The Greatest Generation - A Greek Chorus of Noxzema Commercial Kids (S7E15)

Episode Date: August 28, 2017

When Riker and Troi embark on a quarterly crew evaluation, four fresh-faced ensigns are pitted against each other to see who will get promoted, and who will be voted off the island. But when the Captain takes a special interest in big-dogging a familiar young Bajoran, the competition turns deadly. What does a staff meeting in Ten Forward sound like? Is Worf the best manager on the ship? Is Troi running a long con to get more face time with Lavelle? Its the episode that will serve as a time capsule for post-tour Adam and Ben to understand what pre-tour Adam and Ben were really like.

Priority 1 message from Starfleet coming in on Secured Channel. Hey friends of Disodo. Before today's episode, we just wanted to take a moment to talk about the historic labor actions being taken by writers and actors in the American Film and Television industry. If you're a fan of the work done by the people who make Star Trek, we hope you'll join us in standing in solidarity with the folks who actually bring these adventures to life. Over the past several years, the AMPTP, the organization that represents the American Film and Television Production Studios, have reduced the profit from movies and TV going to workers. And in so doing,

they've attempted to weaken the labor unions that represent those workers. They wouldn't even engage the unions on many issues in their negotiations. And so a strike was the only course of action to take. Adam, Wendy and I have been having a lot of internal discussions about how best to stand with the unions and we are continuing those conversations in a dynamic situation. We're doing our best to understand where the picket lines are in these digital spaces,

and we would never intentionally cross one. With the information we have, we feel like we can do more good talking about and supporting the strike and continuing our show as planned. We'll keep you informed about what all this means for greatest trek specifically. Today we're making a contribution to the Entertainment Community Fund. This fund exists to help all the people whose livelihoods have been put on hold because the AMPTP refuses to negotiate

in good faith with the unions. It provides financial support for writers, actors, and all the thousands of laborers who make the shows that we talk about here and without whom we wouldn't have Star Trek to cast pot about. Those folks are all out of work because billionaires, company shareholders, and the executives of these companies don't want to compromise on the length of their yachts. We hope you'll join us in supporting entertainment workers in a challenging time, especially after they've already endured several years of challenges brought on by the pandemic

and season two of Star Trek Picard. We've set up a page where you can also contribute. It's at friendsofdecotoforlabor.com. That's friendsofdecisoto for labor.com. That's friendsofdisoto for labor.com. Link in the episode description. Okay, now let's get on with the show. Here's to the finest crew in Starfleet. Engage! Welcome to the greatest generation to Star Trek Podcast by two guys who are a little bit embarrassed to have a Star Trek Podcast. I'm Adam Pranica.

I'm Ben Harrison. Ben, this is the first episode to be released after the smashing success of our Midwest and East Coast tour, we've come back closer friends than ever, haven't we? Yeah, we've come back, came back to Heroes Welcome, a ticker tape parade to honor our return from our tour. I'm still picking confetti out of my hair. Adam, I'm having a tough time maintaining the fiction of this premise that we are recording

this after the tour. When in fact, we are recording it before the tour even starts. That's right. About a week, a week and a half maybe before we kick off this tour. What are you thinking about, Ben? Your thoughts. This is also the last time we're going to record before going out on that tour due to my significant work demands. Any final thought before you take the field? I was thinking today, oh, it's going to be so nice, you know, like we've put in so much work to extend the runway so much. And I was thinking,

it's gonna be great, I'm gonna have a few weeks off where we don't have this constant beast we need to feed. And then I was like, wait, I'm gonna be fucking podcasting every goddamn day for like two weeks. Yeah, it's a totally different beast. Any of you have to feed it in person. I'm way looking forward to the tour because I think it will just mean getting out from behind my desk,

which is a place I've been for like three weeks straight on various deadlines. I think we've talked about this before, like at a bunker time can make you crazy and I have been in the bunker for a long, long, long time. So it's time to be out with the people pressing the flesh. Yeah, it's gonna be fun. I think it's gonna be great Adam. I think we're gonna have a ton of fun. And I can't wait to see this movie that we're reviewing. I know.

Time to watch the movie and study up on that. What is your biggest hope for the tour and what is your greatest fear for the tour? I would say my greatest fear is that we're basically doing the same show 10 times. We got 10 engagements and it's 10 of the show. So my fear is that we have staleness issues that present themselves. Given our last tour, like it's not that big a fear, but you know, it occurred to me. I'd say my big hope is that it goes as well as our last tour did. Like we didn't have any

game tape on ourselves before we went on our last tour did. Like we didn't have any game tape on ourselves before we went out on our last tour, and it was just so much fun, and it was really great to meet people. You know, like we had never really met anybody that listened to our program before that, and it was super encouraging. It was groups of wonderful people,

and like people who, you you know came up and had like said really genuinely kind things to us and you know joked around with us and it was just it was fun to hang and I think that that is going to be the best part. Yeah I mean after the first show in Seattle that we did in November, and there was the greeting line afterwards. Like after going through that experience, that became the thing I looked forward to at every show. Like it was almost like during the show,

I was excited for that. Like while we were on stage. I was checking your watch, you're like, yeah, can't wait to be done with this bullshit. Why don't we get it? Take some pictures. Yeah, that's going to be great. And this is going to be on to a larger scale too, that that's going to be an interesting challenge, you know. Yeah, I think the scale thing is really amazing.

