star trek next generation locutus episode

The Best of Both Worlds, Part II (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 1.6 Act Five
• 2 Deleted scene
• 3 Log entries
• 4 Memorable quotes
• 5.1 Production history
• 5.2 Story and script
• 5.3 Editing
• 5.4 Sets, props, and wardrobe
• 5.5 Production
• 5.6 Effects
• 5.7 Continuity
• 5.9 Reception and aftermath
• 5.10 Apocrypha
• 5.11 Remastered version
• 5.12 Video and DVD releases
• 6.1 Starring
• 6.2 Also starring
• 6.3 Guest stars
• 6.4 Special guest star
• 6.5 Co-star
• 6.6 Uncredited co-stars
• 6.7 Stunt double
• 6.8 Stand-ins
• 6.9.1 Spacecraft references
• 6.9.2 Deleted references
• 6.10 External links

Summary [ ]

Geordi La Forge reports that the main deflector dish is six seconds away from discharging. Hope and concern are on the face of the entire bridge crew as they look at what the Borg have done to Captain Picard on the viewscreen . The USS Enterprise opens fire with its deflector dish-weapon which impacts the Borg ship … and causes no damage. Shelby is incredulous as Riker realizes the futility of their resistance and orders La Forge to cease fire before the warp core overloads. Riker laments aloud that the Borg couldn't possibly have adapted that quickly but Locutus states that the knowledge and experience of Picard has been added to the Borg's collective consciousness and that they are now prepared for all possible courses of action that the Enterprise and the Federation are preparing to take. Locutus then notes that their resistance is hopeless, while chillingly addressing Riker as " Number One ."

Act One [ ]

The use of the deflector dish weapon has left the Enterprise disabled. No longer posing a threat and with their main objective, Picard, obtained, the Borg leave the Enterprise behind and resume their course for Earth . Admiral Hanson informs them that their engagement has bought them valuable time to mobilize a fleet of 40 starships at Wolf 359 , with more on the way. The Klingons are sending ships to assist and Hanson has even thought of opening communications with the Romulans . Shelby warns the admiral that with the assistance of Picard, the Borg are now ready for anything Starfleet may have prepared for them. Hanson tells Shelby a tale of watching a Starfleet freshman cadet passing four upperclassmen on a hill in the final leg of a forty kilometer run on Danula II , which made him the only freshman to ever win the Starfleet Academy marathon . Hanson explains that he made it his business to get to know that cadet, Picard, and has come to know him very well and makes it implicitly clear that he has never met anyone "with more drive, determination or more courage than Jean-Luc Picard" and under no circumstances is Picard assisting the Borg – he is a casualty of war, which Dr. Crusher takes to mean that there will be no chance of recovering him. Hanson declares that Starfleet intends to hit the Borg ship with everything they can muster and that either they will survive, or the Borg will. Hanson laments the loss of Picard and officially awards Riker a field promotion to captain and command of the Enterprise , wishing the circumstances were better, which Riker acknowledges and wishes the admiral luck in the coming battle.

On course for Earth, the Borg add to their assimilation of Picard's body, continuing his transformation into Locutus by attaching an arm prosthesis extension and draining the color from his Human skin. From within Locutus, the only sign of the remaining Humanity left within Jean-Luc Picard is a single tear that wells from his eye and continues to the side of his face.

Meanwhile, Worf and newly-promoted Captain Riker discuss in a turbolift how to deal with the Borg's ability to adapt to their hand phasers, as Ensign Crusher suggests creating a chip for the phasers that will automatically re-tune them with every discharge. They both agree that they too can adapt just as well as the Borg but are left with a severe disadvantage since the Borg have Picard and now know everything they knew, even more than the crew knows themselves. " The Borg have neither honor nor courage. That is our greatest advantage ", Worf states to his captain.

Frustration mounts in engineering as Shelby cannot get the shields working again. She reports to Riker that the main deflector dish is operational and that Sherbourne and Barclay are testing it now. She and La Forge agree they should be underway in two to three hours. Riker then praises her for her effort on the Borg ship. She concedes that she didn't get Picard back, but he responds that her efforts gave them their shot and admits that while neither of them has to like each other, Shelby should continue to keep him on his toes. Shelby admits that she may not be Riker's first choice for first officer , which is now vacant; but reminds him that he needs her as she knows how to get things done, and for her knowledge of the Borg. Riker interrupts her that she has a lot to learn but smiles and notes it was just as he did when he was selected as first officer to Picard. He even admits Picard reminded him of it when Riker expressed of what a pain in the neck she is, at which she can't help but smile at as well. Just then, the Enterprise receives word from the Starfleet armada at Wolf 359, that they have engaged the Borg. Riker quickly heads to the bridge, as Admiral Hanson is relaying news that "the fight does not go well," and are trying to regroup. The signal is abruptly cut off, leaving Riker to wonder what happened.

Act Two [ ]

As the Enterprise completes repairs and heads for Wolf 359, Captain Riker "reluctantly" promotes Shelby to first officer over Data and Worf, as Riker cannot afford to move the current staff during this crisis and needs everyone where they are. The crew discuss several possible methods for fighting the Borg, including heavy graviton beams , nanites , and phaser upgrades, but all possibilities appear to be long shots at best. Riker's pessimism can be heard even in his encouragements that " our efforts in the coming battle will justify [Captain Picard's] faith in all of us. "

" You must let him go, Riker. "

Riker then withdraws to Captain Picard's ready room , upset with himself with how poorly the meeting went. Feeling lost without Picard, he asks the captain's empty chair " what would you do? " Guinan , realizing that Riker's attitude is filtering down through the crew through overheard conversations, visits him and insists that the only way to beat Locutus and save Picard is for Riker to let go of Picard and throw away everything the captain would have done. Riker is hesitant as the Enterprise was his ship and the crew his crew, but Guinan reminds him that the Borg now knows everything Picard knew. . Further, she states somewhat sternly that Picard was a dear friend to her and that while their relationship was "beyond friendship and beyond family" that she will let him go because she has to. Guinan tells Riker that this is the only way to both beat and save him. She reminds him that "there can only be one captain" and points to the chair, As she leaves and Riker takes the captain's ready room chair to ponder his new role as captain, the Enterprise arrives at Wolf 359. Riker takes the ship to the battle coordinates. Data picks up several ships, which Riker asks if it is the fleet. All the ships are reading no subspace communications and negligible power readings. When asked about life signs , Data responds in the negative. At visual range, Riker orders on screen, and discovers a horror beyond imagination.

The remains of Admiral Hanson's fleet

Federation starships drift lifelessly at Wolf 359, which stuns the whole bridge crew. Shelby identifies three starships as the Tolstoy , the Kyushu , and the Melbourne , the same ship Riker had been offered. Riker's heavy heart grows heavier with the notion that thousands of Starfleet officers and their families have been killed in only a matter of minutes by the Borg.

Act Three [ ]

Data is able to track the course of the Borg ship and Riker orders a course to intercept and for Shelby to prepare her plan to separate the saucer section upon discovery of the Borg. Shelby reminds Riker that she had briefed Picard on that plan so it is doubtless the Borg will be prepared for it. Riker is unconcerned, as he is actually counting on it. Shelby knows Riker has a plan and orders Wesley, Cartaino, and Gleason to the battle bridge . Before making his way to there, Riker assigns Worf and Data a special mission…

The Borg ship drops out of warp as the Enterprise approaches. Riker, now on the battle bridge -- with Wesley at the helm, Gleason at ops, Cartaino at a duty station, and an operations officer at tactical -- stalls for time with fake negotiations with Locutus. Locutus knows this is merely deception at play and turns to leave while Riker appeals to his other half and wants him to trust him implicitly. Locutus demands that they disarm all their weapons and escort them to Sector 001, but Riker cuts him off mid-sentence. The ruse allowed Gleason to pinpoint the source of their transmission and can put them 30 meters from it. As expected, the electromagnetic field has been adapted to prevent main transporter function. Data and Worf proceed as discussed and activate their emergency transporter armbands . Resuming negotiations, Locutus warns that their delay will not be successful and they will be destroyed if they attempt to intervene. Riker throws down the gauntlet defiantly telling Locutus to take their best shot as they're intervening, and signals to Cartaino to close communications. Knowing that the Borg has access to the Enterprise 's subspace communications through Picard, he resets them using Scrambler Code: Riker-One, and orders the Enterprise to separate.

" Then take your best shot Locutus, cause we are about to intervene … "

After separation, both ships open fire at the cube with a combined phaser and photon torpedo attack to no avail. The Borg fires their tractor beam at the stardrive section, but Riker evades the attack. Wesley reports the Borg are completely ignoring the saucer module as a smile plays on Riker's lips – " just as you should, captain. " Picard is aware that the stardrive section of the Enterprise carries the main armaments and therefore the larger threat to the Borg and that's where they will concentrate their attack. To that end, Riker orders Shelby aboard the primary hull to fire an antimatter spread . Aboard the Borg ship, Locutus reacts with puzzlement as this is an unexpected maneuver from the Enterprise and turns his attention toward the saucer section. In the main shuttlebay, Data and Worf launch and head towards the Borg vessel with the antimatter spread masking the engine signature from their shuttlecraft . However, the Borg then focus within the antimatter spread as they are picking up the ionization trail from the shuttle. Riker advises to take her in unpowered. The shuttle is able to penetrate the Borg electromagnetic field by coasting through it, allowing Data and Worf to beam to the cube.

" Mission accomplished, we have him! "

They locate Locutus, but come under attack almost immediately. Neutralizing five Borg with their adaptive phasers , they race to Locutus; while Worf restrains him, Data incapacitates him. They then engage their transporter armbands and beam back to the shuttle with Locutus and get clear of the electromagnetic field. Once cleared, Riker orders Chief O'Brien to beam them back to the Enterprise shortly before the shuttle itself is blown away: O'Brien completes the transport and reports that they're back onboard. The only reaction to the successful operation is Riker grinning that his strategy has worked flawlessly.

Act Four [ ]

Shelby reports that the saucer section's impulse engines have been damaged and they are disabled. Gleason detects the Borg ship is beginning to increase power as Riker prepares to move in with the stardrive section to draw their fire from the Borg. However, rather than fight the stardrive section and the now-vulnerable saucer section, the Borg resume their course toward Earth . On the re-connected Enterprise , Locutus is revived in sickbay despite Dr. Crusher's request to study the assimilation process. Locutus chastises Captain Riker for putting the whole ship at risk to save just one person, a strategy that he claims Picard would never have approved of and that the abduction will ultimately have no impact on the Borg's mission of conquest. Raising his cybernetic arm extension draws a reaction from Worf by pointing his phaser at him, but Locutus reassures him he intends no harm, a statement he reiterates twice, as though Picard's Human half is appealing to his alter ego. He states he will simply continue to serve as the voice of the Borg on board the Enterprise while the cube continues on without any more diversions to Earth where they will force the Federation's unconditional surrender.

Data discovers, using multimodal reflection sorting , that a series of subspace signals form the basis of the Borg Collective , emanating between Locutus and the Borg ship, which Beverly theorizes is how the Borg are controlling him. Data elaborates that he believes these signals form the basis for the Borg's collective consciousness. Riker suggests simply blocking them, but Data advises against it as it had been observed when the Borg boarded the Enterprise over a year ago that when injured Borg have key components removed from them, they immediately self-destruct and that cutting Locutus off from the collective could prove to be fatal to Picard. Riker declares that they must find out what Picard knows about the Borg as it is obvious that without that information, the Enterprise will be unable to destroy them. Dr. Crusher believes she could restore Picard's Humanity through microsurgery , which she could perform, but she cannot possibly attempt it as long as the Borg implants are functioning. Data, however, suggests that his positronic brain could possibly connect with Picard's machine half to gain access.

Locutus surveys sickbay for people and technology to assimilate. He coldly advises Worf that the Klingons will also be assimilated, to which Worf replies that the Klingon Empire will never yield. Locutus is a bit mystified as to why the Borg are being resisted; in their view, they only want to raise the quality of life for all species. Worf retorts that the Klingons like themselves just they way they are. Locutus blasts Worf's defiant tone, stating such vision is narrow, and that all would become one with the Borg. His attention turns to Data, whom he regards as a "primitive artificial organism" and who will become obsolete once the Borg assimilates the Federation. While he is focused on Data, Dr. Crusher quickly incapacitates Locutus with a hypospray and Worf assists Data to take him to his cybernetics lab. Riker then gets word that the Borg have entered Sector 001 .

Act Five [ ]

Still in pursuit, the Enterprise receives word from Jupiter Outpost 92 of visual sighting and planetary defenses are responding, but Shelby severely doubts its effectiveness. What's more, the Borg cube is twenty-seven minutes away from Earth and they're forty-two minutes away from the Borg. With such a large gap and little time to waste, Data begins to interface with Locutus. His team consists of Dr. Crusher monitoring Locutus/Picard's medical condition, while O'Brien is doing the equivalent for Data and Counselor Troi is to empathically determine if they are reaching Picard or vice versa, and notes that he doesn't know what to do if there's a problem – this is his first time attempting this. He makes a first connection but fails to get access, nor does Troi sense anything.

As the Borg cube breaks through the Mars Defense Perimeter , the Enterprise arrives at Sector 001 but is still twenty-three minutes behind. After unsuccessfully attempting to establish a second neural link, Data succeeds in the final attempt, establishes a net and gathers information on the Borg itself. As he processes the information he is receiving and gathering fascinating and useful insight into the Borg group consciousness; Locutus becomes aware of what Data is doing and attempts to break out of the connection by using his mechanical spinning dissection blade on the circuits. A security officer attempts to stop him but is quickly dispatched with a hard hit on his left shoulder, sending him over the rails and down onto the floor. Suddenly, his mechanical arm is grabbed by Data who, after an imperceptible struggle of mounting strength with Locutus, prevails and rips the blade unit out of its socket.

" It's him ! It's Picard! "

Crusher then and O'Brien detect increased neural activity in Picard. They suggest the Borg may be trying to sever their link which Data rules out, but he cannot explain what is causing the increased neural activity. Troi can feel that it is Picard himself that is breaking through the Borg's collective mentality and establishes contact with Data by reaching out and grasping his wrist. At this point, the Borg ship halts its approach to Earth as Dr. Crusher realizes the Borg's Achilles' heel : their inter-dependency. She explains to Riker that since Picard is part of their collective consciousness now, disconnecting him from that would be like asking a Human to sever an arm or a foot, which would be impossible. Riker realizes now that since they operate so collectively, if one Borg does something, they all must do it and orders Data to implant a command into Picard's connection with the Borg's collective consciousness to disarm all their weapon systems. The Enterprise intercepts the cube, now in orbit of Earth. The Borg engages the Enterprise once. The Enterprise opens fire with their entire arsenal but still cannot affect the Borg. Data reports that he cannot access the weapons or power systems as all critical Borg pathways are protected; Shelby and Riker realize they have no options left and order Wesley to plot a collision course into the Borg ship to destroy them and order La Forge to prepare to go to warp speed. Picard fights through the collective consciousness to tell Data one word: " Sleep ". Dr. Crusher takes this to mean that he's exhausted, but Data realizes that he is indicating a possible course of action. The cube fires its cutting beam onto the hull as Riker prepares to order Wesley to engage the warp drive when Data's voice comes over the intercom and advises Riker to stand by, as he has discovered that the Borg regeneration cycle sub-command path is considered by the collective to be a low priority system and may be accessible to him. The Borg cut into the Enterprise 's engineering section, causing an outer hull breach and decompression danger . Riker implores Data to hurry, as he cannot delay his suicide run any longer lest the Borg destroy the Enterprise first. Suddenly, the Borg attack ceases. Riker asks Data what has happened. Data explains that he was able to access the Borg regeneration sequence and effectively put them all to sleep. Worf confirms that the Borg ship is running at minimal power and their electromagnetic field is no longer in effect.

