Wish I heard how this favor was asked: Klingons: "You're asking for THREE of our ships?!?!? We better get something huge out of this Picard." Picard: "You'll get one of two things in return. Either you'll get to kill some Romulans or watch them get incredibly embarrassed." ... ... Klingons: "We're in."
I feel a little sorry for the commanders of those 3 BoPs though. Can imagine them listening in on Picard & Tomalok. Picard: "Shall we die together?" Klingons: "Yes! Yes! YES! Honourable death here I come!" Tomalok: "I look forward to our next meeting, captain." Klingons: "Aww..."
I like how the Klingon arrival isn't just a deterrent for attacking the enterprise. It’s a symbol to the Romulans that in any war against the Federation, this Klingon Empire would side with the Federation over the Romulans .
in another episode where the Klingons doubt romulan interference in an internal affair, picard coldly states to the ambassador "but they *do* have an interest in driving the federation and the klingon empire apart; our alliance is the only thing that has kept them in check..." ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-eRhs0I_87jc.html
Picard: "I do not require one, Tomalak". *sits down, straightens tunic Tomalak: "(Why do I hear boss music??)" "I urge you, Captain Picard, *surrender.* Consider the men and women you would lead into a *lost cause".* Picard: "If the cause is just and honorable, they are willing to give their lives. Are *you* prepared to die today, Tomalak?" Tomalak: "(Now why does this boss music sound like Jerry Goldsmith's Klingon theme?!)"
@Bullet holes for maga hats really....thst name. Do us a favor and run like the romulan targ you are. And youtube allowing a username which not only condones but calls for violence against people over a stupid opinion. Take a lesson from the tellarites
People often forget to acknowledge the incredible music in Star Trek. Turn off the screen, turn off the voices, and in many episodes you can STILL tell what is going on, and WHO is involved, just by the music.
@@willdavis3802 absolutely. E I think everything he said, "honorable," etc, was for the benefit of the listening Klingons. Otherwise the lines and attitude would've been a little out of character.
He was a lifelong chain-smoker and that ended up costing him his life. One actor at a convention said that whenever he wasn't acting he had a cigarette in his hand lit and smoking all the time
Still Andreas was one of the best human beings I've ever met. At first he has a audience sing Row Row Row Your Boat and when we were done he said thank you you made an old man happy you did a skip and a jump they said now I answer anything you haven't asked any went on to answer until no one was in line. What a fine human being was
I love how Tomalak looks shocked at the sudden appearance of the Klingon warships and has his previous smug smirk wiped out. He clearly underestimated Picard here......
The funny thing is, two D'deridex class warbirds still outmatch one Galaxy class and four birds of prey. The animators should have put more Klingon ships in the scene, instead they just made two of the birds of prey 10x their normal size, leading to one of the most comically badly animated ship scenes in TNG.
This was a perfect example of two things: forward planning and understanding your enemy. I would say its perhaps fair that Picard always had reservations around Jarok's veracity, smelling a possible ambush, hence his forward planning in getting the Klingons to assist. Also, in understanding how the Romulans behave, they will only risk confrontation when the odds are so heavily in their favour that defeat is virtually impossible. The Enterprise naturally couldn't win against 2 Warbirds, but with 3 Klingon K'Vort class battlecruisers at their back the certainty of Romulan victory is very much eliminated. Thus, they suddenly won't want to fight as we saw, instead choosing to slink away to live another day! Great writing!
Picard was a tactical genius. He just preferred diplomacy and peace over fighting. I forgot who did it, but someone broke down why the Picard Maneuver was so brilliant in a video.
A perfect example of plot development. He could have brought in all ships from the start, instead of playing the goat hoping to survive the first bite: Oh you brought two ships, .... but you didn't know I brought four
Even two K'Vorts (not battlecruisers, but enlarged and heavier armed B'Rels, maybe heavy cruisers) are barely a match for a D'Deridex. In a one-on-one, those ships are suprior to anything else until the Sovereign came out.
