| The Next Generation | |
| 77 | |
| Brothers | |
| 44085.7 | |
The plot starts with a practical joke. On second thoughts maybe the plot is a practical joke - hatched on us by Paramount in an effort to stop us getting any sleep. A child on the Enterprise has been hurt as the side effect of a practical joke pulled by his brother. Oh, goody! The Enterprise is diverted to a nearby starbase so the kid can get proper medical attention. They can remove Borg cyberware but they can't fix the kid's bout of flu.
Data has flipped out. Time to BRS him. Oops, to late, he's cut off life support to the bridge and sealed himself in with force fields. Everyone else is locked out, and Picard looks flustered having to be down in Engineering, especially since the computer won't let him have control of the ship. Data locks all access to the computer out by giving a horrendously long access code, which interestingly enough, is not the same code that appears on the monitor before him. Now how many times is it that the Enterprise computer has been subverted?
O'Brien locks out the transporters and they hope to confine Data to the ship. But Mr Talkie-Toaster is too smart for them! He sets up a moving baricade of force fields in front of him and just walks to a transporter room, removes the interlock, and beams himself down onto the planet below.
In a small hut on the marshy world below I almost expected to see Yoda, but instead we are confronted with the Old Man from Scene 24! After a little reactive dentistry on Data the man introduces himself as none other than Dr Noonian Soong, Data's creator - and father. Data and Soong get all metaphysical and discuss the meaning of life and other platitudes, when who should enter through the door...
Lore! Data's evil brother. (And the audience goes "ooooohhh".) Data doesn't want him reactivated, but for plot development sake, Soong does it anyway. We learn that Soong is dying, and that Data was not constructed less perfect that Lore after all - another lie! Great work guys. Soong has prepared a "basic emotions" chip for Data.
Of course before Data can get the chip, Lore switches place, takes the chip, beats up Soong and beams out. Bummer. Soong complains that he can't make a new chip, and Data of course can't feel jealous about it. Surely since the Enterprise now has all of Soong's work and notes, they could just get Wesley to fashion a new one up over a weekend, but no... Riker and the party boys beam in and take charge of the situation, after everything has finished.
Back on the ship the kid gets his medical attention and Bev says that "brothers forgive". Data has a whistful expression.
