I was born in 1988 and there is no doubt in my mind that Star Trek: The Next Generation is the reason I'm a Star Trek fan. My Dad was a fan of the Original Series during its first run and I recall watching a lot of the show during its original airing, but I know there are a lot of episodes I missed.
So, the day has finally arrived that its on Netflix so I can watch the whole show without spending hundreds of dollars. So, I decided to keep this thread as kind of a log of my thoughts and what not. You can post your own thoughts too and maybe we can get some good discussion going.
So here we go...
Encounter at Farpoint
Summary: The new starship Enterprise begins her maiden voyage by uncovering the mysteries of an advanced space station. The crew's mission is threatened by an omnipotent being named Q, who puts them (and specifically, Captain Picard) on trial for the crimes of all humanity.
The Good: The plot is very high concept and relatively ambitious for a pilot. From their first exchange, it is quite clear that Patrick Stewart and John de Lancie are head and shoulders above the rest of the cast at this point. Even when delivering stupid lines, Patrick Stewart is fantastic. The Trial Scene (once Yar is frozen) is really a great piece of television. Also the cameo of DeForest Kelley as a torch passing was just lovely. There is also a sense of wonder here that seems to be lost in later seasons.
The Bad: The dialogue is extremely expository and in some cases just plain poorly written. This isn't helped by some of the acting, especially from Marina Sirtis and Denise Crosby. A lot of them clearly don't have defined roles and for most of the pilot, they're standing around and acting confused about what this is really supposed to be about. Overall the execution doesn't live up to the concept and in many ways the episode dumbs itself down.
Annoying Character: Troi. Do I really need to explain this? In all fairness though, a lot of the minor characters have their annoying moments.
Grade/Final Thoughts: 5/10. This episode seems to be rather polarizing, but I thought it was positively average. There were parts that I loved, parts that I hated and parts I was neutral about. Not enough stood out to really skew it in any one direction.
So, the day has finally arrived that its on Netflix so I can watch the whole show without spending hundreds of dollars. So, I decided to keep this thread as kind of a log of my thoughts and what not. You can post your own thoughts too and maybe we can get some good discussion going.
So here we go...
Encounter at Farpoint
Summary: The new starship Enterprise begins her maiden voyage by uncovering the mysteries of an advanced space station. The crew's mission is threatened by an omnipotent being named Q, who puts them (and specifically, Captain Picard) on trial for the crimes of all humanity.
The Good: The plot is very high concept and relatively ambitious for a pilot. From their first exchange, it is quite clear that Patrick Stewart and John de Lancie are head and shoulders above the rest of the cast at this point. Even when delivering stupid lines, Patrick Stewart is fantastic. The Trial Scene (once Yar is frozen) is really a great piece of television. Also the cameo of DeForest Kelley as a torch passing was just lovely. There is also a sense of wonder here that seems to be lost in later seasons.
The Bad: The dialogue is extremely expository and in some cases just plain poorly written. This isn't helped by some of the acting, especially from Marina Sirtis and Denise Crosby. A lot of them clearly don't have defined roles and for most of the pilot, they're standing around and acting confused about what this is really supposed to be about. Overall the execution doesn't live up to the concept and in many ways the episode dumbs itself down.
Annoying Character: Troi. Do I really need to explain this? In all fairness though, a lot of the minor characters have their annoying moments.
Grade/Final Thoughts: 5/10. This episode seems to be rather polarizing, but I thought it was positively average. There were parts that I loved, parts that I hated and parts I was neutral about. Not enough stood out to really skew it in any one direction.
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