It's all about Data

The family and I have recently been watching Star Trek the Next Generation. Since Netflix has put the entire 7 year run of the show on streaming its a great opportunity to watch some campy sci-fi fun...all without commercials!

Now I've never really been a fan of Star Trek in general. There's something about the Colgate clean future Roddenberry has created that just strikes me as too optimistically utopian for any realism. And I know, its science FICTION. That doesn't change the fact that I find it unsettling at times. I didn't really make a habit of watching the show when it first aired either. However, I did watch the pilot way back in the day. In fact I remember being a Freshman in high school and getting a call from my then girlfriend whilst in the middle of the first episode. I blew her off so I could continue to watch the show uninterrupted. Needless to say, that relationship didn't last. All told, that pretty much sums up my experience and memory of Star Trek TNG. I mean I knew who the characters were. I remember Lt. Tasha Yar being eaten by a tar monster, I remember LeVar Burton as Lt. Geordie La Forge whom my mom recognized from Roots and of course I remembered Wil Wheaton as the adorable Wesley Crusher (whom I remembered as the kid from Stand By Me). But overall, I had few memories of the show itself.

So in diving back into this cherished program I've been entertained and surprised by the myriad of events and the trials and tribulations of the intrepid Enterprise crew. But what has hit me most about this show is it is all about Data. Fans and those familiar will know Data as the android Lt. Commander of the Enterprise, third in command and he of the yellowish skin. That's pretty much what I remembered about him. That and I figured he was there for the fish-out-of-water comic relief portion of the show. But in watching the series now I realize Data is the heart of the entire TV program. We see through his eyes like a child experiencing the world. We see what a strange specimen the human condition is and we, through him, see how utterly baffling some of our traits can really be. We are beside this Positronic Pinocchio as he quests to become human. And we can see what he can't see; he's already more human than any other character on the entire vessel. At least he's an example of human we should all aspire to be. All of this I believe is portrayed beautifully by Brent Spiner.

I'll admit I'm not the best critic of acting. I don't know what the vox populi considers brilliant acting (I can't stand Meryl Streep for example but apparently she's where its at) but I would submit that Brent Spiner is an unsung hero of the acting community. Now I've seen him in other things since Star Trek TNG, and haven't been impressed. But then, I haven't been impressed with the entirety of those films I've seen him in. I'm not sure he's been given the proper chance. That being said, I'm not sure there is another role equal to that of Data out there.

In summary I encourage any of you with a Netflix account to jump back in to Star Trek The Next Generation (not the movies though, they are all horrible). Check out Lt. Commander Data and I dare you not to fall in love with the guy.

Also, I submit that Jonathan Frakes as Commander William T. Riker is more of a man-whore than Captain James T. Kirk ever was.