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Episode 2.21 Peak Performance

Finally the acknowledge the Borg threat. So instead of using a computer simulation they use action Starships and "fight" each other. I liked this episode despite a lot of moments that made me suspended my belief. Like how Rikers team were able to breathe on a starship that has been power downed for years or how Worf was able to trick Ferengi sensors somehow.

The B story with Data and the gamemaster was okay. Although Data basically sulking cause he lost was odd. That's almost a emotion!

"It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life."

3 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.20 The Emissary

The Emissary surprised me with how great the acting was. Suzie Plakson and Micheal Dorn have great chemistry and I was really invested in their story. I do hope that I see K'Ehleyr again. Both that and the story of Klingons that do not know that the war was over made for a great episode. It was such a nice change from previous ones and showed me hope for much better content in the future.

"Worf, we're alone now. You don't have to act like a Klingon glacier. I don't bite. Well, that's wrong. I *do* bite."

4 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.19 Manhunt

This episodes has everything! Fish people (one of whom is Mick Fleetwood!), a horny Troi's mother, and a old Detective Noir story. I was way put off by Troi's mother looking for a mate thing. Just seemed kind of creepy. I actually thought she would end up with the Mick Fleetwood character... How could Picard not know that all his Dixon Hill stories wouldn't be so relaxing? I thought he was an avid reader.

"Well, under the circumstances, I think it would be... prudent if I were to make myself... less available for the duration of the journey."

1 out of 5 tricorders.

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Episode 2.18 Up The Long Ladder

The enterprise receives a SOS signal and finds two different colonies in need of help. One is a over the top stereo type Irish family and another which of consists of clones. Of course Riker pines and eventually bangs the "farmers daughter" type and also gets his DNA stolen along with Pulaski's to make more clones (why would they want to make more of her I don't care to know). I'm not sure why Picard just brushes off the fact the clone side just assaults and steals DNA from two of his crew.

"Sometimes, Number One... you just have to... bow to the absurd."

2 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.17 Samaritan Snare

What a odd choice to have this episode right after the last one. They had just encountered something they have never come across and now underestimate this obvious trap. Did they learn nothing? I guess that's why they took Picard off the ship so they could show that Riker isn't quite ready to be a Captain because of the choices he makes. And of course Pulaski saves the day at the end.

"Wishing for a thing does not make it so."

2 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.16 Q Who

Never seen the introduction of the Borg before and it's nuts how unprepared and outgunned the Federation is. Q does a great job slapping some sense into Picard and showing him what little he knows. I can't see Q as a bad guy here. They generally want to help for what's in store for the future of the Federation.

"You judge yourselves against the pitiful adversaries you've encountered so far - the Romulans, the Klingons. They're nothing compared to what's waiting. Picard - you are about to move into areas of the galaxy containing wonders more incredible than you can possibly imagine - and terrors to freeze your soul."

4 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.15 Pen Pals

I was kind of put off by Data doing very human things.  It sure does feel like he developed feelings for this unknown girl that every superior on the ship told him to not worry about.  I wish that they would have ran with that and questioned his actions more.  In the end, he got his way and we got a very young recognizable Nikki Cox as a guest star. Not only does he break direct orders he also violates The Prime Directive big time.

"It seems that some creatures have the capacity to fill spaces you never knew were empty."

2 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.14 The Icarus Factor

I like to call this one Daddy Issues The Soap Opera.  It really says something when the B story line of Worf missing out on his Ascension anniversary is more captivating then Riker and his father. Also, of course Pulaski and Riker's Dad were a thing. She had to have some involvement in this episode.

"I came here to bury the hatchet with my son, only to find out that the ground was frozen solid."

1 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.13 Time Squared

Seems that higher intelligence them that I have been referring to the last couple episodes continues here.  I'm not sure that they are related, but this one was my favorite of the bunch.  I wonder how long future Picard has been going through that cycle of watching The Enterprise be destroyed.  I enjoy anything that deals with time travel so that is a plus.

