Best of Star Trek TNG---Chain of Command

"Chain of Command" was the 10th episode of the sixth season. It was written by Frank Abatemarco and Ronald D. Moore.

Lengthy Summation

Captain Picard is relieved from command of the Enterprise by Admiral Nechayev. He is reassigned, along with Lt. Worf and Dr. Crusher, to go undercover and find a Cardassian laboratory where Starfleet suspects them of making a biological weapon that eats DNA of living species while leaving infrastructure intact. This allows for the taking over of planets without the addition of conflict with the inhabitants.

In their search, they discover an installation that was believed to be the lab, but instead find it was a trap to lure them and imprison them. Crusher escapes with the help of Worf, but Picard is left behind.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise crew is trying to get used to, and live up to the expectations of, their new captain. He is Captain Jellico (played by Ronny Cox) and he's by-the-book, no nonsense, and a source of irritation to the senior staff. He has clashes with Riker, who feels their top priority is to go on a rescue mission to find Picard when they learn from a Cardassian they have been in negotiations with that he is in the custody of Cardassian authority. Jellico will have none of it, instead insisting they need to complete the mission of ensuring the Cardassians don't attack a federation colony. Jellico relieves Riker of duty for insubordination, only to reinstate him later when he needs an experienced shuttle pilot to plant mines across a nebula where Cardassian ships are hiding.

Back to Picard, who is undergoing torture by an interrogator named Gul Madred (played by David Warner). He is strung up naked, starved, and administered intense pain from an implanted device in his upper chest. When Madred gets an answer he doesn't like, he shocks Picard. He torments him with offers of water but doesn't deliver. He feeds him eggs with live creatures inside.

"There are four lights" Picard says when asked by Madred how many lights he sees. Madred shocks him and tells him there are five lights. He asks him again, "How many lights are there?" Picard is shocked again when he says there are only four.

Madred also lies to Picard and tells him they have the doctor in their custody and will interrogate her if Picard chooses to leave. Madred gives Picard the option of living in luxary or continuing the torture after he is told Cardassian ships destroyed the Enterprise.

When the captain of a Cardassian ship is informed of the mines in the nebula by Jellico, and given a small demonstration as proof, the Cardassian ships withdraw and agree to release Picard. The Cardassian guards arrive at a crucial moment---when Picard is asked once more how many lights he sees. The guards inform Madred of their agreement with the federation and Picard shouts "There are four lights!"

Back aboard the Enterprise, their mission is complete and Picard is reinstated as its captain. He tells Counselor Troi he thought he saw five lights and was about to confess that to Madred before his release.

This was one of the darkest episodes of TNG. It's not about strange phenomenon in space, or cutesy relationships, or discovering new species. This one is about two factions on the brink of war and the consequences that it entails. It depicts disturbing scenes of torture and humiliation. There's no pleasantries in this episode, but it's well-acted and written--and unforgettable.

This episode is a tribute to the great talent that is Patrick Stewart.

Best of Star Trek TNG---Clues

"Clues" is the 14th episode of the 4th season and was written by Bruce D. Arthrus and Joe Menosky.

The Enterprise is investigating a star system when it encounters a wormhole. Everyone is knocked unconscious except Commander Data. He tells the crew upon awakening that everyone was out for 30 seconds and says he'll readjust the ships instruments that were put off line during that time. A probe is launched to get information from the star system after Data suggest it may be too dangerous to take the ship in further.

Dr. Crusher notices an experiment with a rare moss is showing at least 24 hours growth and brings it to the captain's attention. Counselor Troi experiences dizziness and hallucinations, claiming she saw someone else in her reflection in the mirror. Worf complains of pain in his wrist and tells the doctor that he reported to sick bay to report anything out of the ordinary. It is revealed that his wrist was broken but has no memory of it.

In the meantime, Data is the only one who seems to be hiding something. He gives evasive answers to inquiries and can't explain the false readings from the launched probe---showing information from another system not related to the area of space.

