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Monday, August 22, 2016

Star Trek TNG Where No One Has Gone Before





Okay, finally, this is the first episode since the pilot in which a little bit of effort was being made to stand apart from TOS.  The concept of thoughts manifesting themselves in reality isn't a new one to science fiction and I think this script borrows from a pocket TOS novel, but I have no complaints on that score, since I don't consider novels to be on the level with the rest of the franchise.  At least they were trying.


I don't even have too many complaints for this one.  Not impressed by equating things to magic because they hadn't perfected their gifts for writing techno-babble yet.  It was a little over dramatic.  Mustache twirling is the phrase I used before in reference to the villains since the beginning of cinema and the over-the-top acting to dramatize a scene.   






Of course it's not actually that bad, but there's still a terrible quaintness to the way the cast is directed in these early episodes.  The music score was as much of the theatrics as the facial expressions it was intensifying.  All just a touch overdone.  The pseudo-cryptic dialogue, and Picard's loving speech to send thoughts and prayers to the Traveler at the end.  And the old com system whistle even seemed to stick out like a big zit on the nose.  I'm kind of glad they dropped it, nostalgic as it was.  And of course they had to get a jab in at human arrogance... I just don't understand liberal thought processes.  The same people that shame us for thinking that we're the only intelligent life in the universe - how can we think we're that significant? - also think that we are all powerful enough to destroy our planet simply by existing.  But these are minor annoyances.



I loved the Kosinski character!  And the guy that played him was a most convincing pompous ass.  I don't even consider that character overdone, but done just right.  It was refreshing to see after a short run of strike-out episodes.  Finally, the rest of the cast had a good reason to be acting offended and exasperated.  It was good all around.
 

The Traveler was perfect too.  His gentle demeanor; his line delivery; even his movements.  Yes, it was a little obvious what was going on with these two even before it's revealed.   But the Traveler was a great character that should have been brought back more than twice.  He could've been more believably important in the course of things.  It ended up being an almost empty set up and each time he came back it was more like an afterthought and his episodes ended up being lackluster.


The phasing was an excellent touch. 









The effects were beautiful and the hallucinations were exactly what were to be expected, although I read that they were originally supposed to be very bizarre.  This was definitely a change for the better.


  Some of it was cringe-worthy... like a dressed up pig in the part of a Klingon pet.  Admittedly it was better than that dog alien from TOS (they just couldn't stop trying to remake TOS),




 but it was still a little silly even by 1987 standards.  On the other hand, you had Tasha's hallucination of the planet she grew up on.  That was actually very well done and it's a shame Crosby quit before they could really develop that part of her character.




Speaking of character development, this was the breakout episode for the character of Wesley Crusher.  And it was very well done.  It got Wesley on the bridge and in more episodes.  It should've worked and it gave so much potential to the character, but the writers were unpracticed at the Star Trek craft at this point.  They connection between Wesley and the Traveler was the idea that was too complex for them to handle and the character suffered for it.  Wil Wheaton suffered for it.  And the show, to a small degree, suffered for it.  I want to elaborate more on Wesley on another day.  I am a "Wesley hater" but not in the same way others are.  And I feel the need to clarify the "hate" of the character.



I kind of wished they'd brought Kosinski back in later episodes to follow up on him, but we can't have it all.  I give this episode 4 stars.  It was actually a pretty good one for the first season.
 


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