No respect for the character of Scotty in "Relics"?

[cbp44189]

You make a solid argument, but for this:

The Enterprise is fully staffed, not under any emergency and is just doing routine duties and analyses.

Doesn't that mean Geordi could have left the task to his subordinates and shepherded a lonely old man around?

In addition, Scotty's a captain—just short of flag rank, and almost certain to be awarded it the moment he arrives at a starbase. You don't tell a venerable officer he's "in the way." You might excuse yourself and summon Captain Picard to do so, but ... you don't bitch at a man who ranks you by two grades and a century, no matter how irritated you are.

Agreed, as Chief Engineer, there was no need to micro-manage his team. That would be poor leadership. He could have taken the time to escort a captain around, and given him some pointers on the progress of technology..tactfully. I thought people are supposed to be enlightened and sensitive to others' needs in the Star Trek vision of the future. Even if he was not considered a legend, Scotty was chief engineer of an Enterprise and has the rank of captain. He could have done a computer check of Montgomery Scott, and would have been informed immediately of whom he was is the presence of. Geordi was so awestruck of Zephram Cochrane, but couldn't be bothered with the famous Captain Kirk's engineer?
I know that when I was a soldier, we set up a demonstration for bunch of guys from Audie Murphy's unit, and we showed the utmost respect, and they told stories for hours.
P.S. Audie Murphy (most decorated US soldier of WWII) was even more bad-ass than people know.

 

[Cyke101]

You make a solid argument, but for this:

The Enterprise is fully staffed, not under any emergency and is just doing routine duties and analyses.

Doesn't that mean Geordi could have left the task to his subordinates and shepherded a lonely old man around?

In addition, Scotty's a captain—just short of flag rank, and almost certain to be awarded it the moment he arrives at a starbase. You don't tell a venerable officer he's "in the way." You might excuse yourself and summon Captain Picard to do so, but ... you don't bitch at a man who ranks you by two grades and a century, no matter how irritated you are.

Which does, of course, make Geordi look very much like a douche, which I'm pretty sure was the episode's intent anyway. I'm astounded at some people (by far a vast minority) in the armed forces today who wave off the stories of WWII vets as annoying.

I like that Geordi went through pretty much a full character circle, and that this episode isn't just a Scotty story, but a Geordi story. If he foolishly didn't know of Scotty before, he definitely does now, and Scotty made sure Geordi knew his name.

My only complaint? Scotty spouting out technobabble. He don't need no stinkin' technobabble!! He didn't explain things, he just made them work.

I thought the episode handled Scotty very well. He's a popular character from the original series - which doesn't necessarily make him to be an unparalled and legendary engineer. This episode could have easily been pure fanservice with everyone on TNG simply gushing at Scotty's presence and begging him to regale them with plotlines from the sixties show, but it managed to tell a story about Scotty and how the elderly can feel obsolescent in modern society. Scotty's exactly what the title suggests - a relic; and his achievements are ancient history.

Geeze, I never realized how this episode could have been so quickly and easily been made into a clip show! Kudos to the Powers That Be for not falling for that trap (heck, Doohan probably wouldn't have signed on if that were the case).

 

[Finn]

^Actually, he didn't overdo it with technobabble like certain characters do at times. He was talking about technology that enables them to travel faster than light, create sheilds and all that, set centuries into the future. They are engineers. Just as the dialogue between today's engineers would sound like babbling to a 17th Century storekeeper.

 

[shatastrophic]

I did enjoy the exchanges between Scotty and Worf. I loved that it didn't matter whether he was in the future or not, he wouldn't accept Worf. That stare they gave each other was great.
Worf got to see Scotty in 2 different stages of his life. Here, and then as a younger man on K-7. Had Obrien already left for DS9 when Relics was on?

 

[Triskelion]

You make a solid argument, but for this:

The Enterprise is fully staffed, not under any emergency and is just doing routine duties and analyses.

Doesn't that mean Geordi could have left the task to his subordinates and shepherded a lonely old man around?

