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Red Letter Media: Best TNG Episodes

Discussion in ' Star Trek: The Next Generation ' started by Trekker4747 , Aug 6, 2020 .

Trekker4747 Boldly going... Premium Member

As fun as these guys are when they're talking about bad movies, short-subject videos or Modern Trek, them getting into talking good about something is fun. Particularly when it's Rich and Mike talking Star Trek: TNG.  

JamesRye Captain Captain

Trekker4747 said: ↑ As fun as these guys are when they're talking about bad movies, short-subject videos or Modern Trek, them getting into talking good about something is fun. Particularly when it's Rich and Mike talking Star Trek: TNG. Click to expand...

ThankQ Fleet Admiral Admiral

I gotta have more Shatner fights!  

Ryan Thomas Riddle Vice Admiral Admiral

I used to like these guys back in the day, but now I just find them... grating.  

Qonundrum Vice Admiral Admiral

Some of their videos are meh, others are great. Plinkett was gross at times but they knew the fine line between absurdist humor and just being sick. I saw the video in another thread and won't repeat what I said * , but FWIW here are my top 5 - at least for this hour, and in reverse-order since the ordered list one counts upward and not downward ** : HOLLOW PURSUITS BOOBY TRAP 11001001 THE NEXT PHASE Q WHO Honorable mentions: CONTAGION, POWER PLAY, THE NEXT PHASE, EVOLUTION, THE PEGASUS * waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! ** for clarification, please see * above  

Vger23 Vice Admiral Admiral

Top 5 favorite TNG episodes, huh? Tough one..... 5. Conspiracy 4. The Defector 3. Contagion 2. The Inner Light 1. Best of Both Worlds pt 1  

RAMA Admiral Admiral

Excruciatingly boring trolls  

Ghrakh Captain Captain

Good review. They understand and love Trek way more than the current "creators"  

STEPhon IT Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

Vger23 said: ↑ Top 5 favorite TNG episodes, huh? Tough one..... 5. Conspiracy 4. The Defector 3. Contagion 2. The Inner Light 1. Best of Both Worlds pt 1 Click to expand...

somebuddyX Commodore Commodore

Nice to see their opinions on TNG considering what they've said about other Trek over the years. I don't always agree with them but I'm glad they're still making videos. IDIC. As to my top 5. Yesterday's Enterprise, Parallels, The Next Phase, Cause and Effect and The Pegasus probably (Frame of Mind could be there too). There's a whole lot I've never seen yet. YE I watched in whole a couple of times this year and the final battle maybe ten times this year. The Probert Enterprise-C is the only Eaglemoss ship I have so far. That's probably my favourite hands down.  

Gaith Vice Admiral Admiral

Part 2 - more fun times. Was hoping for a mention of Barclay's journey continuing in Voyager , but, no such luck.  

Another good piece from them, seeing Mike and Rich talk about Star Trek is always fun and here them doing it on a show they like is great.  

Part2 was even better. No way is ‘disaster’ in many people’s top 5. But Mike’s passion for it is great and he argues for it so well. They both did, and Who Watches the Watchers....it’s the most underrated episode ever in my opinion. Listening to why these guys love TNG is inspirational. And it makes me long once more for this sort of Star Trek. Have heard some good things about Lower Decks, so fingers crossed.  

Ghrakh said: ↑ Good review. They understand and love Trek way more than the current "creators" Click to expand...

CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

So, I have to watch their video to see their list of top episodes? Pass.  

daveyjones Lieutenant Red Shirt

somebuddyx said: ↑ The Probert Enterprise-C is the only Eaglemoss ship I have so far. That's probably my favourite hands down. Click to expand...

Trekker4747 said: ↑ Particularly when it's Rich and Mike talking Star Trek: TNG Click to expand...

The RLM review of Insurrection is particularly excoriating - now available in HD Everything from 10:30 is spot on.  

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Star Trek: The Next Generation

Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before. Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before. Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before.

• Gene Roddenberry
• Patrick Stewart
• Brent Spiner
• Jonathan Frakes
• 321 User reviews
• 162 Critic reviews
• 39 wins & 61 nominations total

Episodes 176

Photos 3429

• Captain Jean-Luc Picard …

• Lieutenant Commander Data …

• Commander William Thomas 'Will' Riker …

• Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge …

• Counselor Deanna Troi

• Lieutenant Worf …

• Doctor Beverly Crusher …

• Enterprise Computer …

• Wesley Crusher …

• Chief Miles O'Brien …
• Youngblood …

• Lieutenant Natasha 'Tasha' Yar …

• Doctor Katherine Pulaski …

• Nurse Alyssa Ogawa …

• Ansata Terrorist …

• Ensign Ro Laren …

• Keiko O'Brien …
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• Trivia Almost everyone in the cast became life-long friends. At LeVar Burton 's 1992 wedding, Brent Spiner served as best man, and Sir Patrick Stewart , Jonathan Frakes , and Michael Dorn all served as ushers. Man of the People (1992) (#6.3) aired on that day.
• Goofs It is claimed that Data can't use contractions (Can't, Isn't, Don't, etc) yet there are several instances throughout the series where he does. One of the first such examples is heard in Encounter at Farpoint (1987) , where Data uses the word "Can't" while the Enterprise is being chased by Q's "ship".

