Power Play (TNG episode)

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For other uses of "Power play", see Power play (disambiguation).

Star Trek: TNG episode
"Power Play"
Troi, Data and O’Brien are dispossessed in "Power Play".
Episode no.	215
Prod. code
Airdate	22 February 1992
Writer(s)
Director
Year
Episode chronology
Previous	"Conundrum"
Next	"Ethics"

"Power Play" is the title of a Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, from the fifth season. Its episode number is 215, and it first aired on 22 February 1992.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

[edit] Summary

The episode begins with the Enterprise approaching Mab-Bu VI, from where it detected a distress call. Commander Data discovers that the distress call is standard for Daedalus-class starships, which went out of service 172 years ago. He then finds that the USS Essex, a Daedalus-class ship, was lost in the region 200 years ago. After concluding that assessing the situation from the ship is inadequate, Picard decides that an away team must visit the moon. Troi enters the stage, and indicates to Picard that she "feels" a living presence on the surface. Data announces that electromagnetic interference from electrical storms precludes the use of the transporter to the moon; Picard commissions a shuttlecraft, manned by Riker, Data, and Troi.

The audience sees interior and exterior shots of the shuttlecraft as it travels to the moon's surface. Soon, the crew loses navigational control of the craft, and Data is forced to make an emergency landing. Back on the Enterprise, Picard is aware of the situation, as telecommunication with him was fairly well-maintained, despite the EM interference. By the time the shuttlecraft lands, however, all communication has been lost.

Shaken, wind blowing, and with Riker suspecting a broken arm, the three crewmembers emerge from the shuttlecraft to learn about their surroundings. They observe the front of a massive electrical storm, and Riker comments that it appears nothing like the front of any other electrical storm he has seen before. A scan with a tricorder indicates EM bursts across the entire "spectrum" (presumably the same EM spectrum known to modern physicists in the "real" world).

Back on the Enterprise, deliberations as to the location and rescue of the away team occur. Ro Laren states she can use the descent angle of the shuttlecraft (presumably as detected during sensor scans) to approximately calculate the landing site of the shuttlecraft. Miles O’Brien enthusiastically proposes that he should transport to the surface and attempt to use a special device to allow a reliable transport of the away team. In a conversation with Picard about the plan, Geordi La Forge cautions that O’Brien's chance of surviving the transport is about "fifty-fifty". O’Brien acknowledges the risk, and Picard grants permission.

O’Brien safely transports to Mab-Bu VI, and he is greeted with relief by Riker. As O’Brien prepares the transport procedure, one or more of the crew is struck by a large amount of what appears to be electricity. All but Riker are immediately incapacitated, and he hastens to begin the transport. Just before the four are transported, however, three light sources enter the bodies of Data, Troi, and O’Brien.

Upon their return to the Enterprise, Data, Troi, and O’Brien insist that the Enterprise conduct a survey of the polar region of the planet. The rest of the crew refuse, believing the idea to be absurd. The three then stage a violent uprising and take command of the ship. They use hostage as leverage to force Picard to change the course of the ship. Dr. Crusher determines that Riker was not affected because his broken arm somehow repelled whatever force possessed the others. Troi, the leader of the mutineers, then reveals that she is the captain of the Essex. She claims that their spirits were trapped in the electromagnetic fields of the planet, and if the Enterprise transports their bones back to Earth, they can be set free. However, Picard is skeptical of her claim because of their violent actions.

Dr. Crusher devises a way to free the mutineers' bodies from the possessive forces by inducing pain, but the plan fails because Data is unaffected. After Data threatens to kill everyone in the room, Picard weakly agrees to do whatever they say. The three try to return to the surface of the moon, but the same problems existed before. However, O’Brien believes he can transport down as he did before, so the three take hostages and head for a cargo bay. Troi then reveals that the planet is a penal colony, and she hopes to use the bodies of the Enterprise crew to allow the other convicts trapped on the planet to escape. Picard says he would rather open the cargo bay doors and let them all die than risk the lives of his crew. At an impasse, the three spirits are forced to relinquish their hosts and return to the moon. Troi, Data and O'Brien are restored to normal.