Chains of Command...Picard, Worf, Bev...Really????

[Nathan]

Just finished a re-watch of Chains of Command, I always had heartache with Picard, Worf, & Bev on the away mission. I know they stressed Picard was the "only dude around that had knowledge of Theta Radiation"....Starfleet couldn't find anyone else? I mean, I thought the mission was just to destroy the outpost of the metagenic weapon if it was found.

Instead of Worf & Bev, I think Starfleet could/should have had 2 Special Ops guys/MACOs that were briefed on Meta-genic stuff and assist Picard. Yeah, even tho' Bev had a week of "Boot Camp" training in the caves, she was far from being in shape.

My other nitpick was that had to find their own transportation to the planet. Guess they were lucky finding the Ferengi at the bar/tavern to give them all a lift.

Yeah, yeah....I'm sure viewers rather wanted to see Picard, Worf & Bev on a mission that 3 other people we never heard of...but I get tired of "forcing characters into a plot when there were better options."

Your thoughts?

 

[Arpy]

Did Beverly too have metagenic knowledge? You'd think they'd send Picard, maybe Beverly, and a Starfleet Intelligence 007 guy.

Worf is head of starship security and combat, not a spy or infiltrator. Beverly is a chief medical officer, not a metagenic researcher or expert. Really, it's just Picard that needed to be on the mission; the Carsassians chose a technology that he specifically would be called on to deal with.

My biggest problem with the episode(s) is how bad a job they did in portraying Jellico's hot-headedness. Riker came off seeming green (in the Ten-Forward scene) or petulant (in Riker's quarters) more than Jellico did ignorant or arrogant. You're left with trying to imagine them using different takes of the scenes than the ones in the final cuts.

But to your original point, cost-saving measures like these are annoying, yes, especially given how you KNOW freaking TNG is making them money and will practically forever.

 

[Nathan]

I think it eludes in the episode, Bev just had tad bit more knowledge than the average doc when it came to metagenics.

It would have been better if they sent SF Intel 007 guy (and like the red shirt security of yesteryear, he/she would meet his/her unfortunate demise on the planet. I think getting Bev, Worf, and Picard was more of an ensemble.

I think fans want to see his/her favorite crewmember, if Bev was replaced, Dr Crusher fans would be saying "Where the hell is Bev?"

I wish there were more re-curring crew on the show. I suppose to even keep the show going past Season 7, if there were more recurring crew, it could have gone on.

Arpy, I agree with you too about the scenes with Riker & Jellico, I suppose they wanted the Enterprise feel this jarring effect with Picard gone.

On the upside, I do prefer Troi in a uniform and rather some dress/catsuit she wore. Never liked those.

 

[Paradise City]

Worf is scared of bats in this episode as well, lol. What an unsuitable trio. Zero indication in any previous episode that Bev has any competence in the skills to be a commando either. They wanted a way for Jellico to take command and for Picard to wind up being tickled in a Cardassian clink and that's about the best they could contrive. But everyone will be relieved to know that I forgive them - as it's a brace of great episodes.

I thought the clash between Jellico and Riker was done well although their rift probably unfolded a bit too quickly - presumably to fit into a tight schedule with all the other stuff that's going on here. It shows up how comfortable Riker had been and he's thrown off balance by this drill sergeant type.

 

[Jedi Marso]

The whole episde was contrived crap but the whole Jellicoe-in-command with Ronnie Cox makes it eminently re-watchable. It was like a case of: "What if Cohagen got to command the Enterprise and Arnie wasn't around to kill him?" Pure gold.

Geordie (with Arnold accent...): "Give my people aiiir!"

 

[JesterFace]

The fact that Riker seemed to be the only one to pilot the shuttle with the mines and Jellico had to crawl and get his help was just... too forced?

 

[Paradise City]

I think it was a set up. They all got together without Jellicoe's knowledge and agreed to steer Jellico towards Riker as "the best pilot on the ship" . Riker could then get the old boy to squirm a bit. Why, they probably filmed the whole experience and had a good snicker afterwards.

 

[Marsden]

I think this is an interesting question, Why send Beverly?
But then when they don't send her she has even less to do, like the 4 TNG movies. They wanted her to be involved in a story, so they involved her.
Although in a lot of fiction, "scientist" means expert in everything, and Star Trek is no exception in that regard, so I'm sure if it's remotely biological in nature Beverly is an expert.

I think Geordie would have been a better choice than Worf because he can use his VISOR to scan for stuff.

I think if they did get a Section 31 or 007 or some other new character, they would most certainly suffer the fate of every new character, death. Just ask Commander Hawk.

 

[JedGelt67]

I never thought Jellico was unreasonable, just a little to harsh. He could have pulled Riker in on day one - "Listen commander; we might be at war with the Cardassians. We might be in for the fight of our life. This ship is a science ship, an explorer. I need the Enterprise to be a warship, Mr. Riker, and I need it done yesterday."
Boom, unnecessary forced conflict eliminated.

 

[USS Firefly]

But Riker is an officer and not a child, and should listen to his superior officer

 

[JedGelt67]

But Riker is an officer and not a child, and should listen to his superior officer

The First Officer is the one who takes the captains orders and sees that they are properly implemented. He is the one who deals with crew assignments and personnel etc.

 

[Paradise City]

I think Jellico was a fine captain and the crew needed a kick in the backside but I think the crisis situation and that he's infatuated with the ship got to his head a bit. Made him a bit too hyperactive. Riker in his turn is a bit miffed at being sidelined and is a bit too comfy being CEO. So the two locked horns.

 

[Admiral2]

I've said it before I shall continue saying it until everyone agrees with me: Jellicoe is THE MAN.

He was the captain, and being the captain means he isn't required to cajole or compromise. He was The Captain.

