TNG update!

So, J and I are actually (as of May 1st!) well into season 2 of TNG. I had much stronger memories of TNG than TOS because ... uh, I grew up with TNG re-runs, and had a lot of affection for Picard as a kid, etc. But part of the reason I was so shocked by loving TOS as much as I did was because it felt so different in ambitions and even politics than I remembered from TNG, and especially in structure and focus. I'd heard people talk about the overlooked ensemble quality of TOS or how McCoy gets balanced narrative attention to Kirk and Spock or whatnot, and then I marathoned the whole thing as an adult and was like "...uh, so this is like 70% the Kirk and Spock show, TNG was way more about the ensemble unless I'm completely misremembering." But it had been a long time, so I was curious about how TNG would register as an adult with more information about the production etc.

By and large, I do strongly prefer TOS despite the comfort food quality of TNG, but I am really enjoying parts of TNG. Data is endearing, but in these more infamously flawed first two seasons, a lot of the show is honestly carried by Riker and Troi for me. J and I keep joking about how Picard is so often in his quarters or indulging himself elsewhere that Riker actually runs the ship, and in general we've felt that everyone would be better off if he just was the captain. It's like... okay, so in my PhD program, there was this graduate student organization that helped with a lot of coordination and such, but the actual president of the organization was a bit of a self-indulgent flake. My best friend in the program ended up becoming the vice-president, and did basically all the real work of holding it together and whipping it into a useful shape. Said vice-president is now J's girlfriend, so he has this context, and I keep being like "ah, looks like GSO Vice President Riker is doing the real work AGAIN."

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Tumblr crosspost (31 January 2025)

In response to this poll about TOS characterization details, elperian said:

all of these options are so great!

I replied:

Thank you! There were some it was painful to leave out (like my girl T'Pring having no other access to divorce, Spock's fluffy dangerous pet as a child, Kirk having a strict No Fraternization policy that applies only to him, etc) but I felt these were the most interesting!

heckofabecca responded (on 1 February):

A++++ for Bones being respectful of privacy! Good doctor job!

I replied (on 2 February):

Yes! There's a profound decency to him a lot of the time (unfortunately not all, but I appreciate when they remember it's essential to his character!).

venndaai responded (on 3 February):

That Uhura/Chapel kiss was so important to teenage me.

I replied (on 6 February):

I was completely blindsided that it happened! Like yeah MEANT to be platonic but...

bladeangelx responded (on 24 April):

Op I literally just finished watching what little girls are made of and cant find the kiss. Is it likely that I found a version with it edited out or did I simply miss out on the correct time stamp?

I replied (on 1 May):

You might have just missed it! Uhura kisses Chapel shortly before Chapel beams down to the planet.

Tumblr crosspost (1 February 2025)

Characterization poll responses part 2!

The original Tumblr poll got over 500 notes and over 1000 votes, so I can't realistically compile everything, but I did want to include some that I particularly appreciated. I'm organizing them by subject for convenience.

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