The Borg cube self-destructs

On Riker's order, Shelby leads an away team consisting of Worf and Gleason to the cube to investigate. Shelby confirms that the entire ship is currently in a regeneration mode and that the Borg are completely dormant. Riker inquires how long they can potentially keep them in this condition, but Worf's tricorder readings are fluctuating rapidly. Shelby realizes that Data's command has caused the Borg power net to feedback on itself and has triggered a self-destruct sequence. Shelby questions if Riker wants them to attempt to disarm it. While Dr. Crusher is uncertain what the destruction of the Borg vessel will do to Picard and Data suggests the advantages of closer examination of the Borg and their ship, Riker decides not to tempt fate and orders the away team returned at once and for Wesley to have the Enterprise moved away. Explosions begin to erupt on the Borg ship, causing Picard to convulse. The Enterprise speeds away as the Borg ship explodes over Earth, ending the threat of the Borg.

In the lab, Picard begins to return to normal as his Borg implants begin to shut down. As Troi asks him how he feels, Picard warily eyes his prosthetic arm extension and replies "almost Human", with a bit of a headache. Dr. Crusher is confident that removing the Borg hardware will not pose a problem. Captain Riker asks him how much he remembers and Picard replies that he remembers everything, including some "brilliantly unorthodox strategy from a former first officer of mine."

" They picked a fine officer for the task force, Commander. " " We'll have the fleet back up in less than a year. "

As the Enterprise prepares to dock at Earth Station McKinley for five or six weeks of repair and refit , Picard, with bandages on his head, is back in uniform and at his desk in the ready room. Shelby requests permission from Captain Riker to disembark, and Riker defers to Picard, thus relinquishing command back to him. Picard grants her request and commends her on being promoted to the head of Starfleet's task force in charge of rebuilding the fleet. Shelby is confident to have it back up in less than a year. She also coyly suggests to Riker that he would have his choice of any Starfleet command, but Riker tells her (and Picard) that his career plans are his own business, but he appreciates having options. As Riker leaves to take the Enterprise to Station McKinley and resume his duties as first officer, Picard attempts to return to the PADDs strewn on his desk and his usual cup of Earl Grey tea . But a haunted look plays on his face as puts down the cup. He silently goes over to the ready room's window and looks out at Earth.

Forever changed…

Deleted scene [ ]

One expanded scene was filmed but later cut from the episode during editing; the scene was later released in high definition as part of the TNG Season 4 Blu-ray bonus features. [1]

• Act 1, Scenes 15-16 – Riker tries to come to terms with his promotion to Enterprise captain and with his feelings for having tried to kill Picard.

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D), 2367
• First officer's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

Memorable quotes [ ]

" The knowledge and experience of the Human, Picard, is part of us now. It has prepared us for all possible courses of action. Your resistance is hopeless… Number One. "

" I never met anyone with more drive, determination or more courage than Jean-Luc Picard and there is no way in hell that he would assist the Borg. I want that clear! "

" As for Picard, a great man has been lost: your captain, my friend. "

" Commander Riker, I hereby promote you to the field commission of captain. The Enterprise is your ship now. Congratulations. I wish the circumstances were different. "

" We're no longer just fighting the Borg; we're fighting the life experience they've stolen from Captain Picard. Now how the hell do we defeat an enemy that knows us better than we know ourselves? " " The Borg have neither honor nor courage. That is our greatest advantage. " " I hope it's enough. "

" The fight does not go well, Enterprise . We're attempting to withdraw and regroup. Rendezvous with fleet… "

" What would you do? "

" Our relationship is beyond friendship, beyond family and I will let him go… and you must do the same. There can only be one captain. "

" This was his crew; he wrote the book on this ship! " " If the Borg know everything he knows, it's time to throw that book away. You must let him go, Riker. It's the only way to beat him. The only way to save him. "

" We will proceed to Earth and if you attempt to intervene, we will destroy you. " " Then take your best shot, Locutus, because we are about to intervene! "

" They're ignoring the saucer section completely. " " Just as you should, captain… "

" I will continue aboard this ship to speak for the Borg while they continue, without further diversion, to Sector 001 where they will force your unconditional surrender. "

" Worf, Klingon species; a warrior race. You too will be assimilated. " " The Klingon Empire will never yield! " " Why do you resist? We only wish to raise the quality of life for all species. " " I like my species the way it is! "

" The android, Data; primitive artificial organism. You will be obsolete in the new order. "

" Sleep… sleep… SLEEP… Data… "

" How do you feel? " " Almost Human… With just a bit of a headache. "

Background information [ ]

Production history [ ].

• Story memo from Michael Piller to Rick Berman : 16 April 1990
• Story memo from Ronald D. Moore to Michael Piller: 17 April 1990
• Story outline: 11 June 1990
• Final draft script: 2 July 1990 [2]
• Premiere airdate: 24 September 1990
• First UK airdate: 6 May 1992

Story and script [ ]

• There was an atmosphere of anticipation for this episode among Star Trek 's fans during the entire three-month summer hiatus between this episode and the first part of the two-parter that had ended the third season . Fans were left wondering about Picard's fate, and the series' production team worked to keep plans for this episode extremely hidden, aiming to retain the suspense for this much-anticipated season premiere. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Anticipation for this episode was so great that someone even concocted a fake version of the script that ended up in the possession of some fans and brought Picard back by revealing that his "assimilation" had merely been a prank by the Q . ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• The real plot for this episode had a difficult birth. Rick Berman later admitted, " When we finished the first half, we had no idea what the second half would be. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 200)
• Michael Piller preferred not to plan too far ahead before writing a script and had not expected to return to the TNG production team himself. Because of this, he waited until after his contract was signed before beginning to consider how he would write himself out of the seemingly unsolvable cliffhanger that the previous episode had ended with. ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 200) Specifically, he waited until he returned to the Paramount lot in late July 1990 before sitting down to wrap up the story. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., pp. 138-139))
• Michael Piller initially struggled to come up with a solution to resolve the previous installment's cliffhanger. On 22 January 2002 , Piller recounted, " I had created an unsolvable problem. And to be honest with you, as I started writing the second part of the cliffhanger – that was supposed to resolve the story – I just didn't know what it was going to be, that was ultimately going to beat them. " ( Mission Overview , TNG Season 4 DVD special features) Brannon Braga joined the writing team of TNG while Piller was struggling with this aspect. " I walked into the Hart building [on the Paramount lot] in the morning and Michael was rewriting 'Best of Both Worlds, Part II', " Braga remembered. " He introduced himself and said 'I'm trying to figure out how to beat the Borg. I have no idea how to do it.' " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 25/26, No. 6/1, p. 86)
• Piller preferred that the Borg would be defeated not by sheer strength but by ingenuity from Picard's Human insight. Like Picard, Piller sought to defeat the group of formidable villains by determining an unexpected and subtle weakness, ultimately settling on the solution of putting the Borg to "sleep". ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ) The notion of using the Borg's interdependence as their vulnerability suddenly occurred to Piller a mere two days before filming on the episode was scheduled to start. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139)) Commenting on how the characters seemed to suggest the solution to him, Piller stated, " I didn't discover it until the characters did […] I try to believe in Zen writing; I actually like to stand back as a writer and let the characters speak and listen to them and I'll sort of like take notes, while they're talking. Well, that's what happened in 'Best of Both Worlds, Part II'. We got to the scene where they had to solve the problem. Time was running out, there was only ten minutes left in the show. And, um, finally, they came up with the answer that the Borg's strength was also their weakness, that their… interdependence was their strength, and interdependence could lead to their defeat. And I was just… I can remember the smile on my face when I heard that. I said, 'Oh, that is cool!' And that's how we ended it. " ( Mission Overview , TNG Season 4 DVD special features)
• Referring to the problem of being uncertain what the second half of "The Best of Both Worlds" duology would entail, Rick Berman recounted, " Michael Piller, with a little help from me, resolved it. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 200)
• The fact that this episode had to be somewhat bound to the previous installment was not particularly conducive to Michael Piller. He explained, " Part Two had to deliver the goods promised by Part One […] It has to have the battles and all the stuff I don't like writing. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 207)
• Of how this episode continued the gradual transformation of the relationship between Picard and Riker, Michael Piller remarked, " The issue of whether or not [Riker] was big enough to fill the center chair […] led to the second part, which is the master versus pupil dynamic we set up. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 199)
• The scene wherein Locutus insists to Worf that the Borg will raise the quality of life for all species by assimilating them into the Borg Collective was an effort by Michael Piller to help explain the Borg's motivation for attempting galactic conquest. Piller also tried, by suggesting that the Borg believed they were motivated by a greater good, to help make the Borg more believable villains and accentuate their coldblooded evilness. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Because showing the Battle of Wolf 359 in this episode would be prohibitively expensive, Michael Piller chose to feature only the aftermath of the battle in his script, creating a memorable scene in the viewers' imaginations by deciding to show the drifting wreckage and stunned reactions, upon viewing the carnage, of the Enterprise 's bridge officers. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Explaining Picard's disturbed reflection on his ordeal at the conclusion of this episode, Michael Piller stated, " It was my intention to wrap up the two parter with the feeling that although everything is solved, life isn't so smooth and a man does not walk away from something like that and go back to work without having a little extra flashback nightmare. It's just that little uncertainty, the moment of discomfort that I wanted to leave the audience with. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages )
• This episode finally quashed rumors, which had circulated over the summer, that the strong-willed Shelby would become a regular character, in the wake of Wesley Crusher's (and actor Wil Wheaton 's) departure from the series, later in the fourth season. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139))
• The Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139) notes that the two female main characters play important roles in saving Humanity; it is Dr. Crusher who determines the Borg's fatal flaw, and Troi who realizes that Picard is attempting to fight through his Borg programming. According to Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages (p. 202), Michael Piller was intent on servicing even the lesser-used members of TNG's ensemble, including Troi, from the beginning of the fourth season onwards. As such, he had Troi "make some critical contributions to the solutions or problems."
• The script drafts of this episode were closely guarded. So that Paramount could easily learn more about what had happened if any of the scripts made their way into unauthorized hands, early script drafts were secretly numbered by changing the designation of the Jupiter station in each script copy. All copies of the final draft script, however, referred to Outpost 92. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• In this episode's story outline, Michael Piller stated, " This is a story about Riker and Picard's relationship. It is a rite of passage all men face – the son who must discover his own strength and power… and, in order to do so, must vanquish the father upon whom he depends on and dearly loves. "

Editing [ ]

• According to Michael Piller, some of the "master versus pupil dynamic" between Picard and Riker was " cut out of Part II for length, including a scene between Riker and Troi where Riker expresses his concerns and doubts about Picard. We lost a little character to justify all the action that had to go in there. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 199)

Sets, props, and wardrobe [ ]

Patrick Stewart on the set of this episode, wearing his Borg Locutus costume

• Although the two parts of "The Best of Both Worlds" are depicted as taking place roughly within the same few days, subtle changes were made (such as to sets and costumes) during the hiatus between production on the pair of episodes. Thus, when the second episode begins, minute details have changed; most noticeably different are the lighting on the main bridge set and the hairstyles of performers Jonathan Frakes , Gates McFadden and Michael Dorn as Commander Riker, Dr. Crusher, and Lt. Worf, respectively.
• Despite the added difficulty of the secrecy surrounding the project, pre-production work on this episode was relatively easy, in comparison with previous season openers. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ) This was because the Borg ship set had already been built for the first part of this episode's two-parter; the set had – after production wrapped on the third season finale – lain idle on Paramount Stage 16 , gathering dust during the summer hiatus. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ; Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 199) Its availability alleviated the construction crew of some pressure. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Despite having been shown twice before, the battle bridge was heavily remodeled for this episode, as the pieces of the earlier battle bridge set had been needed for the Star Trek movies . The battle bridge set used for this episode had previously served to show such areas as a courtroom and a geology lab in the second season 's " The Measure Of A Man " and " Pen Pals ", respectively, as well as the USS Enterprise -C bridge in Season 3's " Yesterday's Enterprise ". The updated battle bridge set was one of a mere few Enterprise -D sets to feature actual video monitor screens in its control consoles, rather than simple backlit graphics. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• The bridge from which Hanson contacts the Enterprise at the end of the episode's first act was another reuse of the Enterprise -D's battle bridge from this episode, their only difference being that Hanson's bridge included a red alert graphic, prominently displayed to the left of the admiral. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Although the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139) claims that the engineering lab where Locutus is examined was one of a number of redresses – through the years – of the old movie bridge of the Constitution II -class Enterprise , the text commentary for this episode (by production staffers Michael and Denise Okuda ) states that the set was one of numerous redresses of Counselor Troi's office, which had been built across from the entrance to the transporter room set and had specifically been designed – by Production Designer Richard James – for multiple reuses. Despite having no mention of the Enterprise bridge, the text commentary lists the set's other uses as the kitchen of the USS Enterprise -A in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , the Enterprise -D's barbershop , nursery , and stellar cartography lab, as well as a Romulan governmental office in TNG : " Unification II ". The engineering lab had previously featured in TNG : " The Offspring " – in which case, it had been a redress of the battle bridge set – but, apparently, the reason why the counselor's office was instead used here was that the battle bridge itself was required for this episode.
• The cylindrical work chamber at the center of the cybernetics lab appeared not only in this episode but also in "The Offspring"; the apparatus was actually reused here. Also in this case, the set of the cybernetics lab included curved upper wall pieces featuring white backlit rectangles that were likely the oldest part of the set, as they had originally been made for the Engineering set of the Enterprise that had been planned to feature in the aborted Star Trek: Phase II series project. A large work unit in the room was originally created for a medical lab of the Enterprise -D, as seen in TNG : " Home Soil ". ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• A small control pad was added next to the viewscreen in the Enterprise 's observation lounge for this episode, having been absent in the previous part of the two-parter. The pad was stolen by thieving souvenir hunters, despite the presence of two full-time security guards assigned to the series, and was replaced in not exactly the same position it had been in. As a result, the pad is positioned lower down in close-up shots of the screen but about halfway up the side of the screen in longer shots. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• A flashing Borg hand-tool that can be seen being used by a Borg standing over the newly-assimilated Picard, in the second scene of this episode's first act, was originally built as a medical instrument for Dr. McCoy in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier . This episode was one of several in which the prop was reused, owing to the fact that Star Trek 's property masters liked its shape. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )

Rick Sternbach's design notes regarding the restoration of Picard in this episode

• To create Locutus' Borg suit, Costume Designer Robert Blackman worked in close collaboration with Make-Up Supervisor Michael Westmore , the latter of whom made the suit's face-pieces from life castings of actor Patrick Stewart . ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ) On 15 November 2001 , Westmore recalled the makeup for Locutus: " With Patrick when he was Borgified, he had a lot of skin showing, which we had to make up. He never got fully Borgified, so he wasn't really totally white or had to have, like, the Borg helmet on. Patrick mainly had individual little pieces that were glued on in different parts of his face and then the flesh around it was starting to decay or Borgify in different areas. But it meant wearing a robe and having to sit in a chair for a while. " ( Departmental Briefing: Production , TNG Season 4 DVD special features) Rick Sternbach worked on the depiction of Picard's restoration from his assimilated appearance as Locutus; Sternbach, in June 1990 , created design notes for this sequence. ( The Art of Star Trek )

