Target Audience / UNCUT - The Inner Light (TNG S5E25)

I agree with your rating on this episode. I did learn a new appreciation for it after watching this video recently. Its a discussion of the episode from a creator with a few other Trek videos under his belt. I (obviously) suggest it if you have some extra time to listen more about his episode. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZpZfJC21lM

Gryff

2025-03-24 16:42:01 +0000 UTC

The first time Kamin picks up the flute, he plays a song that's comforting to Jean-Luc. The first time Jean-Luc picks up the flute, he plays a song that's comforting to Kamin Also, Kamin's son Batai was played by Patrick Stewart's own son Daniel

Comrade of Chaos

2025-03-22 19:24:43 +0000 UTC

Good stuff, and I agree overall, appreciate your honesty (even when it stings a little). Awesome skit at the end, too.

Banes

2025-03-21 06:33:43 +0000 UTC

S for me. Based on the emotion it evoked from you, you may also find it grows on re-watch. More of a slow burn type episode.

Outis

2025-03-21 00:21:43 +0000 UTC

I have strongly disagreed with some ratings, but that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the system and in fact doing away with it wouldn't change much. You're still going to watch episodes and react to things and ultimately say whether you liked them or not. One thing worth considering as you move into other series is a system used by another popular long time Star Trek reviewer where he makes sure to point out each time that his ratings are always relative to other episodes of that individual series so that there is not an issue of trying to compare two very different series. For example, he considers TNG better on average than TOS and so if he gives a TNG episode a 5/10 he is saying that it's pretty much par for the course for TNG - that it's right in the middle. Yet it might still be an episode that he considers overall better than a TOS episode that he may have rated 6/10, or worse than a DS9 episode that he rated 4/10. It would help with some things, but the big downside is that it is difficult to do when you haven't seen the entire series yet, so it wouldn't work if done exactly like that. Perhaps there is nevertheless some way to incorporate the general idea so that there is one less thing to deal with in terms of people looking at your reactions to TOS episodes and trying to compare them one to one to DS9 or TNG and trying to compare one to one to TOS.

Shane Coombs

2025-03-20 03:54:16 +0000 UTC

yeah, it just feels like a waste of effort these days.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-18 19:18:53 +0000 UTC

I can't remember how I felt about this the first time I watched it. I mean, I know I liked it, but I can't remember if I loved it as much as I do now. So, your rating for the episode doesn't bother me or anything because I might have given it an A too the first time I saw it, and I saw it with no expectations. I think this is definitely one that grows on you with another viewing. As well as watching it again after TNG is complete and you see the rest of (specifically) Picard's story in this series. I'd definitely be curious to know what you two think of it if you watch it again after TNG concludes. :)

Lady Beyond The Wall

2025-03-18 18:08:25 +0000 UTC

Pretty much 75% of my comments on YT just disappear now. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Regardless of what I say. It can be the most innocuous thing and it either disappears from the channel all together, or it's technically there but only the person I responded to can see it. One time it did it when I told someone that I, too, love puffcorn.. lol. Like, what the fuck. It's incredibly frustrating and half the time I don't even bother commenting anymore.

Lady Beyond The Wall

2025-03-18 18:03:40 +0000 UTC

My headcannon to this is that they somehow didnt have the tech for long distance manned space travel, but they did figure out how to project what is essentially a holodeck scene into another person's mind and Picard was the first one to come into contact with it.

Sleeper

2025-03-18 16:44:22 +0000 UTC

Absolutely. I enjoyed this episode when I first watched it, but on subsequent rewatches my love and appreciation for it only grows more and more.

And the rest!

2025-03-18 00:54:28 +0000 UTC

Sorry to just be catching up on this now but I hope you guys don't give up the grading system for good. Here's the thing: Watching something for the first time is very different than watching it for the 20th time. That's part of the enjoyment for us geezers of seeing how you take it in. It helps us remember how our first time was too. You might find that The Inner Light shines brighter than the others once you're looking back after the series is over, or after you've re-watched everything 3 or 4 times over. And if we're honest with ourselves, we probably didn't love it our first time through as much as we do now. You remind us of that. Superfans like to obsess over things, for better or worse. You guys were never disrespectful, you gave your honest thoughtful opinions and it came out an "A", and the fact we know it's an honest and sincere opinion matters more than what the opinion is. Appreciate all the time you've put in to give us a new old perspective. Thank you.

Dan Halstead

2025-03-17 02:20:03 +0000 UTC

Guys regarding your final point about the tier gradings - just don't worry about what the masses make of your ratings, I guarantee more people enjoy the honesty rather than grading something high because the fanbase love it, like what other reaction channels do.

Worf and Riker Ride Again

2025-03-11 13:53:28 +0000 UTC

I don't think I tiered this episode but I'd also give it an S. It's not one of my absolute personal favourites but it's such a great story and concept, and Stewart's acting is superb. The end scene always gets me in his quarters, when he walks up to the window he has a look of absolute grief, though it's a little hard to see due to the lighting. My one improvement would be to have some kind of reference to the massive trauma he would have suffered from living another life which wasn't really his, especially seeing as how he has essentially lost an entire family.

Worf and Riker Ride Again

2025-03-11 13:35:58 +0000 UTC

This one is okay but not really for me. The plot hole is too big. I am also not a huge fan of the one’s Picard goes to other planets and have adventures. Not really another planet or was it? It just is not my thing. I do not get that emotional in this one either. It is done well. Simple plot until the reveal. Just the fact that he was there so long was probably the most interesting thing. The episode did not do much with Picard having to deal with the after effects of his time with the other people. I do not think it really affects him that much. He adjusts very quickly.

Carl Peterson

2025-03-09 08:23:28 +0000 UTC

Picard looked like he was a grandfather when he first arrived. He looked so old throughout this episode.

Carl Peterson

2025-03-09 07:59:12 +0000 UTC

One of my favorite episodes of any show ever. Just thinking of the music gets me every time. S+

temsik28

2025-03-09 06:44:26 +0000 UTC

I may be exaggerating on some of the other stuff but “ just begun to send up small missiles” does not square with the level of technology able to create that probe. As you say it’s way beyond the technology of the Enterprise. Maybe the way my brain works but I could never get past that But if Kamen existed was that Kamens life or Picards life because it seems like he influenced the choices in that reality?

Jon1701

2025-03-08 13:20:02 +0000 UTC

The flute over the credits at the end……whew. So solemn, sad.

Chris S.

2025-03-08 05:05:55 +0000 UTC

Wow! I'd be pissed if I'd just dropped 1/4 million dollars on a 1 of 6....

The Travelers Travels

2025-03-08 04:10:42 +0000 UTC

I agree with you with the technology part. If this species was so advanced that it could create this type of probe, then it would probably have the technology to save itself from it's dying sun. This probe is beyond the technology of the enterprise. That's the only part though where I feel like you have to suspend disbelief though. As for the probe itself, I always saw it as a highly sophisticated holodeck type program that works by downloading memories into whoever it encounters, but also allows them to interact with those memories. "Hard Time" actually does something pretty similar technology wise. This program is no different than Picard playing Dixon Hill. Only in this case, he was forced into that role with no explanation, and he was made to stay in that program long enough to where he became convinced he WAS Dixon Hill. The people on this planet probably figured that the best way to tell their story was to have someone else live as one of them. All of the people in the simulation were real people who chose to download their memories into the program. Camen probably designed the program and based it on his own life. Or, if a team of government officials designed it, as was hinted at in the episode with "a plan is at work" maybe Camen volunteered his life to be the central figure once he learned of it.

BN13

2025-03-08 04:03:35 +0000 UTC

You put that better than I did. Stewart was such a brilliant actor that maybe you wouldn’t get someone quite like that who wasn’t classically trained and maybe there are few classically trained actors who have a genuine interest in sci fi. I don’t know what percentage of the population of North America are into Star Trek but it did seem that they almost always didn’t cast Star Trek fans in major roles.

Smear Campaign

2025-03-08 04:02:56 +0000 UTC

After it sold didn’t Stewart reveal that there were about 5 others knocking about.

Smear Campaign

2025-03-08 03:53:01 +0000 UTC

Considering what we get much later on once Patrick Stewart is at the helm, I think I agree with you. Stewart was always pushing for "action" for Picard like in Captain's Holiday, or really anything that was as un-Picard as possible. I don't think he ever really liked or agreed with the character as is. Although he was able to play the role masterfully, he seemed bored with the role and wanted to do other things with it. I don't think he ever truly understood why people love Picard, or ever really appreciated Picard's vituousness.

BN13

2025-03-08 03:46:59 +0000 UTC

No. I'm not validating or invalidating them. I'm just offering my own 2 cents like every other comment on here. They probably won't even read this comment. And if they do, they can take it or leave it however they see fit. It's their channel. They can do whatever they want.

BN13

2025-03-08 03:27:47 +0000 UTC

I say that about a famous DS9 episode, but I don't say it very often, I'd be drummed out of Star Trek fandom.

Kevin Is Sexy

2025-03-08 02:54:14 +0000 UTC

Too many people don't consider that a spoiler, but, like a spoiler, too many people want to be the one that tells them what's coming up. It's truly an ego thing.

Kevin Is Sexy

2025-03-08 02:52:53 +0000 UTC

Your so called plot points fall apart to anyone that's actually watched the episode.

Kevin Is Sexy

2025-03-08 02:48:16 +0000 UTC

But you think they need your validation, random person in the comments section?

Kevin Is Sexy

2025-03-08 02:44:04 +0000 UTC

I literally joined the Patreon today to watch this full reaction! It's so fun to experience this Hugo winning, mind blowing, conversation starting philosophical thriller with other people both in person and through the magic of the interwebs. While there IS a valid dark interpretation (Picard is kidnapped mentally for decades against his will), if you know the Picard character you can see how much of a gift this event would be for him. Not only does he get to live a quiet, loving family life he couldn't have while commanding the Enterprise, his archeology credentials now include holding the personal history of a now extinct civilization in his head and heart. He should be writing books and building holodeck replicas for the rest of his life!

Patrick R.

2025-03-08 02:37:37 +0000 UTC

Early on Josh said about an episode I wonder if this is the one episode you show someone who's never seen Trek but it's that one episode. And I commented there is and I've done that you just haven't seen it yet and this was the episode. This is S all day for me. It's like Casablance the more you watch it the better it gets. The acting, along with the score, is superb. they even did a talk about it in front of a convention audience. You can see it on YT Patrick Stewart and the Inner Light panel at the 2017 Star Trek Convention

Boston_Mike

2025-03-08 02:05:54 +0000 UTC

I've been waiting since the day I discovered your channel for you to arrive at this point in time. An "A" from both of you is a very good score and I'm super happy that you liked it. This is my favorite episode in the entire series, still. I was worried you both give it an "F" since you didn't like Wrath of Khan and then Star Trek 6... I started to worry and wonder. There are still good episodes to come, but this one is THE top for me.

