This newletter is published quarterly (April, July, October, December)
1997 SUBSCRIPTION RATES (for postal delivery only)
United States - $10.00
Canada - US$12.50
All Other Countries - US$15.00
This newletter is also available free of charge to Guild members via email
by sending a request to: chief@nitcentral.com.
Or, by visiting the Nitpicker Central Internet Extention Office (NCIEO)
located at:
http://www.nitcentral.com
COPYRIGHT 1997 by Phil Farrand. All rights reserved.
Books by Phil Farrand:
The Nitpicker's Guide for Next Generation Trekkers, Volume I
(ISBN 0-440-50571-2)
The Nitpicker's Guide for Classic Trekkers
(ISBN 0-440-50683-2)
The Nitpicker's Guide for Next Generation Trekkers, Volume II
(ISBN 0-440-50716-2)
The Nitpicker's Guide for Deep Space Trekkers
(ISBN 0-440-50762-6)
The Nitpicker's Guide for X-philes
(ISBN 0-440-50808-8)
Greetings Fellow Nitpickers and Proud Members of the Nitpickers Guild!
Before we begin a pair of apologies! First, I am late with this newsletter. Aside from everything else in my life, our church is completing construction of a new three million dollar facility and I've been assisting with the installation of the technical systems for the past three months. It's been chewing up two--sometimes three, and towards the end five--nights a week. I could have possibly completed the newsletter on time over the Thanksgiving holiday but my wife's relatives were passing through and I needed a break from work! Second, even though our first service in the new facility was last Sunday, we are still finishing up many little details on the technical side so I have rushed to get this out. That means you should expect typos because I'm the only one who has proofed this newsletter! (My normal proofers are also busy with the new sanctuary.)
The Nitpicker's Guide for X-philes (X-phile Guide) is on book store shelves. Thanks to everyone who has written with kind words about the latest Guide. Glad you're enjoying it. The new format seems to be a hit! I'm always a bit hesitant too 'toot my own horn' but in this age, if I don't who will! So bear with me as I reproduce some unsolicited comments from Guild members! (Grin)
Charles Cabe: I really like the new X-Files Guide. I just have one question: When will the Nitpicker's Guide To Baywatch come out? (Note from Phil: Can't get my wife to approve that one!)
David C. Meiers: Just wanted to let you know how much I am enjoying The Nitpicker's Guide for X-Philes! Truly, a keeper!
Brian Straight: Well, I picked up my copy of the X-Phile guide today, and I must stay I'm astonished! It's a great book, and comparable to the other guides.
Michel M. Albert: Love the X-Philes Guide. Great format (almost didn't find it cuz I was looking for something with a giant cell phone flying around with tv sets - just kidding).
Daniel B. Case: Got the X-philes Guide a week or so ago. Good work, as usual. The larger format definitely helps (it fits in with all the other [X-File] books. But yours is the best so far. I mean it).
Kristy Scott: First of all, let me say "Kudos!" The X-phile Guide was everything I've come to expect, and everything I had hoped for. I especially loved the sidebar "Whose Truth Is Out There"; it was wonderfully insightful.
So end the Shameless Plug! (I really do appreciate all the kind comments!)
The Nitpickers Guild marches on. As of today, the Guild has 6526 members in 32 countries (Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Republic of China, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Republic of the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, the United Kingdom, USA and Venezuela). Over 8700 postal letters have arrived here at Nitpicker Central (not counting the thousands of email messages). Thanks again to everyone for your interest! It's great to have you in the Guild!
The Nitpicker Central Internet Extension Office (NCIEO) continues to grow. It is located at: www.nitcentral.com. If you have the ability, drop by! We're currently doing Brash Reflections for the fourth season of Star Trek: Voyager. And, there's a weekly Ask the Chief column where we chat about various and sundry topics.
For those of you who are interested, I am still looking for a publisher and/or agent for my first novel The Son, The Wind and The Reign. Bethany House currently has the novel and there's an agent on the west coast who is taking a look at it but I haven't heard word from either. Come the first of the year--after everyone gets back from vacation--I'll start chasing it down and probably send out a new batch of proposals. I'll let you know if anything happens.
In the meantime, I should finished the rough draft of my second novel, That Fated Shore this month! It goes well. I'll start polishing in a few weeks and Kathleen Jayes--my editor at Dell--has said she'll take a look at it so keep your fingers crossed adn hope with me that she thinks it's the greatest novel ever written! (Grin.)
And, I wanted to have some word for you by this now concerning the next Nitpicker's Guide but we're still talking about that one. I'll get back with you later on this as well!
Finally, in the category, "Things You Thought You Knew About Recent Historical Events."
Allan W. Fix wrote: This isn't a Trek nit but one I thought you might like to know about. Watching the Adventurers special on PBS last night about Neil Armstrong reminded me of this one.
You've seen the clip where Armstrong is on the ladder of the lunar lander, says "OK, I'm going to step off the LEM now," hops down, and says his famous line. ["That's one small step . . ."] That's not the way it happened! I was shocked as I discovered this when I watched the 25th anniversary "As It Happened" with Walter Cronkite, which showed the actual live news coverage of the event.
What actually occurred was: Armstrong hops off the ladder onto the lunar landing PAD, which is about three feet in diameter. Then he says "OK, I'm going to step off the LEM now." At this point, he gently leans over and places his foot on the moon's surface, and says his famous line. The first clip is something we've seen so often that we "know" it to be true. I guess that it was re-edited to make the actual "step" look more exciting.
Happy Nitpicking! Phil Farrand
In honor of the release of Men In Black to home video, here's a small portion of the nits that came into the Nitpicker Central Internet Extension Office (www.nitcentral.com) during the movie's first run! A caveat: I have not checked these against the video release so some of it may be inaccurate! First a few comments from yours truly.
This was fun! Great, great aliens. Lots of cute gags, too. I saw it twice. Took my wife the first time and my daughter the second. I think Liz (my daughter) said it best when we walked out of the theater. She had commented that the movie wasn't what she expected and I ask why not.
"I just thought is was going to be one laugh after another," she replied, "but it actually had a plot."
Precisely! Kind of refreshing, isn't it! That, along with the fact that there was some genuinely funny moments. Love the bug in the "Edgar suit"!
Of course, I certainly couldn't hold my head high as a proud nitpicker if I didn't have a few nits to go along with my accolades!
After the bug pulls back Edgar's face to stretch it taut because Edgar's wife has commented that his skin seems to be hanging loose, the scene cuts to a wide shot and--though Edgar's hand is still in the same position--his face is no longer pulled tight.
