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• 2368 deaths

Dathon was a Tamarian captain during the late- 24th century .

In 2368 , Dathon became the first of his race to successfully establish communication with the Federation when his ship rendezvoused with the USS Enterprise -D at El-Adrel IV and beamed both himself and Starfleet Captain Jean-Luc Picard down on the planet 's surface to hunt an aggressive lifeform living there. He hoped that facing a common enemy would help them learn to communicate. Picard successfully learned to understand the Tamarian's metaphor-based language system, but Dathon was killed by the lifeform. ( TNG episode : " Darmok ")

Appendices [ ]

Appearances and references [ ].

• TNG episode : " Darmok "

External link [ ]

• Dathon article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .
• Dathon article at the Star Trek Timelines Wiki .

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Shaka, When the Walls Fell

In one fascinating episode, Star Trek: The Next Generation traced the limits of human communication as we know it—and suggested a new, truer way of talking about the universe.

On stardate 45047.2, Jean-Luc Picard leads the crew of the Enterprise in pursuit of a transmission beacon from the El-Adrel system, where a Tamarian vessel has been broadcasting a mathematical signal for weeks. The aliens, also known as the Children of Tama, are an apparently peaceable and technologically advanced race with which the Federation nevertheless has failed to forge diplomatic relations. The obstacle, as Commander Data puts it: “Communication was not possible.”

Picard exudes optimism as his starship courses through subspace. “In my experience, communication is a matter of patience, imagination,” he beams to his senior staff. “I would like to believe that these are qualities which we have in sufficient measure.” But after hailing the alien ship upon arrival, contact with Children of Tama proves more difficult than Picard imagined:

DATHON, the Tamarian captain: Rai and Jiri at Lungha. Rai of Lowani. Lowani under two moons. Jiri of Umbaya. Umbaya of crossed roads. At Lungha. Lungha, her sky gray. (no response from Enterprise, looks at First Officer in frustration) (slowly, deliberately) Rai and Jiri. At Lungha.

In the Star Trek universe, a “universal translator” automatically interprets between any alien language instantly and fluently. Unlike today’s machine-translation methods, the universal translator requires no previous experience with another language in order to make sense of it. Such is the case with Tamarian, at least on the surface, as the Enterprise crew is able to comprehend the basic syntax and semantics of Tamarian utterances. “The Tamarian seems to be stating the proper names of individuals and locations,” offers Data, stating the obvious. But Picard quickly sums up the problem, “Yes, but what does it all mean?”

Picard’s reply to the Tamarians sounds especially staid to the viewer’s ears after having heard the aliens’ exotic prose: “Would you be prepared to consider the creation of a mutual nonaggression pact between our two peoples? Possibly leading to a trade agreement and cultural interchange. Does this sound like a reasonable course of action to you?” His questions cause the Tamarians as much befuddlement as their litany of names and places does the Federation crew. The Tamarian first officer offers the only honest reaction of the lot, a scornful scoff, but he is quickly silenced by his captain:

FIRST OFFICER (laughing): Kadir beneath Mo Moteh. DATHON: The river Temarc. The officers immediately stop their laughter—as if ordered to. DATHON (continuing; for emphasis): In winter. DATHON: Darmok.             The First Officer looks very concerned—objects. FIRST OFFICER: Darmok? Rai and Jiri at Lungha. DATHON (shrugs): Shaka. When the walls fell … FIRST OFFICER: Zima at Anzo. Zima and Bakor. DATHON (firm) Darkmok at Tanagra. FIRST OFFICER: Shaka! (indicating situation) Mirab, his sails unfurled. DATHON: Darmok.

At this point, the Tamarian ship transports its captain, Dathon, along with Picard down to the surface of El-Adrel IV. Dathon has brought along two Tamarian daggers; the bridge scene suggests they carry some ceremonial significance. The Enterprise attempts to retrieve Picard, but the Tamarians have already created a particle-scattering field in the planet’s ionosphere, making teleportation impossible.

On the surface, Dathon tosses one of the daggers to Picard, who misunderstands, thinking he’s being incited to fight. Meanwhile, First Officer Riker makes the same error up in orbit. He attempts to contact his Tamarian counterpart only to be reminded: “Darmok at Tanagra.” “Your action could be interpreted as an act of war,” enjoins Riker. His counterpart laments to his colleagues, “Kiteo, his eyes closed,” before responding to Riker, “Chenza, at court. The court of silence.” He closes the channel.

As night falls on the surface, Picard fails to make a fire while Dathon lounges comfortably around his roaring blaze. Dathon throws Picard a torch, incanting, “Temba.” After first misunderstanding that Temba might mean fire , Dathon clarifies, “Temba, his arms wide.” And Picard begins to fit the pieces together, “Temba is a person. His arms wide … because he’s … he’s holding them apart. In, in … generosity. In giving. In taking. Thank you.”

As morning breaks, Dathon rouses Picard. “Darmok! Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra,” he entreats, but Picard still doesn’t know what to make of it. An ominous roar is heard from afar, and Picard finally accepts the weapon Dathon had been offering earlier. Picard wants to run (Dathon interprets this gesture with a phrase we’ve already heard, “Mirab, with sails unfurled”) but Dathon shakes his head. “Shaka, when the walls fell.” Picard makes another tentative discovery, “Shaka. You said that before. When I was trying to build a fire. Is that a failure? An inability to do something?”

As the unseen creature nears, Dathon attempts to take control of the situation.

DATHON: Uzani, his army at Lashmir.
 PICARD: At Lashmir? Was it like this at Lashmir? A similar situation to the one we’re facing here? DATHON: Uzani, his army with fists open. PICARD: A strategy? With fists open? DATHON: His army, with fists closed. PICARD: With fists closed. An army, with fists open, to lure the enemy … with fists closed, to attack? That’s how you communicate, isn’t it? By citing example, by metaphor! (demonstrates that he understands) Uzani’s army, with fists open. DATHON: Sokath! His eyes uncovered!

The two proceed with this plan, but just as Picard is about to distract the monster so that Dathon can attack, the Enterprise executes an attempt to retrieve their captain, having found a way to disrupt the ionospheric interference temporarily. Absent Picard’s foil, the strategy fails and the creature pounces upon Dathon, badly injuring him. The transporter effort fails anyway, and Picard rematerializes on the planet’s surface. He runs to Dathon who struggles in pain, “Shaka,” he begins, and this time Picard completes the thought, “when the walls fell.”

While Riker and Laforge attempt to find a way to disrupt the Tamarian polarity coil responsible for the particle beam, Counselor Troi and Commander Data make some progress unpacking Tamarian communications:

RIKER: I’d prefer to find a peaceful solution. If we can talk our way out of this—so much the better. TROI: Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. RIKER: What have you found? TROI: The Tamarian ego structure does not seem to allow what we normally think of as self-identity. Their ability to abstract is highly unusual. They seem to communicate through narrative imagery—by reference to the individuals and places which appear in their mytho-historical accounts. TROI: It’s as if I were to say to you “Juliet. On her balcony.” BEVERLY: An image of romance. TROI: Exactly. Image is everything to the Tamarians.

As their conversation continues, Troi, Crusher, and Data observe that even with this new structural understanding, without a knowledge of the mythical origins of the figures that compose the Tamarian language they have little hope of understanding the sense of their speech. But on the planet’s surface, Picard has the good fortune of a firsthand account that fills in some of the blanks.

PICARD: Our situation is similar to theirs. I understand that. But I need to know more, you must tell me more, about Darmok and Jalad. Tell me, you used the words Temba, his arms wide when you gave me the knife and the fire. Could that mean give ?
 (makes arm motions) Temba ? His arms wide. Darmok. Give me more about Darmok. DATHON: Darmok. On the ocean. PICARD: Darmok on the ocean. A metaphor, for being alone, isolated. Darmok, on the ocean. DATHON: (cries out in pain)
 PICARD: Are you alright? DATHON: (waves him off) Kiazi’s children. Their faces wet. Ughhh. PICARD: Temba, his arms open. Give me more about Darmok on the ocean. DATHON: Tanagra, on the ocean. Darmok at Tanagra. PICARD: At Tanagra. A country? Tanagra on the ocean, an island! Temba, his arms wide. DATHON: Jalad on the ocean. Jalad at Tanagra. PICARD: Jalad at Tanagra. He went to the same island as Darmok. Darmok and Jalad, at Tanagra. DATHON: The beast at Tanagra.
 PICARD: The beast? There was a creature at Tanagra? Darmok and Jalad, the beast at Tanagra. They arrive separately, they struggled together against a common foe, the beast at Tanagra, Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra. DATHON: Darmok and Jalad on the ocean. PICARD: They left together. Darmok and Jalad on the ocean. DATHON: The ocean. (then, in pain as Picard comes closer) Zinda! His face black, his eyes red! (then, shooing Picard away) Kalimash, at Bahar. PICARD: You hoped that something like this would happen, didn’t you? You knew there was a dangerous creature on this planet and you knew, from the Tale of Darmok, that a danger shared, might sometimes bring two people together. Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra. You and me, here, at El-Adrel.

As Dathon succumbs to his injuries, Picard returns the favor by recounting the earthly tale of Gilgamesh and Enkidu, doing his best to frame their similar tale in Tamarian syntax, “Gilgamesh and Enkidu. At Uruk.” As Dathon breathes his last, the Enterprise crew finally retrieves Picard, although they had to attack the Tamarian ship to do so, which has retaliated in force. As red alert sounds, Picard enters the bridge and consummates his new linguistic expertise. It’s a scene no fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation will soon forget.

PICARD (as he moves): Hail the Tamarian vessel. WORF (touches controls): Aye, Captain. TAMARIAN FIRST OFFICER: Zinda! His face black. His eyes red— PICARD: —Temarc! The river Temarc. In winter. FIRST OFFICER: Darmok? PICARD: … and Jalad. At Tanagra. Darmok and Jalad on the ocean. FIRST OFFICER (to others, amazed): Sokath! His eyes open! PICARD (continuing): The beast of Tanagra. Uzani. His army. (shaking his head) Shaka, when the walls fell.             The aliens again face Picard. Picard takes the small             book—the Tamarian captain’s “diary”—and holds             it out in his hand.             The Tamarian First Officer glances at one of his             officers, who touches a console. The book is             immediately DEMATERIALIZED, MATERIALIZING next to the             alien First Officer. He picks it up, showing it to             Picard. FIRST OFFICER: Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel. FIRST OFFICER: Mirab. With sails unfurled.             Picard extends the Tamarian dagger toward the First             Officer, offering it back to him. PICARD: Temba. His arms open. FIRST OFFICER: Temba at rest. PICARD (almost to himself): Thank you …

Shaka, when the walls fell is a likeness of failure for the Children of Tama. It’s also not a bad alternative title for the “Darmok” episode, for the Federation never really grasps Tamarian communication, despite their declared success in making contact with the race and forging a path to future relations.

Picard calls it metaphor , and Troi calls it image . For the Federation crew, the Tamarians cite examples that guide their understanding of and approach to the various problems they encounter on a day-to-day basis: as Picard puts it, by citing “a situation similar to this one.” Science fiction often plays with alternate methods of linguistic understanding, and this is familiar territory: The alien is incomprehensible, but in a way that can be overcome through reason and technology.

But there’s a problem: Metaphor and image are not accurate descriptions of the Tamarian language’s logic. A metaphor takes one thing as a symbol for something else: Juliet’s balcony acts as a figure for romance, Darmok and Jalad as a figure for communion through shared struggle. Even though Troi means image as a synonym for metaphor when she says “Image is everything for the Tamarians,” she also implies vanity in Tamarian speech. From the perspective of her declarative speech, the Tamarians are putting on pretenses, covering over a fundamental thing with a decorative one.

The Federation’s desire to see Tamarian speech as a process of copying one form into another is a uniquely earthly one, even when sieved through Star Trek ’s historical futurism. As Troi and her crewmates see it, Tamarian verbalisms depict the world through images and figures, which distort their “real” referents. Troi and Picard can’t help but interpret Tamarian through their (and our) cultural obsession with mimicry: Metaphorical language operates not by signification, but as poetry, by transforming the real in a symbolic mirror.

But for the Tamarians, something far weirder is going on, precisely because their language is not a curiosity for them as it is for the Federation (and for us television viewers). Calling Tamarian language “metaphor” preserves our familiar denotative speech methods and sets the more curious Tamarian moves off against them. But if we take the show’s science-fictional aspirations seriously and to their logical conclusion, then the Children of Tama possess no method of denotative communication whatsoever. Their language simply prevents them from distinguishing between an object or event and what we would call its figurative representation.

Allegory might have been a better term for explaining Tamarian. While metaphor represents one subject as similar to another object, allegory replaces one with another entirely. Allegory’s veiled language is powerful, because allegories effectively freeze time, making a historical or fictional scenario immortal. Allegory is what makes it possible for us to continue to derive lessons from the Old and New Testaments, week after week, homily after homily.

The 20th-century literary critic and philosopher Walter Benjamin lamented this property of Baroque allegory in particular, suggesting that it swaps out historical myth for present-day concerns. As Benjamin puts it, “Evil as such exists only in allegory … and means something other than it is. It means in fact precisely the nonexistence of what it presents. The absolute vices, as exemplified by tyrants and intriguers are allegories. They are not real.” When we talk about evil in the allegorical sense—the serpent of the Garden of Eden, or Sauron’s eye in Mordor—we do so as a replacement for addressing the more ambiguous, palpable instances of evildoing in the present. For Benjamin, the allegorist rejects the world in order to embrace allegory, and in so doing it strips art of politics.

But the Tamarians’ version of allegory, if that’s indeed the right name for it, cuts both ways. On the one hand, it fetishizes myth in the manner of allegory, but on the other hand it musters that myth in the interest of serious sociopolitical action, as evidenced by Dathon’s willingness literally to die in the name of myth. So Benjamin’s concerns about the abandonment of the present don’t seem to apply to the Tamarian situation, offering further doubt that allegory is the best way to describe their communication process.

