7-20. Journey's End.

Wesley undergoes a Vision Quest.

THE PLOT

A new treaty with the Cardassians has left several Federation colonies in Cardassian space - including a Native American tribe that lives on Dorvan V. Picard's orders are to relocate the tribe using "any means necessary."

Negotiations with Anthwara (Ned Romero), the tribe's leader, do not go well. Anthwara states that this world is their home, and that he has no interest in finding another. Efforts are further complicated when a Cardassian survey team led by Gul Evek (Richard Poe) arrives. Evek wonders why Picard needs to negotiate at all when the treaty has already settled all this, and his soldiers' heavy-handed presence sparks new tension among the colonists, threatening to reignite the very conflict the treaty was meant to officially end.

Meanwhile, Wesley Crusher visits the ship while on leave from the Academy. His mother and Geordi are eager to spend time with him. But Wesley is sullen and snappish, responding with exaggerated irritation to all attempts at conversation. When Wesley visits the planet, Lakanta (Tom Jackson), a tribal mystic, leads him on a "vision quest" that makes him discover that his disillusionment is because he is on the wrong path - leading him to a decision to resign from Starfleet Academy!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: His inclinations toward peace making are shown at the very start, when Admiral Nechayev (Natalia Nogulich) comes aboard. Picard resolves to diffuse the tension that has marked their previous interactions by laying out a snack tray that includes her favorite canapes. She responds to this gesture, and is clearly pained at having to give what she knows are terrible orders. Picard, to his credit, does not blame her for the assignment and makes sure that she knows this. This side of Picard, the patient diplomat, is on display throughout the episode. His solution is an imperfect one and he knows it, but his victory is that he manages to uphold his duty and avoid starting a new war, even if the colony will end up suffering more in the long-term than if they had simply allowed themselves to be relocated.

Dr. Crusher: Is bewildered by Wesley's sullen behavior, and tries to enlist Picard to snap him out of it. When Picard replies that Wesley will need to work through his issues on his own, she bows to his judgment, but her worry is clear. In a conversation with Wesley, she reveals fear that she pushed him too hard to be what was expected. She accepts his decision at the episode's end, but does not do so happily.

Cardassians: Gul Evek, who would later be seen in Deep Space 9's The Maquis, leads the Cardassian team that intrudes on Picard's negotiations. Evek initially comes across as the Cardassian stormtrooper seen in his DS9 and Voyager appearances. He is not immune to Picard's reasoned pleas for peace, however. He has too much first-hand knowledge of how much the war cost both sides to want hostilities to resume. In his willingness to listen to Picard, he shows that the Cardassian military is not simply made up of mindless automatons... Though his initial tactics show why Picard's solution at the end of this episode never had any chance of long-term success.


SHUT UP, WESLEY!

After the enormous strides made with the character in previous appearances, most notably The First Duty, this isn't so much a step backward as a giant leap. Adding to the disappointment is that this script is from First Duty co-writer Ronald D. Moore, who had previously done such a good job of making Wesley into a relatable human being. Here, he comes onto the ship acting like a bratty teenager. Then he allows himelf to be led by the nose by Lakanta to discover that he doesn't really belong in Starfleet after all. Never mind the years of episodes showing that Wesley genuinely loved being a part of Starfleet - It turns out that was just him doing what was expected of him. So he rebels by... doing what the Traveler (Eric Menyuk) said he should way back in Where No One Has Gone Before, right down to agreeing to have the Traveler guide him in his new studies.


THOUGHTS

Journey's End can lay claim to being an important episode for the franchise. It is the last real appearance of Wesley Crusher (discounting a throwaway cameo in Star Trek: Nemesis). It establishes the Federation/Cardassian treaty that would be so effectively followed up by The Maquis. And with a story that draws deliberate parallels to the forced resettlement of Native American tribes in the 19th century, it draws on the kind of historical/social fabric that has fueled many good and even great Star Trek episodes.

Journey's End is not a good episode.

The episode has many potentially interesting ingredients: The tying of up Wesley's "Traveler" storyline, and making that work with his Starfleet Academy arc by showing his disillusionment with that life (likely in part a reaction to the events of The First Duty); Picard's negotiations with Anthwara, and the revelation of heinous acts against Native American tribes by one of his own ancestors; the dispute with the Cardassians over how to resolve the impasse, and Picard's own ultimate solution. There's plenty here to make for a worthwhile episode.

Which is part of the problem: There's too much. The Wesley material never feels like an organic part of this episode. Tying up his storyline should have been a show in itself - It's not like Season Seven hasn't offered up some expendable storylines that could have made way for it! This episode reduces his story to a hastily-executed "B" plot, making it more of a distraction than anything else.

I will say that the scenes between Picard and Anthwara work well, in large part thanks to the performances and sheer screen presence of Patrick Stewart and Ned Romero. I also enjoyed Picard's interactions with Gul Evek, which provided new background on the Federation/Cardassian War by showing in Evek's final decision that it was a conflict that scarred both sides. The heavy-handed manner of the Cardassians, and the violent way in which the colonists react to them, sews the seeds of the entire Maquis storyline - something that was clearly deliberately done, given that The Maquis aired less than a month after this episode.

Unfortunately, as has been true of almost every Trek treatment of Native American culture, the colony is portrayed in broad and mystical terms. The tribe is mystical and the land speaks to them and they have deep wisdom to share with any white man who wants to be Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves. Voyager co-creator Jeri Taylor evidently intended that Chakotay came from this colony, and it's easy to see echoes of Chakotay's most tedious traits in the condescending way in which this tribe of "magic Indians" are treated. They aren't really individuals - They are stereotypes, with only Ned Romero managing to lend a bit of stature to the weak material.

I will say that Journey's End is far from the worst of TNG's disappointing final season. It is at least trying, and there are some good scenes and elements. But this is an "off day" for writer Ronald D. Moore, who is capable of so much better, and yet another weak episode in the increasingly long string of weak episodes that is bringing this show to its end.


Overall Rating: 4/10.

Previous Episode: Genesis
Next Episode: Firstborn


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7-11. Parallels.

First Officer Worf and Troi: Man and Wife.

THE PLOT

It is Worf's birthday when he returns from a bat'leth tournament, in which he won Champion standing. He returns to a greeting from Commander Riker, who quickly briefs him on their next mission. The Argus Array, a subspace telescope, has stopped transmitting for the third time that year. At this point, Riker tells him, Starfleet no longer believes this is a simple mechanical breakdown.

But first Worf must endure an unwelcome surprise birthday party. Capt. Picard is unable to attend, and it's clear from Worf's expression that he wished he was unable to as well. The chocolate cake is cut... Only to become a yellow cake, as Capt. Picard asks from his seat how old Worf now is. Worf is confused, but assumes he simply mistook the cake's flavor and that Picard must have come in unnoticed.

