TNG - Cost of Living

In this episode, a some what depressed Lwaxana Troi, one of the most annoying characters in Trek, returns to the Enterprise, to get married to a man, she’s never met, and succeeds in getting into trouble with another annoying character, Alexander, while metal-eating parasites devour the Enterprise bit by bit. The ensuing events make for a very odd episode. Some of it is good, some of it is hilarious, and, then there are other parts that are just plain stupid. Lwaxana Troi is annoying in every episode she appears in. However, in this episode she sets a new standard. This is not a bad thing; she is supposed to be annoying. In fact, I would be disappointed if her actions didn’t make me want to throw something at the TV! Therefore her annoyingness is one of the highlights of this epsoiode. On the other hand, Alexander also sets a new high standard as far as annoyingness goes. This is not a good thing; his character is not supposed to come across as annoying, yet he bitches and moans so much about everything in this episode that he comes across as more annoying than Mrs. Troi. Most of the stuff in this episode that was intended to be humorous, comes across as being silly, lame, or stupid. Everything that goes on in the holodeck falls under this category, although one of the best Worf lines “you’re just supposed to sit here” takes place in the holodeck at the end of the episode. Another hilarious line for this episode is said by Picard “nothing would give me more pleasure than to give away Mrs. Troi,” or something to that effect. The sub-plot in this episode is actually very good, but was not given enough time in the episode, instead the episode focused mostly on the stupidity going on in the holodeck. Cost of Living had its moments but for the most part was filled with copious quantities of lame humor.