FULL DISCUSSION - Star Trek TNG S3E23 - Sarek

Picard and Riker's uniforms when they greeted Sarek are the "dress uniform". Kirk had one in TOS that he wore in "Journey to Babel".

I love your thoughtful and entertaining discussions. It's what makes your channel unique. 🖖

Now, some people would look at a discussion video that's longer than the episode itself and disapprove. I am not one of those people, fuck it, the next monumental episode you see, do 1 hour! I love it, love you. Xxx

Dennis McCarthy is the best composer in all 4 series

that thing you mention near the end there about something coming in out of nowhere to get in the way of the good stuff, the external force that has nothing to do with the episode, is what we call the "threat of the week", and every time it appears you should blame Rick Berman with extreme prejudice. I mean, it's not always his fault especially earlier on, but it is *spiritually* his fault. he was adamant about sticking to The Formula, and that means there has to be a threat, otherwise why would people care, right?? so frustrating.

One thing nobody has mentioned is how the TNG crew after making this (or at least one guy) said they realized subconsciously this was inspired by their feelings about Roddenberry as it was clear to them by this point that he was declining. The episode originally started as not about Sarek specifically but about an aging ambassador who was clearly showing signs of decline but had a great deal of authority and was insisting on completing this mission which was his passion project and the crew having to deal with making him realize he wasn't capable. When someone had the idea it was Sarek, everyone apparently realized that was perfect and much better then some random admiral and then the episode took shape. But the original idea was clearly inspired by the real life situation the staff was in at the time, having to ignore things Roddenberry was saying and explain to him why they changed things since at this point they had a much better understanding of what this show was going to be and what made it work better then Roddenberry did. I thought that was interesting, the idea they had this initial concept where they didn't realize till afterward it was about themselves and their relationship to this legendary figure they admired but who was increasingly being left out of the loop of the actual creative process while still having the official authority and having to deal with that.

I do not understand how this Don LaFontaine guy got to be a legend and I'd never heard of him ever.

Imagine that fight but with Miles O'Brien and Scotty in the mix... LOL

Your reaction to this is why we watch. That was fun!

Love the Bill Burr reference!

The Worf incident that happens off screen isn't about Worf, it is about him putting a subordinate on report for insubordination for directly questioning his authority. The officer in question had an outstanding record up to that point, and Riker was shocked about that part. The implication seemed to be that Worf was composed and professional towards that officer but still handed down discipline as was his duty.

12:15 *straight right palm. LOL

Thanks for reading my comment, gents! My “execution issues” are the same that Josh mentioned: the speed and severity of the emotional bursts, specifically Geordi and Wesley, and then again Riker blowing up at Picard without repercussions. We all love watching your awe and surprise at these best-of episodes, so no spoilers, but you will get these specific feelings again before TNG ends, and just as poignant as this, imho.

6:38: Spoiler alert: Not every Q episode has "Q" in the title.

I think the punchline you were looking for was "Sarek: the Revenge"

Sarek 2 Vulcan Boogaloo!

4:07 Those are called dress uniforms. As in "fancy-dress uniforms."

0:40 Why couldn't another Vulcan mind meld with Sarek to do that instead of Picard? (Plot armor)

Spock and Saavik did it. Stop fooling yourself. He wasn't himself, but then neither are most people hooking up drunk...

The most amazing thing about Mark Leonard and Sarek is that before this episode, we had Mark Leonard a total of 6 times, and Sarek only 4 times, and they both have such an impact on the episodes (movies) they're in. Sarek is the GOAT, and we know almost nothing about him.

He first showed up in Balance of Terror as the Romulan commander

I wasn't sure if you'd love it or hate it for one reason. It's wonderfully written and acted but if you've been particularly close with someone suffering from dementia or similar ailments it can hit a bit below the belt. That make sense?

Trying to figure out the name: "Saaa...Sa-Sapphic? I think it's Sapphic." Call it a hunch, but I don't THINK that Vulcan's a lesbian. 🤣

Man, I paused on the BEST face at 3:09. God damn. 😆

Roll on next week, you guys finish Season 3 and I get paid, a nice end to the month!

The entire Picard meltdown scene is three shots, by my counting. And the first shot, which is most of the scene, took several takes. Imagine having to hit those emotional highs over and over. That kind of acting isn't for the weak.

One could ask why he doesn't just mind meld with Sakkath since he's a Vulcan and can better handle the emotional onslaught, but then it's specifically because Sarek can draw from Picard's experience in diplomacy as well as its own, which the episode references and establishes. That makes the in-universe explanation work perfectly as opposed to just being good television and giving Patrick Stewart some good acting. Good setup and payoff.

Given the recent news of his death, film producer Jon Landau, who worked extensively with James Cameron on all his films of the last three decades, was brothers with Les Landau, the director of this and many other episodes.

Excellent direction and cinematography in this one. Some really good background moments in this episode: the lowered, defeated look on Picard's face when Sarek snaps "illogical!", Sakkath startling when Sarek loses control since he's feeling it too, the chief of staff reacting to stuff giving away the game, the camera movements to reveal characters, and all the various looks during the concert scene.

i can say for a fact when this show originally aired i had the exact same reaction to the name drop of serek and spock. this is a top ten episode of the entire series

picard forshadows the mind meld early in the episode while talking to troi. he says to her he regrets he won’t be able to share his thoughts with sarek.

Les Landau! When it comes to directing quality, Les is more.

I'm not a very analytical person when it comes to TV shows. I've seen this episode twice before and always felt it was an alright episode and then I move on and don't think about it anymore. But watching it with you guys makes me appreciate it a lot more with the amount of thought and discussion you put into every episode.

I think Worf's not affected by Sarek's condition because his fight instinct is ALWAYS elevated. The rest of the crew just isn't conditioned to deal with their hightened emotions. ("That's my secret, Captain. I'm always angry." - The Avengers)

Not much to say except great episode and it is definitely in my top 5 of the season.

And you still haven't seen the best Season 3 has to offer.

One great point for me - Sir Patrick's emotion scene is such classic Royal Shakespeare Company acting, as contrasted with Mark Leonard, with decades of becoming an iconic Vulcan using the Method Approach.

One bad point for me - on the string quartet, only the left player was legit, although Brent was close.

Even if you remove the TOS nostalgia, this is a great episode.

Don’t worry, Alex. In the Trekker world, there’s no such thing as a dumb detail.

Shoutout to Patrick Steward for an awesome performance. I believe this is the first time he got the chance to show what he could do. The man can act.

This announcer is not Don. It's Ernie Anderson. I'd bet money on it. I believe Don came in at season 4. ;)

I don’t want to go political here, but honestly the Biden joke was hilarious to me, I don’t care which side a person is on, that was gold! And that’s all I’m going to say.

I support your theory that Ernie Anderson just had some goddamn standards about which episodes he'd VO.

11:19 8)

I’d like to think that Sarek taking Perrin’s hand is an aftereffect of confronting his feelings for her and regretting his inability to show tenderness. Just a subtle change after the mind meld. Maybe I’m wrong.

By this point even TOS fans that were a bit sniffy about TNG had got on board, like my parents. We ended up watching seasons 4 to 7 as a family - the only show we did. Sarek was one of the episodes that made them change their minds about the show. Its a fond memory from before my parents got old and we all permanently moved out.

The mind meld scene will forever be in my head. Glad you liked this one. Solid performances from Mark and Patrick. (And others too)

Don't forget, Mark Lenard was in Balance of Terror too.

Watching this will have to wait until after 4 this afternoon, but I appreciated being able to watch the reaction last night. I only got to bed about 15 minutes later.