Super Happy Fun Star Trek: The Next Generation Mistakes Video
February 22, 2024 7:21 PM Subscribe
Hello friends! It’s been a while... It’s me, Mr. Plinkett! Now, you all know I love Star Trek: The Next Generation. I’ve been watching episodes on the Blu Rays recently and I started to notice lots of little production errors. Things that the quick and dirty TV production of the 80’s and 90’s probably overlooked, didn’t notice, or didn’t care about. [Youtube, 1⁄2 hour]
-pressed latinum
posted by neonamber at 7:59 PM on February 22 [19 favorites]
posted by neonamber at 7:59 PM on February 22 [19 favorites]
oh my god I watched the whole fucking thing thanks a lot
posted by aubilenon at 8:08 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 8:08 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
This is funny but for those too young to remember what broadcast TV actually looked like, none of these errors would have been visible on the TVs available at the time. And VHS was worse quality, so even people who taped and rewatched episodes would be unlikely to notice anything.
There is an amusing section in the making-of documentary for Star Trek Generations (I think). That film was shot on existing sets for the TV show but they didn't save that much money. The had to redo all the details because they knew that it was going to projected onto a big screen and the audience would able to see the scuff marks and actually read the sarcastic labels that the original crew had decorated the set with.
posted by AndrewStephens at 8:17 PM on February 22 [5 favorites]
There is an amusing section in the making-of documentary for Star Trek Generations (I think). That film was shot on existing sets for the TV show but they didn't save that much money. The had to redo all the details because they knew that it was going to projected onto a big screen and the audience would able to see the scuff marks and actually read the sarcastic labels that the original crew had decorated the set with.
posted by AndrewStephens at 8:17 PM on February 22 [5 favorites]
I watched this the other day, and it does seem kind of incredible that when designing and building the sets no one seemed to consider how all the plexiglass would reflect the studio lights. While watching that part of the video I kept thinking: if they needed to use plexiglass couldn't they have angled it downward toward the floor so that lights wouldn't reflect directly into the cameras?
posted by good in a vacuum at 9:06 PM on February 22 [1 favorite]
posted by good in a vacuum at 9:06 PM on February 22 [1 favorite]
What has been seen cannot be unseen. I have seen… THE BLACK PAPER.
posted by ursus_comiter at 9:45 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
posted by ursus_comiter at 9:45 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
It's pretty interesting, but MAN I wish it were by anyone other than "Plinkett."
posted by UltraMorgnus at 9:52 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
posted by UltraMorgnus at 9:52 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
What's more, I hear they weren't even in space!
posted by senor biggles at 10:19 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
posted by senor biggles at 10:19 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
It's pretty interesting, but MAN I wish it were by anyone other than "Plinkett."
Maybe that's just what Mike sounds like now.
posted by tclark at 10:36 PM on February 22 [3 favorites]
Maybe that's just what Mike sounds like now.
posted by tclark at 10:36 PM on February 22 [3 favorites]
I’m love/hate/love with the Red Letter Media guys. The Plinkett character is pretty toxic, but I really get the feeling that the creators have realized this. I’m glad they have gone as far as they have to back-burner that character. Even here the character is considerably toned down, which works for me.
The recent spotlight they did on Dinner in America was enlightening. I really appreciate getting a nudge in the direction of interesting films that are otherwise overlooked as direct-to-streaming filler.
I also recall admiring their justification for disliking the Paul Feig Ghostbusters movie. The amount of unfounded, misogynistic animosity around that movie was staggering, which made legitimate criticism nearly impossible, but I feel like they made a good case for a lot of the humor just not landing (aside from Kate McKinnon who absolutely stole every scene in the best way).
But I really wish they would add a feminine personality to their crew.
posted by neuracnu at 10:54 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
The recent spotlight they did on Dinner in America was enlightening. I really appreciate getting a nudge in the direction of interesting films that are otherwise overlooked as direct-to-streaming filler.
I also recall admiring their justification for disliking the Paul Feig Ghostbusters movie. The amount of unfounded, misogynistic animosity around that movie was staggering, which made legitimate criticism nearly impossible, but I feel like they made a good case for a lot of the humor just not landing (aside from Kate McKinnon who absolutely stole every scene in the best way).
But I really wish they would add a feminine personality to their crew.
posted by neuracnu at 10:54 PM on February 22 [7 favorites]
>if they needed to use plexiglass couldn't they have angled it downward toward the floor so that lights wouldn't reflect directly into the cameras?
