Martha : Okay so first I have questions about the sexy party episode, and general questions. So, as you know I know nothing about Star Trek, for example I had no idea it was a travelling ‘community’ rather than just a crew exploring new planets. Like the families and everything. Is that new for TNG and does it continue throughout the whole thing?
Cindee: It is new for TNG. DS9 also has families. VOY sort of does, but not on purpose.
Martha: Is that not dangerous? Toting families around whilst they go and fight the Borg and whatever other big baddies are gonna turn up?
Cindee: Oh yeah it’s extremely dangerous. Also, you know how in Encounter at Farpoint, they separate the ship into two parts to keep some people out of harm’s way? Yeah, well there are about a million times in the future where it would have made lots of sense to separate the ship to keep people safe. But they basically never do it.
Martha: I guess I don’t see the purpose of anyone other than the crew being on the ship. A space station or, god forbid, Farpoint Station, sure, but why on the ship?!
Cindee: No clue, so that Picard could have some children to be afraid of?
Martha: It’s okay he has Riker so he doesn’t make an ass of himself.
YOU HAVE ONE JOB RIKER! Okay so let’s just sputter out my sexy party issues. As you know I watched it again for, terrible reasons. I kinda love Data. I love that his version of a wild party is bendy straws scattered about the Tsiokovsky, aka sexy party death ship where they partied themselves into a sexy grave…Also, am I to assume the ‘ships stores’ have pretty much anything the plot requires? Such as super skimpy outfits for Yar…
Cindee: Oh, she probably replicated that
Martha: She goes to visit Troi for clothing advice (COS WOMAN) and then she’s all ‘oh the ships stores will have what I need’
Cindee: Oh really? Ok that’s not a thing later on in the series, they just replicate the stuff they need.
Martha: We shall ignore the sexy Data occurrence. I want to know more of her backstory without it being a quite seedy segue into her wanting to bang Data.
Cindee: more of Yar’s backsory?
Martha: Yeah
Cindee: Hmm, ok
Martha: Well I guess I’m torn on Yar. On the one hand she started off as a good antidote to Troi’s ‘emotional sensitive woman’ spiel, but in Code of Honour she pissed me off, the pair of them!
Cindee: Is there anyone in Code of Honor who didn’t piss you off? ‘cause, that episode is pretty messed up all around.
Martha: Wesley…
Cindee: 😀
Martha: I’d like to think Michael Dorn noped on out of there which is why no Worf.
Cindee: yeah I dunno why he wasn’t in the episode.
Martha: To my knowledge it wasn’t referenced. So, I mean there are clear issues with the depiction of this culture which are ‘primitive’ and believe in abducting people as a jolly good laugh
Cindee: And that they are for some inexplicable reason all black!
Martha: Also ‘they’ll evolve out of it’
Cringe.
Cindee: Right, and I don’t know how much you know about the Jim Crow era in the south in the U.S., but a lot of the moral panic that white people had about black people is that they thought that black men were out to get white women, so here we have an episode with a black guy kidnapping a white woman.
Martha: But, you do find him attractive though Cindee? This guy who just kidnapped you, and who has held you prisoner. Kinda dreamy right?
Cindee: Hah! Wait, does Yar say she finds him attractive at some point?
Martha: She says it TWICE! Troi makes her say it by telling everyone she can tell she fancies him, and then she says it again later on!!
Cindee: Wow, I think I was so distracted by the blatant racism that I didn’t notice the sexism. So Yar basically has Stockholm Syndrome…
Martha: Oh the sexism is RIFE!
Don’t get me wrong the racism is strong and it is there but it definitely clouds the sexism, we need to look at both! Both are literally referred to as ‘Highly pleasant but unimportant’
Cindee: I agreed, both are an issue. Who said that?
Martha: Yutan. The ‘leader’ though it turns out that the women own all the land and whoever’s ‘wife’ has the most land is the leader So, they tried? Do we count that as a try?
Cindee: Oh right. Well that’s part of a long tradition in Star Trek of other cultures being sexist and us pretending ours isn’t. And no, that does not count as a try 
Martha: In the frankly AMAZING pole dancing fight to the death at the end the leader isn’t bothered if his wife dies as it means he will get the land
(which his friend reminds him of and he smiles, but then the wife still leaves her husband for his friend at the end!)
Cindee: I had forgotten all these details. I mostly just remembered the racism and never watched it again.
Martha: The fight is amazing. There are many poles and at the start they literally slalom between them like dogs at agility courses, how that helps them in this fight I don’t know Plus the leaders wife, Yareena has an amazing sparkly fight jumpsuit.
Cindee: And, this is a rip off of a TOS episode in many ways, though I don’t think that one had the racism
Martha: Why are they doing that? Two episodes in a row, not counting the pilot
Cindee: Fan service?
Martha: Is it a service to just remake what people have already seen…
Oh that’s a question I have. Are the characters roughly comparable?
Cindee: Hmm, good question, I mean, Data is Spock
Martha: Yeah so, Picard/Kirk? Data/Spock…
Cindee: I think I read somewhere once that Picard and Riker were supposed to be the two halves of Kirk or something stupid like that.
Like Picard is the principled half and Riker is the sexy half.
Martha: Well speaking of I’m not looking forward to Riker’s goatee.
Cindee: You prefer beardless Riker? I think I associate beardless Riker with shitty episodes in my mind
Martha: Oh random Picard outburst of the day, when asking Wes to come onto the bridge (to get in his mums good books/pants) and he doesn’t immediately rush to go the one places he’s been told not to Picard is suddenly shouting ‘IS THE WHOLE SHIP DEAF?!?’ which I thought you would appreciate!
Cindee: Oh yeah, I love me some audism
Martha: Also, Wesley’s jumpers = fantastic!
Cindee: Wesley goes through all sorts of great outfits
Martha: I’m glad Troi’s less skimpy uniform has stayed at least two episodes
Cindee: She also has tons of wardrobe changes. Eventually some guy makes Troi put on an actual uniform and they act like that guy is some sort of monster for doing so. But, spoilers. They let Dr. Crusher have a uniform though!
Martha: Okay so did Picard kill her husband? Or was it kinda his fault?
What is that backstory!
Cindee: Oh right, Jack Crusher. Picard didn’t kill him, but he died under his command.
Martha: So to allay his guilt he is clearly gong to get with Dr Crusher?
Cindee: Um, spoilers!
Martha: He has hit on her in three episodes out of three!
I mean the pilot is reaching but I thought Wesley was maybe his kid cos he was so awkward and his whole ‘I HATE KIDS RIKER HELP’ speech
Cindee: Haha, Wesley is not his kid
Martha: THAT WE KNOW OF SO FAR. There’s a new season with Picard right
Who knows what will out…
Cindee: touché.
Martha: OH MAN WE HAVE TO COME BACK TO CALLOUSED FEELINGS! CALLOUSED FEELINGS CINDEE
Cindee: What are you rambling on about?
Martha: Dr Crusher says something about seeing death too much. And she wishes doctors got callouses on their feelings so they didn’t feel them anymore, and Picard’s all ‘maybe good doctors never get calloused feelings’
Cindee: Oh wow…
Martha: Okay one last thing!
Giving them a horse as a gift, and they give zero shits about the horse. He moves it away from himself immediately!
Cindee: Why DID they give him the horse anyways?
Martha: Like as an example of our ancient culture and how we have ~similarities~ They weren’t impressed with it. Though I do like Data correcting Picard
Cindee: Well then you’re gonna love this show!
Until the next time…
