's unique combat situation is pretty funny, actually. Three torpedoes fired.

    Ugh, tearing off the toenail. "Dispersal pattern sierra" of torpedos fired.

    i dunno, Paris, Mr shuttle pilot, but maybe you shoulda jumped to warp a wee bit quicker there? this ain't star wars, mass shadows and indictors (and any technobabble substitute Trek would care to interject) aren't an issue.

    Self-destruct attempt #3. hmm, so maybe Nemesis wasn't being as original as I thought with the self-destruct aversion, though it's set up differently here so it still has a different impact, emotionally and tactically.

    They give Cullah a brief speech to merge their Klingon-lite nature with the oh-so-appealig and-so-popular-with-fans misogyny of the Ferengi and how they treat their woman. Bravo.

    "Why is it so dark in here? Someonebody turn on the lights!" That actually made me laugh, though I don't recall Kazon ships being all that well lit either. The sky really cleared up pretty quickly there, didn't it? it was dark and cloud covered, and now it';s just a nice blue sky.

    The collecting of the comm badges is a nice touch... come to think of it, they need to have a bad guy go after the crew by going after those badges. Eventually Voyager will run out or have to waste resources making more... but in the meantime they lack personal communications and the ability to track and transport crew.

    Actually a rather great line by Cullah- "A fitting end for a people who would not share their technology. Let's see if you manage to survive without it." ...although taking away from that line is the observation that, ya know, you could just kill them.

    This is obviously the culmination of several season 2 threads, as well as some threads from season 1, and it at least treats the Kazon in the way that they are able to be a threat (through their numbers and inside knowledge via Seska) even if the Kazon themselves don't physically project themselves as a threat. Definitely Essential.

    Trivia: This is the first two-parter for Voyager. Departing executive producer Michael Piller aimed to provide this series with a 2nd season coda with the excitement of his Best of Both Worlds cliffhanger through this episode. He was also the one who pushed for the Kazon to be the enemy who took the ship, instead of a new race. The title "Basics", besides reflecting the "back to basics" situation for the crew, was also meant to reflect Piller's final message to the franchise and what he learned from working with Riddenberry.

    The director felt that the baby as an excuse to get them on the planet was not well thought out as a plot device. Mulgrew felt the episode should have been more action oriented and the crew portrayed as more cautious and have had more control on their part. Tim Russ said they had to make some changes on the set to make the episodes work as well as they did.

    When Cullah strikes Janeway, Mulgrew jokingly commented
     
  9. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    (usinga second post to make it easier to read and avoid a super-mega post)

    Voyager Season 2 Breakdown:

    Definitely Essential:
    120/201: The 37's
    210: Cold Fire
    211: Maneuvers
    218/214: Death Wish
    214/215: Alliances
    216/217: Meld
    220: Investigations
    226: Basics, Part I

    Potentially Essential, But Not Necessarily Good:
    118/204: Elogium
    119/206: Twisted
    219: Lifesigns
    225: Resolutions

    Good Episodes, But Not Necessarily Essential:
    117/203: Projections
    202: Initiations
    208: Persistence of Vision
    212: Resistance
    213: Prototype
    217/218: Dreadnought
    221: Deadlock
    223: The Thaw
    224: Tuvix

    Average Episodes:
    205: Non Sequitur
    207: Parturition
    209: Tattoo
    222: Innocence

    Ok Episodes, But Not Necessarily Essential:
    (none)

    Forgettable:
    (none)

    Trash:
    215/216: Threshold


    This was a curious season. They've started to abandon the "next-next generation" angle from Season 1 but also started to avoid stories that should have been in the Alpha Quadrant but were out of place in the Delta (though, ironically, while introducing a lot of Alpha Quadrant-related elements like Cardassians and Cardassian dreadnaughts). At the same time they got pretty lazy with the alien makeup.

    They've told some great standalone stories (The Thaw and Tuvix being notable towards the end) and some franchise lows (Threshold). They made the Vidians compelling enemies and tried to salvage the Kazon like DS9 did with the Ferengi, but weren't very successful- it's just really hard to get past their ridiculous hair, water-Klingons/Klingons-lite vibe and silly Oompa Loompa appearance.

