Home Soil
- Episode aired Feb 20, 1988
- TV-PG
- 46m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
3.5K
YOUR RATING
On Velara III, Geordi and Data discover a microscopic life form responsible for the death of an engineer stationed on the base.On Velara III, Geordi and Data discover a microscopic life form responsible for the death of an engineer stationed on the base.On Velara III, Geordi and Data discover a microscopic life form responsible for the death of an engineer stationed on the base.
Majel Barrett
- Enterprise Computer
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
James G. Becker
- Youngblood
- (uncredited)
Dexter Clay
- Operations Division Officer
- (uncredited)
Susan Duchow
- Operations Division Officer
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaFirst time there is a reference to a rest room (bathroom) on the Enterprise. As Riker and the engineer are talking, she mentions that one of the colleagues is stuck in the restroom due to the aliens taking over the ship. (It's not a restroom but, in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), Kirk does sit on a retractable toilet, with the warning 'Do not use while in spacedock'. This was released in 1989, after this story.)
- GoofsEveryone (including the ship's computer) acts like this is the first non-carbon-based life form the Federation has ever encountered. However, in The Devil in the Dark (1967), the obvious inspiration for this story, a silicon-based life form (the Horta) was discovered on a Federation mining colony and identified by Mr. Spock.
- Quotes
Inorganic Life-form (voice): Ugly. Ugly giant bags of mostly water.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Bags of mostly water?
Lt. Commander Data: An accurate descriptions of humans, sir. You are over 90% water surrounded by a flexible container.
- ConnectionsFeatured in re:View: Star Trek The Next Generation Season One (2021)
- SoundtracksStar Trek: The Next Generation Main Title
Composed by Jerry Goldsmith and Alexander Courage
Featured review
The micro brains and the ugly bags of mostly water
None of the bridge crew has ever seen a terraforming operation before. They ring the door bell but no one is home. Eventually they get someone on the line but he doesn't want to be bothered. Picard insists and the episode gets going. The lady that greets them is nice enough, Riker seems smitten, and some dude is all about Data. They take a tour of the station and so the writers can teach the audience about terraforming. There is much ado about some salty subsurface water and a some dude get killed by a laser drill. Otherwise everything is fine.
The laser drill tries to kill Data so he breaks it. Turns out it takes a full year to build one so the terraforming dude who was impressed with Data is a little bit pissed. Picard assumes one of the terraformers is a murderer so starts an investigation that throws the terraformers even further off schedule. The director is a little bit pissed. Otherwise everything is fine.
Geordi is rather impressed with a flashing light so they beam it aboard under the assumption that it is an inorganic life form. They study the flashing light and have an interesting back and forth with the computer. In order to get to the bottom of the mystery Picard accuses the terraforming director of murder and Troi sends Riker to seduce his assistant. Back in the science lab the flashing light has a baby so Dr. Crusher isolates it in a quarantine field as they evacuate the lab. The whatever it is decides to take over the lab. Otherwise everything is fine.
After a lengthy conference with the terraforming team the life form starts talking, confesses to the murder, insults the crew, and starts taking over the ship. The ugly bags of mostly water deem this new life form a micro brain and decide that they are now at war. After another conference and failed attempts at both transportation and suffocation the micro brain transforms into a full blown crystal. Otherwise everything is fine.
The ugly bags of mostly water turn off the lights and the micro brain cries uncle. Before returning to the planet the micro brain insults the ugly bags of mostly water a few more times. The terraformers learn their lesson, the Captain quarantines the planet, and homeostasis is restored.
Verdict: Yawn inducing but alright for season 1.
Fun Fact: Programmers on board the Enterprise have their own restroom.
The laser drill tries to kill Data so he breaks it. Turns out it takes a full year to build one so the terraforming dude who was impressed with Data is a little bit pissed. Picard assumes one of the terraformers is a murderer so starts an investigation that throws the terraformers even further off schedule. The director is a little bit pissed. Otherwise everything is fine.
Geordi is rather impressed with a flashing light so they beam it aboard under the assumption that it is an inorganic life form. They study the flashing light and have an interesting back and forth with the computer. In order to get to the bottom of the mystery Picard accuses the terraforming director of murder and Troi sends Riker to seduce his assistant. Back in the science lab the flashing light has a baby so Dr. Crusher isolates it in a quarantine field as they evacuate the lab. The whatever it is decides to take over the lab. Otherwise everything is fine.
After a lengthy conference with the terraforming team the life form starts talking, confesses to the murder, insults the crew, and starts taking over the ship. The ugly bags of mostly water deem this new life form a micro brain and decide that they are now at war. After another conference and failed attempts at both transportation and suffocation the micro brain transforms into a full blown crystal. Otherwise everything is fine.
The ugly bags of mostly water turn off the lights and the micro brain cries uncle. Before returning to the planet the micro brain insults the ugly bags of mostly water a few more times. The terraformers learn their lesson, the Captain quarantines the planet, and homeostasis is restored.
Verdict: Yawn inducing but alright for season 1.
Fun Fact: Programmers on board the Enterprise have their own restroom.
helpful•75
- snarky-trek-reviews
- Sep 2, 2021
Details
- Runtime46 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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