The final season of Star Trek, the Next Generation gave us some splendid episodes and also a fair share of stinkers. Everyone knew by this stage that they would not be renewed and attempts were made to wrap up various story lines before they said their final goodbyes. There is still a great deal to be enjoyed.
Well, poor Geordi!
LeVar Burton has to wear an uncomfortable looking Borg-style outfit and heavy, all-white contact lenses throughout much of this episode but, apparently, not to much avail. Despite the unfailing professionalism of all concerned and what should have been a landmark appearance by guest actor Madge Sinclair, it fairly reeked of franchise fatigue.
The seventh season of the Next Generation is well known for bringing aboard never-seen-before family members (and in this case, killing them off just as quickly) but some of the storylines are better than others and unfortunately, this is one of the least interesting. For an actor who had given us such an unfailing commitment over the years with all those background shots and all that technobabble, this must have been quite a disappointment. Fortunately Mr Burton's second career as a director had just begun to take off and he remains a loyal Trekker to this day.
It was also particularly galling for him to see respected older actress and friend, Madge Sinclair, who had shared the screen with him in the seminal television series Roots, given such a lack-lustre part. A dignified trailblazer in the representation of black women on the screen, she deserved so much better from Star Trek.
There is no need to be concerned about "spoilers" in this review; my concentration wandered long before anything much actually happened.
Senior Trekker scores every episode with a 5.
Well, poor Geordi!
LeVar Burton has to wear an uncomfortable looking Borg-style outfit and heavy, all-white contact lenses throughout much of this episode but, apparently, not to much avail. Despite the unfailing professionalism of all concerned and what should have been a landmark appearance by guest actor Madge Sinclair, it fairly reeked of franchise fatigue.
The seventh season of the Next Generation is well known for bringing aboard never-seen-before family members (and in this case, killing them off just as quickly) but some of the storylines are better than others and unfortunately, this is one of the least interesting. For an actor who had given us such an unfailing commitment over the years with all those background shots and all that technobabble, this must have been quite a disappointment. Fortunately Mr Burton's second career as a director had just begun to take off and he remains a loyal Trekker to this day.
It was also particularly galling for him to see respected older actress and friend, Madge Sinclair, who had shared the screen with him in the seminal television series Roots, given such a lack-lustre part. A dignified trailblazer in the representation of black women on the screen, she deserved so much better from Star Trek.
There is no need to be concerned about "spoilers" in this review; my concentration wandered long before anything much actually happened.
Senior Trekker scores every episode with a 5.