DRUMHEAD
Star Trek often prides itself on its ability to produce television that is socially relevant. I thought that the last two television incarnations of Star Trek - "Voyager" and "Enterprise" failed miserably in their ability to provide such entertainment. But, the original Star Trek ("TOS"), and on occassion, Star Trek: The Next Generation ("TNG") provided, in the ostensible context of a science fiction story, with all of the futuristic trappings and jargon that attend the trappings that attend such a story, a critique of today's society that causes us to think, in the best way that science fiction can, about how far we've come, or, if we've really come far at all.
One of the most timely episodes of Star Trek - one whose timeliness its writers could not have envisaged when the show first aired in 1991, is a fourth-season episode of TNG called "The Drumhead." This episode, social relevance points aside, is one of the best-acted, most entertaining, and suspensful of TNG outings. The action never leaves the ship; indeed there is not much action to speak of; just a minimal amount of exposition setting up the plot, followed by a series of character exchanges and whatever dialogue is necessary to set up the crisis, climax, denouement, and so on. By the end, the message - not preachily told - the message "for our times," rings loud and clear. In 1991, this message no doubt cut close to the bone. Now, the message - and I have just seen this episode again, cuts so close the episode is almost unbearable to watch.
The story: Retired Starfleet Admiral Norah Satie, played by Jean Simmons (yes, that Jean Simmons, of Black Narcissus) arrives aboard the Enterprise to investigate what appears to be an act of sabotage. Why Satie? 1) She is retired and thus available, and 2) she is a renowned investigator in the Federation, and was responsible for smoking out the conspiracy that nearly toppled the Federation in Season 1 (for those not familiar with Star Trek, this consipracy was REALLY hard to detect and involved REALLY uglo-alients that were very creepy).
The investigation quickly commences: there's been a security breach, followed by an explosion in engineering which may well have been the result of sabotage. A Klingon exobiologist, J'Ddan, is under investigation for the security breach, and lots of circumstantial evidence points to him. He denies any involvement.
Satie's investigations (which are given Captain Picard's blessings; he has inordinate respect for this woman, in large part because her father, Judge Aaron Satie, now deceased, was the judge who essentially gave the Federation equivalent of the Bill of Rights life and form through his explication of that document - the Federation Charter), combined with some of Security Officer Worf's findings, quickly point to obvious guilt for J'Ddan, who confesses to his "crime" of breach of security.
However, when Sabin, a Betazoid (read: telepathic) aide to Satie, says that he appears to be telling the truth in denying the apparent sabotage, Satie concludes that there's a conspiracy on board (reasoning that if J'Dan fessed up to one offense, and that it looked like another offense with which he was not involved happened, someone who he knew must have been involved in the other offense. Not airtight logic)
Satie quickly gets to work. J'Ddan had few associates, so the number of people to question is small. Since he often received injections, Dr. Crusher is an obvious choice, but she has nothing useful to give. However, after Simon Tarses, a med-tech, testifies, Sabin immediately claims that Tarses is frightened and covering up a huge lie (a lie the nature of which he does not reveal to anyone)--and says "there's your man." Picard begins to get worried about this chain of events, refusing to hound an innocent man-especially when Geordi and Data's investigation later turns up strong evidence that the explosion in Engineering was a random accident, not sabotage.
Satie, however, will have none of it, and insists that the lack of sabotage doesn't imply a lack of conspiracy. At the second hearing for Tarses (which is now open to spectators, incidentally; Satie, channeling the spirit of oppressors everywhere, states that "conspirators tend to conceal and lie in the darkness, but once they are under the bright lights of public inquiry, they have nowhere to hide), Sabin ends up using a blatant lie about the explosion in Engineering to get Tarses off balance, and accuses him of being a known liar about his ancestry (his grandfather was not Vulcan, but Romulan; the Romulans happen to be a current enemy of the Federation; Tarses knowingly and falsely stated on his Starfleet application that his grandfather was Vulcan - a statement that may or may not have caused him to not get accepted, and which may or may not, in the presence, cause him to get expelled from Starfleet At any rate, the lie was not a crime, nor obviously, is it evidence that Tarses is a saboteur). Tarses refuses to answer Sabin's questions (Federation law gives him this right to refuse; the right of self-incrimination is included under that law).
Picard becomes more and more upset at the turn of events, and reminds Worf that Tarses has committed no crime. (Worf, however, is by now convinced that he "must" seek out the enemies of the Federation. Worf, who has been assigned as Satie's assistant, has to be reminded by Picard that Worf's own hatred of Romulans is clouding his judgment, and that lying on an application is not the same thing as being an enemy of the Federation - nor is being an enemy of Worf the same thing as being an enemy of the Federation). When Picard talks to Satie and demands an end to the hearings ("Admiral, what you're doing is unethical... It's immoral... It's wrong. I'll fight you."), threatening to go to Starfleet Command, Satie informs him that she's been in touch with Command, and the hearings are to be "expanded".
In addition, her old associate Adm. Henry of Starfleet Security is now coming on board to observe the hearings. Picard vows to fight, and quickly finds himself ordered to testify at the next set of hearings.
