‘FACE OF THE ENEMY’ (TNG)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
This is a ‘TNG’ episode where Deanna Troi becomes a Romulan. I was shocked when seeing Deanna in Romulan make-up. This must have been a very challenging episode for Marina Sirtis to do than normal.
The episode begins with Deanna waking up in her Romulan make-up, having had cosmetic surgery done on her. She finds herself aboard the Romulan Warbird called the Khazara as she has this mission.
Deanna meets Scott MacDonald as Sub-Commander N’Vek who briefly and privately explains to her what’s going on. He has no intention of harming her, but needs her help to deliver some special cargo.
In the episode, Deanna is posing as Major Rakal of the Tal Shiar, which is the Romulan intelligence service and secret police. Understandably, Deanna is unwilling to trust N’Vek on what he is telling her.
But N’Vek knows Deanna is an empath and therefore she knows he’s telling her the truth. They work together in the episode, but there is tension and friction when he reveals only parts of the plan to her.
Deanna has to act her role as Major Rakal when convincing the commander of the Khazara, Carolyn Seymour as Toreth. This isn’t the first time that Carolyn Seymour has featured in the ‘Star Trek’ series.
Carolyn’s first association with ‘Star Trek’ was in the ‘TNG’ episode ‘Contagion’. She played a Romulan in that too. Carolyn was also in the ‘TNG’ episode, ‘First Contact’ and she’s done ‘Doctor Who’ audios.
Commander Toreth is unaware of N’Vek’s plans to deliver a certain kind of cargo. She also doesn’t like Deanna who’s posing as Major Rakal, since she seems have this certain disregard for the Tal Shiar here.
Deanna agrees to N’Vek’s plan as she’s able to sway Toreth with heading for a certain rendezvous point in the Kaleb sector where they’re to deliver the cargo. Deanna’s Tal Shiar authority benefits her.
Meanwhile with the Enterprise, the crew bring aboard a human defector, Barry Lunch as Stefan DeSeve. He used to serve as an ensign in Starfleet before defecting to the Romulans, living on Romulus.
He’s put under arrest by Riker and Worf who clearly dislike and distrust him. I feel sorry for DeSeve, as he seems a genuinely pleasant guy and must have had reasons. He requests to meet Captain Picard.
Picard sees DeSeve and is given a message from Ambassador Spock. Yeah. This episode is a follow-up to ‘Unification’. I am saddened Leonard Nimoy didn’t reprise his role as Spock for this ‘Star Trek’ story.
DeSeve tells Picard that the message concerns a meeting in the Kaleb sector that would be essential for the Federation’s interests. Picard doesn’t trust DeSeve entirely but very soon directs the ship there.
Back on the Khazara, Deanna is shown the secret cargo by N’Vek. It happens to be a Romulan high official and his two aides held in stasis wishing to defect to the Federation as they oppose their Empire.
N’Vek’s plan is to transport the stasis chambers containing the defecting Romulans to a Corvallen cargo ship in the Kaleb sector. The idea is that these Romulans will get delivered into Federation space.
But things don’t go according to plan, as Deanna senses the captain of the Corvallen cargo ship is untrustworthy. At first, N’Vek fires upon it. WHAT?! And then he says Deanna ordered him to. WHAT?!
Deanna is angry with N’Vek’s unprovoked actions when she talks to him in private. N’Vek suggests travelling to another planet as an entry point for the Federation. Soon the Enterprise meets with them.
In private, Deanna tells N’Vek to create a trail of the Romulan Warbird when cloaked for the Enterprise to follow. Toreth is soon about to destroy the Enterprise ship before Deanna as Rakal stops her doing so.
Deanna manages to take command from Toreth in order to make contact with the Enterprise. The Enterprise crew feign ignorance recognising Deanna as a Romulan before they drop the ship’s shields.
Fortunately the cargo from the Romulan Warbird gets transferred to the Enterprise via low-powered weapon. Deanna manages to get beamed off the Romulan ship to the Enterprise whilst N’Vek gets killed.
‘Face of the Enemy’ is a good, tension-driven episode in the ‘TNG’ series. It’s not an absolute favourite of mine, but having seen it again it is well-written and was very intriguing to see Deanna as a Romulan.
‘Face of the Enemy’ (TNG) rating – 7/10
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