Star Trek: The Next Generation
"Code of Honor"
Air date: 10/12/1987
Written by Katharyn Powers & Michael Baron
Directed by Russ Mayberry
Review by Jamahl Epsicokhan
Absolutely terrible. "Code of Honor" represents a period when bad TNG wasn't bad TNG, but instead bad TOS. In an attempt to negotiate the acquisition of a much-needed vaccine to cure a deadly plague, the Enterprise crew has dealings with the Ligonians, who value customs of ritualistic honor above all else. Play ball and respect their customs, or no vaccine. Now there's an evolved sensibility. And a premise that leads to an idiotic plot.
One of the rituals involves the kidnapping of Lt. Yar by Lutan (Jessie Lawrence Ferguson), who is quite taken by Yar's presence as a Strong Woman (or some such). Picard must subsequently figure out how to get Yar back without offending the Ligonians and losing the vaccine. It's about here where Lutan's wife demands Yar participate in a fight to the death.
The story requires unwavering endurance to sit through, moving at glacial pace and inviting ridicule at nearly every scene. It employs every cliché in the TOS rulebook, including Goofy Alien Customs, a Hand-to-Hand Fight to the Death, Clever Captain Trickery, and Silly Gender Roles Played Stupidly. The fight to the death is particularly inept; stunt sequences have rarely looked so cheesy. One of Trek's worst episodes.
Previous episode: The Naked Now
Next episode: The Last Outpost
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149 comments on this post
Mon, Feb 28, 2011, 8:51am (UTC -6)
stargate.wikia.com/wiki/Emancipation
It was written by Kathryn Powers. Not only did she think this story was worth writing, she thought it was worth writing again!
Fri, Mar 23, 2012, 10:27am (UTC -6)
I didn't last 20 minutes when this was on TV the other week.
Dross of the highest order. I think half a star is generous.
Sun, Mar 25, 2012, 8:41pm (UTC -6)
That said, this is a pretty bad ep. Without going into details, it basically screamed "TOS ripoff" throughout. And the stale acting by most of the ensemble did not help things at all. When Tasha was beamed off, Picard just casually went "Shields up, red alert" and walked out like nothing much happened. If this were a TOS ep, there would have been dramatic music, a focus on Kirk's shocked face for a few seconds to give the audience time to realize what just happened, then he would have yelled "RED ALERT, BATTLE STATIONS!" and ran out of the room as fast as he could.
But it's no use nitpicking relatively little things like this, when the whole script leaves much to be desired. I can't believe that the writer was responsible for another ep just like it (Simon's comment above). 1 or 1.5 stars.
Sun, Mar 25, 2012, 8:46pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Apr 11, 2012, 2:02pm (UTC -6)
At this point everyone is a bad actor, but she's in the leading role of bad actors, and an episode centered around her didn't do any favor.
Oh, and I dont need to tell you how BORING "Code of Honor" actually is. Talk about a bad start for a new show.
Mon, Apr 23, 2012, 10:36pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jun 21, 2012, 10:32pm (UTC -6)
The scenes involving Yar are initially not as bad as the later ones. I liked the exposition on how the holodeck worked as a concept. However the scenes involving Crosby/ Sirtis when discussing Lutan's obvious attraction for Yar are beyond cringeworthy. Jesse Ferguson, memorable as the self-loathing Black Cop from 'Boyz in the Hood' (subsequent to this I think) plays the role in hammy, entirely inappropriate fashion. The guest Actors playing his henchman and wife are if anything,even worse.
Surprisingly Wil Wheaton is proving weak but far from the weakest link here. Crosby ad Sirtis are far poorer in ths episode, and to make Crosby the lead in the third episode was a 'Bridge too far'. As 'The Snob' says, there's a good scene with Data and Geordi and Patrick Stewart is pretty reliable, but overall this merits it's less than stellar reputation -1star....
Sat, Oct 27, 2012, 3:04am (UTC -6)
Bad writing, bad acting, cheesy music.
Tue, Nov 13, 2012, 8:20pm (UTC -6)
First off, kudos to Jesse Lawrence Ferguson puts in a scene-stealing performance at every turn. His presence makes the story far better than what it otherwise would have been, regardless if the guest cast were black, white, brown, or neon green. His confidence as an actor, and vocal cadence, are admittedly magnetici and he rises above how one-dimensional his role is. The role of Lutan is, obviously, as much cliched as anyone else's, however.
The other saving grace is how the Geordi/Data relationship is nailed from the get-go. One can't say that about many things in TNG's early days, but for the Geordi/Data double-act, they got it right.
Now, the story is one big walking cliche.
Picard's use of blowing up torpedoes around the planet is something Kirk would not be stupid enough to do.
Yar's holodeck stuff was good, but the assumption all women would consider Lutan (or any male in general) to be "their type" is indeed cringe-worthy and off-kilter. I want to like it, since Troi is trying to trip Yar up and be more than the usual "I'm saying what's already obvious to you, captain and to you viewers as well" but somehow it doesn't work. B+ for effort, and Marina Sirtis looks like she's enjoying the dialogue since it's not the samey-lamey claptrap...
Even Picard accepting Wesley was decently handled.
All in a story that is otherwise one big warp bubble of a cliche.
In Blu-Ray, this story looks VERY impressive.
I'd give it 2 stars. "Justice" is readily the worst excuse of an episode, which is a shame...
Wed, Feb 6, 2013, 8:15am (UTC -6)
I enjoyed the campy nods to TOS, and didn't get the mild racism.
Imagine this on a darker show... I don't think Captain Picard would be sitting around (was it a whole day?!) thinking Tasha Yar was A-OK. Anyhow, that was my main story related gripe.
2 stars from me.
Wed, Feb 6, 2013, 10:20am (UTC -6)
"Then you shall have NO treaty, NO vaccine, and NO Lieutenant YAH!"
Tue, Mar 5, 2013, 10:40pm (UTC -6)
Couldn't the Enterprise have simply locked on to her com signal and beamed her up straight away?
I mean, I realize this is a Roddenberry episode and all but that just seems like a real oversight.
Mon, Mar 11, 2013, 7:02pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Mar 18, 2013, 4:18am (UTC -6)
My girlfriend cheerfully pointed out how ridiculous it is that we learn at the end that "all women train" for the possibility of a life-or-death fight, to the point where Yareena [whose name is really similar to Yar's, weirdly] is nearly on the same level of strength as Yar, and yet the men are still shocked that a woman can be strong.
I do think the worst part of this episode -- and it's an episode with many "worst parts" -- is Yar's reaction to the whole thing. This is a woman who grew up on a world where she had to, as we learn in the previous episode, run away from and dodge rape gangs, but she somehow swoons at the notion that her kidnapper wants to marry her and needs to have Troi drag that out into the open in order to realize how her attraction is clouding her judgment. What? At the episode's end, Yar seems almost to consider marrying Lutan, dismissing it as being too "complicated" rather than dismissing him on the basis of having kidnapped her and manipulated her into a kill-or-be-killed situation. It's possible Yar doesn't know that he did it all because he wanted his wife's land, but she should maybe be able to figure out that that is part of what happened. Troi seems to act as if Yar's attraction to Lutan is normal, rather than framing it as some kind of Stockholm Syndrome-type psychological defense mechanism, the latter of which would have made some kind of sense.