Watch the table when J is taking the test with the rest of the applicants. A wide shot puts the table in the center of the room but when J goes to move it, it's suddenly much father away. There is time to move it during the cut-aways but the table makes a grating sound when it's moved and no sound occurs during the cut-aways. (I realize that J isn't J yet but it's easier to refer to him as such.)
When J and K view the human representations of aliens on Earth, one of those shown is Newt Gingrich. A cute bit but would the Men In Black really allow an alien to hold such a politically powerful position? (And did you notice Steven Spielburg was included as well?)
When J is staring at the painting of the space ships in MIB headquarters, watch K in the background. He's supposedly entering commands on his computer keyboard but his hands are obviously too high. He's just tickling air!
Finally, what happened to J's "little cricket" at the end of the program? Doesn't it seem like J would have kept the weapon in one of his coat pockets?
Shane Tourtellotte: The alien with the cat steps out of a cab to pay his fare. That isn't how they do it in New York. You have to pay through a little hinged compartment set in the transparent, bulletproof shield between the driver and passenger. What a friendly city it is. (Grin)
So the whatchamacallit battlecruiser fires a warning shot at Earth that strikes the Arctic icecap. Are there any consequences to this? Wouldn't that melt some ice? A lot? Will the world's scientists note the scorched hole in the ice, and the suspiciously rising sea-level -- or will they be 'erased' and just figure it's the greenhouse effect?
Corey Hines: When the UFO flies over the stadium, are we to believe that the only who saw it was one ball player?
The ending shows that females are in this organization. Isn't it a bit sexist to call it Men In Black? (Note from Phil: My guess is that she was the first and from her demeanor in the rest of the film, I'm not sure she would mind being known as a "Man In Black"!)
John Reese: Speaking of the royal alien . . . why did the "bug" guy stab him in the neck if he knew the body was only a transport, with the real alien in the head? And what made the little alien die, just because his transport module was stabbed in the neck?
Beau Landaiche: I just got out of MIB and thought it was great! Look at the initial scene with Will Smith chasing the encephalopod into the building. To get in, he shoots out a glass door. Now, look at the wall behind the shattered door. There are no bullet holes at all! A .45 cal slug would leave at least a 0.44 inch hole in sheet rock.
Richie Laskaris of Toronto, Ontario: K (Jones) ends up back with his wife after losing his memory as a result of resigning from Division 6. But when Edwards (Smith) joined Division 6, "all identifying marks" were removed, including his fingerprints. Doesn't K wonder why he doesn't have any fingerprints? Or did Division 6 give them back?
Dennis Matheson: I just read your Brash Reflections on the movie Men in Black. I'm glad to see the good reaction it has gotten from you and your fellow nitpickers because I am, in a very small way, part of that movie.
Lowell Cunningham, who wrote the comic book the movie is based on, is a very good friend of mine. Years ago, we were driving somewhere and I was telling him about various bits of UFO lore. (I had followed UFOs for a while, from a highly skeptical point of view). One of the "urbanlegends" around UFOs involves the "men in black". There are mysterious figures who show up after a UFO has been sighted and harass the witnesses or contactees. Originally, the implication was that they were some type of aliens in disguise, but later the legend changed to imply that they were government agents (the NSA is most often named) who were intimidating the witnesses and covering up the event.
Anyway, after I told Lowell about the MiB, he commented "that would make a good comic book idea". The rest is history. (He gets a movie, I get a mention on E! and in the "Making of..." book. Oh well...)
Rabi Whitaker: Do dragonflies really live in the *desert*? I thought they hovered around ponds and lakes and stuff. Or maybe they're one of those annoying species that are found "everywhere, primarily in the tropics."
That cow must be on Valium or something. It's standing there eating, this big flying saucer streaks down out of the sky, crashes into a truck and sets a tree on fire, creating a big crater not five feet from the cow - and the cow just keeps on eating, and it's not even singed! This is one resiliant cow!
It's amazing how these aliens can stuff all their tentacles and claws and flippers into their human suits. I would have liked to see Bug getting into the Edgar suit - that must have taken some major flexibility!
Everyone must have been really impressed with J to let him take over K's job after two days. Especially for someone with such a problem with authority.
Isn't it wonderful to know that no animals or aliens were harmed in the making of this motion picture? ;)
Richie Laskaris: There is some confusion regarding the encephalopod's blinking. During the interrogation, Edwards says he blinked "two sets of eyelids". The cop says, "You mean he blinked both eyes," to which Edwards responds, "No, he blinked one set, then he blinked a completely different set." The first time I saw the movie, it was my impression that he only blinked the funny-looking set. I was watching for this the second time around, and it still looked like he only blinked one set of eyelids.
K enters [the interrogation room] and says "They were gills". He proceeds to unplug something from the wall, then repeats, "They were gills--he was out of breath". While he says this, he holds his hands in front of his eyes and makes blinking motions with his fingertips. The problem is, he "blinks" his fingers the way a normal human blinks his or her eyes (from the top and bottom), and not the way the encephalopod blinked (from left to right).
Lisa Solinas: The cockroach ship lands directly on Edgar's truck. Parts fly in all directions. Yet when K comes over, it appears to be neatly cut in half.
David Hensley: Just saw MiB - really cool, very funny, and surprisingly plot-filled movie. Saw it twice in 3 days. Anyway, the only nit I did not see covered in the Brash Reflections is, in my humbled opinion, a pretty glaring one. So J, K, and the mortician just finished fighting the Bug. All of them are covered in yellowish alien goo. But when they get out of the car (just before J erases K's memory) the mortician still seems nice and dirty, while the MiB are both spiffy clean. (Oh, but it's actually some alien self-cleaning garment technology ;-) ).
Schuyler Hauser: Nice to know that K's love remained single all these years and was willing to let in this guy who she hasn't seen for all that time.
Todd Felton: I saw Men In Black on Tuesday and I have one nit that hasn't been provided yet: my friend tells me that dragonflies do NOT fly at night! I can't confirm this, but if it's true, that's a nit right at the opening of the movie! (Note from Phil: Unless, of course, it was some kind of alien-sniffing, bio-robotic device that was programmed to mark the vehicle carrying the alien after detection by slamming into the vehicle's windshield! See . . . now that would have been a way to tie the dragonfly into the rest of the movie!)
Bob Sabatini: When K hands Edwards the card that has MiB on the front, The back looks blank, but after K leaves, Edwards turns the card over, and the address is clearly written on the back.
Michel Albert: Cool cool movie, but I'm surprised this particular nit got by everyone in the guild. It's about the twist at the end, the extended zoom-out. I loved it. I really did. Goes back to the "what if the universe is just one molecule in God's fishbowl?" discussions of my youth. BUT. If the galaxy really IS in a marble as shown, how can we be aware of other galaxies around us?
