The two episodes on tap tonight were "Q Who" and "The Measure of a Man." The former saw the return of Q, who forces Starfleet's first confrontation with the Borg. The latter was a legal battle over Data's rights as a person, when a scientist wants to dismantle him in an experiment. Both are strong episodes -- stronger than anything the first season had to offer, though sadly not indicative of the season as a whole. While season two did have a few gems like this, I remember the lows being quite low and numerous. But we'll get there in time, as I continue my review series of each individual episode.
In a bit of a sneak preview of one of those reviews, though, I want to say a bit about this screening of "The Measure of a Man." The remastering team decided to up their game on this episode. They've already wowed us by reassembling each episode from the original master films, creating versions of the episodes better than anything we've seen before. This time out, they literally decided to give us an episode as we'd never seen it before.
Being a legal drama, "The Measure of a Man" was a great deal more dialogue intensive than the typical episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. The writers and producers misjudged the pacing of the story on the page, and as a result, the first cut of the episode wound up nearly 15 minutes too long to run in the allotted television time. It was subsequently edited down to fit, but a single VHS copy of that rough edit was given to the episode's writer as a memento of her original vision. Nearly 25 years later, with all the raw footage to pull from, and using that decaying video tape as a guide, the remastering team assembled a brand-new version of the episode, restoring all the footage cut for broadcast. This was what was screened tonight in theaters.
I was keenly curious to compare and contrast the two versions, and made a point of rewatching the original recently to refresh my memory. First, let me say once again how amazing these new HD versions of the episodes look. After watching the first season Blu-rays in glorious detail, watching my second season DVD felt like looking through a dirty window (and listening through a tin can). If you like Star Trek: The Next Generation, you owe it to yourself to buy these Blu-rays, even if you (like me) already own the whole series on DVD.
As for the extended episode itself? Well, I'll say that if I must pick just one version, I would probably prefer the broadcast one, trimmed for time. But it's a really close call, and it's mostly because of the small, barely perceptible edits throughout the episode. The extended version of the episode had many unsuitably long pauses -- spaces between lines, slow-moving blocking, and lengthy silences at the ends of many scenes. It was quite similar to the pacing issues I noted in my review of "Encounter at Farpoint," an episode that had too much empty air in it. In that respect, the necessity to trim this episode for broadcast helped it a great deal.
Among the cut scenes were a few that definitely didn't belong in there. A rather lengthy section early on establishes a backstory between Picard and the admiral who orders Data's transfer. Since the admiral doesn't even figure into the trial once it starts, it's wasted time. Another bad scene involves the cyberneticist who wants to dismantle Data, Bruce Maddox, crashing Data's going-away party to insult him. It belabors the point of Maddox's "villainy." In the episode-as-aired, Maddox simply doesn't recognize Data as anything more than an unfeeling machine; in this restored scene, it's hard to justify why he'd make a point of insulting Data so overtly if he really doesn't believe the android has any feelings to hurt.
But the scene I thought was best left on the cutting room floor involved Riker, having been forced to prosecute the case against Data, coming to Picard to inform him he's going to do his best job -- so Picard had better be ready. It's an oddly petulant beat for Riker, ascribing to the character an apparent resentment at living in the shadow of Picard's command. It doesn't suit anything we've ever seen about the character before, not even given his oft-stated ambition to command his own ship. (On the up side, though, the scene did take place in the fencing room, showing Picard engaging in a hobby that wasn't shown nearly enough throughout the series. They were trying for some continuity.)
The rest of the restorations, though, were excellent. Several lines of dialogue put back into surviving scenes did a much more direct and successful job of laying out the Data-as-slave allegory. An interesting exchange between Riker and Troi at Data's party has the two contemplating their own feelings about whether Data has a soul. A fun scene between Picard and Data portrays the two of them plotting their legal strategy. But by far the best cut scene is between Data and Geordi, showing the android giving to his best friend his Sherlock Holmes pipe as a going-away present of his own, and leading into a discussion about what the two might do with their lives if they weren't in Starfleet.
I suppose I'm saying that I think the ideal version of "The Measure of a Man" might be longer than the broadcast version, but trimmed from this extended version. Still, there's no question that in any form, this was one of the best episodes of the series, and a great one to see with an audience.
The theater screening also offered a sample of some of the special features coming on the Blu-ray set: a new documentary specifically about the making of season two, a reunion interview assembling all eight core members of the cast, and some fun new bloopers and outtakes (not the same ones that have been playing at every Star Trek convention since 1988).
So, as I said, the individual reviews I'm writing of each episode will continue, and I'll be getting to season two in time. But until then, this theatrical screening was a fun way to see a couple of great episodes. And you shouldn't wait for me to get to season two to pick up the set yourself.
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