Star Trek: TNG Review - 5x19 The First Duty | Reverse Angle

Wesley is back, and could use a lesson from Worf on growing a spine.
Patreon gets you early access and behind-the-scenes content: / reverseangle
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Sources:
Moore, Ronald D., and Naren Shankar. “The First Duty.” Star Trek: The Next Generation, created by Gene Roddenberry, Season 5, Episode 19, Paramount Television, CBS, 1992.
The X-Files created by Chris Carter.
Teague, Lewis, director. Cujo. Warner Bros. Pictures, 1983.
Simon, Adam, director. Carnosaur. New Horizon Picture Group, 1993.
My Favorite Martian created by John L. Greene.
Star Trek: Voyager created by Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor based on Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry.

[@pacmanrespector9552]

This will always be the origin story of Tom Paris to me.

[@jakeschutz6342]

The story goes that VOY wanted to use Locarno and changed the name to Paris because of royalty payments that would have had to have given to the writer of this episode....so they changed the name to Paris....my head cannon is that he was always Locarno and changed his name due to the notoriety of this incident...

[@siggybuttbrain7026]

@@jakeschutz6342 i thought its cause his character was just unredeemable.

[@Greatermaxim]

@@siggybuttbrain7026 The Borg, Dominion, Romulus, Q. There are far worse people like Fajio and others. He did confess eventually.

[@siggybuttbrain7026]

@@Greatermaxim yeah but it wouldn't have been a good idea to have a character they want people to like to start off on such a bad note.

[@CuShorts]

@@jakeschutz6342 love that

[@MLBeaton]

Carnisaur is gone... but we will always have Paris...

[@rlg1976x]

If flying that formation somehow violated the Prime Directive, they probably would have graduated with honors.

[@charlesvan13]

There's the obvious plot hole. If they successfully performed this maneuver then it would be no secret, and they would be punished for it.

[@john1701q]

But they would still graduate and go down as LEGENDS. Future cadets would view them as rebellious heroes. Maybe the would get a reprimand or a black mark, but it would be worth it. @@charlesvan13

[@3of11]

I find it unrealistic that the image isn’t enough to prove guilt or at least prove obstruction of justice (lying under oath). Enough to catch all of them an expulsion and some time in jail. Also they can do the trek version of “plead the fifth” but that does not get you out of civil punishment. Only criminal punishment. Refusing to testify = automatic expulsion (that’s not a criminal punishment). Matter of fact in civil court I could use your pleading the fifth against you and it will be allowed.

[@Greatermaxim]

Ask Wil Wheaton how to get into Hollywood then nope.

[@dycedargselderbrother5353]

Oh! Now I get how Carnosaur turned into a warp 10 space lizard!

[@halfsourlizard9319]

We need more warp-capable space lizards. 🦎

[@WolfRamAndHart]

Theres an old school animation of that "classic" Voyager episode. Highly recommend.

[@TheRustyGuitarist]

I really liked this episode, thought it was a good break from the normal plots. I thought seeing the academic side of Starfleet was cool. Another great review!

[@allenjones3130]

Jean-Luc's chewing out of Crusher was one of the finest moments in Patrick Stewart's career.

[@QuinnCandless]

Surely the young crew realized they would face disciplinary action if they executed a banned maneuver.

[@BintyMcFrazzles]

Exactly! They were planning to perform and illegal manoeuvre. If Josh hadn't died, and they did end up performing the banned manoeuvre, did they think Starfleet would have approved and congratulated them?

[@dr.juerdotitsgo5119]

@@BintyMcFrazzles I guess the team would be unofficially hailed as badasses by their peers, despite the senior officers's disapproval.

[@italianviking80]

The moment Picard begins his "first duty" lecture, I think of DarkMateria's Picard Song.

[@SweetBearCub]

Captain Jean Luc Picard of the U S S E n t e r p r i s e.

[@marshallhuffer4713]

Robert Duncan McNeill, who played both Locarno and Tom Paris said in a 1997 interview that while the two characters may seem similar, they were actually quite different. He remarked, "Locarno seemed like a nice guy, but deep down he was a bad guy. Tom Paris is an opposite premise in a way. Deep down he's a good guy. He's just made some mistakes." Having had almost a quarter of a century to think about it, McNeill stood by his assessment when he reiterated last year, "I think Locarno was a bad guy who pretended to be a good guy. Deep down inside, he was rotten. In contrast, inside Tom was a good guy who pretended to be a bad guy. He sort of wanted everybody to think he didn't give a damn and that he was a lone wolf, but deep down he wasn't like that."

[@BlueBrainMountainStream]

I like the Nagilum bit. Just blame him....you'd probably be believed.

[@Tim85-y2q]

I honestly don't get why this is generally considered such a strong episode because the central premise is just so ridiculous. Wesley "I'm with Starfleet, we don't lie!" Crusher essentially participates in vehicular homicide and his punishment is to repeat the 8th grade. Ridiculous.