At Picard's hearing, Satie, serving as interrogator, quickly violates the Federation charter by refusing to allow Picard to make an opening statement. Picard points out the violation, then makes the statement, noting, among other things, "Are we so comfortable in our prejudice, and our fear, that we now are certain that a man has committed a crime simply because he happens to contain the blood of a current enemy. I ask you - no, I beg you, Admiral - end this - proceeding."
Satie, who recently got through telling Picard that her whole life has basically come down to "rooting out evil" - she says that she has "no family, no friends," she lives "from starbase, to starbase" - this truly pitiable creature - now laces into Picard. She questions his devotion to the Prime Directive (of non-interference in the development in alien cultures), claiming he's broken it 9 times since taking command of the Enterprise. ("Would it surprise you to know that you've broken it 9 times? It shocked the hell out of me..." Obviously, it did not. As part of her inquisition, she no doubt read the circumstances behind the violations and discovered that they were justifiable, but this fact didn't bother her).
Then, she goes for the lowest blow. Roughly a year earlier, Picard was brutally kidnapped and forcibly assimilated into a cynbernetic being by a race of cybernetic beings known as the Borg. While under their influence, and stripped of his humanity and will, he participated in the Borg destruction of some 40 Federation ships and 10,000 Starfleet personnel. Admiral Satie knows, of course, that his participation was anything but willing. She nonetheless says, "Have you completely recovered from your encounter with the Borg?" "Completely." "One manages how you manage to sleep at night, being responsible for so much destruction. I question your motives, Picard, I question your loyalty!"
That is quite enough for Picard. Picard, who studied Aaron Satie's writings and decisions, decides that it is time to remind the Inquisitor of what her father stood for, and of what the Federation really stands for: 'With the first link the chain is forged; the first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably.' Those words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie as wisdom and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged."
Satie erupts: "How dare you use my father's words to support your traitorous arguments! My father loved the Federation. You dirty his name when you speak it. I've brought down bigger men than you, Picard!....... (Quiet) I have nothing more to say." Admiral Henry leaves in disgust at her actions. The hearings are over.
In the final scene, Worf comes to Picard, and confesses: Satie's purpose seemed so righteous, so noble. He didn''t realize that he was being duped by such a person. Picard replies,
"We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning witches — is all ancient history. Then, before you can blink an eye, [it] suddenly threatens to start all over again."
"Mr. Worf, villains who twirl their moustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged."
"She or someone like her will always be with us. Waiting for the right climate in which to flourish, spreading fear in the name of righteousness. Vigilance, Mr. Worf, that is the price we have to continually pay." - "
Watch this episode. Seriously, you'll be glad you did. If only some in the White House (who can think, read and write and listen to reason; granted, this is a short list) watched it too.
One of the most timely episodes of Star Trek - one whose timeliness its writers could not have envisaged when the show first aired in 1991, is a fourth-season episode of TNG called "The Drumhead." This episode, social relevance points aside, is one of the best-acted, most entertaining, and suspensful of TNG outings. The action never leaves the ship; indeed there is not much action to speak of; just a minimal amount of exposition setting up the plot, followed by a series of character exchanges and whatever dialogue is necessary to set up the crisis, climax, denouement, and so on. By the end, the message - not preachily told - the message "for our times," rings loud and clear. In 1991, this message no doubt cut close to the bone. Now, the message - and I have just seen this episode again, cuts so close the episode is almost unbearable to watch.
The story: Retired Starfleet Admiral Norah Satie, played by Jean Simmons (yes, that Jean Simmons, of Black Narcissus) arrives aboard the Enterprise to investigate what appears to be an act of sabotage. Why Satie? 1) She is retired and thus available, and 2) she is a renowned investigator in the Federation, and was responsible for smoking out the conspiracy that nearly toppled the Federation in Season 1 (for those not familiar with Star Trek, this consipracy was REALLY hard to detect and involved REALLY uglo-alients that were very creepy).
The investigation quickly commences: there's been a security breach, followed by an explosion in engineering which may well have been the result of sabotage. A Klingon exobiologist, J'Ddan, is under investigation for the security breach, and lots of circumstantial evidence points to him. He denies any involvement.
Satie's investigations (which are given Captain Picard's blessings; he has inordinate respect for this woman, in large part because her father, Judge Aaron Satie, now deceased, was the judge who essentially gave the Federation equivalent of the Bill of Rights life and form through his explication of that document - the Federation Charter), combined with some of Security Officer Worf's findings, quickly point to obvious guilt for J'Ddan, who confesses to his "crime" of breach of security.
However, when Sabin, a Betazoid (read: telepathic) aide to Satie, says that he appears to be telling the truth in denying the apparent sabotage, Satie concludes that there's a conspiracy on board (reasoning that if J'Dan fessed up to one offense, and that it looked like another offense with which he was not involved happened, someone who he knew must have been involved in the other offense. Not airtight logic)
Satie quickly gets to work. J'Ddan had few associates, so the number of people to question is small. Since he often received injections, Dr. Crusher is an obvious choice, but she has nothing useful to give. However, after Simon Tarses, a med-tech, testifies, Sabin immediately claims that Tarses is frightened and covering up a huge lie (a lie the nature of which he does not reveal to anyone)--and says "there's your man." Picard begins to get worried about this chain of events, refusing to hound an innocent man-especially when Geordi and Data's investigation later turns up strong evidence that the explosion in Engineering was a random accident, not sabotage.
