"The Child" - is season 2 awesome or what?

[Qonundrum]

Season 2 really starts out with all cylinders firing with a more confident production style, more refined camera work and lighting, more refined characters that just the pre-credits opening showcases with aplomb... great acting by all... and is a mixture of an emotion-driven episode along with some sci-fi fluff.

But there's not much of a plot since it's a character introduction piece, and the handling of the new characters is actually quite wonderful and that's what the episode, and season, had to do after the highly variable season 1. It is at this point when it's fairly obvious TNG would not only survive, but flourish. Everyone loves to say "Season 3 changed the style of storytelling" but that's not really true. Season 2 does more to lay the groundwork for the show as being how to reinvent a show while keeping it true to its roots. Season 3 just tops off and polishes season 2's many strengths. Apart from the more dangerous universe aspect season 2 is known for since they thankfully kept the Borg...

Seeing the external shot of Ten-Forward (not a wordplay on "10-4", I hope) was awesome back in the day and still holds up.

Troi usually states "the obvious" in episodes, or sometimes once in a while gets some great scenes before reverting to the "he's hiding something" routine, but this is the first time Troi gets the spotlight and - damn - she sells it wonderfully. Even when Ian states he's going to "die", how they handle her sensing emotions.

Indeed, given season 2 is loaded with episodes that are quite grim, and in some ways this opener has a lot of skin-crawling moments (used effectively), it's the end and when Troi discusses who and what Ian was that shows the universe isn't always so nasty.

Really great direction, especially in the briefing room when everyone discusses Troi's baby-to-be.

Data gets a nice scene where he is present at Ian's birth. More and more I am preferring this aspect of Data over the season 3-7 changes. It used to be the other way around. Indeed, I really like how Troi counters Pulaski regarding Data as being 'the cold hand of technology'. Then again, in 1988 technology was a lot more formal. Technology nowadays is being made to feel "more informal", "more human". If your browser or operating system crashes, it uses familiarization terms as "We have encountered an error" instead of displaying code that can actually trace and lead to the malfunction. Then again, Blake's 7 had a computer named "Slave" that was just as irritating for the same reason. In either case, it's ersatz warmth and a lie.

Yes, they make the mistake of saying Ian is half human/half betazoid (closer to 75/25), but that's the only flaw.

And the only Pulaski scene I didn't like was the "Daah-ta" vs "Day-ta" naming convention scene. Otherwise any scene with the new doctor stands out in very engaging good ways. Especially when dealing with Picard. Dr Crusher had some moments, but Dr Pulaski really is a refreshing change, and TNG's first attempt to bring in character conflict really did work.

I don't often care for emotion-driven episodes, but this one is an exception.

Fully confident, fully capable, great start to a season that's largely a breath of fresh air (despite Okona, but I'll be getting to that sad chapter soon enough) and had it not been for the writers' strike we would have had 4 more episodes, or 5 if you take out the clip show bits and have a full proper episode in those scenes' places instead. "Shades of Gray" really had started spectacularly but went downhill once they put in the VHS Helmet (tm) onto Riker's head, due to circumstances beyond their control.

8/10

Oh, wish CBS did its restoration in-house. At least the live-action stuff is top-notch. Indeed, for all the problems encountered with the f/x shots, I do recall the original release of "Schizoid Man" having chopped off saucer (or was it the nacelles?) that the TNG-R blu-ray release FIXED. The teal color timing problem can also be seen in the original DVD releases in some episodes. The remastering's biggest problem seemed to be mixing up layers since some 1701-D shots look blurry or weird with the dish and nacelle lighting. But season 1's remastering and bonus tweaks did go well above and beyond. Nitpicks aside, there's little in season 2 that's a complete disaster.

 

[STEPhon IT]

There's nothing in Season 2 which were a disaster, there were nothing but challenging and brilliant episodes from that season and introduced two of the most intriguing characters which would propel this series. The hate for Season 2 is nothing but fan-myth.

 

[Qonundrum]

There's nothing in Season 2 which were a disaster, there were nothing but challenging and brilliant episodes from that season and introduced two of the most intriguing characters which would propel this series. The hate for Season 2 is nothing but fan-myth.

It's awesome that it is a myth! A lot of people do pile on the Pulaski hate(tm) that it sometimes gets me to think into things too much.

Oh, that last paragraph was exclusively about the remastering. When I said "disaster", it was solely about f/x restoration and remastering for TNG-R Blu-Ray.

I'll soon get to "Okona". I've never liked the story but I will be sitting through it for the first time in well over a decade, I never even watched the remastered version. Until very soon.