Jack Shipley

2025-03-07 23:54:36 +0000 UTC

I thought the relationship between him and his wife was great and really sold picards trauma over losing her and the actress was believable

Scarpad’s Domain

2025-03-07 00:15:58 +0000 UTC

It doesn't matter if you get rid of the grades or not. People are still going to cower in fear waiting anxiously to see if you like their favorite episodes as much as they do. This is because most people, whether they are aware of it or not, are desperately seeking external validation for their own beliefs and life experiences. If someone else behaves in a way that feels like an invalidation of themselves, (by not liking the same things that they like for instance) people go on the defensive because the ego can't handle that contradiction and sees it as a threat. It actually takes a great deal of self awareness, ego check, and emotional maturity that isn't taught in our culture to not cower in fear as you desperately hope that some random people on YouTube validate your conclusions by agreeing with your ideas on a Star Trek episode. If you have a bunch of people on your channel doing that, that is a THEM problem, not a problem with anything you are doing. They will act that way no matter what you do, or how ever you might try to change to appease them.

BN13

2025-03-05 16:49:15 +0000 UTC

Imagine if it was discovered by Klingons!

Sherpa Jones

2025-03-05 16:35:35 +0000 UTC

Oh ok. They could have just asked me to edit it out.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-05 14:33:40 +0000 UTC

@AzoriusMage I'm not a "Trekkie" I'm a Whovian.

Jovet

2025-03-05 06:45:55 +0000 UTC

The fact is that it's a lot easier to "grade" episodes when you've seen them all, and have had time to digest them all and analyze what you really think about each of them. I don't have much trouble putting in my Patron Takes grades for most episodes, because I've had 30 years to think about them. I find their "instantly reaction" grades amusing, and not something that anyone should be taking personally or seriously. If this channel were simply an echo chamber for my own beliefs, I'd already be bored and gone.

Jovet

2025-03-05 06:43:41 +0000 UTC

I made it a little further than that. I think this time it was when Kamin brought up the nursery.

Jovet

2025-03-05 06:33:41 +0000 UTC

I think once they finish the run, they should do a final ranking video and adjust the score. They tend to give out Ss too frequently, especially early on. Once they've seen the entire body of work, they'll be better positioned to judge each episode relative to the average.

Jonathon Tsagris

2025-03-05 03:24:50 +0000 UTC

Sorry, I just got to watch this today. I always got the impression that this was an interactive program. Kamen did exist, as all those people, but the program was able to react to Picard's reactions. It adapted the "characters" to fit him, while keeping them true to what they were. If that makes sense. It wasn't just a data dump, it had to adjust itself to fit whomever it encountered out in space.

tyranusfan

2025-03-05 02:02:52 +0000 UTC

I would rather them just trade based on their personal preference than try to approximate some kind of 'objective' rating. If you want that then why not just look at the user ratings on imdb. I come for the personal touch.

kevin coleman

2025-03-05 00:08:45 +0000 UTC

The irony that you liked Picard interacting with his "daughter" and not his "son", since that's Patrick Stewart's actual son... Lol

Eric Singer

2025-03-04 23:30:42 +0000 UTC

That's definitely how I grade episodes Darren. I'm not sure how else you would even go about it. What even is the alternative? Quality is so subjective anyway.

Spencer Loften

2025-03-04 22:45:08 +0000 UTC

Doesn’t everyone grade on how much the like an episode? For me I’ve always rated based on how I enjoyed an episode.

Darren Seal

2025-03-04 21:47:39 +0000 UTC

Disagreements are irrelevant, points of view are irrelevant, diversity is irrelevant. You will all become one with the fandom...... =P

James Knight

2025-03-04 21:36:02 +0000 UTC

I asked my moderators and I think your comment had a spoiler regarding our tier list that many people here haven’t been able to see yet and will be posted next week

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-04 20:49:56 +0000 UTC

I'm right there with you bro.

Michael Metrick

2025-03-04 19:56:54 +0000 UTC

I still do.

Michael Metrick

2025-03-04 19:46:38 +0000 UTC

It made me cry. Again. One of top 5 of TNG.

Michael Metrick

2025-03-04 19:45:45 +0000 UTC

You're right, it's just so rare on patreon that it's not generally worth the effort, and in YT's case it's so prevalent it just discourages discussion altogether.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-04 12:09:15 +0000 UTC

what you should do is for long responses write it in a word processor and then copy paste so that doesnt happen

paultardspambot .

2025-03-04 05:31:43 +0000 UTC

if you havent watched more recent seasons theres an entire episode set inside that game which is great

paultardspambot .

2025-03-04 05:29:49 +0000 UTC

Well said, Owen!

Wrestling With Gaming

2025-03-04 04:35:23 +0000 UTC

You’re a legend Owen 🙌🏻

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-04 03:46:31 +0000 UTC

I like this episode a lot. For me, it's an "S" As for the rating & tier system I absolutely hope & vote to keep it. Personally, I've never liked or needed living in a perpetual echo chamber. I'm surprised more people here react the way some do. I like that Josh & Alex don't always agree with me. Those disagreements also open minds to different points of view. A fresh perspective is always a good thing. I love Star Trek, always have, but diversity of thought & tolerance are Trek-isms to be encouraged not attacked.

Owen Madden

2025-03-04 03:25:23 +0000 UTC

There’s a difference between quality and likability. Star Trek 5 is a movie plagued with issues but I love it. Which is my argument. Josh and Alex seem to treat S episodes as favorites but not based on superior quality. It’s just a matter of immense likability that pushes it to S for them.

Column Meanie

2025-03-04 01:57:20 +0000 UTC

Actually, I think that's a perfect system. E to A is on quality, but S is that magic tier that quality alone cannot push an episode into, it has to speak to the heart and soul of Josh or Alex to qualify. As they keep saying, A is a fantastic episode, effectively flawless, but something unknown in them doesn't let it hit S tier.

Paul

2025-03-04 01:05:13 +0000 UTC

There are episodes I like before my father passed, and then watching them afterwards they are full-on emotional journeys.

Nolan

2025-03-04 00:38:28 +0000 UTC

Holodeck: light illusions, forcefields for the scenery and movement, replicators for objects and foodstuffs, and transporters for clean up.

Nolan

2025-03-04 00:36:48 +0000 UTC

it wasn't even a functional flute!

The Travelers Travels

2025-03-04 00:34:11 +0000 UTC

Huh... I thought "In Theory" was his favorite. It's what he picked for the Captain's favorite episode selection. Probably cause he directed it.

Nolan

2025-03-04 00:34:03 +0000 UTC

Not only that but I think it would be simple for someone to come out with a way to censor the credits so they don't get spoiled

valen

2025-03-04 00:33:57 +0000 UTC

Hmm. Like Devil's Due is a C episode, Jpsh'll admit, but it's a favorite, so it's an S... Or like "A Matter of Perspective" is kinda average overall, I'd give it a B, except I love it, so it's an S... So BoBW would be an A, but it's an S cause it's so good. Like S just has extra requirements to get.

Nolan

2025-03-04 00:31:36 +0000 UTC

Picard's Ressikan flute prop from "The Inner Light" just sold for $237,000 at auction.Jun 29, 2021

The Travelers Travels

2025-03-04 00:30:59 +0000 UTC

That just confuses me even more. At least it wasn't completely for nothing

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-03 23:46:21 +0000 UTC

I think the issue with the grading system is that you guys seem to really be grading quality of the episode on an A-E scale, but if it’s a favorite episode (regardless of quality) you give it an S, which is making the grading system skewed.

Column Meanie

2025-03-03 22:28:57 +0000 UTC

Please keep the white boards. IMHO 👍

T’Pynyn of Vulcan

2025-03-03 22:20:34 +0000 UTC

Kevin, I have seen the show before and I have assiduously watched this episode several times. I fully understand the content; I merely have less sympathy with it than some others. At the risk of repeating myself, this was a good episode and I enjoyed it. My criticism wasn’t of the episode per se but that Stewart (as far as I’ve seen) puts this on a pedestal but seldom expresses any specific fondness of other episodes. I concede that he hasn’t watched many of them.

Smear Campaign

2025-03-03 22:19:43 +0000 UTC

Got it, thanks!

Ryan Caulfield

2025-03-03 21:44:40 +0000 UTC

ayyyyy thanks!

GreenCauldron08

2025-03-03 21:42:19 +0000 UTC

We are just at the Intro and i'm already crying. I just FEEEL this Episode. I really love it.

ComMix

2025-03-03 21:37:08 +0000 UTC

hate to break it to you, but 80% of star trek plots fall apart if you think about them for more than 10 minutes. Hell, even basic elements of the show.... don't think about the holodeck too hard!

kevin coleman

2025-03-03 21:32:00 +0000 UTC

Personally, I think there is more to Picard than just being a captain. This episode explores a side of Picard we've never seen because of his commitments to starfleet. It essentially allows us to see an alternate life Picard could have had while (imo) still staying true to the character he is. If all you see is a soup, kids and a flute; then respectfully, I think you're missing the deeper meaning of this episode.

kevin coleman

2025-03-03 21:29:52 +0000 UTC

To be consistent with what we have been counting, this counts. The point of this to see the number of times we think the character is shown bangin' (without it being shown). SHOCKER none of these characters have ever had sex with anyone because they do not exist. They are made up. Even in world, almost none of our counts can be proven. We are not watching Star Trek "The Next Genital-touching" porn channel, so we can see it happen. We do not count this and we remove nearly all scores, and I can say Riker may not have any. We are looking, as viewers, to see how many times the character (probably) has skinned the potato during the episode.

Prof Moff

2025-03-03 21:18:05 +0000 UTC

People like you that take this way too seriously

AzoriusMage

2025-03-03 21:08:02 +0000 UTC

@AzoriusMage The dead people weren't clowns. They successfully preserved a record of themselves. We humans would be damn lucky to be able to say the same. Picard did not have a solution. He had a stopgap. One which we can presume was implemented, even if we did not see it. ("We'll build our own atmospheric condenser") The Kataan people did not have the technology to escape their dying sun. The only escape would have been space ships to take them to another planet, in another star system. That's something we humans could not do right now even if we had to.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:59:31 +0000 UTC

"does getting laid in a dream count?" NO.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:54:51 +0000 UTC

Put yourself in Picard's place. And live 30+ years on another planet as another person, surrounded by all the things you never had: a loving wife, loving children, grandchildren, hands-on trade/work. It's like winning the lottery. The greatest and cruelest gift for many people. And then it's all gone.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:49:42 +0000 UTC

What is a "trekkie"?

