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Star Trek: The Next Generation 1x22 "Symbiosis" - Full Watch-along (Patreon)

Published:
2026-01-06 19:00:04
Imported:
2026-10

Content

Follow along with me using your own copy of the episode!

Files

Star Trek: The Next Generation 1x22 "Symbiosis" - Full Watch-along

Comments

Preaching to the Horse's Mouth

Probs not my favourite episode but a solid one. Very Star Trek in that it takes a present day social issue and puts it into a sci fi context. Tasha's Don't Do Drugs Kids speech is a little cringe but whatever lol. I wish we'd done more with the electrical zappy zap, pretty cool idea. I don't know what else we could have done but it feels a little just tossed in there. As I often do, commenting before I get the chance to watch. Look forward to it as always, B.

Super Sunny Sunblade

Just when the crew thinks they're having a SUNNY day, they get a distress call from someone who isn't having one...Or IS he?! Hehehe...😹

Jim Jones

"yeah, eclipse that bitch" 🤣 This is one of my favorite episodes from season 1. The ethical dilemma is 100% Trek. It leaves us feeling like we're in a quagmire of morality. It's an episode that does a great job of putting the Prime Directive (PD) in a spotlight. A spotlight filled with shades of gray. Picard made the right decision by not intervening. But the PD also gave him a way to help... by not intervening. I love Star Trek! P. S. Go back and watch Tasha in the background when Picard and Crusher walk out of the bay at the end.

Mark Chrisco

Surprised you didn't recognize Judson Scott who played Khan's right hand man Joaquin in the Wrath of Khan.

William Terry

I fall under the Team Beverly category. How can the Ornarans work if they're sneezing all day? I love Picard's snarky use of PD even when it won't change the evolution of either planet. I'm reading Defeat and Division, part of my required immersion into WW2 non-fiction.

Desmond

You are correct that the question of money/currency is handled a little inconsistently in this franchise. The best way to understand it is that although the Federation itself does not use currency internally, they must have some kind of credit or tradeable resources that they can use with cultures that do. You are also right that Merritt Butrick (who tragically passed away not long after this was filmed) is in this episode, and he portrayed David in Wrath of Khan and the next film. There's another Star Trek 2 alumnus as well, the leader of the Brekkians is Judson Scott, who played Khan's first in command, Joachim in that film as well.

Desmond

And yes, your uncomfortableness with the Prime Directive and resolution of this episode is completely appropriate, and I think exactly what the writers intended. There is no easy answer here. As for Ken Follet, he's a good writer, and my only recommendation of his to offer would be Pillars of the Earth; takes place in the medieval age, and it's about the construction of a cathedral, and all the drama and intrigue surrounding it. There was also a decent TV miniseries adaptation of it, starring Ian McShane and Hayley Atwell, just to name a few.

Mark Gosine

Hold on a sec..it's not Friday! 😂

Mark Gosine

You are the superior intellect. I honestly never made the connection.

Mark Gosine

Yes, Kirk would've said this is not a naturally developing society and told them they were addicted. Then proceeded on to lecture the Bitches; accompanied with a crescendo of music.

Greg

I'm late watching this, so people have already said a lot of what I would have, but I can say what I thought of this episode and add a little context. I agree with your feelings and reactions on this episode 100 percent Bunny. I do like this episode, even though it didn't do very well when it aired. It leaves you feeling icky at the end -- classic Star Trek, a lot of great episodes do that. Yes, what Picard did is 'correct' in how he used the Prime Directive, but could another way have been found while keeping the Prime Directive? I don't know, but I understand totally how Crusher felt here as your instinct is just to help these people. Data mentioned at first contact with these two planets 200 hundred years 'one of them was on the verge of space travel'. So only one of them had freighters. Once those freighters break down, that ends the trade, unless another way is found. In addition, there's the fact that messages from one planet are being 'relayed' by a transmitter found on the other planet. Under the power of the drug addiction, one race has stagnated and doesn't even know how to repair tech anymore, and the other has built their entire economy and culture around a SINGLE product, which as history shows us does NOT end well (Venezuela, anyone?) The 'Just Say No' speech that Tasha gave felt forced and corny cause it was. The director forced it into the script over the objections of the actors, who didn't like it one bit. Years later in interviews he admitted perhaps they were right. And speaking about Tasha -- as someone already pointed out, there's a neat easter egg with her in this episode. Here's how to find it when you go to edit this later -- Towards the end of the episode, as Picard and Crusher leave the cargo bay, Crosby can be seen waving goodbye to the camera behind them (timestamp 42:15, she is clearly visible above Patrick Stewart's left shoulder as the bay doors close). This is because the episodes were shown out of order, and this episode was filmed AFTER 'Skin of Evil' so this was the last time she was playing her role. (Folks, I can say this as she's already finished watching Season one) Merritt Butrick being included here was a big favor to him. He was dying of AIDS when Next Generation started, but because he didn't have any recent screen time in any projects the actors guild wouldn't offer insurance and cover his medical costs. The people at Next Generation, upon finding this out, offered him a guest role spot in a episode so he could 'renew' his actor credits, so to say, and get that medical coverage. Sadly he passed away less then a year after the episode was filmed. Finally, it's interesting to note that drugs are just a big a problem now as they were during the 80's when this was made and produced, but has our treatment of the problems really gotten any better? Sometimes Star Trek ages poorly -- sometimes it ages very well.

