Lynch's Spoiler Review: "Half a Life"
Timothy W. Lynch
week's TNG episode, "Half a Life". Those not wishing to know what happens
during the course of the show had better get off.
Well, it wasn't "Qpid" or "Menage a Troi", but it wasn't particularly good
either.
Now if you want to talk about spreading on the morality with a trowel, forget
"The Drumhead". THIS one did it, and how. Yeesh. Anyway, here's a synopsis
(probably really brief, since the events themselves weren't particularly
detailed):
Lwaxana Troi is on board, and quickly takes a shine to Timicin, a scientist
from Kaelon 2 who's on board to conduct tests critical to revitalizing his
planet's aged sun. Timicin, surprisingly, takes a shine to her as well,
although not quite as strong as Lwaxana's.
Unfortunately, the test proves a failure, and he will not get another chance
at one, for a few days later, he is to turn 60; and on Kaelon 2, everyone who
reaches the age of 60 kills him or herself in "the Resolution". Lwaxana is
outraged by this fact, and when Picard makes it clear that he will not
interfere in the planet's local affairs, first tries to beam down herself and
then goes into hysterics until Deanna comforts her.
After Lwaxana and Timicin end up spending an evening together (and not
particularly vertically, or so it's implied), he tries to explain the custom
of the Resolution to her. Unfortunately, she considers the custom barbaric,
pure and simple, and despite valiant attempts by both sides, neither will
change their views. However, when Timicin's analysis of the failed test turns
up some promising options, he suddenly realizes that no one else has the
knowledge to carry on his work and possibly save his world, and requests
asylum on the Enterprise.
B'Tardat, the Science Minister on Kaelon 2, is outraged, and sends up two
warships to ensure that the Enterprise cannot leave the system with Timicin on
board. Timicin quickly finds that his decision isn't as easy as he thought,
for the planet below will not accept any further reports from him, so that
even if he finds a solution they will not accept it. The final straw comes
when his daughter Dara beams on board to insist that he return--she cannot
bear the thought, she says, of him being laid to rest anywhere but next to her
mother, and she is ashamed of him.
Timicin realizes that he is not the man to forge a cultural revolution, and
agrees to return to Kaelon 2. Lwaxana, however, as a loved one, beams down
with him to take part.
Well, that *was* quick. Anyway, onto some commentary (also likely to be
brief, since I don't think there's much to say).
Well, I was hoping that once Lwaxana got out of her normal, "irrepressible
lusty wench" role (currently very high up on the list of Characters So
Unpleasant to Watch I'd Rather See Them Pummeled Repeatedly In The Face With A
Shovel), she'd be easier to cope with. To a certain extent, she managed that,
although her hysterical bits were probably even _less_ pleasant to watch than
her regular stuff. But she didn't SAY anything that wasn't a speech by rote.
I think the basic problem (or a basic problem, anyway; there was more than
one, methinks) is that Majel simply cannot act her way out of a paper bag.
When she's being the "flirtatious" Lwaxana, it seems to work very, very
marginally, because she's not acting :-) . However, once she tries anything
more strenuous, it falls apart. Oh, well.
The plot was...okay, I guess. It was reasonably solid, although I found a few
holes. First of all, the obvious choice in the whole Resolution question for
the planet was the middle ground; let the elders themselves decide when to end
their own lives. Secondly, Picard didn't put shields up until well after the
warships were *in weapons range*? You must be kidding. (I don't know if
that's quite a plot flaw, though, since it really doesn't affect anything.
More like a characterization goof.) Thirdly, and most importantly, I don't
think Timicin's depression that he couldn't do anything for his world was a
valid one. Who cares if the planet doesn't want to listen to his work--if he
finds a solution, he can get the Enterprise (or some other Federation ship) to
do it for him and the planetary government be damned. (Whether the Feds would
actually agree to do that is probably a tricky point, but I suspect they
might.)
So it was fairly solid, but this is a good example of a solid plot not being a
particularly interesting one. Sure, the issues of euthanasia, the right of
the elderly to die, forced death, etc. are meaty ones worthy of thought--but
unlike "The Drumhead", this show didn't really make me sit up and notice much
of anything. I didn't really _care_...and that's a big problem.
