113. Where No One Has Gone BeforeFORMULA: The Ultimate Computer + Shore Leave + By Any Other Name
WHY WE LIKE IT: One of the few palatable Wesley episodes, and some of the starscapes are pretty cool.
WHY WE DON'T: Sets up much of what will be causing us grief later.
REVIEW: Where No One Has Gone Before is the best Wesley episode for a couple of reasons, one of which is that it explains why he's such a wonderkind, that he's not just precocious, but an actual genius. Though he still remains one of Roddenberry's indulgences, we can now sort of respect his presence. The reason I find it a better episode than most for him, however, is that Wil Wheaton underplays it. Aside from some gushing at the end there, and a little whining in sickbay, he's mostly concentrating on the mathematical work at hand, and seems to be a regular kid watching an adult (the Traveller) do his job.
The Traveller himself is a bit ethereal for me, but works fine as an advanced alien. I find great delight in Kozinsky's arrogance and pretentiousness, but once he learns the truth, he sadly becomes the opposite, meek and grateful ("You really want me to help?") and it flattens out the character totally. It doesn't at all feel like something the character would do. The crew gets short-changed with this focus on "the boy" and his two pals, but that's ok. Note once again the absence of a starring chief engineer. Argyle ("ONE of our chief engineers") is fine, but Riker has to be put in charge of Engineering just so there's someone we know there.
The first jump to Galaxy M33 is cool, with lots of known galaxies spinning around, and the space there is gorgeous. It's too bad the ordinary black starfields are less costly, because space could really have been interesting throughout modern Trek. The edge of the universe, however, makes no real sense. It's weird, but that's about all it is. (I prefer to think they're inside some kind of wormhole, but didn't know where they were so never tried to come out. Compare to the Bajoran wormhole, for example.) Things really start to dribble out for me when the crew starts to let their imaginations take over. For one thing, seeing the dreams of unnamed crewmembers is just so much padding, and the illusions experienced by the crew aren't all that interesting (except the dramatic scene where Picard almost steps out into space). It's not even consistent. Sometimes the illusions are shared, sometimes they're not, sometimes you're totally in your head. Whatever.
And while Picard's giving Wesley "encouragement" is a well done scene, and logical within the framework of the story, it will lead to more exposure for the character, more chances to get the ship into and out of trouble. It's just that I don't think young Wheaton is up to the task.
LESSON: Thought is what makes me move. Yeah, well... I knew that.
REWATCHABILITY - Medium: Cool visuals, memorable guest-stars and a destiny for Wesley, but there's a lot of padding with the imagination sequences, and it ends in a sappy way with the crew sending their good vibrations to the Traveller.
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