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:46:48 +0000 UTC

To me the ingredient is empathy. And empathy for things other people have gone through is much easier to come by if you've gone through similar things yourself already.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:46:01 +0000 UTC

I will edit myself. "...because it isn't about any of the main characters ASIDE FROM PICARD at all."

Joe Concepts

2025-03-03 20:41:00 +0000 UTC

@Ryan Caulfield I think Kiel meant like your comment more than once.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:39:53 +0000 UTC

Sometimes greatness takes time to sink in. We've had 30 years to stew over these episodes.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:37:57 +0000 UTC

Picard isn't in the main cast? News to me.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:32:42 +0000 UTC

I've been advocating that since the start. Each episode should be a completely open and unprejudiced blank slate, until the final credits roll.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:30:39 +0000 UTC

That's not true. Simply not true.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:28:58 +0000 UTC

The plot doesn't fall apart as much as you claim. But some of those questions are not supposed to be answered, especially not by the episode.

Jovet

2025-03-03 20:24:22 +0000 UTC

If you're looking for a critical take on this episode, Allison Pregler has a video where she goes through its flaws. It's an entertaining take, even though I like this episode.

Kristina Weber

2025-03-03 19:40:21 +0000 UTC

thats all the more reason to not use grading of any kind...just use words and analysis

Derek Orr

2025-03-03 18:50:27 +0000 UTC

Yes

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-03 18:16:45 +0000 UTC

City on the hill? Don’t get the reference for some reason. Was that what shatner called city on the edge of forever by mistake or something?

Smear Campaign

2025-03-03 18:11:07 +0000 UTC

Possibly the most powerful ending of any Star Trek episode.

Ron Hubbard Jr

2025-03-03 18:02:15 +0000 UTC

I bet Jeffrey Combs plays it

Smear Campaign

2025-03-03 17:56:52 +0000 UTC

At least his favorite isn’t “City on the Hill”

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-03 17:51:39 +0000 UTC

For all intents and purposes he couldn’t pick an episode as a favourite that is less sci fi than that. The whole episode is set in a different time, with different people, with no space, no ships, no crew. He doesn’t lead anyone and even though he has supposedly has Picard’s memories, he does nothing to become a leader or even in the government’s team of scientists. He just eats soup, plays a flute, and helps his wife pop babies out. I like the episode and he did a great job but him choosing that as the favourite is a kick in the teeth for the franchise and all of his cast mates.

Smear Campaign

2025-03-03 17:47:13 +0000 UTC

He is playing Picard tho... It's still Picard living through this life even if they all call him Kamen.

kevin coleman

2025-03-03 17:37:52 +0000 UTC

I'm sad that this is Patrick Stewart's favourite episode. It's not that it isn't good, it's just that it's the only one up to now (s5) where he doesn't play Captain Picard. (Excluding when he's been possessed / assimilated etc).

Smear Campaign

2025-03-03 15:34:01 +0000 UTC

There's always going to be some noticeable cheese in TV this old. Television used to have far lower budgets. This Golden age of TV with all this prestige expensive television fueled by subscription streaming services... Hasn't always been a thing. Even something like the expanse, which is relatively low budget these days, would be unthinkably expensive back in the 1980s.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 15:28:23 +0000 UTC

Agreed. Fourth grade me couldn't really appreciate this for what it was at the time, watching on TV on my mother's little 13-in screen with the clicky knobs. Decades later, It's something that sticks with me. It's one of those episodes that immediately come to mind whenever I think of Trek.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 15:22:52 +0000 UTC

I was in like the fourth grade. Come on now. 😂

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 15:14:53 +0000 UTC

The whole plot falls apart if you think about it too much. Like I said in my ranking, they can only send up small missiles but they also invent a programme that survives a 1000 years, lives dormant within a probe, can pierce the Enterprise shields and makes a person live an entire life within 20-25 mins?? All while the planet was dying? Why did it pick Picard? Did what happened to Kamen really happen? Or was just his memories that they imprinted on Picard? Why did they teach him to play the flute? Why did they put the flute in the probe? So many questions. It’s a nice episode, A- B+ for me. Different strokes for different folks but it’s all a bit too whimsical. It’s not in my top 25 and I rarely rewatch it

Jon1701

2025-03-03 14:18:45 +0000 UTC

The Red Dwarf Video We Almost Buried Forever https://youtu.be/OOTZ34ng16w

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-03 12:37:43 +0000 UTC

I also think this is one that you have to be in the right mood for it to maximally work. Like maybe you guys would connect more with the story if you were in a different place in your lives. Or maybe not. But when it comes to "heavy" things, there's definitely a degree of whether someone is in the right headspace to really buy into it. I think the confusion over whats going on, which to me was pretty clear, hurt a bit. Like the specific characters other then Picard arent really important outside their relevance to Picard himself. Since you tend to like character dynamics, thy were supposed to just be like, very average ordinary people. Also, I have a headcanon thing that i cant explain now as to why this happened to Picard specifically.

paultardspambot .

2025-03-03 10:42:56 +0000 UTC

I think they didnt get this one entirely. Heres my take. Picard only actually expereinced the moments we saw, but he had memories "loaded in" to cover that span. The program was written with the recognition it would be disorienting for someone, and it was programmed like a very long holodeck scenario. The people in it weren't existing anywhere outside of Picard's mind. Whether or not they were based on specific people who lived on the planet sort of doesnt matter. The point isnt to tell the story of this specific family, its to tell a general story about the final decades of that society's existence. So obviously their neuroscience was way more advance then other technologies were. Picard is living in a small community on a dying planet, so their society is more advanced then what we saw, but the point wasnt to show of their tech or even highlight anyone significant. It was supposed to just be a sort of normal, average life of a person who had lived there. Picard's choices did matter somewhat, and the program could adapt, but he was in a situatio where he couldnt do much more then have a local effect, he already started his life in middle age with a wife. We could also imagine this isnt what they actually looked like, the program made them look like whoever would receive it. I think if he did expereince it the way i said, that makes more sense. It's like the Roy arcade game from Rick and Morty.

paultardspambot .

2025-03-03 10:38:48 +0000 UTC

What's really crazy is, I read the comment you're talking about. Now, poof. But take solace in that it DID get read by someone.

Nolan

2025-03-03 10:12:59 +0000 UTC

And yet you did not use it there where you could have... 🤔 😜

Nolan

2025-03-03 10:06:17 +0000 UTC

They "did" one for the pilot. It did not go well. Though tbf "The End" is probably one of the weaker episodes of the show, all things considered.

Nolan

2025-03-03 08:50:35 +0000 UTC

Please don't lose the ranking/white board system. It's my favorite thing about your format, specifically because I have occasionally misread one or both of your reactions during the actual episode and don't find out until the white boards turn around. I don't know why that makes me like it, but it does.

Steve Boshear

2025-03-03 08:27:32 +0000 UTC

It’s totally fine to disagree. There are time when I am completely out of sync with the boys. But to suggest you are going to cry or not be friends with someone or that they are dumb because they didn’t see something is ludicrous.

Jon1701

2025-03-03 08:18:16 +0000 UTC

ngl I'd be interested in seeing one or two Red Dwarf reactions from you guys

GreenCauldron08

2025-03-03 08:01:36 +0000 UTC

S

David Marcoot

2025-03-03 07:41:45 +0000 UTC

this episode has been unforgettable for 30 years

David Marcoot

2025-03-03 07:39:41 +0000 UTC

Sorry to keep posting...but I have to say...the sound of the impact of a blunt object into a skull immediately following the words "Red Dwarf" was extremely gratifying. Red Dwarf is shit.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 07:27:49 +0000 UTC

And hey, don't get rid of the grades. The grades aren't the problem. The problem is the tendency of people to be so damn bipolar about everything. If you were grading on a ten point scale, with 5 being average, people would still consider anything below an 8 to be shit. That's just how a lot people are. Either its the greatest thing ever, or its the worst thing ever. There's little room for a middle ground.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 07:22:42 +0000 UTC

Also, I'll point out that I was fully prepared for you guys to shit all over this one. I think your remarks about it are spot on, and I'd be exactly on the same page if it were my first watch. I appreciate your reaction and discussion here.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 07:20:34 +0000 UTC

Oh I didn't watch it when it originally came out, I'm not THAT old lol

Paul

2025-03-03 06:56:56 +0000 UTC

Yeah, its a TV show. But its important to people. That's what being a fan is all about. We're here to do a watchalong with a show from 30 years ago. We are still watching it! Since we were kids!

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:54:51 +0000 UTC

Exactly. Thats the moment that always gets me.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:53:43 +0000 UTC

I use the word literally approximately 500% too much. Your good. :)

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:53:02 +0000 UTC

Well...thats exactly why I like it. Theres a certain episode of DS9 where the characters arent the characters...and its probably the best of that show as well.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:50:34 +0000 UTC

Exactly. On every rewatch, after its been cooking in my brain since childhood, it brings a tear to my eye, the way Picard holds that flute to his chest. His vulnerability after such an experience. Its fantastic. But on the first watch? I would have been, wow, cool episode. I wouldn't appreciate it fully until later.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:49:47 +0000 UTC

That's the TNG reset switch. These people go through AWFUL SHIT...and are playing poker next week like nothing happened. TNG isn't serialized at all. You can almost randomly shuffle the episodes.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:47:48 +0000 UTC

Its 30 years old. TV was very different. Its something that has to be appreciated in the context of where TV was at the time, and more importantly, where science fiction TV was at the time.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:46:21 +0000 UTC

IMO, the single greatest episode in the entire Star Trek franchise. A perfect episode.

Aaron Wells

2025-03-03 06:45:07 +0000 UTC

It's only eye-rolling if the grade is given without additional context, but they give plenty of context after, so it's a great way to convey initial impressions of an episode. Tier lists and rankings are awesome.

Paul

2025-03-03 05:31:44 +0000 UTC

Also, I really do hope the grades stay, even if some people are emotionally unstable and can't handle if you give their pet episode anything but the highest tier. Ignore those people. It's a solid way to gauge your immediate reaction after the episode and fun to compare them to the later-on season tier list. Maybe if you're worried about people skipping to the end for youtube & that affecting performance, just keep the grades for patreon uncut videos?

Paul

2025-03-03 05:21:54 +0000 UTC

The reason this episode doesn't even make my top ten for the season is that nothing happens. Everything people praise it for is legitimate and it is a great episode, but the only consequences from anything that happens can only be experienced through Picard in future episodes. If this episode is never referenced again in a significant way, or if Picard doesn't have a noticeable tweak to his character going forward, it means nothing. Pay attention in future episodes. Would the episode you're watching be the same if Inner Light never existed?

