I actually thought the guy who played Samuel Clemens did a decent job. Maybe he was a tad too broad but, again, we are talking about an eccentric 1890s writer here. I liked his look at the 24th Century and realizing the steps humanity had taken in the intervening time and realizing how far humanity has come and what it has achieved, realizing he had misjudged Data's intentions and, at that, the motivations of all of the future visitors from the ship.
IIRC, the actor in the part had never played Clemens before and after the episode went on to do a one-man show as Clemens due to some of the lauding he got in the wake of the episode.
Again, he was maybe a tad broad and a tad of a caricature but I'm not sure anyone around today could exactly say how Clemens really behaved around people or would have behaved under the circumstances he was under in the episode.
I actually thought London's use was decent too even the writer's biography wasn't accurately shown in the episode. It was just a nice little nod at another one of literature's greatest minds, particularly as London mentions is previous lines of work and his desire to see Alaska.
Overall, the episode(s) were good. If I were to "complain" about anything it's how "accepted" Geordi seemed to be in the 19th century San Francisco. It seems like the "most" reaction he gets is from the police officer in the hospital ward taking the cane and saying it's a, "gentleman's cane."
I also thought Mrs. Carmichael was bit too much, her ridiculous pronunciation of Picard's name and granting that not everyone is an actor, her line-reading from the playbook was a bit unbelievably terrible. Her reading just generally stilted. And she's not an idiot, she can hear herself and knows she can't act but she seems to accept Picard's lauds anyway, kiss not withstanding.
But, still, I like this two-parter. It's just decent enough fun and I really do like Clemens' reactions to the 24c and sort-of wish we got to see some more of it.
IIRC, the actor in the part had never played Clemens before and after the episode went on to do a one-man show as Clemens due to some of the lauding he got in the wake of the episode.
Again, he was maybe a tad broad and a tad of a caricature but I'm not sure anyone around today could exactly say how Clemens really behaved around people or would have behaved under the circumstances he was under in the episode.
I actually thought London's use was decent too even the writer's biography wasn't accurately shown in the episode. It was just a nice little nod at another one of literature's greatest minds, particularly as London mentions is previous lines of work and his desire to see Alaska.
Overall, the episode(s) were good. If I were to "complain" about anything it's how "accepted" Geordi seemed to be in the 19th century San Francisco. It seems like the "most" reaction he gets is from the police officer in the hospital ward taking the cane and saying it's a, "gentleman's cane."
I also thought Mrs. Carmichael was bit too much, her ridiculous pronunciation of Picard's name and granting that not everyone is an actor, her line-reading from the playbook was a bit unbelievably terrible. Her reading just generally stilted. And she's not an idiot, she can hear herself and knows she can't act but she seems to accept Picard's lauds anyway, kiss not withstanding.
But, still, I like this two-parter. It's just decent enough fun and I really do like Clemens' reactions to the 24c and sort-of wish we got to see some more of it.
