The Next Generatio 4x1 "The Best of Both Worlds, Part 2"

rating: ****

Memory Alpha summary

Star Trek TNG Episode Guide
"I am thinking of calling it
Picard.  What do you think?"

The most famous story from The Next Generation concludes, featuring the famous Battle of Wolf 359 (to that point and arguably remaining the most famous starship battle of the franchise, depicted again and serving as the basis for Sisko's origin in the Deep Space Nine pilot "Emissary") as Locutus (the assimilated Picard) and the Borg are defeated.

Where the first part focused on Riker's unwillingness to assume his own command, the second part is a full depiction of what it would look like.  Naturally he's completely competent.  He's willing to take advice from anyone, even Guinan, who offers the chilling thought that maybe Picard really is gone for good.  Except that's not good enough for Riker, who quickly undertakes a bold plan to kidnap him back, using the Borg's own passivity against unperceived threats against them.

From there it becomes what even the creators of the episode sometimes fretted as an anticlimactic way to end the epic: inside Data's lab.  Except it's a perfectly Next Generation thing to do, perfectly characterizing the more cerebral aspects of the series and allowing its logic to play out in ways that maybe were never quite pulled off with the same aplomb again.  Picard offering, at a subconscious level, the Borg command that is in effect synonymous with the computer virus of Independence Day (there's really nothing wrong with either means of victory), is a clever way to avoid a merely physical conclusion, thought instead of fought.

Then the episode ends in a way that would later become a trademark of Deep Space Nine, and sometimes featured in Enterprise: with the emotional damage of the preceding events felt.  Next Generation itself would only do it once more, at the end of "Chain of Command."  Both times are brilliantly realized in their complete understatement.  Picard emerges as more and more relatable because of moments like these, as he expresses rare vulnerability in a leading man.

This is how you tell big stories in Star Trek.

four quarter analysis
franchise * series * essential * character

notable guest-stars:
Elizabeth Dennehy
Whoopi Goldberg
Colm Meaney
George Murdock

Star Trek: The Next Generation 3x26 "The Best of Both Worlds"

****

You should know all about "The Best of Both Worlds."  That is, you may think you know all about "The Best of Both Worlds."  It's the famous third season finale that sees the epic return of the Borg, which might as well be the Collective's first appearance (even though it's referenced as far back as the first season and first seen in the second season's "Q Who?"), and of course the assimilation of Picard.

But the funny thing is, this is actually a Riker episode.  It may be the most famous Riker episode ever, but it's probably very rarely thought of in that sense.  How can that possibly be?

Main characters receiving promotions in Star Trek will always be one of the fuzziest matters of the franchise.  On the one hand, it seems by the very groundbreaking nature of the Big Giant Challenges they overcome on a weekly basis, the whole lot of them should be promoted, well, on a weekly basis, except in instances like space-displaced Voyager (although one of the famous and funniest knocks against it is that someone like Harry Kim could remain an ensign for seven years no matter the circumstances).  Riker in particular was frequently discussed as a surefire captain of his own ship, but he always balked at the idea (until the end of Nemesis).  The logistical reasoning is clear enough: you hardly want to lose one of your main characters to something as paltry as career growth.  With the classic structure of the franchise rarely deviated from (Deep Space Nine came the closest; heck, Sisko wasn't even a captain until the end of his third season), once a crew is established it mostly remains intact until the end of the series.  By the film era, the original series crew strained credulity (poor George Takei!) by sticking together for as long as it did.

But funny enough, this is the episode where the issue is explored most deliberately, whether for Riker or otherwise.  Riker, for the record, wasn't even a commander when Picard chose him as his first officer.  It was Picard's own selection that put Riker on the career fast track.  And ironically, it was also this career development that slowed it down.  Because Riker realized that he would never be in a position to be as integral to the fleet again.  Even his own command could never compare to serving aboard the flagship, under Jean-Luc Picard.

Which is what makes this episode doubly agonizing.

The first layer of agony is ambitious Shelby, who appears as Starfleet's so-called Borg expert.  She not only has the necessary tactics, but the yearning to replace Riker as commander of the Enterprise.  The most famous episode of the series can actually become a little annoying because of her.  Tellingly, she's never seen again.

Other firsts include this being the first season finale cliffhanger in franchise history.  It also becomes the first two-part story since "The Menagerie" in the original series (which itself was probably in that format only because it featured extensive cuts from the original, previously untelevised pilot).  Both concepts are subsequently duplicated over and over again, until DS9 and to a lesser extent Enterprise introduce serialized storytelling that run across multiple episodes and in some instances entire seasons, as well as the second season of Voyager.  The cliffhanger especially is never really matched.  It would be impossible even from an objective standpoint.

Part of the reason for that is that Patrick Stewart, Picard himself, was not guaranteed to come out the other end when the next season arrived.  And just imagine Next Generation without him.  That dramatic order from Riker to open fire could very well have been the final fate of Picard.  That's part of the reason some fans will always rank the second part of this story as less satisfying, because it becomes much more predictable once you realize Picard is safe, and the story is no longer at all about Riker.

But then again, the massive battle at Wolf 359 is commemorated in a big way in the DS9 pilot "Emissary."  No other single event in franchise lore has had such direct ramifications.

So what does the title ultimately mean?  You might have assumed all along that it's a reference to the Borg, both mechanical and organic.  And you might as well consider yourself right.  But in this part, it might as well  mean the phrase, "having your cake and eating it, too," which would mean Riker staying commander, remaining aboard the Enterprise, but still having the chance to have his own command, under the worst circumstances possible.  "The best," in this instance, would also be the worst.  Incidentally, there's a comic book sequel called exactly that.

How could you possibly consider this anything but a Star Trek classic?  Unlike the jump between "Space Seed" and The Wrath of Khan, fans will probably continue to consider "Best of Both Worlds" as intrinsically more significant than First Contact, no matter how good the film is.  And that may be all you need to know about that.

franchise * series * essential * character

notable guest-stars:
Elizabeth Dennehy
George Murdock
Colm Meaney
Whoopi Goldberg

Memory Alpha summary