"Should Tasha Have Appeared at Data's Death?" and Other Questions | Trek, Actually Comment Responses

[@stevenjlovelace]

Regarding your responses to people saying you're too "woke", I'm reminded of a Kurt Cobain quote: "I would like to get rid of the homophobes, sexists, and racists in our audience. I know they're out there and it really bothers me."

[@excrono]

We need to be woke to all of the relevant things that are destroying our society and recognize the root cause. How many groups are suffering but everyone is oblivious to, right now? They are all related, different theaters of the same conflict. When we fixate on just one, as a social justice cause of the moment, it enables those in power to divide and conquer, because they see the big picture and are playing the long game. Kurt was on to this.

[@searchingfororion]

I know this is old but I approve. Also I can't remember the exact wording but I remember Cobain also had to quote saying something along the lines of how he wasn't gay but sometimes he where he was so it could piss off the homophobes more.

[@kathrinredfeather3372]

Kurt hated bigots and I can't understand how bigots can be fans of Kurt and Nirvana. Same as bigoted trek "fans".

[@Parker8752]

Oh, god, on the note of doctors having to threaten people to take time off, I'm suddenly reminded of the TOS episode Shore Leave, where McCoy has to get Spock to get Kirk to take a break. Spock then talks to kirk about how a member of the crew is refusing to take shore leave, but they clearly need a rest, and their fatigue is a danger to the ship. After Kirk issues an order that this crewmember is to take shore leave, he then asks who it is, at which point Spock replies "James Kirk."

[@DaneFalco]

If Tasha should be there, then Lal also should be there.

[@christoph.schneider]

Damn, your comment hit enough to make a grown man cry...

[@MartinPittBradley]

That would have made a ton of sense. Lal, Soong, maybe Juliana Tainer, probably Lor and maybe B4. Whoever in his family who has passed on.

[@mattgelfer]

@@MartinPittBradley that’s an excellent point. Like if his family kind of wordlessly surrounded him. If done well that might have been a really moving moment.

[@Futt.Buckerson]

And if Lal was there, Spot should have been there.

[@StarkRG]

Ahh, but Lal _was_ there as Data had downloaded all her memories and experiences and integrated them into his own neural net. Assuming that was the real Data (as the show indicates he is), then Lal was there as well.

[@OpinionsNoOneCaresAbout]

I don't know why this didn't occur to me until now, and not while watching the video about it, but...if Starfleet had required officers to submit to a mental and psychological screening before returning to duty after a traumatic experience, it would have not only made more sense, but would have given Counselor Troi a greater role to play and helped to improve her character. Maybe she would have been promoted to Commander sooner and fully earned it.

[@robertt9342]

Off screen head canon addition complete.

[@Crazael]

5:59 I always kinda felt that the whole "Data has no emotions" thing was only true because the show kept insisting it was. Sure, Data doesn't feel emotions in the same way as, say, Picard, but he does feel them. Too many episodes make that apparent for it to not be true.

[@grumpyotter]

Remember Data's definition of friendship? Sniff, sniff.

[@drawingsticks5333]

Same!

[@caihah.1404]

It's what happens when writers try to write something completely outside their experience. Same reason why so many "genius" characters act like complete imbeciles.

[@lf2208]

That’s the beauty of the Data character, I guess. If he recognizes (in his programming) that you have insulted him, and decides (through his programming) to take appropriate behavioural response to it - doesn’t that mean in a certain way that he *feels* insulted? I mean our own brains can be seen as a biological ruleset for how we respond to things. If we make a machine that has the same responses to the same situations, why shouldn’t we see it as something as much “alive” as we are?

[@kokushi629]

Having so many lives I bet Dax would have a legendary swearing vocabulary... Also I have a video suggestion.. If you had to crew your own Starfleet ship but can use any Star Trek character from any series to do so who would you have in each position & why?

[@edwardphilibin3151]

Especially with the last previous host being Curzon, who spent YEARS hanging around Klingons.

[@polarknight5376]

Dax could probably swear so well, it would have an Andorian calling for an Ushaan on behalf of a Vulcan it insulted. "It" is the correct pronoun for unjoined symbionts, right? Not they?

[@salenstormwing]

28:00 Sisko took 3 years off to deal with his wife's death... And sometime in the middle of that "time off", he decided "You know what, I'm gunna make a ship that can punch the Borg in their stupid assimilated faces so hard every one of them will feel it" and made the Defiant. So obviously grieving for his wife was a part-time job during a decent portion of that "time off".

[@bradbucknell3636]

Knowing Sisko, that makes a lot of sense.

[@kaitlyn__L]

He didn’t take time off from work, he moved to take a job stationed on Earth working at the shipyards all around the solar system. He was in charge of constructing orbital habitats and run-of-the-mill ships too.

