"Where No One Has Gone Before"

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Air date: 10/26/1987
Written by Diane Duane & Michael Reaves
Directed by Robert Bowman

Review by Jamahl Epsicokhan

An experimental new test on the Enterprise's engines — courtesy of Starfleet engineer Kosinski (Stanley Kamel) and his mysterious alien assistant (Eric Menyuk) — sends the Enterprise careening beyond warp 10 and on an unintended (and quite impossible) journey millions of light years beyond the reaches of the Milky Way galaxy.

For the first time on Star Trek: TNG, we have a genuine sense of awe and wonder, where space no longer resembles a black star field but instead a colorful visage of the strange and unknown. The acceleration of the Enterprise beyond what was dreamed possible turns out to be the basis for a pretty good premise centering on the mystery of the assistant — known only as the Traveler — whose alien gifts have allowed the crew of the Enterprise to travel where quite literally no one has gone before. The question now is whether they can get back, especially with the Traveler having been weakened in getting here.

The episode is notable for at first seeming fresh and intriguing, but this feeling fades once it becomes clear that this place, wherever it is, has the ability to turn thoughts into reality. The episode has too many hallucination gags that become real threats, and all of it is based on pure fantasy rather than sci-fi. When anything can happen, and the best the writers can come up with are dead parents, Klingon pets, and flames blocking the corridor, it's kind of a fantasy-manufactured letdown. The Traveler has an intriguing dialog with Picard about the nature of exploration, but it goes on so long as to eventually become impenetrable.

The episode also provides a turning point for Wesley Crusher, whom the Traveler identifies as a science prodigy. Picard encourages this belief by making Wesley an acting ensign, but the problem with the character remains that he's too much of a cloying geek and you just want to strangle him.

Previous episode: The Last Outpost
Next episode: Lonely Among Us

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63 comments on this post

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NCC-1701-Z
Sun, Mar 25, 2012, 9:00pm (UTC -6)

This episode had soooooo much potential, but 99% of it went unrealized. Ultimately, the writers took the most disappointing of all possible paths.

The whole "brand new galaxy" plot felt very refreshing at first, before the episode got stale really fast, as all the hallucinations or whatever just ground the momentum to a halt. I especially found the Picard-and-his-mom scene to be lacking in passion and believability. And making Wesley Crusher into a prodigy, I could have done without. That time would have been better spent making the other characters stronger, quite frankly, since character development has been very lacking for the past few episodes, due in part to the weak scripts and weak acting. I don't *hate* Wesley, but I don't like him, either. The resolution was so cheesy ("think good thoughts" is what it comes down to) that it was unintentionally hilarious.

Also, the music. It left much to be desired. Too weak to the point that it was virtually nonexistent (this has been a major problem with all the eps, too). Half the eps could have been improved dramatically if they had just gotten better music, to heck with cost. I guess I'm kind of spoiled with TOS-style super-dramatic music.

It was still a pretty good ep, though, and in the Things I Liked department, I could see the acting slowly getting better, especially from Patrick Stewart, and as I mentioned earlier, the beginning acts were very well done. 2.5 stars seems about right.

Rikko
Mon, Apr 16, 2012, 1:58pm (UTC -6)

The first acceptable episode ever since the pilot. As you've said, the start is a good one but just becomes silly and sillier as it goes by. The hallucinations would have worked better if they served any real point, instead of "lol-random" stuff.

And Wesley Crusher is annoying as ever, but at least, this time around they got an excuse for it (He's a genious).

@ NCC-1701-Z: I think the music is one of the low points of the whole season! Most of the times it's either overdone or just generic. Wait for that ep of Troi's mother and you'll see it's even more awful.

Van_Patten
Fri, Aug 3, 2012, 10:08pm (UTC -6)

The series goes in for a high concept, and initially it comes off quite well. The Kosinski character seemed to foreshadow the proliferation of ubiquitous 'Management consultants' by about a decade and Guest actor Stanley Kamel really nails the part -also worth mentioning Chief Engineer Argyle, who I thought could have been a worthy recurring character.

As Jammer says, episode is really a tale of two halves - although the pre-CGI graphics for the 'end of the universe' look dated now, the Eric Menyuk character was genuinely intriguing, and even probably halfway in I thought, maybe this was an 'undiscovered gem', but the dimension 'where thoughts become reality' concept's execution lets it down. Also, making Wesley a prodigy in the wake of 'The Naked Now' seems ridiculous, although to be fair to Wheaton, I don't think his performances are that bad, given the scripts.

