"Hide and Q" is still an amazing episode!!

[Makarov]

Well lets just say in Injustice Superman does pretty much take over the world. And someone defies Superman's will, and he/she gets heat visioned through the brain. Pretty disturbing scene actually.

But yeah the full saying is like "power corrupts... absolute power corrupts absolutely"

 

[CorporalCaptain]

TNG had already been renewed for a second-season by the time this episode aired.

Considering the ratings, I'm not surprised. There were, however, many changes made behind the scenes on the way to the second season.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I don't think power necessarily corrupts, but I do think a good chunk of what we consider 'moral behavior' is the result of the fact that if we do not behave that way somebody will hurt us or take away our privileges. We can not exercise power over anybody we want because they have power to strike back us. Any exercise of power against somebody who has no power to defend themselves from it is an offensive act. If Riker had the power of the Q he'd apply his own values to them, and in doing so he would be forcing his will on other people.

Your response to that might be, what if he only uses it defensively, like to save that little girl's life? In the insular case, if it's only that little girl's life, there's no reason not to. What if he made a rule of that behavior, saving anybody whose life was ever in danger? How does he decide who gets to be saved and who doesn't? Unless he does so with everybody and effectively negates mortality for the entire universe, he will be applying them selectively to the people he values more, creating a major advantage for people who go along with his own values over those who do not.

One person with absolute power is simply not capable of deciding what's best for everyone. Otherwise Communism would work.

I would even say, the only way to morally use the powers of the Q is to lose all emotional attachment to mortals.

 

[MakeshiftPython]

Ah, Roddenberry's ideas of humanity being so pure and perfect that they can resist any temptation and have no flaws. Like when Riker grants Geordi vision, he looks around, hits on Tasha, and then he just says no without any trouble at all. Even says "please" when asking for his blindness back! It's too absurd, and doesn't make an interesting story.

 

[MikeS]

If by amazing the OP meant Amazingly bad, I could agree...

The moral of the episode is powerful that humans need to evolve at our own pace so that our emotional, spiritual progress matches our technological progress.

What does that even mean? We have technology that creates food out of thin air and medical technology that can literally bring people back to life (which we have in today's world) AND erase selective bits of memory. When Riker wants to bring a girl back to life, everyone says no because... she needed to die?

...it doesn't handle the subject matter nearly as well as Where No Man Has Gone Before.

^These

I don't think power necessarily corrupts, but I do think a good chunk of what we consider 'moral behavior' is the result of the fact that if we do not behave that way somebody will hurt us or take away our privileges. We can not exercise power over anybody we want because they have power to strike back us. Any exercise of power against somebody who has no power to defend themselves from it is an offensive act. If Riker had the power of the Q he'd apply his own values to them, and in doing so he would be forcing his will on other people.

Your response to that might be, what if he only uses it defensively, like to save that little girl's life? In the insular case, if it's only that little girl's life, there's no reason not to. What if he made a rule of that behavior, saving anybody whose life was ever in danger? How does he decide who gets to be saved and who doesn't? Unless he does so with everybody and effectively negates mortality for the entire universe, he will be applying them selectively to the people he values more, creating a major advantage for people who go along with his own values over those who do not.

One person with absolute power is simply not capable of deciding what's best for everyone. Otherwise Communism would work.

I would even say, the only way to morally use the powers of the Q is to lose all emotional attachment to mortals.

This post did make me re-evaluate for a minute...
...Nah, still find it boring, badly executed and without any redeeming features.

 

[Arpy]

Anyone who doesn't think infinite power wouldn't corrupt a finite human isn't using their imagination. If you were a god all of a sudden, you'd start to, sooner or later. That's human. That's natural for all beings - to establish appropriate boundaries between themselves and their abilities with those around them.

 

[sonak]

Ah, Roddenberry's ideas of humanity being so pure and perfect that they can resist any temptation and have no flaws. Like when Riker grants Geordi vision, he looks around, hits on Tasha, and then he just says no without any trouble at all. Even says "please" when asking for his blindness back! It's too absurd, and doesn't make an interesting story.

yeah, that's the second problem with this episode, apart from the moral. The senior crew is shown to be absurdly incorruptible and pure.

 

[LMFAOschwarz]

How does he decide who gets to be saved and who doesn't? Unless he does so with everybody and effectively negates mortality for the entire universe, he will be applying them selectively to the people he values more, creating a major advantage for people who go along with his own values over those who do not.

That's interesting when you put it that way, the first thing I thought of was Kodos the Executioner.

 

[MakeshiftPython]

It's funny how Picard brings up "power corrupts", yet Riker doesn't seem all that corrupted. He comes off as the most completely selfless godlike being ever, only wanting to grant the wishes of his friends and save a little girl from death. The only side-effect of him having powers is that it made him 100 times more smug than usual. Alright, maybe that's annoying, but if that can grant my wish to live in a mansion as a billionaire playboy with a secret passageway to a dark cave, I could take it.

 

[Makarov]

Riker wasn't ready for god-like powers because he hadn't grown the beard yet

 

[Unicron]

I agree with both of you.

 

[Pondwater]

Wesley got impaled. That was good.

"You were right not to try" when Riker doesn't save that little girl.... dang Picard hates children.

Yep. That's how I remember that episode. Wesley gets stabbed by the hog like creatures.

That was a bit sad about the girl.

 

[Lance]

I thought it was maybe my first indication that TNG would turn out okay.

Lots of little moments I liked..... Worf pouring Q's "gift" out..... Picard and Riker arguing in the ready room was also pretty cool because we just never got to see that kind of conflict much.....

I thought Tasha was kind of lame though. She gets sent to the 'penalty box' without getting to even throw a punch at Q, and then she spends the rest of the episode moping around and feeling sorry for herself..... while Worf gets to take on Riker's vicious animal things in combat. Anybody else get the feeling maybe the writers had already decided even at this early stage that Tasha was kind of surplus to requirements with Worf in the cast?

 

[MikeS]

Anyone who doesn't think infinite power wouldn't corrupt a finite human isn't using their imagination. If you were a god all of a sudden, you'd start to, sooner or later. That's human. That's natural for all beings - to establish appropriate boundaries between themselves and their abilities with those around them.

I don't think anyone was arguing against that. It was just done better in WNMHGB.