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Lauded by most insiders on Voyager's creative team as one of the most satisfying episodes in the series, "Phage" is indeed a nice balance amongcharacter development, story hook, and moral and emotional conflict. With power sources dwindling aboard the ship, Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) sends an away team, including Neelix (Ethan Phillips), to a planet in search of dilithium crystals. While there, Neelix is literally robbed of his lungs by the Vidiians, a once-civilized people who are combating a deadly disease called the Phage by stealing organs. Set up with a pair of holographic lungs by Voyager's doctor (Robert Picardo), Neelix is forced to remain absolutely still while Janeway chases the alien thieves.

Writer Skye Dent may be the only person not entirely happy with the show: he describes the Vidiians he had conceived as arrogant and formidable, while their actual portrayal is, in his words, "wimpy." Point taken, but both Dent and Brannon Braga, series producer and cowriter of "Phage," do find a way here to capitalize on one of the few real relationships--Neelix and his lover, Kes (Jennifer Lien)--among the characters at that time, and the result is tender. Best of all, however, is Janeway's visible pain when she has to get tough with such a pitiful people as the Vidiians; executive producer Jeri Taylor says Mulgrew was quite moved by those scenes. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Is Neelix gonna die?
With the annoyance that Neelix's character seemed to cause pretty much everyone else on the ship, I thought this is the episode that he would leave the show.

An alien with a disease called the "Phage" steals Neelix's lungs and graphs them into this own body. After hunting down the lung theft, Janeway demands the organs back, only to find out he's already using them. Kes offers to give Neelix one of her lungs, the alien offers to perform the surgery using their advanced technology to modify organs from 2 unlike species.

This was a good episode, but I feel that the plot was a little weak. Most episodes have a major story line and a couple of minor ones, as well as the other 'day to day' ongoing struggles. This one seemed the lack the minor conflicts.

Aliens steal Neelix's lungs and Janeway wants them back
One of the prime tenants of Gene Roddenberry's "Start Trek" universe is that plot lines will dress up contemporary issues in futuristic situations. The "Phage" is a devastating plague (think AIDS) that is afflicting an alien race searching the Delta Quadrant for "donors." During an Away Team survey trying to retrieve some raw dilithium, Neelix (Ethan Phillips) is brutally attacked and his lungs are removed. The EMH (Robert Picardo) comes up with a pair of holographic lungs to keep the Talaxian alive, but confined to sickbay for the rest of his life. Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) personally leads an Away Team back to the planet where they discover a medical lab filled with organs harvested from other unwilling donors. The bad news is that Neelix's lungs are not in the lab and when a space ship blasts off from the planet "Voyager" is in hot pursuit. But when they catch up with the Vidiians the crew discovers that these aliens suffer from a horrible plague that destroys their cellular structures that forces them to find healthy organs to replace their own, which is why Neelix's organs have already been transplanted into one of their crew. Thus we come to the big question of this episode: will Janeway kill the Vidiian to get Neelix's lungs back?

"Phage" (Episode 5, Story by Timothy De Haas; Screenplay by Skye Dent and Brannon Braga; Aired: February 6, 1995) plays off the "Star Trek: Voyager" pilot in an interesting way. The ship is stuck in the Delta Quadrant because Captain Janeway put principle ahead of her crew and here we are just a few episodes later and she is confronted with essentially the same decision on a smaller scale. The episode also establishes the principle of bartering and negotiation that serves the crew in good stead as they try to get back home. "Phage" is also the episode when the Doctor comes up with the idea of Kes (Jennifer Lien) being his medical assistant (remember, the EMH was only supposed to a short term solution). It also provides a serious side to the happy go lucky Neelix, who is probably the most cheerful alien in the galaxy. Although he will always remain quaint until the very end of the series, Neelix really does provide necessary social and diplomatic skills and services to "Voyager."

Slightly bizarre, but good character development
Well, I must say that I enjoyed this episode, even though at first blush, the premise (Nelix gets his lungs stolen by aliens) sounded pretty silly.

However, by the end of this episode, we were further aquainted with the characters of Neelix, Kes, and The Doctor...and we met for the first time a species of aliens (the Vidiians) that would come to plague Voyager's crew throughout many episodes to come.

In short...this was a sleeper episode for me. Before I saw it, I must admit not expecting much. But it turned out to be a lot better than the packaging blurb lets on.

Fantastic!
This is a fantastic episode. The plot may seem rather funny at first, but is actually quite serious. While search for dilitheum, Neelix has a strange encounter with an alien who removes his lungs. In order to servive, the Doctor makes Neelix a pair of holographic lungs, but he must remain motionless or they won't work. The crew on Voyager goes searching for the aliens who did it and when they find them, the aliens admit to what they did and offer to do a lung transplant for Neelix. Who will donate a lung? This video shows emence bravery on the parts of Neelix and Kes and is definently worth buying.

Entertaining with Good Characterizations
"Phage" does rely on one slight contrivance to get its plot going, but its a very nice show. The concept is mildy goofy, but the show executes it so well it almost plausible someone's organs can be snatched out from their body using some kind of magical beam. This was the premise behind "Spock's Brain" but DO NOT worry, "Phage" is much smarter than that brainless (pun-intended) travesty. The crew's search for Neelix's lungs is very quick and interesting. Meanwhile, the doctor has created Neelix a pair of holo-lungs. Once we find the thiefs, even they prove interesting. Not usual for Voyager's villians. The final scenes reveal some wonderful characterizations. "Phage" is classic episode of Voyager. ... Read more

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Voyager's most intriguing character, the holographic Doctor(Robert Picardo), gets a plot of his own. When Voyager rescues a dyingVidiian woman named Denara Pel (Susan Diol) who suffers from the phage (anAIDS-like epidemic), the Doctor springs into action, digitizing her brain andcreating a holographic version of her, as he tries to save her actual bodywith a brain graft. But even as he works on her humanoid form, he findshimself beguiled by the holographic version he has created--and despite thefact that he is also a computer-generated hologram, he realizes he is fallingin love with her. Picardo, one of the great unsung character actors in moviesof the 1980s (he's a regular in the films of director Joe Dante), has a goodtime with the persnickety hologram's attempts to come to grips with humanemotions, including a lesson in love from the redoubtable Tom Paris (RobertDuncan McNeill). --Marshall Fine ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Why can't the doctor be an EMH in love?
In "Star Trek: Voyager," Episode 36, "Lifesigns" (Written by Kenneth Biller, Aired February 26, 1996), we discover the EMH has taken another significant step along the road to personhood. "Voyager" rescues a Vidiian female who dying from the Phage, the horrible Delta Quadrant disease that is killing off her people. The Doctor (Robert Picardo) puts the dying woman in statis and not only transfers her synaptic patterns into the holobuffer but creates a holographic body of what she would look like without the disease. The Viddian is Dr. Denara Pel (Susan Diol), a hematologist, and while the Doctor's solution is only temporary, he has hopes of being able to save her life.

Since Klingon DNA is resistant to the Phage, the Doctor is able to persuade Torres (Roxann Biggs-Dawson) to donate brain tissue that is then grafted onto Pel's brain. While waiting to see if the graft works and retards the Phage, the two physicians send time together and the Doctor is surprised to learn that he has feelings for Pel. Of course, his programming gives him no clue as to what he should do next. Fortunately Kes (Jennifer Lein) is around to give encouragement and Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill) is available for dating advice. However, the two doctors are clearly a star-crossed pair.

