According to Diana Mulder also didn't help that she was older and did not vibe with the mostly younger cast, who preferred to joke and mess around on set when Mulder wanted to just film seriously and efficiently.
Episodes that got better or worse after repeated viewings
- Thread starter Pikirk_Janesisko
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According to Diana Mulder also didn't help that she was older and did not vibe with the mostly younger cast, who preferred to joke and mess around on set when Mulder wanted to just film seriously and efficiently.
Dr. Polaski grew on me despite being a Data fan. I found her entertaining at times ( I also liked Dr. Crusher too). I am glad they actually referenced her later to give the show a sense of continuity. I think it would have been interesting if she returned for an episode or two. I didn't know until later that the actress was a guest star on TOS.
She might've done better on DS9 as a guest. From what I've heard, the atmosphere on the DS9 set involved a lot less joking around.
Yesterday's Enterprise is one of those episodes that were a bit underwhelming to rewatch, because I loved it so much 10 years ago during my last rewatch.
I liked the 2nd season better as a whole, perhaps because I no longer dislike Pulaski as much as I used to. She's still my least favorite Trek doctor, but she did get some character development.
Data's Day was a bit underwhelming this time. It focused far too much on O'Brien and Keiko, and I don't like Keiko very much. Generally, I do like the Data episodes and Data as a character.
This time around, I'm really enjoying the Klingon episodes more than I've done in the past. I'm also enjoying the episodes that put La Forge on center stage, like The Mind's Eye, a lot more than I've done before, maybe because his personality remids me a lot of my husband (also an engineer), even if the episodes with Leah Brahms were a bit cringey...
Next up is Darmok, and I'm hoping I'll enjoy that more now than I did before, but somehow I doubt it. I just can't believe the premise where they have an abstract language, but lack the ability to express concrete things. I'm a translator, and natural languages just don't work like that. Yet it's one of the highest-rated episodes on IMDb (although I always take the ratings with a pinch of salt, because some of my favorite episodes have low ratings, just because they're focused on an unpopular character (one of the women or Wesley).
Regarding "Darmok"... I understand that the actual application of metaphors as a language can make people rate this lower. But I never looked at that as a problem. In fact, it enhances the metaphor of the episode, which is two people representing the best of their societies trying to communicate and find common ground, and reaching an understanding with each other.
How is that anything but one of the most core values of what STAR TREK means?
People who focus too much too much on the language mechanics are missing the point of this episode entirely. (No offense intended, it's just something I've felt strongly about since I first heard people actually had a problem with the Tamarian language and rate "Darmok" badly simply for that.)
This absolutely deserves to be called one of the best of TNG, and definitely one of the best representations of what STAR TREK is all about.
How is that anything but one of the most core values of what STAR TREK means?
People who focus too much too much on the language mechanics are missing the point of this episode entirely. (No offense intended, it's just something I've felt strongly about since I first heard people actually had a problem with the Tamarian language and rate "Darmok" badly simply for that.)
This absolutely deserves to be called one of the best of TNG, and definitely one of the best representations of what STAR TREK is all about.
I've learned to love the Klingon stories. I used to be more interested in the Romulans, but after repeat watching I got the feeling all the Romulan episodes essentially boil down to the same thing (the Romulans are scheming - again) whereas the Klingon arc had more richness and real-world relevance to it than I realized when I saw those episodes the first time.
On current reviewing, also noticed a lot of interesting camera angles in "The Child" that make that episode stand out.
And, like others, I also developed an appreciation for Diana Muldaur over time. She doesn't quite have the click with the rest of the cast, maybe for the reason @Legate Duhmar mentioned, and they tried a little too hard to make a female McCoy, but in retrospect I think the complaints about Pulaski being "mean" to Data are overstated. Is it really so hard to believe someone might be uncomfortable with a robot that looks and sounds almost like a human being? Watching those scenes now, and the Pulaski-Data relation develop, I think it's eminently credible.
On current reviewing, also noticed a lot of interesting camera angles in "The Child" that make that episode stand out.
And, like others, I also developed an appreciation for Diana Muldaur over time. She doesn't quite have the click with the rest of the cast, maybe for the reason @Legate Duhmar mentioned, and they tried a little too hard to make a female McCoy, but in retrospect I think the complaints about Pulaski being "mean" to Data are overstated. Is it really so hard to believe someone might be uncomfortable with a robot that looks and sounds almost like a human being? Watching those scenes now, and the Pulaski-Data relation develop, I think it's eminently credible.
