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The Survivors, The Gallifrey Gals Get Warped! S3Ep3

🕑 Added 2020-11-17 18:01:02 +0000 UTC

Comments

Carrie Schwent

I do Limericks for each episode for another Star Trek Podcast I'm a part of, I think you have greatly inspired my limerick for this ep. Thanks!!!

Ashley

OMG I just realized that the actor who plays Kevin is the same actor who plays Harry on MacGyver. "I love ya bud" If you know you know.

Dan Williams

Regret. When feeling sorry about your actions is worse than imprisonment. So often humanity says "live life without regrets," but I think it vital to regret our mistakes. To learn and to grow beyond, but never to forget. It's absolutely perfect for this to be Number 24 in a Top 25, it's the best of the C episodes. The most powerful, with the most meaningful message.

Oblivion'sLegend

There is a huge difference between committing genocide on a planetary or even galaxy wide scale, and committing it on a universal one. What Picard means is that the crime is so atrocious and unimaginable that it doesn't even fit the definition anymore. To simply call it genocide is to understate its severity on a massive scale. No one had ever done something like it before and it will likely never happen again. That and, how do you prosecute and punish what is effectively a god? The Federation couldn't pursue justice even if it wanted to, and what punishment fits such a crime anyways?

Patrick Armbruster

I'm always a _little_ angry at the end. I'm pretty sure the Federation has laws against genocide.

Graham Mills

Excellent catch, Kat! I've wondered for over 2 seasons if you would actually spot the person walking through the Obs Lounge. So many folks never see it until it's pointed out.

Brandon Scott

Ok so the doctor who ep is fixed but I still can’t watch this one. Just a heads up.

Brandon Scott

Cannot watch this one either (just like the doctor who video).

Neil McRae

One other tidbit, the triangular house is a real house out in Malibu. The cast enjoyed shooting there because they so rarely filmed on location. I just found an article saying the house was up for sale two years ago, with an asking price of $5.7 mil.

Geordie Joe

I wonder if Troi might have turned into a version of John Simm's Master had she heard that music in her head any longer.

Peter

It was great watching Katrina have no clue to what was going on in this episode. It made the reaction even better and reminded me how well this episode was written.

David Brown

Guest star John Anderson played Jonathan Frakes' (Riker) father in the miniseries North and South 4 years before this episode.

trylikeafool

Same, I never would have pegged this episode for top 25. There’s way too much good Star Trek that I would put ahead of this.

trylikeafool

Yeah, I think it’s either “YE” or “BOBW.” However, watch it be something completely off my radar.

trylikeafool

I lived in Calabasas the last 6 years and just moved over the summer, so I wasn’t too far from you both in...the valley. Fun fact, I went to find this house in Malibu because I lived like 20 minutes away from it. Took some pictures of it. It overlooks the ocean right off the PCH. Looks exactly the same from what I can tell, but they had the typical L.A. bush fence surrounding it - there were some spots you could see through into the yard where they beamed down. It was fun to see such an iconic house from Star Trek. I never thought super highly of this episode - probably because I was a kid watching it and didn’t get all the heavy stuff. I just remembered how uncomfortable the music box part of it was, but watching it again as an adult definitely makes me appreciate it more. This is something Star Trek does well - leaves you thinking about big things without telling you what’s right or wrong.

GreyIrohNee

season 3 and 5 have great gems, I cant wait

Mark Chrisco

John Anderson, the actor portraying Kevin was offered this role several times before accepting. He had retired from acting and was still grieving the loss of his wife of many years, adding so much poignancy to his performance.

Christine Ester

I had Deanna's dress. wore that thing to death I did. lol

Christine Ester

Buckle up Katrina!

Steven morgan

I can’t believe this, yet another one I don’t remember, but there we go, I wish I wasn’t such a smartarse, I love when a twist hits you at the last possible minute, like it did Katrina, sadly I worked out what was happening when Picard made the cryptic clue about one survivor

GreyIrohNee

excellant episode, so many mor eto come in Season 3

Nolan

Describe this episode of TNG, badly: An old couple think they know best, having outlived everyone, and Troi gets the mother of all ear worms.

