Part two of “The Best of Both Worlds” is just unbeatable, great story, action packed, conflict, emotionally charged because of what is happening to Picard, which he realizes himself even when he is Locutus of Borg. Note - I would not have minded, had this ben dragged out one or two more episodes. Also nice to see Riker is not petty regarding Shelby, he knows he needs her and she keeps him on his toes. In “Family” Picard needs to heal after what has happened with the Borg, so he goes back to his Brother in France, a small but enjoyable episode. In “Brothers” Data meets his brother Lore again. When Soon instructs Data to come back to him, he however accidentally also brings home Lore and he has a grudge towards Soong. Note - Brent Spiner as both Lore and Data is always a good story. He was even more busy, playing Soong.

“Suddenly Human” is one of the weakest of the season for me where The Enterprise rescues a small group Talarian adolescents, all wearing uniforms. They were on a training mission and one of them, Jono, turns out to be human. Note - Is not an episode I really get excited about, few funny moments, for one where Picard really tries to get out of the assignment of bonding with the boy but Troi is adamant that he needs to put some more effort into it. “Remember Me” only is a slight uptick from previous episode. Dr. Crusher is experiencing losing colleagues from the Enterprise. No one notices except her that the crew is diminishing from 1014 to just Dr. Crusher herself. But it is actually the Doctor who is been missing and the crew is trying to get her back, with the help of the Traveler. In “Legacy” The crew of the Enterprise enters into orbit around the home planet of their former crewmate, Tasha Yar, where they encounter her sister, Ishara Yar. She wins Data's friendship, but comes with a secret agenda. Ishara always thought Tasha was a coward for leaving. Note - An average episode, still Data’s scenes are the reason the episode remains interesting. Finale scene between Riker and Data was nice, as a result he is seriously doubting to start using his emotion chip he got from Soong.

“Reunion” is my first 8/10 or higher after the season opener. When the leader of the Klingon High Council dies, Picard finds himself in the middle of the struggle for the now-vacant position. Apparently one of his successors has poisoned K’mpec. Note - Again, these kind of Klingon episodes, I can appreciate, the politics, the games and so on. First time we meet Gowron. And K’Ehleyr is back which was also nice, a strong female character. “Future Impact” is also a strong episode where Riker awakens sixteen years after an away mission where he contracted a disease which destroyed his memory back to the point of infection - or so he's told. First it seems to be the Romulans, but it turns out to be alien who has this power, who lives alone of that planet and is feeling lonely. Note - Entertaining episode with a few twists, although a bit predictable. Always nice to see Andreas Katsulas again as the Romulan commander Tomalak.

In “The Final Mission” we say goodbye to Wesley, after he and Picard are on a dangerous mission. Meanwhile, A ship full of waste is the reason why a planet is “attacked” by radiation. Riker and the crew are trying to help them. Note - It was okay, but nothing more. I did like a number of scenes between Wesley and Picard. Guest starring: Nick Tate. In “The Loss” an unknown force drags the Enterprise. It also has a negative impact on Troi, she is no has her empathic abilities. This is not something she can handle with dignity and she resigns. Note - I saw an IMdB a grade of 6/10. With previous rewatches I would agree with that grade. However this time, for some reason, I enjoyed it more. Love the conversation between Guinan and Troi, about the positioning opening as councilor, trying to evoke a response from Troi. Although she isn’t her pleasant self, Marina Sirtis does a great job with this side of Troi. As a viewer you definitely can understand what she is going through.

In “Data’s Day” Data is writing Bruce Maddox a letter about Data’s daily routine, Keiko and Miles O’Brien are getting married…or won’t they...Enterprise picks up Ambassador T’Pel with a special mission that leads the Enterprise into the neutral zone. The Romulans are there too, as requested by T’Pel. Note - very funny episode, especially of course in regard to Data’s day. Laughed out loud multiple times. For instance: Data’s awkward look at T’Pel when they are in the turbo Lift and Data’s awkward smile as he is dancing with his virtual dancing partner. In “The Wounded, after being fired upon by a Cardassian vessel, Picard races against time to find out the facts behind the Cardassian commander's claim that the Federation attacked one of their outposts. Picard is ordered to maintain the peace at all costs. Maxwell is convinced that the Cardassians are regrouping and having a strategic military outpost close to the Federation border. Although Picard still apprehends him for killing almost 700 people, he still tells Gul Macet (Marc Alaimo) that Picard thinks Maxwell was right about these transport ships. Note – Bigger role for Chief O’Brien, definitely one the best episodes this season. Noticeably that Picard turns his back twice on people, first Maxwell, then later on Macet. Reminds me of the Klingons, a (no) honor thing.

