“The Mind’s Eye”
Written by Ken Schafer and René Echevarria
Directed by David Livingston
Season 4, Episode 24
Production episode 40274-198
Original air date: May 27, 1991
Stardate: 44885.5

Captain’s Log: La Forge is en route to Risa in a shuttle to attend an artificial intelligence seminar — and he’s arriving a few days early for some R&R. While he’s in the middle of playing a word game with the computer to pass the time, a Romulan warbird decloaks, drains the shuttle’s shields, and beams La Forge over. He’s strapped down to a chair on the orders of two Romulans — Taibak and a woman who remains in shadow. Another human who looks somewhat like him puts on a fake VISOR and is told by Taibak to try not to have too much fun on Risa.

Taibak removes the VISOR and plugs the chair right into the little doodads on La Forge’s temples that the VISOR hooks up to, enabling him to force La Forge to watch whatever he wishes. The idea is to condition La Forge to the point where he’s their slave, which can be done in a manner that is undetectable thanks to La Forge’s neural implants.

The female commander Taibak is reporting to remains in shadow, but speaks with a very familiar voice.

[You swear well, Picard.]

“The Host”
Written by Michel Horvat
Directed by Marvin V. Rush
Season 4, Episode 23
Production episode 40274-197
Original air date: May 13, 1991
Stardate: 44821.3

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is bringing a Trill ambassador named Odan to mediate a dispute between the inhabitants of the two moons of Peliar Zel. His father had performed a mediation between the moons in the past. Crusher and Odan have also started a romance over the course of the ten-day trip, though they’re trying to keep it secret. That’s not the only secret — in private, Odan’s belly swells and ebbs because there’s a slug in it he hasn’t told anyone about.

After Crusher and Odan have a roll in the hay, there’s a meeting with the governor of Peliar Zel, where the conflict is laid out. Alpha Moon taps Peliar Zel’s magnetic field as an energy source, but their doing so has an adverse environmental effect on Beta Moon. Beta is accusing Alpha of genocide, and Alpha refuses to give up their energy source.

[Dr. Beverly...]

“Half a Life”
Written by Ted Roberts and Peter Allan Fields
Directed by Les Landau
Season 4, Episode 22
Production episode 40274-196
Original air date: May 6, 1991
Stardate: 44805.3

Captain’s Log: The episode opens with Troi’s personal log stating four simple words: “My mother is here.” What more need be said?

Picard exits the turbolift, looking around fearfully, hoping not to bump into Lwaxana. This hope is in vain, as she pounces upon him, learning that they are about to take a scientist on board from Kaelon II, a reclusive world. Until this current project, they’d had very little contact with the Federation. Lwaxana inserts herself into the greeting party when Dr. Timicin beams aboard and immediately establishes herself as his “entertainment director.” (“He’s in a lot of trouble,” La Forge opines more prophetically than he realizes to O’Brien after they depart.)

[I adore diplomacy! Everybody dresses so well!]

“The Drumhead”
Written by Jeri Taylor
Directed by Jonthan Frakes
Season 4, Episode 21
Production episode 40274-195
Original air date: April 29, 1991
Stardate: 44769.2

Captain’s Log: The latest participant in the officer exchange program (seen in both “A Matter of Honor” and “Sins of the Father”) is J’Dan, a Klingon exobiologist. Unfortunately, he appears to have provided schematics of their dilithium crystal chambers to the Romulans and also sabotaged the warp drive. He denies everything while being interrogated by Riker and Troi — but when Worf escorts him to his quarters, he offers Worf reinstatement from his discommendation if he’ll just provide a shuttle. Worf’s response is an elbow to the stomach, a fist to the face, and an assurance that the Klingon High Council will provide him with a slow death.

[The blood of all Klingons has become water!]

Apologies for missing last Friday. Real life just got in the way at the end of last week.

“Qpid”
Written by Randee Russell and Ira Steven Behr
Directed by Cliff Bole
Season 4, Episode 20
Production episode 40274-194
Original air date: April 22, 1991
Stardate: 44741.9

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is hosting an archeological conference on Tagus III, and Picard is giving the keynote address. He’s more than a little apprehensive about the speech, and Troi has to convince him to stop fiddling with it and get some sleep. He goes to his quarters and discovers a horga’hn on his coffee table — and Vash in the doorway to his bedroom.

She spends the night, and they share morning tea. When Picard asks if she’s on the archeology council, she gives an evasive “more or less,” and he is worried that she came to Tagus III for less than moral reasons.

[“I am NOT a merry man!”]

