Board 8 > Wifebolo Watches - Star Trek: TNG

(+) Yeah! (+)

that was not my kinda vacation
---

S4E23 - "The Host"
Strange, strange episode which questions the roles of physical appearance vs emotional attachment in relationships. I felt kinda bad for Beverly, having to stave off Odan-as-Riker, as well as having to deal with Odan in a form she just was not attracted to. Makes me realize how old this episode really is, 1991. Wow.

Tom's right, I usually get on a more regular viewing schedule when we are not on vacay. Especially not Riza vacations, no thanks.
---

speaking of which
---

We did start S4E24 this morning but didn't afford time to finish. Will do tonight + writeup. After this, two more episodes until S5!
---

S4E24 - "The Mind's Eye"

Wow, this was a good episode. I get excited when Picard professionally maneuvers through Klingon cultural territory, he's very firm yet diplomatic. Data saves the day once again, and it's nice to get our regular Geordi back. Exciting times.

We started S4E25 and couldn't stop laughing. "In Theory" featuring Data's foray into romance is next.
---

There's a reason Picard is the human that the Klingons respect most.
---

it's his shiny head
---

such klingon
---

ertyu, with his topics dormant
---

la la land is pretty intense if you were wondering
---

we quite liked it
---

guinan is p great
---

S4E25 - "In Theory"

Data is trying his best here, and at times his best isn't good enough. One wonders if he could have won the girl by not trying too hard? But the underlying message is 'rebound relationships are bad, kids', with a side of 'don't make the same mistake twice'. Is it more important to be stable and responsible? Or emotionally supportive and charismatic? What's the best balance of these qualities for the person you're with?

S4E26 - "Redemption I" & S5E1 - "Redemption II"

Insane amount of development on Worf, Kurn, Gowron, and the others. Again, I love seeing Picard in Klingon scenarios, he was a terrific Arbiter and very knowledgeable about the cultural attitudes

More to come!.
---

you're still forgetting his shiny head
---

Tom Bombadil posted...

you're still forgetting his shiny head

You're okay, buddy.
---

if this purges while we're gone for the weekend it will anger the picard
---

but we have established contact with the internet
---

and returned to the enterprise
---

Ouch, guys. I'm sorry about this. I'll try to consolidate as much as possible for this massive update.
S5E2 - "Darmok"
A stunning example of Picard's ability to adapt diplomatically and work with any situation. The attacks of the creature on the planet were sufficiently hokey but the rest of it was really solid. White blood is creepy.

S5E3 - "Ensign Ro"
Ensign Ro is easily my favorite 'original' character. [Arguments can be made that Spock was split down the middle and that's how we got Data and Worf, although each of those quickly become more than the sum of their parts. But they fill the Spock void for me, and that's why I like them.] Ro has this terrific balancing act of being aloof yet incredibly useful and resourceful. That moment when she corrects Picard on her name near the beginning of the episode makes me laugh every time.

S5E4 - "Silicon Avatar"
A great episode on the all-encompassing nature of revenge and how destructive it truly is. Data really surprised me with his independent observations in this episode. I also enjoy seeing Picard face-to-face with the real lives of people affected by tragedy when he is so strongly pulled towards an unemotional, purely diplomatic approach.

S5E5 - "Disaster"
Wow, wow, wow. More character development than one can shake a stick at. I loved this episode. Anytime Keiko can take some time away from her botanical studies to dish out some sass is a good time. Worf delivers a baby, Data acts as an energy buffer and loses his head, Picard is adorable with children ["executive officer in charge of radishes" was a hoot], and Ensign Ro gets really intense on the bridge. O'Brien is very helpful, and Troi gets a total rehaul of her understanding of the ship when she's typically managing emotions and stress levels, not command functions.

4 more eps to review. Stay with me.
---

S5E6 - "The Game" *cues up Triple H's entrance theme*
The graphics in this episode have clearly not aged well, but the central theme of creepy mind-addiction is still intact. Ashley Judd makes an adorable love interest for Wil Wheaton in this episode. Also the SFX makeup artists' talents in creating an elegant, bulbous beauty in the character of Etana Jol was amazing.

