tlynch@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Timothy W. Lynch) (05/16/91)
WARNING: The following post contains spoiler information relevant to this week's TNG episode, "The Host". Those not wanting to know plot details, opinions, or the atomic weight of popcorn had best stop here. Beverly's life has taken a turn for the better--she's in love with Ambassador Odan, a negotiator of the Trill race, who's on board to get to a dispute between two moons of a world (sorry, didn't catch the name). However, Odan isn't quite what he seems--Troi keeps getting "fluctuations" of emotion from him, and when he's alone, we see..._something_...moving around in his stomach. The trip is for the most part uneventful, marked only by Bev receiving a bit of ribbing from Deanna about her new flame. Once they arrive at the planet in question, however, things happen very fast. Odan and Riker attempt to shuttle down to the planet (Odan claiming he's not comfortable with transporters), but the shuttle is fired on. Riker manages, barely, to get it back to the Enterprise, but Odan is critically injured. Or rather, Odan's *host body* is critically injured--as it happens, the Trill are a joint species, and the "parasite" within the host body is the true Odan. The body dies, and a replacement host from the Trill is 40 hours away, far longer than Odan could survive alone, even in stasis. Since Odan _might_ be able to survive in a human host, Riker volunteers to be that host temporarily. The process is a little bumpy, but it works. The aftermath is a problem, however. First, Riker/Odan must convince both Governor Leka and the two representatives of the factions that he's legitimate. Secondly, Riker's body is slowly but surely rejecting Odan, and it's unclear how long he can last. Thirdly, Beverly is very...uncomfortable with this situation, particularly when Riker/Odan says he still loves her, and still wants her. All three problems are resolved, more or less. Odan is accepted as negotiator by all three parties, and Beverly manages to accept that the man she loves is still there, inside Riker's body. Unfortunately, the rejection continues, and Odan makes Beverly swear to remove him at the end of the day's negotiations, regardless of whether the new host has arrived. Fortunately, his negotiations are successful, and while Odan has to spend a little time in stasis between hosts, both Odan and Riker survive. The change of hosts, however, becomes too much for Beverly, especially when she finds that the new Trill host is a woman. Saying "I can't keep up," she tells Odan that although she still loves him and will never forget him, it's over. NEXT WEEK: A rerun of "The Wounded". Tim Lynch (Cornell's first Astronomy B.A.; one of many Caltech grad students) BITNET: tlynch@citjuliet INTERNET: tlynch@juliet.caltech.edu UUCP: ...!ucbvax!tlynch%juliet.caltech.edu@hamlet.caltech.edu Why are there so many songs about rainbows, and what's on the other side? R.I.P. Jim Henson, 1936-1990; we shall never see your like again. (has it already been a year? it feels like yesterday...)