TNG: Coming of Age
July 29th, 2003 at 9:28 am (Trek Talk)
The episode TNG: Coming of Age lays down the foundation for an X-files conspiracy arc that could have been great but was dropped like a bad fumble at the end of the season. Admiral Quinn tells Picard that he wants the captain close, as he is one of the only people Quinn can trust in Starfleet. Quinn says “perhaps I see conspiracies…everywhere” as he leaves the ship. Too bad the writers were unable to see these conspiracies clearly enough to do something with them.
Diane Gibson said,
September 2, 2003 at 6:49 am
Leopoldo! You forgot to mention the most interesting parts of this episode, you know, the ones on Relva! I’m disappointed in you
Leopoldo said,
September 2, 2003 at 8:45 pm
Relva? Oh right, the starfleet exams! Yes, I found the setup for the psychological exam a bit hard to swallow, but I did like the whole setup they had going with how the exams are preformed and all that. Reminded me of Spock taking his exam in The Voyage Home.
dyingofluv said,
September 3, 2003 at 3:21 pm
I’d have to agree with Leopoldo, the conspiracyt plot could have been scintillating. The premise redeems the episode: but I found Remmick to be violently irritating, so I don’t watch this one much. The exams were a bit incredible, but i’m partial to benzites, so I liked them. As for Wesley (so clearly Diane’s agenda), he was even more haplessly naive in this one, floundering in doubt over a girl who *clearly* liked him. (Although personally I thought the girl was terrible - not pretty and completely unable to act) But it was an okay episode.
kshatriyahgirl said,
September 3, 2003 at 6:16 pm
My agenda…(laughs)I see I have acquired something of a reputation.
Ooh, I am becoming Unpleased. See me become kshatriyahgirl. Spock taking his stupid tests on Vulcan?! How unutterably boring! They weren’t anything like that!The Relva tests were waaaay more interesting! not just because of Wesley, contrary to what miss dyingofluv may think.I like Benzites, too. And so what if the girl (her name is Oliana) wasn’t particularly pretty? big deal, so what, who cares? Appearances can be deceiving. The body is just a shell…
And what is wrong with being naive, pray tell?
dyingofluv said,
September 4, 2003 at 10:11 am
Oh great, ya mean Oliana was housing the Mother Creature from conspriacy? no wait, maybe that’s not what she meant … You must like the Dauphin, huh, miss quote-it?
Nothing’s wrong with being naive, but geez, how many years of this do we have to endure?? it is painful.
Spock’s tests on Vulcan were more interesting to watch … well, i guess in terms of computer graphics, they weren’t, but it was in a lot prettier place, and he had three computers on him at once. The cadets only had one apiece.
Diane Gibson said,
September 5, 2003 at 4:02 pm
What Wesley is doing is not ‘floundering in doubt’but being surprised that someone thinks he’s cute. Do you realize how rare it is to find someone who thinks that? And naivete is nice, not painful. The only times he’s painful to watch is when he’s embarrassed in Justice(and maybe one or two other times that I’ve forgotten). And while you may have a point about her acting, whether or not Oliana is pretty doesn’t (or shouldn’t) make a difference. That’s no good reason to dislike her.
OK ,you’re good, I better watch what I quote in the future. But cut me a little slack, ok? For months, ‘The Measure Of A Man’ and ‘The Dauphin’ were the only episodes we had, so those were the only ones we could watch. Besides, I like quoting.
Personally, I found the psych test fascinating. Well, maybe not the test itself (although that was plenty interesting) but the stuff afterwards, when Wesley realizes what the test was all about.
Of course any scene with Mordock in it is a good scene.My personal favourite is the one in the corridor, with Rondon. Some other good scenes that come to mind are the Wesley/Worf scene in the holodeck, and the scene at the very end, when Picard tells Wesley his little secret. And the Jake story was good, too.
dyingofluv said,
September 5, 2003 at 4:56 pm
For me the highlight was when the frog-handed guy bumps into Wesley and they start yelling at each other. Har har .. we got some good snickers out of that one. The Jake story was not good. No teen steals a shuttle from a Galaxy-class starship just because he didn’t pass a test, no matter how grim their father is …
Diane Gibson said,
September 6, 2003 at 5:16 pm
OK, Jake was something of an idiot. But I liked that little story. And definitely, the part when Wesley and Rondon (that’s the frog-handed guy) start yelling at each other is a good part.It’s always so satisfying whenever Wesley yells, because he does it so rarely. But what do you mean, snickerworthy? (I have a bad feeling about this…)
heathcliffe said,
September 8, 2003 at 12:12 pm
This one wasn’t stellar, but it’s good entertainment fare. The sequence where Remmick is quizzing the various officers on the events and occurrences of the past year is a particular standout with a great script and perfect characterizations. Though my favorite part is when Wesley, aglow with delight from a comment made by Oliana, says to Mordock, ‘Did you hear that, Mordock? She said I was cute.’
Mordock says, ‘Is that a good thing, Wesley?’
‘Yes!’ Wesley assures him, then pauses. ‘I think…’
It’s a puzzle that even 23rd-century teenage boys have failed to crack!
bobbi chase said,
September 8, 2003 at 2:02 pm
My favourite part (that I can think of right now) is the scene in the corridor, when Wesley realizes what’s going on and starts shouting at Rondon…
Diane Gibson said,
September 9, 2003 at 11:43 am
Remmick is sooo annoying..ugh.