Despite the episode’s popularity, the Star Trek fan community (being a science-fiction fan community, after all) has issued numerous gripes about “Darmok.” The most interesting of these is a general disbelief in the technological prowess of the Tamarians. How could a race that thinks in allegory ever accomplish faster-than-light space travel? Just imagine the day-to-day work of designing, constructing, or maintaining a complicated machine like a starship. The Tamarians seem to be incapable of saying something like, “Hey Bob, can you hand me the three-quarter-inch socket wrench.” Given this inability to discourse pragmatically, why should we suspend disbelief in the first place?

Yet, if we take the episode at its word, not only is the Tamarians’ technology on parity with that of the Federation, but it might even be more advanced. The Tamarians were able to scramble transport signals across El-Adrel IV’s ionosphere, and their ship was clearly capable of destroying the Enterprise at the end of the episode had Picard not restored diplomatic relations just in time.

But what if the Tamarians abstract worldview is precisely what facilitates advanced technological and social practice, rather than limiting it? Watching the episode carefully, the “Darmok” approach appears to be an afterthought, a new idea that strikes Dathon as he realizes the planned diplomatic approach, Rai and Jiri at Lungha, would gain no purchase with the Federation. Likewise, the first officer’s objections to Darmok are both earnest and unrehearsed—he knows exactly what Dathon is talking about, and he doesn’t like it. But once the captain has asserted his authority (“The river Temarc, in winter”), no further instruction was necessary. The crew transports the two captains to the surface, erects the particle field in the planet’s ionosphere, and fends off the eventual Enterprise retaliation.

The skeptic might point out that these omissions in the teleplay are necessary given the compressed structure of the 45-minute television episode, and that just because we don’t see further instructions take place doesn’t mean they haven’t done. It’s equally possible that the Tamarians had already gone over the Darmok approach during their weeks-long orbit above El-Adrel IV, and that the first officer’s objections are rehearsals of an earlier argument that goes unseen during the action depicted on screen.

Given an absence of evidence either way, why not choose the more aggressive interpretation: Everything that takes place on the bridge of the Tamarian vessel during the episode is encapsulated into the single move, “Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra.” So dense and rich is Tamarian speech that these five words are sufficient to direct a whole crew to carry out an entire stratagem over two days’ time, and not by following a script, but by embracing it as a guiding abstraction.

As Troi explained, the Tamarians’ possess a sophisticated aptitude for abstraction. This capacity responds to fans’ skepticism at the Tamarian’s technological prowess. The Children of Tama would not be delayed by their inability to speak directly because they seem to have no need whatsoever for explicit, low-level discourse like instructions and requests. They’d just not bother talking about the socket wrench, instead proceeding to the actual work of building or maintaining the vessel.

By contrast, consider how the Enterprise engineering crew attempts to overcome the Tamarian particle interference field in their attempt to retrieve Picard from the surface of El-Adrel IV:

GEORDI: Matrix levels. LEFLER: Annular convergence holding at four three nine point two oh five. Confinement resolution at point five two seven. GEORDI: That isn’t gonna do it. Increase thermal input coefficient to 150 percent. LEFLER (working console): Increasing now … … GEORDI: Shunt the overload to the phase transition sequencers in transporter one. LEFLER: Yes, sir.

While the episode doesn’t provide a Tamarian mythical equivalent, we can speculate on how the Tamarians would handle a similar situation. While I suppose the explicit directive to adjust thermal input by a specified amount might be rendered allegorically (some Tamarian speech is narrower than others), it’s equally likely that the entire exchange would be unnecessary, subsumed into some larger operation, say, “Baby Jessica, in her well.” The rest is just details.

While his declaration that they speak and think in metaphor is most memorable, Picard offers another account of Tamarian during his encounter on the surface. Before encountering the beast, Dathon makes the recommendation, “Uzani. His army. With fist open.” Picard reacts, “A strategy? With fist open …”

“Strategy” is perhaps the best metaphor of all for the Tamarian phenomenon the Federation misnames metaphor. A strategy is a plan of action, an approach or even, at the most abstract, a logic. Such a name reveals what’s lacking in both metaphor and allegory alike as accounts for Tamarian culture. To be truly allegorical, Tamarian speech would have to represent something other than what it says. But for the Children of Tama, there is nothing left over in each speech act. The logic of Darmok or Shaka or Uzani is not depicted as image , but invoked or instantiated as logic in specific situations. In some cases, apparently, this invocation takes place with limited transformation, such as in the application of Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra depicted in the episode’s main plotline. In other cases, those logics are used in situations with more play, as when Dathon reassures Picard after the former’s injury, “Kiazi’s children. Their faces wet.”

Here we might distinguish between the invocation of a particular logic and the simulation of a creature, thing, or idea by replicating its image. The simulation of life in art often concerns the reproduction of surfaces: in painting, the appearance of form, perspective, or the rendition of light; in literature the appearance of character or event; in photography and cinema the rendition of the world as it appears through optical element and upon emulsion or sensor; in theater the rendition of the behavior of a character or situation.

While all these examples “simulate” to various extents, they do so by a process of rendering . For example, the writer might simulate a convincing verbal intercourse by producing a credibility that allows the reader to take it as reality. Likewise, the actor might render a visible behavior or intonation that is suggestive of a particular emotion, event, or history that the theatrical or cinematic viewer takes as evidence for some unseen motivation.

A logic is also a behavior, but it is a behavior unlike the behavior of the literary or theatrical character, for whom behaving involves producing an outward sign of some deeper but abstracted motivation, understanding, or desire. By contrast logics are pure behaviors. They are abstract and intangible and yet also real.

If we pretend that “Shaka, when the walls fell” is a signifier, then its signified is not the fictional mythological character Shaka, nor the myth that contains whatever calamity caused the walls to fall, but the logic by which the situation itself came about. Tamarian language isn’t really language at all, but machinery.

Because we don’t know very much about Tamarian history and culture, it’s hard to say much about how their conceptual machinery works. But we do have an earthly metaphor by which we might understand it: computation .

When we think about the kind of representation that computers enact, we typically commit our own Shaka, when the walls fell error. Computational media are generally seen as an extension or acceleration of existing mimetic methods. Take computer graphics as an example. We see computer images as extensions of photographic or filmic representation. In both Hollywood digital video effects (which are offline rendered to achieve high resolution and detail) and in computer games (which are real-time rendered to facilitate player interaction), a variety of algorithms produce two-dimensional depictions of three-dimensional scenes that, at their best, reach a level of credibility that can be mistaken for reality.

This take on computational representation sees the computer as a new method for producing appearances , the images that fascinate the Enterprise crew in “Darmok,” and that fascinate us by means of their broadcast as television. But we err in taking visual appearance as a primary replacement for reality.

In CG films, we don’t notice this problem—computer images just become yet more frames of film. But in computer games, realism is always more than just a visual affair. In a 3-D game, movement through a real-time rendered world can produce a sense of place, not just an image. Yet, the thoughtful player will quickly find an enormous chasm between visual realism and other sorts of realism in computer games. For example, the appearance and sensation of being in Grand Theft Auto ’s Liberty City initially suggests enormous verisimilitude, until the player attempts to enter a building that turns out just to be a Potemkin stand-up, or to interact with a non-player character whose verbal and physical actions amount to a few repeatable lines of stock dialog and a pathfinding algorithm that helps steer her around the player’s avatar.

So, while we think that computer graphics represent the world “as it appears,” instead they mimic the logics of visual verisimilitude themselves more than they do the logics of the real world. The method of producing 3-D computer graphics known as ray tracing works by carrying out linear perspective painting in reverse, rendering light from back to front and hiding areas where that light will not meet the position of the virtual camera due to obstacles. Ray-tracing algorithms produce the rationale of Renaissance perspective, to exact mathematical specification. Computation doesn’t represent the world so much as logics from the world, just like the Tamarian language doesn’t reproduce the figures so much as the processes of its cultural history.

Take SimCity as a parallel example. There have been many editions of this city-construction-and-management-simulation game, but all of them share the same features: tools to zone and construct infrastructure in a physical environment, including roads and rail; housing, commercial, and industrial sectors; electrical and other infrastructure; and services like police and fire, along with taxation, advising, and management tools to run the city on an ongoing basis. Playing the game involves a combination of construction and operation, a dynamic that led its creator Will Wright to compare the experience to gardening.

What city does SimCity represent? Not New York or London or Valenciennes or Albany, for re-creating particular cities proves difficult in the game. Nor does the game simulate the role of mayor (even if its interfaces and paratexts sometimes refer to the player as a mayor), because no mayor has the arbitrary power to create and destroy as the SimCity player does. Nor is it the Platonic ideal of a “city,” because some types of cities are more and less feasible within the SimCity simulation. New urbanist mixed development is impossible, social welfare-style taxation policy is impossible, and rail-based mass transit always leads to faster growth than road-and-freeway automobile transit. In this sense, even though large SimCity cities may “look like” credible urban environments, they don’t bear much resemblance to any actual city. Dense, modernist cities demand mixed-use development and increased infrastructure and services; sprawling middle-American metroplexes rely on slow, historical growth in suburbs that draw commercial activity away from and then back to city centers; neither type of city is possible in the game.

If it mimics anything, SimCity characterizes a particular logic of urban planning, one that most closely resembles the urban dynamics model of Jay Forrester, an inspiration Wright has himself acknowledged. Urban dynamics emerged out of Forrester’s post-war research at MIT in system dynamics, an approach to the interactions between industrial systems and social systems in large organizations. Originally a project integrating management and engineering, by the late 1960s Forrester had the accident of sharing an office with former Boston mayor John Collins.

As a result of this encounter, in 1969 Forrester published Urban Dynamics , a controversial account of urban policy that took the form of a model that Forrester and his students also implemented in computational form. (One example of its controversy: While low-income housing might seem to offer succor to the poor, Forrester’s model suggests that such development creates a poverty trap that stagnates an urban district, forcing it deeper into poverty rather than leading it toward prosperity.) While Forrester’s computational design goals entailed prediction intended to drive policy, Wright’s adaptation of Forrester’s urban dynamics was mostly a matter of convenience: It offered a formal logic for urban behavior that could be abstracted and implemented in the form of a creative work.

Unlike a painting or an actor’s performance, the game does not re-create outward appearances (crime, high rises, property values, and so forth), but the logics that then produce those appearances. Rather than translating logics into descriptions or depictions, computational representation like that of SimCity translates logics into logics . It embodies a particular take on how cities work through a computer program that makes them work that way. In my book Persuasive Games I call this technique “procedural rhetoric”—the use of computational processes to depict worldly processes.

“Darmok” gives us one vision of a future in which procedural rhetoric takes precedence over verbal and visual rhetoric, indeed in which the logic of logics subsume the logics of description, appearances, and even of narrative—that preeminent form that even Troi mistakes as paramount to the Children of Tama. The Tamarian’s media ecosystem is the opposite of ours, one in which behaviors are taken as primary, and descriptions as secondary, almost incidental. The Children of Tama are less interesting as aliens than they are as counterfactual versions of us, if we preferred logic over image or description.

At the end of “Darmok,” Riker finds Captain Picard sitting in his ready room, reading from an ancient book rather than off a tablet. “Greek, sir?” Riker asks. “The Homeric Hymns,” Picard responds, one of the root metaphors of our own culture. “For the next time we encounter the Tamarians …” suggests the first officer. To which his captain replies, “More familiarity with our own mythology might help us relate to theirs.” A charming sentiment, and a move that always works for Star Trek —the juxtaposition of classical antiquity and science-fictional futurism. But Picard gets it wrong one last time. To represent the world as systems of interdependent logics we need not elevate those logics to the level of myth, nor focus on the logics of our myths. Instead, we would have to meditate on the logics in everything , to see the world as one built of weird, rusty machines whose gears squeal as they grind against one another, rather than as stories into which we might write ourselves as possible characters.

It’s an understandable mistake, but one that rings louder when heard from the vantage point of the 24th century. For even then, stories and images take center stage, and logics and processes wait in the wings as curiosities, accessories. Perhaps one day we will learn this lesson of the Tamarians: that understanding how the world works is a more promising approach to intervention within it than mere description or depiction. Until then, well: Shaka, when the walls fell.

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Darmok–twenty-five years since dathon and picard famously met at el-adrel.

Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra.

Twenty-five years ago one of the finest episodes of television aired on your local channel carrying syndicated programming.  Arguably the best episode in the history of the Star Trek franchise, frequently found atop “best of Star Trek” lists, and among the best of all science fiction stories, it was Darmok, the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode featuring guest star Paul Winfield as the noble Tamarian Captain Dathon.  Darmok first aired September 30, 1991, the first standalone episode of the excellent fifth season, which featured memorable episodes including Ensign Ro, Unification, Cause and Effect, The Perfect Mate, I, Borg, The Next Phase, and another highly rated standalone episode that bookended the season, The Inner Light.   Written by Joe Menosky and Philip LaZebnik, and directed by Winrich Kolbe,  Darmok broke new ground for Star Trek first and foremost by removing the universal translator from the equation and allowing one of the 20th (and 21st) century’s key challenges–communication between cultures–to be the focus of an episode.  Like the transporter beam and the holodeck, the translator was a story device–a crutch of sorts–that allowed writers to skip beyond basic problems and move along to more complex conflicts.  Darmok took Star Trek back to the basics.

The Federation and the Tamarians–also called the “Children of Tama”–historically failed to break the language barrier, and therefore never could open up diplomatic relations, until 2368.  The Tamarians were an intelligent and strong alien race–their ship easily overpowered the Enterprise-D.  Piglike in appearance thanks to the make-up work of Michael Westmore, they wore warrior clothing (designed by Robert Blackman) that was reptilian in design, with a vest of multi-colored grommets, and a bandolier of leather, copper, and brass that supported a sheath with a dagger that was both practical and ceremonial.  The vest featured totems, crystals wrapped in shaved metal, used for personal spiritual ceremonies.  The captain kept a log book at his belt, chronicling his journey in the strange written language of the Tamarian people.

