Magical Infectious Holodeck Snowball (AKA Angel One)

From Memory Alpha:

An early story meeting about this episode was attended by Patrick Barry, Gene Roddenberry, and Herbert J. Wright. Wright was wary that the concept of a matriarchal society had been too overdone. “So one of the major issues that we didn’t want to do was an Amazon Women kind of thing where the women are six feet tall with steel D cups,” he recalled. “I said, ‘The hit I want to take on this is apartheid, so that the men are treated as though they are blacks of South Africa. Make it political. Sexual overtones, yes, but political.’ Well, that didn’t last very long. Everything that Gene got involved with had to have sex in it. It’s so perverse that it’s hard to believe. The places it was dragged into is absurd. We were talking about how women would react, and Gene was voicing all the right words again, saying, ‘Oh, yes, we’ve got to make sure that women are represented fairly, because, after all, women are probably the superior sex anyway, and it’s real important we don’t get letters from feminists, because we want to be fair and we don’t want to infer that women have to rule by force if they do rule, because men don’t have to rule by force.’ Very sensible stuff. All of a sudden something kicks in and he changes: ‘However, we also don’t want to infer that it would be a better society if women ruled.'” His voice becoming increasingly louder, Roddenberry continued that this was because women were untrustworthy, “vicious creatures,” which he angrily blurted out in a torrent of hateful verbiage. Concluded Wright, “Then he looks out the window, looks at the outline, and says, ‘Okay, on page eight…’ and continues like that didn’t even happen.” (The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years, p. 83)

Martha: Jesus this man is insane!

Cindee: Yup

Martha: But yes he failed in literally all of his supposed aims. I mean failed and then doubled down on the fail

Cindee: It’s sad. there are later episodes where they kinda invert things and then make a point about the actual injustice in our culture and do it well. But NOT THIS TIME

Martha: No this was just ridiculous. The way the men were portrayed as very typically feminine and sexualized. As if that’s the only way one sex can be the ‘lower’

Cindee: It’s so ridiculous too because they’re ALWAYS encountering patriarchal societies and judging them but then being like whatevs. But here they’re like noooooo, this is sooooo wroooooong. And my husband was saying that the women on this planet are unusually strong and that’s why they’re in charge?

Martha: Unusually strong and aggressively dominant

Cindee: White people oppress black people, but not because white people are stronger.

Martha: Exactly. And all this ‘let’s not make them Amazonian, let’s just choose shorter men!’

Cindee: And then they’re like “Riker is so tall”?

Martha: If anything I thought Riker came out of this looking… okay?

Cindee: What did Riker do that was so okay?

Martha: He was asked to wear the outfit to meet the mistress. And he did, and he wasn’t a giggling dumbass about it like Troi and Yar. (Yes he then had sex with the lady but… )

Cindee: Well of course he did

Martha: But isn’t the whole point about respecting the cultures they come across. There was a lot of prime directive blathering. It seems the prime directive doesn’t ACTUALLY matter if someone is at risk of death

Cindee: Even though it did in Justice?

Martha: Exactly

Cindee: Well, that was Wesley, the golden child

Martha: It’s literally ‘Prime Directive unless something is happening that we wouldn’t do. So…. what’s the point!

Cindee: pretty much. Like I said, it gets more consistent, though I think it is on the whole dumb. I mean, ok, spoilers:  There are times when a civilization is literally going to get DESTROYED. Like, WIPED OUT. And they’re like “Sorry! Can’t save you! PRIME DIRECTIVE!!!!”

Martha: BUT FOUR GUYS?! Well they didn’t even bother to cast four guys they cast one and the others were just implied guys

Cindee: Guys are expensive

Matha: So in the end Riker does an impassioned speech so they let this guy(s) stay on another species planet where they don’t want them. Success for the Prime Directive! Meanwhile Crusher is furious to realise she didn’t cure the common cold after all

Cindee: Good summary

Martha: Is it implied that the cold came from the holodeck?! Like is the holodeck trying to kill them again?!