Nerd's Gold

2025-03-03 05:03:20 +0000 UTC

It depends on my mood. Which is true with a lot of things. Hence my problem with the fallacy of Tier Rankings. I am of the opinion that they should forego letter grading, and just talk about their first impressions with a discussion. :)

River Acheron

2025-03-03 04:52:17 +0000 UTC

To be perfectly clear, I think A tier makes sense and is what I expected both of you to give it, maybe even B-tier. Why do I say that when I rank this as one of the best episodes in all of TV history? Because it has to sit with you, take its time, much like it did to Picard, you have to process it. I never gave it a grade on my first watch, of course, but if I had, I'd guess it would have been high B back then. But over many years since then, and countless rewatches, with every run through my brain, its quality was perceived greater and greater until it reached the pinnacle it's at in my mind now. Part of it was truly putting myself in Picard's shoes, and the sheer magnitude of what he went through, and what it meant. Living an entire lifetime, longer than I've been alive now, all to preserve the life memories of an extinct race? That is... historic. As is the episode.

Paul

2025-03-03 04:51:35 +0000 UTC

People put too much importance on grades. I am thinking maybe it is best to get rid of them. Not because they piss people off; but in a real way, they don't really convey how one feels about an episode. I was never a big fan of all this tier ranking thats popular on YouTube nowadays. Plus, the enjoyment or lackthereof and the discussion should always come first, yeah. Letter grades pigeonhole and label things, when enjoyment is more...fluid, ya know? Its hard to explain.

River Acheron

2025-03-03 04:49:18 +0000 UTC

OK, here's an idea: How about we stop telling them which episodes people really like and let them watch it just like another episode, with no pre-conceived notions at all?

valen

2025-03-03 04:41:34 +0000 UTC

Come on, Alex, it's not as if he threatened you with Galactica 1980!

James H

2025-03-03 04:39:20 +0000 UTC

My thoughts exactly. It's funny, on just about any other show, and I'm talking non star trek, this would be their best episode. But in TNG I don't even think it's a top ten for me. It's fantastic and I love it boy there are even better ones imo

Wrestling With Gaming

2025-03-03 04:17:46 +0000 UTC

This is both a fantastic episode and the most overrated episode in all of Star Trek imo. Oh, it's good A+ and maybe an S depending how I feel that day. But this episode is constantly #1 on best of TNG or even all of Star Trek episode lists. It's not even in my top ten of TNG or even top 5 this season. It's very, very, good and on almost any other show it would be that show's best episode. But this is TNG where this high level of excellence is an A+ for me, but not quite and S really. I love it, but the BEST episode of TNG? I don't see it. That's how freaking good this show is. Oh and I'm still watching the discussion part but I'm seeing comments that make me think you guys are thinking of getting rid of the rankings. I love them but do whatever you feel is best. You guys have good instincts for this stuff.

Wrestling With Gaming

2025-03-03 04:15:14 +0000 UTC

ST6 was the only TOS finale. The series only had final episodes but were no more or less significant than the other episodes throughout the season. Finales weren’t really a thing in 60s’ television.

Column Meanie

2025-03-03 03:24:45 +0000 UTC

Not sure if anyone pointed out, the "son" was Stewart's real life son. That's why he looked like him, and had a slight British accent. Also, I love your rating each episode immediately, then at the end of each season, doing a re-rate. Also, episodes ring alot differently as you get older. I saw this episode on first air, recorded on vhs and watched it over and over. 30 years later, I have a 20 year old daughter, and it's much more meaningful.

THE Fans

2025-03-03 03:16:31 +0000 UTC

I think every Trek series (and every show in general) has "THAT ONE" which is revered as "the best ever." I suppose Inner Light qualifies for that, but it's for that very same reason that I've found myself growing... tired of it over the years. I sort of feel the same way about Best of Both Worlds, except that BoBW still continues to be entertaining and plot-relevant. "Inner Light" is a masterpiece CONCEPT of a story, but there's something kinda stale about the execution... and this is especially telling when future installments of Trek tackle the same concept but with FAR BETTER execution, imho. It's still a very important episode, and I'm happy to see y'all's honest reaction to it. As for the "Tier Rating," I say keep at it. It's been a mainstay for so long that I think its consistency would be fantastic to look back on in the future. There are bound to be detractors concerning anything you might do. Have I been disappointed about some of your grades for beloved installments? Sure, but then you've also rated things way higher that I'd never even think twice about. Seeing y'all's unique perspective on things is refreshing, and it's a big reason for why I keep coming back (and paying back) to this channel~

Shortskirtsandexplosions

2025-03-03 02:54:43 +0000 UTC

I believe the ONE thing holding this back as an S for me would be that while it is a really great hour of science fiction, it's not quite a great episode of TNG because it isn't about any of the main characters at all. It's even almost not about Picard as he kind of becomes a new person. Still great stuff, but I'd call an A+.

Joe Concepts

2025-03-03 02:46:54 +0000 UTC

Rats, I was really looking forward to Alex's replacement. I heard Chris Pratt was up for the role

kevin coleman

2025-03-03 02:32:15 +0000 UTC

lol it took me a minute to realize which episode you meant XD

GreenCauldron08

2025-03-03 02:08:34 +0000 UTC

I appreciate that there are many who love this episode but it's not on my favorite list. Perhaps it's because I can't get overly interested in watching a whole episode about people I don't know. PStew is great, the story and pacing is very good. It's solid but it doesn't grab me. Thank you for your great discussion! ❤️

T’Pynyn of Vulcan

2025-03-03 01:58:30 +0000 UTC

I wish I could erase "And the Children Shall Lead". It's the only Trek episode that I absolutely hate!

T’Pynyn of Vulcan

2025-03-03 01:51:05 +0000 UTC

Interesting suggestion.

Sainjl

2025-03-03 01:46:34 +0000 UTC

"Everything I don't like is the fault of religion, especially stuff that that has no religion in it whatsoever. Religion ruined my pop-tarts too?! Dang you religion!"

#MaxwellDidNothingWrong

2025-03-03 01:42:50 +0000 UTC

Maybe y’all can do the Romans’ thumbs up or down at the end of each episode and still keep the ratings for the Patrons.

Sainjl

2025-03-03 01:41:23 +0000 UTC

Most Picard "let's bang" line ever "Can I have your permission to build a nursery?"

#MaxwellDidNothingWrong

2025-03-03 01:40:31 +0000 UTC

Here's what I love about the tier ratings: it's a snapshot of your immediate feelings of an episode or movie, and that's why it's so enjoyable to watch these series with the two of you. I've seen these episodes over and over again -- I'll never have a first impression of an episode of TNG again. Feelings on an episode change over time with age, reflection, or both. But I get to share in those first impressions all over again, and it makes me as a fan ask questions or think about things in ways I haven't before. Star Trek VI was a good example -- I was disappointed in your disappointment because it is one of my favorites, but damn if you didn't have good points in your review.

Jesse Manning

2025-03-03 01:39:24 +0000 UTC

Your ratings for this episode...I just don't understand.

Mark Chrisco

2025-03-03 01:37:02 +0000 UTC

Not sure if someone's already said this ,but this gave me huge nostalgia for Rick and Morty's "Roy - A Life Well Lived", which is one of the funniest things in that show. I did see the other day that this had been an episode that people had been counting down to as it was their favourite. Not even in my top 10 but it's got a good concept. "The Measure of a Man" was probably my "countdown" episode 🙂

Dave Brown

2025-03-03 01:28:30 +0000 UTC

This is the realest comment

#MaxwellDidNothingWrong

2025-03-03 01:26:35 +0000 UTC

Why can't I like this more than once?

#MaxwellDidNothingWrong

2025-03-03 01:25:23 +0000 UTC

Woohoo!!!

T’Pynyn of Vulcan

2025-03-03 01:23:21 +0000 UTC

They can't give this an S because they don't know what all is yet to come. We the audience are all like wormhole aliens who live outside time, with no before and no after, experiencing everything all at once. But they are different, they are linear, and exist purely in a single moment of steadily advancing time. Appreciate that difference and it all comes together.

#MaxwellDidNothingWrong

2025-03-03 01:21:26 +0000 UTC

Also regarding the tier ratings. I would say get rid of them for the after episode discussion, and just discuss what you liked and disliked organically rather than starting from a grading that you then have to justify. Then in the season recap assign a tier rating with the benefit of hindsight.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-03 01:18:05 +0000 UTC

I love the tier rankings. Don't listen to the weirdos.

Tony B

2025-03-03 00:58:47 +0000 UTC

Excuse my use of the word definitely. 😬 Reread my post and was like "Well I'm a mouth breather"..... facepalm🤦

Curtis Fletcher

2025-03-03 00:45:46 +0000 UTC

I look at as a computer simulation that happens in his mind. They could be based on real people but it's an AI.

Brian Sartini

2025-03-03 00:41:39 +0000 UTC

This is definitely one of my top 5 episodes of Star Trek. Definitely a S tier for me. Always brings a tear to my eye at the end. Glad y'all liked it. Definitely thought we'd see the tears flowing in this reaction

Curtis Fletcher

2025-03-03 00:25:36 +0000 UTC

I like the tier rankings. And I like the ones I like... doesn't really affect my viewpoint whether or not you like the ones I like or don't like. However, it is nice to get a validation for one's opinion from the masses sometimes. Regarding this episode... I do think it is one of the best of the series and find it interesting of the three series you've watched so far that the three considered to be the best are very similar... City On The Edge Of Forever, Yesteryear and The Inner Light. Someone earlier in the comments have pointed out some of their similarities already. As for DS9... (those who have seen it know)

Stevtrek

2025-03-03 00:13:07 +0000 UTC

John Luck, I was thinking along those lines as another option, too.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 23:55:30 +0000 UTC

Regarding the goal of making it more about the discussion of the episode instead of about the grades, maybe just don't even assign a grade right away, just go straight into the discussion, and then after you get done with patron comments, then decide on a grade at the very end? Who knows, maybe that way not only can you just keep it out of the discussion, but whatever grade you may have had in your mind at first may even sometimes shift up or down after you finish up discussion and comments?

Forbidden Donut

2025-03-02 23:46:08 +0000 UTC

1) This is S Grade for me 2) Do not get rid of your grading 3) People need to get past their selves and realize that other people's opinons do not reflect their own. Nor should it. I know it's already been said but I guess it bears repeating.

PIG

2025-03-02 23:33:37 +0000 UTC

Just watch the way Picard presses the flute to his chest at the end....that's acting not a word said.

John Rose

2025-03-02 23:23:25 +0000 UTC

besides, filtered comments are still visible to the person who posted them according to Patreon FAQ. And from what I see only comments by free members can be filtered. Like I said probably a connection issue or something where it didn't go through. It's happened before.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 23:20:27 +0000 UTC

Considering I only talked about stuff that had already happened, and given I still see deleted comments followed by "dude, spoilers" in the replies, I don't think that's a thing. Maybe I'm wrong, but there were definitely no spoilers in my comment

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 23:15:52 +0000 UTC

if your post disappeared it's because you said something in it that triggered their auto-safeguards against possible spoilery info.

penoyer79

2025-03-02 23:10:07 +0000 UTC

It’s a crime that you didn’t give this an S… this is science fiction perfection… The acting, the writing. Come on guys!

