Liaisons (S07E02)
Airdate: 27 September 1993
Written by: Jeanne Carrigan Fauci & Lisa Rich
Directed by: Cliff Bole
Running Time: 46 minutes
The final season of Star Trek: The Next Generation presented a fascinating and somewhat melancholic challenge for the series creators. With the franchise's reputation already secured by a decade of previous triumphs and a feature film on the horizon, the remaining season naturally began to feel like a gradual winding down. By this point, the production staff and studio executives were likely already shifting their creative energies toward the upcoming feature films or the concurrent development of *Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Consequently, the writing began to show signs of fatigue, with some episodes settling into repetitive patterns that lacked the spark of innovation seen in earlier years. "Liaisons," the second episode of the seventh season, might be one such example—almost serviceable entry that nonetheless feels like a product of a franchise running out of steam.
The plot of "Liaisons" kickstarts with the arrival of two Iyaran ambassadors, Loquel (Paul Eiding) and Blyeth (Michael Harris), aboard the USS Enterprise-D as part of a cultural exchange programme. The Iyarans are a race that has only recently established contact with the wider galaxy, making them eager students of Federation life. Their presence on the ship allows the show to explore the concept of alien sociology through the lens of cultural immersion. Meanwhile, Captain Jean-Luc Picard takes a leave of absence to travel to the Iyaran home world, accompanied by a shuttle pilot named Voval (Eric Pierpoint). Before departing, Picard assigns Commander Worf to serve as the guide for Loquel, while Deanna Troi takes on the role of mentor for Blyeth.
However, as the episode progresses, it becomes clear that the two ambassadors are not cut from the same cloth. Loquel treats Worf with increasing disdain, bordering on open hostility. In stark contrast, Blyeth exhibits a genuine, almost childlike curiosity about human society. This is particularly intriguing given the Iyaran biological trait: they do not have childhoods but are instead produced fully grown. Blyeth’s fascination extends to the concept of pleasure, specifically in the realm of food. When he is introduced to the concept of dessert, he becomes not only intrigued but visibly engrossed, eventually consuming a significant amount of chocolate. This detail, while minor, highlights the alienness of the Iyarans and their detachment from simple sensory pleasures. Meanwhile, Loquel’s provocation of Worf escalates until it culminates in a scene where he is caught cheating at a poker game, a petty act that underscores his arrogance and his desire to undermine Worf’s authority.
While the interactions on the Enterprise provide the bulk of the episode's setup, the narrative shifts dramatically when the Iyaran shuttle carrying Picard and Voval malfunctions and crashes on what appears to be a Class-M planet. Voval suffers a concussion, and during Picard's search for help, he is knocked unconscious by a plasma surge and dragged into the wilderness. When he awakens, he finds himself in a small, isolated cabin. Here, he encounters Anna (Barbara Williams), a woman who claims to be the sole survivor of a Terellian freighter that crashed seven years ago. Anna immediately assumes the role of caregiver, tending to Picard’s injuries and claiming his broken ribs. She is desperate for companionship and quickly develops a romantic fixation on him. When Picard tries to send her to the shuttlecraft for help, she sabotages the transmitter, claiming it was destroyed. Her infatuation with Picard is portrayed as delusional; she professes her love for him and becomes distraught when he firmly rejects her advances. Picard, ever the sceptic, begins to piece together inconsistencies. He eventually rejoins Voval, who is alive and well, despite Anna’s claims to the contrary. Picard observes that Anna appears only when Voval is absent and vice versa, leading him to suspect a deception. The tension peaks when Anna threatens to throw herself off a cliff unless Picard reciprocates her feelings. Picard calls her bluff, and the truth is soon revealed: Anna was merely a holographic projection created by Voval. Voval had faked his own injuries and crafted the illusion of a long-lost human survivor to study human emotions and reactions in a controlled environment. Picard, wise enough to understand the value of the experiment, accepts this explanation without holding a grudge.
Upon returning to the Enterprise, the episode circles back to the situation with Worf and Loquel. Worf has been in a physical altercation with Loquel, but the ambassador later reveals that he was deliberately provoking Worf to study anger and antagonism. Picard learns that Loquel had actually been taught how to antagonise people by Worf himself through a holodeck battle simulation. It’s a neat bit of circular storytelling, though it feels somewhat underdeveloped given the episode's runtime.
Liaisons employs a typically Star Trek concept of exploring new races and civilisations, with the Federation itself becoming the subject of such exploration by bizarre aliens. It isn’t the first episode to employ this trope, but the lack of originality in the premise could have been compensated with slightly better execution. There were certainly potentials for that, particularly in the Enterprise segment, where the interactions between the Iyaran ambassadors and the Starfleet crew provide some mild, slightly bemused humour. The contrast between the diplomatic Blyeth and the abrasive Loquel offers a decent, if minor, social commentary on cultural expectations.
However, the segment that takes place on the isolated planet is significantly weaker. It is plainly inspired by Stephen King’s novel Misery, relying on the tropes of the "crash survivor" and the "unreliable saviour." Despite the potential for an unusual and potentially disturbing quasi-romance, the execution falls flat. The dialogue is stiff, and the emotional beats feel manufactured. Most notably, Barbara Williams fails to generate any genuine romantic chemistry with Patrick Stewart. Stewart carries the scene with his usual gravitas, but his interactions with Williams feel forced, lacking the subtle tension that a good romance requires. The whole set-up looks fake, especially in the melodramatic finale where Anna’s desperate pleas for love feel more like a script contrivance than a believable human reaction. The reveal that Voval was the mastermind behind the deception is anticlimactic, serving merely as a mechanism to move the plot forward rather than a profound character moment.
In the end, "Liaisons" looks entertaining enough not to be a complete waste of time, but it is nevertheless a step way beyond the high standards TNG accustomed its fans in previous seasons. It serves as a reminder of the creative exhaustion that can plague long-running series, offering a forgettable story that feels more like a checklist item than a compelling narrative journey.
RATING: 4/10 (+)
Blog in Croatian https://draxblog.com
Blog in English https://draxreview.wordpress.com/
InLeo blog https://inleo.io/@drax.leo
Substack https://draxster.substack.com
LeoDex: https://leodex.io/?ref=drax
InLeo: https://inleo.io/signup?referral=drax.leo
Hiveonboard: https://hiveonboard.com?ref=drax
1Inch: https://1inch.exchange/#/r/0x83823d8CCB74F828148258BB4457642124b1328e
BTC donations: 1EWxiMiP6iiG9rger3NuUSd6HByaxQWafG
ETH donations: 0xB305F144323b99e6f8b1d66f5D7DE78B498C32A7
BCH donations: qpvxw0jax79lhmvlgcldkzpqanf03r9cjv8y6gtmk9