It's getting a little predictable but once more I'd echo the rating- 2.5 stars, an intriguing concept again betrayed by flawed execution.

Rachel
Sat, Sep 1, 2012, 9:49am (UTC -6)

An okay episode which has far too many holes for me! If the experiments in warp enhancement worked on the other two ships, and was approved by Starfleet Command, what was the problem here? Anyone could see Kosinski was typical of the annoying grey suited jobsworths that I worked with in my last job!

Why was Picard, an explorer, wanting to get back from where-ever they got to, so quickly?

Who cares, really...I think the whole epsiode was to show off Wesley's genuis again - although I could tolerate it more this time.

Mike Caracappa
Wed, Sep 5, 2012, 2:20am (UTC -6)

Decent episode and some outstanding visual effects. For all it's flaws in this ep, I think TNG first started finding its footing with this episode. Another interesting note if you think about it, this episode was a very early precursor to ST Voyager.

istok
Tue, Apr 2, 2013, 4:27pm (UTC -6)

I wonder if the rest of the series explored this monumental find, that you can travel billions of light years in a second if you think hard about it. They can't have ignored it later on.

William B
Thu, Apr 11, 2013, 7:16am (UTC -6)

I have little to add to Jammer's review here, which I think captures the best and worst of the episode. (I agree with the 2.5 rating as well.) It's a big step up from all the episodes up to this point, but still isn't really all there, despite potential and a fairly riveting first half. I like Kosinski's arrogance and later humble joy at being valued by the Traveler late in the episode. I do think that Wesley's role in this episode is a good use of him -- far better than previous episodes.

Dennis M.
Sat, Aug 31, 2013, 7:39pm (UTC -6)

I quibble with the wording of this criticism: "... all of it is based on pure fantasy rather than sci-fi." I don't take TNG as science fiction, certainly not in the terms of someone like Arthur C. Clarke. Where is the science when the crew can breathe without space suits on every planet, everyone speaks English, and all aliens are humanoids with bumpy heads? Space is really kind of a McGuffin; the real final frontier is (at its best) good storytelling, human nature, imagination, ideas, those sorts of things. I agree with the criticisms here on this episode, and it could have done a better job with some ideas that themselves aren't really so silly. The nature of thought is intriguing coming from Plato or the Kogi Indians of Colombia.

Dave in MN
Wed, Feb 5, 2014, 11:59am (UTC -6)

I have to disagree with the comments about the musical score for this episode. If anything, I felt the score was very impressive and helped set the stage for the almost-cinematic sense of wonderment the viewer feels watching this episode.

In fact, I think one of the biggest mistakes the producers of TNG ever made was going with the incredibly droning/boring musical scores of Dennis McCarthy in the later seasons.

Ron Jones is a wonderful composer and I think he deserves a bit of the credit for making TNG the force that it was.

As far as the episode goes, this is the one where it really feels like the cast is starting to click and settle into their roles; and it shows. Add in a really provocative script and some fascinating imagery (both outside the Enterprise and inside crewmember's heads) and while not perfect, it is definitely an hour of entertaining (and sometimes thought-provoking) television.

V_Is_For_Voyager
Thu, Jun 12, 2014, 4:08pm (UTC -6)

Dave in MN: Agreed completely about the music. I like Dennis McCarthy but I don't know what those other reviewers are talking about with this episode, I thought the score here was unusually impressive and cinematic.

Dave in NC
Fri, Jul 18, 2014, 2:51pm (UTC -6)

Dave in MN is actually me . . . I moved, but my computer still had my old ID saved. *facepalm*

anyways

@V_is_for_Voyager: Part of the reason I'm rewatching TNG is just to discover all the music I never paid attention to when I was younger.

I'm now convinced that Ron Jones is a real genius. I've been listening to the complete score to the Best Of Both Worlds I & II on Youtube and the music is better than most films. There are some fugal passages in the recap at the start of Part 2 that are shockingly complex for any modern-day composition, never mind a piece written for background music on a genre show.

The same goes for the evocative music in Hollow Pursuits, Tin Man, Booby Trap etc etc. He's just an amazingly versatile composer, and I'm really thankful to Gene Roddenberry/whoever it was that saw fit to hire him in the first place.

Entilzha
Fri, Jul 25, 2014, 6:33am (UTC -6)

I loved the Klingon targ hallucination of Worf, and also the one with Tasha and her cat. It really showed something about the characters. After those two it seems the writers got tired from thinking and just decided to do strange things around the ship. What a missed opportunity.