[repeated line]

Capt. Picard : Engage!

• Crazy credits The model of the Enterprise used in the opening credits is so detailed, a tiny figure can be seen walking past a window just before the vessel jumps to warp speed.
• Alternate versions The first and last episodes were originally broadcast as two-hour TV movies, and were later re-edited into two one-hour episodes each. Both edits involved removing some scenes from each episode.
• Connections Edited into Reading Rainbow: The Bionic Bunny Show (1988)

User reviews 321

• Feb 26, 2003

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The Star Trek: The Next Generation Episode That Was So Controversial the UK Banned it

R eleased more than three decades back in 1987, Star Trek: The Next Generation , remains one of the most popular projects from the franchise. Its legacy is so enduring that the seven-seasoned series has been ranked as one of the greatest TV shows of all time, with many of its episodes receiving critical acclaim.

However, apart from earning fans’ praise for delivering high-concept entertainment, and executing a dramatically satisfying storyline, Star Trek: The Next Generation suffered controversial backlash for one particular episode. Aired in the US in 1990, The High Ground became a subject of controversy over sensitive grounds of violence against Ireland, leading it to get banned in the UK.

Controversial Star Trek: The Next Generation Episode Banned in the UK

The popular Star Trek franchise has spawned multiple spin-offs and TV series over decades, and most of them have turned into cult classics. One such iconic TV series is the 1987 show, Star Trek: The Next Generation which not only acquired a nerdy fanbase but even got popularized among celebrities.

X-Men and Star Trek: The Next Generation Were There Weirdest Crossovers of the 90s

However, despite gaining praise and attention, the show later attracted some heat over one controversial episode . While Star Trek: The Next Generation had many memorable moments, one episode in particular got banned overseas. Released in 1990 in the US, the season 3 episode The High Ground was surprisingly singled out in the UK for political reasons and its portrayal of terrorism.

According to reports from Collider , the episode initially caused chaos by portraying a sympathetic view toward violence and domination. However, the main controversy appeared surrounding the character Data, who briefly mentioned a made-up piece of UK history.

“He had a voracious appetite”: Gene Roddenberry Had an Affair With Star Trek Actress Under Everyone’s Nose

Talking about the “ Irish unification of 2024 ” as an example of violence successfully achieving a political aim, Data teased Britain and Ireland’s uneasy history of violence and bloodshed. Further, considering the time when the episode was released, Britain was actually dealing with the IRA, who fought to get the British out of Northern Ireland.

Therefore, considering the real-world events that were happening back then, BBC refused to air The High Ground because of the line of dialogue that referenced the reunification of Ireland, which was a sensitive topic. Thus, the United Kingdom banned the particular Star Trek: The Next Generation episode and later aired an edited version on television.

Star Trek Sci-Fi Writer Addressed the Controversial Star Trek Episode

Back in the 80s, when sci-fi writer Melinda M Snodgrass penned down the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode The High Ground , she had little idea of the unexpected ripples of controversy it would make. While the show at large acquired legions of followers, the particular season 3 episode found its prosperity in infamy.

Actors With Highest Screen Time in Star Trek, Sir Patrick Stewart Shockingly Doesn’t Lead This List

Speaking with BBC , Melinda M Snodgrass thus noted her reaction when she got to know about the chaos that the episode had caused in the UK. Since most US TV shows often debuted internationally several years after their original release, Satellite broadcaster Sky reportedly got the opportunity to cut crucial scenes and air an edited version in 1992, in the UK.

We became aware of it later… and there isn’t much you can do about it. Writing for television is like laying track for a train that’s about 300 feet behind you. You really don’t have time to stop… Science fiction is incredibly important because it allows people to discuss difficult topics – but at arm’s length.

The remarks used by Data as well as the story certainly paralleled the situation that was prevailing in Northern Ireland at the time. But Snodgrass implied that it was a deliberate move. Using her history major degree and her law school knowledge the sci-fi writer claimed that it’s completely normal to talk about complicated issues as long as no one’s picking a fight.

I was a history major before I went to law school and I wanted to get into that; discuss the fact that one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist. I mean, these are complicated issues.