Shaka.  When the walls fell.

The Tamarians reached out to the Federation first, resulting in Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) confronting Dathon via bridge-to-bridge visual communication in orbit of the planet El-Adrel IV.  Frustrated by the continued dissonance, Dathon beamed himself, and Picard, to the surface of the planet.  Dathon’s goal: To use the metaphor of “Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra”–a Tamarian story where two warriors joined together by facing a common foe–to bring himself and Picard–and thereby both cultures–together, one way or another.  What took Picard and the viewing audience the course of the episode to learn, that one could begin to understand the Tamarians once you realized they communicated in metaphors, came too late for Dathon.  The enemy of the metaphor–the planet’s beast in the reality they faced on the surface of El-Adrel IV–attacked both him and Picard, but not before Picard understood.

Sokath. His eyes uncovered! 

As the noble warrior passed on, Picard recounted a similar story from Earth’s ancient history, the epic story of Gilgamesh.  Dathon’s sacrifice was communicated to the Tamarian second-in-command, explained effectively by Picard.  As a token, the Tamarian had Picard keep Dathon’s dagger.

Dathon and Picard at El-Adrel.

A simple plot?  Maybe.  But the brilliance was in the storytelling and acting.  Paul Winfield, already familiar to Star Trek fans as a Starfleet captain in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, delivered an emotional performance, conveying these seemingly nonsensical lines of dialogue intensely and believably.  His passion, his determination, his frustration with Picard, his boisterous laugh!  Picard, sporting a new casual shirt and captain’s jacket made for the episode, never looked more heroic (and confounded!).  Back at the ship Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) captains the Enterprise-D and faces off against Dathon’s own equally determined “Number One” with little success.  Chief Engineer Geordi LaForge (LeVar Burton) and Lieutenant Worf (Michael Dorn) concoct a plan to rescue Picard.  An unusual pairing of Counselor Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) go off on their own to break the language barrier on a parallel track to that of the captains down on the planet.  And the crew gets a new colleague with the first appearance of Ashley Judd as Ensign Robin Lefler.

Many an adventure back on Earth was begun by way of the episode Darmok.  A Facebook post today about the episode elicited nearly 8,500 shares and more than 1,850 comments.  Teachers recounted showing the episode to students in classes ranging from language studies to social studies to Native American studies.  A mother discussed the importance of the episode to her in light of her autistic son who could speak only in metaphor.  A daughter recalled the episode helped her communicate with her father dying from Alzheimer’s disease.  Others echoed the message of self-sacrifice and the late Paul Winfield’s acting prowess.  The preview of the episode alone inspired Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies to pen the 2008 episode “Midnight.”  Children have been named after the noble Dathon.  Many claimed it as Star Trek’s best episode.  And most recited one of the many memorable lines from the episode.  Others recounted where they were when the first watched the episode–on a honeymoon or the subject of a first date.  One commenter summed-up the episode best:  It was the best episode because it was the most “Star Trek” episode of Star Trek.

Twenty-five years have passed since the episode first ran, and you can watch Darmok at your convenience now, streaming for subscribers of Netflix.

C.J. Bunce Editor borg.com

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Published Aug 13, 2024

Striving to Create Our Own 'Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel'

The Next Generation's 'Darmok' has lessons to teach us, still.

StarTrek.com

In the second episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation 's fifth season, " Darmok ," the Enterprise is on-route to the El-Adrel system to make contact with a race called the Children of Tama. Although the race has been peaceful, a failure to communicate pervades — the Children of Tama's language is seemingly indecipherable.

"But are they truly incomprehensible," Picard asks the officers on the bridge as they set a course for the El-Adrel system. "In my experience, communication is a matter of patience, imagination. I would like to believe that these are qualities that we have in sufficient measure."

It is this attitude that separates the Enterprise crew from the " first contact " stories between European explorers and the native inhabitants of North and South Americas in the 15th and 16th Centuries here on Earth. Instead, Spanish Conquistadors such as Hernán Cortés entered these "new worlds" with the intent to conquer rather than communicate.

"Darmok"

At first, the Enterprise believes this may be the case with the Tamarians. After the Enterprise hails the Tamarian ship and the two captains attempt to communicate, Picard's mouth straightens into a line, his signature "this-is-not-going-well" expression. The Tamarian captain argues with his bridge crew, takes a dagger from one of his officers, and, now holding a weapon in each hand, addresses the  crew with, "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra." Abruptly, the two captains are beamed to the surface of the planet El-Adrel IV below the ships.

Unable to transport Captain Picard back due to a particle scattering field on the planet's ionosphere created by the Tamarian ship, Commander Riker asks Security Officer Worf his read of the situation. "It is a contest between champions, perhaps," Worf replies, channeling his Klingon sensibilities. In his culture, this is how an analogous situation would play out.

Meanwhile, the two captains struggle to understand one another on the plant. Picard thinks the Tamarian captain wants him to take the knife for a fight and keeps refusing it even as the Tamarian continue to insist he take it. Night falls and no progress has been made.

The first moment of clarity, when Picard begins to understand, happens when the Tamarian captain, seeing Picard cold that night on El-Adrel IV's surface, tosses Picard a flaming branch for warmth. He pairs the gift with the phrase, "Temba, his arms wide."

"Temba is a person," Picard realizes. "His arms wide because he's holding them apart, in generosity. In giving. In taking.”

It's a genuine moment of language exchange and acquisition, part of the Tamarian captain's plan all along — through shared experiences, the two races would be able to gain a common vocabulary. Picard's words serve as a metaphor for the process of language learning, and also hint at the key to understanding the Tamarian language — metaphor.

It is also a moment of charity — of gift-giving to aid Picard in an unfamiliar, foreign place. This scene is pivotal; isn't generosity just the culmination of the characteristics Picard referred to before — patience and imagination?

During the 1527 Narváez expedition, Spanish explorer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca spent eight years traveling across the U.S. Southwest, interacting with different native cultures and even acting as a faith healer and trader. His generosity and attitude toward the native populations was an outlier among the Spanish explorers who tended to be conquistadors, entering with the intent to claim, rather than explore. One of these seminal conquistadors was Hernán Cortés.

Shortly before de Vaca, Hernán Cortés marched into Mexico in 1519 and laid claim to everything. Instead of bothering to learn the language of the land, he used a shipwrecked priest and took an indigenous mistress to facilitate all of his orders.

The remaining Bridge crew, unable to understand the Tamarians but unwilling to throw out all attempts and take the forceful Cortés route, instead try to find ways to bring Picard back onboard the ship. The Tamarian vessel thwarts each of the Enterprise 's efforts because the crew understands "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra." They know what the captain is attempting to do.

Picard begins to understand the Tamarian captain is using allusions or references to communicate. The metaphors serve as analogous situations and insinuate the next move that should be made. The generosity of the Tamarian captain has facilitated the beginning of understanding. This comes to a head the following day after a common foe emerges in a creature native to El-Adrel IV.

Just as Picard figures out the Tamarian speaks by "citing example," the Enterprise attempts to beam out Picard, causing the Tamarian captain to face the beast alone. Subsequently, he is gravely injured. After Picard is released from the grasp of the teleportation beam, he cares for the wounded Tamarian who still works to teach Picard his language. As he lies dying, the Tamarian captain is more concerned at bridging the language barrier than conserving his energy. For him, the ability to communicate supersedes life itself.

He urges Picard to share a story from his culture.

Perceptive as always, Picard deduces "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra" must be the myth of a friendship forged by two people poised as adversaries. He shares the 1800 BC Sumerian myth of Gilgamesh and Enkidu. In the Sumerian myth, the two enemies Gilgamesh and Enkidu come together to fight a common foe and become brothers in arms. When Enkidu is eventually killed in battle, Gilgamesh mourns. The parallels between not only the Tamarian myth but the current situation are not lost on either the Tamarian captain nor Picard.

An oft overlooked aspect of Earth mythologies are their commonalities. In the Gilgamesh epic, Gilgamesh encounters Atrahasis, the lone survivor of a great flood the gods inflicted to restart humanity. To survive, Atrahasis built a large ship. If this sounds familiar, it's a story that also appears in the Bible, of Noah and his ark. But it also appears in Greek mythology as Deucalion, the son of Prometheus, sailing in a chest or ark for nine days to survive a flood that destroyed humanity. Ancient Aztec myths told of a couple that survives a large deluge by hiding in a hollow vessel. In the Incan mythology of South America, a great flood Unu Pachakuti kills the first creations of their creator god after he has deemed them inadequate. His second attempt was humanity. One version of this tale has a man and woman escaping Unu Pachakuti by floating in a wooden box.

This is only one salient commonality among Earth mythologies and religions — a flood myth 'rebooting' humanity. Instead of using the commonalities among their cultures as a bridge to understanding, Spanish Conquistadors insisted their version of events were the gospel truth. Hernán Cortés forced the indigenous people he encountered to convert to his system of belief. What could have been a shortcut to understanding was instead used as a tool of oppression.

By the end of the "Darmok" episode, Picard returns to the Enterprise and is able to communicate to the Tamarian crew what happened on the planet's surface, including the demise of their captain. After making religious gestures akin to last rites, the Tamarian first officer says, "Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel." The tale of Picard and the Tamarian captain crossing the language barrier is now part of the Children of Tama's lexicon.

Nearly all of Earth's religions and mythologies contain stories of male friendship, travels into the underworld, deluge myths, and analogous gods and goddesses. If cultures looked at their commonalities as bridges instead of focusing on the differences, a connection such as the one forged by the end of "Darmok" may be possible.

As Picard points out to Commander Riker at the episode's end, "Now the door is open between our peoples. That commitment meant more to [the Tamarian captain] than his own life." We too, here in the 21st Century, could stand to be that committed to communication across cultures.

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This article was originally published on September 30, 2021.

Brooke Knisley (she/her) teaches writing at Emerson College and has written for Playboy, VICE, McSweeney's, The Boston Globe Magazine, and others. She has balance issues. Find her on Twitter @BrookeKnisley.

Ekostories by Isaac Yuen

Nature | culture | art, of myths and metaphors: star trek tng’s darmok.

S everal weeks past, I attended a workshop on the use of storytelling for effective social engagement. Sitting at my table was a doctoral student interested in better ways to communicate concepts of  ecological economics  to the public. As we chatted about the various metaphors embedded within conventional economics, particularly around growth and development, I started thinking about stories that focus on the challenge of communication and the power of metaphor. Searching my mind for examples, I found myself returning once more to the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation  for inspiration, this time to an episode titled Darmok .

The Enterprise, captained by Jean Luc Picard , encounters an alien race called the Tamarians in orbit around the planet El-Adrel. Unfortunately, the two crews find each other’s languages incomprehensible. Frustrated at the impasse, Dathon, the Tamarian captain, kidnaps Picard, transports them both to the planet surface, and orders his crew to prevent the Enterprise from interfering.

Once on El-Adrel, Dathon repeats the phrase “Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra” to Picard and tosses him a dagger. Picard refuses the weapon, believing the gesture to be an invitation to duel. As night falls and the two make camp, Dathon shares his fire with a frustrated Picard while saying, “Temba, his arms wide.”

The following morning, a hostile creature approaches their camp. Dathon tries once more to speak with Picard.  Picard finally realizes that the Tamarians communicate by citing examples and metaphors. They stand together against the beast, but due to some unfortunate timing, Dathon is mortally wounded in the ensuing fight.

Back on board the Enteprise, the crew struggles to decipher the Tamarian language, but without much success. They come to a similar conclusion as Picard, deducing that the Tamarians speak via metaphors derived from mythology and folklore, but without knowing the context with which to ground these metaphors, the chance for successful communication is slim.

A second night falls on the planet. As Picard tends to a dying Dathon, he pieces together the meaning behind “Darmok and Jaled at Tanagra”, a tale in which two lone warriors arrived on an island as strangers, but through shared adversity against a common foe, left as comrades. Picard realizes that Dathon had hoped to recreate the event on El Adrel as an attempt to open relations between their two people. Moved by his actions, Picard shares a story from Earth, part of the Epic of Gilgamesh. While listening to the tale, Dathon succumbs to his wounds.

Picard has little time to mourn the loss of Dathon the following morning before the hostile lifeform returns. The Enterprise crew resorts to force in order to disable the Tamarian ship and rescue Picard, but the hostile act triggers a full-on firing match between the two vessels. With the Enterprise about to be destroyed, Picard successfully establishes communications with the Tamarian first officer,  demonstrating that Dathon’s mission had succeeded.

The Tamarian crew is saddened by the loss of their captain, recording the story of successful first contact as “Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel” before departing in peace.  In the coda, Picard quietly honours Dathon’s sacrifice to open the door between their two people.  

Myth and Storytelling  

“My turn? No, I’m not much of a storyteller.” – Jean-Luc Picard: Big fat liar.

Darmok’s quiet campfire scene ranks as one of my favourites in the entire series. Picard’s telling of Gilgamesh was my first exposure to the ancient Mesopotamian tale, and complemented by the background music, it left a lasting impression on me.   Patrick Stewart  puts on a masterful performance, but equally excellent is the venerable Paul Winfield , expertly playing one who only has a vague notion of what is being said, but is nevertheless captivated.  The scene reinforces the notion that the telling is often more important than what is being told.

I love that Picard chose to tell the Epic of Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Narratively, it is a fitting tale to tell, for Enkidu was eventually struck down by the gods, leaving Gilgamesh to mourn the loss of a dear companion. But beyond that, this ancient tale, one of the earliest known stories in human history, also depicts conflict between the forces of nature and culture. Enkidu, the massive man-beast of the wild, fights Gilgamesh, the god-king from the city of Uruk,  yet out of this tumultuous struggle emerges a sense of mutual respect and a profound friendship that renders both more human and humane. Gilgamesh discovers a worthy equal and ceases to torment his subjects, while Enkidu sheds some of his feral nature to adopt the ways of civilization.

