TF01 3,Yesterday's Enterprises - Pt 1 4,by Tim Smith Yesterday's Enterprises - A Season By Season Review ----------------------------------------------------- Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5, 1991 - 1992 ------------------------------------------------------ The one thing that The Next Generation's fifth season will most be remembered for is the passing away of Gene Roddenberry. He saw the show through the twenty fifth anniversary of Star Trek, but died on October 26th 1991. It was a tragic loss to many people, and since Gene's death Star Trek has never been the same. The fifth season was also memorable for a number of other reasons. The last feature film to feature the entire crew of the original series ("Star Trek VI - The Undiscovered Country") was released in November of 1991, and to tie in with the event a special two part episode featuring Spock was televised. Although debate about just how good "Unification" actually still goes on today, the show did hit an all time ratings high that season. The main cast remained the same, although the semi-regular cast of Rosalind Chao, Whoopi Goldberg, Colm Meaney, and Patti Yasutake were joined by Brian Bonsall as Worf's son Alexander, and Michelle Forbes as Ensign Ro. There were also appearances by several returning guest stars, most notably Majel Barrett, Denise Crosby, and Wil Wheaton, but John De Lancie and Dwight Schultz failed to return in their established roles. Major changes behind the camera were also non-existent. Ronald D. Moore and Joe Menosky became coproducers, but that was about it, apart from the addition of Peter Allan Fields as executive story editor towards the end of the season. Episode 1: "Redemption Part II" ------------------------------- Airdate: 9/23/91, Stardate: 45020.4 Written by Ronald D. Moore, directed by David Carson. Guest Cast: Timothy Carhart (Lieutenant Commander Hobson), Denise Crosby (Commander Sela), J.D. Cullum (Toral), Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan), Nicholas Kepros (General Movar), Barbara March (Lursa), Colm Meaney (O'Brien), Robert O'Reilly (Gowron), Tony Todd (Kurn), Gwynyth Walsh (B'Etor). Worf is fighting alongside Gowron in the Klingon civil war, and Captain Picard is trying to persuade Starfleet that the Romulans are also involved. There were one or two important questions that were waiting to be answered by this epsiode. Would Worf ever return to the Enterprise? Who would win the Klingon civil war? And just why was Denise Crosby wearing that awful blonde wig? Anticipation was high, but unfortunately "Redemption Part II" failed to live up to those anticipations. Although the epsiode started off superbly with a terrific scene depicting Kurn fighting off two rival Birds Of Prey, a scene that was full of action and atmosphere, the rest of the episode was a bit like watching a balloon deflate. The acting, particularly from Michael Dorn cannot be faulted. Neither could the sppecial effects, and the directing, but Ronald D. Moore came up with a bit of a duffer. The main problem was that too much had to be resolved in forty six minutes, which led to a rather rushed conclusion both to the civil war, and to Worf's return to his comrades. This is something that "The Best Of Both Worlds" suffered from to a far lesser extent, mainly due to the excellent "Family", and that all of the season cliff hangers would also fail to overcome. Perhaps the weakest element in this epsiode is the introduction of Denise Crosby as Commander Sela. Now before I hear howls of protest let me say that this is nothing personal against Denise Crosby. I neither liked, nor disliked Tasha Yar. On the whole her character was never really allowed to develop. Nor am I against the return of Denise Crosby, but the whole explanation of Sela's connection to the alternate timeline Tasha Yar, and the accompaning dialogue comes straight from one of those really bad soap operas shown on daytime television. Oh, and that ridiculous looking wig just destroyed any remaining credibility that the plot had left. We do learn one or two useful bits of trivia. There are several Federation ships named (the Akagi, the Endeavour, the Hermes, the Excalibur, the Hornet, the Sutherland, and the Tian An Men). The Excalibur was one of the names that would later be considered for the ship that eventually became the Voyager, and the Tian An Men was of course named in recognition of the terrible events in China. Only one Klingon ship is named, but at least it is Kurn's ship, and the name is the Heghta. What I find surprising is that only two of these are in the customizable card game! Perhaps the most interesting piece of infomation though is that the Romulans have apparently been trying to break the Klingon - Federation alliance for twenty years, indicating that although they had no contact with the Federation for fifty years (according to the first season episode "The Neutral Zone") they kept themselves busy with other matters! Best Moment: The attack on Kurn's ship. Person Of The Moment: Michael Dorn. Best Line: "Kill him!", "No!", "But it's our way. It's the Klingon way.", "I know, but it is not my way." Rating: Average. Episode 2: Darmok ----------------- Airdate: 9/30/91, Stardate: 45047.2 Written by Philip Lazebnik and Joe Menosky, directed by Winrich Kolbe. Guest Cast: Ashley Judd (Ensign Lefler), Colm Meaney (O'Brien), Paul Winfield (Captain Dathon). On a sensitive contact mission with a mysterious alien race Captain Picard finds himself in a desperate situation on a dangerous planet. "Darmok" is what many would consider to be the personification of Star Trek. It certainly meets all the criteria. Firstly, the crew meet a new alien race that they quite literally do not understand. Secondly, the majority of the epsiode is all about 'talking heads', i.e. two characters just talking to each other. Finally it is by working together that the two races begin to understand each other, and instead of blowing each other up in special effects bonanza, they leave a little wiser. Other examples of episodes that are similar in style would include "I - Borg", and "Duet". Of course when the success of the episode depends on certain characters, it is important that the calibre of the actors involved is up to the task. Well, all I can say that the actors involved here give two incredibly powerful performances. Patrick Stewart and Paul Winfield (who played Captain Tyrell in Star Trek II - The Wrath Of Khan) are amazing. However there are also others who deserve praise for this episode's success. The music is beautiful, and really adds alot of depth to the events that unfold, especially in the scene where Picard is relating the tale of Gilgamesh. Jay Chattaway must be conratulated for his score to this episode. As for Michael Westmore and his team, they too have done extremely well in creating the Tamarians. "Darmok" is not without criticism though. Riker's attitude and reaction to the situation is a little too aggressive for my liking, and I would say out of character. No doubt, this was written for dramatic effect, but in my opinion it doesn't work. The episode could have started off a little stronger as well, as for the first two acts it is a bit too slow. These may seem like fairly minor complaints, but they are enough to stop "Darmok" achieving an excellent rating. On the trivia side of things we do learn that Data has encountered one thousand seven hundred and fifty four different non-human lifeforms in his twenty six year tenure in Starfleet. Picard gets a nifty new jacket, there is a nice scene when Data and Troi are working together and discover that there are forty seven entries in the computer for the word Darmok, and we are introduced to Robin Lefler, who would later become Wesley's love interest in "The Game". Best Moment: The camp fire scene with Dathon dying whilst Picard tells him the tale of Gilgamesh. Person Of The Moment: Paul Winfield for his portrayal of Captain Dathon. Best Line : "New friends Captain?", "I can't say number one, but at least they're not new enemies." Rating: Very Good. Episode 3: Ensign Ro -------------------- Airdate: 10/7/91, Stardate: 45076.3 Written by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, directed by Les Landau. Guest Cast: Michelle Forbes (Ensign Ro), Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan), Cliff Potts (Admiral Kennelly). A disgraced Starfleet officer is sent to the Enterprise by Admiral Kennelly to help with an important mission that involves the Cardassians. "Ensign Ro" was the first episode to introduce the Bajorans to the Star Trek universe, and although not known at the time was a precursor to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Although it has many elements that can be praised, such as the acting of Michelle Forbes, the scenes involving Guinan, and the directing by Les Landau, it is one of those episodes that has at the heart of it something incompatible with Gene Roddenberry's vision of Star Trek. I don't know how many times that I have said this in many previous articles, but according to Gene, Starfleet is not a military organisation. It is scientific and exploratoy, with any weapons starships are fitted with being purely for defensive purposes. Indeed the rank system is only there as some sort of chain of command is needed. However with epsiodes such as "Ensign Ro", "The Wounded", and the sixth season's "The Pegasus" it is very much portrayed as the Federation's armed forces. It also seems to be littered with rogue officers either attacking the 'enemy' (e.g. "The Wounded", "The Maquis", and "Defiant"), or working to their own agenda (e.g. "The Drumhead", "The Pegasus", and "Ensign Ro"). Now I know that not everything that Gene ever said is set in stone, destined never to change, but this is so fundamental to the whole ethos of Star Trek, that it should never ever be broken. Leaving that criticism aside for a moment, this is a relatively entertaining entry in the season. Michelle Forbes give an impressive debut as Ensign Ro, and Whoopi Goldberg is also very