In addition, Scotty's a captain—just short of flag rank, and almost certain to be awarded it the moment he arrives at a starbase. You don't tell a venerable officer he's "in the way." You might excuse yourself and summon Captain Picard to do so, but ... you don't bitch at a man who ranks you by two grades and a century, no matter how irritated you are.

Agreed, as Chief Engineer, there was no need to micro-manage his team. That would be poor leadership. He could have taken the time to escort a captain around, and given him some pointers on the progress of technology..tactfully. I thought people are supposed to be enlightened and sensitive to others' needs in the Star Trek vision of the future. Even if he was not considered a legend, Scotty was chief engineer of an Enterprise and has the rank of captain. He could have done a computer check of Montgomery Scott, and would have been informed immediately of whom he was is the presence of. Geordi was so awestruck of Zephram Cochrane, but couldn't be bothered with the famous Captain Kirk's engineer?
I know that when I was a soldier, we set up a demonstration for bunch of guys from Audie Murphy's unit, and we showed the utmost respect, and they told stories for hours.
P.S. Audie Murphy (most decorated US soldier of WWII) was even more bad-ass than people know.

WWII vets got some good stories. </understatement>

 

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

My only complaint? Scotty spouting out technobabble. He don't need no stinkin' technobabble!! He didn't explain things, he just made them work.

I liked the techno-babble Scotty. We got so little of that on TOS, just a lot of blinking buttons, it was good to hear Scotty talk like a real engineer

 

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

Oh, come on. Don't be such a geek . It was never shown how well known Scotty is in history. Kirk and Spock are probably the only ones from TOS that is revered and well respected in Picard's time. Scotty and McCoy may be familiar to those in their respective fields. Sulu, Chekov and Uhuru probably have been forgetten by most.

Sulu was very well remembered in the 24th century. There is a bust of him at Starfleet Academy.

 

[Hambone]

Kirk and Spock are probably the only ones from TOS that is revered and well respected in Picard's time.

Riker did not remember Kirk in "The Naked Now". He had to read who the "old Enterprise" captain was from the library computer. Kirk and Spock weren't remembered or revered until the writers made them that way (well, obviously...but you know what I mean).

A couple of years later, though, Sisko seemed to know all about Kirk and his adventures.

Kirk, on the other hand, knew just about everybody in Federation/Starfleet history, because, as he said on several occasions, "[his exploits] were required reading at the Academy".

I didn't really think the Scotty character was disrespected in "Relics". I thought the treatment the 1701-D crew gave him was fairly realistic. He still ended up saving the day. What I didn't like was the ending...getting the old codger off the ship in a shuttlecraft so he'd quit bugging Geordi was kind of lame.

 

[Mallory]

What I didn't like was the ending...getting the old codger off the ship in a shuttlecraft so he'd quit bugging Geordi was kind of lame.

I didn't like the ending either. It seemed a lot like the Eskimos putting their elderly on icebergs and pushing them off to sea.

 

[Brian]

What I didn't like was the ending...getting the old codger off the ship in a shuttlecraft so he'd quit bugging Geordi was kind of lame.

I didn't like the ending either. It seemed a lot like the Eskimos putting their elderly on icebergs and pushing them off to sea.

Yeah, you get the sense that the shuttle is rigged to space him and return on autopilot right after the closing credits.

 

[Red Ranger]

What I didn't like was the ending...getting the old codger off the ship in a shuttlecraft so he'd quit bugging Geordi was kind of lame.

I didn't like the ending either. It seemed a lot like the Eskimos putting their elderly on icebergs and pushing them off to sea.

Yeah, you get the sense that the shuttle is rigged to space him and return on autopilot right after the closing credits.

Ah, no. Giving a respected retired officer use of a shuttlecraft doesn't sound to me like the bum's rush. Scotty wanted to get back to work, as he indicates toward the end. They gave him one of their shuttles so he could do that.

As a captain of engineering, I wonder what kind of project he'd be involved in if he reactivated his Starfleet commission -- after some time catching up on his technical manuals, of course!

