Sfdebris.net

First of all, I must say so far I'm happy with the new player, I can now buffer a video all the way (crappy internet). So that's a good thing.

I always liked this episode, pretty much for the same reasons as in the review. It gave a prominent role to Geordi, something that was needed, and the actress playing Susanna Leijten (it's a Dutch surname, I'm guessing it's pronounced closely enough to Leyton {and that'd probably be the English transilteration}). The concept itself is interesting, albeit scientifically implausible, and it does also build a good aura of suspense, when I saw it first on Sky *spit* I was completely freaked out by the holodeck scene.

Well that's all I've got to say for now, back to drinking and playing Football Manager.

Standard procedure for away missions should be a body camera on each team member and a dedicated "Away Mission Control" Room on the ship to monitor what the teams are doing and provide a constant communication to the ship. Unfortunately, anything like that really only happens when it is required for the plot to work.

Mickey_Rat15 wrote:Standard procedure for away missions should be a body camera on each team member and a dedicated "Away Mission Control" Room on the ship to monitor what the teams are doing and provide a constant communication to the ship. Unfortunately, anything like that really only happens when it is required for the plot to work.

That sounds dangerously like common sense.

It's nice to see a likeable, competent guest character here. It's something that would have been nice to see more of.

In a roundabout way, this episode brings to mind one of my criticisms of TNG- there's hardly any meaningful action taking place off the ship. I haven't kept a running tally, but for a ship of exploration they seem to spend a lot more time having things happen to them on the ship or during survey missions than they do actively discovering/uncovering something new. Bottle shows can be great, of course, but sometimes I think the TNG crew did a bit too much reacting to what came up to them.

Identity Crisis and Schisms bring this to mind because both episodes do have the crew leave the ship, but in both cases the more effective scenes are on the holodeck. Its a bit odd to me that even when they spend the time and money to build the sets, the tension still takes place on the Enterprise.

I also enjoyed this episode, though as Chuck kinda points out, the suicide shuttle at the beginning is both sorta stupid and introduces some plot holes, nor does it really add to the tension of the episode. I would have preferred some more red herrings around the central mystery rather than lets stare at the guy committing suicide.

Also, anyone else the first time they saw this in the schedule think that he was going to review a comic until they checked what day it was on?

Mickey_Rat15 wrote:Standard procedure for away missions should be a body camera on each team member and a dedicated "Away Mission Control" Room on the ship to monitor what the teams are doing and provide a constant communication to the ship. Unfortunately, anything like that really only happens when it is required for the plot to work.

Mass Effect 1 would've been a lot shorter if anyone other than one of Ashley's dead squadmates had a camera.

Good continuity, the scenes in the past use the older style uniforms with the colored seam.

FakeGeekGirl wrote:

Mickey_Rat15 wrote:Standard procedure for away missions should be a body camera on each team member and a dedicated "Away Mission Control" Room on the ship to monitor what the teams are doing and provide a constant communication to the ship. Unfortunately, anything like that really only happens when it is required for the plot to work.

That sounds dangerously like common sense.

'Tricoder goes off'

They've been infected by some type of alien parasite

Speaking of common sense:

Crusher: "You need to stay in Sickbay so we can keep an eye on your condition!"

Geordi: "But I need to analyze the records!"

Crusher: "We can just bring a computer into Sickbay and you can analyze the records there while we monitor you! I mean, Khan was able to do it, on a far less sophisticated ship than this one."

Geordi: "BUT I NEED TO ANALYZE THE RECORDS"

--- and later: ---

Data: "Since you're having trouble finding anything useful in the records, and since time is short, perhaps I, the smartest guy on the ship by a huge margin, should help you."

Geordi: "No thanks, I'll do it myself."

Data: "Perhaps you should have someone keeping you company as you work, someone with a perfect memory that can completely remember whatever clues you find and continue your work should you become incapacitated. Someone who has lightning-quick reflexes and is far too strong to overpower, to prevent you from leaving the ship and forcibly take you to Sickbay to be cured should you start turning into one of the bad guys."

Geordi: "Go away Data!"

I remember they reused this same basic concept, the crew is being transformed into aliens, for an enterprise episode. But I can't remember the name of it.
Edit: the name of the Enterprise episode is Extinction.