Simon Crowley: OK, at the end, when K is showing J how to use the neuralizer, there are some dials on the back, for days, months, and years. But at the beginning, when K is erasing the memories of the police, there are 3 red seven-segment LED's on the back, for hours, minutes, and seconds!
Observations: Did anyone see the "Just Married" cans tied to the back of J and Laurel's black MiB car in the final zoom-out?
Anne Magee: K got himself swallowed by Bug so he could recover the gun. Makes sense. But he spent an awful long time inside there. Since he emerged covered in goo, he probably was swimming in goo. Lucky he can breathe goo.
John Reese: I just saw MIB a second time, and noticed something that bothered me the first time I saw it. It concerned K's grasp of history that reflects a common misconception. He said, "500 years ago, everyone KNEW the earth was flat." I assumed he was referring to the time of Columbus, who, as most of us learned in school, was warned not to attempt his Western passage to the Indies because the world was flat, and he would sail off the edge. Unfortunately, this is wrong. Just about every educated person 500 years ago knew the earth was round. Columbus' naysayers did not think he was mistaken about the earth's shape, they thought he was mistaken about its size. Columbus' estimates on the size of the globe were too small, and he was told that if he attempted his journey, he would run out of provisions. He would have, too, if it weren't for the fact that an unknown continent blocked his way. Therefore, I think it would have been more accurate for K to have said, "1500 years ago everyone knew the earth was flat, 500 years ago everyone knew the earth was the center of the universe." It's possible that's what the script said, and he just delivered the line wrong. Probably, though, the scriptwriters just read the same books I did as a kid.
Trevor Ruppe: When Will Smith and TLJ are aiming their guns to shoot the UFO down at the climax of the film, Will is to the LEFT of TLJ. Then there is a clip of just a few seconds' duration as the UFO banks around and comes in to crash. When we next see the MIB, Will is to the RIGHT of TLJ. True, there is just enough time for Will to move around to the other side of TLJ, but 1) there isn't any evidence that he deliberately did so, and 2) why would he?
Mike Leinoff: Are there really only 26 Men in Black? If each one uses a letter of the alphabet as his name, there can only be 26 agents. Yes, I suppose some of them could use doubled letters, but J was a fairly new addition. I would think someone would already have been named J before him.
More nits that were cut from the NextGen II Guide!
The Best Of Both Worlds, Part Two Star Date: 44001.4
Data puts the Borg to sleep.
A very minor point but a point to ponder nonetheless. While everyone else refers to the location of Starfleet's stand against the Borg as "Wolf three, five, nine," Data refers to it as "Wolf, three, fifty-nine." Unusual behavior for our android. Unless, of course, Data is right and everyone else is wrong!
Just after dropping out of warp upon entering the Sol system in hot pursuit of the Borg vessel, Riker asks Wesley how long till intercept. Presumably, Riker is asking with the assumption that the Borg will stop at Earth. We are given no indication that Borg impulse works any slower than Enterprise impulse so the only way to catch the Borg would be for the Borg to quit moving. With this in mind, we can rephrase Riker's question to ask what he really wants to know, "How long until we reach Earth?" Wesley replies 23 minutes and 14 seconds after which we see the Enterprise passing Saturn. The shortest distance between Saturn and Earth is approximately 1.2 billion kilometers. If the Enterprise will traverse this distance in 23 minutes and 14 seconds, it must travel at a rate of approximately 860,000 kilometer per second. Light only travels around 300,000 kilometers. So, according to Wesley, the Enterprise will somehow manage to travel at almost three times the speed of light while it runs at impulse!
Not a nit, just an observation. In this episode, Locutus analyzes Data as primitive artificial life stating that he will be obsolete soon. On the other hand, the Borg in "Descent," actually choose Lore as their leader.
On the battle bridge, Riker speaks with Locutus. In the background, several displays flash seemingly important information. I realize it looks really cool but do you really want to transmit this stuff so your enemy can see it?
There's something weird about the scene where Data and Worf depart the Enterprise in a shuttle. I am assuming that they leave from the Main Shuttlebay in the saucer section. Now, the last time we saw the saucer section it faced the Borg ship. So, the shuttle would exit out the back of the saucer section. But, when it does we almost immediately see the star drive section and it is facing almost the same direction as the direction of travel for the shuttle and it does not appear that the shuttle has banked into any type of hard turn. This is confusing because the star drive would no doubt be facing the same direction as the saucer since both are "intervening." (I'm confused.)
Thanks to: Jayson R. Hoffman and Christopher Chortrand of London, Ontario; Galen Wilson of Altoona, PA; Mark Bannister of London, England; Amy Vincent and Rodney Crouther of Bradenton, FL; Frank T. Bitterhof of Berlin, Germany
Family Star Date: 44012.3
Picard and his brother bond by hitting each other.
On page 213 of the NextGen Guide I asked if anyone else found it strange that everyone in France speaks with an English accent. Some nitpickers did not, saying that the French learn English from the Brits and therefore would speak with an English accent. However, as I--in my limited knowledge--understand it, French contains vowel and consonant that look identical to English on paper but are actually formed quite differently in the mouth. Take the letter "R" for example. The American pronunciation shoves it forward in the mouth, the English, a bit farther back whereas the French pronunciations place well back into the throat. Having grown up with these placements, it is quite difficult to unlearn them and "speak like a native" (of either the States, Britain or France). If everyone is actually speaking English in this episode and there mother tongue is French, they have all worked very hard learn English vowel and consonant placements--including Picard's nephew, Rene. (Something which the maitre d'hotel of the cafe Picard recreates on the holodeck during "We'll Always Have Paris" failed to do.) On the other hand, it is possible that everyone is actually speaking French and the creators decided not to insult our intelligence with silly accents as Nigel Strafford of Surrey, England pointed out. After all, we are (somehow) hearing them speak in French and the French don't hear a French accent when they speak. They hear what sounds normal so why shouldn't the creators make it sound normal to us? This is an interesting viewpoint. I do wonder, however, why the actors use the French pronunciation of Robert through out the show but the American pronunciations of Louis. If the creators had made a conscious decision to give us pure English accents to show us how much they appreciated our intelligence, why didn't they go all the way? (Thanks to John Potts of London, England.)
On a related front, Clark Scanlon of Council Bluffs, IA suggested that everyone in France speaks in an English accent to hide that fact that Picard doesn't speak with a French one! Edward A. Watson of Coatesville, PA wondered if this French people with English accents thing might be a future side effect of the Chunnel. And, Frank M. Cunat of Chevy Chase, MD has always found it suspect that a Frenchman named Picard would like Earl Grey tea and use expressions like "I might have done."