good as Guinan. The scenes between these two characters are the highlights of the episode, and it is a real shame that their friendship was never really expanded on in future episodes. There is also a very nice scene in the teaser where Captain Picard is having his hair cut by Mr Mot. There are a couple of interesting points to make about "Ensign Ro". Firstly when Ro takes her jacket off to give to a Bajoran child, she appears to have a second communicator on her undershirt. Now if this was standard Starfleet procedure, and why would she be wearing it if it wasn't, it rather negates all those episodes where characters take their communicators off to avoid detection! Me thinks that this may be a continuity error. The second point, and this is not so much an error as an intreresting anomaly, Ro wears her earing on her left ear, but every other Bajoran depicted in Star Trek has worn it on his or her right ear! Best Moment: The conversation between Guinan and Ro. Person Of The Moment: Michelle Forbes. Best Line: Ro's speech about her father (it's too long to list here!). Rating: Good. Episode 4: Silicon Avatar ------------------------- Airdate: 10/14/91, Stardate: 45122.3 Written by Lawrence V. Conley and Jeri Taylor, directed by Cliff Bole. Guest Cast: Ellen Geer (Dr Kila Marr). The crystalline entity returns. This was the last episode that Gene saw before he died, and what a crying shame it is that it had to be this one. Although the episode starts off well enough with a great teaser in which a colony is attacked by the entity, the episode soon degrades quickly into a tale of revenge, and a triumph of hatred over understanding. As with the previous episode the technical side of things are fine, although the performance from Ellen Geer is rather stilted, which considering the character's motivations is all the more noticeable. I certainly got the impression that Geer was not very comfortable in the role, but maybe it was my imagination. One scene that did strike me as a little humourous was when Commander Riker was talking to a female colonist, and she says something like, "You don't strike me as the sort of person to put roots down." Considering what some people think of Mr Frakes and his likeness to a tree (a view that I happen to disagree with), it raises a smile. On a slightly more serious note is the lack of character development, apart when we see Data playing yet another musical instrument, this time a guitar, but this a forgiveable mistake. What is not forgiveable though is the ending in which just as the crew are learning to communicate with the crystalline entity, just as they are learning that it is intelligent, and thus could be reasoned with, Dr Marr destroys it. Not only that, but she takes a considerable amount of time to destroy it, easily long enough for any one of the bridge crew to stop her, but what do they do? Nothing! They just quite literally stand around looking gormless when it is more than obvious exactly what she is doing. Just as "Darmok" (and later on in the season "I - Borg") was exactly what Star Trek is all about, "Silicon Avatar" is the antithesis of what Star Trek is all about. For that alone it more than deserves its' rating of awful. Best Moment: The teaser. Person Of The Moment: Captain Picard, for being the one crew member who at least tries to understand the crystalline entity. Best Line: "I would argue that the crystalline entity has as much right to be here as you do." Rating: Awful. Episode 5: Disaster ------------------- Airdate: 10/21/91, Stardate: 45156.1 Written by Ron Jarvis, Ronald D. Moore, and Philip A. Scorza, directed by Gabrielle Beaumont. Guest Cast: Rosalind Chao (Keiko O'Brien), Michelle Forbes (Ensign Ro), Colm Meaney (O'Brien). The Enterprise hits a cosmic string fragment. Well, after the disaster of the previous episode, this is a far more enjoyable and successful effort, especially if you watch it with the knowledge that it was meant as a homage to all those terrible disaster movies that were usually produced by Irwin Allen. It is not meant to be full of hidden subtext, or have some allegorical allusions. It is just a bit of a romp, and as such it is very good. All of the regular cast are placed in some sort of jeopardy, and it is a rarity to find an episode where all of the cast feature more or less equally. The stars of the show for me have to be Rosalind Chao and Michael Dorn, who are hilarious as Worf acts as midwife to Keiko. The tension is effectively created by Beaumont as director, and the rest of the production crew, with some very atmospheric lighting and clever use of established sets. Some of the scenarios drag a little, and just why Troi seems to be completely ignorant of bridge procedure when she has spent alot of the past five years on it, and is also a Lieutenant Commander as well, is beyond me. And the most embarassing scene has to be when Picard decides that he and the children need a climbing song as they ascend the turbolift shaft. He should have chosen the laughing vulcan and his dog. There