Until Seven of Nine joined the cast of "Voyager" it was the Doctor that was the most intriguing character, not to mention the one that underwent the most change over the course of the series. There is something compelling, or perhaps reassuring, about what is basically a computer program that exhibits anxiety and is plagued by doubt. The Doctor's unrequited love for Seven of Nine down the road offered as much pathos as any "Voyager" subplot (although the echoes of Odo and Kira on "Deep Space 9" were rather obvious), and this episode constitutes the first major step in that direction with Picardo's performance driving home the emotional impact. Bonus points for "Lifesigns" having a one word that title that applies to both of the main characters.

The Doctor turns out to be a nice guy!
I really enjoyed this episode of Voyager and feel that it represents a real turning point in the character development of The Doctor. In this episode, The Doctor first saves the life of, then falls in love with a Vidiian woman who is seriously afflicted with the Phage.

What I really enjoy about the episode is the "new ground" that the character of The Doctor is breaking with his exploration of human love and desire. This is a significant step forward in the overall character development of The Doctor, and Robert Picardo does some excellent acting in this episode as well. I give it 4 stars.

Lifesigns displayed
Another terrific episode of the voyager series. This episode deals with a Vidiian female who is found and seriously injured from the phage, their species AIDS virus. In order to treat her the docter creates a holographic body for her consciousness to reside in while he treats her body's injuries. As the episode progresses the she and the doctor begin to form an interesting relationship. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Captain Janeway tries to make an alliance with the Kazon
"Star Trek: Voyager" Episode 31, "Alliances" (Written by Jeri Taylor, Aired January 22, 1996) has Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) confronting the realities of being stuck in the Delta Quadrant trying to get home when she agrees to try and form an alliance with the Kazon. "Voyager" has been under repeated attack by the Kazon and the ship has been damaged. Running out of options, Chakotay tells Janeway that the Maquis would have exploited the competing factions of the Kazon and urges her to do the same thing. Janeway is reluctant, but when Tuvok argues that such an alliance could provide some degree of stability to that section of the Delta Quadrant, she agrees to make the appropriate overtures. However, both the initial talks between Janeway and Chakotay with their old friends Seska (Martha Hackett) and Culluh (Anthony De Longis), and those between Neelix (Ethan Phillips) and a representative of another Kazon faction go from bad to worse. But then things take a turn for the better and a conference of warring Kazon factions is called to try and establish peace in the quadrant. Unfortunately arriving on the scene as well are the Trabe, who were once the slaves of the Kazon and who are now exiles. Throw into the mix Seska's machinations to use the conference as another move in the effort to capture "Voyager" and it is just a question of how bad things are going to be at the end of this one.

My only real problem with this episode is that even if Chakotay has things he wants to keep secret from Janeway regarding Seska there is no way that the Captain should ever trust Seska or her ally. However, I certain appreciate the way "Alliances" complicates the situation for the "Voyager" crew, although it is a bit difficult to follow all the political implications. Granted, forming alliances is going to be a prime ingredient in getting "Voyager" further along on its long journey home, but Janeway's first diplomatic steps should probably have been something considerably less ambitious. Then again, just to argue out one final flip, after the monolithic enemies of the Star Trek universe from the Klingons and Romulans to the Borg and Cardassians, it is a pretty good change of pace to have the Kazons with their multiple factions (although, once again, it seems there is a pretty good parallel between the Kazons and the factions of the Middle East that are vying for control). The bottom line is that "Alliances" is an above-average "Voyager" episode, with implications down the road for more than the Chakotay-Seska sub-plot.

One of Voyager's best!
This episode is full of action and it has an interesting plot twist! I love it! And to keep things interesting, Seska's hair is curled this time around! Haha! (Not that that is important!). More importantly, we get to see that darned ol' Seska again. I was a little surprised that she agreed to talk about an alliance with Voyager, but oh well, the episode was still great!

Good background for the Kazon
Well, since the Kazon are perhaps "the" villans of Voyager Seasons 1 and 2, it's good that we discover the roots of their aggression. In this episode, we explore the hostile and distrustful relationship between the Kazon and the Trabe, and the result is an excellent episode filled with good dialogue and action.

Unfortunately, the crew of Voyager is, by the end of the episode, left in a position of complete isolation from both the Kazon and the Trabe...but Janeway stands her moral ground with both, and that counts for something!

Also in this episode, Seska makes an appearance, giving us still more reasons to hate her (as if we didn't have loads by this time!)

Overall, and enjoyable episode and one worth viewing from season 2.

Trabe who?
In this episode we learn more about the Kazon revolt against their enslavers and how they were truly treated. By the end you almost feel sympathy toward them. Voyager tries to form a protective alliance with the Trabe but let's just say there's more than a few problems. This is a MUST for every Star Trek fan. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

"Voyager" finally encounters the female Caretaker
Way back in the two-part pilot episode for "Star Trek: Voyager" the Caretaker, the alien responsible for trapping the Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and her crew in the Delta Quadrant, made reference to the existence of a female of his kind. In Episode 26, "Cold Fire" (Story by Anthony Williams, Teleplay by Brannon Braga, Aired November 13, 1995) "Voyager" meets up with the alien being who has the power to send them home. However, this becomes a pivotal second season episode of the series for other reasons.

The first clue comes when Kes (Jennifer Lein) and the Doctor (Robert Picardo) discover the remains of the Caretaker are resonating in response to a strange energy source. Aware of how dangerous such an encounter could be, Tuvok (Tim Russ) creates a toxin that should work against the female Caretaker if she proves to be a threat. But when "Voyager" follows the energy trail back to its source they find a space station occupied by the Ocampa, who attack "Voyager." Kes convinces the Ocampan leader, Tanis (Gary Graham), that "Voyager" is not a threat and he provides information that the female Caretaker, Suspiria, has been looking over his Ocampa group for 300 years helping them to develop their psychokinetic abilities. Kes is intrigued, but when Tanis contacts Suspiria, she orders him to deliver "Voyager" to her.

What makes "Cold Fire" an above average episode is that while the lure of the female Caretaker is the hook for the episode the payoff has to do with Kes and her psychokinetic potential. After all, Kes is the clearly the least significant member of the Voyager" cast (I was going to say the "Voyager" crew but that would not be the case), and the consequences of this episode radically changes her place in the show's hierarchy. I am reminded, not without cause, the transformation of Marvel Girl into Phoenix in "The X-Men," although the upgrade her for Kes is to the initial Jean Grey level not the uber-Phoenix. The episode also deals rather pragmatically with the problems Kes faces: her initial attempt to boil water ends up boiling Tuvok's blood instead.

Female Caretaker makes an appearance
This is an important episode for any fan of Star Trek Voyager to see and I highly recommend it. Shown in the middle of the second season of the show, this episode finally introduces us to the female Caretaker that we've been hearing about since episode one and at the same time allows us a glimpse into the telepathic potential of Kes - very important in the plot set-up for later episodes.

Certainly this episode is a "must see" among the season two episodes.

One o' the best!
This is one of the episodes that no Star Trek: Voyager collection should be without. It's the one where Voyager finds the Caretaker's mate. Kes shines in this one and her struggles about whether to go with Telis and the others or not is very much like personal struggles we in the real world expirience, too. A real good vs. evil episode. One of the best, in my opinion.

