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Where No One Has Gone Before

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"Where No One Has Gone Before"

"Where No One Has Gone Before" is the sixth episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, originally aired on October 16, 1987 in broadcast syndication in the United States. A high definition remastered version of the episode also received a limited theatrical release for one day alongside the episode "Datalore" to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the series on July 23, 2012. The story was originally developed under the title of "Where None Have Gone Before" and was based on Diane Duane's book The Wounded Sky. Together with Michael Reaves, they submitted a script after first pitching the idea to David Gerrold and Gene Roddenberry. The script was subsequently rewritten by Maurice Hurley whose first effort was poorly received, but the subsequently re-written version was filmed. The episode was the first on the show to be directed by Rob Bowman, who would go on to direct a further twelve episodes.

Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the crew of the Starfleet starship Enterprise-D. In this episode, the Enterprise is visited by Mr. Kosinski (Stanley Kamel) and an alien called the Traveler (Eric Menyuk). The Traveler's effects on the ship sends it to distant parts of the Universe, and he requires the help of Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) to bring the ship back home.

Eric Menyuk made the first of three appearances as the Traveler in this episode. He had previously been considered for the part of Data. Biff Yeager made his first appearance as the longest running Chief Engineer of the first season. Some of the effects in this episode were created in Robert Legato's basement using water reflections and Christmas tree lights, while a Klingon Targ was created using a tame wild boar in a costume.

Plot

The Enterprise meets with the USS Fearless to bring aboard Mr. Kosinski, a Starfleet propulsion expert who plans to run tests on the warp engines to improve their efficiency. Along with Kosinski is his assistant, an alien being from Tau Alpha C whose name is referred to as the "Traveler". As Kosinski and his assistant explain the tests to the engineering crew, Wesley Crusher, also invited to watch the tests, quickly grasps what the tests are to accomplish, and the alien shows admiration for Wesley's problem-solving abilities. The test is started but quickly goes awry when the Enterprise gains an incredible boost of speed surpassing the known capabilities of warp engines. Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) orders a halt, and once stopped, the crew finds themselves on the far side of the M33 Galaxy, more than 2.7 million light years from the Milky Way. Though Kosinski is initially pleased with the results he believed to be from mistaken parameters, he is reprimanded by Picard, and suggests to simply redo the process to return home. Wesley warns Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) that during the warp test, the alien appeared to phase out of reality; when Kosinski starts the second test, both Wesley and Riker observe the alien phasing out, appearing even more tired. The Enterprise again bursts into incredible speeds, and when it stops, the crew cannot determine their position. Picard demands that Kosinski get the crew home.

While Kosinski, his assistant, and the engineering crew work on how to reverse the process, the rest of the crew start to experience lifelike visions of their past, an effect of the strange space around them. After experiencing his own vision of his mother, Picard surmises they have arrived at the theoretical Outer Rim, one of the oldest parts of the universe, and issues a Red Alert to wake the crew from their visions. Picard learns from Riker that Kosinski had nothing to do with the warp jumps, but instead it was the result of his alien assistant who has taken ill and moved to Sickbay. Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) cannot determine the alien's biology and is unable to treat him. When Picard arrives, the alien explains he is able to channel pure thought into reality. He brought humans to the Outer Rim, which bestows similar effects on anyone within it, to see if they were ready to experience that. The Traveler, speaking privately to Picard, reveals that he travels looking for prodigies in science such as Wesley, and that Picard should nurture him. Returning to engineering, the Traveler asks Wesley to help assist him in returning the Enterprise to known space. As they concentrate and start returning the ship to home, the Traveler completely phases out and disappears. The Enterprise suddenly stops, and the crew is relieved to find themselves at the same location before their first warp jump in Federation space. After the incident, Picard promotes Wesley to an acting ensign on the Enterprise for his performance.