Cindee: Oh I forgot that? I was so busy with the damn sexism I forgot about the B plot. That sounds about right, murderous holodeck

Martha: Ok, so here is Wesley and pals off to go play in the snow

Martha: They throw a snowball which hits Picard and Worf, who comment on an unusual smell. And him and Worf are the first two after Wesley and other boy to get the cold

Cindee: Oh is this the one where the snowball somehow doesn’t dematerialize off the holodeck?

Martha:  YES! I didn’t know if that was allowed cos those guys sorta walked off it before briefly

Cindee: So, it’s an infected snowball

Martha: Well it never ever mentioned the holodeck or the snow. They just say it’s airborne through smell. Just implied?

Cindee: Ok then. Infected magical holodeck snowball

Martha: But the holodeck is a death trap. 100%.

Cindee: So, for the sake of our reader and completing sake, will you carry on? On, for the sake of your emotional well being, will you skip on to season 3?

Martha: I must carry on, the prime directive…

Cindee: Also . . .  what if someone else says sense OARS and you miss it?

Martha: They almost certainly will

Cindee: All in all, I think I’m going to have rethink my ratings once we’re done with season 2. I stand by my higher ratings, but the lower ones need some reconsideration

Martha: I saw someone considered angel one the 4th worst

Cindee:  I have it as 165 out of 176. That needs reconsideration

Shut Up, Wesley! (AKA Datalore)

Martha: Oh this is kinda sad. I’m still watching. I’m just sad.

Cindee: Because?

Martha: Data has found his unassembled brother. I mean he’ll probably end up evil and ruin everything

Cindee: what makes you think that?

Martha: Well I guess cos they’re not gonna go through life with two data’s. So he can’t be nice.

Cindee: Maybe he’s nice but dies

Martha: That’s also sad

Cindee: Oh right

Martha: OMFG. RIKER ASKED IF IT HAD A PENIS.

Cindee leaves Martha and does something more interesting for a while.

Martha: I have many problems with that episode. Let’s double down and watch Angel One

Cindee: Wait you’re watching Angel One already?

Martha: I can pause!

Cindee: So, you were right, Lore is evil

Martha: Yeah, I guess it was to be expected

Cindee: Really his name should have been a dead giveaway. What’s the opposite of fact? Fiction. What’s the opposite of Data? Evil.

Martha: It was sad that Data wanted a brother and he was just mean to him throughout

Cindee: Data has so many damn relatives for a robot though. Like every other episode someone comes along and is like “you might say I’m like your aunt” and then everyone is like YEAH!

Martha: So let me see if I have the story right. Soong created Lore. He was too lifelike. Soong started making Data. Lore called the crystal thing to kill the planet. The farmers took Lore apart and carefully put him away. Soong was happy with this. Soong put data outside with a clock. Because, reasons. Crystal thing turned up and killed people.

Cindee: That is not completely accurate. The problem with Lore wasn’t that he was too lifelike, that’s just what Lore says. The problem was that he was evil!

Martha: Ok, but I still don’t understand who got made when and when did everyone die and how and when

Cindee: No one does really. Data has quite a complicated family for a fucking robot.

Martha: Okay as long as I’m as confused as everyone else

Cindee: I also don’t understand why, in like 2 decades, no one else has gone to this planet to investigate what happened

Martha: The whole episode makes zero sense. Data isn’t interested in the approach to his home world. EVERYONE IS SURPRISED. You guys do realise you have given no shits about where you were going this entire time? You were on the goddamn holodeck last approach Picard!! They bring Lore aboard. They teach him about the ship. They let him have full access to ship files. Crusher scolds data for not trusting his brother. THEN THEYRE ALL ‘I WONDER WHERE DATAS LOYALTIES LIE’ What?! Why do you suddenly not trust the guy you’ve lived with for YEARS but trust the random new one?!

Cindee: Technically, they’ve lived with him for a few months. But ok, It makes zero sense. I thought that the multiple robots and Wesley saving the day would make you happy!

Martha: I did enjoy that but I was frustrated because he was the only one with a half sensible approach!  I don’t think I have anything else to say on Datalore

Cindee: Maybe you should skip to season 3 after all . . .

Martha: I have 16 mins left of Angel One. And fuck me it’s a piece of shit so far

Cindee: Yeah . . .