”I think they made a really nice choice of episodes, though I still can’t watch the pilot because I was really amazed that they let me keep my job after that. I describe my performance in that as ‘ Sophie’s Choice meets Star Trek’. It was just way too emotional. It was awful, and I thought for sure that I was going to be fired. Aside from that, I can watch the other two."I find it interesting that Sirtis knew how over-the-top she came off. I think the writing or direction may have more to do with it than she may be giving herself credit for. Everyone from Picard on down came off a little shout-y that episode. Still, it's nice to know that even from day one, Sirtis was aware of the problems her character had presented. Looking over our other reviews, whenever we are annoyed with the character or stories around Troi, it's pretty much uniformly the idiocy or laziness in the writing that's the problem. Particularly in her scenes with Riker, she really makes great choices that imbue the character with veracity and depth. It's really a shame they never gave her more to work with until Jellico made her put on pants.
So this post is really a little fan shout out to Marina Sirtis. Don't be too hard on yourself. Whenever they let you do something other than sense deception, I thought you were awesome. :)
My resolve is dwindling and I may just buy the preview disc with the intent of selling it back to someone within a month's time. If you split it with me, I'll share the eventual takings with you and we both should pay less.
ReplyDeleteSure, that sounds like a good idea. The Great Material Continuum flows on. The Nagus (or Richard) would be proud.
ReplyDeleteThe die is cast. We shall have something to post on come the end of the month.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, although the final Troi scene was kind of excruciating, the whole pilot was not disastrous for Sirtis. She very ably conveyed the Imzadi feeling with Frakes, I liked her scene disclosing her relationship to Picard, and I still liked the character even when the show was done.
ReplyDeleteOur current run-through of TNG has really been an exercise in increased Sirtis Appreciation for me. I think she is unfairly written off by a lot of fans.
Yeah, I've been jumping ahead in season 6 to get a head start on some of the reviews, and I just watched Second Chances, and I have to say, I was floored by Troi in that episode.
ReplyDelete