The One Thing You Could Change, TNG Edition...

Though Maman Picard looked pretty advanced in age when she showed up in "where no one has gone before"

 

Plenty of tragedy among the Picard family even with them dying natural deaths. I mean, Picard's brother and young nephew..

 

They say time is the fire in which we burn...

 

Too soon

 

Maybe they could make warp speeds proportional to the size of the Federation (8000 LY across). At the Enterprise D's maximum cruising speed (warp 9.2, or 1610c), it would take 2-1/2 years to get from Sector 001 to the outer edge. At their preferred speed of Warp 6 (360c), it's an 11-year odyssey.

 

These days I don't pay much attention to how fast a ship is going and how far, it's easier to just follow the plot.

 

Ah, but you're not a nitpicky fandom geek like I am!

 

Eh nothing about the distances and speeds in Star Trek ever made much sense, even if you discount "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and Star Trek V. And really, a Federation where it takes you years to get from one point to the other seems a bit unstable to me. Let alone that DS9, at the very least, made it seem like everything is right next to each other.

 

More Starfleet ships named for non-humans.

 

I really disliked how they always used Guinan. Any time the crew had a problem, just go to 10 forward have a drink and Guinan will fix everything.

 

Isn't that her whole deal? It's like complaining about Spock doing science.

 

Who needs a counselor when you have a 500+ year old mystic with trans-temporal powers?

 

Troi says that on a daily basis while eating chocolate alone in her quarters.

 

Actually, I always thought Guinan was useful and relevant to the franchise dating all the way back to "THE CAGE".

Remember what Dr. Boyce said to Pike? "One will sometimes tell things to his bartender that he won't tell his doctor." Or words to that effect... I forget the precise sentence.

(Which reminds me... will the Boyce character be used for STRANGE NEW WORLDS? He should be there, considering it looked like Pike and Boyce enjoyed a friendship similar to Kirk and McCoy.)

 

Yeah and I fucking had that "old boys club" "let's have a drink so we can talk about our feelings because real men don't talk about stuff like that while sober" BS.

I sincerely hope not.

 

I used to be and who knows if I might become nitpicky geek one day, again.

 

But Pike does open up to Boyce even before he drinks (or he may have has one sip, it's been a few years since I saw the episode, but they aren't by any means drunk), because the doctor approaches him as a friend and in a capacity that won't be on the record, if Pike said how he was growing tired with the burdens of command and not sure he can handle the stress and survivors guilt to Doctor Boyce, then as CMO of the ship he'd be duty bound to log that, as the mental health and well-being of the Captain will affect his ability to run the ship, but as Bartender Boyce he is there as a sounding board who can help Pike work through his own issues.

Toxic masculinity is a major issue and is something that does need to die a death, men have feelings and need to express them freely (especially with the frightening stats that suicide is the greatest killer of men under 40). A Pike/Boyce relationship could be written in a healthier way now, and not just copying the Kirk/McCoy dynamic, which could make Pike a nuanced and very human man having real doubts about himself and showing the effects of stress in someone who always appears the epitome of confidence, with Boyce being both his doctor and friend who knows when he needs professional help and when he just needs the right tools to work out things on his own.

 

Still even if they don't get sloshed the 1960s douchebaggery with "a man talks to his bartender" is strong in the scene. In general that Boyce is lodging around a martini set just for stuff like that at all.
The idea of alcohol having to be present is there.

I will admit I'm not an expert on heterosexual male friendships, but that scene strikes me as very douchey and outdated and I'd hope it would be scripted very differently today.

I can only hope, since the DISCO versions Pike and Number One hardly are the characters they were in the Cage either. Particularly the difference in Pike's character is noticeable.

 

Well, speaking as a heterosexual male, my best friends and I will have a couple drinks while letting out a few things that are on our minds. Not a lot of drinking, usually.

I think it's perfectly normal. It's really no different than going out with some friends and having a few drinks for fun. It's just a different set of emotions occur when in a more one-on-one setting.

With my closest friend... who's more a brother than a friend really... some of our best times have been just having some drinks and just letting the conversations go in whatever direction it takes.

 

There is nothing like good conversation. That and long form reading are killed by texting

 

I want to make clear I'm not against people drinking in moderation, or having fun in that way once in a while.

But due to the place/ social environment I grew up in, I have problems with people depending on a substance (any substance, alcohol, pot) in order to be honest about themselves. Like I'm talking about people who really need to alter their consciousness before they can talk like some sort of pathetic ritual. And that is not exclusive to heterosexual men, people of all sexualities and genders can be like that, but it's stereotyped with men, I think.
So when I see something like that in an older TV show, taking into account how society worked back then, what you could show on TV, and considering Roddenberry's background and the views on gender he clearly had, that scene just threw up all sorts of red flags for me.

And I would have no problem with Pike and Boyce or anybody going for a drink because they're friends and want to relax, just this moronic statement "a man talks to his barkeep" and the fact that he's carrying around a martini mix set just for that...that makes me want to punch the people involved.

 

In the Trek timeline The Cage was years before, and Pike was going through a personal problem and seriously reconsidering his career choice.

Number One's difference could be that she essentually "lightened up" and became more comfortable with herself.

I seriously doubt that the doctor routinely carries a cocktail set around the ship, Pike initally didn't know what it was. The semi-anonymous relationship between a customer and bartender, combined with alcohol, does make talking about personal problems easier.