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| Geordi and an old friend (Maryann Plunkett) face a horrifying fate. |
THE PLOT
When Starfleet officers who were all members of the same Away Team to Tarchannen III begin disappearing, Commander Susan Leitjen (Maryann Plunkett) comes to the Enterprise to warn Geordi. She and Geordi are the only two members of that Away Team still remaining, and her briefing is enough to get Picard to divert the ship to Tarchannen. Once there, Susan begins a terrifying transformation, turning from human to alien, seemingly from the inside out.
As Dr. Crusher works to stop the transformation in sick bay, Geordi reviews the old records of the Away mission. He does find a discrepancy in the visual record... but by the time he is able to really study it, his own transformation has already begun!
CHARACTERS
Capt. Picard: Though this is not a Picard-heavy episode, there is a wonderful scene early on. The Enterprise reaches Tarchannen III just in time to see a shuttlecraft stolen by Hickman, one of the members of the old Away Team. The shuttle is going into the planet's orbit too fast and will surely burn up. The Enterprise is too far away to do anything. Picard desperately tries communicating with the shuttle, telling the pilot exactly what to do to avoid disaster. It recalls a similar scene in which Picard successfully talked a teen boy out of disaster in Coming of Age. Only here he is unsuccessful, left to watch helplessly as the shuttle is destroyed.
Geordi: Apparently developed a little brother/big sister relationship with Leitjen on their old ship. The first half sees those old roles reversed, Geordi becoming protective of her as he insists they will find a way to solve this mystery. After Susan begins changing, faced with the near-certainty that this change will eventually befall him, he takes refuge in the puzzle. He runs the old log again and again, until finally he sees something.
Data: An odd episode for Data. In the first half of the episode, as he studies the records, he reminds us of his own close friendship to Geordi. He observes that he is "strongly motivated" to solve this mystery. A little later, he offers his help to Geordi. Since the plot requires Geordi be alone when the transformation begin, Geordi rebuffs that offer... leaving Data essentially a spare part for the rest of the episode.
Dr. Crusher: More plot device than character, though she does get a larger slice of the action than usual. As Geordi runs a holodeck investigation, she investigates the medical mystery of the transforming Susan. She approaches it methodically, eventually finding the answer. Which isn't a surprise, given that we know Geordi's not going anywhere, but it does at least give her a decent role in this episode.
THOUGHTS
Identity Crisis is a decent episode. Brannon Braga apparently adapted a storyline from another writer, which had the transformation occurring to two guest characters. Braga's decision to focus it on Geordi instead of some Random Redshirt is a good one, and Geordi's refusal to passively wait for the transformation to occur keeps him a dynamic protagonist. It's well-paced, and for more than half its length creates an intriguing puzzle.
But it just doesn't quite come together. I think the use of Susan Leitjen at the end of the show is a misstep. Her transformation in the first half is effective, and serves as incentive for Geordi to solve the mystery before this happens to him. But when she comes back at the end to save Geordi, she is all but transformed into a Mary Sue. I think the story would have been much more effective if Dr. Crusher was unable to save Susan, but learned what she needed to save Geordi... and then let Data - Geordi's good friend since almost the series' very beginning - be the one to "talk him down" at the end. This would pay off Susan's horrible transformation in the episode's first half, while also paying off the scenes that nod to Data's friendship with Geordi. In my opinion, it would be much more effective than having a Too-Good-to-Be-True Guest Character Save the Day.
There's also the sense that Geordi's holodeck investigations don't actually accomplish a heck of a lot. Sure, it's entertaining to watch Geordi puzzle out the stray shadow from the recording. But what is actually gained from this? A better script would have had Geordi's holodeck projections provide some necessary information. As it stands, things would actually have been greatly simplified for our heroes had Geordi simply stayed in sick bay and waited for Dr. Crusher. That's not even mentioning how odd it is that the transformation only occurs now, after the infection has lain dormant in the old Away Team's systems for years. Why now? The episode never even addresses this, probably hoping the audience won't think to ask.
All of this is sounding like an indictment of the episode. I don't mean it to be. I enjoyed watching Identity Crisis. The episode is well-paced, with the first half particularly strong in building tension and atmosphere. The puzzle is intriguing, and Levar Burton is very good - as usual, when given good material to play. It just feels vaguely unfinished, as if it was maybe one or two more drafts away from being a genuinely good piece of television.
Overall Rating: 6/10
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I think the holodeck mystery would have been brilliant in a horror plot.
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