That's a pity, because David Ogden Stiers did actually give quite a good
performance as Timicin. (Pretty much all the other guest stars were a loss,
though.) I was worried that I was going to have difficulty separating him
from his most famous role (Charles Emerson Winchester III, in case you hadn't
figured it out), but he certainly managed that. And aside from one or two
moments I didn't care for (some of the scene with his daughter, for instance),
I thought he was a fairly interesting and well played character. Strange...I
cared about Timicin, yet I still didn't care much about the issue. (Truth to
tell, I was on his side during most of the Lwaxana/Timicin discussions--hell,
if he is comfortable with the idea of the Resolution, *let him do it!* I
mean, what's the problem?) C'est la vie, I guess.
Oh, another small thing about that scene with the daughter. I thought the
whole scene was pretty unnecessary--he'd pretty much decided to go back
ANYWAY, based on the conversation he was having right before Dara showed up.
It felt like they needed to fill time, mostly--I mean, yes, showing the
children's reaction has its merit, but not this way. Again, oh well.
I also had a big problem with one statement Picard made: "The Prime Directive
forbids us to interfere with the social order of any planet." Hogwash. The
Prime Directive refers to less advanced worlds, not everything--what about
wartime, for example? I agree with Picard's choice not to interfere at the
start, but that's common courtesy, both to Timicin's choice and the planet's
sensibilities, not the PD. At least, I don't think so.
(Brief aside--did anybody else notice the actual name on the sensor readouts?
"Composite Sensor Analysis 4077." I just knew Okuda and Sternbach would have
to do that somewhere...probably one of the show's high points for me. :-) )
Oh, in brief, I thought the show also had one or two good Lwaxana-related
moments. They were all in the teaser, and all while Lwaxana herself was well
out of sight. Troi's voiceover in the log, "my _mother_ is on board",
Picard's "help! I'm being hunted!" stare before going out into the hall, and
Geordi's "That man's in a lot of trouble." were all great fun. Unfortunately,
that wasn't enough.
A brief technical bit, and then I'm done. It gets a little bit of a perk
upwards for the music, some of which actually got my attention (the beginning
of the test was one of those times, for example). However, it then goes way
down for the makeup on the Kaelonians. I am getting extraordinarily sick of
makeup jobs that make an alien alien simply by putting one or two cosmetic
markings on the head. (I mean, I could make myself Kaelonian by drawing on my
head and neck with magic markers, guys!) I'd like them to either be more
alien (they don't need to do much--the Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians, and
Boleans, for example, are all quite fine), or just called human and that's
that. This quarter-way job is getting in the way more than anything else.
I'm staying neutral, I think, on the whole "helium ignition" question with the
stars. Stellar processes aren't my field, so I'm not sure if he got all the
details right, but I think he had at least the general concepts down.
(Except..."neutron migration"? What in the world is that?)
Oh, my last point. Aside from a bit of rewriting to make the speeches on both
sides of the issue a little less pat, the other thing that would have made me
like this much more was this:
There wasn't any real reason to include Lwaxana in the show. She was there,
for once, primarily as a spokesman for one side of the Resolution issue.
Well, there's someone else who I think could have done that job equally well,
with a decent amount of feeling, and who could even have gotten away with
falling in love with Timicin if they wanted to keep that. Her name? Kate
Pulaski. Think about it--I think she could have been wonderfully used in a
case like this...
Well, that's it. Fairly short this week, but there's not much to say. It
could have been worse, certainly--they could have had a really lousy
performance for Timicin as well. But it could have been a LOT better, too.
Sigh. The numbers:
Plot: 5. Fairly solid, but not particularly interesting.
Plot Handling: 2. Those speeches went on, and on, and on...
Characterization: 5, for decent "walk-on" regulars and Timicin. Lots off for
Lwaxana and all the other guests.
Down half a point for technical...that gives us a 3.5. Well, not absolutely
awful, but not good either.
NEXT WEEK:
Alien parasite transplants and a love interest for Bev. We'll see...
Tim Lynch (Cornell's first Astronomy B.A.; one of many Caltech grad students)
BITNET: tlynch@citjuliet
INTERNET: tly...@juliet.caltech.edu
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"Freedom is that feeling of pride you get when you hear that YOUR
senator...has been found not guilty of all charges."
