Change Your Image
oneknightstands
Reviews
Star Trek: The Next Generation: Masks (1994)
Give me a break
Captains Log: I love STNG. It is my favorite TV series of all time. I made it my mission to buy all 7 Seasons on DVD and watch them straight through. I just finished watched The Masks, so you can see that I'm almost accomplished my mission objective.
So far, this is the only episode that I've felt the need to write a review about ... a warning to my fellow star travelers. I've seen some things that have made me roll my eyes, but nothing as bad as this episode (yes, Dr. Crusher's episode "Sub Rosa" was pretty dumb, but her sexiness cancels out much of the dumbness.).
In this episode a floating alien library starts turning the Enterprise into an Aztec/Mayan temple. This is done through the ships computer, so Data is also affected. Data get's multiple personality disorder and becomes a couple of members of this ancient culture. Picard talks to these personalities for clues on how to stop the ancient goddess. (As an aside, there is a scene where only 20% of the Enterprise is still left "unchanged". The big 4: Picard, LaForge, Riker, Troi, are trying to decide whether or not to enter a certain symbol into the computer. Hello?! The Enterprise is almost completely transformed into a frickin' temple! Is there an alternative?) In the end, Data becomes the sun goddess (yes, a goddess). Picard puts on a mask of the moon god and convinces Data (as the sun goddess) that she is tired and must "relinquish the sky" to the moon god so the "hunted may become the hunter" and the hunt can continue. Data agrees, and everything goes back to normal.
Picture Picard wearing a Halloween mask. Patrick Stewart is a great actor, and I enjoy watching him perform, but I was laughing AT him in this episode. Ugh! This is not an episode that I need to watch again ... ever.
Picard, out.
PS - This is a pretty scathing review. So why did I give it a 4? Being a fan of the series, even the worst episode of STNG is better that much of the drivel that is out there.