David Gottlieb

2025-03-02 23:03:37 +0000 UTC

You know, I wrote out a huge multiparagraph review, I hit post, and now for whatever reason it's disappeared. It's an S for me but I can't be fucking bothered rewriting it. The irony is one of those paragraphs was complaining about how YT removes comments you spent half an hour working on with no explanation or chance to edit and you just lose all your work, and how they need to be put out of business over that. Maybe just a connection issue or something, but it's damned annoying. Amazing ep even if it's not top of my list

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 22:56:01 +0000 UTC

If people don’t like the grades fuck em. It’s a TV show for crying out loud.

Jon1701

2025-03-02 22:50:10 +0000 UTC

Fair because I give your reaction an A - not quite an S. I am so kidding! 😅 I would have bet some ribs or chicken wings that this was THE episode that one of you would have to grab a Kleenex through-and again you surprised me. I have seen this episode maybe 25 times throughout the years and every time it is an emotional experience and much more re-watchable TO ME -than some of your S ones.. I see in the comments it is mostly S and some A or less as well -Fascinating... So what is it in general that makes an episode an S with some or an A with others..? Are the S people just a more emotional kind of personality, more empathetic, or perhaps slightly less evolved B personality that had too much fluoride in their water? Are the A's more A personality, a little more aggressive, like to wrestle each other, and have questionable choice in shorts? Or - just a feeling, like you have said. I fell there is a college sociology thesis here somewhere...😇 Also, interesting-like City on the Edge of Forever, this episode also about the writing and the acting. They aren't on a spaceship very much at all, the regular crew isn't around-there isn't much "Star Trek" in either episode, or uniforms etc… Yet they are some of the most popular episodes of all time... Just an observation.. It never registered to me that guessing your reactions is a lot like playing Fantasy Football… In my head I have a point spread -is it a 'we the audience already knows' episode-B over/under .6%... A Wesley episode -Punt D +/- 75%..and so on.. I find myself re-rolling all my guesses on your DS9 reactions now though.. "The game's afoot, cry the dogs of war"...

Badger

2025-03-02 22:39:02 +0000 UTC

I'm not sure if Kamin was was real person, but I don't think it matters. All the "people" weren't lying, I think it's more of a holodeck simulation of someone's life that has a final scene for the "player" where all his friends say some preprepared lines.

Evan Guthrie

2025-03-02 22:25:21 +0000 UTC

Perhaps rather than a grade. A simple thumbs up or down as an immediate reaction would suffice. You wouldn’t alienate the losers that get their horgons in a twist that you gave a good episode an A instead of the S THEY think it deserves. A bad episode gets a thumbs down either way. Save the ratings for after a rewatch and an end of season review when the episodes have had a chance to sit with you. Inner Light is an S tier but I could totally see people needing to digest it after an initial viewing so this is a perfect example.

Mister Hope

2025-03-02 22:18:04 +0000 UTC

Plus you guys rarely like TOS finales anyways.

Nolan

2025-03-02 22:15:30 +0000 UTC

Man, all I dreamed about last night was needing to puke, and then actually doing so a tiny bit. Just an AWESOME way to wake up. Damn acid reflux. 😅

Nolan

2025-03-02 22:12:49 +0000 UTC

This episode is definitely one that benefits from multiple watches, at least for me, plus I think as kid I just couldn't quite appreciate Picard's emotional journey as much as I can now. I haven't rewatched this episode in a long time and I actually teared up a bit watching it with you guys this time. Something that really stood out to me this time was near the beginning when Picard says "you can't expect me to forget a lifetime spent there", referring to the Enterprise, but by the end, when Picard is playing the flute alone, you realize that works both ways and he will always remember his life on Kataan. I also appreciated that in the same way the people of Kaymin's community sacrificed part of their water for the tree because a symbol of hope was so important to them, the planet used their resources to launch the probe, just on the hope that eventually it would run into someone who could live their life and tell their story. And even though it took over 1000 years, that hope was actually realized and I find that very moving.

Ryan Caulfield

2025-03-02 22:12:41 +0000 UTC

Regarding the Tier rankings, maybe still record the reveals, let them shape your discussions, keep the Patreon rankings, but don't actually put the reveals in the videos. Bank em until the post season tier list as a reveal that you then keep or adjust with hindsight.

Nolan

2025-03-02 21:58:38 +0000 UTC

100% agree.!

Badger

2025-03-02 21:54:31 +0000 UTC

The clearest indication that it's more like a tech-induced dream than "here's a specific life that already happened" is her necklace.

John M.

2025-03-02 21:49:00 +0000 UTC

Its S

Fishing Trip

2025-03-02 21:48:30 +0000 UTC

Love the bits!

Troy

2025-03-02 21:47:22 +0000 UTC

True and same. Younger me: "yeah, this is good, I guess"; Older me: "this is excellent" [eyes watering].

Ryan Caulfield

2025-03-02 21:42:21 +0000 UTC

Cackling at Josh saying Patrick Stewart didn't have any chemistry with his own real life son. 😂🤣😂🤣

Nolan

2025-03-02 21:32:28 +0000 UTC

Wholesome. That's the only word I have for this episode.

Ee'char

2025-03-02 21:28:39 +0000 UTC

We count holodeck "relish the hot doggin' " so this one is a counter for sure

Prof Moff

2025-03-02 21:22:01 +0000 UTC

???

Paul Hess

2025-03-02 21:18:37 +0000 UTC

Got ya. Regardless, like I said, whichever way you decide to go, I'm fine. It's your channel. No matter what you do, you can't win. People have opinions, and they will certainly voice them in this type of forum.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 21:18:22 +0000 UTC

Not surprising, if he was chosen for who he is rather than for his acting ability. (I don't know if that's true)

Paul Hess

2025-03-02 21:17:16 +0000 UTC

No spoilers but man when you talk about something that we will see later it always makes me laugh .. no clues as to what you said or when it might happen but .. awesome keep guessing or asking for stuff .. one of my favorite parts.

Lt Dan I scream

2025-03-02 21:06:43 +0000 UTC

You changed the grades so often at the end of a season and I can't remember that anoyone was bothered by that. So yes. It would be better eliminating the grading after the episodes.

Sam Langanke

2025-03-02 21:03:11 +0000 UTC

I know you worry about the drama its going to cause but you could just say 'i said what I said' and go with it, Ive seen you guys change your grades from the first react to the chat a few times. No shame in feeling how you feel in that moment. an A is a great grade I would say if nothing you guys gave a ton of S's last season which prob should have been A's which tracks cause it was orders of magnitude better than season 3. this season has some good stuff but hard to get that same amount better than season 4. Id say keep doing what you do. talk about what you like what you dont etc .. remember most people just know how they feel about these today .. they cant remember what they thought when they first saw these... who knows in 30 years you might love this one too.

Lt Dan I scream

2025-03-02 21:00:47 +0000 UTC

Jovet we all have our inner judgments about things every day. Alex and Josh are showing up as authentic humans watching our beloved show for the first time. What do you expect?

Sherpa Jones

2025-03-02 20:58:11 +0000 UTC

Well with the Cytherians, I think it was more a matter of "don't want to" than "can't"

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:50:56 +0000 UTC

Watching this today completely wrecked me because last night I had a dream about meeting someone and falling in love, and woke up to the pain of the dream fading and losing that feeling. It was rough to watch. Also, I think the experience was custom made for for the character of Kayman, based on real people and experiences. The program was sophisticated enough to adapt to variations based on the actions and choices of the person it contacted.

Sherpa Jones

2025-03-02 20:48:19 +0000 UTC

does getting laid in a dream count?

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:46:27 +0000 UTC

100%

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:46:14 +0000 UTC

I never really noticed how they reuse "we cant travel so we send the probe to bring Barcaly to us" plot. I will just say I fully get why everyone loves this one but its not just why I watch Trek. I can see unhappy stuff outside my window, I'm not looking for it on my screen.

Alan Thompson

2025-03-02 20:45:15 +0000 UTC

Yup lists and tiers and ranking systems bore me to death. Give me all the thoughtful and detailed discussion

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:43:22 +0000 UTC

Picard literally had a solution and they dismissed it. Probably religious types denying science.

AzoriusMage

2025-03-02 20:43:21 +0000 UTC

Umm clowns? Ouch and yes it is poignant that Picard the explorer, scientist and archeologist has now memories of an ancient civilization in his head. The probe could not have picked a more perfect target

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:42:09 +0000 UTC

Somehow, Tasha Yar returned

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:41:29 +0000 UTC

Why would that not count? He literally can’t tell the difference

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:40:50 +0000 UTC

It’s just an arbitrary and honestly silly thing to rank episodes in the first place. Their opinions and reviews and discussions are infinitely more interesting

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:39:38 +0000 UTC

Meaning the foolish alien race implanting a history in him. Clowns in those context means fools, idiots etc a common usage of the word.

AzoriusMage

2025-03-02 20:39:16 +0000 UTC

They literally made a comment about the magnitude of having a lifetime of memories dumped into him and how it must affect the character of Picard going forward.

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:38:15 +0000 UTC

Oh I meant the grades they give at the end of the episodes. I’ll like seeing their initial reactions. I don’t make these lists for myself but I don’t mind the tier lists either.

Sainjl

2025-03-02 20:35:56 +0000 UTC

We are actually up in both subscribers and patrons since Star Trek 6 ☝️🤓

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 20:35:21 +0000 UTC

Could be other ruins or remnants from early versions of probes sent out…literally even just a plaque like on our Voyager probe that has basic info and their name…..some archaeologist records it and has the star map people name the system out of respect 🤷‍♂️ As for building it in the first place. I just think the village we see is just a remote traditional village and not the urban or technological centre of this planets civilization. And they chose a more nostalgic traditional framework for their invasive holo novel story message in a bottle program…basically they had tech level roughly of 1970s USA or so for most things….but where much further along with AI software development (possibly in secret as well given how they seemed to control info on this planet)

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:34:01 +0000 UTC

Definitely an emotional episode. I'm surprised it hasn't come up that Picard's son Batai (the older version) is Patrick Stewart's real son.