At the episode’s conclusion, Picard comments that “more understanding with our own history and mythology makes us more capable of understanding and communicating with others.” The statement serves as a reminder that past knowledge can help us foster more durable relationships with ourselves and with others. This links me back to a comment made by a fellow WordPress blogger I keep coming back to about the value of mythic stories:

“All over the world great mythic stories were told to people of all ages, stories that had violence, humor, sex, slap-stick, philosophical questions, and ethical dilemmas built into them. As you grew older, you would realize new depths to the stories, picking up on themes and ideas within the tale as your own maturity grew and your mind asked new questions… We injure ourselves by simplifying the world.” – Earthknight

• What are your favourite mythic stories? What elements make them memorable?

Sokath, His Eyes Uncovered!

 “Their ability to abstract is highly unusual. They seem to communicate through narrative imagery by reference to the individuals and places which appear in their mytho-historical accounts.” – Data, describing the Tamarians

Over the course of the story, Picard slowly works out the main but by no means complete meanings behind the phrases uttered by his Tamarian counterpart:

• “Shaka when the walls fell!” denotes failure
• “Mirab, with sails unfurled.” means departure
• “Kiazi’s children, their faces wet.” signifies unavoidable death (?)
• “Sokath with his eyes uncovered!” conveys revelation or understanding

I won’t go into the feasibility of a language constructed entirely upon metaphor. I am not a linguist, and far more knowledgeable people have written extensively about this issue. ( See here for an essay on Tamarian grammar ) As I rewatch the episode, I instead find myself thinking about our own use of metaphors in everyday life, that we often communicate through narrative imagery. Why are metaphors so evocative? Why are we so drawn to them?

This is personal speculation, but perhaps the power of metaphor stems from its inherently cooperative and participatory nature. In a successful metaphor, the teller compresses and transmits the entirety of their experience as code, while the receiver uses their understanding of the world and the other party to decipher its meaning. The teller must trust that the receiver is capable of understanding the essence of their experience, while the recipient has to be fully engaged in the process of figuring it out .

Perhaps this active and inclusive process, compared to one party stating instructions or ideas at another, is what makes metaphors so powerful. Visiting a concept discussed in The Science of Narrative , communicating in metaphor, like communicating in stories, may lead to greater “neural coupling” in which both teller and receiver become more attuned with each other.

Darmok also illustrates how metaphors are able to tap into vast multidimensional experiences. Packed into the five word phrase of “Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel” is a sea of emotion and meaning that Picard becomes intensely aware of: First contact, shared danger, cultural exchange, death and sacrifice, personal courage, and all the specifics those elements entail. Maybe this is why as narrative devices or standalone expressions, metaphors can evoke such deep resonance within us: They can instantly deliver and provide context to a web of elements that cannot be easily summarized by ordinary means of communication.

• What are examples of powerful metaphors that have stayed with you?

The Courage to Convey, The Willingness to Listen

 “The Tamarian was willing to risk all of us just for the hope of communication, connection. Now the door is open between our people. That commitment meant more to him than his own life.” – Picard, in the coda

What resonates with me most in Darmok is how Picard’s curiosity of the other and his willingness to listen helps avert a disastrous conflict. Dathon, despite his commitment and sacrifice, could not have achieved his goal without Picard’s help. Darmok highlights the fact that it always takes two (or more) for successful communication, especially across disparate worldviews.

We often celebrate the courage of the conveyor, the one who initiates the exchange, extends the first gesture. What is less often praised is the listener, the one who is receptive and perceptive enough to create the space for fruitful dialogue. Both are absolutely crucial for meaningful communication. Having two speakers can quickly degenerate into one talking over the other, while having two listeners mean no bridges will ever be built.  Successful communication seems to be an exercise in complementary partnership, and as I write this sentence, I realize that this also holds true in reverse: enduring partnerships rely on complementary communication styles.

• Are you a conveyor or a listener?

While not as accessible as The Inner Light , I found Darmok to be an extraordinary hour of television, embodying one of core mantra of Star Trek “to explore strange new worlds and seek out new life and new civilizations.” As with most aliens in science-fiction, the Tamarians serve as mirrors for ourselves, reminding us of the importance of myths, metaphors, and storytelling in our lives while demonstrating how ingenuity, determination, and receptiveness can help defuse conflict, bridge gaps, further understanding across different worldviews.

Related Ekostories

• Zelda’s Twisted Tale: Majora’s Mask
• Star Trek’s Finest Hour: The Inner Light
• Changing Planes: The Nna Mmoy Language

  Star Trek: The Next Generation is a registered trademark of Paramount Pictures. All images are © Paramount Pictures and are utilized under the the guidelines of Fair Use; no copyright infringement is intended.

17 Comments

• November 14, 2013

This is one of my very favorite Next Generation episodes, and certainly among the most moving. Thank you for posting the clip.

Going back to the title of your post, I think myth and metaphor are very tightly entwined, and the most powerful metaphors I know of are myths. Watching Bill Moyers’ interviews with Joseph Campbell was a powerful experience, and as a Christian, I call to mind C.S. Lewis’s comment that he saw Christianity as a “true myth.” (I think that’s the correct quote. Haven’t double checked.) Recognizing that religion is rooted in symbol, metaphor, and myth as its primal language should keep those of us who subscribe to organized religions humble and help to avoid the hubris that comes from literalist readings that attempt to force the reader’s opinion on everyone else.

The most powerful literature draws on myths, too, for example The Lord of the Rings, which is rooted in Tolkien’s deep religious beliefs, which he uses to create something at once old and new. One of the things that moves me most in Tolkiens’ work is his obvious reverence for the earth and its creatures, as embodied in Treebeard and the Ents. Another of my favorite writers, Robertson Davies, talks about this kind of mythic intertwining of life in many of his novels, most notably in The Deptford Triology and “Rebel Angels.”

Thanks for reminding me of a beloved ST episode and for making me think!

• November 15, 2013

Glad you connected to the episode and the subject of myth and metaphor.

There’s a section of Campbell’s “Thou Art That” that I am fascinated by. I’ll post the link to it here, because it’s a little too long to quote, but it’s full of really intriguing ideas:

http://www.dailyom.com/library/000/000/000000578.html

Temba, his arms wide!

This was one of my favourite episodes!!!

And the Inner Light was my all-time favourite! An excellent post and discussion of universal themes.

Haha I don’t mean to highlight Patrick Stewart and Star Trek episodes, but it seems that they’re too good to avoid 🙂

• November 16, 2013

They are, indeed! There were so many universal themes that foreshadowed what has come to pass. I enjoy your discussions – insightful and detailed.

• November 17, 2013

Fun post Isaac and thanks for reminding me of that particular episode. I think it’s interesting to think how language and communication have changed and continue to do so in the present moment. On more than one occasion, I have felt that people are losing their ability to recognize or relate to traditional metaphors and symbols. Perhaps the world trending towards the secular has had an impact here? This just underscores our need to create new stories or find ways to update the more universal ones. When I look at how my own children communicate with their friends through social media and text messaging, I’m struck by the brevity of words and the renewed importance of actual images.

I think language and communication is always changing and evolving, but perhaps it is the rate and the changing of forms in present times that is a little disorienting. I think the lack of resonance of particular stories lies very much in the way of telling and that is a generational problem. If kids don’t want to read long books anymore, is it our responsibility to push them to read them or should we engage them on their own medium and tell stories on tweets and texts? Is there a way to meet half way, to engage in some form of compromise that works for both parties? Bit of a rambling train of thought.

As an aside, I would actually contest the claim that as a whole the world is trending towards the secular 🙂 There’s a fantastic series on Ideas, a Canadian radio show, titled the Myth of the Secular. It’s a lengthy series, but well worth it, if you are interested:

http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/episodes/2012/10/22/the-myth-of-the-secular-part-1/

I don’t recall this particular Star Trek episode, but it sounds very thought-provoking. Specifically, one question that comes to my mind about a language based on metaphors: would said metaphors eventually come to receive so much use, they devolve to the level of cliche, wherein everyone knows instinctually what the words mean, but they fail to resonate on an emotional level or stimulate new emotions and perspectives the way a new metaphor comparing previously unassociated ideas does?

Netflix Joanne! Check it out 🙂

What an intriguing question, and one I’m not sure the episode addresses at all – how metaphors evolve with use. After all, language is so organic and open to change, how will they “wear” over time? Do they invent new ones? I’m sure like our language, there would be dead metaphors that become irrelevant, and ones that enter into such ubiquitous use that they become as ingrained as common verbs are for English. Maybe they build metaphors upon metaphors, or mix them together to create weak and strong versions.

My mind is blown!

• November 18, 2013

Wonderful post. Yet another reason why Star Trek: The Next Generation was one of the best TV shows ever. The Epic of Gilgamesh was very fitting as you mentioned. Such a great story. My favorites, however, are Beowulf, The Iliad, and The Odyssey. Stories are such a powerful way to build bridges from one culture to the next, if only we take the time to listen.

It’s definitely got some very good standout episodes, that’s for sure!

I’m actually ashamed to admit I’m quite illiterate when it comes to the Western classical epics, being more familiar with Chinese mythology. That being said, I’m currently working on a piece related to The Aeneid, so stay tuned!

• November 19, 2013

Good. Glad to hear it. I’ll look forward to that post.

• December 12, 2013

This has always been one of, if not my favorite episode (I am watching it now, which made me look for discussions of it on the internet). Watching it makes me wonder what happens in our modern age when, due to information overload, there is no root metaphor to unite a culture, no story that is common to all Can this be a single uniteda culture? In past centuries the Bible served as a source of metaphors that tended to unite a culture. What story serves as a metaphor for ours? I hate to think that it is only whatever video on Youtube has the most hits week.

Hello John,

Religion certainly served and will continue to serve as a major source for metaphors. What else? Economic doctrine is can be a pretty rich mine for metaphors, and war is full of narratives that both bind and divide. Perhaps there are powerful stories out there that both unites and acknowledges diversity, but maybe human unity requires we strive against something, the Other. I’m pondering this myself.

• July 8, 2014

I really enjoyed your post, and I really liked the linked article about the language. I always thought this language was impossible – just a fun idea for star trek that conveyed the importance of culutral understanding. I live in Korea, an English teacher, and I’m pretty patient, but 1) I get a bit flustered when I’m with a really good English as a second language student and they don’t get a metaphore or 2) when I’m using Korean, and I though out a Chinese 4 letter proverb, most young people don’t get it (although I admit, sometimes this is due to my pronounciation:p)

Anyway, I think it IS possible for a language to be like this, as when I read chinese characters I often don’t think or can’t remember their korean reading(sound), but just think oh, that’s fire(instead of reading “bul” in my head), or that’s independence or solitutude (instead of “dok” in my head). So its possible if their written language is iconographic ~ OR, like another poster said about our children and texting, its pretty time saving and easy enough nowadays to just send an image of where we are to our friends instead of typing. It’s not hard to conceive a race 400 years in the future would have an even easier time perhaps even transmitting video recordings or reenactments of these myths to one another through… who knows, blue tooth brain implants? (They’re aliens too, so if they are mildly telepathic, that would explain a lot as well).

Just my two cents! Just found your page, and it’s awesome, keep posting!

• July 9, 2014

Hi Stephen, thanks for reading and for sharing your thoughts on the possibility of a language like this.

I’m Chinese, and I always marvel at the terseness of the language in communicating complex ideas in a few succinct words. Poetry comes closest to thought, as they say. I remember as a child, my parents would cite a proverb (many times grounded in a historical event or a story) and then proceed to tell me what it means in normal Chinese. So the question is: How do you communicate entirely in metaphor without that step of explanation in a base language? Can the same ideas in the proper context be precisely conveyed to an entire society? For me, that’s one of the many very interesting aspects about Darmok.

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Trivia/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E2Darmok

Star Trek: The Next Generation S5E2 "Darmok" » Trivia

• From Entertainment to Education : The episode is sometimes taught in communications classes, due to its premise of friendly communication between cultures that are at first incomprehensible to each other.
• You Look Familiar : The Tamarian Captain Dathon is played by Paul Winfield , who'd previously played Capt. Terrell in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .

A Very Loose Guide to the Tamarian Language

• Darmok/Jalad on the Ocean: A person who is isolated or alone, possibly travelling
• Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra: Two strangers/enemies who becomes friends/comrades after facing a common enemy or dangerous situation
• Darmok and Jalad on the ocean: Two friends/comrades travelling together.
• Darmok of Kanza. Jalad of the Kiteo: Introductions between two people.
• Shaka, when the walls fell: Failure, disaster, tragedy
• Temba, his arms wide: Somebody giving a gift or assistance
• Temba at rest: Declining a gift because it is not necessary
• The beast at Tanagra: A problem or crisis to be overcome
• Kadir beneath Mo Moteh: Failure to communicate/understand
• Zima at Anzo/Zima and Bakor: Danger/hostility arising from miscommunication/misunderstanding
• Kiteo, his eyes closed: Refusal to understand
• Mirab, with sails unfurled: Leaving a place (depending on the inflection, it can be an order or Screw This, I'm Outta Here! )
• Sokath, his eyes uncovered/opened: Coming to an understanding/realization .
• The river Temarc in winter: Be quiet/silence/stop at once!
• Kurlash, when it rises: When something stays lifted and supported. (Possibly a baked food?)
• Kalimash at Bahar: Everything is okay.
• Zinda, his face black, his eyes red: Anger or conflict, also can indicate pain or discomfort, possible indication of inability to survive (either self, or other party)
• Kiazi's Children, their faces wet: Do not be concerned/It's nothing.
• Rai and Jiri at Lungha: A meeting between two people; intended as a friendly, open greeting.
• Rai of Lowani. Lowani under two moons: We are Tamarians. We hail from the planet Tama.
• Jiri of Ubaya: Noting another entity is a federation/organisation.
• Ubaya of crossroads, at Lungha: Noting that a federation/organisation consists of a multitude of different peoples/cultures.
• Lungha, her sky gray: Sending someone a message, in the hope of establishing a cordial relation.
• Uzani, his army with fists open: A strategy to lure the enemy towards you by spreading your forces
• Uzani, his army with fists closed: To close ranks and attack after luring the enemy
• Chenza at court, the court of silence: Not listening
• Kira at Bashi: To tell a story
• Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel: Successful first contact between two alien cultures, or to work toward a common goal. Coined as a result of the episode's events.
• Rapunki, when he joined the seven: An acknowledgement of being welcomed to a new group.
• Bazminti, when he pulled back the veil: To spy, or otherwise observe one's enemy.
• Karno, in the forest with Mira: Overeating or calling someone overweight.
• The path to Kamata, in Spring: Expression of relaxation or joy.
• Gramble, his throat slit by his mistress: A mistake brought on by clumsiness.
• Coltar, when he drowned in the swamp: Sympathy for an unpleasant situation(?)
• Akron, on the night of his joining: Someone getting something they've wanted for a long time.
• Unzak, when he guided the florkas to their roost: Reassurance when bringing or escorting something to a destination.
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Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel

In a special episode of Star Trek, we learn the value of story telling and in understanding our shared experience.