The Caretaker is back
Voyager locates a space station similar to that of the Caretakers and hopes that they will be able to send them home a little faster, but the residents are not too happy to see them. In this episode we learn about the Caretaker's mate and about the potential psychic power of the Ocampans. A great conclusion to the season premier's unresolved questions. A wonderful addition to your collection. ... Read more

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Original airdate: 8/28/95. Stardate: 48975.1. Granted, the sight of a 1936 Ford pickup truck floating in space is pretty cool, and although the truck's presence is never explained, it does lead to one of Voyager's quirkier encounters in this, the series' second-season opener. The vintage Ford leads to an even bigger discovery: eight humans--including the famous Earth aviatrix Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence)--preserved in cryostasis on a distant planet, having been abducted from Earth in 1937 by an alien race called the Briori, who forced over 300 abducted humans into slavery. The Briori were defeated in a slave revolt and now, 15 generations later, the humans have developed a thriving city-based civilization. With Voyager having safely landed on the planet (a series first, allowing for some memorable visual effects), Janeway must face the possible exodus of her crew to the safety of a tempting new home. Will anyone leave Voyager? The answer is anticlimactic, and this episode (scripted by series veterans Brannon Braga and Jeri Taylor) leaves too many unanswered questions to be truly effective. (Details about the Briori are not forthcoming.) Still, this is one of those nifty "What if?" episodes that are Star Trek's bread and butter, and Lawrence (who was still a semiregular on NYPD Blue at the time) makes Earhart a believably misplaced explorer.--Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (9)

The "Voyager" crew solves the mystery of Amelia Earhart
So, there you are on the good ship "Voyager," stuck in the Delta Quadrant 70 light years from home and feeling pretty sorry for yourself. What could be worse? Well, an answer to that question is provided in the premier episode of the second season of "Star Trek: Voyager." Episode 20, "The 37's" (Written by Jeri Taylor & Brannon Braga, Aired: August 28, 1995) begins with the starship encountering a pickup truck from the Earth circa the 1930s. The trail leads to a planet where "Voyager" actually lands on the planet (remember when the ship was preserving energy because they are in the middle of no where?). There an Away Team discovers eight human beings in cryo-statis units. When they are revived the crew discovers these people were kidnapped by aliens in 1937 and that one of them is the famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence) and her co-pilot Fred Noonan (David Graf). Another mystery solved by the friendly people at Starfleet.

Of course the revived earthlings want to know where they are and what happened to them and being told that they were abducted by strange visitors from another planet 400 years earlier is met with disbelief. Apparently aliens in need of slave labor raided the earth and brought back hundreds of humans (this extremely wasteful use of energy for such limited returns makes landing "Voyager" on the surface of a planet seem like a stroke of genius in comparison). Ultimately it turns out that what "The 37's" is about is that, in the grand tradition of premier episodes of a show's second season, the "Voyager" crew gets to rededicate itself to the mission going home. All things considered, this is the long way around to make that particular point. Furthermore, the episode continues the tradition of less than stellar "Star Trek" stories from various series in which we find 20th century human beings alive and well in the Star Trek universe. The point of having Amelia Earhart be one of the humans is not really exploited to great effect and the entire affair ends up being something of a silly diversion from the task at hand.

'What If?' ... Who Cares?
A truly dumb outing for any series, THE 37S is made equal parts dumber by taking a wonderful television actress (Sharon Lawrence) and stuffing her into a glitzy, no-brainer role. 'What If' scenarios generally work for Trek, but this time out -- the discovery of missing Earth items along with Amelia Earheart -- bares no significance. 'What If' stories work when they present some interesting aspect to ponder which makes you re-examine your world: this episode just makes you want to re-examine better episodes on the same theme.

Imagine you see a 1936 Ford Truck floating in outer space...
The Voyager second season opener is one of those episodes fans seemed to have a friendly debate over. After a first season filled mainly with the type of shows that define character roles and generally focusing on their differences, I think Voyager fans were looking to be treated to an action filled episode. 'The 37s' wasn't what most of us had in mind but I wasn't at all disappointed with it. The story is derivative of the TNG episodes, 'The Neutral Zone' and 'Up The Long Ladder' - it's more like a melding of the two of them actually.

Harry reports that he has found traces of rust during a routine scan of the area of space Voyager is traveling. More than just a mere anomaly it is investigated by the bridge crew who then follow the trail to a 1936 Ford Truck floating in outer space. Bringing the truck aboard they discover it has an AM radio which they play with - and hear an old style SOS signal being broadcast. That signal is traced to a planet, which the crew travel to and are forced by atmospheric conditions to land the entire ship. They soon find the source of the signal, which is an early 20th century earth aircraft. Inside it they notice an alien device that powers the SOS signal. Further, they discover a cavern that houses several humans held in cryogenic suspension; upon investigation one of them turns out to be Amelia Earhart! Of course the crew releases them all from suspension and that begins the fascinating mystery.

Admittedly, some of the elements present in this story can be a bit tough to swallow for the Star Trek fan that insists on hard science fiction only. This episode reminded me of the pulp science fiction & fantasy short stories I read as a youth growing up in the sixties. Perhaps it is a bit slow, but what it lacks in action it makes up for in intrigue. During their investigation of the plane 'someone' silently observes them. When they enter the cavern to explore it, that same 'someone' observes them again. We wonder if they aren't falling into a well-plotted trap. The discovery that the present alien culture are descendants of a group of over 300 earthlings "shanghaied" to this planet by an alien race during the early 20th century also piques our interest.

The intro to the show is great as well - it's an excellent hook device. The crew's quizzical treatment of the truck; their reaction to it's backfiring; one of the earthlings demanding to speak to J. Edgar Hoover in Washington; and other such awkward moments adds humor in all the right places. Again, the Star Trek writers devised a clever way for the crew to interact with the past without having to time travel. (See also TNG's, "The Big Goodbye", "The Neutral Zone" and "Up The Long Ladder".) All in all I found this a very satisfying episode and one of the Voyager shows that I like to watch frequently.

One final note: The first use of surface landing by a Federation starship is seen here - "ST IV: The Voyage Home" featured a Klingon ship landing in San Francisco bay, for all you buffs.

Interesting Twist on Earhart Disappearance
Sensors detect a trail of rust and Voyager follows it to an old pickup floating in space. The truck is pulled into the cargo bay and Tom Paris discovers an SOS is being picked up by the radio. The crew tracks the SOS to an earth-like planet and Star Trek history is made when Voyager becomes the first starship to actually land on a planet. Captain Janeway, Ensign Kim and Lt. Tuvok find an old style airplane with an alien fusion-based transmitter onboard that is the source of the SOS. Meanwhile, Chakotay finds a cave which is the source of some power readings and upon investigation by Janeway, Chakotay and B'Elanna, 8 cryo-stasis chambers are discovered inside. Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence) and her navigator, Fred Noonan (David Graf) are among the 8 people in stasis. After being revived, the eight believe they have been kidnapped by Janeway and the others and Fred pulls a gun on them. Janeway persuades Earhart to accompany her to Voyager to prove that the 8 have been 'asleep' for a few hundred years and the crew mean them no harm. When they leave the cave, they discover other humans on the planet who turn out to be descendants of 300 people who were brought there by aliens to be slaves. The human slaves revolted and drove the aliens off and are now free. The 300 were abducted from Earth in 1937 and the last 8 of these have been in stasis since that time. The planet's inhabitants explain that the 8 people are known as The 37's and that they are monuments to their ancestors. The humans invite Voyager's crew, as well as Earhart and the other 7 people, to stay on the planet with them. Janeway worries that too many of her crew will stay behind and that would effect Voyager ever getting home. The captain is disappointed when Earhart tells her that she and the others are staying behind. It's a tense moment for Captain Janeway as she and Chakotay walk toward the cargo bay to discover how many of the crew will be waiting there to transport to the surface and begin their new life.

