Mirror Universe Star Trek Discovery: Ends Up As Fairly Good, "Despite Yourself"

The Good: Decent performances, Moments of character, Decent direction
The Bad: Larger continuity problems with the Star Trek Universe
The Basics: Star Trek: Discovery goes into the Mirror Universe for "Despite Yourself," the midseason premiere.


Star Trek: Discovery has returned! While many people were busy watching the Golden Globe Awards, Star Trek: Discovery returned with "Despite Yourself," an episode that was largely anticipated by the fans thanks to Jonathan Frakes accidentally spoiling (months ago) that he was directing a Mirror Universe episode. The Mirror Universe was introduced in the Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror" (reviewed here!), so - unlike the Star Trek Enterprise episodes that were set within the Mirror Universe without any crossing over aspect - the instant burden upon "Despite Yourself" is to make the episode fit the canon. After all, fans have been asking, how can the U.S.S. Discovery go to the Mirror Universe a decade prior to the Enterprise without anyone from either universe knowing about that alternate universe? This is especially problematic in that the first Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode involving the Mirror Universe referred to the events of "Mirror, Mirror" as the "first" crossover.

"Into The Forest I Go" (reviewed here!) climaxed with the U.S.S. Discovery being knocked out of our universe. As many fans had long predicted, the Mirror Universe is the ship's first stop on its trek back to our universe. And, despite the inherent continuity issues with inter-universal travel at this point in the Star Trek Universe, the idea that the crew has traveled to an alternate universe is realized pretty quickly.

The crew of the U.S.S. Discovery quickly realizes that they are in another universe when the ship materializes within a debris field. There, the ship encounters a Vulcan ship, which refers to "rebels" and exchanges fire with the Discovery. Stamets, blinded and crazed in Sickbay, is relieved by Lorca of his partner's case. Lieutenant Tyler is sent in a shuttlepod to extract the data core from the debris of a Klingon raider. There, the crew is shocked when Tyler finds the bodies of a Vulcan and an Andorian. Tyler returns to the Discovery and he confronts L'Rell. Tyler talks with Burnham, but he refuses to confess to the Captain that he is suffering from post-traumatic stress.

When Burnham and Tilly are able to activate the Klingon core and define the universe they are in, they discover that the Terran Empire is at war with the Rebels, who are an alliance of Klingons, Andorians, and Vulcans. Burnham learns about the Mirror Discovery's crew and she learns that Tilly is the ship's Captain there. After bluffing their way through a conversation, Lorca has the ship refitted to appear to be the I.S.S. Discovery. Burnham learns that in the Mirror Universe, Lorca attempted to seize political power and escaped, killing the Mirror Burnham in the process. Lorca wants to learn who the Emperor of the Terran Empire is, so he prepares a mission for himself, Burnham, and Tyler to infiltrate the Mirror U.S.S. Shenzhou.

In "Despite Yourself," Captain Lorca continues to be written like a painfully oblivious person. Lorca recognizes that Burnham and Tyler have a relationship, which is pretty basic on the perception level (Burnham, on the bridge, is not at all subtle). Lorca seems to have no idea that Tyler is completely shellshocked from his torture at the hands of the Klingon L'Rell. While "Despite Yourself" reveals that Tyler has not talked with the Captain about his PTSD, the fact that Lorca, Saru and the ship's Doctor have not noticed Tyler's condition is somewhat ridiculous. In fact, as the episode progresses, it becomes more and more problematic that Lorca is so unobservant to Tyler's behaviors.

"Despite Yourself" blends Star Trek: Discovery with Star Trek: Enterprise fairly well. In Star Trek: Enterprise, the U.S.S. Defiant that was lost in the Star Trek episode "The Tholian Web" (reviewed here!) rematerialized in the past in the Mirror Universe. "Despite Yourself" includes that aspect of plot continuity and that works fairly well.

Unfortunately, the slow revelations of "Despite Yourself" create larger continuity problems in the Star Trek Universe. While the technology on the U.S.S. Discovery has always been problematic, "Despite Yourself" opens a massive continuity problem as far as the technology of the era. Lorca either has a tribble that is engineered not to react to Klingons or the Klingons have a disguise technology that can fool a tribble. If the latter is the case, why would they ever utilize agents that could not pass the "Tribble test?!"

Tilly is fleshed out fairly well in "Despite Yourself." Tilly, who is meek and talkative, has to play her counterpart, a brutal killer. Playing the more aggressive version of Tilly allows Mary Wiseman a chance to play her part with a bit more vigor and depth than normal and that is interesting to watch. Wiseman plays well a nervous young woman playing a woman in power who is essentially evil.

"Despite Yourself" does a good job of revealing what the seeds in Ash Tyler's character actually have been revealing. Dr. Culber does another examination of Tyler and his report reveals what many fans have suspected about his character. The problem with Tyler's character being revealed as much as he has been - and with Tyler committing murder on the Discovery - is that it undermines all the rest of the characters on the U.S.S. Discovery. Tyler almost constantly fools Saru - who now lacks the character to tell Lorca that he senses Tyler might be a threat, which makes him a piss poor first officer. Tyler fools Burnham, Lorca and reveals that Culber has no backbone or sense of medical ethics that would make him a ship's doctor of the caliber of McCoy, Crusher, Pulaski, Bashir or even the EMH! For a group of people at war with the Klingons, the crew of Discovery is painfully trusting of the most obvious person who could betray them.

Ultimately, "Despite Yourself" is a dress-up episode where most of the characters learn about the Mirror Universe and change clothes with minimal chance to grow of evolve. Jonathan Frakes directs "Despite Yourself" just fine, including in the episode a little homage to Guardians Of The Galaxy, Vol. 2, and he makes the somewhat basic episode look good. Ultimately, "Despite Yourself" makes for a decent return to Star Trek: Discovery, even with its issues.

For other midseason premier episodes, please check out my reviews of:
"Chosen Realm" - Star Trek: Enterprise
"Borrowing Problems From The Future" - The Flash
"Aftershocks" - Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.

6/10

For other Star Trek episode, movie, and seasons, please check out my comprehensive Star Trek Review Index Page!

© 2018 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The 10 Essential Star Trek Experiences! (Happy Star Trek 50th Anniversary!)

| | | The Basics: The Star Trek franchise is massive and if one were to try to distill the incredible franchise into ten works, these are the pieces everyone ought to experience!


Happy 50th Anniversary Of Star Trek! Fifty years ago today, Star Trek made its debut on NBC with the episode "The Man Trap" (reviewed here!) and that led to the creation of a massive franchise set in a common fictional universe's 22nd, 23rd, and (most significantly) 24th Centuries. To celebrate the Star Trek franchise, I thought it was the perfect time to explore just why so many people have fallen in love with the Star Trek universe. I have been a Trekker for more than twenty-five years and celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Star Trek is a pretty big holiday in my household.

In celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Star Trek, I decided to contemplate the entire franchise and all of the varied experiences I have had with watching, reading and otherwise studying the Star Trek franchise. I got to thinking about what was essential in the Star Trek franchise and I thought I'd give the answer the classic "desert island" question. In trying to winnow down the massive Star Trek franchise down to only ten items, I had to make some very difficult cuts. The incredible Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Hard Time" (reviewed here!) was a tough cut to make, as was the brilliant two-part Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes "Chain Of Command" (reviewed here!) and "Chain Of Command, Part II" (reviewed here!) had an insular subplot that non-fans would just not appreciate, despite its absolutely essential anti-torture message.

After all of the cuts and contemplation, after fifty years of all things Star Trek, the ten absolute essential Star Trek experiences are:

10. "The Measure Of A Man" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? An early second season episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, "The Measure Of A Man" finds the Enterprise docking at a starbase on the frontier where a scientist comes aboard to take custody of the ship's android officer, Data. Dr. Bruce Maddox wants to experiment upon Data and when the incredibly intelligent android doubts the scientist's methods and balks at the proposed experiments, Data attempts to assert his bodily autonomy. Maddox presses the issue and Data resigns from StarFleet in order to protect his life, which leads Maddox to assert that as a sentient machine, Data is property, not a person. What follows is a court case where Data's right to self-determination is decided.

Why Is It Essential? "The Measure Of A Man" is a strong ethical argument that holds up incredibly well. There is a lot of Star Trek that did not age well and "The Measure Of A Man" has moments of melodrama between Captain Picard and the officer representing the Judge Advocate General that play poorly, but they are not enough to rob the episode of its vitality. Instead, "The Measure Of A Man" has great character conflict and an ethical dilemma that successfully explores the ramifications of having ethics. The struggle between Data and Maddox is not about resolving a simple conflict; it leads to an argument about what comes next, what the ramifications are of devaluing life.

9. "The Survivors" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? An early episode of the third season of Star Trek The Next Generation, "The Survivors" has the Enterprise arriving at a colony world that was attacked and the entire world's population was wiped out. While investigating the destruction, the Enterprise discovers one family and their property have survived entirely unscathed. The mystery of how and why they survived perplexes the Enterprise crew and the mystery is intensified by a psychic attack upon Counselor Troi. As Captain Picard investigates the loving couple who survived a planetary genocide, he uncovers a horrific truth.

Why Is It Essential? No one else would probably find "The Survivors" essential, but it is truly an immaculate work of what Star Trek stands for. "The Survivors" explores the nature of guilt and consequence, it is a profound statement on love and the grief that plays out exceptionally well, time after time. "The Survivors" puts Picard at the mercy of someone he does not understand and his final statement to Kevin Uxbridge is a simple, eloquent moment where Patrick Stewart adds an entirely new dimension to Captain Picard with his delivery. After so many episodes of Star Trek and Star Trek The Next Generation where StarFleet seems virtually invincible and the sole occupant of the moral high ground, "The Survivors" redefines StarFleet's jurisdiction and there is a brilliance to the episode's simplicity and it's contrasting moral sophistication.

8. "Mirror, Mirror" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? In the second season of Star Trek, four members of the Enterprise crew teleport through an ion storm and end up in an alternate universe. There, they find that they are part of a warship that is set to wipe out an entire planet's population to eliminate the roadblock to strip mining the planet. With the ion storm dissipating, which will prevent the crewmembers from returning to their native universe, Captain Kirk risks his life to take a moral stand to prevent the genocide of the Halkan people. With assassins threatening Kirk and the others, Captain Kirk allies with his counterpart's partner to use reason and an alien weapon to delay the destruction he has been ordered to carry out.

Why Is It Essential? Star Trek managed to take a basic science fiction premise like multiverse theory and do something more than just give Spock a goatee (though it does that, too!). "Mirror, Mirror" is an episode that seems like a simple gimmick episode, but it is both character-driven and portrays a higher sense of ethics. "Mirror, Mirror" is pretty much the gold standard for multiverse episodes not only for the way it spends time with Captain Kirk and his team in the Mirror Universe, but for Spock's explanation for why their counterparts absolutely failed to integrate when they were beamed up to the Enterprise. There are not a lot of episodes of the original Star Trek that manage to use the entire ensemble cast (despite the mythology, only Star Trek only had three stars in the opening credits and the episodes were very heavily biased toward Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock); "Mirror, Mirror" is, arguably, the best to showcase the acting talents of the entire cast.

7. "Frame Of Mind" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? In the sixth season of Star Trek The Next Generation, Commander Will Riker is sent on a mission to a planet where he is wounded and ends up in an insane asylum. Prior to the mission, Riker had been involved in performing in a play that was set in an asylum and his sense of reality rapidly begins to break down. As Riker transitions between the play rehearsals and the alien asylum, he struggles with his sense of reality. With his apparent mental breakdown progressing, Riker must choose which reality is real, potentially risking his entire brain and life!

Why Is It Essential? Long before Brannon Braga absolutely gutted the Star Trek franchise, he wrote some masterful episodes of science fiction television. "Frame Of Mind" was his creative peak and Jonathan Frakes used it as an opportunity to act the hell out of it. Not at all about the reversal at the end, "Frame Of Mind" is incredible for the process, the thrill of discovery. And Jonathan Frakes dominates on the acting front. Sure, there is more to a great hour of television than an amazing performance, but seriously, Jonathan Frakes is that good as Riker transitioning between the two very different realities and making those transitions have an effect on his character.

6. Imzadi By Peter David (reviewed here!) - What Is It? Opening in the future, Admiral Riker is a miserable old man, crushed by the weight of losing one true love, Deanna Troi. Set in the future, the past when a young Will Riker met Deanna Troi, and the present when the U.S.S. Enterprise is on a mission that costs Troi her life, Imzadi becomes a time travel adventure as Admiral Riker decides to violate all of the rules of time travel by going back to save Troi's life. Pursued by authorities from his own time, Admiral Riker risks everything to change reality out of his sense of loss and love.

Why Is It Essential? No one writing Star Trek novels before Peter David looked at the episodic, unrelated, episodes in the franchise and managed to tie them together with plots, references and asides like Peter David. Imzadi is funny and tragic and clever in a way that endures as only great literature can. Intricate and character-driven, Imzadi effectively explores the depths of love and loss in a time-travel adventure that transcends pulp fiction. Indeed, when the greatest flaw a book possesses is that it gets a character's middle name wrong (Riker says his middle name is "Tiberius;" when Peter David wrote the novel, Riker had been referred to in the show as William T. Riker, it wasn't until years after the book was published that an episode defined the "T" as "Thomas"), you have a bona fide masterpiece. Imzadi is the gold standard for what a writer can do when not bound by a television budget for sets, make-up, special effects, and guest actors. Peter David writes a work that is appropriately complex and clever, with a narrative voice that entertains even as it drives the reader to empathize.