--Mark Russell
--
Copyright 1991, Timothy W. Lynch. All rights reserved, but feel free to ask...
dr...@drake.almaden.ibm.com
>WARNING: The following post contains spoiler information regarding this
>week's TNG episode, "Half a Life". Those not wishing to know what happens
>during the course of the show had better get off.
>finds a solution, he can get the Enterprise (or some other Federation ship) to
>do it for him and the planetary government be damned.
I strongly doubt it. Imagine the situation:
The problem with the 1st attempt at star-fixing is found, and a second
attempt is made. It works. The Federation then decides to go ahead and
use the technique on the star in question ... the SUN of a Federation member.
Without their approval.
Not a chance. Gee, we tried this once and blew the sun to bits (which
would have killed all life on any inhabited planets in he system). We tried
it again and it worked. So by one calculation there's a 50% chance that
the Federation would commit genocide by using the technique.
Lawyer heaven! Melvin Belli would LOVE it.
Sam Drake / IBM Almaden Research Center
Internet: dr...@ibm.com BITNET: DRAKE at ALMADEN
Usenet: ...!uunet!ibmarc!drake Phone: (408) 927-1861
Vicki Holzhauer
br...@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (Brian Wood) writes:
Spoilers Ahead for "Half a Life."
Here's a ^L, but it's never worked for me before ...
So I'll give a lot of spaces, just in case ...
>I wouldn't give the episode a 3.5. Maybe a 6.
Personally, I would give it about a 7 or 7.5 out of 10.
>I did not care for Lwaxana at all, as always, but her "resolution"
>at the end was OK.
Of all the Lwaxana episodes, I find myself liking this one the best.
The fact that she was not able to convince him to leave his culture
was appropriate and not the ending I expected.
> Her crying job earlier was absolutely AWFUL. I could hardly
>stand to watch!
I agree. This was my least favorite scene in the episode.
>I'm sorry to see nurse Chapel looking so bad and having such an awful
>role to perform.
Actually, I thought she was looking better in this episode than in any
other Lwaxana episode. Interesting how greatly perceptions can
differ!
>Like you said, Stiers' performance was great.
He was wonderful. Even though he doesn't look at all like a romantic
lead :-), he was extremely convincing. A very good actor, and a
perfect choice to match up with Lwaxana.
>Soon it'll be summer - no new Trek, no Twin Peaks, no Dark Shadows.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Can you believe they're making us wait until 10 June for the
conclusion? No WONDER they lost their viewership!!!!!!! :-(
> What am I supposed to do? Accomplish something USEFUL?
There's always "The Simpsons" ... :-)
--
Vicki Holzhauer, NCAR/Research Aviation Facility
Internet: vi...@ncar.ucar.edu
"I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said
I didn't know." --Mark Twain
Jeffrey T McQuillen aka CaptPicard
tly...@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Timothy W. Lynch) says:
>
>WARNING: The following post contains spoiler information regarding this
>week's TNG episode, "Half a Life". Those not wishing to know what happens
>during the course of the show had better get off.
"
>if he is comfortable with the idea of the Resolution, *let him do it!* I
>mean, what's the problem?) C'est la vie, I guess.
>
Or more appropriately, c'est la mort.
____________________ . . __ . | Jeff McQuillen |
\______NCC_1701_____|) .____.--"--"---._____ | JXM114@PSUVM |
|| /-----._________.----/ | j...@vivaldi.psu.edu |
/=======||====/___/ "--" | mcqu...@snafu.psu.edu |
. \==\____________|(- + . | ten-fwd is dead *sniff* |
Brian Wood
I wouldn't give the episode a 3.5. Maybe a 6.
I did not care for Lwaxana at all, as always, but her "resolution"
at the end was OK. Her crying job earlier was absolutely AWFUL. I
could hardly stand to watch! But I don't hold that against Trek.
I'm sorry to see nurse Chapel looking so bad and having such an awful
role to perform. I don't like the Betazoid contact lenses either.
Like you said, Stiers' performance was great. And making us think
about how we treat our aged was a worthwhile theme.