@@novacolonel5287 K'Vorts in Trek lore are known to be significantly larger than the B'Rel Birds of Prey, and they were established as battlecruisers in 'Yesterday's Enterprise' - there's no reason for their hull classification to change in the prime timeline would be my view.
@@novacolonel5287ne thing to keep in mind: Most of a D'Deridex's weapons are front-mounted, and this was an ambush counting on overpowering the enterprise. With their ambush so expertly predicted and a klingon war cruiser up each of their asses, those warbirds would be heavily fired upon before having a chance to fire back properly. And Romulans dont like sticking around for a fight like this, even if the odds might still be in their favor.
The musical score to this scene was pure genius. The Klingons decloaking is pretty obvious but when Picard tells Tomalak about how they would be willing to give their lives for the just and honorable cause at 3:15 you get that lone trumpet. It always brings tears to my eyes.
Not just that, but at 3:25 as soon as it shifts back to Tomalak's face on the viewscreen, that subtle Klingon theme starts playing foreshadowing what's about to happen and of course it comes in full swing as Worf sends the message. I just love the music in this series.
That lone trumpet is because is mirrors Henry V which is one of the themes of the episode. We start with data reciting Henry V, then we get Picard asking Data how the crew are to mirror the scene then we get the Henry V hopeless cause line here, "if the cause is just then we are prepared to die" the lone trumpet is a medieval trumpet to underscore the Henry V line. The Klingon twist and music is entirely separate
I also appreciate how when Tomalak makes his parting remarks, the Romulan theme composed by Ron Jones plays subtly under him. (Rick Berman firing Ron Jones was a real loss to the series.)
I never realized it before, but there is an interesting historical reference here. During the first Punic War, I believe it was, the Romans captured two Carthaginian warships. Their bows were displayed in the Forum, just as Tomalok plans to do with Enterprise. They became platforms for speakers to use in public debates. Their shape was similar to that of parrots' beaks, and so they came to be called. The Latin word for parrot's beak is, "rostrum".
This is a perfect microcosm of the political situation in TNG. The romulans are powerful enough to take on the federation or the Klingons on their own, but they would not be able to take on both at the same time.
The Romulans could take the Federation but supposing they could achieve victory it would still be Pyrrhic, and even without the Klingon-Federation Alliance the former might still take the opportunity to strike at the Romulans and settle old scores while they're committed against the Federation.
Romulans were always counterpunchers, they don't like to strike first unless sufficiently threatened ... skirmishes and power plays more likely than all-out war
@Steven Strain "Contrary to the propaganda" or something like that! I've always loved it when other powers respected the federation as adversaries. Kurn even has a moment like The romulan commander in an episode of ds9 which name escapes me atm
@Jim Barrows Actually, if one considers the world politics of the 1960s(when TOS was written), the Klingons were the Soviets while the Romulans were the Chinese communists(at the time, Taiwan was recognised by the US and the UN, whereas "red" China, was not). As for your comments about tactics, I find your comment about the relative cowardice of Russians to be groundless. I'm not a fan of their domestic and international policies, but cowardice is not a Russian trademark. Bad planning, staying with lost causes; yes; cowardice; no way. Cheers, Alan Tomlinson
In an episode called Future Imperfect, Riker says to Picard, "You yourself have said it's always a chess game with the Romulans. Move - countermove, guile and deceit." That is very much on display here.
Dark Kronis You misunderstand the term “blue balls”...lack of ejaculation after a long period of foreplay (or abstinence while yearning) is what causes BB, not withheld fights. Also, Picard prevented nothing...it was the Romulans who chose to leave prior to a conflict with the Klingons. They were all gung ho for a fight when it was in their favor 2 to 1....but when the Klingons showed up, suddenly it was 2 to 1 _against_ , and they tucked tail and -ran- walked briskly to the exit.
No.. Tomalak instigated the whole situation, putting out fake intelligence to test his own officer, knowing he would defect and that it would ultimately lure the Enterprise into the neutral zone, allowing him to capture the Enterprise. How can you say he was not playing on the same level as Picard? Come on now.
