Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 2 Episode 13

A great plot base on a time quandry riddle.





Picard and the crew must battle their trepidation of the future in order to solve the surprise arrival of their own #5 shuttle and a facsimile incoherent Picard. Most of the scenes set out to build up tension and worrying for what it all means as the Enterprise is on a collision course with a seemingly unalterable series of events. When the time comes for the finale you will probably be caught up worrying as much as the Ryker et al. Which is what youre supposed to do. Though the locations are set mostly on board the Enterprise, the story is strong enough to propel you through and keep you interested in the climax of this show. The alien vortex is very good effects compared to Series 1. While the best part of the plot is the finale as the fully aware duplicate Picard and the "real" Picard as they look to be on a collision course to repeat and stay in the loop.





Thankfully, though Picard does what can only be described as something unthinkable in order to change the future and save the day.





Worth one watch!

What makes this episode fun is that it takes the big concept of time travel and goes small with it; dealing with only six hours rather than six years or sixty years. It's an idea future episodes of Trek (in particular, TNG's "Cause and Effect") would borrow and execute even better. As for "Time Squared", it is interesting from a mystery standpoint, but ultimately fails to supply a satisfying conclusion. (The original ending, involving Q, was vetoed by Gene Roddenberry, and the writers didn't really know what to put it its place.) Still, it's a fun episode in "the journey is its own reward" sort of way.

Time travel themes have been good to Star Trek - especially, in my opinion, The Next Generation. Some of the best TNG episodes (and movies) have dealt with time travel or time anomalies or other thing related to time and Season Two's "Time Squared" was the first full-out time travel episodes (Season One's "We'll Always Have Paris" was the first to throw in a plot element about time though) of many more to come - and boy is it a good one.





Picard and crew find a mysterious shuttle floating around in space - upon retrieving it, they discover that the pilot is in fact Captain Picard himself! Doctor Pulaski learns that it is actually Picard from six hours into the future and Data and Geordi learn from the shuttle's logs that something terrible happens to the Enterprise. Suddenly the fate of the Enterprise, her crew, and her Captain become very uncertain as the situation becomes dire.





"Time Squared" is very well directed by Joseph L. Scanlan, who wields mystery and suspense like a ninja wields a pair of nunchucks, and Patrick Stewart is terrific within a story that takes Picard places he had never gone (and would ever be again) in the series. This is undoubtably one of the finest episodes of Season Two of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

A shuttle from 6 hours into the future is found by the Enterprise. Brought on board, we find a second Captain Picard, and some log files detailing the circumstances that prompted him to leave the ship.





This is very cleverly plotted; not only to make use of Picard's character and mannerisms, but as an inventive piece of science fiction. When it is revealed, the entity that ensnared the Enterprise, and Troi reveals an intelligence albeit an in instinctive form only, one has to wonder if this is a twisted game engineered by Q. (As much as they try to suggest, a galactic tornado that can suck down a ship traveling at warp 9 can't be a natural occurring act). Either way, it's cool, but fathoming Q only makes it icing on the cake.





Just four questions:





1. How do they tractor beam the shuttle in? The first tractor beam is at a vertical angle. (an extension pole lifts out of the hull to assist). The second one is positioned at an angle in the shuttle bay, rather than straight ahead to assist with the laws of physics (the tractor unit in the shuttle put at an angle to make it look less crowded on the screen by the director; it's a small nitpick)





2. When Geordi laments the inverted power connections should blow up the circuitry, everything powers up. Yet on the initial attempt, circuits were overloaded. Do shuttles have self-healing capability?





3. Why does the entity fire lightning at both Picards? (it thinks both of them are the 'brains') Of course, the other Picard becomes fully conscious and mobile once hit. That's the bit that doesn't add up; at least on initial observation.





4. Once they pass through the entity, it vanishes. Without much an explanation, which seems odd given how Riker wanted to stay and study the thing in the first place, and how Picard would have too if he didn't meet himself from the future. Still, add in the theory Q was behind it all and it works.





As usual, this episode exemplifies what makes Star Trek great -- especially the second season, which is grossly underrated. The episode hooks you in with a novel idea, plays it out on both sci-fi and character-based terms, and follows through without cheating along the way when the plot becomes more difficult. Definitely a must-see.

