YOUTUBE - The Inner Light | Star Trek TNG Reaction & Review

This episode has grown in me over the years but stilldoesnt get past a B in my mind. No one does anything this episode but Picard. The story isn't really all that gripping. The pace is slow and Stewart has almost no chemistry with anyone but the actress that plays his daughter. We'll, maybe the Office Space guy too. But too see Picard go through the second of his three experiences that that would absolutely psychologically wreck an human but still not real.... Well, I'll stop there to make sure there are no spoilers.

Trek doesn't use works from the 20th century onward because of public domain laws. Shakespeare and Mozart are cheap. They caught a little crap from the Doyle Estate for their first Sherlock Holmes episode. That was (mostly) from the 19th century!

Hey, I just saw a really excellent analysis of The Inner Light on The Art of Storytelling channel on YouTube from a couple of weeks ago. He points out how the realities of broadcast television in the '90s influenced the structure of the episode and how the writers took advantage of it. I think this effect is somewhat lost today when you can watch it straight through without commercial interruptions like a movie. Anyway, you should really check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZpZfJC21lM

Batai jr being played by Patrick Stewart son is such a sweet bit of trivia

Always assumed that the probe basically created a simulation in his head, much like a holodeck. Was there an original Kamen that Picard’s life was based on? Were the people he saw based on people that existed? Not sure, nor does it matter. The idea was for the makers of the probe to have an alien experience what their world was like, and what it was like to be a member of the community of Ressick on the planet Kataan. No need to get into the weeds of the “how”.

I get it, Alex and Josh. I felt the same way when I saw it as a young guy. But this episode may hit you differently when you are in your late 30s, 40s, 50s+. It can hit deeper as your life slips by. But I think that's the point.

54:00 Do people not just watch the whole reaction? Who's skipping around? It's weird.

Saw this episode a few days before High school graduation. First time I was ever brought to tears by TV... turned around and saw my father with tears for the first time in my life. This one only gets better as you age.

Alex,...about that,...hmm,...never mind, spoilers. All will unfold as it is meant to.

I'm glad you reconsidered and gave this the S rating it deserved in the tier list. This is my favorite episode of TNG, which makes it one of my favorite Star Trek episodes of all time. (Though my favorite all time is a DS9 episode which we won't see for several years, but I plan to be here. My yearly subscription to this channel renewed today.) It was also my late Mother's favorite episode, and one of the first Star Trek episodes I ever saw, since it was one of her favorites. I didn't appreciate it the first time I saw it, because I was young and foolish, but since then, it's really grown on me. Just 'cause it's my favorite that doesn't mean that what follows isn't good. There's some episodes to really like in Season 6 and Season 7, though I think the show's best years are behind it after Season 5, and I consider Season 5's finale to be the weakest finale since Season 2. (Not that Season 1's finale was anything to write home about either.)

I agree with your grades. This was an excellent episode. I remember watching it for the first time and what a great ending. It’s a really good story. But it didn’t impact me personally at the level “I, Borg” and a few others did. That doesn’t mean it’s not excellent. “S” rating is personal while “A” is objective

You know if Geordi had the bridge (let's say the remainder of the senior staff was recovering from an ordeal of being shot at by fishy looking drones) this plot never would have worked because he would have built a damn warp drive. (...Or because the dead planet was 100% white).

Damn, I love watching you guys watch Trek. I don't understand your viewers who get upset when your opinion doesn't sync with theirs. That's what a reaction show is all about. That's why we're aboard her.

Not the Flute 🙁

This episode does it to me EVERY SINGLE TIME!!! Even an edited reaction makes me weepy.

i knew when i saw this episode 30 years ago it was special. i still cry 30 years later watching it

So given that this is an intentional fabricated glimpse of this culture, in reality it's highly unlikely to be properly representing these people in full, rather than a tailored vision of how they want to be remembered. Its likely they looked completely different and only looked human so Picard could integrate easier to start with. Maybe they actually caused their sun to go nova! I like to imagine a retired Picard leading an archeological expedition and finding out many of the inaccuracies

I can’t imagine having to go back to work after being away for 30 years. I take a week off and then can’t remember my network password.

Unpopular opinion but not a favorite. Don't get me wrong, it's a good episode. The acting is great, but the premise just doesn't do it for me. And I could never wrap my mind around the fact that the good Captain lived a lifetime in 20 minutes. I still will give a B but a low one...

I think I enjoyed the cheesy bit at the end the most

Someone has probably mentioned this already, but this episode ties in very well with the lyric of the Beatles song with which it shares its name. “Arrive without travelling, see all without looking, do all without doing.”

This is one of my top 5 for TNG, however over 30 years have past since it came out and seeing you two put the pieces together way sooner than I did as a kid perhaps brings it down that 1/2 notch. Nothing wrong with it, but just one of those episodes that kind of hit you later on if you get a chance to think about it later in life.

First off, keep the grades. Even when I don't agree with a take or the final grade, I still know it's coming from two guys who love Star Trek. The people who are saying you don't clearly haven't seen your tier lists (S5 you had over half the episodes at B or higher). Keep being honest with your takes/grades while giving the Patrons a chance to voice their opinions too. Better to have a debate where some opinions get challenged than just rubber stamping everything as perfect. Second, I'm curious what you think could be done to rehab Riker in your eyes. I get he's not Picard and he lets his concern for the crew push him to what he thinks is the best move to keep them safe, but I was surprised to see how you guys seemed to have soured on him since "Both Worlds". I'm sorry if I'm reading into it wrong, but what would you do to make him a better character/captain? All that being said, thank you for the content, congrats on getting through TNG Season 5, and on to Season 6 and the start of DS9! Engage!

I like the grades. If the viewers need the hosts agree with them in order to enjoy the videos that's their problem. The differing points of view is what makes this rewatch interesting. If the hosts agreed with the consensus in everything there'd be no discussion, no differing points of view, and we wouldn't open our minds to new ways of viewing the material.

On one of the Voyager spacecraft that is so far away now, has recorded sounds of Earth, diagrams of human anatomy, and directions to where the spacecraft came from. In effect, it's the same type of idea as this episode. If any other sentiment species ever finds Voyager, at least there will be evidence of our civilization that was.

Why is this town so beige? So they can build a space probe that can last a thousand years til it finds the right person to lock on to, but they can not find a way to leave the planet. These people are too dumb to live. Also Picard did not consent to this.