Remember when I said that the First Season of TNG was pretty sub-par? Well, there are a few exceptions to that. While there were stinkers, there were some episodes that were actually pretty good. Today's episode is "Conspiracy." It's actually a follow-up to the episode "Coming of Age." In that episode, Picard was under investigation from Starfleet because the higher ups believed something was happening and they needed to trust him. It also featured Wesley Crusher heavily. It's an okay episode all-around.
In this episode, Picard is contacted by a captain from another ship. He and other captains believe that there is some sort of conspiracy going in with Starfleet. Picard begins to suspect it more when the captain who contacted him dies. The Enterprise heads back to Earth to speak with Starfleet command. Admiral Quinn and Lt. Remmerick (the officers who headed the investigation) show up and one of them decides to stay on the Enterprise for a visit while Picard is on Earth. It's revealed that most of Starfleet's admirals had been taken over by alien parasites and that the parasites were a precursor for an invasion. They try to infect Picard but Riker shows up and a fight ensues. Picard and Riker end up finding the Queen of the parasites (in one of the grossest ways) and kill it. We end the episode with the crisis averted and a sign that the parasites might return... or not as it turns out.
It's not one of their best episodes, but it is a pretty decent one. It's pretty action-packed as well. Admiral Quinn gets into a fight with Riker, Geordi, and Worf which was pretty cool and pretty funny. The stakes are pretty high since Starfleet has been infiltrated by these things. What throws this episode into "Freakin' Weird" territory is what happens at the end. Picard and Riker find out that Remmerick (the other investigator) is essentially the queen of these parasites. They blast him with their phasers and the dude literally blows up. Then, the actual queen rises out of what's left of the man and the two repulsed officers kill it. That was probably the most gruesome thing I've seen on something involving Star Trek. I mean, ... "Freakin' Weird, Man!!!"
Another thing that makes this episode a weird one is that the parasites never show up after this.They don't get any mention after the season. I read somewhere that they would have been brought back but they weren't for some reason. I don't remember the reason. It may have had something to do with the Borg though I may be thinking about the next episode "The Neutral Zone." I do know that this is a decent episode from a pretty sub-par season. If you want to see why the show stayed on the air, check this out. Before you check this one out, check out "Coming of Age" first. If you can tolerate Wesley, you'll be alright.
In this episode, Picard is contacted by a captain from another ship. He and other captains believe that there is some sort of conspiracy going in with Starfleet. Picard begins to suspect it more when the captain who contacted him dies. The Enterprise heads back to Earth to speak with Starfleet command. Admiral Quinn and Lt. Remmerick (the officers who headed the investigation) show up and one of them decides to stay on the Enterprise for a visit while Picard is on Earth. It's revealed that most of Starfleet's admirals had been taken over by alien parasites and that the parasites were a precursor for an invasion. They try to infect Picard but Riker shows up and a fight ensues. Picard and Riker end up finding the Queen of the parasites (in one of the grossest ways) and kill it. We end the episode with the crisis averted and a sign that the parasites might return... or not as it turns out.
Picard: What the He--- Kill it! Kill it with FIRE!!!!
It's not one of their best episodes, but it is a pretty decent one. It's pretty action-packed as well. Admiral Quinn gets into a fight with Riker, Geordi, and Worf which was pretty cool and pretty funny. The stakes are pretty high since Starfleet has been infiltrated by these things. What throws this episode into "Freakin' Weird" territory is what happens at the end. Picard and Riker find out that Remmerick (the other investigator) is essentially the queen of these parasites. They blast him with their phasers and the dude literally blows up. Then, the actual queen rises out of what's left of the man and the two repulsed officers kill it. That was probably the most gruesome thing I've seen on something involving Star Trek. I mean, ... "Freakin' Weird, Man!!!"
Get down! He's gonna blow!!!
They weren't brought back because they were not liked, and this episode traumatized me as a kid. The Borg were sort of the replacement for them.
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