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Episode
179
Data’s Day
Which of these is the least important?
A – A wedding that may not happen
B – Feeding a cat
C – A standoff with the Romulans
D – Learning to dance
Find out the correct answer when we put Data’s Day the Mission Log.
YAAAAAAAAAAAAY. Finally. Another of my favorite episodes!!
Perfect wedding gift from Worf:
“Space knife!”
Perfect companion to the space fork!
It’s the thought that counts, dude.
C – A standoff with the Romulans because #anytime. But if you don’t feed the cat, no one’s going to have a good day.
On a separate and only replicator-related vein, um, replimat on the Enterprise has ALWAYS bugged. Seriously, couldn’t they just give iTunes gift cards and be done with it? It’s not like the O’Briens have room for gifts from 1,024 people in their quarters, not on Miles’ salary and the quarters they can afford. Unless they’re living off of Keiko’s botany salary . . . still.
What’s a salary? Hell, what is a gift?
If I was Maddox and received this I’d talk to Star Fleet about getting Data some counseling to deal with his repressing his emotions.
Yup. Data is in denial.
The replicator center never makes an appearance again, but the reason you’d have a replicator center is for larger or restricted products.
Replicators are again one of those techs that are back and forth about how it all works, but based on what we know we know that the replicators arent just a “pool of energy”, because #1, they have make references to supplies and such and #2 we know the replicator can’t replicate certain things that complex or have fine details… If they can’t do that they certainly can’t just have matter as energy as we’re often lead to believe. How they likely work is something like they have a cargo bay full of various compounds, organic and no organic, as well as tissues that they then convert to a matter-stream (which isn’t energy, but some sort of quantum fluxed matter) that behaves like electricity and then molded into the various structures needed with holography…
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I have that issue with all gifts and such… There is distinct difference between a “gift” and a gift that you feel you’ have to give someone. A real gift is something that reflects in the giver that they care about the receiver because the only way you can give someone something they like is supreme luck or caring to pay attention and understanding their interests.
Also, another reason gift giving is similar to the previous reason for gifts which is that gifts are a way to open the world to a person to give someone something that they may have never otherwise paid any mind to.
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It’s interesting that Data doesn’t think to just download dance algorithms…that are in the ship memory used with the holodeck. And one must wonder about Crusher. Why would anyone think to go into a tap routine and not question why the person actually wants to learn to dance in the first place. Is that just Crusher trying to think ahead of Data?
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T’pel’s espionage lasting 70 some years isn’t really all that amazing when you think about it. Romulans and Vulcans like for 200 or so years. There are many people that have gone into deep covers for 20-30 years. A Romulan’s life span being double and the length of a deep cover mission being double makes sense.
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The Slice of Life episode should be recognized as at least the beginning of episodes in the same vein and episodes that focus on the O’Briens….
Also… One wonders what TNG would be like if Keiko was introduced earlier and Miles made a more central character earlier. I think that the characters wouldnt have been as successful as they became and would have really changed the flavor of later TNG and DS9, because I don’t think the zeitgeist of the earlier TNG run was ready for the O’briens just yet.
Boys, for someone in your position, having analyzed every episode, in order, probably more than the most hardcore Trekkies did back in the day, I can…almost see why you think this episode doesn’t work.
I don’t agree with your assessment in the slightest, though. Given all the times that TNG (and TOS before it) has completely forgotten character growth and…almost everything else, why are you being so hard on this one episode? Sure, it – arguably – regresses Data by overlooking past periods of growth, but that’s par for the course by now, and at least the episode reference Maddox meaningfully. Not only in how he exists and would have a continuing interest in Data, but also in how Data would have no reason NOT to co-operate and share his thoughts. He doesn’t bear a grudge, nor should he.
For those of us who just want to watch an enjoyable Trek episode, I think this episode was fantastic and fun. I’m not even a huge Data fan (he takes up a little too much of the show’s oxygen, I think, that could have been re-routed to Geordi or Beverly, I mean, Brothers, Masks and Fistful of Datas…you’d think Spiner was constantly threatening to leave or something), but he’s adorable in this episode. ADORABLE. And it gives the others at least one good scene, including a new significant character. So what if it’s kinda soapy. It’s a one-of-a-kind (until we get to Disaster, though this one’s a hell of a lot more fun).
I’ll forgive you this minor-to-moderate slipup. But partly because I’m saving my energies for next week. It’s my fourth-favorite. Better be on your game.
Well, I think we covered the “whys” of our opinions in the podcast (and totally acknowledge that there are people who will enjoy this one more than we did). It’s not that we’re against “Data growth” episodes or soapy or fun/light or adorable or personal introspection. So far (speaking for myself) we’ve seen some really well-done personal stories like “Family” if we want to use that one as a high point; this one just didn’t quite do it for me. That’s fine though – there are plenty of compelling Data stories out there. We totally get that there are hallmarks of Data here: he’s got a cat, he writes to Maddox, he learns to dance, etc. I just question if those hallmarks added up to make a great story.
I totally agree. Plenty of, “That’s a great moment” moments, but on the whole it is a lackluster episode. Not bad, but not great
Well, for one, it is not a ‘story’. Its a painful amount of exposition. And what is the point of all this? The problem with Data’s character is that he continually says he has no character. And he does it so often I start to believe him, and want to hit the fast forward button.
I thought Measure of a Man – excellent episode – should have changed all this. But it didn’t for some reason.
One thought I had while listening to the podcast. Poor O’Brien had to work on his Wedding Day. That’s rough. Seems like something you give a guy the day off for.
Totally agree, the “Ambassador” being Romulan. What a long con. Luckily she never had any medical issues. “Hey, you have Romulan DNA!!”
So much going on here. Introduction of Spot, the Doctor being a dance instructor, introduction of Keiko. Oh and a spy Romulan.
The undercover Romulan could have been its own two or three episode arc. Seems very wasted here.
“Ambassador T’pol” Sierra Pecheur
“Mr Mot” Shelly Desai
“Admiral Mendak” Alan Scarfe
Barber pole, yes J.Champion very cool for the man cave.
That;s the one!
I’ve not had a chance to listen yet so don’t know if this was brought up – but given that we see the Dancing Doctor in this episode – here is a behind the scenes video of Gates’ work on the film “Labyrinth” – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdiTg-Yg-FU
I never knew
DIdn’t even know Cheryl was her first name. Great featurette!
Yes, all right, sorry to “that guy” but eating malformed DNA is not harmful. Your digestive system is adapted specifically to break DNA down into constituent amino acids.
You’re totally right, Harry. I didn’t think we were edging too closely into that territory, but we were more amused that there seems to be a very WIDE margin of error for the replicator that would really be not acceptable for the transporter.
Of all the “focus on the character, not the science fiction” stories that TNG seemed determined to give us this season, this was the one I remembered as being the most “meh”. The continually looping “wallpaper music” in the first few minutes of the episode seemed to confirm this! However, I’d forgotten about many of the subplots (including the Romulan one) and as a result this episode was…OK. I can’t believe how many examples there are of Data having emotions though!
With regard to why Data doesn’t just download dance algorithms, I assume it is the same reason he has to visually learn the sign-language in “Loud As A Whisper” or memorise text in other episodes by having it flash up on the screen – he just isn’t designed to be compatible with a direct data link to the ship’s computer. Perhaps Positronic and Duotronic systems are the 24th century equivalent of PC and MAC?
Could very well be – and also, there is something about the “human” experience of learning from another human.
Maybe the holodeck added tap soles to the bottom of Data’s regular shoes. Also his smile while dancing was comedy gold.