Firefly24601

I'm so excited to find out what episode is Paula's favorite! I have a 3 episode short list of possible episodes, and a front-runner. :D

Sìne Watson

You mentioned "he reminds me of the Doctor," which I think is a good point. More specifically, though, he reminds me of Rose from the Parting of the Ways, at the moment she wipes out the Dalek fleet.

Josh G

Also I feel like the episode is one big plot hole. If he's so powerful he could have just transported the alien species to the other side of the galaxy rather than let the colony die.

Ross Holditch

I think it wouldn't make my top 25. But seeing Katrina react to it certainly made me consider if I had judged it too harshly before.

Josh G

Not sure why but I have never forgotten his delivery of the lines where he explains how he wipes out the alien race. His voice and tone were etched into my preteen brain.

Peter Evans

Survivors. For me straight up the first five-star episode of Star Trek the Next Generation, and it remains one of my favourites. Measure of a Man was very good, a strong four-star episode and something of a classic but for me five-stars are handed out extremely grudgingly. An episode has to be practically flawless, and this is one of them. The surreal imagery of the house alone in a ravaged wasteland, a perfectly little square of normality - or abnormality - is such a perfect hook for the episode. Everything is stripped away except that which is vital to plot, the message and the humanity - with just a few quality gags to sweeten the mix at points. This is light-years ahead of Season One in maturity and emotion. How can you judge a God who has such infinite capacities - not only for creation (of a sort) and destruction but for anger and anguish. As Picard says, "We have no laws to fit your crime. We are not qualified to judge you." A true unpremeditated crime of passion is instinctual, unconsidered. Perhaps there was nothing to hold such a power of annihilation in check - not even Kevin's considerable conscience. Acting plaudits go to John Anderson as Kevin, who manages to weigh his character in a short space of time with a great sadness and mystery. I also have to hand out the laurels to Marina Sirtis though, who imbues Troi with a level of suffering that's genuinely distressing to watch. The relief is profound when she is finally healed. Of all Trek characters, Troi is undoubtedly the most difficult for writers to write for as she has a supressed capacity to suddenly end episodes as effectively as Kevin can galactic civilisations. ("He's lying captain, he disguised himself as the bell-hop and the Andorian ambassador's body is in the woodshed." "Oh, thanks Deanna. Whelp, see you next week fans!") It's nice to see Sirtis really cut loose with some intense acting. I find I'm appreciating her substantially more than I used to first time round - her best stuff is yet to come. The people walking in the ready-room in the opening credits! When I watched it on a CRT TV at the time I drove myself almost crazy trying to work out if I were imagining people walking about in there or if they had really pulled off an amazing special effect! It's easier to see in HD but I still keep wondering if I'm imagining it... glad I have independent confirmation that this isn't a hallucination every bit as effective as Kevin's mastery of illusion. By the way, I wonder if Jonathan Frakes practices his quizzical-concerned look in mirrors? They close out so many cut-to-adverts fade outs and I love 'em. That slightly raised jaw, that mildly raised eyebrow, that frown of worried concentration. Great stuff Frakes. And great reaction once again! I won't lie, this one had me blubbing a bit too on first watch. If you want to read a brilliant, beautiful and haunting little science-fiction story about keeping a memory alive I can strongly recommend 'Light of Other Days' by the Irish writer Bob Shaw. It's one of the greatest science-fiction stories I've ever read. The only element in it is the idea of 'slow glass', glass through which light takes years to pass. What it does with this idea is heartbreaking and the story was a deserved Hugo Award winner for best story in '67.

Ross Holditch

I don't know if I'd call that a "fun" fact... certainly an interesting one.

Robert Williams

Watching the two of you react to the enterprise flying past the viewer in the opening credits made me think of how in the original Star Trek series, the sound of the enterprise flybys were simply Alexander Courage blowing into a microphone.

Daniel

It is so fun to share the confusion and thrill with Katrina that I felt first time watching, and then also share the smugness with Paula as someone who already seen the show.

Robert Williams

Kevin Uxbridge is what Niel Breen wishes he was.