The Traveller and Kosinski, and Wesley were also good. The rest of the crew were portrayed as very reactionary and stuffy.

Vylora
Mon, Dec 29, 2014, 10:05pm (UTC -6)

Despite some notable unrealized potential, this is the first good episode of TNG and would always recommend it as such. Very awe-inspiring and some rather great dialogue between the Traveler and Picard concerning the idea of thought, space, and time being different parts of the same whole. I think a lot of what was being said in this episode was a little ahead of its time but I could be wrong. I do know that the fact it held a fascination for me re-watching it as it pertains to current day ideas says something in compliment to the writers of this episode.

I agree there's elements here that could have been done better but it's mostly minutiae in the scheme of things. Wesley was more of a cloying geek in this episode than others and a bit too whiny. Konsiski was a little too much on the scenery-chewing side with his arrogance albeit not horribly so. I understand Picard's necessity to get everyone back home, but firing off a probe or two wouldn't have hurt. So on, so forth.

Nevertheless, this episode did achieve at least SOME of the potential that it set out for and that's a lot more than I can say for some of the other early episodes. I wouldn't necessarily call it a "must-see" but I will call it worthwhile.

3 stars.

Mike
Fri, Jun 5, 2015, 1:13am (UTC -6)

This is episode is only as good or bad as Data Phone - er, Phantasms. It's a thin excuse for some amusing images, with Season 1 narm instead of Braga's must.

Diamond Dave
Sun, Aug 9, 2015, 11:40am (UTC -6)

Definitely a step up from what has gone before. Nice pacing as it builds from the crew interaction with the prickly Kosiniski, to the increasing layers of revelation after the warp jumps to the explanation of the Traveler. A rather lightweight and bizarre set of visions nearly dispose of the tension created earlier, but a long and wordy third act introduces some interesting concepts and gets the episode back on course. Although it could have done with something more grounded than the "power of thought" explanation.

I'd agree that at least here Wesley has a purpose, and the revelation of his prodigy status at least gives some direction to a fundamentally annoying character.

And we liked the targ. 3 stars.

petulant
Fri, Jan 22, 2016, 6:03pm (UTC -6)

In this episode they say it takes 300 years to travel 3 million light years but in Voyager they say it takes 70 years to travel 70,000 light years , which would mean that Voyager is 10 times slower than the Enterprise D

Jason R.
Wed, Mar 2, 2016, 6:36am (UTC -6)

I enjoyed the episode's first half, but as soon as they ended up in fantasy lalaland they just lost me.

What this episode needed was something real, something wondrous, maybe even something scary. They were on the other side of the universe, in a new galaxy. Imagine if they had encountered, say, the Borg or something awesome and threatening like that? Something real. Something alien.

Not Worf's bloody pet Klingon Chiwawa, or Picard's old mum drinking tea and crumpets!!

Luka
Thu, Jun 2, 2016, 3:20pm (UTC -6)

"Thought is the basis of all reality." This episode is the law of attraction. I'd give this episode at least three stars. Season 1 of TNG really was trying to explore the intricacies of human reality. That is something special that Gene Roddenberry knew about and that is what we are all lucky to have experienced watching the first season or two of TNG.

Dougie
Wed, Jun 22, 2016, 6:22pm (UTC -6)

Ahh yes The Creeper takes a fascination to young Wesley and befriends him, compliments him, gets in his head. Leave it to Doc Crusher to have no maternal instinct here. Of course later we get Sub Rosa.

This is as creepy an episode as the one with Alexander in a mud bath with naked adults. 23rd century sensibilities, I'm not buying what they're selling.

Latex Zebra
Sat, Jul 2, 2016, 7:06am (UTC -6)

I've always had a soft spot for this one.
Kosinski is such a dislikeable twat, the actor plays him really well.
I agree that once they get to the arse end of the universe it becomes a bit wishy washy but overall it is fun and certainly ranks as one of the better episodes of season 1.
I'm sure I've said this before but I don't mind Wesley... Yes he is a little know it all but when TNG came out I was roughly the same age so it was nice to see a teenager of the Enterprise and think "That could be me... If I was a totally annoying smart arse."
3 out of 4

David
Sun, Jul 3, 2016, 12:25am (UTC -6)

This is one of my favourite episodes from season 1. The Traveler was a great character and very original. I always wondered how he ended up making that first mistake, though. Was it because he was distracted by Wesley, or was it actually something that Wesley did when he was re-configuring the computer?

borusa
Wed, Aug 31, 2016, 2:53pm (UTC -6)

This episode was quite acceptable after a crummy pilot and trashy early episodes.
Hardly surprising since it was co written by Diane Duane and loosely based on one of the best TOS novels:The Wounded Sky.
The mirage section was old ,old territory and cropped up again in Generations. As implied above how much better would it have been if the hallucinations were created by morally ambiguous extra galactic monsters.