is also a continuation of Doctor Crusher's interest in staging shows with her attempts to persuade Geordi to sing in her production of The Pirates Of Penzance. Previous references to this include "Data's Day" and "Nth Degree", and of course it would form the basis for the sixth season episode "Frame Of Mind". It is little touches like this that really make the episode for me, and it's satisfying to see all of the characters benefit from this kind of writing. Although it is not the sort of episode that would stand up to repeat viewing, well at least after the first two or three times, it is enjoyable enough. Now does anyone know the lyrics to the Laughing vulcan and his dog? Best Moment: Worf acting as midwife to Keiko. Person Of The Moment: Michael Dorn, for showing that he can do comedy. Best Line: "I'm going into labour!", "You cannot. This is not a good time Keiko." Rating: Very Good. Episode 6: The Game ------------------- Airdate: 10/28/91, Stardate: 45208.2 Written by Brannon Braga, Fred Bronson, and Susan Sackett, directed by Corey Allen. Guest Cast: Ashley Judd (Ensign Lefler), Colm Meaney (O'Brien), Katherine Moffat (Etana Jol), Wil Wheaton (Cadet Crusher), Patti Yasutake (Nurse Ogawa). Wesley Crusher visits the Enterprise, falls in love, and saves the ship. "The Game" was the first episode to feature Wesley Crusher since his departure from the ship in the fourth season episode "Final Mission". It also was the second episode for the character of Robin Lefler, played by Ashley Judd (sister of the country and western star Wynnona Judd). Although it was hoped that her character would return at least once more, it never actually happened, a pity since Judd gives a very engaging performance here. But then I have always wanted to know what became of Sonya Gomez! This episode seems to get a very mixed reaction from fans. They either seem to really like it, or they think that it is a load of tripe. Reportedly one member of the cast actually ripped up their copy of the script, but then if you know what Star Trek is for wild and inaccurate rumours, this may be completely untrue. Personally I think that it is one of the better Next Generation episodes. The performances from everyone are up to the usual standard, and Wil Wheaton gives one of his best performances as Wesley. There are two high points of the episode for me. The first is the infamous chocolate sundae scene with Troi and Riker. Well written, and very well played by Sirtis and Frakes. The other is Ashley Judd. She would have made a very good recurring character, and it's a shame that she never returned. The plot is nothing original. Each of the crew being slowly taken over by a strange device, and the ending confrontation with Jol is weak, but the building of tension and growing paranoia as each crew member falls prey to the game is very effective, as is the final chase sequence. It shows that sometimes, and I do only mean sometimes, it is not the originality of a plot that matters, but how that plot is scripted and filmed. The only proviso that I put on this is that if an episode does rely on plots from previous entries then, as with both "Disaster" and "The Game" they can tend to get tedious after a while. The music also plays an important part in creating the right atmosphere, and Jay Chattaway, not my favourite Star Trek composer, has done another fine job. One final point of interest is that there is the second mention of the number forty seven this season when Nurse Ogawa tells Wesley that she has reached level forty seven of the game. Best Moment: The final flight of Wesley from the affeacted crew. Person Of The Moment: Ashley Judd. Best Line: "Your neutrinos are drifting." Rating: Good. Episode 7: Unification Part I ----------------------------- Airdate: 11/4/91, Stardate: 45236.4 Written by Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor, directed by Les Landau. Guest Cast: Graham Jarvis (Klim Dorachin), Norman Large (Proconsul Neral), Mark Lenard (Sarek), Joanna Miles (Perrin), Stephen D. Root (Captain K'Vada), Malachi Throne (Senator Pardek). Captain Picard has to discover whether Ambassador Spock has really defected to Romulus. Well, this was THE episode that alot of fans were looking forward to. Not only was it the meeting of the two generations, although technically this had already been done in "Encounter At Farpoint", but it was also going to be connected to the events portrayed in "Star Trek VI - The Undiscovered Country". On both accounts it was a major disappointment. The most obvious one for this particular episode was that although all the trailers had hyped up Spock's appearance, he actually only appeared in the last thirty seconds, leaving alot of fans disillusioned. This was not the only let down. The whole pacing of the episode was painfully slow. Picard's search for the truth, and for Ambassador Spock, should have been involving, but to say that it was not would be a bit like saying that a Deltan was slighlty bald. Even the appearance of Mark Lenard as Sarek was a