All Good Things...

DVD, TNG S7 (All Good Things...)

Being in the position of 2009, knowing that Trek has changed beyond belief, and now seeing 'Star Trek Nemesis' as the final and definitive conclusion to the characters of 'The Next Generation', the ending on show here is a lot less final than it must have seemed at the time. Even then the first TNG film was to come out in the same year the series ended, so I don't think they ever really intended to make an ending to the series. It is set to continue, but with things learned, with a sense of family ingrained in every member, whatever was to come.

Well what came, came. And went. And now focus has moved full circle back to the cowboy diplomats of the original, and away from the thoughtful, language-driven, ideas-heavy series that followed it. I don't say which is right, both have their merits, but growing up in the nineties I suppose the 24th century Treks mean a bit more to me. Yet I first saw the original as a child, so I had the best of both worlds. I was more into what came after TNG, but I cannot avoid the fact that without its success no more spinoffs would have come into being and Trek would have died out.

But this is all beside the point, and these things can be debated in another place. The important thing is how well TNG closed out its TV adventures. As I say I was less attached to the characters, but I did become more interested in them, and maybe you have to put in the effort more to enjoy the series, but it does reward you with a great feeling of friendship and family, and that factor is evident here. That's the most important part of the episode, I believe - oh it's fun to see Q, and sad that he never got to plague Jean-Luc again, and his speech about the future and exploring new ideas was quite intriguing; the time-shifting, returning back to the maiden voyage of the 'D' and Tasha and O'Brien; seeing the future uniforms that all later series adhered to if they went into that time period of twenty-five years past the time we know; the way characters convincingly portrayed their past or future selves...

It all serves to provide a traditional end of series (what became traditional after this episode!), full of delights. But it isn't without fault. In today's action-obsessed, pace-driven narrative, there is little place for the kind of stories Trek did best, and what is found here. Technobabble does rule, thoughtful examination is needed, and even I who adore all this, especially when it's wrapped up in confusion for a specific character, felt that some kind of action would have been good in places, besides the short battle with a couple of Klingons (although the future 'D' did look so cool slicing upwards through them!). And I suppose it is a shame that in their last episode none of the existing characters except Picard experienced the events.

But the good outweighs the bad (and the Evolution goop stuff), providing a heartfelt and poignant series of connections between people. Stewart's performance was especially strong, and on his bedrock shoulders the whole episode stood. He was superbly irascible, tenacious and impatient, just the way you might imagine him turning out, though 'Nemesis' admittedly shows a much more mellowed and comfortable Picard - but then that was only a few years after this episode (maybe ten), and he still has time to grow into that old man!

It does feel strange to see Worf and Deanna so close, and it's not really ever explained in the films how she returned to her love for Riker. I suppose with the disruption of the 'D's destruction, and Worf's leaving for new places, pulled them apart? Tasha, though unable to disguise a slightly less fresh face, is wonderful to have back, and O'Brien shows that his posting on DS9 was not the last time Picard saw him (I always felt he should have made an appearance in one of the films, but being a feature film star in his own right, the pay would probably have been too much for a small cameo to be worked in just for the sake of it). Q works best when he's providing clues from a position of power, rather than using people as an excuse to show off, and he has one of his best, if relatively short appearances here. And lastly, I didn't realise Geordi's 'First Contact' eyes originated here! That was a nice little gag.

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