"Well, they say if you travel far enough, you will eventually meet yourself. Having experienced that, Number One, it's not something I would care to repeat."

4 out of five tricorders

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Episode 2.12 The Royale

Rather than doing this on the holodeck they did it on a planet that is impossible for life. Like the last episode Contagion, they seem to encounter evidence of a much higher intelligence alien race. I'm wondering if this is the start to a larger arc that the season is getting to. 

"I find it stimulating. Also, it puts things in perspective. In our arrogance, we feel we are so advanced. And yet, we cannot unravel a simple knot tied by a part-time French mathematician, working alone without a computer."

3 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.11 Contagion

What I got out of this episode is that there is a intelligence out there than the crew has come across so far. Even in the large universe they don't see everything. Q is another example of this. 

"Tea, Earl Grey, hot."

3 out of 5 fingers

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Episode 2.10 The Dauphin

The trouble with these early episodes is that they are all over the place. You get a wonderful episode like The Measure of a Man only to get a stinker like this next. All the momentum is lost. I didn't care much for this episode, but I'm not a twelve year old girl. I would think that even they would hate this one.

"There'll be others. But every time you feel love, it'll be different. Every time it's different"

1 out of 5 tricorders 

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Episode 2.9 The Measure of a Man

This is a episode that I haven't had a chance to see yet that I have heard the most about. It's pretty great actually. Everyone is on their top game. This is easily my favorite episode so far. If you were to show someone who thought that Star Trek was just about space battles with Klingons. This is the episode to show them and make them become a fan.

"Now, the decision you reach here today will determine how we will regard this... creation of our genius. It will reveal the kind of a people we are, what he is destined to be; it will reach far beyond this courtroom and this... one android. It could significantly redefine the boundaries of personal liberty and freedom - expanding them for some... savagely curtailing them for others. Are you prepared to condemn him and all who come after him, to servitude and slavery? Your Honor, Starfleet was founded to seek out new life; well, there it sits! - Waiting."

5 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.8 A Matter Of Honor

Strong episode after the last one. I like the idea of Commanders serving time on other ships. Wouldn't the Klingons need to have someone serve on the Enterprise if it was a exchange though? 

"It's been my understanding that one of the duties of the first officer of the Klingon vessel is to assassinate his captain?"

3 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.7 Unnatural Selection

I joked when Geoff Johns wrote Aquaman #1 he basically held a gun to our head and said "HEY, AQUAMAN IS COOL NOW! GET IT! LOOK HOW COOL HE IS!".

I felt the same way about this episode. The beginning of the episode was a conversation about how cool Pulaski is. Then they get a distress signal which amazingly enough needs Pulaski's expertise. The problem is that the actress who plays Dr. Pulaski (Diana Muldaur) is really not cut out to play a major role like this. It's pretty obvious that she spends most of her on air time reading cue cards. I was actually upset that they found a way to save her. It would have been better if this was her last episode.

Also... Isn't genetic testing against Federation guidelines?

"I'll tell you one thing: if I live through this... I'll have a much better understanding of geriatrics."

1 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.6 The Schizoid Man

Great way to show off Brent Spiner's acting skills. Although how they couldn't figure out that something was off with Data earlier than they did is a mystery. Also it seems odd that they find Data on the ground and just take his word that he's good. Plus they are good with this jealous dude living in the computer? Even though they said he lost all human conscious, I would have deleted that in a heartbeat. 

"I feel pity for you. Your existence must be a kind of walking purgatory - neither dead nor alive. Never really *feeling* anything. Just existing. Just existing."

3 out of 5 tricorders

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Episode 2.5 Loud As A Whisper

This was really a lower tier episode. The only saving grace for the episode was something that I really enjoyed. It showed a hearing impaired character. That really wasn't being done back then (and not even today). Howie Seago played Riva with great emotion that a non impaired actor would not be able to do. He upped my score all by himself.

"The real secret is turning disadvantage into advantage."

3 out of 5 tricorders