This is a good episode with an interesting twist on the Earhart disappearance. The only thing that bothered me was that I don't think Amelia Earhart would really have decided to stay on the planet. Being an independent, adventurous person, I believe she would have left with Voyager. But, understandably, the writers had to write the story with her staying. Too bad - she would have made an interesting addition to the crew.

The dumbest "Voyager" episode
This is the single worst episode of "Voyager" -- what "Spock's Brain" is to the original "Star Trek". What a stupid idea -- aliens drag Amelia Earhart halfway across the galaxy for no apparent reason; the crew finds a 1937 truck floating in space(with it's AM radio still functioning after 400 years!); they get to a planet where Earhart is in suspended animation; wake her up; and then -- NOTHING HAPPENS! Nothing, except a dumb debate about whether they should stay or go. No action, tedious, pointless. Fortunately, "Voyager" reached it's bottom early, with this debut to its second season and got better from here. Don't waste money on this -- any other episode would be a better purchase. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

So, you say you want an evolution? Not on this planet.
The Enterprise rescues a seriously injured humanoid from a severely damaged escape pod. Dr. Crusher fears for the worst, but then the patient makes a miraculous recovery, although he remembers neither his name nor his past. Crusher calls him "John Doe" and discovers his cells are mutating, eventually leading to strange energy surges. La Forge and Data figure out that their visitor is from the planet Zalkon, and when the Enterprise arrives there several weeks later they are stunned when a ship meets them and its captain demands they turn over the dangerous criminal they are holding for punishment.

"Transfigurations" starts off as a pretty standard mystery: who is this stranger person and why are his cells mutating? The twist comes when we get our answer, at which point the episode becomes one of the more provocative ones dealing with the good ol' Prime Directive. At issue is how to respect the rights of an individual versus the rights of a society. Episodes like this make you wonder why each ship in Starfleet does not have someone from the Judge Advocate General's Office on the bridge all the time. ... Read more

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According to the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion, "Yesterday's Enterprise" was written by committee and hastily finalized to meet shooting demands. The end result is arguably the best episode of the series. (It often outranks "Best of Both Worlds" in fan top 10 polls.) What easily could have been a typical TNG time-anomaly story turns out to be a powerful and disconcerting teleplay about the cost of war versus the price of peace.

The teaser opens with Guinan (Whoopie Goldberg) introducing Mr. Worf to a new beverage. After no small amount of wheedling, the recalcitrant Klingon dubs prune juice "a warrior's drink." This is a pivotal scene. Why? Because later, when Guinan looks out the window of Ten-Forward, she sees a strange cloud--and when she looks back, nothing is the same. The Enterprise-D is now a battleship, the Federation is entrenched in a 22-year war against the Klingons, and tactical officer Tasha Yar is very much alive. To the astonishment of the bridge crew, the long-lost Enterprise-C hovers badly damaged within a temporal rift. And something deep within Guinan tells her none of this is right...

"Yesterday's Enterprise" has it all: great writing, great acting, and, above all, honor. This episode belongs in every TNG video collection. Note: it contains tons of embedded trivia. Combat date is used instead of stardate and military log for captain's log, and early film uniforms are worn aboard the Enterprise-C. Watch for Geordi's famous "cuff" blooper in the last scene. --Kayla Riggney ... Read more

Reviews (20)

The resurrection and redemption of Tasha Yar
"Yesterday's Enterprise" is one of the greatest Next Generation stories, in which the character of Tasha Yar is given more depth and resonance in this single episode than she had during her entire time on the show's first season. The Enterprise encounters a temporal rift through which flies the Enterprise-C, the predecessor to Jean-Luc Picard's own Enterprise-D. In that instant, everything changes. We are now aboard a ship of war, which has been fighting a losing war with the Klingon Empire. Of course Worf is gone and in his place is Tasha Yar. Only Guinan knows that something is wrong and has to convince Picard that this time line is wrong and that the right one must be restored. "This is a ship of war," Picard tells her. "No, its not," she insists, "It a ship of peace." What happened? The Enterprise-C was responding to a distress call from a Klingon ship being attacked by the Romulans. Eventually Picard surmises that the Enterprise-C must have been destroyed in the encounter, a honorable act that the Klingons would have respected. The choice then is between using the Enterprise-C to help fight the war with the Klingons in this time-line or send the ship back to certain death on the chance that will make everythign all right. Meanwhile, Tasha is told by Guinan that in the "true" reality she is dead and that her death was without meaning.

This is a stunning episode, which not only provides dignity to a character who was pretty much dismissed by everyone in the first season, but which also sets up several marvelous plot twists down the road. Denise Crosby does the most with this wonderful second chance to play this character. The moments that Madame Whoops has with both Picard and Tasha are marvelous. I always like the little hints of the true nature of Picard's relationship with Guinan. It is also nice to see Christopher McDonald in something other than the male jerk roles he has been typecasted with ever since "Thelma and Louise." This is an A+ episode and before this third season ends there will be several more just as good ("The Offspring," "Sarek," "Menage a Troi," "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I"). This series really starts cooking at this point.

Ooooh Yes!
Here's an episode that brings out the best of Star Trek. The alternate universe created by the Enterprise C's time slip is utterly eerie. The war-torn Federation is getting trounced by the Klingon Empire (hardly surprising, if it did indeed come down to all out war). Everyone's on edge, Picard is at Riker's throat, and Tasha Yar strolls the gritty bridge, back in the land of the living.

And of course, Star Trek provides us with a moral dilema as Picard must convince the C crew to return to certain death. One is reminded of Wrath of Khan, when does the good of the many outweight the good of the few? It's also inspiring to give Yar a better send-off after the disaster that was Skin of Evil. This episode is a must for any fan of Star Trek.

One of the top 5
I was an original Star Trek fan back in the 60's but didn't catch hardly any of the Next Gen. series until after it was over went into reruns. Then I caught all of them in a year and a half, since they were playing them 5 nights a week. . .

Having now seen probably all of them, I have to say this is one of the greatest episodes. Denise Crosby gets to reprise her Tasha Yar role in a dramatic episode where she returns with an earlier doomed Enterprise (about 70 years earlier) to its past to try to save the ship, which is losing a battle with the Klingons. She is told by Guinan that her death was "...without meaning," and now she has a second chance. She goes back with the doomed crew to see if she can make a difference.

There are some other nice touches to this episode, such as Guinan's relationship with Captain Picard, who must convince Picard that there is something wrong with their timeline and something has altered their present, and so it must be changed back by returning the earlier Enterprise to its past. But Crosby finally gets to be the star of this one episode. Don't miss it.

