Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Star Trek: The Next Generation - "Hide and Q"

...Wherein instant power corrupts Riker instantly, Worf says Klingon ways are now alien to him, and Q promises never to bother humanity again.

Well, maybe I'm being a little harsh with poor Riker-- there is the definite implication that his being given Q powers was affecting his mind. But it's such an instantaneous change, from being able to resist the powers one minute to being a pompous idiot the next, that it's hard to relate to. Picard's agreement with Riker that he was acting like a fool when he comes out of it is priceless, because it feels like he's speaking for the audience as well.

Worf's little Public Display of par'Mach is interesting, because on the one hand it does set the tone for his later courting by Jadzia on DS9. On the other hand his saying he's not interested in it because "she is from a world that is now alien to me" feels like something Worf would never admit to, as his Klingon heritage has always come first in his life. But seeing as this is still a very early episode, I can forgive the writers for not quite knowing what Worf's situation is yet.

John DeLancie's portrayal of Q has never before or since felt more like Trelane from "Squire of Gothos" than in this episode.

And lastly, the best scene in the episode has to be when Picard and Q use to Shakespeare to sum up humanity, both pro and con. Stewart's "and what [Hamlet] might say with irony, I say with conviction" speech is just fantastic. What a scene.

Almost makes me want to read some Shakespeare. Eh... maybe I'll watch another episode of Knight Rider instead.

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