Redemption

Having recently watched each of the 25* episodes of Season Four again, I decided to rate them in order of my personal preference.

The points awarded to each episode are only used in comparison with other episodes of this season. The Top 6 shows as listed below are the ones I would choose to put forward from season four and add to my list of Top TNG shows of the entire series.

*In the case of the first episode of Season Four being the conclusion to a two-part episode which began as the Season Three finale, I decided to rate both episodes as a part of Season Four. Therefore 'The Best Of Both Worlds, I & II' is rated in this list and not as part of Season Three. (The Season Four episode: Family, could also be included with this double-header to form a trilogy.

Each of these S04 'Top 6' shows will be reviewed again once I have completed watching the entire series as part of my REVIEW 2022.

Reunion (10/10) Brothers (10/10) The Best Of Both Worlds, I & II (10/10) Remember Me (10/10) The Wounded (09/10) First Contact (09/10)

Several other episodes could have been included in this list, but overall missed the cut simply because I didn't feel they were quite as strong as these six.

The Mind's Eye (09/10) Family (09/10)

Bottom Four Shows Of Season Four The Nth Degree (05/10) Galaxy's Child (05/10) The Host (04/10) Qpid (04/10)

This episode begins just before Gowron takes over as leader of the Klingons. However, despite his legitimacy to the title and his opponent being brutally killed by Worf in a previous episode, there is a schism that might just plunge the empire into war. The new opposition is led by two beastly sisters and their pipsqueak pretender to the throne. Can this schism also offer an opportunity for Worf to regain his honor? And, what part do the Romulans have in all this? As for Picard, he sure thinks they're behind all this and he's in the unenviable position of having to choose the next Klingon leader.

This episode features betrayals, civil war, intrigues and death-- exactly what the show generally avoids but which many folks like me love! And, because it's such an exciting episode, it's no surprise that they'd make it the first of a two-part series that ends season 4 and begins season 5. Well worth seeing and exciting throughout.

You might ask why did I only give this one an 8. After all, I love Klingon episodes. Well, the last 2 minutes of the show are BAD-- reintroducing a dead character which simply seems contrived and a bit stupid. Too bad...up until then, it was fantastic.

Is it possible that TNG basically invented the concept of the season cliffhanger? This is almost as good as Best of both worlds. Great writing, character development, acting, and then the story twists .. That good bye scene brought a bit of moisture to my eyes.... It's incredible how easily Berman Trek at its height manages all these things with such ease, where modern productions try to do so many things and fail at most of them. I' ve seen this episode like ten times or so and it still manages to capture me where I would pick up my phone during most modern Trek. There isn't much that feels wrong or drawn oit, each scene counts, there are no WTF moments.

The Federation gets dragged into a civil war. Through the Captain of its flagship Enterprise. The captain who appointed a Klingons security officer of that flagship three seasons earlier. The first part of a double episode featuring a Klingon civil war. It's not a great double episode. The Borg in the cliffhanger a season earlier were an enemy more 'captivating.' So why the Klingons now ? Isn't that a step backwards ? Tension-wise ? Intellectually ? I reckon you would feel something is missing if the Federation didn't get dragged into Klingon politics. It's 'The Picard.' The captain of Starfleet's flagship. He HAS to carry that crew into one or another war against their will. The crew don't oppose him enough. The Picard means Death. He ignores God ("Q") in the very first episode, causes tens of thousands of staff to die during last year's Borg invasion, and appoints a Klingon the head of security. In the final episode, The Picard is going to turn mad. At some point along the way, the crew needs to be warned - along with tens of thousands staff in Starfleet - that Captain Ahab means Death. If you left out this kind of warning, the character Picard in all future episodes of this outstanding TV show would start to feel two-faced.

Season 4 contains the 80th episode of The Next Generation, at which point it surpassed the output of the Original Series. A number of extended themes played out during this season delving into both the political backdrop and the personal lives of the crew. These continuing storylines proved extremely popular, however they did not detract from the use of Science Fiction to tell interesting stories. Senior Trekker continues to score every episode with a 5.

In this episode we go back to the Klingon Homeworld for the installation of Gowron as the new chancellor, while Worf attempts to regain his family honour and Captain Picard gets to deliver some more splendidly guttural renditions of Klingonese. A language, by the way, first devised by James Doohan of the Original Series but not heard on the screen until it featured in The Motion Picture in 1979.

As in previous such episodes some outstanding use of lighting manages to convey atmosphere despite the minimal set dressing and the use of scaled-down versions of full Klingon prosthetic for the background characters. After all these years of technical progress, the use of freeze-frame or high definition is not particularly recommended. Although I'm sure many have actually tried it on the next two important characters to enter our story!

For this is the episode where we are introduced to the magnificent Duras sisters, Lursa and B'Etor, played with such aplomb by Barbara March and Gwyneth Walsh. Two statuesque Canadian actors with theatrical backgrounds. Those not looking too closely at their spectacular foredecks (perhaps in an attempt to determine the further use of prosthetics) will probably notice a striking similarity with the pair of monstrous sisters who appear Shakespeare's King Lear.

Although hardly aspiring to such a level, Redemption is still a satisfying piece of theatre and we are left awaiting the second act with anticipation.