Star Trek: Armageddon Game

Episode: "Armageddon Game"

Series: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Season 2, Episode 13

Original Air Date: January 30, 1994

via Memory Alpha

Bashir and O'Brien help two long-warring races dispose of their biological weapons.  Unfortunately, they soon become assassination targets.  The two escape but are stranded.  Meanwhile, Miles has been infected by one of the weapons.

This week's episode is also about developing the bromance.  Originally, it was supposed to be a Dax-Bashir story but fortunately, someone thought better of it.  The Miles-Julian arc provides a lot more room to grow.  I like the fact that, at least in the beginning, the relationship is built largely upon their annoyance with each other - or at least Miles's clear resentment/irritation/whatever with Julian.  After all, real world friendships can evolve the same way.  You see all of the faults but given enough time together, you start to care about each other.  Over time, it becomes a highly relatable bond.

"Armageddon Game" was nominated for an Emmy for the hairstyles.

via Memory Alpha

Acting Notes

via Disney Wiki

Darleen Carr played the role E'Tyshra, a T'Lani ambassador who initially celebrated our Starfleet friends but eventually became one of the hunting party.  Carr was born Darlene Farnon on December 12, 1950 in Chicago.  She was born into a family of musicians, her father an orchestra leader, her mother a singer.  

Before even appearing on screen, she had a voice career in film.  She dubbed voice parts in both The Sound of Music (including the higher parts for her older sister, Charmian who played Liesl) and The Jungle Book.  On screen, she appeared in Monkeys, Go Home!, The Impossible Years and Death of a Gunfighter.  Television work came a little earlier, beginning with The John Forsythe Show - later The Smith Family and Miss Winslow & Son.  She was nominated for a Golden Globe for her role in the miniseries Once an Eagle.

Squid Mixes: The Williamsburg

Now that we have a bottle of Punt e Mes (initially acquired for this drink), many new cocktails are accessible.  Gary Regan, author of The Joy of Mixology, seems particularly fond of it.  He got the recipe for The Williamsburg from Brooklyn-based bartender Clif Travers.  The Williamsburg is a Manhattan variant combining bourbon, Punt e Mes, dry vermouth and yellow Chartreuse.  Funky mixing math: with Punt e Mes and dry vermouth in equal parts, you still have a 2:1 ratio with vermouths but now it's 2:1 in favor of dry.  Woah.

The combination isn't too different from a Greenpoint.  You switch out the rye for bourbon, impose a different vermouth regime and skip the bitters.  Frequent visitors may recall my wife wasn't so impressed by the Greenpoint but she was willing to try The Williamsburg anyway.

Chartreuse is always the wild card in a drink.  There are so many interesting flavors in the liqueur that you can never be sure what's going to pop out when it plays with others.  This time, I got an apple Jolly Rancher vibe along with something else I couldn't quite label.  My wife acknowledged the hard candy taste but still didn't care for The Williamsburg.  She was willing to finish it - she hadn't been with the Greenpoint - but wouldn't ask for it again.  Still too cough syrupy, she says.  

Star Trek: Homeward

Episode: "Homeward"

Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation

Season 7, Episode 13

Original Air Date: January 17, 1994

via Memory Alpha

The Enterprise responds to a distress call from Worf's brother, Nikolai Rozhenko.  Much to the distress of our heroes, Nikolai has been helping villagers in a pre-warp civilization in violation of the Prime Directive.  In fact, as we eventually learn, he's fallen in love with one of Boraalans and she is pregnant.  Nikolai has a clever plan for rescuing the villagers from their dying planet and, reluctantly, Picard agrees to help.

"Homeward" gets mixed reviews from the critics.  Many don't like Picard taking on the enforcer role in a situation where we, the viewers, are set up to see him as in the wrong.  I appreciate Trek stories like this, though admittedly the original series did them better.  I enjoy a good moral dilemma and the Prime Directive always delivers.  Quite often, leaders in the real world - even the ones we see as the good guys - are put in these situations and the right choice is not always obvious.

Historical context is relevant.  The Prime Directive was first introduced in 1967, at the time an obvious response to the Vietnam War.  Gene Roddenberry was not a fan of the US's involvement in Southeast Asia.  Much of the Trek philosophy was built around his objection so a futuristic, Starfleet policy of non-interference, especially with developing cultures, made a lot of sense.  

Global politics were different in 1994.  War in the Balkans dominated the headlines and attitudes towards American involvement ran the gamut.  Was there any way to enter the conflict without making it worse?  Wouldn't we simply become another warring faction of many?  Who were the good guys anyway?

But there was genocide.  Ethnic cleansing was happening in Bosnia and everybody knew it.  By not getting involved, were the United States and its allies complicit in the murders and the rapes?  The questions were not easily answered.  There were UN sanctions and trade embargoes.  Peace was negotiated.  The fighting continued.  If you weren't alive at the time, trust me.  In February 1994, all was an unholy mess and the path out of it was far from obvious.