But anyway, the overt racism of the Tribal African tone (reportedly, the original script didn't call for an all-black cast; that was the director's decision and he got, understandably, fired -- but too late), the nonsensical plot, the casual sexism, the silly sets and costumes, the constantly shifting definitions of "honour" to mean "whatever the plot requires the Ligonians to do at this given moment," etc. It is baaaaad.
Sun, Mar 24, 2013, 10:14am (UTC -6)
Sun, Sep 15, 2013, 6:20am (UTC -6)
I wonder if an actor has the power to tell a writer that they just can't SAY their lines because they're utter bullshit. I can't blame Denise Crosby for being bad in that episode, because, let's face it, her script was crap.
Wed, Jan 8, 2014, 5:34pm (UTC -6)
Also, the ending is total bull: somehow Yareena's momentary death annuls her marriage but not her property ownership. But then again everybody was probably fed up with Lutan by now so they all just went along with it.
Sat, Mar 1, 2014, 2:10pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jun 27, 2014, 6:21pm (UTC -6)
When I first saw this, I was pretty intrigued that they had a planet of dark-skinned aliens - being a dark-skinned individual myself - and I wished that they'd revisited the Ligonians in a later episode. (Not too mention, this episode featured Tasha Yar, who I had a crush on at the time).
While it could have been stronger, being that that 1st season episodes were a bit shaky, I would give this episode a 3 out of 5 stars.
Wed, Jul 2, 2014, 11:08pm (UTC -6)
This is a Minstrel Show, plain and simple. I believe the audience is meant to laugh at the primitive nature of this "native" space culture, and that's not what Star Trek ever has really been about. I was pretty offended watching this, and I'm still surprised that this was greenlit and filmed.
The only way this episode could possibly be defined as a success is as a subversive comedy. Other than the offensiveness, the only emotion I felt watching this was stupified bemusement. When Lutan said "then you shall have no treaty, no vaccine, and no Lieutenant Yar!" I admit I laughed, and laughed hard. Some definitely campy moments.
Side note: extremely distinctive old-school Star Trek music for this episode. Truly a VERY evocative score.
1 star if taken seriously, 3.5 stars if viewed through John Waters's eyes.
Sun, Sep 21, 2014, 2:05am (UTC -6)
Thu, Nov 27, 2014, 10:48pm (UTC -6)
But when tasha was asked if she wanted to take lutan and she replied "there would be complications" I wanted to see the missing scene where Picard goes up to Riker and says "this is our security chief? Can I fire her yet?"
Mon, Dec 29, 2014, 6:56pm (UTC -6)
While the previous episode was campy at times, yet entertaining, this one is overtly-campy, offensive, and boring. Any comparisons to TOS on it's supposed homage to "campiness" is incorrect. TOS was campy as in it is a product of its time. And their were MANY episodes of that show that came no where even CLOSE to this schlock.
Yes there were a couple of surprisingly good scenes and the scenery chewing from Jesse Ferguson was pretty awesome. It still isn't worth scraping out of the bottom of the barrel. Plop the lid back on and bury this one please.
Zero stars.
Tue, Feb 3, 2015, 4:33pm (UTC -6)
When I watched TNG as a child, I liked Yar a lot. She seemed like a tough, but also nice person to me, and I was sad when she got killed. Having rewatched all the episodes featuring her, I have to admit that the character does not hold up that well, though she might have developed in a better direction if Denise Crosby had stayed along for the next season.
"Code of Honor" might very well be the worst TNG episode, and I don't think it is necessary for me to add my reasons for hating it. On my recent rewatch I was baffled as to why this strong, independent person would not simply punch Lutan in the jaw and get out of there. However, thinking about the episode again after having watched the rest of the season, it seems much more in line with Yar's character for me.
In other first season episodes, as well as season 4's "Legacy", it is revealed that she grew up without parents, abused drugs and had to protect her sister (as well as her kitty cat) while fleeing from rape gangs.
This has obviously affected her perception of the concepts of sexuality and family. This has already been shown in last week's "The Naked Now", where she confided in Troi that she is unhappy with her own unfeminine appearance, seduced Data (the only person on the ship without any feelings) and afterwards told him to never speak of it again. In "Justice", she apparently wants to present herself as particularly promiscuous and kinky when she tells the whole bridge crew how the people of Rubicun III "make love at the drop of a hat - any hat".
In this episode, she seriously considers marrying a man who kidnapped her, and whom she admires for his raw masculinity and "I take what I want" attitude. And in "Hide and Q", Yar breaks down in the face of imminent death and confides in Picard that she sees him as some kind of father figure, which is immediately turned into a sexual direction by her (I think her words were something like "Oh, if you weren't my captain...").
So simply judging from the first season, we can assume that Yar is deeply disturbed in her understanding of sexuality. She dresses up as hot as she can, only to bed the one person whose only requirement for sex is the command "start intercourse subroutine", and who by design can not attach any feelings to the experience. And when it comes to relationships, she longs for a mate who is a strong father figure, who will care for her and tell her what to do.
This is an interesting parallel to Riker, who also grew up without parents (well, his father was still alive, but he wasn't around much and cared more for his career than for his son) and has promiscuous sex with as little strings attached as possible, while striving for the admiration of a father figure (Picard) and the caring, warmness and understanding of a mother figure (Troi).
Sun, Jun 28, 2015, 1:24pm (UTC -6)
Tue, Jul 21, 2015, 6:05pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jul 30, 2015, 2:28pm (UTC -6)
That said it is rather weak (1-1/2 stars for me), but ok when judged in the context of 1st season.
In regards to Adara's point about Tasha dodging rape gangs wouldn't be attracted to an abducter...while her planet HAD rape gangs it is never asserted that a rape gang actually caught her.
Sun, Aug 9, 2015, 8:09am (UTC -6)
But the nice little set up between Geordi and Data provides some compensation. 2 stars.
Wed, Dec 30, 2015, 3:22am (UTC -6)
Tue, Feb 16, 2016, 11:18am (UTC -6)
Tue, Jun 28, 2016, 3:20pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 15, 2016, 8:42pm (UTC -6)
I can't believe the Ligonians ever developed space travel considering they still have ritualistic battles to the death and their guards seem to prefer melee weapons to phasers.
Tue, Aug 2, 2016, 5:50am (UTC -6)
Wed, Aug 10, 2016, 1:25pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Oct 12, 2016, 4:04pm (UTC -6)
He says to his friend, "It's utter crappilies."
His friend says, "You mean crap don't you?"
The man says, "I said crappilies, diddle I ?"
Fri, Nov 11, 2016, 9:00am (UTC -6)
It makes me wonder how TNG survived the first season.
Fri, Nov 11, 2016, 10:07am (UTC -6)
Fri, Nov 11, 2016, 6:23pm (UTC -6)
Anybody found the jokes in the first half REALLY weird and out of place? These people are having lighthearted banter, arguing over silly bullshit, while their security officer is kidnapped by a bunch guys they know are sexually attracted her and right after-hell, I think in the same scene-they are talking about how important the vaccine is and how many lives are at stake. It just makes them look like a bunch of assholes.
