‘THE LAST OUTPOST’ (TNG)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
I like this ‘Star Trek’ episode very much from the ‘TNG’ series. It’s one of my favourites from Season 1 and features the first appearance of the Ferengi, a new alien race for the Enterprise crew to tackle.
The Ferengi had been mentioned in ‘Encounter At Farpoint’, but they were never revealed or described what they look like. They were meant to be the next ‘Klingons’ and ‘Romulans’ for ‘TNG’.
Sadly they didn’t turn out the way as hoped, since the Ferengi were eventually seen as comic relief rather than a threat. But that did not stop the Ferengi coming back for more ‘Star Trek’ appearances.
In this episode, the Enterprise ship pursues a Ferengi starship. The Ferengi have stolen an energy converter from an unmanned Federation outpost. The Enterprise crew intends to stop the Ferengi.
But on the way, the Enterprise and the Ferengi starship come close into orbit around a planet called Delphi Ardu IV. Both the starships become stuck and trapped by the planet, suffering power drains.
Initially, Captain Picard and the Enterprise assume they’re being held captive by the Ferengi before they discover the truth. They hope to forge an alliance with the Ferengi in order to escape this trap.
Eventually, Riker with his away team of Data, Geordi, Worf and Tasha beam down to the planet. They’re soon attacked by the Ferengi. Can Riker and his away team find a way to free the Enterprise?
I liked that first meeting between Captain Picard and the Ferengi leader, Mike Gomez as DaiMon Tarr. The Ferengi appear to be so very ugly, especially with their giant heads; big ears and scary-looking faces.
The Ferengi are also greedy and obsessed with trade. This would become a recurring theme with the Ferengi, since it would develop later on when they appeared more for ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’.
The episode also features Armin Shimerman as Letek, the leader of the Ferengi away team on the alien planet. This is Armin Shimerman’s first contribution to the ‘Star Trek’ universe and as a Ferengi.
Later on, Armin Shimerman would play the regular Ferengi character, Quark, in ‘DS9’. He did get ‘his feet in the wet cement’ as a Ferengi in this story, but he would improve later on when he was Quark.
The other Ferengi in Letek’s away team are Jake Dengel as Mordoc and Tracey Walter as Kayron. The Ferengi in this episode appear very comic and over-the-top, which is tricky to take seriously at times.
The episode also features Darryl Henriques as Portal, who is guardian of the Tkon Empire on the alien planet. This is also Darryl Henriques’ first role in ‘Star Trek’ before he appeared in ‘Star Trek VI’.
I enjoyed some of the comedic moments featured in this episode, not with the Ferengi. The scene where Data is trying to get his fingers out of a children’s Chinese finger trap was very funny to watch.
There’s another aspect of the Ferengi that makes them unappealing. For them, females aren’t allowed to wear clothes. They become shocked when they see Lt. Tasha Yar wearing clothes herself.
I like how the episode develops with the revelations of the Tkon Empire. Riker with his away team of Data, Geordi, Tasha and Worf try to persuade Portal to listen when they tell him the empire is gone.
There is tension when the Ferengi attempt to make Portal mistrust Riker and the humans with lies and deceit. This leads to Portal putting Riker to the test, which isn’t as strong in the story as I hoped.
‘The Last Outpost’ is fairly good ‘Star Trek’ episode from the ‘TNG’ series. It’s not the best introduction to the Ferengi, but I do like how the ‘TNG’ crew interact with them for the first meeting.
‘The Last Outpost’ (TNG) rating – 7/10
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