Voyager 5x21 "Juggernaut"

rating: **

the story: B'Elanna tries to control her anger while dealing with repair work on a Malon ship.

what it's all about: The Malon, in the fifth season, became the second-most unlikely recurring aliens of the series (the sixth season had the "Potato Heads").  Debuting in "Night," the season premiere, they were basically galactic polluters.  Yet in "Juggernaut," it's not really polluting that defines them so much as their generally disagreeable nature.  Enter: B'Elanna.

And duck for cover!  The episode is basically an excuse to illustrate her poor temper, and how she tries to get it under control.  There are plenty of episodes that explain why she has a poor temper, but this isn't one of them; instead, we just get to see her angry for the sake of being angry, and it's actually a refreshing change of pace.  Maybe those who can't fathom having such a bad attitude won't get it, but seeing someone grapple with this as the whole point of an episode...it's cathartic. 

And, as you'll see under the guest-stars listing, there are plenty of otherwise familiar faces hiding beneath the lumpy Malon makeup, so that's certainly one of the episode's pleasures, too.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Casual fans might be baffled by the Malon phenomenon.
• series - But it's nice continuity all the same.
• character - B'Elanna Torres is one of the most fascinating characters in the whole franchise.  Here's an episode that doesn't even try to prove why, and she's still fascinating.
• essential - Sure it doesn't try to resolve anything, but that doesn't mean it's not worth watching.

notable guest-stars:
Ron Canada
Lee Arenberg
Alexander Enberg

The Next Generation 7x22 "Bloodlines"

rating: **

the story: DaiMon Bok returns with another diabolical plot against Picard, this time featuring Picard's...son?!?

what it's all about: This follow-up to the first season episode "The Battle" has to automatically be seen as better than its predecessor, even if "Battle" actually holds up better than most episodes from that season.  "Bloodlines" also fits in with the seventh season's trend of looking at dark or overlooked chapters from the past, when Picard's Ferengi adversary Bok comes up with a convincing case for Picard having a son he didn't previously know about.

Bok, and the Ferengi in general, will never have the reputation of legitimate villains in Next Generation.  Botched horribly in the first season ("Battle" wasn't their only appearance that season; their debut in "The Last Outpost" is downright pitiful).  Two-for-two, Bok is betrayed by his own crew, who are outraged that he can so single-mindedly obsess over Picard against the basic Ferengi custom of fixating on profit.  Deep Space Nine's Ferengi had far more convincing villains among them (including Brunt, who basically works for the IRS), and far more to do with being Ferengi.  There's nothing intimidating about these alien trolls except their values, which are more or less indicative of everything humanity outgrew to reach Star Trek's future.  Plus, they're natural cowards.  The worst thing about Bok is not he's not even much of a Ferengi.

But his obsessive tendencies are familiar, if one-note.  It's basically Bok with another con job, though.  Harry Mudd he is not.  So let's just put him aside.  The real meat of "Bloodlines" is Picard confronting his wild past, all over again.  I mean, wild by his standards, by the time we know him, anyway.  The younger Picard, who was a lot like Kirk, we never really get to meet is always fascinating to explore, and this is a fun way to touch on him.

The best thing about the episode is Picard finally confronting the idea of having a family.  This was a solitary man who hated the idea of children (his relationship with Wesley Crusher, as it evolved, was a major character aberration; just look at the continued awkwardness presented in "Disaster").  Remember how shocked Kirk was in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan to learn of the existence of David Marcus?  Well, this was Picard's David Marcus moment.  And once more, we're presented with the extreme differences between Picard and Kirk.

The most surprising thing about "Bloodlines" is that Picard tries so hard to forge a relationship with the man Bok presents as his son.  (Never mind that like David Marcus, the guy wants nothing to do with his supposed father.)  The audience is asked to believe that someone would hate the idea of Picard as their dad (no doubt contributing to the ill-ease that greats this whole season, where Picard is joined by the rest of his senior staff in feeling extremely uncomfortable for such reasons).

Seeing Picard vulnerable always makes for good storytelling.  For a man who is usually in control of himself, and a given situation, it's nice to see him struggling upstream.  In a way, "Bloodlines" is an episode that had to happen, an update and not just sequel to "Battle," from a point in the series where his character has been firmly established, and everyone's on his side, including the audience.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - It's a fun thought exercise, comparing this episode with Kirk's David Marcus moment, but you don't have to.
• series - It's a mark of the growth of the series since its first season.
• character - It's a good character moment for Picard.
• essential - It could've been better.

notable guest-stars:
Lee Arenberg (Bok)

The Next Generation 7x9 "Force of Nature"

rating: *

the story: Scientists claim that warp drive is an environmental menace.

what it all means: Boy o boy.  Fans really pick their spots when naming the worst episodes/movies/ideas in franchise lore.  "Force of Nature" rarely seems to come up in the conversation, but like "Phantams" earlier in the season, it certainly merits consideration...

As with most episodes/movies fans despise," the problem resides mostly in the idea (although execution often plays a heavy hand): just go back and read my plot summary above and try and see for yourself what the problem might be.

Okay, let me spell it out for you: having the basic concept of warp drive questioned is like having an episode question tricorders, or communicators.  Sure, one of the running tropes of the franchise is questioning transporters, but Star Trek could technically get by without them.  It couldn't without warp drive.  You see the problem?

The '90s were a watershed moment in the environmentalism movement.  You wouldn't have the concept of climate change without the ideas discussed in the '90s, when great strides were made in at least addressing the worst things man was indisputably doing to nature.  We've since entered territory where things are a little less clear-cut, and "Force of Nature" kind of epitomizes that.  Simply put, we're now kind of putting into question whether humans are more menace than friend to the planet, on an existential level.  "Force of Nature" does the same with Starfleet, whether or not it realizes it.

It's a brave and foolish subject to tackle, and the episode has been questioned in the past, but it apparently has been easy to overlook in more recent years.  This is oddly troubling.  The whole franchise very early on developed a reputation for fearlessly tackling the most difficult issues, and usually not having too much of a problem sounding right about them.  Here it's such a difficult subject, and handled so clumsily, it's hard to know what to make of the episode, even two decades later.

So I will exercise the rare privilege of giving the final verdict up, and merely noting that it's worth considering in the greater Star Trek experience.  Otherwise I'd be very much inclined to outright dismiss it, the way fans can sometimes find it so easy in such matters.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - This big idea is at least worthy of Star Trek's highest ideals.
• series - The series should really have been able to do better, though.
• character - Some half-hearted attempts were made to ground the story.
• essential - I'm inclined to say this is the opposite of essential.

notable guest-stars:
Lee Arenberg