The Enterprise is sent to repair a space telescope, discovering that its malfunction was caused by a mysterious alien probe. A close encounter with the probe leaves Barclay with rapidly increasing intelligence, which for a time makes him an invaluable resource for the crew. But soon he connects himself to the computer, takes control of the ship, and begins a potentially dangerous propulsion experiment to instantly transport the Enterprise to the center of the universe.
The writers decided early on that they didn't want to bring the Barclay character back just to tell another story about holodeck addiction, and thus the season was starting to wind down by the time they finally worked out what to do. A separate idea had been floating around about a crewmember suddenly made superintelligent, and the writers wisely realized this would be a good Barclay vehicle. Since the insecure and shy character was socially below the curve already, his progression would make for more of a journey.
Of course, I have criticized past episodes for focusing too much on a guest star. But this episode, I quite liked. What's the difference? Partly, it has to do with Dwight Schultz, who turns in a great performance in all stages of Barclay's evolution. First, he's awkward -- but less so than in his prior episode. Then he's suave and confident, while still eager to please his superior officers. Finally, he's simply dismissive and arrogant. It's a full spectrum performance. But it's also important that in both of the Barclay episodes, the story is just as much about how the main characters interact with and react to him as it is about the character himself.
In fact, many of the best moments in the episode come from the regular characters. Most are comedic in tone. There's Data's confusion at the way everyone applauds Barclay's awkward acting performance. And Riker's glazed-over face as Barclay explains his shield modifications. And Troi's coy refusal to tell whether Barclay's "good" pass at her worked.
More dramatic moments are effective too. Troi gets to do some actual counseling, giving a truly motivational speech to Barclay at the beginning of the episode. Dr. Crusher gets a few good scenes as Barclay's acting teacher, a hobby that was given to the character after Gates McFadden's lobbying to round out her character. (Earlier this season, she'd picked up dancing and botany hobbies as well, as a result of the same requests.)
The idea of acting may have come elsewhere, but the specific idea to perform Cyrano de Bergerac actually came from producer Rick Berman. After I've pointed out so many times that he opposed good ideas on the series, it's probably fair that I acknowledge his good contribution here. Not only does the time period make for a good early fake on the audience (who probably expects this is another holodeck program), but the story actually resonates a bit with the episode's conclusion. The alien Cytherians revealed at the climax explore the universe by bringing others to them, essentially using alien species as their mouthpiece much as Cyrano is used in the story. (This connection is likely just a coincidence, though, since the ending of this episode went through a last minute rewrite. More on that in a moment.)
The episode is also rather impressive from a technical perspective. The "Argus Array," the space telescope that makes for the initial Macguffin of the story, is an impressive bit of model work. The use of live lasers on the set to depict Barclay acting as the computer makes for a powerful visual. And Barclay's new propulsion method is depicted by shooting at a jarring 8 frames per second, a simple in-camera effect with impressive results.
Other observations:
- This is the second time in just a handful of episodes that a great story revolves around a first contact with a new alien culture. But interestingly, the scene featuring the Cytherian was rewritten on the very day it was filmed. Originally, the race was planned to be more malevolent, but the writers smartly decided not to play another "hostage situation" at the end of this episode.
- This episode shows a rare occasion when Worf makes a suggestion that Picard actually agrees with. (To use weapons on the alien probe.)
- It's too bad that Guinan couldn't have been used here somehow, particularly after her rather lackluster appearances in a few recent episodes. She had a rather significant role in the first Barclay episode (and Whoopi Goldberg had a role in getting Dwight Schultz on the show to begin with).
- In the middle of the episode, Barclay makes a truly meaningful point: "I've finally become the person I've always wanted to be. Do we have to ask why?" The episode has too much story to tell to make much of a moment of this, but it's a really powerful truth from a deeply cloistered individual finally coming out of his shell. I suspect many Star Trek fans might identify.
- The filtered computer voice of Barclay is reminiscent of HAL in 2001. Intentionally, I'd guess.
- The "teaser" of this episode (the part before the opening credits) is one of the longest in all of Star Trek, clocking in at more than 7 minutes. It's sort of a precursor to the way TV is made today, almost 25 years later. It's much more the style now to treat the teaser as simply one more act in the whole rather than a short... well... teaser of what's to come.
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