While he is under investigation, the ship heads back to the system to uncover the mystery. An energy source penetrates the shields and possess the counselor. She confronts Data about their failed plan. Then Geordi tells Data that he's wanted on the bridge.

Data tells the captain that they must leave the system immediately. Picard demands to know why and asks if anyone gave him an order to suppress information about the star system. Data stuns the captain when he said "You did, Sir."

The alien enters the bridge and confronts the crew saying that the Enterprise must now be destroyed about it failed to live up to their end of the agreement, which was to leave the system and leave them in peace. As Data explains, they are called the Paxans and they are xenophobic in nature and want to be left alone without outsider knowledge of their existence. We see the story played out as Data relays what happened in their first encounter and learn that the alien boarded the bridge and was confronted by Worf. The alien overpowered him and his wrist was broken. The Paxans required at least 24 hours to complete a memory sweep of everyone on board the ship so they'd forget about their encounter.

Picard convinces the alien to try it again and the crew would ensure they would not leave any clues behind this time. "You are a most unusual species," the alien tells Picard, but "worthy of a second chance."

The crew is once again knocked unconscious and awakened but this time Picard is convinced by Data's reasoning to leave the system because it may pose a threat to the ship. The scene ends with a satisfied smile on Data's face.

This was a fun episode, partly because we get to see Data acting suspiciously and not knowing if it's alien influence, a positronic brain malfunction, or that he's deliberately lying. And if he is, why? The story is full of suspense from start to finish, leaving the viewer waiting for the next clue in the mystery.

Worst of Star Trek TNG---Imaginary Friend

"Imaginary Friend" was from the 5th season.

The episode begins with Counselor Troi talking Clara, a young daughter of a crewman, about the girl's imaginary friend she calls Isabella. The crewman is concerned about his daughter's behavior because the girl spends her social time with Isabella. Troi explains to the crewman that Isabella is with Clara wherever she goes, unlike real friends she leaves behind when her father gets transferred to other ships.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise is exploring a nebula that has formed around a neutron star. We see a ball of light working its way around the ship as the crew goes about their daily business.

Put these two scenarios together, what do you get? As Clara plants flowers, the ball of light finds her and probes the girl's mind and then---a flesh and blood Isabella appears. She leads the child to engineering while they're investigating a sudden turbulence of the ship. The Isabella entity wants to explore the entire ship.

Troi addresses the issue with Isabella in a pretend fashion in front of Clara. Clara relays to Troi that Isabella's response is "You better leave us alone."

This is the first major thing wrong with this episode. Why didn't Troi sense the presence of the intruder or sense that Clara was being sincere about Isabella being real and visible to her? Troi takes Clara for a walk and says that Isabella isn't invited. This does not sit well with the entity. The ship experiences more turbulence and loss of velocity.

The entity acts more malevolent, playing games on Troi and Alexander in the art room, and threatens Clara with death along with everyone else on the ship as the nebula continuously drains the ship of energy.

This episode seems lost in a lack of content, filling the void with Guinan talking to Clara and Troi about her imaginary friend when she was a child.

When the counselor confronts Clara about her bad behavior in her quarters, the Isabella entity reveals herself to Troi, knocking her unconscious.

Clara reveals to the captain in sick bay that Isabella's feelings were hurt when she wouldn't play with her. Again, why didn't Troi sense this?

Then the nebula begins to drain the shields of the Enterprise and the captain meets Clara and Isabella in the garden where Clara first met the entity. The Isabella entity tells the captain that her people in the nebula were trying to determine if the Enterprise was a threat to them and that the energy the ship possesses is something they need to consume. She tells that captain that the Enterprise crew should be destroyed because of the cruel way they've treated Clara. The entity took the perspective of a child. The captain explains that adults protect their children with rules and restrictions.

Clara asks the entity not to hurt them. Picard orders the ship away from the nebula but gives them a beam of energy to consume before leaving.