He resumes normal duties, analyzing the image files from the array and determining that it's been reprogrammed, probably by the Cardassians, to spy on the Federation. Then Worf has a dizzy spell, and when he comes to he learns that he only placed ninth in the bat'leth tournament, and that there is no image file from the array that indicates Cardassian involvement.

As these changes continue, it becomes obvious that Worf is jumping from one parallel reality to another - and with each jump, the parallels get more and more different from the life he knows!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Enjoys needling Worf at his surprise party. He also shows the other extreme, responding with clear disappointment when Worf fails to raise the shields in time to protect the ship from a Cardassian attack (the shield settings in this reality being configured too differently for Worf to figure out in time). He clearly sees that something is wrong with Worf, however; instead of upbraiding him, he simply accepts Worf's request to be relieved of duty.

Capt. Riker: We spend more than a third of the episode in a parallel reality in which Picard died during the Borg invasion, meaning that Riker is now ship's captain. That he's a good captain is no surprise, not after seeing him assume the role so often from Best of Both Worlds on. He is more directly approachable than Picard, with less separation evident between himself and the rest of the crew, but he clearly learned his lessons from Picard. He listens to his officers' input, then makes his decisions based on all the available information. He also responds to the sight of an alternate Picard on his viewscreen with evident pleasure, taking a moment to tell him how good it is to see him again.

Worf: When little things start to change, he reacts as most of us would: He assumes he made a mistake or failed to observe something and moves on with his job and his life. This method of coping works until the shifts create major discrepancies, but when his trophy changes from ninth place to first, or when Data checks on the status of a task he has no memory of having been assigned, this becomes an impossible situation. He asks to be relieved from duty after an incident shows that he is no longer familiar enough with the ship to do his job. Then he tries to work through the problem, wisely accepting help when it is offered. Michael Dorn is terrific throughout, keeping Worf grounded and believable in a way that makes it very easy to follow him down this particular rabbit hole.

Troi: Her rapport with Worf's son, Alexander, is such that Worf asks her to act as a family member, to promise to take in Alexander in the event that anything happens to him. She agrees readily, though she does have some fun at Worf's expense by pointing out that this makes her mother part of Worf's "family" as well. As the shifts continue, Worf finds himself in a reality in which he and Troi are married. They are surprisingly compatible, and Troi actually listens to Worf's story and prompts him to enlist help from others to find out what is prompting the shifts.

Wesley: Returns, but only in the parallel reality that saw Picard die. In this variant, Wesley apparently continued on as a full Enterpise officer under Riker. This is a nice touch, allowing for the possibility that without Picard giving him a final push, Wesley would likely not have left the ship for the Academy. It's also interesting to see this alternate Wesley behave with a maturity and professionalism that the prime universe Wesley has often lacked - perhaps indicating that Picard's death brought an end to the remnants of his childhood.


THOUGHTS

Brannon Braga returns to the writer's desk for another reality-bending episode. A good one, too - Parallels is Braga's best script since Cause and Effect. Directed with visual polish by Robert Wiemer, this is easily the best episode Season Seven has seen thus far. In a year that's been characterized by dull, mediocre bits of glob, this is a gem that shines all the brighter.

Parallels is a showcase for Braga's writing strengths. It's very fast-paced, never allowing the audience a chance to grow restless. Every scene provides some new wrinkle. It's also clever, with a sci-fi high concept that's easy to grasp quickly but interesting enough to be fun. The structure is well thought-out, with the shifts moving from minor points of divergence to increasingly major ones. We never shift into a universe that's completely unrecognizable, however (though we do get a glimpse of one through the viewscreen). Even the final, most changed variant Worf inhabits is largely different for Picard's death, with all the characters and the universe itself remaining largely recognizable.

It's not just a "concept" episode, either. Worf and Troi get some excellent character material. Lest their relationship in other shifts come out of nowhere, we start with a scene in a very close parallel showing the strength of their friendship. This is echoed when Worf returns to his universe, with Troi being the only one waiting for him (showing that even the initial return to the Enterprise - which we and Worf assumed to be the "prime" one - was itself a parallel). The early Worf/Troi scene also shows his commitment to Alexander, setting groundwork for a later shift in which he learns that Alexander now never existed. Michael Dorn plays Worf's reaction to this realization wonderfully.  Marina Sirtis is equally good in her reactions, showing pain and worry at the thought that "her" Worf may very well not return even if "our" Worf is successful.

This being a top-drawer Brannon Braga episode, we have to get at least one moment in which the whole thing goes completely nuts. That happens near the end, when all the parallels begin coming together. In a small sector of space, one parallel Enterpise after another pops into being. We see the Enterpises appearing on the viewscreen behind Data as he turns to Worf and Riker to explain what's happening. Then we cut back from commercial to see still more ships popping into being in the establishing shot. It's a moment of pure, sublime insanity, and exactly what an episode like this needs to hit its full potential.


Overall Rating: 9/10. Terrific.

Previous Episode: Inheritance
Next Episode: The Pegasus 


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5-19. The First Duty

Wesley's flight group faces an inquiry.

THE PLOT

The Enterprise is approaching Earth when Picard is informed of a flight accident involving Wesley Crusher and his Starfleet Academy flight group. Wesley is fine, but one of the cadets - Joshua Albert, son of Lt. Commander Albert (Ed Lauter) - was killed.

Initially, the incident seems very clear-cut. Nicholas Locarno (Robert Duncan McNeill), the group leader, testifies that they were practicing standard formations when Josh attempted to pull out of formation too quickly, resulting in the collision. But when a satellite image is displayed, showing the squadron in a completely different configuration just prior to the crash, it becomes clear that there is much more to this story than the flight group is telling...


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Is able to empathize with Wesley at the end, apparently because he had some incident of his own during his Academy days. Boothby (Ray Walston), the gardener he previously told Wesley to befriend, helped him through that - help he didn't appreciate at the time, but now recognizes as vital. He echoes Boothby's own words to him when talking to Wesley at the end: "You knew what you had to do. I just made sure that you listened to yourself." I hope Picard's past indiscretion is revisited at some point, as I suspect that would itself make for an interesting story.

Wesley: Is torn between two father figures as well as between two duties: Picard and Locarno, loyalty to the truth vs. loyalty to his friends. That he ends up picking Picard and the truth is inevitable, but it doesn't make the character's dilemma any less absorbing. The script plays to Wil Wheaton's strengths as an actor. I particularly appreciate how well the script uses Wesley's silence. He does a lot of listening - to Picard, to Locarno, to the dead man's father - and does as little talking as he can get away with. Given that Wesley has never been exactly taciturn, his silence itself becomes a demonstration of his shame, and it's clear from the looks exchanged between Picard and Dr. Crusher at the start that this does not go unnoticed.

