Re:Engage TNG
Four friends return to a sci-fi series we all have a strong connection to - Star Trek: The Next Generation. It debuted in 1987 when we were all young, and now in 2020, we re-engage with the series, one episode at a time, and re-consider Star Trek from a new perspective as grown-up fans.
Listen on:
Episodes
Tuesday Jan 26, 2021
Tuesday Jan 26, 2021
Gotta go BACK in time! There's always something thrilling about taking the odd uniforms and social norms of the 24th century and putting them in modern genre settings like the hard-boiled detective stories we know from Raymond Chandler novels and L.A. Confidential. "The Big Goodbye" puts Captain Picard in the role of tropey Dixon Hill on the holodeck, and introduces another trope Star Trek will visit again and again: holodeck malfunctions. Greg hosts this discussion and loves taking the piss out of 80s genre television, Kate jumps into the palpable sexual tension between Crusher and Picard, Jimmie G loves Data's origins in Brazil, and Erik is available to writer's rooms to make up names of said 80s genre television.
Host: Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG)
Panel: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG), Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG), and Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next up is "Datalore" s1e12 hosted by Erik!
Tuesday Jan 19, 2021
Tuesday Jan 19, 2021
Lwaxana Troi is a treasure! This episode goes full-on rom-com with the impending matrimony of Counselor Troi to Teabag from Prison Break, er, Wyatt Miller. So many guest stars make this episode work as a comedy, especially Majel Barrett the First Lady of Star Trek. It's really funny to see Picard squirm under the ministrations of Lwaxana, and Data working off of Mr. Homn during the rehearsal dinner. BONG! Kate hosts this episode and notes the harp-core porn Riker enjoys, Jimmie G loves silver boxes puking gems, Greg misses Wesley & Worf but enjoyed the character work, and Erik recalls in excruciating detail the plot of Three Men and a Baby.
Host: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG)
Panel: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next up is "The Big Goodbye" s1e11 hosted by Greg!
Tuesday Jan 12, 2021
Tuesday Jan 12, 2021
We welcome Tessa Gratton, author of speculative fiction such as the recent Lady Hotspur (available now!), to the cultural bridge crew of Re:Engage to discuss the second appearance of Q in Star Trek canon. After we go into the lyrics of Billy Idol's "Mony, Mony" and Richard Dawson's terrible-ness in "The Running Man," there is talk of Gene Roddenbury's vile behavior around the creation of this episode before we delve into what worked and what didn't, story-wise. John Delancie's performance is solid, but Tessa points out what a world-building paradox it is to have an omniscient power like Q's offered to Riker so easily. Kate points out we do get to see Picard out-Shakespeare Q, which is fantastic, although Jimmie G disparages Delancie's phonetic learning of it. And Greg learns what a trochee is. (I HATE IAMBIC PENTAMETER!)
Host: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Panel: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter), and special guest Tessa Gratton (@tessagratton on Twitter or at tessagratton.com)!
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next up is "Haven" s1e10 hosted by Kate!
Tuesday Jan 05, 2021
Tuesday Jan 05, 2021
Captain Jean-Luc Picard had an illustrious career before he joined the Enterprise, and we get to see it in all its glory aboard his old ship, the USS Stargazer. "The Battle" also features the second appearance of the Ferengi in this voyage of the first season of TNG, and we all (mostly) agree it's much better than how they come off in "The Last Outpost." Riker has some good scenes with the Ferengi first mate, but the episode is definitely carried by Patrick Stewart's illustrious acting chops, Picard Maneuver notwithstanding. Greg hosts this episode; Erik does his best to lovingly derail the conversation and Jimmie gets a little more comfortable with Ferengi while Kate expounds on Picard's sexiness ... again.
Host: Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG)
Panel: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG), Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG), and Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter).
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next up is "Hide and Q" hosted by Erik with special guest Tessa Gratton (@tessagratton on Twitter) joining the discussion!
Tuesday Dec 22, 2020
Tuesday Dec 22, 2020
It's come-uppance time for Wesley! Your cultural bridge crew returns to dissect the Edos and their twisted idea of justice. Hint: It doesn't involve tight jeans, but does include revealing white under-garments. Riker is far too eager to enjoy this planet, but it all goes awry when Mr. Crusher falls into a forbidden flower zone and Picard straight-up ignores the Prime Directive just as it's introduced. Kate Jaeger hosts this discussion, while Jimmie G. reminisces about Weird Al Yankovic shoveling snow, Erik talk about prat falls and Greg mumbles about chest hair.
