Therapist Reacts to STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ต.ค. 2021
- Why does trauma lead Picard to a place of rage? Why does Zefram Cochrane feel like an imposter in his success?
Licensed therapist Jonathan Decker and filmmaker Alan Seawright talk about Jean-Luc Picard's trauma response and journey of healing from PTSD from his encounter with the Borg and how it can apply to our own healing journeys. They also talk about how to face imposter syndrome, how Star Trek was Alan's first fandom, and how First Contact is really an action-horror film (Jonathan gets super grossed out from some of the shots in this movie).
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Written by: Megan Seawright, Jonathan Decker and Alan Seawright
Produced by: Jonathan Decker, Megan Seawright & Alan Seawright
Edited by: Trevor Horton, tzhediting.com
Director of Photography: Bradley Olsen
English Transcription by: Anna Preis - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
“It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not weakness, that is life.”
That's how i feel yikes
One of THE best lines to take away in ST
I love that line
One of the best quotes for life
Best quote of all time.
"There are three things every wise man learns to fear: the night of a new moon, an ocean lacking a tide, and the anger of a quiet man."
aaaand now I need to re-read the kingkiller chronicles, thanks 😂
@@dyver123 You're welcome!
@@lonestar_iconoclast Have you read them yourself? They are absolutely fantastic!
@@dyver123 I have yet to do so, but I've heard that phrase often and I absolutely love it!
It's "the sea in a storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man", although it could sound very different if translated in another language?
It's exactly the quote I thought of too!
It may sound stupid but seeing Picard diagnosed with the same diagnoses as myself.. I don't know. It kinda makes me feel less like a loser I guess. He is one of my untouchable heros and knowing that he is experiencing the same symptoms gives me hope.
That is the power of good fiction, it’s the best
Same
While I don't have PTSD, I do have ADHD and I understand how isolating can feel when you feel like you're the only one suffering with your condition. I know how freeing it can be to find others both real and fictional that has suffer like you especially if we find a way to conquer or find cohesion (in my case) with it. I really hope you get the help you need
@@dragoninthewest1
i have autism makes me not a perfect human but im not afraid of some things since i’m a rock climber i remember going on my 1st outside climb, but living in a Dystopia for type 0 civilization can make life very hard.
you've got this dude
Speaking to Stewart's mastery, there's a tiny moment after his "I will make them pay" line that he actually hears his own words. You can see in his eyes the ground falling out from under him and realizing Lily is right. And she seizes the moment to drive the point home, steadfastly holding the mirror to Picard's face until he sees his reflection. I love Alfre Woodard in this role!
Not Ruby. Lilly.
So true!
@@Kinglore2000 confirmed by IMdB, thanks, but it's spelled "Lily" so I guess we were both wrong on the Internet. ✌️🙄
My favorite lines from this movie is: "The Borg? Sounds Swedish to me" and later she remarks "Definetly not Swedish!"
As a Swede I try to be more like a Swede and less like a Borg every day.
Wouldn’t thay make them “artificial swedeners”? 😉
@@ErzengelDesLichtes
Damn bro.... that's too good!😂🤣😆👍
For some reason, the line that makes me laugh every time is, “You broke your little ships!”
Swedish Borg are basically Björn to play tennis.
@@dieZauberfloete maybe. But words aren't characterised as good or bad. In this case it is actually making fun of a person, a Swede, not a name or word it self. Björn Borg is a famous tennis player and considered quite emotionless (the Swedes the to be stereotyper as cold and reserved, kind of like robot. Untill you get to know them). The Borgs being emotionless cyborgs, the connection between Björn Borg and the Borg was an obvious joke. Swedes are also known to be pacifists, kind and generous - the opposite of The Borg.
Also the G in Borg is pronounced more like J (as in Jim). Meaning fortified caslte/fort, which is why most words ending in borg is a place name.
Someone said something that really stuck with me: "When you heroize someone, you rob them of their humanity." I feel like Zephram Cochrane's character in this movie is the embodiment of that quote.
@Pro Justice yes, well, when we hear if his stomach turned over inquisitions, 1 Corinthians 10, that dishonest 1 Corinthians 2:14 and Romans 1:20 crud, pogroms, and whether we should have brother turned against brother, and what 'some now living will not taste death' means, then we may have to view that assessment in the abstract.
@Pro Justice This is a channel about psychology and movies, not religion. Please leave it at home.
@@neuralmute yeah it is kinda off topic to bring Christology into it this didn't seem all that theological at all
@@wendyleeconnelly2939 It isn't theological at all. And if you really want to analyse it, the possible historical person that we know as Jesus was completely stripped of humanity the second his followers declared that he was some sort of deity, rather than a man who did and said some very kind and wise things that are worth remembering.
@@neuralmute Well it really depends on who u ask. Some theologians say he was a deity some say he was deity in human form with bodily functions and frailties. And I'm sure some other theories. The latter tho does bring his canon humanity into light unlike what u reminded us of as the followers said he was a deity which definitely would remove his humanity. So u make some good points there
I think that Picard's apology to Worf also shows how much he has come back into acknowledging the perspective of other people than himself: The first thing he apologizes for is not for shouting at Worf or for being condescendent or even for making the wrong decision, he apologizes for calling Worf a coward, because he knows that this insult is what hit the hardest and what would be most important to Worf who is struggling with how to bring his identities as a convinced pacifist and a warrior into a balance.
And also a big shout out to Worf - he takes the offered hand IMMEDIATELLY, without the tiniest hesitation. He is proud and strong both, such a wonderful combination.
Picard's insult also shows his total command over people. He can gage a situation very quicky in order to create the most effective response in the shortest amount of time. Now, calling Worf a coward was not exactly the right thing to do, BUT it was the most effective thing to do, he wanted to make Worf as mad as he was. Contrast that to Beverly's response where she just did as she was told, knowing it was quite possibly the worst idea Picard had ever had, but also knowing him the best of any of the bridge officers, and STILL trusted in his judgement.
A good comparison of this particular scene is the end of DS9 when they stand in the ruins of Cardassia prime, and Martok cannot understand why they don't want to celebrate thier hard fought victory. He want's to open barrels of bloodwine, yet Sisko and the admiral are just looking at the ruins of a society that simply should not have happened, which is essentially Garak's storyline.
It's hard to come back from all that hate.
@@sutekh233just a wonderful comment, thank you for that! 🏅
@@cjwright79 If you read it, and it put a smile on your face, or made you think, it was worth it. Thank you!!
@@kitsmashing3267 Drop the fucking mike brother!!
It really says a lot about how out of character Picard is behaving that he refuses to listen to Worf’s advice. One thing that makes Picard a great captain is that he listens to his people and trusts in their expertise. You see it all the time in the show. The fact that he shuts Worf out so thoroughly shows that something is very, very wrong.
Ever watched “Worf gets denied”?
I must admit I was surprised Crusher didn't relieve him of duty because it was so out of character. But then she, along with most, if not all, crew are loyal.
The part that hits hardest with Worf's "If you were any other man, I'd KILL YOU WHERE YOU STAND." is the fact that in TNG, Picard saved Worf's life and became an honored man in the Klingon culture. The fact that Picard insulted him so deeply and called Worf's honor into question DEMANDS him to be killed by the Klingon.
Absolutely spot on. When he said that he meant every word with every fiber of his being. Any other man standing in Picard's position would have been dead before he hit the ground.
"coward" is the ultimate insult to a Klingon.
And if he were any other man, he'd never have said it
@@PenneySounds and on a normal day even Picard would never say such a lie
It's Not just Picard's words: Worf Knows (like all Jean-Luc's Close friends know) How out of character Picard is acting.
Worf wouldn't just kill him for the insult, but because he knows Picard wouldn't normally throw away his Men's lives.
20:21 I'm really surprised the guys didn't touch on Patrick Stewart himself being an abuse survivor. Its something he's spoken about, and does all this charity work to help children and families heal. Such an amazing human being.
Yes. I believe his expressions of rage and anger were drawn heavily from watching his father with PTSD from the war. I watched an interview with him the other day where he was talking about taking on the role of Leontes in Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale. He was reluctant to play such an aweful character but he was persuaded by the director who told him we all have such a person withi us and playing the part would allow him to "let this demon out". How much of his expressions of rage and anger in this film was drawing on watching his dad and how much was him letting out his rage and grief ABOUT his dad.
As someone with PTSD and was afraid to go to therapy because of it this made me felt so much better and made me want to go to therapy, thank you💜
You have made an important first step. So many people are afraid of that step. Congratulations and good luck.
That's what we like to see
❤️❤️❤️
Going to therapy was the best decision for myself I made. She is one quarter of the people who I truly trust.
Yes, by all means please do find support for yourself. I promise you deserve it.
I think there is a part of the backstory that is not communicated within this film which is massively relevant.