This one is borderline but I'll bring it to you attention and let you decide. After the big fight, we rejoin the brothers in a sitting room of Robert's house. The camera slowly pans across big glops of mud--brought in from outside by the brother's soiled shoes--eventually arriving at an outside door. A moment later the door opens and Robert's wife enters, instantly shocked by the mess. Now back up several frames and study the mud around the door before Robert's wife opens it. You will see an arched streak of mud that terminates in a ridge near the open position of the door. The formation could only be cause by the opening of the door with mud already on the floor. If Robert and Jean-Luc had wandered in and then shut the door, the mud would be smeared towards the closed position of the door. (There are several explanations for the placement of the mud. No one can prove that Robert and Jean-Luc have only traversed the door once. But, then again, if they had, they would have tracked more mud around the area instead of just leaving a neat trail.)
Thanks to: Kelly Eagle of Albuquerque, NM
Brothers Star Date: 44085.7-44091.1
Data meets his dad.
On pages 214 and 215 of the NextGen Guide, I suggested that Picard should have known very early on that Data had something to do with the course change and subsequent loss of life support on the main bridge. When Picard orders everyone to re-assemble in Main Engineer, Data goes and stands by a the emergency turbolift that goes direct to the battle bridge! Jessica Hall of Middlesex, England reported that Riker orders everyone to "turbolifts two, three and four" and that's why Data went to the emergency turbolift. (She also wondered by Picard would expect Data to leave the bridge at all. Why not just have him stay behind and run the diagnostics from there?) In addition, Riker's designations of turbolifts raises a few other questions. From the sound of it there are four turoblifts on the bridge? Where is the fourth one? Is it the one that connects to the Observation Lounge? If so, why is it turbolift one? Wouldn't the numbering for the turbolifts on Deck 1 start on the main bridge, making the turbolift in the observation lounge turbolift four? On the other hand, the Technical Manual claims that there are only three turbolift shafts that connect to Deck 1: two normal shafts (port forward, port aft which includes an observation lounge access point) and the emergency shaft to the battle bridge. To what then does Riker refer when he designates "turbolifts two, three and four?" He can't be referring to the actual turbolift cars themselves. According to the Technical Manual, these things move all over the ship. There is no way Riker could know which cars happened to be loaded up in the shafts at the time of the evacuation.
In the NextGen Guide, on page 216, I questioned why the crew doesn't take a shuttle to retrieve Data even with the lockout of all command function. Ryan Jodrell of Cremona, Alberta answered that the shuttlebay doors probably would open. I can accept that. But, what about using the "emergency evacuation override" that Jake Kurland evoke in "Coming of Age." And, if that doesn't work, how about firing off one of the life boats? (The kind we saw in action during the series premiere of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.) Surely the designers of the Enterprise made some provision for the crew abandoning ship after a looney seizes control.
When the away team beams down to retrieve Data, Riker stands in the blue center of the transporter instead of on one of the transporter pads. It has been done before. (One of the Klingons materialized there in "Heart of Glory.") It's just a bit odd.
Suddenly Human Star Date: 44143.7 No subsequent cuts.
Remember Me Star Date: 44161.2-44132.8
A warp core accident traps Crusher in a warp bubble reality.
Just after speaking with O'Brien about Quaice, Riker and Crusher ride a turbolift up to the main bridge. Riker disembarks on the bridge. Crusher remains behind and the turbolift continues. Evidently, Crusher hadn't finished her conversation with Riker when the turbolift reached her destination and she told Turbolift Control to drop Riker off first. The turbolift had to reach her destination before it reached the bridge because the bridge is on Deck 1. This would also explain why Crusher fails to give the turbolift a destination yet the lift knows where to take her.
Thanks to: Emma Garland of Gloucestershire, England
Legacy Star Date: 44215.2-44225.3
The crew is deceived by Ishara Yar, Tasha Yar's sister
Shortly after arriving on the Enterprise, Ishara changes out of her unisex Alliance outfit into a tightly fit unitard. On page 222, I wondered the crew of the Enterprise required Ishara to endure this type of outfit when--aside from babe counsellor Troi--no other crewmember did. David Tarbox of Huntertown, IN felt I had it all wrong. He believes Ishara herself chose the outfit as part of a campaign to win the admiration of the male members of the crew. She, apparently, was successful since no one suspected her deception.
I realize that this may be becoming tedious but the stars in the observation lounge, once again are static in the wide shot and move in the close-ups during the initial meeting with Ishara.
Thanks to: Kelly O'Connell of Orefield, PA
Reunion Star Date: 44246.3
Picard oversees the succession of the leader of the Klingon empire.
During the ceremony to prove that K'Mpec is dead, each of the contenders jab a pain stick in the former head of the Klingon High Council, K'Mpec. As the ceremony concludes, a bomb goes off sending humanoids flying every where. Two Klingons die, one from Duras's contingent and one from Gowron's. Presumably, whoever planted the bomb intended to kill one of the challengers. Later, La Forge and Data determine that the bomb used a molecular decay detonator--a Romulan design. Also, Crusher determines that the assassin had the bomb implanted in his right wrist. Compiling all these facts, P.T.H. Carder of Lancashire, England brought an interesting thought to my attention. It's not exactly clear where the assassin stood when the bomb went off. It's dark and the camera angle changes quickly. We do know that K'Ehleyr stands to K'Mpec's right, Picard stands on the other side of her and Gowron stands on Picard's right. Three Klingon's occupy the space on the other side of Gowron. Duras is either next to Gowron or only one Klingon away. Since the bomb was in the assassin's right wrist, it had to be closer to Duras than Gowron. Also, the bomb was found in one of Duras's men. Now, if you want to assassinate someone, it would be much easier to get the bomb close to the guy if you compromised one of his own body guards. And finally, why would Duras use a Romulan detonator in the first place? Were no Klingon detonators available? It does make sense for Gowron to use a Romulan detonator. Perhaps he has heard rumors about Duras's father's involvement with the Romulans and seeks to cast doubt on Duras. With all this "evidence," can we really conclude that the assassination attempt came from Duras and not Gowron?
Future Imperfect Star Date: 44286.5
Riker experiences a fake future.
