{"id":4536,"date":"2015-03-19T13:00:32","date_gmt":"2015-03-19T20:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4536"},"modified":"2015-03-18T23:28:34","modified_gmt":"2015-03-19T06:28:34","slug":"mark-watches-the-next-generation-s01e13-datalore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2015\/03\/mark-watches-the-next-generation-s01e13-datalore\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘The Next Generation’: S01E13 – Datalore"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the thirteenth episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0The Next Generation<\/i>, THAT WAS UNNERVING. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Star Trek<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not gonna try and claim that the core idea of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Datalore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is anything new. For a long time, fiction \u00e2\u20ac\u201c particularly genre fiction \u00e2\u20ac\u201c has been obsessed with the concept of an evil twin. I mean, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a pervasive trope that people have been regularly asking me whether I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m the evil twin out of me and my brother. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00c2\u00a0<\/span>that<\/i> common.<\/span><\/p>\n

So how does a show like\u00c2\u00a0The Next Generation<\/i> try to keep my interest when using such a typical trope? Through Brent Spiner. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t find the second half of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Datalore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to be nearly as interesting as the first half, at least in terms of the story, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Brent Spiner\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s acting that makes this such a memorable episode. Still, the chance to learn more about Data\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s background was exciting! I mean, the first ten minutes of this episode were so surprising to me because I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d never even considered that Data was\u00c2\u00a0from<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0anywhere. (It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s possible that this detail was revealed prior to this and I just forgot it; I did take a month off from the show in between the first nine episodes and where I am now!) I had just assumed that the Federation had created him.<\/p>\n

However, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Datalore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d gives us a backstory for him that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot more mysterious and dark than I was ready for. I WAS NOT READY, Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL. This entire time, Data had the memory and accumulated knowledge of 411 Earth colonists in his own storage, and NO ONE KNEW WHY. Without that crucial context, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re given a hell of a mystery, one that only gets more disturbing when we find out\u00c2\u00a0why<\/i> the entire colony on Omicron Theta died out. But what does that mean for Data? How does he react to any of this? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not until he discovers the pieces of a second android \u00e2\u20ac\u201c one styled exactly like him \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that we see Data act\u00c2\u00a0excited<\/i>. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s thrilled about the possibility of a companion, one he can call his \u00e2\u20ac\u0153brother.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

I think\u00c2\u00a0that<\/i> aspect of this story is what separates \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Datalore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d from the more traditional \u00e2\u20ac\u0153evil twin\u00e2\u20ac\u009d tales. Data never had a brother; he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always been alone. On top of that, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been striving to be more human, to fit in with his companions onboard the\u00c2\u00a0Enterprise<\/i>. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the point of the absurd sneezing sequence at the beginning of the episode; it establishes that Data is leagues behind Lore\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s own programming. But why? Why is that an important detail?<\/p>\n

Well, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s through this detail that the script allows for Brent Spiner to unleash a horrifying characterization on the world, and I want to talk about what a brilliant reversal this is. The villain here is not the character who lacks human emotion or does not act as we do;\u00c2\u00a0it<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the character who is brutally human<\/i>. Lore is so terrifying because he was programmed to be just as selfish, cruel, and violent as humans can be. He got the full spectrum of humanity within him, and he utilizes that to amplify his own superiority. He knows he is better than humans, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s precisely why his creator \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Noonian Soong \u00e2\u20ac\u201c shut him down and created Data instead. HUMANS COULD DEAL WITH DATA BETTER THAN THEY COULD WITH LORE.<\/p>\n

I love that, and I love that this episode shows us that part of Data\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s appeal as a character is his behavior. The horror comes from watching how Lore not only imitates Data, but uses his understanding of human nature to exploit those around him. Suddenly, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t\u00c2\u00a0want<\/i> Data to become more human. I want him to stay exactly as he is because THIS IS A VERY UPSETTING ALTERNATIVE. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not to say that Data would turn into Lore immediately or anything like that; I think Data has sense and loyalty, which Lore did not possess. Still, the glimpse is completely unnerving!<\/p>\n

Which brings me to Wesley Crusher. I feel conflicted by this character. Part of me loves the idea that there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a voice in this show that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s as young as Wesley is. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a fascinating perspective, and when Wesley was desperately trying to convince Picard to listen to him, I was into him. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true that in a rigid environment like a starship, age and rank and experience is highly valued. Hell, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s almost\u00c2\u00a0entirely<\/i> what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s valued. Having someone counter that? I like that. But at the same time, it feels the show can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t let him do that without also portraying him as super annoying. So yes, I laughed when Picard and then Dr. Crusher told Wesley to shut up. It was funny! I think that the show wants to give us a character who is both eager to learn but also kind of inappropriate? I mean, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a teenage boy, WE ARE AN AWFUL BREED OF PEOPLE Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL. So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m interested to see how much further they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll take this with him. I mean\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 what will they do when he grows up???<\/p>\n

Anyway, Brent Spiner can be creepy. I DID NOT KNOW THIS.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Datalore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– The Mark Does Stuff Tour 2015 is now live and includes dates across the U.S., Canada, Europe, the U.K., and Ireland. Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches will be the remainder of\u00c2\u00a0The Legend of Korra<\/i>, series 8 of\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>, and Kings<\/i>. On Mark Reads, Diane Duane’s Young Wizards<\/i> series will replace the Emelan books.
\n<\/b>-\u00c2\u00a0Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!
\n– If you would like to support this website and keep Mark Does Stuff running,\u00c2\u00a0 I’ve put up a detailed post explaining how you can!
\n<\/a>– Please check out the\u00c2\u00a0 MarkDoesStuff.com<\/a>. All Mark Watches videos for past shows\/season are now archived there!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"