Now consider Picard's position.  Obviously, there is sympathy for the Boraalans.  (Is the alliteration between Bosnians and Boraalans a coincidence?  I doubt it.)  But the Prime Directive is clear and as ugly as the consequences of following it can be, the question remains of whether breaking it is truly in the best interest of all.

Imagine you're the captain.  You've signed on with the firm largely because you share its moral grounding.  You know these tough calls are part of the job.  Is it ever okay to violate the holiest of principles even if it means extinction for an intelligent species?  What would you do?

The Worf/Nickolai story is satisfying.  The brotherly tension is thick.  Worf resents Nickolai's disregard for his responsibilities, in this and all situations.  Nickolai clearly loves Worf and also chafes at his more conventional attitudes.  Fortunately, there's resolution and understanding by the end.

Acting Notes

via Wikipedia

Paul Sorvino (Nickolai) was born April 13, 1939 in New York City.  He started as a copywriter for an advertising agency.  While attending the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, initially for voice lessons, he decided to go into acting.  He made his Broadway debut in 1964 with Bajour.  In 1972, he was nominated for a Tony for his performance in That Championship Season.  

In 1990, Sorvino played the unforgettable mob boss Paulie Cicero in Goodfellas, widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made - certainly on a short list for the past 50 years.  The movie cemented his Hollywood legacy, yet he regretted that most of the public saw him as a thug.  He was a strong choice for father figures in general: Juliet's father in Romeo + Juliet, David's father in Moonlighting and Murray's father in The Goldbergs.  He was also proud of playing Kissinger in Nixon and a deaf lawyer in Dummy.  He was also an accomplished sculptor.

Sorvino was married three times and had three children from his first marriage, including two actors: Michael and the Oscar-winning Mira.  He passed away in 2022 from natural causes.

Squid Eats: Bleu Marine

My wife and I recently spent several days in Quebec City, partly to celebrate our wedding anniversary and partly to facilitate the emotional transition to summer.  While we visit Montreal as often as we can, this was only our second trip to the provincial capital.  The last time was ten years ago.  

via Wikipedia

Quebec is one of the oldest European settlements in North America, dating back to 1608.  It's a prettier city than Montreal by a long shot and more touristy, too.  It's also more French.  The average Montrealer switches effortlessly between at least two languages.  Quebec is different.  While most in the service industry speak English a far sight better than either of us speaks French, the accent is strong and there's a lot more searching for words.  Geography matters.  Quebec is further from Ontario and further from the US border than Montreal.  Sure, New Brunswick isn't far away but the northwestern part of NB is also largely French-speaking.  Quebec has historically, and probably not coincidentally, held a lot firmer to its own Francophone identity than Montreal has.

We stayed in Old Quebec amid all of the prime-target sightseeing spots.  Naturally, there are plenty of lovely restaurants in the area.  Our first night, we went to Bleu Marine for dinner.  The restaurant's concept is unusual.  You choose between four or six courses.  Chef Claudine Déry picks the dishes, each with a wine pairing (optional).  You explain any dietary restrictions and the night is on.  The pace is slow, the warm and knowledgeable wait staff attending only as needed to explain the dishes (and wines).  No hovering.  As you relax into the evening, the conversation flows.

For my wife and I, it all began over food.  Before we started dating, we went out to dinner with a group of mutual friends at Soho Steak, a long-gone French bistro in Lower Manhattan.  She and I had only known each other about a week.  She ordered steak tartare as an appetizer, something I'd never even heard of before.  I turned up my nose at it - raw beef mixed up with raw egg? - but asked to try.  She was impressed that not only was I willing to try it but also admit that I liked it.

For me, that single bite was about so much more.

The steak tartare was not merely good.  It was a revelation.  Flavor exploded, then melted gently on the tongue.  Mouth feel.  I didn't know mouth feel was a thing until that steak tartare.  I didn't know food could be like that.  Who was this woman who knew such secrets?  It was a profoundly exciting moment in my life.  And deeply sexy.

Before meeting her, I can't say I knew much about food.  My parents appreciate a good meal and certainly taught us to do the same.  I had just spent two years in Japan, a culture that takes eating quite seriously indeed.  But I didn't actually know anything about what I was experiencing.  

My wife started cooking for her family when she was 14.  What began as a chore became artistic expression.  She read about food.  (All those books I post about?  She read them all first.)  She worked for food magazines and listened when she was taken out for meals.  She drew from her Lebanese heritage.  Combine the accumulated knowledge with her inherently sophisticated palate and her genius for project management and you get quite a talented cook.  She even considered a career in the the profession.  Luckily for me, she didn't pursue it.  We probably never would have met.

A dinner like the one served at Bleu Marine would not have happened in my life before meeting her.  Fine dining wasn't part of my experience and not only because of the price.  (Full disclosure: Bleu Marine ain't cheap.)  Previously, food, however good, was part of the back drop to the event.  With my wife, the meal is the event.