When he was originally assimilated and subsequently rescued, the following episode (S4E2 "Family") dealt with Picard's trauma and rediscovery of his sense of self. To find it, he returned to his childhood home in France, somewhere he had rarely visited in adult life due to a fundamental rift between himself and both his father and brother, who were dedicated vintners. They eschewed modern technology and preserved 20th Century methods of wine production, while Jean Luc literally reached for the stars.
When he does return, his father and mother are long dead, and his estranged brother Robert is living and working on the vineyard with his wife Marie and their 11 year old son Rene. In some really brilliant scenes, Robert bullies his way through Jean Luc's defences and unleashes his pain. Picard reconnects with his family and forms a new and different bond with Robert as an adult. He also sees himself in Rene and forms a bond with him too.
Fast-forward 4 or 5 years, and we come to the film directly preceeding First Contact, Star Trek: Generations. That film starts with Picard recieving a letter from Marie that immediately crushes him, but we don't learn why until Troi confronts him about his obvious pain. He reveals that Robert and Rene had been killed in a fire. "Modern technology" in the 24th century includes automatic fire suppression systems that erect forcefields around uncontrolled flames and deprive them of oxygen.
When Troi expresses her condolensces, Picard says "It's alright. These things happen." like it's a truism - but Troi is horrified: "It's not alright! These things *don't* happen."
The subtext is that Robert's insistence on relative agrarianism got both him and his son killed. Jean Luc has no offspring, and the Picard family lineage was always of supreme importance to his father. He felt reassured that Rene would carry on the name, but now that's gone.
Later in the same film, the Enterprise-D is destroyed. As he says in First Contact "I tend to think of this ship as home". For a man who hasn't felt at home with his family for most of his life, that loss is almost as profound as the loss of his brother and nephew.
The ... brother and nephew who helped him deal with his Borg trauma... and... no sooner has he settled in on the new Enterprise-E, than the remaining Borg technology in his body starts to reactivate as the Cube draws near. The nightmares return and he hears the Collective in the corners of his mind...
Absent his familiar home vessel, absent the people foundational to his restored sense of self, and confronted with a situation where the only sensible solution is to burn down his *new* home (Blow up the damn ship!) to slay the demons that abused him, he fucking snaps.
I think it's masterful character development, even if the writers weren't consciously aware of it themselves.
And that is a masterful piece of commentary, the kind I'm sure many hope for an hardly ever receive.
Not only is Picard a survivor of the Borg assimilation, he was also physically and psychologically tortured by the Cardassians, so there is an extra layer of trauma weaving through everything because that torture made him second guess his own perceptions and being inside the Nexus is basically the same, his perceptions being manipulated.
@@SevCaswell then, in the Star Trek: Picard past season, the reason for his estrangement with his father was made apparent, he blamed himself for his mother's suicide.
The arc continued and built throughout the season and I strongly suggested where it was going, for the reveal that, he got out of the boat up shit's creek and stepped promptly off into the deep end.
Done that a few times myself.
Another good one was on Voyager, when the holographic doctor kept losing himself over a crewmember's death, with him stuck over why he saved Harry, rather than the deceased crewmember, when both were equally badly injured. I'd have simply said, "Because, Harry mattered just a little bit more to you as a person and that's alright, as nobody is perfect, save me. I'm a perfect 10 on the Richter scale". Then, as long as it takes, just as I've had to do with some of my own teams over the decades, calling in a professional when it was beyond my capabilities - I've never been shy about asking for help when it was needed.
Because, Dad may have raised a dummy, but he didn't raise a fool.
@@SevCaswell not to mention living through a whole fabricated lifetime in the blink of an eye before being pulled bavk and having to return to a life he had accepted as merely a fever-induced fantasy.
Picard's been through some shit 😅
@@lizardlegend42 Oh man. That’s a really good point - living a whole lifetime and the civilization doesn’t even exist anymore. There was also the Drumhead trial with Admiral Satie where he’s falsely accused of being disloyal to the Federation for protecting a (later revealed) part Romulan crewmember when it should’ve focused on the Klingon who almost gave away Federation and Klingon Empire secrets to the Romulan government.
Picard’s been through a lot! 😮
What’s interesting about Picard becoming a Borg is also him dealing with the guilt of what he did as a Borg, like causing the death of Sisko’s wife. That dynamic is incredibly interesting with regard to forgiveness.
He has to deal with the fact that with being Locutus he wound up killing several starships full of people and then some. Picard lives with that guilt for quite a while.
I absolutely LOVE Picard's first interaction with Sisko during DS9's pilot episode for that reason - it shows that both men have been emotionally scarred and are haunted by that incident, and it also shows how differently each man is coping with that trauma with Sisko turning his anger and pain outward to blame Picard and Picard turning his anger and pain inward to internalize that blame.
That one short scene was so crucial to informing us of what kind of commander Sisko was going to be on top of the deep insights we got into the inner strength of Picard's character as he struggled with that inner turmoil that we got a peek of a year earlier with "I Borg".
When he became Locutus of Borg, his entire being was taken over while he was fully cognizant of the actions being performed by his mind. 'He' KILLED 11,000+ Starfleet personnel and families stuck on the ships. We saw in the Vineyard with his brother how much damage they had wrought to the core of his very BEING. To be twisted into the instrument of death and assimilation, be invaded or should I say his very being was raped by the Borg. So imagine the trauma that could put onto a person, the borg implants and invasiveness of the hive mind's commands making you kill your own people. It seems most in the Federation could understand that he wasn't in control of his actions but it could never take away the guilt. We saw it eat at him in severe heat aboard the " Big E" in the action in "First Contact", and twice in TNG.
When he encountered Cmdr. Sisko who lost his ship and wife, this action turning his son into a partial orphan; and during "The Drumhead" tribunals. When Adm. Satee probed him in questioning about several things then tried to bring up the Borg incident and get a rise out of him, some bad seeming emotional response to the reminder of his Trauma. Thankfully he was composed enough but we saw how close it had hit his core during the questioning. [sorry for the ramble, I lost my purpose of the post]
@@dragonsword7370 it’s worse then that. He contributed. Jean Luc, for all his pacifism, is one of If not the best tatical minds the Federation had at the time. And he knew all the federation tactics. Which means now the Borg knew all the federation tactics. And there was his brain, giving suggestions on exactly how to best counter those. He wasn’t just an instrument, he was the hand. Notably more ships and people died / were assimilated because he was in that cube that day, and it’s not like the borg forgot everything once he was out, so even more died because they had that much more edge in battles to come. It’s one thing to be made to shoot the gun against your will, but it’s a whole different level to hear yourself saying “and here’s where we should aim!”
In Star Trek Hive, we get to see what happens in a reality where the borg get locutus back. He actually regains his individuality all on his own! … Because he is able to logic that the borg cannot achieve perfection because they’ve come to a stagnant standstill, due to their lack of creativity. Because centuries ago he finished assimilating the last sentient being in the galaxy so there’s nothing left to take.
@@kagato23 yep. They used everything he had at the time as part of their will to conquer and kill. The only version of that in modern day is a cult programmed killer. Same issues occur if they leave and have deprogrammed from the brainwashing they had done on them!
This movie gave us one of the funniest Worf lines:
"Captain Worf, we've lost all shields and weapons, and hull integrity is low!"
"Perhaps today IS a good day to Die! PREPARE FOR RAMMING SPEED!"
The best Worf line will always be:
Q: [Trying to prove that he's mortal] "What must I do to convince you people!?"
Worf: "Die"
@@Adimdim18 I dunno, "WARRIOR's DRINK!" is always gonna be my favorite, I think.
@@Adimdim18 I immediately started laughing when I read this. That line is definitely the best joke in all of Star Trek.
Michael Dorn's deliverey makes a lot of lines way funnier than they were on the page. "Good tea, nice house".
@@Adimdim18 One of their best moments lol
I love the ending of the episode lol
By the way, as Alan is a huge Star Trek nerd, too, he may have explained these things. But the scene where Zefram Cochrane tells Geordi that he has to pee, aside from being all those things you said, was also an in-joke to the fans. It was a fan running joke that they never showed the bathrooms on the Enterprise so everyone was always asking where the crew relieved themselves.
Additionally, while they've now overdone the Borg and the idea of first contact, at this time we, the fans, had no idea who the first alien race was that humans encountered. So the slow reveal at the end where the Vulcan pulls his hood back and reveals his pointed ears was a surprise to the fans, and we went to the film eagerly anticipating who it would be. This was, of course, before the internet got huge to where other people would spoil things. It was much easier for filmmakers to keep a secret back then.
And promptly smacked our heads and said "Well, OBVIOUSLY First Contact was with the Vulcans!"
@@erikbjelke4411 Yeah, looking back, it really couldn't have been any other race.
If you pay really close attention to TOS you may actually have been able to guess it. When Spock met Cochrine he immediately recognized him as being Vulcan.