And what's up with how during the fight, Lutan interrupts and orders that his wife will get her glove back? Yeah, I guess he can violate the rules on the grounds of "I'm in charge, I can do whatever I want", but I thought his whole plan was to get her killed so he can get her stuff?
Oh, and you gotta love that scene between Crusher and Picard. "This is extremely important, millions will die if you don't get the vaccine, you need to take this seriously! Oh, and could my fifteen-year old son spend some time on the bridge please? Thanks :-)"
Fri, Jan 20, 2017, 3:35pm (UTC -6)
She cries
She's ogled
She's kidnapped
She stands around uselessly
She moralizes against drug use
She gets zapped by a castoff skin.
Her best moment was her pursuit of data in "Naked Now" - fanservice I suppose, but at least that interlude showed her as an interestinglydamaged human with a will of her own.
This episode was one of her lows. But... Good for laughs 30 years later!
Tue, Feb 21, 2017, 12:46am (UTC -6)
Wesley on the bridge at ops? In what military organization would that be allowed? A kid, or any untrained officer for that matter? No way. Was that why Worf was missing from the episode--to give Wesley a place to sit?
And Riker takes over as head of security? He'd be the next one in line for that? Really?
The joke scene with Data and LaForge was the only redeeming thing in it.
It almost seemed like the script was written by a checklist: kidnapping, vaccine, negotiations, fight sequence, etc.
The quality of the first couple seasons is appalling. It's truly amazing what the series was able to evolve into, given it's beginning episodes.
Fri, Apr 14, 2017, 10:27pm (UTC -6)
Mon, May 29, 2017, 12:05pm (UTC -6)
Other episodes have failed for hokey ideas (Way to Eden) or ridiculous plot contrivances (Spock's Brain) or execution (Threshold), but this one is all of those things with a generous dollop of inexplicable racist African savage/strongman stereotyping.
The unsubtle biggotry may have been passable in 1966, but 21 years later? Inexplicable. Unconscionable. Embarrasing. It may be the sole episode that would have benefited from network broadcast standards oversight.
No way this episode gets made today.
Thu, Jun 1, 2017, 4:07am (UTC -6)
What I actually liked about this episode is to see how Starfleet officers have to deal with backwards societies like these in order to obtain a much needed vaccine, for example. It is a somewhat believable scenario. What's no doubt insulting is how black people are stereotyped to be backwards like this - the episode could've been saved if they had just used white actors. I would have given it 2 stars with white actors. It should also be noted that episodes like "Angel One" are equally terrible when it comes to sexism. Because in "Angel One", it is insinuated in the end that the men on the planet will grow to be more masculine in the future because that's how the natural course of evolution goes. In other words, the matriarchy is shown to us to be less evolved than the patriarchy it will be superseded by. A terribly sexist message: Men will take their rightful place in the end.
I don't want to sugar-coat "Code of Honor", but at least it bears some realism. If you think of the cheesiness of the Edo, for example, who live in a paradisical fantasy garden (episode "Justice"), I'd much rather see a believable alien society like here.
One star from me.
Thu, Jun 1, 2017, 1:28pm (UTC -6)
- The first time he tried watching it, the episode was "Code of Honor."
- A year or so later, others told him that the show had gotten a lot better and he should give it another chance. So he did, and came upon a repeat of "Code of Honor."
- When he took the Kim role, he was given tapes of some TNG episodes to watch to familiarize himself with it. The first episode on the tapes? "Code of Honor."
(Burton seemed to be in full agreement that the episode was terrible.)
I think it's been 17 years since I saw even part of this episode, but in addition to the racism and sexism, I remember a lot of very cheesy background music, and having the plot hinge on two people fighting a duel was pretty dumb.
Fri, Jun 2, 2017, 11:37am (UTC -6)
Sat, Jul 8, 2017, 2:30pm (UTC -6)
It felt much more sexist than racist to me. I understand why a lot of people find it very racist. It might even actually be very racist.
But the sexist bullcrap would have been very easy to eradicate from the episode. The racist stuff, you would have just had to make This Week's Planet of Hats a bunch of caucasians, just like pretty every other Weekly Monopersonality Humanlike Aliens. If you randomly picked a race or ethnicity and then randomly picked an alien species from a Trek episode, and replaced said white alien species with that race or ethnicity, odds are 50/50 you just made an episode look racist.
Which isn't to say that it's not racist, but every option seems a bad one.
* Make different alien species different races - gonna look racist
* Make every alien species white - looks racist
* Make every alien species mixed just like earth - doesn't hold up
On the other hand, making most alien species both male and female holds up better and shouldn't be so damn hard to avoid the horrid sexist cliches.
Sat, Jul 8, 2017, 3:17pm (UTC -6)
This means that the only option is to assiduously avoid ascribing negative traits to a dark skinned alien race - which is again an arbitrary decision and arguably one that denies dark skinned actors the full range of roles white actors enjoy. Or more likely, to simply never present a dark skinned alien race, which leads to the accusation that black actors are being unfairly shut out in favour of white ones.
For the record, I found nothing particularly villainous about the Ligonians as they were portrayed. I suppose much of the criticism of the episode centres on the sense of primitiveness they exude, which isn't really valid either since they clearly have transporters and other advanced technology. Or perhaps it's their culture of honour? Is that a black stereotype? I'm not sure it is. Is it because they are male dominant and black people are perceived as male dominant? Again, unclear since the women are stated to own the property in their society. It is all rather fuzzy to me.
On the balance, it is extremely difficult to pinpoint a cogent explanation of the episode's supposed obvious "racism".
My personal view is that this conclusion is actually a reflexive response to the fact that the alien race is dark skinned and not portrayed in a uniformly and unambiguously positive light.
Tue, Nov 21, 2017, 1:23am (UTC -6)
As others have pointed out, it definitely has the feel of an Original Series episode but with Next Gen characters. Specifically Season 2 of TOS.
As for the racism: I'm trying to do a lot of self-examination these days and see the world through eyes other than white American male. But in the end, that's what I am, and I really didn't feel that racism vibe others feel -- then or now.
I took the Ligonians to be a loose derivation of an older Asian culture, the Mughal Empire perhaps, but played with black actors instead of brown ones. It didn't strike me nearly as racist as Jar Jar Binks or the trade villains in "Phantom Menace." Those immediate jumped out to me as bad stereotypes. The Ligonians -- they just came off to me as another typical Season 1 effort than didn't pan out well.
I think the easy solution in that instance was to hire actors of various skin pigments.
Tue, Dec 12, 2017, 1:32pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jan 5, 2018, 8:31am (UTC -6)
@MMM I don't understand why you think it wouldn't hold up to cast a group of people from mixed racial backgrounds as the alien species. That appears to be an easy fix.
Tue, Jan 23, 2018, 8:23pm (UTC -6)
We expect TNG to use prosthetics for aliens, which TOS didn't -- we can give a pass to TOS (60s, low budget) but not to TNG. But what really sucks about the episode is how lame the plot is, how stupidly it unfolds, and some poor writing/acting for Crosby.