Mike Hardisty

Lessons in storytelling from Star Trek: The Next Generation

First, you'll need some context

To understand this post, you need to watch the episode or read the spoiler.

Watch the episode

The episode is called Darmok . It is Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5 Episode 2. In the US, the show is available on Netflix, Paramount+, and Amazon Prime Video.

Read my brief spoiler

The main characters of the show, led by Captain Picard, encounter an alien race called the Tamarians (or the Children of Tama). No one can understand the Tamarians as they seem to speak gibberish.

Some examples:

• Rai and Jiri at Lungha
• Kadir beneath Mo Moteh
• The river Temarc in winter
• Shaka. When the walls fell...
• Mirab. His sails unfurled.

Even in the fantastical Star Trek universe, these names and places are meaningless. No progress is made. Both sides are frustrated until eventually, the Tamarian captain pulls out two knives and says, "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra." The Tamarian captain and Captain Picard are teleported away to a planet called El-Adrel IV. Through the episode, they are forced to work together to fight a dangerous beast.

The critical turning point of the episode is when Captain Picard realizes the Tamarians speak only in allegory. In Tamarian history, Darmok and Jalad were two foes who were forced to fight a common enemy on an island called Tanagra. By bringing Captain Picard to the planet, Captain Dathon replicates the story.

Of course, without the context of Tamarian history, communication was impossible. It's as if you were to say "Romeo and Juliet at the balcony" or "Jonah and the whale" to an alien race. We know those are a Shakespearean play and a bible story. We have the context.

Could this actually work as a language?

Probably not. As Picard and his crew discover, this form of communication depends on knowing the stories behind each of the phrases. It's not far off though.

There are dozens of real world examples that could be translated into the Tamarian way of speaking. These can be drawn from the bible (David and Goliath, Jonah and the Whale) or Aesop's fables (The Tortoise and the Hare, The Boy Who Cried Wolf). Each of these carries its own standalone idea.

In the same way, we use proverbial phrases like "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" and "don't rock the boat". There are dozens of these sayings. Wikipedia even maintains this list . These shortcuts let us communicate more effectively, assuming the listener understands the meaning of the phrase.

You have also probably heard of mental models. Academics don't seem to agree on a single definitions so I'll provide my own. A mental model is a representation of the world that shortcuts complexity with simpler, true-most-of-the-time principles.

If you are a die-hard productivity nerd, you have probably heard of the Eisenhower matrix, the Pareto principle, or the POSEC method. Each of these models represents a time-management philosophy meant to help prioritize and organize your life. You could think of these models as the fables of the business world.

What Star Trek shows us through Darmok is that our shared history is part of our language. If we use those stories as a framework, they can carry our meaning with little explanation.

For example, engineers frequently employ Murphy's law (If anything can go wrong, it will) to motivate design decisions and testing strategies. They don't need to convince each other. If someone has doubts about a particular part failing under some special condition, they can cite Murphy's Law and get help to fix the possible failure condition.

Our shared experience isn't static

In one of the closing scenes of this episode, the first officer of the opposing ship says, "Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel" to acknowledge that Picard and Dathon's experience can itself be shared as a lesson among the Children of Tama.

What does it mean though? Maybe "Picard and Dathon" will be a lesson about communicating with other intelligent species or a warning about the dangers of forcing someone into a dangerous situation. Either way, Picard's experience is added to the Tamarian vernacular.

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• September 27, 2024 | Interview: Jonathan Del Arco Talks “Borg Spin-Off” That Became ‘Star Trek: Picard’ And Hugh’s Surprise Death
• September 26, 2024 | Bodum Bringing Back Classic Picard Tea Cups From ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’
• September 25, 2024 | ‘Star Trek Explorer’ Reveals Final Issue, Ending 30 Years Of Official Magazine
• September 25, 2024 | Interview: Jonathan Del Arco On What To Expect At The Celebrity-Packed ‘Trek The Vote’ Live Comedy Show
• September 24, 2024 | Star Trek Coffees Adds Janeway And Borg-Themed Blends Along With Line Of Collectible Mugs

Interview: Jonathan Del Arco Talks “Borg Spin-Off” That Became ‘Star Trek: Picard’ And Hugh’s Surprise Death

| September 27, 2024 | By: Laurie Ulster 58 comments so far

Jonathan Del Arco, who played Hugh on  Star Trek: The Next Generation  and  Star Trek: Picard  and Fantome on  Voyager , chatted with us about the Trek the Vote show on October 2, a fundraiser for Vote Save America . In part 1 of our interview with Del Arco, we asked him what to expect at this “comedy show that blends politics, games, and a healthy scoop of hot nerdery.” Now read part 2, where we talked about how he found himself on Picard , the surprise news that his character was going to die, and more.

(This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.)

You turned up on season 1 of Picard ; were you given any kind of backstory on what Hugh had been up to and how he got to where he was?

I sure wasn’t! [laughs] We were lucky enough to have rehearsal for the first episode, we had some time because they were building sets and they were running way behind, they were rewriting a bunch of scripts and we sat around talking, and they were like, “I don’t know.” So I did come up with a lot in my own head of what I thought, and we did have one person who was more knowledgeable on this, Kirsten Beyer, so I did talk to her. She was helpful and helped me kind of hash out what might have been in that middle ground, which was very helpful. But initially, no, I was trying to piece together exactly—they kept saying to me, he’s really broken, and I didn’t understand what that was. A very weird note to me. I didn’t understand what that meant. And then once I got into him and into the scenes, I completely comprehended what they meant by broken… I eventually got there, but I use all kinds of things to motivate my mental state on the ship and to try to find a thread. What I didn’t want to happen, because it’d been so many years and I was in so much makeup the first time, for the fans to not recognize Hugh, that there needed to be some thread of recognition of who that young person might have become.

So did you have any specifics that you came up with in terms of, like, what he’d been doing?

Yes, he dedicated his life to the betterment of the little collective that followed him as they broke off from The Collective, as it were, and became their leader and their guide. And then when this opportunity came up to work on the on The Artifact . He took it because he felt, were he not there it, the situation, would have been even worse for the xBs , even though he wasn’t capable of protecting them fully. He did what he could within that job to keep things from going completely off the rails, right? Which eventually they did.

Jonathan Del Arco as Hugh in Star Trek: Picard.  Photo Cr: Trae Patton/CBS ©2019 CBS Interactive, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Was this a situation where they had written Hugh in and then called you, or was there someone on the production—I know you’d worked with [executive producer] James Duff, who was on the show at that point. Was that something he did? How did it all happen?

James was the showrunner on The Closer and Major Crimes and a very dear friend of mine and Jeri [Ryan]’s, and he had been hired to come very early on, one of the early executive producers and writers of a spin-off of Star Trek. We didn’t know what it was. There was no Picard yet. It was a spin-off of Star Trek. Alex Kurtzman, James Duff, and I believe maybe one other writer was involved at the time, and James really wanted it to be a Borg spin-off. That’s why he talked to Jeri and I, and really started talking to them about it being this Borg storyline. And somewhere within that he discussed it with us maybe a year before it even happened. And they didn’t have Patrick yet. So I think then they went and made the pitch to Patrick. But had Patrick not done it, some kind of show about the Borg would have happened. It would not have been Picard , it would have been a show about the Borg. And you can even tell how heavily Borg-influenced it was. So the Borg was really the the kernel, from what I understand of of the beginning of that idea. And once Patrick became involved, the pieces began to fall into place, and we were set up and given deals to come be a part of the show. What I was not told was that I was getting killed, because that was not James’s plan. And James left the show before they began filming. He had a creative differences and left, I think, weeks before I even began. I’d signed my contract, and the people that were left, I think, then made that decision without my being told or even knowing about it through gossip. I read it in a script. That was the first time I ever—

They didn’t tell you before they sent you the script?

That’s always fun for an actor.

It was not. [laughs]

Do you know why?

I have no idea what the creative reasoning for killing Hugh was. I was told they needed it to propel the story. And maybe they thought, that’s how they get Seven onto the cube. I just think they missed a lot of really great storytelling opportunities with Seven and Hugh… Had I stayed on the show, I wouldn’t have gotten to do these two movies that I did, one which premieres October 18 in theaters, The Grotto . I would have never gotten to do The Grotto , because I would have been filming Star Trek and so creatively, I don’t regret it. I don’t feel bad about it. The only thing I regret is I didn’t get to do stuff with a couple of people, Jeri Ryan and LeVar Burton. Those are the two people I wanted to really have an opportunity to connect with as characters. Creatively, those are the two relationships I really wish I’d gotten to do.

Given that season 3 of Picard was so Borg heavy, it seems like that would have been a great opportunity, especially because your original adventures were with that whole crew.

I mean, not having to have a scene with Geordi, or to even ask about Geordi was completely misinformed to me. I kept asking, “Shouldn’t I ask about Geordi?” Nope… But you know what? I’m fine with that, because I got to do these movies, and I’m excited that I did. People magazine just put the trailer out [for The Grotto ] today.

I just rewatched your first episode of Next Gen [“I, Borg”] and all over again, your performance blew me away. Did you have any thought back then that the episode and Hugh would have such an impact on viewers, not only to come back later in TNG, but decades later?

I think about it often. I wonder, what about the performance and the character hit people in such a primal way? And I think that character is a study in loneliness. And I just think that that’s something everyone can identify with at some point in their life, feeling alone. We come into the world alone, we leave the world alone. I think it’s a very scary thing for people, and it’s a very isolating thing for people to be disconnected from family and friends and being alone. There’s a ethos to that that I think really strikes at it. At the time when I played the role, I was going I was in grief, my partner had passed, so I was in a very particular space as a person that I think I put into the role that had a beautiful resonance to people. I think people just connected to that, to the truth of that person.

There was a vulnerability there.

Absolutely, yeah. So I think that that’s why. But it’s also a great character to come out of this sort of villainous—the idea that the villainous collective has this vulnerable, fragile creature amongst them.

You had a great scene with Whoopi… Do you remember anything about filming it? Had you worked with her before?

I had never worked with her. I was a fan, and I remembered her just being the loveliest person ever, and joyful and smiling—she was a fan of Star Trek. So she was really, really, really into it. I remember, because you film things in a certain order; when you’re a star, it’s called shooting you out, which is, let’s get all your stuff done so you could go home. I remember her insisting that they do all of MY stuff first, because I was in the uncomfortable costume. So then I could relax out of some of that makeup and do her stuff. I remember thinking that that was just amazing. And then she said, “Come back and say hi to me when you’re out of that makeup.” And so I did. I went back, and she goes, “Oh, you’re so cute!” So it was a really cute moment. She wanted to see what I looked like out of all my stuff. She was terrific.

And you also had great scenes with Patrick, with LeVar… there must have been something fun in that scene with Patrick in Picard , where you got to actually hug.

I will take full credit for the hug. It was not in the script. And I hear a lot of people talk about the hug being a moment for them, so that’s nice to hear… It was odd, the way it was written. We just had the conversation, there was no physical touching going on. And Patrick said, “I feel like we should at least shake hands or something.” And I said, “Would you mind if I hug you?” And he said, “No, let’s try it.” So we rehearsed it. And the director [Maja Vrvilo], she came up to us with tears in her eyes, and she goes, “Oh, we’re doing that. Everyone was crying, we’re definitely doing that.”

Picard and Hugh hug on Star Trek: Picard

Trek the Vote is happening on Oct. 2

Hosted by Trekkies Jon Lovett and Alice Wetterlund, guests so far include Jonathan Frakes, Gates McFadden, Wil Wheaton, Jeri Ryan, Rosalind Chao, Tawny Newsome, Eugene Cordero, Noël Wells, Mike McMahan, and of course, Del Arco himself. (Read part 1 of our interview for details about the event.)

Why is it so important to connect Trek to this? What’s the connective tissue?

The connective tissue to me, is, first of all, Trek is a family. Trek is an organized principle of fans that believe in certain principles—that are obvious, right? The Federation, the respect for humanity, not judging someone on what they look like or on what their physical capabilities are or aren’t, on their wealth…  There are many, many things that connect the vision of Star Trek to what is happening in in our politics right now, and the possibility of a future where we have different point of view of running the show. By that, I mean a woman in particular. It would be a very refreshing change to try to put that at the helm. Remember when Janeway became the first captain? It was a moment in Trekdom. I think this will be a moment in American history in the same way, and it’s very optimistic to me.