And what uniform would he wear? Me, I think it would be similar to the Picard variant uniform, with the jacket in black and operations gold and the black-and-gray tunic underneath.

Red Ranger

 

[John Picard]

Just watched "Relics" tonight. I was so excited for this crossover when it first aired in 1992. Watching it again, I'm reminded what a bummer this episode turned out to be even though it had much potential.

Ron Moore sure threw out some TOS love with the references to Kirk and especially the real fanboy references to "By Any other Name". "Elaan of Troyus" and a couple other old episodes.

However, Moore didn't reference that Scotty was a rockstar engineer and a known part of Starfleet history. I was disappointed that Geordi and Picard didn't immediately recognize Scotty. A little recognition and props for being the legendary "miracle worker" It seemed like they knew Kirk and the Enterprise, but Scotty got sold short in terms of name recognition.

Did anyone else feel this way? It made the whole useless old guy story line even more depressing.

I didn't read through all of the posts, but I suggest you read the novel. it goes into more detail that a one-hour story can't. Scotty really was out of his element by the 24th Century.

 

[Trekker4747]

The ending is odd to me too.

"Well then, I thought you were going to buy me a drink in Ten-Forward."
"Actually, I had a better idea."

You can leave!

 

[nx1701g]

Then again knowing Scotty that shuttlecraft is probably more capable than the Enterprise-D is within a week.

 

[Cyke101]

Then again knowing Scotty that shuttlecraft is probably more capable than the Enterprise-D is within a week.

Pimp My Shuttlecraft! Why use a wimpy replicator when you can have... an ionic plasma gas-powered grill with dual quantum-lock hinged stainless steel door?

 

[Trekker4747]

Then again knowing Scotty that shuttlecraft is probably more capable than the Enterprise-D is within a week.

Pimp My Shuttlecraft! Why use a wimpy replicator when you can have... an ionic plasma gas-powered grill with dual quantum-lock hinged stainless steel door?

And check it out. We've got LCARS interactive panels in the headreasts!

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Gods save us from a Trek story where modern Trek characters fawn over TOS characters. That's not drama, it's fanboy wish fulfillment verging on masturbation.

"Relics" was wonderful because for the very first (and last) time in the history of "Star Trek" James Doohan was the central actor and star of a Trek production (that episode about "Redjack?" Don't make me laugh). The episode honored Doohan and gave him an opportunity to show what he was capable of in a "Star Trek" story, so who cares whether "Scotty" was properly worshipped or not?

 

[Mr. Fergy]

Geordi probably skipped class when they talked about Scotty...same as he skipped class when they talked about how to eject the warp core.

Maybe.

Then again ST: Generations made the whole, damned, TNG crew look incompetent.

 

[Mr. Fergy]

Gods save us from a Trek story where modern Trek characters fawn over TOS characters. That's not drama, it's fanboy wish fulfillment verging on masturbation.

"Relics" was wonderful because for the very first (and last) time in the history of "Star Trek" he was the central actor and star of a Trek production (that episode about "Redjack?" Don't make me laugh). The episode honored Doohan and gave him an opportunity to show what he was capable of in a "Star Trek" story, so who cares whether "Scotty" was properly worshipped or not?

I couldn't agree more. Relics was a brilliant episode, easily one of the top 5. Hell, reports say it made the Directors wife cry, and she's not a Trekkie it was so good.

 

[The Old Mixer]

Geordi probably skipped class when they talked about Scotty...same as he skipped class when they talked about how to eject the warp core.

Maybe.

Then again ST: Generations made the whole, damned, TNG crew look incompetent.

It wasn't just Generations...it was a pattern that developed throughout the show. Every one of the many times that the ship was threatened with a warp core breach, they either never mentioned ejecting it, or gave some vague excuse as to why it couldn't be done. They put a safety system in there and then constantly make excuses why it won't work. So it became my humorous contention that Geordi was hiding the fact that he never learned how to eject the warp core.