Observations in TNG: "Power Play"
A joint project with TrekCore, by Jörg Hillebrand and Bernd Schneider
Here are some observations about sets, props and visual effects in TNG: "Power Play" without a specific theme, and a comparison of the original TV release (TNG) with the remastered episode (TNG-R).
"Power Play" HD Screencaps @ TrekCore
| Description TNG | Other caps | Comparison TNG to TNG-R | Description TNG-R | |
| The USS Enterprise-D approaches Mab-Bu IV and its moon. The moon appears in several more shots in this episode while the planet is only seen here. |    |
The planet was recreated for TNG-R, with the same unusual colors as in the original episode. | ||
| The moon of Mab-Bu IV as seen on the main viewscreen. |   |
The cloud structures are finer in TNG-R. | ||
| The USS Enterprise-D in orbit of Mab-Bu IV's moon. |   |
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| The Type-15 shuttlepod Campbell flies through the turbulent atmosphere of the moon. |   |
The clouds were created completely anew for the remastering and look much more convincing now. | ||
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| The interior of the shuttlepod looks much bigger now than it did when it last appeared in "In Theory". A new larger interior was most likely created for just this episode and positioned on a hydraulic platform so the whole sets could be shaken violently, hence the rarely seen seatbelts. Variations of the Type-15 Shuttle |
 "In Theory" |
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No changes | |
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| The Campbell continues its descent through the clouds. |   |
Again, the clouds were completely recreated from scratch for the remastering. | ||
| The crash-landed shuttlepod is seen on the surface of Mab-Bu IV's moon. The mountains in the background are clearly a painted backdrop. |   |
The shot in HD. | ||
| The aft hatch cover of the shuttlepod has been jettisoned, so Riker, Troi and Data can leave the shuttle through the round aft hatch. |   |
The TNG-R shot doesn't show more details of the shuttlepod. | ||
| The painted backdrop on the surface of the moon can be seen a little better here. |   |
The backdrop is even more clearly visible in HD. Note that due to the lightnings the brightness of the shots in the planet set varies considerably. | ||
| The Ux-Mal criminals approach the away team in an oncoming storm. |   |
The shot in TNG-R. | ||
| Pattern enhancers appear for the first time on Star Trek in this episode. Here, and in "Ship in a Bottle", three pattern enhancers are carried in a practical case. |  "Ship in a Bottle" |
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No changes | |
| The lightning gives away the folds in the fabric of the painted backdrop. |   |
Once again, the painting is clearly visible in HD. | ||
| A broken off nacelle (a similar one from the Type-6 shuttle, although it is a runabout that crashed) can also be seen in the DS9 episode "Battle Lines". |  DS9: "Battle Lines" |
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A look at the nacelle in HD. | |
| All three screenshots in this sequence feature anionic energy, all that is left of the Ux-Mal criminals, encountered in this episode. |   |
The effect was reconstructed for TNG-R. | ||
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| The pattern enhancers in action. |   |
The scene in HD. | ||
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| This extreme close-up shows the large dark pupils (or irises) of Betazoid eyes, achieved by using large black contact lenses. |   |
Deanna's eyes in HD. | ||
| When an angry Data/Ux-Mal criminal slams the ops console, Data's white make-up noticeably comes off. |   |
In HD, we can't see the make-up stain. | ||
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| The control interface to the left of the turbolift was especially added for this episode. Notice how the turbolift floor carpet is red here. |  "New Ground" |
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The error was corrected for TNG-R. The carpet is consistently red now. | |
| Three Starfleet communicators can be nicely seen on the floor of the turbolift in this screenshot. Notice how the carpet is no longer red but brown, meaning this scene was shot in a different turbolift (or a completely different set). |   |
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| This is a rare look at the short corridor in front of the starboard Ten Forward door. Troi and O'Brien are seen leaving a door to the left of Data. On the set, this could only have been the starboard Ten Forward door. Ironical, as the three possessed crewmembers are seen entering Ten Forward through the port door a few minutes later. |  |
No changes | ||
| The wall panel that Data smashes in was especially created for this scene. Normally, the black LCARS panel located here is flush with the wall. |  "The Defector" |
