Emergence

Something has taken over the Enterprise, and that something is – the Enterprise. The ship is alive and trying to create life, too. But Picard and crew have places to be. Can they wrest back control from this new life without killing it so they can go back to seeking new life? And can they please play in the holodeck without being almost killed? Find out when Emergence goes into the Mission Log. I knew I’d seen the Catheter Cowboy somewhere! As for the episode it’s a typical late season TNG episode. Not bad, not brilliant. Can’t believe we’re so close to the end of TNG in TV format now. Are you doing All Good things as two episodes or one giant episode after the forthcoming and great Preemptive strike? Thing is; It is a very nice episode to end the show – A lovely bookend to the show, that both celebrates its past methology, and has fun with its future too. John and Ken will likely have a lot of fun talking about it, and perhaps will be a little sad that TNG is done. It is the perfect feel-good sci-fi show, the kind that makes you feel good about life I will say. I’m glad they have that bendy-straw thing; it really ties the whole episode together. Whew! I need a drink, maybe a White Russian. Perhaps the reason the “smart” Enterprise computer’s thinking as it manifests on the holodeck is slow and dreamlike is that the newly emerging Enterprise intelligence/consciousness can’t simply execute a purposefully, intelligently designed program here — rather, it’s an entirely unplanned side-effect of all those “smart” shipboard systems interacting. That is to say, it’s essentially a new, “unprogrammed” brain that can’t just call a “solve a complex equation” subroutine (for example) but has to figure things out on its own, somewhat like a human would have to. I also thoughtthat the “lifeform” it creates in the cargo bay was basically a vessel for itself so it can have an existence independent from being other people’s vessel — so instead of reproducing and then going back to being a self-unaware machine, it’s actually leaving the ship. VOY had some silliness about holograms from other societies forming some group of refugees. I never liked the show, nor the holodeck doctor plot devices…. I am ok w sentient mechanical lifeforms, but I just like there to be some plausible impetus. Do you think Data uses the holodeck to pretend he’s hosting Jeopardy? This episode could have been about all the things that made Measure of Man great – about what it means to essentially be human. Unfortunately, this episode is really about the most innane and ridiculous dialog of people on trains. It is a dull and lifeless affair having neither logical consistency or suspense. It also makes the fundamental mistake of substituting a cool tech idea (“ooh, we can make the Enterprise spawn a life!”) with character development, plot and story. I always chuckle at how fast Trek, sci-fi in general has these stellar phenomena occur at such rapid rates. Of course, it is for the sake of the viewer and time constraints but still funny. I wanted to see the waiters come out dancing and serving hot chocolate to everyone. Don’t really have much to say on this one…because TNG doesn’t really have much to say this week. All of the potential implications play out in our heads, rather than on-screen – a real story would’ve been, what if the Enterprise decides it doesn’t want to be infested with carbon units anymore? Wouldn’t that have been a potential series ender? We’ve spent years seeking out new life and it’s evolving within our own AI? What is our responsibility to this new form of life since we basically created it? But none of that is addressed, or will be. Not even on Voyager, which made a big deal about that ship having “bio-neural gel packs” (they’re like Tide Pods…BUT THEY THINK!). Instead, Menosky officially flies the communicating-by-metaphor thing nose-first into terrain with the train denizens on the holodeck…and…a Krazy Straw is born…and…that’s it. Thi