“The Nth Degree”
Written by Joe Menosky
Directed by Rob Legato
Season 4, Episode 19
Production episode 40274-193
Original air date: April 1, 1991
Stardate: 44704.2

Captain’s Log: Crusher and Barclay are performing Cyrano de Bergerac, the former as Roxanne, the latter in the title role. Barclay is pretty terrible, though he has very occasional flashes of talent — but yeah, mostly terrible. In the audience, Riker, Troi, and La Forge are all clapping enthusiastically. Data and Worf are both less enthused, though the former comes around when Riker points out that it’s polite to applaud and pretend like he was good.

The Enterprise arrives at the Argus Array, an automated subspace telescope on the edge of Federation space. It stopped working, and the Enterprise has been sent to fix it. Worf detects an unidentified object near the array, and Picard sends La Forge in a shuttle.

[“No problem, here’s how you build it...”]

“Identity Crisis”
Written by Timothy DeHaas and Brannon Braga
Directed by Winrich Kolbe
Season 4, Episode 18
Production episode 40274-192
Original air date: March 25, 1991
Stardate: 44664.5

Captain’s Log: Five years ago, an away team from the U.S.S. Victory investigated the disappearance of 49 people from an outpost on Tarchannen III. Three of the five members of that away team have recently deserted their posts and at least one was seen heading toward Tarchannen.

The other two members of the team are Susanna Leijten, the away team leader, now a lieutenant commander — and La Forge.

They find the shuttle that one of the team, Lieutenant Hickman, stole, but Hickman himself isn’t responding to hails. He approaches Tarchannen III too fast and the shuttle explodes. However, Worf detects two more shuttles on the surface — Riker beams down with Data, Worf, La Forge, and Leijten to one of the shuttles, which turns out to be the one stolen from the Aries by another of the Victory away team, Mendez. They find no life signs — but Worf is certain they’re being watched, and La Forge found Mendez’s uniform abandoned in the Aries shuttle.

[I am strongly motivated to solve this mystery.]

“Night Terrors”
Written by Shari Goodhartz and Pamela Douglas and Jeri Taylor
Directed by Les Landau
Season 4, Episode 17
Production episode 40274-191
Original air date: March 18, 1991
Stardate: 44631.2

Captain’s Log: The U.S.S. Brittain has been missing for about a month. The Enterprise finds it adrift in a binary star system. Life sign readings are inconclusive, likewise Troi’s empathic senses — there’s life, but she’s not sure what it is.

Riker beams over with Data, Worf, Crusher, and Troi. They find the bridge crew all dead at their posts — it looks like they were murdered — and a Betazoid hiding in a corridor just off the bridge, catatonic. He’s Andrus Hagan, a scientific advisor, and he’s the only survivor. Some were found barricaded in their quarters stockpiling weapons, others were obviously killed in combat in the corridors.

[I am no longer a warrior!]

“Galaxy’s Child”
Written by Thomas Kartozian and Maurice Hurley
Directed by Winrich Kolbe
Season 4, Episode 16
Production episode 40274-190
Original air date: March 11, 1991
Stardate: 44614.6

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is en route to Starbase 313. Picard informs La Forge that an engineer from the theoretical propulsion lab at Utopia Planitia is coming on board to inspect La Forge’s engine modifications: Dr. Leah Brahms. La Forge is giddy over getting to meet the real Brahms, after encountering a holographic simulation of her a year earlier, so it comes as rather a shock for her first words upon being introduced to La Forge are, “So you’re the one who’s fouled up my engine designs.”

Brahms criticizes everything La Forge has done, to which he replies (several times) that things are a little different in the field than they are in a lab. Brahms asks if that’s going to be his only defense, and La Forge tartly points out that he doesn’t really need a defense.

[Was it good for you?]

“First Contact”
Written by Marc Scott Zicree and Dennis Russell Bailey & David Bischoff and Joe Menosky & Ronald D. Moore and Michael Piller
Directed by Cliff Bole
Season 4, Episode 15
Production episode 40274-189
Original air date: February 18, 1991
Stardate: unknown

Captain’s Log: A patient is brought into the crisis room of a hospital on an alien world. The aliens are humanoid, but with forehead ridges, and no fingers, just mitten-like hands with single thumbs. The patient’s interior organs seem to be all out of place, and when they remove his gloves and shoes, they discover digits on his extremities. “What are you?” one of the doctors asks his unconscious form.

Only then do we get a look at the patient’s face: It’s Riker, with a prosthetic forehead.

[I’ve always wanted to make love to an alien...]

