We begin this batch of episodes with "First Contact", where we learn how the process actually works. Riker is on a planet incognito doing reconnaissance, and is badly injured. This forces Picard to move up plans for first contact, beaming in next to one of their chief scientists (Carolyn Seymour). She is accepting of the new arrivals, as is their chancellor (George Coe), but other are fearful, including the security minister (Michael Ensign). The episode centers around the new race rather than the regular cast. It's a fascinating episode.- We have a returning guest--Dr. Leah Brahms (Susan Gibney). Of course, the last time she was on the ship, it was as a hologram LaForge mocked up to help him. The real Brahms is officious--she wants to know why he has changed engine settings. LaForge overdoes a "date" with her (he always seems to do this), then finds out she's married. A space-based alien shows up and starts draining the ship's energy--Picard is forced to shoot it. The alien was about to give birth, so they help deliver "Galaxy's Child". Unfortunately, now "Junior" is draining the ship. Brahms wants to know more about the engine mods, so LaForge leaves her with his records--she finds the holodeck file and the other Brahms. After a fight, they manage to work together to save the ship--and we get the "sour the milk" reference used on other sci-fi shows.
- In "Night Terrors", the Enterprise comes upon a derelict ship--all aboard are dead except for a catatonic Betazoid. They determine that the ship--and the Enterprise--are stuck in a technobabble loop that drains their energy and stops them from dreaming (except for Troi). People start hallucinating things, and Data takes over the ship. Troi is able to contact the other Betazoid telepathically, and then figures out she can send a message to another ship in the loop. Together, they blow up the loop, and Data orders everyone to bed.
- Levar Burton must have complained he wasn't getting enough screen time--he stars on another episode, "Identity Crisis". Before he was on the Enterprise, LaForge was on an away mission, and now the members of that mission are going AWOL then disappearing. The only other remaining member of that mission (played by Maryann Plunkett) is also on the Enterrpise. A theory that aliens are abducting them is wrong--they are becoming aliens themselves. A parasite is changing their DNA, to the point that they are essentially invisible. The other affected officer tracks down LaForge on the planet using ultraviolet light. The makeup team put in a lot of hours in this episode.
- Barclay's back in "The Nth Degree". We start with Barclay (Dwight Schultz) in Crusher's drama group (do these people ever work?), and he's his normally bumbling self. During a mission, he gets blasted by an alien probe--suddenly, he's hyper-intelligent and hyper-confident. He even saves the ship from the probe. Now they have to fix an antenna array also affected by the probe--he can fix it far faster than they can. He ends up tying into the main computer via the holodeck--becoming one with the computer. Now he's sending them faster than the ship has ever gone. An alien super-intelligence (played by Kay E. Kuter) shows up--they're explorers too, bringing other races to them. Barclay is put back to normal(?).
- Q (John de Lancie) is back, as is Vash (Jennifer Hetrick) in "Qpid". The latter appears in Picard's quarters--there's an awkward moment when Crusher stops by. None of the officers have heard of her (Picard never brought her up). Q then shows up in his ready room--he wants to repay Picard for saving his life--Picard just wants him to leave. Vash and Picard have a spat, and Q realizes how he can repay them: put them in a classic adventure--say Robin Hood, with Vash as Maid Marian. She flips the script and works to save herself. In the end, Vash partners up with Q to explore the universe. It's a very fun episode.
Star Trek: The Next Generation is available on Netflix--more to come!