Easily the best of the TNG episodes...
Every bit of it just works. Captain Rachel Garrett turns in a GREAT performance as the captain of the Enterprise-C . Patrick Stewart's finest performance as Picard; a harder man who has seen many more battles than his alternate-timeline counterpart; carrying the weight of the knowledge that the war with the Klingons does not go well for the Federation. He doesn't smile once.

The final line in Picard's battle speech to his crew, as he explains that the Enterprise-D MUST protect the Enterprise-C at any cost: 'Let us make sure that history never forgets the name Enterprise.' Best line ever spoken in Star Trek.

The U.S.S. Enterprise-C intercepts the U.S.S. Enterprise-D.
Synopsis:

The course of history is altered by the mysterious appearance of a U.S.S. Enterprise from the past.

While on a routine mission, the U.S.S. Enterprise discovers a bizarre rift in space, which reveals an unidentified vessel. Both ships are now on an alternate universe where the Federation is in the midst of a twenty-year bloody war with the Klingons.

The crew identifies the mysterious vessel as their ships' immediate predecessor, the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-C, believed to have been destroyed in battle twenty-two years ago. Their own crew now includes Tasha Yar, the ex-security chief who was killed in the line of duty. Meeting with the captain of that vessel, Captain Rachel Garrett, Picard learns that it was responding to a distress signal on a Klingon outpost when it was attacked by four Romulan Warbirds. But in the middle of the assault, the ship broke through the space rift, thus saving it from the destruction recorded in the history books, and now history has no memory of the U.S.S. Enterprise-C's battle with the Romulans. Although Picard and his crew are baffled by the strange appearance of the U.S.S. Enterprise-C, Guinan's alien instincts lead her to believe that the Federation's current bloody war with the Klingons is the result of the U.S.S. Enterprise-C's presence in their future. Certain that the ship is now existing in the wrong time line, she pleads with Picard to send the U.S.S. Enterprise-C back through the rift in order to change the course of events, which has resulted in the loss of 40 billion lives during the Klingon war.

Picard confers with Data, who asserts that if the U.S.S. Enterprise-C was destroyed while aiding the Klingon outpost, it would have been viewed as an honorable act, which means the current war with the Klingons may have been avoided. Faced with this knowledge, Picard decides to send the U.S.S. Enterprise-C back through the time rift, to face its tragic destiny.

Meanwhile, Tasha learns from Guinan that, in the correct time line, she died a meaningless death. In response, Tasha requests that she be allowed to serve on the doomed U.S.S. Enterprise-C crew so that she may die in the heroic battle with the Romulans, and Picard reluctantly agrees.

As the U.S.S. Enterprise-C makes its way back through the time rift, three Klingon warships try to launch an attack on it. To assure that the U.S.S. Enterprise-C returns to its rightful place in time, Picard positions the U.S.S. Enterprise-D between that vessel and the Klingons, sustaining heavy casualities in the process. Just as the U.S.S. Enterprise-D's engine core seems on the verge of exploding, Data announces that the rift has closed, and, unaware of the preceding events, the U.S.S. Enterprise returns to its original time line, heading for a cultural exchange program with a Klingon delegation. ... Read more

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As Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) heads to Starfleet Academy to take theirgrueling entrance exam, a brash Starfleet commander (Robert Schenkkan) boards the Enterprise in order to conduct a top-secret investigation. Just as Wesley doesn't always know what is and isn't part of the test (he's one of four finalists for a single Academy slot), the crew of the Enterprise doesn't know who or what is being investigated. All they are told is that "something is wrong with the ship." Soon they figure out that Captain Picard is under investigation, as captain's logs are nitpicked for inconsistencies and past actions are questioned. This puts everybody on edge, as they can't understand what could be wrong with a captain as competent as Picard, but the commander is under strict orders not to blab about it until the investigation is over. Both story lines are eventually resolved, of course, but it's fun to see the members of the Enterprise get all uppity in defense of Picard. --AndySpletzer ... Read more

Reviews (4)

"Did you hear what she said, Mordock? She said I was cute."
You would not think an episode primarily concerned with people taking an exam would be engaging, but "Coming of Age" is exactly that. Remember that if you ever come across an exam question asking about the proper ratio of matter to antimatter, the answer is 1 to 1. Don't know the answer to the Dynamic Relationships question though.

The Enterprise-D arrives at Relva VII. As Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) beams down to take his Starfleet Academy entrance exam, Admiral Gregory Quinn (Ward Costello) and Lt. Commander Dexter Remmick (Robert Schenkkan) beam aboard the ship to conduct an investigation. As Wesley starts to stress over the psychological evaluation portion of the exam, the Enterprise's senior officers start to become impatient with the increasingly hostile nature of Remmick's line of questioning. As if Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) doesn't have enough to worry about, he is also forced to deal with a suicidal Jake Kurland (Stephen Gregory) who has become despondent over not qualifying for the Starfleet Academy entrance exam

Talk about a full plate. "Coming of Age" has a little bit of everything. We get to see what Starfleet Academy's entrance exam is like, we get a glimpse of a Benzite for the first time, we get to witness the tightening up of Star Trek: The Next Generation's continuity in the course of Remmick's investigation, we get to see Picard be offered the head job at Starfleet academy, and we get a wonderful guest starring turn by Robert Ito. Oh, and I almost forget to mention that we also learn that courtesy is a no-no when speaking to a Zoldan. With so much material to fill up this single episode, it is no wonder that it moves along at a crisp pace and manages to keep the proceedings interesting from beginning to end. You know an episode is good when Wesley Crusher is holding your attention. Wow.

We learn much about the culture of Star Fleet
Most of the best episodes of the original series and TNG deal with learning about new cultures. In this episode, we learn much about the culture of Star Fleet and it is done in two ways. The first is when Wesley leaves the Enterprise to take the Starfleet Academy entrance exam. While many elements of the exam are familiar, there are many that are unexpected. The candidates are of course grilled by computer, all in the same room, and there seems to be few, if any, restrictions on their communicating during the exam. Clearly, these exams are very difficult, as even the boy genius Wesley struggles and does not "pass."
The second element of the culture is when Lt. Commander Remmick boards the Enterprise to conduct a very demanding investigation of Captain Picard. His probe is nasty, with very testy questions, leading to a great deal of hard feelings among the crew. Nevertheless, we see how strong the discipline of Star Fleet is, as only someone with enormous self control would be able to tolerate it. Remmick is very impressed, even asking if he could serve on the Enterprise when his current tour is over.
This is an episode that should have appeared earlier in the series. Since so much of what the characters are was molded by their Star Fleet training, it is good for us to be able to see some of what it involves. While it is not a great episode, it certainly ranks in the top twenty percent.

Starfleet Exam
Coming of Age or......The Horrendous Psyche Test at the Academy

Another Wesley Crusher episode. In this one we get to see him as a finalist at Starfleet Academy. He meets other students his age and discovers he's not the only one who couldn't fit in. He meets a Benzite called Mordock; who proves to help him with insider info on the test. Wes and his other classmates take the infamous psyche test. It means facing your greatest fear in the holodeck simulation. He follows his instincts and meets the test with unexpected bravery. I wish that the Crusher character was given more episodes like this. It would have been better if the writers took him through the academy instead of turning him into another time traveler entity.