[@KayleighBourquin]

I just love when you get comments telling you to take out or tone down your politics, your response to them is always pure gold! Please never ever take your politics out of your videos, if only just to piss those fools off some more.

[@stillmagic714]

My absolute favorite and the most appropriate response.

[@PaulTheadra]

Always gold content

[@TheGerkuman]

Well said Kay :)

[@markgoggin2014]

B’lana Tores from voyager would make a great one for a profanity laced tirade. Her tryingto get something to work at the 11th hour and wacking on something with a hyperspaner

[@DaemonKeido]

That should be a given for every Chief Engineer. I've worked on cars and small engine repair with my dad for years and one thing that is a given when you are fixing something is that something isn't doing what it should and it pisses you the fuck off.

[@thescifiZipacna]

With the example of "Captain's Holiday" invoked, I want to note how Riker's main concern is "The captain needs to get his wick dipped."

[@StarkRG]

Want to make it even better? Troi was the first to suggest to Riker that he go on vacation, but it was Crusher who first approached him about the idea. Yeah, maybe Risa was all Riker's idea, but Riker mentions Risa on the bridge, in the presense of Troi who seems to fully support the idea (Worf seems less enthusiastic), and her telepathic connection to Riker, not to mention years of knowing the guy, suggests she knows full well what he has in mind. Then there's Troi's sly smile when Riker requests Picard bring him a Horgon. Troi, who will have been to Risa with Riker on numerous occasions, should know _EXACTLY_ what a horgon is, what it means, and what path Riker is sending Picard down (well, ok, so she doesn't know exactly where that path led, but it did go via the route Riker had in mind). Riker might have been the one saying the things, but I think at least he and Troi have had several in-depth discussions about sending Picard to Risa. At some point in those discussions, one of them will have brought up the question of the last time Picard got some. The question is, which of them brought it up?

[@robertt9342]

Not sure why people would think betazeds are prudes or why this aspect wouldn’t be considered part of someone’s mental health.

[@christopherdavis3424]

Army vet here. Never heard anyone ever use “frag” as a substitute f-word. Also, side note, my favorite substitute f-word from any sci-fi show is “frell” from Farscape.

[@razgrizdefias]

Please correct me if I am wrong but wouldn't frag be a substitute for kill if it was used at all?

[@BubberTubber]

Farscape is the best!

[@DrTssha]

@@richardarriaga6271 And really, their delivery just totally sells it. I can still hear Starbuck angrily go after Apollo saying "Are you fracking her?".

[@Firebatx36]

"There are four lights" quality of delivery accepted.

[@DaarthNox]

I was having a really rough start to my morning, I suffer from PTSD and anxiety and these comment videos really make my laugh and help me through my dark times. Thank you for all you have done for me, keep up the great work.

[@happyninja42]

For me, the question of whether an A.I. character is genuinely alive or just simulating emotions/identity, usually comes down to something I heard years ago by a robotics expert. I'm paraphrasing but, the 2 points they brought up were 1. whether or not the A.I. shows any agency when organics AREN'T around, and thus it has no immediate purpose to fulfill. (3PO muttering to himself in the desert, cursing R2D2 for "tricking him to go the wrong way" for example. Or hiding to try and avoid being found, and thus avoid punishment by Luke when R2 runs away) and 2. Engaging in activities that serve no function towards their purpose. The EMH deciding to simulate a family to see what it's like. Data doing things like trying to learn how to paint, or understand why people say a watched pot never boils. Those activities serve no purpose towards their..well...purpose as an A.I., and thus, are simply a reflection of their personal desire to just learn and know things. That's my usual rule of thumb when trying to decide if a synthetic being in a show is sentient or not. It's not perfect of course, and can be fuzzy in things like Star Wars, where some of the droids seem to be simple automatons, and others are fully realized individuals. But as a first test, I think it works pretty well. Also, if the writers and director clearly frame the events of the character with the intent to humanize them to the audience, and make us feel sad when they are hurt, and happy when they succeed, that's a good indication that, at least in the script, they probably want us to consider them to be sentient.

[@kaitlyn__L]

That’s very well said

[@alexmuenster2102]

>>or understand why people say a watched pot never boils

[@Ragnarok345]