Dale Williams

2025-03-02 20:33:10 +0000 UTC

It wouldn’t be about people getting mad, it would be to make the conversation more than what grade we gave it. What I predicted in the discussion about us giving an A grade has already come true in these comments within a few hours of posting. Not by everyone obviously, but it feels like the grade comes first and everything we say afterwards comes second (if at all)

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 20:32:37 +0000 UTC

Yeah, even without rating the trailer or anything, just seeing those often corny 90s trailers was a cool trip down memory lane.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:32:17 +0000 UTC

The Borg would have either not bothered with the probe and just destroyed it. Or a drone would go through the process and take it in to the collective with a giant shrug all lasting a micro second

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:31:20 +0000 UTC

Alex and Josh were discussing how & what was done to Picard.

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 20:30:09 +0000 UTC

Occasionally on the screen - S-tier emotions

Adam from Germany

2025-03-02 20:29:01 +0000 UTC

100%

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:28:14 +0000 UTC

I was the same way. I liked it when i first watched it, but over the years, and espeically today. it really hit me. If I gave it an A before, i'd give it an S now.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:27:44 +0000 UTC

I think this is a fair reaction to this episode. I remember watching it when it first aired with my mom (who is not a Trekkie) and she really liked it. For me as a teen I liked it but wasn’t blown away by it. But then I rewatched it. And rewatched it. And rewatched it again and again. Something about the episode just kept pulling me back into it. And I think I realized finally why: because Patrick Stewart is such a phenomenal actor that you really can feel Picard’s journey. You feel as if you’re going on this ride with him. His performance in each scene is so genuine and real, and so familiar. With a lesser actor, “The Inner Light” wouldn’t work. With Patrick Stewart, it becomes immortal. But I didn’t get any of that until I really watched it repeatedly. Any episode that encourages you to rewatch it is damn fine television.

Column Meanie

2025-03-02 20:26:28 +0000 UTC

Well ya it’s crystal clear there was no time travel involved…not sure how anyone could think there was after watching the episode

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:25:57 +0000 UTC

You can manage expectations on a reaction channel, but that is simply catering to the masses, which is not what you guys are about and not what drew many of us to your channel. Keep the ratings, or don't, but do not get rid of them just because some people get in a wad about how you rate stuff.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:25:03 +0000 UTC

Did you guys actually lose subs/patrons because you didn't like Star Trek VI as much as people were expecting? I can't imagine taking something this seriously as a fan. To each his own I guess. I personally don't mind getting roasted for my grades/hot takes but I also don't have to worry about the financial side of things like you do.

Spencer Loften

2025-03-02 20:23:38 +0000 UTC

If you think you've seen Patrick Stewart's range as Picard up to this point, just you wait.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:21:59 +0000 UTC

I think they should. Reducing complex things to top 10 lists or whatever is just eye rolling for me

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:20:32 +0000 UTC

What exactly is wrong with giving it top rating of A?

Derek Orr

2025-03-02 20:16:14 +0000 UTC

A is hardly a low grade. I know a good number of people who can't stand this one. It's a very specific kind of story that won't speak to every kind of fan. They definitely enjoyed it a lot to give it an A

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:15:14 +0000 UTC

Really enjoyed this! I love this episode but like you, not sure if I'd include it on a favourites list just through personal preference. You really shouldn't have to apologise for what rating you give to an episode. The whole reason most of us are here is to see your genuine reactions to Star Trek. Some of your comments I agree with, some I don't. That's the whole point of discussion. It'd be really easy for you guys to quickly check the patrons' tier rating before you give your own and adjust yours to match, but you don't. You give your honest, in the moment opinion, despite what 'most fans' think of an episode. Honestly, huge respect to you two for doing that.

Elizabeth N

2025-03-02 20:12:56 +0000 UTC

That was definitely their "City on the Edge of Forever"

penoyer79

2025-03-02 20:12:07 +0000 UTC

Daniel Stewart "I'm leaving school father. I want to be an actor." PS "Leaving school!! No You're not! There's no money in acting" DS 😕

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:08:55 +0000 UTC

I dunno about that one man. I mean Picard didn't really get any, he just played through an interactive retelling of another man's life. And if he did get some, it was with a woman who was 1000 years dead. It's either the most complicated way of watching porn ever, or necrophilia. There's no middle ground.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 20:06:23 +0000 UTC

I hope you don’t get rid of the tiers, but I’ll understand it if you do.

Sainjl

2025-03-02 20:03:27 +0000 UTC

Sounds like this was maybe Josh's Hawaiian pizza episode? Maybe that ingredient was pineapple?

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:02:01 +0000 UTC

Everyone stay to the end the last scene is hella funny

Narnman

2025-03-02 20:01:03 +0000 UTC

Watching the episode today, for some reason, it REALLY moved me emotionally. I know I've enjoyed it since I first saw it, but for some reason this time around, I was emotionally spent by the end. This is probably a series top 5 episode for me, and definitely in the top 10.

Collin Freeman

2025-03-02 20:00:24 +0000 UTC

Keep in mind when this aired the end of the episode would have been a commercial.

Column Meanie

2025-03-02 19:46:06 +0000 UTC

If they let it.

Column Meanie

2025-03-02 19:42:51 +0000 UTC

Take the blue pill, and all memory of episodes like And The Children Shall Lead and Captain's Holiday will be purged from your mind. Take the red pill, and you will forever be unable to overlook any of Star Trek's faults. The bliss of ignorance, or the cold hard reality of unreserved criticism.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 19:39:05 +0000 UTC

I have a feeling how much this episode resonates and hits you has alot to do with how actually close you are to the end of your life

Scarpad’s Domain

2025-03-02 19:37:45 +0000 UTC

Maybe they should just give opinions nd abandon a letter grade

Scarpad’s Domain

2025-03-02 19:36:29 +0000 UTC

The acting by Patrick Stewart alone makes this my favorite episode. It sure grows on you.

Andreas Barth

2025-03-02 19:28:05 +0000 UTC

My favorite episode of the series I don’t know why it just is

Josef Nitervol

2025-03-02 19:14:36 +0000 UTC

Agree. They are on a very typical Trekkie path and are doing a great job. We are waiting patiently for what is still ahead of them. This is so far a fraction of the Trek canon.

James Baloun

2025-03-02 19:11:49 +0000 UTC

They keep getting the ratings wrong because they aren't trekkies yet, they are just people watching the show. They will see their ignorance after a few re-watches.

Fishing Trip

2025-03-02 19:07:54 +0000 UTC

Couldn't be AI they had normal fingers

Fishing Trip

2025-03-02 19:04:59 +0000 UTC

Yea, but Picard still had his memories, so that affected how he acted. The computer needed to take that into account.

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 19:04:22 +0000 UTC

Picard got married and had kids and grandkids without getting married and having kids... Have to appreciate Star Trek where you can die, come back and become your own daughter.

James Baloun

2025-03-02 19:01:20 +0000 UTC

BTW, I miss your critique of the coming attractions. It was a big part of the original viewing experience. Don't watch them first, but include them anyway.

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 19:00:41 +0000 UTC

The pacing was very well done

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 18:54:17 +0000 UTC

Lol, Alex at the end giving vibes of "well, you can't do this to me. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I SACRIFICED!?!?"

Timothy Nikiforovs

2025-03-02 18:52:23 +0000 UTC

You really have to step back and appreciate that they did fit 30 years into 40 minutes. This time I was noticing in the middle how it felt like a movie length story. The story was paced but still moved smoothly if quickly through the lifetime.

James Baloun

2025-03-02 18:51:50 +0000 UTC

Your ratings will change over time, and they already have. In the end you have some episodes that you'll gladly rewatch, and those you'll change the channel (streaming changed that). When I watched these originally, my teir rating was: 1. Holly shit, that was good! What's on next week? 2. Wow, that was good. What's on next week? 3. Okay, what's on next week?

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 18:51:14 +0000 UTC

Yep, great reaction guys and perfectly valid. This is one that grows on you, that repeatedly makes you think long after the episode is over and rewatches make your mind go in various directions. Each rewatch feels in a way different and i've seen this one many many times. This wasn't my favorite episode the first time I watched it. For one I was a young teen the first time and while I liked it then I didn't look at it as deeply as I do now. This is one that became my favorite over time, ironically, though I didn't have Riker trying to sever my connection to the episode and kill me in the process. This is an episode that I think grew with reflection. I think its already started with you both given your thoughts here and then on the tier list.

Sequiro

2025-03-02 18:50:24 +0000 UTC

Yeah that's an odd piece of information for them to know, but it's possible they learned of it from neighboring space-faring systems that knew of Kataan before it was wiped out.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:39:22 +0000 UTC

Recognizing that the episode wasn't shit by the end doesn't mean that the early judgemental opinion did not cloud his intake of the rest of the episode. I'm just attempting to encourage you to both keep an open mind and let each episode play out as it was made, judging it after versus during.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:37:05 +0000 UTC

pretty self explanatory that he lived someone else's life through their memories via a dream. sort of a first person living diary as a way of documentation of their way of life and what happened to them. a message in a bottle.

penoyer79

2025-03-02 18:35:13 +0000 UTC

Oh yeah, fully agree, I was just giving it's basic function as a reason for launch in the first place. One thing that does bug me (aside from how the, let's face it primitive by federation standards civilization) could build such a thing in the first place is how they knew what the system was called despite them being gone for 1000 years. Oh, right. TV lol.

Incredible Jon

2025-03-02 18:31:23 +0000 UTC

Yep. The probe was programmed with parameters to play out a "life" like the Kataan people lived.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:31:06 +0000 UTC

They're in The Matrix.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:26:09 +0000 UTC

I started crying the earliest in ever. I guess I'm an emotional wreck lately, which is not my usual nature.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:25:46 +0000 UTC

Clowns?

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:24:19 +0000 UTC

Their "chemistry" gauges are obviously broken.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:23:48 +0000 UTC

I don't believe Picard did any time traveling. I think his family may have been based on real people, but it was AI generated. But, that doesn't change how real it was to Picard.

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 18:23:27 +0000 UTC

I liked when you used to show the teaser trailer for the episode during the discussion was very entertaining

Anthony Varra

2025-03-02 18:23:16 +0000 UTC

Trying to cut the beam from "drilling into him" kinda was.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:22:59 +0000 UTC

"A" is not a low grade. And the guys need time to come to terms with this one, too. And, spoilers I won't go into...

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:22:32 +0000 UTC

The probe says more than just "they existed". It's a living testament (through Picard) of how they lived, what they valued and believed, and how they died. It's the ultimate holodeck experience except it's all inside one man's mind.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:20:49 +0000 UTC

Alex said that, and wouldn’t that actually be evidence to the contrary since that happened and then he still loved the episode? If he ended up hating it and that was the cause then I’d see your point.

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 18:20:06 +0000 UTC

He would have snapped out of it after 2 minutes, saying I killed them all, it was glorious.

Marko

2025-03-02 18:16:26 +0000 UTC

Again, I know you get a lot of shit from people who disagree on one thing or another. Please don't take it the same way from me. I love your analysis of this episode. As I've said in the past, you detail your reasoning, which is key. And much appreciated.

