Melinda Snodgrass was seriously underrated

Discussion in 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' started by Wingsley, Apr 2, 2013.

  1. Wingsley

    Wingsley Commodore Commodore

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    Over the past couple of weeks, Hulu offered access to episodes of TOS, TNG, DS9 and VOY for free. That ended on Sunday. It was neat while it lasted.

    I concentrated on TOS and TNG. The TNG reruns I picked were among my Year #2 and Year #3 favorites: "Contagion", "Up the Long Ladder", "The Ensigns of Command", "Where Silence Has Lease", "The Survivors", "Yesterday's Enterprise", "Tin Man", and "The Best of Both Worlds".

    With the possible exception of "The Best of Both Worlds", I believe Melinda Snodgrass was likely on staff at TNG to edit or co-write all of these episodes. (That would be the right time frame) The thing that struck me about all of them except "Best" was the way the characters spoke. You could just see Snodgrass trademark wit all over in the dialogue.

    - Troi and Picard; "The Ensigns of Command"


    - the Computer, Picard, and Riker; "Where Silence Has Lease"


    - Riker; "Contagion"


    - Worf and Kevin Uxbridge; "The Survivors"



    I point out the witticisms because the character dialogue in TNG never had this charm before Ms. Snodgrass' arrival nor was it there after she left. (If you ever read her STAR TREK novel, "Tears of the Singers", you would recognize her wit; her writing of TREK characters makes them sound notably different.)

    I thought she added something very special to TNG and I miss it to this day. I wonder what TNG, DS9 and ENT would've been like if Snodgrass had been involved in some way. (I know she left on much-less-than-friendly-terms.)
     
  2. Maxwell Everett

    Maxwell Everett Commodore Commodore

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    I agree she is definitely underrated. She also did an uncredited page one rewrite on "The Offspring." René Echevarria's original submission "Bloodlines" was very Lal-centric, and Piller thought it should be told from Data's point of view. Snodgrass says she didn't like doing it because she felt it covered too much ground in her script "The Measure of a Man." Piller then did the final polish.

    You can read Snodgrass' first draft of "The Ensigns of Command" on her site below. I wish she'd put all her work on TNG up there along with it. :)

    http://melindasnodgrass.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/EnsignsOfCommand.pdf
     
  3. T J

    T J Commodore Commodore

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    "Fate: Protects fools, little children and ships named Enterprise."

    One of my all time favorite sayings, I love using it when the opportunity comes up.

    A tip of the hat to Melinda Snodgrass for adding her own personal touch. :techman:
     
  4. Wingsley

    Wingsley Commodore Commodore

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    One of my favorite TNG outings was "Up the Long Ladder".

    One of my favorite quotes from it: "You're no prize yerself".
     
  5. Anji

    Anji Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    The best TNG writer barr none. She is the one credited for giving Data a heart and starting all that "is he or is he not human" stuff. She once stating that Data was the one all the ladies should be swooning over and not Picard because Picard was an arrogant SOB and Data was a really nice guy.

    I hope she's still writing. She's damn good.
     
  6. Borjis

    Borjis Commodore Commodore

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    Just watched measure of a man with her commentary. Couldn't agree more. She did what she could to inject aspects of tos.
     
  7. Amaris

    Amaris Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I loved her story treatments, and yes, she is very talented.
     
  8. GalaxyX

    GalaxyX Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Damn! I had no idea.

    Those really are some of the best lines in the series. Data definitely was IMO the best character of TNG. The portrayal of the character, his motives, and Brent Spiner's acting all came together in an incredible way.
     
  9. trevanian

    trevanian Rear Admiral

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    While not a big TNG fan, I AM a big fan of Ms Snodgrass' work on the show. I would LOVE to see her version of the terrorist show (was it THE HIGH GROUND?)

    FWIW, it was a version of the american revolution on another world, but with the Enterprise follks coming to realize they were playing the british while the Romulans were the French ... in essence we are the bad guys in the show. Compare that to what we got!

    Berman really was kind of snarky in his comments about her in CFQ magazine, dismissing all of her (pretty darn valid) criticisms of the show as sour grapes for not being invited back. Not being invited BACK!? Some revisionist history was going on from the git-go, apparently. Then again, her comment regarding TPTB on TNG, in the Ellison book about CITY, was something like beware men who are more concerned with how they are remembered in history than for doing what is right (just paraphrasing; it may be this was her comment in OMNI as well, or close to it.)

    I remember her saying she wanted to do a show that was a cross between the crew of NOSTROMO from ALIEN and Solo on MILLENNIUM FALCON. Now THAT really sounded like the best of both worlds to me, and it is a damn shame it never happened.

    Have a feeling she'd've really been at home on DS9 in mid-to-late run ... also wish she'd been able to write for FIREFLY.
     
  10. Nagisa Furukawa

    Nagisa Furukawa Commander Red Shirt

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    I'm also quite a big fan of her work in the Wild Cards series of short stories and novels which is a collaborative work between many authors but other than George R.R. Martin, she's the main creative force.
     
  11. Marten

    Marten Captain Captain

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    Where can I find the commentated version?
     
  12. Maxwell Everett

    Maxwell Everett Commodore Commodore

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    It's on the HD extended version of the episode on disc 2 of the Season Two Blu-ray set.