Summer

The Federation trades energy credits or supplies for everything but some of their cultures and all outside the Federation have different currencies. The Onarin payment was lost in the frieghter you would think the Brekians would have saved that…maybe they did.team Bev. though Picard was shrewd, I think he didn’t offer Federation aid in honor of plot/message the episode wanted. I tend to think the prime directive changes every few months often dependant on the writer. Yes interference includes saving that ship. Suffice to say I would take the laziness and arrogance out of the prime directive, clarify no one is under developed but everyone is different and here is a long list of ways to interfere or when not to based on situation and logical outcomes. I would have viewed this as a slavery situation and called in the Federation. So we might get skin of evil on Friday that would be awesome

reply

"Wesley, I hope you never do..." He's lucky to have the best auntie Tasha keeping him on the straight & narrow! In another life without her, he might have been a teenage addict on his mom's backup med supplies or something!

Matthew Graves (Graviton)

This one is just ok to me. My problem is basically: no one in the hundreds of years on the junkie planet ever went through the withdrawal and came out the other side and realized "oh, there's no plague, I can get along without the drug"? No one ever, I dunno, got lost on a hiking trip and had to go for a long time without the drug? I mean, going through withdrawal is dangerous, people can potentially die in real life if its not done under careful medical supervision. But then, if withdrawal has a 100 percent lethality rate, that makes Picard's solution straight up genocide. I dunno, I fully acknowledge I'm probably overthinking this, but the whole thing just never sat right with me, and not in way the writers intended. I've never read anything by Follett before, though Ive heard some good things about the "Pillars of the Earth" series of books. Well Bunny, I've certainly blathered on about my opinions of books in my posts so fair's fair. I downloaded Code to Zero this morning. Looking forward to it. If you are interested, I'll DM you my thoughts when I finish. As aloways, great reaction, thanks Bunny!

Mark Chrisco

An interesting side note on drug abuse in Star Trek. Wayback when, Harlan Ellison's first drafts of The City on the Edge of Forever, featured a crewman acting as a drug dealer on the Enterprise, taking advantage of a addicted officer. Roddenberry was extremely uncomfortable with this and future drafts switched to a medical accident involving McCoy instead of a crewman suffering an overdose. I think Gene felt humanity had moved on from this vice. Ellison, did not agree and never forgave Roddenberry for this, an others to his script.

뱀파이안젤

Picard's tough love for their whole civilization...

Carlos Stevens

Regarding books: Did you ever read Stephan R. Donaldson?

Carlos Stevens

"What species are they..." Do you not remember "Let That Be Your Last Battlefeild" with Bele and Lokai... they had the same electro-zapiro hands. Clearly related.

Carlos Stevens

Bunny, in case you missed it... there are two actors in this episode from The Wrath Of Khan. Yes... that is David (Merritt Butrick)... but who's the other (I haven't read the posts to see if someone has already spilled the beans).

Carlos Stevens

Wow, I never heard this... but I can tell you, a crewman/drug dealer on a '60s era TV show would NEVER pass the censors back then. If they had tried that, Star Trek would have been Insta-banned, and Gene Roddenberry would have been thrown into the La Brea Tar Pits.

Carlos Stevens

bro... "phantom addictions"??? Have you not seen the Fentanyl Zombies that have been roaming the streets of American cities? We are well past the question of phantom addictions.

Carlos Stevens

Ok... I have to say this now.... Back In The Day... when I was watching these episodes on the new Fox TV channel... I don't remember Dr. Crusher looking so damn cute. (am I wrong?)

Carlos Stevens

IMHO... I think Kirk would have made the same decision that Picard made. However, the episode would have progressed differently. In TOS, the moral dilemma would have occurred between Mr. Spock and Dr. McCoy while Kirk would have listened to both and ultimately came to the same resolution that Picard did.

Jack

My guess on the mystery book(s) you're reading: The Bobiverse series. (If not, you should check it out, Bunny, because you would LOVE it!)

Greg

As cheesy as that speech was (and the director later admitted it was a mistake), at LEAST they picked the right character to give it. Tasha would have seen PLENTY of drug use on the ruined world that she grew up on, and perhaps did some herself just to cope with the life that she had.

bunnytails

Pillars of the Earth is my all time favorite novel. It's quite long, though, so I've only read through it twice.

bunnytails

Looking forward to hear what you think about Code to Zero!

bunnytails

True. Picard oftentimes makes decisions without consulting others, and leaving people in the dark until the proper time.

bunnytails

I don't think I've ever heard of it!

John DiGiantomasso

First off, I read Ken Follet back in the day. "Eye of the Needle" was/is one of my favorite stories. Impeccably researched, totally historically accurate and plausible. I saw the movie on the big screen. Very well done, a real suspense thriller. Donald Sutherland gives an amazing performance. You should watch it! As for the episode, on the surface you feel for the addicts. The B-people are easy to hate, and you think they are very clever manipulators for creating the dependency of the addicts. But they are BLIND!!! They totally don't see their own dependency. Remember, they said they had NO industry other than the Felicium, and they relied on the addicts to provide them with EVERYTHING. So yeah, the addicts will go through withdrawls- but they WILL survive and recover after the suffering is passed. But the B-people? With NO industry, and no transports to bring them everything they need courtesy of the addicts? For the B-people, no more fancy clothes. No more luxury lifestyle. No energy. No sanitation. No medicine. Hell, NO FOOD!!! Addicts get temporary withdrawl symptoms. B-people get disease, darkness, exposure, starvation, death, planetary genocide, and extinction. And Picard and the Federation are fine with that. Would Beverly be fine with that? Sure. "What goes around comes around." Or "FAFO!" But still... As for you and your reading, I wish you all the best with life, the universe, and everything! 😉