So there’s a lot of connective tissue with the future. For one, we believe in science. I dare say, you could definitely make an argument that the people running on the other side are not very big believers in science. I believe in healthcare, I believe in a person’s body autonomy… I dare say the other side doesn’t believe in body autonomy, because they have taken it away from women across the country. So we could go down the line of how it aligns. Sometimes I’m very surprised to talk to anyone that is a fan of Star Trek that doesn’t see the similarities between the kind of two ideologies of what America is… [And in terms of the event] What’s great about Star Trek is this sort of opportunity to have fun and also make a change.

Listen to full interview

The audio of the full interview with Jonathan Del Arco was released today on the All Access Star Trek podcast.

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After reading this, I really want to see the plan for James Duff’s PIC season 1. It sounds so much better than Chabon’s, if only because it didn’t kill off Hugh just to “propel the story.” The season 1 of Picard we got certainly felt like a chaotic rush job, and this interview only confirms it. I’m still not over how they decided to pair Seven and Rafi up for the stated reason that they looked cute together during photoshoots at San Diego Comic Con… for a show they were at least halfway through shooting!

Given Season 1’s rather robust character introduction to death pipeline, the story we got must have needed a LOT of propelling.

‘Robust introduction to the death pipeline’, LOL. What a wonderful way of putting it!

Right? I really like the idea of them together, but we didn’t seen the beginning of their relationship. We saw them suddenly decide to hold hands after meeting at the very end of the season. It’s clear the creators thought about it so much they were used to it and it felt real to them… but they forgot to involve US the audience in that process, which is the whole point. By season 2, the No Man’s Land audio drama did for me what PIC season 1 didn’t regarding them, so I’m on board now (should they choose to further explore it).

EDIT: Now that I think about it, though, this IS the season that gave us a scene where Jurati bones Rios in response to killing her partner under mind control, so it had already set a precedent of weird and inexplicable pairings.

His recollections of not having backstory thought about and not being told he was being killed off definitely jibe with what Jeri Ryan was saying about how they handled Seven at first. The character was unrecognizable on the page, and she said she had to go through some pretty elaborate mental hoops to come up with a justification for why the character’s voice was so drastically changed. She said Frakes and del Arco helped her enormously with that. They had to, the writers were probably putting out so many brush fires they couldn’t have helped solve this if they tried.

Loved his story about Whoopi. That was a very special shoot.

I think there was certainly some sort of clash in that first season and Chabon kind of seems to be in the middle of it. They had two distinct ideas with the Borg and Picards involved and wanted to have a connectedness with those ideas and they probably brought in Chabon to connect those and he wanted to have his own ideas involved with the show and couldn’t really get those two concepts together. It seems like a clash of egos and ideas of the different producers.

I distinctly remember while watching Picard Season 1 I thought, “oh my goodness. I know a lot more about this world and these characters than the writers do.” It was not a good feeling.

season 1 of picard was a missed opportunity. i feel like braga and moore could have made a better season long story arc. all the pieces were there, they just didn’t come together well. then season 2 happened and things got worse. but we will always have season 3 as one last hurrah for TNG and i feel content with TNG ending there (but i would love a STL series with the G, 7 and that new crew / cast)

Yes thank God for season three. It was nice to finally have some semblance of old Trek back and the characters were given proper roles again.

Season one had such great potential but ended up being a big failure. Not as bad as Discovery’s first season but close enough IMO..

And Hugh should have lived. Another big mistake. I was so excited for this show since I was so tired of going backwards and wax so excited to have some of the TNG characters back, but lots of problems there.

Nepenthe was definitely the standout that season along with the first few episodes. But it’s mostly a mess overall.

I think S1 of PIC would have flowed more smoothly if we had twelve episodes instead of ten. You have a three-part series premiere and basically a two-part season finale; so you’re left with only five episodes in the middle to flesh out the story and new characters.

I think you’re right. The season felt like hardly anything happened before it was over. It felt so rushed in the end and so much still left unresolved. We never heard about the XBs again.

Good interview. It is so sad they killed off Hugh. How does it propel the story? When Ro Laren dies in season 3, it directly affected not only the plot, but also the characters in a deep way. Her death meant something. When Hugh dies, it’s pointless. And yes, Hugh should have had a scene with Geordi.

When people ask me about the Picard series, I tell them to just skip the first two seasons.

Problem with S1 of PIC was that there were too many elements to make a cohesive season. They should have scaled it back a bit, because you could have has two seasons of PIC with the amount of material there were. Plus, I felt that the “edginess” that the producers were trying to go for was “forced”. Storytelling should always be an organic process, resulting in both a penultimate and conclusive episode.

I really disliked how the PIC showrunners made the BRP xB faction into another minority metaphor just to slaughter them all and not even resolve their story at the end. I recall Chabon being surprised that anyone cared when asked about it and it’s just…ffs, if we’re not supposed to care about the parts of the story specifically calculated to get an emotion reaction, why waste our time by putting it on screen? If Hugh’s death had, for example, been used as explicit character development for Elnor (who sorely needed it) that would have shown some thought was put into the whole thing, but nope. Complete waste of the character.

Well said, on all points!

And again, totally unnecessary to kill Hugh and Ro Laren.

And Bruce Maddox, Icheb, B4, Shelby. Probably several others I can’t recall because I’ve done my best to forget the nihilistic and terrible parts and remember the good things. All good things, hehe.

Even Picard!

Good point! I totally forgot about that.

Seasons 1 and 2 of Picard have literally no rewatch value for me. I’ll never see them again. And when I did see them ‘off’ Hugh for no good reason, I was heartily disappointed.

Per usual, totally agree with you. I was the biggest proponent for this show when it was announced. I didn’t object to a single idea or rumor about it. I was just so excited to get some of TNG cast back and to finally go forward again I didn’t even care what it was. I just trusted if Patrick Stewart agreed to come back then obviously it was going to be good and something very special.

Sadly couldn’t have been more wrong the first two seasons. Season 3 turned it around for me (but yes, I understand not for everyone though) but it was basically another show completely by then. Matalas obviously wanted a TNG reunion but he knew the show wasn’t really working and finally just gave what most fans wanted to see anyway. But if season one was just better received, my guess is they probably would’ve stuck to that direction of the show and brought in the TNG casts as part of that original direction instead of scrapping it completely and doing whatever he wanted.

I will never understand why didn’t they just make it a full on TNG show from the beginning? It sound like Stewart ego got in the way but fans wanted to see them all back.

I love Picard as a character but seeing him with new characters at this point of his life just felt strange. If he was on a starship at least that would’ve felt more realistic like Admiral Janeway in Prodigy.

Season 3 worked because he was with his family again and not with mostly random strangers. I never bought it even if I liked some of the characters.

I did understand Stewart’s thinking about it at the time. He didn’t want to be back on another Enterprise barking orders at Worf or Geordi when he had done that for 15 years and 20 years ago. I think in all reality he really did move on from Star Trek by then and it was going to have to be something major (besides money ;)) to get him back. He said in other interviews he was being pitched to return to the role on some level for years, as far back as 2012. So it sounds like SOMEONE wanted to try and bring TNG back for a long time; we just don’t know in what form (another show? TV movie?) but he turned them all down…until Kurtzman called him and came up with a radical departure.

And we got it for better or for worse.

And I did like the original Picard cast. And even now I felt bad most of them got the shaft in the third season. Hell most of them got the shaft in the second season lol. But I also agree it felt a bit forced. And I remember saying after season one ended how would they find a way to keep bringing them together? Because for Star Trek, it’s being in Starfleet or a part of it somehow that naturally creates that cohesion. And sure enough they basically put them all in Starfleet in season 2 lol.

If Stewart had said no to the idea of bringing back the TNG cast, they would’ve came up with something for season 3 but in all honesty they needed something to change the narrative or a reset after the first two seasons. Even if others liked them, they do have to admit most fans didn’t. And I think because the show had such a limited run, they had to go out with a bang to justify even having it because after season 2 I think most people just didn’t care anymore. I certainly didn’t. And that’s kind of sad seeing how much fanfare Stewart had returning. It would’ve royally sucked if the show had been considered a complete failure. Again, I know not everyone loves season 3 either but it did what many were hoping the first two seasons did and got fans excited about seeing these characters and era again. It’s a huge hit and the show went out with that bang. Maybe it went out a little too well because now people won’t stop talking about Legacy lol.

The bigger irony is Matalas had to talk Stewart into doing a TNG reunion season but now he keeps hinting he wants to do more with them, either more seasons or a movie. I guess the nostalgia of them all working together again had the same effect as old fans watching it.

I don’t know if we’ll ever see them together again, but it’s still Star Trek, so who knows?

Yes, per usual you laid out your thoughts well Tiger2! 🙂

And I understand Stewart wanted to do something different in the role but sorry how it was done was too lackluster for me. I liked most of the cast as well but it didn’t gel for me. They didn’t feel like a real team. First season was OK I guess because they gave them a reason to be there. But second season just felt like everything was done by convenience only. For starters. why were those people specifically sent to the past? Why did Q bring them specifically? We wouldn’t need to ask this if it was the other TNG characters because he knows all of them and their relationship to each other. But here it felt so random because it was.

And there is hardly any chemistry between them. Seven and Raffi relationship just felt forced. Elnor is a nice kid but I have no idea why he’s even there? What was his purpose? Jurati belonged in prison for killing her boyfriend and just felt ridiculous it was dropped so easily. Rios was great though and the only one I wish stayed longer besides Seven of course. There didn’t felt like any reason they were there together other than they are stars of the show. But they had little to no connection to each other. Not to mention the story was even worse that season one.

Now take season 3 and how those characters came together. Of course Picard and Riker were going to save Beverly and it went on from there. They were all given a reason to be there. And because they all deeply care about each other it wasn’t hard to figure out why they would join the mission. It was great to see them come together because they been coming together for over 30 years. That’s why I absolutely loved season 3.

And they certainly needed to swing direction after season 2. Picard overall is just a bad show. I still believe Discovery is easily worst but not by much. Season 3 fundamentally felt like a different show. It certainly wasn’t perfect either and still pales to some of the Golden age of 1966-2005. It would fall somewhere in the upper middle in terms of quality. For 700 episodes that is high IMO.

But for NuTrek, it might as well be considered a masterpiece haha.

I don/t know if you did this on purpose or not, but you left out Soji in season 2! But don’t feel bad, so did the show. ;)

As for Elnor, sadly I think that’s why they essentially just killed off his character in season 2 until the end. They would find ways to bring him back like that weird hologram scene and some flash back with Raffi, but basically sidelined. And having the Soji actress play a Soong clone in the past also was an odd choice. Again, just so strange. They couldn’t even find enough reason to use those characters fully in season 2; but you can say that for most of them. And what was the point of using the same actress who played Laris to also play a Traveler in the past?

The only thing I can think of is they were all contracted for the first two seasons and had to use them all in some way.

And I think maybe what would’ve been a better idea in the first two seasons if you didn’t want the complete TNG cast, but use one of those characters as another main character. Bring in Worf or Geordi and they are part of the mission too and that way you at least have one other long time character and someone Picard is really connected to and trusts. Raffi was basically suppose to be that character but she was still a stranger to the audience. And of course she could’ve still been there. I don’t think that addition would’ve made the seasons any better but it would’ve made sense for Picard to have one long time friend by his side.

I still say I’d be on board a Picard show where he stays on Earth and solves crimes from his chateau. Different is wonderful, but it’s always all about the writing.

Ha, ‘Inspector Picard’ sounds wonderful.

And I probably would’ve watched that with bells on lol

Oh and I’m still upset we didn’t get Janeway in season 3 even though they dropped her name a dozen times in it lol, but that’s life. Tuvok was a nice substitute as well! :)

Now that really bugged me. They teased and teased and teased Janeway throughout the entire season and she never showed up. I was waiting for the scene her and Seven reunited. It would’ve been such an emotional moment to see Janeway reaction to Seven becoming a Starfleet Captain. I knw she was proud to see Chakotay and Tuvok become Captains but Seven would’ve met so much to see how far she came.

Very disappointing but I hold out hope we will see our beautiful ladies together again! ❤️

Yep, fingers crossed!

I… like Season 2 in all its messy, incoherent glory. It’s an explosion of ideas that don’t really pay off in many ways but I am always entertained.

End of the day that’s all that matters. Someone got something out of a piece of entertainment then it did its job.

Agree with others here, Picard had lots of promise in the beginning in season one but it fell very short in the end. So much of that season just feels so confusing and anti-climatic. There are so many decisions they made that were questionable to say the least, one of the biggest was indeed killing off Hugh. A character we haven’t seen for three decades and the minute we get to see him back he’s gone just as fast. And I remember thinking that he was going to be around the rest of the series when I assumed that story line was going to continue in season two and we would see him eventually reunite with Geordi; which is what many people wanted to see. Not only did that not happen, they then threw out this idea he and Seven had became close friends but like so much of that season, we were never shown it, just told since they couldn’t be bothered to put them in a scene together before he was killed off. Season one ultimately felt like a huge misfire in the end. Not as bad as season two lol but for all the hype going in, it turned out deeply disappointing minus a few stand out episodes. A season I don’t know if I will ever watch again frankly.

But it is interesting that they were already coming up with a very different show before Stewart agreed to come back and with Hugh and Seven. I always assumed there was only the idea of a TNG inspired show and nothing beyond that. I think a Borg show would’ve been very interesting because I always want Star Trek to try and think outside the box a little. And not just always another show of Starfleet officers on a starship which ironically every show in NuTrek has ultimately become including Picard.

But it also proves that there are probably so many ideas they are pitching for these shows that we probably never even hear about.

Still bummed we never got a proper send off for Laris. Liked her. Sloppy writing, no shock there. In my head canon Picard went and met her at the bar she mentioned in the first episode of S3.

It’s absolutely crazy what they did with Laris as a character. I loved her too and was hoping to see more of her in season 3. But I remember a former poster here said she only worked one day in season 3 and that’s when I knew she was being discarded like the rest of them.