Tom Paris: OK, so it's Nicholas Locarno." But this is basically the character who would become Tom Paris in Voyager, with the name change and a few fudges to the backstory existing presumably to keep Paramount from having to pay royalties. Something I'd be more indignant about if I wasn't of the opinion that characters created for an ongoing series should belong to the series in any case.

Whatever the character name, Robert Duncan McNeill's Trek debut is a good one. Locarno is clearly the villain of the piece. His personal ambition created the incident, and he uses his influence over his flight group to cover up the truth even at the cost of the dead man's good name. Still, he doesn't come across as a pure villain. He prioritizes the good of the team over the truth - and he makes good on that at the end, protecting the team as a whole at the cost of his own career. McNeill is suitably charismatic, and it's easy to see why he was brought in as a regular when Voyager was launched a few years later.


THOUGHTS

Between the impressive guest cast and the co-writing credit for Ronald D. Moore, it's no surprise that The First Duty is a particularly good episode. More than that, this may well be the best Wesley-centric episode of the entire series - a bit ironic, as it comes more than a year after Wesley ceased to be a series regular!

The First Duty is a character-based episode. There's no real external threat. The major conflict is the internal one Wesley faces. That conflict is personified by Picard and Locarno, but even then it's kept mostly low-key. Locarno makes impassioned speeches about the good of the group, while Picard makes a similarly impassioned speech about duty to the truth, but in the end the story comes down to Wesley and the decision he must make.

The surrogate father/son relationship between Picard and Wesley was something The Game didn't have time to address, so it's good to see that followed up on here. Picard's frank words for Wesley, both in his ready room and at the episode's end, are well-chosen. Picard doesn't try to sugar-coat Wesley's situation. He freely acknolwedges that the cadet has some "hard times" ahead of him, and that Wesley should feel bad about what happened. He's supportive of Wesley's decision, but his words at the end offer the young man hope, not absolution. These scenes see Patrick Stewart and Wil Wheaton in excellent form, and are highlights of the episode.

The First Duty is a change of pace for the series, and a successful one. It's a distinctive episode within the Trek canon, and it's a carefully-written script that works extremely well. For the character of Welsey and for the actor Wil Wheaton, the episode stands as a vindication, proof that the problem with Wesley in the early seasons truly did lie in the writing. Had he received scripts of this caliber at the time, then the character would be far better remembered than is generally the case.


Overall Rating: 9/10.

Previous Episode: Cause and Effect

Next Episode: Cost of Living

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5-06. The Game

Playing "The Game."

THE PLOT

Wesley Crusher returns to the Enterprise for a short vacation. He is happy to see his old friends again, and particularly a chance to catch up with Picard and compare stories about Starfleet Academy. He is also happy to help the crew work on a scientific survey of an uncharted area of space. It's while working in Engineering that he meets Robin Lefler (Ashley Judd), a bright young ensign who quickly catches his eye. It takes no time at all for them to arrange a dinner date. But even by then, the game has begun spreading through the ship...

It's a video game that Riker brought back with him from shore leave on Risa. A simple enough device, worn on the user's head. The goal is to move discs into funnels. But every time you get a disc into a funnel, it acts on the pleasure centers of the brain. Wesley and Robin study it out of curiosity, and discover that it is addictive. But by the time they go to the captain with this information, Picard has already become a player - and the Enterprise has all but fallen into the hands of an alien invasion!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Given the workings of the game, it stands to reason that the characters' basic intelligence remains intact. Picard is shrewder than most of the crew. While the rest of the crew simply try to push wesley to "play the game," Picard pretends he isn't playing it. When Wesley comes to him, he listens reasonably and attentively and promises an investigation. He only puts the game on after Wesley leaves.

Riker: "I brought something back from Risa," he intones to anyone who will listen. I'm surprised one of them doesn't tell him to go see Dr. Crusher about that. Jonathan Frakes is in full leering mode. Not just in the teaser, but after he gets back to the ship. When Geordi introduces him to Robin, Frakes speaks to her as if sizing her up for a notch on his Number One bed. Once the game is spreading through the ship, he recedes into the background.

He does get a nice character beat at the end. Realizing that he's been used, he becomes visibly angry in a very controlled way. When Etana (Katherine Moffat) threatens to fire on Enterprise, Riker asks Worf to compare the combat capabilities of her ship vs. Enterprise. He then takes great satisfaction in ordering Etana removed from the screen. Clearly, he does not enjoy being used.

Data: The first step to taking the Enterprise by using an addictive videogame? Get rid of the one crew member who is likely to be immune. Neutralizing Data is a logical step for the takeover plot, and it's an effective way of raising the dramatic stakes.  Brothers showed us exactly how capable Data is. If he were around for this story, it would feel very strained for the takeover to actually get anywhere. When he is removed, so is the story's safety net.

Wesley: Wesley returns and saves the ship again... but he does so without making me want to reach into the screen and throttle him, so the return of the "Shut Up, Wesley" heading will have to wait for one of his later guest shots. Wil Wheaton actually does very well in his first return. The time away has done him good, as he's clearly more engaged here than in many of his late Season Three/early Season Four appearances. Plus, he gets to kiss Ashley Judd - a fairly nice reward for coming back, I'd think!

Hot Space Babe of the Week: Ashley Judd returns as Robin Lefler. When I saw Judd in the background of Darmok, I figured it was just a case of dues-paying, a young actress still in the earliest days of her career taking whatever part she could get. So it's a pleasant surprise to get a second appearance. Even this young, she's highly appealing. She also knows how to play to the camera. She doesn't simply deliver her lines to camera or to the character she's talking to. She looks toward both camera and character at angles, and gives a lot of quick, darting looks to really sell her character's attraction to Wesley. She's still relatively untried, and some of these mannerisms come across a bit self-conscious. But her camera instincts are visible, and her performance in a fairly stock part is well above average. There's not much here that would make one sit up and say, "Future big star." But in retrospect, you can see that the potential is there.


THOUGHTS

This episode may be the easiest one in the entire series for the dirty-minded to read into. Never mind the obviously intentional ones, like Troi's seductive ice cream speech. Troi inviting a curious Dr. Crusher to her quarters to "show (her)" her the game also comes across as a seductive come-on. Even Dr. Crusher telling her son to invite Robin to her quarters so that they can "all play the game together" is giggle-worthy, and I have to imagine some younger kids were confused when their parents began snickering.

The actual game in The Game hasn't dated well. The graphics are more than a little cheesy and - if I recall my reaction at the time - they seemed so on original broadcast. I'd add that some of the character material is a bit ham-handed, particularly the scene in which Robin fills Wesley in on her backstory ("Let me tell you, word-for-word, what is written in my character sketch").