5. "A Piece Of The Action" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? Late in the second season of Star Trek, the U.S.S. Enterprise visited the planet Iotia. Iotia was once visited by another starship and now, years later, the Enterprise crew is horrified to learn that the entire planet has modeled itself off of Chicago Mobs of the 1920s. When Kirk and Spock are taken hostage, a caper ensues with their escape, rescue, and capture by rival gangs. In trying to stay alive, Captain Kirk has to try to put the societal evolution of the planet back on its natural course.

Why Is It Essential? Science fiction can work amazingly well when it utilizes humor and "A Piece Of The Action" is an excellent example of that. After a season and a half of Captain Kirk and his crew spouting the Federation's non-interference directive (the Prime Directive), the viewer is treated to seeing why the Prime Directive is important. The result of interfering with the natural evolution of a society is presented with humor and menace and "A Piece Of The Action" manages to find the right balance of it. Like "Mirror, Mirror," it utilizes the ensemble cast well and it is an episode that allowed William Shatner to go wild with his performance of Captain Kirk and have the occassional over-the-top nature of his acting not at all detract from the episode.

4. Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan / Star Trek III: The Search For Spock (reviewed here! and here!) - What Is It? The two movies, viewed together, open with an aging Admiral Kirk feeling unsatisfied with life, wondering what his purpose in life is after being promoted out of being a starship Captain. Admiral Kirk accompanies Captain Spock and the Enterprise, crewed by cadets, on a training mission. While on the mission, a research outpost contacts the Enterprise with a crisis; a starship they work with is coming to take a potentially dangerous scientific device without authorization. The Enterprise rushes to help only to discover that the U.S.S. Reliant has been hijacked by one of Kirk's old enemies. In trying to stop a man who is smarter, stronger, and more dangerous than the Enterprise crew, Captain Kirk finds his sense of purpose, but loses his closest friend. In the aftermath of tragedy, Captain Kirk and his friends struggle to save Dr. McCoy and Spock's lives, risking their careers and lives against a new, vicious adversary.

Why Is It Essential? Technically, it is a cheat as they are two movies, but they actually hold up much better playing off one another to make one solid narrative. Plus, Star Trek III: The Search For Spock was Leonard Nimoy's directorial debut and Christopher Lloyd never gets enough credit for his portrayal of Klingon Commander Kruge. Aging and obsession are masterfully presented with a strong character-driven narrative and the full cast illustrates the depths of their character in a powerful story about loyalty. There is a reason Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan is considered a classic . . . and it's not just Ricardo Montalban's bare chest. Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan and Star Trek III: The Search For Spock find the absolute right balance between action, character complexities, and ethical dilemmas.

3. "The Inner Light" (reviewed here!)- What Is It? At the end of the fifth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the Enterprise encounters an alien probe that knocks Captain Picard unconscious. While his body lies unconscious on the Bridge, fed a stream of data from the probe, Captain Picard wakes up on an alien planet. He is told his name is Kamin by his wife and that he lives on the planet Kataan. After years of rejecting what appears to be the truth, Kamin accepts that the time he recalled aboard the Enterprise as Picard was a fever delusion and he starts a family and studies the environment to discover that Kataan is on the verge of a devastating climate change.

Why Is It Essential? It takes a lot to make a story that is insular to a character that is also incredible to viewers who are not invested in that character; "The Inner Light" finds that perfect spot. Fans of Star Trek The Next Generation were used to Captain Picard as a somewhat emotionally-withheld character who disliked children and was never in a successful romantic relationship. "The Inner Light" completely redefines the character and is a brilliant exploration of "the road not taken." "The Inner Light" effectively explores how, given a chance, a person can completely redefine themselves and create a life that is unexpectedly satisfying. "The Inner Light" is a Patrick Stewart performance that absolutely captivates the viewer and the guest cast that surrounds Stewart is surprisingly impressive, rising to his caliber. "The Inner Light" uses a minimal science fiction concept to explore real character drama.

2. "The Visitor" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? The fourth season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine shifted immediately from its burgeoning war story arc to a powerful character-driven piece with "The Visitor," which focused on Jake Sisko. Opening in the distant future, Jake Sisko is a writer living in seclusion when he is sought out by an aspiring writer. Jake tells the story of how he became a writer and why he stopped writing; he lost his father. But when Benjamin Sisko was lost, so many years ago, he did not simply die. As the grieving Jake Sisko tried to move on with his life, his father would appear periodically, apparently trapped in another dimension. Guided by grief, Jake gives up his promising career to study subspace physics in a desperate search to find a way to recover his father . . . a pursuit that takes him his entire adult life.

Why Is It Essential? This is the ultimate Star Trek franchise tearjerker. "The Visitor" is a love story and it is a profound statement on the importance of having a loving parent. "The Visitor" is a great example of a powerful character study that has a universal message that makes incredible use of a minor science fiction conceit to reveal something deep and true. More could be said about "The Visitor," but it might be the greatest Star Trek experience worth experiencing rather than analyzing.

1. "Duet" (reviewed here!) - What Is It? The penultimate episode of the first season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine finds an alien ship visiting the station with a Cardassian who requires medication. The need for the medication instantly draws the attention of First Officer Kira Nerys, who claims that for the Cardassian to need the medication he must have been at the site of one of the most horrific examples of genocide during the Cardassian Occupation. Kira imprisons the Cardassian and as tensions arise outside the station about the legality of the Cardassian's detainment, the crew works to confirm the Cardassian's identity. Kira has either imprisoned an innocent Cardassian filing clerk . . . or one of the greatest war criminals of the Occupation.

Why Is It Essential? It is virtually impossible to make a compelling hour of television where the bulk of it is two people simply talking to one another. The idea of creating an episode of Star Trek where the plot action is a prisoner identification seems like a recipe for boredom and disaster. Star Trek Deep Space Nine not only makes it work, but it creates a truly brilliant episode. Nana Visitor and Harris Yulin play off one another immaculately and their banter is a writer's dream. "Duet" is essentially an allegory episode that explores (in metaphorical terms) the effects of the Holocaust and the idea of national culpability. And, on the opposite side, "Duet" is a knock-out episode that defines Kira Nerys; a woman who has been fueled by racism and anger who is forced to look at a man she perceives as an enemy in an entirely different way. The emotional journey is intense, viewing after viewing. Like all of the best moments in the Star Trek franchise, "Duet" is smart, well-performed, character-driven and blends social commentary with a statement that reveals something profoundly important and human.