Like we're, I think that the smallest venue we are playing on this tour is twice the size of the biggest venue we played on the last tour. So that's going to be a real head trip. That's nothing to be nervous about at all. I love the idea that our tour is just a catastrophe and we're here recording this as a little time capsule for everybody to, you know, they've seen the the tweets they've seen the Facebook post about what a what a fucking complete massacre of

unfunny bullshit it was One of us is still in jail like the mugshot has been meamed Oh, they were so young and optimistic and naive What's when you get three public urination strikes that That's life in prison, isn't it Ben? That's it Yeah, they just they don't even put points on your license. They punch holes in it Oh, no well hopefully we will have kept it together

enough to Bring you fresh pod by the town we get back Fresh pod like this been speaking you fresh pod by the town we get back. Fresh pod like this, Ben. Speaking of fresh pod Adam, we've got some fresh faces in the episode we reviewed today. Yeah, like a Greek chorus of Nagzima commercial kids, huh? Fresh faced and ready to go. Splashing water on themselves in seductive slow motion. It's season seven episode 15 lower decks.

This episode opens with Riker and Troy very publicly talking about the people that work for them. They're like sitting and 10 forward where anybody can overhear them going like fletcher is more experienced with propulsion systems. But cost is better with people. Guys close door conversation please. Yeah I mean 10 forward ends up being the primary location for this episode right? So much so that even the exteriors have 10 forward lit up in a way that I don't remember seeing. Every time they show the ship from outside, instead of an over top view, it tends to be a from the bottom view, which I guess is a nod

to the title. Mm-hmm. But yeah, the nose of the ship is conspicuously bright. With the word being lit up like it is. Right, and so Riker and Troy are going over these, these personnel reports, and they're like grading people, right? They're grading people for promotion. And even they're kind of sick of it.

Didn't we just do crew evaluation reports? Yeah, it's got to be pretty obnoxious when you are, the person who's responsible for like, I mean, we know that there's a thousand people on the ship. We know that at least seven or eight hundred of them are small children, but you know, Ryker oversees like at least one or two hundred officers probably. Right. You know, he's got to make calls about when they get promoted and stuff. I mean, that's hard in a small office. This is a big one. It's true. So we're getting like a cut between Riker and Troy and this group of four who will get to know this, uh, this Greek chorus

that I referred to before that's two backzips and two frontzips. It's a, uh, Ogawa. Who's a front zip? The Vulcan. He's a front zip. And, and Level. In the a, Ogawa. Who's a French? The Vulcan. He's a French. And, and Lavel. In the red, the guy with Peter Fast and Ellie vibes. Oh,

I thought he was a back. No. He's a front. What? Two and two. Why does Cedo get the back sip? Like, we know why Ogawa gets the back sip, but why does Cedo get the back sip?

I think it's because Cedo has tap billing of this four. I think she gets the most screen time. They're not going to stick her in the spandex. What I didn't quite remember from about this episode before seeing it again was that lower decks refers to not only these four officers, but it also refers to a waiter who is just as much of a character in this episode as anyone else. Yeah, and it's the waiter's play probably Bruce Bady who's like a real that guy. Yeah, he's been in a lot of stuff You sure about dessert?

Yes, don't tempt me. You could argue he's as much of if not more of that guy than Any of the four we're seeing. Yeah, I guess save Okawa Absolutely. This group of four I think sort of demonstrates four different emotional philosophies, right? I think Ogawa is like the bubbly oversharer. Don't worry about it, sound. Level is paranoid. Just paranoid at all times. How can I have a good time when my career's being decided across the room? Sido is nice, but she has a dark past. Can we just try and have a good time here? And the Vulcan is a tryhard.

You can't really believe the way you're doing. Millian fluents the outcome of your evaluation. And I think these are pretty familiar character types in any workplace, right? Sure. And it's cool to catch back up with Sito because we have seen her before in the Wesley is covering up the death of a cadet episode. She was involved in the cover up and that very, you know, like I think that the

writers could have burned calories trying to remind us of who she is early in this episode and they had the confidence to save that for the middle. So yeah, they're all sitting there like just out of your shot wondering what's going to go on with their promotion and Riker and Troy are there on the other side of 10 forward talking about that promotion and Ben the waiter is going back and forth between them, stirring shit up. Apparently you two are up for the same job. Ben's character plays this as something that's fun, that is amusing him, and that he believes as amusing to the other people.

But this is not nice. I don't think Ben should be doing this. Ben is manipulating. Yeah. I think he knows how untouchable he is and that is established right from the start, right? Yeah. Like, no one gives a shit.

He is. He's just a civilian. He's outside the chain of command, which is a place that I like to be, you know, like. Yeah. I like if I go to a show and I'm there to film it, like not really being in the crowd, but not really being with the band and not really being with the venue, I'm like, I'm not really under anybody's purview, which

is great. Right. Yeah, I mean, who does this guy report to? Geinen is Geinen the boss of 10 Forward? I think so. And if not, who is? She's got that office, she's got that nubby gun. I would say whatever she says goes. I love the idea of Geinen doing a before 10 Forward opens

sort of like gather the troops and talk about the specials for the day. Yeah, they've for the day. Yeah, they got the good. We got a birthday coming up. You know, we got to get the special cupcake with the weird candle ready. Yeah. Everyone remembers we don't sing Happy Birthday and the sister's establishment. There's a new molecular gastronomy cocktail invented. Everybody take a small sip. We are trying to push this hard. This is the special. We want to sell a lot of this today, people. Got a great prize for the waiter,

for the server who sells the most of these. Day off on Friday. So push the cocktail. Guys, just so you know, on the last shift, we had a surprise health inspection. Did not go super well. I need to remind everybody that there's got to be cellophane on top of a container of milk

if you're putting it aside for any amount of time. They really dinged us on that one, guys. Wilson, I know you were on the hood and they don't really care about me entering the danger zone of temperature over there. The hood is very happy to hang a sea in the window if they're 10 forward. Yeah, 10 forward is an A established mononely, it has to be.