And when do people feel like their back is so much against the wall that they have no choice but to turn to violence? And is that actually ever justified? I think what I wanted to say was: if we’re talking and not shooting, we’re in a better place.

Eventually, while The High Ground sparked concerns over the exchange between the characters, leading the episode to not be broadcast on the BBC or Irish public broadcaster RTÉ, Star Trek: The Next Generation overall remained popular, even decades later.

Star Trek: The Next Generation is available on Paramount+. 

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Star trek’s redshirt has a real world meaning.

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TNG Ended Star Trek’s Redshirt Joke For Good

Ds9 gave star trek's red shirt death problem a greater meaning, 8 star trek warp drives (& which is the fastest).

• Star Trek popularized the term redshirt for disposable characters in The Original Series, which often unceremoniously killed security officers.
• The term redshirt also exists in real life for college athletes who are kept out of competition for a year to extend eligibility.
• The redshirt trope ended in Star Trek: The Next Generation when the color red switched to command, making it one of the safest colors for officers.

Star Trek fans may only associate the term redshirt with the unluckiest officers of the Starship Enterprise, but the word also has a real-world meaning that has nothing to do with Star Trek. The term redshirt became associated with Star Trek thanks to the tendency of Star Trek: The Original Series to kill off unnamed security officers. These unfortunate souls were always wearing red Starfleet uniforms, and numerous redshirts were killed in 1960s Star Trek . While every Trek show since Star Trek: The Next Generation has done away with the redshirt trope, the term had already made its way into the pop culture lexicon.

As the USS Enterprise's security officers were often the first ones to face any dangers, it makes sense that more of them would be killed in the line of duty. The term redshirt became a Star Trek trope because these officers were often killed unceremoniously and then promptly forgotten about. Once it became a pattern, these redshirts were doomed from the start, and numerous movies, television shows, and other forms of media have referenced or joked about Star Trek's redshirt trope. However, the term redshirt has another real-world meaning familiar to college sports fans.

Star Trek is infamously known for killing off officers wearing red, but Star Trek: The Next Generation actually put an end to this trope in 1987.

Redshirt’s Meaning In Star Trek & The Real World

The term 'redshirt' was coined before star trek.

In Star Trek: The Original Series, a redshirt was one of the usually unnamed red-shirt-wearing security officers who was killed during a mission. These Starfleet officers would often be members of a landing party, and their deaths would serve to raise the stakes for the rest of the crew. Over the course of TOS , 55 crew members were killed, 24 of whom were wearing red shirts, and so the term came to refer to disposable characters who were killed off soon after being introduced. The 1999 film Galaxy Quest pokes fun at Star Trek 's trope , as does the novel Redshirts by John Scalzi and the video game Redshirt.

The first known usage of the term redshirts in regard to college athletes was in 1955, eleven years before Star Trek premiered in 1966.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a redshirt is "a college athlete who is kept out of varsity competition for a year in order to extend eligibility." In other words, a redshirt freshman can spend their first academic year practicing with the team and playing in a game or two, before taking on a larger role in subsequent years. This allows the player to have five years of eligibility and continue to play on the team as a fifth-year senior. Also according to Merriam-Webster, the term redshirt was derived from the red jerseys often worn by these players during scrimmages against the regular players.

Killing off a minor character in Deep Space Nine season 1 fixed Star Trek's redshirt problem and ensured that death would have meaning on DS9.

Star Trek’s Redshirt Trope Ended After The Original Series

Star Trek: The Next Generation changed the colors of Starfleet uniforms. Red went from security to command, and command gold became operations. This switch brought an end to the redshirt trope in Star Trek, although the term retained its meaning in popular culture. From TNG on, officers on the command track have been wearing red, making it one of the safest colors for a Starfleet officer to wear. Star Trek was never going to kill off Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) or Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), after all.

With the deaths of Star Trek characters like David Marcus (Merritt Butrick) in Star Trek III: The Seach for Spock and Lt. Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby) in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 1, death began to have more of an impact and real consequences for the other characters. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine took this even further with its darker tone and Dominion War storyline. Even Star Trek shows set before TOS have mostly done away with the trope . Shows like Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds rarely treat characters as disposable, and which characters live or die has nothing to do with the color of their uniforms. Still, the trope persists, even though Star Trek characters wearing red haven't actually been more likely to die since 1987.

Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: The Original Series

Star Trek: The Original Series follows the exploits of the crew of the USS Enterprise. On a five-year mission to explore uncharted space, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) must trust his crew - Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (Forest DeKelley), Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (James Doohan), Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Chekov (Walter Koenig) and Sulu (George Takei) - with his life. Facing previously undiscovered life forms and civilizations and representing humanity among the stars on behalf of Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets, the Enterprise regularly comes up against impossible odds and diplomatic dilemmas.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.