Satie, however, will have none of it, and insists that the lack of sabotage doesn't imply a lack of conspiracy. At the second hearing for Tarses (which is now open to spectators, incidentally; Satie, channeling the spirit of oppressors everywhere, states that "conspirators tend to conceal and lie in the darkness, but once they are under the bright lights of public inquiry, they have nowhere to hide), Sabin ends up using a blatant lie about the explosion in Engineering to get Tarses off balance, and accuses him of being a known liar about his ancestry (his grandfather was not Vulcan, but Romulan; the Romulans happen to be a current enemy of the Federation; Tarses knowingly and falsely stated on his Starfleet application that his grandfather was Vulcan - a statement that may or may not have caused him to not get accepted, and which may or may not, in the presence, cause him to get expelled from Starfleet At any rate, the lie was not a crime, nor obviously, is it evidence that Tarses is a saboteur). Tarses refuses to answer Sabin's questions (Federation law gives him this right to refuse; the right of self-incrimination is included under that law).
Picard becomes more and more upset at the turn of events, and reminds Worf that Tarses has committed no crime. (Worf, however, is by now convinced that he "must" seek out the enemies of the Federation. Worf, who has been assigned as Satie's assistant, has to be reminded by Picard that Worf's own hatred of Romulans is clouding his judgment, and that lying on an application is not the same thing as being an enemy of the Federation - nor is being an enemy of Worf the same thing as being an enemy of the Federation). When Picard talks to Satie and demands an end to the hearings ("Admiral, what you're doing is unethical... It's immoral... It's wrong. I'll fight you."), threatening to go to Starfleet Command, Satie informs him that she's been in touch with Command, and the hearings are to be "expanded".
In addition, her old associate Adm. Henry of Starfleet Security is now coming on board to observe the hearings. Picard vows to fight, and quickly finds himself ordered to testify at the next set of hearings.
At Picard's hearing, Satie, serving as interrogator, quickly violates the Federation charter by refusing to allow Picard to make an opening statement. Picard points out the violation, then makes the statement, noting, among other things, "Are we so comfortable in our prejudice, and our fear, that we now are certain that a man has committed a crime simply because he happens to contain the blood of a current enemy. I ask you - no, I beg you, Admiral - end this - proceeding."
Satie, who recently got through telling Picard that her whole life has basically come down to "rooting out evil" - she says that she has "no family, no friends," she lives "from starbase, to starbase" - this truly pitiable creature - now laces into Picard. She questions his devotion to the Prime Directive (of non-interference in the development in alien cultures), claiming he's broken it 9 times since taking command of the Enterprise. ("Would it surprise you to know that you've broken it 9 times? It shocked the hell out of me..." Obviously, it did not. As part of her inquisition, she no doubt read the circumstances behind the violations and discovered that they were justifiable, but this fact didn't bother her).
Then, she goes for the lowest blow. Roughly a year earlier, Picard was brutally kidnapped and forcibly assimilated into a cynbernetic being by a race of cybernetic beings known as the Borg. While under their influence, and stripped of his humanity and will, he participated in the Borg destruction of some 40 Federation ships and 10,000 Starfleet personnel. Admiral Satie knows, of course, that his participation was anything but willing. She nonetheless says, "Have you completely recovered from your encounter with the Borg?" "Completely." "One manages how you manage to sleep at night, being responsible for so much destruction. I question your motives, Picard, I question your loyalty!"
That is quite enough for Picard. Picard, who studied Aaron Satie's writings and decisions, decides that it is time to remind the Inquisitor of what her father stood for, and of what the Federation really stands for: 'With the first link the chain is forged; the first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably.' Those words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie as wisdom and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged."
Satie erupts: "How dare you use my father's words to support your traitorous arguments! My father loved the Federation. You dirty his name when you speak it. I've brought down bigger men than you, Picard!....... (Quiet) I have nothing more to say." Admiral Henry leaves in disgust at her actions. The hearings are over.
In the final scene, Worf comes to Picard, and confesses: Satie's purpose seemed so righteous, so noble. He didn''t realize that he was being duped by such a person. Picard replies,
"We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning witches — is all ancient history. Then, before you can blink an eye, [it] suddenly threatens to start all over again."
"Mr. Worf, villains who twirl their moustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged."
"She or someone like her will always be with us. Waiting for the right climate in which to flourish, spreading fear in the name of righteousness. Vigilance, Mr. Worf, that is the price we have to continually pay." - "
Watch this episode. Seriously, you'll be glad you did. If only some in the White House (who can think, read and write and listen to reason; granted, this is a short list) watched it too.
posted by EnterCenter at 8:00 PM
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