Production [ ]

• Even though this episode's pre-production work was relatively easy – compared to previous season openers – the episode still ended up being a lot of work for everyone involved. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• As part of the attempt to maintain anticipation for this episode, production staffers were kept apprised of the episode's progress strictly on a "need-to-know" basis. Everyone who participated in the episode's production was admonished not to discuss the episode with anyone, not even with friends or family. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Director Cliff Bole was delighted to work on this episode's two-parter, later stating, " I enjoyed doing those two shows more than anything I've ever done. " Referring to this episode in particular, he commented, " It was also an attempt to do big and fast. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 207)
• Guest star Elizabeth Dennehy found that, by this episode, she knew how to handle the complicated lines of dialogue and technobabble given to her character of Shelby. She recounted, " I actually had much less to do in the second one than the first. I had the show on tape so I watched it quite a few times before we went back. The hard thing was remaining the same weight, because my weight goes up and down and those spacesuits are merciless. I'm sure I put on some weight between the first and the second one. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 207)
• When the filming of this episode began, actor LeVar Burton was in hospital for emergency surgery. Consequently, his scenes as La Forge were carefully filmed after the majority of production was concluded; this is why he only appears in close-ups and not in shots with any of the other main performers. Several of his major lines were rewritten for Colm Meaney , which is why Chief O'Brien is one of the main characters who works to restore Captain Picard. [3]
• Cliff Bole filmed the scene wherein Riker and Worf share an elevator trip – from one corridor to another – in one continuous shot, using a subtle lighting difference in the corridor set to make it seem as if the turbolift (which did not actually move) had traveled between two different corridors. An alcove at the far end of the corridor is dark when the characters enter the lift but lit when they exit. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )

Nowak as unfilmed double for "Locutus"

• Another scene was scheduled to include Picard stuntman John Nowak performing a stunt, but the moment was ultimately never shot. Nowak recalled, " In 'Best of Both Worlds, Part II', they had a big stunt planned where they would capture Picard/Locutus, but at the last minute they ran out of time, so I was there, got my four hours of makeup and sat around another 12 hours in the stuff, but never got filmed as the Borg. " ( Starlog Science-Fiction Explorer , issue #8)
• On one evening during post-production for this episode, Michael Okuda was in the TNG art department, and was adding some battle damage to one of the models of the wrecked spaceships for the battlefield scene, when Patrick Stewart – wearing his Borg costume – walked into the department to use its Xerox machine. In response to a puzzled Stewart asking Okuda what he was doing, Okuda held up the ship and jokingly said to the Locutus actor, " Look what you did! " ( New Life and New Civilizations , TNG Season 4 DVD special features, [4] )

Effects [ ]

• According to an estimate made by Associate Producer Peter Lauritson on 21 August 1991 , this episode had at least eighty visual effects shots. ( New Life and New Civilizations , TNG Season 4 DVD special feature)
• Continuing TNG's groundbreaking use of visual effects technology and artistry as well as the series' pioneering use of motion control visual effects for series television, this episode was the first in which all the video composites and effects – the former of which allowed more effects to be done more quickly and less expensively than with the old optical printers of The Original Series – were created digitally. Although most of the model elements were still shot with traditional film and models, the image assembly was done digitally, providing the effects artists with much more control over their work and bringing higher image quality to the finished effects shots. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• In another change from previous seasons, the blue tinge to the transporter "shimmer" effect was removed, leaving a white/silver color and smaller, more refined "particles".
• In order to show Picard being turned ghostly white by the Borg probe, the color scheme was turned off, making the film black-and-white. Picard's upper garment and mechanical implants were all black in order to disguise the loss of color in the picture. The beam, probe, and probe light were later edited to make their color seem to remain constant.

Gary Hutzel prepares the Constitution II -class Enterprise wreck model for this episode's depiction of the battle at Wolf 359

• As the Enterprise travels through the aftermath of the battle at Wolf 359, several of the destroyed ships were actually Enterprise concept models built for the ill-fated Star Trek: Planet of the Titans movie project (not Star Trek: Phase II , as is often erroneously stated). There are also remnants of the "destroyed" refitted Enterprise from Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , as well as a variety of new " kit-bash " starship classes, which included the Freedom -class , Niagara -class , Cheyenne -class , Challenger -class , Springfield -class , New Orleans -class , and Nebula -class . The first two classes were constructed by Greg Jein, Inc. using their own production assets, while the others were constructed by Ed Miarecki , who used AMT Star Trek model kits (Nos. 6618 and 6619), embellished with custom-made parts and appropriately modified and battle damaged by Michael Okuda.
• For the shots of the saucer section and the stardrive section , new footage of the six-foot Enterprise model was shot. Stock footage of the model was used for the separation sequence itself.
• The Mars Defense Perimeter ships, which appear as the Borg ship approaches Mars , were based on the submarine model used in The Hunt For Red October and were made from the hull of a Russian submarine model kit. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139), Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ) They were dubbed the "Blue-gray October" by the TNG production staff. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139))
• To depict Mars itself, the production team borrowed a model of the planet that had been used for the scientific documentary series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage . ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• Although this episode depicted the Borg cube in most shots by reusing a three-quarter filming model that had been utilized for both the previous installment and "Q Who", a separate less-detailed model was made to show the cube exploding. The lesser-seen model was designed to break apart easily and was, to represent the cube's innards being blown apart, filled with many model parts and bits of plastic. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary ) On 7 March 2002 , Visual Effects Coordinator Gary Hutzel recounted the creation of this model: " The Borg explosion in that shot was, of course, very important. It was a pivotal moment in the show. And it had to be really big. So, we had all set out realizing we needed a spectacular explosion. Dick Brownfield was our effects person on the show, at that time. And he'd pulled out the stops, brought out everything. But as usual, we spent all the money on the pyrotechnics and there was no money left to build the ship. The ship had to be built. There was no money. I mean, I had to build the ship. So, the ship that was used for the pyrotechnics was only about two feet square, as I recall. So Dennis and I ended up sitting on a table and taking basically model-kit parts, stripping all the parts off, taking the little frames – the little plastic frames that they come on – and gluing them to the side of this box […] and then spray-painting it, looking at it and sticking more stuff on, spray-painting it some more until, finally, it looked like the Borg ship. It was a spectacular explosion, and beautifully executed. We got it in the first take. " ( New Life and New Civilizations , TNG Season 4 DVD special features)

Continuity [ ]

• With the addition of this episode, TNG outnumbered the quantity of season premieres in Star Trek: The Original Series , as TOS had only three seasons.
• This is the first episode to depict the Borg as having an Achilles' heel, rather than being portrayed as virtually indestructible. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• This episode (and its predecessor) was the first in Star Trek to use a navigational deflector in such a way, a trend that went on to become a staple of later episodes including " The Loss ", " Night Terrors ", " The Nth Degree ", " A Matter Of Time ", " All Good Things... ", several from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager , as well as Star Trek: Enterprise 's third season finale, " Zero Hour ". A navigational deflector is also used to emit a beam, on a 23rd century starship, in the movie Star Trek Generations .
• This was also the first episode to establish that shuttlecraft are equipped with their own transporters.
• Although the Battle of Wolf 359 is unseen (except for its aftermath) in this episode due to budgetary reasons, portions of the battle were recreated, two-and-a-half years later, for the pilot episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , " Emissary ", which – with the bigger budget of a feature-length pilot, and more advanced effects technology – was able to show the battle. In that same episode, the USS Saratoga is established as one of the ships lost at the Battle of Wolf 359, from which Benjamin Sisko makes a lucky escape with his son but loses his wife , who is killed when the ship is dealt a death blow by the Borg cube.
• In " The Drumhead ", a later episode of TNG's fourth season, Admiral Norah Satie states that the loss at Wolf 359 was thirty-nine starships and nearly eleven thousand lives. While Shelby estimates, in this episode, that the fleet will be back up in "less than a year" after the battle, Starfleet continues to prove shorthanded all the way up to and including the fifth season episode " Redemption II ".
• Worf and Miles O'Brien recall the events of this episode in DS9's own fourth season premiere, " The Way of the Warrior ". O'Brien tells Worf that he thought they would all end up assimilated, like Picard, while Worf claims that he never doubted that they would succeed.
• In VOY : " Death Wish ", it is revealed that, during the final battle, the Enterprise -D truly was the Federation's last line of defense, as Q explicitly states that – had Quinn not saved an ancestor of Riker 's during the American Civil War , Commander Riker wouldn't have been around to devise his brilliantly unique strategy. As a result, the Borg would've surely assimilated the Federation.
• The seventh season outing " Parallels " showed two different outcomes of the battle via different quantum realities due to Worf's encounter with a quantum fissure . The first was that the Enterprise successfully destroyed the Borg cube but could not rescue Picard, resulting in his death. The second was that the Enterprise failed to stop the cube and the Borg assimilated the entire Federation, with a badly damaged Enterprise one of the last Starfleet ships to have survived four years on the run.
• While the Borg force – during this episode – appears to be only one cube, later episodes of Voyager (including " Unity " and " Unimatrix Zero, Part II ") indicate that Humans were not only assimilated at Wolf 359 but were also taken back to Borg space (see Riley Frazier and Laura ). Additionally, the Borg Queen herself states, in Star Trek: First Contact , that she was present on the cube and survived; she tells Picard not to think in such three-dimensional terms, suggesting that her method of escape may have been or involved time travel.
• At the end of this episode, a conversation is held between Shelby and Riker about the future careers of both officers, with Shelby stating that Riker could soon have his choice of any ship in the fleet to captain. In actuality, Riker did not become a captain until over a decade later, in Star Trek Nemesis . Shelby, however, is possibly referenced as a captain in DS9 : " You Are Cordially Invited ", suggesting that she became a captain before Riker did. However, the Captain Shelby referenced in that episode could be simply another Starfleet officer with the same surname. Shelby was confirmed to be a captain of a capital ship at least by 2381 , in LD : " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ".
• While not technically a sequel to this episode, the following episode to air, " Family ", dealt with the repercussions of the events seen here, including the repairs to the Enterprise and Picard's personal trauma; the controversial arrangement not to end the storyline of Picard's kidnapping with this season premiere but to extend it into a third episode had been the biggest decision that the writers of TNG had made over the summer hiatus. ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , pp. 207-208) Star Trek: First Contact later established, however, that Picard never fully recovered from the ordeal of his assimilation.
• Whereas Part I originated the saying " Resistance is futile ," this second part introduced the phrase " You will be assimilated. " This, in turn, creates the popular quote, " We are the Borg. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile. " This quote has been used in various episodes of Star Trek: Voyager .
• The film Star Trek: First Contact is a sequel to this two-part episode and ignores the episodes " I Borg ", " Descent ", and " Descent, Part II ". This is because – when Rick Berman , Brannon Braga , and Ronald D. Moore wrote the script for First Contact – they knew they wanted to use the Borg Collective once again, since those three episodes dealt with individual Borg. It's especially noticeable when Data says to the Queen, " The Borg have a collective consciousness. There are no individuals. " Braga and Moore discuss this continuity issue in the commentary for the special edition DVD .
• This episode reuses footage from Part I, when Worf and Data neutralize approaching Borg on their vessel, and when the Borg make their final attack on the Enterprise .
• The blu-ray release seems to use an alternate take of the Battle Bridge scene. When Riker orders Gleason to re-set subspace communication to scrambler code "Riker One", the dialogue does not match Riker and Gleason's lip movements, which seem to indicate that the original code was "Riker Zero". The dialogue from the "Riker One" scene also seems to have been either re-dubbed or inserted into this take.
• This is the last of three TNG episodes to feature a Borg cube, which had been present during the Borg's previous two appearances. The ship design went on to make reappearances in Star Trek: First Contact , DS9 pilot episode "Emissary", and numerous episodes of Star Trek: Voyager .
• This is also the last TNG episode to feature the saucer separation sequence and the Enterprise battle bridge, having previously been shown in Season 1's " Encounter at Farpoint " and " The Arsenal of Freedom ". The saucer separation sequence appeared one last time, in Star Trek Generations .
• This episode is the first of two to feature the character of Enterprise crew member Gleason , as he subsequently appeared in the later Season 4 episode " Future Imperfect ", despite apparently being demoted between these two episodes; he is wearing lieutenant junior grade rank insignia here but wears the rank pips of an ensign in his follow-up appearance. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 148))
• Nanites are mentioned in this episode as a possible way to combat the Borg, having been introduced to Star Trek in the third season TNG episode " Evolution ", the first episode that Michael Piller had penned. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 139))
• Despite Locutus' dismissal of Data as a "primitive artificial organism" who would be "obsolete in the new order," the Borg Queen takes a far greater interest in Data during the events of Star Trek: First Contact .
• This episode marks the first appearance of Mars in the franchise.
• A soundtrack album containing music from this episode (as well as Part I) was released in 1990 . An extended soundtrack , featuring the complete episodic score, was released in 2013 .
• Composer Ron Jones cited the music from this episode as his favorite from all the Star Trek episodes he worked on. ("Ron Jones – Sounds in Space", The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 14 , p. 17)
• The orchestra for this episode and Part I was double the size of that for other episodes, at seventy-seven musicians. ("Ron Jones – Sounds in Space", The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 14 , p. 17)

Reception and aftermath [ ]

• While several science fiction publications have voted "The Best of Both Worlds" Star Trek 's finest piece and even in some cases one of science-fiction television's finest pieces, Michael Piller and Cliff Bole have both stated that they felt Part II was a letdown after the strong buildup of Part I. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 138))
• Of this episode and the previous installment, Cliff Bole has also stated, " They turned out very well […] The two episodes really go together, and I wouldn't put it past Paramount to release them theatrically in the foreign market. However, I did think that Part Two's ending was a bit of a cop-out. We ran out of time […] You would like to do a bigger ending, and not one so claustrophobic that it takes place in the ship's bowels. I don't have an answer for it, but it was just a very quick ending for such a big show. " ("Cliff Bole – Of Redemption & Unification", The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 17 , p. 31)
• Michael Piller similarly had a mixed opinion of this episode, not only thinking that it wasn't as good as the first part and that "the goods" promised by the earlier episode were – in this follow-up – "not as interesting." He continued by saying, " If you look at it as a two-hour movie, it's really quite effective. As an episode by itself, I don't think Part Two really has a lot of character stuff. " One of the aspects of this episode's creation that he was extremely pleased about was the way in which he managed to find a means to defeat the Borg threat. ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 207) Piller also regarded the story as "a show in which Picard became more Human than ever before," involving " huge consequences" and rendering Picard as "a far more interesting character," especially following the scene in which a needle comes towards his eye and a single tear rolls down his cheek. ( Mission Overview , TNG Season 4 DVD special feature)
• Fellow Star Trek writing staffer Ira Steven Behr agreed, " What was genius was it took Picard, who, compared to Kirk, was an administrator more than an adventurer, and by cutting him off and turning him into a Borg, it kind of gave his humanity back to him. " ( William Shatner Presents: Chaos on the Bridge )
• In summation of his own feelings about working on this episode and its two-parter in general, Rick Berman remarked, " It was a lot of fun to be able to stretch the format and do something that was two hours as opposed to one. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 200)
• This episode's text commentary states that the episode premiered "to the delight of fans everywhere." The commentary also characterizes this episode's two-parter as a "wildly popular" duology that "proved to be a defining point," not only by setting "the pattern" for subsequent season-bridging cliffhangers but also by helping to define the character of Picard by giving him "an emotional edge, reminding us that even heroes have Human flaws."
• This episode won two Emmy Awards . Only four other episodes of Star Trek have won this many. It was nominated for four, a distinction it shares with only three other episodes. It won for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Series and was also nominated for Outstanding Art Direction for a Series and Outstanding Achievement in Special Visual Effects. The Emmy for sound editing was the last of four such Emmy wins for the series, with each award having been for an episode from each of TNG's first four seasons. On 31 January 2002 , Supervising Music Editor Gerry Sackman – who had been among the award's recipients – commented, " The final one was 'Best of Both Worlds, Part II'. That's a terrific action show. " ( Inside the Star Trek Archives , TNG Season 4 DVD special feature)
• This episode was featured in the Star Trek: The Next Generation Viewers Choice Marathon .
• Entertainment Weekly ranked this episode (combined with Part I) #2 on their list of "The Top 10 Episodes" to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation . [5]
• Similarly, Empire magazine cited Part II as the best episode of The Next Generation when they ranked the series #37 on their list of The 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time . [6]
• The book Star Trek 101 (p. 72), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block , lists this episode and the previous part of its two-parter as being, together, one of the "Ten Essential Episodes" from Star Trek: The Next Generation .
• A mission report for this episode by Will Murray was published in The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 14 , pp. 58-62.
• Following its use in this episode, the Borg set was disassembled, with most of its pieces being stored for use in subsequent Borg episodes. Ultimately, some of the pieces even made their way into ships from other alien planets. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• The updated Enterprise -D battle bridge set went on to be redressed as Baran's mercenary ship in the seventh season 's " Gambit, Part I " and " Gambit, Part II ". ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• This episode turned out to represent the first of multiple times when thieves managed to steal the small control pad that was meant to be situated next to the viewscreen in the Enterprise 's observation lounge. ( Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg text commentary )
• After being introduced as a kit-bashed model in this episode, the Nebula -class went on to appear as a fully realized studio model in the later fourth season installment " The Wounded ".
• The shots of the saucer section and the stardrive section in this episode mark the last time that new footage of the six-foot Enterprise model was shot until Star Trek Generations . However, stock footage of the model continued to be used throughout the series' run.