In my review of this episode on pages 226 and 227 of the NextGen Guide, I found a few things odd with Riker's future fantasy. Remember that the setting is taken from Riker's mind using neural scanners. First, Riker tells Troi that he can't imagine her leaving the Enterprise but in the setting she has and it's Riker's own mind that has created the setting. Second, in the same setting, Riker is going to sign the treaty between the Romulans and the Federation even though leaders and diplomats sign treaties not star ship captains. Diana Brown of San Ysidro, CA noted that since it's Riker's fantasy he can have himself signing the treaty if he wants to! And, Bill DeLong of Springfield, MO suggested that both Kirk and Picard have negotiated treaties in their time and perhaps the Romulans would only be satisfied with Riker's signature. (This brings up an entire discussion concerning who is empowered to act as agent for the Federation. Presumably the Federation has some sort of election process to select it's leaders and by law those leaders would be given the responsibility of pledging the Federation in any agreement, i.e. signing for the Federation. But . . . it's a big discussion and can wait till later.) Finally, Jeff Deluzio of London, Ontario assumed that Riker's statement that he couldn't imagine Troi leaving the Enterprise was simply realistic human banter.
Shortly after transporting aboard, Tomolok rides a turbolift with, Picard, Riker and Troi. They travel to the main bridge but the motion indicator shows them going down! Since the Main Bridge is on Deck 1, they are going the wrong direction.
As part of the opening scene, Riker celebrates his birthday. The crew throw him a party in Ten-Forward and he blows out the candle. Troi asks him what he wished for and Riker leers at her intently for a few seconds before delivering his line, "Music lesson." The groups breaks out in cackles but those between Troi and Riker seem very genuine, as if he wasn't supposed to leer intently at her and threw it in for effect.
Thanks to: Philip Heckman of Monona, WI and Steve C. Windham of Glen Rose, TX
Final Mission Star Date: 44307.3-44307.6
Picard takes Wesley on a final mission before the Academy.
In this episode, as Riker has the Enterprise tow a barge containing radioactive waste, the computer give a precise countdown to lethal radiation exposure. In the NextGen Guide, on page 230, I found it a bit incredible that the computer could make this determination to the second. I also wondered if this lethal exposure level was exactly the same for all the crewmembers. John Hobson of Bolingbrook, IL believes that the computer has simply been told that a given number of rems is fatal to humans and it is monitoring the total rem exposure. (This seems a plausible explanation. However, wouldn't it also mean that the computer's countdown may not be wholly accurate? Since there are many races aboard the Enterprise, doesn't it seem likely that some of them might be more or less susceptible to radiation poisoning?)
Data's Day Star Date: 44390.1
Data keeps a diary.
Paged by Sickbay, Crusher cuts short her dance lesson with Data. She grabs a towel from the barre in the holodeck created studio, wipes her brow and rushes from the holodeck. The shot changes and suddenly the towel reappears on the barre. (No doubt, this is a feature in the holodeck program: Continuous towels!)
Just after the Romulan vessel arrives, Picard and T'Pel walk out of his ready room. The preceding wide shots show that Worf is not on the bridge. Moments later, Worf walks up the ramp as if he just disembarked the turbolift near Picard's ready room. But, if that's the case, the door swish is missing.
The Wounded Star Date: 44429.6 No subsequent cuts.
Devil's Due Star Date: 44474.5
A beautiful con artist poses as Ardra, Ventax II's devil.
On page 238 of the NextGen Guide, I found fault with Picard hesitancy to explain the possible source of Ardra's powers during the arbitration when he did so earlier in the episode during a staff meeting. John Hobson of Bolingbrook, IL wrote to say that, during the trial, Picard was constrained to deal with facts not unsubstantiated guess.
This isn't really a nit, rather an observation. I'm a bit surprised that the Ferengi aren't shuttling people off Ventax II. The dialogue indicates that the Ventaxians expected Ardra's visit for several years. Surely, word has gotten out and the Ferengi could have made a healthy profit relocating the inhabitants of this planet.
Sometimes, I feel bad for the creators. For instance, in "The Defector," Picard calls for the holodeck to freeze program and the fire keeps burning. Now, I'm sure the hordes of nitpickers bombarded Paramount with letters detailing the reasons that the fire should freeze as well. I have no doubt that "The Memo" went forth , "Yea, from hence forth whenever thou shalt observe to do the following, without fail, thou shalt lend thy talent to accomplish this task: Upon seeing that the script calleth for "freeze program," yea thou, of the visual effects crew, shalt set forth to insure with thine abilities that any fire, whether lain on the ground or confined in a firebox be made to freeze as well. So say I, executive producer, so say us all." So then, we come to this episode. It starts out with Data giving a private rendition of "A Christmas Carol" for Picard. Sure enough when Picard calls for freeze program, the fire halts in mid-flame! Unfortunately, the candles around the fireplace keep flickering! (Time for another memo!)
If I was O'Brien or any of the other transporter chiefs, this episode would just about do it for me. Following an unexpected transport by Ardra to the surface of the planet in his lounge wear, Picard orders Worf to beam him back to his quarters. Worf attempts this from his console as opposed to calling a transporter room. I guess the job of transporter chief has no job security in that anyone can do the transporter cheif's job from the looks of it.
Thanks to: Matthew Rorie; Gary Wesley of Cambs England
Clues Star Date: 44502.7
The crew loses a day and works to discover what happened.
In this episode Picard states that he has never known Data to tell a lie. On page 244 of the NextGen Guide, I noted that our dear captain must have forgotten about the incidents during "The Schizoid Man." Michael Hollick of Brampton, Ontario pointed out that technically Data didn't tell a lie in "The Schizoid Man," Dr. Ira Graves did since he inhabited Data's body at the time. However, I would contend that the situation in "Clues" is the same as that of "The Schizoid Man." In that episode, Picard and Data stand in his ready room. Picard asks Data to do a self-diagnosis. Data claims everything is fine. Picard replies that for the first time he doesn't believe what Data says. At the time, Picard didn't know about Grave's occupation of Data's body. In "Clues," under similar suspicious circumstances, Picard simply says that he has never know Data to lie when he should say he has never know Data to lie free of outside influences and then conclude that Data is under some outside influence.
Several nitpickers wrote to complain about what they felt was an obvious plot oversight in the episode. Ruth Radecki of Santa Maria, CA explained that, by the end of the show, the crew is missing two full days. She wondered what they would tell Starfleet when the chronometers demonstrated this startling fact. For instance, the ship's chronometers might say it's Wednesday when it's really Friday or Saturday. I can see Ruth's point. I guess I always thought that the crew would chalk this up to a time displacement caused by the worm hole that threw them two days into the future.
Andrew LaMance of East Ridge, TN had an interesting observation on this episode. He had always believed that the episodes we watch were taken from the ship's visual logs. This episode confused him because it couldn't come from a ship's log.