S5E7 - "Unification I"
Yay, it's ... disguising our intrepid heroes as Romulans. Bleugh. Never mind. Sarek dies and it's more than a little devastating. Perrin's great but I also miss Amanda. Surprise Spock at the end of this episode. Wow. I'm excited.

S5E8 - "Unification II"
More hokey Romulan disguise, except a wild Sela appears and shenanigans ensue. Thankfully, we are all mostly unharmed and things are Pretty Okay™. The mind meld part at the end was very sweet.

S5E9 - "A Matter of Time"
Gotta watch out of those Jersey types, they will pull one over on ya. In all honesty, the 'steal Data because he's nifty and/or lucrative' plot retread is getting a little old, tbh.
---

woo updatez
---

after this morning's episode I am wondering if there was something in my cereal
---

S5E10 - "New Ground"
Worf's mommy decides that maybe he should actually parent for once. Alexander's actor is a terrific, adorable kid. It was strange to see that the creatures did not pose a threat after Riker saved them from the fire [the Netflix teaser splash was very confusing in this regard]. I enjoy Worf and his parenting skills - not unlike my folks'.

S5E11 - "Hero Worship"
This episode was very precious. I enjoyed seeing Data do some good for an emotional human, instead of being 'the convenient computer'. Data with children is the best. I was really amused at that kid's stint as an 'android', reminded me of when I switched schools and strongly identified with Mr Spock back in the day.

S5E12 - "Violations"
Psychological creepiness. As hokey as some of the 'memories' were in this episode, they felt strangely realistic as memories. Memory is such a tricky thing, tbh - I have a pretty bad one but thankfully I keep people around who remember better than I do. I felt really terrible for Troi and for the rest of the people trying to get this sorted. Way to go, Data and Geordi.

S5E13 - "The Masterpiece Society" is next.
---

shenanigans
---

they tend to ensue
---

and ensue they have
---

we watched a dang ton yesterday but no writeups yet
---

but we did watch a dang ton
---

no really
---

but now we're watching movies instead
---

I forgot how much I liked O Brother Where Art Thou
---

Hidden Figures was pretty good too
---

farmer picard!
---

S5E13 - "The Masterpiece Society"
Oh noes we can't leave our planet, that'd be bad. Anyway, I kept thinking of Justin Long when I saw this main character leader guy, so it wasn't a very easy sell to put him with Troi. Also noted to Tom that if this were made today, Troi would be scarred for the next half season about her mind being violated by that dude in the last episode. This episode aired on my birthday that year.

S5E14 - "Conundrum"
I'm glad we got this episode all worked out, but it was a little tiresome in the meantime. The only entertaining part was Ro and Troi teaming up in Ten Forward in the end.

S5E15 - "Power Play"
I feel like I'm watching the third season of TOS, where we have run out of gas and started pedaling instead. This was another fairly tiresome episode, although Worf was really entertaining.
---

S5E16 - "Ethics"
Worf-centric and therefore awesome. Frakes delivers here as Riker, yelling at Worf while still maintaining their relationship. I thought it kinda strange that Worf asked him rather than Picard, but maybe he didn't want to inconvenience the captain? Also I guess Picard was just filling the role of Arbiter of Succession, but they've been through a lot together. Alexander is particularly cute and loved the survival twist at the end [gave me that 'Vulcan third eyelid' feel!].

S5E17 - "The Outcast"
An episode before its time. I've always considered Trek to be thinly-veiled progressive, which is awesome because it still addresses the issues while skirting any authorities that may have complaints. To put this episode in perspective, the Ellen DeGeneres show is shut down in 1997 following the title character coming out. This episode aired in 1992. I loved Melinda Culea's performance as Soren - stunning impact despite not being able to use her expressive eyebrows!

S5E18 - "Cause and Effect"
'Groundhog Day' a la Jonathan Frakes. This episode was a little spooky, but as always I am impressed by the TNG team. Also seeing Frasier [Kelsey Grammer] as a starship captain certainly elicited a laugh from me.