[@3of11]

Agreed. Everyone should have been expelled. Wesley gets 2-5 years for confessing, lacarno takes 10-20 years for negligent homicide for the rest 5-10 as accomplises. But it’s Star Trek. Extras don’t matter.

[@Tim85-y2q]

@@3of11 I don't think that would have worked because they wanted to keep Wesley around but it's a reason not to do the episode in the first place.

[@clearsmashdrop5829]

While I enjoyed this episode I did find it difficult to accept that Wesley and the others didn't get expelled.

[@dycedargselderbrother5353]

The truth becomes malleable when you've got your head up your ass. Part of this episode's appeal is that Wesley is finally put in his place for once.

[@Tim85-y2q]

@@dycedargselderbrother5353 That doesn't really wash to me. Wesley wasn't willing to lie when he was a scared child with his life literally hanging in the balance, but he is to cover up teenaged jackassery? I'm not a fan of Wesley's character development up to this point (to put it mildly), but having done that, they should have committed.

[@ogto]

funniest joke of the video is in the description

[@CentreSwift]

Damn thanks for making me check that. XD

[@goodiefx761]

One thing about this episode that I always wonder... Let's say everything went off without a hitch and at the ceremony they pulled off the maneuver and dazzled everyone. Okay, but isn't the maneuver banned though? Like, shouldn't they have all got in major trouble anyway???

[@reverseangle]

That's a really good point.

[@SBaby]

They would have. But as cadets, they didn't have the maturity to realize that.

[@MichaelBrookham]

Ed Lauter was also on the A-Team.

[@mrscruffy8045]

Having another team member step up at the end is a brilliant idea!

[@stevenreichertart]

I think Wesley had to make that realization himself. This was his story to make a moral decision when caught between Lacarno and Picard.

[@NerdilyDone]

You guys got Carnasaur's motivation wrong. He wasn't so much about saving himself, as he was about saving the team -- it was about loyalty to each other, even more so than loyalty to authority. That's why he took all the blame in the end. It was him being consistent with his loyalty to his team.

[@MLBeaton]

AFTER he lead them astray... He convinced them to do the move... Chain of command is a powerful tool (-Tom-) Carny was to blame!

[@CyndisKrist]

Powerful episode. Picard came down on Wes pretty hard, and he needed it. The youth team didn't have the maturity to realize that performing a dangerous and banned maneuver would've gotten them called on the carpet even if they'd succeeded. The teammate who died was equally responsible for his choice to participate.

[@quincynishihara2572]

Speaking of Wesley being finally potty trained too bad the flight performance was near Saturn and not Uranus……..

[@RichardBejtlich]

IIRC the writers consulted the Air Force Academy to learn how our honor code worked. That’s what I heard anyway. I was a cadet there from 1990-1994 and this episode aired in 1992.

[@jC-kc4si]

Wesley's advanced admittance to star fleet got a cadet killed. Maybe if Wes had more maturity, he'd have the strength of character to oppose Tom Paris' risky stunt.

[@aestusmaris]

I love all the court room episodes of TNG, and this is the second best in my opinion, after Measure of a Man.

[@DblOSmith]

I always thought everyone gave waayyyyyyy too much deference to Wesley. Really? No one on the Enterprise could ever dream of a teenage boy doing something reckless? Has none of them ever driven their parent's 1991 Honda Accord and ran into the garage? .... wait, what was I saying? C-

[@MLBeaton]

We all know Worf drove an Ox-plow or tractor into stuff during his youth in future russia!

[@DblOSmith]

@@MLBeaton We know from DS9, he's headbutted a kid during a soccer match and killed him.

[@MLBeaton]

@@DblOSmith I did not yet know but AWESOME

[@NeilCWCampbell]

I would like the tribunal to ignore my clients ramblings at this time. Until we can have a full evaluation. ;)

[@finenebula]

Are you guys watching this for the first time? I am surprised you didn't joke call Nick... Tom Paris..... so have you not watched Voyager. It is the same actor... different character!

[@wewlad8697]

they did tho

[@CyndisKrist]

I know this is future-military-in-space, but I cringe every time they call that woman "Sir."

[@stpat7614]

My issue is that Wesley only fessed up when Picard gave him an ultimatum. If he has fessed up WITHOUT knowing Picard was going to reveal the truth, then his confession would have been noble. Instead, Wesley has betrayed both Starfleet AND his friends.

[@SBaby]

This episode hits different after you play the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet DLC. Because in that, it's you. You're Wesley Crusher.

[@lefty2007]

I swear this is Tom Paris.

[@bad-people6510]

It's really weird that they had Robert Duncan McNeill play a character in Voyager who is for all intents and purposes the same character as he plays in this episode, up to and including a backstory that is just the events of this episode, but then just made him a different character anyway.

[@1down4upworkshop61]

I was due to a royalties claim ... Voyager writers wanted this character but didn't want to pay the original writer royalties so they just changed the characters back store a bit and called him Tom Paris ...