@@VagueMemory you underestimate Picard if you think he and Tomalak were on the same level. Picard's a little smarter than that dude. At some point Picard figured out this was all a setup, so he called for some cloaked backup. Those Klingon BOPs were shadowing the Enterprise before the Romulan ships decloaked.
Even if you don't like some of the lackluster battles on Next Gen... you gotta appreciate this moment. When 3 K'Vort cruisers came out of nowhere and made the Romulans pee their pants... no battle, but that's only because the Romulans KNEW they coulda gotten the shit kicked out of them. Superior tactics on Picard's part.
I love how Riker is smiling at Picard 3:49 That's the best thing about being friends with the klingons you can call on them to help you when you need it
@@demarcusfaulkner7411 Yes, it doesn't take long to persuade Klingons to kick someone's ass. The Klingons in the scene were certainly not happy that it was so peaceful. On the other hand, a lot of liters of blood wine have surely flowed when they toasted the cowardice of the Romulans.
Kingons: you ask for 3 ships Picard, what is there for us in exchange? Picard: you will either kill some Romulans or die in nonsense battle. Klingon: YESSSSSSSS...
@@FireLordJohn3191 They also got a chance to get detailed scans of the Warbirds. A military and intelligence coup of sorts for the Klingons. They now know what the Warbirds are capable of and can begin to adjust their tactics to deal with them.
I just love how they portrayed the obvious respect that Tomalok has for Picard as an adversary. The two characters play off each other beautifully as did Andreas and Patrick.
Reminds me of the Romulan commander and Captain Kirk in "Balance of Terror." Lenard and Shatner played off each other beautifully, just like these two men. And just like Picard and Tomalok, you could tell the Romulan Commander and Kirk, even though they didn't _like_ each other, clearly _respected_ each other.
Did Patrick and Andreas ever play off each other? Did they ever have scenes together? A scene like this they would both be filming on different days talking into blue screen or camera. There's no scope to play off each other
This entire scene is terrific, but the best part is how Tomalak thinks the entire time he has the situation under control even as his lies are unraveling. Once the Klingon warships decloak we see him briefly lose composure, and then he tries to bluff Picard, only to have his bluff called, and then decides it isnt worth dying over.
imagine those two constantly mocking and (heavily) fight over their empires agendas, but on the field helping each other out. And in the end of the series admitting they respect each other and part ways as somewhat friends.
The smugness of Worf's face when the Klingons decloak, it must have been hard work for him to contain himself from firing both phasers and torpidos lol, I bet the Klingons were thinking the same thing, praying a battle would begin.
yes, we only occasionally get indications of how actually powerful these weapons are when not directed against technology that has means of defence against them. The armaments of a single starship would likely be sufficient to wipe out all life on several planets at the very least given their yields
Well that's salvos fired in the beginning. The Romulan trying to take head start by weakening Enterprise's front shield. But yeah, the tense's real. Cool drama.
It was nice to see Tomalak one last time, but it did annoy me that Katsulas delivered those lines with the histrionic energy of G'Kar, not with Tomalak's smooth measured oiliness. Ah well, actors can get into habits when they play the same character a long time.
Such a scene. The Enterprise slowly turning tail to escape, to see the way free blocked at the last moment by the Romulans decloaking. One of my favourite scenes in sci-fi.
The "Gromulan" or "Greek Romulan" as my family always called him, due to the fact that he looked exactly like a close family friend who was not only very Greek, but even owned a Greek restaurant.. Tomalak, is by far one of the best foils, especially for Picard, since they can both maintain a high level of verbal sparring, and even one of the best overall characters in all of Star Trek history. It's a shame we couldn't have seem way more of him, especially considering the Romulan storylines of this era were super solid. An excellent, nuanced character, played by an excellent actor. Tomalak is THE standard, by which all Star Trek adversaries should be measured. RIP Andreas Katsulas.
Mu favourite tng scene by far. Always loved the romulan episodes. Loved the d'deridex class warbird. The sound when they decloak gives me goosebumps after 33 years !
