Perceptions of Wesley Crusher over the course of the show

[BlueStuff]

By the time Wesley was written off in season four, had attitudes towards him cooled somewhat, or were fans largely rejoicing that he was gone? Was it mostly the first season or so that he was so loathed? Were most fans more accepting of him in small doses as in "The First Duty"?

 

[LK3185]

As a person that is watching TNG for the first time really, is all I can say is I hated Wes in season 1. Like kill him off type hate. He was so annoying.. Yet season 2, he's not bad. He's just kinda there. But he's definitely less annoying. That doesn't mean he got great material though.

 

[Twilight Phoenix]

I've always liked Wes, both when he was very young and when he was older

 

[maneth]

I never got the Wes hate either. Sure, I'm not too keen on episodes like The Game or Datalore, but I'm not annoyed with Wes for saving the day. I'm annoyed at the adults for being so stupid.

 

[Herbert]

I think all the bad perceptions of Wes come from the way he was written in season one. Had they toned down the boy wonder aspect of it, the hate wouldn't have been so bad. There is also a little bit of "why is this type of character featured so prominently on the show?" Why do we need him?"
Of course, I say that about the counselor role as well.

 

[Twilight Phoenix]

I've always perceived Wes as a gifted child, which is not a very common character type in series (at least from the series I've watched so far). He reminds me of Lisa Simpson in many aspects, even though Wes lacks the ambivalent emotional roller coaster aspect that gives depth to Lisa.
This is good to show a bit more neurodiversity in the show, IMHO. Data does that job too, in his own way, since he has so many traits that resemble autistic spectrum.

 

[Qonundrum]

Season 1 meant well in trying to show a child genius. The problem was the writing, letting the child genius end up looking better by writing down the adults as being a gaggle of nitwits. "Datalore" is the worst example of the bunch, though "We're Starfleet, we don't lie" in the season 1 extravaganza "Justice" is quick runner-up in terms of what not to do.

Season 2 shows immediate and robust improvement, with "The Dauphin" being exactly what Wesley should have been: Smart, awkward, inexperienced, and dealing with puberty schlock as well. "Pen Pals" also had a nice Wesley subplot in learning confidence and leadership.

Season 3 also shows improvement, but I don't remember him being seen as much.

And it doesn't help when sci-fi, in general, tries to show socially awkward above-average kids.

I'm also one of a few that has no animosity toward the "drugs are bad" speech in "Symbiosis". I've seen enough lives get hampered by the stuff and Yar's emotion in the issue felt sincere, or at least relate-able. Wes's ignorance and naivety also felt less forced than the "THEY WOULD LISTEN TO ME IF I WERE AN ADULT, WAAAAAAAAAAH!" routine season 1 was plagued with.

One could also argue that Wes might be an Aspie (Asperger's Syndrome) if not elsewhere in the Autistic Spectrum Disorder umbrella group (per DSM-V, which includes ASD but separates AS if I remember correctly), since the all-over-the-map personality Wes had on screen isn't always atypical for some who have AS. In which case some of season 1 manages to feel somewhat more authentic as a result. If not a little heavyhanded, but as most of season 1 does the "make kid smart by making experienced adults act dumber" routine and had no real grasp on such people, the dumbing down of everyone else is by far the biggest problem - which has less to do with Wes and more to do with the writing of the other characters if not the writers being inexperienced. Still groundbreakers, however for taking steps in areas they had no experience. Hindsight can reveal more after making a path that nobody had seen before.

And given how television over the decades has rarely used people with neurological issues, mental retardation, etc, Wesley is as much a groundbreaker - though a couple of TV shows in the past had one or two "very special episodes", they stumbled worse and even with more common issues. TNG might have been first with a main character as such, even if the US didn't recognize AS until the mid-1990s, with more doctors needing more time to accept the nuances. I feel bad for anyone with an ASD who was misdiagnosed, given medication and dealt with hideous side effects.

 

[Nakita Akita]

Season 1 meant well in trying to show a child genius. The problem was the writing, letting the child genius end up looking better by writing down the adults as being a gaggle of nitwits. "Datalore" is the worst example of the bunch, though "We're Starfleet, we don't lie" in the season 1 extravaganza "Justice" is quick runner-up in terms of what not to do.

Season 2 shows immediate and robust improvement, with "The Dauphin" being exactly what Wesley should have been: Smart, awkward, inexperienced, and dealing with puberty schlock as well. "Pen Pals" also had a nice Wesley subplot in learning confidence and leadership.

Season 3 also shows improvement, but I don't remember him being seen as much.

And it doesn't help when sci-fi, in general, tries to show socially awkward above-average kids.

I'm also one of a few that has no animosity toward the "drugs are bad" speech in "Symbiosis". I've seen enough lives get hampered by the stuff and Yar's emotion in the issue felt sincere, or at least relate-able. Wes's ignorance and naivety also felt less forced than the "THEY WOULD LISTEN TO ME IF I WERE AN ADULT, WAAAAAAAAAAH!" routine season 1 was plagued with.