The Game is silly "B" movie stuff, and probably not for those who like their Trek to always be serious. Still, Brannon Braga's script moves the plot along at a good pace. There aren't any real twists, with even the reveal of Picard playing the game easy to see coming from literally the start of that scene, but it keeps moving along. The script even does a good job of making the Wesley/Robin romance feel plausible without letting it slow down the pace.

Praise is due to Corey Allen's direction. This is a highly visual episode. I love the POV shots by people playing the game, with the game foregrounding background action. A very effective use of special effects, and one which shows how far the series' capabilities have come in just a few short years. There are also some entertaining echoes of 1970's paranoid thrillers at the climax, as Wesley runs through the corridors from the now-malignant forces of the Enterprise crew. It's eerie enough to have our regulars suddenly made into villains, with everyone - Wesley included - knowing that he has no actual hope of escape. But Allen uses some clever camera angles to emphasize Wesley's isolation. The scene in which he is finally cornered is particularly well lit and shot.

Not one of Trek's greats by any means. Like Disaster, this is purely a "B" episode. But also like Disaster, it's a lot of fun to watch. For the second week in a row, I find myself awarding a filler episode a fairly high score.


Overall Rating: 7/10.

Previous Episode: Disaster

Next Episode: Unification

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4-09. Final Mission

Wesley's farewell.

THE PLOT

A spot has opened up at Starfleet Academy, and Picard has vouched for Wesley's readiness, giving the young ensign a new opportunity to advance his Starfleet ambitions. With Wesley leaving the Enterprise, Picard decides to bring him along on one last mission, a routine negotiation on a mining planet. Flown in a shuttle by the grizzled Capt. Dirgo (Nick Tate), it is set to be a simple and routine bit of Starfleet business.

Then one of Dirgo's engines explodes, forcing them to crash-land on a desert moon. Picard takes charge immediately, pushing them to move toward the mountains for shelter, then leading them into a cave. It is there that they see a fountain, protected by a technological sentry. When Dirgo attempts to use his phaser against the sentry, the resulting disruption leaves Picard severely injured - leaving it up to Wesley to reach the water, before the captain dies!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Dirgo makes an early dig about hoping that Picard is tougher than he looks. Picard quickly proves that he is, effortlessly taking command after the crash landing. When Dirgo tries to protest, Picard doesn't shout him down (as Wesley tries to), instead calmly asking for the man's input until the pilot is forced to acknowledge that there is no viable alternative to Picard's urgings to move toward the mountains. Picard talks to Wesley almost like a father to a son during the scenes in the cave, and worries that it was "selfishness" to bring Wesley along on this mission.

Riker: Yet another episode that puts Riker in command of Enterprise, and yet another one that demonstrates his readiness for command. Presented with the radioactive garbage scow, he doesn't stubbornly cling to his first option - directly towing it - when Geordi questions him on it. Geordi points out the risk to the ship and proposes a safer alternative. Riker listens... and even when he learns of Picard's disappearance, he sticks with Geordi's plan for as long as it appears viable. The instant Geordi's plan fails, however, he doesn't hesitate to order a return to his riskier initial idea, now that there is no other alternative. My only question is how long the show can sustain a second-in-command who is clearly ready for his own ship, given that we have yet to even hit the series' halfway point!

Wesley: Wesley's final appearance as a regular (though he will be back for some guest appearances). For the first half of the episode, we largely see a return to the annoying Wesley of the early seasons. He loudly dismisses Dirgo's ship in earshot of the man, then becomes unnecessarily argumentative with him after they crash-land on the moon. Picard eases Dirgo's ruffled feathers both times, and gently but firmly indicates to Wesley to back off, but it's still rather poor behavior. Thankfully, the second half allows him some more dignity, particularly once he is caring for Picard on his own. His admission that the thing he most wants is for Picard - the closest thing he has to a father - to be proud of him is genuinely effective, and the episode's encapsulation of the Picard/Wesley relationship is by far its strongest element.


THOUGHTS

Final Mission is the second and, I believe, last TNG episode to write out a regular. It's a deeply ordinary episode, and one that leaves me with no particular enthusiasm. It flirts with tedium through most of its running time, though I'll acknowledge that it mostly stays on the right side of that line. I am getting far too familiar with the Star Trek cave set, which the production doesn't even attempt to make look different than it did in, say, Captain's Holiday.

The script, by Jeri Taylor and Kasey Arnold-Ince, never does anything to explain the single fountain or the sentry. The fountain is simply a goal for Wesley to reach, the sentry simply an obstacle. It's dramatically effective at giving the story some conflict and momentum, but it doesn't go any further than that. I might be willing to credit the episode for leaving the mystery unexplained... except neither the fountain nor the sentry is ever presented as a mystery. They are there simply to fulfill a narrative function, and none of the characters seems to find their presence in any way strange. A sharper script would have made more of this, I think.

The episode does at least do a good job of encapsulating the Picard/Wesley relationship, and most of the show's best moments come from their scenes together. Wil Wheaton, while not a bad actor, really isn't at Patrick Stewart's level. Still, he does raise his game in the quiet scenes in which Wesley tends to Picard, scenes that are the real heart of the episode. If some of what surrounded these scenes were a bit stronger, or if the episode had simply trapped Wesley and Picard in a cave to await rescue without having to throw in an unexplained sci-fi fountain and an idiot guest character, then this episode might actually be good. As it stands, it's a tolerable time-filler with a few really good scenes.

As an exit episode, one might have wished for better... but, as Skin of Evil reminds us, it certainly could have been much worse.


Overall Rating: 5/10

Previous Episode: Future Imperfect
Next Episode: The Loss

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4-05. Remember Me

Picard and Dr. Crusher share a moment.

THE PLOT

The Enterprise docks at a starbase for a routine crew rotation and takes on board a passenger: Dr. Quaice (Bill Erwin), an old friend of Dr. Crusher's who is retiring after the death of his wife. After delivering Quaice to his quarters, Beverly stops by engineering to look in on Wesley, who is running an experiment involving Dr. Kocsinski's failed warp theories. Wesley's experiment also is a failure... a disastrous one!

After the experiment, Beverly is unable to find Dr. Quaice. At first, she worries that the old man may have had a bad fall. But there is no record of him ever having coming aboard, nor does anyone else on the ship remember him. In fact, Starfleet records indicate he does not exist! Picard begins a thorough investigation, but then the effect spreads further. Dr. Crusher's staff disappears, and she is told that she never had a staff. She is told that the Enterprise - a ship with more than a thousand people aboard - only has a total complement of just over 200. 200, and shrinking rapidly...


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: "Your word has always been good enough for me," he says with a reassuring smile. It is refreshing to see Picard immediately order the ship turned back to Starbase when Dr. Crusher tells her story. Picard knows and trusts Beverly, and does everything in his power to properly investigate her claims. It is only as reality continues to shift that he begins to treat her differently and, even then, his core thoughtfulness emerges.