@@RRW359 That fact, alone, wouldn't mean the Vulcans were the first race humans encountered, unless you assume Cochrane never met any other alien species'.
I think one thing to note is that in Picards arc, he not only has to get over the trauma of being assimilated but also the trauma of of leading the Borg in the battle of Wolf 359 where the Borg was able to use Picard’s tactical knowledge to decimate Starfleet resulting in thousands of lives lost.
How does one get over that kind of trauma?
He had to face that face to face the ramifications of Wolf 359 when he met Commander Sisko in the pilot of Deep Space 9
@@karter95 I liked Lily as a character, but how awesome could it have been if it was Sisko confronting Picard in the conference room: "Jean-Luc, blow up the damn ship!" "See you around, Ahab." "Actually, I never read it." "I guess he didn't know when to quit." Harkening back to Sisko's actions capturing Commander Eddington.
@@eXcommunicate1979 I just watched that episode this morning ironically. It has some of the most epic scenes in Trek..
Mr Worf attach a cargo pod with Trilithium Reson to two Quantum torpedoes. Later on MR WORF FIRE......
"Reformed warrior" kind of ignores a lot of who Worf is. It's more of an identity crisis situation, cause you have to remember he was raised by humans. So he's constantly trying to reconnect with his heritage, validate who he is, and is pretty awkward in his attempts most of the time (caused largely from from the trauma when he accidentally killed that human kid while playing soccer).
Agreed: Worf is less of 'Reformed Warrior' and more a person who struggled with his adopted and birth heritages. A lot of Worf's story in TNG is him trying to live up to his birth heritage in the Klingon Empire without dishonoring his adopted human heritage. While he is a full-blooded Klingon, his attitude is as Human as can be making him a Human/Klingon hybrid emotionally. He learned how to BE a warrior because he's innately skilled at it (compared to a human) and because it shows respect to his bloodline. But he also embodies the best forms of honor in Humanity. He even raises his (mostly) Klingon child in a human household and struggles with teaching his child the same lessons his adopted parents taught him because of his desire to bring Alexander up more Klingon.
Yes thank you that's exactly what I was thinking
TNG Worf was someone who was the ideal Klingon because he read everything about being Klingon but never actual lived in that society. He lives by an idea of what a culture is, not its reality. DS9 Worf is a man of two worlds who finds his own unique identity.
Thanks I was cringing at that description in the video.
To be fair, they don't seem too entrenched in the lore, just casual fans.
I just want to say thanks for adding "and that sucks" to the responsibility line. I've heard that particular quote said in a callous and uncaring way more than once. It was really nice to hear a more sympathetic take.
@Pro Justice Yeah, sometimes it doesn't take "two to tango", it just completely ignores abuse and victim-blames when used that way. Thing is, most people have been, or know someone who has just been wronged. Messed over. Period. It blows that argument out of the water. When referring to survivors of violence, it is a bad faith argument because people on the periphery feel responsible. They tell you it has to be at least half *your* fault, because they worry it is in fact partially *their* fault. So answer *that* instead when you hear this, and you *know* it's B.S... answer the underlying fear and you're more likely to get through..
❤️
@@a_diamond no wrong the point is to get people to take care of themselves you can't have adults dependent on anyone grow the f up
@Pro Justice Haaaaaa ive seen so many people finally see the shittyness of this quote. Its been a pet peev of mine for a while now.
I was NOT ready for the line "The person who hurt you isn't hurting you anymore" so make me burst out crying. I was listening to this while doing data entry. Thanks guy.
Oop. Worf is the other way around, he spends the entire show slowly reconecting with his culture. He's never been a killer, killing for the sake of it is not honorable. On the contrary, he grew up around humans and built his entire frame of reference around the human experience - Worf is arguably a better diplomat then most of the crew, when he feels the need to be. I will not stand for Worf slander chchch. That aside, another great episode. Really explains why I stan Picard so hard, his trauma isn't too far from mine, and it feels very very good to see another grown man be agonizingly human and deeply hurt, and still loop back around to sticking to his principles.
I think Worf would make an interesting episode as well. Because Worf was raised by humans and only has a distant memory of his childhood as a Klingon, Worf feels he has to be more Klingon than anyone else. But he's a book made Klingon rather than a lived in one. Meaning Worf does everything Klingon by the book, but he doesn't know the everyday life of a Klingon, which is why he doesn't know how to party with his brother during the Klingon Civil War. But in many ways it's a gift, as it makes him the most Honorable and genuine Klingon. Worf with every fiber of his being tries to live up to the Klingon ideal, as opposed to other Klingons who are more pragmatic and understand the darkside of their people. In many ways, he's the Picard of the Klingon people.
Yeah, that urked me to.
Worf might have the body, the genes of a combat monster.
(Klingons have two+ of every organ needed to stay alive, not to mention two freaking spines!
They don't two hearts to live, the extra organs are just that, extra organs to take over if one is damage.)
Only one brain tho, protected by a thick "metal" like skull.
But that has never been his personality.
Picard said that Worf had managed to take the best of Klingon and human culture and made it his own.
Worf gets a lot of shit in the series for always getting denied when he comes up with ways to attack or battle the enemy.
But that IS his job, to form a battle plan as quickly as possible, and suggest it to the Captain.
It is then the Captain's job to approve or disapprove said plan.
Even if Worf himself knew that they will probably chose a different, more peaceful way.
He still went through the effort of always coming up with a plan of attack, should things go wrong.
Ah, that was a nice ramble.
Ramble ramble.
"The most healing thing is not vengeance...but the best way to get revenge is to heal." -
The past weeks had really been traumatic for me, I lost myself, I lost my worth, and even now, I'm doing my best to keep it steady and keep myself whole.
There's really something comforting, knowing what I'm up against and realizing that trauma is not an end all. Yes, it's true that my mental health is my responsibility. I'm glad that
Channels like CINEMA THERAPY provides that film catharsis one needs. Thank you so much. Forever grateful.
We hope you're able to get through this difficult time and find healing ❤️
Wishing you best outcome on your journey, from Australia x
The best revenge is living will
May you find love and peace my friend. We all are all fighting. Some battle is harder than others. Always love yourself. Because like Mr Rogers said, you are fine just the way you are.
I sometimes forget about that too.
@Pro Justice but this already happened, to a number of people, who never got a reply?
And medieval Jews got abandoned to quite a lot. I realize this is more of a resume' question, but still, even for a god, it has to look awkward.
Still, I'll try not to get overly critical, ahem.
There's a really interesting angle to consider about the "Moby Dick" scene: Picard was familiar enough with the book to quote from it, but due to his trauma he had COMPLETELY missed the lesson of the book, while Lily, who had never even read the book, knew the lesson of the book just from pop-culture osmosis.
I don't think he missed it, necessarily, I think it was a matter of timing and perspective. If he first read it when he was younger... I think it's easy for all of us to distance ourselves from certain stories and see the figures in them as a caricature rather than as a person. Even if he saw Ahab as an object lesson or a kind of fable, he may not yet have been through a traumatic experience that caused him to reach that level of obsession. Even when she first mentioned the story, it struck him, but he tried to deny what was happening, deny that he could relate. It wasn't until she pushed him, got him to make an outburst, that he could recognize the "cannon" in his own chest. You're absolutely right about how amazing it is that Lily could recognize it herself, but I think it's because she was far enough removed to have the perspective to see it. (Hope that all makes sense, I'm not sure it did, but took a shot anyway. 😅)
Also, Patrick Stewart played Ahab in a television adaptation of Moby Dick just 2 years after this movie was released
I think most days Picard did know the books lesson. Just not this one. But when she actually called him Ahab he understood almost instantly.
@@kagato23 could u elaborate what he understood
@@acelovesdiyschristopher7023 he understood she was referring to him and a self destructive obsession, he just disagreed. Then he has his little tantrum and starts quoting the book cause he realized she’s absolutely right.
I remember scenes in Star Trek: Picard where he has an outright panic attack upon arriving on an excavated Borg Cube and almost falls to his death before a few recovering drones save him. Of course, being grabbed by drones only exacerbates his episode. He finally snaps out of it when Hugh meets him.
Picard is a controlled monster, he's not a monster like a psychopath. He's a man who has an inner beast that he keeps chained but can release in case of a real threat. he has a 'break glass in case of war' mode and has since his days as a cadet.
Demons run when a good man goes to war
I was 14 when this movie was released. At that time, I understood Jean-Luc's pain/trauma on an academic level. Now, as a 39 year old Army veteran, I understand it in a way that most (thankfully) never will. I didn't see any combat during my time in service, but I still know. That, and I did work with a LOT of Combat vets in my various units. You would not believe how damaged some of these people really were and what a poor job Uncle Sam does in helping them.
Its truly a massive failure.