First season she was in the first three episodes and then disappeared once Picard left. In season two, I was hoping she got a much bigger role. They threw them together in this shot gun relationship after killing off her husband and built an entire story line of them being together just to dismiss it completely in season three. And technically she was only in the first and last episode of season 2. Why not just have her be part of the main story line and develop their relationship more instead of bringing in Talinn?

And yeah why even bother to give that line in season 3 that they would meet at the bar if they were going to have Picard just brush her off completely? I don’t think he even mentioned her name again once she left lol. It’s just tells you just how disjointed the writing was. The character deserved so much better.

Also it’s interesting that he brought up people like James Duff and Kirsten Beyer. I remember when Duff was hired because they made an article about it here and I don’t think we heard anything else about him since, now I know why lol. But I completely forgot Beyer herself is still making these shows. She had such a big presence at the beginning of Discovery and then Picard. But lately I don’t remember hearing much about her so I went on her IMDB page and discovered she’s still a part of the franchise and completely forgot she wrote an episode of SNW last season; sadly my least favorite one, “Among the Lotus Eaters”. But still nice she’s active. Just funny how some people gets so much attention in the media and then just disappears. Apparently she was a producer on Picard for all three seasons but I don’t remember her name even mentioned in season two or three and especially when the final season basically turned into the Terry Matalas show.

And speaking of people disappearing, it’s still crazy to me how much fanfare Michael Chabon got when he joined the franchise and thought he was going to be around for quite a while. I have never heard of him until he joined Star Trek. I think his time on that show was super rocky considering how the season turned out and he left before the show before the season even aired. He was around when it was airing but disappeared completely after that and cut ties never to speak about Star Trek again. I think there is a huge rift we’re not hearing about for him to come and go so fast.

I think you are completely correct about Chabon. There seems to be some serious conflict that happened in the background as Chabon really doesn’t even want to talk about Trek at all anymore. And the sad part this is probably why we will never get another literary figure to write or produce for Trek ever again.

Even during season 1 it became clear from interviews by Chabon that the show we got was kind of a hodgepodge of ideas from different producers and that he wasn’t necessarily happen with all of them even though he was officially the showrunner. Based on Del Arco’s remarks here, it sounds like the Borg storyline came from James Duff. If I remember correctly, the strange Romulan love/spy triangle came from Akiva Goldsman. It is noteworthy that basically all open plot points from season 1 were dropped in season 2, and season 3 went on to actively undo stuff from season 1 (and season 2). So if he wasn’t happy with his time on season 1, and then basically everything he did got erased as soon as he left, I could understand that he may feel a bit bitter or sad and not want to talk about it anymore. Especially if he was a big fan and doing Trek was his life’s dream, this could have been be a very disappointing experience for him.

The Narek/Narissa thing was my least favourite part of S1, so it tracks Goldsman was responsible for it. The man is a disaster when it comes to Star Trek.

Oh the Romulan sibling incest thing was definitely Goldsman idea. He talked about it explicitly in one interview and said not only was it his idea, he wanted them to have a sexual relationship but was (not surprisingly) overruled. But he still had enough clout to imply there was at least something going on.

And I also think they greatly changed a lot of things because I remember originally at least the story in season one was suppose to carry on in the next season and probably through the entire show like the Dominion War on DS9. But that was obviously dropped. And like you said, it wasn’t just dropped, but they didn’t even reference any of the plot points from season one in season two outside of Picard being an android. Again, who knows, but if true, I can see how that would bother Chabon if he had fleshed out this bigger story and all of it was changed or side lined. I can see him not being happy about that obviously.

Either way, it’s very obvious that season had too many cooks or just constantly change things because it did feel really disjointed. It’s still crazy we spent 9 episodes on a Borg cube and that story line went nowhere in the end.

It’s strange for someone who said they not only loved Star Trek but said getting the job was a career high for him to basically just walk away and not look back. AFAIK, he was the one who decided to leave as well after just one season. I do remember something about his novel being adapted to a show and that was supposedly why he left. But that obviously never happened and he looks like he had no desire to return to Star Trek.

And I can imagine being your first time running a TV show and one with so much hype there must’ve been a lot of craziness behind the scenes. I think just like what happened with Bob Orci and the third Kelvin movie, we’ll probably never know the true reasons why he left.

but the season was easily the best picard season

If you’re talking about season one qe definitely disagree but happy you enjoyed it more than I did.

Picard was such a shitty, hapazard series. A complete mess from begining to to slightly better end. I glad it ended before it destroyed star Trek. Somany characters and plots deserved so much better writing and execution than they got.

It was never going to destroy Star Trek. Stop being dramatic.

‘fridging’ icheb was way worse.

As a motivation for a one-off episode that didn’t even shape the character in the rest of the series? Yeah, absolutely disgraceful.

Indeed. And needlessly grotesque.

That was a Frakes episode.

Interesting. I still have an overall positive opinion about Frakes as a director, just not for that episode.

Yeah, I was sitting in a hospital, eating lunch and waiting for my son to get out of surgery, when I saw that eyeball being pulled out. That, I did NOT need that day…

There was no point in it being so grisly. You can give Seven of Nine the same unoriginal arc and not have to show the gore and torture. Imagine being a kid watching Voyager and getting attached to Icheb, then finding out there’s a sequel show with Seven in it…

Oof, that’s rough. How’s your son doing?

There was no creative reasoning behind killing Hugh. You have to be a capable and creative writer and Chabon and Goldsman are neither of those things.

Unfortunately, he strikes to the heart of the matter- there was NO point in killing Hugh; it was needless and gratuitous. Getting Seven there could be so simple- she just stays with Picard and crew and stays with Elnor. Or the command functions ‘will only respond to a female drone’ because they’re keyed to the Queen.

That was the major problem with season 1 of Picard- Icheb, Hugh, Bruce Maddox… all the legacy character deaths were totally narratively unnecessary, and just there for cheap shock value. It really tainted what could have been a decent season, because it turned into this weird mix of nostalgic reunions and gratuitous slasher film.

Season 1 of Picard was all build-up and no pay off. Soji saves the day by literally waving her hands about. The writers admitted they had no idea how the story was going to end and they were making it up as they went along. It’s probably one of my least favourite seasons of Trek ever produced. Just awful.

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Picard’s greatest star trek tragedy is a copy of kirk’s.

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Picard Season 3 Fixed Jean-Luc’s Biggest Star Trek Generations Regret

Two star trek captains can pull off spock's vulcan nerve pinch, star trek reveals the enterprise's new design as a full-fledged warship.

The greatest tragedy of Star Trek 's Captain Jean-Luc Picard's (Patrick Stewart) life mimics a Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) tragedy from Star Trek: The Original Series . Both Captain Kirk and Captain Picard prioritized their Starfleet careers and their starship crews became their families. Although Captain Kirk's older brother initially pursued a Starfleet career, he later took a position as a civilian research biologist, living on the planet Deneva with his family. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has revealed more about Kirk's brother, Lt. Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte) , offering a glimpse into his Starfleet career.

In Star Trek: The Original Series season 1, episode 29, "Operation — Annihilate!," the USS Enterprise travels to Deneva to investigate strange reports of mass insanity. Captain Kirk visits his brother's home to find Sam dead, his wife Aurelan (Joan Swift) hysterical, and their son Peter (Craig Hundley) in a coma. Aurelan later dies on the Enterprise, but Peter recovers after the Enterprise crew finds a way to stop the parasites causing the insanity. Star Trek has never revealed what became of Peter Kirk onscreen, although he does feature in some Star Trek tie-in fiction, and the fate of Sam Kirk's other two children remains unknown.

Picard’s Family Died Just Like Kirk’s In Star Trek: The Original Series

Picard & kirk both lost most of their families.

In Star Trek Generations , Captain Picard receives the tragic news that his brother, Robert Picard (Jeremy Kemp), sister-in-law, and nephew have perished in a fire. Although Jean-Luc and Robert had had their fair share of disagreements, Captain Picard was devastated by his family's deaths. Picard was hit by the realization that no one would be left to carry on his family name after his own death. Prior to this moment, Jean-Luc had never worried about having children, knowing that his nephew Rene (David Birkin) would continue the Picard line. Jean-Luc was bereft that the Picard line would end with him.

Although Kirk and Picard have very different command styles, they both enjoy being in the Captain's chair more than anywhere else.

Captain Kirk had a son named David (Merritt Butrick) with Carol Marcus (Bibi Besch). Klingons killed David on the Genesis Planet in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock . Kirk mourned for his son and cursed the Klingons, but he did not seem as bothered by the fact that his family line would end with him. In Star Trek Generations, Kirk finds himself in the Nexus, living a life with a woman named Antonia, but Jim soon reverts back to his first, best destiny: being a starship captain.

Star Trek Made Sure Jean-Luc Isn’t The Last Picard

Should jack crusher change his surname.

In Star Trek: Picard season 3, Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) came crashing back into Jean-Luc Picard's life, revealing that she had given birth to his son around twenty years before. Beverly chose to keep Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers) a secret from Jean-Luc, fearing that the captain's many enemies would target him. As he was raised by Beverly, Jack took his mother's surname, but it's possible he could change or hyphenate it now that he has a relationship with his father.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard expressed a major regret about his family in Star Trek Generations, but Star Trek: Picard fixed it.

After helping to avert the Borg/Changeling takeover, Jack joined Starfleet and quickly landed a position on the newly renamed USS Enterprise-G . Whether in name or not, Jack will carry on the legacy of both of his famous parents, alleviating any of Jean-Luc's fears that the family line would end with him. It remains to be seen exactly what Jack's responsibilities are as Special Counselor to Captain Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), but hopefully, a future Star Trek project will revisit the story of Picard's son.

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Darmok (1991), richard allen: tamarian first officer, photos .

Quotes 

Tamarian First Officer : Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard : [presenting Dathon's dagger to the Tamarian First Officer]  Temba - his arms open.

['Take it'] 

Tamarian First Officer : Temba - at rest.

['Keep it'] 

Captain Jean-Luc Picard : Thank you.

Tamarian First Officer : Kailash, when it rises.

Tamarian First Officer : Chenza at court - the court of silence.

Tamarian First Officer : Kadir beneath Mo Moteh.

Tamarian First Officer : Darmok?

Captain Jean-Luc Picard : And Jalad at Tanagra. Darmok and Jalad on the ocean.

Tamarian First Officer : Sokath, his eyes open!

Captain Jean-Luc Picard : The beast of Tanagra. Uzani, his army. Shaka when the walls fell.

Tamarian First Officer : Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel. Mirab, with sails unfurled.

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Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel... Forever

By Vic , September 30, 2018 in VIC Topic Archives

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Vic    17.

Back in 1991, season five of Star Trek: The Next Generation gave us weekly choice cuts of science-fiction filet mignon. “ The Inner Light ,” “ I, Borg ,” “ Cause and Effect ” “ The Outcast ” and “ Unification ” all sit atop the pantheon of great Trek episodes. Arguably the most-cherished episode of that golden season is one that regularly ranks high on the list of all-time great Star Trek hours; “ Darmok .”

The second episode of the fifth season -- which premiered 27 years ago today, with today coincidentally being International Translation Day -- Picard’s captain's log entry sets the scene.

"Captain's log, Stardate 45047.2. The Enterprise is en route to the uninhabited El-Adrel system. Its location is near the territory occupied by an enigmatic race known as The Children of Tama."

The Enterprise arrives at the world of El-Adrel, holding opposite a waiting Tamarian vessel. While the universal translator could translate individual words, the intent and meaning of the Tamarian words evades them. Speaking in allegory and without understanding the stories of which they speak, communication is virtually impossible. Frustrated at their inability to communicate, the Tamarian captain, Dathon, has himself and Picard beamed down to the surface of El-Adrel IV while a scattering field is raised to make transport off-planet impossible. Dathon utters the phrase "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra" and throws Picard a dagger. Picard believes the alien is challenging him to a fight, so refuses the blade, but as night falls and Picard is unable to start a camp fire, Dathon offers him fire, saying "Temba, his arms wide." The following day, they are stalked by a fierce predator, and using the language of metaphor, Dathon tries to formulate tactics with Picard to fight the creature. But as they battle the beast, Picard is caught in a transporter beam from the Enterprise. The crew are attempting to beam him off planet, leaving Dathon to fight the creature alone. Picard is agonizingly stuck in the transporter beam while Dathon is severely injured.

Talks with the Tamarians fails, as does a shuttle mission to retrieve the captain, but the Enterprise crew finally realize what Picard already has, that the Tamarians communicate through example, based largely on allegories from their own folklore. Without a common frame of reference, the language remains unbreachable.

On the planet, Picard tends to Dathon’s wounds and the two begin to narrow the language gap between them. Picard deciphers the meaning of the allegories and their intent, telling Dathon the epic tale of Gilgamesh before the Tamarian captain succumbs to his injuries. Meanwhile, the Enterprise fires on the larger Tamarian vessel, scattering the displacement field and beaming up Picard.

Back on the bridge, and to the surprise of his crew, Picard uses those metaphors to communicate with the Tamarian commander, and as he sends Dathon’s personal journal back to his people they add a new phrase to their language - "Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel."

The episode ends as Picard and Riker discuss the mission, and how a stronger link to their own mythology would help break the wall of language between them and the Tamarians. As Riker departs, Picard lifts the blade and repeats the ritualistic gesture he had seen Dathon do, paying silent tribute to his fallen comrade.

Championed by the late Michael Piller, the episode took two years to come to the screen. Developed from a story outline by Philip LaZebnik, Piller passed the episode to Joe Menosky to develop. Menosky focused primarily on two leaders learning to communicate as well as the story of Gilgamesh, one of our planet’s oldest known literary pieces.

Filmed over 13 days of studio and location shooting in July and August of 1991, “Darmok” is littered with firsts. It was the first time we saw the Type 6 shuttlecraft and also marked the debut of Captain Picard’s new jacket (believe me, it was a BIG deal at the time). The ensemble was comprised of a a grey undershirt reminiscent of the First Contact colors that would arrive five years later and a red leather jacket. It also introduced us to Ensign Robin Lefler, as played by Ashley Judd, who would more prominently reappear in the fifth season’s sixth episode, “ The Game ,” a month later.

