Gates McFaden and season two
Why did they kick her off but then bring her back?
shareBeen told and re-told and told over again
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MovieChat Forums > Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) Discussion > Gates McFaden and season two
She was too vocal in her complaints about sexist storylines. Maurice somebody got rid of her. But then Maurice somebody left in Season 2 which opened the door for her to return.
shareWhy did they kick her off but then bring her back?
shareMaurice O'Hurley was responsible for McFadden being gone in season two.
When he left before season three, Patrick Stewart was responsible for getting her back as he pushed for the remaining writers to write her back in and then convinced her to come back.
was it sexist storylines for her character or sexual harassment on Gates McFadden IRL? I thought it was the harassment story. that would make more sense than sexist storylines.
Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.
I prefer Pulaski anyway. I wish she would've stayed.
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
There are two reasons as far as I know first reason was that McFadden wanted more input in the roles since she came from a theatre background she was used that actors were given a certain amount of freedom to fill in their roles.The other was that some exec(Maurice Hurley) was harassing Mcfadden and that she was very vocal about that, where Stewart was the only one supporting her so when Maurice Hurley left at the end of season two(because he was one of Roddenberry's yes men)it was Stewart that campaigned heavily to get McFadden back.
shareWorst thing Stewart ever did.
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
I liked Beverly better she actually fitted much better in the ensemble cast of TNG Pulaski always stood a bit out of that ensemble cast it is not that she was bad or something but crusher just seemed to fit better with the rest.
shareDiana Muldaur has just got to be the ugliest woman ever in Hollywood.
It's easier to have fantasies about The Traveler than it is to even think about Pulaski...
S2 really should be non-canon, if for no other reason than to officially declare that Pulaski never existed
Diana Muldaur has just got to be the ugliest woman ever in Hollywood.I had no idea every female character needs to meet some standard so that you can have 'fantasies' about them.  share
It's easier to have fantasies about The Traveler than it is to even think about Pulaski...
He's a weird wolf, Censor.
Movie Theater: Young Frankenstein 10/10. RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time.
I like that she didn't fit the mold though. She stood out. You noticed her.
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
When TNG was first airing I hated Pulaski, but now watching these episodes again I think she's a far better character than Crusher. That's the main thing, Pulaski is a character while McFaddens acting abilities always meant Crushers involvement in any plots was very limited. Usually standing about not doing much more than giving out medical diagnoses and injecting people with hypos.
I think the TNG crew really needed that crew member who wasn't just a yes man. Who would offer up their own ideas and introduce a slight conflict into the show. It's a real shame she left and it's an even bigger shame she was stuck in the worst of all the seven seasons.
You had me right up until you said "worst of all seasons". Season 2 is better than season 1, for sure. And has several of my all time favorite episodes in it.
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
Season two has "Up the Long Ladder" with the Irish space peasants and "Shades of Grey" my two worst episodes (them and the one with Crusher's rapey space ghost). The writers strike shows for this season.
shareI think the awkward Season 1, where the characters are not even developed properly, is by far the weakest. If you compare they way they act to any other season, they seem almost like different characters. And many of the scripts just stink. Is "Shades of Gray" a complete and utter turd? Of course. But Season 1 plods around like it can't find itself. Mainly because of Roddenberry's influence. Riker is a cardboard cut out character compared to every other season. Yar is perhaps the worst main character ever on the show. Worf, with ZERO story background, is wasted. We have what - THREE different Chief Engineers? Mr. Singh dies, and nobody really gives a hoot. Data is at his most irritating. Picard seems like a stiff grumpy old man. Troi is UNBEARABLE. And we have a litany of terrible episodes littered with terrible acting, starting with the Pilot.
Horrible Season 1 episodes include
ENCOUNTER AT FARPOINT
THE NAKED NOW
CODE OF HONOR
JUSTICE
THE BATTLE
THE LAST OUTPOST
The season has some of the worst acting, dialogue, pacing, directing. Even most of the music is sub par.
Season 2 isn't the best, but Season 1 is almost universally panned as the weakest season.
I love "Shades of Gray", firstly. But, season 2 has The great Dauphin episode, and the superb The Royale. Not to mention the revered Measure of a Man.
Movie Theater: Young Frankenstein 10/10. RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time.
What on a earth makes you lIke The Royale so much?
I thought that one was really boring and like way too sad.
Because you'd be in jail
I enjoyed Riker, Worf and Data in the hotel by themselves trying to figure out how to get out, with Picard reading the book and finding it hard to get through for a solution. Good stuff. Worf not know I g how an old timey elevator works and expecting it to open like theirs on the Enterprise was amusing too.
Movie Theater: Young Frankenstein 10/10. RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time
Hurley was a Roddenberry yes man? Not if you watch that documentary, he only had unkind things to say about The Great Bird.
Spenser with an "S", like the poet.
Well it was Hurley that fired McFadden and whether he was the one harassing her or not we don't know or whether he had orders or complaints from one of the other execs that shall forever remain a mystery and yes Hurley did say in Chaos On The Bridge that GR's ideas for TNG were cuckoo.
shareDidn't Hurley say that Roddenberry's ideas were whack-a-doodle? Correct me if I'm wrong.
Spenser with an "S", like the poet.
I think he said 'yo! He was whack!', actually.
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
one thing I assure you Hurley NEVER said:
"Bev's got a great... mouth"
(sorry dawg, never knew there were mouth men 'til you came along)
Gates wouldn't sleep with Maurice O'Hurley.
"if you're not a ho... you got to go!!!"
S2, producers soon realized... not even Wil Wheaton would sleep with Maurice!!!
When Wil's turning down man love... well, you know something's wrong!!!
With Maurice gone, and accepting that Gates wasn't the problem, she returned in S3.
(She certainly didn't return for the fine writing in TNG. Bev had to have been the dumbest doctor in Star Fleet!)