Star Trek: Visionary

Episode: "Visionary"

Series: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Season 3, Episode 17

Original Air Date: February 27, 1995

via Memory Alpha

Due to radiation poisoning, O'Brien is experiencing time jumps five hours into the future and back.  Meanwhile, a Romulan delegation has arrived.  They're none too happy about the lack of intelligence available regarding the Dominion.

Once again, I roll my eyes over time travel in Star Trek.  I don't even see the point this time.  Some on the creative staff thought it was too much like a technobabble heavy NextGen episode.  Actually, I don't have any trouble with the basic Romulans-up-to-no-good story itself.  In fact, I think the same tale could have been told more effectively without the time shifting garbage.  And the wrinkle at the end where one can't even be sure if the Miles still alive is the "right Miles" is unnecessary nonsense.

As ever, there are redeeming elements.  The Miles/Julian darts "rivalry" begins when the board is put up in the bar.  Quark closing his eyes and hurling all three darts simultaneously is definitely funny.  The bar brawl involving Klingons and Romulans is good value.  We get a brief continuation of the Odo Crush on Kira story.  There's decent character development, particularly for Miles, of course.  So, there's 5-10 minutes of quality material sprinkled through the mess.  

Acting Notes

via Wiki 24

Jack Shearer played the role of Ruwon, the leader of the Romulan delegation.  Shearer was born March 21, 1994.  "Visionary" was his second of six Star Trek appearances.  In First Contact, he played Admiral Hayes, a role he would reprise for two episodes of Voyager.

Other films include The Usual Suspects and Senseless.  Television appearances include Ally McBeal, Malcolm in the Middle and Boston Legal.

Squid Perks: The North Branch Cafe

The North Branch Cafe has been operating in Montpelier since 2013.  Central Vermont in general and Montpelier in particular have been through a lot in the past few years.  Obviously, COVID took a big bite out of local businesses just as it did for many others worldwide.  Then last summer, our state capital was hit with severe flooding that caused damage to everyone at ground level.  On top of that, Vermont's recent mild winters (climate change is real) have hurt the ski industry, robbing everyone of tourism dollars.  Plus, there are the ongoing workforce shortages currently plaguing many cafes and restaurants.  So North Branch is not in the strongest financial position these days.  If you're in a position to help, check out their gofundme page here.  

North Branch is seemingly never open when we're in town, though learning more about their struggles offers clues as to why.  As luck would have it, they were open this past rainy Saturday afternoon so my wife and I stopped in.  We ordered a pot of Assam and a piece of gluten-free Scottish shortbread to share.  You will likely notice in the photo above that we were served in to-go cups rather than a pot.  Understaffed, management elected to close an hour early at 4.  And yet, they continued to take orders right up to closing time.  I suppose it's understandable given their cash crunch but it didn't make for the most relaxing experience.  

On the positive side, the tea was perfectly nice as was the shortbread - a little dry for my taste but flavorful.  I'm all in favor of bringing North Branch more business the next time we visit Montpelier... assuming they're open.

Family Book Swap: Starter Villain

Title: Starter Villain

Author: John Scalzi

via Amazon

Charlie Fitzer is down on his luck.  Once happily married and gainfully employed as a business reporter, he is now divorced and working as a substitute teacher.  He moved back into his childhood home to take care of his ailing father, now deceased.  His financial situation is dire.  On the bright side, he has two cats who clearly adore him.

Charlie's world gets turned inside out when he learns an estranged billionaire uncle has died.  Charlie is his only living relative so much to Charlie's own shock, he is placed at the head of an international financial empire that extends way beyond owning parking lots.  He becomes, in effect, a supervillain based in a remote Caribbean volcano cave.

The story that unfolds is a combination of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Doctor No and The Cat from Outer Space.  The ties to James Bond are the most obvious with direct references to Goldfinger, Blofeld and SPECTRE.  But the Douglas Adams narrative elements are many: a lovable loser who learns his world is not at all what he thought it was; animals (including dolphins) who turn out to be a lot more intelligent than expected; Ford Prefect- and Zaphod Beeblebrox-like characters plus a generally irreverent sense of humor.  We're talking laugh out loud funny.  As for the cats, well, some surprises are worth preserving for anyone intending to read the book.

Scalzi is a well-established scifi novelist. He has won several Hugos in various categories, including Best Novel.  Starter Villain has been nominated for that award for 2024, the winner to be announced in Glasgow on August 11th.  The fantastical elements aside, the basic premises of the billionaire playground world are surprisingly believable.  The typically incompetent super rich play by their own rules with minimal accountability to anyone besides, only occasionally, each other.  Sounds about right.  

I'm not sure how I feel about the ending.  It's not all tied up quite so neatly as one expects which I suppose it's a good thing.  Fortunately, Charlie is certainly better off than when the book started and the most important characters are still devoted to him.  There's just enough of a crack in the door to allow for a sequel but perhaps better to leave the story as it is.

Overall, it's definitely a strong book.  I'll be keeping an eye out for Scalzi's other work and certainly will check in for the Hugo results in August.