Season 2...underrated?

[TheBishop]

No, seriously. I think it is. Everyone seems to lump it in with Season 1 as the "wandering years" of TNG, but while I'd never place it on the same level as the seasons that follow it, I think it was a vast improvement on the first year and a bridge of sorts between that season and season 3. We had a heap of good-to-great episodes like "Where Silence Has Lease", "The Measure of a Man", "Elementary, Dear Data", "A Mtter of Honor", "Time Squared", "The Emissary", and of course, "Q Who". Plus I thought the season as a whole just felt more vibrant and energetic than Season 1.

Ofg course, there were a few stinkers, such as "Up The Long Ladder" (my pick for worst ever TNG episode) and "Shades of Grey". And Dr. Pulaski could get annoying, I suppose.

So I contend that Season 2 gets an undeserved bad rap. Anyone with me?

 

[WillsBabe]

I think that season two does get a bad rep. I think you're right. There are some interesting episodes, I agree. I wonder what would have happened to TNG if its third season had been similar in style and quality to season two.

 

[Spider]

Season two had some great episodes, but I tend to think of it as the "bad doctor year".

 

[Kegek]

Season 2 is, frankly, the most wildly chaotic season of the entire franchise in terms of quality. It's got what I consider the best episode of TNG - "The Measure of a Man" and the worst episode of the entire francise - "Up the Long Ladder." I'm glad somebody agrees with me on that count.

The season introduced us to Guinan and Ten Forward. It gave Wesley a job, which IMHO made him less irritating. I frankly feel Pulaski was a significant improvement over Crusher. "Time Squared" was the best TNG episode about time travel and probably one of the best in the franchise on the subject - it kept itself creepy, fatalistic and inexplicible, with a haunting performance by Patrick Stewart of his dazed, mechanical other self.

But it also had awful, awful episodes - "The Outrageous Okona", for instance. I think ultimately the season - most obviously "Shades of Grey" - was the result of the writer's strike that screwed everything up and let a lot of scripts that needed rewrites - or to be thrown into the can - go into production. Maybe if that strike hadn't happened the season would have been of much higher calibre.

Season 2 is, for me, the moment the show made its first stabs at what it could be, with some brilliant flashes... but it wasn't until the third season that it reached a consistent level of high quality.

 

[Angel4576]

Measure of a Man and Q-Who? are better than anything produced in season one, but overall, the season's not much better on average than the first year IMO.

Up the Long Ladder, The Outrageous Okana, The Dauphin, Samaritan Snare, Shades of Grey were all pretty woeful, and equally as bad as episodes like Code of Honour, Justice, Haven and Angel One.

 

[Kegek]

^
I consider "Samaritan Snare" to have a hilarious A-plot and a poignant stiff-Picard B-plot (later followed up brilliantly in "Tapestry"). It's leagues away from S1's "When the Bough Breaks" or "Haven".

 

[TheBishop]

Yep, I like "Samaritan Snare" too. Being a Transformers fan it always gives me a kick to see Chris "Starscream" Latta playing one of the Pakleds.

 

[Angel4576]

^^ It was the Pakleds, they just did nothing for me. They were, IMO, a one-line joke. "Our ship is broken, make it....go", and that was pretty much it.

 

[Smiley]

I don't get the hate for "The Outrageous Okona." It's not groundbreaking, but it is entertaining, the guest stars pull their weight, and I can't help but love Okona.

 

[Kegek]

^
I think it's mainly these three things:

1) The show sits around lecturing us about how great Okona is. This attitude is even evident in the title.
2) A tired Romeo and Juliet end-plot.
3) A lamely written Data subplot, where Data tries to learn humour by taking advice from very unfunny people. Maybe if that was done intentionally it'd be great, but as it is...

It's not the worst thing ever made, but it's a good example of S2's wasted potential - a script that could have stood a few more drafts.

 

[Vasquez Rocks]

I liked season 2. It had some really weird episodes like Where Silence Has Lease, The Royale and Time Squared which I enjoyed. I didn't mind Pulaski, but I really missed Dr. Crusher and was glad when they brought her back for season 3.

 

[TeutonicNights]

It's abit underrated. It had some very strong episodes.
Everyone is forgetting "Contagion". A rock-solid episode and probably where the whole "Stargate" concept was stolen from.
To me it is one of the best episodes of TNG.


Also, the measure of a man, Time Squared, QWho. But, as said, many horrible stinkers that drag it down overall.

I loved Pulaski.

 

[Kegek]

I always forget "Contagion" for some reason. Great episode, also had a solid follow-up on DS9 in "To the Death". First of a long line in good TNG Romulan episodes, as well.

Glad to see I'm not alone in my view of Pulaski, either.

 

[WillsBabe]

Angel4576 said:
Measure of a Man and Q-Who? are better than anything produced in season one

I think Measure of a Man and Q Who are probably two of the best TNG episodes of TNG made. I'd forgotten they both came in season 2.

 

[The Old Mixer]

Being early in Season 2 via DVD, I recently thought the same thing. Despite any flaws of individual episodes, and the overall flaw of Pulaski, we see a lot of things come together in Season 2 that will be with us for the rest of the series, or at least for seasons to come--In addition to the already-mentioned Ten Forward, Guinan, and Wesley acting as an officer, we got the poker game, Chief O'Brien being established as a recurring character with a name and personality, Geordi as Chief Engineer, and probably a few other things that I'm not remembering off the top of my head.

Plus we had "A Matter of Honor" and "Measure of a Man" back-to-back!

Smiley said:
I don't get the hate for "The Outrageous Okona." It's not groundbreaking, but it is entertaining, the guest stars pull their weight, and I can't help but love Okona.

I believe it was the writer who was doing Cinefantastique's TNG episode guides who described this one as a leftover episode of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. In my recent viewing, I thought the actors playing the feuding families were pretty awful...and "Straleb" sounds like the sort of planet name I'd have come up with in 3rd grade. I can't fault Billy Campbell, though, because he worked with what he was given, and I know he's got acting chops from Once & Again, in which he held his own with Emmy-winning co-star Sela Ward.

I never minded "Shades of Gray" because, when it originally aired, I hadn't seen about half of Season One's episodes, so I was intrigued by the flashbacks of episodes that I'd missed.

 

[Nebusj]

I believe it was the writer who was doing Cinefantastique's TNG episode guides who described this one as a leftover episode of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.

I can't believe how long it took me to recognize Okona as a Mary Sue character. He may not be an idealized representation of the script's author but he certainly plays out as a Mary Sue.

Another too-often-harshed-on piece from this season is ``Where Silence Has Lease'', which is wonderfully atmospheric and creepy. Great episode.

 

[Jack Bauer]

It's underrated in the sense that it's nowhere near as horrible as the first season. It's not that great either. Relentlessly mediocre is how I'd describe it. Season was was spectacularly awful.

 

[Sisu]

Compared to early Season 1, it was brilliant. Compared to later Season 1, it was equivalent.

The writer's strike did derail them, I think.

 

[patlandness]

"The Measure of a Man" and "Q Who" are what I call "TNG's One-Two Punch" and the true announcement of the TNG's arrival!

 

[Ro_Laren]

I too am guilty of lumping Season One together with Season Two. One of my least favorite parts of Season Two is the absence of Beverly Crusher (and therefore the presence of Pulaski).

I too absolutely hate "Shade of Grey." There were many less than stellar episodes in Season Two, but this one stands out because it is a freakin' flashback episode!! Flashback episodes should be made illegal (and I don't mean the flashback episodes found on Lost)! Cheap way to save a studio's budget. They do nothing to make a TV series progress!!!