LogFAQs > #972069217

So, I slightly lied. But the last of my assignments is done a while, so, this topic shouldn't be any danger of purging before it's time.

Episode 16: Ethics

Forgive me for not leaping for joy. Bad back.

Picard's attitude to euthanasia is about right. Pretty much agree with him on using the risky treatment, too.

Riker tries to uplift the mood, but quickly gives up when he realises the severity. Angry about being asked to kill his friend. Clearly an onset of grief. Unbearably cruel towards him when discussing the ritual. He's right that the whole thing is only really about Worf's self image, but he's such an atrociously unlikeable bastard about it.

La Forge trolls Worf over the possibility of cheating.

Worf tries vainly to justify a poker loss. One hell of a nervous swallow when told his spine is broken. Not that I want to see him die, but I firmly believe suicide is his right. Sort of sweet that he asks Riker to do it. His objection to being disabled is very much based in how people see him and might judge him. Barking at Alexander to leave once he falls is a pretty clear example of this.

Appreciate Crusher bluntly, but compassionately telling Worf what's going on. Dont blame her refusing the experimental treatment. 37% isnt great. Visibly switches to stressed as fuck when she hears about the colonists. Obviously, tries to lead him towards accepting treatment. Absolutely right that Russel isn't here for the right reasons. Also completely right to not let it interfere with her lending a hand. Proper tranquil fury in the triage centre. Another thing she's right about is kicking Russel out once she proves to be a mad scientist. Gets obnoxiously tropey when she rants about having permanent guards to stop Worf's suicide. Her final dressing down of Russel is absolutely correct.

Troi has an unenviable task. Gets a bit guilt trippy with Worf, not that shes wrong. Immediately empathic, as you'd expect, when he falls. Seems to be sharing a fair few scenes with him recently.

Data briefly does his job.

Alexander was particularly annoying this time. Not my favourite character, it has to be said.

Russel is alright for a slight lunatic. Far more optimistic about her work than i would be. Remorselessly goes above Crusher's head. In answer to her hypothetical, yes, if the standard treatment would've worked perfectly fine, I would condemn her for needlessly killing a man, no matter how many future lives the experiment saved. Absolutely useless lemon when the treatment had its inevitable difficulties.

Decent zoom out to the problematic container. Good transition to Worf waking up in sickbay. Nice continuous shot showing work in the triage centre. Brilliant mini scene of Picard and Riker discussing their work whilst stressed about Worf. Still not thrilled with the surgical clothes. I half expected Alexander's love for his father to bring him back, so, the answer instead being a callback to the discussion of Klingon anatomy is a mildly welcome surprise, but much of the final sequence is still a bit paint by numbers.

I don't really find the discussion around whether Worf should commit suicide as interesting as the episode wants me to. As far as I'm concerned, it's a solved issue: if Worf is of sound mind and wants to die, then his friends should be supportive of his wishes. Instead, the central arguments, apart from the possibility of learning to accept a disabled life, boil down to emotional blackmail and generic mutterings about the sanctity of life. Its just not an interesting debate. Even though Worf should have the right, the way the episode frames his decision making process puts him as a bit of a narcissist obsessed with how he's perceived which is a bit of a nasty turn for his character. Of course, Riker gets the worst of that. For all that these later seasons have been trending up in quality, they do seem to cast the main characters as unpleasant individuals a bit too often.

A bit more interesting is the question of medical ethics, though that's less because of any arguments put forward and more because its gratifying to delve into Crusher's moral principles and see who she really is. Seriously, though, the "debate" the episode wants to have just falls into the same rote pattern that almost every show (especially the infinite number of crime procedurals) does whenever they make an explicit effort to tackle a complex or controversial issue. The main cast take up the most common perspectives, occasionally breaking their characters in the process and repeat the same shallow points ad infinitum. Which, due to status quo being god, usually results in a lot of noncommittal waffling. Even if its conclusion was something i didn't agree with, id still probably respect it more. Crusher's insane plan to have guards orbit Worf's bed for decades on end was the point when it became even clearer to me just how standard this was going to be. The surgery scene and its inevitable dramas was when my goodwill expired. Theres no better description than paint by numbers. I imagine this is a favourite to many, but I've seem this story far too many times elsewhere to be enthused about a Sci-fi retread that ultimately says nothing.

Far less interesting than it believes, in both production and themes, and makes some characters more unpleasant than they ever should be.

Checking out The Outcast tomorrow (for realsies).