Host: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG)
Panel: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter).
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Re:Engage is taking a short break but we'll be back with a new episode in 2021, "The Battle" hosted by Greg!
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Running a spaceship is a simple job, really. Sometimes you just have to pick up some delegates and transport them to a secure location. Easy peasy, right? Except it gets way more complicated when the delegates are from two feuding species, the ship accidentally picks up a weird energy being, and the doctor/captain gets possessed by said being turning the ship off of its course. Then when the entire meat body of Captain Picard is replaced from a backup data set, it all seems to end in good fun with a ... murder? Erik hosts this discussion on Star Trek: The Next Generation's strangely satisfying episode. At least, Kate & Greg found it satisfying. Jimmie did not.
Host: Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Panel: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter).
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next episode ... "Justice" hosted by Kate!
Tuesday Dec 08, 2020
Tuesday Dec 08, 2020
Wesley Crusher rules the world, er, all space & time! Jimmie G leads the discussion of one of the best hard sci-fi episodes of the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation with Kate, Greg and Erik chiming in with nothing but love for the Traveler. Great character work from guest actors and the visualization of a location far beyond human understanding at the heart of the galaxy makes this episode an early standout. The plot was actually adapted from a novel set in the original series, but it works really well to establish Wesley's place on the bridge and in the hearts and minds of the audience. At least until the next episode...
Host: Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter),
Panel: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next episode ... "Lonely Among Us" hosted by Erik!
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
The arrival of the Ferengi in The Last Outpost is quite a thing. Kate Jaeger hosts the discussion with Jimmie G, Erik, and Greg Tito going into this whizbanger of an episode. The introduction of this new species was touted as being as important as the Romulans or the Klingons in Star Trek lore but the Ferengi never mustered that level of antagonism, despite their distasteful behavior in this episode. Unbridled capitalism was a big theme in the late 80s America with Black Monday occurring the day this episode first aired in 1987, yet sadly that commentary never quite coalesces in the Ferengi when they are portrayed as "frogs with whips," as Erik describes. This Re:Engage epsiode features the return of Kid Trek with Edna & Fiona discussing what they thought of the Ferengi!
Host: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG)
Panel: Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next episode ... "Where No One Has Gone Before" hosted by Jimmie G!
Wednesday Nov 25, 2020
Wednesday Nov 25, 2020
It doesn't take long for the Enterprise to reach it's first clunker. Host Greg Tito welcomes Cicero Holmes as the first guest on Re:Engage to join Jimmie G, Kate, and Erik in discussing the issues behind "Code of Honor." The casting of an all Black ensemble from the planet Ligon II was a strong choice in 1987, but the production of this episode didn't land for us looking back on it with 2020 hindsight. Re:Engage would like to apologize to the spiked gauntlet industry for how much we didn't like the climactic fight scene with Tasha Yar and Yareena from Ligon II.
Host: Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG)
Special Guest: Cicero Holmes (@stubbystan on Twitter)!
Panel: Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter), Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG),, and Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next episode ... s1e4 The Last Outpost with Kate hosting and the return of Kid Trek discussing the Ferengi introduction.
Tuesday Nov 17, 2020
Tuesday Nov 17, 2020
Kate Jaeger hosts this one as Greg Tito, Jimmie G, and Erik Gratton go deep on the second episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation to see if it's still "fully functional." We cover the sexism behind the scenes that led to the writer removing her name from the credits, the clowning from Data and Picard, and what it meant to abandon the character norms before they were even established.
Host: Kate Jaeger (@jaegerlicious on Twitter and IG)
Panel: Jimmie G (@thejimmieg on IG & Twitter), Greg Tito (@gregtito on Twitter, @greg_tito on IG), and Erik Gratton (@erikfallsdown on Twitter & IG)
Audio Editor: Krista Curry (@kristafromglee on Twitter, krista.curry on IG)
Logo artwork: @mojojojo_97 on Twitter, mojo97.com
Theme music: Ryan Marth
Next episode ... s1e3 Code of Honor hosted by Greg with the first guest of Re:Engage, Cicero Holmes (@stubbystan on Twitter)!
Re:Engage
Four friends return to a sci-fi series we all have a strong connection to - Star Trek: The Next Generation. It debuted in 1987 when we were all young, and now we re-engage with the series, one episode at a time, and re-consider Star Trek from a new perspective as grown-up fans.