I was a teen when this came out too (and of course much younger when the episode of TNG aired when Picard was assimilated) and had a similarly less rich understanding of Picard's perspective. I've been fortunate not to have the level of personal trauma in my life, but I've had so much more life experience that it hits so, so hard seeing Picard go through it in First Contact. His sense of personal violation is palpable in ways I just didn't absorb as a young person.
I believe you! I’m a little bit older than you, but have met more than a few Vietnam vets. I’m familiar with the damage that caused.
In "Chain of Command", Picard hangs onto his sanity, if only by a thread, and continues to assert that "There are four lights" even when his torturer tries his hardest to get Picard to say otherwise. In First Contact, the Borg have done what the Cardassians could not - they have broken Picard's mind and cost him some of his sanity. He now has to repair himself, something he has never had to do before.
Well, that's...partly true. He admits to Counsellor Troi that at the end, he did finally break, and was almost convinced he could actually see a fifth light. You can even see him squinting in the moment before he's rescued, trying to see that light...
But then he was rescued from that situation. He managed to assert himself again, defiantly shouting at his abuser that there were only *four* lights. He recovered in the moment, but that's not healing...healing takes a lot longer, but I'm sure having the power to assert himself in front of his abuser helped.
@@DrTssha , true re the "healing". However, the key word you used is "almost". Borg assimilation is more all-encompassing and psychologically complete due to the pressure and cocooning nature of the hive mind. But then, since this is all fiction, then all discussion is speculation. Much fun, though! :)
@Screw TH-cam , if all you can contribute to the joy of others' intellectual speculations is derision, then you can move along. There is nothing for you here.
As far as the rage being out of character, I seem to recall Picard being a man of rash action as a younger man. Wasn't he stabbed through the heart by an alien in a bar fight? Something tells me that that rashness and passion didn't really go away, so much as mature: his wisdom and peace are acts of restraint.
He also looks *more* wise and restrained next to William "I'm going to bang anything with remotely compatible genitals" Riker
Yes a Nausican, he recalls laughing after seeing the blade sticking out of his chest
I remember the 1st time I saw this film in the Theater. When Picard said "This is not about revenge!" in reference to Capt Ahab of the Pequod, my first thought was "Wow, someone is in denial.". It was also an eye opener to the parallels of Moby Dick that the writers were going for. It also amazed me that they had Lily admit she never read the book but knew what the story was about. Much like most people today who have never read it but know it's a story about a hunt for revenge. Like it was a call out to Pop Culture.
23:00 Not only are those models of the Enterprise, but the specific “little ship” that was she was holding was the Enterprise D, the ship Picard captained throughout all seven seasons of The Next Generation.
I’ll leave it up to y’all to figure out the symbolism behind that.
And I'll go ahead and spoil it. In "Generations" (the movie before this one) he lost the Enterprise D (he was not in command at that moment, but it was still his command at the time it occurred) as the saucer section crashed to Earth.
@@christinacody5845 Well, not Earth, but to earth (as in ground). It was an alien world where the Saucer crashed, specifically Veridian III.
I notice there's no mention of Jonathan Archer. And I can understand why.
@@OpDDay2001 You're right, thank you for the correction!
Well, the symbolism may suggest that although the ship was lost, the crew survived and the mission to stop the evil Dr Soren was accomplished. And the name Enterprise would be passed on to the next Federation flagship.
“This is Cinema Therapy, not TV Therapy” - in some ways it’s kinda a shame as it would’ve made a good accompaniment to this review to also cover the TNG episode ‘Family’ which involved the immediate aftermath of Picard being rescued from the Borg and a look into the start of his recovery process, plus touching with the trauma of his childhood and (abusive) relationship with his brother.
Adding another layer to his trauma which you didn’t mention - his initial refusal to abandon and destroy the Enterprise here is coloured by the fact that he’s already lost two ships under his command by this point, the Stargazer (which was his first command) and the Enterprise-D. The other characters urging him to activate the self-destruct is prodding at those old wounds and tearing them open.
This makes me really want to see them do the "Only a Paper Moon" episode of DS9. That episode always hits me right in the feels.
That is honestly one of the best episodes. It's not flashy or juicy or filled with a lot of action, it's just a down to earth episodes about family shit. It doesn't pull any punches or try and make it seem like it's trying to turn it into a 90's PSA or glamourize it. They just make it look like one pile of familial drama that never got solved until the two of them come to the breaking point. Things aren't fixed yet, but they're definitely in a place to get there and _that_ is what happens in life. Such a good episode.
Plus, Jean-Luc still carries the trauma with him, even into "Star Trek: Picard."
Yeah, I really wish they'd incorporate the TV. At least do character arc analysis of Picard
@@DrDingsGaster And at this point in First Contact, he'd just lost that family in the previous movie! So yeah, he's gone through some stuff.
You really got me, when you both looked at the camera and said "I'm sorry".
To heal from trauma is a lot of work and it takes a lot of time. I didn't ask for it. But I have to fix it, if I ever want to be anything else than a victim again. And you are right, that sucks.
But to hear you, two strangers on the internet, say that you are sorry for that... That brought tears to my eyes. And you said it with compassion, not pity.
Thanks.
Sir Patrick has spoken of how he saw his father abuse his mother and he has gone on to be a patron of a domestic abuse charity. I get the feeling that his journey in the role of Picard might not be so far removed from his own journey in coming to understand why his father behaved that way and replacing that anger with pity.
"Don't put people on pedestals"
I've said that for years, and it's amazing the lack of agreement I get.
No idols, no heroes, no gods. Just people.
"Well, anybody ELSE shouldn't be put on a pedestal, probably. But you should be able to put ME on a pedestal. I wouldn't cause problems. And after all, I deserve it." /s
our entire culture is about manufacturing false gods and then being shocked when they act like assholes.
@@JeanLucCaptain Or, manufacturing false gods, then tearing down them and the statues built to them when they fail us, or when we tire of them and just want to watch someone/something burn.
I'm surprised you didn't touch on Data's story in this movie. He made some of his most important steps towards becoming/understanding what it is to be human - facing temptation and testing his loyalty and values. Plus there's the bit about Picard envying his ability to turn off his emotion chip. 😄
I love him in this movie "Resistance... is futile"
I think there is one simple explanation: video is already 35 minutes long. :)
If Datas story was also included, it would have reached 50 or more minutes and I guess this would have been too much for the format.
@@thomaskositzki9424 fair point. Part II then 😁
This video was about Captain Picard's PTSD. They can revisit Data's arc in another video.
@@Neekazan That would be cool. 2 for 1 sale!
When I first saw this movie as a teenager, it was easily my favorite Star Trek film. I liked the scares, the action, and the little jokes. I rewatched it, decade or so later, as a grown man, who'd lived a little, and the emotional beats in this film are so heavy
I love how Lily and Picard’s stories are intertwined. She’s mostly recovered from her time in WW3 while Picard is still navigating Wolf 359. It shows no matter what time period someone is coming from, a lot of experiences can be shared. That’s what makes the ready room confrontation so powerful and why First Contact is in the top of my Star Trek film list.
Edit: I think someone commented below but it’s also possible that Stewart referenced his own childhood since his father had PTSD from serving in WW2. He’s done a lot of advocacy work for abuse and trauma, especially those who have experienced in childhood.
After Cochrane's reaction to the talk about a statue, I am always reminded of a line from an episode of Firefly, where Captain Reynolds tells Jayne, "It's my estimation that every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of sommbitch or another. Ain't about you, Jayne. It's about what they need."
edit: and then... you guys played the scene!
Just keep watching the episode, LOL
Because they're that cool.
Lol meta!
My favorite Firefly episode.
@@slashandbones13 mine too!
I was married for ten years to a person with a personality disorder, who was physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive. I can relate to that idea of having every aspect of my individuality stripped away from me. To be controlled, and to have my friends and even to some degree family driven away. It left me feeling like a ghost. I was not living - I was haunting my shell, as I drifted toward death. One day, I was at work and one of my bosses spoke loudly suddenly, and out of instinct I threw up my arms to shield my face. It was a sign, and I read it for what it was. It was time to go. So I did. It took over a year of therapy to get me back to a place where I started to feel like myself. I've started to put back bits and pieces of myself. This week I bought a guitar, and picked it up seriously for the first time in over a decade - it brought tears to my eyes. The good kind of tears.
I hope this doesn't come off as presumptuous or condescending from some internet rando but... Congratulations on getting out and getting help. It's incredibly hard work and often even harder to be open about in a public forum - though nothing to be ashamed of. I'm so pleased you've let music back in to your life - I've found it deeply important to me too, despite a complete lack of any talent, sadly. But the act of doing/appreciating a hobby/art form is just as valid, regardless of talent, it's just sometimes better not to inflict it on others! 😳😅
Keep doing the good work for yourself, I wish you nothing but the best!