For other Star Trek articles, please visit:
The Top Ten Episodes Of Star Trek
The Top Ten Episodes Of Star Trek The Next Generation
The Top Ten Episodes Of Star Trek Deep Space Nine
The Top Ten Episodes Of Star Trek Voyager
The Top Ten Episodes Of Star Trek Enterprise

For other Star Trek reviews, please visit my Star Trek Review Index Page!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Finale 2.0, “These Are The Voyages . . .” Ends Star Trek: Enterprise And Star Trek: The Next Generation

The Good: Interesting retcon for Riker, Inside jokes, Moments of concept
The Bad: Nothing stellar on the plot or character front
The Basics: In a one-shot finale episode, “These Are The Voyages . . .” has an old Star Trek: The Next Generation episode revisited with Star Trek: Enterprise as a Holodeck program within in!


Cut short (or, for those of us who were not fans, finally going off the air after being dragged out for far too long), Star Trek: Enterprise had a surprisingly controversial finale. Instead of ending Star Trek: Enterprise on its own strength, with the logical end point for the series – the founding of the United Federation Of Planets - “These Are The Voyages . . .” (the series finale to Star Trek: Enterprise) concluded with an episode that devoted a decent chunk of time and more in the way of actual character development to Star Trek: The Next Generation! After years living in the shadow of the prior Star Trek series’s, Star Trek: Enterprise surrendered to the probability that no one would ever accept the show the way they fell in love with Star Trek: The Next Generation, the executive producers and writers hedged their bets and essentially created a “lost episode” of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

On the clever front, “These Are The Voyages . . .” occurs within the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “The Pegasus” (reviewed here!). In that episode, Commander Riker had to make a tough choice. To help him get the emotional strength to make his tough decision, Riker disappears (in this retcon episode) to the Holodeck. Revisiting the final mission of the NX-01 Enterprise, Riker begins to get the inner strength that we are supposed to believe he did not have before that. Go figure.

During the mission to recover the U.S.S. Pegasus, Commander William Riker is troubled. Having encountered Admiral Preston, his former commanding officer, and learned that he plans to continue pursuing illegal military operations with cloaking device technology, Riker finds his loyalties divided. To make the difficult decision as to whether or not to betray his former commander by outing the secret mission the Pegasus was on when it was lost, Riker takes Counselor Troi’s advice and visits the holodeck. There, Riker relives the final mission of the NX-01 Enterprise.

On its way to the signing ceremony for the United Federation Of Planets’s charter, the NX-01 Enterprise is diverted when Shran pops up. Presumed dead for the four years prior, Archer brings Shran aboard and he reveals that his daughter, whom Archer never knew existed, has been kidnapped. Calling in his favor with Archer, Shran and the Enterprise go to the Rigel System to make the trade. Getting his daughter back, Shran returns to the Enterprise. But the raiders who kidnapped Shran’s daughter catch up with the Enterprise and in their zeal to capture Shran, Tucker steps up to protect his captain and his captain’s Andorian ally.

“These Are The Voyages . . .” unfortunately undermines both Star Trek: Enterprise and the character of Commander William T. Riker. Riker has been known to make tough decisions prior to the seventh season of Star Trek: The Next Generation (which is when “The Pegasus” happens). So, the idea that the events of “The Pegasus” are so daunting that he needed to use a mission of the NX-01 Enterprise just to do the right thing is somewhat preposterous. More than that, the two halves of the episode do not really jive. Archer does not make any particularly tough or world-shattering decisions in his half of the plot. And Tucker, who dominates the character front of the Star Trek: Enterprise portion of the episode, makes a fast decision that is no more difficult or different from his other, prior decisions.

As a result, “These Are The Voyages . . .” glosses over most of the Enterprise crew on the character front. T’Pol and Tucker reference their defunct relationship but because the episode happens over five years after the prior episode, “Terra Prime” (reviewed here!), there is a real emotional disconnect in the characters. The idea that Shran has been presumed dead for years and that Archer so quickly accepts his return is an abrupt one. Shran pops back in and given that the Enterprise crew has had some experience with shapeshifters, that Archer just accepts his sudden appearance is as disconnected as the other elements of the story.

“These Are The Voyages . . .” tries to use all of the main cast of Star Trek: Enterprise, but they are glossed over very quickly. Riker taking on the role of Chef is an amusing in-joke (Chef is never actually seen in the series) which gives him access to all of the crewmembers, but with one or two lines each, there is no real depth to the character arc of the episode.

What “These Are The Voyages . . .” ends up being is an episode that brings real closure to the modern Star Trek era; reminding viewers why they loved the Star Trek franchise. It wasn’t Star Trek: Enterprise they loved and, ironically, the finale to the show illustrated that.

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Star Trek: Enterprise - The Complete Fourth Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the final season here!
Thanks!]

For other Star Trek finales, please visit my reviews of:
“Turnabout Intruder” - Star Trek
“The Counter-Clock Incident” - Star Trek: The Animated Series
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
“All Good Things . . .” - Star Trek: The Next Generation
“What You Leave Behind” - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
“Endgame” - Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Nemesis

4.5/10

For other Star Trek episode and movie reviews, please visit my Star Trek Review Index Page!

© 2014 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Beardless Riker! Galoob’s Least Loserish Common Figure: Commander Riker!

The Good: General sculpt (it’s obvious who it is), Can be found dirt cheap!
The Bad: Overproduced, Unbalanced, Lousy accessory, Terrible coloring and detailing.
The Basics: The only beardless Riker figure to date is the Star Trek: The Next Generation Commander Will Riker action figure from Galoob!


Despite the popularity of Star Trek The Next Generation, there are some characters from the show that are surprisingly under-represented in the merchandising. Despite all of the various Commander Riker action figures that have been produced, there is (to date) only one figure of Riker without his trademark beard. While Riker shaved his beard in Star Trek: Insurrection, the 12” dolls from the movie cheated; only one had the barefaced Riker. Playmates even cheated when it recycled the figures, making the Riker In Second Season Uniform (reviewed here!) figure so they could reuse the bearded Riker head. As a result, it’s only Galoob that offers a first season, beardless, Will Riker action figure.

One of the four most common Galoob Star Trek: The Next Generation figures was Commander Will Riker. Commander Riker was popular, but the figure was released after promo images from the second season were leaked and viewers were already liking the bearded Riker quite a bit! As a result, the Riker figure was a universal pegwarmer, often remaining on clearance racks even after the Picard figure from Galoob (reviewed here!) was bought up!

Basics

The Star Trek: The Next Generation 1988 Collection of action figures contained six figures (though two were quite rare and another four were later released) and it focused on the essential characters and villains of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Enormously overproduced even then, Commander Will Riker was one of four figures that was so common by 1989, most toy stores were trying (unsuccessfully) to blow their stock out in the dollar bins. Will Riker suffered additionally because Riker had a beard for most of the time the figure was stuck in the discount bins, so he didn’t look much like the action figure when people went to buy it!

The Commander Will Riker figure is the Command officer as he appeared in the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation (reviewed here!). Will Riker is wearing the maroon command uniform which should have the piping on shoulders unique to the first two seasons, but is missing from the figure.