One could also argue that Wes might be an Aspie (Asperger's Syndrome) if not elsewhere in the Autistic Spectrum Disorder umbrella group (per DSM-V, which includes ASD but separates AS if I remember correctly), since the all-over-the-map personality Wes had on screen isn't always atypical for some who have AS. In which case some of season 1 manages to feel somewhat more authentic as a result. If not a little heavyhanded, but as most of season 1 does the "make kid smart by making experienced adults act dumber" routine and had no real grasp on such people, the dumbing down of everyone else is by far the biggest problem - which has less to do with Wes and more to do with the writing of the other characters if not the writers being inexperienced. Still groundbreakers, however for taking steps in areas they had no experience. Hindsight can reveal more after making a path that nobody had seen before.

And given how television over the decades has rarely used people with neurological issues, mental retardation, etc, Wesley is as much a groundbreaker - though a couple of TV shows in the past had one or two "very special episodes", they stumbled worse and even with more common issues. TNG might have been first with a main character as such, even if the US didn't recognize AS until the mid-1990s, with more doctors needing more time to accept the nuances. I feel bad for anyone with an ASD who was misdiagnosed, given medication and dealt with hideous side effects.

I never felt at all as though they were trying or even accidentally made Wesley seem to have Asperger's.
Television has portrayed mental disabilities previously,
There was a show on TV "Monk" that portrayed a person with the disorder. It was from 2002.
There was also a show in 1989, " life goes on" that had a character with Down's syndrome.

Their used to be a show about lawyers and they had a character that was supposed to have Asperger's.
I think the show may have had William Shatner in it too. ( I maybe mixing up something though)

My boyfriend's nephew has what is termed Selective Mutism, the nephew is not nearly as disabled as his disabler mother.

 

[velour]

"Datalore" is the worst example of the bunch, though "We're Starfleet, we don't lie" in the season 1 extravaganza "Justice" is quick runner-up in terms of what not to do.

In a short period of time, Wesley went from that naïve idealistic "we're Starfleet, we don't lie" kid to a lying cadet covering up the death of a fellow cadet.

The first part of Wesley's story arc came full circle from "Justice" to "First Duty". Picard laid down the law when he scolded Wesley that "the first duty of every Starfleet officer is to the truth." Oddly enough, Picard was essentially echoing what Wesley once said.

Wesley was forced to either live up to the ideal, "we're Starfleet, we don't lie", that he once believed in; or lie and cover up in order for him to become Starfleet. There was some irony in that.

By the time of "First Duty", I didn't really mind his presence on the show. He had become a more "normal" character by then instead of being an annoyance or gimmick.

Another irony, for me, is that Wesley's behavior in "First Duty" helped further make him a more compelling character. As a tv viewer, I wouldn't have minded him continuing on the show, but at the same time, I thought Wesley should have been kicked out of the Academy for his negligence in the death of a fellow cadet and his subsequent cover.

I was ok with the character being dropped from the show after that episode and then being brought back for his conclusion in "Journey's End". Glad that he was ultimately no longer in Starfleet by the end of the series.

 

[Tosk]

I didn't hate Wesley, but I definitely wasn't sorry to see him go either.

 

[Jonesy]

The best thing that happened to Wesley Crusher was turning him from a know it all kid to a real young man with real challenges. Genuinely great episodes came out of this from say season 3 onwards.

However, all of that progress was thrown away when they chose to make him Trek's version of the Star Child from 2001.

 

[Marynator]

I always liked Wesley. I never understood the hate. I also don't understand the general dislike of the episode "Sub Rosa", so maybe I'm just weird.

 

[Armus]

I was sorry to see Wesley go originally, as a kid I obviously related to him the most. Rewatching the first three seasons I noticed how his character added to the family feeling between the characters, and he had chemistry with everyone in the cast, especially with Geordi and Data.

 

[at Quark's]

Actually I like that Wesley as an adolescent became less "ideal", made errors, and started plotting his own course and refused to tread the Starfleet career path everyone had laid out for him. I'm just not convinced he should have left with that somewhat creepy Traveler guy...

 

[JirinPanthosa]

When I was first getting into TNG I was 11 so Wesley was kinda *for* me. At the time I liked him.

When I came back to Trek later, I think he was terrible in season 1 but became a good character by season 3. Later on they showed him make more mistakes, portrayed him more like a human being who happened to be a genius. In season 1 he didn't seem like a real human, much less a real teenager. He was an idealized teacher's pet without the rebellious impulses of a teenager. Like somebody who was raised in a bubble without ever meeting any other children his age. You could argue, well, maybe that's exactly his childhood, but then they also didn't do any stories where he was trying to fit in with other teenagers and struggling because of his 'Please the adults, follow the rules' attitude.

In season 1 Wesley was a wish fulfillment character for the younger part of the audience and that's what makes him so hard to watch when you're older.