VIDEO/EPISODE REVIEWS -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CASSETTE 66 ("SCHISMS" / "TRUE Q") ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Schisms is a story of mysterious disappearances and equally strange re- appearances centred on Will Riker. He particularly is suffering from a lack of sleep and after an examination in sickbay it seems he has been experimented on! The story is well written by Jean Louise Matthias and Ron Wilkerson with some unexpected twists and gets cassette 66 in the expanding Next Gen video collection off to a good start. The second tale on this tape introduces a seemingly innocent student called Amanda. Unluckily for her and the crew of our favourite starship she is a bit of a Q! Unlucky because Q himself turns up to test the young woman - is she a full Q or a Q/human hybrid? True Q is a competent story from the pen of Rene Echevarria which partners Schisms well. Just don't expect a great deal and enjoy them. STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CASSETTE 67 ("RASCALS"/"A FISTFUL OF DATAS") ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Oh dear. The first story on this tape isn't as bad as Imaginary Friend but comes very close. Rascals entails the reduction of Capt. Picard, Ensign Ro, Guinan and Keiko to twelve year olds. This is bad enough but then a handful of Ferengi in two Klingon Birds Of Prey manage to capture the Enterprise! This story is a complete load of rubbish and does not bode well for the directorial future of Adam Nimoy. In normal circumstances I would say keep away from this tape. However the second story is a bit of a classic! A Fist Full Of Data's is one of the best episodes I have seen and depicts the problems of Worf and co, trapped in a holo-deck with all the characters in the wild west senario turning to Data's! A wonderful example of Next Gen from Robert Hewitt Wolfe (directed by Patrick Stewart) that should be part of everyones collection even with the tainting of Rascals! STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CASSETTE 68 ("THE QUALITY OF LIFE" / ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн "CHAIN OF COMMAND - PART 1") нннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Data is the centre of attention as he tries to prove that a set of tool drones are sentient in the face of the adverse opinions of the devices inventor, who is desperately trying to complete her life's work and needs the `Exocomps' (the drones) to do it! A well written story from Naren Shankar and directed by the now experienced Jonathan Frakes! Part one of Chain Of Command takes the second half of this tape and sees Starfleet handing command of the Enterprise to Captain Edward Jellico formerly in command of the U.S.S. Cairo! Meanwhile Captain Picard, Dr Crusher and Worf are training for a mission of the utmost secrecy in Cardassian territory! A good and sometimes shocking story from Frank Abatemarco. A good buy but only as a set with volume 69. STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CASSETTE 69 ("CHAIN OF COMMAND - PART 2" / ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн "SHIP IN A BOTTLE") ннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн The conclusion of Chain Of Command sees Captain Picard strung up by the Cardassians and Will Riker removed by Captain Jellico! A competent ending to a competent story, but a PG? I don't think so. Moriarty comes back due to the repair work on the holodeck performed by Reg Barclay. He demands to talk to Captain Picard and then leaves the holodeck! A good story with some holo-complications by Rene Echevarria with welcome guest appearances from Stephanie Beacham and Dwight Schultz as a more confident Lieutenant Barclay. This cassette along with 68 provides 3 hours of good entertainment for г22 that can be seen again and again. It's got to be good value for money! STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CASSETTE 70 ("AQUIEL" / "FACE OF THE ENEMY") ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Aquiel is a interesting whodunnit with Geordi at last finding a real girl who likes him. The story involves the death of a Lieutenant on board a subspace relay station and possible connections with the Klingons. A well made episode from a good storyline with a few twists and turns and romantic hope for Geordi! By Jeri Taylor. Deanna wakes up to find she has the face of a Romulan! She has been kidnapped by Spock's underground movement and given the identity of a Romulan intelligence officer. She is also on board a Warbird. Things get hairy when the warbird prepares to attack the Enterprise. Face Of The Enemy (by Rene Echevarria) is another damn good story from which sets season 6 up as the