I just re-watched this episode the other day. I still recall the first time i saw the episode and shocked that Sito Jaxa did not make it back safely. I liked the Lavelle character (even tho' I bet most viewers thought of him as Riker 2.0 or "Riker on Steroids") I always wished there was a follow up to the episode -- perhaps with Lavelle & Taurik on DS9 looking for Jaxa. Also thought in my own version of Fan Fiction that Cmdr Elizabeth Shelby & Lavelle would make a good Capt/1st Officer (or perhaps just plain bad fan fiction) Never liked Nurse Ogawa in the episode, even tho' her character was already established, I never thought she fit in well....lastly thought the bartender was sorta odd too. Anyway, just wanted to see what people's thoughts were on the episode. Nathan
Eh, it's a decent enough episode, but it kinda falls flat to me because, with the exception of Ogawa, these are one-off characters that we've never seen before and will never see again. (Okay, we saw Sito twice, but you know what I mean.) Especially Ben, who we're supposed to believe is close to all the senior staff and a regular fixture in Ten Forward, yet only appears this once. Yeah, I know it's a necessary conceit of episodic television. But it still makes it hard for me to "buy in" to the episode.
They were going to do something with Sito Jaxa on DS9, have her come back from the Cardassians, but the writers felt it would've robbed 'Lower Decks' from it's ending. I liked Taurik, but I automatically like all the Vulcans that appeared on screen. Lavelle felt a lot like a younger Riker, but I have the feeling that was the point. Nurse Ogawa was developed enough, and I feel that 'Lower Decks' was mostly about Jaxa, Lavelle, and Taurik. Ben's role was pointless. Completely and utterly pointless.
I liked it, but I agree, it would have been more powerful if the audience already had something invested in the characters already. It would have been great if they used all characters whom we were used to seeing in the background for this episode. And it would have also been great to see all of these characters again.
Lower Decks is one of my favorite TNG eps. I would have loved to have seen some of these characters again, but considering it was just ten episodes from the end of the series it's not surprising.