I even think the PD issue is incorrectly dealt with here. This race may not have warp capability but it has it's own transporter technology and is savvy enough to make a vaccine that the Enterprise can't. Yes, they have their stupid code of honor and bizarre rituals but this is not a primitive "pre-warp" race. I guess I have an issue with how this race is conceived.
I have no issue with this race being deceptive in that Lutan wants the land that his wife has and covets Yar -- why did she say she was attracted to Lutan?? Does she have shit for brains?? Should this race have a belief that a fight to the death is required -- in some respects they are very advanced, but in others, still barbaric/backward. Then I guess I would have an issue with one of TOS all-time great episodes and a personal favorite "Amok Time". Hmmmm...
The episode spends way too much time planning for this battle which is very poorly played out -- it was ridiculous to watch. But, like in "Amok Time" the Enterprise has a plan to revive the loser/dead.
We get some snippets of Data's development -- humor and his budding friendship with Geordi. The android is still also learning to give Riker/Picard what they need and to not piss them off by displaying his encyclopedic knowledge.
1 star for "Code of Honor" -- will go down as one of the worst TNG episodes. Brainless, pointless, and just a poor representation of what TNG should be. Just watching it, it was impossible to take it seriously.
Tue, Feb 20, 2018, 12:24am (UTC -6)
It's just that it's so terrible. Just awful.
I think anyone defending it may be a TNG fanboy. I think it's probably the worst episode of ST ever made.
Zero stars.
Wed, Feb 21, 2018, 3:00am (UTC -6)
Thu, Mar 8, 2018, 2:26am (UTC -6)
“No treaty, and no caffeine! … Never had it, never will!”
Thu, Apr 12, 2018, 11:00pm (UTC -6)
I think her "strong woman" role is too overplayed and just feels a little awkward, especially when Lutan covets her because of her strength.
Sat, May 19, 2018, 1:47pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jun 8, 2018, 8:29pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Jun 16, 2018, 1:20pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jun 21, 2018, 8:47pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 27, 2018, 4:00pm (UTC -6)
any particular alien species, sure.
every single one of them having an earthlike mix of skin tones, no.
plus then we wouldn't have, say, Orions or Bolians or Children of Tama (for the longest time I had no idea what race the actor playing Dathan was - turns out it's Captain Terrell from ST2).
does that clarify what I was trying to say better?
Thu, Sep 20, 2018, 12:21pm (UTC -6)
I found this piece of crap to be insulting to both white and black people.
Speaking of Yar, the way she treated so far in the series of TNG, could have been the reason she wanted out of the damn thing and place. Denise was probably treated badly on the set and around the studio. Of course, Sirtis could have done any number of things to be ugly to the Yar character as she had been invited by Majel Roddenberry to live with them since she was in the USA all alone and broke by the time she landed the role of Troi. It is very easy to spot how people are treated by watching the expressions whoever they have to play off in scenes. Try it if you don't believe me. As a matter of fact, I never liked Sirtis, she is not a good actress and until a couple of years I could not figure out her heritage.....she is Greek. But she doesn't actually look Greek. She is probably Jewish-Greek which is what you HAVE to be in Hollywood if you want to be an actor.
Take that as racist if you want to but you will be making mistake to think that way because the truth is the truth.
Sat, Nov 24, 2018, 6:06pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Nov 24, 2018, 9:15pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Nov 24, 2018, 9:35pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Nov 26, 2018, 4:42pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Dec 1, 2018, 10:39pm (UTC -6)
I enjoyed this one. It’s sooooo 80s. The match was tense and exciting. And I liked lutan being a big loser no yar. No wife. No land. And now second husband.
Sat, Dec 8, 2018, 11:32am (UTC -6)
Sat, Dec 8, 2018, 1:34pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Dec 12, 2018, 9:17pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Dec 12, 2018, 9:21pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Dec 22, 2018, 12:03pm (UTC -6)
Tue, Jan 1, 2019, 1:25pm (UTC -6)
Tue, Jan 1, 2019, 2:56pm (UTC -6)
It’s more incredible is they managed a 90s vibe in 1987. What bold prescient visionaries!
Tue, Jan 8, 2019, 10:43pm (UTC -6)
And that would be because it was composed by "old-school" TOS composer Fred Steiner. "Code of Honor" was his one and only scoring contribution to TNG.
Fri, Jan 18, 2019, 7:13pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Jan 19, 2019, 11:03am (UTC -6)
Sun, Jan 20, 2019, 4:42pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Jan 20, 2019, 6:29pm (UTC -6)
Note as well as that race/ethnicity is mentioned through the episode: American Indians, the Ming Dynasty, the status of Frenchness, etc.
Fri, Feb 1, 2019, 8:59pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Feb 10, 2019, 11:57pm (UTC -6)
We shall review the facts:
The original television series - The one African character, Uhura is nothing more than a telephone operator and note how she sits at the BACK of the bridge. She also protrayed as an object of lust.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The first Star Trek film released in 1979 features no new African characters which is odd considering that by the 23rd Century there will be over 6 billion Africans on Earth and less than a billion white people. Yet the Enterprise crew appears to 99.9% white.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan – This is one of the most despicable and racist of the Star Trek films. An African Starfleet captain played by the late Paul Winfield is captured by an evil white man and controlled like house slave with an alien slug placed in his brain. Later, after failing his “master”, Winfield’s character kills himself in shame for failing to serve the commands of his white master.
Star Trek: The Voyage Home – We learn in this film that the Federation of Planets (which is supposed to be diverse union of many races) is led by a white alien.
Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country – An African Starfleet Admiral played by the late Brock Peters is portrayed as being an evil, untrustworthy character.
Star Trek: The Next Generation – This new series has African actors play characters who are either blind (Geordi La Forge) with the temperament of a house slave or violent aliens such as Lieutenant Worf.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Star Trek manages to redeem itself somewhat with the character of Benjamin Sisko. The series begins with an evil pale alien creature refusing to help Sisko save his wife but at the end of the series it turns out his character is not really African at all but some kind of alien puppet whose fate is controlled by beings who appear to be white women.
Star Trek: Insurrection – In this Star Trek film, the Enterprise comes across and defends an all-white race who are being attacked by a darker skin tone people.
Star Trek: Nemesis - At the end of this film, Picard selects another white male to be his First Officer.
Mon, Feb 11, 2019, 12:26am (UTC -6)
Mon, Feb 11, 2019, 9:51am (UTC -6)
Wed, Feb 13, 2019, 9:03pm (UTC -6)
The aliens in "Code" are tribal, chauvinistic, superstitious, ritualistic and technologically inferior to the Federation. Throw in countless "African" tropes, and you have a portrayal which many deem to be racist. But Picard addresses this himself in the episode: the aliens are just like ancient humans, he reminds us, and if another culture had violently imposed its customs upon what now passes for contemporary enlightened cultures, then these smug, enlightened cultures would themselves be deemed backwards.
England, for example, is less sexist and homophobic than many of her ex slave colonies. She has gone through various gay rights, civil rights and women's rights movements. And so in some aspects, we can say she is more progressive than many of her ex colonies. Many of her ex colonies in the Caribbean, for example, have yet to have spawned women's rights movements (and so are deeply patriarchal/sexist) or decriminalize homosexuality.
