After years of suspenseful waiting, Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) and William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) have finally tied the knot. Their Earth wedding is performed to perfection, and they now look ahead to the Betazoid ceremony on Deannas home world. A somewhat humiliating ceremony to be honest, as all the participants must go unclothed, but it is tradition. While aboard the Enterprise and en route for Betazed, the ships computer picks up strange positronic signals emanating from a nearby planets atmosphere. As Data (Brent Spiner) is also positronic, naturally it would seem that another Android is present. After a somewhat unconventional landing in a small transport equipped with its own land rover, six individual sections of an Android are recovered. Remarkably enough, this Android, B4, is in the precise appearance of Data, though less high-tech. It seems curious that an Android would have simply been abandoned and in pieces no less, but there is not enough time to find the answers. His presence becomes vitally important in the future, but for now, hes simply a curious specimen.

Once again the Enterprises course is redirected for Betazed, and once again they are detained, this time by a more important matter. Relations with the Romulans have always been on shaky ground. In truth they are practically nonexistent. Therefore, you can imagine the shock when Starfleet is contacted by the Romulans proclaiming a desire for peace. What may have been the most astonishing however was the realization that a Reman was now Praetor or ruler of the Romulan Senate. For a bit of background information, Romulas and Remus form a somewhat vicious symbiotic relationship. They two societies have been enemies since before they can remember, so the idea of a Reman leader being a part of a peacemaking mission on Romulas is nearly to good to be true. StarFleet has desired peace with the Romulan Empire for many years now, so this opportunity cannot be passed up.

The Betazed trip is postponed, and the Enterprise makes a swift detour to "The Neutral Zone", prepared for any and all situations. However, nothing could have prepared Picard (Patrick Stewart) for this horrific shock. One would imagine Praetor Shinzon (Tom Hardy) of Remus to be Remun, with the hideous complexion and deep-set eyes of that culture. Not so; Shinzon is mostly human, and what a human. In appearance, he is a young Picard, right down to the eyes and shape of the nose. Shinzon is a clone, one originally created by the Romulans for the purpose of replacing Jean-Luc when former became old enough to take the latters place in StarFleet. The project was abandoned however, many years before, and Shinzon is now at the head of this peace-making mission. Hes vigorous, excited, and makes an honest case. His words are correctly spoken, but the character has something lacking. After his many years at Starfleet, Jean-Lucs senses have been honed to near perfection, and Shinzon does not feel right.

He wishes to trust his younger self, but cannot bring himself to deny his reservations. A Remun in charge at the Romulan senate is as near to a miracle as one could imagine, and yet. Could Shinzon be sincere in his peace treaty proclamations, or are they simply a mask behind which hides a more devious purpose? First off, I must state, that even with some alteration of character and inconsistencies, I truly did enjoy Star Trek Nemesis. Yes, there are changes, and some do not match up with the characters I remember, but overall Nemesis is a good film with a rather fascinating plot. Violence is really very minimal, and weve seen it all before. Thematic elements are what most parents would question. Before he dies, one character almost morphs into someone completely altered in appearance. Hes hideous and the change is so astonishing that you have to fight back revulsion. This same character also impales himself, albeit accidentally, on a sharp object before dying. The Remuns are ugly, exceedingly so, but nothing too surprising. Orcs still win the prize for hideous characteristics. An entire group of people is infected with a deadly radiation at the start of the film, and it practically dehydrates them from the inside out before they finally die.

Now we come to the sensual difficulties. A Romulan commander flirts shamelessly with Shinzon in one scene, but hes not tempted in the least by her offers of companionship. Deanna and Will (now married) are engaged in somewhat heavy petting, but I was very thrilled that no nudity was present. You simply see Deanna from the shoulders up and Wills bare back. Now, Shinzon has never loved, never had the opportunity to love, but has always possessed the desire. Needless to say, when he first encounters Deanna, his hormones truly kick into high gear. She is almost all he can think of, and his viceroy happens to possess nearly the same telepathic power as Deanna herself, only in a different sense. Somehow, and its never made clear, Shinzon is projected into Deannas mind in place of her husband. Mind rape is a very apt description and I was extremely relieved that Shinzon didnt have the opportunity to attempt more than a few kisses and seductive whispers. The evening starts as a sweetly loving experience between husband and wife and swiftly progresses into utter terror for Deanna. The Betazed term Imzadi is strictly reserved for true lovers, and it becomes a slur when used by Shinzon.

The relationship between Picard and Shinzon was the most fascinating element. From the beginning, you sense that they are very much alike in interests and personality, which is mostly due to Shinzon being Picards clone. Jean-Luc begins to wonder if perhaps, had he lived Shinzons life, might not he have made some of the very same choices which lead to death and destruction. Shinzon, in spite of his nature, seems to desire the life Jean-Luc lived. He envies him but extends that envy into a more despondent outcome. He makes grand speeches about the echo triumphing over the voice, yet you still feel that Shinzon wishes he possessed enough strength to change who he had become. Its truly a tragedy, and you cannot help but mourn for the loss of the friendship that might have been. Star Trek Nemesis is a truly worthy attempt at keeping TNG characters alive. Apart from some odd scenes which make no sense, and the unnecessary edition of B4, Datas brother, overall it leaves one with a sense of satisfaction. Be prepared, a main character does die and as this character was a favorite of mine, I cried for about twenty minutes.

Yes, it has its slight inaccuracies, but the heart of the film remains true to the qualities and ideals of Star Trek. I would recommend it to any fan, and in particular Data or Picard fan, as unfortunately the other characters do not receive exceedingly large roles. Make an effort to watch the deleted scenes on the DVD, as they give a little more insight into some of the emotions Picard and the others are experiencing. Beware, however, that there is another scene between Deanna and Shinzon, not graphic, but definitely present. Truth be told, when it comes down to it, Nemesis is most like a memory. Beautiful and fragrant, it brings an ending to the characters we loved for so many glorious years.