Moments on TNG that make you cringe.
- Thread starter ED-209
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I hate to say it, but Frakes's acting in the first season was a bit cringy at times. Fortunately, it seems as the seasons progressed and the more his real, natural personality began to shine through Riker, the better the character became.
Literally, growing the beard.
Also from that episode, all the times the whiny kid complains about having to take calculus or even mentions calculus.
Considering that I took algebra in 7th grade, but got hammered flat by calculus in my senior year, I'm inclined to agree. How old was Harry? 9, maybe?
The episode was too flawed to make good, but it could have been less appalling with one relatively simple change: make the Aldeans' infertility permanent. It would have improved both the story itself and its place in the overall Trek narrative. And eliminated Troi's cringe line.
This is an old thread, did I say Data and Joe Piscocpo on the holodeck yet?
Jeez. I'm Italian and I remember when I saw this episode I thought: "Who is this guy? And why would Data have chosen him as the supreme example of comedy in all the millennia of human history?"
Edit: Maybe it's best to clarify the concept better: no one outside the USA has the faintest idea who Joe Piscopo is.
That's ok. I'm from the USA and have no idea who he was.
I have to say that of all the Star Trek series, TNG has handled comedy the worst. The very concept of comedy in TNG is cringe. The "comedy" episodes have been absolute disasters.
As a kid, I didn't know anything about him either. Joe was big in the early-80s, especially Saturday Night Live where only he and Eddie Murphy surviving SNL's cast change due to the 1980 season bombing, but left in 1985 to do bodybuilding. By the early-90s, the inevitable Gen-X-catered jokes referencing other actors and comedians and all would begin, such as the one from "Married With Children" (from a late season 4 episode where Peggy learns she had to re-take a high school class in order to graduate. Naturally the class is "Home Economics", which is amazing as, by then, many referred to it by the diluted-down slang "Home Ec".)
Apparently, Jerry Lewis was to be the comedian but scheduling conflicts prevented. All us nerdy kids knew him from the Muscular Dystrophy telethons in the 80s, but he was big in the 1950s-70s, really big.
When seeing the Okona episode, complete with that tiny sign on the back, it all felt underwhelming. I wonder if that had an adverse effect on the cast, creating a damper as a result?
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That would have made sense. Of course, I wonder how the episode would have turned out. Wasn't Jerry Lewis known more for physical comedy?
Yup. Physical antics, facial exaggeration, etc. I think that would have worked better as Data would be incapable of repeating the exaggerations properly, which then gets Brent to masterfully do a rather rare ability (for any actor) to show a professional pretending to be a dilettante trying to be professional but goofing up. The dancing episode from season 4 was another memorable bit. Brent's casting was probably the most inspired...
TNG is, by far, the series that took itself the most seriously. Which is ironic, since the cast are known to have been the cast out of all the shows that had the most fun behind the scenes. Still, I agree with you that TNG generally did not handle comedy particularly well.
There were some decent moments here and there, though. Worf smashing Geordi's mandolin and saying "sorry" comes to mind. Captain Picard Day is another. And I thought "A Fistful of Datas" was pretty decent as a comedy episode.
Well, after 7 years statically you have sometimes a good joke
Then you have "Up The Long Ladder", sooooo....
I love TNG far more when it has unintentional comedy. Stuff that's so WTF that it comes across as funny but wasn't meant to be. That's why I like the first two seasons so much, they are filled with such WTF moments. But I agree, whenever TNG deliberately tried comedy it tended to fall flat on its face.
I thought the bit with that Irish guy and Worf's Klingon booze was pretty funny.
"Now that's what I call a wee drop of the creature!"
I love the moment in which Jean-Luc just starts laughing at the utter absurdity of everything in the cargo bay (it's my all time favorite Jean-Luc moment, actually). Very meta. 
So yeah, "Up The Long Ladder" has its moments for me also. Although most of it is cringe, admittedly.
So yeah, "Up The Long Ladder" has its moments for me also. Although most of it is cringe, admittedly.And Brenna Odell certainly was very easy on the eyes.
Also, Pulaski came off great here, with her knowledge and understanding of Klingon culture. Plus, respecting Worf's privacy. Great scene, them and the tea ceremony. It's another reason why I grew to really love Pulaski after my first rewatch many, many years ago.
Also, Pulaski came off great here, with her knowledge and understanding of Klingon culture. Plus, respecting Worf's privacy. Great scene, them and the tea ceremony. It's another reason why I grew to really love Pulaski after my first rewatch many, many years ago.