Apocrypha [ ]

• A sequel to this episode appeared in comic book form in 1993 ; Star Trek novel writer Michael Jan Friedman wrote a four-part story that featured Picard and the Enterprise going through a wormhole and entering a universe where they failed to rescue Picard from the Borg and where Dr. Crusher was still at Starfleet Medical when the Borg took Earth. Notable characters that appear in the story include Chief Engineer Argyle , Commander Shelby , Ensign Ro , the O'Briens , and Wesley Crusher . The issues were in DC's second TNG volume , numbers 47-50 – " The Worst of Both Worlds, Part I! ", " The Belly of the Beast! ", " The Armies of the Night ", and " And Death Shall Have No Dominion ".
• The DS9 novel The Siege establishes that Julian Bashir was on Earth attending Starfleet Academy at the time.
• Despite appearing in only the two-parter of which this episode is half, the character of Shelby later returned in the Star Trek: New Frontier series of novels, which feature her as the first officer of the USS Excalibur and go on to track her career path to becoming an admiral in command of a starbase .
• In the Doctor Who crossover comic series, Star Trek: The Next Generation - Doctor Who: Assimilation² , the Eleventh Doctor and his companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams travel back in time to the Battle of Wolf 359 to recover a copy of the Borg central archive from the Borg cube during the battle after the present version is 'deleted' by the Doctor's enemies, the Cybermen . During their visit, they witness the battle underway and Amy asks the Doctor why they don't try to stop it, and he explains it's because the Battle of Wolf 359 is a ' fixed point in time ', a concept introduced in Doctor Who that refers to an event in time and space that absolutely has to happen with dire consequences if there are any attempts to alter it.

Remastered version [ ]

Three seconds of footage could not be located when CBS Digital remastered this episode as part of The Best of Both Worlds (Blu-ray) release. Occurring one hour, one minute into the theatrical edition of the episode, this brief shot was included as an upconverted image from the original standard-definition videotape.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 38 , catalog number VHR 2571, 17 February 1992
• As part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: The Next Generation - Borg Box : 5 December 1994
• As part of the UK VHS release Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Full Length TV Movies : Volume 2, catalog number VHR 4102, 16 January 1995
• UK collectors' edition VHS: catalog number VHR 4433, 9 December 1996
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, Paramount Home Entertainment ): Volume 4.1 , catalog number VHR 4752, 19 March 2001
• As part of the TNG Season 4 DVD collection
• In feature-length form, as part of the Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Complete TV Movies collection
• As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg collection
• As part of The Best of Star Trek: The Next Generation DVD collection
• In feature-length form, as part of the The Best of Both Worlds Blu-ray standalone release
• In feature-length form, as part of the Star Trek: Picard Movie & TV Collection Blu-ray collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Patrick Stewart as Capt. Jean-Luc Picard / Locutus of Borg
• Jonathan Frakes as Capt. William Riker

Also starring [ ]

• LeVar Burton as Lt. Cmdr. Geordi La Forge
• Michael Dorn as Lieutenant Worf
• Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher
• Marina Sirtis as Counselor Deanna Troi
• Brent Spiner as Lt. Commander Data
• Wil Wheaton as Ensign Wesley Crusher

Guest stars [ ]

• Elizabeth Dennehy as Shelby
• George Murdock as J.P. Hanson
• Colm Meaney as Miles O'Brien

Special guest star [ ]

• Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan

Co-star [ ]

• Todd Merrill as Gleason

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Rachen Assapiomonwait as Nelson
• Majel Barrett as Narrator / Computer Voice
• Debbie David as Russell
• Nyra Crenshaw as operations division officer
• Robert Daniels as operations officer
• Eben Ham as operations division ensign
• Mark Lentry as science division lieutenant
• Tim McCormack as Bennett
• Randy Pflug as Jones
• Kip Reynolds as Borg drone
• John Rice as science division officer
• Lincoln Simonds as security officer
• Adrian Tafoya as Borg drone
• Guy Vardaman as Darien Wallace
• Natalie Wood as Bailey
• Cartaino (voice)
• Female engineer
• Female operations ensign
• Hanson's aide
• Twelve Borg drones

Stunt double [ ]

• John Nowak as stunt double for Patrick Stewart (" unfilmed ")

Stand-ins [ ]

• Nora Leonhardt – stand-in for Marina Sirtis
• Tim McCormack – stand-in for Brent Spiner
• Lorine Mendell – stand-in for Gates McFadden
• Randy Pflug – stand-in for Colm Meaney
• Richard Sarstedt – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes
• Dennis Tracy – stand-in for Patrick Stewart
• Guy Vardaman – stand-in for Wil Wheaton
• James Washington – stand-in for Michael Dorn

References [ ]

2367 ; abduction ; accelerator coil ; access barrier ; Achilles' heel ; all stations ; ambition ; analysis ; android ; antimatter spread ; apprehension ; arm ; armada ; artificial organism ; assimilation ; assimilation chamber ; attack ; attention ; auto-sep sequence ; auxiliary generator ; away team ; Barclay, Reginald ; battle bridge ; Battle of Wolf 359 ; battle section ; bearing ; biobed ; blast ; Borg ; Borg Collective ; Borg implant ; branch point ; breed ; cadet ; captain ; career ; casualty ; cell ; choice ; circuit ; cliff ; collective consciousness ( group consciousness ); collision course ; comrade ; communication ; consciousness ; courage ; course ; culture ; cutting beam ; damage ; " damn it "; Danula II ; day ; deception ; decompression ; defense ; defense system ; defense systems command structure ; deflector dish ; deflector power ; destruction ; discussion ; DNA ; docking latch ; ear ; Earth ; eddy current ; electromagnetic field ; emergency transporter armband ; enemy ; energy discharge ; evacuation sequence ; evasive maneuver ; experience ; expert ; expertise ; family ; fatigue ; Federation ; Federation history ; field commission ; first officer ; fleet ; foot ; force field ; friend ; friendship ; freshman ; harm ; headache ; heart rate ; heartbeat ; heavy graviton beam ; hill ; honor ; hour ; hull breach ; hull failure ; Human ; hundred ; hypothalamus ; impulse drive ; inner hull ; isolinear chip ; job ; Jupiter Outpost 92 ; kilometer ; Klingon ; Klingon Empire ; knowledge ; lab ; lie ; life sign ; Locutus of Borg ; low-priority system ; machine ; main shuttlebay ; malfunction ; maneuver ; Mars ; Mars Defense Perimeter ; meter ; meter per second ; microcircuit fiber ; microsurgery ; mission ; motor pathway ; multimodal reflection sorting ; nanites ; nanotechnology ; navigational deflector ; neural activity ; neural link ; neural net pathway ; neural path ; New Providence colony ; Number one ; parietal lobe ; pattern buffer ; percent ; phaser ; phaser adapter ; photon torpedo ; permission ; plan ; planetary defenses ; plasma coolant ; positronic matrix activity ; power subcommand path ; power subcommand structure ; power system ; prefrontal lobe ; premise ; premotor area ; problem ; quality ; reaction chamber ; red alert ; refit ; regeneration ; regenerative subcommand path ; relationship ; rendezvous ; repair ; Riker One ; Riker Alpha ; Riker Beta ; robot ; role ; Romulan ; room ; root command ; Saturn ; saucer section ; saucer separation ; scrambler code ; second ; Sector 001 ; self-destruct sequence ; Sherbourne ; shield generator ; shields ; shuttle escape transporter ; shuttle launch sequence ; " sitting duck "; sleep ; species ; speed ; " stand by "; Starfleet ; Starfleet Academy ; Starfleet Academy marathon ; starships at Wolf 359 ; strategy ; submicron matrix ; subcommand ; subcommand path ; subspace ; subspace channel ; subspace communications ; subspace domain ; subspace field ; subspace field fluctuation ; subspace frequency ; subspace link ; subspace message ; subspace signal ; supposition ; task force ; term ; Terran system ; testing sequence ; thought ; thermal limit ; thruster ; torpedo bay ; tractor beam ; transmission ; transporter ; transporter beam ; tricorder ; unconditional surrender ; upperclassmen runners ; visual contact ; vital signs ; warp core reactor ; warp engine ; warp power ; warrior race ; weapon ; weapon system ( weapons system ); week ; Wolf 359 ; Wolf system ; " wrote the book on "; yellow alert

Spacecraft references [ ]

Ahwahnee , USS ; Bonestell , USS ; Borg cube ; Buran , USS ; Challenger -class ; Chekov , USS ; Cheyenne -class ; Constitution II -class ( unnamed ); Earth Station McKinley ; Enterprise -D, USS ; Firebrand , USS ; Freedom -class ; Hanson's starship ; Klingon warships ; Kotoi ; Kyushu , USS ; Liberator , USS ; Locutus' cube ; Melbourne , USS ; Nebula -class ( starship ); New Orleans -class ; Niagara -class ; Princeton , USS ; Springfield -class ; Tolstoy , USS ; Type 7 shuttlecraft ( unnamed )

Deleted references [ ]

engine control processor ; needle ; Riker, Kyle

External links [ ]

• "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II" script  at Star Trek Minutiae
• " The Best of Both Worlds " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " The Best of Both Worlds " at Wikipedia
• "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II" at StarTrek.com
• " "The Best of Both Worlds" " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• 1 Abdullah bin al-Hussein

• Pearl Jam Albums Ranked
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30 Years Ago: Captain Picard Becomes Locutus of Borg

On June 18, 1990, Capt. Jean Luc Picard appeared on the view screen on the Enterprise bridge, half his face covered with the robotic additions forced upon him by the genocidal Borg Collective.

A red laser shined from the side of his face into the screen. From the Borg ship he told Commander William Riker, “I am Locutus of Borg. Resistance is futile. Your life as it has been is over. From this time forward you will service us.” The laser filled the screen. The camera approached and turned on Riker, who, without looking at his weapons officer, gave the instruction: “Mr. Worf, fire.”

So ended the episode that’s reputed to have secured the position of Star Trek: The Next Generation in the long-running franchise’s history. “The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1” was the final episode of the third season, but the show had struggled against Trekkies’ loyalty to William Shatner ’s Captain Kirk and the original series. It worked, in part, because it was a strong story – and also because it was the first-ever Star Trek cliffhanger, and one of the few times the leading character of a leading TV show had been put at risk.

The Borg were previously featured on TNG  and proved themselves to be an archenemy in the vein of Doctor Who ’s Daleks. Terrifyingly advanced, they valued improvement over everything, including life, and existed only to assimilate other races, leaving no survivors. While leading Star Trek characters like Spock and Data became icons of the franchise, as non-humans who revealed who we are as we struggle to better ourselves, the Borg depicted the complete rejection of humanity as an element of improvement.

At the end of the third season, they’ve had their interest piqued by humanity and, concluding that a less direct approach is the best way to assimilate the best of the race, they form a plan to have a human spokesperson who’ll streamline the process with minimal massacres. Hence the arrival of a Borg cube, the kidnapping of Picard, the failure of his crew’s attempts to rescue him and his reappearance as Locutus, the voice of the Collective – leading up to the final scene, in which Riker gives the command to open fire on his captain.

Watch 'Star Trek: The Next Generation': ‘The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1’ Cliffhanger

“All of us were quite thrilled they had the balls to leave Picard on the Borg cube,” said Jonathan Frakes (who played Riker) in 2015. “It's commonplace now. Shows like Lost and House of Cards — they'll kill off a regular and think nothing of it. This was 1990. It was not commonplace to be killing off any of your series regulars. That was a big ‘Who shot J.R.’ type of plot.”

Riker’s future was also at stake in the episode. After two seasons of being seen as the “best number one in Starfleet,” it seemed strange he didn’t have his own command, and protestations that he was happy where he was didn’t sit well with the ambitious young officer he appeared to be. But while he dealt with the possibility of killing the senior officer who’d helped turn him into an even better number one, he was also trying to decide whether to accept his first command, while a younger and even more ambitious officer, Shelby, vied to take his place on the Enterprise. “The episode was key to Riker's character,” Frakes said. “Previously, I thought it was not very cleverly handled.”

With Picard’s future seemingly stolen from him after being kidnapped by the Borg and turned into the spokesperson they’d use to make assimilating the human race easier, and Riker’s future in doubt because he had a crisis of loyalty, putting the two characters head-to-head made for very powerful drama. There was always the possibility that if Picard didn’t survive, Riker could become a captain without leaving his home ship.

A real-life dilemma helped inspire late writer Michael Piller, who, unusually, didn’t share the plot-development chores with the rest of the writers room. “Michael had a very personal connection to that particular story,” fellow script creator Ronald D. Moore said. “The episode starts with Riker getting an offer to go command another ship. … Michael said very overtly that he was in a very similar place. He was the number two guy on the show, and he was debating whether or not to leave Star Trek and go and run his own show. … So, he was Riker, and he wrote the story from that perspective. ... When Michael did ‘Part I,’ he said, ‘I have no idea how this thing ends. We're going to end on this cliffhanger of “fire” and we're going to figure it out next season.’”

Watch 'STTNG' 'The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1' Trailer

Rumors persisted that the cliffhanger was in part a producers’ ploy to put pressure on Patrick Stewart (Picard), whose contract was ending and whose agents were applying their own pressure, while the actor had made some outspoken comments about TNG . But Stewart denied his position was ever in doubt, saying in 1999, “I speak my mind about all the work I've been involved with. There have been times when I've perhaps been too public with opinions that should have been expressed privately. But, as far as the series was concerned,I was always very proud of it. … There was never a point when I tried to leave, despite popular opinion.”