Did ur boss notice when u did That?
@@acelovesdiyschristopher7023 They did. I was lucky that they were pretty understanding - they could tell that something was wrong.
@@YetMoreCupsOfTea I'm so glad u had such a healthy and concerned work environment and coworkers. I'm glad ur doing better now.
This "you're used to him being a man of peace" reminded me of this quote:
"Doctor. The word for healer and wise man throughout the universe. We get that word from you, you know. But if you carry on the way you are what might that word come to mean?" and "Demons run, when a good man goes to war"...
Too bad that there never was a good movie about this series :D
Picard's trauma pops up several times in TNG, so honestly it's not so surprising to see him succumb to it in this film. Honestly most of his decisions over the course of the movie are relatively rational and logical given the situation he finds himself in, until the situation becomes hopeless and he decides he'd rather go down swinging and take his crew with him than make the tactical withdrawal. I wonder how much of that is down to the fact that this is his third command? He lost the Stargazer, he lost Enterprise-D, and now he's about to lose Enterprise-E, and just to rub salt in the wound he's about to lose it to the Borg.
But there are definitely 3 episodes of TNG that play directly into Picard's trauma that you need to see - Family (the episode that deals with some of the immediate fallout of Best of Both Worlds), Drumhead (where his experiences with the Borg are used as evidence against his loyalty), and I, Borg (where he is faced with a moral dilemma regarding the Borg and is siding with the morally questionable position). I won't go into more specifics because of potential spoilers (I don't know how much of TNG you or the viewers have seen), but they do provide plenty of context for this film to happen in.
Also, I loved that you let the ready-room scene just play out with almost zero commentary. It's a very powerful moment and both actors do a Stirling job.
Can you please do Bucky's character development throughout the MCU movies? From overprotective, funny, ladies man and Captain America's best friend to being tortured by Hydra and working for them for 70 years to being more accepted by the rest of the avenger's team and being treated like one of them to finally turning into more of his old self in falcon and the winter soldier. Maybe you can talk about Bucky's obvious PTSD that he is trying to push away and shove down to the bottom. If you read all the way through this congrats, I hope that somebody from Cinema Therapy will see this and hopefully do it because the more I think about him the more Bucky is my favorite character and you can see his journey from WWII to being broken by Hydra to start to slowly heal at the end of TFATWS.
Thank you for coming to my TED talk
Choir. Preaching. Line.
Speaking as a Trek fan: these out-of-character moments didn't come from nowhere, but rather it was the accumulation of everything Picard went through. There's the episode "Family," where Picard has a confrontation with his brother, and he breaks down crying about how powerless he felt while he was assimilated. Later on, there's "I, Borg" where the crew nurses a lone surviving Borg back to health and is given the name Hugh. Picard was ready to send an invasive program that would have destroyed the entire collective, but Hugh ends up evolving a sense of individuality, which forces him to reconsider.
First Contact, IMO, brings all of that to a head, and forces Picard to confront those feelings.
And the 2 parter episode with Data and Lore's borg followers VS Hugh and his borg followers.
@@DiscoTimelordASD Yeah, but not quite. That episode centers more on Data than Picard. The only big part with Picard is when Admiral Nacheyev reprimands him for not sending out that invasive program.
Honestly, I think First Contact missed an opportunity by not including Hugh and his followers.
@@nickbell8353 Perhaps a mention, but Hugh's sect would likely want to stay as far away from the collective as possible.
I can't remember which episode or season, but there was also the one where Picard breaks down over the loss of his entire family in a fire at the Picard Vineyards back on Earth. That one was especially hard for him because he had no way to stop it and nothing he could do to affect it.
@@JaRyCu Time's Arrow?
I think I'm way off here, my apologies but it's the 1st thing in my head for some reason.
I’m so glad y’all highlighted this aspect of Capt. Picard’s life. After seeing “First Contact”, it makes Picard’s statement in “Next Generation” that much more intense and meaningful. He says, “I am Locutus of Borg!” when attempting to interrogate a captured Borg. (S6:E26) He spent 3 years & countless hours in therapy healing from his traumatic encounter (S3:E26) and you can still see how hard it was for him to come to terms with uttering the words, but once he did, you can almost sense his character gained a sense of power over his enemy and his fear.
Picard, having a terrible relationship with a family that doesn't love or value him, loves his crew like a family and loses his mind when they're threatened by the Borg. Trauma will make you cling to the people closest to you harder, but also makes him reject their attempts to reach out to him, too. That's why the apology at the end really works because that's a part of recovering from trauma - realizing you were a dick and you need to make some amends.
As a historian specialized in Ancient Rome, I can attest that most people we know from history were jerks, no doubt. Especially if you dive further into their treatment of people "below" them, but history glosses over those facts e.g. by saying "love" and "seduction" instead of "assault" and "rape"
Yeah reading history you learn that quick. Way I deal with it is to understand the culture they lived in and what they considered right and wrong and good and bad. If someone was considered good by their time I’ll usually be more forgiving.
Zeus was a serial rap!st
You haven't figured out that jerks make history?
The most intense I'd seen Picard before this movie was when he was shouting "There are four lights!"
Phenomenal two episodes
that ep could be whole video on its own too
I love that one!!!
That episode haunts me to this day.
He was tortured and deprived of his humanity twice. It6no wonder he snapped.
Imposter syndrome is just being an adult. I don't know how often it seemed to me that I was just pretending to be an "adult". I expected someone to catch me any day.
Same. There are still times when I think, "Nah, I can't handle that. I need an adultier-adult around", lol.
There's a line spoken by Calvin's dad in Calvin and Hobbes that resonates with me more and more the older I get:
"I wouldn't have been in such a hurry to become an adult if I knew the entire thing was going to be ad-libbed."
I always loved the idea that Picard didn't care about his pain but that he carried insurmountably awful guilt for the Battle at Wolf 359 and his (arguably) direct actions that led to the deaths of thousands of officers and civilians.
"... And it's just replaced by hurt and anger and pain." Don't forget fear. By far and away, the biggest symptom of trauma I have seen, is fear. Often it is the only symptom, particularly in people who don't know they are suffering from the effects of trauma. And then you have the whole "fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate" thing, which is true.
Fear can also lead to depression and then to paralysis. In my experience, I've found that sadness/depression and anger are two sides of the same coin. They are the emotional equivalent to "fight or flight". You either lash out at others, or you withdraw within yourself and avoid others.
@@Ithenna apologies if you already know this, but it's a bit of a pet peeve how the popular consciousness understanding of fight-or-flight is, those are actually only 2 of the automatic response options - the full list is freeze, flight, fight, fright, flag, and faint*.
This is why some of us can get paralysed by fear, or freeze up when being attacked, similar to animals that respond by playing dead, I guess... (evolutionary roots I mean, not to suggest that some responses are more evolved more/less civilised, or anything like that!)
I think a lot of the stigma and mental health problems some people face are exacerbated by misunderstanding this - when victims/survivors are asked 'why didn't you fight back?', for example.
Noone should be blamed, or should blame themselves for the automated response of their body in such moments and I really hope if we can correct this misunderstanding then we will have a more accepting society. It couldn't hurt, eh? 🤞🤞
*source: Schauer, M., & Elbert, T. (2010). Dissociation following traumatic stress. Journal of Psychology, 218
@@helenl3193 I'm not really sure how this is a pet peeve. I'm just talking about my literal behavioral experience. Yes we could list other types of responses, but anger and sadness/depression have proven to always be the underlying responses in my experience, with the other responses being either sub-responses or nuanced responses of those two. When I felt attacked or hurt, I either lashed out in some way, or fled by either physically leaving the room, trying to make myself as unseen as possible while staying put, and/or withdrawing internally and not interacting with much anyone. I would either be fuming mad at the person who caused me hurt, or if I chose to forego anger, all I could do was withdraw and cry (and most likely not be productive in anything for some time). There was never anything in between.
This is because our Conscious Minds _don't_ normally deal *with* fear. Our *subconscious* (SC) ones do. They're *supposed* to: part of what they do is react to trauma. You need instincts to trigger biochemical responses. The *problem is...*
The Sc doesn't think: it's _purely_ reactive. It assumes that anything inside itself Is Important. Ergo it *retains* trauma.
This is likely an evolutionary thing to _try_ to remind us not to make the same (potentially harmful) mistakes again. One *can undo **_some_* of the Sc's reactive mistakes under some circumstances. But the SC will fight even those attempts. The SC is where our fight or flight responses live, & getting close to eve a small trauma it retains can trigger it all over again.
I *have had success* overcoming SC retained memories through conscious effort. But it's kind of like explaining color to the blind. Until you've been through it yourself, the explanation makes zero sense.
