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Sins of the Father
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 3, Episode 17
Worf comes across the brother he never knew he had. The pair jaunt off to some council or another - with Picard in tow - to defend the family honor. Heavy on the roaring and chest-thumping, as one would expect from a Klingon episode, but not so bad.
(viewed 03/14/2009)
Datalore
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 12
A reasonably interesting episode turns up Data's evil twin, Lore. Who proceeds - as befits an evil twin - to do bad things. A bit over the top in this respect but otherwise okay. Contains a funny aside in which Data attempts to master the art of sneezing. Not as good as Data to trying to learn small talk, but another rare example of Star Trek humor that actually works.
(viewed 03/11/2009)
Episode One
- Garak gets busted for a DUI and is caught on tape assaulting the officer and blaming his troubles on Klingon bloodwine. The Cardassians are accused of using photon torpedoes on paparazzi who are trying to snap photos of them at the Playboy Mansion...
More of the Episode Guide to Keeping Up With the Cardassians at McSweeney's Internet Tendency.
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Haven
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 10
A dreadful episode in which Troi's overbearing mother shows up and attempts to marry her off. A plot more suited for a soap opera or The Golden Girls.
(viewed 03/10/2009)
The Price
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 3, Episode 8
Negotiating for rights to a wormhole, romance for Troi, and the Ferengi. A bit dull and by the numbers, but a few good interactions between Riker and a negotiator.
(viewed 03/04/2009)
The Vengeance Factor
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 3, Episode 9
A snoozer of an episode that finds Picard mediating between two bickering races. File under Overdone.
(viewed 03/03/2009)
11001001
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 14
A holographic jazz club, with a sultry love interest for Riker. Could you cram a few more overdone cliches into the storyline? Well, there's also a pair of really goofy aliens bent on wreaking havoc on the Enterprise. Not a shining moment for TNG.
(viewed 03/02/2009)
Hide and Q
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 9
If you were going to model a TNG character on one from TOS, why choose the Squire of Gothos, who, in turn, appeared to be modeled on Liberace? Just asking. Here's Q again, in a typically dopey Q episode in which the Q try to press Riker into their ranks.
(viewed 02/28/2009)
The Shipment
Star Trek: Enterprise
Season 3, Episode 7
Archer, Reed and Hayes are hot on the trail of the Xindi weapon, this time around on a planet where explosives are being made. Moral quandaries for the scientist working on the explosives and whatnot. Ho hum.
(viewed 02/26/2009)
The Last Outpost
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 4
Good Lord. The Ferengi make their first (and unfortunately not last) appearance in a hokey episode in which they form an uneasy alliance with Enterprise to go up against a sentinel watching over a mysterious planet. So bad in so many ways that it could have fit nicely into TOS season three.
(viewed 02/22/2009)
The Enemy
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 3, Episode 7
Yet another episode lifted from the Can't We All Just Get Along section of the Star Trek playbook. Geordi and an angry Romulan are stranded on a planet where they eventually learn to...get along. All of which takes place in about 60 minutes, minus commercials. Palestinians and Israelis, take note.
(viewed 02/16/2009)
Who Watches The Watchers
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 3, Episode 4
Though some reviewers have praised it, I thought this episode was truly a dud. This, thanks largely to the stilted dialogue and awful performances of the actors portraying the primitives who take to worshipping Picard. Rather a snoozer of a premise too.
(viewed 02/01/2009)
Lonely Among Us
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 6
Bickering aliens aboard the Enterprise and another alien presence that messes with the crew members' minds. All of which seems rather done before and not particularly interesting.
(viewed 01/27/2009)
Where No One Has Gone Before
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1, Episode 5
An alien with odd powers bumps Enterprise clean across the universe and becomes pals with Wes. Will he croak before he can return the ship to its rightful place in the universe? Shouldn't be too hard to figure that one out.
(viewed 01/20/2009)
Birthright
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 5, Episode 17
Romulans and Klingons exist in relative harmony in a former prison colony for the latter until Worf appears and stirs the pot. Part one of this two-parter features an interesting subplot concerning Data's dreams but this is pretty much abandoned by the time part two rolls around.
(viewed 01/16/2009)