Yeah, it's got to be. These guys are all drinking the groanies, which is pretty cool. They've also added three-dimensional checkers to all of the tables in 10 forward in this episode. Yeah, it seems like sort of a step down, doesn't it? Yeah, these guys are playing three-dimensional checkers and the bridge officers are playing three-dimensional chess. It's great, though, because no one ever touches the games.

Yeah, it doesn't seem like a fun game, right? It's great though because like no one ever touches the games. Yeah, it doesn't seem like a fun game, right? Checkers has never been fun. No, sucks. So Lavel believes that he is not going to get the promotion even though he's up for it. He wants it so bad. Oga was so bubbly and positive, she's like, no, bud, it's totally yours. But when the waiter comes by and says,

yeah, guess what? Level and Ceto are up for the same job. That's so's right away. The tension that will be carried throughout the episode between the two. Like, Ceto is all like, level you're great. I'm sure you'll get it. Levels like, but Riker hates me. Let's everyone remember that. How much Riker hates me. And if you forget, I will remind you throughout the episode. Lavelle is an interesting character, and I think I don't like him

because I see a lot of myself in him. He like totally overestimates how much other people are thinking about him. Right. It's a weird kind of vanity, isn't it? It really is. It is something that I'm very, very much guilty of most of the time. His pessimism is something that I definitely vibe with,

but his oversharing of that pessimism is something that I don't generally do. The Vulcan is the fourth guy at the table, and he is pretty standard issue Vulcan. He's just sort of like logically irritating everyone at the table. Yeah, bone stock Vulcan. Yeah. I think this guy was on Voyager 2. You really get close to that season one, season two uniform in this episode. get close to that season one season two uniform in this episode. Like, you forget how shiny that is. And he's wearing it. It makes him look so skinny because it's spandex. Yeah, he looks like a rail. So back on the bridge, they're near Cardassian space, the enterprises. They're doing some like training. They're doing like Kobayashi Marpou.

And they're doing like simulations. Yeah. Yeah, and this has got to be some of the most. You know, like my Kobeashi Maru pun. I really don't bend. You're better than that. You're better than a cheap poo joke. All right, well, I'll think about it.

It's a tactical simulation and Ensencito, the bejorng, is not quite as quick as she'd like to be, you know? Like they got a drill on this missile test. Is the best they can do? No, sir, but that's what they did. Missile readiness test, whether or not there's a fire in the galley. I really love the specificity that Riker gets with her on his critique. Like, she's a tactical, and she's having a hard time locking the phasers.

Yeah. And Riker actually talks a little inside baseball about how to use the targeting computer, and I thought that was great. Like, so I'm tri-lating the locking relay float until the actual order to fire is given. They may not teach that trick of the academy, but it works. Give me more of that sort of techno babble. Like normally we're here and all about like the

duck to work of the enterprise and what pipes connect to what other pipes. Yeah. But like this is practical, tactical. Yeah. It's great. Gotta let that locking relay float at him. That's right. He does it in a way that totally discloses that he is a good teacher. Yeah. You know, this episode is really from the perspective of these four ensigns. And so, like, we don't get a lot of context for what's going on. And while they're all sitting there on the bridge, they get a... I feel like this is when, like, Picard comes in and he's like,

Hey, guys, change of plans. we're going to this other system and, you know, we're just left to wonder what the mission even is. Is this also the scene where they gather in the observation lounge and they, and Cito and Lavelle are at Ops and Con? This is that scene, right? Yeah, yeah. All the senior officers like walk off the bridge together and Cito comes down and parks it at Codd at Ops and that seat that she plopped herself in is the one that they are both competing for.

There's some pregnancy of competition in that moment. Cedow seems interested in what's happening in the observation lounge in a very obvious way. I think anyone would be interested in the observation lounge in a very obvious way. Like, I think anyone would be interested in what's going on. And Levelle just isn't even trying to hear it. Levelle is pissed about how he acted during the drill. And he can't get it out of his head, still, that Riker hates him.

And Sido's like, man, I would love to know what they're talking about in there. And Levelle is like, I'm such a fuck up, I'm so stupid. I said, I twice, Riker hated that. Yeah. Yeah, Levella's a little bit of a tryhard too. Yeah. Yeah, he really wants, he really wants to turn his reputation around, but he is really inept at doing that.

It's natural when you know that an authority figure, or when you surmise it, an authority figure might not like your whole deal to like try to up your game a little bit, and it it's so cringey to watch him try and then just get rebuffed every time. Yeah, it me. Yeah. So the deal is they're on the edge of Cardassian space and they got a scan for an escape pod that they soon find. And this is a super secret mission because only the senior staff knows about it. And what you see from the lower dex perspective is how much anyone who's outside of that senior bubble knows anything about what's going on on this mission or probably mostly others, right? I mean, this mission seems like particularly sensitive because they're dealing with like a secret informant, but they have some real fun with the way they unfold the app.