I seem to imagine a scenario where Picard and the Enterprise-E along with some other starships aid a group of Romulan ships led by Tomalak being attacked by Jem'Hadar warships and later, Tomalak returns the favour and aids Picard against Jem'Hadar warships.
Worf being in on this secret cloaked Klingon ship ploy must mean he's been shaking with excitement the entire time, impatient af for Picard to give him the cue.
That's why he said "not yet, Mr. Worf. This is just a tap on the shoulder." While the bridge is shuddering and shaking about as the lights go off and on.
Picard has an excellent understanding of Romulan tactics. He KNEW that this was what they were going to do and came prepared. Only those Klingons were probably disappointed the Romulans chickened out. lol
tomluk: i expect more than idle threats from you picard picard: then you shall have it. mister worf. worf: aye sir. 4 klingon warships decloak around the trio. worf: klingon warships, armed and ready sir picard: what shall it be tomluk? tomluk: you still won't survive our assault! picard: and you will not survive ours, shall we die together? tomluk: i look forward to our next meeting captain. worf (with a look of QUPLA on him): romulan disruptors are powering down sir. romulan warships cloak away. the scene is a great example of human willpower, and the human pokerface. don't fuck with humans, ever!
@@Snowwie88 It's interesting, I always thought of this as 4 warships, based on the positioning around the ships. Even though there were only 3 shown, I just expected that there was a 4th one out of the shot to the left of the Enterprise to mirror the one to the right.
I wasn't in any way a fan of B5,...but For some reason Whenever he was on the screen, I found myself transfixed. especially when he was on screen with that guy Londo. extremely talented people.
TNG is the ONLY series I can watch every 10 years. These clips I found this morning has decided my third decade is time now. Sometimes I'm happy the human mind given time, can forget such great episodes so we can watch again..
One of my favorite episodes, that defector was such a great story. Should of been a two parter.. or a whole season! I was biting my hand the first time I watched this scene.
@@danieldickson8591 Yes…. the actor that played him (James Sloyan) did such an amazing job, he was so believable and made you feel for him. Damn what good TV!
@@valeriocorsetti7278 No, that was a remastered CGI scene you saw in "The Enterprise Incident". The original broadcast version with physical models had only D7s and the Enterprise. Watch at 5:11 in this side-by-side comparison. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-oaRVNf-BCBA.html
Imagine how Tomalok would have reacted if at 4:10 Picard had cut him off and basically gave him the same unreasonable terms of surrender speech he had just given a minute earlier.
Star Trek TNG: 1.5 million per episode on average adjusted in today's money for inflation lets call it 3.3 million. Moments like this where the tension and the threat of a battle is more exciting than having the battle it self. Star Trek Discovery: 8.5 million per episode. Gives you a space battle or high octane CGI bore fest every episode to try to hide the fact they have no idea what Star Trek is. Don't get me wrong when a TNG episode is bad its just about the worst thing you can watch on TV. I would still put up with a bad hour of TNG vs any hour of Discovery.
@@danielhausser8038 There were episodes in the DS9 that went over this and long story short the Feds, Roms, Klingons, and Cardassians all knew how to detect cloaked ships. The Roms and Klingons even more so since since they actively utilized the technology.
@@Not-Ap That was years later than this episode and I doubt they can detect them "just so" without a detection grid etc. Especially not on this episode or do you really think the Romulans wouldn't have at least mentioned Picard's ace up his sleeve to preempt him? Tomalak wouldn't have been so surprised. And why would Picard have gotten trapped here in the first place? Why were they all able to surprise each other here?
In another reality, after the warbirds decloak, more romulan ships decloak and more warbirds decloak and they continue like that for minutes, hours, days even.
Good God! You know what I miss nowadays? Solid writing like this! Star Trek isn't about special effects; it's about the interpersonal relationships and the drama. The Klutzman version of Trek is missing something at its very core: 💝.
One of the best and finest moments of all TNG. If they only had focused more in this kind of political struggle, the series it would have been much more than it was.