When I feel lukewarm about an episode, I snap myself out of it by
remembering most of the 3rd season of TOS, and I just count myself
lucky that we have Star Trek AT ALL. It won't be that long before
the last movie is history (with the original cast anyway) and TNG is
gone too. THEN what'll we do?
BMW Soon it'll be summer - no new Trek, no Twin Peaks, no Dark Shadows.
Robert J. Granvin
>the last movie is history (with the original cast anyway) and TNG is
>gone too. THEN what'll we do?
The same thing that happened before TNG and the movies came along.
Discuss them over and over and over again. 1/2 :-)
--
Robert J. Granvin \\\\\\\\ r...@sialis.com : INTERNET
University of Minnesota \\\ ...uunet!rosevax!sialis!rjg : UUCP
School of Statistics \\\\\\\ rjg%siali...@uunet.uu.net : BITNET
Some people misinterpret .signatures
L J Jim Kiraly
->Not a chance. Gee, we tried this once and blew the sun to bits (which
->would have killed all life on any inhabited planets in he system).
->Sam Drake / IBM Almaden Research Center
I had a little problem here as well. When the sun was going Nova, I beleive
Picard said something like "Get us out of here, Warp *2*", and when they
left the area to take Timicin back home, Picard left at Warp 6. I guess
there are probably a lot of good reasons for this seeming inconsistancy-
but it sure seemed strange to me!
--
___________________________________________________________________________
Jim Kiraly - j...@ljkiraly.lerc.nasa.gov - NASA Lewis Research Center
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michael Rawdon
In <1991May12....@eagle.lerc.nasa.gov> j...@ljkiraly.lerc.nasa.gov (L J "Jim" Kiraly) writes:
>I had a little problem here as well. When the sun was going Nova, I beleive
>Picard said something like "Get us out of here, Warp *2*", and when they
>left the area to take Timicin back home, Picard left at Warp 6. I guess
>there are probably a lot of good reasons for this seeming inconsistancy-
>but it sure seemed strange to me!
Here are a few rationalizations for you:
1) High warp is impossible in a solar system (seems unlikely, and someone
can probably dig up an episode where it's been done pretty easily...)
2) High warp in a solar system is DANGEROUS, and since warp 2 is still greater
than the speed of light, Picard elected not to take unnecessary risks.
3) A higher warp speed might have dragged some of the exploding star matter
and/or energy along with the ship. (Ow!)
--
Michael Rawdon Internet: raw...@rex.cs.tulane.edu
Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana Bitnet: CS6FECU@TCSVM
"Communication is hard to establish
when things like a state of mind get in the way.
People don't eat, they just think what you feed them now;
The horse with the blinders eating the hay."
- Men Without Hats, "The Great Ones Remember"
Timothy W. Lynch
>>/ tly...@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Timothy W. Lynch) / 11:12 pm May 8, 1991 /
>>Well, I was hoping that once Lwaxana got out of her normal, ...
>The end scene doesn't qualify?
The entire last two-thirds of the show applies. I said that I hoped her
getting out of her normal routine would improve matters. She did, but I don't
think it became any more pleasant.
>>...But she didn't SAY anything that wasn't a speech by rote. ...
>>...is that Majel simply cannot act her way out of a paper bag.
>Well, gee, that's an interesting observation. And I thought she was doing
>much better than some actors or actresses that I've encountered. Sorry,
>her emotional acting isn't on par with Spiner or Stewart, but she isn't
>as horrible as you paint her.
Perhaps you don't think so--hey, fine with me. Someone's got to like her,
after all. I happen not to--I didn't like Majel much in TOS, and I absolutely
loathe her in TNG. She came closer here (closer, that is, to me being able to
tolerate her) than in any previous Lwaxana show once she got past that awful
scene in the transporter room, though.
>>First of all, the obvious choice in the whole Resolution question for
>>the planet was the middle ground; let the elders themselves decide when to
>>end their own lives.
>Fails due to fact that those who fail mentally are not capable of making
>that type of judgement, which means it falls back on the family, and that
>point was addressed.
This is true, and a weakness in my proposal. But it _would_ cover more than
half of the planet, I think, and is thus already a better choice to me than
what we were shown.
>>Secondly, Picard didn't put shields up until well after the
>>warships were *in weapons range*?