Like, they're beaming the person out of the escape pod, and you see the transporter start in 6 Bay, but the shot cuts before it resolves, and it's only kind of hinted at who that person might be. Yeah. You get to hear the instance speculating about who it might be. And I really like that they, that Ben suggested might be Spock and Torek is like, no, that doesn't make any sense.

No, no. Spock wouldn't be in Cardassian space. Torek thinks about Spock all the time. Like, the idea that Spock could be on board, I think would totally melt his brain. Yeah, Torek is causing some grief for Jordy because he's got some like scheme about how they're going to improve their warp efficiency

or something and he's been like taking the liberty of running simulations on it. We got a problem here. Your plasma filter in his cells is out of sync. Actually, sir, that was done deliberately. It's that kind of tryhard thing that makes everybody else look bad, because they're not going above and beyond.

And so, Jordy is like, all right, man, like I'll fucking read your little, your little pup paper or whatever, like, all right, man, like I'll fucking read your little, your little pup paper or whatever, like, come on. Let's, let's focus on the job we actually came here to do. Jordi makes that mistake of saying, yeah, like, let's set up a meeting on that. But and then like wheels around and walks away and Torik's like when? I'm ready.

Uh, I hate that trap. Yeah. Cause you're trying to be diplomatic. You don't want to say fuck off, but really like, let's set up a meeting as sort of a, a soft fuck off. It's the like, yeah, I hope I make it to the party. You know, it's the, it's. It's the plausible, like leaving yourself as many plausible outs as you can and the person is not picking up on the social cues

and really wants to pin you down on an answer will you be at the party? Yeah, Jordy, Jordy may be the least equipped to handle social cues. But Tarek is even worse. Yeah. Yeah, Dirty gets a little taste of his own medicine. Yeah.

And speaking of missing social cues, Ogao keeps having conversations with Beverly, where Beverly is really trying to be like her pal and like, you know, just trying to have like the friendly chit chat of friends. How are things going between you and Lieutenant Powell? And Ogawa is like unable to drop rank. Actually, I just wanted to tell you that

in some Rally's condition is showing improvement. Like, I kind of feel like Beverly is promoting her so that they could just be like on closer to equal footing so that Ogawa can stop like deferring to her so reflexively. I don't know, man. I think I might be on the opposite side of that take because when you are a subordinate and your authority figure keeps like asking you personal questions about your life. You feel obligated to answer because of the power imbalance there.

And I think she is flattered that Beverly takes an interest in her life, but I don't know if she's totally comfortable with it. And what's Beverly's deal? I wish Beverly wasn't such a prior in her life or anyone else's. Like that's sort of a character trait of hers now is like asking the personal question all the time. Maybe she's just trying to get,

she's trying to develop a new breakfast bud. Yeah. It can't be all Picard all the time. I think you're probably more right than I am about the Ogawa Beverly relationship. I think there is true and genuine affection between them, but I do understand the initial reticence to share personal facts about yourself given their professional relationship you know and the idea that she may be obligated to do so in order to get a promotion. When else she should have to do is bring in a basket of Exactly There's some a couple of mysteries going on alongside this mystery escape pod one is that nobody really knows why

Cito got Suggested as getting promoted tops because she's a tactical officer and there's like a scene in 10, 4-word where Wurf is like, yo, I put you up for that because I think you're great. I think you got a lot of talent, kid. And that comes as kind of a shock to her. Like she's just trying to like do her thing. She's not, she does not perceive Wurf to be like paying that close attention to her. Worf really shows themselves to be kind of a great boss in this episode. Like, I completely agree. Really is making insightful choices about how to manage his people.

Physically kicking a subordinate's ass when necessary. Yeah, he takes care of them. This to me was the most interesting plotline of the app. I mean, there are threads drawn between all four of these characters and then people on the senior staff. Yeah. But this CTO War relationship I found totally fascinating and it's because they don't say it. That makes it so great. I mean, Cito is someone who is living with a great dishonor and still carries on with her

life and her career in a way that I know warf understands. But warf never says that openly. He uses metaphor, he uses physical examples of violence on her. He says everything without saying it in a way that I think great leaders do. And he lets her kind of arrive at what she needs to do by just kind of showing her the door. She's the one that walks through it. Obviously he can't because he doesn't know how to work it. Right. There's also the scene where Jordi has Torek down

in the shuttle bay and he's just having him like phaser, the shit out of a Previa. And Jordi keeps going like, why are we shooting this Previa? And Jordi's like, oh, we're testing the phasers. It made me nervous how close to the target Jordy stood at any given point. Like, in any firing of any weapon, I feel like no one should be downrange. And there's Jordy trusting an Ensign to not kill him.

Yeah, he's like, he right there and like the beam hits like inches from where he already his finger is. It's got to be like, do you remember your first job? Like my first job was working at a grocery store and like bagging groceries as a 15 and a half year old. And like occasionally I would be given a job that was way outside that scope of work. It was like, it was like go back to the cardboard baler and like bail a new bin of cardboard.

And I would like relish that because it was so different. Like I would get to do that once a month and it would be like off the floor in the back by myself, like that was the best part and I feel like Torek is given as an engineer in SIN, like the most unique job of that he could get, which is like shooting a phaser at a Shuttlecraft, like for a phaser at a shuttlecraft. For a Vulcan, he's got to enjoy that as much as a Vulcan can. Yeah. It's also not fooled at all by the lie that they're testing the phasers or or making sure the phasers are doing good. He's put it together that they are making this ship look

like it's gotten into a scrape. Yeah, and he is a, he's a volatile combination of Vulcan and Trihard at this point. Like, he can't help himself. He can't help himself from proposing a more efficient way to scar the shuttlecraft and make it look like it was, you know, sustaining battle damage. And Jordy is just not trying to hear it. Vulcan's hard to shut down. Once they have their mind on something, you know, sustaining battle damage, and Jordi is just not trying to hear it. Avogans are hard to shut down. Once they have their mind on something, you know? Jordi is just ill-equipped. Yeah. They're like a pit bull, you know. They just get locked up.

