Conspiracy

This carries on the conspiracy theme where suspicions arise about a coup taking place behind the scenes. A friend arrives on the Enterprise and Jean-Luc comes to realize that he is not acting as he should. The good captain finds himself meeting with what may or may not be friends of the federation. They are a surly lot and see destruction ahead. On board a series of events take place, finally sending Riker into a state of shock. He becomes catatonic. Captain Savar fights with Worf and nearly dismantles him. He has powers beyond human capability and enjoys his superior strength to no end. Meanwhile, Picard beams to the meeting room for a discussion of the future of Star Fleet. From there, things get really dicey as we realize that there are things at work here that are alien in nature. It seems the deck is badly stacked and subterfuge is going to be necessary. There are wonderful twists and turns, analytical subtleties, and excellent premises to tie together. For some reason, there are those who are incredibly disappointed in this effort, that somehow there are a set of rules that episodes are supposed to follow. I have seen this episode several times and still enjoy it.

After reading HNSampat-2's review, I had to respond. Sampat writes that the episode should be disowned, but it's the 39th best rated TNG episode out of 176 on IMDb. It's the highest rated episode out of the first season. And if we consider the people who are taking the effort to rate each episode, it's obvious that it's the fans who think it deserves a 7.9.

So I put it to you Sampat - how is it not Star Trek? That's a load of rubbish. This show made Star Trek what it is today.

And this episode DOES relate to space. In fact, it's a prelude to what should have been a future space adventure episode relating to these beings. Instead they were replaced by the Borg.

The episode is very enjoyable. There's some dodgy direction in the fight scenes, but outside of that it's a joy to see the actors begin to gel with their characters. I could always remember this episode from when I was younger due to the beeping of the beacon sent out - chilling stuff.

Also, watch out for horror specialist Michael Berryman (Pluto in The Hills Have Eyes) making a guest appearance. 9/10

It's undoubtedly the best episode from season one and possibly the best episode of Next Generation. From the jump, it had the perfect amount of tension and believability and a great story. The only season one episodes that compare to its quality are "Datalore" and "Heart of Glory." The Federation's rules and benevolent nature are under assault by a mysterious force that might have originated from within the core leadership of its organization. Only a handful of its trustworthy senior officers seem to be aware of the problem, which is alarming in itself.

This episode's only flaws: its special effects are very dated and almost laughable by today's standards, and it relies on Jonathon Frakes's acting (groan) a bit too much.

Captain Picard is contacted by three other Starfleet captains who give him some disturbing information.

This is an intriguing and gripping episode with number of memorable scenes and character moments.

The plot for me is reminiscent of the original series episode 'Operation Annihilate', only better as it presents the possibility of Starfleet's command structure being compromised by an alien organism.

What works well is that right from the moment Picard is woken from his slumber there is an established sense of dread that remains until the end credits. It all stems from some quite atmospheric early scenes that set the tone for the rest of the episode. For what feels like the first time in the series we are faced with a credible threat.

Several characters make a strong contribution to the plot. It centres around Picard who leads from the front, placing himself in peril in the line of duty. Riker, Data and Dr Crusher all support him well and display the strengths unique to their characters.

The visuals are a mixed bag in terms of quality, but they entertain nonetheless. The scenes on Dytallix B are well designed, filmed and set the tone well. The creature effects are easily identified as clay animation but if you keep in mind this is 80s sci-fi you should appreciate the effort gone into making them as cinematic as possible. At one point it feels like a horror movie due to the comparatively graphic nature of the models.

All performances are strong with Patrick Stewart carrying the story superbly well. Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Gates McFadden are all solid. Ward Costello and Robert Schenkkan return with memorable performances.

The only real problem with this episode is that the story is never followed up at any point later in the show. However, judged on its merit it is for me the strongest of the first season.

Star Trek meets The Invasion Of The Body Snatchers!

Picard is covertly summoned to a secret location by an old friend who has some concerns about what is going on at Starfleet, so he scraps the Enterprise's visit to a paradise planet for R and R. In favor of investigating this issue. As it turns out nothing is as it seems.

It's a little hard to assess this episode within the pantheon of this very inconsistent first season of The Next Generation. On one hand, the tone of the episode really doesn't fit in with the others, and the lack of payoff from this episode in later seasons, makes me categorize this into one of The Next Generations weird experiments.

On the other hand, when you consider it as a standalone, it is perhaps the best episode of the 1st season. While not the best written, it is one of the very few times that this show managed to truly creep me out, which is no easy feat if you know me.

In many ways, I wish this were the finale of the first season, because if this was a thread that they were thinking about pursuing, I would have liked to see what they would have done with it. Unfortunately, this plot was never revisited. But as a standalone, I liked this episode quite a bit.