Tom Occhipinti

2025-03-02 18:15:01 +0000 UTC

Giving it an A is grading it low? I'm so confused. The only difference between an A and a S is if it is one of their personal favorites

Jeffrey

2025-03-02 18:13:37 +0000 UTC

The greatness of this episode takes time to sink in. Your mind has to make it personal to you, and for most people that is not going to happen immediately. Your reaction here exemplifies something I've brought up in the past, however: Josh mentioned forming judgement of the episode based on what he saw Kamin (Picard) wearing, and equating that with his experience of a low-quality episode. This is an example of the early judgemental reactions that are unfair to episodes because you somewhat (or completely) tune out after you've decided "Well, this is going to be this..." that I've mentioned before.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:12:41 +0000 UTC

Each to their own. At least you gave an honest opinion. You're allowed to live another day.;

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 18:11:41 +0000 UTC

Captain Picard learns to question his entire life of not settling down and having a family.

Jovet

2025-03-02 18:06:00 +0000 UTC

It’ll be posted next week after the finale

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 18:04:17 +0000 UTC

Am I losing my mind? I saw you guys in a video where you were ranking these and you were already ranking the ones that we hadn't seen yet, so I paused the video and waited until today and I wanted to go back and look at it but I can't find it. Where is it??

John Rose

2025-03-02 17:52:30 +0000 UTC

Fair enough

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 17:51:38 +0000 UTC

I'm actually kind of in the same boat as you guys. This is an episode I completely understand why so many people rate it as one of the best episodes of Star Trek. Why it is so beloved. It's also not in my top 10. But I really have no issues with the episode. I think we all need to get more comfortable with something not being "the greatest of all time" and that being totally okay. I like having A tier episodes.

Deep Red

2025-03-02 17:50:59 +0000 UTC

The beauty of this channel is that it answers the age old question of “what if Lucha Underground was about a reaction YouTube channel” He had better have had a son you can have a blow off match with for the season 5 program.

William Roberts

2025-03-02 17:44:27 +0000 UTC

No hate, just a difference of opinion. IMO, this was an' "S." A gut punch to see Picard wake up out of 40+ years experience. Again, IMO, Redemption and I, Borg were "A."

Tom Occhipinti

2025-03-02 17:44:17 +0000 UTC

Nowhere in the reaction or the subsequent review did I see any attack on the episode for not revealing what was going on in the first 15 minutes.

DG

2025-03-02 17:41:36 +0000 UTC

I didn’t understand what you meant at first and genuinely googled John Goodman thinking he had passed 💀

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 17:40:48 +0000 UTC

I envy you guys for getting to see this episode cold. I went to a Star Trek convention just before the last 3 episodes of season 5 aired. They did a snopsys of what was going to happen in them. I would rather not known exactly what was going to happen to Picard in this episode.

Keith S

2025-03-02 17:38:45 +0000 UTC

R.I.P. John Goodman, but... I guess this works out better for Alex moving forward with the channel.

Forbidden Donut

2025-03-02 17:36:47 +0000 UTC

Excellent simile!

Jovet

2025-03-02 17:36:09 +0000 UTC

Wow. A discussion as long as the episode. Minus the bit at the end, I guess.

Jovet

2025-03-02 17:34:25 +0000 UTC

Others have given personal connections to episodes; here's mine. When this aired my wife and I enjoyed it, while concentrated on our careers. On reruns just a few years later , we were trying to have kids and had miscarriages. We were at the point that we were adjusting to the idea of not ever having kids. This episode hit so much harder then and even now remembering the feeling. It also makes me think of a Valjean line from the musical Les Misérables from the same time period: "He's like the son I might have know, if God had granted me a son." If you've read this far, we did end up with three children, now adults starting families.

C

2025-03-02 17:33:13 +0000 UTC

i always wondered how this would have gone if the probe connected to a Klingon or a borg

Dark Kronis

2025-03-02 17:31:58 +0000 UTC

This episode is quite simply, one of the best. All those people we see and indeed the race itself couldn't escape the disaster that eventually caused them to go extinct. So they threw out the probe in a desperate attempt to just say they were there and that they existed... now they exist powerfully but only in Picards mind. He, to his mind had a family and all the things he never allowed himself to have as a captain, I always feel in those last shots he would have given anything to go back, just as much as in the first scenes he was trying to go back to the enterprise. God tier episode. It's not even the best of Patrick Stewarts acting, there's an episode coming where if you're even able to take your eyes off the screen to say anything I'll be frankly surprised 😅

Incredible Jon

2025-03-02 17:28:56 +0000 UTC

Everyone has their opinions and no one should be faulted for how they feel. Personally, this is my fav episode of TNG. :)

Echo Moon

2025-03-02 17:27:50 +0000 UTC

“Graded it low” lol this comment reads as something we’d say in the video as satire

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 17:26:24 +0000 UTC

Comparing this to Data's Day is embarrassing...I get you graded it low because you don't understand that the lived experience can alter Picard but that's not the show's fault. They constantly talk about not wanting to know what's going on but then when the show doesn't reveal what's happening in the first fifteen minutes they knock it for that. I rejoined the Patron to watch this uncut episode. The grade given to the episode has convinced me to move on.

Andrew Ramos

2025-03-02 17:24:08 +0000 UTC

Agreed!

Andrew Ramos

2025-03-02 17:20:02 +0000 UTC

I also tend only to watch uncut reactions nowadays, avoiding any channel's edited ones on YouTube despite how well they are often done

DG

2025-03-02 17:16:34 +0000 UTC

Notice there was no B-plot.

Tom Occhipinti

2025-03-02 17:15:32 +0000 UTC

🤝

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 17:14:23 +0000 UTC

We finally made it y'all. This episode is timeless imo.

Clyde Frog

2025-03-02 17:13:15 +0000 UTC

💓💓💓

KatWithAttitude

2025-03-02 17:09:18 +0000 UTC

This a well done and important episode but not a favorite of mine

Phil Ken Sebben

2025-03-02 17:09:14 +0000 UTC

"Didn't really feel it with his son" had me giggling. IYKYK. (Oh there we go ... ok I wrote this before the end of the discussion hahaha).

Joshua Taylor

2025-03-02 17:08:28 +0000 UTC

The sex scoreboard Picard gets a score. Riker 14 Troi 4 Picard 3 new Dr. Bev 3 Data 2 Ro 1 Worf 1 Geordi 1 Broccoli 2 i Chief/Keiko 1 Extra: I cannot do my normal over the top vulgar sex talk about this one. This was a sweet episode and a real reason for sex.

Prof Moff

2025-03-02 17:04:59 +0000 UTC

Yes, though I do like both brief and longer thoughts, and aside from the grading I do enjoy the way the Patreon Takes bit is handled, and am glad The (Re)writers' Room is no longer a separate section on the TNG reactions.

DG

2025-03-02 17:03:58 +0000 UTC

Picard has Sarek, the Borg and these clowns in his head now.

AzoriusMage

2025-03-02 17:03:29 +0000 UTC

Absolutely. Please don't stop doing this.

Spencer Loften

2025-03-02 17:02:15 +0000 UTC

Yes, this is the equivalent to City on the Edge of Forever, in my opinion. There can be no other. Not to fulfill that slot.

Tom Occhipinti

2025-03-02 16:56:22 +0000 UTC

Getting blasted by the end credits is like cold water splashed on your face

Terminaldogma01

2025-03-02 16:55:55 +0000 UTC

Won a Hugo award for Best Dramatic Presentation and was nominated for an Emmy.

Terminaldogma01

2025-03-02 16:54:05 +0000 UTC

By that do you mean a reaction and brief thoughts

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 16:53:58 +0000 UTC

I say keep the post-watch grading. It’s fun!

Shanelle

2025-03-02 16:52:39 +0000 UTC

I found the TA discussion towards the end of the post regarding grading very interesting. I tried and failed to get into the whole tier thing and indeed stopped voting quite some time ago. As much as I still really enjoy the Star Trek reactions the most on this channel, my favourite approach/structure is the way The Expanse is done here (and before that Game of Thrones).

DG

2025-03-02 16:51:25 +0000 UTC

I know you are rerating this, but this rewatch (>25) for my all time favorite gave me something new. At the big reaction scenes, I was listening to but not watching your video, I was glued to the episode. It's that powerful.

C

2025-03-02 16:48:52 +0000 UTC

Unbeknownst to Alex and Josh, they’re somewhere on an alien starship, passed out on the floor, while a probe sent by Star Trek fans beams humanities greatest achievement into their minds. After they watch the very last trek episode, we fans will gather around “my darlings, remember us”, before they return to their real life.

Lwaxana’s Poolboy

2025-03-02 16:40:30 +0000 UTC

When I watched the Darmok reaction I knew this one couldn’t reach S. They’re both concept episodes and I think these guys need more. The Inner Light is a fine wine that gets better with time.

Christopher Boutwell

2025-03-02 16:38:12 +0000 UTC

The reactions and comments are great and all, but it's those surprise endings that take it over the top!!

Matt G Cowart

2025-03-02 16:38:00 +0000 UTC

Next time on Star Trek the Next Generation. Picard and the crew encounter an ancient alien mind link device designed to teach flute playing. It works. S+ for me.

Paul Hess

2025-03-02 16:33:23 +0000 UTC

When I first watched this years ago I didn't think it was particularly good, granted I was 12 or 13. Years later I view it as one of the best in series. I think the seed is there in your heads too and in the future you'll see it in a different way. I noticed that you spent more time justifying why it wasn't an S than why it was an A which kind of makes me think that, subconsciously, there might be more you guys are picking up on and it'll break through some day.

Mordock_Vapelord

2025-03-02 16:28:13 +0000 UTC

I enjoy seeing your grades at the end, but I totally get your frustration with people being angry about them. However, I also wonder if some of that apparent anger isn't just people joking around. Anyway, I'm still glad you give your honest opinions, because it seems to me that's the whole point.

Steven Linden

2025-03-02 16:28:09 +0000 UTC

That last scene hits hard years later! Patrick Stewart does such a good job of selling his unease in his own quarters, not feeling at home. And then the way he grips the flute like a man at sea grabbing a plank. It must be so surreal to have a piece of that dream in the real world. And now it's not something "just in his head," it's something he can express - in music - in his actual home.

Chris

2025-03-02 16:23:22 +0000 UTC

Took me 10 reviews over 3 decades to fully understand how deep this was 🖖

Dan Here

2025-03-02 16:21:17 +0000 UTC

This is in my top five Star Trek episodes of all time, but I think I enjoy it more in the way I enjoy a great one-off short story rather than as a Star Trek episode per se. There are a few episodes like that across the various series, "The City on the Edge of Forever" being another prime example.