 

[Armus]

Season 2 is a nice transition from Rodenberry's strict adventure of the week approach in season 1, to the greater focus on the crew's off duty lives in the subsequent seasons. Brent Spiner has said the addition of Guinan and Ten-Forward, which occurred at the start of season 2, is the point where he felt that the show really came together.

The show still has its energy and edginess, while the greater emphasis on the character's personal lives added emotional resonance. Every season following seemed to tilt the focus too far away from TNG's original vitality, especially after composer Ron Jones was fired. It was a good balance in season 2, where TNG still portrayed space as a vast, mysterious wild west, as opposed to just having Romulans and Klingons at your doorstop every week as in subsequent seasons.

Q Who, Elementary Dear Data, The Measure of A Man, and A Matter of Honor are rightly regarded as classics but many episodes are underated, such as Where Silence Has Lease, The Dauphin, The Schizoid Man, The Royale, Contagion, Pen Pals, and Up The Long Ladder.

 

[Qonundrum]

Yay, Brent!

Guinan in ways is what Troi should have been, but I just cannot imagine Troi being relegated off the bridge and she's still made occasional excellent use of in the show's run, several times. So they still found ways to accommodate both characters and Guinan definitely makes a strong impression in her premiere. So did Troi in "Farpoint" but unlike Guinan, Troi gets sidelined because not many could think of good ways to use her. At least in season 1.

Yeah, the off-duty stuff appeals and they found a good balance. I believe it was "Time Squared" where we see the bridge crew and doctor eat Riker's prepared eggs, for example. That stuff adds so much more to the characters, which is something TOS very rarely did.

The edginess does appeal. Even in the just-reviewed "Okona" story. It's not a perfect story but it has a sense of aliveness that still works.

Every season following seemed to tilt the focus too far away from TNG's original vitality, especially after composer Ron Jones was fired. It was a good balance in season 2, where TNG still portrayed space as a vast, mysterious wild west, as opposed to just having Romulans and Klingons at your doorstop every week as in subsequent seasons.

While it is technically impossible to agree more than 100%, I will agree to that 42000% anyway. And the wild west with the unknowns and mystery is Trek at its core. Even rewatching long-forgotten episodes, little felt trite. Even "Okona", where the main triteness is arguably Okona himself - the ship crew who interact with him get a lot of fresh and refreshing material.

Q Who, Elementary Dear Data, The Measure of A Man, and A Matter of Honor are rightly regarded as classics but many episodes are underated, such as Where Silence Has Lease, The Dauphin, The Schizoid Man, The Royale, Contagion, Pen Pals, and Up The Long Ladder.

Wholly agreed. Dauphin is extraordinarily underrated and I wish I saw it at the time because it might have helped me. Even better, this was the 1980s - the "coming of age" movies for teens were largely sleazy. Here comes TNG and gives some weight and merit and treats young people with actual respect. It's aged immensely well as an episode.

"Elementary Dear Data", which I also just sat through again, remains as enthralling as ever. Okay, Geordi can bring out a piece of holodeck paper and it doesn't vanish but it's forgivable given how strong the dramatic situation is. It's great adventure... which also adds more to the concept and debate of sentience in machines than (here it comes) "The Measure of a Man" was. And the more I rewatch season 2, the more it's clear they had an arc regarding Data that culminated in "Measure".

Loved "Where Silence Has Lease" - more off-duty antics, but it adds much to Worf and Riker. Then the mystery of the Yamato and space folding in on itself leading to some great tension. Ditto for Nagillum and its mental trickery on the crew. Season 2 is fantastic.

"Pen Pals" is another of my favorites, even though the ending - sweet as it is on one level - still endangers Sarjenka in remembering her experiences and what might happen as a result. (Dismissed "Children and their imaginations" being the best case scenario.) But it's a fantastic episode with the prime directive and Data being the one to save the day.

"Up the Long Ladder" - yes, they resorted to stereotypes. Not always the best but the overall plot is still very chilling, and scientifically accurate regarding the gene pool. Mixed with clones and copy degradation, it made for a surprisingly clever episode at times with a sound conclusion and just reactions, especially from the scientists that go all "Eww, we find shooting DNA at one another offensive!" like how Bender opined in "Futurama".

"Contagion" is an all-time classic in my book. Like TOS's "Court Martial", there's an obvious piece to the puzzle not touched (TOS = alter log, TNG = antimalware) but the setup and execution are so perfect that even knowing what's being overlooked doesn't detract and "Contagion" had some spectacular stuntwork. The idea of an interdimensional doorway adds a lot to canon and even perception of other lores regarding people who arrive out of thin air.

