Television Review: Cost of Living (Star Trek: The Next Generation, S5x20, 1992)
Cost of Living (S05E20)
Airdate: 20 April 1992
Written by: Peter Alan Fields Directed by: Winrich Kolbe
Running Time: 46 minutes
Star Trek: The Next Generation is rightly regarded as the franchise's golden age for much, if not all, of its seven-season run. However, its rigorously episodic nature inevitably led to some serious missteps, instalments so tonally aberrant or poorly conceived that they risked alienating viewers who might otherwise have become lifelong 'trekkies'. One such example is the fifth-season offering Cost of Living. While far from the absolute nadir of either TNG or Star Trek as a whole, it is one of the series' most profound disappointments. Its core flaw is one of identity: it feels like an intruder from another genre, resembling a routine and uninspired 1990s sitcom far more than even a below-par episode of thoughtful science fiction drama.
The plot, such as it is, is bifurcated into two strands that never meaningfully intersect. It begins with the USS Enterprise-D destroying an asteroid threatening Tesselin III, during which the ship is coated by a mysterious dust. The vessel then proceeds to the Mosalina System. Concurrently, Lieutenant Worf becomes increasingly despondent over his inability to parent his young son, Alexander Rozhenko. He seeks counselling from Deanna Troi, who devises a formal 'contract' between parent and child to delineate obligations. These efforts are immediately thwarted by the arrival of Deanna's mother, Lwaxanna Troi, who announces—accompanied by her silent attendant Mr. Homn—that she is to marry Campio (Tony Jay), a powerful minister from Kostolain, despite never having met him. Awaiting his arrival for a wedding ceremony in Ten Forward, Lwaxanna befriends Alexander and systematically sabotages Deanna's disciplinary efforts, encouraging the boy's free-spiritedness. They spend their time in a bizarre holodeck simulation of the 'Parallax Colony'. Meanwhile, the mysterious dust is revealed to be a nitrium parasite, which begins to degrade the Enterprise's systems, starting with the replicators and escalating to life support. Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge eventually deduces the source and devises a solution involving a return to an asteroid field, creating a standard race-against-time crisis that is ultimately resolved.
After the engineering crisis is averted, the personal storyline reaches its limp conclusion. Lwaxanna realises Campio is not a suitable match and sabotages her own wedding by appearing naked in Ten Forward—a shock to her prudish fiancé, who promptly leaves. This final beat underscores the episode's fundamental lack of stakes or consequence.
The script, written by Peter Alan Fields, is particularly perplexing given the writer's pedigree. Fields had made a strong debut with the poignant @drax/television-review-half-a-life-star-trek-the-next-generation-s4x22-1991" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Half a Life, which also featured Lwaxanna Troi, and would later earn fame for the classic The Inner Light and his work on Deep Space Nine. One would not guess that from 'Cost of Living', which represents formulaic, uninspired fluff. It wastes the considerable talent of Majel Barrett and the latent potential of Lwaxanna, one of the franchise's more controversial but genuinely interesting recurring characters. Here, she is reduced to a mere plot device for broad comedy and superficial sentiment.
The sitcomish conceit of Worf struggling with his increasingly vexatious son grows tiresome remarkably quickly. While Lwaxanna's grandmotherly interaction with Alexander provides a momentary refreshment from Klingon sternness, even this dynamic is undermined by the surreal, clown-like inhabitants of the Parallax Colony holodeck. Ironically, these creations won the episode an Emmy Award for makeup and costuming, yet within the narrative they feel annoying and utterly disconnected, serving only as garish background for inconsequential antics. The episode further indulges in unusual fan service via a gratuitous scene featuring a body-painted dancer, a moment that feels tonally jarring and desperate for attention.
Amidst these failures, Majel Barrett nevertheless delivers a commendable performance. Her monologue expressing a fear of loneliness and a desire to compromise in her search for companionship is genuinely moving. This poignancy is inadvertently deepened by the knowledge that Barrett had recently become a widow in real life following the death of her husband, Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry. It is a fleeting moment of authentic humanity in an otherwise hollow script.
The decision to have Lwaxanna appear naked at the wedding—though carefully framed within the broadcast standards of early 1990s American television—is a rare nod to TNG's own continuity, referencing her species's cultural norms regarding attire. However, the choice to have the young Alexander present at this ceremony, gleefully observing his friend's state of undress, is a detail that would rightly raise eyebrows in a contemporary context, adding an uncomfortable layer to an already clumsy sequence.
Ultimately, every marginally successful element is sabotaged by the perfunctory 'Enterprise in peril' B-storyline. The nitrium parasite subplot feels entirely grafted on to pad the running time to forty-five minutes, exhibiting no thematic resonance with the A-plot concerning family, commitment, or ageing. It is a textbook example of filler, relying on technobabble and a generic crisis to inject artificial tension where none naturally exists. The resolution is as mechanically executed as it is forgettable.
Cost of Living is an episode that fails on almost every level that defines quality Star Trek. It lacks compelling science fiction concepts, meaningful character development, or insightful social commentary. Instead, it offers a tedious familial comedy and a boilerplate ship-in-jeopardy scenario, both executed with a startling lack of inspiration. For a series routinely capable of profound intelligence and narrative ambition, this episode represents a baffling lapse, a piece of sitcom flotsam adrift in the stars. It is the kind of misfire that, encountered by a newcomer, could indeed convince them to discard the entire franchise—and one that even dedicated fans must endure rather than enjoy.
RATING: 4/10 (+)
Blog in Croatian https://draxblog.com Blog in English https://draxreview.wordpress.com/ InLeo blog @drax.leo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://inleo.io/@drax.leo
LeoDex: https://leodex.io/?ref=drax InLeo: https://inleo.io/signup?referral=drax.leo Hiveonboard: https://hiveonboard.com?ref=drax Rising Star game: https://www.risingstargame.com?referrer=drax 1Inch: https://1inch.exchange/#/r/0x83823d8CCB74F828148258BB4457642124b1328e
BTC donations: 1EWxiMiP6iiG9rger3NuUSd6HByaxQWafG ETH donations: 0xB305F144323b99e6f8b1d66f5D7DE78B498C32A7 BCH donations: qpvxw0jax79lhmvlgcldkzpqanf03r9cjv8y6gtmk9