What kept the VISOR on?

[Jayson1]

Are we talking about the guy who snapped out and got offended because a woman pointed out to him that it's not nice to use someone's image without their permission to act out sexual fantasies and then feel entitled to replicate them in real life? That "approachable" and "likeable" guy?

She went to his program where they saved the ship. She didn't stumble into a porn program. Even if he wanted to it would still be masturbation because their would be privacy rules in place that prevents you from seeing how someone looks naked in real life. Their is a reason why the Goddess of Empathy in Barclay's program is wearing clothes.

 

[Ragitsu]

privacy rules in place that prevents you from seeing how someone looks naked in real life

Rules created by Starfleet/The Federation? Rules built into the Holodeck's programming?

 

[Qonundrum]

Are we talking about the guy who snapped out and got offended because a woman pointed out to him that it's not nice to use someone's image without their permission to act out sexual fantasies and then feel entitled to replicate them in real life? That "approachable" and "likeable" guy?

Who'd that be? "Booby Trap" does have Geordi telling the computer to crate an amalgamation of her personality. The computer bleeps 93.7% accuracy or whatever. The computer tells SimuLeah to start a massage somehow and it is Geordi who says it's not appropriate.

"Galaxy's Child" has Leah making claims with Geordi telling her to watch the entire program. Because there was nothing. No replication. No fantasies.

If anything, few would argue against how he responded in Galaxy's Child, when she asked how he knew she liked Fungili, is a little bit creepy. But the recorded simulation shows her simulation telling him about that entree and that was all.

As a person who doesn't always pick up on plot points, for those I definitely had.

...Geordi didn't act out any sexual fantasies. As far as I can recall, the computer made the holographic representation behave a certain way with no guidance/prompting from him; after the crisis was averted, he never revisited the program.

^^this

Your memory passes all diagnostic tests.

 

[dupersuper]

...Geordi didn't act out any sexual fantasies. As far as I can recall, the computer made the holographic representation behave a certain way with no guidance/prompting from him; after the crisis was averted, he never revisited the program.

Though apparently kept it for a years or two...

 

[Skipper]

Even if there are some justifications about the holosimulation, still her outrage is warranted and valid - she has no idea who this guy is, or why he'd have a holographic representation of her saying things like "when you're touching the engines, you're touching me". Geordi's reaction to that outrage is... to turn it back on her. Geordie tried to use the information he learned from the hologram to hit on the real (and married) Brahms, then blaming her for being unreceptive (and eventually creeped out by what she saw on the holodeck)

Though apparently kept it for a years or two...

Without even having the decency to lock it with, say, a password or whatever.

 

[Ragitsu]

Though apparently kept it for a years or two...

Forgetting to delete a file/program.

 

[Skipper]

Forgetting to delete a file/program.

So he was totally justified in getting mad at her, right?

 

[Ragitsu]

This modern "Let's demonize Geordi" movement is so weird. I first caught wind of this newfound criticism on YouTube; unfortunately, it has drifted over here.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

She came to a completely obvious, perfectly logical, entirely understandable, internally consistent, wrong conclusion. Who among us hasn't done that at least once.

And he was shocked at her misread. Who among us hasn't been there?

 

[Skipper]

This modern "Let's demonize Geordi" movement is so weird. I first caught wind of this newfound criticism on YouTube; unfortunately, it has drifted over here.

Virtually every after-2000's review of Galaxy Child says that Geordi was a creep.

Star Trek: The Next Generation Rewatch: “Galaxy’s Child”

And then she goes to the holodeck, and sees the fateful program. She tears La Forge a new one, and it’s one hundred percent justified. Her questions are all legitimate: how far did it go? how many Leah Brahms programs does he have? As viewers who watch every week, we’re pretty sure La Forge didn’t take it any further (if it was Reg Barclay, it might be a different story…), but Brahms only just met the guy, and he’s mostly been creepily flirting with her, so she has no way of knowing how far this personal violation has gone.