Those are a really good way to define it, for sure! My go-to has always been Samantha Carter’s definition for a life form, her three rules (plus one that I forget where I got it…may even have been Trek itself?). I like to use these because they don’t just determine whether a _machine_ is alive, they determine whether _anything_ is alive, including life forms we have no knowledge or understanding of, or previously thought impossible. Such as clouds of space gas, or crystalline life forms. 1. Intelligence. The Doctor and Data both certainly have that, in great abundance. 2. Self Awareness. The Doctor obviously has this, and the point was made heavily in Measure of a Man that Data certainly does too. 3. Fear of Death (Or at least desire for continued survival). The Doctor demonstrates this many times. Data…well, the entire _premise_ of Measure of a Man is built around this very trait of his. 4. Ability to reproduce, to propagate the species. Doesn’t have to be sexually, just has to _happen._ The Doctor _could_ code another AI, another hologram, for instance, if he had the knowledge and training to do so. He could make a new intelligence completely separate from himself. And Data, of course, made Lal. She may have ultimately failed, and Data never tried again because he didn’t know how to make it work, and the Doctor _didn’t_ know how to make an AI, so you could claim that neither of them could reproduce. But take humans for example: if you found an adult human that didn’t know how to have sex or that it was what produced offspring, that wouldn’t mean they _couldn’t_ do so, it wouldn’t mean they were _physiologically incapable_ of it, and that lack of knowledge certainly wouldn’t disqualify that human being as a life form. By any and every definition of the term I have ever heard, Data, the Doctor, the androids from Detroit: Become Human, and so many others across media are completely, beautifully, wonderfully _alive._ I wholeheartedly believe that, and I always have, since I’ve been able to understand these concepts. And many times it truly defies my comprehension whenever I see people that don’t understand that. Because to me, it’s not just unarguable, it’s also just…so clear. So obvious. They’re alive. They just… _are._ Of course they are.

[@donedennison9237]

The EMH had a personality foisted upon him by his creator. I suppose Sung's experience with Lor lead him to think that was a less good idea. In a way I see EMH as developing due to necessity and the influence of Kes. The other EMHs had the disadvantage of lack of pressure to adapt. That reminds me of the genetically pure people episode. The implication that perfection leads to complacency is a deeply intriguing philosophical stance.

[@Stephen-Fox]

I do like that the Mark 2 was "This is a great idea, really useful. But oh my god why the hell did we let Zimmerman design the personality" Not so keen on how they treated the previous existing EMH's considering - even without knowing about Voyager's EMH at the time - how holograms of people in Trek all seem to be capable of developing self-awareness if they're left on for too long without having their instances reset - IIRC it happened with DS9's jazz singer as well? - and _someone_ in the Trek universe probably should study that. Also... What does that say about the ship computers that are running the holodecks and holosuites?

[@Rigel7WasAlreadyUsed]

Spock: Captain, I have heard what I believe to be a *moving* piece of music. Kirk: Oh. Spock? You? Moved... moved by. Music? What... song! Might. That be? Spock: Fuckin' "Heaven" by Bryan Adams, man.

[@RapidCityJM]

Favorite quote of all time: Delenn: "Abso-fragging-lutely damn it!"

[@admanios]

I thought Kirk and Spock's discussion on the profanity of the '80s was a cute little commentary on Beverly Hills Cop, which was one of Paramount's biggest hits at the time, and, thanks to Eddie Murphy's performance, absolutely *drenched* in four-letter words.

[@Madhouse_Media]

And Eddie Murphy was almost in IV. I'm sure they'd have let him have at least one colorful metaphor.

[@rosswieloch1115]

Commander Sisko wasn't on the front lines after Wolf 359 until being assigned to DS9 but was he really getting away from work to deal with the death of Jennifer? From the lore I've seen Sisko was leading up the development of the Defiant. So was he taking time off of a stressful job or was he diving head first into work to get revenge by building the Borg-Basher 9000?

[@DoctorWhom]

I guess it depends on how The Sisko managed his time. Was he working 9-5 or the space age equivalent, or alternatively dodging calls from Jake while being in the office nearly 24/7?

[@robertt9342]

My canon is the tv shows, and they never mention it. I doubt he’d have anything to do with starship development and in the show it would appear that the defiant was relatively a new ship to him.

[@seaconfused]

Sisko didn't took time out exactly, he was at Utopia Planitia building Defiant!

[@jonathancrosby1583]

Even if correct that is a far lighter duty load than most get

[@ExploringFate]

21:53 I may be wrong but I from what I recall TNG (The Wounded) was setting the background for DS9 even though it wasn't in production yet but they already had Colm Meaney in mind for DS9 but wasn't sure what role he'll play. But Marc Alaimo performance in this episode is what won him his role as Gul Dukat.

[@KerbyKlay]

My favorite part of comment response videos, complaints over Steve's politics getting slapped down. Slow claps, every time.

[@sunyavadin]

On the swearing - I think you need to go all in for the suspension of disbelief to work. If you're gonna use substitute words like that, you need to make up more stuff to support it. Like, you can't just have everyone talking in perfect English and then swap out those words specifically. You need to make it part of a whole dialect that people use in general conversation, like the Belters in The Expanse.

[@shawarden]

At least the belters were wholly multicultural to properly justify the linguistic fusion. Though The Expanse also didn't even need to try to make up new swear words, courtesy of Madam Potty Mouth.

[@DavidCDrake]

LOL! Steve, I love all your responses to people who tell you to "keep your politics out of your videos," but this one takes the cake: 32:31 Muah (chef's kiss)! Perfection!

