Yes, it’s been a little while since I got two new reviews out to y’all. I’m just glad I can do it now, because in a couple of weeks my third child will be born and that will likely throw a monkey wrench into things again. Still, I will keep on truckin’ until I finish.
Aquiel is one of the weakest episodes of season six, and there’s only one other episode even in the running. Alright, two episodes. In the course of delivering supplies to a relay station, the Enterprise crew stumble upon a murder mystery. One officer is dead, the other (presumably Aquiel) missing. Geordi looks through all of Aquiel’s files and sort of falls for her, then voila, the Klingons produce her, still alive! The only problem is she’s the prime suspect now, and that puts Geordi potentially at odds with her and his crew mates. Also, there’s a dog.
Incredibly weak episode, so forgettable I forgot the Klingons were even in it! Ron Moore, one of the star writers for TNG, DS9, etc, said if there was anything he would have done differently during his time on Star Trek it would have been not writing Aquiel! Would you like to know which classic film American film Aquiel is based on? Want to know why the CGI at the end of the episode turned out so horribly bad? Check out my full review!
Face of the Enemy is as good as Aquiel is bad. It’s the terrifically told story of how the soft, empathetic ship’s counselor gets kidnapped, surgically altered to look like a Romulan and thrown onto a Warbird against her will, only to rise to the occasion and become a complete badass. Turns out she’s part of a plot hatched by Spock to smuggle out a high ranking vice proconsul and his aides so they can defect to the Federation. The plan goes sideways though, and she has to stare down a tough-as-nails Romulan Commander, take command and deliver the Romulan dissidents practically by herself. It’s the best Deanna Troi episode ever. It may be the best Romulan episode ever too.
There are several bits of trivia here. This is the episode where Worf finally debuts his new warrior’s ponytail. He’ll have it for the rest of the series and all through DS9. I’ve captured a picture of it for you. Would you believe the ponytail wigs he wore were made out of Russian children’s hair? This is where the Tal Shiar started, and have appeared as recently as Star Trek: Picard. Want to know how Q almost came into this episode? Check out this and more by reading my full review.
That’s it for now. Next time I’ll be reviewing Tapestry and Birthright, Part I. Hopefully it’ll be sooner rather than later! Ta Ta For Now…