6.05 Schisms

Rating: 2.5

Riker experiences fatigue, stress, and the feeling that it is time to wake up moments after his head hits the pillow. Soon he finds that his feelings of being trapped and invaded have been shared by other crewmembers. Piecing together their memories, they realized they have been abducted and experimented on by aliens who have entered through a sub-space rift.

Comments

This is a nice little mystery, with probably too many shots of Riker wearing his pajamas. J

There’s way too much technobabble in this episode, some of it laughable.

The VOY episode scientific method uses a very similar concept.

As I watched this episode, I came up with a tagline for it: "In sub-space, no one can hear you sub-scream."

Nits

Why is Worf and team strolling so slowly to the cargo bay where an explosion was thought to have occurred?

When Riker complains of fatigue, Crusher suspects that he is not getting REM sleep. She prescribes a warm milk toddy, stating that heating the milk releases a natural sedative. Note that Riker did not complain of being unable to sleep. Why does he need a sedative? And will warm milk increase his REM sleep?

When the victims are recreating their shared memories, they all remember a table. Troi asks, "Can you remember what shape it was?" A woman says, "Long. It was long." ‘Long’ is not a shape! It’s a vague measurement as best.

On that same subject, the victims start a group session at a conference table, discussing what they remember, which isn’t much. Then they move to the holodeck, and suddenly, they seem to be able to remember exactly what the table looked like, how many restraints it had, and what other implements of turture were surrounding it!

I found it amazing that the computer was able to duplicate the exact table in so few jumps, given the vagueness of the descriptions.

Memorable Moments

•    Data’s Poem: Ode to Spot

•    The lighting and sets in the alien’s abduction chamber