History Recap / StarTrekTheNextGenerationS4E22HalfALife

* HopeSpot: Played for laughs in the opening scene. When Picard goes to meet Timicin at the Transporer Room, he first timidly pokes his head out of the turbolift to see if the coast is clear. It is and he exits his cover...only for Lwaxana to sneak up behind him moments later.

* HopeSpot: Played for laughs in the opening scene. When Picard goes to meet Timic at the Transporer Room, he timidly pokes his head out of the turbolift to see if the coast is clear. It is and he exits his cover...only for Lwaxana to sneak up behind him moments later.

'''Original air date:''' May 6, 1991

* ActorAllusion: A display screen features the number "4077", the number of the medical unit in ''Series/{{MASH}}''.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The people of Kaelon II view it as immoral for the elderly to expect their children to take care of them when they're feeble. So immoral, in fact, that they'd rather ''risk extinction'' than allow a single exception.

** It's also mentioned in dialog that Timicin is especially virile for his age, so he might naturally come off as younger than he really is. [[NoTropesTools This works out really well narratively,]] as it contrasts with Timicin's descriptions of the elderly all being invalids and makes it seem all the more absurd that he's expected to commit ritual suicide.

** It's also mentioned in dialog that Timicin is especially virile for his age, so he might naturally come off as younger than he really is. [[TropesAreNotBad This works out really well narratively,]] as it contrasts with Timicin's descriptions of the elderly all being invalids and makes it seem all the more absurd that he's expected to commit ritual suicide.

* HollywoodOld: Stiers was only 48, playing a character just shy of 60. His bald and bearded look helps him look older than he is (though perhaps not quite as old as the character he's playing). Given we don't see any other Kaelons his age, nor know the age of any other Kaelons who do appear, it's theoretically possible Kaelons actually age slower than humans, though there's no indication given of this in the episode.

** This could also be seen as reinforcing the themes of the episode. As Lwaxana points out, some people -- like Timicin -- are still healthy and vital at the age of sixty, while others are sick and infirm at a younger age.

* BrokenAesop: This episode is in theory a counter to the Cowboy Captain ways of Kirk in the original series where they would show up and declare another culture wrong and practically dismantle it, by showing that it's wrong to be a cultural imperialist. The problem is the other side is very bad at making their points. Most of it comes down to "it's always been this way" which most people can understand is a statement that can be easily used as an argument in favor of oppression. Timicin's daughter effectively has the argument of "you're at fault because you won't let the government force you to die against your will, and that makes me ashamed." Timicin gives a fairly good argument of "I want to die when I'm strong and healthy and will always be remembered this way", but Lwaxana dismantles that by pointing out that that has nothing to do with being 60 and entirely to do with his personal health because a person could be suffering at 50 and have to suffer another 10 years to wait until they can have their Resolution. This also extends to the entire subplot about the sun dying because it's being treated like this is simply the sun's time to die as a parallel to the Rsolution which is why their culture isn't exactly scrambling to throw all their resources to save it or get the full help of the Federation. They won't move because they believe doing so would destroy their cultural identity, ignoring that the total death of their species ''also'' would mean the destruction of their cultural identity.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: During his first briefing, Timicin states that he hopes to be able to fix his planet's star within his lifetime and then gets a far-off look.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Lwaxana is trampling all over the culture of Kaelon II and their beliefs, but as she points out several times, ''none of that is going to matter if their sun explodes.''

* Adorkable: Timacin is certainly pleasant enough a fellow, but extremely shy and awkward and is captivated by Lwaxana's free spirit.

* Adorkable: Timacin is certainly pleasant enough a fellow, but extremely shy and awkward and doesn't quite know what to make of a livewire like Lwaxana.

* HollywoodOld: Stiers was only 48, playing a character just shy of 60. His bald and bearded look helps him look older than he is. Also, no one ever really considers that Kaelons might age at a different rate than humans and Betazoids.

Our episode tonight starts out on a particularly chilling note:

The Federation is offering assistance to Kaelon II, an alien world whose sun is slowly going out; one of the inhabitants, one Dr. Timicin (Creator/DavidOgdenStiers), believes he has developed a method to [[SolarCPR "stoke" the sun]], so to speak, and the ''Enterprise'' is to assist in testing the device. As Captain Picard is heading to the transporter room to welcome Timicin aboard, he is desparately trying to duck, dodge and hide from Lwaxana Troi, which works about as well as you'd expect (c'mon, hide? from a '''telepath'''?). So Lwaxana pops up out of nowhere, and does her usual shtick of bugging, bothering and annoying Picard all the way to the transporter room... until Dr. Timicin beams up, and Picard is able to fob the [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS2E19Manhunt still man-crazy]] Lwaxana off on him.

Timicin's experiment for rekindling his sun involves launching a modified torpedo into the star. Fortunately for all involved, there just happens to be an uninhabited star system right over there, whose star is in the same state of decay, where they can test the device. On the way to this system, Lwaxana continues to perform her PluckyComicRelief duties by [[WhatDoesThisButtonDo being her usual pain in the arse self]] to everyone, including Timicin, though he starts to warm up to her rather quickly. Anyway, they reach the test system and Timicin's device is deployed. It initially shows promise: The dying star's internal combustion does indeed increase. And increase. [[GoneHorriblyRight And increase, and increase and increase]], until they finally have to get the hell out as the star reaches critical mass and [[StarKilling goes supernova]].