Production

Writing

The original story for "Where No One Has Gone Before" was developed prior to the start of the series, with Michael Reaves and Diane Duane invited to pitch ideas for TNG stories.[2] Duane wasn't a member of the Writers Guild of America which was a requirement to write for the show at the time, and so doubted that she would be invited to write a script.[3] Duane and Reaves worked together on a number of ideas and after a week, Reaves informed Duane that he had developed an idea based on her The Original Series novel The Wounded Sky and asked her to pitch jointly with him.[3] She worked on the story idea with Reaves, and the pair developed the story slightly from Reaves original idea.[3] One version of the script involved the Enterprise causing the birth of a new universe, and a play on the Genesis creation narrative.[4]

The duo pitched the story to story editor David Gerrold, and afterwards brought them in to pitch to the creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry. Gene was favourable of the story idea and put forward some changes which Reaves and Duane incorporated into a second draft.[3] At this point the episode was entitled "Where None Have Gone Before" and included some significant differences from the final version.[5] The differences included some to the character of Kosinski, with him being a roommate of Picard at Starfleet Academy, and during that he had a son. The manner of the ship's travel was also different, the Traveller didn't appear but instead a "warpdrive booster" was used which contained a miniature black hole. In this version of the story, the situation was resolved by a second miniature Enterprise being imagined in full detail and pushed into the black hole on the full-sized ship. The interactions of the two black holes (there was a even smaller black hole on the miniature Enterprise) returns the full-sized ship near to the location it left when it began to travel.[5] After they turned in the first version of the script based on that premise, nothing was heard back from the TNG staff for a couple of weeks.[3]

The script had been handed to Maurice Hurley to re-write.[3][4] He took six weeks to conduct the re-write, with his initial version being received very poorly by TNG executives. Hurley later said "they absolutely hated it, I think they wanted to fire me, and they would have if I didn't have a guaranteed contract."[1] He conducted a further re-write and which resulted in the filmed version of the script. Hurley was pleased with the result, saying that "everything about that episode worked".[1] The final version was significantly different from the Reaves and Duane original script, with Duane later saying that only two scenes remained, which were where Picard sees his mother and where Picard nearly falls out of the turbolift into open space.[3] Reaves later said that the episode "came together much better on the screen than we thought it would when we read the script. We were lucky, because it was out of our hands."[1]

Direction and casting

Director Rob Bowman (photographed in 2012) made his Star Trek debut with "Where No One Has Gone Before".

Donald Petrie was originally lined up to direct the episode, but dropped out to direct the film Mystic Pizza. Executive producer Robert Justman brought in Rob Bowman to direct his first Star Trek episode. Justman later said that this was one of his proudest achievements while working on The Next Generation.[4] Bowman worked on storyboards and set blocking for twenty days prior to shooting the episode.[4] Bowman was nervous about working on the show initially, and felt that he had to prove himself because of his relatively young age as a director.[1] He said that from the second day of filming onwards it got easier and credited the crew with making him feel welcome.[6] Bowman went on to direct a further twelve episodes of The Next Generation.[7]

Eric Menyuk was cast as the Traveller. The actor had previously been considered for the main cast role of Data several weeks earlier,[4] and was second choice in the role which went to Brent Spiner instead.[8] He had been a fan of Star Trek since he was six,[4] and would later return in the role twice more in the episodes "Remember Me" and "Journey's End".[9] Biff Yeager made his Next Generation debut in "Where No One Has Gone Before" as Chief Engineer Argyle, and would go on to be the most frequently appearing of several Chief Engineers to appear during the first season by appearing twice.[9][10] Stuntman "Dangerous" Dennis Madalone also made his show debut as the ensign who is threatened by his own imagined fire.[11] From season three onwards he become the stunt coordinator for The Next Generation and continued to portray a number of different crew members.[9] Picard's mother would later gain a first name in the episode "Chain of Command"; she was portrayed in "Where No One Has Gone Before" by Herta Ware who had previously appeared in the 1985 science fiction film Cocoon.[9]

Visual effects and make-up

Some of the effects were created at the home of Robert Legato. The script was non-specific about what was to be seen at the end of the universe, and so Legato played with the effects of water reflections onto his basement wall. Shooting through BoPET film, he created multiple images which were then layered over one another for the final effect which Legato described as "peculiar and bizarre".[9] Christmas tree lights were suspended and moved in order to create the blinking effect seen on screen.[9]

