TNG Season 5 Wrap Up: We’ve reached the end of TNG Season Five!

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7 responses to “TNG Season 5 Wrap Up: We’ve reached the end of TNG Season Five!”

1. 

   Paul Brauner

   April 26, 2016

   The Inner Light!

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2. 

   Kevin Black

   April 26, 2016

   This question is 80% easy for me–there are four really excellent Fifth Season episodes that for me stand head and shoulders above the rest (in alpha order):

   “Ensign Ro” — Introducing a great character, great performance (Michelle Forbes), and the Bajoran/Cardassian conflict which will be mined in DS9.

   “I, Borg” — Another very imaginative episode anchored by another great performance.

   “The Inner Light” — Classic, lovely episode, which I feel like I just wrote a lot about.

   “The Next Phase” — This is my favorite episode.

   The question what is my fifth favorite episode is tough. Candidates: “Darmok,” “Cause and Effect,” “The Game,” “Power Play,” and “The Outcast.” I also have a soft spot, in retrospect, for “Disaster” and “A Matter of Time” (although I rated them only 3 of 5 after watching).

   The one that stays with me best is “The Outcast”, also anchored by a great guest performance–but mostly because of the classic theme of searching for love, belonging, and an authentic sense of self. In my review, I wrote “It’s the chance of shows like this that makes watching the series worthwhile.” The other episodes are honorable mentions!

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3. 

   Randi Cohen

   April 27, 2016

   Ugh… you liked “The Game”??  Yuck.  I don’t think sex and Star Trek mix that well.  

   I agree with the other 4 (and “The Next Phase” is my favorite too!) and would go with “Darmok” to round out the top 5.  A rare example of actually doing an Original Trek thing better than TOS.  (I liked it better than “Arena” by far!).  And it is so hopeful about man’s journey and meeting other races… I love that hopefulness.  Roddenberry-esque.

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4. 

   Kevin Black

   April 27, 2016

   I’m not sure about “The Game.” Seems like a long time ago. Apparently I rated it four stars? Wesley and Ashley Judd were pretty good in it, right? The video game, on the other hand….

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5. 

   Randi Cohen

   April 27, 2016

   Yes. They were OK.  It’s just that it felt like watching the smurfs do a soft-core porn episode… out of the box, and not in a good way.

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6. 

   Kevin Black

   April 27, 2016

   Well, I’m okay with some out-of-the-box if it isn’t disempowering women and advancing corrosive stereotypes, which is more normal for TNG. I guess I should say it’s more normal for TNG to exclude these topics, especially compared to TOS, but when it does venture into that territory it tends to be with less awareness and sensitivity, or even authenticity (Riker?).

   I would say that walking on the borders of outlaw sexuality gave a measure of constant frisson to the original series which reflected Roddenberry’s contribution. And that’s not bad. Identity politics are sexual politics, and TOS was constantly concerned with exploring between its leads (Kirk, Spock, McCoy) with what it means to be masculine, and really pushed those notions–Kirk could be powerful and virile and still be disciplined, cautious, curious, and respectful. Spock could be strong and still brainy and pacifistic and in control of his emotions. Starting from baseline in 1966 this was huge. Of course there should have been more, better female characters.

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7. 

   Randi Cohen

   April 29, 2016

   I wish we could just write the character of Riker out of the series entirely.  Nothing against Jonathan Frakes, but his character seemed to exist purely to shallowly romance women.

   Reply