The writing staff never followed up on this concept. What happened to Wes other than him becoming one of those hocus-pocus magical Q-like entities? The more I think of this episode; the more I say the right direction for his character would be for him to become a commander like his mentor Picard or a research doctor or scientist like his Mom.

The B story in this one is when Remmick starts poking his nose aboard the ship; he discovers Picard is a much better captain than expected. He convinces another friend of Wes's not to run away from his problems. We also discover that Picard was not successful after the first attempt on his Starfleet entrance exams.

The B story with Remmick jump-started what could have been an otherwise slow moving episode. It's too bad they killed him off in the "Conspiracy" episode. He played a good devils advocate and would have been a good foil for Picard when starship inspections came up.

Wesley takes the entrance exam for Starfleet Academy
The Enterprise orbits Relva VII while Wesley Crusher takes the Starfleet Academy entrance exam. In the grand traditions of Social Darwinism, there are four candidates contending for a single admissions slot: Wesley, a human female, a Vulcan female, and a Benzite male. Apparently this is either the only Vulcan to apply or for some reason she logically thought that she would have a better chance taking the test out in the boondocks. However, it turns out that even if these happen to be the four best candidates in the universe, it will not matter because one and only one of them will get to help make the galaxy safe. Meanwhile, back on the Enterprise, Admiral Quinn has beamed aboard with Lt. Commander Remmick from the Inspector General's office to conduct an investigation. Remmick ticks everybody off big time (especially Worf) with his pointed questions about Captain Picard's recent decisions in what proves to be a rather provocative critique of earlier episodes. Quinn confides to Picard that there is some sort of internal threat to the Federation. We will find out exactly what is rotten in the Federation down the road in "Conspiracy" (Episode 25), but we will not be impressed.

The problem with the character of Wesley Crusher was always two fold. First, even though we were proven wrong in the last episode in which he appeared, we always knew that even though he was a scientific prodigy, Wesley was going to grow up to be a great Starfleet Captain. Consequently, there was this whole inevitable destiny thing that was rather constraining to the character. Second, and more importantly, if you accept at face value the idea that Wesley is such a wunderkind, then how do you justify him remaining on board the Enterprise and not going directly to Starfleet Academy, do not pass go, do not collect 2 bars of gold pressed latinum? I always thought the best Wesley Crusher episodes were after he finally did head off to the Academy, and not just because it meant his appearances were less frequent. Ultimately, "Coming of Age" is the first season contrivance to keep Wesley in his place aboard the Enterprise. ... Read more

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TNG really hits its stride with this well-written episode. What starts out as Data's letter to the nefarious Bruce Maddox at the Daystrom Institute evolves into a complex and genuinely funny character study of the seemingly "emotionless" android. Oh, and it's the "1,550th day since the Enterprise was commissioned."

Over the course of the series, Data desperately strives to become more "human." This episode illustrates the point that even though he is technically a machine, Data possesses fundamental traits that define humanity. He has a great capacity for forgiveness (Bruce Maddox wanted to deactivate and dissect him in "Measure of a Man"), compassion (we're introduced to Data's cat, Spot), and friendship. And finally, Data is baffled and bemused by interpersonal relationships, which is the very definition of human being. As always, Brent Spiner plays Data baffled with the sophistication of Cary Grant. The B-story about Chief O'Brien's wedding is particularly baffling and amusing. Rosalind Chao makes her first appearance as Keiko, and the ship's arboretum makes its first appearance as itself.

"Data's Day" ranks high on TNG top 10 lists, and is a favorite with trivia buffs for absolute high weirdness. Things to watch for and ponder endlessly: Worf and the crystal swan; the Bolian Barber's unique hair coloring method; Dr. Crusher's secret past as the Dancing Doctor; the Ersatz Vulcan; Spot; the whole Miles and Keiko thing going on; and last but not least, the immortal sneer: "Human bonding rituals often involve a lot of... talking... and dancing... and crying." --Kayla Riggney ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A hilarious episode
This episode is a first for Star Trek, in that it presents the episode in 'a day in the life' format of one of it's characters. The character chosen in the crew's android, Lieutenant Commander Data. Data is an excellent choice, as he provides many witty comments about human behaviour throughout the story.

Anyway, in the episode, Data must sort out a disagreement between an couple who are due to be married, learn how to dance, solve the mysterious death of one of the Federation's top Ambassadors and be father of the bride in a wedding on board the ship. Pretty hard work for a day's work I'd say!!

The episode is a comic gem, with some great interplay between Data and the rest of the crew. I would recommend it to both the casual Star Trek viewer and the die-hard fan, who will find it a trivia fest!

A day in the life of Data the tap dancing super sleuth
The framing device for this episode is that Data is putting together a report on all of his activities for a single day to be forwarded to Bruce Maddox, the clown who wanted to claim Data as Starfleet property back in "The Measure of a Man" (Episode 35). For the sake of argument we will assume that Data does not do a mondo data dump on him. Two main activities occupy Data's time and effort on this particular date. First, he has been asked to stand in as the bride's father at the wedding of Chief O'Brien and Keiko, since he introduced the happy couple. There is a hysterical sequence when Data asks Dr. Crusher to teach him to dance; she teaches him tap dancing before she learns he wants to be able to dance with the bride at the wedding. Second, the Enterprise is taking Vulcan Ambassador T'Pei to the Netural Zone for a meeting with the Romulans who supposedly want to enter into diplomatic conversations with the Federation. However, a transporter malfuction apparently kills the ambassador when they try to beam her over to the Romulans. There is too much mystery here for Captain Picard and Data has to use his positronic brain to find out what really happened.

"Data's Day" would be an interesting episode even without the framing device of Data's report. I almost get the feeling that they had this interesting plot line involving a mysterious Vulcan ambassador and a fun one with Data being father of the bride at Keiko's wedding and figured why not toss the two together? Except for Data there is really nothing that puts these two halves together. The surprising thing is that the whole is more than the sum of the parts. This is not one of the best Data episodes, but it certainly does provide more insights in everyone's favorite android than most.

A Day in the Life
I love this episode! "Data's Day" is TNG writing at its best. Behind the simple premise lies a very complex character study of the seemingly "emotionless" android, Data. Make no mistake, even though "Data's Day" is charming and very, very funny, it's also quite revealing.

Over the course of the series, Data as a character desparately strives to become more "human." This episode illustrates the point that even though he is an android, Data posesses fundemental traits that define "humanity." He has a great capacity for forgiveness ("Data's Day" is a letter to Bruce Maddox, the man who wanted to deactivate and disect him), compassion (we're introduced to Data's cat, Spot) and friendship. We should all be so human.

"Data's Day" shows up on a lot of TNG Top 10 Best Episode lists. Definitely makes my personal Top 10. All-around great episode. Excellent writing. Spiner's acting is solid as always. Tons of fodder for trivia buffs.

Things to watch for: Spot; The Dancing Doctor; Worf & the crystal swan; Keiko and Miles; and last but not least, The Ersatz Vulcan ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The Price of War
Built for War

Jeff McCarthy portrays a prisoner of a war long gone on planet Angosia. While Prime Minister Nayrok portrayed by James Cromwell; applies for Federation Membership, this guy is wreaking havoc aboard the Enterprise. The best scences were in the transporter room. When the prisoner disarms all the security with deadly precision.

