Farpoint is CANCELLED because we’re being tested by “All Good Things…”!
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author David R. George III is back on the show this week for a look at the finale of Star Trek: The Next Generation, a tour de force, feature-length episode that celebrates the genius and success of the series it concludes. Captain Picard is mysteriously travelling through the past, present, and future, taking him from the Enterprise-D’s very first mission to the seeming last days of his life. But when Q appears to deliver the Continuum’s final, damning verdict for humanity, the Enterprises of three eras must cooperate to save the galaxy and the future of humanity among the stars!
Any show that experienced the kind of extended creative and critical success that Next Generation did could be forgiven for limping across the finish line or seeing its inspiration run dry. However, the Hugo Award-winning “All Good Things…” stands as one of the series’s finest entries, putting the capstone on a show that had not only brought Trek back to life, but one that had also set the standard for sci-fi shows to come. During our discussion, we talk about the evolution of the series over its seven seasons, the perfect distillation of a TNG episode, keeping time travel fresh, the real-life power of John de Lancie, the true nature of the Q Continuum, and the pressures of filming a double-sized episode while you’re making a movie.
We also talk about the source of Q’s name, never working with omnipotent children or computers, dropping the show’s name in the episode, the way that rules enable jeopardy, Q as evil Doctor Who, only Americans passing God’s tests, whether Q is an angel or a devil, the Yar that could have been, Dave praises the good parts of “Turnabout Intruder,” and Aaron’s still hung up on them god-like aliens!
No crying at the poker table!