    This season, much more than the first, does show that they still weren't sure what they wanted the show to be. They had some clear opportunities to take the show in new directions that would have been absolutely amazing (Alliances' Fedeation-building elements) but they weren't confident enough to break pattern and pursue it, so they backpedaled.

    On the other hand, they did a lot of good things in the season (Seska, Suder & the spy come to mind), but mishandled/blew them either because of a lack of confidence in the concepts or the apathy and idiotic decisions of certain producers. Seska gets offed sloppily, Suder gets offed because Taylor had no interest in further developing a good character and the spy plotline gets mishandled because the producers saw it as something distracting from their individual episodes when in fact it was actually making the show (and, by association, the producers) seem much more competent than it actually was, apparently.

    On the other hand, the producers get credit for seeing that certain things like the Jazon clearly weren't working (despite their best efforts) and pushing for something of a clean break between Seaosn 2 and 3. And while that allowd them to sweep away the Kazon and move to more promising waters, elements that actually were working, like the Vidians, got swept out along with them. Baby with the bath water-Klingons and all that. I can't help but wonder if the aforesuggested lack of confidence contributed to that overcompensation.

    On the upside, they clearly understood some of the non-Nelix characters by this point and at least gave the impression they had some ideas of what they might try to do with Chakotay.



    DS9 Season 4 Breakdown:

    Since so many episodes in this season are Definitely Essential, it's easier to just list the ones that aren't...

    Potentially Essential, But Not Necessarily Good:
    410: Our Man Bashir
    416: Bar Association
    425: Body Parts

    Good Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential:
    406: Rejoined
    417: Accession
    418: Rules of Engagement
    419: Hard Time

    Average:
    421: The Muse

    There's not a lot to say, really- this season was great. Way of the Warrior is officially one of the best Trek "movies" and we just got some badass episodes from this season, as well as some great quiet ones like The Quickening. And Dukat and Garrak stuff is always welcome.

    The Homefront two parter may not have been entirely successful, though- but it still had some gr
     
  10. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    A series of before and after animated gifs

    Just hit the "next" links to scroll through them. Comparison shots of screens from the BDs to the DVDs, albeit it in animated gif quality restructions- still, there are some noticeable improvements.

    That holodeck shot is a REAL eye opening stunner. Also we're definitely seeing some FX replacements (the D vs Klingon ship to present the correct perspective) and FX error corrections (the energy beam no longer firing from the Captain's Yacht). These look fantastic.
     
  11. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
  12. duende

    duende Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 28, 2006
    what is this, just a sampler or something? why don't they just release the whole series in BD?
     
  13. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    It's a sampler with three episodes. I think they wanted people to see what it looks like (and pay money for it) before they finished doing the whole series.
     
  14. MandalorianDuchess

    MandalorianDuchess Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 16, 2010
    They are indeed planning to reissue all of STTNG on blu-ray; the 1st season should be out by summer or fall of this year. After that, they hope to get 2 seasons released on blu-ray every year. So it could be a few years before all 7 seasons are on blu-ray.

     
  15. Jedi-Anakin-Solo

    Jedi-Anakin-Solo Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 26, 2001
    Picked it up yesterday and I've been really impressed. They look and sound amazing.
     
  16. halibut

    halibut Ex-Mod star 8 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Aug 27, 2000
    Amazing.

    Watching Farpoint was like watching a brand new episode. I never knew Picard had a red uniform in seasons 1 and 2 before. It was beautiful.

    Sins of the Father was even better. Had a real film look about it.

    Absolutely gorgeous.
     
  17. Everton

    Everton Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Jul 18, 2003
    So is this full seasons or selected episodes?


    EDIT: Only read hal's post. [face_blush]

    Would be interesting to see...
     
  18. DantheJedi

    DantheJedi Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 23, 2009
    Has anybody else been watching the Nostalgia Critic's reviews of the odd-numbered Star Trek films? Just throwing that out there, and also, because things here are more TNG-related, this week he's reviewing Generations, and next week he's going to do Insurrection.