It was Riker's job to get the crew in line, not constantly bitch and protest on their behalf.

As for the PicaWorfBev team: It's not the first time Starfleet's used a captain to do a spy's job (You TNG whippersnappers should check out "The Enterprise Incident") and it wasn't the last. Starfleet officers are the sharp end of the spear in a service with only one branch. they have to be prepared to do whatever is needed.

 

[saladdays]

Jellico's preferences are fine, but he wanted the whole ship to change in an instant. Significant changes like that aren't going to run smoothly and are going to take some getting used to.

 

[Admiral2]

Jellico's preferences are fine, but he wanted the whole ship to change in an instant. Significant changes like that aren't going to run smoothly and are going to take some getting used to.

The ship itself is designed to change in an instant. The whole point of variable touchscreens and non-specific workstations is so that those stations' functions can be changed with the touch of a couple of contacts. Plus, the whole series it was made clear that even though Ent-D's primary mission was exploration, it had a military function as well. The crew of the ship should have understood that and trained for the possibility, else why were they there?

All Jellicoe wanted to do was activate Ent-D's military function, and doing so should have taken from a few minutes to a couple of hours at most, You're switching consoles from one function to another and adding a watch to the rotation. Only an incompetent would have been unable to make those changes when the captain asked for them, and only a bunch of whiny pissants would have fought the changes at every step. In fact, Jellicoe showed more restraint than he's given credit for. If it had been me, at the first sign of whining I would have put the ship on Red Alert and kept everybody at battle stations until the changes I wanted were made. Don't like it? I'm your captain, not your friend. I could care less.

Jellicoe is THE MAN.

 

[JedGelt67]

Sloppy writing. Of course the Hero(TM) needs to be at the forefront in any episode, and Patrick Stewart really was fantastic. The plot was simply too contrived. There could have been any number of means for Picard disappearing. Beam him out of his quarters. Kidnap him from a shuttlecraft. Beam him out of a bar with a transporter disguised as a phaser pistol (actually not that).
The manufactured crew complaints were boring and did nothing to advance the plot.

 

[saladdays]

The ship itself is designed to change in an instant. The whole point of variable touchscreens and non-specific workstations is so that those stations' functions can be changed with the touch of a couple of contacts. Plus, the whole series it was made clear that even though Ent-D's primary mission was exploration, it had a military function as well. The crew of the ship should have understood that and trained for the possibility, else why were they there?

All Jellicoe wanted to do was activate Ent-D's military function, and doing so should have taken from a few minutes to a couple of hours at most, You're switching consoles from one function to another and adding a watch to the rotation. Only an incompetent would have been unable to make those changes when the captain asked for them, and only a bunch of whiny pissants would have fought the changes at every step. In fact, Jellicoe showed more restraint than he's given credit for. If it had been me, at the first sign of whining I would have put the ship on Red Alert and kept everybody at battle stations until the changes I wanted were made. Don't like it? I'm your captain, not your friend. I could care less.

You act as if any officer can merely be switched out for another and there would be problems or complaints with anything. If you were merely replacing a helm officer? Maybe. To replace a captain? Not so easy.

 

[Admiral2]

You act as if any officer can merely be switched out for another and there would be problems or complaints with anything. If you were merely replacing a helm officer? Maybe. To replace a captain? Not so easy.

It's also not the point. Your new captain has the same authority aboard ship as your former captain, and that authority is absolute. Complain and kvetch all you like, but your new captain doesn't require your adjustment to the new situation...he just requires your obedience. As long as the orders he issues are valid and legal you are obligated to obey them, regardless of what you think of them or him, and if it's a tactical situation you are required to obey those orders smartly. question them all you want later, but you have to carry them out. It makes no difference if he's not as nice about issuing orders as Picard. Picard, at that moment, is not in command. Jellico is. Period.

 

[saladdays]

It's also not the point. Your new captain has the same authority aboard ship as your former captain, and that authority is absolute. Complain and kvetch all you like, but your new captain doesn't require your adjustment to the new situation...he just requires your obedience. As long as the orders he issues are valid and legal you are obligated to obey them, regardless of what you think of them or him, and if it's a tactical situation you are required to obey those orders smartly. question them all you want later, but you have to carry them out. It makes no difference if he's not as nice about issuing orders as Picard. Picard, at that moment, is not in command. Jellico is. Period.

I don't care about the complaints. What I'm talking about is the fact that Jellico assumes he can't walk right in, throw his weight around, and have everyone on board change and work seamlessly. Yes, you're right in that he is in command, so he does have the "right" to throw his weight around as I say. However, he also must also expect and prepare for the crew to react in some ways to that. Jellico obviously knows that his command style is different than Picard's, and must have expected this. He tries to make Riker and Troi go and make everything perfect for him without his involvement at all, and it just isn't going to work that way, at least that quickly.

 

[Admiral2]

I don't care about the complaints. What I'm talking about is the fact that Jellico assumes he can't walk right in, throw his weight around, and have everyone on board change and work seamlessly. Yes, you're right in that he is in command, so he does have the "right" to throw his weight around as I say. However, he also must also expect and prepare for the crew to react in some ways to that.

The only reaction he should expect and prepare for is obedience to his orders, which is why he has the aforementioned right. The crew can get over his not being Picard on their own time.

Jellico obviously knows that his command style is different than Picard's, and must have expected this. He tries to make Riker and Troi go and make everything perfect for him without his involvement at all, and it just isn't going to work that way, at least that quickly.

Dude...it's supposed to work that way. It is the First Officer's job to make sure the captain's wishes are carried out, regardless of the crew's opinions. If the captain has to involve himself by nursemaiding the crew through the transition himself, then the First Officer's not doing his damn job and should be replaced.