dudd. The dialogue left alot to be desired, and somehow the terrible tragedy of something like this happening to a major character failed to come across. The one line mention of his death was also a missed opportunity to make an emotional impact. Picard and Data's arrival on Romulus failed to portray any of the great danger that the characters were in, and the Enterprise's search for evidence just seemed like an excuse to give Riker and the rest of the crew something to do. The one bit of trivia worth mentioning is that the character that they speak to at the ship junkyard is a Zakdorn, a race that we first encountered in the second season episode "Peak Performance". This may seem like this makes "Unification" the worst episode ever made. Well, it's not. It's just that considering what characters are involved, the suppossed importance of the events that the characters are involved in, and that it is a two parter, it should have a whole lot more than it was. It is at best mediocre, and that's not good enough. Best Moment: The final scene where Picard meets Spock. Person Of The Moment: Mark Lenard, for making the best of a bad script. Best Line: "He probably figures that we don't get to see alot of handsome women out this way, and someone like you might get a little more cooperation from me; he's probably right." Rating: Poor. Episode 8: Unification Part II ------------------------------ Airdate: 11/11/91, Stardate: 45245.8 Written by Rick Berman, and Michael Piller, directed by Cliff Bole. Guest Cast: Denise Crosby (Commander Sela), Norman Large (Proconsul Neral), Leonard Nimoy (Ambassador Spock), Stephen D. Root (Captain K'Vada), Malachi Throne (Senator Pardek). Events on Romulus continue to unfold. After the poor start to this double length episode with part I, you might expect that things would pick up with part II. I'm afraid that they don't. The plot is till very slow, and even though things do speed up towards the episode's climax, they never really create enough pace. Leonard Nimoy is a particular disappointment. There are one or two brief moments when the old Spock shines through, but otherwise his performance, whilst being adequate, is never above that. As for the rest of the cast they too are unremarkable. The plot seems to have more holes in it than an old string vest. Riker's mission serves no purpose whatsoever, other than to fill in forty six minutes, and to give the rest of the cast some lines. The whole Romulan ploy of using old Vulcan shuttles seems rather pointless as well. For starters, the shuttles would surely be recognised as types that had meant to be dismantled, thus arousing suspicions. Secondly, since they were being accompanied by cloaked warbirds, why not just send the cloaked ships over? They stand the same chance of being detected, with or without the shuttles, and they can certainly hold more troops than they could. On the plus side, Worf does sing some Klingon opera. Oh, hang on I said on the plus side didn't I? Well okay, how about this for an interesting fact? The young romulan D'tan is played by Vidal Peterson who would later play a young Cardassian in the Deep Space Nine episode "Cardassians". Okay, okay, but I'm really struggling to find something positive to say about this episode. In the final analysis both parts of "Unification" are a big let down. The acting is rarely exceptional, the plot doesn't stand up to any detailed investigation, Spock's role could have been taken by any character, and the ending is rushed. In one word, boring. Best Moment: Spock's cowboy diplomacy. Person Of The Moment: Leonard Nimoy, the best of a poor bunch. Best Line: "A new face!", "Same one I've always had." Rating: Poor. Episode 9: A Matter Of Time --------------------------- Airdate: 11/18/91, Stardate: 45349.1 Written by Rick Berman, directed by Paul Lynch. Guest Cast: Matt Frewer (Berlinghoff Rasmussen). A time traveller from the twenty sixth century visits the Enterprise. The character of Berlinghoff Rasmussen was originally written for Robin Williams, but unfortunately he was unable to film the episode, and it was given to Matt Frewer (Max Headroom, and Honey I Shrunk The Kids). He does a good enough job, but you don't need to watch "A Matter Of Time" closely to tell that Williams was really meant for the role. I'm afraid to say that this is yet another weak episode. Rasmussen is really annoying, and it is also blatantly obvious that he is up to no good. Of course, it becomes apparent in the final act that they suspected him all along, but if this was really the case, it does raise questions over why Captain Picard agonises so much with him when trying to decide what action to take over the planetary dilemma. Since he is so extremely easy to suspect, the final denoument that he is in fact from the twenty second century, comes as no surprise at all, and you are left thinking so what? Not the first time that this has happened. There are some good moments to "A Matter Of Time", but none of them involve the main guest character, which is