We'll Always Have Paris

I give this ten. 6.6 Average come on! Michelle Phillips California Dreaming. I watched The Next Generation when it first came out. This episode is not bad at all but Michelle Phillips. Oh my...

This is an excellent episode, addressing unrequited love and the fabric of space. An old friend and super scientist invokes his old friend's good nature to try to repair the results of experimentation in time. Because of this rift, a series of events take place where things become sort of stacked. This also brings in the character of a beautiful woman that Picard loved back in the day. As with Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca, she chose the great man, the man going places, even if she didn't love him. Because things are able to be repeated, Picard is given a second chance. He can let his friend die and get the girl or try to solve the problem. There are some wonderful scenes where events test the quick thinking of the crew as reality and time are chopped up. We get to see the lonely captain, wanting something so bad, an opportunity one never gets. We are also again able to see Beverly's true feelings for Jean-Luc. Of course, some believe that Picard's arbitrariness led to the doctor's husband losing his life. A very good episode with lots of implications.

I must have been between 8 to 10 years old when Star Trek: The Next Generation first aired in my country. It became for me, as for so many others, a pillar in one's growing up and throughout life. I might have rewatched (rather: binged) the whole series about 20 times.

This episode is, in my honest opinion, misunderstood by lots of people, including the writers themselves. Making such a comment is quite bold, not to say filled with hubris, so please allow me to elaborate.

Reading the trivia and comments, there's a lot of focus on the love story, but I believe that this, as far as a story that wants to be told, was only the setting for the main events. The central story was dealing with time, gravity, and the distortions caused by meddling with them. It was dealing with the construction of space, time, and reality.

Similarly to "Where no-one has gone before", where there are several side-stories; Wesley's being ignored and then vindicated, Kosinski's arc from arrogance to humility and being needed, even Picard briefly getting a visit from his past. These stories are there to support the main event, they are there to bring depth, illustrations, metaphors and examples to the main event. The main event is about the fabric of reality, and the teasing notion that space, time and thought are connected.

I like to view this episode in a similar way. The main event is about time, gravity and the construct of reality. And the love story is a supporting arc. Unfortunately, the main event is shadowed somewhat by the side-story, as even the people involved (writers, producers, cast etc) focused more and got distracted by the love story and forgot about the grandeur of the main event. But the central story still stands out and I shall forever be fascinated with the turbolift incident, and of course the climactic ending where Data saves the day.

One of my favourite ST:TNG episodes, almost 40 years down the line.

I just watched this episode and i can barely remember what happened. Picard didn't go on a date once and he regrets it? Yawn. A potentially interesting rift in time is barely shown or used before being easily fixed? Wasted premise. Worst of all they turned Paris into "Space Paris". Ugly buildings right in the center. Ugh.

What am I even watching here? Picard has a boring ex-girlfriend with a sleepy new husband? It has something to do with time loops, but not really, they never really get into it? Beverly is bummed out, for some reason? Also, at one point Jean Luc says to Data, "Well, Data, I'm gonna ask you to put a stitch in time - and save much more than nine", so that's not great. The set for Dr. Manheim's lab is cool tho.