Amac Productions

Um… I’m not sure I have the words for this episode.

A guy legit takes some alien drug to make himself younger. Then when he’s summoned to a crisis situation, he decides to just down the whole thing, including the one he got for his wife. Apparently, he decided being young and able to handle the negotiations was more important than his time with her.

Oh well, she can just die from old age.

He did not deserve her. Not in the slightest.

Maybe he was once a good man. And his intentions behind getting it for both of them was good. Except for the part where his ego gets in the way and he decides to ‘upend the bottle’ as his wife put it.

Yeesh.

Out of all the things that happened in this episode, I’m most sad for her.

She was looking forward to time together. As we’ve seen from Picard and Riker, when you’re a high-ranking officer with Starfleet, it doesn’t leave a lot of time for one’s personal life. Even with Deanna literally stationed five feet from him, Riker and her cannot seem to get their shit together.

So, I imagine, after a busy and decorated career, she was looking forward to retirement together. Spending what was left of their golden years together. Even if she had to care for him because his body was slowly rotting away.

Because that’s what happens when you spend a life with someone.

Regardless of whether or not they have a serious disease. Age comes for us all.

We will all arrive at the age when we shit ourselves by accident. Fall over and can’t get back up by ourselves. Maybe even have parts replaced. Be bedridden for a time. Possibly forever. Lose our minds. Aliments will come in all shapes and sizes for us all one day. At some point in your life, more than likely, your spouse will end up caring for you in one way or another.

But that is literally something you committed to.

So, the idea that he thought his wife was suffering because she had to care for him is just ridiculous and hogwash and speaking purely from his ego. From the man he wishes he could still be.

As Picard points out that there is wisdom and grace in aging. Getting older. It’s not a crime and we shouldn’t treat it as such.

I really love that this episode focuses on the idea that youth is not the end all, be all. Age has its place. Aging has its place.

To me, it appear that Anne – his wife – was more bothered that he planned to live a life without her. Since he took both of their aging ‘medicine’ and was – essentially – going to leave her behind. Appearing as though he didn’t think about her at all when he took the dosage. Only thinking of his career and feeling young again. Getting there quicker.

Meanwhile, Anne just wanted to be with him.

Spend her final years with him.

To quote Lorelai Gilmore, ‘she just wanted someone to hang out with until she died.’

It’s not too much to ask.

And I find it ridiculous that people don’t consider the idea of aging when choosing the person they’re going to spend their life with. Because you do choose. You can walk away if you imagine that this person would feel more like a burden when they’re struggling than just enjoying being with them.

Strip away the looks. Strip away the age. The good times. When all that’s left is them on a bad day – is that better than a day without them?

Anne said yes.

Jameson missed the point entirely.

Not that he said no or wouldn’t take care of her. But his ego didn’t allow him to consider himself as anything other than a burden to her. A shell of the man he once was. Someone – he thought – people looked at and pitied. Said things like, ‘remember when he was great.’ His ego took his life from him.

His time with his wife.

Instead of getting more time, he got even less than he should have.

This episode of Star Trek doesn’t tell you that youth is everything. It tells you there is beauty and grace in getting older. Seeing your past mistakes and understanding that you’ve learned from them. That you made a mistake in youth because you thought you knew everything.

Realizing as you get older that you don’t. And never will.

Then coming to terms with the idea that you’re okay with that. You don’t need to know everything. Have all the right answers. Be perfect. You can simply be.

Such as Picard.

He simply is himself.

Understands that he’s getting older but has lived a life he’s satisfied with.

That Riker is still full of youth but knows there’s more to learn from the universe, from people. From people like Picard. Even from Jameson. That getting old isn’t a curse.

It simply is.

And spending time wishing to be younger or wishing you were more like you were when you were younger is time wasted. You’ll never go back. You can only forward. And you should enjoy whatever time you have here.

Because instead of enjoying the time with his wife. Jameson suffered a terribly painful death and put his wife through something truly awful. Completely selfish choice here.

I really loved this episode.

A lot of media I grew up with treated aging like it was this horrible thing we needed to stop. To push pause and live life forever at one age.

I mean, look at the amount of vampire media we had in the late 2000s, and 2010s. In Twilight, Bella thinks there’s nothing worse than getting older.

In Vampire Diaries, Elena is the odd one out for not wanting to be a vampire. For wanting to get older. People think she’s crazy. If she could choose to live forever, why wouldn’t she?

It appeared time and time again. I remember it so vividly because there was a part of me that was scared to stop being a teenager. That my life was somehow over and everything would just suck from there out.

Except, that’s not true in the slightest.

In my 20s I learned so much about myself. About the people I wanted to surround myself with. I did dumb stuff. Quit a job I hated and moved on. Got into a motorcycle accident. Found a group of friends I wanted to keep forever. Stayed out way too late with friends. Discovered new things about myself I never considered before. I lived. Learned. Grew.

And realized that aging is actually kind of fun.

I got to be an idiot on my own terms. Screwed up. Pissed people off. Apologized. Realized that my ego isn’t everything. I don’t have to be perfect. I can just be. I can screw up and make mistakes. Admitting them and asking for help is always better. Things I never understood as a teenager.

Life feeling like it was going to end at a certain age went away.

Leaving my 20s and entering my 30s I wondered what it would hold next for me. Since a lot of people told me my 30s would be better than my 20s.

Life evolves and changes. You evolve and change with time. And you get to know yourself better and better through time and experiences. I wouldn’t trade where I am to be a teenager again.

I wouldn’t trade where I am to be 24 again.

I’ve never experienced this age before or the next one. I wonder what they’ll hold in store for me.

Overall, this is a good episode dealing with an interesting topic in a unique way. Meant for the audience to understand that growing old isn’t the end of the world. Especially, if you’ve led a good life (whatever that means to you) and you can share the end of your life with people you love (whoever that might be, could be dog.)

Before my Papa died, one random day, he announced that if he died tomorrow – which he did not – he would be happy. He had a family, took care of them, and lived the simple life he wanted. I thought to myself – that I hope when I’m facing the end – I can look back and be happy with the life I lived. To die with peace knowing it may not have been perfect, but I made the most of it.

I think that’s a really important message.

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