The scene between Picard and Worf is so powerful. I was maybe 11 or 12 when I *really* understood. I vividly remember Picard calling Worf a coward. I gasped in surprise and just shock. I felt so hurt FOR Worf. The man you admire and respect most in life calling you a coward is just devastating. Looking over to my mom in tears going "He's being so mean!"
I freaking love this movie. It's just so good.
And for specifically Worf, that is PARTICULARLY insulting, being of a warrior race, a culture that pride themselves on being brave and courageous in the face of danger
i think the other reason blowing up the enterprise is so impactful is because for picard he may not have had anything left of himself, but he did have the enterprise, and that was it. all he could do was immerse himself into the enterprise like you said with distracting yourself while you're awake. and for him to destroy it meant he has no outlet anymore, he has nothing of his own anymore to hold on to, and now he just has to face his trauma and move on
Galaxy Quest - yes! Can't wait for that one! So much material. And First Contact was Jonathan Frakes feature-length directorial debut - heavy hitting material to start with!
"Got your Lisa's?" *Me dashing out of bed to turn on the coffee maker, so I feel like I'm participating*
Ready!!
@Chris Sears agreed, but I already had the coffee set up
@Chris Sears you mean, tea, earl grey, hot
In "The Best of Both Worlds Part II," when the crew of the Enterprise is able to rescue Picard and begin to unassimilate him, I think it's Dr. Crusher that asks him how he feels and his response is, "Almost human." I think it's clear from this film that despite the adventures and missions and successful six subsequent years of captaining the Enterprise that he went through, he never really got past just feeling "almost human." I think that is some true character development.
Even in Star Trek Picard, Seven asks him if he truly feels he regained his humanity after all this time and he says no.
This is actually one of my favorite parts of the Picard show. For all its pitfalls and let downs it has some fantastic moments too. The moment after the like casino heist to get Maddox back, where Seven asks Picard...
Seven - "After they brought you back from your time in the Collective, do you honestly feel that you regained your humanity?"
Picard - "Yes."
Seven - "All of it?"
Picard - "No... but we're both working on it. Aren't we?"
Seven - "Every damn day of my life."
So even after more than 20 years, Picard is still struggling with lingering effects of being assimilated. Which to me sounds like being assimilated by the Borg, and then being free of that assimilation, never fully heals you. Some part of you will always be broken because of what happened and how invasive assimilation is on your mind and body.
@@RaiderNic99 and Picard was only Borg, not even a complete normal drone for only a few days. Imagine the damage done to people like Seven
Keep in mind the Borg violated Picard in every single way it's possible to be violated. They took everything from him and then used him to slaughter countless people with the intention of then using him to do to the population of Earth what they had done to him.
I have complex PTSD and this film is amazing for me as a fan of Star Trek. I love it. Also, knowing that Patrick Stewart came from an abusive home helps me to feel better about myself.
Something I really love about this is that you two drive the point home that just because he moves past the rage at this point, this trauma doesn't just go away. So many people were upset in the first season of Star Trek Picard when Jean-Luc arrives at the derelict Borg Cube artifact that the Romulans and many ex-Borg have been studying and he goes through a bit of a panic attack. People say "That happened so long ago, he should be over that by now." Why should he be? Especially when he first arrives on the Cube and is alone. Momentarily, but alone in a place that brings up every memory of the single worst experience of his adult life. In that moment, he is seeing himself strapped into an assimilation frame, being injected with cybernetics and all of his individuality being taken away. He was, quite literally, triggered.
And even more than that it was a war type situation. Such things will stay with a person almost their entire life.
I love when Geordi is all "haha Reggie is such a fanboy, I'm so cool I'm going to be standing here shaking my head" then becomes 100 times a worse fanboy once Reg leaves.
Well to be fair, he is chief engineer.
In Geordi's defense, the subject had already been brought up, and he could easily have assumed that Cochrane was interested in knowing about the future. Not to mention he's not really fanboying about getting to shake Cochrane's hand so much as the massive scope of his influence. Still not great, and it definitely reignited imposter syndrome, but it was much more unintentional than Reggie's behavior.
I mean, I'd be fanboying just a tiny little bit if I met LeVar Burton, so can we entirely blame Geordi?
Not surprising, Geordie and Reg have basically the same social problems, it's just Reg hides and internalizes them, and Geordie broadcasts them loudly, to other people, with holodeck violins XD
Their impressions of Grandpa Simpson is so on point! 😂👌
Also, that talk about how trauma taking over our lives cuts deep! 😣 but so interesting to listen to what you said about it!
You finally got me guys. Star trek, especially TNG, is close to my heart. Watched them when they first aired, knew tos pretty well. My first two fandom's - the Beatles and star trek. 😂 I was born in 1980, so a little late to both.
I adore and idolize the Picard character for everything he is, especially the things Kirk was not.
Patrick Stewart as a man is still a hero. For everything he's done for people, and just being the best example of a human he can be. Idk if you know, or anyone has mentioned, but Stewart's father was abusive.
"I will make them pay" is about the most revenge laden sentence ever. That anger has nowhere to go sometimes. Trauma is the gift that keeps on giving. It can sneak up on you and ruin a good day. There's a point where it seems like you're just surviving, barely, and nobody wants to live like that. Trauma doesn't go away, its always with you, but changing the way you carry it inside can mean everything.
Honestly there is so much I can say.
I appreciate you guys for this.
This is my first time watching one of your videos. Fantastic choice for a number of reasons.
I'm a lifetime Star Trek fan -- my middle name is Tiberius.
I'm a combat veteran with fairly severe PTSD, so watching you discuss it in the context of Star Trek makes me feel heard.
I've been in therapy at The Vet Center for quite a few years, and I definitely feel the "ups and downs" thing you mentioned. I often say it is like a dampened sine wave, with the ups and downs becoming less extreme over time.
Also, I have experienced imposter syndrome so much in my life, I've finally decided that maybe other people do actually know me better than I know myself in that manner.
It's interesting to think about this film and Picard's trauma in the light of things Patrick Stewart has shared about his own father's post war PTSD and the effect it had on his family.
How about this for a revised quote: "Don't try to be a great man, try to be a good one, and let history sort out the rest". Which I actually like much better because many people we call "great" were not good.
The Borg always creeped me out: no central systems or command to shoot, they could carve out a piece of the _Enterprise_ , the jewel of Starfleet with ease, and were faster and more powerful, with high-speed repair and personal shields to boot. I think they were more threatening as the Legion Collective than with the Queen, but even though there was a drone to represent her in _First Contact_ and in _Voyager_ , it's not hard for me to believe that she could survive simply by uploading her self into another new drone. Remember, Q said the Borg were genderless. That means _any_ drone can be made into the Queen. And there are countless drones on a Cube. More since assimilation via nanites was introduced. Touch, you're infected. Being assimilated and made to move, all while being perfectly aware of what you're being made to do. There's a game called simply _Borg_ with John de Lancie that got made into a video available on TH-cam that covers the Borg pretty well.
The MMORPG _Star Trek Online_ makes the Borg one of the first returning threats you face, and they have changed again, not just being able to assimilate ships and people, but entire planets now. And their battle doctrine has also changed: while both he Legion and the Queen-led Collective are represented at different times, if they fail to assimilate you and your ship, they will quickly switch over to doing their best to destroy you as a threat. And yes, you can be assimilated and lose at least some control, both in space missions and in ground missions. If you don't have a skill or item to counter Borg nanites, your only hope is that someone will KO you so you can respawn clean. Now that's effective use of the 'And I Shall Scream' trope.
But _STO_ also approaches an interesting topic with Seven of Nine and the Borg Cooperative, a faction that wants to be separate from the Collective, and is willing to pitch in against genuine threats as part of a multi-power alliance. How do you escape an oppression so deep it's in your mind, and move forward without shattering? By banding together, and by forging meaningful alliances and friendships, apparently. I genuinely would like Cryptic to do more with the Collective and the Cooperative, especially now that the Borg have been out of the spotlight for so long in the game's story.
If you get the Tommy gun in _STO_ , the alt-fire is that side to side spray, complete with the shouting expression.
I’ve always felt that Jerry Goldsmith was underrated as a movie composer. John Williams gets all the hype. I really love the intricate complexity of Jerry Goldsmith’s compositions right down to the sometimes unusual choices in instrument that takes the lead voice. Like the French horn in First Contact’s main themes, and how then others are added woven together.
One analogy that I was told after my father died was that trauma is like a button in a box with a ball in it. Every time the button is pressed by the ball, your trauma resurfaces and you feel all the emotions and pains from it. But, over time, the ball slowly loses it's size. Sure, it will press the button still, but less frequently. The ball never goes away fully, and will still cause that pain to resurface, but it shrinks down to a more manageable size.
Another wonderful episode gentlemen. As a Millennial who constantly suffers with Imposter Syndrome and has experienced trauma, getting this episode has been very illuminating.
I heard a similar analogy, but the box was your life. As time goes on, the box gets bigger. The ball is still there, but it rarely finds the button anymore.