Standing three and a half inches tall, this is a poor likeness of Commander Will Riker immortalized in plastic. The character is molded in a generic standing position that makes him look like he is in a coffin. He is molded with a phaser in his left hand, so he is ready for combat, so long as it is straight in front of him! This Will Riker figure has a terrible level of detailing, with the head being disproportionately small compared with the rest of his body. As well, the uniform detailing is poor with accents like the piping on the pants and shoulders not being painted on. To add further insult to collectors, some of the painting is sloppy like the communicator pin, which is not clearly defined by the coloring, only the molding! Will Riker's face is a generic, neutral expression that contains no emotions. His eyes look dead and are little more than black dots on the white fields of the eyeballs. Will Riker’s skin is also monotonally colored, so there is no depth or shading realism to the figure’s features. He is obviously the Commander, but the molding and paint details are so minimal. He lacks color for his lips, too.

Accessories

Commander Will Riker comes with only one accessory, considering that the phaser is molded into his one hand. That accessory is a tricorder and it comes with a strap that was never used on the actual tricorders on Star Trek The Next Generation. Instead, this looks like a generic phone from the late 1980s hanging on a plastic loop. The accessory is light on molding details, looking nothing like a tricorder, and is absent any coloring details. As such, it is just a slightly gray plastic piece that hangs from the figure’s shoulder.

Playability

Commander Will Riker is terrible as a toy, for several reasons outside just its sculpt. First, Will Riker has terrible balance, light articulation and the molded phaser limits the play options as one whole hand is unavailable for posing or holding items (if there had been more accessories), unless one wants to have Will Riker shooting someone. This was pretty lousy as one of the few playsets Galoob produced was a shuttlecraft and it is hard to imagine Will Riker effectively navigating that craft if he only had one hand available to do it with! Commander Will Riker is endowed with five points of articulation: groin socket, shoulders, and neck. All of the joints are simple swivel joints. As a result, the neck turns left to right, for example, but the head cannot nod. Similarly, the shoulders are not ball and socket joints and only rotate.

Will Riker, unfortunately, is topheavy with his broad chest and as a result is poorly balanced. This Will Riker tips over and I’ve not found a way to get him to stand unless one has him leaning back from the waist, so it looks like he is doing a groin thrust! This is a terribly balanced toy and the inability to stand is the final nail in the coffin for this figure.

Collectibility

Galoob mass produced the four figures from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and made the others exceptionally rare. Will Riker was one of the four ultra-common figures and this Will Riker is beyond worthless. Found loose for less than a dollar these days, this Will Riker can often be found for less than $3.00 Mint on card! Galoob flooded the market with these figures and they are almost impossible to use as investment pieces.

Overview

Even though Galoob might have the only little, all-plastic, beardless Commander Riker figure, it is not worth hunting down.

For other Commander Riker figures, please check out my reviews of:
1992 Playmates Commander Will Riker
Commander Will Riker As A Malcorian
Thomas Riker

2/10

For other toy reviews, please visit my Toy Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2014 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Too Little, Too Late; Fortunately, Even All Bad Things Come To An End: Star Trek: Enterprise Season Four!

The Good: Storylines try to use Star Trek lore
The Bad: Terrible acting, Lack of character development, Sense of desperation
The Basics: On its final legs, the NX-01 Enterprise returns to the Star Trek universe to try to repair the damage of the prior three seasons and still fails.


Having fairly gutted the Star Trek canon with Temporal Wars, Xindi, and appearances by races that had no business preceding Kirk's times, Star Trek Enterprise had lost a large portion of its audience and it looked like it was going to utterly fail. Miraculously, the show was picked up for a fourth and final season and the producers must have sensed their time was limited. Brannon "I hate the original Star Trek" Braga was replaced in the writer's room by Manny Coto, a writer who had great respect for Star Trek. It fell to Coto to save the series and while Star Trek Enterprise - The Complete Fourth Season is easily the best in the NX-01's storyline, it is too little, too late.

Having destroyed the Delphic Expanse and rescued humanity as we know it, Captain Archer and his crew are forced to deal with the final twist from Season 3, that behind all the conspiracies were alien Nazis. No, no one could have realistically seen that one coming. Sadly, Coto's first task is to clean up the mess left at the end of the prior season and the first two episodes seek to do that. They manage to sweep the Temporal War up under the rug (finally) and the NX-01 goes on from there.

Where the Enterprise goes is into more familiar territory. Sort of. Following their debriefing on an Earth that is suddenly rather anti-alien, the Enterprise leaves to find genetic supermen like Khan, Orion slave girls, Vulcans who are working to reform their society around logic, and we finally learn why Klingons look different in Star Trek than in all of the other incarnations of the franchise. And it all leads up to an unreasonably bad series finale.

Is it worth it? No. Coto is a gifted writer and exec, but the efforts to save the show come far too late and the attempt to rewrite the prior three years of television catastrophe still force him to deal with those premises established for the previous three years. So, for example, from the series premiere of Enterprise, the Vulcans behaved in rather un-Vulcan-like ways. They were a factionalized society that was not terribly logical duking it out between factions that were solidly into mysticism and the other into political and social control. Coto is forced to deal with that disparity in the Trek pantheon and the resulting three-parter ("The Forge," "Awakening," and "Kir'Shara") explains the phenomenon, but doesn't make it work any better in the overall tapestry. That is to say that despite the "Temporal Cold War" being written out, Enterprise still finds itself stuck in the universe of Enterprise as opposed to Star Trek. To try to make those two creative visions come together, things like the illogical Vulcans have to be dealt with and even dealing with that undermines the Star Trek universe. In short, Coto is stuck in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario. After ending the Temporal Cold War, he (presumably) had the choice to restart the series from the beginning - doing it right - or doing his best to correct the problems and go forward from there. He chose (or it was chosen for him) the latter. All that could have saved the series was the former. All that could have saved Star Trek Enterprise was Patrick Duffy in the shower.

But what we have instead is season four of Star Trek Enterprise and in it, the Vulcans overcome their lying tendencies and embrace both mysticism and logic to become the Vulcans we know from Star Trek. The Klingons become infected with a genetic condition which make them look more human, which sets up the Klingons in Star Trek, but does not explain how the Klingons from Star Trek that we see later on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine make the transformation back. And ultimately, xenophobes on Earth must be thwarted to bring the Federation into being.

The latter concept is pretty much lifted right from the playbook of Babylon 5, which Coto was associated with. Babylon 5, which knew where it was going and what it was doing, did it much better because of who the people in the B5 universe were. In Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future in Star Trek and especially Star Trek: The Next Generation, humanity came together after the third world war and made something of itself and headed off in a positive and progressive direction. In the Berman/Braga Trek universe, that didn't happen. Coto tries to negotiate between the two, but as previously stated, this is a tough order that comes too late.