Yeah. There's a fun sequence in here where Riker and his gang are playing poker, and then the Ensign's are playing poker poker and it kind of like uses close-ups on chips and cards to intercut between them. Really deft. Yeah. Maybe not as tightly edited as it could be, but it's, you know, it kind of establishes similarities between Lavel and Riker. Like, as if they like weren't already clear enough, like La Lavel, like plays the same kind of poker as Riker, and the Ensens are talking about their ambitions at the same time as the upper deck people are talking about, like, where they, you know, like, how they got to where they

are and, like, how they feel about the people that they're considering for these promotions. Troy is, like, an like an empath feeling empathy. Like the case she's making to Riker is like, I think what you might be feeling right now is like the narcissism of minor differences between you two. Like you were that guy once, you were an ensign trying to get the attention of a commanding officer or maybe didn't like you.

Like you see this guy walking around the ship, swinging his leg over chairs, like he's just like you. It's funny, man. Right, there's having a hard time hearing it, but Troy's right. Do you think Troy finds Lavel attractive for the same reason that you find found that era of riker attractive? Oh, that's interesting. I bet. What if she wants Levelle to be promoted so she can be closer to him? Like Levelle gets more bridge time, Troy gets more bridge time,

they get more bridge time together. She fits him for a back zip. That thing zips all the way down. The other thing that's happening in this episode is that Sito has caught the attention of Captain Picard and there's a really intense scene where he pulls her into his office and really rips into her about the fact that she had that cover up in her past. And he's like, you know, like, what the hell am I even supposed to think about you? Like, why are you here? Like, how can anybody, how can anybody trust you after what you did? And she's, she's pretty chickened up by it. Like, she does okay in, in the moment.

In a lot of ways, it would have been easier to just walk away, but I didn't. I stuck with it. Doesn't that say something about my character too? But he's basically attacked her character and it feels, it's a very interesting side of Picard to see because we don't have a lot of context for why he's doing it yet. He withers her in such a way that she has no response. Like she is totally taken down and then leaves.

I think the thing that gives this scene a lot of weight is the scene that comes before, which is Cedos Joy at the idea that Picard is sort of tapped her shoulder and asked her to come with him on on a walk that that she doesn't know the destination of. Yeah. She's excited and and like thrilled that the Captain noticed her and for and the reversal of that feeling is so massive that I think it gives a lot more weight to the undressing that Picard gives her. Like, he just verbally murders her in the ready room. Yeah, so Worf is doing some Klinghahn Yoga and he tells her, basically, you've gotten to a level where you can move on to the advanced class of Klinghahn Yoga.

you can move on to the advanced class of Klingon Yoga, but first you've got to pass this test where I'd put a blindfold on you. I was watching him cover her eyes up and thinking about what the HR department would think about this, but it winds up being like a very instructive moment for her where she's like, fuck this, this test is bullshit. Like how the fuck am I? It's also kind of a repudiation of Star Wars.

The blast shield down, I can't even see. How am I supposed to fight? Not fair to test me when I can't see, basically. I, the thing I was thinking over the whole time was like, Warp so, I must administer the Kumate test. You might be familiar with it from the end of the film Bloodsport when Frank Dukes was blinded. And Sido does not is not able to fight off her attacker the way Frank Dukes does. She gets her ass kicked in such a major way. One scene in particular, like made me laugh out loud,

she like sort of front kicks, and Worf is massive next to her. I think Worf has like a foot and a half on her. Yeah. She front kicks, because Worf grabs the kicking foot, like holds it and then grabs the other foot with his other hand and like full sum or solter. It looks like a video game.

It's good stuff. And yeah, I wonder if they had to blindfold her because they had a stunt womaner and shooting at that close, there was no like, there was no way to cover that up except with a blindfold. I wonder if there was like a practical reason for that. And it just stayed a story reason.

The story reason is like the most interesting part of it. Because he says like it took courage for you to say that this was a bullshit test. Like that's what it was testing. And that really puts some wind in her sales. And she goes back to Picard and she's like, hey, Bub, like I did the crime, but I also did the time. Like you're not the fucking tribunal that is hearing about the bad thing I did. It is not your place to repunish me for that just because you had some strong personal feelings about it. So if you don't want me on this ship, that's fine.

I'll go somewhere else, but I'm gonna like be the best officer. I can be despite my past and I would appreciate not getting Shit on by you about it. Seedos like I lit my plasma farts on fire at the Academy and you were a borgs Like and you got your job right back. So fuck off, man. Dang. You think what I did was anywhere nearly as bad as what you did? Mm-hmm.

No one ever drops the Borgs bomb on Picard. And Sido really could have. Yeah, that would have been nice. He's like, listen, Sido. Like, the reason that I was being addicted was to make sure that you had what it takes to do a really scary assignment. So why don't you come with me to the observation lounge and we're going to talk about it. And they go in there and there is a Cardassian.

