I would disagree on the red grade given to season one of TNG - the introduction and all-too-soon death of Lt. Tasha Yar is one of the...kKKNnnnKK.. GNNNGGGg... (nerdurysm)
I dunno, I though season 3 and most of 4 was pretty bad for Enterprise. I would have said that most of 1 wasn't horrid... certainly not up to the grade of DS9 and TNG glory days.
ENT 3&4 had the advantage of largely dropping the HEY REMEMBER THIS THING FROM TOS ALSO ALIENS ARE WEIRD ALSO SEXY VULCAN TIME feeling of a lot of episodes in favor of a stab at a darker, grimier frontierish thing. It wasn't brilliant but it was definitely less goddam aggravating and people got to do a bit more acting and get out of cardboard character land.
And then, as noted by that little red diamond, it had the fucking worst final episode ever. The actual climax/finale of the season 4 storyline was okay, but then they capstoned the whole thing with Will god-bless-him Riker doing a clipshow-that-isn't-a-clipshow episode where he gets to go explore the nature of the Enterprise crew blah blah blah fuck that thing it was so bad.
On the bright side, it was a terrible episode that sort of thematically mirrors the terrible last-episode-of-TNG-season-one clip show starring Riker. So.
@joshmillard the clip show was at the end of season 2 (I know you meant that it was a clip show of season one but it also had season two clips in it). It appears Will Riker is involved as the focal point of many awful episodes. Coincidence? I THINK NOT
@nayyar oh shit, you're right. I actually feel both better AND worse that it was the second season. Because, I mean, at least that means they didn't fuck up the first season with that. But also it means it was two seasons in and they still didn't have their shit together enough not to pull that? I don't know.
@joshmillard I've been rewatching the entire series from start to finish, so I unfairly had that particular show in recent memory. Reading the background of the episode, the clip show was a result of budgetary constraints from overspending in episodes earlier in the season. Consequence of the medium (television), so I give it a pass, but it's still an abomination of an episode.
@nayyar @joshmillard I learned over Christmas that a longtime friend of mine's all time favorite TNG character is Riker and I was all, "It's like I don't even know you!" Now when he approaches a low chair I wait to catch his leg in case he tries to throw it over.
I caught an episode of TNG a few months ago and remembered how much I watched and enjoyed them when I was a teenager. But then it turned out to be the episode where Riker and Picard are stuck in Jazzworld in the holodeck while the Enterprise is being hijacked.
Was that in a season worth skipping? Or just an aberration in a good season?
And then, as noted by that little red diamond, it had the fucking worst final episode ever. The actual climax/finale of the season 4 storyline was okay, but then they capstoned the whole thing with Will god-bless-him Riker doing a clipshow-that-isn't-a-clipshow episode where he gets to go explore the nature of the Enterprise crew blah blah blah fuck that thing it was so bad.
On the bright side, it was a terrible episode that sort of thematically mirrors the terrible last-episode-of-TNG-season-one clip show starring Riker. So.
Now when he approaches a low chair I wait to catch his leg in case he tries to throw it over.
Was that in a season worth skipping? Or just an aberration in a good season?