Lasers won't even get by their navigational shields!

[Goose]

There was some TNE episode where the Enterprise encounters a small, diplomatic vessel from another race which targets the enterprise (but doesn't fire) with lasers. When Whorf reports this, Riker looks at Picard, bemused, and says "Lasers? Lasers won't even penetrate our navigational shields..."

Does anyone else remember this?
Does anyone remember what episode it was?
Comments?

[B5B7]

This is very well known incident to those on this board. I don't recall the name of the episode, but you will find a rebuttal of it done on this very site - here is link to the page it is on: infamous no lasers argument, half way down page, as a case study of the analysis methods.

[Starglider]

I suppose it's theoretically possible that you aren't a troll, if rather improbable.

Does anyone remember what episode it was?

"The Outrageous Okona" (s2e04).

[Bounty]

TNG, "The Outrageous Okona"

It's an age-old argument that doesn't hold water. Lasers do mess with shields in later episodes; for instance, Borg cutting lasers go through Galaxy-class shields like a knife through butter. The Straleb's lasers weren't ineffective simply because they were lasers, they were ineffective because they were lasers operating at a power level much below the one even the Enterprise's nav deflectors were built to handle. That's what made Picard chuckle; the tech disparity between the two ships was ridiculous.

As for why Riker dismisses lasers out-of-hand... in Trekverse, it seems like every power at some point switches to phasers or disruptors, suggesting they have *some* sort of advantage over lasers when attached to the same power source. The fact that the Straleb apparently hadn't made that development probably clued him in to their general technological backwardness.

[Goose]

wow. that's quite alot about it... thank you all.

I come here form an argument brewing on /b/ of all places, and wanted more info from people who weren't idiotic assholes
so i suppose that could make me a troll... sort of
but thanks anyway.

[Bounty]

Next time, try using the board's "Search" function. If there's a versus argument, chances are somebody has made it during the last six years.

[Lord Revan]

indeed it's a case of there being unsaid additional information that should be obvious (full line would probably be "lasers? No lasers mounted on ships of that caliber could get past even our navigational deflectors!" (or words to that effect))missing part is in italics

[Bounty]

indeed it's a case of there being unsaid additional information that should be obvious (full line would probably be "lasers? No lasers mounted on ships of that caliber could get past even our navigational deflectors!" (or words to that effect))missing part is in italics

What's really interesting is that the "lasers" part is missing entirely from the script; Picard's line was an incredulous "phasers", and he wasn't so much surprised about that as he was about the fact that a teeny little patrol boat was locking weapons:

DATA
Sensors report a minimum range
combat craft of the Squadron
Class, twenty-six crew.

WORF
(overlap)
Captain, they have locked phasers.

PICARD
(somewhat puzzled)
Phasers?

RIKER
(same look)
Regulations call for a Yellow
Alert.

PICARD
It's too small of a craft to be
of any threat to us. Do you
agree, Lieutenant Worf?

Even if the filmed episode swapped in "lasers", the sentiment was never meant to be solely about the weapons' type being important.

[Ender]

clearly lasers can pierce the shields. If they were immune to photons, the ship could not be seen. Additionally, if they had a magic no limit on photon absorption, photon torpedoes would be useless - antimatter released most of its energy in the form of gamma ray range photons when it reacts.

[Ghost Rider]

Answered.