Catching Up With Star Trek TNG
by Jackie Mason on February 2, 2011

Kelly Lee | February 2, 2011
Tiny Klingons!

Ferengis are much better on DS9...on Next Gen they were a warrior race? Come on.

Jackie Mason | February 2, 2011
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Lori Lancaster | February 2, 2011
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Jackie Mason | February 2, 2011
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Scott Hardie | February 2, 2011
I'm glad you and Will are still enjoying TNG. I put on an episode from time to time, and most of them hold up pretty well, especially after the awkward first season. The thing that struck me about TNG, probably around the "Data's Day" episode where Data just hangs around talking to people, is how much of a sense of place it creates. The longer you watch, the more the Enterprise D comes to feel like a very specific, familiar, comfortable place that you revisit each episode. You want to go there and find out what's happening to the characters you like and spend another hour in their company. This feeling is no doubt a huge part of why it attracts such a following among certain nerdy fans. :-) Have you seen the four TNG movies? Any thoughts?

In our house, DS9 is the hands-down favorite. It took the best elements of TNG and added interpersonal conflict, moral complexity, and serialized storytelling. This can make it something of a time commitment to watch, since it needs to be seen from start to finish instead of jumped around in, but it's hugely rewarding. I recommend giving the pilot episode a try; it encapsulates those elements like a sampler for the rest of the series.

Jackie Mason | February 2, 2011
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Erik Bates | February 2, 2011
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Scott Hardie | February 3, 2011
I had that same trouble after drifting away for a while. I started watching again with some difficulty, since a lot of the references were lost on me. With time, I got back into DS9 and still enjoyed it, but it wasn't until I saw the whole series on DVD that everything clicked. Considering current trends, it was a decade ahead of its time.

Denise Sawicki | February 3, 2011
Well if you like DS9 so much, you should watch Babylon 5! Some say DS9 copied them.

Alexander the little Klingon is cute. We like him because he's a hippie. I doubt he is very popular among people who idolize Worf.

Scott Hardie | February 4, 2011
You're right. Watching B5 has been on my to-do list for much too long... like 15 years too long. As soon as we're finished with Lost, it's next.

Matthew Preston | February 4, 2011
4) Picard and Crusher should hook up. Which brings me to,
5) Crusher is smart when it comes to medicine, stupid when it comes to men

It took me a few seconds to realize you were talking about Beverly and not Wesley.

Scott kept me interested in DS9 for years, for which I am grateful. The series was spectacular and every episode was satisfying. When the show came to an end in 1999, Scott taped the last 10 episodes and we watched them all in a marathon weekend with another friend.

Scott Hardie | February 5, 2011
What do you mean, "creepy"?