2.18 Manhunt Lwaxana invites Picard to dinner, and he’s confused to discover that it’s just the two of them. Attempting to distract her, Picard asks Data to come and make small-talk while he makes good his escape. Troi informs Pulaski and Picard that her mother is going through a Betazed menopause, meaning that her sex drive has quadrupled and that she’s chosen Picard to be the focus of her attention. Rather than risk insulting Lwaxana, Picard fires up a Dixon Hill holodeck program and heads off to relax. Because who doesn’t find being a PI in a world full of organised crime relaxing? After discovering that his optimism was indeed misplaced, Picard takes his holo-secretary to Rex’s Bar for a drink. Riker and Data enter the Holodeck to inform Picard of the situation, and Lwaxana follows them there, upset to discover that that Picard has been hiding from her. Luckily, in her hormone-addled state, she’s intrigued by her inability to sense anything off Rex, the bar’s holographic proprietor and engages him deep in conversation, already planning marriage. When they reach the planet, Picard and Riker explain that Rex doesn’t really exist, causing a small amount of embarrassment to Lwaxana, although she deals with it. As she does, she mentions offhand that the Antedeans are terrorists planning to blow up the conference using explosives hidden in their garments. Although they feign outrage, the ship’s sensors confirm Lwaxana’s accusations and they’re taken to the brig. She beams down to the planet, taking one last moment to chastise Picard for his inappropriate thoughts. TNG LOL: There are loads of funny moments in this episode, although the performances in general are comic from the start. It’s basically a farce, and it’s great fun to see Deanna getting petulant with her mother, Picard getting nervous around Lwaxana, and Riker being left speechless. I thought Mr. Homn glugging down the entire bottle Picard brought to dinner was a hilarious moment, and, of course, Worf gets his now-characteristic deadpan moment as he observes the Antedeans and simply muses “What a handsome race.” Who’s That Face?: Believe it or not, one of those Antedean dignitaries is allegedy Mick Fleetwood, of Fleetwood Mac. Although given the two options, I’m not sure I believe it. Also, one of the holo-thugs is played by Robert O’Reilly, the man who will eventually play everyone’s favourite Klingon, Chancellor Gowron! Time Until Meeting: No meetings here. The mark of a fundamentally broken episode. Captain’s Log: Lwaxana Troi episodes are famed for being awful, but this one is genuinely funny as long as you appreciate the attempts to make it a screwball comedy rather than a traditional Star Trek episode. Majel Barrett really throws herself into the role, and her unfamiliarity with technology, while massively illogical, is still the source of some incredibly charming moments, such as her conversation with the computer and her exclamations of “Legs! Where are the legs?!” when she transports over. Beyond that, much of the episode’s screen time is hugely irrelevant to the story. We spend rather a lot of time on the Holodeck watching Picard tweak the program, given that he’s only really there to set up the episode’s punchline, and Lwaxana’s engagement with Riker is forgotten as quickly as it’s announced. Data even goes to the trouble of dressing in full period dress for his trip to the holodeck, but then once he’s in there he doesn’t actually do anything. So, while this episode delivers some laughs, it’s fair to say that there’s not much of a story going on. All it really contributes to Trek lore is to reinforce Lwaxana’s attraction to Picard, but whether that’s enough to keep people interested is debatable… Read James’ look-back at the previous episode, Up The Long Ladder, here. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here.