“The Best of Both World, Part 1” closed with the caption “To be continued ... ” and fans began a three-month wait to find out what would happen next. That’s the element that appears to have helped TNG find favor with the TOS hardcore. “What people forget now is in the first couple of seasons of Next Generation , we were sort of not taken seriously as Star Trek ,” Moore observed.

“You would go to conventions and there would be bumper stickers and T-shirts that basically said, ‘I’m a real Trekker. Forget the bald guy.’ … When ‘Best of Both Worlds’ came out, suddenly there was all this buzz. And it got in the press and there was all this tension and people were talking about the cliffhanger and Picard. ... Suddenly, we had done something that was legitimate and got people's attention and told a great story. From then on out we carried the torch. We were legitimate and that was the show that turned it around for us.”

In 2013, Frakes argued that an additional layer of tension was added onscreen because even the producers, writers and cast didn’t know how the plot would be resolved. “We were left hanging out to dry,” he said. “And I think it was that seriousness of the story that made for such a brilliant cliffhanger. I think it is one of the greatest cliffhangers in television history.”

However, if Stewart had his way, the episode would never have been made. “I originally said no to doing it,” he recalled in 2020. “I remember questioning whether that storyline was a good one to follow. I wasn’t sure that it was.” As he struggled to work out how to depict what was happening to Picard, he found inspiration in the makeup room. “The best part about Locutus was that I have something to reference, the drama Picard had to endure … the makeup process for me, which was extremely unpleasant and painful and unsettling. No experience is wasted.”

The story was indeed continued with “The Best of Both Worlds, Part 2” as the fourth-season opener, though it wasn’t exactly completed. Even after Picard was saved from the Borg, the experience he had at their hands would fuel many other stories, including the TNG episode “Family” and the plot for Star Trek: First Contact . It also supplied one of the main themes for the first season of Star Trek: Picard .

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‘star trek’: the story of the most daring cliffhanger in ‘next generation’ history.

Ron Moore, Jonathan Frakes and more reveal how writing themselves into a corner for "Best of Both Worlds" changed Trek forever: "All of us were quite thrilled they had the balls to leave Picard on the Borg cube."

By Aaron Couch

Aaron Couch

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In June 1990, many Trekkies considered the crew of the Enterprise-D pretenders to the throne.

Star Trek : The Next Generation  was closing out its third season, and it was still struggling to step out of the shadow of Kirk’s ( William Shatner ) Enterprise. That was about to change thanks to a daring cliffhanger pulled off in an era of television in which shocking deaths and major plot twists weren’t par for the course.

When “Best of Both Worlds: Part I” aired 25 years ago this week, it was truly jarring to fans. The season three finale saw the return of The Borg, the seemingly unstoppable villain introduced a year earlier. The Borg captured Captain Picard ( Patrick Stewart ) and transformed him into Locutus of Borg, a de facto spokesperson for the collective consciousness. The episode ended with Picard’s No. 1 Commander Riker ( Jonathan Frakes ) giving a shocking order (“Mr. Worf , fire.”) and the screen cutting to the words “To be continued…”, something it had never done.

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Written by Michael Piller and directed by Cliff Bole , “Best of Both Worlds” is arguably the most influential arc in Next Generation history. Along with “Best of Both Worlds: Part II” and its aftermath episode “Family,” the story introduced layers of psychological complexity, bold storytelling and emotional depth the show had not yet explored.

“RICK BERMAN CALLED ME AND SAID, ‘THIS IS FANTASTIC!’ “

Ronald D. Moore, member of the writers room: The story really goes to Michael Piller , who was running the writing staff in the third season when I joined the show. In the writers room, we would often talk about revisiting the Borg.  Piller said as the season went on that he thought there should be a cliffhanger, which Star Trek had never done. 

Jonathan Frakes , Commander William T. Riker : All of us were quite thrilled they had the balls to leave Picard on the Borg cube. I don’t know if they were trying to threaten Patrick with renegotiations . It’s commonplace now. Shows like Lost and House of Cards — they’ll kill off a regular and think nothing of it. This was 1990. It was not commonplace to be killing off any of your series regulars. That was a big “who shot J.R.” type of plot.

Moore: It was the only show that year that we didn’t actually sit in the room as a writing staff and break together. Michael said he wanted to go do it. Michael had a very personal connection to that particular story. The episode starts with Riker getting an offer to go command another ship. That’s at the heart of it. Michael said very overtly that he was in a very similar place. He was the number two guy on the show, and he was debating whether or not to leave Star Trek and go and run his own show or if he wanted to remain second in command of the Enterprise, as it were. So he was Riker, and he wrote the story from that perspective.

Frakes : The episode was key to Riker’s character. Previously, I thought it was not very cleverly handled to have Riker say in the first two seasons, “All I want is to have my own ship. I aspire to be a captain in Starfleet.” But then, when offered the ship, the writers put in Riker’s mouth that he didn’t feel he was ready to captain, or he didn’t want to leave his friends.

Michael Dorn, Lieutenant Worf: We didn’t know how they were going to handle it in terms of the special effects with Patrick. At that point we trusted each other, we trusted the producers and we trusted the writers enough to know that it was going to be exciting. 

Alan Sims, property master: My pride with those episodes would be the prosthetic arms, for which I created remote control apertures. You would see it flicker and flip back and forth. When the one Borg came to the Enterprise and captured Picard, that was me off camera with a little remote control with two control joysticks and antenna. 

Michael Westmore, makeup artist:  Patrick Stewart loved being in the makeup chair. He didn’t care what it was — whether he was doing a Shakespearean character in the Holodeck or doing the old age makeup on “Inner Light,” Patrick loved getting in the chair and getting made up. He would be putting his two cents in, “Oh, let’s do a little more shading right here.” He loved that part of the process.

Moore : My favorite moment was seeing Picard in that Borg outfit for the first time. When that reveal happens and he looks at the camera and he’s a Borg, and he says, “I am Locutus.” It was a shocking moment. You realize the show had gone someplace different. We all knew that internally and were like, “Woah, OK. This is going to break some molds.”

Westmore:  My son [ Michael Westmore, Jr .] found the laser we mounted on Patrick’s head for the end of “Part I.” It cost $200. It was  a new product on the market and had never been used on TV previously.  We thought, “Oh this is going to be great,” but we go into the set, and we can’t see it at all. The special effects guy said, “Let me put a little smoke in.” And oh my God, that light cut right through everything. They wanted Patrick to look directly in the lens, and nobody knew what was going to happen at all. Patrick turns to the camera, and the refraction between the laser and the mirrors in the camera made it look like it’s just shattered everything. It’s the one time [executive producer]  Rick Berman called me and said, “This is fantastic! Oh my god.” It blew Paramount away. If it was an optical, it would have cost thousands of dollars and we did it with a $200 laser.  

“IS PICARD GOING TO BE KILLED?”

The episode electrifies audiences when it begins airing on syndication June 18, 1990. Even Trekkies who refused to accept Next Generation as legitimate are buzzing. Rumors of Patrick Stewart’s exit swirl, with fans waiting an agonizing three months for the conclusion to air in September. Meanwhile, the writers are tasked with figuring out how to follow up their first cliffhanger ever.

Moore : What people forget now is in the first couple of seasons of Next Generation , we were sort of not taken seriously as Star Trek . The fans were split on the acceptance of the show. You would go to conventions and there would be bumper stickers and t-shirts that basically said, “I’m a real Trekker. Forget the bald guy.” Stuff like that. We were the second-tier Trek . When “Best of Both Worlds” came out, suddenly there was all this buzz. And it got in the press and there was all this tension and people were talking about the cliffhanger and Picard.

Jordan Hoffman, freelance writer/critic who specializes in Star Trek:   After that “To be continued…” we felt, “Is Picard going to be killed?” After that episode, there was a lot of talk. Somehow we knew — there were rumors that Patrick Stewart was going to leave the show. That was definitely in the air. There would be somebody who goes, “You know Patrick Stewart is leaving?” How do you know this? “Everyone knows it.”

Dorn : We figured there wasn’t any problem with Patrick’s contract. He was coming back. The interesting thing was, how were they going to play that?

Moore: “Part II,” we did break the story together in the writer’s room, but when Michael did “Part I,” he said, “I have no idea how this thing ends. We’re going to end on this cliffhanger of “fire” and we’re going to figure it out next season.” We all gather in the room, and it was essentially a new writing staff. I was the only holdover from season three. We sat down, and Michael was like, “All right, I don’t know where we’re going. Let’s just try to figure out something.”

Hoffman: Something that younger people don’t quite get was the fact that Next Generation was on in syndication. It was not on a major network. It was the first show to be in syndication to have tremendous ratings. What that meant was it was on in different times of the day depending on where you were. I would go down to my grandparents’ on the weekends. They were in southern Jersey outside of the Philly markets. I lived in the New York market. You could catch it three times a week.  I relived that “to be continued…” moment over and over.

Moore: There were various efforts to try to keep the scripts’ distribution tight and the plot secret. They were trying to watermark the scripts  —  which was a novelty at that point  —  and number them. It was the pre-Internet days, so it wasn’t like the files were being passed around in emails. It was all hard copy stuff anyway.

Gary Hutzel, visual effects coordinator : The budget was small by today’s standards. A lot of stuff you see on the series wasn’t shot on a professional stage. A lot of it was shot in people’s basements, because there was no money.

Brent Spiner, Data: I remember Worf and Data beamed over to the Borg ship to grab Picard and bring him back to the Enterprise. There was a moment where a Borg is coming up behind me, and I turn and blast him with my phaser. We shot a version of it where the Borg was coming up behind me and I didn’t even turn around. I just put the phaser over my shoulder and shot it and blew it away. We thought that would be really cool if Data just sensed it and didn’t have to turn around. It looked great, but they sent it to Rick Berman and he said, “That’s ridiculous. He can’t do that. He doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head.” So we didn’t use that one.

Dorn: This might take away some of the drama for the audience, but there is a scene where Data and I go and rescue Patrick. I had to struggle with Patrick. He tries to hit me and I grab him and we’re going “ah, ah!” back and forth. And we just started cracking up. We just started laughing uncontrollably. All of us laughed uncontrollably most of the time on the show.

Marina Sirtis, Counselor Deanna Troi: The episode was a very important one for my character [Troi is key to figuring out how to save Picard]. A lot of the time, I was decorative. Hey, that was fine. I was a very ugly child, so if you had said to me when I was 13, “One day you are going to grow up to be this sex symbol,” I would have asked if you were high. But, as far as character development goes, the third going into the fourth season, where my advice was listened to, I always used to treasure those moments. Every weekend at a convention, someone will say to me it was so nice to see a competent woman on a TV show who wasn’t “the bitch.” Troi was strong and professional, but took a pride in her appearance. It was kind of a first, to have a professional woman, who wasn’t “the bitch.” It was very important to me that the writers began to see Troi as a whole person. I think it kind of started with “Best of Both Worlds Part II.”

Westmore : Creating the Borg took a lot of makeup artists and it took a lot of time. Not only because of the makeup, but because they had the suits to put on. It was a process that probably took at least three hours at that time. We had it down to a system, where we could line them all up and make them up very fast. For the faces, I found every makeup artist shades differently. In the early shows, all the Borg had all different looks to them because of all the different techniques people used to shade. Later, I took an airbrush class and I could literally airbrush each one of them in a minute and a half. It was easier for me to do than for a bunch of makeup artists, where there’d be some great ones and there’d be some not so great ones. That was the beginning of Star Trek using the airbrush. After that point, I insisted any makeup artist I hired knew how to use an airbrush.

Hutzel:  My coordinator Judy Elkins , had a great idea as we were preparing to do the destruction of the fleet. We didn’t have that much money to work with, and we had to physically build everything. How do we show an entire fleet destroyed? We invited people from the art department and other people on the show for a kit bash. We got spaceship models and all destroyed them. And we gave them our own names and whatever we wanted and put on them the ships for the shot. We were able to get quite a few ships made that way with pretty minimal effort and money. I rigged them all with internal lighting to make them look like they are on fire and we shot then that way.  The toy company gave them to us for free.

Spiner: Near the end, I’m hooked up to Patrick. It’s a tribute to Michael Westmore’s genius and his son Mike Jr . who did all of the electronics. They always did a great job of opening up my various bits. They opened up every part of my body, save one  — and they were saving that one for I guess in case we did another movie ( laughs ). Michael Westmore is a genius. 

Hutzel: I had to build the Borg ship because we couldn’t afford a modeler to make it. I just brought a whole bunch of models. I put chicken wire over a framework. And I stapled that on and I attached a board and attached all the plastic to it. We hung the cube on one of the sound stages and the pyrotechnician came in and he rigged it. Back then, if you really wanted to blow something up, you would use primer cord. Nobody really does that anymore because it’s dangerous. But this thing is loaded with primer cord. They let it rip. I didn’t know that putting chicken wire inside of something with primer cord would cause it to become a big grenade. And so when it went off, stuff flew everywhere. Fortunately it was a safe situation and no one got hurt. They’d cleared the stage before we fired it, but we came back in and saw the mess on the floor and bits of chicken wire stuck on the walls.

THE AFTERMATH

The arc would go down as one of the most daring in Star Trek history. It also gave birth to “Family,” an understated but highly acclaimed episode which saw Picard deal with the psychological trauma of becoming a Borg, as well as Star Trek: First Contact (1996), the Next Generation cast’s most beloved film. 

Moore:  That was the turning point on Next Generation ‘s acceptance as Star Trek , among the fans and with the public. Suddenly we had done something that was legitimate and got people’s attention and told a great story. From then on out we carried the torch. We were legitimate and that was the show that turned it around for us.

Frakes: The cool thing about the story was that he was forever haunted by Locutus being in his DNA. That informed the first movie that I directed, First Contact .

Moore: The second half of the show was kind of not as satisfying as the first half, in all honesty. It was a little too technobabble. It doesn’t quite have the oomph that “Part I” did. But Michael [Piller] was fine with that. He launched us into more character-based storytelling. The next episode was “Family,” which was a complete character episode, which I got to write. It was set down on Earth after Captain Picard’s experience in “Best of Both Worlds.” He goes home and you meet his brother. There was no action-adventure component to that episode. It showed you Piller was determined to make the show more character-oriented and more about the people on the Enterprise, instead of the alien on the week.

Dorn: In the end, Patrick, although he was back and he was fine and he was like, “Yeah, I’m fine. Everything is great,” you knew by his look, and by the way he felt and looked out the window that it wasn’t over. We didn’t know how it wasn’t going to be over, but it wasn’t over. Interestingly enough, it culminated in First Contact , the movie.

Moore: We had to kind of fight for “Family.” [ Star Trek creator] Gene Roddenberry hated it. He wanted to throw it out. My only story meeting with Gene was that episode. It was me and Michael and Rick Berman, who was running the production side of things, we all met in Gene’s office and Gene just said “this isn’t the 24 th century.” “These brothers reflect outdated, 20 th -Century modes of childhood development. Mankind had solved these kind of issues by then. I hate this.” I sat there and I was a really green writer. I was like, “Oh my God, what are we going to do? I’m dead.” We walked out in the hall and I just looked at Michael and Rick and was like, “What do I do now?” They said, “You know what? Just go write your story, we’ll work with Gene.” That was the last I ever heard of it. So they went off behind the scenes and did something and got him to back off or let it go or kind of distracted him with something else, because then we did the show.   