First Contact Star Date: Unknown No subsequent cuts.
Galaxy's Child Star Date: 44614.6 No subsequent cuts.
Night Terrors Star Date: 44631.2-44642.1
The Enterprise becomes trapped in a Tykon's rift.
On pages 249 and 250 of the NextGen Guide, I suggested that Picard et al might set the Brattain for self-destruct and thereby free the Enterprise from the rift. Diana Brown of San Ysidro, CA believes that exploding the Brattain would damage the Enterprise as well.
Depending on your interpretation of Worf's statements, this may or may not be a nit but try it on for size. In this episode, a trembling Worf tries to commit suicide in his quarters. When Troi asks why he states that he is no longer a warrior that he feels fear. Yet, in "Coming of Age," Worf told Wesley that only fools have no fears. Perhaps in this episode Worf means that he can no longer control his fear?
Contributor: Joshua M. Truax of Platteville, WI
Identity Crisis Star Date: 44664.5-44668.1
La Forge turns into a lizard.
On page 252 of the NextGen Guide, I found it odd that--at the end of the episode--Leitjen tells the away team that the altered Starfleet officers can't see the ultraviolet light but as soon as Data shines his ultraviolet flashlight on them, they run away. Michael Hollick of Brampron, Ontario didn't find this odd at all given that the veins on the aliens start glowing in the presence of ultraviolet light. He claims he would be freaked out and run away as well if a part of him started glowing! Mark A. Shore of Staffordshire, England suggested that perhaps the absorption and re-emmision of the ultraviolet light in the visible spectrum by the alien's veins could produce some tactile sensation--akin to feeling the heat of a light bulb even though a person is blindfolded.
I always enjoy hearing from you. Here's a portion of the input that's come in over the last two months. Some items of old business and then on to the new stuff!
Preambles and War (Part 3)
Adam Howarter observed, "I think I figured out how Spock's comment makes sense in 'City on the Edge ...' By the 23th century we will have overcome our 'Euro-centric' views. And as such we will have realized that WORLD war II didn't start until December of 1941 because until that point the US and Japan weren't officially involved, and as such it was still only a European thang. But once Pearl Harbor was attacked then the WHOLE world was officially involved. This also explains Picard's "Bloody preamble" speech. Well, its the best I can do."
Then Again, Einstein Was Exceptional At Math Either (Part 2)
Brendan Dillon of Raleigh, NC corrected, "Actually, if memory serves, Riker mentioned the warp coil, not the warp drive. I don't know much about the warp drive's inner workings, but that may have been a later addition to the drive systems, making it more efficient."
Bashir-Style Bootlicking (Part 2)
Alexander Shearer advised, "I'm wondering if you mistyped, or Edwin did, or what. DNA is a linear polymer of nucleotides, all right, but proteins are built out of polypeptides, linear polymers of amino acids. This doesn't even have to be technobabble (though it probably is). Here's how it could be (mind you, I haven't seen this episode, so I'd need to see the scale on the graphic).
"Among other things, DNA codes for RNA, which codes for proteins (in short, DNA-->proteins). Thus, there are sections of DNA which code for a bunch of proteins, all in a row. One example everyone should have a passing familiarity with is HIV, where a series of proteins all in a row is translated (built) as a single unit, then chopped into functional units by proteases (hence the use of protease inhibitors in halting HIV). Thus, Bashir could be pointing at a region which codes for a series of proteins, and simply be calling it 'the protein series' as a verbal shorthand. I know people who do that. That said, I still think it's probably technobabble, especially if the helix is big and obvious in the graphic (oooh...DNA)."
I checked. Big DNA graphic on the screen! (Grin.) Now, it could be that the screen changes when we aren't looking but . . .
Vox Populi (Part 2)
Murray J.D. Leeder wrote, "The observation of Dana-Jean LaHaie reminds me of a poem my Latin teacher told me recently, 'Latin's a dead language; It's very plain to see; It killed off all the Romans; And now it's killing me' . . . and I have felt that way from time to time. But 'Bread and Circuses' proves it! If the Romans spoke English, the Roman Empire would had never fallen!"
The Asexual Borg
Some of you may recall that Q said of the Borg that they were neither male nor female. Dr. Robert Woolley of St. Paul, Minnesota had a few thoughts on this topic.
"Now, here you're going to need the observational skills of a most highly trained medical nitpicker, since nobody else is going to notice this: I have detected in the new character 'Seven of Nine' faint hints of secondary sexual characteristics that suggest that this Borg is a female. And this even before she gets deborgified. Go back and look at a tape of her first appearance, take it down to frame-by-frame, crack open a copy of 'Gray's Anatomy' for reference, compare her carefully, inch by inch, to a more generic Borg standing next to her, and you might be able to see what I mean."
Knead, Let Rise, Knead Again, Bake At 350 (Part 2)
Ethan Calk commented, "On the last page of Part 4 of the newsletter, there is a nit from 'Children of Time'--i.e. Odo's holder being a bread machine. They are absolutely correct. I was there! I laid hands on said bread machine! (touched it, not stole it, grin.)
At Least We Know Q Isn't A Vampire
Werner Rodejohann from Lippstadt in Germany wrote, "In the show where Q and Vash appear in the first year ('Q-less'), Vash is getting a room on the station. She starts to try to get her things in a dresser until Q shows up. We see her taking things from her bag, which lies on the bed. She goes to the dresser and the camera follows her. When she goes back to the bed Q sits on the bed. Look on the gold-colored shield over the bed! When she takes her things out of the bag you can see a person's reflection on the right side of the shield! Since this reflection cannot be hers it must be John de Lancie getting ready to sit on the bed as soon the camera is not pointing at it.
The Talking Alarm Clock Systems Upgrade For The Enterprise
Gina Torgersen observed, "The Star Trek: The Next Generation Talking Alarm Clock instruction booklet says, 'Another way to cancel the alarm when it is sounding is to manually disconnect the saucer module of the Enterprise. This activates an additional sound chip which reproduces the noise as the saucer module accelerates to warp speed (you have now saved all nonessential crewmembers allowing the battle section to return and face the Romulan warbirds).' The problem is that the saucer definitely does not have warp capability! Before reading the instruction I assumed that the stardrive had just left, leaving the saucer in my hand but this is also odd because of the two Romulan Warbirds in the immediate vicinity in the background of the clock."
Morn Speaks!