Pointing this out is not racist. Saying that Saudi Arabia's stoning of gays, or that Zimbabwe's genital mutilation of women, is "savage", is not racist, once there's an understanding - like Picard alludes to - that the progress proudly touted by something like the British Empire is a result of a bevy of things (imperialism and the stability it affords the oppressor etc) which had the knock-on effect of destabilizing and stymieing the very places the British Empire deems itself superior too.
And I mention the British Empire because Trek itself grew out of 18th and 19th century British nautical fiction and non fiction (and later, the early works of Melville, like Typee and Omoo); island romances in which heroic captains and their first mates discovered new routes, cultures and made first contact with strange inhabitants (often portrayed in racist ways). What makes Trek interesting is the way it offers a liberal re-imagining of these nautical tales. What if Actually Good People landed on those foreign shores?
So when I see this episode, I don't quite see a racist caricature of Africa and Africans. I see a Federation that is relatively enlightened only because this alien planet hasn't gotten over whatever socio-historical sh*t its still working its way through. It's a episode with Space Zimbabwe and Space Geordie. Mugabe and Neil Tyson Degrasse. (If anything, the racist caricature in this episode is the Federation, with its squeaky white/American cast.)
Beyond all this, the alien race is one of the more interesting ones in Trek: the women hold property and power, but are subservient to men within certain realms; a strange blend of patriarchal and matriarchal power unique in SF.
The coolest thing, though, is the way Picard has to solve the episode's dilemma (acquire a vaccine and rescue a kidnapped crewman), whilst also kowtowing to the alien's customs and culture. This is a deeply respectful, tactful and tactical Picard, and its fun and original watching him try to maximize his outcome (studying primitive weapons and alien laws) whilst also remaining within strict "politically correct" frameworks. He wants to diss these aliens for being idiots, but also respects their culture and respects Fed protocols. It's a really interesting bind he finds himself in.
Less well handled is a rushed, arguably sexist plot which tries to say something about Tasha's attraction to "hyper masculine men". But she gets a neat fight scene (very TOS), and the episode's sets, matte paintings and set designs are some of the best in TNG.
This episode was also the first time we see the holodeck used for fight-training, and its a cool scene: you begin to get a sense of the Federation as an enlightened organization which puts as much emphasis on the body as the mind; a holistic enlightenment, part Gandhi, part Bruce Lee.
Sat, Feb 16, 2019, 6:42pm (UTC -6)
I am starting to see the gelling of the TNG way - where the captain and crew arrive with all their good wishes and are stymied by those pesky otherworld types.
It is true though that stand alone episodes start to grate (already) having just gone through a wonderful binge watch of DS9 for the first time.
2.5/4
Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 7:23pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 2:36pm (UTC -6)
It feels like one of those 1800s-1930s Orientalist Adventures, or a 1930s Colonialist Tale like Gunga Din, the white explorer dealing with the Strange Natives, but as told by a liberal or with an anthropologist's non-judgemental tone. Indeed, the aliens here, despite being extremely low tech, have Picard on the ropes for most of the episode. Their little plan is quite clever, and elaborately thought out, and its interesting to watch the high-tech Federation repeatedly bested by such a low tech people. I can't think of another episode in Trek which quite does this.
The episode also feels like "Who Watches the Watchers", in the sense that its packed with anthropological/sociological discussions (and nice allusions to Native American Indian honor practices). Hardly deep, but by 80s TV standards its interesting to watch this alien's cultures practices repeatedly discussed. Its also nice to see the Federation adjust its approach to these practices, not something we often see. The underrated episode, "The Ensigns of Command", did something similar, the crew forced to kowtow to the customs of the Sheliak.
The tempo of the episode is also great. Picard is pensive and thoughtful throughout, always brooding in shadowy corners. He ensures that every action is discussed, and nothing rushed without consideration. The way he and his crew run a risk assessment on a fight scene feels almost subversive, everything deliberately drawn out and hyper-analysed by a bunch of pajama wearing space-sociologists. I've also noticed that Troi, in season 1, is actually at her most useful. The character's integrated fairly well into most of the season 1 scripts, and is often providing good advice.
Seen in HD, the lighting and set design here is also above all the other "planet of the week" planets in season 1. Everything's bathed in a slightly golden shadow, the skies are a nice shade of red, with stark black trees silouetted against them, and the episode's new matte painting recalls some kind of Arab temple, or Orientalist art; you can almost imagine Picard as a 19th century East Indian Company merchant entering the lair of some African tribal leader in the hopes of forging some wacky-ass trade deal for the Empire (which is basically what he does; Picard's after foreign goods in this episode, after all). There are some allusions to "Requiem for Methuselah" too, both Kirk and Picard forced to kowtow to planetary leaders in order to get a life-saving vaccine.
Wed, Mar 6, 2019, 5:55pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 10:45am (UTC -6)
Wed, May 29, 2019, 10:40pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Jul 7, 2019, 10:34pm (UTC -6)
Boring, silly . . . especially disliked the portrayal of Yar as someone who would "of course" be attracted to the "manliness" of the overbearing and ooky Lutan.
The fight scene was extremely hokey.
Seeing the start of the Data-Geordi bond was one of the few plusses.
I'd forgotten how slow TNG is to get going.
Looking forward to better eps ahead.
Tue, Aug 20, 2019, 9:52am (UTC -6)
Tue, Aug 20, 2019, 2:47pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Sep 30, 2019, 11:40am (UTC -6)
Wed, Mar 25, 2020, 8:58pm (UTC -6)
Having a “Code of Honor” is morally neutral. A Code has no inherent normative value. Code of Honor tried using the Ligonian code to cut off debate between the characters. Too much screen time was given to Troi’s explaining what codes were valued and why and how much... instead of an honest dramatic exploration that would cause an audience to care.
Picard, by allowing himself and the crew to be hamstrung by the code, was, per “Who Watches the Watchers,” sanctioning false beliefs. Or at least respecting them to such an extent that he put a member of his crew in physical danger. The Captain’s duty is supposed to be safeguarding the lives of his crew, no? Or does the Prime Directive demand a different result, as the script demands? Anyway, all the talk about the code is like someone forever reciting the books of the book as proof of that person’ s piety, without that person having actually read any of those books. Similarly, in Prime Factors, Tuvok said he made the decision to use the space-folding technology because “Logic” dictated that he do so. He didn’t explain what tenet of logical science was used to come to the decision that the Captain was compromised. Saying “logic” ad nauseum doesn’t explain or excuse an act (and stifles good drama), just by saying someone’s “Code” explains characters’ decisions without having to mak these decisions dramatically interesting.
Fri, Mar 27, 2020, 11:25pm (UTC -6)
🤟 (which represents 1/2 of 🖖)
Sat, May 30, 2020, 7:25am (UTC -6)
The episode actually has an assortment of good scenes and should not be expunged from memory. One of the difficulties is that Lutan is not written as having a code of honor that anybody really respects.
The second difficulty is that once the horse thing is introduced, nothing is done with it. This is a real missed opportunity.
