TNG S5E7-8 "Unification" Review by AnswerMan

Horrible:Meh:Adequate:Good:Fantastic

A two-parter featuring the return of Leonard Nimoy as Spock? Sign me up! Don't get too excited...this one is actually pretty lame. But hey, at least we have and excuse to put Picard and Data in Vulcan ears and make them prance around.

Spock has gone missing, and worse yet, is suspected of defecting to the Romulans (as if!). Picard goes to visit Sarek, who is on his death bed. Suddenly he is feeling much better as he delivers a beautiful soliloquy while exploring the space in his bedroom. But then, he tuckers out and goes back to the business of dying. We are reminded that Picard and Sarek share a special bond, since they mind-melded awhile ago. I like this context for mind-melding much better than the later version portrayed by Tuvok. It used to be that a mind-meld was a big deal, but Tuvok The Mind Slut melded willy-nilly with anyone that he could on Voyager. Hey, remember when a mind-meld between two grown men meant something? Sarek and Picard do. Anyway, Sarek gives Picard a tip as to where Spock might be, and then promptly dies. Picard and Data put on their Halloween costumes and head to Romulus via coerced Klingon cloaked transportation.



Meanwhile, Riker and the crew are dicking around at a space junkyard, which is a pretty cool concept. The keeper of the space wreck yard is a quirky fellow who is fun to watch, and fun for the crew to manipulate using Troy's natural assets. They discover that someone is stealing ships and parts, and they engage in a fire fight with the suspects. This leads to Riker flirting with a woman with too many appendages, and roughing up a Ferengi. None of this is particularly important or sensical, but I guess it is entertaining enough, and we can't just have a solid hour of Data staring at Picard creepily while he tries to sleep, can we?

They find Spock, and sure enough he hasn't defected. Rather, he's working with an underground movement on Romulus that wants to unite with Vulcan. Not to get too bogged down in the boring details, but the plan fails and Spock is double-crossed by the highest official that he's been able to gain an audience with. The crooked Romulan was actually planning an invasion, not a union. Spock decides to stay on the planet and continue his work, even though we all know it's futile. Oh and Tasha Yar's daughter is there for some reason.

To me, Spock's logic is not solid here. I understand that he wants to work alone so as not to endanger anyone, but let's face it- he's not going to get all of Romulus on board with unification by himself. Pursuing a mission that only has the smallest possibility of being successful is not logical. Plus, who says that Vulcan is ready to unify? Wouldn't Spock be better suited to working on that side of the table (if they ever come to the table, which they won't)?

The entire plot is just bad here. The only reason it scores a Meh and not a Horrible is out of respect for Leonard Nimoy and the Spock character. The only bright spots are the moments that have nothing to do with the plot like the hilarious junkyard operator, Picard pushing the Klingons around a bit, Data annoying Picard, and Data performing the Vulcan neck pinch. Oh and there is a special moment between Spock and Data where they are both perplexed at the other's pursuits. Spock is half human, and yet has abandoned that side of his nature in favor of nurturing his unfeeling Vulcan side. Data is unfeeling already, and wishes nothing more than to become human and experience emotions. I guess the grass is always greener....

Published December 8, 2017