Now'a'days if they have the budget they'll gimble every glass window in a set. Think pairs of pivots so you can move it to any angle. Otherwise it's a giant pain in the arse for the crew to keep themselves and their gear out of shot. Wearing black helps too, as does standing perfectly still, the cameras vision is based on movement.
posted by Pink Fuzzy Bunny at 11:12 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
Now'a'days if they have the budget they'll gimble every glass window in a set. Think pairs of pivots so you can move it to any angle. Otherwise it's a giant pain in the arse for the crew to keep themselves and their gear out of shot. Wearing black helps too, as does standing perfectly still, the cameras vision is based on movement.
posted by Pink Fuzzy Bunny at 11:12 PM on February 22 [2 favorites]
They had Jessi (Mike's partner) and the funny, little bit weird, tummy stroking lady years ago. My guess is they stopped with that because the comment section got taken over by people being aweful.
posted by Kosmob0t at 1:23 AM on February 23 [5 favorites]
posted by Kosmob0t at 1:23 AM on February 23 [5 favorites]
Oh the flute thing...
posted by pompomtom at 5:26 AM on February 23 [3 favorites]
posted by pompomtom at 5:26 AM on February 23 [3 favorites]
Ugh. At first I didn't understand what everyone was talking about Plinkett, but after five minutes of watching this I can't stand him.
Also do the mistake get better and more interesting than a stray power cords (why does Plinkett keep making remarks about insulin pumps?) and pieces of carpet? I was kind of hoping for more hilarious intrusions like people in the background running face first into doors that didn't open or Patrick Stewart wearing comfy slippers ala Peter Cushing.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 5:33 AM on February 23 [7 favorites]
Also do the mistake get better and more interesting than a stray power cords (why does Plinkett keep making remarks about insulin pumps?) and pieces of carpet? I was kind of hoping for more hilarious intrusions like people in the background running face first into doors that didn't open or Patrick Stewart wearing comfy slippers ala Peter Cushing.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 5:33 AM on February 23 [7 favorites]
Yes, they often used to feature women as part of the RLM on-camera talent crew, but they stopped because the fan community became obsessive, creepy and disgusting about the women. Doxxing them, their relationships (or lack thereof) with other on-camera RLM crew, and exposing stuff about their personal lives, postulating weird shit, I think even stalking them. RLM is just a handful of people with very normal lives in Milwaukee, it ain't some professional show business outfit.
RLM has stated this explicitly, that's the reason there are no longer any women on camera in RLM videos. Because some fans were extremely awful.
I love RLM videos, for the most part. Wish they would do more simple videos about movies and shows they liked, but they know their YouTube numbers better than I do.
RonButNotStupid, a lot of the comedy with RLM is long running jokes. Being obsessive about things like power cords and stains on the carpet, miniscule mistakes. It's what Frank Zappa referred to as "conceptual continuity," long, long ago. Their content is absorbed over time, it's rare that a single video becomes its own thing. If you'r a fan, you watch them all the time, and the jokes make sense.
I'm not a fan of the Plinkett character, but that character is very rarely used anymore. He embodies the character of the weird, obsessive fan, scrutinizing tiny, meaningless details. It's a bit.
RLM does a lot of other stuff that I enjoy much more.
posted by SoberHighland at 5:59 AM on February 23 [12 favorites]
RLM has stated this explicitly, that's the reason there are no longer any women on camera in RLM videos. Because some fans were extremely awful.
I love RLM videos, for the most part. Wish they would do more simple videos about movies and shows they liked, but they know their YouTube numbers better than I do.
RonButNotStupid, a lot of the comedy with RLM is long running jokes. Being obsessive about things like power cords and stains on the carpet, miniscule mistakes. It's what Frank Zappa referred to as "conceptual continuity," long, long ago. Their content is absorbed over time, it's rare that a single video becomes its own thing. If you'r a fan, you watch them all the time, and the jokes make sense.
I'm not a fan of the Plinkett character, but that character is very rarely used anymore. He embodies the character of the weird, obsessive fan, scrutinizing tiny, meaningless details. It's a bit.
RLM does a lot of other stuff that I enjoy much more.
posted by SoberHighland at 5:59 AM on February 23 [12 favorites]
It's a real fucking shame they switched away from film for DS9 and Voyager, I'll tell you what.
posted by seanmpuckett at 10:56 AM on February 23
posted by seanmpuckett at 10:56 AM on February 23
(camera catches a slip of paper on Worf's chair)
"I think that's Michael Dorn's receipt from when he went to Chili's, it must have fallen out of his pants."
Absolutely perfect fanthink there: I know two things about this subject so obviously there is an A->B causal connection!
I'm glad they are salvaging Plinkett's tone-perfect fannishness from the general grossness of the character.
posted by Sauce Trough at 11:06 AM on February 23
"I think that's Michael Dorn's receipt from when he went to Chili's, it must have fallen out of his pants."
