Nemesis.

Star Trek Nemesis is generally considered one of the weaker entries of The Next Generation feature films, as well as the entire Star Trek movie franchise. The story mixed together action sequences, the idea of "dark mirrors" for Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Lt. Cmdr. Data, and attempted to send off the Enterprise-Echaracters to their next stage of life (or death, in the case of one android). Daniel, Darren, and Phillip examine the multiple aspects that did not work in the film, what parts they enjoyed, and how this movie predicted the look and feel of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek into Darkness. Pour a glass of Romulan Ale or Chateau Picard, and join Earl Grey for Next Gen's final journey. 

Hosts
Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Editor / Producer
Darren Moser

TNG Ranks & Promotions. 

Star Trek has created a universe where Starfleet personnel have recognizable ranks and positions. The Next Generation promoted several characters and moved others to various ship positions, while at the same time left certain officers in the same rank through all seven seasons and four feature films. Darren, Daniel, and Phillip examine the career paths of the TNG crew, how the Starfleet promotion system on the Enterprise fits into the greater canon of the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th centuries, and discover a surprising conspiracy concerning those with full commander rank.

Hosts
Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Editor / Producer
Darren Moser

Controversial Storylines.

Gene Roddenberry believed that Star Trek was a way to debate so-called "controversial" issues through the disguise of a futuristic setting. The Next Generation featured episodes that tackled the modern struggles of changing gender roles ("The Outcast," "Angel One," & "The Perfect Mate"), drug use ("Symbiosis"), terrorism ("The High Ground"), and the lifelong effects of war ("The Hunted"). The quality of these storylines ranged from thought-provoking to disappointing. Phillip, Darren, and Daniel discuss how the writers of TNG did not always provide the answers to these issues, but how they provided a platform to examine our society. We invite you to be a part of the controversy and listen to this latest Earl Grey.

Hosts
Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Editor / Producer
Darren Moser

Chapters

Controversial Story-lines (00:04:18)  

The Outcast 5x17 (00:07:40)  

The High Ground 3x12 (00:17:13)  

Symbiosis 1x22 (00:26:14)  

The Perfect Mate 5x21 (00:34:37)  

Angel One 1x14 (00:42:45)  

The Hunted 3x11 (00:46:00)

Closing (00:52:48)  

Women in TNG.

From the pilot "Encounter at Fairpoint," The Next Generation signaled that it wanted to update the way Star Trek would handle gender roles - it was no longer "where no man had gone before" but "where no one had gone before." The first season featured three female characters - Security Chief Tasha Yar, Counselor Deanna Troi, and Dr. Beverly Crusher. However, two of those three characters did not return in the second season. The full run of TNG and the feature films contain many female characters, both primary cast and guest stars, and created episodes that focused on women, from "The Child" to "The Perfect Mate." @FirstTimeTrek Andi VanderKolk joins Daniel, Darren, and Phillip to discuss the successes and disappointments in how women were portrayed in TNG.

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Guests

Andi VanderKolk

Production Manager

Richard Marquez

Content Coordinator

Will Nguyen

Chapters

Is TNG Better in It's Portrayal of Women? (00:05:00)  

Where No ONE Has Gone Before (00:12:02)  

Tasha Yar (00:22:10)  

Deanna Troi (00:29:28)  

Ro Laren (00:34:10)  

Dr. Leah Brahms (00:36:30)  

Lal (00:41:00)  

Admiral Nechayev (00:46:21)  

Mae Jemison (00:50:20)  

Kathryn Janeway (00:53:27)  

Lwaxana Troi (00:57:58)  

Closing (01:02:22)  

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Death in TNG.

All good things must come to an end, and in The Next Generation, that means the deaths of many favorite (and perhaps not so favorite) characters. Mr. Data meets his demise in the final feature film Star Trek: Nemesis, the first security chief Tasha Yar dies a senseless death in the season one episode "Skin of Evil," and memorable guest star K'Ehleyr is murdered by Duras in "Reunion." These deaths affected our TNG characters and fans, leading to debates about whether these deaths served a purpose or whether they should have been avoided. Phillip, Darren, and Daniel discuss the end of these characters and others in this episode, asking how those deaths were treated, what was the aftermath, and what death teaches us about the dangers of exploring the final frontier.

Hosts
Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Chapters

AI in the 24th Century.

Star Trek The Original Series is filled with the twenty-third century crew encountering robots, androids, and god-like computers. In the twenty-fourth century, artificial intelligence still surprises Starfleet's flagship, falling under the category of "new life and new civilizations."

In the episode of Earl Grey, Darren, Daniel, and Phillip discuss The Next Generation's episodes that feature Soong-type androids, Starfleet's computer systems (LCARS), holographic intelligence ("Elementary, Dear Data" and "Ship in a Bottle"), and machines that grow beyond their original programming ("Evolution" and "The Quality of Life"). What is the definition of life? How does artificial intelligence in TNG challenge that definition? Join us as we tackle these issues.

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, and Darren Moser

Editor and Producer

Darren Moser

Associate Producer

Will Nguyen

Chapters

Data: Encounter at Farpoint (00:03:09)

Lore: Brothers (00:06:45)

Lal: The Offspring (00:10:36)

The Computer: Emergence (00:17:00)

Minuet: 11001001  (00:25:51)

Moriarty: Ship in a Bottle (00:31:02)

Exocomps: Quality of Life (00:39:11)

Nanites: Evolution (00:44:31)

Closing (00:46:14)

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Season Four Overview.

