Darmok
- Episode aired Sep 28, 1991
- TV-PG
- 46m
Picard must learn to communicate with a race that speaks in metaphor under a difficult set of circumstances.Picard must learn to communicate with a race that speaks in metaphor under a difficult set of circumstances.Picard must learn to communicate with a race that speaks in metaphor under a difficult set of circumstances.
- Ensign Gates
- (uncredited)
- Ensign Kellogg
- (uncredited)
- Ensign Jae
- (uncredited)
- Operations Division Officer
- (uncredited)
- Enterprise-D Ensign
- (uncredited)
- Tamarian Officer
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaTenagra Observatories, an internet-based network of telescopes sharing information on stellar phenomena, took its name from this episode. The Tenagra project links observatories located in Arizona, USA, Perth, W. Australia and Oslo, Norway.
- GoofsWhen the Enterprise fires on the Tamarian vessel, the phasers are fired from photon torpedo launch bays, not from the phaser banks on the saucer section. It is admitted to be a post-production mistake in the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion. Rick Berman said the producers received hundreds of letters from fans pointing it out. This was corrected for the Blu-Ray disc release by replacing the shot with a close up of the phaser array from "The Best of Both Worlds".
- Quotes
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Gilgamesh, a king. Gilgamesh, a king. At Uruk. He tormented his subjects. He made them angry. They cried out aloud, "Send us a companion for our king! Spare us from his madness!" Enkidu, a wild man... from the forest, entered the city. They fought in the temple. They fought in the streets. Gilgamesh defeated Enkidu. They became great friends. Gilgamesh and Enkidu at Uruk.
Captain Dathon: [faintly] At Uruk.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: The... the new friends went out into the desert together, where the Great Bull of Heaven was killing men by the hundreds. Enkidu caught the Bull by the tail. Gilgamesh struck him with his sword.
Captain Dathon: [laughing] Gilgamesh.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: They were... victorious. But... Enkidu fell to the ground, struck down by the gods. And Gilgamesh... wept bitter tears, saying, "He who was my companion, through adventure and hardship, is gone forever."
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Chronic Rift: Organized Religion in Science Fiction (1992)
- SoundtracksStar Trek: The Next Generation Main Title
Composed by Jerry Goldsmith and Alexander Courage
A lot of thought went into this episode and it touches on communication something we take for granted. No doubt StarFleet's universal translator was one of the great breakthroughs in history facilitating communications with other races.
What do you do if a race never developed a written language and advanced with an oral tradition? This particular alien race speaks in metaphors that pertain to its history, but who else can possibly understand it.
It's the dilemma of Jean-Luc Picard and the alien Dathan who Paul Winfield plays. A misinterpretation could mean war. It has in our history any number of times.
One of my favorite TNG episodes, Stewart and Winfield are nothing short of brilliant here.
- bkoganbing
- Jan 25, 2019
Details
- Runtime46 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1