The acting throughout the fourth season of Enterprise is almost homogeneously bad, with Scott Bakula continuing to play Jonathan Archer as largely stiff and Jolene Blalock continuing to play the Vulcan T'Pol with far too much emotion. In the twenty-two episodes of Star Trek Enterprise Season 4, there are no superlative performances.

Here is where the show finds the characters, though:

Captain Jonathan Archer - Having survived the Xindi attempt to make a superweapon doomsday machine, he helps reset the timeline, then finds himself inside a catalog of Star Trek backstories where he blusters his way through,

T'Pol - Outside an arc where she helps save the Vulcan people, her purpose seems mostly to continue to develop a relationship with Commander Tucker,

Trip Tucker - He continues his relationship with T'Pol,

Malcolm Reed - He shows up and shoots things,

Hoshi Sato - She occasionally shows up to translate something,

Travis Mayweather - After being captured in the season premiere, his next big contribution is to help sniff out the xenophobes in the series' final arcs,

and Dr. Phlox - He continues to work medical magic for the crew and later for the Klingons.

Of note, the mirror universe from Star Trek's "Mirror, Mirror" (reviewed here!) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is featured in two later episodes of the series ("In a Mirror, Darkly - I and II") and the writers are careful and clever about how it is approached.

Even that, though, is not enough to make this set worth recommending. From day one, Enterprise tried to mortgage its original Star Trek audience. Creatively, they established a universe unlike what Star Trek fans were used to and comfortable with. The NX-01 was never a logical predecessor to the NCC-1701 and none of the equipment looked to precede Captain Pike's. Star Trek Enterprise - The Complete Fourth Season is the last ditch attempt by the creative minds behind the series to woo back the fans it forsook at the outset.

It's not enough.

For more information on this season of television, please visit the reviews of each episode in the set at:
Storm Front
Storm Front, Part 2
Home
Borderland
Cold Station 12
The Augments
The Forge
Awakening
Kir’Shara
Daedalus
Observer Effect
Babel One
United
The Aenar
Affliction
Divergence
Bound
In A Mirror Darkly, Part 1
In A Mirror Darkly, Part 2
Demons
Terra Prime
These Are The Voyages . . .

5/10

For other television reviews, please visit my Television Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2014, 2006 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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In The Wake Of Thor: The Dark World: “The Well” Fits In Well!

The Good: Decent acting, character development, plot, Good special effects
The Bad: Larger themes are not developed as much as one might hope.
The Basics: “The Well” is a great tie-in for Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. to the latest Marvel cinematic adventure!


When it comes to crossover appeal, Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. has done a good job of working into the Phase 2 Marvel concept. The “Pilot” (reviewed here!) followed smartly on the heels of Iron Man 3 (reviewed here!) and the first real challenge to fitting into the Phase 2 concept came with the recent release of Thor: The Dark World. Thor: The Dark World (reviewed here!), featured an attack on Greenwich, England and given the huge nature of that event, the Marvel Universe should be resonating with consequences. Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. explores some of those consequences with “The Well” and it follows up on Thor: The Dark World much better than just an after-credits scene. Sadly, “The Well” does not follow up on the final scene from the Frost Giant’s realm, but it does promote the idea of Asgardian visitation to Earth and have that resonate with consequences.

More than simply an advertisement for Thor: The Dark World, “The Well” explores the character of Grant Hill and it expands the Marvel Universe surprisingly well.

In the wake of the attack on Greenwich, Agent Coulson’s team is called in to dispose of any alien technology that is left on Earth. Elsewhere, in Trillemarka Park, Jakob and Petra recover a metal staff from inside a tree they cut down. Violence breaks out in Oslo, as the staff empowers Petra and Jakob and they are overcome with the belief that they will become gods of death and destruction. To stop them, Coulson visits Professor Elliot Randolph, an expert in Norse mythology. When Agent Coulson and Skye embark on a mission to recover the second of three pieces of the staff, they discover Randolph with the piece they were there to recover. In the process, Ward touches the staff piece and he begins to feel violent rage and recalls a childhood incident focused on a well.

While Simmons and Fitz study the changes going on in Ward’s body, the Asgardian cult surrounding The One Who Stayed (a mythical Asgardian who remained on Earth after the Asgardians defended Earth from the Frost Giants) grows and has more violent demonstrations. Testing a hunch, Ward goads Randolph and then attacks him, getting him to reveal that he is from Asgard. Determined to keep the final piece of the staff from falling into the cult’s hands, the team and Randolph journey to Ireland to recover the final piece from a monastery. The cultists are there and while Ward and Randolph struggle to hold them off, another member of the team steps forward to take them on and protect the Earth!

With “The Well,” Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. reveals how good it can be at creating a serialized story. The episode focuses on Grant Ward, though it has decent use of the entire ensemble cast. For a change, Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. does not belabor the character of Skye, though she comes in for the final scene in a big, obvious way. The rest of the episode smartly spreads itself around the characters to make for a good ensemble piece. “The Well” has Simmons wrestling with the consequences of “FZZT” (reviewed here!) in a fairly decent subplot. As well, the resolution to the episode sets up a potential complex emotional relationship that it will be intriguing to see how the producers develop.

Director Jonathan Frakes managed to get one of the juiciest episodes of the season and he pushes the envelope for just what Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. will show. Agent Coulson sticking his hand in Randolph’s chest is definitely more graphic than prior episodes. Frakes has one of the stronger scripts to work with, but he brings Monica Owusu-Breen’s script to life with vivid direction, wonderful special effects, and genius casting for the primary guest star, Peter MacNicol.

Peter MacNicol plays Professor Randolph and the role is an interesting one. MacNicol makes Randolph’s backstory seem like more than simple and straightforward exposition. Instead, MacNicol makes Randolph vivid and the concept that the character is of the same race as Thor plays well. While all else is different between Thor, Loki, and Randolph, they all share an arrogance that MacNicol is expertly able to play with subtlety in every one of his scenes. MacNicol completely eliminates even the hint of the usual timid character he plays as Randolph and that sells the character.

The other character that resonates in “The Well” is Grant Ward. Ward has frequently been played as a pretty generic secret agent type, but in “The Well,” Ward has added layering to him. The incident at the well where he was bullied inspired the adult version of Ward to repress rage and focus on being an efficient S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. Actor Brett Dalton is able to express anger that the character has not revealed before and the actor pulls the added range off exceptionally well.

Perhaps the best episode of Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D., “The Well” has a decent level of character development, an engaging plot and performances that are well above the norm, making it an essential chapter in the Marvel Phase 2 storyline!

For other works with Peter MacNicol, please visit my reviews of:
Battleship
Game Change
Ally McBeal
Addams Family Values

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. - The Complete First Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the debut season here!
Thanks!]

8/10

For other television reviews, please check out my Television Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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One Cool Moment Does Not A Worthwhile Documentary Make: Trek Nation Disappoints.