The Klingon Targ was created by dressing a tame wild boar called Emmy Lou in an outfit created by costume designer William Ware Theiss. Executive producer Robert Justman later recalled, "that pig smell horrid. A sweet-sour, extremely pungent odor. I showered and showered, and it took me a week to get rid of it!"[9] In order to appear as the Traveller, Eric Menyuk wore a prosthetic piece created by Michael Westmore on his forehead which ran into his hairline. He also wore a pair of fake three-fingered hands,[8] which were later sold in the "It's A Wrap! sale and auction" which followed the end of Star Trek: Enterprise.[12] The Traveller costume was also sold at the same auction.[13]

Music

"Where No One Has Gone Before" was the second episode to be scored by Ron Jones.[14] Some of the themes included in the soundtrack were rearrangements of Jerry Goldsmith's score from Star Trek: The Motion Picture. In the piece "Talk with Mom" which was played during Picard's meeting with his mother, Jones was trying to create the same effect as the end of the 1944 composition Appalachian Spring. Alexander Courage's themes from The Original Series are included in a seven note ostinato in the pieces "Log", "Visitors" and "Fly-By".[14]

The score was recorded with a forty piece orchestra. Jones formatted the orchestra to generate a bigger sound than normally heard on television soundtracks in an effort to make it sounds more like Goldsmith's The Motion Picture score. Keyboards were used to make the cellos sound more prominent, and other changes included an increase in the mid-range of the string section.[14] The soundtrack to "Where No One Has Gone Before" was subsequently released as part of The Ron Jones Project box set of Star Trek: The Next Generation scores in a limited run of 5000 copies, released in 2010 by Film Score Monthly.[14]

Themes

In Richard Hanley's book, The Metaphysics of Star Trek, the appearance of the Traveller in "Where no One has Gone Before" was described as a continuation of the appearance of intellectually advanced aliens in Star Trek. This had originally begun in The Original Series with aliens such as Apollo in "Who Mourns for Adonais?" and Gary Mitchell in "Where No Man Has Gone Before".[15] Metaphysics are directly referenced in this episode by Wesley Crusher, who poses the question as to whether thought is the basis of existence.[16]

Reception

With the full weight of its network behind it, TNG got away with a lot of things that would have killed other shows stone-dead. This episode is a prime example of that. The crew lack urgency in their situation, the ideas it presents are wholly unrelatable, and the story has virtually nothing resembling an emotional core. And yet, it works, if only because it tickles the part of you that wonders exactly what might be out there. Early TNG was many things, but "Where No One Has Gone Before" shows that it wasn't bland.

James Hunt, Den of Geek[17]

Several reviewers re-watched the episode after the end of the series. Cast member Wil Wheaton later described the episode as "the first time The Next Generation really started to come together".[11] But that the episode was still flawed in both dialogue and in that Picard kept changing his tone throughout the episode, saying "I'm not sure if that was a deliberate choice, so he would appear as a conflicted man, or if it was Patrick Stewart's natural warmth and kindness coming through the gruff demeanour Picard was written to have."[11] Overall when reviewing the show in 2006 for AOL TV, he gave it a score of B+.[11] Keith DeCandido reviewed the episode for Tor.com, and praised the guest actors saying that Stanley Kamel was "magnificent" and "ooze[d] arrogance, overconfidence, and bull in equal measure",[10] while Herta Ware brought "tremendous gravitas" to her role.[10] He went on to describe the episode as the best of the first season with some strong performances from the main cast. He gave an overall score of eight out of ten.[10]