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What ever happened to locutus of borg.

The character Locutus of Borg, who first appeared in the Star Trek:  The Next Generation classic episode “The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I and II” ended up back on the Enterprise-D thanks to the leadership of acting Captain Riker and Lieutenant Commander Data, working with Dr. Crusher and Counseler Troi, who figured out the code (sleep!) to rescue Captain Jean-Luc Picard and remove his cybernetic components.  Hands down, Locutus was our favorite of The Borg–that cybernetic race that was the nemesis of Starfleet and every culture they came in contact with and subsequently assimilated.

But what about the costume Patrick Stewart wore in “The Best of Both Worlds” episodes as Locutus?  In Trek canon, you could speculate that the components went off for testing at Starfleet Medical.  In the real world?  The fact is The Borg characters returned in subsequent episodes of the series, including the great character study episode “I, Borg” and the two part “Descent” episodes which featured more than a dozen of these cyborgs of the future.  The idea for the Star Trek borg characters were first thought up by Star Trek: The Next Generation writer Maurice Hurley and created by Robert Blackman and Michael Westmore.  Just as the Paramount production staff re-used other costumes over the seven-year series run, Stewart’s rubber and plastic components were reused as parts of other costumes and the original Next Generation Locutus costume does not exist complete and intact today.  Paramount did create and sell a replica of a limited edition life-size version that looks great as a display.  Here is how the replica appeared when they were selling these at the now-defunct Star Trek: The Experience in Las Vegas a few years back:

I am getting ready to put together a display of Locutus, featuring actual components labeled as Stewart’s that I was lucky enough to pick up over the past few years, that became a part of Adrian Tafoya’s costume seen in Descent as well as used in part in a Borg video game by John de Lancie (who also appeared in The Six Million Dollar Man and the original Battlestar Galactica ) as “Q as Borg”  and other characters.  Tafoya is seen here on the left:

And I am starting with this replica resin cast I purchased to be used for the head of the mannequin:

First, to find time to paint and refine it!  I’ll post an update down the road when I get this painted and the cybernetic components displayed.  For now, here are some components of the actual Locutus worn by Patrick Stewart (repainted with a rust paint by production staff and with some parts added later for subsequent actors who played members of The Borg collective)…

C.J. Bunce Editor borg.com

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Star Trek: How Picard's Assimilation by the Borg Radically Changed the Franchise

Jean-Luc Picard's assimilation by the Borg Collective was a monumental event in Star Trek, even though it only lasted for one two-part episode.

Jean-Luc Picard was assimilated by the Borg for only six days on Star Trek , constituting one two-part episode bridging Seasons 3 and 4 of The Next Generation . And yet that was the defining moment for the character, with the fallout extending through numerous episodes of The Next Generation , the film Star Trek: First Contact and all three seasons of Picard . Locutus of Borg's actions had effects well beyond TNG , stoking deep resentment toward Picard in Deep Space Nine 's Captain Benjamin Sisko after Sisko lost his wife during the Battle of Wolf 359.

The Borg were first encountered in The Next Generation Season 2, Episode 16, “Q Who?,” and presented as so unstoppable that Picard had to swallow his pride and beg Q for help to escape them. The episode ended with the Borg presumably on their way to Federation space and time running out on finding a way to stop them. The plot came to a head a little over a year later in Season 3, Episode 26, “The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1,” when they returned as powerful as ever -- and abducted and assimilated Picard.

RELATED: How The Next Generation's 'The Best of Both Worlds' Altered Star Trek

Locutus of Borg Wreaked Havoc That Still Haunts Picard

The assimilation itself took place largely off-screen, and the details were only hinted at. The Borg selected Picard to act as their spokesperson in the subjugation of the Federation, allowing Star Trek to demonstrate the effects of Borg assimilation and how it could be used against a targeted species. As captain of Starfleet’s flagship, Picard was privy to every strategy, tactic and technical specification in the fleet. Once the Borg knew those things, there was little the Federation could do to stop them.

However, the same connection allowed the crew of the Enterprise -D to access the Borg network. They did so in the next episode -- Season 4, Episode 1, “The Best of Both Worlds, Part 2” -- and put the Borg to sleep before they could finish their conquest. At that point, Picard was left to recover and the Borg were temporarily vanquished.

The choice of Picard let The Next Generation illustrate how implacable the Borg were as foes and how little anyone -- even the captain of the Enterprise -- could do to stop them. However, the abduction ran counter to the established understanding of the Borg, which viewed no one individual higher than any other. Ostensibly, they conducted it to more smoothly facilitate humanity's assimilation, but that never seemed to be a priority before, and it went against the whole notion of their unstoppable nature.

RELATED: Captain Shaw Just One-Upped an Iconic Sisko Moment with Picard

First Contact took steps to remedy that with the introduction of the Borg Queen. As Locutus, Picard served as the Borg Queen's “consort,” which permitted him certain privileges of rank. The Queen fully intended to use Data as a replacement, suggesting that the position was far more important than just heralding the conquest of a new species. As it turns out, the Queen wanted Picard to choose assimilation willingly, as she believed Data had done. Free will was the one thing the Borg couldn't take by force, and if her most tenacious foes submitted, it would finally render their defiance of her irrelevant.

Whatever the reason, Picard’s assimilation was so momentous that The Next Generation returned to it time and again. In fact, the next episode in Season 4, “Family,” concerned itself primarily with his struggle to put the trauma behind him. Borg assimilation and Picard’s reaction to it gave Star Trek more complex villains than fans had ever seen before. The Borg reappeared numerous times, and the Queen returned in Star Trek: Picard Season 2 as an ally of sorts. Season 3 revisited the effects of Wolf 359. Picard's brief tenure as Locutus reshaped the entire world of Star Trek .

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Recap / Star Trek: The Next Generation S5E23 "I Borg"

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Original air date: May 11, 1992

Answering what they think to be a distress signal, the Enterprise comes across a crashed Borg scout ship. All its crew are dead, save one. Clearly against his better judgment, Picard allows the injured Borg ( Jonathan Del Arco ) to be brought to the ship for medical treatment, though it is placed inside a force field which interrupts its connection to the Collective . Despite Counsellor Troi's misgivings, Picard insists he's fine with the situation.

As part of its medical treatment, La Forge prepares to repair/replace certain of the Borg's cybernetic implants, but Picard takes the suggestion one step further: why not reprogram an implant to introduce a Logic Bomb through this drone into the entire Borg Collective, causing them all to shut down? At a meeting to discuss this plan, Dr. Crusher alone objects, pointing out that this would be tantamount to genocide . Unfortunately for her, everyone else is fine with it, having accepted the non-declared, unofficial state of war between the Borg and, well, anyone they want to assimilate. Unfortunately for them, Crusher's apparent sympathy for the Borg drone only grows as his physical condition improves; she notes that he seems to be frightened and lonely, severed from contact with the other Borg. Meanwhile, Guinan hands Picard a sort of Dark Side version of her usual Whoopi Epiphany Speech , when she fakes an injury during a fencing duel and then defeats Picard as he moves to help.

Guinan: You felt sorry for me; look what it got you .

The Borg boy continues to improve, and Crusher and La Forge work on testing him out to see how best to implement the Logic Bomb plot. They converse with him and introduce themselves, to which the Borg wonders if he has a name (he only knows the Borg designation "Third of Five"). Trying to sound out a pet name for him, they settle upon "Hugh", sort of a pun on "you...". Now that Hugh has an actual name, La Forge too begins to develop an attachment to him and is having second thoughts about the whole plan. He talks to Guinan about this, but she is uncharacteristically unsympathetic. La Forge challenges her to go visit Hugh for herself. Complicating matters, another Borg scout ship is approaching, presumably to retrieve survivors/scavenge the wrecked ship.

Guinan does eventually go visit Hugh, and she maintains her harsh facade until she lets it slip that her people had been very nearly obliterated by the Borg. Hugh notes that she is lonely, being so far away from any of her kind, and that he is also lonely. Guinan is, to say the least, speechless at this unexpected acknowledgment of emotion from the Borg. Guinan goes to Picard with her new misgivings, only to find him as fiercely defiant as she herself had been. Guinan is having none of it, though and insists that Picard too must at least look Hugh in the eye before turning him into a Tyke Bomb .

Finally Picard agrees and has Hugh beamed into his Captain's Office. Hugh, for his part, recognizes Locutus of Borg , and Picard takes advantage and speaks to him as Locutus. After forcing Hugh to renounce his human name and reiterate his Borg designation, he announces that the Enterprise and her crew will be assimilated , even against their will, or they will die. Hugh doesn't cotton to this idea, having grown attached to his human friends (especially La Forge) but "Locutus" is adamant, culminating in this exchange:

Picard: They will be assimilated. You will assist us. Hugh: I will not. Picard: What did you say? [...] You said "I"; but you are Borg! Hugh: No... I am Hugh.

Now Picard realizes that, with Hugh's newfound individuality, it really would be morally wrong to use him as a Tyke Bomb , and the option is floated that Hugh could be offered asylum from reintegration with the Borg. When told this, though, Hugh realizes that the Borg would simply hunt him down and harm the people he now sees as friends, and he voluntarily returns to the crash site where the other Borg will re-assimilate him. As a final note, it is suggested that the Borg will probably erase Hugh's memory of these events but, in the brief time before they do so, they will be subject to Hugh's experiences as an individual... "and that may be the most pernicious program of all!"

So they beam Hugh back to the crash site. Shortly thereafter, the other Borg arrive and quickly reintegrate Hugh as a drone. But, just before they depart, Hugh gives a clandestine nod to Geordi, indicating his yet-intact individuality.

Notable Tropes in this episode:

• Ambiguously Human : Hugh's race is never specified but he appears physically human, which makes the crew's impulse to dehumanize him especially harsh.
• When Geordi first explains the concept of friendship to Hugh, the latter immediately declares "Like Hugh and Geordi!", proving that he's formed a genuine bond with LaForge and complicating the engineer's feelings about the genocidal plan.
• Guinan talks to Hugh and vents her anger at the Borg to him, remarking that they assimilated her people and left the few survivors who resisted scattered around the galaxy. Hugh ponders a moment and remarks "What you are saying is that you are lonely." Guinan is visibly stunned by that reaction, as she can't believe that her sworn enemy can understand how she's feeling.
• When Picard pretends to be Locutus of Borg and tells Hugh that he must help him forcibly assimilate the Enterprise crew, Hugh vehemently protests " I will not assist you," asserting his individuality for the first time and convincing Picard that Hugh is more than just a drone.
• Believing Their Own Lies : It's implied in this episode that the Borg simply ignore any defeats or failures they suffer; Hugh initially believes that "resistance is futile", only to be informed of Guinan's people successfully (if only barely) resisting assimilation, and he still sees Picard as Locutus despite Picard being removed from the Borg's Hive Mind , both facts that the Borg should be well aware of. He also voices a belief that "no Borg leaves the Collective" while speaking with Picard, who has done exactly that.
• Both Sides Have a Point : At the meeting to discuss the Logic Bomb , everyone brings up valid points opposing and supporting its use. Crusher hammers the point that using it would tantamount to genocide, while Riker responds that the Borg are such a huge, existential threat that it would be justifiable . Picard also notes that "genocide" is a rather meaningless term when applied to the Borg, which is essentially a single organism.
• The Bus Came Back : The Borg return to TNG after a nearly two year hiatus following "The Best of Both Worlds".
• The things that Troi says to Picard regarding the after-effects of his assimilation further drive home the rape metaphor .
• Hugh is basically a kid separated from the totalitarian cult that raised him, and is pretty unclear on the mere concept of thinking for himself or deciding who he is or what he wants to do beyond what he's been told.
• Hugh forms an extremely close bond with Geordi: he cites him as someone he cares about, initially protests Picard-as-Locutus by fearfully asking "Geordi must be assimilated?", and, when given the choice between remaining on the Enterprise and returning to the Collective, remarks "I would choose to stay with Geordi." It's easy to read his attachment as queer love (as noted under the Trivia tab, there's also a healthy dose of real-world subtext involved, as Jonathan Del Arco, Hugh's actor, is openly gay and had lost his long-term partner to AIDS just a year before).
• A very late example regarding the Borg. This is the first time Borg drones are given numerical designations, and use ordinal numbers (Third of Five). Later appearances would use cardinal numbers (Seven of Nine).
• Hugh states that the Borg assimilate civilizations, not individuals (which is apparently why they ignored away teams on their ships in prior episodes, and why the two who come to retrieve him at the end ignore Geordi). Starting from Star Trek: First Contact , this would be abandoned altogether, with the Borg regularly opportunistically assimilating anyone they could get their tubules on. The Collective would frequently be shown to include members of still very-much-extant races, including humans, Klingons, Romulans and Cardassians.
• Eye Scream : When Dr. Crusher asks to examine Hugh's eyepiece, he simply removes it and hands it to her — exposing the circuitry where his eye should be. Crusher and La Forge are visibly unnerved by this.
• Failed a Spot Check : Hugh instantly recognizes Picard as Locutus of Borg and believes that Picard is still Locutus despite the very obvious lack of any Borg attire or implants on the Captain. After their meeting, however, Hugh comes to accept Picard as himself, rather than Locutus.
• Fantastic Racism : In this case, even our heroes see lumping an entire group into a single category as perfectly reasonable. After " The Best of Both Worlds " it seems only logical to see all Borg as malicious and dangerous, particularly for Picard. Once they get to know Hugh, however, the crew start to question their own assumptions.
• The Farmer and the Viper : Although never referenced by name, the episode hinges on this trope, with Crusher arguing to provide mercy for a wounded Borg, while the rest of the crew consider kindness to an inherently evil creature to be self-destructive. It turns out that the "viper" in this case can actually change when given the opportunity.
• Fate Worse than Death : Geordi explains to Hugh how being assimilated, losing his sense of individuality in the process, in many ways seems worse than death.
• Final Solution / Genocide Dilemma : Given the unique threat presented by the Borg and apparent lack of other options, most of the crew is fully in favor of destroying them completely, with only Dr. Crusher opposing the plan. As the rest of the crew comes to see Hugh as an individual, they begin to develop doubts, and ultimately abandon the idea.
• Happiness in Mind Control : Hugh, thanks to Borg indoctrination, sees assimilation as both normal and positive, and is genuinely unable to understand why the Enterprise crew is so opposed to it. Gradually, he comes to understand their point of view.
• Hugh realizing that the Borg basically wiped out Guinan's people.
• After speaking with Hugh and hearing him assert his individuality, Picard reconsiders his plan to use Hugh to destroy the Borg, seeing that doing so would make him no better than the Borg themselves .
• Heroic Sacrifice : Hugh volunteers to rejoin the Collective to save the ship.
• Hoist by His Own Petard : The Enterprise crew originally plans to use Hugh as a living Logic Bomb to destroy the Borg. However, as each member of the team meets and talks to him, they are challenged by Hugh's paradoxical nature and gradually become "infected" with compassion and understanding for him.
• Hyde Plays Jekyll : Inverted. When Picard first meets with Hugh, the latter identifies him as Locutus (despite the very obvious fact that Picard is no longer Borg). Picard plays along with this, claiming he is there to facilitate humanity's assimilation, and ordering Hugh to assist in assimilating the Enterprise . He's utterly thrown when Hugh insists " I will not! "
• I, Noun : A particularly striking episode title considering this is The Borg we're talking about.
• Innocuously Important Episode : This is the first episode in the franchise which humanizes the Borg (or more precisely, the drones who have been severed from the Collective). Hugh's introduction would eventually to lead to the characters of Seven of Nine and Icheb on Star Trek: Voyager . Hugh, Seven of Nine and Icheb would later also guest star in Star Trek: Picard .
• "It" Is Dehumanizing : Everyone in the crew shows their sympathy for Hugh or lack thereof by referring to him as either "he" or "it." Picard is the last holdout. Picard: It's not a person, damn it, it's a Borg!
• Line-of-Sight Name : A purely verbal version, when Crusher and La Forge go from "you" to "Hugh".
• Little "No" : When " Locutus " informs Hugh that Geordi will die if he is not assimilated, Hugh utters a horrified "no". Hugh: He would rather die than be assimilated. "Locutus" : Then he will die. Hugh: No... Geordi must not die. Geordi is a friend.
• Logic Bomb : Picard's plan is to introduce an unsolvable math problem (an anomalous geometric figure, which every attempt to analyze produces further contradictory anomalous figures) into the Borg Hive Mind by letting Hugh look at it and returning him to the Collective. Data and La Forge calculate that it will shut down the entire Collective in a matter of months.
• The McCoy : Doctor Crusher first begins treating a fatally injured Borg, and objects to the Logic Bomb plan as soon as it's proposed.
• The Needs of the Many : Hugh, still grappling with his individuality, struggles to wrap his mind around this not being the case, being offered the choice of staying aboard the Enterprise even with the certainty of Borg pursuit. However, he ultimately plays it straight, choosing to return to the Borg to protect his new friends and the rest of the Enterprise crew.
• When Geordi is analyzing Hugh to learn more about him, Hugh helpfully points out that the Borg do the exact same thing with the species they assimilate, and so expects Geordi to like the idea. It's subverted when Geordi explains how the Borg's tactic of forcible absorption differs from consensual curiosity.
• Played straighter when Guinan visits Hugh in his cell and talks to him, angrily remarking that the Borg assimilated most of her people and left the few remnants scattered across the galaxy: Hugh : What you are saying...is that you are lonely. Guinan : ...what? Hugh : You have no others. You have no home. (Guinan stares at Hugh in shock) Hugh : We are also lonely...
• Oblivious Guilt Slinging : Hugh's innocent questions about Crusher and La Forge's tests make both officers feel very guilty about their ulterior motives.
• Obliviously Evil : It's a complete surprise to Hugh that most consider assimilation by the Borg to be a Fate Worse than Death and that contrary to the Collective's oft-heard refrain, resistance is not futile.
• Oh, Crap! : Pretty much everyone's reaction to discovering that the wreckage they're investigating is that of a Borg ship... and there's a survivor.
• When the away team discovers the surviving Borg drone, the honor-obsessed, Proud Warrior Race Guy Worf recommends killing it, making it look like an accident, and running like hell. The compassionate, unflappable Captain Picard seriously considers doing so before reluctantly deciding to show the drone mercy.
• Guinan is uncharacteristically hostile and close-minded when faced with the question of Hugh, owing to the fact that the Borg wiped out nearly all of her species. It's one of the few episodes where she actually has an arc.
• In the initial conference, Deanna is the most militant she's ever been by far, rejecting Beverly's claim that they're not "formally" at war by pointing out the Borg have attacked the Federation at every encounter.
• Resistance Is Futile : Discussed; Hugh starts out parroting the Borg's typical refrain, but when he meets Guinan, he learns that she and some of her people survived and escaped from the Borg's destruction of her homeworld. Guinan: My people resisted when the Borg came to assimilate us. Some of us survived. Hugh: Resistance... is not futile?
• Rogue Drone : Hugh is separated from the Borg Hive Mind , is given a name, and slowly develops a sense of identity and individuality, finally culminating in use of the singular pronoun "I".
• Sarcasm-Blind : While confronting Hugh, Guinan is initially snarky and dismissive, only to find that the childlike Hugh can neither understand nor appreciate her attitude. Guinan: Aren't you going to tell me you have to assimilate me? Hugh: You wish to be assimilated? Guinan: No, but that's what you... things do, isn't it?
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! : Dr. Crusher remarks that, war or no war, Hugh is an injured sentient being, and thus she's going to treat him regardless of whether or not it's allowed.
• Shout-Out : The title is a play on the classic science fiction story I, Robot .
• Sure, Let's Go with That : A dark version when Hugh recognizes Picard as Locutus. After a moment of shock, Picard decides to roll with it.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork : Dr. Crusher ends up doing this when she's outvoted among the Enterprise officers and forced to help with their genocidal plan. She throws up protests the whole way, at one point outright saying "I'm here to help, but I don't have to like it."
• Two Roads Before You : Hugh has the choice of staying with the Enterprise crew or returning to the Borg Collective. He chooses the latter to protect our heroes .
• Vocal Evolution : When Hugh first awakens on the Enterprise as Third of Five, his voice is cold and robotic, barely rising above a monotone. Throughout the episode, as the crew members teach him about individuality, his tone changes in kind, gradually filling with inflections, emotions, and humanity.
• What Is This Thing You Call "Love"? : It's revealed that the Borg have no words for or even concept of emotion beyond the desire to assimilate. As such, Hugh has to learn all about the ideas of loneliness, friendship, kindness, and love; each member of the crew that teaches him about them comes to recognize his humanity.
• What the Hell, Hero? : Crusher calls out Picard for considering genocide.
• Wham Line : One of the most memorable of the series. Picard: You are Borg. You will assist us. Hugh: I will not. Picard: ...What did you say? Hugh: I will not assist you. Picard: "I...?" Hugh: Geordi must not be assimilated. Picard: But you are Borg. Hugh: No... I am Hugh.
• First, a subversion, when Picard and Guinan are fencing one another. The normally wise and introspective Guinan is surprisingly ruthless, combined with a Wounded Gazelle Gambit in their fencing match, to highlight the dangers of keeping a Borg drone, even one seemingly disconnected from the Collective, on board. Guinan: You felt sorry for me. Look what it got you.
• A series of inversions come in the middle of the episode. Guinan is actually on the receiving end of such a speech, from Geordi. Guinan: Let me tell you something, when this kid's big brothers come looking for him, they're not gonna stop until they find him. And they'll come looking for us, and they will destroy us. And they will not do any of the soul-searching that you're doing now. Geordi: So why don't you go and talk to him? It might not be so clear-cut then. Guinan: Because I wouldn't have anything to say. Geordi: Then why don't you just listen? That is what you do best, isn't it?
• Guinan does indeed talk to Hugh after this, leading to her own change of heart on this situation. Guinan: Thanks to you, there are very few of us left. We're scattered throughout the galaxy. We don't even have a home anymore. Hugh: What you are saying, is that you are lonely. Guinan: What? Hugh: You have no others, you have no home. We are also lonely.
• This leads to Guinan reversing her previous stance with Picard in a more Played Straight example of the trope: Guinan: If you're going to use this person- Picard: IT'S NOT A PERSON, DAMMIT, IT'S A BORG! Guinan: If you're going to use this person to destroy his entire species, you should at least look him in the eye. Otherwise, you might find that decision much harder to live with than you realize.
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit : Guinan pulls one while fencing with Picard to teach him a lesson about sympathy for the Borg.
• You Will Be Assimilated : Well, not if Hugh has anything to say about it...
• Star Trek: The Next Generation S5E22 "Imaginary Friend"
• Recap/Star Trek: The Next Generation
• Star Trek: The Next Generation S5E24 "The Next Phase"

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Complete List Of Appearances Of The Borg In Star Trek

This article is more than seven years old and was last updated in July 2019.

The Borg are Star Trek's most feared and most loved adversaries they appear in a total twenty-one episodes in the Star Trek franchise in 'Enterprise,' 'The Next Generation' and 'Voyager,' every television incarnation other than the original series and 'Deep Space Nine.' They also appeared in the Star Trek movie 'First Contact.' Below is a complete list of the Borg's appearances in chronological order.

1. Enterprise - 'Regeneration' [S02E23]

2. The Next Generation - 'Q Who' [S02E16]

3. The Next Generation - 'The Best of Both Worlds' [S03E26 - S04E01]

4. The Next Generation - 'I, Borg' [S05E23]

5. The Next Generation - 'Descent' [S06E26 - S07E01]

6. Voyager - 'Unity' [S03E17]

7. Star Trek: First Contact

8. Voyager - 'Scorpion' [S03E26 - S04E01]

9. Voyager - 'The Raven' [S04E06]

10. Voyager - 'Drone' [S05E02]

11. Voyager - 'Dark Frontier' [S05E15 - S05E16]

12. Voyager - 'Survival Instinct' [S06E02]

13. Voyager - 'Collective' [S06E16]

14. Voyager - 'Child's Play' [S06E19]

15. Voyager - 'Unimatrix Zero' [S06E26 - S07E01]

16. Voyager - 'Imperfection' [S07E02]

17. Voyager - 'Endgame' [S07E25]

There's More To Come...

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How Star Trek Made LeVar Burton Actually Glow For Its Identity Crisis Episode

In the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode "Identity Crisis" (March 25, 1991), Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) meets an old friend, Lieutenant Commander Susanna Leijten (Maryann Plunkett), the only surviving member of a mission they both went on years before. It seems that their compatriots have gone missing or stolen shuttlecrafts to return to the planet Tarchannen III, where they were last united. Soon after her arrival, Leijten also begins exhibiting weird behavior, twitching nervously and demanding a visit to Tarchannen III. Her body begins to mutate. Her fingers fuse together and eerie blue veins appear on her skin. Her eyes turn yellow. It's all Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) can do to slow the mutations.

Geordi, while unattended, also suddenly begins to mutate. He eventually returns to Tarchannen III, having turned into a near-invisible creature that can only be seen under a special blacklight. Leijten has to overcome her own mutations and communicate with Geordi before his transformation becomes irreversible.

"Identity Crisis" is a good body-horror episode of "Star Trek," and perhaps shouldn't be watched in the dark alone. The scene where Geordi recreates a shadow on the holodeck is one of the scariest in the show's history.

In order to achieve the look of the invisible alien, Burton had to undergo a full-body makeup process  that involved a facial prosthetic, contact lenses, a lot of painted-on veins, alien gloves, and alien feet. It was the most makeup Burton ever had to wear on "The Next Generation."

In the book "Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages" edited by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross, "Crisis" director David Livingston recalled the makeup process in detail, as well as the complex lighting the episode required. Livingston used U/V light on set, a first for the series.

The Mark & Brian Show

Some fun trivia: local KLOS DJs Mark Thompson and Brian Phelps, stars of "The Mark & Brian Show," played two additional aliens in the episode. They had no lines and just lurched past the camera. They also didn't have to undergo the same makeup process that Burton did, wearing full-body stockings and masks instead. The issue was getting the aliens to glow as it said in the script, a problem Livingston presented to his producer, Peter Lauritson. After checking out some test footage, Livingston went to longtime "Trek" makeup artist Michael Westmore and longtime costumer Robert Blackman about achieving the look. Livingston explained:

"We were talking about how we're going to make these guys glow and Peter Lauritson said to me, 'Why don't we try ultraviolet?' [...] I said because we had done a test the year before. I almost dismissed it, but then pulled out the tape and looked at it, and said this stuff is great. [I] went to Michael Westmore and Bob Blackman and said we want to do this, and they designed these suits and we painted them with U/V [paint] and put these contact lenses into this woman's eyes that glowed. [...] LeVar looked fabulous."

The costumes looked great, and they did indeed glow under a blacklight, a phenomenon anyone who has visited a commercial haunted house has likely encountered. The next problem, however, was lighting a set with blacklight-activated aliens on it. It seems that Livingston had to employ a special kind of blue lamp on set to bathe everything in a low, even color. This was in addition to the white lights needed to illuminate the actors. This kind of lighting had never been done on "Next Generation," a show that typically featured clean and even lighting.

The blue beacon

Livingston described the lighting rig as follows:

"We used heavy blue light for the set lighting, and it's different lighting than you see elsewhere because all the source coming from behind the camera is blue light. That's a decision we made and it should look harsh and unrealistic and not well-lit because it's not lit from one single blue source. It's basically a beacon shining out. It looked different than anything else and that was intentional." 

It was certainly strange-looking, giving off a ghostly vibe that wasn't used elsewhere in the series. Livingston noted that it worked well before adding that, after 1991, many other photographers and TV-makers started to use a stylized U/V light to create glowing images, notably in music videos. He continued:

"What I was surprised at was how powerful the U/V reflected back, and MTV is using it a lot now. I liked our use because it was integrated into the story. We used it to make it work dramatically rather than doing it as an effect. To me, that was a major accomplishment. We didn't do it to just be glitzy, we did it because it tied in dramatically with the story."

The makeup on Burton took four makeup artists and six full hours to apply. It was not just Burton's most extensive makeup job but the longest application in the history of the series. Luckily for Geordi, he was spared a subplot in the "Crisis" script wherein he and Leijten experienced a stalled romance. Geordi had already experienced several stalled romances , and piling another one on the character seemed cruel. The showrunners merely mutated him into an alien instead.

Den of Geek

Star Trek Just Delivered a New Take on a Classic Next Generation Episode

Star Trek: Discovery did its own version of the Next Generation finale, highlighting the differences between the two shows.

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This Star Trek: Discovery article contains spoilers.

Whatever the problems in its first two seasons, Star Trek: The Next Generation ended in perfect fashion. “All Good Things…” saw Captain Picard become unstuck in time, visiting the past, present, and future of his ship.

“All Good Things…” allowed the show and fans to see just how far TNG had come over the years. It revisits the clunky inaugural season via Picard’s interactions in the past with Tasha Yar, whose death midway through season one only underscored the tumultuous first two years of the series. And by going into the future, checking in on Professor Data, Captain Beverly Picard, and journalist Geordi La Forge (married to Leah Brahms, for some reason), the show imagined future adventures beyond the series finale for our favorite characters.

By the time that present tense Picard joins his crew at the poker table, “All Good Things…” confirms what we fans always felt. This was an ensemble show with a wonderful cast, and we like seeing them all together.

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That feel-good ending is actually representative of some of the criticism surrounding Star Trek: Discovery . Instead of continuing the ensemble approach that TNG and all of its followers took ( Enterprise , to a lesser extent), Discovery has a single protagonist in the form of Michael Burnham . Burnham serves as the main character in every storyline, in a way not seen since the days of William Shatner stealing his co-stars’ lines for Kirk. The bridge crew of Discovery have names, a few facial expressions, and that’s about it.

So when the fourth episode of Discovery ‘s final season, “ Face the Strange ,” gives Burnham a chance to revisit her own crew’s past as well as see the Discovery’s possible distant future, it’s a take on TNG ‘s “All Good Things…” idea that hits very differently. But there’s no denying it’s also true to the ethos of what Discovery is versus The Next Generation ‘s approach to storytelling in the ’90s.

In “Face the Strange,” Burnham and her new First Officer Commander Rayner are sent time jumping around the Discovery. The episode involves the treasure hunters Moll and L’ak distracting the Discovery on its chase for the Progenitor tech by infecting Burnham and Rayner with a device that thrusts them into ship’s past and future.

The episode resolves when Burnham and Rayner convince members of the Discovery crew from season one to jump to warp, which allows Stamets (whose Tardigrade DNA puts him outside of time) to remove the infecting time bug and send the duo back to their time. To do so, Rayner and Burnham have to prove that they know the bridge crew, who do not recognize Rayner and see Burnham as a mutineer.