I wish TNG had kept season 2's style for another year or two. Pillar brought a lot to the table but after season 4 it really fizzled flat. Even "Power Play" suffered due to the cheesy incidental music and, good grief, Dennis McCarthy has put out so many more action packed scores - but he had to go by what the producers told him to do to keep in style for the newly changed show format. TNG, to me, really is seasons 1-4, and 5-7. If not 1-most of 4 / tail end of 4-7.

 

[STEPhon IT]

The only season of TNG I don't like was Season 3 which was burdened by fan-service but most fans talk about it as heading in the right direction. The show was steering in the right direction at the start from it's brilliant lead in Patrick Stewart, and embracing the world. I still think the costume change was a betrayal of the concept of an exotic future, but I can understand some cast members' waste lines--Jonathan Frakes-- couldn't possibly sustain this well formed outfit. It's a shame TNG couldn't have transitioned to the DS9 jumpsuits sooner because I thought it was an outfit in the right direction. I like my heroes attractive and lean looking in a uniform, it was interesting how often the male characters had to adjust their tops in every episode because it kept riding up. Stewart, in true command of a scene, made it a character trait for emphasis on a pinnacle moment.

 

[Armus]

^The modified new uniforms that Robert Blackman designed in season 3, after the form fitting versions that the men wore until "The Bonding" didn't stretch enough for the cast to raise their arms, were not very flattering; it made the male cast look overweight, especially Frakes who was in excellent shape in season 3. It made their chests look like a burlap sack with a string tight around the waist. Worse, it seemed sexist to have a skin tight spandex for the female officers while the men wore the wool two piece outfits. I would have liked to have seen another design for new uniforms which were unisex and flattering for everyone.

 

[Armus]

Although I'm glad Michael Piller joined TNG in season 3, since he stabilized the writing staff and most importantly, co-created DS9, I regret that Maurice Hurley, the head writer for seasons 1-2, left. He had a real knack for the characters and crafting stories for the Enterprise that both fit into Rodenberry's future, and had suspense and edginess, like Where Silence Has Lease and Q Who. The scripts that he wrote from scratch had very unique premises and nice twists. Its a pity he had such issues with so many people, including Rodenberry, apparently. Fortunately, Shades of Grey was not his last script for TNG; he cowrote Galaxy's Child in season 4 and was commissioned to write one of the scripts considered for the first TNG movie.

 

[STEPhon IT]

What a shame his script was not considered, I wondered what his idea was or was it based upon the idea of that hollow head of Rick Berman? I hate Ira Behr's production of DS9 but I honestly thought he would've been a better movie producer than Rick Berman while Berman was a better TV executive producer. The reason is Behr was not afraid to take risks, I hate the fan service but he would've turn that shit on it's head.

 

[Armus]

Hurley's story involved the Tholians(from The TOS episode) and a recreation of Kirk on the holodeck. Kirk would have been the only character from TOS to appear, unlike Generations, which was supposed to have Spock, McCoy, and Kirk before Nimoy and Deforest Kelly turned it down. I'm not sure if he wrote an entire script or just an outline; I don't think its ever popped up online.

 

[Herbert]

I quite enjoy Season Two. (and Season One for that matter despite it's wonkiness at times as they try to flesh out the characters) However, The Child is one of my least liked episodes, as is Shades of Gray and Schizoid Man.

 

[Trek Survivor]

I've said many times here that season 2 is my favourite TNG season, and "The Child" is a great start.

 

[Maurice]

...Then again, Blake's 7 had a computer named "Slave" that was just as irritating for the same reason. In either case, it's ersatz warmth and a lie.

Ignoring that Slave was the 3rd computer character on Blake's 7, after the awesome Zen and the persnickety ORAC.

 

[Spirit of 73]

I see season two as a transitional season between one and three, where three consisted of strong, well crafted episodes and one was a nearly total disaster full of basic storytelling mistakes. Season two often avoided these mistakes, but not always. I think The Child was an awful episode, and would have ranked near the bottom of season one episodes if it had aired then.

The main problem I had with The Child was that the characters we knew and cared about are inconsequential to the story. They take no important actions to solve their problem; it's the child who shows up, causes the problems with his presence, and then solves the problem by turning back into a firefly. Not really compelling drama for me.

But the second episode, Where Silence Has Lease, really got things going.