And it is explained to Ceto that this dude has been like feeding information to the federation and he actually snuck out of Cardassians space to give them a bunch of intel on what the Cardassians are up to. And now they need to get him back to the Cardassians. And the only way to do that is to make it look like he stole a shuttle and took a bejure and prisoner, like make it look like he's a bounty hunter. And if she goes with him and does this, they'll send her back across the line in an escape pod much the same way he came across. And they'll get her back, but it's a dangerous mission she's signing up for. She's not conscripted into doing it, like, and Picard is very clear about this. Picard's

like, this is a fucked up mission, like, TBH. And there is a fair to Midland chance of death here. So, I'm not going gonna order you to do this and Cedos like I volunteer I'll take it I love it. Bruse me up. Captain Picard obviously it would be ideal not to put another member of your crew into danger but I simply cannot turn out a real doll with a Bajora nose. I've been trying for years. I'm no good at it. I could make you a real doll that'll let you use the high-acupancy vehicle lane, but any close inspection will reveal that it's not a authentic bejorin. Perhaps you could loan me your ancient you're an ancient shito and then I could make some sort of nose mold.

So that I could then create a real deal with realistic, bejure and nose molds. What I'm saying though is that it'll take a little time and if this mission is timely, you may want to just risk her life needlessly. We know this show has plastic surgery technology. Like, they could have used a lieutenant. Like, an actual security lieutenant made them up to be a bejurean and then had someone capable of fighting back in that shuttle. Instead they send Sita and she gets in the preview with this Jorret doll and they fly

off and she's like, they're like sitting there and she's like, why the fuck are you working with Starfleet if you are a Cardassian? Like, I have no context for a Cardassian that doesn't just kill Bajorans wantonly. What's up? His answer is so interesting because he doesn't say I'm tired of killing Bajorans. He doesn't say I don't hate Bajorans. His problem is with war itself. If the information I've provided helps Starfleet deter even one pointless skirmish, I've served my purpose. I'm sick of war. And just how tired he is of

of living in conflict. Yeah. That was an interesting way to state his case. And if I were Sido, that would not give me any that would not make me feel better. Like what I want to hear is, no, but Jordans are cool. I think you guys are totally misunderstood. He's like, you know what? My trigger finger is actually getting really tired from shooting all the bejorans.

Yeah. Well, he read some, some Von Clausowitz and really just kind of changed his perspective on things. Yeah, I'm really tired of digging all the mass graves for the Jorins. Like, my backyard is a shambles. My backyard is a shambles, and my back is killing me. Oi!

Sido just sort of like scoots away from him a little bit after this. Sido's bruise makeup looks very realistic and troubling to the degree that before she boards the shuttle, Wurf is like, oh, whoa, like, who did this to you? I'm gonna fucking kick his ass. What's his name? Yeah, like Wurf takes a step back into karate stance, like ready to take someone on. And I think this does a little bit of a time jump, right?

Like this is the last scene that we get inside the shuttle. Yeah, they, they're like getting close to the border and he puts a, put some shackles on our wrists and that's the last we see of them. At what point were you sure that Cedo was gonna die? I think in this scene, I think... I don't think it seemed certain to me in the McLaughlin group. Is your one!

Yeah, I think this was the moment, right? Like the... I thought this was... very good storycraft in that the cut to Includes the time jump and they're looking for the pod that she's supposed to be in and she didn't show up The idea that she dies off screen Makes it more devastating. I think then if you had seen her pod attacked by a cardass. Like, and it's also that like fog of war thing where they're like kind of not feeling good about her chances, but they're still kind of holding onto some hope.

You know, it's like, like they're watching the election results come in and they're like, God, like Florida's looking like it's going Trump, like fuck, this is not necessarily good. Like maybe we'll pick up some states in the Midwest, but shit. I thought it was very much in keeping with the late motif of the entire episode, which is like about perspective, right? It's the perspective of our lower dex Greek chorus. It's the perspective of our lower dex Greek chorus. It's the perspective of the senior staff

It's the perspective of the ship in relation to the shuttle craft and then the escape pod like they do a great job only showing things from those points of view and as soon as they leave in the shuttle You lose that perspective when you come back to the enterprise and that that I thought was a great parallel that they drew Picard gets on the radio and announces to the whole ship that They're pretty sure she's gone and that she was a great officer that deserves a lot of respect for what she did She was the finest example of a starfleet officer And a young woman of remarkable courage and strength of character. Great moment for Picard's character here.

Just the solitude of command once again, just a man alone in a room behind a desk, eulogizing someone that he sent to their death. Yeah. Pretty powerful moment. And the last little scene is a 10-forward bump out. And Wurf is like off in the window by himself and the three surviving ensigns are at a table with each other and Ben the waiter convinces Wurf to go hang out with them

and talk to them because They all are feeling the same thing. Yeah, that was a great moment. I mean warf sees through Ben's manipulation I appreciate what you are trying to do But it is not appropriate but the manipulation is coming from such a place that But the manipulation is coming from such a place that War finally acquiesces to the feeling of it and the feeling of it being pure

And that the episode ends with him just sitting down and no one saying anything I thought was especially powerful as well like I think words would diminish that moment Totally Like, I think words would diminish that moment. Totally. LeVell got his promotion and he got the pins and there's no satisfaction for him, is there? No, I mean, you can't really feel like you earned it if the person you were in competition was died. Those are bloody pips, aren't they? Yeah, it's got blood all over those pips. Ben, did you like this episode?