[@NeilCWCampbell]

Sigh.. This is why we can't have nice things.. :(

[@CyndisKrist]

I am unclear as to whether the members of Nova Squadron were graduating themselves or if they were simply going to perform a demonstration for the class that was graduating. If they were graduating themselves, expulsion wouldn't be a disciplinary option because their education at Starfleet Academy was complete.

[@combcomclrlsr]

Gates McFadden looking hot as ever.

[@halfsourlizard9319]

I mean, something had to not-suck about this snoozer episode.

[@Greatermaxim]

Tagline: We did it anyway.

[@pseudotasuki]

He's Tom Paris. Like… literally. Everything about them is the same, except Paris didn't get expelled.

[@SBaby]

Also Paris eventually became a decent officer, while Locarno went crazy and got his hands on a Genesis Device.

[@marshallhuffer4713]

Instead of "Carnosaur," they should have called him "Proto-Tom Paris."

[@MLBeaton]

No its 100% Tom... His dad just wasnt high enough rank yet to get this overturned... But he does!

[@thegermanspino6186]

bruh carnosauria is a wastebasket group lol

[@mikeluit3027]

Good review. I liked this episode but agree with you guys that Wesley character just isn't likeable. If this was a character I actually liked, I could find this episode floating into the A- range, however since its Wussley Crusher, I have to downgrade it to a B-. I also liked the story and progression of the episode as it involved more character depth, but ugh, the Crushers.

[@Greatermaxim]

What is your ideal character? People who disapprove of Mary Poppins might like Wesley more?

[@mikeluit3027]

@@Greatermaxim Thanks for the comment. I don't think it's about being ideal, as it is with characters I can't relate very well with. The less I can relate, the less I think of them. For the Crusher characters, it may be more about trying too hard to be/sound right all the time. It's always good to learn more and be more sure of things/subjects, but there is always (in some form or another) some residual doubt. This doesn't always seem to reflect the Wesley characters (mostly Wesley).

[@Greatermaxim]

@@mikeluit3027 Why do you and Norbert forget about broadcasting standards? You do not see too many episodes with them in bikinis or a great deal of colorful words. ;)

[@SBaby]

@@mikeluit3027 What kinds of characters do you relate the best with then?

[@manco828]

I will always find a way to throw in 'diamond slot formation' in any random conversation.

[@charlesvan13]

How were they going to keep the maneuver a secret if it were successful?

[@manco828]

They thought their practice version of it was in secret and then they'd perform it at the graduation ceremony so Tom Paris could go out in a blazy of glory.

[@scottfitzpatrick1939]

I do my first duty every morning

[@ludicrousfunone5705]

5:58. And cue more of the Picard Song

[@JonesNate]

The one thing that bothers me in the episode: Picard tells Wesley to tell him what happened, but it's GLARINGLY obvious that Wesley is EXTREMELY nervous about something. Picard, however, doesn't seem to notice this at all, and when Wesley tries to take a deep breath to mentally prepare himself, Picard interrupts that deep breath and starts in on Wesley again. This seems like it goes against Picard's character traits.

[@benjaminbierley2074]

Wouldn't say it's that out of character, just rarely brought to the fore. Picard as a character holds duty above...almost everything. He holds Starfleet ethics and ideals on a pedestal, and when those ethics and ideals are violated he gets PISSED, hence why he comes down hard on Wesley, cause Wesley violated not only Starfleet ethics but in Picard's mind his trust that Wesley would uphold those ethics. Ethically and moralistically it's not the wrong stance, Picard is in the right, and Wesley of all people needed to be told he was dead wrong. But it does show a consistent trait in Picard that only peeks out now and then depending on the circumstances, Starfleet principles mean EVERYTHING to him.

[@SBaby]

@@benjaminbierley2074 It's just too bad that Starfleet often times does not practice what it preaches.

[@whistlerwade]

Sceent of a woman?

[@calderarecords]

Yeh man there's a ton of empaths in the universe but not in this investigation. Should have got the gardener to dig that old Drum head battle Axe fossil out of retirement - she had an empath & would have accused everyone of everything, bringing down starfleet ready for Nagilum to do sick experiments on what causes black humans to die when in single episodes.

[@torridd]

A B? You guys!

[@fullyvictorious]

Great

[@manco828]

Who else thought Picard was an overblown windbag?

[@RobertTLongway]

There is a collection of Star Trek short stories called 7 Deadly Sins and the Lacarno character is in one of them

[@claudemckenzie2398]

Better watch where you walk around the first dooty

[@3dartistguy]

Wesley threw Locarno under the bus like a stool pigeon.

[@SBaby]

Locarno was the commanding officer in that situation. A commanding officer is always supposed to assume responsibility for the actions of their subordinates.

[@mr.a8315]

♥

[@halfsourlizard9319]

There was nothing good about this episode. It had Wesley, it didn't have Tom Skerritt or homo-erotic volleyball scenes, and we didn't even get to see their flying.