Viewers flocked to the season-four premiere of The Next Generation to see if the Enterprise-D would survive the Borg attack and whether Locutus of Borg versus Captain William T. Riker would mean the end of Jean-Luc Picard. The rest of the season introduced the family members of our crew ("Family," "Brothers," "Reunion"), saw Chief O'Brien get married ("Data's Day"), and Wesley Crusher finally moved on from the Federation flagship ("Final Mission").

In this episode of Earl Grey, Daniel, Phillip, and Darren discuss the introduction of the Cardassians, the expansion of the Klingon civil war arc (featuring Daniel's favorite shadowy Romulan), and what episodes made us laugh, think, and cry the most during the season that fully established TNG as a Star Trek incarnation with its own identity and success.

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, and Darren Moser

Editor and Producer

Darren Moser

Associate Producer

Will Nguyen

Chapters

The Best of Both Worlds (2:03)

Family (5:51)

Passing TOS (11:03)

Family Season? (16:51)

Wesley Leaving (21:03)

O'Brien (30:25)

Highlights of Season Four (33:37) 

Fun with Titles (38:58)

Q (44:20)

Final Thoughts (47:00)

Closing (52:03)

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Lost Plotlines.

There are times when an episode of The Next Generation causes a viewer to ask, "Hey, whatever happened to…?" TNG is sometimes criticized as being too episodic compared to more modern television shows thanks to characters, guest stars, and plotlines that would be introduced and then promptly disappear.

In this episode of Earl Grey, Phillip, Daniel, and Darren explore these vanishing acts, from Dr. Pulaski telling La Forge that she could give him ocular implants in "Loud As a Whisper" to a conclusion for Commander Sela in "Redemption" and "Unification" to the destructive effects of warp travel in "Force of Nature." Join us as we imagine the storylines that could have been if followed up on in later TNG, DS9, or Voyager.

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, and Darren Moser

Editor and Producer

Darren Moser

Associate Producers

Become one! Support Trek.fm and Earl Grey at the $25/month level or higher! Visit http://patreon.com/trekfm

Chapters

Geordi's Sight (4:00)

Sela (9:40)

Ambassador Tomalak (15:40)

Wesley (17:20)

Jeremy Aster (19:05)

Bynars (20:52)

Tin Man (24:55)

Conspiracy (28:46)

Ship In a Bottle (36:00)

Warp Speed Limit (41:00)

Q (43:16)

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The Worf-Dax TNG Wedding Invitations.

We all remember the big wedding in Star Trek: Nemesis that finally united two characters who we saw fall in love throughout the years on TNG. But we would have loved to see our beloved TNG crew attend Lt. Commander Worf's wedding years prior in the Deep Space Nine episode "You Are Cordially Invited." The real-life limitations of budget, an existing storyline, and actor availability kept our favorite Klingon's friends and family from attending the ceremony. Nevertheless, in this episode of Earl Grey, we discuss who should have been sent calligraphy-engraved PADDs inviting them to attack Worf with painsticks at his bachelor party. From Worf's adopted parents and brother, to his closest friends on the Enterprise-E, to other people he encountered while serving under Picard, Darren, Daniel, and Phillip arrange the seating at the wedding reception to include those who would have enjoyed being part of Worf and Jadzia Dax saying, "I do."

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Editor and Producer

Darren Moser

Associate Producers

Become one! Support Trek.fm and Earl Grey at the $25/month level or higher! Visit http://patreon.com/trekfm

Chapters

The Setting (5:13)

Where Were the TNG crew? (9:38)

Captain Picard/Riker (10:05)

Mr. & Mrs. Rozhenko (16:46)

Nikolai Rozhenko (20:44)

Kurn (21:32)

Jeremy Aster (22:06)

Dr. Pulaski (23:08)

Guinan (23:53)

Data (28:26)

K'Ehleyr (30:43)

Crossover Conundrum (32:02)

Alexander (33:56)

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Casting TNG with Larry Nemecek.

The familiar credits roll during every episode of The Next Generation. But how did our favorite actors get these timeless roles? And how close did other actors come to crewing the first version of Star Trek to take place in the 24th century? In this episode of Earl Grey, "Dr Trek" himself, Larry Nemecek, joins us to discuss casting The Next Generation. Darren, Phillip, and Daniel talk about how important it was to get "famous" names in Trek's second televised live-action incarnation, where each of the actors were in their careers in the mid 1980s, and how close Wesley came to being "Leslie" Crusher. Larry also reveals what actors lost out in being cast in the main roles and in what subsequent episodes they appeared in as guests, as well as which actor ended up being cast in a main role in a later Star Trek series. Get your glossy headshots ready, break a leg, and join us in discussing the casting process on TNG.

Hosts

Daniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren Moser

Guests

Larry Nemecek

Editor and Producer

Darren Moser

Associate Producers

Become one! Support Trek.fm and Earl Grey at the $25/month level or higher! Visit http://patreon.com/trekfm

Chapters

Patrick Stewart (3:07)

LeVar Burton (10:17)

Marina Sirtis / Denise Crosby (18:30)

Phillip Returns (24:08)

Wil Wheaton (25:10)

Gates McFadden (29:28)

Runner-up Choices (31:40)

Jonathan Frakes (33:55)

Big Names (35:15)

Brent Spiner (38:25)

Michael Dorn (43:15)

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Twitter: @trekfm

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Become a Trek.fm Patron on Patreon and help us keep Star Trek talk coming every week. We have great perks for you at http://patreon.com/trekfm