The One With Captain Picard Day and TNG Season 6…

Happy Captain Picard Day!

Don’t tell me you forgot. It’s June 16! That means it’s Captain Picard Day!

(I’ll wait while you go get yourself some Tea. Earl Grey. Hot.)

Anyways, I finished Season 6 a couple of days ago, but I’m just now getting around to writing this TNG Season 6 review post. There are plenty of reasons for that, but mostly, I already had two posts this weekend and I wasn’t sure what to write about for this portion of the post.

I have a few ideas for some posts I’d like to get done before I finish TNG (namely, a post about Q and a post about the Imzadi relationship), but I needed something to write about here.

Then, as I’m racking my brain for something (anything) to fill a couple hundred words, Facebook reminds me that today is Captain Picard day!

Picard looking adorably uncomfortable in front of a Captain Picard Day sign.

In the Season 7 episode The Pegasus we learn that Captain Picard Day is an annual holiday where the Enterprise schoolchildren honor the Captain by creating different craft projects. It’s a wonderfully memorable moment because Patrick Stewart plays Picard perfectly. He is genuinely uncomfortable with the attention, and Riker and Troi relish in his discomfort.

Since it’s Captain Picard day, it only seems fitting that I devote a quick post to Captain Picard. As any reader of this blog might have surmised, I’m a pretty big Picard fan, and there’s no doubt I could wax poetic about him for thousands of words. So, instead, I’m going to pick a few of my favorite Picard quotes and talk about what they mean to Starfleet and my love for the Captain.

“If we’re going to be damned, let’s be damned for what we really are.”

–Jean Luc Picard, Encounter at Farpoint

I love this quote from the pilot episode of TNG. Picard, facing a trial for all of humanities misdeeds put on by the omnipotent being Q, does not back down from a challenge. He could easily have decided to act differently knowing he was being watched. Instead, he recognizes the importance of not changing to hopefully appease Q. Picard holds his head high in any situation he encounters, and his ultimate duty is to the truth.

This is a continuing theme for the Captain:

“The first duty of every Starfleet Officer is to the truth,whether it is scientific truth or historical truth or personal truth. It is the guiding principle on which Starfleet is based!”

–Jean Luc Picard, The First Duty

This is one of the more famous Picard speeches, and it is probably the most commonly cited when trying to describe what Starfleet is. Again, Picard recognizes the importance of truth in all aspects of life. For Picard, truth is more than “not telling a lie.” It is about discovery to understand the universe, history, and himself. It is important not to live in ignorance or to blindly follow teachings without questioning them. Seeking truth, whatever kind, is the only way to truly push humanity forward.

But that doesn’t mean we’re perfect:

“It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness, that is life.”

–Jean Luc Picard, Peak Performance

This is one of those quotes that speaks to me as a Type A perfectionist. Failures happen. Things don’t always go as planned. We can do something perfectly and still encounter a less than desirable outcome. It isn’t about failing, it is about responding to failure. Life is about getting back up and not being defeated by our losses.

I truly believe there is a Picard quote for nearly every situation. He is thoughtful and idealistic, and he gives wonderful speeches. I could probably go on and find a quote from nearly every episode that really speaks to me. Instead, I’ll let Riker summarize Picard’s genius for me:

“I’m sure Captain Picard would have something meaningful and inspirational to say right now. To tell you the truth, I wished he were here because I’d like to hear it, too.”

–William T. Riker, The Best of Both Worlds, Part II

Anyways, on to Season 6…

The Good:

• Relics
• Chain of Command, Parts I & II
• Face of the Enemy
• Tapestry
• Starship Mine
• Lessons
• Second Chances

The Bad:

• Realm of Fear
• Ship in a Bottle
• Birthright, Parts I & II
• Rightful Heir

The Characters:

Season 6 marks some of the best character development in all of Star Trek.

Of course, Captain Picard has grown throughout these seasons, and it’s already pretty clear how I viewed him as a character prior to season 6. But season 6 does provide us with a fantastic glimpse of what Picard could have been. In Tapestry, Q allows Picard to go back when he was a young, brash cadet and make a single change to his life. We get the opportunity to see how that simple change (not engaging in a fight with some Nausicaans) would ultimately shape Picard’s entire life. In this alternate reality, he’s a freaking blue shirt. This episode is one that always sticks out to me because it lets us have insight into how Picard became who he is. He hasn’t always been a stuffy, serious speech giver. He was young and a little too eager once. The Kirk/Picard dichotomy isn’t nearly as strong as many would have you believe.

