7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Datalore, January 3, 2000
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episode 14: Datalore [VHS] (VHS Tape)
In this episode, the Enterprise goes to the planet where Data was created. While there, they discover Data's "brother" Lore -- an android created before Data and who looks exactly like Data. It soon becomes apparent that Lore is not the sweet and innocent android that Data is as Lore attempt to destroy the Enterprise the same way he destroyed his creators.
This marks the first of many appearances of Lore.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
For the fun, not the quality, July 10, 2002
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episode 14: Datalore [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I LIKE first season TNG episodes. Yes, they're often rough in their acting and production quality; but their storylines are often more interesting than in later series, where there was a slick, by-the-numbers feel to everything. And yes, "Datalore" has some terrible dialogue and plot holes big enough to fly the Enterprise through, but I still give it four stars - that's for the importance this episode has in the TNG universe, and for the sheer fun of it.
Since they are in the area, Picard sends an away team to visit Omicron Theta, the planet that Data was found on. Once down, the away team discover that the whole planet is dead and deserted - but they also discover a secret, underground facility. Inside, Data finds himself remembering that this is the place where he was constructed, and even the name of his creator. A search of a laboratory reveals the pieces of another android that is physically identical to Data. Data insists on returning the other android to the Enterprise and assembling him, with Picard's support. And so Lore is brought to life.
Lore soons shows himself to be very different to Data, dangerously so. He has emotions and, despite his naivete, an understanding of humans that Data lacks. He claims that he was contructed to replace Data, being an advancement on his emotionless brother; but he later admits to Data that Data was made to replace HIM because everyone found his humanity and perfection uncomfortable. Or is that, too, a lie? Lore reaches out to Data, in his own twisted way, and is rejected. So Lore decides that he wants what Data has - at least for a little while, until he can organise his revenge. By the end of the episode, the mystery of what happened on Omicron Theta is explained (if you don't think about it too hard, that is) and Lore is gone - until next time, anyway.
I wish it had been someone other than Wesley who had been so pivotal in this episode, but you can't have everything, I suppose. Troi is absent altogether, for obvious reasons. And everyone else seems very, very dim. Production values are pretty clunky, and the music can be annoying. But it's the fun of the storyline and acting that carry this episode along.
Brent Spiner is great as Data, Lore, and Lore-masquerading-as-Data. He brings Lore to life in all his vicious insanity, but still manages to make him more than the stereotypical evil twin. There are some great moments in this episode: the look on Data's face as Lore tells him not to be jealous of him; the look on Lore's face when he realises that Data has more loyalty to the Enterprise crew than to him; the moment when everyone tells Wesley to shut up; and Worf finding out just how inadequate he is against an android.
It's a pity that this episode took the easy way out in the end. Lore does the stereotypical mad criminal thing and overreaches himself because of his desire to hurt and terrorise, rather than being defeated by superior skill. The consequences to Data of his appearance and disappearance are not dealt with at all, and the jokey ending grates. As Brent Spiner's portrayal of him shows, Lore deserved more than being just another cardboard cutout villain, and it's unfortunate that the writers of the series did not have the courage to make his character more than that.
If you're willing to suspend some disbelief and not think about it too deeply, this is a fun, as well as important, episode.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Would Captain Picard really say, "Shut up Wesley"?, May 23, 2004
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episode 14: Datalore [VHS] (VHS Tape)
The premise of this episode is one of the oldest in human literature, that of the evil twin. Proving once again that Star Trek often attempts to look ahead by looking back. In this case, it is Data that has an evil twin, found in pieces when the Enterprise travels back to the planet where Data was found. There are also hints of the crystalline entity, a creature that appears to subsist by devouring life.
When the Enterprise arrives at the planet, it is completely devoid of life, although a research lab is still intact. Lore is found, taken back to the ship and reconstructed. Once he is together, Lore "awakens" and immediately begins plotting to allow the crystalline entity to penetrate the Enterprise and consume the life on board. He is foiled by the efforts of Wesley Crusher, who seems to be the only one who recognizes that Lore is impersonating Data.
There are so many logical holes and inconsistencies in this episode that it becomes a strain to watch. The most amazing is the way that Captain Picard treats Wesley. In the previous episode, "The Big Goodbye", Captain Picard and Dr. Crusher are trapped inside the holodeck due to a computer error. Wesley is allowed to participate in the rescue attempt; in fact he is the sole person examining the circuitry, searching for the flaw. Yet, in this episode, when Wesley voices his concern that the android is in fact Lore impersonating Data, Picard's solution is to yell, "Shut up Wesley!" Riker's behavior is almost as bad, paying no attention to what Wesley is trying to say. At the end, when it is clear that Wesley has in fact saved the ship and the lives of everyone on board, the only thing Picard can say to Wesley is, "Are you ready to return to duty?" This is completely inconsistent with the established patterns of behavior, as Wesley has established himself as one of the most capable members of the crew.
The only thing that saves the episode is the excellent performance of Brent Spiner as both Data and Lore. As a consequence of his giving Lore a facial tic and slightly different mannerisms, we always know which one is on the screen. Unfortunately, if we can see it, it should have been obvious to the crew of the Enterprise as well. Fortunately, Lore is defeated in a way that allowed for a logically consistent return in future episodes. Despite this bad start, his appearance in future episodes yields much better stories.
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