Dr. Crusher: A Beverly-centric episode is usually not good news. Some of the blandest episodes of Season Three were the ones focused on her, and while her performance is generally adequate, it's fair to say that Gates McFadden is not exactly the strongest link in this cast. This script, however, carefully stays within McFadden's acting range, challenging her just enough for her to rise to the material without pushing past what she's actually able to do as an actress. It also effectively allies us with her, sticking firmly to her point of view for most of the show's run. Scenes in which she applies scientific reasoning to her situation - diagnosing it as if it were a disease - are particularly good, as is the scene between Beverly and Picard just past the episode's midpoint, as she surrenders to her own inability to convince him and simply sits and talks with him for the short while that she has the chance.

Wesley: Endangers the ship with his science experiment, which probably should merit a "Shut Up, Wesley." But even though he creates the problem of the episode, he doesn't annoy while doing so. Well, maybe a little at the start, when he ignores Geordi's calls to pull the plug on his experiment so that the ship can go about its business. But this fits with Wesley's age, as his reaction is exactly what you would expect of a teenager being asked to turn off his video game ("Just one more level, mom!"). Wesley doesn't believe his mother as the disappearances become ever more severe, but he still is sympathetic toward her. He even offers up useful advice regarding the Traveler. Really, a pretty good Wesley episode, and the interactions between the two characters and actors are quite well-played.


THOUGHTS

Season Four appears to be the year for following up on some of the better first season episodes. First Brothers provides a sequel to Datalore, and now this episode[ follows up on the characters and plot elements of Where No One Has Gone Before. There's even a return appearance by The Traveler (Eric Menyuk), although this time the episode is not built around him.

Like Brothers, this episode follows up on one of the series' early successes without trying to replicate the earlier episode. There is a hint of the surreal here, as there was in Where No One Has Gone Before. But the situation and atmosphere are completely different, and the plot progresses in a very different manner. The earlier episode was more dreamlike, while this is more like a nightmare horror film. There's also an emotional maturity here that was absent from the earlier episode, though that is simply a natural consequence of the show having matured and the characters having deepened during the three intervening years.

The episode does have a twist, one that's easy enough to see coming but is still well-executed. It fits with everything we've seen (particularly if you go back and re-watch the teaser afterward), and is tidily explained without the explanation being cumbersome. The twist also works because it is delivered at just the right moment: Late enough in the episode to allow the situation to develop, but with enough time left in the episode for its ramifications to be dealt with.

With good character bits for Picard, Beverly, and Wesley, as well as some decent interaction among the supporting cast, Remember Me is a good episode. It's not a "big" episode, and it's hardly one to sear itself into the memory, but as an entertaining and effectively atmospheric science fiction puzzle, it works.


Overall Rating: 7/10

Previous Episode: Suddenly Human

Next Episode: Legacy

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3-24. Menage a Troi

THE PLOT

The Enterprise attends the closing of a trade conference on Betazed, which allows Troi a chance to reunite with her mother, Lwaxana (Majel Barrett). Also in attendance are the Ferengi, who - as a Betazoid delegate observes - "made a profit and behaved themselves," representing progress in relations with them. But the Ferengi Daimon, Tog (Frank Corsentino), has set his sights on Lwaxana. When she spurns his advances, Tog tries an even more direct approach: Abduction! And since Riker and Troi happen to be with Lwaxana at the time, they get to go along for the ride..


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: The episode's climax allows Patrick Stewart to indulge his hammier tendencies as Picard imitates a jealous lover by quoting random poetry lines at the viewscreen. Stewart appears to be enjoying himself, but I did not find his enjoyment to be contagious. He's much better in the more subdued scene that follows, in which he rewards Wesley for his service to the ship. I think underplaying suits Stewart's acting strengths a lot better than ham does. He is not William Shatner, nor should he try to be.

Riker: Trapped in a cell with both Troi and Lwaxana in danger, he focuses intently on escape. When Troi reports what Lwaxana is doing with Tog, his response is pragmatic: Lwaxana is buying them time, so they'd better make use of it. Unable to bypass the Ferengi security systems to send a direct message to the Enterprise, Riker comes up with a subtler way of achieving the same end.

Troi: Remains eternally exasperated by her mother, and is impatient at Lwaxana's endless pushing for her to get married. Still, when alone with Riker on Betazed, she shows a distinct inclination to enjoy herself in his company... at least, until Lwaxana's piercing, glass-shattering voice is heard not very far in the distance. Despite the aggravations caused by her mother, once they are captives of the Ferengi, she remains in constant telepathic contact with Lwaxana and is highly protective.

Lwaxana Troi: In possibly the first truly positive note the character has struck at this point in TNG's run, she is even more protective of Deanna than her daughter is of her. She is willing to do whatever it takes to secure her daughter's safety, a character beat that goes a long way toward offsetting the many intentionally obnoxious moments she's given in the first and last Acts of the show. Unfortunately, a recurring problem of Lwaxana Troi is that, though she may be intentionally obnoxious and irritating, the fact that it's intentional doesn't really compensate for her being obnoxious and irritating. Still, this episode does represent positive development for her, even if she's still well short of the kind of genuine character material she would get when stuck with Odo in a turbolift on Deep Space 9.

Ferengi: This episode establishes the Ferengi practice of oo-mox, in which they are manually pleasured by stroking their earlobes. Meaning that this episode, to the best of my knowledge, features the first televised handjob in the history of US network prime-time television. Beyond that, there's not much new here. The Ferengi are greedy, lust-filled, and cannot be trusted. But at least they make up for it by being stupid. It is amusing to see Ethan "Neelix" Phillips playing a sort of Ferengi Josef Mengele, eager to experiment with Lwaxana and potentially dissect her, but these Ferengi remain caricatures rather than characters.


THOUGHTS

Lwaxana Troi returns - and to add to the joy, it's a Ferengi episode too! All that's needed is a German-accented Laurence Olivier with a pair of pliers coaxingly asking, "Is it safe," in order for the picture to be complete.

In fairness, Menage a Troi is a substantial improvement over the previous Lwaxana episode. But given that her previous appearance came in the dismal Manhunt, that still isn't saying much. The first Act is surprisingly tolerable, even entertaining. Then the Ferengi kidnap Lwaxana, Riker, and Troi, and it rapidly degenerates.

The biggest problem is that there really isn't enough story here to sustain 45 minutes. The writers attempt to deal with this by using a subplot involving Wesley Crusher's imminent entry to Starfleet Academy, in scenes that are marginally more entertaining than the Lwaxana/Ferengi ones. But since we know Wesley isn't going anywhere, the resolution of this subplot is mostly a given - though the story does refreshingly and unexpectedly advance Wesley's position at the end, making the Wesley subplot ultimately more satisfying than the "A" plot.

