Out of Contreks

Back to our regular schedule this week! Ryan and Brady have different reactions to this mid-period Enterprise episode, which bears a lot of similarities to Star Trek VI. Ryan liked it more than Brady did, which is why he spent 10 minutes trying to pause Netflix at the right time to get this episode image.

We're had some scheduling issues, so we moved an episode up to cover the gap. We're hoping to get back to our schedule over the next couple of episodes.

 

In THIS episode, the Borg return once again to Voyager, and Ryan and Brady have mixed feelings about it. We continue to explore the usefulness of the once-fearsome race frequently appearing in the Delta Quadrant, making detours into a strange racquetball sport and the underappreciated Jeri Ryan.

We're in Wallace Shawn territory, folks! For the first time we've featured a Grand Nagus Zek episode on the podcast, we discuss DS9 character development, what the Ferengi mean in the greater context of Star Trek, and take a detour toward the end into how we feel about parenting episodes!

Tom Paris is, like, REALLY interested in the idea of Tuvok cheating on his wife in this one. There's also some Nolanesque time dilation and Tim Russ looking good in a tank top.

Here's an episode that Ryan and Brady thought was about one thing, but then it was actually about something else much more boring and after-school-specially. Still, we gab about the return of a TOS movie actor, how much we like Crusher vs. Picard stories, and that great face Riker is making in the episode image.

The first Lwaxana Troi episode Ryan and Brady discuss is also probably her best! We talk about this great entry in TNG, how it relates to the culture of productivity in the United States, and why Lwaxana is one of the few Star Trek guest stars who can actually carry an episode. We also briefly discuss what is up with the weird desk accoutrement of the guy in the episode image.

Ryan and Brady dig into this classic Star Trek episode to judge if it's worth basing a movie on. We find some pretty retrograde views on women (though certainly not the worst we've seen from the original series) and a pretty rockin' performance from Ricardo Montalban. Throw in a couple of really good scenes from Bones and Uhura and one very strange, (accidentally?) resonant rumination on how humanity lionizes its greatest killers, and you have a solid outing on your hands. Hopefully you think that about our episode, too.

Ryan and Brady cover the sixth season finale of Voyager, and... they think they might be starting to understand a lot of the complaints people have about Voyager, folks. To distract themselves, they also discuss bat'leths of the mind, Borg anatomy and #JusticeForHarryKim. And check out that episode image! Pretty gross for Star Trek, huh?

It's our 50th episode, and we've got something special for you: Rather than watch a random Star Trek episode, we've watched a random Star Trek movie instead! But is Wrath of Khan really the best Star Trek movie of all time, or does that ending leave a little something to be desired? There's some disagreement on this point, but one thing is certain: Ricardo Montalban was absolutely RIPPED.

Watching this very early Voyager episode, Ryan and Brady discuss one of the weirdest ethical dilemmas Star Trek has ever posed: Is it OK to steal a man's lungs if he stole them from you first? Also discussed: The universality of chefs hats, the vagaries of the universal translator, and Neelix's sickbay mobile.