Absolutely perfect fanthink there: I know two things about this subject so obviously there is an A->B causal connection!
I'm glad they are salvaging Plinkett's tone-perfect fannishness from the general grossness of the character.
posted by Sauce Trough at 11:06 AM on February 23
Would love to watch this all the way through, but the narrator is so obnoxiously annoying, it's probably not going ever to happen. Sad, too, TNG is the best Trek.
posted by zbaco at 11:09 AM on February 23 [2 favorites]
posted by zbaco at 11:09 AM on February 23 [2 favorites]
RLM has stated this explicitly, that's the reason there are no longer any women on camera in RLM videos. Because some fans were extremely awful.
To me, this would be a sign of doing some soul-searching about who exactly they're reaching with their content, if their "fans" are being vile - not to reach for the Billy Graham Rule. (And before you say that's unfair, let me point out that their argument is the same one Ninja used to justify not streaming with women.)
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:28 AM on February 23 [5 favorites]
To me, this would be a sign of doing some soul-searching about who exactly they're reaching with their content, if their "fans" are being vile - not to reach for the Billy Graham Rule. (And before you say that's unfair, let me point out that their argument is the same one Ninja used to justify not streaming with women.)
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:28 AM on February 23 [5 favorites]
Back in my media journalism days, I did the press junket for the Stargate series in Vancouver. This would have been around 2007 or so, I guess. Lot of interesting tidbits out of that, but the one that's relevant here is the cast get-together. They set up a folding table and chairs on one of the starship sets, and we all sat around it with our recorders on the table, and then cast members would come in one at a time and we had 15 minutes or so with each to ask questions.
One of the things that struck me was how incredibly shabby the set looked. Poured cement floor. Wooden frames covered in black styrofoam, plastic lights and switches, stick on labels. It looked astonishingly fake. I couldn't imagine how this would look remotely convincing on screen. And yet it did! I can only chalk it up to the magic of the camera.
posted by Naberius at 1:05 PM on February 23 [6 favorites]
One of the things that struck me was how incredibly shabby the set looked. Poured cement floor. Wooden frames covered in black styrofoam, plastic lights and switches, stick on labels. It looked astonishingly fake. I couldn't imagine how this would look remotely convincing on screen. And yet it did! I can only chalk it up to the magic of the camera.
posted by Naberius at 1:05 PM on February 23 [6 favorites]
This may have talked a friend of mine out of buying TNG on blu ray. I'll never be able to watch and episode without spotting the black paper and floor marks.
posted by cmfletcher at 1:18 PM on February 23
posted by cmfletcher at 1:18 PM on February 23
none of these errors would have been visible on the TVs available at the time
... as the video in the OP mentions many, many times.
posted by hanov3r at 3:12 PM on February 23
... as the video in the OP mentions many, many times.
posted by hanov3r at 3:12 PM on February 23
It's pretty interesting, but MAN I wish it were by anyone other than "Plinkett."
I can't stand it, which is a shame because the content is great.
posted by kirkaracha at 4:14 PM on February 23 [1 favorite]
I can't stand it, which is a shame because the content is great.
posted by kirkaracha at 4:14 PM on February 23 [1 favorite]
It's pretty interesting, but MAN I wish it were by anyone other than "Plinkett."
That’s entirely what keeps me from even opening it.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:54 PM on February 23 [3 favorites]
That’s entirely what keeps me from even opening it.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:54 PM on February 23 [3 favorites]
One of the things that struck me was how incredibly shabby the set looked. Poured cement floor. Wooden frames covered in black styrofoam, plastic lights and switches, stick on labels. It looked astonishingly fake. I couldn't imagine how this would look remotely convincing on screen.
This falls under the 'never visit a nightclub in daylight' rule.
posted by jordantwodelta at 1:53 PM on February 25 [1 favorite]
This falls under the 'never visit a nightclub in daylight' rule.
posted by jordantwodelta at 1:53 PM on February 25 [1 favorite]
Props and sets are kind of remarkably low quality in person, especially for content aimed at pre-HD broadcast. Which makes sense - adding lots of tiny details not only adds time to creation, but also leads to more continuity issues to track.
RLM has stated this explicitly, that's the reason there are no longer any women on camera in RLM videos. Because some fans were extremely awful.
Keeping those fans is more of a priority to them than putting effort into supporting their own staff, got it.
posted by Molten Berle at 5:10 PM on February 25 [2 favorites]
RLM has stated this explicitly, that's the reason there are no longer any women on camera in RLM videos. Because some fans were extremely awful.
Keeping those fans is more of a priority to them than putting effort into supporting their own staff, got it.
posted by Molten Berle at 5:10 PM on February 25 [2 favorites]
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