That's right. The Wesley storyline here is the good bit.

The scenes aboard the Ferengi vessel begin amusingly enough, but rapdily become tedious. Once Riker bluffs his way out of his cell, there's nothing for Riker and Troi to do except tread narrative water for the next 15 minutes. Meanwhile, the plot connives for Lwaxana to act to keep her daughter safe by performing sexual acts for a man who disgusts her. The stuff of horror and nightmare, surely? But no - It's all played for laughs, complete with comedy music and exaggerated facial expressions. Sexual blackmail as comedy relief is just about forgivable in 1960's Trek, where it was part and parcel of the time period (heck, Sean Connery's Bond does much the same in Thunderball, albeit with a more willing victim). But in 1990's Trek, it's not only bad taste, it's significantly out of step with society.

It's also just not very funny, certainly not as funny as the actors and music seem to think it is. And in an already slow-paced episode, that's the final nail in this one's coffin. Season Three has moved the series' average quality significantly on from where it used to be. Unfortunately, this one plays for all the world like something from the last, horrible stretch of Season Two.

Overall Rating: 3/10.


Previous Episode: Sarek
Next Episode: Transfigurations

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3-12. The High Ground

THE PLOT

The Enterprise is delivering medical supplies to Rutia IV, a non-aligned world that has been torn apart by terrorism. The Ansata, a group of separatists who want the right to rule themselves on the planet's western continent, have orchestrated a campaign of bombings and assassinations against the Rutian government, which has responded by cracking down more and more on all Ansatans, which in turn fuels more terrorism. It's a messy situation, with no clear end game in sight.

The stakes are raised when Finn (Richard Cox), the leader of the Ansatan separatists, kidnaps Dr. Crusher. He wants her to use her advanced knowledge to help his people, whose undectable inter-dimensional transporters have enhanced their campaign, but at the cost of slowly killing those who use it. When Dr. Crusher tells him she can't reverse the damage, and the only cure for those not already dying is to "stop using it," Finn goes even further. He intends to draw the Federation into the conflict, so that they can force the Rutians to grant honorable peace terms. His method? Destroy the Enterprise!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Is dedicated to finding Dr. Crusher, but has no interest in directly involving the Federation in the Rutians' internal problems. When explaining what has happened to Wesley, he is direct but sympathetic. He denies Wesley's request to join Riker on the planet, but finds a way for the boy to be useful by assigning him to work with Geordi to analyze the terrorists' transporter technology. Which has the twin benefits of keeping Welsey out of the way (and out of harm's way), while at the same time using Wesley's actual skills.

Riker: Works with Alexana (Kerrie Keane), the head of the Rutians' security forces. He clearly disapproves of Alexana's methods, which are reminiscent of a police state, but listens to her point of view, and works well with her. When Alexana's questioning of random Ansatans yields no results, Riker spreads the word that the Federation will negotiate directly for the return of Dr. Crusher... which ends up spurring the terrorists to even more desperate action.

Dr. Crusher: Her refusal to simply beam up after witnessing an explosion is what puts her in harm's way to start with. When Picard says he should have just beamed her up, even without her assent, Dr. Crusher is shocked at the suggestion, and says that she'll obey Picard's orders when she deems them "sensible." Which is entirely consisent with the Picard/Crusher relationship - she has questioned his orders on at least two previous occasions - but highlights a problem of Picard having a key staff officer with whom he has such a close and complex relationship. She intellectually understands the chain of command, but can't always make herself see him as "the captain" rather than just "Jean-Luc."

Wesley: Gets another decent episode, as he recognizes the pattern of the terrorists' interdimensional Technobabble, spurring Data and Geordi to Technobabbling their Gizmos to detect and trace the device.


THOUGHTS

Two episodes in a row dealing with a minority group that resorts to a violent response against a repressive government. The High Ground is less simplistic than The Hunted was, but in many ways it's also less effective.

Though Melinda Snodgrass has crafted a thoughtful script about terrorism, the story just doesn't dig very deeply into its topic. Both sides are represented by a single face: Finn (Richard Cox) for the terrorists, and Alexana (Kerrie Keane) for the government. Alexana might reference that her predecessors were more oppressive than she is, but we don't see anyone around her wanting to try a harsher or less harsh approach. Finn, similarly, is the leader of the planet's only terrorist group, with no rival groups or offshoots, and no one challenges any of his plans or approaches. In fact, there aren't even any other terrorists with speaking parts!

It all leads to a conclusion in which Riker says something about the significance of a child not shooting Alexana - a bit that induced me to exercise my eyes by rolling them. Mix in a very wooden performance by Kerrie Keane, who in fairness must contend with a lot of artificial dialogue, and the episode falls a fair bit short of its ambitions.

On the other hand, it is quite watchable. Richard Cox is good as Finn, who has more character depth than the average Trek villain. The script is well-structured, and the plot moves along quite nicely. As with The Hunted, the action scenes are well-directed and there is definite momentum. The climax does show the major flaw in Finn's plan to bring the Federation into it - the Federation's technology and manpower means that, the instant the Enterprise alone becomes involved, Finn can't help but very quicky lose.

Not everything in The High Ground works, and it seems clear that the producers were aiming at a much better episode than they got. But it's well-paced and reasonably thoughtful. Most of all, the situation is just as much of a mess at the end as at the beginning, with no one black-and-white villain and no easy fix for Rutia's complex problems. It may not deliver all that was wanted of it, but it's still a solid piece of television.


Overall Rating: 6/10.

Previous Episode: The Hunted

Next Episode: Deja Q

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3-5. The Bonding

THE PLOT

Worf and an Away Team are investigating the ruins of a dead civilization, which destroyed itself after a conflict that lasted for generations. A long-dormant mine explodes, leading to the death of anthropologist Marla Aster (Susan Powell).

Since Marla died under Worf's reponsibility, the Klingon is left feeling an obligation to help care for her now-orphaned son, Jeremy (Gabriel Damon). But Jeremy's grief is complicated when an alien force appears on the Enterprise - an energy being of enormous power, who takes the form of his dead mother.  The alien insists that she will care for him, even if she has to overcome the entire Enterprise crew to do it!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: He's always been uncomfortable at having children on starships. Here, he is able to express why in a way that extends his thoughts beyond, "I hate kids." As he says, there are risks to serving on a starship, which the officers and crew members understand and accept. Children simply cannot consent to those risks in the way that adults can. He is compassionate in his dealings with Jeremy, and eloquent in his talks with the alien.