Steven Linden

2025-03-02 16:16:44 +0000 UTC

Just a hunch, but this one may grow on you... maybe

Jason Lallathin

2025-03-02 15:52:51 +0000 UTC

Great discussion! I loved this as a teen, but it really grows as a) I age, b) I had children and c) global warming became a much more in-your-face problem (people knew it was coming back then, but hadn't seen its effects yet). It's the epitome of an episode that has aged well and is also one of Trek's most rewatchable.

John M.

2025-03-02 15:47:19 +0000 UTC

I hope you revisit your grade for the greatest episode of all time.

Joshua Langweil

2025-03-02 15:45:08 +0000 UTC

No

Josh (Target Audience)

2025-03-02 15:26:00 +0000 UTC

This experience of his sequestration as it took 5 years to finaly fully accept his situation as mentioned by wanting to build a nursery is what you call Stockholm syndrome wich is a well known disorder that can last years to heal. Picard would have serious identity crissis, his memory would be screwed like whats real, whats not. He could have forget so many things from his previous life from crew members to the Entreprise little secrets a captain should find obvious. Just the rythme of his life on the planet, like seeing a sun every day, no more earl grey tea etc. I don't know how his body could react versus his brain's new and long lasting life. Food, sleep cycle, hobbys, friends, everything he knew for the last 30 years would be gone. He just lost his wife, kids and grand kids wich he raised and loved for decades. He changed diapers, helped for homeworks, showed his kids all he knew about astronomy and all. It takes me weeks to recover from my cats when they die, i can't imagine loosing my beloved wife of 30 years, kids and grand kids, friends even his house, village etc... His command style would surely been affected, either by being more of a family man, wich he never knew before or just i don't give a fuck anymore. His relation with child, wich we all know his not his primary talent would be totaly different He would also be experiencing steady flashback of his previous life, seeing a kid would make him remember the family he build over a 30 years span. You don't erase 30 years of pure emotion like you close a book. Finaly, i beleive he would need to consult with Troi on a weekly basic, probably for years only to never fully recover. On a positive note, his learning of the flûte would see his relation to music completly changed, while still being a major cause of flashbacks. I would have love to see a follow up episode to see his recovering process, a little like Family folowed when he was assimilated by the Borg. They missed a really good oportunity to show Stewart's talent as an actor at his deepest emotions. At last, sorry for the long and surely full of grammatical errors comment, english not being my first language but just to show the impact this particular episode had on me.

Dan Here

2025-03-02 15:19:36 +0000 UTC

🐐 tier

Fishing Trip

2025-03-02 15:16:38 +0000 UTC

Have you guys started watching Season 6 yet?

The_Truth

2025-03-02 15:16:04 +0000 UTC

Dam, I've been waiting for this, and I've got to go shopping. I'd look strange in Walmart holding my tablet and phone, watching two different videos and trying to shop at the same time. But then again, it is Walmart. That would be far from the craziest thing to see in there.

startrekiborg

2025-03-02 15:10:18 +0000 UTC

Here is hoping you guys love it and S Tier it. I go back to this episode many times

Glenn Zigli

2025-03-02 14:47:26 +0000 UTC

First comment of the best episode ever 🖖

Dan Here

2025-03-02 14:47:06 +0000 UTC

UNCUT - The Inner Light (TNG S5E25) | Star Trek Journey 232

Comments

The first time Kamin picks up the flute, he plays a song that's comforting to Jean-Luc. The first time Jean-Luc picks up the flute, he plays a song that's comforting to Kamin Also, Kamin's son Batai was played by Patrick Stewart's own son Daniel

Good stuff, and I agree overall, appreciate your honesty (even when it stings a little). Awesome skit at the end, too.

S for me. Based on the emotion it evoked from you, you may also find it grows on re-watch. More of a slow burn type episode.

yeah, it just feels like a waste of effort these days.

My headcannon to this is that they somehow didnt have the tech for long distance manned space travel, but they did figure out how to project what is essentially a holodeck scene into another person's mind and Picard was the first one to come into contact with it.

Absolutely. I enjoyed this episode when I first watched it, but on subsequent rewatches my love and appreciation for it only grows more and more.

Guys regarding your final point about the tier gradings - just don't worry about what the masses make of your ratings, I guarantee more people enjoy the honesty rather than grading something high because the fanbase love it, like what other reaction channels do.

Picard looked like he was a grandfather when he first arrived. He looked so old throughout this episode.

One of my favorite episodes of any show ever. Just thinking of the music gets me every time. S+

The flute over the credits at the end……whew. So solemn, sad.

Wow! I'd be pissed if I'd just dropped 1/4 million dollars on a 1 of 6....

After it sold didn’t Stewart reveal that there were about 5 others knocking about.

No. I'm not validating or invalidating them. I'm just offering my own 2 cents like every other comment on here. They probably won't even read this comment. And if they do, they can take it or leave it however they see fit. It's their channel. They can do whatever they want.

I say that about a famous DS9 episode, but I don't say it very often, I'd be drummed out of Star Trek fandom.

Too many people don't consider that a spoiler, but, like a spoiler, too many people want to be the one that tells them what's coming up. It's truly an ego thing.

Your so called plot points fall apart to anyone that's actually watched the episode.

But you think they need your validation, random person in the comments section?

I thought the relationship between him and his wife was great and really sold picards trauma over losing her and the actress was believable

Imagine if it was discovered by Klingons!

Oh ok. They could have just asked me to edit it out.

@AzoriusMage I'm not a "Trekkie" I'm a Whovian.

I made it a little further than that. I think this time it was when Kamin brought up the nursery.

I think once they finish the run, they should do a final ranking video and adjust the score. They tend to give out Ss too frequently, especially early on. Once they've seen the entire body of work, they'll be better positioned to judge each episode relative to the average.

I would rather them just trade based on their personal preference than try to approximate some kind of 'objective' rating. If you want that then why not just look at the user ratings on imdb. I come for the personal touch.

The irony that you liked Picard interacting with his "daughter" and not his "son", since that's Patrick Stewart's actual son... Lol

That's definitely how I grade episodes Darren. I'm not sure how else you would even go about it. What even is the alternative? Quality is so subjective anyway.

Doesn’t everyone grade on how much the like an episode? For me I’ve always rated based on how I enjoyed an episode.

Disagreements are irrelevant, points of view are irrelevant, diversity is irrelevant. You will all become one with the fandom...... =P

I asked my moderators and I think your comment had a spoiler regarding our tier list that many people here haven’t been able to see yet and will be posted next week

I'm right there with you bro.

I still do.

It made me cry. Again. One of top 5 of TNG.

You're right, it's just so rare on patreon that it's not generally worth the effort, and in YT's case it's so prevalent it just discourages discussion altogether.

what you should do is for long responses write it in a word processor and then copy paste so that doesnt happen

if you havent watched more recent seasons theres an entire episode set inside that game which is great

Well said, Owen!

You’re a legend Owen 🙌🏻

There’s a difference between quality and likability. Star Trek 5 is a movie plagued with issues but I love it. Which is my argument. Josh and Alex seem to treat S episodes as favorites but not based on superior quality. It’s just a matter of immense likability that pushes it to S for them.

There are episodes I like before my father passed, and then watching them afterwards they are full-on emotional journeys.

Holodeck: light illusions, forcefields for the scenery and movement, replicators for objects and foodstuffs, and transporters for clean up.

it wasn't even a functional flute!

Huh... I thought "In Theory" was his favorite. It's what he picked for the Captain's favorite episode selection. Probably cause he directed it.

Not only that but I think it would be simple for someone to come out with a way to censor the credits so they don't get spoiled

Picard's Ressikan flute prop from "The Inner Light" just sold for $237,000 at auction.Jun 29, 2021

That just confuses me even more. At least it wasn't completely for nothing

I think the issue with the grading system is that you guys seem to really be grading quality of the episode on an A-E scale, but if it’s a favorite episode (regardless of quality) you give it an S, which is making the grading system skewed.

Please keep the white boards. IMHO 👍

Got it, thanks!

ayyyyy thanks!

We are just at the Intro and i'm already crying. I just FEEEL this Episode. I really love it.

hate to break it to you, but 80% of star trek plots fall apart if you think about them for more than 10 minutes. Hell, even basic elements of the show.... don't think about the holodeck too hard!

People like you that take this way too seriously

"does getting laid in a dream count?" NO.

What is a "trekkie"?

To me the ingredient is empathy. And empathy for things other people have gone through is much easier to come by if you've gone through similar things yourself already.

I will edit myself. "...because it isn't about any of the main characters ASIDE FROM PICARD at all."

@Ryan Caulfield I think Kiel meant *like your comment* more than once.

Sometimes greatness takes time to sink in. We've had 30 years to stew over these episodes.

Picard isn't in the main cast? News to me.

I've been advocating that since the start. Each episode should be a completely open and unprejudiced blank slate, until the final credits roll.

That's not true. Simply not true.

The plot doesn't fall apart as much as you claim. But some of those questions are not supposed to be answered, especially not by the episode.

If you're looking for a critical take on this episode, Allison Pregler has a video where she goes through its flaws. It's an entertaining take, even though I like this episode.

thats all the more reason to not use grading of any kind...just use words and analysis

Yes

City on the hill? Don’t get the reference for some reason. Was that what shatner called city on the edge of forever by mistake or something?

Possibly the most powerful ending of any Star Trek episode.

I bet Jeffrey Combs plays it

At least his favorite isn’t “City on the Hill”

He is playing Picard tho... It's still Picard living through this life even if they all call him Kamen.

I'm sad that this is Patrick Stewart's favourite episode. It's not that it isn't good, it's just that it's the only one up to now (s5) where he doesn't play Captain Picard. (Excluding when he's been possessed / assimilated etc).

Agreed. Fourth grade me couldn't really appreciate this for what it was at the time, watching on TV on my mother's little 13-in screen with the clicky knobs. Decades later, It's something that sticks with me. It's one of those episodes that immediately come to mind whenever I think of Trek.

I was in like the fourth grade. Come on now. 😂

The Red Dwarf Video We Almost Buried Forever https://youtu.be/OOTZ34ng16w

What's really crazy is, I *read* the comment you're talking about. Now, poof. But take solace in that it DID get read by someone.

And yet you did not use it there where you could have... 🤔 😜

They "did" one for the pilot. It did not go well. Though tbf "The End" is probably one of the weaker episodes of the show, all things considered.

It’s totally fine to disagree. There are time when I am completely out of sync with the boys. But to suggest you are going to cry or not be friends with someone or that they are dumb because they didn’t see something is ludicrous.

@Ryan Caulfield I think Kiel meant like your comment more than once.

What's really crazy is, I read the comment you're talking about. Now, poof. But take solace in that it DID get read by someone.