3-25 TransfigurationsI experienced a funny thing watching
Transfigurations. Until about halfway into it I couldn't recall if I'd ever seen it before, so it obviously wasn't that memorable. But after a while I began to remember things, albeit sketchy. To top of the weirdness, I found that online Trek reviewer Jammer had the same experience. Freaky!
And there really wasn't much here. Random injured alien, with a convenient memory loss (much like my own), is on the verge of ascending into some God-like energy being, scaring the bejeebers out of his people. Before that he goes around healing people like some Space Jesus, and romancing Dr. Crusher.
Speaking of romancing, he's obviously able to heal Geordi's chronic shyness so that the chief engineer can date the wickedly cute Julie Warner. Somehow I think that is his greatest accomplishment, for no other reason than that I'd probably be like Geordi around the lovely Ms. Warner.
That last part is also why I give
Transfigurations a grade of
3 instead of a 2.
3-26 The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1This is the benchmark that all other modern Trek stories and cliffhangers are measured from, and for good reason. With its second part, it is one of the finest, if not the finest, outings that
The Next Generation has come up with. It has a movie quality to it and there is a reason why it will always be a classic.
Finally we encounter the Borg again, probably the scariest aliens ever to grace the Trekverse (even though some of that got lost later on). They are literally single-minded, they cannot be reasoned with, they can only be fought or you die or get assimilated trying. Resistance is futile, as they proclaim for the first time here. But of course it is not, this is Star Trek after all.
The Borg hive mind is a weakness, but they too can learn, which is why they kidnap and assimilate Picard into Locutus. They have recognised the need to present a human face to the civilisations they will devour. And they learn all that he knows in the process. The sight of Picard/Locutus delivering the terms at the end was chilling, as was Riker's response: "Mr. Worf - fire!"
Cleverly interweaved into the story is Riker's dilemma about once again being offered another command of his own, and the appearance of ambitious Lieutenant Commander Shelby. I have never been a fan of Riker, and what is presented here is a perfect illustration of that. He was originally thought of as a young hotshot but quickly became overtly cautious and too comfortable playing second fiddle. There's ample acknowledgement of this in the episode, even by Riker himself. And it is ridiculous for him to toil as the X.O. year after year without his career suffering. At this point his character might have been salvaged had he taken up command (and there were rumours that Picard/Stewart would depart) but notice how absent these discussions are in the seasons to come. When he finally is given to helm the Titan in the last movie
Nemesis, years down the road, I've long since stopped caring.
So I'm with Shelby all the way. Well almost, I didn't support her idea of having another go at rescuing Picard on the Borg cube. But I cheered every time she showed initiative and challenged Riker, even if that might have been a bit unprofessional at times. She'd make a better first officer and it's too bad we never see her again after this two-parter.
The funny thing is that Riker does rise to the occasion. He can make tough decisions when the situation calls for it (we see it even more in part two). So why doesn't he want to sit in the big chair? Maybe he really is too comfortable on this luxury liner, and maybe he doesn't want the responsibilities. But even as first officer you need a certain drive. No one stays first officer. Either you move on (to command) or you move out. I realise the limits of a weekly TV show with set cast members, but still…
OK, I seem to have talked more about Riker here, but don't let that fool you. I really love this episode and even Riker's story is interesting here. And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the captivating score by Ron Jones.
The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1 receives a perfect grade of
10+ from me.
Season Three overviewIt may be a bit of an exaggeration to say that there was a marked improvement in season three, but it was still noticeable. The average season grade was 4.70 (or 5-) compared to season two's 3.83 (or 4-). So far the season average has risen by about one grade each year and I wonder if it will keep up that pace.
I can however, point to the reason for the rise in quality, and that is the addition of more competent writers and producers such as Michael Piller, Ron Moore and Ira Steven Behr, and the subsequent lesser involvement of Gene Roddenberry. I know it's probably like swearing in the Trek Church, but Roddenberry has not been all that good an influence to his creation. It is noticeable how he changed as he got older if you compare the original series to
The Next Generation, and that's not for the better in my humble opinion. Even back in the sixties,
Star Trek wasn't all his. It took the help of people like Gene L. Coon, Bob Justman and Herb Solow to make it the legend it is today.
Anyway, looking at the episodes I gave high marks, it comes as no surprise that I really liked it when there were Romulans and Klingons involved, or Vulcans like Sarek for that matter. And of course I gave the first ever perfect grade of 10 to
The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1. Equally non-surprising was the abysmal grades to the annual Lwaxana Troi appearance or her daughter's run-in with an oily con artist. Betazoids and Ferengis bring out the worst in me.
There was a distinct lack of character development this season, and that's par the course for this rather bland 24th century crew, and I've stopped caring about it much. It's the non-human characters that interest me more, and the plots. I still expect the show to get better, as it is generally considered that
The Next Generation hit its stride in season four, and that's also my recollection.