The experiment, Timicin's life's work, is a failure. Lwaxana goes to him to try to offer consolation, but it turns out there's more to his depression than the experiment. Specifically, she tries to assure him that he still has plenty of time in life, both for his experiments and for their still-blossoming relationship. Timicin, however, reveals that he actually does not have that time: "You see, I'm going home... to die."

Turns out Timicin's society practices [[MercyKill ritual euthanasia]], [[DeadlyEuphemism dubbed "Resolution"]], upon reaching the age of 60 (which Timicin is rapidly approaching). Lwaxana is appalled by this practice, even as Timicin defends its merits (preventing the old from becoming a burden to the young, or from losing their dignity due to old-age ailments); she is further infuriated when Picard cites the [[AlienNonInterferenceClause Prime Directive]] and refuses to intervene.

Meanwhile, Timicin has been re-examining his experiment notes and begins to see how he could address the problems therein, but because of his impending euthanasia he doesn't have the time to do so. If only he could put off his Resolution for a while... Timicin goes to Picard and officially requests asylum, believing he can work out his experiment's flaws and then go home to die in peace. While this action pleases Lwaxana, Timicin's government is less than thrilled and actually dispatches warships to retrieve the 'rogue' scientist. Wow, I guess Major Winchester really '''was''' worth some serious crap. Making matters worse for Timicin is that, as long as he stays in his self-imposed exile, his government keeps him locked out of his own work, refusing to let him communicate any new findings on how to correct the experiment (adding salt to the wound, Timicin does indeed find some things he could fix, but his government simply will not listen).

But the final straw comes when Timicin's own daughter beams up and pleads with him to go through with his Resolution, even shooting Lwaxana a [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech "Reason You Suck" Speech]] for her presumptuous presumption that her anti-euthanasia beliefs are just automatically and inherently superior. Timicin's resolve caves in like so much card house, and he returns home to [[AttendingYourOwnFuneral attend to his funeral]]. Lwaxana, though still unhappy by the whole thing, ultimately relents, and in the end insists on attending the Resolution ceremony with him as a "loved one."

* BothSidesHaveAPoint: Lwaxana and Timicin debate the merits of mid-life euthanasia as compared to growing old and dying naturally; although Timicin does go through with it in the end, the episode paints neither him nor Lwaxana as explicitly right or wrong (his daughter's objection to Lwaxana is more about her self-righteous attitude).
* BreakTheHaughty: Seems to be this episode's raison d'etre. At one point Lwaxana bursts into tears (something she apparently hasn't done since her husband Ian died); at the end, when she elects to observe Timicin's Resolution, she exhibits uncharacteristic humility, contritely asking Picard for permission to go and promising not to cause trouble.

* DownerEnding: Despite now wanting to live and doubting the tradition of the Resolution, Timicin is forced by his people to commit suicide, with his daughter in particular shaming him into it. To add insult to injury, his people nearly attack ''Enterprise'' for even considering giving him asylum, which can't be good for interstellar relations. With him dead it's also heavily implied his planet is doomed, as he was the only one who had sufficient knowledge of the dying sun to fix the issue in due time.

* LargeHam: Creator/DavidOgdenStiers is mostly reserved as Timicin, but he has his moments.

* NobodyEverComplainedBefore: The Kaelons ritualistically kill themselves on their 60th birthdays, and they seem shocked and baffled when one of their own refuses to do so (because he needs more time in order save the whole planet--also, he'd fallen in love with Lwaxana). Apparently none of their 60-year-olds had ever had any qualms about dying before.
** Except that if someone does complain, [[PersonaNonGrata the Kaelons shut them out of society and refuse to acknowledge their existence]]... meaning it may happen fairly often, but since society refuses to acknowledge the dissenters, they ''act'' like it never happens.
* OlderThanTheyLook: Timicin does not look anywhere close to 60 (Creator/DavidOgdenStiers was 48 at the time). Of course, it's possible that Kaelonians age differently from humans.

* ThisIsGonnaSuck:
--> "Counselor Deanna Troi, personal log: Stardate 44805.3... ''My mother is on board.''"

* WhatDoesThisButtonDo: "Madam, please! That is a [[OhCrap photon torpedo launch initiator]]!" We'll just ignore, for the sake of the gag (and because it hasn't happened yet), that the episode [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E11HeroWorship "Hero Worship"]] firmly establishes that the control panels will not operate if the 'operator' doesn't have proper clearance. [[FridgeBrilliance Unless Worf installed that feature in anticipation of her next visit.]]

** Except that if someone does complain, the Kaelons shut them out of society and refuse to acknowledge their existence... meaning it may happen fairly often, but since society refuses to acknowledge the dissenters, they ''act'' like it never happens.

* TakeThat: The angry speech Timicin's daughter gives Lwaxana ("How dare you question my beliefs?") could be seen as a knockback against all the times [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Kirk and Company]] visited some backwater world, told the inhabitants in a [[KirkSummation nutshell]] that their belief system sucked, then destroyed the lynchpin of their society and flew off into the sunset after telling them how much better off they were for it. Not forgetting, of course, that Kirk usually did this because his ship and/or crew were in peril; but the attitude was always there.