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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Star Trek:The Next Generation at its best!, November 13, 2000
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episodes 74 & 75: The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & 2 (Gift Set) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
They are from the deepest reaches of the Delta Quadrant; they call themselves the Borg. Half-humanoid, half machine, their only goal is total perfection using one sole strategy-the assimilation of whole worlds, cultures, and races. They are relentless, chilling, and almost unstoppable. Which is why its no wonder that they have been voted Star Trek's favorite villain! The Best of Both Worlds deals with the Borg (first encountered in 2nd season episode "Q Who?") invading the Federation. The U.S.S. Enterpise-D is sent to buy time for a Starfleet Armada assembling at Wolf 359, but in the process, Captain Picard is captured, assimilated, and becomes known as Locutus of Borg. With Picard's past experience, the Borg are able to decimate the armada and its up to the Enterpise and Commander Riker to stop them before they reach Earth. This truly is the best episode of the second Star Trek series. It also gave way to other Borg two parters, including "Descent", "Scorpion", "Dark Frontier", and "Unimatrix Zero". The only downside is that we only see the graveyard of Wold 359 but two years later, we would see the actual battle during the pilot for "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." Thus, remember that freedom is irrelevant and resistance is futile!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Star Trek: The Next Generation's Finest Hours, November 25, 2001
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episodes 74 & 75: The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & 2 (Gift Set) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I'm not much of a fan of "Star Trek", but I willingly concede that both episodes are the finest hours of "Star Trek: The Next Generation". In "Best of Both Worlds" Part I Jonathan Frakes demonstrates why he had the charisma and presence to take over literally from Patrick Stewart as the star of "Star Trek: The Next Generation"; his William T. Riker quickly proves why he deserves command of his own Starfleet vessel. Actress Elizabeth Dennehy is terrific as the no nonsense Lieutenant Commander Shelby, newly arrived to show the Enterprise crew the latest tactics in dealing with the Borg. Part I is a nonstop rollercoaster of superb action and tense drama as Picard, Riker, Shelby and the rest of the Enterprise crew deal with the Borg's incursion into Federation space. Picard is captured and becomes the Borg Locutus, who chillingly warns Captain Riker, "Resistance is futile", at the episode's conclusion. In Part II, the Enterprise arrives to survey the destruction of the Starfleet task force at Wolf 359, while Locutus' Borg cube heads straight for Earth. Fortunately Riker, Shelby and the crew thwart the Borg's attempt at assimilating Earth. It's a pity the movies haven't been as well written as these episodes, though I'm sure "Star Trek" fans are hoping for the best with "Star Trek X", presumably the last featuring "The Next Generation" crew.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best Star Trek episode ever, April 29, 2001
This review is from: Star Trek - The Next Generation, Episodes 74 & 75: The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & 2 (Gift Set) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Since the original series came out, my favorite Start Trek episode has been "Mirror Mirror" where Kirk, Scott, Mccoy and Uhuru are accidentally beamed into a parallel universe where the Federation is an evil empire. However, that favorite has been replaced by this one. Not only do we meet a new villain, it is one with enormous power and quite different from humans. To me, the most interesting thing about the Borg is that unlike the Klingons, Romulans and other threats, they actually resemble species found on Earth. Ant colonies have often been noted for their similarity to human societies. They wage war, take slaves, overrun territory and maintain a strict hierarchy. Some commentators have noted that while the individual generally does not live long, the colony itself could live for a very long time. The efficiency of the hive structure in maintaining the existence of the hive is also not something to be taken lightly. From the evolutionary perspective, humans really have not been on this planet that long, so we really do not have the history to predict our long term dominance. It may turn out that hive organisms have better prospects for long-term survival. It is also a very plausible argument that any extraterrestrial society will more closely resemble the Borg structure than that of humans. The Klingons and Romulans are modeled after humans in their glorification of conflict. However, it is very hard to see how societies that wage so much internal war could possibly survive to travel space. Furthermore, the Klingon and Romulan empires would aggressively expand their influence, conquering and subjugating all they encountered. It seems difficult to conceive of circumstances where they both could simultaneously exist. The main criticism of hive societies is that they reach a level of development and then stagnate there. That would not happen with a Borg society, as the ability to assimilate other species would continually add new knowledge and abilities to the collective, allowing it to evolve into a more capable organism. Furthermore, in this episode, the Borg show the ability to selectively improve themselves by performing the selective assimilation of a star ship captain. The capture of Picard shows an ability to reason that makes the Borg a more formidable foe than a simple collective consciousness could ever be. Given the human propensity for individuality, it would appear difficult to determine how a Borg colony could arise. However, in a world of religious cults who kill themselves as part of their religion, it does not take a great leap of faith to envision of group of people choosing the Borg lifestyle if it were available. Which raises some interesting questions. How large would the hive have to be before it would have a plausible chance of taking over the Earth? Could it be made illegal for a human to convert to the Borg "religion?" Could the joining of a Borg cult be considered a suicide? To me, the Borg are the most believable of all the nonhuman "species" in all the Star Trek series. Since any extra-terrestrials encountered by humans will more likely resemble the Borg than the Klingons, this battle between the Federation and its most dangerous enemy is loaded with profound and subtle subplots.
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