Off-Topic discussion - Star Trek

Since there are a couple threads for other fantasy/sci-fi genres, I thought I would start this one. This is a place to discuss plots and plot holes, theories, content, and maybe technology in general.

I am a casual Star Trek watcher, and I recently found a new TV channel that plays Star Trek every night. Last night they showed the episode of Next Generation where the Enterprise goes to the planet where they found Data, and they find Lore and bring him back.

Lore makes a plan with the Crystal Entity that he will drop the shields to transport something large out to space, that the Enterprise will then blow-up, showing the Enterprise's destructive power and scaring the entity away, but in reality the transport will give a reason to lower the shields, allowing the Crystal Entity to destroy the Enterprise.

Of course, Wesley sees that it's Lore acting like Data to perform this plan, and there is a fight between Data and Lore where Data flings Lore into the transporter, which Wesley activates. Picard and Riker show up and they congratulate themselves on a job well done.

It left me with two questions:

They just transported a sentient being out into space. Don't they feel a little bit bad about that? It seems to me if they are really that compassionate and evolved, they aught to at least transport him back to the brig for some kind of investigation.

If the shields had to be down for the transporter to work, why didn't the entity attack when they transported Lore? I mean, it was just sitting there waiting for him to do that.

We're you watching a channel called H&I, heroes and icons? They should be at that episode because they played the big goodbye the other night.

For some odd reason the characters in Star Trek have never been all that sympathetic to robots that are perceived as a threat to human/alien life. They have a wonderful sentient android friend, you would think they'd care more.

As for transporter and shield based problems, it's just feels like a convenient plot device to create drama most of the time.

The real question is, doesn't Brent Spiner play an amazing bad guy? He is awesome!

Maybe they didn't want to make Wesley feel bad about the moral ramifications of his decision. Right now I'm picturing an edited out scene where they all have dinner and talk about how terrible that was... without Wesley there, of course.

Yes Brent Spiner is quite an actor!

@Evil Evie wrote:

We're you watching a channel called H&I, heroes and icons? They should be at that episode because they played the big goodbye the other night.

H&I, yes. Didn't even know we had it until we had to re-program the channels the other day.

@Evil Evie wrote:

As for transporter and shield based problems, it's just feels like a convenient plot device to create drama most of the time.  

Yeah, that's always been a barrier to me really enjoying Star Trek sometimes. I really love some of the interactions and hypotheticals they get into, but I hate the episodes where things are resolved by some engineering trick. I hate when Scotty or Jeordi pulls something out of thier ass at the eleventh hour. It's not like you can say "Hey, warp cores don't work like that!" (Although my brother's college did teach a course on Star Trek, so maybe one of those students could. Or someone who's read The Physics of Star Trek.)

It’s unfortunately something that we also see now with a certain palace...

We've been watching the Star Trek Voyager on BBC America. Love all the Star Trek show and movies. Except for Enterprise, couldn't get into that one.

We need a new Star Trek based series.

@G0lden wrote:

We need a new Star Trek based series.

Guess what?

Just watched "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" for the first time since it was in the theatre. Imdb says Michelle Yeoh is part of this new series.

@Outlier wrote:

Yeah, that's always been a barrier to me really enjoying Star Trek sometimes. I really love some of the interactions and hypotheticals they get into, but I hate the episodes where things are resolved by some engineering trick. I hate when Scotty or Jeordi pulls something out of thier ass at the eleventh hour. It's not like you can say "Hey, warp cores don't work like that!" (Although my brother's college did teach a course on Star Trek, so maybe one of those students could. Or someone who's read The Physics of Star Trek.)

It’s unfortunately something that we also see now with a certain palace...

Me and my brother have always enjoyed those little inconsistencies in the original series and trying to explain them. He's going into engineering and you should see his collection of books on the physics/other stuff of Star Trek. I just haven't analyzed the next gen enough to really get into any deeper of a discussion yet.

Can't wait for Star Trek Discovery.

Spiner and Stewart were theater actors long before the TV series.  I felt they put more effort into their speech and expressions for this reason.

Stewart plays an aging Professor Xavier in "Logan." Very sad, reminds me of my late father.

Spiner was also in the tv series Night Court and of course ID4

@Evil Evie wrote:

Me and my brother have always enjoyed those little inconsistencies in the original series and trying to explain them. He's going into engineering and you should see his collection of books on the physics/other stuff of Star Trek. I just haven't analyzed the next gen enough to really get into any deeper of a discussion yet.

Can't wait for Star Trek Discovery.

That is very interesting that some people actually understand the "tech bla" of Star Trek and try to explain it. I always thought they just babbled random technical sounding nonsense.

Yes we do need a new Star Trek series. Something that is better than Enterprice or the new movies. Although I like Zachary Quinto.
My favorite characters are Worf and Odo. Although I like Lwaxana Troi too. She is so much fun every time she appears.
We're watching Next Gen with our oldest daughter now and it is fun to go through all of it again and see how she reacts.

I was really impressed by the "Enterprise" episodes that revolved around Vulcan and Sarek and that whole society change.

As a Latter-Day Saint who has heard the tale of the Restoration many times, the story of the Restoration of Sarek's teaches had a very familiar feel and I thought they handled it very well too. (Not always the case when Big Name media attempts religion.)

@Sifra wrote:

That is very interesting that some people actually understand the "tech bla" of Star Trek and try to explain it. I always thought they just babbled random technical sounding nonsense.

Seems like I remember reading somewhere that towards the end of the next generation run the writers would just write "techno-speak" in the scripts and let the cast ad-lib.

Never underestimate the ability of hardcore fans to make sense of just about anything.

I'm so excited, just learned that a young Sarek is apparently going to be in the new series!