It's a matter that Picard can't handle. He eventually escapes and causes a revolution on his home world.

How many wrongs does it take to make a right?
Exactly when does the Prime Directive kick in? The Enterprise is visiting Angosia, a planet that wants to join the Federation. While Picard meets with the Prime Minister, played by James Cromwell, there is a report a violent prisoner has escaped from the planet's penal colony. Although Angosia is only in the application process, Picard uses the Enterprise to capture the escapee and beam him aboard the ship. Counselor Troi is attracted to the prisoner, Roga Danar, who tells her how her was programmed by his government to be a super soldier, his body modified by drugs and his mind altered by psychological training. When the war was over Danar and his brethren could not be allowed back into polite society, they were carted off to a penal colony. When Picard demands an explanation from the Prime Minister, he is told quite pointedly that this is an internal matter and demands the return of the prisoner. Maybe Angosia is not ready to join the Federation.

Of course, if the Federation did a better job of investigating planets applying for membership they would probably discover all these deep dark secrets, but then we would not have all these fun Prime Directive episodes such as "The Hunted" where Picard flips a coin to see if he follows it or not. But once you get past the slightly flawed premise, this is an above average Next Generation episode. As I write this review we are recounting the recounted votes in Florida and I have to admit the idea of ethics in politics being a question of efficacy that we see there is very much present in this episode. The highpoint of "The Hunted" is when Danar attempts to escape from the Enterprise, proving exactly how good of a job the Angosians did in creating their race of super soldiers. Will the Captain of the Enterprise continue to play fast and loose with the Prime Directive or will the Prime Minister of Angosia be hoisted on our own Picard? ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Torres comes down with pon faar and goes after Paris
It is "pon farr" time in the "Star Trek" universe once again with "Blood Fever" (Written by Lisa Klink, Aired February 5, 1997), Episode 57 of "Star Trek: Voyager." However, the afflicted Vulcan is not Tuvok, but an ensign named Vorik who's warped logical mind decides that he should asked Torres (Roxann Dawson) to be his mate. She rejects his overture, not only with a polite refusal but also by dislocating his jaw when he grabs her face. For those few souls who missed "Amok Time" on the original "Star Trek," the Doctor (Robert Picardo) explains that Vorik can die is he does not mate. While Vorik endeavors to get through this trying time through intense meditation, Torres joins an Away Team searching for gallicite on the planet below. The only problem is that her Klingon side seems to be making its presence known as she become more and more aggressive, even biting Paris at one point.

Of course when Vorik touched Torres' face that was enough to initiate a telepathic mating bond between them, which means now she is experiencing "pon farr" as well. Meanwhile, back on "Voyager" the Doctor has programmed a holographic Vulcan female for Vorik (which pretty much confirms what you suspected about Quark's holosuites on DS9). However, it is down on the planet where Torres is making the moves on Paris that things are getting interesting, especially for those who know where that relationship is going to end and what happens in the final episode of the series. Consequently, "Blood Fever" is a important story in terms of the entire series since it is in many ways the first significant Torres-Paris episode.

There are also some aliens on the planet who have had some major problems in what will also become a major subplot down the road, but this episode is primarily about this pon farr a trois. Just like in the original "Star Trek" show, this one comes down to a fight. Consequently, "Blood Fever" manages to do something of a homage to the original episode but ground it entirely in the context of this series and its characters. This is not a classic "Voyager" episode per se, but it is an important one in terms of what is to come.

Just a few words
Klingon vs Vulcan a can't miss episode

Star Trek - Voyager, Episode 57: Blood Fever
If you are a true Voyager fan, this is an episode you should not miss, I own it. It shows us all how the real relationship between Torres and Paris begin...but does so with humor and in true Klingon form...a ritual of sorts. Paris is not sure what hits him, but knows he wants more, thus the relationship truly begins. A great video. Paris and TOrres are perfect together. Don't miss this one!

My Favorite Episode
I am a true Voyager Trekkie, and a big fan of the Tom/B'Elanna storyline. If you are wondering how the whole intrest got started, this episode is for you! I highly recommend it--wonderfully written, beautifully directed, and the acting is above par. I'm ordering you to buy it!!!

The Power of Sexuality
This episode tackles the complex web of issues regarding the power, seduction, and responsibility underlying sexual attraction. Afflicted by the Vulcan Pon Farr, B'Elanna dramatically embodies the deep and sometimes unconscious human struggle between normal consciousness and the hormone-aroused, instictually-driven self. In contrast, Tom Paris, who has not been afflicted as such, embodies moral clarity and maturity regarding his pre-existing attraction to B'Elanna, which includes his selflessness both in withholding and offering sexual contact. This is by far the most positive and exemplary depiction of sexual ethics I have yet seen. The characters and story are attractive and though within the genre of science fiction, the essence is certainly true to life. Engaging and uplifting, this episode makes a great departure point for sparking self-inquiry or a discussion between interested teens and parents on the topic of responsible, caring, self-aware sexual decison-making and behavior. It is also the beginning of the Tom and B'Elanna story arc in the series. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

star trek fan
this is my favorite episode, It keeps me on the edge of my seat, I had to order it to complete my season. Highly recommended!

Captain Picard and Mark Twain change places in Time
In "Time's Arrow, Part I," the fifth season's finale, Picard led an Away Team that followed a pair of alien predators into the past: 19th-Century San Francisco to be precise. There they join Data and Guinan (the Guinan of the past not the present Guinan who is still in the future). Together they discover the cave that would contain all of the artifacts, including Data's head, which were found in the 24th-Century at the start of this story. Unfortunately, at the key moment Samuel Clemens (Jerry Hardin) intervenes and the time portal opens. The resulting blast sends Data's body, but not his head, back to the future. Picard stays behind to take care of a wounded Guinan, while the rest of the team follows Data's body, quickly followed by Clemens.

"Time's Arrow" was the least exciting cliffhanger in STNG's long run, so it is not surprising that the conclusion is above average but nothing special. We do see the "first" meeting between Guinan and Picard, but, of course, that is only from HER perspective, so it is not like we have uncovered a key moment in their history. Jerry Hardin does a marvelous job as Mark Twain, certainly capable of giving Hal Holbrook a run for his money and the significance of Data's head being buried for 500 years does have an interesting explanation. This is an enjoyable two-parter, but hardly a STNG classic.

Back on Earth
This two-parter was a great set! The plot line was ok, but the episode was totally made by the appearance of Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain, and the explination of Picard's and Guinan's relationship. I love any story when they are back on Earth.

Breathtaking
If you haven't seen Star Trek The Next Generation you're missing all the excitement.