another indication of his weakness. I imagine that he is meant to be a loveable rogue, but take it from me: he isn't. The other element involving the crew's attempts to prevent a planetary disaster is okay. It is not original either, but at least it gives Geordi the chance to show his skills, and actually ends up being a whole lot more entertaining and watchable than the main plot. I don't really know what else to say about this epsiode, other than when I watched it, it was worse than I remembered it being! Best Moment: The second attempt at stabilizing the planet's atmosphere. Person Of The Moment: Patrick Stewart. Best Line: "I assume that your handprint will open this door; whether you are conscious or not." Rating: Below Average. Episode 10: New Ground ---------------------- Airdate: 1/6/92, Stardate: 45376.3 Written by Sara Charno, Stuart Charno, and Grant Rosenberg, directed by Robert Scheerer. Guest Cast: Brian Bonsall (Alexander Rozhenko), Georgia Brown (Helena Rozhenko). Worf's son comes to live with his father on board the Enterprise. "New Ground" reintroduced Worf's son Alexander to The Next Generation. Last seen in the fourth season episode "Reunion" played by Jon Steuer, the more experienced Brian Bonsall took over the role for this and subsequent episodes. His age is the subject of alot of confusion. Taking various episodes and stardates into consideration, he should be about one year old, however he has the appearance of a six year old. Of course many people have postulated that his klingon heritage accounts for this. The back plot of the Enterprise testing a new warp drive system called the Soliton Wave only acts as a dramatic back drop to the main story of Worf and Alexander trying to get on with each other. Personally I found it all rather tedious. All of the situations used to illustrate their struggle were cliched to say the least, and consequently were of no real interest. Sure, the performances were okay, but when you have dialogue and scenes that you have seen a thousand times before, that doesn't count for much. The most laughable thing about this episode has to be the corvan gilvos, the animals that Alexander becomes fascinated with. They are quite the worst special effect, and I use that term loosely, that I have ever seen used in The Next Generation. To balance these dreadful puppets, there are some nice tidbits ofbackground information. Alexander's birth date was on stadate 43205, he also uses Worf's calisthenics program, and doesn't do too badly on it! We also see the school office, and Counsellor Troi's office as well - two parts of the ship rarely seen. Finally Worf has a statue of Kahless and Morath in his quarters. Kahless first appeared in the original series episode "The Savage Curtain", and would later reappear (or at least a clone of him would) in the sixth season episode "Rightful Heir". Best Moment: Worf and Troi's conversation. Person Of The Moment: Michael Dorn. Best Line: "Data Data. Isn't this exciting? We are going to witness a moment in history!", "Every nanosecond in this continuum is a moment in histroy once it has elapsed." Rating: Awful. Episode 11: Hero Worship ------------------------ Airdate: 1/27/92, Stardate: 45397.3 Written by Hilary J. Bader and Joe Menosky, directed by Patrick Stewart. Guest Cast: Joshua Harris (Timothy). The Enterprise finds a lone survivor of a decimated ship. Patrick Stewart's second episode behind the camera is another Data story. I'm afraid to say that it is another failure. Alot of that has to do with the completely awful script, but I don't know how much Stewart's direction has also got to do with it. This was the second episode involving children, but Timothy is completely annoying, even though he is not trying be, where as at least Alexander was likeable. I don't like saying this but you just wanted to reach out and grab the kid, and tell him to get a grip. Marina Sirtis, and Levar Burton come out of this pretty well. The both have several nice scenes, Troi showing that she does actually do a job, and Geordi recounting his being trapped in a house fire when he was five, and before he had his first VISOR. However, as with "In Theory" (Patrick Stewart's first directorial episode) Data is far too mechanical. I know that he had to be portrayed as such to a certain degree, to show just how emotionally withdrawn Timothy had become, but I think that it was a case of less would have meant more. The mystery of what happened to the ship, as with the b plots of the two previous episodes, serves only to make the dramatic climax of the main plot, but that's okay. There is nothing wrong with that, except when it becomes more interesting than the main plot. Guess what has happened here! The schoolroom is featured again, and Data is seen painting again. There are also three connections to the Star Trek feature films. The song that the school class sing is that old favourite 'Row, row, row your boat', featured in the camp fire scenes in "Star Trek V - The Final Frontier", and the Breen are mentioned