Home Soil

DVD, TNG S1 (Home Soil)

The title doesn't exactly inspire visions of exciting galactic exploration, does it, and sometimes it seems a little too silly, such as when Picard is telling the little blobs of light that they can go back to their wet sand, but I have a soft spot for the episode. I don't know whether it's just something to do with how safe and comfortable episodes like this make me feel, for some reason, but it's nice to emerse into the world without complicated backstory or ongoing continuity to worry about. I'm in two minds over the terraformers. Were they bad actors or were they very good actors making a realistic portrayal of a group who haven't seen anyone else for ages, which is why they talk and move so disjointedly? I'm serious, it could be either way!

There are moments when you long for modern technology - the part when Data is trapped in a room with the laser gun (reminded me of the 'BUGS' episode where Ed gets trapped in the vault!), would have been improved if we got to see him have to move physically superfast to outwit the gun, but obviously at the time they couldn't achieve that very easily (though they had a good go in the 'Datalore' episode this season). In the end the episode turns out to be pretty functional, when you think it might be a mystery, where people get picked off. Nothing so glamourous, but it does pique the interest enough to be watchable. I'm not sure they succeeded as much as the Genesis Project did in 'Star Trek II' however, which I suspect was part of the inspiration.

**