The child who played Clara was fine, but the child actress who played Isabella was wooden and gave me the creeps. This episode was mostly focused on the guest child actor and her exchanges with the other child and dealt with the childhood issues of imagination and loss of friendship. Heavy on human drama best suited for a children's book, but very light on science or excitement. It was a waste of time and should have been scrapped for something more appropriate for this series.

Best of Star Trek TNG---Disaster

"Disaster" was the 5th episode of the 5th season and written by Donald D. Moore. The story begins with a routine day---Dr. Crusher is helping Geordi in the cargo bay while trying to talk him into a singing part in a play; in Ten Forward, Keiko O'Brien is talking about her baby kicking in her womb; and Captain Picard has the task of taking 3 children on a tour of the ship, which is their reward for winning prizes on science projects.

As Picard and the children are in the turbolift and sharing an awkward moment of silence, the ship is tossed about and the turbolift drops suddenly and the captain suffers a broken ankle. Now he has that in addition to three scared and crying children. He enlists the aid of the children by giving them rank and getting them focused on getting out of a potentially deadly situation.

On the bridge, Troi is the senior officer and shows to be a bit out of her element here by not knowing exactly how to handle the situation. A helmsperson is killed after announcing the damage to the ship is caused by a quantum filament. They brace for impact. The ship is heavily damaged and doors, bulk heads, computers, engines, and turbolifts become inoperable. O'Brien and Ro discover the antimatter containment is failing and work to restore as much power as they can and alert engineering of the danger.

In the cargo bay, the turbulence caused the plasma core to overload and is creating deadly radiation to leak. Dr. Crusher and Geordi must figure out what to do to survive after attempts to open the doors fail and they are trapped.

In Ten Forward, Keiko begins going into labor and Worf assists in her delivery.

Commander Riker and Data climb through a jeffries tube to reach engineering in order to get the computers and the ship back online. On one of the control panels, Riker discovers the message O'Brien and Ro sent to engineering about the containment field going into failure and Data uses his positronic brain, with the help of Riker's hookups to the computer, to contain the breach and avoid an explosion.

This episode was exciting, entertaining, and just plain good television. It was a good exercise in how people interact, help one another, and get things done during a crisis.

Best of Star Trek TNG---The Wounded

"The Wounded" was the 12th episode of the 4th season and was written by Jeri Taylor.

The Enterprise is fired upon by a Cardassian vessel. They put up shields and get through to the other ship and it's captain says that another starship captain attacked one of their science outposts and goes on the assumption that the federation is now once again at war with the Cardassians.

Captain Picard informs starfleet command about the incident and the admiral confirms that a federation ship, manned by Captain Maxwell, did attack the outpost. Picards assignment is to intercept the Phoenix to prevent another attack on the Cardassians.

In a show of good faith, Picard invites the Cardassian captain on board the ship to help assist.

Meanwhile, it is learned that Chief O'Brien served under Maxwell's command and sits in on a staff briefing. O'Brien says Maxwell's family were killed in an attack by the Cardassians, leading Picard to suspect this may be a motive for his behavior.

Then the Enterprise enters the area of space where the Phoenix is, but isn't in time to stop it from firing upon and destroying a Cardassian supply ship with 600 persons on board.

Picard hails Captain Maxwell and convinces him to board the Enterprise to talk about what he's doing. Maxwell insists there are weapons on board the supply vessels and the outpost was a strategically located military base, not a science station as the Cardassians claim. Picard instructs Maxwell to head his ship back, with the Enterprise following, to the starbase where he will await further instruction, and justice, from Starfleet command.

Maxwell has his ship set a different course; it's on an intercept course to a Cardassian supply vessel. The Enterprise is set to launch torpedoes about Chief O'Brien asks the captain to board the Phoenix and talk to Maxwell. Their meeting is successful and Maxwell stands down when he realizes he cannot win the war and begins to come to terms with his tragic past.

Back on The Enterprise, Picard informs the Cardassian captain that his mission was to preserve the peace they've made with the Cardassians but also knows that Maxwell was right and that the federation will be watching.

