Sarek

Showing continuity with the original Star Trek series, this TNG episode has Mark Lenard returning as Sarek the great Vulcan ambassador and negotiator of countless treaties that made the United Federation Of Planets the force that it is. Of course he's also the father of Spock from the original series.

Because Vulcans have a few centuries of lifetime it is highly logical that Sarek return to this new Enterprise and its crew. Mark Lenard is about to cap off the final triumph of his career, a treaty with a race that's been most reluctant to participate in the universe within the Federation.

Unfortunately because of a Vulcan malady he is losing the great emotional reserve that Vulcans prize as the key to their way of living. The strain on him and his aides in keeping his emotions in check is being passed on to the crew. Can you believe Wesley Crusher and Geordi LaForge in a brawl?

It's up to Patrick Stewart to work out a solution for Sarek and get that treaty signed. The solution chosen is as much a strain on Captain Picard as on Sarek.

Scenes with Stewart and Lenard are some of the best in the TNG series. And the scenes with his new wife Joanna Miles are also wonderful to see.

Amazing performance by Stewart that grabs you by the throat a forces you to look into a tortured soul. Do not miss this one.

A major treaty is about to be forged and it will be the crowning achievement of Sarek, the father of Spock. When he arrives on the Enterprise, it is obvious that his entourage is being incredibly protective of him. His second wife, once again an Earth woman, is privy to a situation that is changing the great man for the worse. He has a condition that often comes to Vulcan men when they reach their 200th birthday and beyond. He has begun to lose some of his basic faculties and she is aware of this. He is determined to put this negotiating feather in his cap, however. Unfortunately, because he has powers of telepathy, the disease is causing disarray on the Enterprise. Crew members get into fights. They are edgy and angry. There's even near fisticuffs with Geordi and Wesley, pushing and shoving until Riker breaks it up. It's obvious that Sarek is in no condition to carry on with this effort because he, himself, is also showing a violent streak. What will they do? This is a very good episode during a really impressive season.

Vulcan alzheimers is nothing to gloss over, and the show does an excellent job with the disease, the fallout, and an excellent (if temporary) treatment. If only more episodes dealt with flaws in such manner, rather than abandon all logic in order to put forth a shallow, lazy short story. The arguments and fights shown were all excellent as well, with some refreshing violence to break up the monotony inherent in the mythos.

I think it's impressive enough that a respected character was borough onto TNG as a bridge to the Original Series, but the execution thereof just raises it to a whole different level. Sarek is losing control of his emotions on the eve of his crowning diplomatic achievement - which is shattering to a Vulcan and an interesting way to see the effects of dementia. Picard says it best: "It's ironic, isn't it? All this magnificent technology, and we still find ourselves susceptible to the ravages of old age" But it's also Picard who ends up coming through in the end, and the scenes with Stewart and Lenard are both powerful and heartbreaking.

Honestly, before watching this, I'd just expected to see Sarek show up as little more than a nod, like DeForest Kelley in 'Encounter at Farpoint'.

But this was a surprisingly considerate story.

9/10