Story: The Neutral Zone
Written By: Maurice Hurley
Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Year: 1988
This one is pretty bad throughout. The problem is that the more interesting storyline, the Romulan stand-off, is FAR more interesting. But we have this bad “unfrozen past people” plotline taking the A-slot. What were the writers on when they made this show? They’re using the plot of "Encino Man" to overshadow the Romulans grand return to Trek?
The unfrozen people aren’t that interesting, and their story never once captivated me. The Romulans however are easily the best thing to happen to TNG at this point. The Ferengi were supposed to be “the new Klingons” but the writing and performances crumbled that plan early on. So the writers scrambled…they had to find a new staple villain to fill the void created by making the Klingons on good terms with the Federation. And the Romulans WERE the correct choice. Not only are they made even more conniving and sneaky in this series, but they are also a familiar face…something old fans can go “oh shit” too when the episode ends with the Romulan saying “understand this Captain…we are BACK”.
The episode also foreshadowed the idea that beyond the Romulans being back in the picture, that there is something bigger out there, something scarier than the Romulans, as they attacked outposts for both the Romulans and the Federation. Maurice Hurley had the plan of creating the Borg, and this was his first step in creating a true threat (after the Ferengi plan fell apart so quickly). His initial plan to implement the Borg into the storyline struggled, as this episode focused more on the weaker "people from the past storyline"...and not so much on the stand-off that foreshadowed the Borg, and he planned to begin Season 2 with their intro, but a writers strike screwed that plan up. Luckily when they did show up they kicked ass. So this episode foreshadowed the two biggest foes of the Federation throughout the run of TNG, and that is admirable, it's just a shame that most of the episode is irritating.
So the episode in itself is poorly conceived, but the idea of bringing back the Romulans as antagonists for TNG, as well as hinting at a bigger threat out there was a stroke of genius. Probably saved the show from having NO returning viewers in the following season.
NEXT TIME: TNG Season 1 Recap
Written By: Maurice Hurley
Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Year: 1988
This one is pretty bad throughout. The problem is that the more interesting storyline, the Romulan stand-off, is FAR more interesting. But we have this bad “unfrozen past people” plotline taking the A-slot. What were the writers on when they made this show? They’re using the plot of "Encino Man" to overshadow the Romulans grand return to Trek?
The episode also foreshadowed the idea that beyond the Romulans being back in the picture, that there is something bigger out there, something scarier than the Romulans, as they attacked outposts for both the Romulans and the Federation. Maurice Hurley had the plan of creating the Borg, and this was his first step in creating a true threat (after the Ferengi plan fell apart so quickly). His initial plan to implement the Borg into the storyline struggled, as this episode focused more on the weaker "people from the past storyline"...and not so much on the stand-off that foreshadowed the Borg, and he planned to begin Season 2 with their intro, but a writers strike screwed that plan up. Luckily when they did show up they kicked ass. So this episode foreshadowed the two biggest foes of the Federation throughout the run of TNG, and that is admirable, it's just a shame that most of the episode is irritating.
So the episode in itself is poorly conceived, but the idea of bringing back the Romulans as antagonists for TNG, as well as hinting at a bigger threat out there was a stroke of genius. Probably saved the show from having NO returning viewers in the following season.
NEXT TIME: TNG Season 1 Recap