Troi: This script tries hard to make Troi an integral part of the action. She is able to sense the presence of the alien even when ship's sensors cannot, which allows the crew to find the fake "Marla" before she can get the boy down to the planet. She is also able to prompt Picard, Worf, and Wesley into expressing the right emotions regarding grief and loss to make the energy being realize that the boy will be healthiest in the long run if he stays where he is. For all of that, she actually comes across worse here than in the previous episode. There's something too self-aware about a lot of Troi's scenes, and Marina Sirtis' performance is stilted as a result. Still, it's a good effort to do something with one of the series' weakest overall characters.

Worf: Suffers enormous guilt at the death of someone under his command, all the moreso for it being a death he regards as "senseless... (He) cannot seek revenge against an enemy who has turned to dust centuries ago!" He feels it is his responsibility to bond with the orphaned boy and to help take care of him, but he does listen to Troi when she advises him to move slowly.

Wesley: No "Shut Up, Wesley" this time, as both Wil Wheaton and his character have a rather good episode. There are two excellent scenes centered around Wesley's memories of his father's death: First, when he confesses to his mother that he has difficulty even remembering what his father looked like; later, when he tells Picard about how angry he was at the older man for surviving the mission that killed his father. Wheaton is particularly good in the scene with Picard, bringing a genuinely hard tone to his voice when talking about his anger, even as he insists that he doesn't feel angry anymore.


THOUGHTS

Ronald Moore's first Star Trek script. Like all of the Season Three episodes so far, it's strongly attempting to create good drama in a science fiction setting. Like most of the Season Three episodes so far, it doesn't live up to its ambitions, but at least it's trying.

There are too many scenes in which the regulars simply talk about their roles as if delivering exposition to the audience, I suspect a symptom of this episode's origin as a spec script. But scenes in which Troi and Picard talk about what a ship's counsellor does, for example, suffer from writing that is alost painfully on-the-nose. It's the episode's major weakness: a lot of what should be left as subtext has been directly written into the dialogue.

The script's greatest strength is that it actually uses all of the series regulars. Everyone gets something to do. The script may be a bit too artificial in its use of Troi, but Worf is used to very strong effect, Picard has a strong role, and both Crushers get some effective scenes. Even Riker, who is largely on the periphery delivering plot information, gets a good scene opposite Data, one which mirrors Spock's words in The Immunity Syndrome when Riker reflects that if all death affected us the way the death of a loved one did, then "human history might be a lot less bloody."

The alien plot, with the false Marla transforming the boy's sterile Enterprise quarters into a replica of their old house on Earth, evokes an effectively creepy atmosphere. I also appreciate that the alien is entirely well-intentioned, with no hidden agenda. Picard does get a "Picard Sledge-Hammer" bit, in which he talks at length about the need to accept loss, but it's actually a very good monologue which fits perfectly into the narrative and is splendidly acted by Patrick Stewart. So I'll refrain from making fun of it.

In the end, The Bonding is not all it might have been. There's a lack of subtlety and a wooden performance from the child actor at the center of the plot. But it also has a lot of strong elements, particularly in its use of the entire regular ensemble. A promising first effort, by a writer who would go on to deliver on that promise in later episodes.


Overall Rating: 6/10.

Previous Episode: Who Watches the Watchers?

Next Episode: Booby Trap

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3-1. Evolution

THE PLOT

The Enterprise is hosting an experiment by Dr. Sutton (Ken Jenkins). Sutton's experiment involves firing off an "egg" into an energy phenomenon. But just as his egg is about to be launched, the ship experiences a severe malfunction.

This malfunction is followed by more system failures, with no apparent cause. At least, not until Wesley confesses that the damage was caused when he fell asleep while working on a science experiment involving nanites. The nanites escaped into the ship's systems, and have been rapidly reproducing themselves. They can be removed by a massive dose of gamma radiation. But Picard is reluctant to do so, as the nanites' behavior increasingly indicates that they have evolved into intelligent life!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: When he realizes that Wesley's nanites have evolved into a life form of their own, he resists the idea of killing them. He wants a peaceful solution, and presses Data, Wesley, and Geordi to help provide him with one. When the ship is directly imperiled, he is on the verge of giving the kill order, but he's suitably relieved when Data is able to offer an alternative.

Data: Likely very sympathetic to the idea of artificial life evolving into true, organic life.  He is quick to offer himself up as a conduit to communicate with the Nanites. Brent Spiner's acting as the Nanite-possessed Data isn't exactly subtle, but it's effectively varied from his normal performance in both speech and movement.

Dr. Crusher: Evolution sees the return of Gates McFadden's Dr. Beverly Crusher to the Enterprise. She's still pretty... and still pretty bland. After a year away, she is concerned about Wesley. She feels that her reunion with him has been "too polite," and worries to Picard that Wesley isn't getting into enough trouble. She is relieved when she sees Wesley hanging out with a pretty teen girl in the tag scene - and then her protective maternal instincts kick in, and she demands Guinan tell her what she knows about the girl in question.

Annoying Space Bureaucrat of the Week: Dr. Sutton (Ken Jenkins) is a "Wunderkind," and effectively acts as one possible future for Wesley. His obsession with living up to his much-vaunted "potential" through this experiment feels almost like a callback to The Ultimate Computer, though Sutton isn't actively unhinged as Daystrom was. Jenkins gives a strong performance, and develops an effectively paternal style in his scenes opposite Wesley. I found his reaction to Troi to be a refreshing one, as he resists her efforts to "counsel" him and bluntly tells her that he "will share the feelings that (he wishes) to share." Mercifully, though Sutton "reforms," he never repents his words to Troi.


SHUT UP, WESLEY!

Wesley the Wunderkind screws up. That should make his role in this episode less annoying. It doesn't. The scene in which Wesley whines to his mother about how he's "an officer now, with responsibilities" before lashing out at her because she hasn't "even been here" is teeth-gratingly irritating. It's not just that Wesley's being a brat. Wil Wheaton's performance in these scenes is... well, bad. You can see him forcing the lines, and overacting some of the reactions. Annoyance at Wesley is raised by the rest of the episode, which fails to provide any consequences at all, either for his mistake or - more critically, I'd think - for his failure to immediately report it.


THOUGHTS

The eyecatching effects shot which opens the show seems almost like an announcement that the series is moving forward, at least on a technical level. This is reinforced by the noticeably upgraded title sequence. It's as if the show is telling us that the first two seasons were just a warm-up: Now is when the real series begins.

If that's the statement being made, then it is a great shame that it is followed by such a middling episode. Evolution is certainly not bad. But it's not particularly better than the stretch of seriously flawed episodes which ended Season Two. The effects are better, but in storytelling terms it feels very much like "more of the same."

The first half actually works fairly well. The mystery is developed. The "A" plot is tied together with Dr. Crusher's return and her worries about Wesley when we discover that Wesley actually caused the problem. Wesley confesses by the halfway point, leaving the rest of the episode to deal with the now rapdily-evolving threat.