>And did you hear when the ships entered weapons range? I didn't.
I didn't hear when they entered--I did hear "ships are already well in weapons
range" "shields up". That's why I objected.
>I
>also believe that there was no immediate danger, so this point isn't a
>problem.
If we'd been told the Kaelonian weapons were of no consequence, I wouldn't
be objecting. But as it is, the Kaelonians could have opened fire and possibly
trashed the Enterprise before she could react. That is a clear and present
danger.
>>Thirdly, and most importantly, I don't
>>think Timicin's depression that he couldn't do anything for his world was a
>>valid one. Who cares if the planet doesn't want to listen to his work--if he
>>finds a solution, he can get the Enterprise (or some other Federation ship)
>>to do it for him and the planetary government be damned. (Whether the Feds
>>would actually agree to do that is probably a tricky point, but I suspect
>>they might.)
>I suspect otherwise because of the PD.
Well, I've already said I don't think it applies in this case, particularly if
it's an official of the actual planet who's asking to be allowed.
>Besides, his depression was more
>at the fact that his life was defined by his work and he wanted (almost
>needed) to have that work recognized by his home planet.
Hmm. That's true. Maybe...
>>That's a pity, because David Ogden Stiers did actually give quite a good
>>performance as Timicin. ...
>Hmmm. I thought he was excellent! The use of his eyes and minimal
>facial expressions conveyed the meaning of his sorrow rather well!
Uh...exactly what are you disagreeing with here? I said I liked him! :-)
>>Oh, another small thing about that scene with the daughter. I thought the
>>whole scene was pretty unnecessary--he'd pretty much decided to go back
>>ANYWAY, based on the conversation he was having right before Dara showed up.
>But it was suppose to show that Lwuxanna was actually wrong.
I thought she was wrong from the start, and his conversation with her right
before Dara showed up was a perfectly sound reason to tell her so. Dara was
overkill.
>Most of
>the show tried to show Lwuxanna as having the right idea,
If so, it failed for me. I barely found any points of agreement with her.
>Some will claim this episode was heavy into moralizing. I claim
>that it wasn't discussing "care of the elderly", for it left that question
>in the air.
Um...discussions don't have to have pat endings one way or the other. That's
one of the things I dislike about TOS, and I *did* like about the ending of
"Half a Life".
>>..."The Prime Directive forbids us to interfere with the social order of any
>>planet." Hogwash. ... At least, I don't think so.
>I disagree. We have seen episodes where the PD implies that changing the
>social order of a society is wrong, even should the society be a
>member of the Federation. (Riker's trial for murder, for instance).
I don't recall the PD applying there either. The PD, as I interpret it, is
applying to less advanced worlds. Federation members don't qualify. There
are, as I said last time, sound reasons not to interfere, like common
courtesy (and, as you say, tolerance)--but I don't think that's part of the PD.
Your mileage may vary.
>P.S. Did you miss the meaning of the episode because you were tearing
> apart Lwuxanna's character?
No, I don't think so. Why is it that I can't dislike a show without being
ripped into? I disliked Lwaxana's portrayal, though less so than usual. I
didn't much care about the characters, except for Timicin. And I thought the
issues were being addressed in a heavy-handed manner. I wasn't so busy
"tearing apart Lwaxana's character" that I didn't notice the rest of the show--
on the contrary, if I'd been basing my review solely on Lwaxana, it would have
fared rather worse. Mark, you're usually pretty reasonable about dissenting
opinions--what's got you on the offensive now?
Tim Lynch (Cornell's first Astronomy B.A.; one of many Caltech grad students)
BITNET: tlynch@citjuliet
INTERNET: tly...@juliet.caltech.edu
UUCP: ...!ucbvax!tlynch%juliet.ca...@hamlet.caltech.edu
"With the first link, a chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first
thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
Peter Cash
>Here are a few rationalizations for you:
I'd assumed that Picard ordered warp 2 because he wanted to leave at a
fairly leisurly speed--putting enough distance between the ship and the nova
for safety, but remaining close enough to continue observing what was going
on.
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
| Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist. |
Peter Cash | (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein) |ca...@convex.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mark Runyan
>week's TNG episode, "Half a Life". Those not wishing to know what happens
>during the course of the show had better get off.