Right after that, the episode goes directly into the toilet. Instead of apologizing, instead of throwing himself on Brahms’s mercy, instead of admitting that he’s been kinda creepy, La Forge gets his dander up. He tries to blame her for being such a meanie to him, even after he was nice to her (while using his holographic blow-up doll to help him flirt better with her), and makes it all her fault for not accepting his incredibly creepy attempts at friendship.

Revisiting Star Trek TNG: Galaxy’s Child

Who doesn’t like an episode about Geordi’s love life? Oh, everyone? Well, yeah, fair point. It’s a real shame that Geordi is a whiny, unpleasant, unreasonable dickhead because LeVar Burton is really acting the hell out of his scenes. He’s good enough to make you think that being a whiny, unpleasant, unreasonable dickhead is actually some kind of positive trait. Which is kind of a problem, because this episode’s subplot largely revolves around making a fairly good point: that women won’t necessarily like you because you like them, and that’s your problem not theirs.

The problem is that the episode has to be on Geordi’s side because he’s the regular character. So we get a very weird scene where Brahms apologises to Geordi for jumping to conclusions and tries to absolve him of his weirdness. Except that he DID kiss the hologrammatic Leah, which isn’t what she thought was happening, but in creepiness terms that’s on a similar level to stealing a woman’s jumper so that you can smell it in secret. Certainly, you wouldn’t want to share a turbolift with someone who had done that to you.

Star Trek The Next Generation: Galaxy's Child

Brahms eventually calls Geordi on it and tells him she's married, at which point he proceeds to go and sulk to Guinan about the fact he didn't know this and hadn't been able to find out by doing the 24th century equivalent of Facebook-stalking her (asking the computer for information). This information is private to Brahms and has nothing to do with Geordi and there is no reason he should have known it.

And then, on top of everything, he doesn't tell her about the hologram. This might not be a problem if his behaviour had been more normal, but Brahms repeatedly asks him how he knows certain things about her (like how she used to wear her hair) and hiding the truth just makes him seem even worse. All of this culminates in Geordi somehow yelling at her for 'badgering' him and insisting that he's shown her 'courtesy' and 'respect' - 'courtesy' and 'respect' is not inviting a woman you just met in a professional context to your quarters on the pretence of doing some work, putting on your sexiest massive early 90s jumper and dimmi

“Galaxy’s Child” – TNG 4X16

But before Geordi can really turn things around, real Leah discovers her holographic counterpart.
I’d be more than a little pissed off too if I saw someone had made a fantasy version of me saying things like “I’m with you every day, Geordi. Every time you look at this engine, you’re looking at me. Every time you touch it, it’s me.”

When Geordi comes in, too late, she lets him have it:

>I’m outraged by this. I have been invaded. Violated. How dare you use me like this? How far did it go, anyway? Was it good for you?

Geordi insists it was just a professional collaboration, the two of them working together to solve a problem. Even though the real Leah presumably didn’t get to the part of the recording where they kissed, she doesn’t buy it.


So what does Geordi do in response? Makes out like he’s the victim and she’s the bad guy:

>All right, look. Ever since you came on board, you’ve been badgering me and I’ve taken it. I’ve shown you courtesy, and respect, and a hell of a lot of patience.
>Oh, no, no, no, wait a minute. I’ve tried to understand you. I’ve tried to get along with you. And in return, you’ve accused, tried and convicted me without bothering to hear my side of it.
>So, I’m guilty, okay? But not of what you think. Of something much worse. I’m guilty of reaching out to you, of hoping we could connect. I’m guilty of a terrible crime, Doctor. I offered you friendship.

Um, and badmouthed her to Guinan, and lied to her repeatedly, and created a holographic version of her whom you, at minimum, kissed. Geordi, Geordi, I’m feeling like you didn’t really let Guinan’s advice sink in.

Mark Watches ‘The Next Generation’: S04E16 – Galaxy’s Child

Here’s the thing, though. The awkward nature of this is important, but it’s not why this is such an awful situation. Throughout Geordi’s interactions with Dr. Brahms, he consistently knows more about her than she knows about him, and he uses that to his advantage. She is justifiably unnerved when she begins to realize this, and it’s because there’s a gross power imbalance at work. I have been on a panel with my friend Jesi at two separate conventions called “Romantic or Repulsive” where we’ve talked specifically about this trope. (For context, the panel discusses tropes and devices common in romance or romantic scenes and determines whether they’re romantic or repulsive. We firmly came down on the side of “Repulsive” for this specific trope.) Knowing more about a person than they know of you isn’t bad in and of itself; it’s the way in which Geordi exploits that in order to impress her that’s super fucking creepy.