The Good: Moments of exceptionally rare footage
The Bad: Mislabeled actor/role notations, Poor interviews, No real purpose.
The Basics: Trek Nation is a surprisingly lame documentary that has Eugene Roddenberry Jr. listlessly learning very little about his father about Star Trek.


Lately, I’ve seen quite a few documentaries and many of them have been about Star Trek. I’ve actually enjoyed some of them quite a bit, most notably The Captains (reviewed here!). So, when my wife wanted to sit down to watch Trek Nation, I was actually excited about it. Unfortunately, the execution of this particular documentary was particularly lackluster.

Trek Nation has a loose point; it is Eugene Roddenberry Jr.’s attempt to learn about his father, Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek and the whole Star Trek phenomenon. Eugene Roddenberry Jr. was a teenager when Star Trek: The Next Generation was on the air and he was off doing his own thing. So, decades after Gene Roddenberry’s death, Roddenberry Jr. has gotten around to learning about the phenomenon his father created. Trek Nation is the result of that search.

And it is surprisingly bad.

The set-up is, unfortunately, almost the entire movie. Eugene Roddenberry Jr. reiterates many times that he had no prior knowledge of what the Star Trek phenomenon was all about and that he was off doing his own thing around the time Gene Roddenberry died. So, the movie has Eugene Roddenberry Junior wandering around asking writers, producers, obscure Star Trek guest stars (remarkably few major castmembers from the Star Trek franchise participate in Trek Nation) about their Star Trek memories before concluding that maybe Star Trek is all right.

Trek Nation has a wealth of footage that is more confusing and pointless than it is enlightening. So, for example, the film includes reaction shots where Roddenberry Jr. clearly upsets Majel Barrett-Roddenberry with is questions . . . but the movie includes only the reaction shots, not the questions he was asking and the answers she gave. Interestingly, there are outtakes of Gene Roddenberry getting frazzled during his famous 1991 interview for the 25th Anniversary documentary.

Eugene Roddenberry Jr., director Scott Colthrope, and writer Jessica Brunetto repeat a great deal of information that those who are likely to watch this documentary – namely, Trekkers – already know. In fact, outside Trekkers and those who already “get” Star Trek, it is hard to guess who Trek Nation was actually made for. The fans are likely to be bored with it because there is so little that is actually new – in fact, outside Roddenberry Jr. visiting J.J. Abrams to present him with a video that seems to endorse the concept of the 2009 Star Trek, there is little fans will not have already seen or know -, those who are not part of the culture are not likely to be intrigued given that no one makes a fully compelling argument as to why Star Trek was so incredible and remains relevant today (though Nichelle Nichols comes close with her story about her and Martin Luther King Jr.) and those who like great documentaries are likely to be irked by the lack of real resolution to this piece.

While Eugene Roddenberry Jr. gets interviews with D.C. Fontana, Michael Dorn, and Jonathan Frakes, most of the major Star Trek players are notably absent from the documentary, leaving guest stars like Victor Brandt and Patrick Kilpatrick to make statements on the franchise. Ultimately, Trek Nation is not a particularly thorough exploration of the life of Gene Roddenberry, the genesis of Star Trek or the phenomenon of Trek fandom.

For other documentaries, please check out my reviews of:
Great White Odyssey
After Porn Ends
Nantucket Film Festival’s Comedy Roundtable

2/10

For other movie reviews, please visit my Movie Review Index Page for an organized listing.

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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One Of The Worst Repacks, The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Thomas Riker Action Figure Sucks!

The Good: Good sculpt, Good coloring, Decent variety of accessories, Balance
The Bad: Accessory coloring, Drastically overproduced, Obvious reuse of all components, Chipped paint.
The Basics: A terrible action figure, the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Lieutenant Thomas Riker figure recycles other action figures parts to make for a lousy and obvious cashgrab.


When Playmates Toys had the license for Star Trek action figures, they made some pretty terrible recycled figures. The peak of those poor action figures was the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Thomas Riker figure. The Thomas Riker action figure was an obvious reuse of the first Chief O’Brien action figure (reviewed here!) with a Commander William Riker figure’s head on the body. This is a pretty terrible reuse of prior components and fans responded to it as such.

Lieutenant Thomas Riker, for those who were not tuned in to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine appeared only in the one episode, “Defiant” (reviewed here!) . . . and he never appeared in the standard Deep Space Nine jumpsuit, as the figure has him.

Basics

The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 1995 Collection of action figures contained twelve figures and it focused on fleshing out the main characters and aliens of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in addition to making some cheap repackages of previous figures. This was one of the most common action figures in the assortment and it remains fairly easy to find even now. Still, card collectors helped keep this from being a complete pegwarmer as it features a SkyBox pog card exclusive to the action figure, which made it hunted by trading card collectors as well.

The Lieutenant Thomas Riker figure is the human StarFleet officer as he never appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, with the black uniform and the standard William (or Thomas) Riker head. Lieutenant Thomas Riker is attired in a black StarFleet uniform with the mustard yellow (for Engineering division) shoulders. The outfit is open at the collar, enough that his lilac undershirt may be seen. The outfit is colored appropriately, including the three rank pips on the collar of the undershirt.

Standing four and three-quarters inches tall, this is a fair likeness of Lieutenant Thomas Riker immortalized in plastic. The character is molded with his hands ready to hold most of his accessories in a half-closed position. His legs have a very neutral stance, so this figure stands up and looks like he is ready to be displayed, as opposed to an action pose which made some of the earlier Star Trek figures more problematic for posing in displays. As a result of the neutral stance, Lieutenant Thomas Riker has good balance on or off his stand (though the stand certainly helps). There is a decent level of uniform detailing, including the communicator pin on the chest being both molded into the figure and then painted on. The sculpting details lessen, though at the hands, where Riker has less detailing, including a lack of defined knuckles, though he has faintly molded fingernails.

Lieutenant Thomas Riker's face is molded in a bland, neutral expression and hair that is ridiculously lifted. The hair is tough to capture for an Riker figure as Riker had somewhat spikey hair, but Playmates made a fair go at it with a wavy look to the molded hair. At least it doesn't look like Riker is wearing a helmet.

The paint job is fair at best, especially for the face. The skin tones are monotonal white with no shading or subtlety. The figure's lips are painted an unnaturally bright pink which looks somewhat ridiculous. As well, Riker's eyes are blue with white pupils, which is disturbing. On the body of the figure, the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine figures seem to have been rushed to market as many of mine, including Riker have chipped paint on the shoulders and elbow. Either the paint job was rushed or it chips off the figures, which is disturbing because mine went from their packages to a display with no play in between!