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No changes | |
| Sparks of energy run through Data's arm as he attempts to bypass the force field stopping the criminals from getting to Ten Forward. |   |
The reconstructed effect in TNG-R. | ||
| The nozzle of the Type-2 phaser pistol can be seen very well in this shot. |   |
An HD close-up of the phaser nozzle. | ||
| This scene is edited interestingly. It switches from a close-up of the transporter console to a close-up of a newly added console in Ten Forward, allowing a close look at both LCARS displays. |   |
The two consoles in HD. | ||
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| Colorful circuits can be seen under the floor panels of the Jefferies tube above Ten Forward as Ro Laren cuts a small hole in the hull plating using a micro-optic drill. |   |
The circuitry in HD. | ||
| The newly created device Ro and Geordi use to monitor the activities of the criminals in Ten Forward can be nicely seen in this screenshot. Behind Geordi and Ro, the Jefferies tube is extended not very convincingly, using a painted backdrop. |   |
A good look at the console in HD. | ||
| A good look at the display of the console used in the Jefferies tube in this episode. The small box with green, yellow and red buttons seen in the left half of the screenshot was also seen inside an engineering console in "The Game". |  "The Game" |
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| Two of the criminals are hit by a plasma shock. |   |
The effect was reconstructed for TNG-R. | ||
| A Terrace game board can be seen lying on the floor next to O'Brien's feet. The game was introduced as set decoration in Ten Forward in season 5. Terrace got its biggest screen time in season 7's "Lower Decks", however. A game board with all pieces still in place was seen behind Keiko O'Brien a little earlier in the episode. |  "Lower Decks" |
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No changes | |
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| The USS Enterprise-D in a polar orbit of the southern polar region of Mab-Bu IV's moon. |   |
The shot in HD. | ||
| The small console behind the Ten Forward bar was especially added to the set for this episode, so the criminals could have a convenient way to contact the bridge crew and plan their escape. The screenshot from the previous episode "Conundrum" shows that the console was not yet in place in that episode. Similar consoles have appeared in several TNG episodes since season 2. One console of this type was last seen in main engineering in "The Game". |  "The Game" |
 "Conundrum" |
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An HD close-up of the console. |
| This short scene showing the criminals taking their hostages from Ten Forward to a nearby turbolift is interesting in several ways. The short corridor leading to the port Ten Forward door can be seen very well in this shot. From "The Child", when the set first appeared, until the end of the series, this section of the corridor featured a fake gray door that was never seen in use. |  |
No changes | ||
| When the group of criminals and hostages walks to the turbolift, the computer terminal that was previously destroyed by Data can be seen. Apparently, it has been repaired already. |  |
No changes | ||
| When the group enters the turbolift, the starboard Ten Forward door can briefly be seen, begging the question, why the starboard door was not used to leave Ten Forward in the first place. Using this shortcut would have made the scene very short and undramatic, of course, so the detour can be forgiven. |  |
No changes | ||
| Blue and yellow cargo containers like this were first seen in a cargo bay aboard the USS Enterprise-D in "Disaster". |  "Disaster" |
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The cargo containers in HD. | |
| The set borders of the cargo bay are clearly visible in the top left hand corner of this scene. |   |
The set borders are still faintly visible in TNG-R. | ||
| The anionic energy of the Ux-Mal criminals can be nicely seen behind a possessed Troi in this shot. |   |
The reconstructed effect in TNG-R. | ||
| It seems this graphic of the magnetic flux density uses the same elements as a similar graphic seen in main engineering in "The Masterpiece Society" a few episodes earlier. |  "The Masterpiece Society" |
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The graphic in HD. | |
| Filming equipment is visible at the left frame of this screenshot. |   |
We can still see something like a tripod on the left. | ||
| The Ux-Mal criminals finally leave Troi's, Data's and O'Brien's bodies. |   |
The reconstructed effect in TNG-R. | ||
| The USS Enterprise-D leaves orbit Mab-Bu IV's moon. |   |
The shot in TNG-R. | ||
Credits
Thanks to Thorsten Wieking who correctly objected that the nacelle in "Battle Lines" is not the same.