Our dinner (four courses):

Gazpacho

Scallops dusted with bacon

Sweetbread - a first for me

Deconstructed strawberry shortcake

The scallops were our favorite, though the gazpacho was nearly as dazzling for me.  Sweetbread - lamb pancreas - was not as weird as I was expecting.  It's certainly better than haggis!

Bleu Marine is a definite winner.  I'd go again, provided it's for a special occasion and/or someone else is paying.

On the Coffee Table: Ruth Reichl

Title: Comfort Me with Apples: More Adventures at the Table

Author: Ruth Reichl

via Amazon

Comfort Me with Apples, memoir of food writer extraordinaire Ruth Reichl, starts in 1978 when she first left professional restaurant service to become a critic.  It ends about five (?) years later when she learned she was pregnant with her son.  Along the way, she got to be friends with nearly everyone in the American food world and survived several personal hardships to reach a point of apparent satisfaction.

Reichl is exceptionally generous in sharing the intimate, emotional details of her journey.  She leads us through affairs, divorce, remarriage and, most difficult of all, the quest to have a child.  Her florid language around the dining experience is enchanting but she never loses sight of the human context - for the preparers, the diners or herself.  I appreciate that.

I judge all food writers against M.F.K. Fisher and Calvin Trillin.  In the dinner party of my dreams, I would angle to sit between the two of them, eager to soak up their charm, wit and unwavering love for food.  I would not put Reichl in their category.  Her name-dropping, while impressive, was tiresome.  I also found her a bit self-centered, though perhaps that's inherent in the memoir form.  On the other hand, neither Fisher nor Trillin was ever a professional cook so Reichl provides a level of expertise the other two don't.  And to be fair, she paints colorful portraits of her famous friends.  The biggest name drop of all is actor Danny Kaye, apparently an expert amateur cook.  While predictably arrogant, he is also one of the warmest and most disarming characters in Reichl's story.  The author includes photos and one is of Kaye and herself at her wedding.  You can see genuine tenderness in his face as he speaks to her.  It's awfully sweet.

Comfort Me with Apples is an enjoyable, engaging read.  I doubt I'd seek out Reichl's work again but I wouldn't turn it away either.  I'm certainly pleased for her that she found true love and became a mother.

Star Trek: The Pegasus

Episode: "The Pegasus"

Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation

Season 7, Episode 12

Original Air Date: January 10, 1994

via Memory Alpha

A Starfleet Intelligence operative comes aboard the Enterprise and he's an old friend of Commander Riker's.  Erik Pressman was Will's first commanding officer.  Their old ship, the USS Pegasus, was thought lost but it would seem the Romulans have found it and Pressman wants to get to it before they do.  The missing ship holds a secret and only Riker and Pressman know about it.

"The Pegasus" is a good Riker story, one of the best so far .  From the beginning, we've known that Captain Picard values Will for his willingness to stand up to his superiors.  "The Pegasus" provides a backstory on how he found that gumption.  Riker tests Picard's trust as never before in this story, ultimately revealing a great deal about their loyalty to each other  - and to the truth.

"The Pegasus" is, in fact, the strongest episode so far in what has been a relatively weak season.  

Acting Notes

via Lostpedia

Terry O'Quinn (Pressman) was born Terrance Quinn, July 15, 1952 in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.  He was one of eleven children.  He attended Central Michigan University and the University of Iowa.  During his time at CMU, he wrote and directed a musical called Orchestrina.  Jeff Bridges played the lead in the production.

O'Quinn's best-known film role is the titular character in the Stepfather movies.  Other big screen credits include Tombstone, Young Guns and The Rocketeer.  He won an Emmy for the role of John Locke on the mega-hit TV series, Lost.  Other television gigs include The West Wing, Millenium and Mysteries of the Missing.  

Squid Eats: McGillicuddy's on the Green

via Hello Burlington

McGillicuddy's on the Green is an Irish pub in Colchester, Vermont.  I go so often - easily 3-4 times a year - that I'm surprised I've never blogged about it before.  I rarely eat a proper meal there, though they have a full menu.  I also don't know if I've ever gone with either my wife or child.  It's a popular spot for gatherings after work and also a reasonable middle ground with friends.  The service is friendly and the food - I typically order from the appetizer, pub grub menu - dependable, if unspectacular.

My favorite thing about McGillicuddy's (McG's) is the beer list.  It's where I discovered my all-time favorite beer: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale.  Sadly, they don't carry it any more - haven't for many years.  Mind you, that doesn't stop me from looking for it every time I go.  Even so, McG's always has plenty of interesting choices, from Vermont and beyond.  

The mozzarella sticks have been my app of choice, recently, though I also enjoy their fried pickles and chicken wings.  For the fried pickles, they've switched from slices/chips to spears so it's a bit like eating a pickle french fry.  I like their nachos, too, though a single order is way too much for one person.