    I'd make a link, but his stuff is kinda NSFW and all, but you'll find them if you go to TGWTG.com.
     
  19. halibut

    halibut Ex-Mod star 8 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Aug 27, 2000
    Generations is by far the greatest Next Gen film, and if he says otherwise, I have no interest in hearing what he has to say.
     
  20. Dark Lady Mara

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

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 1999
    Not possible. It's an odd-numbered flick. :p
     
  21. halibut

    halibut Ex-Mod star 8 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Aug 27, 2000
    I hope the new boards have an ignore feature [face_plain]
     
  22. tom

    tom Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Mar 14, 2004
    [image=http://i.imgur.com/6RYy1.gif]
     
  23. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [face_laugh]




    [image=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080813124226/memoryalpha/en/images/f/ff/Janeway_%26_kes_sacred_ground.jpg]
    VOY 302/307: Sacred Ground
    -Premise: Kes is injured when she accidentally commits sacrilege on an alien planet; in order to save her life, Janeway must go through a mysterious ritual that challenges her faith.

    -T2Q Comments: Another boring forehead ridge race. Another example of the magic seamless zipper-replacing tech of the 24th century. The "helpless" / "I do understand" moment, while not impactful, is an interesting observation at least.

    Are you serious? The last twenty minutes of this episode were literally meaningless? That's worse than "it was all a dream". Seriously? WTF?

    Well, at least part of the meaningless segment of the episode is relevant...

    "If you can explain everything, what's left to believe in?" the explanations?

    If belief is the key to surviving the biogenic field, how is it Kess could have been harmed by it in the first place, when she had no reason to doubt or hesitate, being unaware of the field's existence?

    I'm not quite sure what the message or point of this episode was. It tries to be a "belief over fact" type episode, which is unTrek like, but then it reveals it's more of a "belief over fact because they won't let you scan something for no reason" type scenario, which somehow upsets Janeway, even though it shouldn't (at least, not in the way it seemingly does). Average.

    Trivia: The first (in production order) of four episodes produced during the second season and intentionally held back for the 3rd season. The first episode directed by Robert Duncan McNeill. Originally, this was to be directed by Jonathan Frakes, who backed out to direct First Contact.



    [image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20050123102810/memoryalpha/en/images/1/1e/Barzan_Wormhole_in_the_Delta_Quadrant.jpg] [image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20050811181651/memoryalpha/en/images/4/4e/Arridor2373.jpg] [image=http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20050811182147/memoryalpha/en/images/6/61/Kol%2C_2373.jpg]
    VOY 303/307: False Profits
    -Premise: Voyager discovers a pair of Ferengi who control the economy of a primitive world; nearby is an unstable wormhole that leads back home.

    -T2Q Comments: Seeking a wormhole- the wagging dog tail analogy is actually kinda neat. You'd think for away missions like this they might come up with a more discreet slipcase for a tricorder to help mask some of the blinking bits. Also, these people look completely human- they didn't even bother with a generic noseridge.

    Ah, yes, the follow-up to TNG: The Price with the Ferengi stuck in the Delta Quadrant.

    "That...was beautiful." ::snort::

    Naturally, Neelix would make a good Ferengi. Well, thanks for nothing Neelix, your squealing isn't helping my opinion of you. However, Neelix's reaction to the "seven years of pure profit" line kinda makes up for it.

    Shame they couldn't fit in an epilogue to at least deal with the (somewhat obligatory) loss of the wormhole and let that failure as a result of their preoccupation with the Ferengi (for better or worse) sink in.

    This one was kinda fun, really and does follow-up on the first significant Delta Quadrant plot element in the franchise- although The Price wasn't mandatory viewing, so we'll have this one be Potentially Essential.

    Trivia: The second (in production order) of four episodes produced during the second season but intended for airing during the third.

    This episode was the first episode written by a staff writer during his return from a 4 year stint in France- he had previously been a staff writer on TNG (so, fitting that a TNG writer works on a TNG sequel episode).

