Worst TNG Episode Ever?
- Thread starter Chief Medical Officer
- Start date
Why?
I have to know why you dislike it. I didn't mind it. Liked the idea of a living ship.
Since that episode's writer is a poster here, I'll assume you're being facetious.
Looking back at my Blu-Ray run of the whole series, there are two episodes that stick out more so than any other bad episode in all of Star Trek. Not because they're genuinely awful in their own right, but when put together, they manage to go below even my lowest expectations.
"A Code of Honor" and "Justice"
Both feature a 'humanoid' species. One is all black, one is all white (And blonde!). One is a tribal culture that openly manipulates other cultures for their own self-interest while the other is so welcoming to outsiders that they will have sex with them right on the spot. One is willing to put aside their laws and beliefs to help the crew of the Enterprise, the other is willing to condemn an entire planet's population to death just so their leader can marry a woman he's kidnapped or watch her be killed in a duel by his jealous wife.
These episodes are like two sides of the same coin. Together they represent the absolute worst at how insensitive Star Trek's show runners were. A humanoid race that's giving our crew trouble? Make them all black! A humanoid race that the crew look onto with wonder and happiness? Make them all white!
At least Shades of Grey is funny in the sense that they tried to make an episode featuring Riker remembering stuff look interesting.
"A Code of Honor" and "Justice"
Both feature a 'humanoid' species. One is all black, one is all white (And blonde!). One is a tribal culture that openly manipulates other cultures for their own self-interest while the other is so welcoming to outsiders that they will have sex with them right on the spot. One is willing to put aside their laws and beliefs to help the crew of the Enterprise, the other is willing to condemn an entire planet's population to death just so their leader can marry a woman he's kidnapped or watch her be killed in a duel by his jealous wife.
These episodes are like two sides of the same coin. Together they represent the absolute worst at how insensitive Star Trek's show runners were. A humanoid race that's giving our crew trouble? Make them all black! A humanoid race that the crew look onto with wonder and happiness? Make them all white!
At least Shades of Grey is funny in the sense that they tried to make an episode featuring Riker remembering stuff look interesting.
"Samaritan Snare" - hands down.
Both the "Justice" and "Code of Honor" aliens initially appeared to be admirable and were thought of as such by the crew but were then revealed to be fairly immature, very antagonistic and even unreasonable, the two aliens and their fairly similar plots felt like they were treated pretty equivalently by the series.
Both the "Justice" and "Code of Honor" aliens initially appeared to be admirable and were thought of as such by the crew but were then revealed to be fairly immature, very antagonistic and even unreasonable, the two aliens and their fairly similar plots felt like they were treated pretty equivalently by the series.
Not as much as one might think. The Edo's actions, as rubish as they are, didn't come from malice. As you watch the episode, the Edo not only contemplate how sad it would be if Wesley Crusher were to be killed under their laws. So much so that they'd be willing to overlook his escape!
LIATOR: And since you are advanced in other ways too, I suggest you use your superior powers to rescue the Wesley boy. We will record him as a convicted criminal out of our reach, an advanced person who luckily escaped the barbarism of this backward little world.
That's certainly more mature than how the Ligonians respond.
LUTAN: Then you shall have no treaty, no vaccine, AND NO LIEUTENANT YAR!
And let's not forget that the battle to the death between Yar and Yareena. Not only does Lutan break his own rules (The duel will not be interrupted, but Lutan does so anyways), but a spectator actually dies when Yareena's weapon flies out of the ring. They are perfectly content with innocent spectators dying!
right, what was wrong with that again?
right, what was wrong with that again?
Well for one Beverly might be upset with that, and deny Picard his nookie privileges.
I would have paid money to see a conference room scene where the senior staff debated the pros AND cons of saving Wesley ;-)
I think Liator and the other Edo were very bitter, including in the delivery of that line, that they thought the Enterprise crew thought of them as barbaric, that it was the Enterprise crew that was uncivilized for not accepting local law and presuming a right to violate their system (and bitter that the technological difference would give them that capability). It's true that the Ligonians were portrayed more as more overt villains rather than just antagonists and the episode suffered from it but I think that was mostly just Lutan and the overall presentations of the societies and stories didn't seem that different.
Thank god someone finally mentioned Naked Now. I hate that and Code of Honour equally. I don't think I could hate any TNG episode more.
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Everyone has their own tastes. I liked Inner Light for exampleI always liked "The Naked Now".
OMG thank you as well from me. Naked Now is one of the very few TNG shows I avoid. If it's on TV I avoid it.
"Samaritan Snare" is an A-B story, meant to fill a gap between classics, since if you break your back trying to make them all classics, you run into the problems TOS did, first season. They slapped together a couple entertaining ideas that in at least a marginal way, do get you thinking. Sometimes very little of that thought is spelled out on screen. That can work. All we get of the Pakleds is the idea, of, say, a situation where some lesser evolved precursor to homo sapiens (if we apply it to Earth and us) getting a crashed alien ship to half-work, and going out there...
The B story was the heart operation. My discomfort whenever Wesley appears on NG at any time may have to do with my history of intense social discomfort at his age. He seems to be so obvious about feeling every bit of that an d exuding it, that it bring s painful things back. But Wesley and Picard on a shuttle forever... exactly the kind of awkwardness ensues that you'd predict. Tough to watch.
It's a truly classic moment in an unclassic episode, though, when we get one of the toughest scenes ever in Next Gen... the impaling story. In 1988/9 I still was horrified by impalings. Many are. I don't know why they don't have that effect on me now. Strong stuff for a show that tended to sink into the quicksand of it s own dignified respectability. Actually, despite having bad filler episodes, that's why season two is my favorite. It was vital.
SS also had the great line from Picard, about learning literature , history, etc ... (standing, looking out the viewscreen) ... "... so that all this might mean something."
The B story was the heart operation. My discomfort whenever Wesley appears on NG at any time may have to do with my history of intense social discomfort at his age. He seems to be so obvious about feeling every bit of that an d exuding it, that it bring s painful things back. But Wesley and Picard on a shuttle forever... exactly the kind of awkwardness ensues that you'd predict. Tough to watch.
It's a truly classic moment in an unclassic episode, though, when we get one of the toughest scenes ever in Next Gen... the impaling story. In 1988/9 I still was horrified by impalings. Many are. I don't know why they don't have that effect on me now. Strong stuff for a show that tended to sink into the quicksand of it s own dignified respectability. Actually, despite having bad filler episodes, that's why season two is my favorite. It was vital.
SS also had the great line from Picard, about learning literature , history, etc ... (standing, looking out the viewscreen) ... "... so that all this might mean something."
It was pretty ho hum but Ardra was nice screen material
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