Well, this was surprisingly good. It was basically a classic moral dilemma and culture clash situation. The biggest drawback is that we never got to learn how Bortus's people got to be all males (who lay eggs) with only the rare female birth. Obviously they were mammalian at some point in their history, since they not only have the potential for female individuals, but the one female that we saw had mammaries.
But, that (and the male stereotyping) aside, it was a very philosophy- and dialogue-driven story. I particularly liked the scene in the lounge where the captain played devil's advocate with his own viewpoint for the sake of "policing" himself. This added great depth to a character who had been little more than a joke (or at least a joker) up until now. Also to the credit of Malloy and LaMarr, they overcome their initial revulsion at Bortus's plans and make a friendly visit in a (successful!) attempt to change his mind-- using the original Rudolph cartoon. There are a couple of interesting twists-- including Bortus's mate turning out to have been born female and the greatest writer on their planet also being secretly female-- culminating in a very Trek-style courtroom drama, and a not-so-happy-for-everyone ending. Some of the arguments proposed-- the boxing match and the strength demonstration, for example-- are simplistic, but the overall contention over cultural context is very compelling. Is it wrong for an all-male species to consider a female child a deviation? If males and females are equal, does it even matter either way? Arguments raised ranged from circumcision to infanticide, with no solid answers reached-- though the story clearly treated the resolution as a loss.
And, in the end, despite the differences and the outcomes, colleagues remained colleagues, friends remained friends, and the marriage remained intact-- with the ultimate message being that the baby would be loved in any case. This is the kind of Star Trek that we've been missing all these years.
And... no token spaceship battles or raygun shootouts... no dire threats to the world or the galaxy... no genocide or shocking deaths of a major character... just a compelling story about people with differing opinions.
But, that (and the male stereotyping) aside, it was a very philosophy- and dialogue-driven story. I particularly liked the scene in the lounge where the captain played devil's advocate with his own viewpoint for the sake of "policing" himself. This added great depth to a character who had been little more than a joke (or at least a joker) up until now. Also to the credit of Malloy and LaMarr, they overcome their initial revulsion at Bortus's plans and make a friendly visit in a (successful!) attempt to change his mind-- using the original Rudolph cartoon. There are a couple of interesting twists-- including Bortus's mate turning out to have been born female and the greatest writer on their planet also being secretly female-- culminating in a very Trek-style courtroom drama, and a not-so-happy-for-everyone ending. Some of the arguments proposed-- the boxing match and the strength demonstration, for example-- are simplistic, but the overall contention over cultural context is very compelling. Is it wrong for an all-male species to consider a female child a deviation? If males and females are equal, does it even matter either way? Arguments raised ranged from circumcision to infanticide, with no solid answers reached-- though the story clearly treated the resolution as a loss.
And, in the end, despite the differences and the outcomes, colleagues remained colleagues, friends remained friends, and the marriage remained intact-- with the ultimate message being that the baby would be loved in any case. This is the kind of Star Trek that we've been missing all these years.
And... no token spaceship battles or raygun shootouts... no dire threats to the world or the galaxy... no genocide or shocking deaths of a major character... just a compelling story about people with differing opinions.