I loved it!
I guess I loved it mainly because it features my three favorite characters: Brent Spiner(Data), Whoopie Goldberg(Ginen), and Patrick Stewart(Jean-Luc Picard). It is a suspensful story that keeps you on your seat. I have it on video already! ... Read more

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The holodeck needs a bit of maintenance, so the Enterprise checksin to Starbase 74 to allow some Bynars (beings who can speak in binary code and who sound like fax machines) to update the programming. While Riker doesn't trust the Bynars, he forgets all of his complaints when he tries out the holodeck. Setting himself up as a trombone player in a 1958 Bourbon Street bar, he meets up with a sultry brunette. "What's a knockout like you doing in a computer-generated gin joint like this?" is his none-too-subtle pickup line. Her reactions turn out to be more complex and more "human" than the program ever exhibited before, and when Picard walks in on the couple he is equally charmed. While they're lost in the holodeck program, theEnterprise starts to self-destruct. This forces an evacuation ofeverybody (except Riker and Picard) and an eventual hijacking of the ship. Thereasons behind the events are very smart, making this a nicely thought-outepisode, despite little things like Data learning to paint and Riker'smasturbatory fantasy. --Andy Spletzer ... Read more

Reviews (5)

"Believe it or not, Worf is developing a sense of humor."
A year before the Borg made their grand debut, the theme of interdependency between organic beings and technology was explored in "11001001." Even though the pale-skinned assimilators made more of a long-lasting impression, you gotta wonder why they never adopted the Bynars' strategy of duping Starfleet officers with attractive holograms - if this episode was any indication, it seemed like a pretty effective strategy to distract Starfleet officers.

The Enterprise-D arrives at Starbase 74 to have their computer system upgraded by the Bynars. The crew evacuates the ship when it appears that its magnetic containment field is on the verge of collapse. However, the emergency is actually a ruse staged by the Bynars so that they can steal the Enterprise. Yet, Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) are still aboard. The two officers eventually regain control of the ship after pulling themselves away from an alluring hologram named Minuet (Carolyn McCormick).

There are some genuinely cool aspects to "11001001." It's great to see the exterior and interiors of Starbase 74 which rekindles memories of Spacedock from "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) and "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" (1991) and it's great to see a replay of the auto-destruct moment from "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" (1969). Yet, the whole subplot revolving around Minuet is not totally convincing. You would think the captain and first officer of the Federation's flagship would notice that their ship is traveling at warp speed when it should not be doing so. Guess that Minuet must really have been far more radiant and captivating than it seemed on the small screen. Yet, in the final count, "11001001" is goofy fun and one of the more amusing outings among the first season efforts.

One of the gems of the inaugural season
Among the best shows of the first season was this very succinct and compact story of Riker meeting and falling for the woman of his dreams...with a twist. Although the storyline of Trek characters falling in love only to lose their loved one is an oft used plot device, the unusual background and setting for this episode rises above the mundane and entertains us supremely.

Arriving at a starbase, the crew is introduced to the Binars a computer-independent and androgynous alien race who will initiate some necessary repairs to the Enterprise. Most of the crew is granted shore leave during the interval with Riker somewhat inadvertently ending up on the holodeck immediately following some updates and enhancements implemented by the Binars. He designs a program to reflect a mid-20th century New Orleans jazz club where he meets an incredibly beautiful and sultry "woman" named Minuet. She instantly causes the first officer to fall head over heels in love with her and he all but completely forgets that she is a creation of the holodeck. During this time the crewmembers still present experience a ship wide emergency causing them to evacuate and the starship is then placed on autopilot to clear it's space dock. Only after the starship is gone a great distance does the crew at the starbase realize that someone is attempting to hijack the Enterprise - and that the captain, the first officer and the Binars are most likely still aboard.

'11001001' is a well-conceived episode that balances both ongoing plots expertly. The Binars were one of the most interesting alien races the Enterprise and crew encountered and it's a real shame they weren't brought back for additional appearances. Carolyn McCormick as Minuet is a knockout and it's easy to see why Riker would fall so hard for her; the writers constructed the ending of the show excellently, helping make the point that you fall in love with the illusion and the image not the person. Riker's conversation with Picard in the finale bears this out. Riker also has the best line in the show. When he checks in with Data he finds the second officer getting painting lessons from Geordi. Quickly thinking on his feet he tells them to keep notes on the session. Befuddled, Geordi asks him why. "A blind man teaching an android to paint? That's gotta' be worth a couple of lines in some historian's book," is Riker's smart reply!

I found an oddity in the story when I watched it recently. When Picard and Riker sense a problem they question Minuet about it and she explains she isn't programmed to give that information. Several minutes later they approach her again with the same question - and without hesitation she spills her guts this time! An oversight by the writers? Perhaps.

Some final notes: Gene Dynarski, who played one of the miners in the Star Trek original series episode 'Mudd's Women', becomes the first guest star to make separate appearances in the two different Trek series. The auto destruct sequence changes drastically between this show and the second season show titled 'Where Silence Has Lease'. Here it's observed that it is automatically set for five minutes and cannot be altered; in the latter episode Picard and Riker are allowed to choose a time limit.

Program Enhancement
Minuet and the Gin Joint Program Enhancements

The surprising aspect of this episode is that it wasn't only humans that programed the Enterprise. The Bynars make their first and last appearance in this segment. The Enterprise returns to star base for the Bynars to work on updating the programming. Supposedly each one of them works as part of the greater whole. Shades of the Borg mentality here. Wonder why they didn't help out the Federation? Well, they hijacked the big E to their planet were a supernova was set to destroy their master computer.

The crew is evacuated by a false warning. Riker and Picard are still on board. This is were it gets interesting.......Riker steps into a holodeck Jazz bar in New Orleans in the 20th century. Since the program is influenced by the Bynar everything has more "enhancement."...not the run of the mill shallow programs. When Riker asks for the perfect date it creates Minuet. Will Riker jumps into a relationship that can't last.

The Jazz Bar scenes and the abduction of the Enterprise by Bynar hive mind make this an unusual mix of drama and romance. Scenes of the Enterprise entering the star base were lifted from the effects shots from the movie the "Search for Spock."

Meanwhile, back on the holodeck . . . Gee, its Minuet!
If you think about how far computer technology has come in the last decade let alone the last half-century, can we even begin to imagine what the ship's computer on the Enterprise must be like. Most Star Trek episodes take the computer for granted, which makes "11001001" an exception to the rule. The Enterprise is at Starbase 74 for routine maintenance checks and computer upgrades, the latter being performed by the Bynars, a race that has attained an amazing high level of interconnectedness with the main computer on their home world. After enhancing the holodeck, the Bynars suggest Riker give it a try. Conjuring up a New Orleans jazz bar, Riker is confronted with a beautiful woman named Minute. Picard joins his First Officer and the two of them are both amazed and enchanted by the sophistication of her enhanced programming. It turns out this is all a diversionary tactic by the Bynars who have the ship's computer warn of an imminent warp engine explosion. After Data evacuates the ship, the problem suddenly disappears and the Enterprise warps away towards the Bynar's home world. Meanwhile, back in the holodeck, Picard and Riker suddenly realize they have been tricked.

"11001001" is the second Next Generation episode after "The Big Good-Bye" (Episode 13) to explore the nature of reality on the holodeck. The initial idea that it is a giant entertainment center that, in Picard's words, "has given us woodland and ski slopes, figures that fight, and fictional characters with whom we can interact," is gradually giving way to more philosophical concerns. In future episodes the notion of what constitutes a sentient being will be dealt with in terms of holodeck creations (e.g., Professor Moriarity), as well as with Data and various alternative life forms. This is the episode that really starts the series off in that particular direction as the show starts to create its own identity instead of trying to offer constant reminders of the original show.

I liked this Episode beacause it was very exciteing.
I liked the part where data gets a call on his comm//saying the magnettic grid was detiriorateing.Then they had to Evac.Ship with the captain and will in the holodeck. ... Read more