Parallels a amazing episode/concept

[Lange]

Just saw Parallels today to finish up season 7 realizing I missed a few episodes and I must say it was amazing! The whole concept of so many alternate enterprises really intrigued me that each one of them had some alternation in the events that affected the crew like how Picard died from BoBW in the universe Worf ended up in last that helped him get back, and how Wesley Crusher was still on the enterprise as a tactical officer. Or how the Borg had completely obliterated the Federation in another universe where that Riker tried to destroy Worf's shuttle.

Sometime I hope they can explore a lot of those universes in Trek literature somehow, I know its impossible to come up with 285,000 seperate concepts but at least explore the universes mentioned and maybe concepts for some others. Would bring about some really interesting premises the prime universes could not. For one, what would it be like with Riker as captain of the Enterprise which was something that always loomed in the prime universe but never happened. Concepts like this to consider alternate scenarios and things that could of happened to the characters in various forms.

One thing I was saddened by was the real intimacy of the Troi Worf romance. The fact they had kids in another universe and Worf had no idea of that really showed what could of happened. however in the prime universe obviously we know that doesn't happen. To me it was ironically tragic to an extent.

To conclude is it just me or was it just such a great episode on a emotional and conceptual level. Be interested in you all discussing it with me. Thanks

 

[7thsealord]

It is one of my favourite episodes. That scene in Worf's quarters, when Deanna starts behaving .... strangely, is just hilarious.

I occasionally find myself wondering about one particular alt-universe that surely must have stemmed from this episode. Specifically, the universe where 285,000-odd USS Enterprises all stayed. That would make for some ..... interesting problems.

I more often wonder about what sort of traits a half-Klingon/quarter-Terran/quarter-Betazoid individual would have. Presumably, you'd get a warrior who will rip both your arms off, but then sit down and help you get in touch with your feelings about the experience.

 

[Cyke101]

I occasionally find myself wondering about one particular alt-universe that surely must have stemmed from this episode. Specifically, the universe where 285,000-odd USS Enterprises all stayed. That would make for some ..... interesting problems.

Thanks to some 285,000 new Rikers (give or take a few thousand due to Borg attacks, Evil Oil Entities, brain viruses, etc etc), the Alpha Quadrant now has a new baby boom.

Even worse: another attempt at trying to rescue Thomas Riker via transporter fails, resulting in a third Riker and many, many facepalms on the bridge.

 

[davejames]

To be honest, at the time it just felt like a cheap and uninspired rehash of previous alternate universe stories to me. Like the writers just put Yesterday's Enterprise, Future Imperfect, and a couple other episodes into a blender and out came this story.

But I haven't seen it in quite awhile, so I should probably give it another look someday.

 

[Christopher]

Sometime I hope they can explore a lot of those universes in Trek literature somehow, I know its impossible to come up with 285,000 seperate concepts but at least explore the universes mentioned and maybe concepts for some others.

Not those specific universes, but:

http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_Myriad_Universes

Myriad Universes is a set of (so far) three trade-paperback collections, each containing three short novels set in different alternate Trek histories. One (The Chimes at Midnight by Geoff Trowbridge) is set in the alternate timeline seen in TAS: "Yesteryear," while the other eight are original concepts branching off of key events from the various ST series.

Other Trek literature pertaining to alternate timelines includes TNG: Q Squared by Peter David; VGR: Echoes by Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, and Nina Kiriki Hoffman; and ENT: Daedalus & Daedalus's Children by David Stern. There has also been a series of books in recent years set in the Mirror Universe.

 

[JB2005]

KRAD's Q + A takes place in alternate realities...

 

[Christopher]

KRAD's Q + A takes place in alternate realities...

Well, brief portions of it do.

 

[sonak]

this is a great episode-clever premise executed very well.

 

[Mysterion]

It's a fun episode, and it is handy if you feel the need to justify some of those annoying continuity glitches ("Hey, it probably DID happen that way in one of those 285,000 universes, so...").

 

[StevenR]

The only thing I really didn't like about the episode was that it was really just slight variations on the normal setting. It would have been interesting to have seen Worf have to cope with something like being on the Enterprise and not knowing the captain or being on the Enterprise and that particualr Federation is at war with the Klingons or on an Enterprise where everything is completely normal except nobody knows who Worf is.

 

[Mysterion]

The only thing I really didn't like about the episode was that it was really just slight variations on the normal setting. It would have been interesting to have seen Worf have to cope with something like being on the Enterprise and not knowing the captain or being on the Enterprise and that particualr Federation is at war with the Klingons or on an Enterprise where everything is completely normal except nobody knows who Worf is.

Perhaps a bigger budget and making a two-parter might have opened-up some interesitng possibilities. As-is, it's not bad considering the money and time limitations it faced.

 

[E-DUB]

I had the idea too of "What if all the Enterprises had stayed".

Would have made for a short Dominion War, you bet.

 

[F. King Daniel]

*whispers* ....sliders....

I love "Parallels" very much. The concept of alternate realities is a favourite of mine (although, IMO, DS9 failed failingly into a vortex of suck in it's MU episodes). I'm currently reading the second "Myriad Universes" collection. I love the concept. Take an episode like "Shockwave", where Archer's stranded in the ruins of 31st century Earth. It's an alternate future that gets "undone" by the end, and we don't learn much about it, but the idea that countless billions of people lived out their lives in this history is epic.

 

[sbk1234]

I always liked it. One thing - unless I've missed something.

The episode first shows something amiss at Worf's party.

Then, at the end, he goes back to his own universe in the shuttle beforehand. When he gets to his quarters, there's no party waiting for him.

Was he in an alternate universe already in the beginning, or is he now in an alternate reality for the rest of Trek?

 

[Borjis]

I love the beginning at the party....it throws you off.

 

[Christopher]

Was he in an alternate universe already in the beginning, or is he now in an alternate reality for the rest of Trek?

The former. Before the episode began (or sometime between the opening scene on the shuttle and the next scene on the Enterprise), Worf's shuttle intersected with a quantum fissure and he passed into the first alternate timeline, which is where the party was held. So we didn't see the "home" timeline until the end of the episode.

 

[7thsealord]

The only thing I really didn't like about the episode was that it was really just slight variations on the normal setting. It would have been interesting to have seen Worf have to cope with something like being on the Enterprise and not knowing the captain or being on the Enterprise and that particualr Federation is at war with the Klingons or on an Enterprise where everything is completely normal except nobody knows who Worf is.

Well, they did sort of touch on that. In at least one timeline, the Bajorans were hostile to the UFP AND had the military muscle to back this up, and it might have been the same one that had a Cardassian bridge officer.

I am also guessing that, since Worf was arguably the catalyst for the entire mess, all of those alt-Enterprises had a version of him on board.

 

[RandyS]

It's a fun episode, and it is handy if you feel the need to justify some of those annoying continuity glitches ("Hey, it probably DID happen that way in one of those 285,000 universes, so...").

Exactly why canon arguments are pointless and idiotic.

But of course, I'm biased. Parrallel universe stories (Star Trek related or not), are my favorite kind of sci-fi stories.

 

[TheSeeker]

Love this episode. Can't wait to see it again in HD. Of course I'll have to wait about four years for it.

 

[SiddFinch1]

Its been a while since i saw it but I always wondered. Did the other Worfs all make it home at the end?
would also liked to see a more radically different timeline shown.
Also were all 285k timelines represented by a shipcalled Enterprise? No timeliness with a ship with a non English name or Vulcan name?