Déjà Q

Haven’t heard the podcast yet, but I think this was one of the best episodes w Q. Hide and Q was bad…Q-Who was great w the Borg. I just liked the humbling of Q, too bad he did not seem to show any signs that he learned a lesson in follow up episodes….oh well…..the unique and original effect of the Calamarain was very fun. So different, yet intelligent…like the Crystalline Entity or the space whale from S4? good stuff…gonna listen asap maybe curiosity is a trait? versus emotions being brought about almost uncontrollably under certain circumstances? Of course, we can catch Brent Spiner making facial expressions as Data that seem to indicate anger, or sadness when in a phaser fight etc….to be perfectly accurate, he should not emote any facial gestures when firing phasers or getting surprised I think… Understandable: It’s a subtle distinction because he absolutely wanted Worf to briefly think he was calling him a Romulan. But, from the context and the inflection, he’s not. It’s meant to bookend with how he started the conversation buttering him up by saying he should have picked Klingon (I’m just like you), so he’s insulting him by saying he should have picked Romulan (I’m nothing like you). Actually calling him a Romulan would weaken the statement he’s trying to make because he’d by saying, “We’re the same” again. That would mean he’s still trying to suck up to Worf, which he isn’t. Kinda weird they couldn’t work Mr. “You don’t have to lay out circuits for a week, just see it in your head” Crusher into this episode. Repulser beams are his speciality. The part about Guinan…in retrospect I didn’t care for Guinan. There are many future episodes that she could have lent insight too, but would have to be explained as being off ship. If they had a character that was less high profile it might be more plausible. Someone who can discern temporal anomalies and has a history w the Q? What would she have done w her finger pose in “Q Who?” why not use it now…? Because that aspect of her abilities was never developed and should never have been introduced… Did the phaser blast vaporize Geordi’s spine? Gave his abs a good work-out, though, so maybe it’s a plus. I recall collecting a few from this time period as well. I thought the ankle upside down V was interesting and would look for it on the show and cry foul! lol- Also in other issues Crusher has a white labcoat…. The Survivors, Who Watches the Watchers, The Bonding, The Enemy, The Defector(!), now Deja Q. Guys, as soon as you realize that TNG Season Three is better than TOS Season One, feel free to just blurt it out. We won’t judge. No, I’ll resist crediting him as Kolchak the Night Stalker. This time. This may be far out there, and certainly not what the show was intentionally trying to portray, but Q episodes almost seem a study in toxic masculinity. Much of the traits that Q condemns the Enterprise Crew for are historically (though not necessarily inherently) female traits- compassion, empathy, thoughtful judgement, non-violence, valuing verbal communication. Q, on the other hand, has a lot of the negative, old-world masculine traits- quick judgement, posturing, shows of power, unemotional, etc. Star Trek tells us that adopting these “feminine” traits don’t make us weak, they make us strong enough to reach the stars. Q is the bundle of toxic traits that Star Trek believes we should leave behind. By walking a day in our shoes, Q is able understand the value of listening instead of preaching over everyone, that power dynamics through posturing is not the best way to do things, and that compassion makes you brave, not weak.