“Clues”
Written by Bruce D. Arthurs and Joe Menosky
Directed by Les Landau
Season 4, Episode 14
Production episode 40274-188
Original air date: February 11, 1991
Stardate: 44502.7

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is engaged in some downtime. Picard takes advantage of the time to bring Guinan to a Dixon Hill program, which is interrupted by Data. They’ve detected an M-class planet surrounding a star that shouldn’t be able to support a habitable world. Picard expresses regret to Guinan, saying that he must abandon the 20th-century mystery for a 24th-century one.

Everyone comes to the bridge, and they discover that there are unstable wormholes all around. The Enterprise goes through one, which renders everyone except for Data unconscious. When folks wake up, Data explains that they were all unconscious for thirty seconds. There appears to be no damage or major injuries. Data suggests that returning to investigate the planet would be hazardous with all the wormhole activity, so they send a probe.

[“Gloria — from Cleveland.”]

“Devil’s Due”
Written by Philip LaZebnik and William Douglas Lansford
Directed by Tom Benko
Season 4, Episode 13
Production episode 40274-187
Original air date: February 4, 1991
Stardate: 44474.5

Captain’s Log: Data is playing Ebenezer Scrooge on the holodeck while Picard observes — in much the same way he watched Data play Henry V — and then is summoned to the bridge. There’s a distress call from Ventax II — the Federation science outpost on that world is under attack. Apparently the Ventaxians believe their world is coming to an end tomorrow.

The Enterprise arrives just as the scientific outpost is being invaded by an angry mob. The head scientist, Dr. Clark, is beamed to safety on the ship and explains the situation to Picard: Ventax was a society that turned its back on technology a thousand years ago and have remained a peaceful, agrarian society ever since. They made first contact with the Klingons sixty-five years earlier, and have refused to adopt technology that was available to them.

[The advocate will refrain from making her opponent disappear.]

“The Wounded”
Written by Stuart Charno, Sara Charno, Cy Chermak, and Jeri Taylor
Directed by Chip Chalmers
Season 4, Episode 12
Production episode 40274-186
Original air date: January 28, 1991
Stardate: 44429.6

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is on a mapping mission near the Cardassian border. A peace treaty signed a year earlier ended the long conflict between the Federation and the Cardassians, a conflict so vicious that there’s been nothing remotely resembling an indication of it in the past three-plus seasons’ worth of television episodes. Picard reminisces about a time he faced off against Cardassians while commanding the Stargazer.

A Cardassian ship, the Trager, attacks the Enterprise without obvious provocation. The Enterprise gets the upper hand in short order, at which point the Cardassian shipmaster, Gul Macet, is willing to talk. He reveals that a Federation starship destroyed a Cardassian science station in the Cuellar system. Picard assures Macet that the Federation has no wish to abandon the treaty. Macet tartly points out that the Cardassians haven’t abandoned it, but is willing to wait an hour while Picard contacts Starfleet.

[Smells musty in here — like a bureaucrat’s office!]

“Data’s Day”
Written by Harold Apter and Ronald D. Moore
Directed by Robert Wiemer
Season 4, Episode 11
Production episode 40274-185
Original air date: January 7, 1991
Stardate: 44390.1

Captain’s Log: Data is recording a letter to Commander Bruce Maddox, acceding to his recent request for more information on Data’s programming and operation. He will give Maddox a full account of a day in his life. He is in charge of gamma shift, and Riker shows up fifteen minutes early to start alpha shift so Data can get ready for his duties that day.

Turns out this is not a typical day, as there is a wedding happening between O’Brien and the head of the arboretum, Keiko Ishikawa. Data is the one who introduced them, and he is acting as the father of the bride. In addition, the Zhukov is en route with Ambassador T’Pel of Vulcan, there are four birthdays, two transfers, two chess tournaments, a school play, four promotions, the celebration of the Hindu Festival of Lights, and Lieutenant Juarez is going into labor.

[I could be chasing an untamed ornithoid without cause.]

“The Loss”
Written by Hilary J. Bader, Alan J. Adler, and Vanessa Greene
Directed by Chip Chalmers
Season 4, Episode 10
Production episode 40274-184
Original air date: December 31, 1990
Stardate: 44356.9

Captain’s Log: Troi is having a session with Ensign Janet Brooks, who lost her husband to an accident. It would have been her husband’s birthday, and she woke up that morning wanting to hold something that belonged to him — but she had gotten rid of everything of his after the funeral. Troi then walks over to a closet and pulls out a music box, which she had held behind for when Brooks would need it.