best season so far. This tape is well worth г10.99! STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - "LESSONS" нннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Matthew Dean нннннннннннннннннннннннн Okay - I'm going to put my hand in the air and say with authority that this is one of my favourite TNG episodes so far. And I'm proud of it too, even though the rest of the IF team want me taken away by the men in white coats! Seriously, though, I believe that this episode goes a long way in really bringing the character of Picard out, and exploring facets of his character that have previously been left well alone. The best bit about this story was the beautiful music that was used within, and that characters of Picard and Daren mix in the most explosive and delightful way. The base story is also explosive, with lots of high and low points. My only complaint is the absence of any sort of jealousy by Crusher - sure, she balks at Darens piano duets, but that is it. Anyone who likes a bit of romance, with a bit of soothing music, should buy this episode, as it is a worthy addition to any video collection - not only Star Trek - way on the same par as The Offspring. No - I think the red padded wallpaper looks better in here, Simon.... STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - CASSETTE 1 ("EMISSARY") нннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Emmisary is a good intoduction to the series which centres rather worryingly around Commander Sisko, especially when there are more interesting characters like Odo, Quark, Major Kira and Dax around. There is a welcome appearance from the Enterprise. A better pilot than Next Gen's Encounter At Farpoint by Rick Berman and Michael Piller but not without it's flaws. Lets hope season 2 turns up without Sisko and the terrible and long winded title sequence at the start. Well worth г9.99 if you don't want to wait for the collectors edition. STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - CASSETTE 2 ("PAST PROLOGUE" / "A MAN ALONE") ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн The first episode on this tape centres more around Kira, DS9's Bajoran first officer, and her past as a terrorist acting against the Cardassian empire. A terrorist is rescued from a Cardassian pursuit by DS9 and seemingly gives up his terrorist lifestyle. However the presence of Lursa and B'Etor of the clan Duras and other details suggests there is more than meets the eye. A good story by Kathryn Powers which starts the tape well. A Man Alone sees a murder take place in one of the holosuits and the prime suspect is... Odo! A nice story which explores an outsiders problems in a community as everyone's favourite shape-shifter gets mobbed and relieved of duty. A nice end to a г9.99 tape (at big stores) from the keyboards of Gerald Sanford and Michael Piller. STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - CASSETTE 3 ("BABEL" / "CAPTIVE PURSUIT") ннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн Chief O'Brien is talking gibberish! Thanks to a virus the inhabitants of DS9 may well have their lives somewhat shortened. A competent story with definite Naked Now overtones from Sally Caves and Ira Steven Behr which also suggests that Jadzia Dax may not be as scientific as she first let on! That damned Prime Directive causes more problems in Captive Pursuit as O'Brien befriends the first alien to arrive from the Gamma Quadrant and DS9's staff try to discover why the visitor, Tosk, is so nervous. An intriguing story which suggests that the gamma-inhabitants are a little barbaric from Jill Sherman Donner. Get those tenners ready people! STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - CASSETTE 4 ("Q-LESS" / "DAX") нннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннннн Reviewed by Sven Harvey ннннннннннннннннннннннн O'Brien manages to put the situation in perfect clarity with two words "...bloody hell"! Why? Well Vash is back after leaving the Enterprise and Sherwood Forest but her `partner' turns up as well and he's damn annoying - Q! In another excellent episode Q goes around making peoples lives a little less mundane though for once he's not the main problem. It's a Q episode so it's got to be worth a place on your shelf. The second story on the tape is called Dax, so as you would imagine for the majority of males out there that's all you need to know. Other than the obvious qualities of this episode the story is good (from Peter Allan Fields) and the teleplay is by P.A. Fields and Trek verteran D.C. Fontana. This video for г9.99 go buy it (it's got Jadzia on the cover so it's not gonna last long). But why isn't Dax on the cover? Who would buy a video with a slimy invertebrate on it?