Tuesdays with Geordi: First Contact

Making my way through the complete series of Star Trek: The Next Generation, one Tuesday at a time. This week covers Season 4, Episode 15 – First Contact

Single Sentence Synopsis: It is better to ask permission than to beg forgiveness.

Recap: Dr. Lilith Sternin (formerly Dr. Lilith Sternin-Crane) and Malcor III’s most curmudgeonly government official, an unsettling mashup of Henry Bemis and Trent Lott, fuck up everything and almost get Riker killed. Picard’s best efforts and long, meaningful looks aren’t enough to save the day, unfortunately; Federation/Malcor relations will be verboten for generations, until old prejudices die and a new generation is ready for significant change (boy, that doesn’t sound at all familiar.). Upside? Riker gets laid. Downside? We don’t see it. Verdict? 7/10.