Like the dinner invitation, for example! He knows her favorite food, but plays it off as a mere coincidence so that it seems like she just happened to meet someone else who likes what she does. He does this multiple times! On top of that, he bases his interactions with Dr. Brahms almost entirely on his interactions with the holographic version of her, which is clearly nothing like her real personality. He expects her to fall for him because her holograph did. He expects friendship because he’s certain that they’re compatible. And he can’t even treat her like her own person, which was made clear by the fact that HE DIDN’T EVEN CHECK TO SEE IF SHE WAS SINGLE. That’s how caught up in his own bullshit he was.

So when the confrontation finally happened after Dr. Brahms stumbled upon the original holodeck program, I was so excited. She was saying EVERYTHING that needed to be said about how creepy and inappropriate this was, and I was so thrilled that it was being spelled out so clearly. Yes. YES. Y E S.

And then Geordi has to go and blame it all on Dr. Brahms because she dared to reject his offer of friendship.

BULLSHIT. You cannot claim to offer real friendship when you exploit a person like this. This episode absolutely falls apart after this point, and I’m annoyed at whomever wrote this nonsense. How do you have a character violate someone’s privacy for an entire episode and then try to make me feel sympathy for him without him apologizing?

 

[NCC-73515]

,,,anyone wanna talk about the visor...?

 

[fireproof78]

Virtually every after-2000's review of Galaxy Child says that Geordi was a creep.

Hell, I barely knew the show and I found it off putting. I don't feel this is rocket science or some other cliched difficulty.

 

[Ray Hardgrit]

Yeah there's nothing new about the reaction to Galaxy's Child.

 

[Skipper]

Yeah there's nothing new about the reaction to Galaxy's Child.

Yep. It's not like a recent "woke" or "#metoo" development where "these young folks doesn't understand it was a different time".

And, putting aside the creepiness factor, in the episode Geordie repeatedly deceives and lies to Bramhs, and never apologizes for it. Indeed, the authors make her beg for forgiveness.

 

[Skipper]

I should create a new thread about the subject? I always thought that there was a general consensus that Geordie was a creep in the episode, but I see there are still people ready to defend his actions.

 

[tharpdevenport]

In-verse, what about a simple magnetic attachment? Something basic that doesn't require a device to implement and not special working to archive (a blind person, after all)? Strong enough to stay on the head for walking around, falling to the ground to roll under before the lock and be taken off with relative ease, but not strong enough to be knocked off. Perhaps even a light sensor system (the glowing red dots maybe) that detects hands are gripping it for removal and lowers the magnetic strength.

 

[cooleddie74]

The prequel VISOR design seen in the late 2250s in DSC was a neat tip of the hat to the future technology that would shrink in size and allow Geordi to see with minimal physical interference. I like that it's clearly a 23rd century forerunner to Geordi's VISOR but is so much larger and bulky.

 

[Ragitsu]

Miniaturized tractor beam?

 

[NCC-73515]

We also saw an earlier visor in the USS Victory recordings

 

[Legate Duhmar]

I have to confess, I was prematurely hopeful this topic was about what kept it powered lol

Also, it's a little vague how it stayed on Geordi's head in-universe too. He has slightly protruded, glowing domed implants, that it seems to attach to, via indents in the apparatus, but it's not really said how. Do they just click in place?

As a kid this never bothered me, its obvious he has some implants that link to his brain and then the visor clicks on, it doesnt need to be much more complicated than that in universe. After all the Enterprise in TNG had a saucer section that "clicks in" to the drive section.

My bigger issue is when they dropped the visor in the films, it took a LOT away from the character, removing his visible disability and honesty just made the character feel less like LaForge and more like LeVar.