Air Date: November 25, 1996 (Episode 11)
Title: "The Q and the Grey"
Story: Shawn Piller (I think he's the same guy who wrote the suicide episode; it looks like
he's improved since :) )
Teleplay: Kenneth Biller
Guest Stars: Suzie Plakson, Harve Presnell, John de Lancie
Plot: Q attempts to practice zero-gravity docking maneuvers with Captain Janeway.
Review: It's hard not to like any episode with John de Lancie in it, and this one's no
exception. As usual, Q contributes the majority of snappy dialogue to the show, such
as his affectionate diminuitive "Kathy" for Our Miss Janeway. He wasn't the only one
to fire off the witty lines; Torres and the female Q got their fair shares in, as well
("Helm Boy", to Paris). The holo-program was a nice touch, in that it contributed to
series continuity. They even brought back the same holo-characters! The female Q
surprised me, but I was wondering how Suzie Plakson was going to fit in (you could
say she was "Suzie-Q"!). I wonder why she was cast...I think doing such a thing
unnecessarily runs the risk of someone [who isn't familiar with her real name] recog-
nizing her--doesn't that spoil the character? You know, like when you watch a movie
and recognize the person who just came on the scene as a famous movie star (okay, so
Suzie Plakson's not one, but for Trek fans, the analogy works)? Once you know who the
actor is, the new character is inevitably contaminated with comparisons to the character
the actor is most famous for playing. It's a subconscious thing. I did enjoy the
virtual eye-winking and elbow-nudging of the female Q's remark about Klingon women,
though. At least it helped to make up for that little casting dilemma. When she was
talking to Chakotay (trying to convince them how insignificant they were), he said words
to the effect of, "there's got to be some other way to get back to the Continuum other
than [snapping your fingers]". Now, I'm sure we'd all like to know just how Chakotay,
in his limited experience with the Q, came to this conclusion. On what basis did he
make it? Animal spirit wisdom? And then there was the matter of flying into the star's
supernova. As soon as Torres boosted the shields tenfold, a bell went off in my head
(and, I'm sure, in the heads of most other fans)--surely Torres would be wise enough to
note exactly how she accomplished this? It was so obvious, and very similar to the
time on the Enterprise-D (in "The Nth Degree") when super-smart Barclay boosted the
shields three hundred percent. Well, I can't blame Shawn Piller for not catching this;
the writer(s) of "The Nth Degree" didn't, either. All in all, the best scenes were
with Q. The male one, that is. His final scene with his son was great. Cute kid,
especially with the Starfleet uniform. They didn't mention the kid's name, but I
suppose he's probably named after his parents, which is a shame...I think "Trelane"
would have sounded nice.
Rating: 4.0 stars
Please send all questions, queries, concerns, conundrums, and/or comments to: laskaris@sprynet.com
Copyright © 1996 Richie Laskaris
Last updated