The end scene doesn't qualify?
>...But she didn't SAY anything that wasn't a speech by rote. ...
>...is that Majel simply cannot act her way out of a paper bag.
Well, gee, that's an interesting observation. And I thought she was doing
much better than some actors or actresses that I've encountered. Sorry,
her emotional acting isn't on par with Spiner or Stewart, but she isn't
as horrible as you paint her.
>First of all, the obvious choice in the whole Resolution question for
>the planet was the middle ground; let the elders themselves decide when to end
>their own lives.
Fails due to fact that those who fail mentally are not capable of making
that type of judgement, which means it falls back on the family, and that
point was addressed.
>Secondly, Picard didn't put shields up until well after the
>warships were *in weapons range*?
And did you hear when the ships entered weapons range? I didn't. I
also believe that there was no immediate danger, so this point isn't a
problem.
>Thirdly, and most importantly, I don't
>think Timicin's depression that he couldn't do anything for his world was a
>valid one. Who cares if the planet doesn't want to listen to his work--if he
>finds a solution, he can get the Enterprise (or some other Federation ship) to
>do it for him and the planetary government be damned. (Whether the Feds would
>actually agree to do that is probably a tricky point, but I suspect they
>might.)
I suspect otherwise because of the PD. Besides, his depression was more
at the fact that his life was defined by his work and he wanted (almost
needed) to have that work recognized by his home planet.
>That's a pity, because David Ogden Stiers did actually give quite a good
>performance as Timicin. ...
Hmmm. I thought he was excellent! The use of his eyes and minimal
facial expressions conveyed the meaning of his sorrow rather well!
>Oh, another small thing about that scene with the daughter. I thought the
>whole scene was pretty unnecessary--he'd pretty much decided to go back
>ANYWAY, based on the conversation he was having right before Dara showed up.
But it was suppose to show that Lwuxanna was actually wrong. Most of
the show tried to show Lwuxanna as having the right idea, but the
daughter scene was suppose to convey to the watchers that maybe she
wasn't. Some will claim this episode was heavy into moralizing. I claim
that it wasn't discussing "care of the elderly", for it left that question
in the air. It was discussing TOLERANCE, what the PD is all about.
>..."The Prime Directive forbids us to interfere with the social order of any
>planet." Hogwash. ... At least, I don't think so.
I disagree. We have seen episodes where the PD implies that changing the
social order of a society is wrong, even should the society be a
member of the Federation. (Riker's trial for murder, for instance). You
may disagree, but I claim Picard's statement is consistant with Star Trek.
Mark Runyan
Otto Hack-Man Heuer
>"The Drumhead". THIS one did it, and how. Yeesh. Anyway, here's a synopsis
Well, we have agreement so far. :-)
>The plot was...okay, I guess. It was reasonably solid, although I found a few
>holes. First of all, the obvious choice in the whole Resolution question for
>the planet was the middle ground; let the elders themselves decide when to end
>their own lives. Secondly, Picard didn't put shields up until well after the
I don't think that would have been any more accepted than what he tried.
>warships were *in weapons range*? You must be kidding. (I don't know if
>that's quite a plot flaw, though, since it really doesn't affect anything.
I'll agree with this point, with the slight modification of the last line:
... since he does it every week.
>More like a characterization goof.) Thirdly, and most importantly, I don't
Yes, he *is* a goof, isn't he? :-)
>So it was fairly solid, but this is a good example of a solid plot not being a
>particularly interesting one. Sure, the issues of euthanasia, the right of
>the elderly to die, forced death, etc. are meaty ones worthy of thought--but
>unlike "The Drumhead", this show didn't really make me sit up and notice much
>of anything. I didn't really _care_...and that's a big problem.
I myself didn't really care, but that's only because the issue is so old and
overdone. (see my review)
>That's a pity, because David Ogden Stiers did actually give quite a good
>performance as Timicin.
Yes, he *did* give a good performance.
>I also had a big problem with one statement Picard made: "The Prime Directive
>forbids us to interfere with the social order of any planet." Hogwash. The
>Prime Directive refers to less advanced worlds, not everything
That's what I said while watching the episode (you weren't watching at the
same time, were you :-) but I decided to blow that one off as Yet Another
Picard-ism.