There's a whole lot of TNG that I haven't seen since I was a kid so it'll be interesting to go back to them. I remember being bored on Dark Page but I think that might be interesting to see a different side to Lwaxana and see how Majel handles it. And there's ones that I've only seen as an adult like Frame of Mind, which I love, but I think I might have hated as a kid for being too weird for young me.
I've never seen Darmok so I can't say how I'd feel about it as an episode and whether it would hold up to scrutiny for a culture to exist that way, but I think the core idea is so interesting and unique that I'd probably give it a pass just for having a go at it.
I've never seen Darmok so I can't say how I'd feel about it as an episode and whether it would hold up to scrutiny for a culture to exist that way, but I think the core idea is so interesting and unique that I'd probably give it a pass just for having a go at it.
Update on Darmok. I liked it a bit better this time, but I still can't get past the language thing. Maybe because I work with languages and know something about how they work on Earth. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss, and too much knowledge gets in the way of the story.
That's a valid point. Particularly if it's your profession.
...Android
This is my wife's opinion, but I think it's controversial.
In "HIPPOCRATIC OATH", when O'Brien destroyed what Bashir was working on in order to save his life, he robbed the doctor of his right of choice.
In "HIPPOCRATIC OATH", when O'Brien destroyed what Bashir was working on in order to save his life, he robbed the doctor of his right of choice.
I mean you don't even have to know much about languages to know that the one presented in Darmok makes no sense whatsoever. So you're not the only one who can't get past that part of the episode (especially since it's such a central part)
If true, that's stupid, petty, misplaced, and unprofessional. It's not like it was Muldaur's fault that McFadden was let go.
Hi, I just read through this thread. "Cause and Effect" was one of my favorites.
“Night Terrors” happened to be on the BBC yesterday, each time I’m more impressed with it conceptually and visually….many memorable scenes: Deanna floating through purple space toward the “eyes in the dark” voice, Beverly doing autopsies with the corpses suddenly sitting up, Picard cowering as the turbolift seems to fall on him, Riker with snakes in his bed, Worf about to perform ritual suicide. The lighting and makeup made everyone look increasingly exhausted, also the eerie music throughout. And, as Beverly says to Picard, “We have to dream in order to survive.”
“Night Terrors” happened to be on the BBC yesterday, each time I’m more impressed with it conceptually and visually….many memorable scenes: Deanna floating through purple space toward the “eyes in the dark” voice, Beverly doing autopsies with the corpses suddenly sitting up, Picard cowering as the turbolift seems to fall on him, Riker with snakes in his bed, Worf about to perform ritual suicide. The lighting and makeup made everyone look increasingly exhausted, also the eerie music throughout. And, as Beverly says to Picard, “We have to dream in order to survive.”
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Many years ago I disliked Seasons 1-2 of TNG, preferring Seasons 3-7.
These days, generally speaking, I’m the other way around.
These days, generally speaking, I’m the other way around.
That's like blaming the sheep whose herder was also the farmer for the cow who gave the 1% milk that tasted different next to the whole milk plopped atop a big bowl of bran flakes, since it's the processing plant that determines the % of fat and not the cow itself... Granted, all the cow could do is sit there, gawk, go "moo" as it's not sentient, and wait for the next pair of hands to have an udderly good time... eww...
...and there has got to be a less convoluted analogy than that...
It's true there was also a mix of attitudes; incoming cast Muldaur was more procedural and by-the-book, while the bulk of the established cast were more jovial and even playing jokes (I have to concede, those outtakes with silly antics are indeed rather entertaining and often well-timed...) I'm sure that rubbed off on the established crew the wrong way. But she's as much TNG Family as Ensign Ro is. They're both what the show needed, IMHO...
IIRC she was also paid more than the rest of the cast and had a tendency to forget her lines (such that cue cards were required) which would not have helped.
To be fair, about her salary, she was in the business much longer than any of the other cast, except for maybe Patrick Stewart. I can't blame her agent or her for getting paid based on her experience.
The lines and cue cards... I never heard that, but if true, it's understandable there would be some friction among the cast.
The lines and cue cards... I never heard that, but if true, it's understandable there would be some friction among the cast.
Regarding "Best of Both Worlds," my feeling is that Part I holds up as absolute perfection to this day, regardless of how many viewings. But I think Part II has lost a lot of its luster over the years, and really isn't a very satisfying conclusion.