Accessories

Lieutenant Thomas Riker comes with five accessories, including the base, some of which had noticeably been recycled from Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine figures. Lieutenant Thomas Riker comes with a StarFleet phaser, a scanner, tricorder and DS9 monitor, and the base. The Action base is a StarFleet delta shield symbol with the name "RIKER" stuck on it with a cheap, black sticker. The center of the base has a peg which fits into the hole in either of Lieutenant Thomas Riker's feet! When Lieutenant Thomas Riker stands flatfooted on the stand, he is stable for balance and has a decent, neutral display appearance. The base is also enough to support Riker in more outlandish poses, which is nice.

The StarFleet phaser is the same Type II phaser accessory that came with many of the Star Trek: The Next Generation action figures. It is a 2 1/2" long prop which features the dustbuster-shaped beam weapon with a bright pink phaser beam emitting from it. The phaser has good molded details, down to the different buttons and a display screen, but is light on the coloring details. In addition to not having a black grip, the phaser does not have detailing on the buttons or power indicator, so it is homogeneously silver to the beam, then monotonally pink. Riker's hands are molded so he may carry the weapon in either hand.

The medical scanner is a 1" choking hazard which is a generally faithful replica of the equipment unique to “First Contact.” This is essentially a plastic alien PADD with a sticker for the screen. The alien PADD is recycled from an earlier figure and it not at all familiar to anything that Riker was seen with.

The tricorder is a three-quarter inch blue molded plastic device that fits awkwardly into Riker's hand. This accessory looks utterly ridiculous, though it is molded generally well. It, too, fits only in Riker's right hand.

As well, Riker comes with a Deep Space Nine monitor, one of the desk computers on the station. The screen is a simple sticker with a schematic of the station on it and it can fit in Riker's hands if he holds it with both hands. It looks strange there, though as this was a desktop computer in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine universe.

This is the unfortunate aspect of all three of Lieutenant Thomas Riker's accessories (save the phaser); they are molded in an unrealistic blue plastic which looks unlike what any of the props looked like on the show. Clearly Playmates went through some effort to sculpt the accessories realistically, but the coloring minimizes the sense of realism and clashes with the coloring of the figure. Lieutenant Thomas Riker is over-accessorized and with the lame coloring of the accessories, it is a bit of a drawback for the overall figure.

Even so, Playmates included a pog trading card unique to the figure from SkyBox which attracted trading card collectors to this figure in addition to toy collectors. The trading card has a shot of Lieutenant Thomas Riker’s head over the wormhole. The back has a simple checklist of the figures that came with pogs.

Playability

Lieutenant Thomas Riker was a cheap recycling of parts. Lieutenant Thomas Riker is appropriately stiff, but has decent poseability. Lieutenant Thomas Riker is endowed with twelve points of articulation: knees, groin socket, biceps, elbows, shoulders, neck, and waist. All of the joints, save the elbows and knees, are simple swivel joints. As a result, the neck turns left to right, but the head cannot nod. Similarly, the shoulders are not ball and socket joints and only rotate. Still, Playmates dealt with this limitation by having a swivel joint in the bicep, that allows everything below to turn and offers real decent poseability!

Moreover, for use with actual play, Lieutenant Thomas Riker may bend or extend at the elbows, which offers a greater amount of movement potential making him one of the more realistic Star Trek action figures to play with (for those who actually play with these toys!). On his base, Lieutenant Thomas Riker is exceptionally stable, even in the most ridiculous poses. He actually looks very dignified and ready-to-work in his neutral display pose.

Collectibility

Playmates seemed to gauge about the right amount of interest for the first wave of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine figures, but the second wave had a number of pegwarmers. Lieutenant Thomas Riker was an incredibly slow seller from the assortment as it was inaccurate and an obvious reuse of parts. Despite appearing on two Star Trek series, Lieutenant Thomas Riker was still a pegwarmer. As a result, he has not appreciated in value at all since its release.

That said, at least Playmates tried to make the figures collectible. Each figure has an individual number on the bottom of his right foot. In the attempt to make them appear limited, they had numbers stamped on them, though one has to seriously wonder how limited something should be considered when there are at least 60000 figures out there (my Lieutenant Thomas Riker is #059825!).

Overview

The Lieutenant Thomas Riker figure is a poor figure, not worth picking up . . . for anyone.

For other figures from this same series of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine figures, please check out my reviews of:
Doctor Julian Bashir In StarFleet Duty Uniform
Jake Sisko
Rom and Nog
The Tosk
Q
Vedek Bareil

1.5/10

For other toy reviews, please visit my Toy Review Index Page for an organized listing.

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Trekkies Documents The Fringe Aspect Of An Interesting Subculture In The U.S.

The Good: Decent interviews
The Bad: Focuses on the fringe of the subculture
The Basics: Trekkies could have been a groundbreaking documentary, save that the director and host/documentarian focuses on the fringe of the subculture.


I am a fan of the Star Trek franchise. In fact, I eagerly identify as a Trekker. I had started my small business geared around Star Trek collectibles when the documentary Trekkers was being filmed and it was around that time that I started to truly identify with the culture.

Ironically, last night was the first time I sat down and watched the documentary Trekkies. It is worth noting that there is a difference between Trekker and Trekkies. Trekkers are the folks who know the show is a television show; we enjoy the franchise, we collect the collectibles, but we know it is not real and we have a life outside our favorite hobbies. “Trekkies” are the stereotypical unhygienic, obsessed fanatics who give Trekkers a bad name. “Trekkie” is, in fan culture, the derogatory – the “N word” – for the fans, relative to Trekker. So, I did not have high hopes for Trekkies.

Trekkies documents well; it is a true documentary, with no judgment made (explicitly) on the subjects. However, the subjects of the documentary exhibit a bias. Trekkies includes interviews with a Star Trek talk radio show, a transvestite male fan, a fourteen year-old fan who yells at a friend who calls during his interview (and once got in trouble at his Catholic school for wearing his costume), a dentist’s office designed to mimic a Federation ship, and others (like people who go out in daily life wearing their Star Trek uniforms).

These interviews are mixed in with Denise Crosby’s interviews with cast members and convention promoters/dealers. The cast members that Crosby interviews are remarkably gracious and they tell stories that are not available in other movies, shows or DVD bonus features.

Trekkies is interesting when Crosby and director Roger Nygard focus on the interviews from the celebrities and people behind the scenes of the conventions. The documentary exhibits a strong bias against fandom by focusing early on people like the juror in the Clinton trials who appeared for jury selection wearing her StarFleet uniform. By the time the film gets to interviewing a person who dresses their cat up in a StarFleet uniform, the movie has lost most of its cohesion.

Outside the bias, Trekkies suffers most from lacking a specific and careful focus. The movie meanders from interviews of celebrities to fans to writers of Kirk/Spock fanfiction without any real focus or finesse. The documentary is not horrible, but it is not going to attract legions of new fans or make Trekkers admit they would be associated with the Trekkies shown in this film.

For other documentary reviews, please visit my reviews of:
The Furious Gods: Making “Prometheus”
The Cream Will Rise
The Big One

4/10

For other film reviews, please check out my Movie Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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