Forum:"This is What Happened" Section on Episode Synopsis Pages?

!!! DS9 Spoiler Below !!!

Hi folks,

Sometimes, after being baffled by a particular episode of TNG or DS9, I'll visit Memory Alpha to try to find out what actually happened during the episode. What the 'jist' of the episode was. Basically saves me having to think too hard and work it out for myself. :-) You know - something which makes me say "Ah ha!  So *that's* what happened!"

However, the summary section on the episode pages basically just transcribes the episode. I could get this info by simply watching the episode again.

I wonder if some pages could do with a "This is What Actually Happened" section?

One example is the. Such a synopsis of this episode might read as follows:


 * This episode follows the plight of a replicant of Chief O'Brien. The replicant, which had been created to assassinate a government official during a peace conference on DS9, had been created too well and inherited O'Brien's moral and mental traits.  In fact the replicant believed he was Chief O'Brien.  DS9 staff had been informed of this and were required to appease the replicant until the real O'Brien had been safely rescued.

Has anyone else asked for this kind of synopsis or have similar feelings?

Adambuckley 05:09, September 26, 2009 (UTC)

Another example relates to. I had presumed during the episode that Dr. Mora was attempting to make Odo look like a dangerous monster in a plot to take him back to his lab on Bajor and continue his beloved research. A give-away synopsis of this episode might read:


 * Odo breathes in toxic gas on a foreign planet which causes him to experience uncontrollable and violent transformations during his regeneration phase. Once returned to normal, Odo has no recollection of the events.  At the end of the episode, Dr. Bashir purges the gas from Odo's body.

Adambuckley 05:21, September 26, 2009 (UTC)


 * I think this is largely covered by the shorter description at the beginning of episode articles. I don't know if we need to create a third description of the plot in an episode article.--31dot 11:15, September 26, 2009 (UTC)

I agree that adding a third description also seems unnecessary. But the header description for is as follows:


 * After O'Brien returns from a mission in the Gamma Quadrant, it seems that everyone on the station has turned against him.

This is fine for a kind of summary or teaser of the episode, but contains no "Ah! I get it now!" kind of content. Would replacing this header summary with e.g. the description I gave above be appropriate? My description seems a bit long for this.

So would adding a third description called "The Gist" be helpful for some people? I suspect that such a section would only appear on the more complex or baffling episode pages. It wouldn't be a complete description as such, more just a paragraph containing what the viewer needs to know for the episode to make sense.

Adambuckley 13:34, September 26, 2009 (UTC)


 * The teaser line is intended to mimic the line from the TV guides and tease you. If you watch an episode and don't get the gist of what's going on, then there's something seriously wrong.  Yes, some of the episode summaries here are too close to an outright transcription, but you should be able to read through it and understand the "gist".  I personally don't see a need for a "gist" section that summarizes the episode in 3 sentences or less. -- sulfur 13:52, September 26, 2009 (UTC)