This episode is on my mountain, Adam. I think it's fantastic. It's so interesting to see the show from a different angle. It's so strong in so many ways. Like, it's very emblematic of like some of the best stuff this show is doing this season, where like theme and motif are

really flawlessly being heightened in every scene, and it adds so much dimensionality to the ship. Like, you know, you can't help but think about where these characters are and what they're doing in subsequent episodes. How about yourself? I agree. I wish we'd gotten one of these episodes every season. And maybe we could have known these characters every time. Like, maybe this is the seventh time we could have visited them and maybe Cedos's death would have had

even more emotional gravity because we could have known her for so much longer. I thought all of the characters were likeable in their own way. It is strange to say that in a series with seasons that are 26 episodes long that there wasn't time for this kind of storytelling, but like when I consider how many other B stories this thread could have been a part of. Like that's a missed opportunity, right? There wasn't time in a lot of episodes to tell this story,

but I think we could go back time in a lot of episodes to tell this story, but I think I think we could go back and and do a census of episodes of all the episodes that we hated the B story on and transplanted this B story on instead and would have been I think it could have redeemed a lot of bad episodes. Yeah. And that's a sort of retconning that I think about a lot when watching a episode this great. And this is on my Mountain Tube, and it's one of the great episodes for sure. I mean, the other thing I kind of wished we had more of that is in this episode is secrecy. You know, like, it's so fun when the doctor has to ask everybody

on her staff to clear the room, because they're going to beam on somebody that nobody else is allowed to see. And I wish, I wish like some of that behavior had been established from the other side earlier in the series. Yeah. Yeah. You know, it's like all the best episodes of this show show how much potential it had. And when it achieves at this level, it's so sad to think about how many times they also stepped up to the plate and took three big swings and missed. That's something that I'm trying really hard to get away from, like in criticizing the show. Like it's so hard to look at it in an episode in isolation and go great episode without

also going, why are the other episodes is great? Like that to me. Okay, I'm in idiot Adam, fuck you. No, I'm not criticizing your critique. I'm saying this is something that I'm trying to work on with me in enjoying a television show that I love is like, is like taking these individual moments for what they are a little better. And you know, I say this after leveling the critique of, why didn't we get seven? It's like greedy fan mentality, right?

Like, yeah, that was really great. Why didn't you give me more? You know, and I think in our, did you like this episode conversation? I think that is something to consider. And I think we both feel the same way. Like, great app app wish there were more Grateful that we have this one

Indeed Adam You know what other thing I'm grateful for Ben what I just love reading P1 messages me to let's do it Priority one message from star fleet coming in on secured channel Need a supplement only to come. A supplement? A supplement. A supplement. Yeah, it's extra. But the interest alone could be enough to buy this ship!

Ben, our first priority one message is of a personal nature. It is from Lisa, your sweet potato penguin. It is four, sixth anniversary husband, bare Ben Douglas. The message goes like this. Vila. Now, oh, okay. This is a Bob Vila. What is that? That's not Bob Vila. Bob Vila isn't in this old house. Okay, so I guess this is gonna be of this old riff. I wish you would have this one instead, Ben, but here we go.

Now, when you wish in a happy anniversary to your husband, you're gonna want to get your favorite podcast to do the job. And then we go back into the normal voice. Thank you for forcing me to watch Star Trek because I love it. You're my very own fully functional Android. Here's to the uncountable infinity of our joy together. PS, thanks to Greatest Gen for bringing us closer. Ben, we're bringing people closer. That's great. We're putting bears with penguins in defiance of God. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Adam, we have another message here, and this one has some instructions as well

that we need to make a new Baker Street drop for it. This message is from Rob and JL Pipes. The dog, she's my dog, young JL Pipes. It is for hope. I'm late for our anniversary and early for your birthday, so just because is my reason to drop some scars. I love you as much as Riker loves consent, as much as Wurf's sucks at being a dad, as much as Pleveem hates Razz. I love being a little bit embarrassed with you, and I'll always be your drunk Shimoda as we boldly go through the universe.

Oh, this is the doggie daddy of JL pipes, the dog that we've seen on Facebook over the last couple of weeks, yeah? Yep. Pretty great. Ben, I feel like being a little bit embarrassed with whoever you're with is like a great foundation for a relationship. Because that's like, your with is like a great foundation for a relationship. Because that's like, that's like real intimacy, right? When you're intimate enough with someone to be to share some embarrassment with them, I think that's vulnerable in that way. Yeah. Yeah. Jury's out as to whether or not that vulnerability super

seeds being late for an anniversary wish. But hopefully this gets you out of the doghouse where you're currently sleeping with that new dog rob. Hopefully hope has the capacity for forgiveness. Fingers crossed. Well, Ben, our show has the capacity for more priority one messages. If you've got a message you like to send, a loved one, a hated one, or anyone in between, you can go to maximumfund.org slash jembo-tron where personal messages are $100 and commercial messages are $200. They are a great way to help with the ongoing production of our program. Thanks, guys.

Thank you. guys. A greatest gen live show is something you don't want to miss. Why? Well it's a great opportunity to see me and Ben in person, but that's not all. FODs from all over gather at these shows to cosplay, to do pre and post show hangs, to make friends, and share their embarrassment. Hey, I'd make a pretty great name for a tour. Let's do it. The Share Your Embarrassment Tour is coming in August 2023,

and we've got a bunch of dates in a lot of great places. Go to GreatestGenTour.com to get more info. That's GreatestGenTour.com for dates and ticketing information for the share your embarrassment tour. I'm Jordan Morris. And I'm Jesse Thorne. On Jordan Jesse Go, we make pure, delightful nonsense. We were open awesome guests and bring them down to our level.