 

[johnnybear]

The Child! A good start to season two agreed but the concept had been done before! Space 1999s Alpha child in 1975 was the first version of the baby and later child taken over by an alien life form which then grows into adulthood, then it was the main focus of the V television series and the star child which was born from an alien lizard father and human mother! I know the story was originally conceived (pardon the pun) for Star Trek's 1977 reboot which never happened and became the Motion Picture~!
JB

 

[Timo]

Yes, they make the mistake of saying Ian is half human/half betazoid (closer to 75/25), but that's the only flaw.

...How is that a mistake? Deanna Troi is half-and-half, supposedly (her mother is pure Betazoid and we never learn her father would not have been pure human). And Deanna Troi is both the mother and the father of Ian Troi. That is, Pulaski establishes that there's no genetic material other than Deanna's in Ian. So the genetic ratio should be the same in Deanna and Ian.

The real "mistake" is the mystery of where the Y chromosome came from to turn Ian into a male, as a human female would have none to offer regardless of whether we considered her the mom or the dad or both. But Betazoid chromosomes probably work differently anyway.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[gakelly]

Season 2 was full of a bunch of below average episodes. It seems like these episodes should be on at 1 am on reruns for some reason, probably because that is when I saw most of these. The episodes seem stripped down and have a minimalist feel, which I kind of enjoy.
There are some good episodes but a lot of bad ones too.
I really hate the Outrageous Okona...probably one of the worst episodes of any series in the history of television.
Time Squared is another horrible episode...every single time travel cliche you can think of is in this one.
Unnatural Selection...why does every sci fi series need to have an episode with a quick aging virus.
The Child is super unoriginal and boring.
Up the Long Ladder should be beamed into space.
The Schizoid Man kinda sucks.
The Dauphin...A Wesley love story...ugh.

Some of the other episodes start out strong but have very weak endings...Where Silence Has Lease, Elementary Dear Data, The Emissary, and Peak Performance.

Loud as a Whisper is a very good episode, minus the crappy love subplot.

The writers seemed to be focused on forcing some kind of love interest in a lot of these episodes. They all weakened the episode except for the Emissary, which was a pointless story other than the relationship between Worf and Kehlyr.

The Child= Troi and a ball of light
Elementary Dear Data= Pulaski + Moriarty
The Outrageous Okona= Apparently an irresistible stud is on the loose, spreading his seed to every woman on the Enterprise.
Unnatural Selection= It seemed like the writers were trying to start some kind of romantic relationship between Picard and Pulaski
The Icarus Factor= Kyle Riker and Pulaski
The Schizoid Man= Data love story
The Dauphin= Wesley love story
Loud as a whisper= Troi love story
Up the Long Ladder= Riker love story
Manhunt= L Troi trying to hook up with every guy on the ship...she should be introduced to the outrageous Okona guy.
The Emissary= Worf love story

 

[Nakita Akita]

^The modified new uniforms that Robert Blackman designed in season 3, after the form fitting versions that the men wore until "The Bonding" didn't stretch enough for the cast to raise their arms, were not very flattering; it made the male cast look overweight, especially Frakes who was in excellent shape in season 3. It made their chests look like a burlap sack with a string tight around the waist. Worse, it seemed sexist to have a skin tight spandex for the female officers while the men wore the wool two piece outfits. I would have liked to have seen another design for new uniforms which were unisex and flattering for everyone.

I was wondering about that uniform duplicity as I watched DS9 about two days ago.

Reading this discussion I was just thinking how I never recalled the women pulling at their shirts. I guess now I know why.
More stupid sexist crap.
I was in the Army, we all wore the same stupid uniforms for the most part.
Class C uniforms for sure. (Pretty much)

They didn't have bathrooms on the enterprise because it took to long for the women to go and get virtually completely undressed to urinate.

 

[Vger23]

I’m one of the few people who actually really appreciate S2 of TNG. There is an eerie, otherworldly feel to the whole season that is the closest TNG got to consistently inspiring wonder and a sense of awe. To me, later seasons of TNG might have been tighter and more consistent, but always felt very “routine” and “clerical” rather than having the sense of danger and mystery of the Enterprise being in deep space on an extended mission. S2 had a lot of that, and that was always my favorite element of what TNG brought to the table.


That said, I really don’t agree that “The Child” was a good episode. It’s easily in the bottom 15% for me. I do agree that it was well-directed and was visually/stylistically far more mature than anything in S1, but the story was varied from uninteresting to annoying.

 

[Amaris]

I like season 2 of TNG, mostly due to Pulaski. One of my favorite episodes is a S2 ep, "The Royale," and I love the music we got that season, and hated that it became "wallpaper" in later seasons. The show felt exciting and fresh, adventurous and bold, at least at the time. So, yeah, season 2 is one of my favorites.