Synopsis: Federation scientists develop a new method of space travel and decide that the alpha testing stage should risk the lives of billions of people. And a couple lizards.
Memory Alpha Summary: 1/4 Human, 3/4 Annoying
Review: So, this soliton wave experiment doesn’t work (surprise) and we learn it will destroy most of the planet it was aimed at (!). I’m guessing the citizens of said planet did not sign a joint waiver releasing the scientists from liability, but perhaps that’s part of joining the Federation. Back to the wave, the Enterprise needs to stop it by setting off an explosion in front it. Since they don’t have time to go around it, they go through it, suffering some significant but not fatal damage. Just so I understand, this wave does moderate damage to the Enterprise but will annihilate an entire planet?
Unfortunately this couldn’t be explained because Worf was too busy being a deadbeat dad. In Alexander’s first significant episode, we learn he behaves quite well considering most kids going through what he has (murdered mother, absent father, grandparents who want to shuffle him off) would have reactive attachment disorder. Yet Worf is ashamed of him. But to save his bad parenting, the plot forces him to save his son’s life (and the aforementioned lizards); consequently, they both decide they want to be with each other for a while.
Damn.
Death By Troggles 
So did season five represent a strong dip in quality, or is this just a coincidence so far?
Actually, season five probably represents the end of TNG’s crest of most consistent quality (I think most agree that 3 through 5 are the strongest overall), it just has a few really big clunkers. But almost every season does (the first two have more than a few, season 7 has the Irish ghost sex episode, which I expect to see soon, etc.)
Scottish ghost sex, I mean. Yeah, I watched that episode once in the 90s and never again.
Yeah, I think that one might be in my bottom 3.
“should risk the lives of billions of people. And a couple lizards.”
Bah, there’s no way Riker would let gilvos die.
If season 5 represented a drop in quality, it was in large part because they managed to find a kid that was even more annoying than Wesley – and immediately set him to work in eroding any trace of badassery in Worf’s character that hadn’t been torn from him during one of the million times he was tossed like a paperdoll around the brudge by some super-powered new alien.
Like Wesley, Alexander had a couple of ok moments. They didn’t really make up for the cheese of the rest of them.
I especially liked the part where Worf suddenly was stronger than he and Riker had been together because Alexander said he was scared or he loved him or some crap like that.
Wesley’s biggest problem was that the writers kept making him into such a superkid that no one could stand him. Alexander’s biggest problem was that he sucked.
I dunno, Alexander kicked ass in that episode where they all got turned into kids. Most of Wesley’s lines were “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you!”
I was trying to pinpoint a representative clunker from Season 6 for my list above, and I think you’ve nailed it with “that episode where they all got turned into kids”. “He’s my Number One Dad!”, indeed.
Yeah, they just didn’t handle children well at all. Romance either. It’s almost like the show was written by a bunch of nerds who had never gotten laid or experienced the products thereof.
sometimes I wonder how much of it was the writers and how much of it was the producers hacking and slashing scripts
Although, in all fairness to that episode, mostly it was supposed to be humor. I think.
It’s fascinating watching you guys talk about upcoming episodes and having to restrain myself from dropping hints as to when you’ll see said episodes.
But DK is right; season five is pretty strong, but there was a month there that was just not good.