John Potts July 28, 2017 Share July 28, 2017 Quote After losing his leg in battle, Nog takes refuge from the trauma in the holographic world of lounge singer Vic Fontaine. I know that traditionally "Recovery" episodes get low ratings (ST-TNG's Family - where Picard has to come to terms with what the Borg did to him - was one of the lowest rated of that Season), but it does seem odd that the Touchy-Feely Federation goes "Tortured for days? Back to work! A bunch of your friends murdered and kidnapped while 8 months pregnant? Just shrug it off!" So it's nice to address that people aren't machines and major trauma does take its toll on anyone. Anyone who knows about depression would recognise what Nog is going through (feeling like wanting to just shut the world out and wanting anyone who tries to get through to you to just GO AWAY). And I know several critics have said that Ezri is a terrible Counsellor, but I think she did OK - first off, she admits her own uncertainties (which is to her credit, IMO) but realises that living in Vic's Casino IS getting Nog engaged in something, keeps an eye on him while he's there, coaxes Nog out of the Holodeck by talking to the one person he was listening to (Vic) and actually ****ing listens to what Nog was saying! OK, got a little carried away there. Let's just say I thought it was great. 1 Link to comment
legaleagle53 July 28, 2017 Share July 28, 2017 39 minutes ago, John Potts said: I know that traditionally "Recovery" episodes get low ratings (ST-TNG's Family - where Picard has to come to terms with what the Borg did to him - was one of the lowest rated of that Season), but it does seem odd that the Touchy-Feely Federation goes "Tortured for days? Back to work! A bunch of your friends murdered and kidnapped while 8 months pregnant? Just shrug it off!" So it's nice to address that people aren't machines and major trauma does take its toll on anyone. Anyone who knows about depression would recognise what Nog is going through (feeling like wanting to just shut the world out and wanting anyone who tries to get through to you to just GO AWAY). And I know several critics have said that Ezri is a terrible Counsellor, but I think she did OK - first off, she admits her own uncertainties (which is to her credit, IMO) but realises that living in Vic's Casino IS getting Nog engaged in something, keeps an eye on him while he's there, coaxes Nog out of the Holodeck by talking to the one person he was listening to (Vic) and actually ****ing listens to what Nog was saying! OK, got a little carried away there. Let's just say I thought it was great. Exactly. Ezri may have been inexperienced at her job, but she definitely knew what she was doing here. She understood that the only real way to help Nog was to get him to want to help himself, and that was through being patient, playing along to a degree, and just letting things take their natural course. 1 Link to comment
BigBeagle December 4, 2017 Share December 4, 2017 What I thought was amazing about this episode is that the showrunners trusted two recurring characters to carry the ep ... except for Ezri, hardly any of the regulars were around. Link to comment
Maverick December 6, 2017 Share December 6, 2017 Nog had been around since the beginning and had a dramatic character arc to that point so it felt less like relying on a recurring character. Realistically he could have easily been promoted to regular in season 7. In fact, I would rather they had done that and if they just had to have on Dax's next host made that character recurring. Link to comment
rmontro June 7, 2018 Share June 7, 2018 On 12/5/2017 at 10:39 PM, Maverick said: Nog had been around since the beginning and had a dramatic character arc to that point so it felt less like relying on a recurring character. Realistically he could have easily been promoted to regular in season 7. In fact, I would rather they had done that and if they just had to have on Dax's next host made that character recurring. When you say "regular", I assume you mean that they get credit on the opening theme. I was actually surprised to see Ezri Dax make the opening credits, but so far she has lived up to them. I enjoy Nog's character though, and he "feels" just as regular as Jake or Ezri. In fact, I'd say this "quiet" episode has been one of my favorites of the season so far. Nog's losing a leg seemed to make him confront his sense of mortality, especially being a Starfleet officer in a dangerous war. Not surprising that he would try to escape his reality. It is nice that Starfleet recognized that it was important to give allowances for his mental/emotional status. The choice to let the Vic Fontaine program run indefinitely seemed like a bit of an odd choice. They've always said the character is "special", seems like they're halfway to giving him A.I. sentience on the level of The Doctor from Voyager or Moriarty from TNG. James Darren (the actor who portrays him) actually has a pretty good voice IMO, it's very velvety, even when he talks. Link to comment
legaleagle53 June 7, 2018 Share June 7, 2018 6 hours ago, rmontro said: The choice to let the Vic Fontaine program run indefinitely seemed like a bit of an odd choice. They've always said the character is "special", seems like they're halfway to giving him A.I. sentience on the level of The Doctor from Voyager or Moriarty from TNG. James Darren (the actor who portrays him) actually has a pretty good voice IMO, it's very velvety, even when he talks. Not halfway -- all the way. Vic not only has A. I. sentience, but it was also established when he was first introduced that he's even self-aware enough to know that he's a hologram that is the product of 24th-Century technology, even though his world is firmly rooted in 1962 Las Vegas. Link to comment
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