Watching this episode, I wondered if it were possible to develop lung cancer from watching a TV show. It was possible to imagine some guy running around during the filming to make sure that a sufficient number of people in any given scene were busily puffing away on a cigarette. Such a significant change from other shows in the series--such as the excellent entry "The Cage" which immediately preceded this one--causes one to wonder if some tobacco company hadn't offered to pick up a significant portion of the production costs, if one of the episode's producers had "a thing" for cigarettes, or if the producers came to believe that their viewers taste had deteriorated to the point where they'd be entertained simply by watching a large number of people smoking.
All kidding aside, such a profusion of smoking--sometimes where it even looks forced--amounts to a serious distraction from the story. That became annoying. Since this episode was one of those slated to be "the last" in the series, it's a shame that the producers would have been willing to go out like this.
