Stardate: 41590.5
Original Air Date: November 23, 1987
Writers: Maurice Hurley & Gene Roddenberry
Director: Cliff Bole
“We have much to discuss, including perhaps the realization of your most impossible dream.”
The Enterprise has dropped off Counselor Troi at Starbase G-6 for a shuttle visit home, and the ship is now headed for the nearby Sigma III solar system which has transmitted an urgent call for medical help following an accidental explosion in a mining operation. Riker suggests the accident may have been caused by a methane gas leak, and Dr. Crusher is tasked with helping 504 injured colonists.
Suddenly, a mysterious grid entraps the Enterprise and it is revealed to have been caused by the Q entity. Q appears on the bridge as an “Aldebaran serpent” before transforming himself into a faux Starfleet admiral. What does he want? The Q launches a new “game” by transporting Riker, Data, Geordi, Worf, and Tasha Yar onto a strange barren planet reminiscent of a TOS set (where Q is dressed as a French marshal serving under Napoleon Bonaparte) while Picard is left alone on the Enterprise within suspended time but absent the use of his computer (he can’t even make a log entry).
The game is actually revealed to be a test of Riker when he is given the “greatest gift imaginable” –the full powers of the Q. Riker is then attacked by animalistic creatures (French pigs?), and Riker sends his compatriots back aboard the Enterprise. The Q expresses his hope to invite Riker to become a part of the Q in order to learn more about humanity’s unique “need and hunger” to grow as a species. But when Riker refuses to join the Q, the rest of the crew are beamed down to the planet –unarmed– and they are quickly attacked by the animalistic creatures before Riker saves the crew once again and they all return to the Enterprise. Will it be possible for Riker to refuse the omniscient power of the Q?
The Enterprise proceeds with its initial mission as it rescues people entrapped in the mines –Riker wonders if he should use his Q power to save children who were harmed in the mining accident. This leads to an uncomfortable confrontation between the bridge crew and Riker whose powers have started going to his head (he begins calling Picard “Jean-Luc” rather than “Captain”). To justify his powers, Riker begins offering beneficent gifts to his crewmen –Wesley is transformed into a fully grown man ten years ahead of his time, Data is offered the chance to be human, Geordi’s eyes are repaired, and Worf is offered a wife. But in the end, the crew reject these offers and Q is forced to disappear back into the continuum as per the agreement.
My Thoughts on “Hide and ‘Q’”
At its best, this episode offers a fascinating moral dilemma which compels the Enterprise to weigh the potential benefits of accepting Q’s godlike powers while soberly considering their devastating consequences. However, “Hide and ‘Q’” is still a clumsy season one episode in my view with plenty of clunky dialogue and eyebrow-raising character moments. Plus, the nature of the Q is still a bit befuddling to me. For example, if the Q can read minds and travel through time, wouldn’t he already know that the Enterprise crew will ultimately reject his offer anyway? What are the limits of his power?
My favorite moment in the episode occurs when Q appears on the bridge dressed as a hooded monk and remarks, “let us pray for understanding and for compassion.” To which Picard responds, “We shall do no such damn thing!” There are a few other quirky, fun moments in this episode (Worf’s growling and discussing Klingon sex, Geordi admiring Tasha Yar for the first time with his eyesight recovered, Geordi also admiring an older Wesley, and a few other moments), but at least this is not as bizarre or awkward as some of the other notorious first season episodes.
Writer/Director
The story for this episode was written by Maurice Hurley (1939-2015), the initial head writer and showrunner for TNG, but the teleplay received significant rewrites by Gene Roddenberry. Hurley then requested that his name appear as C.J. Holland in the credits.
Cliff Bole directed a total of 42 episodes of Star Trek across TNG, DS9, and Voyager.
Star Trek Trivia:
- This episode marks the second appearance of Q in TNG (played by John de Lancie) following the pilot episode “Encounter at Farpoint.”
- “Drink not with thine enemy” is apparently a part of the “rigid Klingon code” as mentioned in this episode. Klingon sex is also briefly alluded to.
- Q and Picard quote Shakespeare several times in this episode.
- Apparently, with Counselor Troi being temporarily written out of this episode, at the time actress Marina Sirtis was concerned that her character was being entirely written out of the show altogether.
This episode certainly made Q’s potential as a recurring villain more questionable. But for a sci-fi drama to make us realize the drawbacks of having great powers like the Q, it thankfully wasn’t as violent as the classic Trek’s second pilot. That shows how Roddenberry had succeeded into doing away with the forced dynamics that the classic Trek needed for the 60s. I’m not saying that I liked this TNG episode. But in setting the tone for much of what TNG was aiming for in its futuristically enhanced dramas, it’s easier to appreciate for how it made TNG its own Star Trek show and I give Roddenberry good points for that. Thank you for your review and trivia.