'Time Squared' is a second season classic that utilised a nifty time travel premise at a time in the show's run where time travel hadn't become 'old hat' and where the novelty factor really acted in the episode's favour.





The discovery of a duplicate Enterprise shuttle containing a duplicate Picard is handled with aplomb, and as the episode unfolds things get more ominous (the duplicate Picard is from 6 hours in the future, where the Enterprise will seemingly be destroyed). There's a genuinely creepy, unnerving feel throughout, helped no douby by a memorably intense music score.





In short, it's an atmospheric and entertaining episode that keeps the viewer guessing right up to the climax. Unfortunately, the resolution itself is perhaps a little disappointing (why would flying into the anomaly get them out of it?), but this is apparently because the episode was rewritten at the last minute. Originally Q was going to have been behind the anomaly and the end of this episode would have led into a subsequent Q episode (possibly 'Q Who?'). Overall, a keeper though and well worth a watch.

When the "enterprise" encounters a federation shuttlecraft cartwheeling out of control. It is brought aboard in shuttle bay 2. Riker inspects the shuttle and finds it came from the "enterprise". What is odd is they already have a shuttle #05. Dr Pulaski inspects the person on board the alternate shuttle. It is Captain Picard. But how could it be? Why is there two Picards. Data inpects the shuttle and finds that the shuttle is from the future. It's clock is six hours ahead of the rest of the ship. This is great sci-fi episode I give it a 9.0.

I have always considered the second season of Star Trek: The Next Generation to be my least favorite. The main reason being Diana Muldaur. She was a liability. I'm glad that she lasted only one season. Still, season two has some very good episodes. "Time Squared" is definitely one of them. I have seen it many times and each time I am very entertained seeing the story run its course. The climax of the story, where Picard confronts his future self, is very compelling. Patrick Stewart gives another one of his many excellent performances on Star Trek:The Next Generationin this episode.

Going back through the second season, I'm constantly surprised by how many good episodes there are - I had only remembered "Measure of a Man" and "Q Who", but "Time Squared" and "Contagion" are also very good.





Like "Contagion", this episode is a thriller -- but it also has a certain psychological depth that the earlier episode lacked. In this one, the level of dread gradually rises as the Enterprise slowly drifts toward its rendezvouz with disaster. There are all sorts of small vignettes - Geordi and Data figuring out how to repower the shuttle, Pulaski and Troi in sick bay, Picard yelling at his double from the future, O'Brien expressing dumbfounded shock at the disappearance of the double - that together aggregate into one excellent whole. And the musical score is outstanding, adding marvelously to the escalating tension. Patrick Stewart gives another brilliant performance, showcasing a side of Picard that we rarely see - a Picard beset by doubts and who at some points loses his composure.





The rest of the ensemble does a great job as well. Maybe my memory is fuzzy, but this is probably the best performance up until this point by both Marina Sirtis and Diana Muldaur - their tense argument in sick bay is an integral part of the episode.





TNG did a bunch of time travel episodes, and in general the execution was riddled with inconsistencies and contradictions. But as long as you don't worry too much about internal logic, these episodes - "Time Squared", "Yesterday's Enterprise", "Cause and Effect" (which in many ways echoes "Time Squared" and arguably tops the original), "Tapestry", "All Good Things..." - are among the best of the series.

This episode is one that really sticks in my mind across the entire life of the program. The second Picard is a disturbing and paradoxical enigma for the crew of the Enterprise. There is also the interesting theme of what if you knew you had exactly so long left to live. The destruction of the ship is inevitable in a sense and the real Picard's frustration at his future self's incohesive speech is portrayed very well by Patrick Stewart. I liked the physical fight against the sink hole too and the way the ship tried to throw its all power into escaping only to be pulled harder and harder. In many ways, this episode was truly fascinating for its paradoxical nature and personally made me think about it a long time afterwards.

This was a very good episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. It was very exciting and dealt with some very interesting themes.





The involvement of the time loop and what path the Enterprise should take all makes this a good episode. I believe that the Enterprise should of changed course, because they would of not done that originally, hence, cancelling out the whole time loop.