as a possible agressor against the destroyed Vico. The Vico is a redress of the Grissom, seen in "Star Trek III - The Search For Spock", and the Breen (first mentioned in the fourth season epsiode "The Loss") would also be mentioned in "Star Trek Generations". It is all a bit of a disaster. The only light on the horizon is that Stewart's next directorial effort would be a stupendous success, but that wouldn't be until the sixth season. Best Moment: Data's evaluation of Timothy's model. Person Of The Moment: Anyone who manages to sit all the way through this. Best Line: "I would gladly risk feeling bad at times if it also meant that I could taste my desert." Rating: Awful. Episode 12: Violations ---------------------- Airdate: 2/3/92, Stardate: 45429.3 Written by Shari Goodhartz, Pamela Gray, T. Michael Gray, and Jeri Taylor, directed by Robert Wiemer. Guest Cast: Eve Brenner (Inad), Rosalind Chao (Keiko O'Brien), Ben Lemon (Jev), David Sage (Tarmin). Counselor Troi is attacked by one of three visiting aliens. Oh dear, oh dear. From one awful episode to another. However this is slightly more worrying considering the subject matter dealt with. What is surprising is that they have dealt with it so badly. Star Trek is good at doing moraltiy plays, of making some point about a modern day situation by placing the Star Trek characters in an allegorical situation. However, whenever they bludgeon people over the head with a 'cause of the week', they only end up achieving nothing but aggravating people. At first that is what I thought had happened here, but when I watched the episode again I came to the conclusion that it wasn't. I think that what they have done is almost the complete opposite. They have taken the incredibily sensitive subject of rape (both male and female), and used it as the basis of a routine thriller. Little, well in fact nothing, is made of the fact that Jev is a serial rapist, with victims on several planets. That is a horrific thought, but instead of dealing with this, they turn it into a game of guess which guest star is the criminal. That is terrrible. They also ignore the effect of this rape that the three crew members involved are victims of. I don't know about you, but I find that very disturbing. I find it difficult to seperate that major flaw with the rest of the episode, but when I do there is nothing but yet another routine and cliched story that holds no surprises. The camera angles used in the 'nightmare' sequences are effectively used, but this does not make up for the rest of this garbage. Best Moment: Riker's 'nightmare'. Person Of The Moment: Marina Sirtis. Best Line: None. Rating: Poor. Episode 13: The Masterpiece Society ----------------------------------- Airdate: 2/10/92, Stardate: 45470.1 Written by Adam Belanoff, James Khan, and Michael Piller, directed by Winrich Kolbe. Guest Cast: Ron Canada (Martin Benbeck), John Snyder (Aaron Connor), Dey Young (Hannah Bates). The Enterprise tries to save a genetically engineered society from a stellar core fragment that is going to impact on their planet. "The Masterpiece Society" is not only an examination of genetic engineering, and the moral implications of it, but also an examination of the prime directive. Whilst this is not exactly a classic, it is in fact only an average episode, it is a big improvement on the previous six episodes. The case both for and against a genetic engineered society is made, not an easy task to do, but done so relatively well. On the one hand everyone has a purpose and a reason for being there, there is no one who feels unfulfilled. On the other hand it is dehumanising and almost fascistic, not allowing for such people as Geordi. The romance between Counselor Troi and Aaron Connor, the society's leader, is handled sensitively and convincingly, as is Hannah Bates growing disillusionment at her society. At times though it can get a little monotonous and bland, and this stops the episode from keeping the viewer's attention, and thus make its' point more effectively. I suppose that the best way to describe it might be that it is the sort of episode that you might find playing in a lift, or in the lobby of a hotel. One nice touch is the implied jealousy of Riker of Troi and Connor's romance. It is very subtle, and Frakes does a very good job in a very small part of the overall scheme of things. Of course in the end Picard cannot turn down the request of those society members who want to leave, even though he tries to persude them not to. I have to say that I agree with him. To refuse to help them would have been cruel, but on the other hand it can be argued that it is breaking the Prime Directive. The lesson to be learnt, and one that the episode teaches fairly well, is that sometimes there are no easy answers. Best Moment: Picard and Connor's conversation. Person Of The Moment: John Snyder. Best Line: "Who gave them the right to decide whether or not I should be here? Whether or not I might have something to contribute?" Rating: Average. Continued in part two...