This episode was well-acted and presented the nuances of conflict. There's no black and white, but a gray area that opposing sides must face in order to maintain the peace. We can resolve conflict without violence while staying watchful of the enemy. We can work together even while learning to build trust.

Worst of Star Trek TNG---The Outcast

"The Outcast" was the 17th episode of the 5th season. It features an androgynous race of people who ask for the help of the Federation when two crewman on a shuttlecraft get lost in their atmosphere while exploring a null in space.

Riker volunteers to take a shuttle to look for the missing along with a Janii named Soren. It is the times they spend on the shuttlecraft where a relationship develops between Riker and Soren. Soren reveals to Riker that she identifies herself as female and has longings for him.

According to Wikipedia, "this episode was intended to address the contemporary issue of LGBT rights." I think it fails as a Star Trek episode, not so much for the plot itself, but that Commander Riker falls in love with the character of Soren and runs the risk of ruining his career for this androgynous person. In the past, he left Troi to pursue his career! It seemed out of character for him to put love for anyone above his career in Starfleet. And this love affair could jeopardize not only his career but violate the prime directive.

Also, the subplot, which was weak, seemed more of a fill in for the main story. Why would Riker volunteer for such an assignment rather than a regular helmsmen? (Yes, I know...almost every episode has this idea of putting a senior staff at risk).

The show's only redeeming part was Soren's speech to the council of Jnaii (after her love for Riker is found out) where she chastises her society for treating those who are different as outcasts and forcing "therapy" on them.

She is then taken away to undergo treatment for her "sickness." Riker, with the help of Worf, beams back down to the planet to get Soren and offer her asylum on the Enterprise, but too late. She tells Riker she's sorry and why would she want to go with him when she's no longer "sick." The "therapy" worked, which is opposite the reality of today's conversion therapy in which Christian therapists attempt to "heal" homosexuals.

Best of Star Trek TNG---I Borg

"I Borg" is the 23rd episode of the 5th season. It was written by Rene Echevarria.

The Enterprise finds a downed ship consisting of several borg, but only one survivor. Worf wants to kill it, but Dr. Crusher insists on treating it and bringing it aboard the ship for treatment. Against his better judgment, Picard agrees, but with the understanding that the borg be kept in confinement.

After it's awakening, the borg searches the walls for a slot in which he can plug into the collective. Geordi makes a food container for him consisting on energy the borg can digest. While the borg feeds, he keeps saying "We are borg, you will be assimilated."

The borg is then transported to another containment cell where Geordi can study him and determine how to implant a virus into the borg, one that the borg will take with him back to the collective. The idea is to implant a chip in him that will cause the collective to try to analyze, causing a destruction of their collective identity and eventually destroy them.

Meanwhile, Guinan, whose people were scattered across the galaxy after the borg attacked them, is upset that the captain has allowed the borg onboard ship. However, Geordi is beginning to develop a rapport with the borg and introduces him to the concept of individuality and tells Guinan the changes he sees in this borg and talks Guinan into meeting him. He even gave the borg a name--Hugh.

Behind the confinement cell, the borg talks to Guinan about loneliness after Guinan confronts him about how his collective destroyed her home and people. He recognizes that resistance is not futile and people have a right to choose not to be assimilated.

It's apparent on his own, the borg is not influenced by the collective and is now thinking more like an individual. Captain Picard decides to test this hypothesis and discovers to his astonishment that indeed, the borg is now an individual who, even after recognizing Picard as Locutus (see "Best of Both Worlds") he insists that his friend Geordi does not want to be assimilated.

After a staff meeting, Picard announces that he's reconsidered implanting the borg with the virus but feels instead that Hugh will introduce individuality to the hive and it will eventually break down but without dying out.

Hugh decides to head back to the collective instead of staying on the Enterprise because to do otherwise would put the Enterprise and the federation at greater risk.

I liked this episode because it turned a boogieman into a person who can appreciate the needs and wants of others without trying to assimilate them into being like them. I think the show's message is to look deeper into a person by finding their humanity by creating trust without judgement.