S5E19 - "The First Duty"
Not gonna lie, I was surprised to see Boothby was a white guy. And that he was still alive. The 24th century holds a good many mysteries. Wesley went through some tough character development here. Nice to see Picard embrace his role as a mentor, even if it made for brutal moments ["you don't deserve to wear that uniform"!! Oooh, burn.]. And that one kid is in Voyager? I thought he seemed familiar. Wow.
---

S5E20 - "Cost of Living"
As annoying as she seems to be, Lwaxana does shake up the Enterprise-D just when it's needed. Very amusing to see her almost get married to that stuck-up guy, and hilarious to see her interfere with Troi's careful family counseling. She reminds me of my grandmother, except less responsible.

S5E21 - "The Perfect Mate"
Yet another actor whose appearance kept nagging, 'you've seen me before'. Kamala's actress Famke Janssen eventually plays Jean Grey in the X-Men films from the early 2000s. Entertaining to watch Picard squirm under the attentions of lovely ladies.

S5E22 - "Imaginary Friend"
This episode is nope. They cast Noley Thornton as the most adorable child and then the 'imaginary friend' was completely hollow o_o
---

More writeups to come! I'm just finishing up S5 between today and tomorrow.
---

S5E23 - "I, Borg"
Alternate Title: My Favorite Murderer. Some people don't like the Borg and some bleeding hearts think it's a great idea to get to know them and feel emotionally compromised about them. I like the holistic approach TNG has but this episode was a bit scary - even if I found Hugh adorable. Seeing the typically unflappable Guinan on edge about the Borg is always a characterization win for me.

S5E24 - "The Next Phase"
Weird episode, just really entertaining that floors are the only things that operate properly. By rights, both of them should have been sucked out to space before the end of the teaser. I enjoy Ro and Geordi interacting - talk about a cat and a puppy trying to solve a problem together. And then they nearly got to attend their own funeral, Tom Sawyer style. I still want to know what Riker was going to say about Ro.

S5E25 - "The Inner Light"
I can only assume the events of this episode will effect Picard later, as many other things have. After all, he lived an entire adult lifetime in the span of 25 minutes. I was very moved by watching him with his wife and children, getting old and cranky over time. Really lovely, would recommend.
---

The two-parter "Time's Arrow" is next!
---

Cause and Effect is my personal favorite, and Inner Light is one of the top ten of all Trek.

Re: Next Phase, floors working ~kinda~ makes sense, as each floor has its own artificial gravity that works through technobabble. Of course, if Ro and Geordi phase through normal matter there's a bigger problem: How are they breathing?

Also, First Duty speech is a classic and key part of the Picard Rap.
---

Cause and Effect is my favorite episode to rewatch
---

the more star trek I watch the more I realize how much stargate owes it

window of opportunity best ep
---

S5E26 & S6E1 - "Time's Arrow, Parts I & II"
Entertaining, fascinating, and all the best. A little silly and downright Whovian at points, I would definitely rewatch this episode [I love time-travel and comedy of errors!]. Data and Guinan are key, as well as a certain Samuel Clemens. Tom and I were really amused by his voice.

S6E2 - "Realm of Fear"
Poor Barclay, and how his intense paranoia and phobias help us all with our problems. Well, those problems too, but I meant in-plot issues. It's always nice to see him and know that not every Starfleet officer is a stalwart specimen with excessive confidence and zero anxiety.

"Man of the People" is next.
---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxCW9xmamzQ
---

...good
---

I've been watching a bit of Doctor Who, but will be back to TNG very shortly.
---

Bringing this up in my own personal list of messages so that I don't have to go to the second page to see it.

I envy you guys being able to sit down and methodically plow through a series like this. Each episode is almost an hour long so that's anywhere from two to four hours spend on a single task.
---

Really it's more like 45 minutes a day. We watch over breakfast and sometimes after work
---

she just likes doing the writeups in clumps I guess
---

old scotty ;_;
---