Why upon receiving the horse does Lutan not say something like "What is this maahvelous creature? We have nothing like it on our world. I don't understand it but as is gesture of your friendship, I will try to be worthy of it."
But all of the ideas become a muddle.
The focus should have been on the horse (linked to both masculinity and counting coup). Lutan should have been written with an honor system in which his counting coup against potential friends and allies was eventually admitted to have been a mistake. Then Lutan could return the horse to Picard at the end, poignantly and resign from over-weening pride and regain some of the honor he had lost.
Sun, Oct 25, 2020, 7:15pm (UTC -6)
Decent Data/Geordi work but sheesh.
This fight for the coronavirus vaccine is an early fart in the car that would herald the dynamic that would follow. Mainly, that Stewart was such a presence that he he would soon nudge the attempted Neo-Kirk that was Riker right off to the side.
Thu, Nov 19, 2020, 7:35am (UTC -6)
Data calls Geordie his friend twice in their adorkable kiddlies scene. For some reason I thought their closeness developed later.
And Troi is much better an advisor to the King -- I mean Captain -- than as a therapist with office hours. We should have seen her more like this.
Yar has mental scars and damage to bear when it comes to men. Not just Lutan, but also Picard. This could have made a great character arc, had she stuck around. She didn't seduce Data, of all people, for no reason. She has a weird sexual daddy vibe with Picard. I can see her lusting after Lutan. She definitely had sex with at least one person on the planet of the Edo, and knowing them it could have been an orgy with everyone at "play."
The single episode that I refuse to rewatch is Too Short A Season. It's mean spirited and spends all its time with guest actors who lack the gravitas to make it a compelling character study. It's too uncomfortable to watch. I'll take Code of Honor or Shades of Grey anytime over that one.
Tue, Dec 8, 2020, 10:44pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Feb 13, 2021, 3:02am (UTC -6)
TNG season 1 episode 3
“We are aware of many of your planet's achievements, and its unique similarity to an ancient Earth culture we all admire.”
- Picard
2 1/2 stars (out of 4)
As @petulant said in the “Naked Now” thread, Tasha really was the most interesting character during these first few episodes of TNG. Right from the beginning in “Encounter” we learn that Tasha comes from a planet very different from your typical Federation paradise,
TASHA: I grew up on a world that allowed things like this.
We learn in the next episode, “Where no one has gone before” that Tasha’s planet also had roving rape gangs. And of course we saw just last week in “Naked" that when Tasha gets a little bit tipsy, what she really wants is a good fuck.
So “Code of Honor” is very naturally a Tasha episode. All in all, the episode is roughly in line with the quality we see in the first four episodes of the series. But with a few tweaks, it could have been so much more.
Riker tells us at the beginning of the episode that “not only are they closely humanoid, but their history has remarkable similarities to ours.” This is the same old old TOS trope of near-Earth conditions. The show should have simply made this Tasha’s home-planet.
And it should have been Tasha explaining to Picard how best to deal with these people - her people. How best to take advantage of that culture of honor to get her back.
Take the following conversation, which would have worked much better if it was Tasha explaining things,
TROI: We believe it would be preferable if the Captain led this away party.
DATA: Agreed, sir. Their customs concerning guests make it much preferable.
RIKER: And I'm very much against that idea. Lutan is clearly a liar, and devious. Counsellor Troi has admitted she believes he's capable of killing. It is my duty to keep the Captain from danger, sir.
DATA: Except that Ligonian custom makes it clear that a visiting leader becomes an honoured guest. Not us, not second in command, him.
TROI: And the custom requires that Lutan should die rather than violate that.
RIKER: Yes, it seems reasonable put that way.
Imagine it was written this way instead, only slightly different,
TASHA: I think the Captain should come down to the planet to get me. Our customs concerning guests make it much preferable.
RIKER: I'm very much against that idea. Lutan is clearly a liar, and devious. Counsellor Troi has admitted she believes he's capable of killing. It is my duty to keep the Captain from danger.
TASHA: Except that our customs makes it clear that a visiting leader becomes an honoured guest. Not you, Commander, only the Captain. Our customs require that Lutan should die rather than violate that.
RIKER: Yes, it seems reasonable put that way.
What I really like is that at no time does Tasha seem the least bit concerned about her safety. She is so at ease with her situation it is amazing!
PICARD: Have you been treated well, Lieutenant?
TASHA: Fine, Captain but they're showing some signs of wear.
Also, thanks to @Van_Patten for pointing out how incredible the Lutan actor was in the Boyz in the Hood. His scenes across from Academy Award winner Cuba Gooding Jr. as well as Laurence Fishburne (from The Matrix) are out of this world!
https://youtu.be/2tggDVMaeYk
It’s a shame TPTB didn’t allow the actor to dial his menace all the way up to 11. Alas, those depths were never really attempted after TOS.
Finally, as so many have said (@The Snob, @DPC, @Diamond Dave, @Rahul, @Springy, @Silly), it is great to see Geordi and Data share a friendly moment that will grow into one of the cornerstones of the series. As @Jill Florio says, Data calls Geordi “friend” twice. It is a joyful scene.
And @DPC points out, this is the first time Picard deals with Wesley the right way,
PICARD: Is the whole ship deaf?! Sit down over there, young man. Temporarily.
:-)
In fact I agree with @Jill Florio’s entire write up. “Code of Honor” is never boring and always included when I re-watch the series. It might not be great, but it has loads of wonderful touches, like the applause-sticks, that show this episode was not just slapped together, but loving constructed. I, for one, appreciate the effort.
Sun, Feb 14, 2021, 12:44pm (UTC -6)
A racist episode, as a white male 60 year european I am not the best person to judge but I would not argue against someone of colour claiming it.
Sexistic, yes.
Having eliminated the two above hinderneses. I liked it :-)
@Kevin Nostrand, not five stars but good.
Standalone, funny side stories, and although sexistic, women are taking their placess.
Tue, Feb 16, 2021, 8:50pm (UTC -6)
When Yar demonstrates the holodeck, Lutan responds in alarm “You can create people? Without a soul?” That would have been an interesting perspective to build a plot on. Or maybe flesh this one out.
And Data, with his early strong lack of tact:
DATA: That's from an obscure language called French. Counting coup
PICARD: Mister Data, the French language for centuries on Earth represented civilisation.
DATA: Indeed? But surely, sir — (Riker cuts him off)
Fri, May 28, 2021, 2:00am (UTC -6)
What let it down so badly was not specifically related to this episode, but how shockingly poor some of TNG is compared to TOS: Crusher is terrible compared to McCoy (just doesn’t have the charisma or personality), Denise Crosby is an appalling actor, Wesley Crusher... well I scarcely need to repeat how irritating that character is. Etc.
As for this episode, the worst aspect was the fight scene - absolutely awful. The rest of it - the comparative lack of dramatic tension, Ferguson’s deliciously camp delivery, the heavy borrowing from TOS - I can forgive.
Not a truly great episode, but not a truly poor one either. I sat through it without wanting to switch off. 2 stars.