Daniel B
Mon, Jan 2, 2017, 1:44am (UTC -6)

Rachel: "An okay episode which has far too many holes for me! If the experiments in warp enhancement worked on the other two ships, and was approved by Starfleet Command, what was the problem here?"

The episode sort of implied an answer. Riker stated that he thought the experiments "worked" on the Ajax and Fearless not because of Kosinski's calculations, but because they were older designs and the work done on those ships resulted in some needed tweaking to smooth out some inefficiencies of their engines. The Enterprise being brand new wouldn't have had those issues and might be a newer warp engine design altogether. (The Leah Brahms episodes that come later also imply the Galaxy Class had an newer type of warp drive than previous classes).

Derek
Sat, Oct 21, 2017, 12:23am (UTC -6)

3 1/2 stars for me.

Sarjenka's Little Brother
Mon, Nov 20, 2017, 4:35pm (UTC -6)

I'm mostly here to echo points already made:

1. When I watched this the first time, I remember thinking it was the "first good episode." And really, it's practically OUTSTANDING until we get to "11001001." Of course, once episodes such as "Measure of a Man" are released, we get a new bar.

2. Wonderment. What a great word. And that's probably the only thing Season 1 (and maybe Season 2 a little bit) actually does better that the rest of the seasons. Wonderment. There truly is a sense of wonderment and exploration and the ability to be surprised that's lost after the series turns to Klingon and Romulan machinations and threats from the Borg.

3. The music. Not that I was paying a whole of attention, but I think the music for this episode added to the sense of wonderment, not take away from it.

4. This probably would have been turned into an amazing episode in Seasons 3, 4 or 5.

5. Chief Argyle would have been a good recurring character, although I think O'Brien ended up filling that particular character void. (Dr. Solar is the one-time character I most lament not being a semi-regular).

Rahul
Thu, Feb 15, 2018, 9:14pm (UTC -6)

Plenty of strong things about this episode -- really giving the feel of some fresh and new sci-fi, but it's undermined by the impossibility of the situation and some "cheap tricks" which give the episode a hokey feel at times.

Here's something that felt like real sci-fi -- like 2001 when the ship is traveling well beyond the galaxy -- I really enjoyed the visuals. Just the fact that the Enterprise is over a billion light years away from home is unfathomable so I give props for pushing the envelope (however unrealistic within the Trek paradigm); not to mention being in some part of the universe where thoughts become reality (just wish they had come up with better examples).

The Traveler is also a wonderful concoction -- the idea of blending thought with the technology is an intriguing one (and one that Picard entertains). That the Traveler has a bond with Wesley is helpful for giving some "logic" to why the boy is a boy genius and that Picard needs to encourage him etc. etc.

As for Kosinski -- the writers went overboard with his arrogance. So he's had a couple of successes on older ships (thanks to the Traveler's help) and now he thinks he's the shit but he acts like a total dick while still being subject to Star Fleet protocols. Glad he ate his humble pie and fell back in line (a tad).

2.5 stars -- had the feel of some grand old sci-fi with bold imagination and a serious threat to the ship; however, the solution of benevolent thoughts for the Traveler and the wishy-washy nature of his condition is all arbitrary and convenient. I didn't find Wes annoying here and this episode will put into context his future actions. Easily the best of the 1st 5 TNG episodes (and perhaps the best of the dozen or so), although flawed in many respects.

Peter Swinkels
Thu, Feb 22, 2018, 7:03am (UTC -6)

Nice episode. Too bad that the whole nonsense concerning speed is yet another example of technology magically suiting whatever the plot demands. Which adds to Star Trek technology being an ill defined inconsistent mess. Something Voyager made even worse.

Prince of Space
Thu, Mar 8, 2018, 3:22am (UTC -6)

Finally! A half-way decent S1 episode!

Brought crashing down by portraying a distant part of the Universe as the Magic Kingdom.

