TNG S4E2 "Family" Review By AnswerMan

Horrible:Meh:Adequate:Good:Fantastic

I guess you can't have it both ways. If "Family" hadn't been made, I would be complaining about the episodic nature of the series and poking fun by saying something like: Hey, remember that time that Picard got assimilated by the Borg and then returned to work the next day like nothing happened and we never talked about it again? Well, they didn't go that route, so now I get to say: Hey, remember that boring episode of TNG where Picard goes home to France and cries? Maybe there's just no pleasing me. Or, maybe this episode just isn't all that good. I don't know.



Picard's brother is such a dick that it's just not very believable. Jean-Luc was always good at everything, and became a hero. Meanwhile Robert was average and took over their father's vineyard. For this reason, Robert hates Jean-Luc. He has taught his son Rene that Jean-Luc is an arrogant son-of-a something or other. But knowing what we know about the captain, this just doesn't fit. We know that he is gentle and kind. He is modest, and introverted. He can be gallant when the situation calls for it, but mostly he's just....boring. So as a viewer that knows all of this, we can only conclude that it's Robert that is the problem in the relationship. I think this is a failing of the episode. It would have been more compelling had it exposed some things about the captain that we didn't know. Like maybe if he did actually wrong his brother in some legitimate way that he needed to make amends for. But no, Robert is just a dick for no reason.

Meanwhile Worf is having to deal with his embarrassing adopted parents coming on board while the Enterprise is orbiting Earth for repairs and retrofitting. Worf finds it inappropriate for them to be there while he is on duty, but really they are just what he needs right now. Worf is recovering from a crisis of his own after being disgraced in the world of the Klingons. It's not so bad that he would seek comfort from his human parents, who of course see him no differently than before. However, I find his parents annoying and over-acted. In fact, all of the guest roles on this episode are just lazy stereotypes. This includes Jack Crusher, who has recorded a holo-message for Wesley that says nothing of importance. It is a particularly sad moment though when Jack ends his message by telling Wesley that he loves him, and then Wesley reaches out to him to return the sentiment, but the message ends and the hologram just disappears. Not the closure I was expecting.

This is simply a character episode for Picard, and to a lesser degree for Worf and Wesley. Here, Picard has a Captain Pike moment where he considers leaving Star Fleet for the first opportunity that he is qualified for. I think it's normal to consider a career change after your chosen profession has caused you to get assimilated by an alien race. But Picard's brother helps him to realize that he's going to have a long road to recovery regardless of what he's doing, so he might as well stick to what has been working for him. I'm not sure I agree. Granted, the episode can't end with Picard coming to any other conclusion, but I'm just not convinced that a cry in the mud somehow got rid of all doubt in his mind.

I have to respect the episode for its importance in the story of Picard, and for sticking strictly to that goal. There is no B plot. There is no alien takeover of the Enterprise while in dock, or some catastrophe that the captain must save his family from, or any ten second countdowns to any explosions. It's just people struggling, which is kind of nice, but not very exciting or science-fiction-y. It's...Meh.

Also, Picard mentions that he decided to walk to the vineyard from town rather than taking the shuttle. But why wouldn't he just beam directly to where he needed to be in the first place?

Published November 30, 2018