What a lot of people don't realize (you might) is that Aquiel is TNG doing their own version of the classic noir thriller "Laura". Aquiel is the Laura character, Geordi is the detective taken by her beauty in the painting in her apartment, and the lifeform is the killer that wants to silence her because he shot the wrong person. it was ambitious, but wasn't as well executed as it probably needed to be to pull it off properly.
Unpopular Trek opinions game
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What a lot of people don't realize (you might) is that Aquiel is TNG doing their own version of the classic noir thriller "Laura". Aquiel is the Laura character, Geordi is the detective taken by her beauty in the painting in her apartment, and the lifeform is the killer that wants to silence her because he shot the wrong person. it was ambitious, but wasn't as well executed as it probably needed to be to pull it off properly.
Multiple appearances by Sela says otherwise.
Initially in Pen Pals Picard was perfectly fine with standing aside and allowing an entire sapient species to die. Only when Picard made a personal connection with one of the inhabitants did Picard do anything, if Picard hadn't heard the communication from the young girl directly, all of her people would have died.
Should that really be the standard by which this type of decision is made?
Nah
That is definitely one episode that sticks in my craw.
Yeah, I'm trying to figure out what Sela actually brought to being connected to Yar.
In Penpals, Picard would have been bound by the Prime Directive and since the civilisation concerned was a pre warp society he'd have been duty bound not to interfere. I think it was more a child pleading for help that made Picard eventually interfere (though who wouldn't help if a child pleaded for help).
And even though Sela was Tasha Yar's daughter you have to remember she was also half Romulan who's father was a Romulan General and as such would have been prone to the hatred/propaganda that the Romulans spewed out at the time. Up until about 6 years old I think she loved her mother but when she was being taken away by Tasha she probably believed her mother was betraying the Romulan way of life and she wanted to defend it. So she screamed out and alerted her father. After she probably detached herself from her human side altogether and became completely Romulan.
As far as she was probably concerned Tasha's connection to her was just her mother who was a traitor and deserved to die, and means nothing more to her.
Which means that it has very little influence upon the character. So, being Tasha's daughter means precisely zilch.
Explaining doesn't make it any more acceptable. It is a deplorable moral view to my view.
I agree with you that it's a deplorable moral view to leave a civilisation to it's fate but the prime directive is there for a reason. It's like the temporal prime directive, interfering in a society that not ready to know what's beyond their atmosphere can lead to catastrophic consequences. TNG episode First Contact is a prime example where things can go belly up if procedure goes out of control. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/First_Contact_(episode) the Malcorians may have been ready for warp speed etc but their belief that they were the center of the universe and unique was destroyed with the arrival of Picard and Troy.
I agree with you that it's a deplorable moral view to leave a civilisation to it's fate but the prime directive is there for a reason. It's like the temporal prime directive, interfering in a society that not ready to know what's beyond their atmosphere can lead to catastrophic consequences. TNG episode First Contact is a prime example where things can go belly up if procedure goes out of control. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/First_Contact_(episode) the Malcorians may have been ready for warp speed etc but their belief that they were the center of the universe and unique was destroyed with the arrival of Picard and Troy. Also Nikolai Rozchenco may be blamed for the death of a Boraalan when he killed himself after discovering he was aboard a ship and not in caves on his planet, all because Nikolai wanted to save a group of people from their planets destruction https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Boraalan.
I think in this case there's room for positive & negative arguments on both sides of the divide and we'll just have to agree to disagree on this matter
Oh, I agree with the Prime Directive in principle. Don't muck with societies that aren't ready for you.
However, I have an issue with the particular interpretation of the Prime Directive we see in episodes such as this. An interpretation that sees extinction of a species as preferable to interference (even to save their very existence) just because we don't know what it could do to their development? I'll never accept that interpretation.
Never.
However, I have an issue with the particular interpretation of the Prime Directive we see in episodes such as this. An interpretation that sees extinction of a species as preferable to interference (even to save their very existence) just because we don't know what it could do to their development? I'll never accept that interpretation.
Never.
I myself would also find it extremely difficult to not help anyone in distress but remember Starfleet cadets have this kind of thing about non interference drummed into them (almost in a brainwashed way) so when it comes to the crunch it automatically kicks in. It can be difficult to make the right/moral view.
Kirk never had an issue doing an end run around the Prime Directive. Considering how many times he got away with it, there are probably some pretty big loopholes in it.
The prime directive wasn't drummed into the Starfleet personnel as much during Kirks time. But it was in Picards day.
I disagree.
The Omega Glory said:
Even in the 24th century, Janeway says there are 47 subsections to the Prime Directive. There is likely lots of reasons a captain can interfere yet still be playing by the letter of the law.
Kirk basically says it is unthinkable that a captain would violate it, that there would be an expectation that a captain would give their lives and their crew's lives instead of violating it.
Not sure how you get more intense.
Unless Wesley accidentally trampled some flowers...
It could yes, but it also could not. And if there are disastrous consequences to contact, the civilization survives to better itself later.
And if the consequences result in the complete destruction of the civilization, how is that worse than doing nothing and the civilization is destroyed?
Remind what that is again please, in terms of a civilization facing extinction?
Not "their belief," but rather a single individual, within the small group of government officials who knew of Picard.
Here's an idea, inform the general populace fully, and let them discuss the idea and then they make a collective decision. Instead of a "small group of government officials."
Unpopular opinion:
The Star Trek movies, on the whole, are very good. Especially when you compare them to other drivel that's been made along the filmmaking / Hollywood continuum.
Even the couple of Trek movies I have less affinity for are still films I'd prefer to watch over much else of what is out there.
The Star Trek movies, on the whole, are very good. Especially when you compare them to other drivel that's been made along the filmmaking / Hollywood continuum.
Even the couple of Trek movies I have less affinity for are still films I'd prefer to watch over much else of what is out there.
I don't know how unpopular this is, so much as most people probably don't have an opinion on it: but I think Planet of the Titans would've made a good movie. In my head-canon, it would take place between TMP and TWOK.
Hell, I can't go to sleep, so I might as well say how I'd fit it. Click here to see what I think and why I think it in another thread in the Movie Forum.
Hell, I can't go to sleep, so I might as well say how I'd fit it. Click here to see what I think and why I think it in another thread in the Movie Forum.
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Maybe? Maybe not? But Shatner definitely gave it his all when he was on screen. For that, he made a worthy Captain Kirk.
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