Matt
Thu, Mar 8, 2018, 11:12pm (UTC -6)

I get intense chills everytime during the scene where Picard encounters and speaks to his long since deceased grandmother. The sense of wonder in this episode gets me everytime. Our thoughts truly shape our realities and this strikes a chord. The music drives it home as well.

mephyve
Sat, May 19, 2018, 2:25pm (UTC -6)

Maybe I'm biased but I have always found this traveler guy boring. When I don't skip the episodes he's in I usually fall asleep on them.

Startrekwatcher
Mon, Dec 3, 2018, 5:30am (UTC -6)

3 stars

Unfolding
This had a Wonderful Sense of awe and wonder the places they traveled to fired the imagination
Fun idea of thoughts becoming reality

Trent
Sun, Feb 17, 2019, 5:41pm (UTC -6)

Each Season 1 episode thus far has been very distinct and different, and studded with iconic little moments.

In this one we have the Enterprise visiting another galaxy, and then some kind of sub-universal realm akin to the spore-network in Discovery. The sweeping "80s science fiction score" (from the Spielberg/Lucas/Zemickis school of awe) helps sell these moments.

Really, the only thing excessively bad here is a single scene, in which an alien called the Traveler informs Picard that "Wesley is the Chosen One". It's a terrible scene, and turns Wesley's otherwise interesting "kid to cadet to crewman" arc into something needlessly mystical.

Meister
Tue, Feb 19, 2019, 8:42pm (UTC -6)

I agree with Jammer`s review.

I hadn't realized Wesley being anointed grand science protégé happened in the first season.

I liked the special effects at the end of the universe.

Why did two people see the Targ but none of the other visions were shared that I recall?

Markus
Wed, Feb 20, 2019, 1:08am (UTC -6)

I loved this one as a little kid. It gave me many fantasies wondering if there were parts of the universe where it didn’t just look like stars in the sky and if so, what else might be possible.

Springy
Thu, Jul 11, 2019, 12:13am (UTC -6)

The best so far. I like The Traveler.

Though I know the whole "Wes is a mega-genius that no one listens to" thing is going to get tiresome, it isn't yet. I like the relationship that begins here, and that Traveler actor really sells it (as does Stanley K as Kozinski).

I'm glad they dropped the Argyle-engineer thing. As a Scotty homage, it just hokey.

The special effects were great and the travel was exciting, as was the thoughts and reality" stuff. I especially liked seeing Mamman Picard. No boredom this time.

Yay! I hope we're on a roll.

Latex Zebra
Wed, Mar 4, 2020, 9:45am (UTC -6)

Kosinski is like another Maddox. Starfleet really did recruit some utter knobs.

Dela
Sat, Mar 21, 2020, 1:12pm (UTC -6)

Did someone notice this one:

When Kosinsky explains the procedure to the chief engineer, the traveller is seen in the background, looking at what Wesley is doing. Then the next shot, Kosinsky is still explaining and the Traveller stands behind him looking at the computer table in the middle of the engine room.

Just a simple continuity goof but now on my xxth rewatch i noticed this. :)

Captain Jon
Sat, Mar 28, 2020, 9:09pm (UTC -6)

This is more like it! After a decent premiere, a TOS retread, a piece of garbage, and a lackluster episode with embarrassing villains, we finally get an episode with a sense of awe and spirit of exploration. It’s far from perfect, though. Of course The Boy Wesley is the only one who immediately notices The Traveller’s influence on events and is revealed to have a special destiny. The brilliant engineer is cocky, arrogant and very hard to line. And the mysterious dimension where thought becomes reality feels underbaked.

But there’s a genuine sense of awe and wonder that “Star Trek” embodies. The effects aren’t too bad for the time period. And the concept is pretty good even if more could’ve been done with it. Overall it’s a successful outing.

🖖🖖🖖

SS Elim
Wed, Jul 22, 2020, 8:51pm (UTC -6)

Half a dozen episodes in and they are already comparing Wesley to Mozart. Did they really expect people NOT to hate this little shit?

Mr Peepers
Wed, Sep 2, 2020, 12:53pm (UTC -6)

This is the first of many times when Tasha talks about the rape gangs she grew up with. Pretty sure everyone has gotten tired of her bringing it up every few episodes. To hear her tell it, she ducked and dodged them for many years and had never gotten caught.

This first season only had a few good episodes, and this wasn't one of them. It seems that every crew member has an advanced doctorate in astrophysics. No way our current astronauts could figure out how to get out of the space jams this crew gets entangled in on a weekly basis.