Zack Handlen reviewed the episode for The A.V. Club, and said that while it was an improvement on earlier episodes, but he had some reservations about the use of Wesley Crusher. He called the "thoughts made flesh concept" a "cliche" but was "gratified to see the series actually trying for something a little beyond their reach, this early in the game".[18] As for Wesley, he thought that it was imposing a "Chosen One narrative" that brought "an unlikable character even further to the forefront of the action simply because some writer didn't get enough pats on the head growing up."[18] He gave the the episode a grade of B-.[18] Jamahl Epsicokhan at his website "Jammer's Reviews" said that it was the first time in the series that space itself generated "awe and wonder",[19] but thought that the "fresh and intriguing" nature of the episode faded as it went along.[19] He also directed further criticism at Wesley Crusher, describing him as a "cloying geek" and that "you just want to strangle him".[19] He gave the episode a score of 2.5/4.[19]

Home media and theatrical release

The first home media release of "The Naked Now" was on VHS cassette, appearing on April 1, 1992 in the United States and Canada.[20] The episode was later included on the Star Trek: The Next Generation season one DVD box set, released in March 2002.[21]

The most recent release was as part of the season one Blu-ray set on July 24, 2012.[22] In order to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation and promote the release of the first season on Blu-ray, the episodes "Where No One Has Gone Before" and "Datalore" received a theatrical release in the United States on July 23, 2012,[23] in nearly 500 cinemas. "Where No One Has Gone Before" was chosen by Star Trek experts Mike and Denise Okuda because of the unusual space special effects.[24]

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e Gross; Altman (1993): p. 158
  2. ^ Reaves, Michael. "Preface to "Where None Have Gone Before"". Michael Reaves' Website. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Duane, Diane (October 28, 2006). "Star Trek: The Next Generation: Where No One Has Gone Before". DianeDuane.com. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Nemecek (2003): p. 36
  5. ^ a b Duane, Diane. ""Where None Have Gone Before"". DianeDuane.com. Retrieved February 14, 2013. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Gross; Altman (1993): p. 159
  7. ^ "Looking Back At TNG With Director Rob Bowman, Part 1". Star Trek.com. December 3, 2012. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  8. ^ a b Westmore, Nazzaro (1993): p. 57
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Nemecek (2003): p. 37
  10. ^ a b c d DeCandido, Keith (May 23, 2011). "Star Trek: The Next Generation Rewatch: "Where No One Has Gone Before"". Tor.com. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  11. ^ a b c d Wheaton, Wil (October 27, 2006). "Star Trek The Next Generation: Where No One Has Gone Before". AOL TV. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  12. ^ "Star Trek: TNG "The Travellers Hands" from "Where No One Has Gone Before"". Star Trek Prop Collector.com. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  13. ^ "Star Trek: TNG "The Traveller Costume" from "Where No One Has Gone Before"". Star Trek Prop Collector.com. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  14. ^ a b c d Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Ron Jones Project (Media notes). Film Score Monthly. 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2013. {{cite AV media notes}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |albumlink= and |notestitle= (help); Unknown parameter |artist= ignored (|others= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ Hanley (1998): p. 37
  16. ^ Hanley (1998): p. xvii
  17. ^ Hunt, James (October 12, 2012). "Revisiting Star Trek TNG: Where No-One Has Gone Before". Den of Geek. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  18. ^ a b c Handlen, Zack (April 16, 2010). ""Where No One Has Gone Before"/"Lonely Among Us"/"Justice"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  19. ^ a b c d Epsicokhan, Jamahl. "Star Trek: The Next Generation: "Where No One Has Gone Before"". Jammer's Reviews. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  20. ^ "Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode 6 (VHS)". Tower Video. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  21. ^ Periguard, Mark A (March 24, 2002). "'Life as a House' rests on shaky foundation". The Boston Herald. Retrieved October 13, 2012. (subscription required)
  22. ^ Shaffer, RL (April 30, 2012). "Star Trek: The Next Generation Beams to Blu-ray". IGN. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  23. ^ "'Star Trek: TNG': Jonathan Frakes light years past 'Farpoint'". LA Times. June 19, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  24. ^ "Star Trek: The Next Generation 25th Anniversary Event to Head to Cinemas". Entertainment Close-up. June 11, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2013. (subscription required)

Bibliography

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