That is such a perfect analogy! I'm borrowing that 😁
I, a Trekkie, saw this movie once but couldn't stand to see it again because of the horror. Now that you've explained what it's about, I need to own a copy.
Love that Yoda quote.
but this is the one where data and the borg queen are an item. THAT IS THE HORROR you don't want in your house... that whole act is so cringeworthy
@@morganseppy5180 Yes I know, but the catharsis is worth it to me. I so know what it's like not to have an identity. And how could I ask for better than Patrick Stewart? Besides, I think the worst part is when Picard sticks his hand into the ex-crew member's insides. But as they said on another show, horror can be cathartic. And I sure need it!
Thanks algorithm for recommending this to me today. The part about 30 min in where they talk about you feeling pretty much over your trauma and then a trigger suddenly bringing it back out of nowhere is exactly what's happened to me recently. This episode of CT is helping me to feel less 'stupid' for struggling with this after years of not being really affected too much by the trauma.
Here's me at the beginning thinking "Yes! A video about my favourite franchise!" cut to half way through and all I can think is "That's a great grampa Simpson impression!"
I would like to clarify Riker's quote of "Don't try to be a great man, just be a man" 'cause I think there is some confusion about his use of the term "great man" with being a "good man". Trying to be a "great man" and a "good man" are not the same thing. Greatness and goodness are very different concepts. A "good man" is a humble label that has to do with the virtues and morality you exhibit in your everyday life. Anyone, no matter what their circumstances, can be a good person. However, the same can not be said for being "great". Being a "great man" implies distinction, fame, and importance. Trying to be "great" means trying to reach "greatness". Being considered "great" is really something that is bestowed upon you and, therefore, depends entirely on how other people perceive you. So if you're actively trying to reach it, you'll be constantly trying to be impressive and worthy of being on that pedestal. Or you'll go the other way and stop trying 'cause you know you'll fail at what you think being "great" means. Riker is saying that you don't need to worry about any of that. You're human and fallible and that's okay. It doesn't mean you don't have greatness within you. But, you just need to move forward as the person that you are and not worry about whether or not you will live up to others' expectations or if you're really worthy of being considered "great". That is not something you need to worry about yourself but, something for others to ultimately decide after you're gone. So, remove that pressure 'cause it's impossible to know or predict what your legacy will be. Obviously, everyone should try to be a good person but, that's really a separate issue from what Riker is talking about in that scene.
Beautifully put.
Yeah, that's exactly how I feel about that line. He should have said, "Don't be a great man, just be a *good* man."
@@jasonblalock4429 yeah.. but I do not think that would work with Cochrane.
Couldn't agree more.
This comment also brings to mind two different exchanges of dialog (spoken seasons/years apart) from BBC's Sherlock that also distinguishes that being a "great man" and being a "good man" are not one in the same.
"So why do you put up with him?"
"Because I'm desperate that's why.....And because Sherlock Holmes is a Great Man. And I think one day, if we're very, very lucky, he might even be a Good One." -John Watson and Greg Lestrade s1 ep1.
"Is that him, sir, Sherlock Holmes?"
"Fan are you?"
"Well, he's a great man, sir."
"No, he's better than that. He's a good one." - Patrolman and Greg Lestrade s4 ep3
Wait until Riker realises that Cochrane was actually quoting him when he said that
"Mental health is not your fault but it is your responsibility." Marcus Parks! I love him.
As a Trekkie since the tender age of 6 - thank you! Star Trek has forever astounded me by the amazing social topics they delve into
The time has come. Cinema Therapy is doing Star Trek. My life is complete. Also I love that Jonathan is as disturbed by eye things as I am.
I've never been through trauma, but I've interacted with people who have. Trauma is a gash on the psyche. You can heal it, but some damage will remain. There will always be a scar. It'll always be tender. Maybe you'll be in pain the rest of your life. You can learn to live, you can achieve a good life, but you can't ever return to who you were before because you can't just undo the damage. And that's ok, you're still a whole human being, worthy of respect and love.
"To go where Netflix never let us go!" That was beautiful! LOL
I would love to see a follow up with some scene picks from season 1 of Picard, for the Characters of Picard, Hugh, and Seven. Even after you deal with the trauma and go through healing and are for what most would say are now "better", the pain and wounds still linger, and still affect the mind decades later. All three of them still trying maintain the day to day humanity while still dealing with the low grade background noise from that trauma.
When Alan cries I cry. I know Alan tearied up at bit at 22:10 even tho he's on tiny screen because I could feel myself starting up too.
I remember someone said that the only good Star Trek movies are the even numbered ones and you have to put Galaxy Quest in as one of the even numbered ones.
I've heard that, too, and it's hard to argue, although I did like Three as a continuation of Two. But then there is SIX- 😱👿
It was an old adage among Trekkies that the even numbered Trek films were good and the odd ones were bad, but then Nemesis (which was the tenth) came out and was terrible, which broke the even number rule until someone noticed that Galaxy Quest came out between it and the ninth film (Insurrection), so by making GQ #10 and Nemesis #11 the rule would be preserved.
@@lordofuzkulak8308 Well, that works, so the conundrum is solved. 😅
Thank you for this.
Watching your analysis of Captain Picard's trauma, how he became consumed with destroying the borg, resonated with me. Because of your explanation, I was able to see SO many similarities between Picard's reactions and my emotional reactions to the trauma I've survived. I believe we become what we focus on. And I've had to focus on my fight for a long time. I was slipping into Captain Ahab. Which is not someone I'd ever want to be.
I've seen "First Contact" several times, but never saw what you've shown here. You helped me steer back on course. You helped me be aware. You gave me a warning not to let winning my survival destroy who I am.
Your insights are amazing. In a world of trouble it's nice to see REAL heroes saving people from legitimate pain (and having fun while doing it).
Keep watching movies.😉
My favorite Star Trek movie is and always will be "The Wrath of Kahn".
Having said that, "First Contact" is a masterful example of writing, directing and special effects. Most of all, it is some of the best acting I have ever seen.
PTSD effects a lot of people I know. It's no joke. Just when I think that they are healed, another trigger slaps them in the face and they are right back in the moment. It is truly aweful. There are no easy answers.
My memory of this one isn't from seeing it in the theater, though I did. My memory is being at Boy Scout camp with my dad. We were there for a week and, as a special treat, they screened this film for us. It was a trip all that day to hear the "We are the Borg" speech over the loudspeakers all over camp every couple hours. And I remember sitting and watching with my dad. And we had problems in our relationship. Pretty substantial ones. But there were a few things we had that could we always share. And Star Trek was one of them. And there was something magic about that night. Us, a bunch of other Scouts, and the crew of the Enterprise fighting the Borg. And that's a permanent memory.
I'm surprised that they didn't reference the TNG episode "Family" where we meet Picard's family and he first starts to wrestle with what the Borg did to him.
Yes! My fav ep!
His need for family is literally what "Generations" was about.
I love that episode. Gets you in the feels
‘Family’ also touched on him dealing with the childhood abuse he’d experienced from his older brother and healing the rift between the two of them that had developed as adults.
Some of Patrick's best acting in the series, even though it's in a more underrated episode.
"It's not your fault but it is your responsibility . . . and it sucks."
My personal take on that based on my personal experience is this: My mother and sister abused and neglected me during 29 and 27 years of my life, respectively (I'm 30 now).
The thing about them changing their behavior (I know this is the exception rather than the rule) is that the damage is done, the trust is broken, and there's nothing they can do now to mend that damage unless I put in the effort as well. I'm not a child anymore and I have to take responsibility for my own emotions instead of letting them rampage through my life.
The thing I think about Zephram Cochran is that life changes you. Yes, he started out as a guy working on a project that's going to allow him to check out of society. But that moment when he arrives back to earth after having broken the light barrier and then these weird looking dudes with pointy ears, a weird language, and an actual spaceship shows up - that changes him.
The movie only showed us cynical Zephram.
Also, I see a lot of metaphor that the Trek cast are trying to show their fans that the starstruck stuff might be a bit too much. (And then, of course, Galaxy Quest came out in 1999.)
One of my favorite quotes comes from a book by Patrick Ruthfuss: "There are three things all wise men fear. The sea in a storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man." I love that you guys are doing Star Trek, and I really hope you do more of them because there's so much gold in the series and the movies.
"Nightmares are the place where the brain deals with things that we're unwilling to deal with when we're awake."
Well, my dreams are full of travelling and physically being with the person I love, and I can't deal with that because F THIS PANDEMIC.
Hmmm... Last night I dreamed that my abusive bio-father was running over my ex's head in a snowbank under a spinning car tire, while I yelled for him to stop, and he insisted that my ex wasn't being hurt.