That's when it all starts to fall apart. There are no consequences for Wesley, and in fact Wesley has little additional role in the episode. The situation is actually resolved by Data. Wesley just stands around in the background. Now, it's obvious enough that I don't really care for Wesley as a character. But when a situation is set up around one character, I tend to prefer that character to be involved in the resolution.

The resolution feels weak, and Picard's closing voice over, in which he tells us how everything ended up working out OK, with the Enterprise crew, Dr. Sutton, and the nanites metaphorically sitting around a fire singing Kumbaya, induced me to exercise my eye muscles. By rolling them. A lot.

On the plus side, the effects work in this episode is excellent, and the characterization continues to be treated with the seriousness seen in Season Two. Dr. Crusher's return is surprisingly well-handled, given that Pulaski is not on-hand for a handover.

Neither good nor bad, then. The best I can really say is that it is, at least, better than the previous season opener. Here's hoping for better in the none-too-distant future, though.


Overall Rating: 5/10

Previous Episode: Shades of Gray
Next Episode: The Ensigns of Command

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2-21. Peak Performance

THE PLOT

Realizing the threat posed by the steadily approaching Borg, Picard agrees to a Starfleet request he had previously resisted: He allows his ship to become involved in a war games exercise, presided over by Kolrami (Roy Brocksmith), a master strategist of the Zakdorn race. The engagement is one that's well-suited to preparing for a Borg attack. Riker will command the Hathaway, an 80-year-old vessel that is only partially working, in simulated combat against the Enterprise.

With the Hathaway hopelessly outmatched by Enterprise, Riker's only chance lies in finding ways to trick and surprise Picard. Kolrami doesn't think Riker is up to the challenge. He's read Riker's file, and "found him wanting." But with assistance from Worf's tactical skills, Geordi's engineering abilities, and Wesley's science experiment, Riker may have a few surprises in store for both his captain and the pompous Zakdorn.


CHARACTERS

Capt. Picard: Has developed tremendous respect for Riker. He recognizes that Riker's lighthearted personal style differs from his own, more serious one. But he has the sense to see this as a strength, rather than as the weakness that Kolrami insists it is. He defends Riker's lightheartedness to Kolrami, observing that the very joviality the Zakdorn disdains is what makes the crew so loyal to Riker. His desire to see his first officer do well does not impact his own desire to win, however, and he sets Data to work analyzing Riker's past performance in combat situations to try to figure out exactly what the younger man will do.

Riker: Enjoys a challenge, even a challenge he has little chance of turning into a victory. It is for this reason that he challenges Kolrami to a game of Strategema, knowing that he has no chance of winning or even of managing a close match. He simply wants to play the man who is the best, even if he can't win. This same quality is in evidence in his command of the Hathaway. He uses every resource given to him to trick and bluff Picard in the war game. He doesn't really expect to win. But he relishes the challenge of showing what he can do with these limited resources.

Worf: Another very good episode for Worf. His reaction to Kolrami is well-judged. Once he learns that the Zakdorns' reputation for strategy has never truly been tested, he loses all interest in Kolrami, stating that with no actual test, his reputation is meaningless. He does not see the point in the mock combat, but is eager to join Riker's crew to try to outwit the Enterprise. He employs guile as a tactic to good effect, first in the war game, then in more dire circumstances.

Data: Prodded by Pulaski, he challenges Kolrami to a game of Strategema... and loses. This prompts a crisis for Data.  He assumes that since he believes he made no mistakes, then there must be some fault in his systems. Picard snaps him out of it by telling him that it is quite possible to lose even when no mistakes are made, and Data is able to re-think his game strategy to stymie Kolrami in the tag.

Annoying Space Bureaucrat of the Week: Kolrami (Roy Brocksmith) is arrogant, superior, and smug. He's more or less the perfect Starfleet bureaucrat. He's not actually evil, but you still want to see him get a severe comeuppance. His disapproval of Riker's jovial nature is convincing. To a certain type of personality, people with a tendency to joke about serious subjects can easily come across as frivolous, no matter how good their record may be. Once the situation turns deadly serious, Kolrami folds into a cardboard coward - the predictable path for the script, though it would have been far more interesting had Kolrami stepped in at that point with a brilliant strategy that proved his reputation.


THOUGHTS

"Starfleet is not a military organization." Uh-huh. It has a naval command structure, mandatory court-martials for captains who lose their ships, and court-martials for officers accused of misconduct. Junior officers who disobey a captain's orders can be charged with insubordination. In the event of a war, Starfleet is trained and ready to fight on the front lines. But no, it's not military. No sir, nothing military about it at all.

What's that old saying about something that quacks like a duck... ?

That bit of grumbling to one side, Peak Performance starts out rather well. I particularly enjoyed the nod to the Borg. I assumed they would go unmentioned until Best of Both Worlds, so it was a nice surprise to have the encounter from Q Who used as an excuse for Picard to OK this exercise.

Riker's preparations for the war games are fun to watch. He selects his crew well, and putting the two characters who most hate to lose - Riker and Worf - into a situation where there are few options for winning creates an interesting scenario. As they prepare little tricks and traps, the stage is set for what seems likely to be an entertaining encounter between the two lead characters, and their differing command styles.

A funny thing happens on the way to the contest. The Ferengi crash the episode, taking the whole show on a left turn into a completely different story. I don't know whether the writers were trying to up the stakes by creating a genuine threat (to the extent that the Ferengi could ever be said to fill that role), or whether they simply did not want to answer the question of which of the two leads would win. Either way, it effectively derails the show. The contest the entire episode had been building toward is forgotten in favor of a rather standard and uninspired "action climax."

I would have far preferred to have simply carried out the contest. As I see it, there are two possible outcomes. Most likely: Picard wins through having the vastly superior ship, but only after Riker does a tremendous job with the resources at his disposal, thus earning Kolrami's respect. Less likely, but potentially more interesting: The trick with the warp drive allows Riker to win the engagement, thus setting up a situation for the rest of the series in which the First Officer is actually the more capable commander in a direct military engagement. If that were the resolution, officially recognized by Starfleet in the wake of the war game, then that could have set up some truly interesting situations for Seasons Three and beyond.

But no. The Ferengi come in with a stupid Third Act that has nothing to do with the episode we've been watching up to that point, but which allow Picard and Riker to be back on the same side for the finale. And with that, the war games are over, and Data gives Kolrami (who, all too predictably, becomes a coward when the going gets tough) his comeuppance.

It's far from the worst of what's been a very uninspired set of episodes. But given the promise of the first half, it is the most frustrating of the past five, because it so clearly could have been good. Instead, the series contents itself with mediocrity. Again.


Rating: 4/10.

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