What do You Think of Q?

I just saw two episodes of ST:TNG for the first time. Going through the series. I have some clues by seeing some episodes in the series and reading most of the novels. Saw "Hide and Q" for the first time as far as I can recall. Earlier saw Farpoint and had seen it at least two times previously. Would like to get and read "I, Q" sometime but not quite yet.

Q's hamming up the starship does serve as a contrast. When he dresses in standard Starfleet uniforms, you fail to note as much contrast. But then you can be surprised. Surprise is the emotion of learning. No surprise, no learning.

Q lives in the element of surprise. The 'ah-ha' moments. The critical points in civilization even if they need to be created. It seems that invention and discovery which are so different to humans are very much alike to the Q.

The Q who have no need for discovery can be somewhat nonchalant about voyages of discovery or exploration. Or, can they?

I liked reading the book series of "Amber" by Roger Zelazny. Some characters travel by adding or subtracting to or from what they "sense" in order to change reality to suit them. Some characters reach out to retrieve what they want. A journey with a Q character along the lines of the Amber/Chaos lines (providing it does not come to resemble Babylon 5 too much) could be interesting. I notice that Q's log entry about the Enterprise was that it was like being stuck in Amber. Maybe a reference to the novelverse?

The opportunity to come to terms with power and godhood, a regular theme of ST, is always interesting. Q serves as a proxy/surrogate for God in a form that may easily be questioned and confronted.

 

I woudl have liked to have seen Q appear in one of the movies. I really enjoyed his character as, as has been said, he always tested the crew was important for developing the characters and show.

 

First TNG movie should've been about what Q talked about in the end of 'All Good Things...', exploring new levels of existence and things like that, "That is the exploration that awaits you". Q on Enterprise for 2 hours, win.

 

The Nexus seems like something the Qs could have concocted. They could have made Q appear in the end and explain that this was yet another riddle for Picard to solve or something like that.

 

Great concept, brilliant performances, but sometimes a weak presentation. I'm not even that fond of Tapestry. It had worn thin by then, & a TNG "It's a Wonderful Life" didn't do much to inspire . The finale was the saving grace

Now, my dad, who enjoyed TNG with me, couldn't stand him ever. Something just rubbed him wrong about it. Too much buffoonery me thinks. He couldn't take it seriously. Over the top godlike stuff. He may have stiil been reeling from the st:5 aftertaste

 

That's pretty much where I'm at too. I like the actor, but the appearances started to feel obligatory by then.

Think how great it would have been if he hadn't appeared again until All Good Things.

 

What tends to happen in writing is the production staff catches wind of how a character is received by the audience and this feeds back into the writing. So the initial concept of the character can sacrifice itself on the altar of public expectation. I think over time Q was seen as a cuddly fan-favorite that they could trot out for instant ratings. But once a recurring character gets this kind of success, it's hard to keep his rough edges and keep him restrained. So he was used a crutch for a show that wasn't firing on all cylinders.

No matter how buffoonish Q was written, he was never anything less than entertaining to watch (and more importantly, listen to). DeLancie's voice is one of a kind, which is why he's got a good niche now as a voice actor in My Little Pony.

When they did the TNG reunion (I think it was THE first if not one of them) and DeLancie stepped onto the stage, he got more applause than anyone. That says a lot about his importance to the franchise. For all the criticism Gene has received for making TNG dull in the early days, he did bring us Q, which was probably its biggest bright spot.

 

That sort of goes to how I explain it to my dad who hates Q. He's actually something of a throwback to TOS, with their godlike beings, which was very much Gene's style, that there's life in the universe beyond our very comprehension. It's one of the great things about the early seasons. Nagilum, Q, The Traveler. They all have elements of potential futures for humanity