Jeff Seely

I've always had a soft spot for this episode, and I was really looking forward to seeing what Katrina was going to think of it. John Anderson (the actor playing Kevin Uxbridge) had quite an acting career going all the way back to the '50s. Among many other shows, he was in eleven episodes of The Rifleman (playing a different character in each one), four episodes of the original Twilight Zone series, twelve episodes of Gunsmoke (playing a different character in almost every episode), nine episodes of Dallas, and five episodes of MacGyver. And in this TNG episode, his performance absolutely sold the grieving and guilt-ridden character he was portraying. If we were in season one or two, this would easily be one of my top five episodes of the season. It's only because we're in season three that this episode is probably in the ten to fifteen range for me.

Joshua Gosdin

Worf has excellent manners. Also, fun fact: John Anderson (Kevin Uxbridge) filmed this episode shortly after the passing of his wife.

Bruce Bromley

Yes, Anderson's wife died February of '89 and this episode aired in October of that year. I'd say that her passing was very close to when they filmed.

Bruce Bromley

Nothing else they really could do. He was pretty much a Q being, but with morals and a conscious.

Neil McRae

Also one bit of trivia: both the Uxbridges were in the movie "Psycho", but not the same version: John Anderson played the friendly used car saleman who sells Janet Leigh a car in the original 1960 Hitchcock version, while Anne Haney played the sheriff's wife in the not-so-well-received 1998 Gus Van Sant remake.

Andrew Hogan

Wow, I was surprised to see how emotional this one was. I suppose after my 500th viewing I’ve become numb to the ramifications. I have noticed your first reactions are to clothes and decor. This is one of my underrated gems of the series. It doesn’t get a lot of mention but it’s definitely a solid episode all around, hardly any flaws to it. It’s funny because the next episode is held in high regard which I understand but to me it’s a bit boring. I’d go into greater detail but I can’t without spoiling things so you’ll just have to accept my opinion. There are quite a few gems coming up that aren’t mentioned much because they’re overshadowed by the last 15 or so. To me this was also one of Marina Sirtis’s best performances, she doesn’t get a lot of credit most of the time because of her character being so back and forth, but she really sold it on this episode and I think a lot like Shatner her performances are criticized a bit unfairly at times. Can’t wait for the TOS reaction episode either, we need an update, lol!

Neil McRae

I got to meet Michael Dorn at a convention a few years back and asked him what guest stars had really made an impression on him. He said there were two. One was Jon Colicos (who played the Klingon Kor in the Original Series and returned a few times on DS9) and the other was John Anderson in this episode. I don't if it's true, but I read somewhere that this episode was hard for him because he really had lost his wife before filming this episode.

Sean Ellingham

Morality of it aside, there's a solid practical reason for leaving Kevin alone at the end - there's no possible way a being with his level of power could ever be detained, so leaving him in self-imposed isolation is essentially all they can do

Christian Rennie

This is a great episode. But I like how Dr. Crusher calls it in the beginning, "It must be an illusion." Every one ignores her and by the end of the episode she is proven right. Interesting writing to spoil the mystery from the beginning.

Bruce Bromley

I had a feeling this one might get to the both of you. Especially the end. John Anderson, who played Kevin was a hell of an actor. You can see a lot of his early TV roles from the 50's on MeTV. This was one of his final ones. He worked up until his passing in '92 at the age of 69. Yes Kat, that painting has always been in the Captain's Ready Room, but I believe this was the first time it had been lit up light like that.

Matthew Berry

I believe this is the first episode where we see Katrina cry TWICE!! It goes to show the quality of the episode, and it's only the third one yet this season. This one is one of my favorites of all of TNG. Glad to see you Gals enjoying things thus far!

Jarrod Wild

Good show. Nice reaction.

John

Just a minor technical comment - the audio on the video was a lot lower than your voiceover, so when I turn it up to hear the episode your conversation is really loud. This episode makes me think about how uncontrolled our own thoughts are. Even if you can control your actions, imagine if your angry impulses were immediately manifested in reality. I'm also really looking forward to next week's episode. Yeah it's good, but to me the story speaks to the core of what Star Trek is about. If you're curious, here's the origin of the Vulcan salute: https://youtu.be/DyiWkWcR86I