Series: Star Trek: TNG
Episode: 4.17 Night Terors (03/18/1991)
Rating: 2.5/5
Redshirt Status: 0/1/34
Notable Guest Stars:
John Vickery (Andrus Hagan) – Vickery was a reoccuring actor on the series, and will appear in several episodes of DS9. He also got to originate the role of Scar in The Lion King musical.
Review:
TRIGGER/CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains suicidal behavior.
This episode starts with an interesting idea. Devoid of REM sleep for weeks on end, the crew of the Brattain basically kill each other till the only one left is the Betazoid. The Enterprise comes too late, but slowly begins to show the same symptoms, with Deanna being the only one allowed to reach REM sleep.
It’s a bit of a mystery, and I think it could have turned out better but the end result did not really make it that great of an epside. I find it better then the last one, so it at least gets two stars.
It was nice to see Deanna have a show highlighting her abilities, although I kind of wish that it had been less of Data being in control. Not that I don’t like the idea, but so much of TNG focuses on Data and sometimes the other characters don’t get their due time.
However, the one scene that was a joy to watch was Gunian deciding enough was enough and breaking out her gun and shooting it in the air to break up a gun fight. Guinan doesn’t take any problems in her bar.
Interesting Notes:
- Written by Shari Goodhartz, Pamela Douglas and Jeri Taylor
- Directed by Les Landau
- No one seems to really like this episode. The Director won’t even talk about it, and all the other comments from staff listed on Memory alpha are all negative.
Pros:
- Deanna gets a leading part in an episode.
- Guinan getting to end a bar fight with her gun.
Cons:
- I feel this is a good concept that failed to work out in the end.
- I’m a little troubled by Worf’s tendency towards suicide.
Screencap via CygnusX1.net
Sokorra Lewis 