[@Zurpanik]

This is why I like Steve so much -- he talks about all of it and reflects with us. How amazing is Star Trek that we can use it to talk about basically everything!

[@rafaelnunes1039]

Remember Chekov on Star Trek II, he had part of his brain eaten and was controlled by the Khan, almost committing suicide in the end, then he goes back to the bridge, as if everything he went through was a big problem.

[@DaemonKeido]

Well Chekov got killed a few times before that so he might not be the best example of that.

[@alexmuenster2102]

>>then he goes back to the bridge

[@lukeitaliano8841]

Steve, I've enjoyed your videos for years now. You and I have VERY different politics. I'm a conservative Christian (who, incidentally, didn't vote for Trump either time). Yet, your Star Trek opinions I find not just entertaining, but often agreeable. It boggles my mind when people tell you to keep your politics to yourself. I mean, seriously, if someone doesn't like it, go watch a different video. There might be one or two other options on KZbin. Maybe. This is your channel. Go ahead. Say things I disagree with. Believe it or not, I won't crumble into silicate matter. I'll continue to disagree with you on a number of matters and still enjoy your Star Trek videos. Keep making them, man. I appreciate the hard work you put into them!

[@johnfairhurstReviews]

Re the Chinese in Firefly, the schools are run in a (westernised view of an) oriental style as seen in flashbacks from River's childhood. Firefly operates amongst the outcasts, pretty much, of that society, which has become the home of those of Western descent (the Tamms were fairly high caste before they did a runner)

[@georgem1874]

"Get your progressive politics out of star trek" Me: *Looks at basically all of Rodenberry era Trek* Um, what? You can like or not like new trek stuff, but the idea that it being "woke" is new is laughable.

[@lorensims4846]

When "Encounter at Farpoint" was first broadcast I taped it and watched it over and over the next week because it was the very first new Star Trek we had had in many, many years. One thing I noticed was that Tasha Yar and Data were practically bookends throughout the episode. Where you saw one, you usually saw the other, usually on the other side of the screen. Absolutely she should have been there at the end, even if it was just in Data's mind.

[@spacepiratecaptainrush1237]

I feel like O'Brian deserves to say "Shite" at just about every opportunity.

[@kaitlyn__L]

👍

[@elizabethslayton3534]

I appreciate that you read your comments

[@MultiMackD]

Few thoughts: Star Trek 4 if all swearing was permitted, I'll just leave it at that The scene with Kirk and the Commodore in "Court Martial" gave me unsettling deja vu with modern US PD's

[@realzico]

Just discovered your channel. Thnx for this, now I can listen to someone else just talking about Trek theories, doing it all by myself in my head became tiresome and one sided

[@st.clairmcintyre6642]

I myself don't curse, but I think that sometimes it's appropriate. Like at the end of "City On The Edge Of Forever" when Kirk says, "Let's get the Hell out of here."

[@michaeldean1934]

Steve, I want to thank you. You have given me a valuable insight. I, too, deal with trauma in my life by focusing on work. I am a teacher....in Oklahoma. The past year and a half has been hell. Your comments have made me realize that part of my problem is that a significant coping mechanism is gone.....my work IS the source of my stress. Last year students did not distance or wear masks (properly) unless there was teacher around enforcing it. This year our state government is not allowing schools to require masks or quarantine those exposed. Rather than getting away from the trauma, going to work just focuses me on it. Now I know....and knowing is half the battle.

[@KrooTon]

Since coming across your videos I have absolutely loved how unapologetically you have your views in your videos. And I've learned an incredible amount about Trek shows I thought I knew well. Cheers!

[@matthewblanchard9805]

The only way I could see doing a Tasha reference for TNG completists without going out of your way to establish Tasha would be to have a shot of Data activating his memorial device and watching Season 1 Tasha's final words in a wide shot.

[@chadwelborn215]

Perhaps a Panting of Tasha Picard has hanging up.The painting was painted by Data of course.The painting could then spark conversation about why Data painted it.

[@albineigengrau3212]

I'm kinda sad Picard gave up on his "merde" from the first season of TNG. I would have enjoyed him calling Q "cul" every time he showed up.

[@borkabrak]

I think it would be a pretty funny running joke for Picard to refer to Cardassian leaders as "Cul" instead of "Gul", with no explanation, just a joke for those who would notice.

[@f0rth3l0v30fchr15t]

In my headcanon, at every faceplam, Picard is giving a sotto voce "oh for *fucks* sake"

[@DaemonKeido]

Or possibly the French equivalent of that since he does occasionally remind us he's French.

[@OpinionsNoOneCaresAbout]

Maybe I'm just hung up on this scene, but...Picard channeling his inner Samuel L. Jackson at Gul Madred. "THERE! ARE! FOUR! MOTHERFUCKING! LIGHTS!!!"

