Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2024/04/30/star-treks-data-loves-visiting-prisoners.html
…
6 Likes
9 Likes
I just realized that Gates McFadden was originally intended to be a regular major character on the 1986/1987 TV show The Wizard where Rappaport played the title character.
Maybe there’s a parallel universe where The Wizard got seven seasons and some other actor was cast as Dr. Crusher.
4 Likes
That’s nothing compared to the fact that Data tried to kill Fajo at the end of that episode in a case of attempted premeditated murder, using a very slow and painful Varon-T disruptor, no less.
5 Likes
21 Likes
I imagine Trump’s prison quarters could be a potential revenue-generating kind of Schadenfreude Disneyland for tourists from everywhere so I can see the appeal. Too soon? 
1 Like
Absolutely not. Anyone who knew Rappaport from Time Bandits, Secret Policeman’s Ball etc would recognise the intercut clip was him. RIP - a great acting talent.
In fact I just checked and the other clip is titled " Original Fajo Brig Scene ST TNG . I added sound effects and lowered voice pitch of David Rappaport" so 
In fact who could forget the legendary Ftumch from The Young Ones:
4 Likes
Holy cow! I’d nearly completely forgotten about that one.
My dim memories would have put an actual child in the starring role rather than someone with dwarfism. A child who solves problems with a variety of cool, unaffordable toys.
Of course it’s practically ungooglable. Is there a decent Youtube video essay on the subject?
2 Likes
our favorite android Starfleet officer’s vaguely sadistic taste for visiting prisoners
You know, one of the things Christianity got right was attributing to Jesus the duties of being a good Christian, in the amusingly named Parable of the 10 Virgins (Matthew 25):
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
To call this act sadistic is a bit off to me. While I’ve never just gone to prison to talk to a random convict, I have gone to visit a couple of friends and cow-orkers who ended up in the clink. While a bit masochistic (the prison system in the US does not make it easy to visit someone), aside from some brief embarrassment on their part I would hardly call it sadistic.
Or, if you mean those particular visits by Data for nebulous plot-driven purposes, ok, I haven’t watched those episodes since they came out, but they struck me not so much as sadistic as a possibly poorly scripted attempt to portray someone who literally cannot feel empathy or other emotions trying to work his way through an awkward situation. I can empathize, albeit poorly.
7 Likes
My personal interpretation (again, plot demands aside) is that Data is always trying to understand behavior. Lacking emotion, he doesn’t feel awkward or embarrassed in visiting a prisoner and asking questions, but he doesn’t necessarily understand why a person would do the things they did, either. I see a parallel here with murder mysteries, where the detective always asks the criminal, “So why did you do it?”
9 Likes
Holy cow - me too! I looked up the intro- and yeah - I totally remember - vaguely - that show!
Man there were several “fantastic” or sci-fi shows that had short runs in the 80s I loved as a kid.
1 Like
Someone made this fansite (quite vintage internet by the looks of it) that includes a video compilation:
From what I remember David Rappaport was basically a Willy-Wonka-meets-Tony-Stark kind of figure. I think the props & effects budget was probably a big part of why the network decided to drop it by the time the first season wrapped.
3 Likes
I don’t know if there’s a video essay that gives an overview of the series but you can watch whole episodes, starting with the first one:
3 Likes
Wow. Never heard of the series, but that was classic '80s - more cheese than all the Cheddar Gorge dairies put together. And Rappaport’s performance was still brilliant.
The fact that I had to watch the whole episode through says a lot 
.
1 Like
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
