The Enterprise encounters the Lantree, a supply ship in serious distress. By the time the Enterprise reaches it, everybody on the ship has died - and scans confirm that the crew all died of old age. Tracing the ship's route, Enterprise travels to the Lantree's last stop, a genetic research facility whose researchers are also suffering from sudden aging. When the head researcher talks Pulaski into attempting to save the genetically-engineered children that are the subject of their experiments, Pulaski finds herself infected... leaving Picard and his crew scrambling for a solution to save not only the researchers, but also the ship's doctor!
CHARACTERS
Capt. Picard: Still uncertain if he trusts Pulaski. He has no doubts as to her competence or dedication, but fears that she may lack perspective. When the researchers make their request to beam the children aboard, Picard insists on preserving the safety of the Enterprise. When Pulaski comes up with a way to study one of the children in close quarters without risk to the rest of the ship, Picard reluctantly grants the request, on the grounds that at least she is attempting to work within his concerns, rather than simply railing against them.
Troi: In a slightly bizarre not-quite-subplot, she is left acting as something of a go-between for Picard and Pulaski, two dominant personalities whose unbending nature inevitably clashes. It is odd to see two middle-aged professionals of clear maturity and stature going to a young woman to whine that the other isn't working with them exactly the way they'd like. Troi, of course, states that she "feels (Picard's) concerns" - right after Picard has directly expressed his concerns. That's a truly eerie gift she has, isn't it?
Dr. Pulaski: Pulaski's character spotlight episode. We mainly get to see her dedication to medicine and her stubborn streak - both of which were characteristics already amply shown. Still, the episode gives Diana Muldaur a chance to flex her considerable acting muscles, and she easily carries the material with a dominance that Gates McFadden simply would not have matched. She gets one nicely compassionate moment. Once she realizes she's infected, immediately before beaming the child back into the quarantine, she urgently tells him that it isn't his fault. A good beat. Also good is that she is given ample screen time with Data, in which her earlier harshness toward him is dialed back to a more collegial relationship. It's a shame they couldn't have just started there and saved the damage done to her character from the beginning, but at least the writers are now trying to repair their mistakes.
Chief O'Brien: Finally gets a name! He also gets to play the hero of this episode, techno-babbling the solution to the problem. Though the chief is still more of a plot device than a character, Colm Meaney does get to more than double his on-screen dialogue for the series. He also gets a brief moment in which he expresses gratitude to Picard for taking the controls in the event that it's necessary to send Pulaski's atoms into space.
THOUGHTS
Though still flawed, Unnatural Selection is thankfully better than the past few episodes have been. A good thing - It was becoming an act of will simply to put the TNG disc into the player to watch the next show!
One thing that struck me quite quickly is that this episode really should have been placed earlier in the season. Picard and Pulaski are still feeling each other out, with each of them turning to Troi for advice on dealing with the other. Pulaski is basically treated as if she has only just joined the crew - which, close to a third of the way through the season, seems a bit of a stretch. This would feel a lot more natural if this had been among Pulaski's first four episodes, rather than seven episodes in.
The plot is nothing revolutionary, and it's very techno-babble heavy at the climax. The piece as a whole is more than a little reminiscent of TOS' The Deadly Years - and, though that was hardly the 1960's series greatest outing, it's still not as good. Nevertheless, it is entertaining, with a decent pace and a moderately effective ending tag. I'm not going to label it a favorite, but its basic competence is a huge relief after the last three dreadful installments.
Rating: 5/10.
Previous Episode: The Schizoid Man
Next Episode: A Matter of Honor
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