[@jamesleonardpanes9915]

But Patrick Stewart is an actor of such talent that he does not need to use a stream of four letter words to get the point across.

[@verlorenModus]

Fragging is the deliberate killing or attempted killing by a soldier of a fellow soldier, usually a superior officer or non-commissioned officer (NCO). The word was coined by U.S. military personnel during the Vietnam War, when such killings were most often attempted with a fragmentation grenade. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fragging

[@NikolaHoward]

I love being here. I love your thoughts, all of those you choose to share with us. Been here since you were on about 25K subs. It gives me a whoile new perspective on a show I love, ad little side trips into other shows, so I know to go check those out, and also as an aside, US poltics (As I'm in the UIK) I wish I had the funds to Patronise you and your work. *sigh* it will come I'm sure.

[@stewblare2190]

i think you made the right call on the jokie-jokes.

[@lilithcal]

Here’s one for you. If Polaski thought of Data as a thing rather than a thinking being, what would she have thought of the EMH considering it’s a replacement for her job.

[@nybble]

My favorite Twilight Zone episode "Third From the Sun" was really guilty of the parallel earth trope :) But it's okay, cause it's a great episode.

[@shibolinemress8913]

Totally off topic, but I love that it (and other TZ eps) reuses the C-57D cruiser from Forbidden Planet. Then again, maybe not so off topic because they probably did that to save money too, not thinking that this old lady would still be geeking out about it 50-odd years later! 😁

[@FirestormMk3]

Oh my God, asexuality is almost always either a "broken" person from trauma or is aro/ace and I never saw that with Q. I definitely looked at Odo that way but didn't see it with Q. As someone who is asexual but not aromantic I love this, you don't see it anywhere.

[@excrono]

Being aromatic but not asexual is the most stigmatized end of the Aro spectrum of all, speaking from personal experience. Society considers that orientation, desiring sex without the relationships to earn it (regardless of how toxic or abusive they are) as cheating in the terrible game of relationships we’ve made for ourselves. Consider what the concept of paying for that evokes in many people.

[@kirok2011]

@steve Shives Thank you for commenting on my inquiry

[@screamingtongue]

That Avengers and Bucky thing kind of sounds like making a Marvel version of Teen Titans GO!

[@WFierce]

Sounds more like a Marvel version of The Brave and the Bold to me.

[@me-nah3343]

Gosh, your low effort is always highly enjoyable :)

[@creepyunicornwithlazers3594]

"I didn't know you were that close". OMFG I can never ever unhear it now

[@johnquiett1085]

Perfect delivery of "4 lights". Thank you sir.

[@Purple_Lilith]

Your low effort vids are quite entertaining.

[@theillusionofjustice1250]

Ok here’s an idea: at the end of each traumatic episode, Starfleet dispatches a team of Vulcans to make the crew…. Forget 😉

[@alexmuenster2102]

>>Vulcans to make the crew…. Forget

[@stevenjlovelace]

Thanks for reading my comment about O'Brien as a union organizer. I wonder if Rick Berman would have had a problem with DS9 showing that Starfleet was unionized.

[@Kleion_RFB]

As someone who needs the captions to follow along with these videos, there's something that makes me laugh about the how Steve is on a diatribe about how important maintaining the usages of "fuck" versus made-up sci-fi terms, and every time "fuck" is uttered, KZbin feels the need to replace it with "[___]" in the captions. It's capable of recognizing "frak" though, which is not censored.

[@VlogMN]

At 5:20 To quote the EMH and the EMH Mark 2 in the Voyager episode "Message in a Bottle" "Stop breathing down my neck!" "My breathing is merely a simulation." "So is my neck, stop it anyway!"

[@sinswhisper9588]

i LOVE these videos ... i look forward to the Commenter Response vids every month

[@Closer2Zero]

The part about “you will never have time to stop and catch your breath“ is honestly something I struggle and deal with in real life. That life is always moving and I’m always struggling to tread water, and I never have the time to rest and catch my breath and get myself back to center

[@travisgames6608]

I have a question, or request. Idk if you've done one already, a video comparing the chief engineers of each Trek series. Cause on the second viewing of TNG.. Jeez.. Geordi kinda sucks. All of his estimates on his repairs takes 8+hrs. I know it was to add tension, yet still.

[@AltraWave7]

The fact that Steve takes the time to tell the people that don't like his politics to F off on a somewhat regular basis is one of the many reasons I love this channel, it's nice to see someone not afraid of loosing viewers or trying to twist themselves into knots to appeal to as broad an audience as possible.

[@emmamacfarlane8137]

‘The closest thing he would have to a son is dead’ Well, his actual biological son just went off and got godlike powers but we don’t acknowledge that familial connection. I also wonder if the toxic work culture is FOMO. I mean, on the one hand you should take a day off… but you might miss ‘we just saw a black hole forming’ and I can empathise.