Fri, May 28, 2021, 2:30am (UTC -6)
Yes, Marina Sirtis is Greek, and does look it I believe. But she is actually London Greek by birth and upbringing.
Sat, Jun 19, 2021, 9:30am (UTC -6)
Sat, Jun 19, 2021, 2:59pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 2, 2021, 1:19pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 2, 2021, 2:43pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 2, 2021, 2:47pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Jul 3, 2021, 10:35am (UTC -6)
Mon, Oct 11, 2021, 2:23pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Oct 11, 2021, 6:13pm (UTC -6)
Someone at Netflix has a sense of humor because last I checked when you linger on TNG the automatic preview for the series on Netflix is a scene from Code of Honor :)
Mon, Oct 11, 2021, 9:06pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Dec 6, 2021, 6:57pm (UTC -6)
And that's probably what happened, considering the script didn't call for an all black cast, the director decided on that and the director was FIRED for being racist to all the black actors he hired!
Nobody's in black face or anything overt, but there are reasons it makes people uneasy.
BTW, the original director being fired was a prime reason this was so clunky, particularly the fight scenes. The assistant director had to take over and he wasn't at all experienced.
There's also an astonishing bit of victim blaming here, aside from the bizarre notion of Tasha "wanting" Lutan but it being inconvenient:
PICARD: Did you have any idea, Lieutenant, that Lutan was suddenly going to announce that he wanted you for his First One?
TASHA: No, sir.
PICARD: Tell me what you know about this?
TASHA: Nothing, sir.
TROI: But it was a thrill. Lutan is such, such a basic male image and having him say he wants you
What the hell? They are literally saying "but you actually wanted to be kidnapped, didn't you?"
It seems like Picard's questioning was tactful and appropriate-- apparently Tasha and Lutan came directly from the holodeck when Tasha was abducted, so he has no idea what happened there. But Troi's insinuation is outrageous.
BTW, no, I don't believe this episode had anything to do with why Crosby quit. Her complaint was she was underused. In this particular (and early) episode, she was featured with a large beefy role. While the episode was clunky, the role was still solid. Later it became mostly "hailing frequencies open" etc etc.
And I doubt the granddaughter of Bing Crosby can complain too much about how hard it is to break into Hollywood.
Mon, Dec 6, 2021, 7:22pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 11:03am (UTC -6)
"Is this episode actually racist? I guess it would depend on the definition of racist. It feels uncomfortable in that it feels like maybe a 1930's cliched depiction of a white person's impression of an African tribal culture. Something like that, I don't know."
Agreed.....not racist....just dumbed-down to the point of being so trope-heavy that it causes the viewer embarrassment. The 1930's is about right....taking into account that the '30's was still mired in the earlier accounts of Sir Richard Burton.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 11:29am (UTC -6)
I think the more troubling aspect is the believe that even an technologically advanced african-like society has to be primitive and tribal in some way. Same with that black panther movie. They are super advanced but the leader is elected by hand to hand combat to the death. That is not a good method to select your leader. :)
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 11:36am (UTC -6)
lol, I don't know if that joke was intentional or not.
I have never met anyone who likes this episode, but it's unironically one of my favorites. It reminds me of Orientalist adventures from the 1930s, 1940s, where a some White Commander visits Africa or Asia and has to outsmart the locals and their customs. I feel the episode is aware of its heritage, and subverts all its racist tropes, but that the casting and costuming causes people to miss this.
Ignoring whether the episode is good or not (or racist), I think its a very good one in terms of lighting, mood and set design. The remastered version of the episode also adds a few neat FX touches. It's also a special episode, in the sense that it's one of TNG's first "planet of the week" adventures.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 1:43pm (UTC -6)
I personally favour the star fire wheel - the "winner" gets vaporized and his clan gets to lead.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 2:21pm (UTC -6)
I would say, though, that the lead up to that silly fight is quite good (when Tasha selects her weapons, and when Picard has a quiet talk with her). The episode also has a lot of very good little Picard moments, and he's quite ambassadorial throughout.
Booming said: "I think the more troubling aspect is the believe that even an technologically advanced african-like society has to be primitive and tribal in some way"
When you put it in those terms, it does seem like a racist episode.
I'm half British, so I was exposed to lots of old, racist adventure films about the British Empire rolling up on African tribes, or Indian villages, or Middle Eastern sheiks. Think all the stuff that influenced the trashy B-movies that influenced Indiana Jones.
So my framework for this episode has always been: this is an enlightened version of pre-war racist adventures. Instead of the racist British soldiers, you have Picard. Instead of patriarchal natives, you have a kind of matriarchy. Instead of low-tech tribes, you have a technologically advanced culture.
And the alien culture always seemed a hybrid to me; there are samurai and Chinese motifs throughout, and a key plot point is based on a Native American practice ("counting coups"). I agree, though, that the African motifs do ultimately overwhelm this all.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 4:50pm (UTC -6)
"I think the more troubling aspect is the believe that even an technologically advanced african-like society has to be primitive and tribal in some way. Same with that black panther movie. They are super advanced but the leader is elected by hand to hand combat to the death. That is not a good method to select your leader. :)"
100% agreement on that. As I was writing, images of the movie Black Panther came to my mind too. Such stuff goes beyond mere trope usage, it is also, at its worst, a simplistic repackaging of content to quickly manufacture epics. In the Avenger movie Infinity War the conflict is placed within 400 meters of the capital of Wakanda so that that advanced nation can nobly defend Earth using Zulu battle formations from the late 19th century.
It's not the first time African warfare cinematic content was brazenly repackaged for use in sci-fi....in Starship Troopers, the battle at Whiskey Outpost, Planet P was a direct translation of massed regiments attacking defenses at Rorke's Drift (1879) as portrayed in the movie Zulu. Nice to know that valiant Zulu warriors were just fodder to be translated into arachnids that time around.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 5:07pm (UTC -6)
"Starship Troopers, the battle at Whiskey Outpost, Planet P was a direct translation of massed regiments attacking defenses at Rorke's Drift (1879) as portrayed in the movie Zulu. Nice to know that valiant Zulu warriors were just fodder to be translated into arachnids that time around."
Isn't that a nice inversion of the movie Zulu? The Humans in Starship Troopers are the bad guys. That is why they are wearing Nazi uniforms. :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvAsR4O4W0w&ab_channel=TV
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 5:41pm (UTC -6)
Even as a teenager I thought it was obvious that the humans were not only fascist villains but likely the asteroid attack was itself a false flag orchestrated by the government.
But to this day so many seem to think that movie was just some space shoot em up.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 5:44pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 6:16pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 6:24pm (UTC -6)
Admittedly 300 is a little murkier. But you have to admit the parallels are there. I would even call 300 a soft ripoff of Starship Troopers with the Spartans as fascist and the Persians as basically monstrous villains in a Spartan propaganda story (in the form of a pre battle campfire tale versus a series of video snippets like in Starship Troopers).
Like in Starship Troopers Snyder kind of tips his hand with the opening monologue with the baby scull pit.
Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 8:33pm (UTC -6)
The whole relationship is completely cross-fertilized. Spartans are a model for Prussia; Prussian virtues inspire a militaristic Germany; the Nazi party arises within Germany and as Paul Cartledge puts it seizes the Spartan "brand" to regenerate its society. Starship Troopers adopts the fascist brand with uniforms of German styling and a Laconic hero. "300" projects an ostensibly fascist message simply by depicting Spartans at all, almost unavoidably.
Wed, Dec 22, 2021, 10:15pm (UTC -6)
It was a bit weird that the director expected people 50 years removed from WW2 to get the N*zi references. A film director could easily be well versed in 30s/40s German propaganda film techniques but most of the audience wouldn't recognize it at all.
Wed, Dec 22, 2021, 11:19pm (UTC -6)
"A film director could easily be well versed in 30s/40s German propaganda film techniques but most of the audience wouldn't recognize it at all."
You pose an interesting question. Would a modern audience get the visual references to Riefenstahl? Maybe not, but it's hard to miss all that feldgrau, and insignia on Sgt. Zim's cap. Of course Raiders of the Lost Ark and its follow-ons probably did a lot to rekindle awareness of the look of '30s-era German fascism in the 1980's. The Last Crusade even threw in the book-burning and who can forget the line (said after Indy gets belted in the face by jack-booted member of the Waffen SS ) :"That's how we say goodbye in Germany." Although, even that stuff is now chronologically ancient and might be lost on persons born after 2000.
In the TNG episode, 'Too short a Season,' the German WWII look inspires (even if tie-dyed) the uniform of governor Karnas of Mordan IV, and I think the actor Michael Pataki (earlier of Tribbles fame, where he expressed that the Enterprise should be hauled away "as garbage") really sells the 'fascist boss type.' Again, the high collar and rank insignia support the historical reference to the German police state.
Thu, Dec 23, 2021, 7:37am (UTC -6)
The Regorians from the Orville are another example.
Sun, Jan 9, 2022, 1:03am (UTC -6)
Tue, Jan 11, 2022, 7:51am (UTC -6)
Tue, Jan 11, 2022, 8:00am (UTC -6)
Thu, Mar 17, 2022, 2:17am (UTC -6)
Thu, Mar 31, 2022, 3:28pm (UTC -6)
What gets me though is why all this talk about the sexism (either for or against) Tasha Yar and racism against Lutan and his second (in command/family? I don't know. One time watching this episode in full was MORE than enough for me). But nothing said about the racism AND sexism both AGAINST Yareena throughout. I'd be glad to explain more about the misogynoir of having BOTH the hyper-sexual/jealous black woman AND the angry black woman stereotypes rolled into one single character for this episode
Sun, Jul 3, 2022, 10:54am (UTC -6)
@Tomas
Picard does return to Ligon II - well, he *thinks* it's Ligon III, but in actuality it's Ligon II, which shifted orbit after the *real* Ligon III blew up. The planet is now a devastated wasteland, its surface pitted and scarred. Lutan is understandably very angry at the Federation, and seeks revenge.
Wed, Nov 2, 2022, 1:50pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Nov 3, 2022, 10:55am (UTC -6)
Zero stars.
Sat, Nov 12, 2022, 10:04am (UTC -6)
Wed, Jan 11, 2023, 4:23pm (UTC -6)
Did anyone mention the utterly cringe political (ie not ACTUAL) correctness?
In the future see, women will be able to beat up large men with ease... and we will kiss black peoples asses non stop,
Oh crap!! The future is now!
Future!!!
Wed, Jan 11, 2023, 6:22pm (UTC -6)
Ok, new rule Kobra: From now on commenting first, then huffing glue.
Wed, Jan 11, 2023, 8:47pm (UTC -6)
To your point -- I recall there was this show or (event of some kind) on Canada's national broadcaster CBC (I think) about well-to-do white women voluntarily submitting themselves for some kind of "real-world education" from black women. Whatever it was, it was getting roundly criticized ...
Kind of reminded me of how during the George Floyd riots some police officers would kneel in front of protestors (some who had probably just torched buildings etc.). Ridiculous.
Thu, Jan 12, 2023, 6:10pm (UTC -6)
How much FOX news must one consume before one is triggered into seeing "Code of Honor", an episode that for decades was accused of perpetuating racist stereotypes, as pro-woman propaganda that hates white people and trains its audience to submit to black people?
Thu, Jan 12, 2023, 6:21pm (UTC -6)
Not sure. I don't watch FOX news.
I don't see "Code of Honor" as "pro-woman propaganda that hates white people and trains its audience to submit to black people" -- don't know what you're watching these days to come up with such a theory.
Fri, Jan 13, 2023, 1:48am (UTC -6)
You have to be understanding towards Rahuloccio. He just wants to be a real white boy.
Tue, Apr 4, 2023, 11:28pm (UTC -6)
Take this example:
PICARD: Did you have any idea, Lieutenant, that Lutan was suddenly going to announce that he wanted you for his First One?
TASHA: No, sir.
PICARD: Tell me what you know about this?
TASHA: Nothing, sir.
TROI: But it was a thrill. Lutan is such, such a basic male image and having him say he wants you
TASHA: Yes, of course it made me feel good when he. Troi, I'm your friend and you tricked me.
TROI: Only so you'd think about it, completely and clearly.
Either the scripting is nonsense of the director completely misunderstood whatever it was supposed to mean. The way it's played Deanna frankly tells Tasha what she felt, Tasha openly admits it, then says she was tricked. What was the trick? I suppose it was that Deanna didn't really use her empathy to know Tasha's feelings, but just said it tactically to see if Tasha would admit it. If so the point was lost, and the issue of friendship coming into it becomes a random left turn in a scene that isn't even about that anyhow. If they wanted us to entertain the possibility that Tasha might be going into the fight because she actually wanted Lutan, that should have been discarded conceptually the moment they did the actual casting for Lutan. It's so illogical as it stands that it's hard to even know what they're talking about here. Seriously, how was Crosby supposed to play any of these scenes?
The one sort of nice thing in the plotting is that Picard's plan at the end, to abduct Lutan's wife, and then Lutan himself, cannot possibly be objected to because a firm point has already been established that their culture respects bold actions, especially those involving capturing something or someone valuable. This is an underwritten element because Picard is in fact being diplomatic in this method of undermining Lutan's plan in using their own customary actions to do it. The least the scripting could have done was have the new leader say as much, that he respected Picard's boldness and that all honor was satisfied. But instead of showing us that Picard cleverly used their code of honor to his own ends, as Lutan had done, it ends up being a rather muddy and indistinct wrap-up.
Sat, May 6, 2023, 4:24am (UTC -6)
The ending bothered me more than it did anyone else that posted a comment. It was mentioned that millions would die on Styris IV if they didn't get the cure as soon as possible. Not a single person seemed to be bothered with them traveling at warp 3 to their destination with millions of lives at stake, instead of warp 9.
Fri, Jun 16, 2023, 3:17pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Oct 26, 2023, 1:57pm (UTC -6)
Let’s use the Discovery argument. After all, aren’t you just glad that there is more Trek out there? Or, who are you to be a gate keeper? All Trek is conspicuously badly written and produced, ya’ll. If you want good TV, go watch a better show like Babylon 5, one that deserves a much wider audience.
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