Troi also finally gets a chance to shine. I’ve often heard the joke made that once Troi puts on a real uniform, the writers realized she had a brain. Unfortunately (and perhaps embarrassingly for Star Trek) this is true. Admiral Jellico comes through in Chain of Command, disrupting nearly everything in his wake, but his lasting impact is forcing Troi into a Starfleet uniform. Like a switch has been flipped, she is now a competent bridge officer and not just a pretty face and pair of boobs. Watching her go toe to toe with some Romulans in Face of the Enemy, is a testament to the character she could have been.

The Troi/Riker relationship is placed center stage in Second Chances. Leading up to this episode, the audience has only been treated to the tiniest of morsels, doled out quite sparingly, about the history of their relationship. Then, like opening up the floodgates, everything comes pouring out in Second Chances. I plan to delve into the Troi/Riker relationship in its own blog post, so I’m not going to belabor the point here. But I love that this episode finally gives the audience a chance to understand why the Imzadi relationship is so complicated.

Bonus: no Wesley Crusher!

Final Thoughts:

According to The Progress, Season 6 was a 6.88. Quite honestly, this has been the most surprising of all of my rankings. TNG has a reputation for building between seasons 3 and 5 and then dropping off as it finishes out its run. I’m sure some of my high scores have to do with the fact that I’ve enjoyed TNG so immensely so far, I’m willing to overlook some of the flaws in the episodes. But I genuinely do believe that Season 6 was mostly high points, and the only real detractor was that Klingons, for some reason, insist on stealing 3 or 4 episodes a season.

That’s all for now. Happy Captain Picard day! May your speeches always be grand, your ship always bear the name Enterprise, and your tea always be Earl Grey. Hot.

#LLAP

The One Where I’ve Finished TNG Season 5 and I Look At What Makes An Episode A Ten.

Around the time I was finishing season 4, I got to talking to one of my Trekkie friends, Matt. I gave Matt an update on my Prolific Trek progress, and he firmly declared, “Season 5 is the best season.” I was a little skeptical. Seasons 3 and 4 were absolutely fantastic, and I know that the latter seasons of TNG do ultimatley diminish in quality from the strong ones in the middle. Thus, it seemed only reasonable to assume that Season 5 simply couldn’t live up to its predecessors.

Boy, was I wrong.

When I started keeping track of my episode rankings for The Progress, I had no idea what most episodes would be rated or what would constitute a particular rating, but I did have one very clear focus in mind. I wasn’t going to give away a “10” rating lightly. I love Star Trek, and if I threw out a “10” every time I had an episode that left me going “wow, I loved that episode,” every fourth or fifth episode would get a “10.” I wanted a 10 to be a special score.

Measure of a Man got a 10, and that score was well deserved. If Measure of a Man is a 10, that means that any episode that seeks to garner such high praise is going to have to live up to that reputation. So, an episode that garners a 10 needs to be special. It needs to be quintessential Star Trek, it needs to be memorable, and it needs to pass the threshold from “good” to “great.”

With all that said, Season 5 managed to have two episodes that warranted the coveted “10” ranking, and they each manage to capture, in different ways, what it is that I love about Star Trek.

Darmok kicks Season 5 off with an episode that is, indisputably, one of Star Trek’s most memorable. Star Trek has always been about expanding horizons and thought processes, and it has always been about exploring new cultures.

Darmok addresses the issues of language and communication in a thought provoking fashion. When Captain Picard is beamed against his will to a desolate planet by an alien race that speaks only in mysterious metaphors, what is the crew supposed to do? Watching Picard and Dathon work together to learn the meanings of phrases like “Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra” and “Shaka when the walls fell” never ceases to amaze and entertain me.

There are certainly some logical flaws in the development of the language that is at the center of Darmok, but like any good piece of entertainment, the storytelling and development of the episode hide those flaws expertly. I will never get over seeing Picard declare “Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel.” There’s a reason Darmok made it on my Top 10 list.