[@polarknight5376]

In regards to the work culture, considering that starfleet is basically a hobby to these people; they don't get paid, they can leave at basically any time, the only reward for your work is staying on the ship, etc, yeah that makes sense. The reason they're in starfleet is because it's fun for them. It's not a job, it's fun, so they want to get back to it asap, like one would want to get back to video games, or D&D, or hiking. Only in the case of Starfleet, if you're dealing with trauma and not at your usual level, rather than risking a few failed WOW raids, or risking getting a PC killed, or risking getting lost on the trail for a few hours, you're risking the lives of thousands or maybe even millions of people.

[@mikeddh2018]

The response starting at 32:44 is my favorite part

[@kelleighohara83]

Can we please have a gif of Steve indignantly saying "Kiss my whole entire ass"? 😆😆😆

[@andrewbesso4257]

As I recall, the "made the trains run on time" thing is a reference to Mussolini. He got the trains to run on time by changing the schedules to match what the trains were actually doing.

[@chrisblake4198]

I think the next time you do this, you should have a sub come in and read your hastily written notes while you're on vacation. A great way to add another layer to the 'not actually' meta

[@nikoteardrop4904]

Re: the B5 scene in question, if they just had to have Garibaldi swear, he could've just said "give me the damn data crystal". It certainly wouldn't have had the impact of an f-bomb, but at least it wouldn't have been baby-talk.

[@threeofeight197]

The EMH software is built to interface with Starfleet technology and thus probably has the appropriate security protocols built into his program. With data he is a completely separate technology with no Starfleet control built in. Data is dangerous, and with what happens they have to create new security protocols to keep him from taking over the ship. However, I’m pretty sure if he wanted to he could hack those as well. It’s always better to have that dangerous person on your team than to not have them.

[@Wimpoman]

"Red a-fucking-lert, all fucking hands to battle stations. Captain Picard to the fucking bridge please." - Riker, any random episode.

[@MahraiZiller]

That scene with Sisko beating up Garak in "the pale moonlight" wouldn't have worked for me as well if it involved swearing. It was kind of like when your parents or teachers or other adults wouldn't shout at you as a kid, but would say "I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed", but if they did that while kicking you around the room. Yes, the scene involved graphic violence, but that only darkened the scene for me - in the good sense of that term. If someone's beating the shit out of you out of anger and yet have the self-restraint not to swear, that's going to be some fucked up shit to face. "You've pissed me off so much that I will turn to violence before I turn to profanity." It's one of Sisko's darkest moments, and for me his constant vigilance against cursing juxtaposed with his utter willingness to be violent in that moment, is what made that scene terrifying. If he had said "get the fuck up", it wouldn't have had the same effect. Granted, I think it wasn't a choice based on that idea in the script writing process. They just couldn't swear on tv. But with that restriction in place and how they dealt with it, it made a more horrifying scene than if they had full permission to swear. It would have made Sisko more relatable and his actions more excusable, because he's obviously under stress and can't control himself. Instead, the scene involved someone who evidently COULD control himself but chose not to. As you well know, sometimes the best scenes are accidental and come out of proscriptions placed on the writing and production teams (I know you appreciate a good bottle episode, for example). There are times when putting restrictions on writers and production teams can inadvertently make the story even better. This is one of them. I don''t agree with not letting people swear on tv - especially when graphic violence is apparently ok - and I don't think the writers thought much about it at the time other than "how can we shoot this scene without swear words?" But what they came up with, by accident, was so fucking menacing. Even more so than if they were allowed to write swear words into the script. We're watching Sisko be both his most physically aggressive and most passive aggressive. It's like watching the British Empire in action. His inability to swear only adds to the trauma of the scene. Again, I'm sure that wasn't intended, but for me it is how it came across. It made the scene - and the characters of - and relationship between - Sisko and Garak more stark and more interesting and more full. Sometimes when it comes to swearing, less is more.

[@LordBloodraven]

I work in HR and the best resource we have is an "unnamed" paid-time-off that is made available for any of our employees when they suffer a physical or emotional trauma. Technically, it's called bereavement leave, but considering some people suffering from emotional trauma might be averse to it simply because of the name, my department deliberately doesn't name it with the other staff. It's important that I give my coworkers what they need, even if I'm not calling it something they dislike.

[@kaitlyn__L]

I love that, being mindful of reactions to the name.

[@thegrayshaws]

I agree with your decision to stretch what happened for the jokes. Your jokes about the dumb kid that would apparently eat anything was definitely the funniest part of that video. :)

[@DarthLocutus0]

On the subject of spicing up some lines with cursing... Imagine the scene between Picard and Lily in "First Contact" with some more colorful dialogue. Or Data going off on someone in "Generations" after he first gets the Emotion Chip.

