episode #18: Home Soil

HOME SOIL - episode #18, first season / Air Date: 2/22/88
written by Robert Sabaroff; Directed by Corey Allen

Here at least we have an interesting, if familiar, science fiction concept - the existence of alternate life, inorganic, which we would be unfamiliar with. It's not tackled much on TV, though TOS did have The Devil in the Dark, featuring a silicon-based lifeform. The Enterprise arrives at a seemingly dead planet which is being terraformed by Federation scientists. The head scientist (played by Walter Gotell, general Gogol from the James Bond films of the eighties) tries to make out that all is routine, but he didn't reckon on Troi the tattletale empath; she tells Picard that the scientist is too alarmed and hiding something.
Soon enough, there's a sudden death, a mystery and the discovery of a mysterious microscopic form of life which, against all reason, turns out to be intelligent - when actual communication begins, the lifeform refers to humans as "ugly bags of mostly water" - how rude! As with several first season episodes, this is slow paced and some of the acting (by a couple of the younger scientists, especially the female) is horrid - it's like listening to someone recite a manual during moments when we should be fascinated.
Also, there could be a reason why deep concepts such as here are not explored much in the TV format. There are too many constraints, perhaps having to do with time and other limitations, severely undercutting descriptive attempts. Wesley, for example, calls the discovered lifeform "beautiful;" later, Riker does so, as well, and Troi. But, they are unable to convey to the audience why it is beautiful; it comes off as trite and even pompous. BoG's Score: 6 out of 10.