Considering the context that I haven't seen or spoken to the sperm-donor (as I call him) in about 10 yrs, that my ex and I are both on the autistic spectrum, and remain on good terms, and that circumstances are forcing me to make contact with the donor again against my own will, I think my brain is trying to tell me something loud and clear. 😖
@@neuralmute oof! Not so subtle... But then I always prefer that to those cryptic ones that take days to make sense of! Anyway - good luck with the dreams and the donor!
@@helenl3193 My dreams seldom do subtle, and the donor is precisely the sort who *will* run you over and insist that he hasn't hurt you in any way, and if you're hurt it's your own fault for being weak. Classic malignant narcissist trash. I'm not looking forward to the near future, as is obvious. But thank you very much for the good wishes and digital luck - I'm needing it all!
Let's not forget that his nephew died in the previous movie. His family line now ends with him and his brother. For Picard, that has got to have pushed him even further.
As a somewhat retired but once huge treky, I greatly appreciated all the star trek jokes and references, in the surf shark ad, definitely worth not skipping
"AH! Not eye things!"
Holy.. HECK Jonathan you're like the first person who has the same reaction as me when it comes to that stuff.
Anything eye-related has potential of completely ruining media and my day for me.
Thankfully that did not go further but I had the same exact reaction.
Seconded on eye stuff. I absolutely can't stand any body horror that has anything to do with eyes. It really freaks me out. I definitely had the same reaction.
Yup, total phobia for me. I've worn glasses since age 7, now 40 and still can't do contact lenses! Laser eye surgery sounds like actual torture, and when I got an eye infection 8 years ago my housemates had to literally hold me down for the first couple of days of eye drops. I can now do my own if needed, but I still end up with more going down my cheeks than in my eyes! 😳😳
It's so reassuring to find my people! 😅
Until now the only one my friends reference is Rachel in an episode of Friends - they also had to hold her down for eye drops, although at least I didn't require multiple people and rugby tackling to the couch! Mostly because my pride/ego was almost equal to my fear, I guess! 🤣
@@helenl3193 Laser eye surgery sounded great until I heard that you're awake and now I'll just wear glasses the rest of my life instead xD
I feel you on the eye drop thing. I've not had to do that much but it's been pretty bad every time.
Sending all the mental support possible ^-^
Same
@@helenl3193 When I was five or so some kid threw wet sand in my eyes and I had to be literally held down screaming in terror in the sink with the stream of water going into my eyes. I'm in my sixties and have cataracts, which I'll eventually have to have removed. I want to be very very unconscious for that. Eye horror is the worst, except maybe being buried alive.
A Psychiatry professor at RWJ who teaches psychopathology through films (mainly horror films) mainly for med students hosted a screening of this film along with a discussion of its portrayal of PTSD along with a Q&A with the writer of the film. It was so cool to be a fly on the wall of that lecture and it was doubly cool to see you guys cover the same movie and topic!!!
The part I thought you would notice when Picard apologizes to Worf and extends his hand is how quickly Worf responds with the handshake despite Picard previously hurting Worf's pride. It is plain to see the admiration Worf has for Picard and how much the apology means to him that he accepts it with zeal as confirmation of their friendship.
I know you specifically didn’t get into the tv series but another wonderful acting moment from Patrick Stewart related to his Borg trauma is in the DS:9 Pilot “Emissary” when another ptsd suffer Sisko reminds Picard of their previous meeting at Wolf 359 with all the anger and bitterness held up inside of him and the normally calm collected Picard has a moment where he looks like he hit him with a train and has to fight it down and continue what he brought Sisko in to tell him. Just a beautiful acting job as you can see the pain Siskos words cause him and again all with just small changes in his expressions and a catch in his voice. Hits me every time I watch it.
"Live long and prosper."
"Thanks."
Jonathan's scream of "NO NO NO" with the eye screw thing was so full of true fear and disgust 😂
There is another layer of wonderful writing in this movie, which is taking Data away from Picard for the moments when his trauma overtakes his reason. More than any other character, Data's reasoning is usually unquestioned because he does not have an emotional bent to his reasoning. If Data had been on the bridge, it's very likely that Picard may have been unable to deny the reasoning behind the self destruct, and could have even relieved Picard of command under the emotional compromise regulation of Starfleet code. But since he isn't there, no-one can be depended on by Picard to override him. And it's beautiful positioning by the writers and director.
Can we all take a moment to appreciate how great Patrick Stewart is at showing such a range of emotion in his acting. He truely is a legendary actor
I love that Patrick Stewart went on to actually play Captain Ahab in a Moby Dick mini series.
This was not a film I expected to pop up, but I’m glad it did. A good movie, but memories of it are very much tinged by the group I saw it with- an evangelical christian cult that never managed to induct me.
My parents recommended I go to a young adult group, that one they’d heard about. It was… eye-opening, and I never let the group thing overwhelm me, because I knew what I believed. Being there, watching their interactions, watching them assume everyone there believed exactly the same thing, started to fill me with growing apprehension and horror. There was a vision and they weren’t willing to accept anything outside of it. They literally told that martial arts were satanic because the power came from yourself and not God.
But the defining moment of the whole thing was when one of the women I was very attracted to and had a connection with told me she was ready for God to take her now, “But, if it’s his will to let me live another day… *sigh*”
Insta-gone after that. Abject horror. You don’t die for God. You live for him. You live a long life to its fullest. It took me a long time to be able to find a community of faith once again after that, and part of that was not trusting any of it anymore. Once I did start searching, it took me a long time to actually find one that aligned with my principles. It filled a hole I had in myself, but it was far too difficult in coming.
Yes, I have to chime in. I recently have been searching for something besides Christianity, just too many questions and whys, but what is up with all these songs about wanting to go to heaven now and not wanting to live anymore? Yes, live for God, He doesn't want you to die!
Why do even need God after that?
I mean sincerely, really can't understand that need in people, so if you mind giving me a clue
Haha! We have the same name, just spelled differently. Sweet! But I digress. I'm sorry about that "Christian" cult; it is a cult. A christ-filled church full of His love shouldn't invoke "fear" or distrust, but rather the opposite: a welcoming and trustful community of believers. Though, finding a church shouldn't, per say, be about finding a church that lines up with your principles, because that could lead people to simply follow anyone who scratches their spiritual itching ears, sort to speak. Finding a church, as I'm sure you know, is about finding a body of Believers who are Holy Spirit-led--in Love, Power, and a sound mind--and who knows, understands, and biblically practice the Ways and teachings of Jesus Christ, the son of God, as written within the Bible. In short, imitators of Christ; not that we are equal to Christ, but suffice to be like Him, like a student is to his master, despite humanity being created in the image of God...that lady friend whom you were once attracted to, and whom you quoted earlier, I wonder if she was talking within the context of Philipeans 1, under the section of "Live in Christ" particularly verse 21? So much can be taken out of context within the Bible.
It sounds like this "church group" were trying to assimilate you...
@@Eforero83 Good, then overstated Romans 1:20 can go in the dustbin of history, maybe, along with 1 Corinthians 10, given the mess it caused from Italy to Poland to Torquemada's Spain, in part? Just a thought.
If the Spirit wasn't going to (seemingly) be there at the time, more drastic measures might be needed to put things to rights.
But given angels got given ignorance and delusional, suicidal pride in any measure in heaven (so some tell me) then the odds of that may be messy? Mind you, I'm not a precise expert, on such things.
My mom LOVES TNG from her young age, a few years ago I watched the whole series with her and also really into it. She told me that Cap.Picard was one of her life icons, she also has a very similar personality and principles, even similar childhood as Picard. Which is the key for our family to get through the difficulties and troubles we've experienced. She's truly a captain for me. I'm the one who always concerned and kept in touch with her mental condition, this role started from early childhood, 'cause there were no other people capable of doing this(dad was already a quite traumatized person, my little sister has DID and emotion-control problem, there were not much therapy resources and informations in our country back then, and we didn't have reliable grown-up relatives to help us). Watching this episode is so heartbreaking and also so healing for me. It just hits so deep.
The final season of Picard takes the results of his Trauma to a new level . Would love you to watch and add updated commentary. 🙏🏻😊
I’m sure the whole crew, including Troi, thought Picard had dealt with and healed from the trauma, without having to encounter the Borg again. Coming back face to face with his perpetrator(s) brings it ALL back to the surface. It makes a big difference when you have to keep seeing them over and over, instead of having them behind bars or moving away or they are dead or whatever. So of course he’s thinking this is all going to happen again, they’ve come back for me. And he panics. And it all rises back up and now he’s in a position to do something.
"perpetrator(s)", I hope you know how genius that choice of () was.
@@Nala15-Artist I did not- I was thinking of the Borg as both a singular and a plural unit. Thank you.
He dealt with the borg off and on for 4 more seasons. He did get over it, but the movies changed his character. By the way Troi sucks as a counselor. Guinan is the real counselor on the ship.