[@jp12x]

"So it took 45 minutes to say episodic TV sucks?" "Uh, no." *Makes a poop face* LOL, so funny. EDIT: One note: I think "gorram" on Firefly is used exactly as intended. It is not a substitute for a swear due to TV but as a substitute for swearing for the character. You might consider the pastiche of "old-timey" and "western" words characters use. Gorram fits right in with sufferrin suckatash. Also, Jayne, who uses Gorram most, is a bit of a big kid and seems to have had a strict upbringing, making the use of a "swearish" word a character choice. Great video!

[@standroid2406]

"I don't need ya, I don't want ya" 👏👏👏👏👏

[@boxybrown6900]

A comment response! Love these!!

[@BK4LF1]

"Kiss my whole" I'm glad I found this channel.

[@dcHAUSdesign]

Good job on the “4 lights” bit

[@tasoth]

Really thought my comment on Starfleet's negligence towards civilians on board their ships would of made the cut.

[@jamesmorris9130]

Not to mention that Troi is a freaking empath "Gee, Picard, I didn't know you felt that way about your family." Then why are you here? Troi has one job on the show, knowing how people feel.

[@grumpyveterannewsservice8605]

I'm a doctor, not a lightbulb.

[@joearnold6881]

When data got his emotion chip, and started having (positive) emotions… do you think he felt love for Tasha? Like, it’s a weird question. Their whole relationship was before he had any idea what love felt like. Can love be retroactive, or would he only feel more reflective emotions, like nostalgia or wistfulness?

[@SamuelGrahamDoesTCGs]

B'Elanna Torres strikes me as another who could let rip with solid "colorful metaphor" blast.

[@jenniferwilliams9612]

One episode that is a great example of “censored” profanity in DS9 is the episode, “looking for Par’MaH in all the wrong places” where, when O’Brien is massaging Kira, and telling her about his mother, and says some thing to effect of, “yeah, but my mother didn’t swear in Bajoran,” meaning that Kira can swear a blue streak in her native tongue. Also, I am pretty sure that the Klingon word “Pa’TaQ” is profane. There was also that TNG episode, where Picard greets a Klingon, says some Klingon somethingorother, and the Klingon responds with, “you swear well in Klingon.” They let profanity into Golden Age Star Trek, if they disguise it as made up languages.

[@kaitlyn__L]

I keep bringing this up in comments but, in Voyager, da Vinci literally says “what the fuck?” when his invention breaks down. I love it. Sailed right through the execs as “some random Italian speech”. Much like Picard’s merde.

[@visionaryventures12]

24:13 That line always seemed stilted to me. Glad you pointed it out.

[@flamechick6]

I was here originally for the atheism and came back for the Star Trek 🤣🙌 new Trek nerd here! I've watched most of the new series (behind on "The Lower Decks") my first and favorite series is Deep Space Nine 🙌

[@Merrick]

In with the first obligatory "these are much better than your regular videos"

[@justinaclayburn2248]

I would cancel any vacation to Raisa the moment I discovered Star Fleet officers were on leave there. 😂🤣

[@volodyanarchist]

Warf would not have problems on Raisa. He would make problems on Raisa.

[@yoduh4077]

Ha, gotta love the FNGs that think they can boss Steve around regarding politics.

[@js3599]

When anybody talks about not going all the way when swearing, it always reminds me of a story my mother always told me about when she was young, her younger sister, (obviously, my aunt) told my grandparents that she was running away because she was tired of being treated like a child, and my grandmother said OK, just remember you can't cross the street. So my aunt walked around the block, carrying her suitcase, for nearly 4 hours until she finally came in tired, hungry, needing to use the bathroom, and desperately trying to ignore the fact that my grandparents and the whole neighborhood could see her walking in circles over and over again, not to mention it was also getting dark. The neighbors never let her live that down. The point is, my aunt failed to prove herself being an 8 year old adult spectacularly, not to mention publicly, when she still could not bring herself to cross the street without adult supervision only proved how much growing up she still had to do. Not saying what you mean to say proves the same point. I admit, I do intentionally try not to swear in front of certain people, including children and in KZbin posts, but I usually end up looking like an idiot when I do unless I had planned ahead what exactly I was going to say. That is hard to do in the heat of the moment. When your p***ed off, F**K YOU has far more value then FRAG YOU. If your not upset enough to say what you really mean, is it really worth saying at all? Guess what, the joke is on you. If all you can give is a FRAG, why in hell should anyone else give a F**k? Btw, I intentionally chose tho use *s instead of the actual words to demonstrate my point while still avoiding swearing in KZbin posts.

[@toonezon4836]

so there's slept with his my thought about Picards "nephew" rene, he's not his nephew, he's his son. that's right, he spept with his sister-inlaw on a trip back to earth, its why he and his brother didnt talk for so long. also the proof is right there, he's the spitting image of jean-luc, just look at the episode Rascles.