The Traveler tells Picard to encourage Wesley to develop to his potential, but in later episodes, this isn't the case. He is merely tolerated but reminded to act right, or he is off the bridge.

Jillyenator
Sat, Sep 19, 2020, 12:42am (UTC -6)

What is it about Jean-Luc and turbolifts? I recall three times he's had trouble on one. Here, Night Terrors, and Disaster.

Geordi had a bad experience on the turbolift too, where he was rolling around on the ceiling before it spat him onto the bridge. I think it was Contagion.

I'm surprised anyone takes these things. Clearly the turbolifts are evil. Maybe they should just beam all around the ship. ;-)

Ari Paul
Fri, Oct 9, 2020, 11:56pm (UTC -6)

Kaczynski, as in Ted Kaczynski, author of the books ANTI-TECH REVOLUTION and TECHNOLOGICAL SLAVERY and the manifesto Industrial Society and Its Future. The pro-wilderness and anti-technology anarchist terrorist and social theorist.

I always thought it was ironic that his name is used in this episode.

Silly
Sun, Oct 25, 2020, 8:01pm (UTC -6)

This episode has some eye-popping wonder, but sheesh.

The executive level incompetence here is off the charts.

“Kazinski’s claims are gibberish”...

Ship flies galaxies away in seconds...

“Well, he’s still crazy and full of it, but I guess we have to do whatever his shifty butt says, but let’s do it!!”

Wesley with his double corduroy is the most rational person here. Acting ensign? He should have named acting Captain.

Let’s not do any analysis about just what happened.

Silly
Tue, Feb 2, 2021, 8:43pm (UTC -6)

Also, Picard looks really bad at the beginning. Perhaps this is early episode weirdness, but he’s rather argumentative with and dismissive of Riker at the beginning when Riker—the XO— expresses concern about someone coming aboard to mess with the Watp Engines. Probably should have had this chat somewhere other than the bridge.

Worse, he sends Riker to meet the Kazinski with the stated rationale that Riker should take care of it if he’s so worried about it.

That’s incredibly petty and condescending.

Mal
Sat, Feb 13, 2021, 3:44am (UTC -6)

Just wanted to, um, chime in on the music. A wonderful score! As @Sarjenka's Little Brother says, it really adds to the sense of wonder. In particular, this beat is absolutely perfect for the mood of the episode,

https://youtu.be/3lR_a6_yafM?t=115

Very cinematic in a distinctly 80’s way, as @V_Is_For_Voyager points out.

I agree with @Matt that the scene with Picard’s mom is a gem (sorry @ Jason R., have to disagree with you there), and the music really worked perfectly.

I’m so glad @Dave in MN highlights what a wonderful job Ron Jones did here. As @Dave in MN says, appreciating the music is one great reason to go back and re-watch TNG for the eleventy-seventh time!

Of course one thing that really sets @Jammer apart from the rest of us, is that he noticed the music on TNG all the way back in 1995!

https://www.jammersreviews.com/articles/trekmusic.php

Finally, as @Dougie says, Wesley gets his first man-crush,

https://youtu.be/n0lNwmstY84?t=55

So yeah, 3 stars from me. This is real Trek.

Frake's Nightmare
Sat, Feb 13, 2021, 6:41pm (UTC -6)

Wesley's Jumper - orangey red roll neck with chevron ribbing. Reference to the design of the new uniform and his move to crew membership?

Jeffrey Jakucyk
Sun, Feb 14, 2021, 12:00pm (UTC -6)

"Wesley's Jumper - orangey red roll neck with chevron ribbing. Reference to the design of the new uniform and his move to crew membership?"

I'd chalk it up to generic 1980s grandma fashion. His frumpy sweaters may have been used to contrast his more polished acting ensign uniforms, symbolizing his growth/maturity/etc. More likely they knew where they were going with the character and just didn't want to spend too much on wardrobe that would only be used for a few episodes. I wouldn't be surprised if it was a thrift store find.

