‘DISASTER’ (TNG)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
This is one of my favourite episodes from Season 5 of ‘Star Trek: TNG’. This episode is essentially a ‘disaster movie’ episode where the Enterprise gets hit by natural forces in space. Can the crew survive?
What I like about this episode is how there are various subplots going on with our main characters involved in this ‘disaster’ aboard the Enterprise. This makes it compelling how our heroes will survive.
Essentially what happens is that the Enterprise gets hit by something called a quantum filament. This causes many of the ship’s functions inoperable and puts so many of the crew members in deadly peril.
There’s so many subplots with so many characters, so here’s how it goes. On the bridge, the crew is limited to Counsellor Troi, Chief O’Brien and Ensign Ro. Deanna Troi gets to be in charge of the bridge.
Apparently Troi has the rank of Lt. Commander, making her the most senior officer aboard the bridge. It was interesting to see how Troi gets to be in command for a change and how she finds it a challenge.
It was nice to see Colm Meaney as Chief O’Brien get an active role on the bridge in the episode. Michelle Forbes as Ensign Ro does challenge Troi’s sense of judgement which was mesmerising to see.
Ensign Ro makes the suggestion of separating the saucer section from the drive section because of a fault in the anti-matter containment field. But Counsellor Troi isn’t willing to allow any of the crew die.
Meanwhile in Ten Forward, Riker and Data are there with Worf and Keiko O’Brien. Riker and Data soon go off to engineering via the Jeffries’ tubes to fix the ship’s problems as the turbo lifts are not working.
They hope to regain control of the ship in engineering rather than the bridge. However they face problems including a series of electrical currents getting in their way. Data has one idea to get past it.
Data uses his body to absorb the electrical currents which causes his body to shut down. Riker still needs Data to regain control of the ship in engineering. Data suggests that Riker uses ‘his head’ for it.
I found it funny when Riker was astonished and asked Data, “You want me to take off your head?” It sounds ridiculous to consider, but it works since Data is an android and it was fun to see him headless.
Eventually they’re in engineering and Riker with Data’s head fix a containment field failure. I found it funny when Riker tried to set up the proper connections to Data’s head and getting it wrong in process.
Where is Captain Picard in this? Well, he has the dubious honour of giving a guided tour of the ship to three kids who have won a science fair. It was intriguing to see as Picard’s uncomfortable with children.
The three kids are Erika Flores as Marissa; John Christian Grass as Jay Gordon and Max Supera as Patterson. All three kids are good in the episode. They do whine a bit early on but do come out alright.
Picard and the three children are inside a turbo-lift when the ‘disaster’ incident occurs. Picard fractures his ankle and he has to help the children get out of the turbo-lift, boosting their morale in the process.
I liked it when Picard gives the children temporary honorary command roles to renew their spirits. They also sing a climbing song ‘Frere Jacques’ as they climb up the turbo-lift shaft. This subplot’s good.
Meanwhile, Beverly Crusher and Geordi La Forge are in a cargo bay when the disaster happens. They are trapped in the bay and find a plasma fire has occurred in a nearby panel as they have to get it out.
Fortunately they manage to do so by depressurising the cargo bay to douse out the fire and remove the recent supply of thruster fuel to prevent the explosion. They get their oxygen back after it is done.
Back in Ten Forward, Rosalind Chao as Keiko O’Brien who is pregnant (when did this happen?) goes into labour prematurely. Worf helps to deliver the baby and he does this well despite the inexperience.
‘Disaster’ is a fantastic episode in the ‘TNG’ series. It’s one of my favourites and it’s one I like to watch again and again. Even if you’re not a ‘Star Trek: TNG’ fan, I’m sure you’ll find this engaging and thrilling.
‘Disaster’ (TNG) rating – 10/10
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