>(Brief aside--did anybody else notice the actual name on the sensor readouts?
>"Composite Sensor Analysis 4077." I just knew Okuda and Sternbach would have
>to do that somewhere...probably one of the show's high points for me. :-) )
:-) I missed that one! I didn't een THINK to watch for those, but yeah,
there should definitely have been some in THIS one, eh? :-) If I hadn't been
on the phone for half of the episode I might have caught this one...
> --Mark Russell
>--
>Copyright 1991, Timothy W. Lynch. All rights reserved, but feel free to ask...
NOTE: You might want to use ot...@cfsmo.honeywell.com for email to me.
--HACK-MAN
--
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|_||_________||_____| "The innovator for software solutions." FSD, Inc.
Timothy W. Lynch
>tly...@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Timothy W. Lynch) writes:
>>holes. First of all, the obvious choice in the whole Resolution question for
>>the planet was the middle ground; let the elders themselves decide when to
>>end their own lives.
>I don't think that would have been any more accepted than what he tried.
Perhaps not, but I think it might have.
>>Secondly, Picard didn't put shields up until well after the
>>warships were *in weapons range*? You must be kidding. (I don't know if
>>that's quite a plot flaw, though, since it really doesn't affect anything.
>I'll agree with this point, with the slight modification of the last line:
>... since he does it every week.
Dead wrong, and I'm getting extremely tired of the insistence that he does.
He's often wary about putting up shields and looking hostile, yes, but he
very rarely is quite THIS extreme about it.
>>(Brief aside--did anybody else notice the actual name on the sensor readouts?
>>"Composite Sensor Analysis 4077." I just knew Okuda and Sternbach would have
>>to do that somewhere...probably one of the show's high points for me. :-) )
>:-) I missed that one! I didn't een THINK to watch for those, but yeah,
>there should definitely have been some in THIS one, eh? :-) If I hadn't been
>on the phone for half of the episode I might have caught this one...
Um...hmm. First you claim inaccuracies in your review are fine since you write
them while you watch, and now you say you've spent much of the time watching
on the phone? Somehow your credibility doesn't seem to be rising particularly
fast...:-) :-)
Tim Lynch
Chengi Jimmy Kuo
>In article <74...@rex.cs.tulane.edu> raw...@rex.cs.tulane.edu (Michael Rawdon) writes:
>>Here are a few rationalizations for you:
>I'd assumed that Picard ordered warp 2 because he wanted to leave at a
>fairly leisurly speed--putting enough distance between the ship and the nova
>for safety, but remaining close enough to continue observing what was going
>on.
At warp 2, you're moving faster than the event horizon. You can't "observe."
--
cj...@locus.com
"The correct answer to an either/or question is both!"
Hal Chambers
>I'd assumed that Picard ordered warp 2 because he wanted to leave at a
>fairly leisurly speed--putting enough distance between the ship and the nova
>for safety, but remaining close enough to continue observing what was going
>on.
In article <1991May15.1...@locus.com> cj...@locus.com (Chengi Jimmy Kuo) writes:
>At warp 2, you're moving faster than the event horizon. You can't "observe."
Ahhh, but you forget; this is the Star Trek universe. Their sensors don't
quit working just because they're traveling at warp speed.
Hal Chambers h...@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu
------------
"In the beginning the universe was created. This made a lot of people
very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move." - D. Adams
Jerry Gardner
|>I had a little problem here as well. When the sun was going Nova, I beleive
|>Picard said something like "Get us out of here, Warp *2*", and when they
|>left the area to take Timicin back home, Picard left at Warp 6. I guess
|>there are probably a lot of good reasons for this seeming inconsistancy-
|>but it sure seemed strange to me!
|
|Here are a few rationalizations for you:
[rationalizations deleted]
The reason is really simple: nothing coming out of the star would be
moving faster than the speed of light, therefore it wasn't necessary
to move much faster to outrun it.
--
Jerry Gardner, NJ6A Altos Computer Systems
UUCP: {sun|pyramid|sco|amdahl|uunet}!altos!jerry 2641 Orchard Parkway
Internet: je...@altos.com San Jose, CA 95134
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