Marcus Gansloser of Gafelfing, Germany wrote, "I can read everywhere that Morn has never spoken a single word. That might be true for the original version, but in Germany, he has (unfortunately) spoken twice. It happened in 'The Jem'Hadar': A short time after the beginning, Quark has a hear-to-heart talk with Morn. He tells him that he (Quark) is his friend, that Morn can tell him everything. Then Odo appears, and Morn raises his finger to start telling his story. I guess that in English, he doesn't say a word, but in German, he starts with 'Ach, ah' which means something like 'Well, uhm . . .'. Then Quark talks to Odo and Nog and leaves after that with his nephew. After that, we see lonely Morn. In German, he says, 'Dann nicht,' which I would translate with, 'Never mind.'"
The Undiscovered County (According to Shakespear)
Keith Alan Morgan of Sumner, WA commented, "[In Tapestry,] Q tells Picard, 'Welcome to the afterlife. You're dead!' Then the credits start and we heard, 'Space, the final frontier.'"
Yet More Fun From Those Wacky German Translators
Peter informed, "I was rewatching the NextGen episode 'I Borg' today and the craziest - and most obvious - BSE nit ever came to my attention (I probably had suppressed the memory earlier). I don't know if you're already aware of it, but I'll tell you anyway, because it's so unbelievable.
"The Borg in the episode, Third of Five, is given the name Hugh in the episode--at least in the original version. In the German version, the poor boy must walk through the episode by the name of 'Du,' which is the German word for 'you' when addressing a relative, a friend, or a child. Of course this is irritating enough. Hearing somebody say 'Du,' a German will automatically think of the pronoun 'you.' (Guinan to Picard: 'Did you know he had a name? LaForge gave it to him. His name is you.')
"But of course, just to confuse the casual viewer completely, and to show their complete and utter ignorance, the German dubbing studio chose for a German episode title . . . 'Ich bin Hugh' ('I am Hugh')!
"BTW, just to maintain non-continuity, in 'Descent,' Hugh is called Hugh in the German version."
Needed: The Federation Citizens With Disabilities Act
Ken Porter of Revere, Massachusetts noted, "Twenty-fourth century, progressive, equal rights for everyone, access to all . . . Why is it that the only places we ever see stairs are in the transporter rooms? What if you're beaming up a group of delegates who are in wheelchairs? You could probably transport them right onto the floor, but then why have the stairs in the first place?"
Of course, when the Enterprise-D beams up Admiral Mark Jameson in his wheelchair, the crew beams him up to the transporter pad! And, it never really shows how he gets off the pad.
Odo's Weight Problem
John Burrows of Middlesex, England corrected, "I have been re-reading my DS9 Guide and was struck by your several nitpicks about Odo's apparent change of weight when shapeshifting. Now, I don't know what else has been said about this but don't forget this is Science Fiction.
"If we can accept that the Q Continuum can do anything, that people can meet themselves in a parallel universe and that in 'Shadowplay' a village consists entirely of holograms who believe themselves human and live, dies and give birth, then surely we can accept that Odo's weight changes according to the object he assumes."
Certainly, people can believe whatever they like about Odo. For me, the problem is that Trek is supposed to be SCIENCE Fiction. If the creators would drop a line somewhere about Odo being a trans-dimensional being then I wouldn't have any problem with his weight change. But from everything that we've seen Odo is subject to the same physical universe as we are and according to our current understanding of physics, weight is related to mass therefore a change in weight indicates a change in mass and that mass has to go somewhere. I am willing to believe that it slips into another dimension (unfortunately, this would make the Founders very difficult to defeat); I am also willing to believe he turns into a gas (although he would make a lot of gas) and there are other possibilities as well. Problem is: All of them have problems! As far as the other improbabilities mentioned above: Q exists outside our reality so science doesn't apply to them. Some scientist DO postulate the existence of other universes. And I find nothing in science to contradict the possibility of artificial intelligence someday "reproducing"!
Double Meanings For Planets
Alfredo Ruanova commented, "I know the subject is a little old, but I recently noticed one funny term that nobody has called to your attention. Remember the shore-leave/pleasure planet established in TNG and DS9? It is called Risa (pronounced rye-sa, right?). However, in Spanish, it would be pronounced 'ree-sa,' which means 'laughter.' It still is a fun connotation, isn't it?
All's Well That Ends Well
Rebecca Sleven of Birmingham, England noted, "I have only one real problem with this film: The last line drives me nuts.
"'Lay in such-and-such a course.'
"'Course laid in.'
"'Make it so'
"Make what so? The laying in of the course? He's just done that! 'Engage!' was what was needed. Granted 'Make it so' is Picard's other catch phrase, and it needed to go in somewhere, but it just doesn't make sense!"
The Fabled NCC On The Odyssey
Jason Barnes wrote, "You mentioned in your DS9 Guide that several people have told you that you can see the 1701 D on the Odyssey in the episode 'The Jem'Hadar.' You said you couldn't find it. I have to bow my head in shame to admit that I saw the episode for the first time Tuesday night. I taped it and rewatched it today and I SAW the registry. Watch the first shot of the Jem'Hadar ship flying towards the Odyssey. It flies from the left of the screen, across to the right and if you look very close to where the numbers you should, you can just make out 1701 D. It's been shadowed over so the NCC is not visible and the first 1 is hard to make out but, it IS there! That's the only time you can see it. There are no other numbers or symbols on the ship. I agree. That's odd. I mean, how did they do the shots for the Yamato?"
I checked again and still can't find it but my tape isn't that good to begin with!
The Clown Files
Craig Mason observed, "I loved the reference to The X-Files in the second episode of The Visitor. [A supervisor tells some FBI agents that if they don't make some progress on a case soon, he will be] 'tossing this thing down to those two clowns in the basement.'"
In Water, Falling Upward
Sydney Carton offered, "Tonight I rented the movie Anaconda, just released on video. It contains the saddest, most obvious, most pathetic movie edit ever. They needed to do a quick little transition scene where the boat goes into reverse. So, rather than moving the boat, they took footage of the boat going forward and reversed it. Unfortunately, no one on the editing staff noticed the LARGE WATERFALL directly behind the boat. So, for about three seconds, a large cascade of water falls upwards. I know it's just a random nit, but we all got a big laugh here and thought you might want to mention it sometime."
Ah, The Sound Of The Cash Register Bell
Jonathan R. Ormond of Shropshire, England commented, "[Concerning DS9: 'Our Man Bashir,'] It may not have enriched my life much to learn the lyrics in the closed captioning for this episode, but if anyone points them out to Ray Davies, it might result in him being enriched by some royalties. The words, 'Girl, you really got me now . . . (etc.),' are more or less exactly from the Kinks song, 'You Really Got Me.' Full marks for accuracy to the holosuite programmers, though; this song was indeed a hit in 1964! How many film-makers are that accurate when depicting scenes several centuries ago? (I have my doubts, though, whether the rather stark sound of the original track would be thought suitable for this sort of establishment; maybe it's an easy-listening cover version?)"