Wil Wheaton said in his review of "Where No Man Has Gone Before" on the defunct TV Squad site: https://web.archive.org/web/20071015030529/http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/10/27/star-trek-the-next-generation-where-no-one-has-gone-before/

"A few minutes later in engineering, Kosinski whizzes on the engine and Riker and Argyle follow as he gets ready to do his thing. Trekkies who may have begun to dislike Kosinski immediately start a fan club for him when he stops mid-stream to ask "why is this child here?" in reference to Wesley Crusher, who is working on a school project and decked out in a really sweet burnt sienna sweater, straight out of famed Klingon designer K'Talh Ba'akQoth's fall collection. (No joke: William Ware Theiss, the original costume designer, had me go to some dude's house to have my colors done. As a 14 year-old who was really into the sweet pastels and bright neon colors of the late 80s, I was horrified to discover I was an 'autumn with a hint of winter, honey,' who would get to wear oranges, browns, greens, and pukes until I finally got my official spacesuit, which honestly wasn't much better.)"

Bob (a different one)
Sun, Feb 14, 2021, 12:20pm (UTC -6)

I think the first two thirds of this episode are quite good. It hits the wall for me when the Traveler goes to sickbay. The long scene of the Traveler explaining things, intermittently interrupted by the crew being vaguely dickish, really made the story drag. The "everybody wish really hard" ending wasn't very exciting either.

I wish the mystery of the Traveler had remained a total mystery. Don't let the crew or the audience find out that the human scientist was a fraud until the very end. And just have the Traveler disappear. Let the point be that even though humanity has been in space for hundreds of years, the universe is, always will be, full of wondrous and unexplainable mysteries.

Complaints aside, this episode is a step in the right direction.

Silly
Mon, Mar 15, 2021, 7:33pm (UTC -6)

For some reason, I really like the profile view of the Enterprise when it first engages the super warp. Maybe because it was never used anywhere else.

To a lesser degree, I also like the view from behind the ship the second time they warp. It kind of looks fake but, along with the severe shaking on the bridge, it does adequately convey they don’t know what they are doing.

Tidd
Mon, May 31, 2021, 2:41am (UTC -6)

One of the great sci-fi episodes, operating at the very limits of space-time scientific knowledge even in our own 21st century, never mind the mid-1980s. I didn’t mind at all the philosophical expositions from the Traveller, who was one of the best alien inventions of Trek up to this point; putting humanity in its place with great patience and compassion.

The ‘where no-one has gone before’ was imaginatively done with good SFX for its time, also the explosions and dizzying effects of the journey. Nicely done.

There were a few downsides: when Geordi asks “But where are we?” and Data actually grins and says “Where no-one has gone before “. He’s a f*cking android for Chrissake! It’s not part of his programming. I also didn’t understand why Kazinsky had to be such a dickhead. Nor why Riker ignored “The Boy” when he’d clearly seen something significant.

However, unlike other reviewers, I did like the ‘thought hallucinations’ - imaginative sci-fi which leads to the conclusion “why not?” Is it any more unbelievable than starships travelling faster than the speed of light and encountering alien beings? After all, we turn thoughts into reality every night when we dream. No, I applaud the writers for their creative imagination.

Close to 4 stars- 3.5 at least.

MidshipmanNorris
Tue, Jun 8, 2021, 8:21am (UTC -6)

> The episode also provides a turning point for Wesley Crusher, whom the Traveler identifies as a science prodigy. Picard encourages this belief by making Wesley an acting ensign, but the problem with the character remains that he's too much of a cloying geek and you just want to strangle him.

This got a solid laugh out of me, indeed S1 Wesley is not fun to watch, I'm sure Mr. Wheaton can relate

I don't like listening to my earlier material anymore than the next guy, I get it ^_^ Lol

Silly
Thu, Aug 12, 2021, 6:55pm (UTC -6)

Wheaton's comments on his costume are interesting. It's ironic that he got those subdued colors, not just relative to popular gain of the 80s, but the bright blue, gold and red of standard Starfleet uniforms. Still, that orange looks pretty 80s now.

I had just assumed they gave him bulky sweaters because he was still a skinny kid and sets are typically quite cold.

This is the first decent episode of season one, but when it becomes the total Wesley wankfest and Picard advises the crew to think happy thoughts, you definitely know where you are.

It's just silly Picard not only took the advice of this sick mystery space alien, but went far beyond and made him an acting officer.

But Wesley was meant to be a main character, and this was probably better than him being otherwise jammed into stories.

Bleh, Engineer Argyle and especially Riker are behaving quite unprofessionally toward Kazinski. Even if he is an ass, they are still officers.

Matt
Tue, Oct 12, 2021, 12:49am (UTC -6)

Everyone is overlooking one thing. The reason why the alien slipped up this time is because of his man crush on Wesley. Remember he later reveals that "thought" is the tool he uses to travel at super high speeds.

