In tribute to my newly acquired Blu Ray set, I am in Season 5 of my first full TNG rewatch in many years. TNG is my favorite series of all time, but there are episodes that I have skipped over since I got the DVDs in the mid 2000s. I see no reason to subject myself to episodes like Code of Honor, In Theory, Sub Rosa, etc. unduly.
But after finally treating myself to the Blu Ray set, I decided a full rewatch was in order. No skipping eps. Overall, I have adored the experience. The show looks great, though some of the makeup effects are not improved at higher resolution.
But one episode I have dreaded the most….Cost of Living. I first watched it when it aired and hated it. It’s a crossover event of the two most annoying characters in the series, Lwaxanna Troi and Alexander. This show is BAD….I mean it’s friggin terrible from so many angles.
The whole plot begins with Worf being a terrible parent and running to Counselor Troi every time his kid does something. Lwaxanna is on the ship to marry someone she met on Match.com and gets involved by subjecting a defenseless child to the most nightmarish holodeck weirdos you can imagine. If I could imagine hell it would be this place. This causes Alexander to act out more at home. When Worf tells him to eat dinner, this CHILD goes up to Worf and says “The higher, the fewer” and books out. This just shows how Worf has been nerfed by season 5. Season 1 Worf would have pulled out the Bat’leth.
The plot is so bad that the Enterprise itself starts bleeding goo everywhere and wants to blow itself up to escape but the crew tries to stop it. The story gets so bad everyone passes out except Data who is immune to the effects of bad writing and saves the ship just in time for the wedding.
Now onto the wedding, Lwaxanna is marrying this old guy who wants her to be less annoying and more traditional and formal but she decides that she cannot conform to the deepest wishes of the TNG audience so she shows up to the wedding naked as hell. Everyone smiles uncomfortably, (though I am pretty sure there is a deleted scene of Geordi throwing his VISOR into the nearest dumpster)
It’s at this point the show stops for a few beats, so that everyone can reflect on the fact that Alexander is staring at her nude body and she can smile back proudly exposing herself to a minor. So the old guy she is marrying is horrified by what stands before him and the implications of the previous shot so his aide rushes him to safety. So the wedding is off.
The show ends with Worf, both Trois, and Alexander in a mud bath all nude together. Lwaxanna says something about Alexander teaching her the value of being annoying and nonconforming and the episode ends.
To me, this is the most painful episode to get through. It’s almost fascinating that it’s this bad, especially considering it was penned by Peter Allen Fields. This guy wrote the only decent Lwaxanna episode (Half a Life), The Inner Light, along with a slew of great DS9 eps.
Regardless, I advise that if you ever say you are going to do a completionist run through of the series, to skip this one anyway. Life is too short, and the “Cost of living” is too high.
But after finally treating myself to the Blu Ray set, I decided a full rewatch was in order. No skipping eps. Overall, I have adored the experience. The show looks great, though some of the makeup effects are not improved at higher resolution.
But one episode I have dreaded the most….Cost of Living. I first watched it when it aired and hated it. It’s a crossover event of the two most annoying characters in the series, Lwaxanna Troi and Alexander. This show is BAD….I mean it’s friggin terrible from so many angles.
The whole plot begins with Worf being a terrible parent and running to Counselor Troi every time his kid does something. Lwaxanna is on the ship to marry someone she met on Match.com and gets involved by subjecting a defenseless child to the most nightmarish holodeck weirdos you can imagine. If I could imagine hell it would be this place. This causes Alexander to act out more at home. When Worf tells him to eat dinner, this CHILD goes up to Worf and says “The higher, the fewer” and books out. This just shows how Worf has been nerfed by season 5. Season 1 Worf would have pulled out the Bat’leth.
The plot is so bad that the Enterprise itself starts bleeding goo everywhere and wants to blow itself up to escape but the crew tries to stop it. The story gets so bad everyone passes out except Data who is immune to the effects of bad writing and saves the ship just in time for the wedding.
Now onto the wedding, Lwaxanna is marrying this old guy who wants her to be less annoying and more traditional and formal but she decides that she cannot conform to the deepest wishes of the TNG audience so she shows up to the wedding naked as hell. Everyone smiles uncomfortably, (though I am pretty sure there is a deleted scene of Geordi throwing his VISOR into the nearest dumpster)
It’s at this point the show stops for a few beats, so that everyone can reflect on the fact that Alexander is staring at her nude body and she can smile back proudly exposing herself to a minor. So the old guy she is marrying is horrified by what stands before him and the implications of the previous shot so his aide rushes him to safety. So the wedding is off.
The show ends with Worf, both Trois, and Alexander in a mud bath all nude together. Lwaxanna says something about Alexander teaching her the value of being annoying and nonconforming and the episode ends.
To me, this is the most painful episode to get through. It’s almost fascinating that it’s this bad, especially considering it was penned by Peter Allen Fields. This guy wrote the only decent Lwaxanna episode (Half a Life), The Inner Light, along with a slew of great DS9 eps.
Regardless, I advise that if you ever say you are going to do a completionist run through of the series, to skip this one anyway. Life is too short, and the “Cost of living” is too high.
