No no, the weird ramble is great! Keep it coming! Data can be, in some ways, very naive and not understanding of things--or at least he comes off that way--but at the same time he understands a lot more than he's give credit for. He chooses to come off as sweet and nonthreatening and ask clarifying questions to make sure he really does understand things ... and then he'll turn around and be very perceptive. I always remember that one episode where they've scraped up this rag-tag fleet and are blockading--I want to say it's the Klingons? Maybe the Romulans?--and Data is in command of that one small ship and his first officer is BLATANTLY disrespectful and doesn't think he's a person and doesn't think he can command and is ignoring his orders at a crucial moment and Data snaps at him like he's furious, and that's enough to shock the guy into doing what Data wants him to do. Data knew how to use the appearance of emotions to manipulate the guy. He's not naive, he's a perceptive person who chooses to be kind and gentle and sweet. And I think a lot of people, writers, fans, and characters in the show, forget that about him. So in this case, he's figured out that he and Geordi could be really good together--and that it would benefit both of them--when Geordi hasn't even thought about it, because he doesn't have the blind spots that humans do. Data's very methodical and doesn't run on habits the way we do. So he suggests something and Geordi has to catch up.
And if there's one thing Data and Geordi can be reliably called on to do, it's talk about the important things in their lives together. Why should this be any different?
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Beatrice_Otter Thu 13 Jul 2023 01:00AM UTC
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