Writer:	Allison Hock, Ward Botsford, Diana Dru Botsford, Michael Piller
Director:	Adam Nimoy
Star:	Michael Dorn (Lt./Lt. Cmdr. Worf),  Patrick Stewart (Captain Jean-Luc Picard),  LeVar Burton (Lt. Cmdr. Geordi LaForge),  Jonathan Frakes (Cmdr. William T. Riker),  Marina Sirtis (Counsellor/Lt. Cmdr. Deanna Troi),  Brent Spiner (Lt. Cmdr. Data),  Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher)
Recurring Role:	Brian Bonsall (Alexander),  Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan),  Colm Meaney (Miles O'Brien),  Rosalind Chao (Keiko O'Brien),  Majel Barrett (Computer Voice),  Michelle Forbes (Ensign Ro Laren)
Guest Star:	David Birkin (Young Picard),  Isis Jones (Young Guinan),  Caroline Junko King (Young Keiko),  Megan Parlen (Young Ro),  Morgan Nagler (Child #1),  Hana Hatae (Molly O'Brien),  Tracey Walter (Berik),  Michael Snyder (Morik),  Mike Gomez (DaiMon Lurin)

The shot of the Enterprise firing from its saucer section as well as those of the Birds Of Prey are recycled FX from "Yesterday's Enterprise." (edit) This is the second time on the series that Riker has had a "son" named Jean-Luc. Neither times were they his real son. (edit) Riker mentions the name of the computer on the Enterprise. It's likely taken from the German physicist Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976). Heisenberg won a Nobel Prize for physics in 1932 and in World War II he headed the German's unsuccessful nuclear weapons project. Life under the Nazis was unbearable for Jewish and non-Jewish scientists like Albert Einstein, Max Born, Lise Meitner, and Wolfgang Pauli so they left, but Heisenberg and others chose to remain in Germany. (edit) Last appearance of Rosalind Chao as Keiko O'Brien on TNG. (edit) David Tristan Birkin (young Picard) played Jean Luc's nephew, Rene Picard, in Season 4's "Family." (edit)

12-year old Picard: I want to see my Father! I want to see him now! Now now now now now! (edit) Guinan: That's the thing about crayons... they can take you more places than a starship. (edit) Riker: (confusing the Ferengi) So, one more time. The remastat kiloquad capacity is a function: square-root the intermix ratio times the sum of the plasma injector quotion. (edit) Troi: I came to see how you're doing.
12 year old Picard: Well, I'll have to speak to my tailor, but otherwise I'm well. Thank you. (looking in the mirror) It's just so ridiculous. I can't take myself seriously like this. (edit)

The explanations for changing the characters' apparent ages, body masses, and other physical characteristics doesn't explain why they materialized on the transporter pad wearing child-sized uniforms instead of baggy, too-large adult uniforms. The fabric had no living DNA to be affected. (edit) Unfortunately, the writers of Star Trek series are repeatedly under the impression that altering DNA alters the host instantly. Even if every fragment of DNA in an organism was manipulated in exactly the same way simultaneously (which would be necessary, since many changes would cause the body's immune system to quickly kill the affected cells), the transporter system would have to selectively excise extra cells from the body (hence the drop in mass). Additionally, other changes (such as the fact that Picard had suddenly sprouted more hair) would, at the very least, take time to happen. In short, the whole transporter event is the usual ST bad science. (edit) The characters in this episode capture the Ferengi by attaching comm badges to them and then beaming them into a contained area. Why are the comm badges necessary? If they have access to the computer systems, can't they just scan for Ferengi bio signs and site-to-site transport them from inside of the classroom? (edit) The Ferengi say they are not affilliated with the Ferengi Alliance--that they are renegades--yet they also say they claim the Enterprise in accordance with Ferengi Salvage Codes. (edit) When young Picard asks "Daddy Riker" to turn on the computers in the classroom, he identifies the classroom as schoolroom 8. However, when Picard is at the computer, the computer identifies itself as being in Classroom 7. (edit)

Computer: I'm sorry, but I can't do that. Would you like to play a game?
The 12-year-old Picard gets allusions from two different classic sci-fi movies from his ship's computer. The first sentence comes from HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey. The second comes from the computer in WarGames. (edit)