Unbelievably – to those of us who watched it on its initial run back in 1991 – this episode is now 27 years old, but the intervening years of technical evolution and advances in visual effects haven’t diminished the power of the episode one jot. As compelling and engrossing as it ever was, “Darmok” is not only beautifully directed by the late Winrich Kolbe, but is anchored by powerhouse performances from Sir Patrick Stewart and the late Paul Winfield.

Previously best known in Trek circles for his performance as the tragic Captain Clark Terrell in 1982’s Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , his masterful turn as Captain Dathon in “Darmok” arguably supersedes that.

Every iteration of Star Trek has brought us tales of adventure, exploration, discovery and understanding. Many remain long in the memory, but few are as affecting and distinct as “Darmok,” and for that we salute this most unique of episodes.

"Temba, at rest."

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Man indicted in death of Star Trek Ticonderoga tour guide, Elvis tribute artist

T he 70-year-old man accused of killing 40-year-old Thomas Krider (most commonly known as T.J. Greene), a beloved Star Trek Ticonderoga tour guide and Elvis tribute artist appeared in court Thursday, indicted on charges of manslaughter in the second degree and tampering with physical evidence, both felony charges.

Ronald Rayher is accused of restraining Krider and administering chloroform multiple times. Krider was found dead at Rayher's Milton home on April 10th, according to police it was five days after he was killed.

On Thursday Rayher pleaded not guilty to the charges.

If convicted of manslaughter, Rayher could face up to five to 15 years behind bars.

Saratoga County Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Buckley said Thursday the prosecution is ready for trial. Buckley also requested that Rayher's passport be revoked, and the request was granted.

RELATED: Man accused of killing Star Trek Ticonderoga tour guide, Elvis tribute artist out on bail

On April 25th, Rayher requested the 1.5 million dollar bail be reduced . That request was denied. Several days later though Rayher posted bond, allowing him to leave jail.

In that same appearance, ADA Buckley argued that Rayher is a flight risk. Plane tickets for an upcoming European trip were found while police were in Rayher's home.

Kevin O'Brien, defense attorney to Rayher says the tickets were purchased months in advance.

O'Brien also says a contract existed between Rayher and Krider and they are ready to take the case to trial.

"We're confident that he's going to be exonerated and able to move on with his life and again that's not to minimize the sadness of a lost friend and a good member of the community. It's just we're very confident in our case," said O'Brien. "This was all consensual acts by two consenting adults who both wanted to be there and participate in these activities as is you know, strange and weird as they may be to some people, these are two people who were happy to be there and who were friends with each other and were participating and you know, activities, friends, or whatever you want to call it."

As previously reported, Rayher a long-time chiropractor, and Krider knew each other for many years.

In an April court appearance, ADA Buckley said "His (Rayher) plan initially was to dispose of the victim's body but he was unable to do so and ultimately went to the sheriff's office four days later."

O'Brien says he does not believe this action will be a hurdle in his defense. "I kind of try to put myself in his shoes and I think I would be terrified having never been in that situation," said O'Brien. "I don't think it's an insurmountable hurdle at all I think it almost makes more sense than not because I think most people would be very scared in that situation having never dealt with that before."

ADA Buckley has also said Rayher did dispose of Krider's cell phone, eyeglasses, and other personal belongings.

"I understand that Mr. Rayher had a conversation about removing some items from the house," said O'Brien. "I understand that but how do we know that that was evidentiary in nature? How do we know that it wouldn't have exonerated him? There's a million different things."

Krider's wife of 15 years, along with a friend sat in the courtroom Thursday, listening in. CBS 6 spoke with the friend after the hearing who says he disagrees with the sexual allegations of Rayher and Krider's relationship.

"I think it's more to it," said Kevin Dunbar, Krider's friend. "I've known his wife for a long time. It's pretty hard. I've been trying to keep her up. It's not easy. Late nights ."

In May CBS 6 spoke with Krider's wife who says Krider always trusted people way too much.

One of the last conversations they exchanged was on April 5th. Krider told his wife he was going to pick up her medicine and help Rayher move furniture then come home.

This was the first time she heard about Rayher.

Rayher's next court appearance is scheduled for November 12th.

The trial is set for February 10th, 2025.

Paul Winfield

Winfield filmed his scenes for "Darmok" between Tuesday 23 July 1991 and Friday 26 July 1991 on Paramount Stage 9 , Paramount Stage 16 , and on location at Bronson Canyon . For his two day location shooting, he was picked up at home at 2:45 am and 6:45 am and brought to the studio where he received his make up from Michael Westmore , Gerald Quist , and Ed French before he was brought to location.

Winfield appeared in roughly 125 films and television shows. Among the roles for which he is known are his Academy Award -nominated portrayal of a Depression-era Louisiana sharecropper in the 1973 film Sounder and his Emmy Award -nominated performance as Dr. Martin Luther King in the 1978 mini-series King . He is also known for his supporting roles in such films as The Terminator and Mars Attacks! and for narrating the A&E series City Confidential .

Winfield is one of only four Star Trek alumni to have been nominated for the Academy Award in the Best Actor in a Leading Role category. The others were F. Murray Abraham , Frank Langella , and Benedict Cumberbatch ; thus far, Abraham is the only one to win the award.

In his afterword in the novelization of Far Beyond the Stars , Steven Barnes noted that Winfield's film characters tended not to survive and that they usually died to protect white characters. Barnes commented: " Poor Paul Winfield actually made a career out of dying in SF movies. Wrath of Khan (protecting William Shatner), Terminator (protecting Linda Hamilton), Serpent and the Rainhow (protecting Bill Pullman) and, most insultingly, in Damnation Alley . Oh, I remember watching that movie. In fact, I'll never forget it ".

Winfield was reported as saying in relation to his role of Captain Terrell: " I died so the white man could live ".

• 1 Personal life
• 2 Awards and nominations
• 3.1 Early career
• 3.2 Later career
• 4 External links

Personal life [ ]

Winfield was born in Dallas, Texas. He attended four colleges: the University of Portland, Stanford University, Los Angeles City College, and the University of California at Los Angeles. He was openly gay in his private life, though he remained discreet about this fact in public.

Winfield was the cousin of William Marshall . The two appeared together in the 1977 thriller Twilight's Last Gleaming .

Winfield, who battled obesity and diabetes, died of a heart attack in 2004 at the age of 62 in Los Angeles. He is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills with his partner of thirty years, architect Charles Gillan, Jr., who died of bone cancer in 2002.

Awards and nominations [ ]

Winfield received an Academy Award nomination in 1973 for his leading role in the film Sounder (with Janet MacLachlan ), at the time being only the third African-American to be nominated for the award. One of his final acting appearances was a made-for-television remake of this film in 2003.

Winfield earned his first Emmy Award nomination for his portrayal of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1978 mini-series King . Fellow Trek alumni Cliff DeYoung and Roy Jenson also had roles in this series, which earned eight other Emmy nominations, including Best Limited Series.

In 1979, Winfield received a second Emmy nomination for his role as Dr. Horace Huguley in the acclaimed mini-series Roots: The Next Generations . He was a part of an ensemble cast which also included Brock Peters , Bernie Casey , Logan Ramsey , Percy Rodriguez , Jason Wingreen , and Albert Hall , Trek movie actor Bill Quinn , and frequent Trek guests Bruce French and John Rubinstein .

In 1995, Winfield won his first Emmy Award (his third nomination) for his 1994 guest appearance in an episode of Picket Fences , a series which starred Ray Walston .

Other works [ ]

Early career [ ].

Winfield became known to television audiences for his role as Paul Cameron, Diahann Carroll 's love interest, in NBC 's Julia . Winfield played Paul from 1968 through 1970; when he left in the latter year, he was replaced by Original Series guest actor Fred Williamson as Steve Bruce. Winfield later worked with Williamson in the 1996 film Original Gangsta .

Prior to being cast in Julia , Winfield guest-starred in such programs as Perry Mason (in an episode with Anthony Caruso and Seamon Glass ), The F.B.I. (starring Stephen Brooks ), and Mission: Impossible (with Sid Haig ). During his run on Julia , he was also seen in such shows as The High Chaparral (starring Henry Darrow ) and Mannix (in an episode with Susan Oliver ). In addition, he made appearances in two episodes of Ironside , one in 1968 with Gene Lyons and another in 1972.

Winfield made his film debut in The Lost Man (1969). His second film was R.P.M. (1970, co-starring Gary Lockwood , Graham Jarvis , and John McLiam ). Winfield then appeared in Brother John (1971, directed by James Goldstone ).

In 1973, nearly ten years before The Wrath of Khan , Winfield appeared alongside his future co-star William Shatner in the TV movie The Horror at 37,000 Feet . Darleen Carr and France Nuyen also appeared in this production.

Following his Oscar nomination for Sounder , Winfield starred in the 1974 film Conrack , in which he co-starred with Madge Sinclair (whom he would appear with again in the 1993 mini-series Queen: The Story of an American Family ). He then portrayed Jim in the 1974 version of Huckleberry Finn and had a major supporting role in Hustle (1975).

In 1977, he starred in Damnation Alley , which featured Original Series guest actor Seamon Glass in a small role. The following year Winfield starred in the film A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich , which featured Bill Cobbs .

Winfield worked with Robert Hooks on several projects, beginning with Trouble Man (1972, co-starring William Smithers ). This was followed by the 1979 TV mini-series Backstairs at the White House , which featured Winfield's Wrath of Khan co-star Bibi Besch , as well other Trek alumni such as Noble Willingham and Bill Quinn . Winfield, Hooks, and Besch also co-starred with each other in The Sophisticated Gents (1981, featuring Bernie Casey and Alfre Woodard ). The following year Winfield and Hooks co-starred together in the TV movie Sister, Sister .

Later career [ ]

Winfield is well known for his role as Lieutenant Ed Traxler in The Terminator (1984, featuring Earl Boen , Dick Miller , and Brian Thompson ). Winfield followed this with roles in such films as The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988, with William Newman , Dey Young and Paul Guilfoyle ), Presumed Innocent (1990, with Tucker Smallwood ), Cliffhanger (1993, alongside Bruce McGill ), and Mars Attacks! (1996, with Michael Reilly Burke and Jeanne Mori ). He also worked with Christopher Lloyd in Dennis the Menace (1993).

He appeared with Stephen Collins in two TV mini-series. The first was 1982's The Blue and the Gray , which also featured the likes of Robin Gammell , Gregg Henry , William Lucking , Charles Napier , Duncan Regehr , Dan Shor , and Noble Willingham . The second was 1993's Scarlett , the sequel to Gone with the Wind which starred Colm Meaney .

Winfield and fellow Next Generation guest actor Paul Eiding were regulars on The Charmings , which aired on ABC during the 1987-1988 season. Winfield then appeared in the recurring role of Isaac Twine on the CBS comedy series Wiseguy , working with Jonathan Banks , Mick Fleetwood , Ken Jenkins , Pamela Segall , and Ron Taylor .

Winfield was a regular on NBC's 227 during the show's fifth and final season (1989-1990), where he played the role of Julian C. Barlow. Afterward, he had a recurring role as Derron Holloway on NBC's L.A. Law , working with series regulars Corbin Bernsen and Larry Drake , as well as fellow guest stars James Avery , Paul Eiding , John Hancock , Anne Haney , Jennifer Hetrick , Diana Muldaur , and John Vickery . David Carson and Win Phelps were among the directors Winfield worked with on the show.

In 1995, Winfield guest-starred in the "GROPOS" episode of Babylon 5 . Art Chudabala and Marie Marshall also appeared in this episode, along with series regulars Robert Rusler , David L. Crowley , Andreas Katsulas and Bill Mumy . That same year, Winfield co-starred with Neal McDonough , Roy Brocksmith , and Michael McGrady in the TV movie White Dwarf .

Winfield played famed boxing promoter Don King in the 1995 biographical TV movie Tyson , co-starring Lilyan Chauvin and James B. Sikking . Winfield later supplied the voice of boxing manager Lucius Sweet, a parody of Don King, in two episodes of The Simpsons . The title of Winfield's second episode as Sweet, "The Trouble with Trillions," is an obvious reference to the Original Series episode " The Trouble with Tribbles ".

Winfield was one of many Star Trek alumni to lend their voice to the animated series Gargoyles . The others include LeVar Burton , Michael Dorn , Jonathan Frakes , Marina Sirtis , Brent Spiner , Avery Brooks , Colm Meaney , Kate Mulgrew , Nichelle Nichols , David Warner , and W. Morgan Sheppard .

He also voiced in two different animated Batman series: the 1990s version, in the episode "The Mechanic", which also featured the voices of Barry Gordon , John de Lancie , Loren Lester and Paul Williams ; and Batman Beyond (1999-2001), on which he voiced the character of District Attorney Sam Young in several episodes. Other Star Trek actors he worked with on the latter series include Terri Garr , Larry Cedar , Clyde Kusatsu , and Michael McKean .

From 1995 through 2003, Winfield had a recurring role as senior supervising angel Sam on the CBS drama series Touched by an Angel . He appeared in thirteen episodes of the show, including ones featuring Ivar Brogger , Jim Metzler , Charles Rocket , David Ogden Stiers , Kenneth Tigar , Harley Venton , and Craig Wasson . Winfield's final acting appearance before his death was in the penultimate episode of Touched by an Angel , which aired on 26 April 2003.

Winfield was the narrator of City Confidential from the show's premiere in 1999 until his death in 2004. The last episode he narrated aired on 13 March 2004, less than a week after his death.

External links [ ]

• Paul Winfield at the Internet Movie Database
• Paul Winfield at Wikipedia
• 2 Daniels (Crewman)
• 3 Klingon augment virus