Season 4 contains the 80th episode of The Next Generation, at which point it surpassed the output of the Original Series. A number of extended themes played out during this season delving into both the political backdrop and the personal lives of the crew. These continuing storylines proved extremely popular, however they did not detract from the use of Science Fiction to tell interesting stories. Senior Trekker continues to score every episode with a 5.
This episode combines the awkward meeting of Geordi LaForge with real life Doctor Leah Brahms (his fantasy crush) and a bit of silliness about an orphan space creature latching onto the ship and draining it of power.
The wonderful Susan Gibney, who played Leah, actually auditioned unsuccessfully for a number of Star Trek leads, in both The Next Generation and Voyager. Although she appeared again in a minor role in Deep Space Nine, this was her most memorable character. Her confusion, turning into outrage, as Geordi awkwardly attempts to woo her and is finally revealed to have had a relationship with her hologram is unforgettable. It's a shame that Star trek didn't contribute more to the actress's career because she, in turn, gave us so much.
I'm sorry to have to point this out but Geordi's angry riposte that he was "just trying to reach out and be friendly" comes straight out of a creepy stalker's play-book. He was a stranger who had appropriated her image for his own private ends. Not good. I'm glad that they reached an amicable resolution by the end of the episode and in one possible future (All Good Things, Season 7) they appear to have married but, in the meantime, the chap could do with a visit to Counsellor Troi.
If the Space Child part of the episode seems familiar it is because something similar took place in the Original Series; even in the use of the expression "we soured the milk" when the Enterprise got rid of "Junior" by changing the frequency of its power output. Patrick Stewart did manage to add a note of seriousness with his genuine regret at having accidentally killed the parent, an unknown life-form, but otherwise its pretty forgettable.
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