Man of the People (S06E03)
Airdate: 5 October 1992
Written by: Frank Abatemarco
Directed by: Winrich Kolbe
Running Time: 46 minutes
By its penultimate season, Star Trek: The Next Generation had matured into a remarkably well-oiled machine. Even when grappling with a palpable lack of inspirational fuel - a deficit that would have crippled a less assured series - the show could reliably deliver competent, watchable hours. Man of the People, the third episode of the sixth season, stands as a prime exhibit of this phenomenon. It is, in the end of the day, a largely forgettable entry, yet it remains broadly satisfactory television. One might even view it, somewhat cynically, as an extended piece of fan service, engineered to function smoothly within the established parameters of the Enterprise-D's weekly operations without challenging them unduly.
The plot mechanics engage with reliable efficiency. The Enterprise responds to a distress call from the Federation ship Dorian, which is transporting the diplomat Ves Alkar (Chip Lucia) to the planet Seronia. Alkar, a member of the empathic Lumerian species, is tasked with mediating a delicate peace between the warring worlds of Rekag and Seconia. He beams aboard with Sev Maylor (Susan French), an elderly woman he introduces as his mother. The initial intrigue is minimal, adhering to a standard template of mysterious diplomatic guests. Upon arrival at Seronia, however, Maylor exhibits sudden, virulent hostility towards Counsellor Deanna Troi before promptly dying. Alkar conducts a funeral rite where Troi touches ceremonial stones, and he then forbids an autopsy on religious grounds, despite Dr. Crusher's discovery of bizarre neurotransmitter residues in the deceased woman's system.
The episode's central mystery then unfolds through Troi's disturbing transformation. As the ship nears Seronia, the empathic counsellor begins to act entirely out of character. She becomes caustic and dismissive towards her patients, such as the hapless Ensign Janeway (Lucy Boryer). Her demeanour shifts dramatically towards the predatory; she adopts provocative attire and openly seduces a young, nameless ensign (J. P. Hubbell). Concurrently, she ages at an alarming rate and develops an irrational, violent jealousy towards Alkar, even attempting to murder him as he prepares to beam down to meet his female aide, Liva (Stephanie Erb). This grotesque metamorphosis is the episode's primary engine, and it is only when Dr. Crusher finds the same alien residue in Troi as in Maylor that Captain Picard authorises an autopsy. The grim revelation follows: Maylor's internal organs were those of a much younger woman.
Confronted on the planet, Alkar coolly admits his culpability. He explains his "gift": the ability to channel all his negative emotions and ageing into a "receptacle," thereby maintaining his own objective calm for diplomacy. He is utterly unapologetic, viewing his "receptacles" as necessary tools, and refuses to help the rapidly deteriorating Troi. The resolution, concocted by Dr. Crusher, is a piece of contrived medical melodrama. Troi is induced into clinical death to trick Alkar into returning to the ship to select Liva as his next victim. Upon his arrival, Crusher releases the neurotransmitter residue, causing the process to reverse catastrophically upon Alkar himself. He ages to death in moments, while Troi recovers. The episode concludes on a sentimental note, with Commander Riker assuring Troi he would stay with her "even when you're old and grey," a line that plays directly to the audience's investment in their will-they-won't-they romance.
On a technical level, the episode is competently shepherded by series veteran Winrich Kolbe. The deficiency lies squarely in the script by Frank Abatemarco, which garnered a notably poor reputation even among the production staff. It was widely considered a rushed product, born of schedule reshufflings. Its foundational concept is a rather uninspired science-fiction gloss on Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, transplanting the motif of a hidden portrait that bears the burden of sin and age into the realm of empathic parasites. The diplomatic subplot is perfunctory, serving merely as a backdrop, and the villain himself is a critical failure. Actor Chip Lucia delivers a performance of utter blandness; his Alkar is neither charismatically sinister nor intriguingly ambivalent, but simply a dull, pompous cipher. Without a compelling antagonist, the moral conflict lacks weight.
What rescues Man of the People from total mediocrity, and indeed renders it watchable, is the committed performance of Marina Sirtis. Liberated from Troi's typically serene and supportive demeanour, Sirtis visibly relishes the chance to explore her character's shadow side. Her scene berating Ensign Janeway is a highlight, crackling with a venomous pettiness entirely foreign to the ship's counsellor. Sirtis has noted she modelled this incarnation on Anne Bancroft's Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate, and that inspiration is evident in the predatory, world-weary sexuality she projects in her interactions with the younger crewman. This is fan service of a different, more effective kind: the pleasure of seeing a familiar actor tear into a rare, juicy character shift. It provides a visceral charge that the schematic plot otherwise lacks.
Furthermore, the script consciously plays upon the deep-seated romantic history between Troi and Will Riker. The final scene, with Riker's tender vow, is pure "red meat" for Troi/Riker 'shippers,' offering a tantalising hint that their long-stalled relationship could be rekindled. This emotional beat, while somewhat tacked-on, leverages the series' extensive history to generate a warmth and resonance that the A-story struggles to achieve on its own merits.
Man of the People is a textbook example of The Next Generation on autopilot. Its plot is a derivative, mechanically executed conceit, its villain is forgettable, and its resolution feels hastily contrived. Yet, the machine was so finely tuned by Season Six that even this underwhelming material produces a passable instalment. The episode is ultimately saved from oblivion by Marina Sirtis's entertaining departure from type and by the reliable emotional pull of the Troi-Riker dynamic.
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RATING: 5/10 (++)
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