He was so distracted by Wesleys "special mind" that he lost control of the ship. He was even turned around smiling at Wesley when the mishap occurred.

Lmo
Tue, Nov 23, 2021, 10:52pm (UTC -6)

I think Wesley is a lot less annoying than Counselor Troi. Not Marina Sirtis’ fault, but she consistently has the most inane lines of any other character in this series. At least Wesley has some interesting insights as the episode progresses. Maybe he is too sweet and pure for most people (In junior high we liked kids who are “cool” and snarky) but his personality just never bothered me as it does so many others.

Silly
Mon, Dec 6, 2021, 6:08pm (UTC -6)

WESLEY and WHEATON are ok, it's just the way the character was so often used. In this case, the Traveler is character shilling hard for the character.

If it has been just this episode, it wouldn't have been bad. I must have been tipsy in my last post, but there's nothing really bad here in the sense of Wesley looking smart by making the adults look like idiots, the way it happened in The Naked Now and, especially, Datalore.

In this case, Wesley just happened to be sitting where he could see what was happening to the Traveler, while Riker and the others were focused on Kazinsky. Riker didn't want to hear it because he had no reason to believe Wesley had any useful thing to add.

Riker even admitted to Picard that Wesley tried to tell him. That was all good stuff.

R3
Wed, Apr 6, 2022, 8:03pm (UTC -6)

ehh...mediocre, 2 star rating

Steve
Mon, Feb 20, 2023, 11:54am (UTC -6)

Picard was a real dick for pretty much the entire first season.

Michael Miller
Sat, Mar 11, 2023, 8:28am (UTC -6)

11% of the galaxy charted in only 300 years of space travel? Something seems off there. There are hundreds of billions of stars, even if you explored 1 per second, that's still in the thousands of years, and we all know that even at warp speed it takes them days/weeks to reach other systems. Even with a fleet of 100+ ships exploring all over simultaneously, that seems off.

Also, isn't it weird that it was going to take the Kelvins to go around that same distance in the same amount of time, at warp 11. Max Speed is Warp 9 in TNG.

On top of that, they stated they only went 1 billion light years, which ain't the "outer rim" of the observable universe! The observable universe is around 25 Billion Light Years, with the total width of the entire universe estimated at over 93 Billion Light years, so what they did was equivalent to driving an exit or 2 on a highway in a major city, not leaping to the edge LOL

Gilligan's Starship
Wed, May 17, 2023, 1:19am (UTC -6)

For a first season ep, I rather enjoyed this one. I like the actor that portrayed The Traveler, he was an interesting character & I would've liked to have seen him recur more often--like they did with Q.

Also, I thought the VFX for the "super-warp" effect were pretty cool. It was so different from the standard stuff we've seen over the years, I found it really eye-catching. I thought it worked well with the idea of them entering unknown territory.

Although I enjoyed Wil Wheaton in "Stand By Me", I never could get into his character on TNG. But this one had some funny moments where everyone refers to him as "the boy" and the ribbing he gets from Picard & Riker at the end is hilarious.

And it's interesting to watch Brent Spiner as he grapples with the characterization of Data. He managed to make him more of an "innocent" as the series went on, but in these early eps, he's sometimes kind of CrEePy. And it's pretty dang funny some of the annoyed/perplexed looks he gets from Picard & the crew when he tries to use colloquialisms & slang.

Jason R.
Wed, May 17, 2023, 8:00am (UTC -6)

My fantasy version of this episode is an amalgam with Q Who where the Enterprise meets the Borg in galaxy M87 and eventually (with the Traveller's help) escapes home. Everything else including BOBW remains the same and pretty much all of Borg canon henceforth is erased from existence.

SpaceTime Hole
Sun, May 21, 2023, 12:33am (UTC -6)

Wesley is a welcome part of every episode he’s in.

Except Picard season2.

Projekt Kobra
Fri, Aug 18, 2023, 12:26am (UTC -6)

Cringetacular, like all first season.. but JESUS, Troi is flipping HAWT!!!!!

Michael Miller
Thu, Sep 21, 2023, 11:02am (UTC -6)

What is with this 300 year figure to go between galaxies? The distance between here and the Andromeda Galaxy is only 27 times the width of the Milky Way itself. And we see in almost every episode they are traveling halfway across the galaxy in hours/days at most. So why would it take 3 centuries to go only 27 times that distance??

Jammer's Reviews

Star Trek: The Next Generation