[@kaitlyn__L]

Bringing Rascals into the reasoning is wonderful

[@RemyMenari]

You know what gets me way more than swear word substitutes and throws me into a saturday morning cartoon mindset? The fact that whenever the klingon swords came out they'd only in the rarest of rare occassions draw blood. I suppose it was a combination of ratings and also production cost and difficulty since obviously making it look like wounds occur and all is more costly than post-producing in a phaser beam. Kirk-fisticuffs-antics is one thing, as is the good old silly fistlock double punch, but I always found myself having a hard time believing in any intensity of any melee in the TNG to VOY era of Trek. The big battle and brawl on Way of the Warrior was ambitious for its time on a TV show like this that had to devote a lot of its budget elsewhere, but the disparity between the space battle FX side of it and then the good old Star Trek stageplay battle choreography where people swing rubber weapons at one another I always found extremely jarring.

[@ilanbachar3162]

To the comment from the army nurse and your reply - well, I served as a combat medic (in another army, but theyre all the same) and honestly its not so much a "all hands needed on deck" approach (and as a peace time military durinh TNG stsr fleet can afford a lot), but we were told that first care for a traumatized comrade is to get them back on job. The first treatment of combat trauma (is that what you call shell shock in english ) is get them back to work, to feel normal, to feel compitent and able. So in a lot of those examples getting back to work IS the treatment.

[@ilanbachar3162]

Also, in a more meta approach, obviously star trek is about telling a story, and you cant tell the same story after each adventure. I think TNG dealt with trauma after Picard most extreme trauma - having his Self violated by the borg and the guilt for thousand of deads. They dedicated a whole episode to it . But sonce they cant keep telling that same story again and again - that time would have to stand in for all the times

[@lordofsparks]

I hadn't thought about it, but having Tasha and her death as a background element throughout Picard season 1 would have been smarter than some of the choices they made. Tasha being there as Data's memory clone dies would have been... a choice. Showing that he was moving from techno heaven to like regular heaven, I guess? Personally I would of had Q there as a plot hook for season 2 if I was going that way. But the whole series would have been stronger if they had Picard find and turn on Data's old holopicture of Tasha when he was checking his storage shed, and then take it with him and just have it is a paperweight throughout the show. Then later on when they are trying to get permission to go to The Artifact have Picard call Sela and let them have a little moment that shows they are friends now after the evacuation. Maybe have Sela at the final battle too, like she is the XO/Flag Captain of Oh's flagship and do a proper Romulean betrayal when Riker shows up and hands her over. Finally when Picard dies and enters the upload VR space, I would have had an audio clip of Tasha from TNG play when Picard is still trying to figure out what is going on and Data says something like "some echos of what was persist here." Which I think would have helped give the impression Data's afterlife was less of a living hell and make his choice to die feel less like euthanasia of a depressed person.

[@kaitlyn__L]

I love this, especially the final sentence.

[@JaredByer]

Watching this, I had one of those silly/fun fan made up in universe explanations for whey there isn't much profanity in Star Trek. The crew interacts with a huge number of nonnative English speakers, they rely on universal translators for so many conversations in their day to day life. These Starfleet provided universal translators don't do a good job of translating profanity. This is of course on purpose, since Starfleet cares abut image. After the first couple of dozen times O'Brien had to explain to a Cardassian why he told them to go "engage in procreative activities off" or why he called them a "biological waste product head" he would probably just stop using profanities. Although, could you imagine Data responding to profanity the way he did to euphemisms? "I don not understand Commander Riker, why would you want me to copulate with you while you are traveling above your normal speed?" Now, in ST:Picard when the Picard is talking to the Admiral, they both know, that they grew up speaking the same language. She very much did use profanity in that situation, knowing Picard would understand, and in that situation, in my imaginary future, that carried so much more weight than it ever would today. Of course, my fun little distraction totally falls apart when it comes to ST:Enterprise. That crew was almost entirely native English speaking humans, that did not use a universal translator in their day to day lives.

[@FiXato]

I love how the auto-generated closed captions replace Steve's uses of 'fuck' with '[_]' ;)

[@Stettafire]

24:04 Sadly, very accurate 33:33 As a centrist (who does not support these far-right folk who moan about "politics" 🙄) I support this message.

[@theepicpenguin5494]

Oh. you did explain it. ... I don't agree with you. But you explained it. :)

[@mishapurser4439]

TV shows are often initially conceptualised years before production actually begins. And it makes sense that the person or small group of people who come up with the idea for the show would start thinking about what they might want the show to be from the beginning. Maybe The Wounded was the time when they choose to have O'Brien in DS9.

[@NotThatSarahLevy]

I always wanted to see Barclay and Sonya Gomez interact, I think they'd make a great couple