    Arridor is played by the same actor from The Price, but, because Kol was played by an uncredited, non-speaking extra in The Price, he had to be recast. Ethan/Neelix had previously played a Ferengi in TNG: Menage a Troi and would later do so again in ENT: Acquisition.

    The idea of Ferengi posing as a gods harkens back to an abandone
     
  24. Boba_Fett_2001

    Boba_Fett_2001 Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Dec 11, 2000
  25. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [image=http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20050921220752/memoryalpha/en/images/1/1b/Sisko_as_a_Klingon.jpg] [image=http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111025164708/memoryalpha/en/images/4/46/Hall_of_Warriors_in_2373.jpg]
    DS9 501: Apocalypse Rising
    -Premise: Sisko leads a commando team into Klingon headquarters in an attempt to expose the Changeling impersonating Gowron. (Season Premiere)

    -T2Q Comments: Doesn't seem like a good move to open the recap AND the teaser proper with the same shot of the station.

    "I hate prototypes."

    Dukat returns, along with his stolen Bird of Prey. As amusing as it is, I'm not too hot on the dressing-actors as-other-races approach... it sometimes tends to break the illusion except with similar species like Vulcan/Romulans, etc.

    New shot of the station as the BOP departs... CGI station?

    "This is still your fault" a bit of a meta joke referencing the realworld origin of the baby subplot I suppose?

    And, ya know, they can do the cosmetic surgery to make Odo look like a Klingon... can't they humanize his face? Gowron and his baby blues returns again.

    "Glory to you..." ::eyes widen beyond human capacity:: "..and your house." Yeah that's a Gowron thing right there.

    Ah, at least they bring up the implications of Starfleet cosmetic surgery for Odo. So, it begins to resolve the Klingon conflict, plus has Gowron and Changelings, so we'll go with Definitely Essential.

    Trivia: The primary goal of Season 5 in general, and Apocalypse Rising in particular, was to get the show back on track towards the Dominion War plotline that Season 3 had been building to before Paramount had them shake things up with the Klingon conflict plotline in Season 4. At the same time they wanted to tie the Klingon conflict into the Dominion War so as not to give the impression that Season 4 was a pointless interlude- they wanted people to know that they didn't switch horses midstream.

    The decision to make Martok a Changeling instead of Gowron was done o as not to upset TNG fans- but the producers were so pleased with the actor's performance here that they decided to bring back the real Martok later on. This episode was originally concieved to be a two-parter, with the first part on Dukat's BOP and the second on the planet. Dukat's daughter was to appear in this episode, but only had one line, so it was felt there was no point filming the scene with her and Dukat.

    Despite Dax's knowledge of Klingon culture, she was not part of the mission because Terry Farrell was allergic to the excessive Klngon make-up. Michael Dorn enjyed seeing his co-stars undergo the same heavy makeup that he was forced to endure for several years. Colm Meaney was so uncomfortable and complained so much that Dorn asked the producers to never put him in maeup again. On the flipside, Rene found the Klingon makeup much easier than Odo's usual makeup since it covered less of his face. Rene previously played a non-Klingon disguised as a Klingon in ST6 as Colonel West.


    [image=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20071025212723/memoryalpha/en/images/e/e8/Harry_and_Tom_in_Prison.jpg]
    VOY 305/303: The Chute
    -Premise: Harry Kim and Tom Paris are found guilty and detained in a prison where a neural implant gradually drives the inmates mad.

    -T2Q Comments: "I will not allow this ship to be boarded." again. You forgot to add "again".

    These quick pans for the ship FX seem a bit...quick? cheap? Janeway blinking at the coward accusation is an interesting moment. Oddly enough, halfway into this episode, for once, Harry has been more interesting than Paris. The way the chute is framed to give this guy a Jesus halo is a curious shot.

    The escape attempt is handled well, as is the reveal. Is this guy from walking dead? No, it's not that guy.... oh, he played the Minbari Ranger in Severed Dreams on B5! That's it!

    Neelix's ship...have they even mentioned that since the pilot? You know, I almost feel like Harry should have been compelled to go back for that manifesto guy...in another world, this could have been a key point