Of course, they succeed, but not in a manner that will satisfy most viewers who remember Picard’s trip down memory lane in TNG . The crew interactions just don’t hit the same way in the Discovery version of this concept. Rayner wins over the crew not by pointing to qualities that viewers have seen by watching every season of Discovery , but by repeating exposition from the previous episode. Even many of Burnham’s pleas fall flat, heightening only the surface level of even well-developed characters like Tilly.

But then there’s the crux of Burnham’s argument. When her younger, angrier self storms onto the bridge, the current Burnham gets desperate. Her only recourse is to reveal details about the death of Ariam, the android member of the crew who sacrifices herself at the end of the season two episode “Project Daedalus.” Discovery handled Ariam’s death in the most clunky way possible, only giving the character any attention in the previous episode, manipulating audiences into caring about her sacrifice.

However, when Burnham revisits the moment in “Face the Strange,” she doubles down on the emotional appeals. Burnham tells the crew about how Ariam chose to die to save the ship, and while Tilly and Owo insist that they would never let that happen, Ariam interjects. She would gladly sacrifice herself for the others, if that was the only way to save them.

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In other words, Burnham doesn’t make a logical argument about the science behind her arrival from the future, nor does she assert her authority and commandeer the ship to do what needs to be done. Rather, she leans heavy into the emotion, tugging on everyone’s heartstrings as a solution to the problem they face.

If you like your Star Trek to be logical and professional, then Burnham’s solution is just one more example of the shortcomings in Discovery . But then again, why are you watching Discovery at this point if you’re not down with that approach?

In the same way that “All Good Things…” gave TNG a victory lap to celebrate everything that the once ill-advised show was and had become, “Face the Strange” embraces Discovery ‘s own unique identity. This is a show in which things happen not because they make logical sense, but because they make emotional sense.

As Discovery comes to an end, “Face the Strange” highlights the show’s unlikely path from oddball prequel to an exploration of the future of Star Trek . But as much as the show has changed cast members and settings, it’s always been about solving problems through emotional intelligence. The “All Good Things…” riff in “Face the Strange” proves that if Discovery was ever going to be the show that some Trekkies want, it should have changed a long time ago.

Star Trek: Discovery is streaming now on Paramount+.

Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

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Star Trek: The Next Generation

Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before. Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before. Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before.

• Gene Roddenberry
• Patrick Stewart
• Brent Spiner
• Jonathan Frakes
• 321 User reviews
• 162 Critic reviews
• 39 wins & 61 nominations total

Episodes 176

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• Captain Jean-Luc Picard …

• Lieutenant Commander Data …

• Commander William Thomas 'Will' Riker …

• Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge …

• Counselor Deanna Troi

• Lieutenant Worf …

• Doctor Beverly Crusher …

• Enterprise Computer …

• Wesley Crusher …

• Chief Miles O'Brien …
• Youngblood …

• Lieutenant Natasha 'Tasha' Yar …

• Doctor Katherine Pulaski …

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• Keiko O'Brien …
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• Trivia Almost everyone in the cast became life-long friends. At LeVar Burton 's 1992 wedding, Brent Spiner served as best man, and Sir Patrick Stewart , Jonathan Frakes , and Michael Dorn all served as ushers. Man of the People (1992) (#6.3) aired on that day.
• Goofs It is claimed that Data can't use contractions (Can't, Isn't, Don't, etc) yet there are several instances throughout the series where he does. One of the first such examples is heard in Encounter at Farpoint (1987) , where Data uses the word "Can't" while the Enterprise is being chased by Q's "ship".

[repeated line]

Capt. Picard : Engage!

• Crazy credits The model of the Enterprise used in the opening credits is so detailed, a tiny figure can be seen walking past a window just before the vessel jumps to warp speed.
• Alternate versions The first and last episodes were originally broadcast as two-hour TV movies, and were later re-edited into two one-hour episodes each. Both edits involved removing some scenes from each episode.
• Connections Edited into Reading Rainbow: The Bionic Bunny Show (1988)

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The aunt of star trek: tng's tasha yar actress once romanced ds9's quark.

Despite leaving TNG in season 1, Denise Crosby has lasting ties to the Star Trek franchise, including her aunt, who fell in love with DS9's Quark.

The aunt of Star Trek: The Next Generation 's Denise Crosby once had a brief romance with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's Quark (Armin Shimerman). Denise Crosby played Lt. Tasha Yar in TNG , whose family continued to pop up in the show even after she was killed by Armus. Tasha's sister, Ishara Yar (Beth Toussaint), used the crew of the USS Enterprise-D to help her launch an invasion of the Turkana IV Alliance's territory in TNG season 4, episode 6, "Legacy". Star Trek: The Next Generation season 5 introduced Sela (Denise Crosby) Tasha Yar's half-Romulan daughter from an alternate timeline, who became a recurring villain on the show.

Tasha Yar's extended family appearing on Star Trek: The Next Generation was reflective of Denise Crosby's own family links to the wider Star Trek universe. Denise Crosby was the granddaughter of popular crooner and actor Bing Crosby, named after her father, and Bing's son, Dennis Crosby. Embarrassed by a high-profile child support case between Dennis Crosby and Denise's mother, Marilyn Miller Scott, Bing Crosby reportedly never met his granddaughter . Amid this court battle, Bing Crosby's second wife, Kathryn, gave birth to her second child, Denise's aunt and future Star Trek: Deep Space Nine guest star , Mary Crosby.

Star Trek: TNG's Most Hated Episode Still Traumatizes Denise Crosby

Star trek: tng's denise crosby's aunt played quark's love interest in ds9.

Denise Crosby's aunt Mary played Professor Natima Lang in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 2, episode 18, "Profit and Loss" . Mary Crosby was a prolific TV guest star in the early 1990s, appearing in shows such as Murder, She Wrote and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman before being cast as Natima in DS9 . A specialist in political ethics, Natima was a prominent member of the Cardassian dissident movement, who wanted to overthrow their government's military rulers. Natima Lang was a character who brought out Quark's romantic and heroic side, something that DS9 writer and producer Ira Steven Behr disapproved of :

" I felt we didn't need another tough, sexy, swashbuckling character on the show. We had enough of those." - Ira Steven Behr, The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion

Mary Crosby is best known for playing Kristin Shepard in the iconic soap opera Dallas between 1979 and 1981 . Kristin Shepard was the character who famously shot J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) in the soap, with the reveal becoming one of the highest-rated episodes of any TV drama. In an interesting parallel between her character in Dallas and her character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Mary Crosby also shoots Quark in "Profit and Loss", albeit accidentally. It's a fun nod to Mary Crosby's best-known TV role.

Denise Crosby's Other Star Trek Family Links

Mary Crosby isn't the only member of Denise Crosby's extended family to appear in the wider Star Trek universe. Denise Crosby's brother, Paul, is married to actress and stunt performer, Spice Williams, who has made many appearances in the Star Trek franchise . Spice Williams-Crosby played Vixis in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , the first officer on Klaa's Klingon bird of prey. As a stunt performer, Spice Williams-Crosby doubled for Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine on episodes of Star Trek: Voyager.

Denise Crosby is also a distant relation of Family Guy creator and Star Trek: Enterprise guest star, Seth MacFarlane . Ancestry details of Seth MacFarlane reveal that he was a descendant of William Brewster, an ancestor of Bing Crosby. This means that Denise Crosby and Seth MacFarlane are distant cousins, a detail which must have pleased the noted Star Trek fan. In 2011, Seth MacFarlane revealed his desire to reboot the franchise on TV, a dream he never got to realize. However, his sci-fi comedy drama The Orville is the next best thing, a loving homage to Star Trek: The Next Generation that features many of its alumni.

All episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

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Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

8 Coolest Starships From Star Trek: The Next Generation

• The Galor-class cruiser introduced the brutal might of the Cardassian Union, setting itself apart with a fish-like design.
• The USS Pasteur, a hospital ship with a spherical hull, met a tragic end in a Klingon attack after being specialized for medical aid.
• The Borg cube, with its unique design, proved to be a terrifying opponent by easily defeating the Enterprise-D and annihilating Starfleet vessels.

Following the success of the Star Trek movies of the 1980s, the franchise returned to the small screen with The Next Generation , a sequel series set a century after the exploits of Captain Kirk. Under the command of the stoic Captain Jean-Luc Picard , the Enterprise -D continued Starfleet's mission to explore the galaxy, discovering a wide range of civilizations, scientific mysteries, and deadly new threats along the way.

Star Trek: The Next Generation's 'Skin of Evil' Explained

While The Next Generation favored philosophy and moral dilemmas over melodrama and technobabble, the series still delivered when it came to fascinating technology and innovative vessels. From the Enterprise -D itself to the rarely seen D'kora- class Ferengi Maurader, the show's seven seasons featured a bounty of notable starships.

Galor-class Cruiser

First appearance: "the wounded" (season 4, episode 12).

As well as being a showcase for tortured everyman Miles O'Brien , "The Wounded" introduces both the Cardassians and their iconic Galor -class cruisers. The fish-like shaping of the Galor -class (a design choice replicated in later Cardassian vessels) sets the starships of the Cardassian Union apart from other alien civilizations. However, despite its naturalistic appearance, the cruiser is a capable warship that serves as the backbone of the Cardassian military.

Indeed, while the Galor -class is less well known in popular culture than many ships from The Next Generation , it came to symbolize the brutal might of the Cardassian Union within both the series itself and in Deep Space Nine . The Cardassian cruiser may be something of a hidden gem, but it nonetheless deserves to be remembered as one of Star Trek 's coolest starships.

USS Pasteur

First appearance: "all good things..." (season 7, episodes 25 & 26).

Starfleet is no stranger to specialized starships: the USS Defiant seen in Deep Space Nine is a dedicated warship, while the USS Voyager , despite its heavy armament, is ostensibly a science vessel. Yet few Starfleet vessels are as practically focused as the USS Pasteur , an Olympic -class hospital ship under the command of Captain Beverly Crusher. In the alternate timeline glimpsed by Picard in "All Good Things", the Pasteur is assigned to help those suffering from Terrelian plague on Romulus.

Star Trek: 8 Best Book-Only Characters, Ranked

The Pasteur represents a radical departure from conventional Starfleet design doctrine , as the vessel's primary hull is spherical rather than saucer-shaped. This additional internal space no doubt provides additional room for laboratories, wards, and surgical theaters. Unfortunately, the Pastuer 's fate shows that no good deed goes unpunished, as it destroyed in a Klingon attack.

Ferengi Marauder

First appearance: "the last outpost" (season 1, episode 5).

"The Last Outpost" sees the Enterprise -D come face to face with a D'kora -class Ferengi Marauder. This multi-function vessel is capable of operating not only as a cargo ship (as per the Ferengi's mercantile ideology ) but also as a fearsome warship. Indeed, during the Enterprise- D's first encounter with a Ferengi Marauder, the alien vessel was able to greatly weaken the Galaxy -class starship's deflector shields using a powerful electromagnetic pulse.

The imposing D'kora -class would make several more appearances in The Next Generation and even cameoed in Voyager , albeit as a CGI recreation of the original model. Despite the prominence of the Ferengi in Deep Space Nine , this cruiser is absent from the groundbreaking series, perhaps suggesting that the Ferengi Alliance could only afford to field a few of these versatile vessels.

USS Jenolan

First appearance: "relics" (season 6, episode 4).

While attempting to respond to a distress signal from the USS Jenolan in "Relics", the Enterprise -D discovers the Sydney -class starship crash-landed on the surface of a massive Dyson sphere. Picard and his crew are 75 years late to the scene of the accident, but they are able to recover a survivor: Montgomery Scott of Captain Kirk's Enterprise , who has preserved himself in the starship's transporter pattern buffer.

However, there is more to the Jenolan than its celebrity captain. In terms of appearance, it is a deviation from the norm when it comes to Starfleet vessels, as it lacks a saucer section. That the Jenolan bears a passing resemblance to the Danube -class runabouts seen in Deep Space Nine should come as no surprise, as these auxiliary vessels were heavily influenced by the design of the Sydney -class transport.

Romulan Warbird

First appearance: "the neutral zone" (season 1, episode 26).

The D'deridex -class Romulan warbird makes its debut in the closing minutes of The Next Generation 's "The Neutral Zone". The Romulans aboard the mighty starship tell Picard and his crew that they mean business, and the sleek yet powerful design of their vessel only underlines their message. The D'deridex -class would go on to make many more appearances across the franchise, making it one of Star Trek 's most iconic villain ships.

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One advantage of the Romulan warbird over its rivals is the fact that it is equipped with a cloaking device. This stealth technology, coupled with the D'deridex 's considerable firepower, makes it a dangerous threat in any military confrontation. As such, it makes sense that the starship is often deployed in intense military situations, such as during standoffs against the Enteprise -D and throughout Deep Space Nine 's Dominion War .

USS Enterprise-C

First appearance: "yesterday's enterprise" (season 3, episode 15).

Although various iterations of the Starship Enterprise play key roles throughout the Star Trek franchise, not every starship to bear the name is as prolific as The Next Generation 's Enterprise -D. Indeed, the Excelsior -class Enterprise -B makes only a brief cameo in 1994's Star Trek: Generations , while its successor, the Enterprise -C, only appears in the episode "Yesterday's Enterprise". However, despite its lack of screen-time, the Enterprise -C is involved in one of the most pivotal events in Federation history: the Battle of Narenda III.

The Ambassador -class vessel is destroyed protecting a Klingon colony from a Romulan sneak attack, impressing the Klingons and laying the groundwork for the Treaty of Alliance between the Federation and the Klingon Empire. While the Enterprise -C may resemble an awkward merging of Original Series and Next Generation aesthetics, its contribution to Federation history cannot be understated.

First Appearance: "Q Who" (Season 2, Episode 16)

The Borg are one of science fiction's most memorable villains, due in part to their relentless and single-minded push to assimilate other species. Yet much of the Borg's enduring appeal can be attributed to the excellent visual design of the Borg cube. Envisaged by writer Maurice Hurley and realized by designer Richard James, the iconic vessel is based on an architectural language that is entirely distinct from other Star Trek ships.

Star Trek: How Do Borg Nanoprobes Work?

However, the Borg cube is more than just an unusual design: it is also a terrifying opponent. The initial Borg cube seen in "Q Who" easily bests the Enterprise -D, while another cube annihilates a large flotilla of Starfleet vessels at the cataclysmic Battle of Wolf 359 in "The Best of Both Worlds". The Borg cube may look simple, but it has plenty of tricks up its sleeve.

USS Enterprise-D

First appearance: "encounter at farpoint" (season 1, episodes 1 & 2).

No discussion of The Next Generation can be complete without referring to the USS Enteprise -D, the starship that is as integral to the series as any of the show's characters. While earlier iterations of Star Trek toyed with the concept of the Enterprise as a living space as well as an exploratory vessel, The Next Generation fully embraces the idea with the Galaxy -class starship. Boasting schools, families, and a sizable civilian contingent, the ship is perhaps the best example of Gene Roddenberry's utopian future in practice—even if taking children on frequent military missions doesn't make a whole lot of sense .

As the hero ship of The Next Generation , the Enterprise -D plays a central role in shaping the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, whether through its amazing discoveries of a shared link between many of the galaxy's civilizations or its repeated battles against the Borg Collective. When it comes to Next Generation starships, the Enterprise -D is second to none.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Release Date September 28, 1987

Genres Sci-Fi

Creator Gene Roddenberry

Number of Episodes 178