For me, “Devil’s Due” is quite possibly the weakest episode of the season! While answering a distress call, Picard finds himself not sure of exactly who he is dealing with, but he's sure he's not dealing with the planet's version of the Devil, as she claims to be. Note - Astonished it gets an average of 7.2/10 on IMdB. I thought this was one of the weakest of the season. The episode annoyed me mostly as also the actress who played the Devil character. In “Clues” the effects of passing through a wormhole give the Enterprise crew a sense that they were unconscious for more than the thirty seconds they've been led to believe. Note - Good episode, a real mystery to solve! At first I thought it was a holodeck story with Picard as Dixon, happy this wasn’t the case. In “First Contact”, disguised as an alien prior to First Contact, Will Riker's life is in danger when incurred injuries reveal his foreign internal structure to a xenophobic alien population. Note - Thought this was a very good episode, one of the best this season. Mainly the political storyline I particularly liked, first contact with a new species. I also liked the ending, that this chancellor didn’t want to proceed because he felt, certainly after some incidents, that his people weren’t yet ready for first contact.

In “Galaxy’s Child” a tragic first contact leaves the Enterprise with a gigantic galactic infant suckling the ship's energy. Geordi La Forge finally meets the real Dr. Leah Brahms and certainly at first, this does not go as he hopes. Note - Guest star: Lanei Chapman as helmswoman Ensign Sariel Rager (Lt. Vanessa Damphousse in S:AAB). “Night Terrors” definitely is one of my least favorite season 4 episodes. After The Enterprise finds a Federation ship full of death people with only one survivor, a betazed, it gets trapped in a Tyken's Rift, an energy-absorbing rupture in space, where all but Data, Troi and Guinan experience rising hallucinations and paranoia. Troi is the only one that is dreaming but she is having nightmares, but this ultimately is the key the solution for them to escape their fate. Note - I really didn’t love the dream sequence Troi was in each time. Guest stars: Lanei Chapman & John Vickery (a.o. Babylon 5). In “Identity Crisis” Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge and an old friend fight to defeat a parasite that is trying to transform them into another species. Note - It was okay episode, but that’s about it. In “The Nth Agree” When assigned to investigate an unknown probe, Lt. Barclay is hit by an energy surge, through a shuttlecraft's computer, and he receives an inexplicable boost of confidence and a vast increase in his knowledge. Note - Always nice to see Dwight Schultz return, always a bit awkward, uncomfortable around people. He is a great actor. In “Q Pid” Aiming to get out of Jean-Luc's debt, Q forces Capt. Picard and his officers to live out the Legend of Robin Hood - with Vash as Maid Marian. Note - We see a sight of Picard we normally do not see. Was interesting to see Picard with Vash. Otherwise not a favorite episode of mine.

In “Drumhead” A retired admiral boards the Enterprise in an effort to determine the actions aboard the ship surrounding an act of sabotage and possible treason. Note - Brilliant episode where you see how quickly you can be branded a criminal or a spy, when an important person is convinced of this, he or she tends to get most of the crowd with him or her. Nice performances of Patrick Stewart and Jean Simmons. Best episode since “First Contact”. In “Half A Life” Counselor Troi's mother visits the Enterprise and becomes infatuated with a man whose culture forces him into a suicidal ritual called "The Resolution." It is their custom to take their own life at 60. Lwaxana horrors with the thought and cannot understand his willingness to go through with this. Note - Beforehand I thought I would not enjoy this episode much, but I did, an emotional episode because of these two characters, Lwaxana and Timicin (David Ogden Stiers), I am really going soft. Other guest star: Michelle Forbes as the daughter of Timicin. In “The Host” Dr. Crusher falls for someone who's not at all what she expects him to be. He is a Trill and only when he gets injured he tells Crusher what he is. Note - This was an episode I didn’t really like at all. Happy that the Trill has changed when starting DS9, it would’ve hidden / interfered with Terry Farrel’s beauty. I know it should not matter….but it does.

In “The Mind’s Eye” Geordi is brainwashed by the Romulans to start a war between the Klingons and the Federation. He has been kidnapped on his way to Risa. The Romulans want a war between the Federation and the Klingons and are trying to provoke this by getting Georgie to kill the Klingon Governor Vagh. Vagh claims the Federation is helping these rebels. Klingon ambassador Kell is trying to intermediate but in reality he is the one working with the Romulans to try and cause a war. Note - This was actually a good episode, shame though the Romulans were there only the first 10+ minutes or so. In “In Theory” A colleague of Data falls in love with him after she just broke-off another relationship. Data goes by his friends and colleagues to ask for advice about what his next action should be. Note - Fun episode, Data has some great funny lines.

In “Redemption” Gowron is about to become the new Klingon Chancellor and asks Picard for help to prevent a Klingon civil war. Note - Definitely one of the best this season, not a fan of Klingons perse, but I really like these political Klingon episodes. Love the scene between Worf and Guinan and also scene with Picard and Lursa and B’ Etor, where Picard lets them know he knows the Romulans are involved! And the women realize this immediately. Also some powerful Picard moments and a familar face, as you can see below. A real treat!

Final Word:

Really enjoyed this season, some really strong episodes, but again, there are still too many episodes that are okay at best. I really love these Next Generation characters, I enjoy these characters more and more, so yes, even the episodes which are not stellar, it is still enjoyable because of these characters, can’t wait for season 5! And yes, I wrote one page less with my season 4 blog in comparison to my season 3 blog!

Blog written with the help of IMdB. Screencaps taken from Trekcore