A Brick-Peddler Cometh
Ryan Smith wrote, "In the DS9 Guide under 'A Man Alone,' you note that someone throws a brick at Odo's office shattering the glass. Something just seemed wrong there, but I couldn't put my finger on what. Then I saw the episode again and I figured out what I thought was odd:
"Where do you get a brick on a space station? I'd almost believe Quark was selling them for a tidy profit to capitalize on the situation."
The Mirror And Two Faces (Part 2)
Jonathan R. Ormond of Shropshire, England observed, "[In the original series episode, 'Let That Be Your Last Battlefield,'] there is a rather odd feature concerning the prejudices in this programme. The two aliens are identical except that one is white on the left and black on the right, while the other is reversed. They are hostile to each other because of these differences. How would these feelings come about in the first place? Call the two races Type A and Type B. When a Type A looked into a mirror, he would see himself as a Type B, and vice verse; this must surely militate against any sort of sterotyping. It would have been better if the colour divide had been horizontal that rather than vertical, which would have eliminated this nit and would have allowed the same point to be made."
Good point! It might have been really interesting for the creators in integrate this idea and make mirrors outlawed on the homeworld!
When Television And Life Collide
Doctor Robert J. Woolley confessed, "A patient came to see me about headaches. She described them as feeling 'like somebody is driving metal spikes into my head.'
"Having just seen 'Scientific Method' on Voyager, and without thinking too hard about the consequences, I said, 'Maybe there are phase-shifted aliens conducting experiments on you.'
"Now, you have to understand that I work in a university student health service, so a high percentage of my patients will be Trek watchers and I can get away with allusions like that. Well, this woman wasn't one of them. I can't begin to describe the look she gave me. I quickly tried to explain, but the explanation only made me look and feel even stupider. I have a hunch she's not going to come back for her next appointment. Oh well. Sometimes a comment like that finds a fellow fan and makes for a better relationship; sometimes it really bombs."
The Bugs Move Out And Then They Move Back In
Jenifer Gordon observed, "I just read your last newsletter, and one person had a question as to why at the end of this episode a bug was staring at Mulder after his apartment was fumigated? I live in a condo building, and it does NOT help just to fumigate only one apartment. The little horrors will leave for a bit then come back. They needed to fumigate the WHOLE building!"
The Anguish of Jem'Hadar Dematology
Matthew Chase Maxwell of San Francisco CA: In "Sacrifice of Angels," the Jem'Hadar which Quark orders to deactivate the holding cell force fields has a very strange (discolored) nose. Did a piece of makeup fall off the actor?
I really think we should show more sensitivity when we bring up these kinds of comments. I mean, afterall, it seem pretty obvious that this poor Jem'Hadar is passing through the equivalency of our adolescence and the scourge of acne that it often produces. No doubt this is a source of great embarrassment for this young Jem'Hadar! (I'm just joking! To me, it really looks like the make up people forgot to paint one of the latex prosthetics! What's incredible to me about this is the Jem'Hadar is shown in a full-face close-up!)
When Television And Life Collide (Part 2)
Michael Deeds of Philadelphia, PA wrote, "I have a nit for The X-Files episode 'Unusual Suspects' (11/16/97). This episodes stars Richard Belzer as Detective Munch from Homicide: Life on the Streets. Thus, it implies that Homicide and The X-Files exist in the same fictional universe. However, here comes the nit. In the Homicide episode 'Partners' (1/20/95), a character refers to The X-Files as a fictional TV show that airs at nine o'clock on Fridays! Can you guess which character has this line? Yes, it is Munch played by Richard Belzer! So, this episode implies that these two shows do NOT exist in the same fictional universe!"
But Are The Creators This Clever?
Joel Croteau noted, "Not really a nit, just an observation. I think the writers in Star Trek are trying to test how observant we are. In the DS9 guide, in your review of 'The Sons of Mogh,' you say the following: 'O'Brien gives their heading as "327 mark 215" It would be a whole lot simpler to say "147 mark 305."' Let me repeat that last part: '147 mark 305' Or, more to the point '147' If you haven't figured it out yet, I'll give you a hint. See the sidebar, '47.'"
Future History
Doug Brooks of Knoxville, TN commented, "I found it amusing that 'Judgment Day' has past and nothing happened. This is my favorite kind of nit: when a show or movie tries to predict the near future and fails horribly. That Eugenics Wars thing was way off. But because the Florida Marlins won the World Series, there was a discussion on a local sportstalk radio show about the prediction made in Back to the Future Part II. If you've seen it, you may remember that the Chicago Cubs swept the Miami Gators (we only saw their logo, but I assume they were the Gators) in the 2015 World Series. While there probably won't be a Miami Gators club, they did correctly predict (in 1989) that a club from Miami would one day play in the World Series. Also, the USA Today from October 22, 2015 contained this line in the top right corner: WASHINGTON PREPARES FOR QUEEN DIANA'S VISIT. Unfortunately, we already know that it won't happen. I also want to tell you about the best non-nit prediction of all time. In 1991, there was an episode of Quantum Leap called (I believe) 'All-American.' Sam was a quarterback on a high school team. During the big game, Al enters the imaging chamber and says that he has been watching Super Bowl 30, and that the Steelers were down by three. Guess what? Five years later, the Steelers were down by three (in both the first and fourth quarters) in Super Bowl 30. That's a good pick considering the Steelers weren't very good in '91.
Beams Away!
Stephanie Jessop wrote, "Okay, so in the Nit-Guide for DS9 under Plot Oversights in the episode 'Way of the Warrior' you asked why there were so few Klingons beaming into Ops. The Guide says, 'It would make more sense to keep pumping people in there until you overwhelmed Sisko and company.' Well, yeah, I guess that would work, too. But, if I was in command of that Klingon fleet, I would have done it a little differently. I would have beamed all the Starfleet personel on the station into space. (Starting with the ones in Ops, of course.) Brutal, perhaps. But it'd be easier more effective, wouldn't it? In fact, I would think that in the age of transporters that would be a standard battle tactic.
This tactic is, of course, prohibited by the Galactic Non-Aggressive Beaming Pact of 2153! (Grin.)
A Final Groaner
Recently a guy in Paris nearly got away with stealing several paintings from the Louvre. However, after planning the crime, getting in and out and past security, he was captured only 2 blocks away when his Econoline ran out of gas. When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an obvious error, he replied: "I had no Monet to buy Degas to make the Van Gogh."