We got stupid with Judy Greer. My friend Molly and I call it having the spaceweards. Pat Naswald. Could I get a Balrog burger and some air-gorn fries? Thank you. And Kumail Nanjiani. I've come back with cat toothbrushes, which is impossible to use. Come get stupider with us at MaximumFun.org.

Look, your podcast apps are already open. Just pull it out. Give Jordan Jesse Goat try. Being smart is hard. Be dumb instead. Whoa, Russ. Hey, baby. Oh, I'm about to count you in line.

These clouds are really freaking me out. I hate having to stand in line. And boy, what do I? These giraffes do not smell good. No, they do not, and they've such short nacks. But I'm hearing we need to get on this. We've got to get on the art. It is about terrain, about a spout to destroy humanity.

Hey, oh, sorry, sorry, sorry. Are you Noah? Yeah, I know we look like humans, but we're actually, we're podcasters. We are podcasters, so it's different. Have you heard of Ono Ross and Carrie? We investigate spirituality, claims of the paranormal, stuff like that.

And you have a boat and say the world's gonna end, so seem like something for us to check out. We would love to be on the boats. We came two by two. What do you think? Ono Ross and Carrie, available on maximumfun.org. ["Making a Star of the Sea"] ["Making a Star of the Sea"]

Hey, Pan. What's that, Adam? Did you find yourself a drunk Shimoda? Drunk Shimoda! Gotta give it to Sam. I've wanted to give it to him all through the app, but the thing that really like sealed the deal for him was showing up at the We are in 10-forward

Feeling awful because our friend just died hang and Making it all about himself. He like he like plops himself down in the chair puts the pit on the table Just like God, I just feel terrible. It's like, dude, fucking, fucking don't make it about yourself for one second. Your friend is dead. Yeah, I mean, that was such a tough pivot. And it's not the actor's fault at all. No, it's in the script. It's the character.

Yeah, yeah. That was tough, man. You have to button the episode with who gets the promotion because you introduce that from the beginning. But oof. I think it's good writing. It's just like that is such a flaw in that character. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, and it makes a likable character up until then unlikable. I like how Sam fucks it up with Riker going up and getting a drink next to him. He's sort of a lovable doofus.

Yeah. Oh, Canada and Alaska both have snow. I really admire Sam for that. Canada and Alaska both have snow. I really admire Sam for that. Like that is a big, that moment where you cross a room and talk to someone you're nervous to talk to is a big moment. And he does it. And who is more, like we know,

we've known Riker for seven seasons as someone that we love as much as any character, but like he's intimidating. He's a big dude and he's the exo of the ship. Like, it's a big moment to step to him. And uh, God, he just eats so much shit in that scene. I guess what I'm trying to say is he's also my drug-shamotor for that moment. I had a hard time choosing between him and Ben.

The reason I would have given it to Ben is the whole, like, he cleans up the lower Dex poker game and then goes, and then he like doubles down on the senior officers game. Like, I've played a lot of poker and I feel like when you've done well and you leave, you do not play another game and you do not come back later on. That is how you lose the money.

And so that was a poor move by him. But I don't know. Sam was very endearing in that scene with Riker. And the way that Riker plays it during that scene is very entertaining too. Like a guy who is amused, a guy who is letting himself hang himself in front of you socially. Good times. Good times. What do we have coming up on the next episode, Ben?

The next episode is season 7, episode 16, Vine Own Self. Having completely lost his memory, data is stranded on a primitive planet where the inhabitants fear he is carrying a deadly plague. Do you remember this episode, Adam? This is the episode I always think of whenever I go to like a street fair or like a farmer's market or something like whatever whatever market like where they close off a street fair, or like a farmer's market or something, like whatever market, like where they close off a street and there's like pop tents and there's... Zeppalee's and shit. Where like people set up booths and they sell

like handmade jewelry and stuff, every time I see the handmade jewelry, I think it might be radioactive. So that's what I remember from this episode, is like how it ruined handmade jewelry for me. Well, handmade jewelry, not that great to begin with. Yeah. That'll be the next episode, Adam.

Looking forward to it. One thing that always warms the host's heart about this show, warms it without being proximal to a piece of metal that is radiating warb on its own. Are the conversations that happened on social media, Ben? Yeah. Twitter. Reddit. Yep.

Facebook. Yes. That's like the holy trinity of social media right there, and we've got presences on all of them. Yeah. Presences, eh? Yeah, very non-sh got presences on all of them. Yeah. Presence A. Yeah, very non-shitty presences too. Like people are nice and fun with each other

and making cool artwork and drawings and stuff. I think one of the reasons that they're so pleasant is that the few times where people step out and are dicks, the pig pile on whoever that person is is massive. That is a very well self-policing place. Yeah, it's good. Well, we should thank Dark Materia for our theme music and Adam and Gusea for a lot of the other music you hear on the program. And with that, we will be back at you next time with another great episode of Star Trek,

the Next Generation, and an episode of the greatest generation that is in way too heavy of woolen clothes to be filmed in Southern California. That's for sure. Welcome back from the tour band. I am very confident that it will have gone great. I'm sending past Adam a sending positive vibes to future Adam and bin Hey, thanks past Adam Make it sound. Make it sound. Y'all look for God, God, God, God, God. Maximumfund.org.

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