When the session ends, Troi starts getting wonky, eventually passing out at the exact same time that the Enterprise encounters weird sensor echoes. They come to a full stop and check it out, but there is no reoccurrence of it. So Picard orders them to go to warp, at which point the ship lurches — according to La Forge, the warp field collapsed. Meanwhile, Allenby reports that the ship is moving despite being at all stop, being pulled along at sublight speeds. All attempts to move fail, even though the engines are fine. There’s no indication of a tractor beam, sensor readings are indeterminate, and they have no idea what’s going on. To make matters worse, Troi’s empathic abilities have simply stopped. She can’t sense anything. Crusher finds some minor brain damage, and will try to figure out what’s going on.

[Nothing seems real!]

Besides being Wes’s final episode, this edition of the rewatch also provides a new category: In the Driver’s Seat. With Wes’s departure, the conn position is no longer occupied by any of the opening-credits regulars, and a varied selection of (mostly female) officers take up that position, starting this week with Ensign Allenby.

“Final Mission”
Written by Kacey Arnold-Ince and Jeri Taylor
Directed by Corey Allen
Season 4, Episode 9
Production episode 40274-183
Original air date: November 19, 1990
Stardate: 44307.3

Captain’s Log: Picard has been assigned to mediate a dispute on Pentarus V, and he will be accompanied by Wes — for whom this will be his final mission on the Enterprise, as a position has opened up in this year’s class at Starfleet Academy, and he’s been accepted.

Picard and Wes board the Nenebek, a small mining shuttle captained by a crotchety old bastard named Dirgo. The captain says he and the Nenebek have logged 10,000 hours together — which is apparently when the warranty runs out, as the port thruster goes blooey en route to Pentarus V. They’re forced to crash land on a moon of Pentarus III, which is a big ol’ desert. The Nenebek’s systems are completely trashed. It’s a small shuttle, so emergency supplies are limited, and there’s no food and water. The sun is brutal, and they need shelter that isn’t the metal shuttle (which will act as an oven), so they head toward a cave system, with Picard fashioning an arrow out of wreckage to point out where they went to any possible rescue parties. (Let’s hope a windstorm doesn’t hit...)

[It’s medicinal...]

“Future Imperfect”
Written by J. Larry Carroll & David Bennett Carren
Directed by Les Landau
Season 4, Episode 8
Production episode 40274-182
Original air date: November 12, 1990
Stardate: 44286.5

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is patrolling near the Romulan Neutral Zone, but things are quiet enough so that Riker can have a birthday party. As Picard and Data are about to head to the party, Gleason informs them that Alpha Onias III is giving off subspace readings. Concern about Romulan incursion on the planet leads to Picard interrupting the party so Riker can send an away team down.

[“What did you wish for?” “Music lessons...”]

“Reunion”
Written by Drew Deighan and Thomas Perry & Jo Perry and Ronald D. Moore & Brannon Braga
Directed by Jonathan Frakes
Season 4, Episode 7
Production episode 40274-181
Original air date: November 5, 1990
Stardate: 44246.3

Captain’s Log: The Enterprise is hailed by a Klingon ship that is carrying the Federation Ambassador to the Klingon Empire, K’Ehleyr. She has a matter of some urgency to discuss with the crew. Picard sends Worf to greet her — Worf points out that K’Ehleyr may be offended by his discommendation, and Picard slaps him down, saying that he can’t go into hiding every time a Klingon ship decloaks.

Upon arriving in the transporter room, Worf’s discommendation proves to be the least of the awkwardness, as the ambassador beams aboard with a young son named Alexander, who has the same forehead crest as Worf. (Worf is also surprised that there are two to beam aboard at first, though that confusion doesn’t really make sense — ambassadors often have aides, after all. But whatever.)

[“What is THAT doing here?”]

(Apologies for the lack of rewatch on Tuesday. Someone I’ve known since high school died of a heart attack at the depressingly young age of 41 this past week, and I’ve been a bit of a mess this week. But we’re back on track — look for “Reunion” on Tuesday...)

“Legacy”
Written by Joe Menosky
Directed by Robert Scheerer
Season 4, Episode 6
Production episode 40274-180
Original air date: October 29, 1990
Stardate: 44215.2

Captain’s log: The poker game—including Riker trying and failing to pull a card trick on Data that I knew the trick of when I was a teenager, so Riker thinking he could fool the hyperobservant android with it is pretty damn hilarious—is interrupted by a distress call from the freighter Arcos, which has been damaged while in orbit of Turkana IV. By the time they arrive, the freighter has exploded, but the two crew members managed to get into escape pods.

Unfortunately, Turkana IV is not a nice place. It’s the cesspool of a colony that Tasha Yar was born on, and there hasn’t been any contact with them for six years, which was after their government collapsed. All the surface settlements are long-since destroyed; everyone lives underground.

[Have you got a flush or a full house?]