Star Trek: The Next Generation — 3x03 — The Survivors

Aired 1989-10-09

SpaceOpera.com rating:5

Average reader rating:5.52

Synopsis

An elderly couple somehow survives a devastating attack.

Remarkable scenes

Riker being caught by the trap and hung upside down.
Worf: "May I say your attempt to hold the away team at bay with a non functioning weapon was an act of unmitigated gall." Kevin: "Didn't fool ya, huh?" Worf: "I admire gall."
Worf embarrassed about the sudden appearance of the Husnock ship after his declaration of such an event being impossible.
Worf: "Good tea. Nice house."
Picard arrogantly solving the mystery but questions his resolve privately with Riker.
Picard, after beaming up the survivors: "My apologies if I interrupted a waltz."

Review

The Troi suffering scenes are getting old. Thankfully they didn't last too long. Kevin the mass murderer... but a crime of passion! PIcard was right. Kind of hard to pass any kind of judgment on Kevin. Not because we're not qualified though. Because we don't have enough information. I would have preferred less mystery and more exploration of what Kevin really was and especially what the Husnock were all about. All we get his Kevin's word on this. Some mud can also be thrown at this episode regarding the logic behind the attack and alleged colonial resistance. In fact the whole episode seems silly up until the surprise ending, but the logical problems are minor enough to be largely forgiven. Exceptional premise, flawed execution.

7 reader comments

I find it very interesting that DS9 is being called "the most human Star Trek series" even though that the regular cast features the least human characters. This applies here too. This episode is one of the most human episodes of TNG and the amazing thing is that the humanity comes from a creature who is as far from human as it gets.
The Dowwd's dilemma is something, which I think many of us have had to deal with one way or another: How far would you go for the woman you love? Superbeing or not, love makes us do what we never thought we would.
Am I giving him absolution? Absolutely not! Genocide is the worst imaginable crime. Like Picard said: "We are not qualified to be your judges!" But if you ask me if I would do the same if I were in his place… Why do I identify with this being, more so than with any other character I've seen on Star Trek? Why does his pain move my insides so deeply?
This episode is a personal favourite of mine so I give it 10 out of 10! Call me biased if you wish!
by Vlad | 04/02/2006 at 3:04 am

Kevin perceives Troi is sensing he may not be human from the Enterprise, so he sends music to confuse her. He creates a warship that attacks and retreats from the Enterprise. He is able to control the warship's acceleration to maintain a constant distance from the Enterprise. Kevin destroyed an entire race, wherever they happened to be in the galaxy. Yet every time an away team beams down to Rana IV, Kevin acts surprised. How can Kevin be surprised by the presence of the Enterprise? He could sense the Husnak throughout the galaxy, surely he could sense the Enterprise in orbit around his planet.
An instant after Kevin begins to "transport" himself to Troi's quarters, Geordi turns and looks at the turbolift. This is before Kevin fully disappears. How did Geordi know that Kevin would use that particular turbolift?
by DSOmo | 07/06/2007 at 7:36 pm

I agree with JRPoole… I also suspect the arm sling at the end is a bluff. As for the comment about the universal translator, it's just using the same implant as the communicator.
I also like to think that Picard doesn't think he's calling Liko's bluff, but is actually willing to die.
by Evan | 05/26/2008 at 1:54 pm

There were some things about this episode that seemed quite familiar after watching TOS The Man Trap. What do you think? Kethinov?
by Wes Thompson | 03/24/2011 at 5:50 pm

I've always liked this episode. However, along the lines of what DSOmo was noticing, Uxbridge seems to be some sort of idiot-savant superbeing. How the heck can his power manage to find and kill every Husnock, when he has such a difficult time even keeping track of the Enterprise?
by Christopher Alexander | 04/04/2011 at 2:17 pm

If it wasn't for the dramatic epic revelation at the very end, this episode would've been quite thoroughly lost… but the ending redeems it to a considerable degree.
The premise with the music box and infectious telepathic tune starts off rather neat and eerily mysterious, but ends up being a bit over the top and somewhat silly.
One thing I did like was how something like 1/2 way through the episode, you still really have no clue what the heck's going on. Everything's up in the air and it's not at all clear which way things are going to go. We know things are not as they seem, but what's actually up is quite a mystery.
The way this is actually resolved and revealed is both a bit disappointing but, at the very very end, at least partially redeeming. The long-winded exposition seems sort of lame, just a poor way to resolve all the building tension…
Thankfully we have this rather unexpected revelation: "All Husnock. Everywhere."
That brings the whole matter to a whole new level, a different order of magnitude. As Picard says, "We don't even have the legal definitions to fit this crime" (something to that effect). In short, ep. is a mixed bag, redeemed by taking its premise to a rather extreme conclusion.
by Ggen | 03/08/2012 at 10:22 pm

I completely agree with the fact that this seemed like a really stupid episode until the ending.
by Dominic | 10/29/2012 at 5:00 am