The other episode that garnered a 10 was a bit more surprising. I, Borg has always been an episode that I consider quite fondly. Going into my Prolific Trek, I knew both The Measure of a Man and Darmok would almost certainly be rated a 10, but I had not really considered that I, Borg might earn such an honor.

It was, however, well deserved.

It’s pretty clear by now that I love the morality plays that Star Trek puts on regularly. Looking at a world that has moved to such an advanced place but still realizing that they struggle with the same basic questions of humanity and what is “right” is fascinating for me, and I, Borg presents such a struggle expertly.

I’m not going to do an entire review of the episode here, but it is a wonderful episode. And I simply love the conversation that the senior staff has regarding the ethics of using Hugh to implant a virus that would wipe out the entire Borg collective:

Doctor Crusher: I just think we should be clear about that. We’re talking about annihilating an entire race.

Picard: Which under most circumstances would be unconscionable. But as I see it, the Borg leave us with little choice.

Riker: I agree. We’re at war.

Dr. Crusher: There’s been no formal declaration of war.

Troi: Not from us, but certainly from them. They’ve attacked us in every encounter.

Picard: They’ve declared war on our way of life. We are to be assimilated.

Dr. Crusher: But even in war there are rules. You don’t kill civilians indiscriminately.

Riker: There are no civilians among the Borg.

Picard: Think of them as a single, collective being. There’s no one Borg who is more an individual than your arm or your leg.

Dr. Crusher: How convenient.

Picard: Your point, Doctor?

Dr. Crusher: When I look at my patient, I don’t see a collective consciousness. I don’t see a hive. I see a living, breathing boy who’s been hurt and who needs our help. And we’re talking about sending him back to his people as an instrument of destruction.

—I, Borg

The question of when it’s okay to commit such an act of destruction will come up again later in DS9, but it is handled so perfectly here. The Borg are the ultimate evil to the Federation, but there has to be a limit. And when the crew begins to realize that “Hugh” is an individual, their entire mindset changes.

All in all, it is a wonderful character exploration and a morality play, and it earned its 10.

So, what else is there to say about a season that earned two 10s along the way?

Well…

The Good:

• Darmok
• Disaster
• Power Play
• The Outcast
• Cause and Effect
• I, Borg
• The Inner Light

The Bad:

• The Cost of Living
• Imaginary Friend

The Characters:

Five seasons in and Star Trek really knows it’s characters at this point. It has been fun watching them develop over the course of several seasons, and now their characterizations really seem to have hit home and established themselves as the characters I recognize.

Picard is, of course, the center point of Season 5, and the season allows us to see many facets of his personality. The diplomat and story teller in Darmok is one of my favorite facets. His devotion to the truth and his duty in The First Duty is similarly iconic. That said, I think the biggest misstep with his character comes in Season 5. The “romance” or whatever it is that he has in The Perfect Mate falls flat, and there is something a little squicky about that relationship. I don’t want to go too far with it, but there seems to be a question of whether consent is even possible in a situation like that.

Riker also gets a chance to shine in a few episodes. His inner playboy really is on display in Conundrum. I adore the implications for his relationship with Troi that come in that episode. There’s something comforting about the fact that, even when they’re lacking their memories, those two always have a deeper connection (even if Riker does manage to screw it up pretty royally). As much as his caddish nature is on display in Conundrum, a much deeper and more evolved Riker shows up in The Outcast. Riker’s evolved opinions of gender and relationships are pretty impressive, and given the current political climate relating to transgenderism and other LGBT issues, I was absolutely floored at how far ahead of its time this episode was.

Wesley Crusher came back in two episodes, and I really didn’t hate him in either. Of course, Ensign Ro Laren has now shown up, and she’s kind of replaced Wesley as the subject of my annoyance. Michelle Forbes does a wonderful job portraying the character, but she always feels really superfluous. However, her character does make me anxious to get to DS9 where I can see a strong Bajoran character in Commander Kira.

Final Thoughts:

I don’t know that I have many final thoughts to say about Season 5 as I’ve addressed my love for the season above. Season 5 ended up being ranked a 7.0. This is the highest I’ve ranked any season, and I’m guessing it’s the highest any season will rank from here on out. So, I guess what I’m saying is: if you’re only going to watch one season (which, why would you do that?) make it Season 5.

#LLAP